Riva had followed her orders to the letter. She didn’t hold back in the slightest. Whether it was because she had underestimated Rhys at first or because he was stronger than she had anticipated, she fought with everything she had. By the end of their sparring session, Rhys was battered and bruised, every muscle screaming in protest. At the same time, he couldn’t deny that his eyes had reflexively shut at the last second more than once, shutting down before a blow could land. It was an instinct that Riva’s training had slowly forced him to overcome, helping him keep his eyes open even under threat.Once the physical sparring ended, Riva spent the next hour teaching him the fundamentals of Mana Manipulation. Rhys already had some skill with Bloodclaw because of Gaelion’s ability, but the underlying principles of Mana Manipulation remained a mystery. He found himself blaming “compatibility” for his struggles, though in truth, the repeated practice with Bloodclaw had allowed him to gra

Rhys idly toyed with the badge pinned to his chest, the polished metal catching the light as his fingers traced its intricate engravings. For some reason, Maeve had been following him all morning.Even after moving to class, she had taken the seat next to him without hesitation.His eyebrows twitched as he finally asked, unable to contain his curiosity, “Why are you following me around?”Maeve glanced at him briefly, her expression unreadable. “We’re going to the same place. Besides, I sat here during the test.”Rhys raised an eyebrow. “During the opening ceremony too? There were plenty of empty seats.”She shrugged. “You were the only one in this row, so I sat here to avoid other students.”He couldn’t argue with that. From a practical standpoint, sitting next to a beautiful girl was far preferable to enduring the chatter of some obnoxious classmate. And Maeve was undeniably attractive, the kind of girl who drew attention just by existing. Being a noble added another layer of complic

“Rhys wins!” Varyn’s voice rang out sharply across the arena. He gestured toward the staff stationed at the edge of the arena. “Quickly, bring him to the infirmary.”The announcement sent a wave of shock through the spectators. Students scrambled to their feet, eyes fixed on Gaelion as if trying to process what had just happened.“He won?” one whispered.“Impossible…” another muttered.“Isn't that wolf supposed to be weaker than a goblin? That slap alone—he could have killed an orc with it.”The disbelief rippled through the crowd. Most struggled to accept it, but a few composed themselves almost immediately.“So it’s not about talent after all,” Prince Rudeus said, squinting with a sly smile. “Rhys… I’ll have to keep a close eye on him.”Maeve rose quietly and walked away, leaving Rhys’s presence in the corridor. Cade muttered under his breath, eyes still glued to Rhys, “Doing that? You’ve just made enemies—not only Xander, but his family and all the sycophants lining up behind him.”

The room fell quiet again. “I’m not saying your beliefs are wrong,” Wyndia added after a moment. She looked at him directly now. “But I want you to remember one thing.” Her voice became firm. “What is your goal as a Beast Tamer?” Rhys remained silent. “Find that answer,” she continued. “Believe in it. And never lose sight of it.” Her expression softened slightly. “I hope you become someone who can hold onto that.” Rhys slowly closed his eyes. After this conversation, he felt he understood Wyndia a little better. Once, she had probably believed the same things he did. But somewhere along the way… She had lost. Or perhaps the world had simply worn her down until she became someone she never wanted to be. “Take this.” Something suddenly flew toward him. Rhys barely managed to catch it with both hands. It was a crystal roughly the size of his palm. Both ends tapered into points, like a double-terminated quartz crystal. The surface was completely transparent, and faint

The room fell silent. “That incident became the reason the Academy strictly recommends consuming cores one at a time,” Rhys finished. Gaelion slowly sat back. “…Alright. That sounds unpleasant.” Rhys nodded. “Exactly.