“Thomas… the second-ranked student on the leaderboard. I never thought we’d run into him here! Hey, does the big shot need any more followers?” someone in the crowd remarked.
The mention of Thomas’s name caused an already buzzing crowd to erupt with excitement.
Having just been saved by Charles, the third-ranked student, and now encountering Thomas, the second-ranked, everyone marveled at their luck today.
As Charles looked at Thomas, a few lines of information appeared on the screen before his eyes.
[Name]: Thomas
[Age]: 19
[Height]: 188 cm
[Beast Master Level]: 2
“Given that he’s ranked second on the leaderboard, he must be quite formidable. His strength is likely close to the peak of a Level 2 Beast Master,” Charles speculated, assessing Thomas’s capabilities.
Charles had already defeated a Level 3 Beast Master like Bradley, and now that Max and Mousie had reached Level 19, combined with the ability to see his opponents’ weaknesses, Charles was nearly unbeatable against anyone below a Level 3 Beast Master. He had no reason to fear Thomas.
This beast core was the crucial material for forging the [Nine Netherworld Armband], so there was no way he would give it up.
Stepping forward, Charles said, “I killed this Bloodthirsty Rhino. From the way you’re talking, it sounds like you’re planning to take it by force?”
Hearing this, Thomas turned, his eyes sweeping over the speaker, a hint of killing intent flashing in them. But when he heard from the surrounding crowd that this was Charles, the third-ranked student on the leaderboard, his expression softened slightly, and a faint smile played on his lips.
“Heh, since it was Charles who killed it, I wouldn’t dream of taking it from you. However, this beast core is very important to me. If you’re willing, I’d like to offer you these materials in exchange, along with a gold coin.” Thomas’s lips curled into a smirk as he pulled out a pouch from his backpack, revealing more than ten first-tier beast cores.
“If Charles is willing, consider it a gesture of friendship from me.”
The first-tier beast cores in Thomas’s hand radiated a strong energy, and the gold coin gleamed brightly in the sunlight.
“Gulp!” The sound of people swallowing their envy was audible, and the surrounding crowd’s eyes turned green with jealousy.
While a second-tier beast core was indeed valuable, it didn’t compare to the worth of over ten first-tier beast cores plus a gold coin. It seemed like an unbeatable deal.
However, Charles merely smiled lightly. “Sorry, I’m not interested in trading.”
Charles urgently needed this beast core. While second-tier beast cores weren’t impossible to come by, finding one with a specific attribute was much harder. He was in desperate need of a water-attribute core for forging equipment.
Besides, Charles found Thomas unpleasant in every way, making him even less inclined to trade.
Caught between the two, Lyra was visibly conflicted. She glanced at Thomas, then at Charles. After a moment of hesitation, she handed the azure beast core to Charles.
This was nothing short of a public slap in the face, and Thomas’s expression turned dark, as if he had just suffered a great loss.
Daniel arrived just in time to see Thomas, and couldn’t resist mocking him. “Well, if it isn’t Thomas! I heard your family’s business has been struggling lately. Those commercial streets are just being wasted on the Draven family—why not sell them to the Smith family instead?”
The Smith family, the Taylor family, and the Draven family ran the three most prominent merchant guilds in Lsengard. The rivalry between them was fierce, with frequent underhanded tactics used to compete for limited customers, making their relationships far from harmonious.
Just six months ago, a scandal erupted when it was revealed that the Smith family’s jewelry store was selling counterfeit goods. Later, David discovered that it was the Draven family behind the fake news campaign. Unfortunately, due to a lack of solid evidence, the Smith family had to swallow the loss.
The tension between the two families was palpable, and Daniel’s eyes practically rolled back in his head with disdain.
Thomas, however, didn’t show much reaction, but one of his friends bristled at Daniel’s taunt. The faint sound of swords being drawn could be heard.
“Thomas, these punks are getting way too cocky. Should we just take them out? No one would know in this remote place, and we could just say the ferocious beasts got them,” someone whispered behind him. Thomas considered it for a moment before shaking his head slightly.
This Charles guy had managed to climb from nearly the bottom of the leaderboard to third place in just a month, indicating that his strength was likely on par with Thomas’s. Moreover, the Draven family wasn’t powerful enough to openly declare war on the Smith family. Killing Daniel would be like kicking a hornet’s nest. freeωebnovēl.c૦m
“It seems Charles isn’t interested in being friends with me,” Thomas sighed softly, shaking his head before turning to Daniel with a mocking expression. “You know, some dogs just love to bark from behind their master. But once the master’s gone, they won’t even dare to whimper.”
“Who are you calling a dog?” Daniel roared, enraged at Thomas’s insinuation. The silver hexagram in his hand flashed as he summoned his mystical beast, the [Rock Turtle].
He was about to charge forward, but Charles held him back.
It wasn’t that Charles thought Daniel was in the wrong—Thomas had clearly shown a desire to kill, but hesitated because he couldn’t gauge Charles’s strength. Charles had no intention of showing mercy to someone who wanted him dead.
However, with the trial nearing its end, Charles didn’t want to waste a single second. His points were slightly below Thomas’s, and he knew that dragging this out would only benefit Thomas.
He had bigger priorities than engaging in a pointless skirmish.
Thomas had already conjured a hexagram magic array in his palm. Seeing Charles hold Daniel back, he assumed it was a sign of weakness, and a smug expression spread across his face. “I’ve heard that someone’s been making quite the waves recently. In just a few days, you’ve managed to knock Emily out of third place. Your points have risen so quickly—could it be…
you’re boosting your score by killing people?”
Whoosh—
Before Thomas could finish his sentence, a dark blue spear flew through the air, grazing his neck by mere millimeters. He could almost feel the tip of the spear brush against his skin, sending a chill down his spine. A centimeter closer, and he’d have been dead on the spot.
Thomas’s shocked expression drew laughter from the students around Charles.
Having lost face in front of so many people, Thomas’s face twitched with anger as he glared coldly at Charles’s back. “Charles, all you know how to do is sneak attack, huh? After the trial, those who are admitted to one of the three major academies in the imperial capital have half a day to accept challenges from others. Do you dare to fight me fair and square?”
From a distance, without even turning around, Charles waved dismissively. “Not interested.”
“You…!”
Being completely ignored by Charles from start to finish, and nearly getting taken out by his sneak attack, Thomas’s temper flared. He slammed his fist into a nearby tree, and with a loud crash, the tree, which took several people to encircle, collapsed.
“Boss, are we just gonna let someone from Lsengard High show off in front of us from Second High?” one of his followers grumbled.
“How about we go take care of them later?” another person suggested.
Thomas gritted his teeth, watching as Charles’s figure faded into the distance, and shook his head. “Too many people saw what happened, and some even recorded it and posted it online. It’s too late to make a move now, especially with Daniel backed by the entire Smith family merchant guild.”
“But during the post-admission challenge, anything goes. I’ll kill that kid in front of all of Lsengard!”
Forcing himself to suppress his anger, Thomas waved his hand, leading his followers in the opposite direction.
…
In stark contrast to the tense atmosphere surrounding Thomas, the crowd around Charles was filled with laughter and cheer.
“Charles, how did you pull off that move just now? I couldn’t even see what happened, and your spear flew right past Thomas’s neck!”
“That scumbag Thomas probably wet his pants, haha!”
“Thomas has been used to being domineering at Second High School because of his family’s influence. Today, Brother Charles really gave us students of Second High School a chance to vent our frustrations!”
“By the way, I heard you guys mention that Charles fought and defeated a second-tier ferocious beast on his own. Can someone tell me more about that?”
“You should’ve seen it! Charles summoned a 50-meter-long crocodile—I was completely stunned!”
“…”
As Charles walked at the front of the group, he couldn’t help but feel exasperated listening to the chatter behind him. How did these stories get so exaggerated? A 50-meter-long crocodile—what did they think this was, a dinosaur?
He glanced at the time. The delay had cost him valuable points. When they reached the campsite, Charles suddenly turned to the group and said:
“The trial ends tomorrow. My tent is set up on the other side of the mountain, and I need to pack up. Let’s part ways here for now.”
Waving off their pleas for him to stay, Charles headed toward the canyon. With all the materials for the [Nine Netherworld Armband] now in hand, he couldn’t wait to start forging it.
Watching his figure gradually disappear, Daniel—who had just learned that Charles was ranked third on the leaderboard—was left in awe. “Back in school, who would’ve guessed this guy had such talent?”
Lyra smiled, her eyes filled with admiration. “Someone this talented wouldn’t be content to stay in a small place like Lsengard, would they?”
Noticing Lyra lost in thought, another girl waved a hand in front of her face, teasing her, “Don’t get your hopes up. With his talent, all three major academies in the imperial capital will be vying for him! Unlike us, who probably won’t even make it into Vendantia Academy. With Charles’s Beast Master talent, he’s destined to become someone great, someone we’ll always look up to.”
Hearing this, Lyra felt a pang of disappointment, but she quickly regained her composure and summoned her mystical beast.
Geniuses have their own lives, but even the ordinary have their paths to follow. Even if she couldn’t get into one of the three major academies, a future working at The Beast Master Guild in Lsengard would still offer a life that many would envy.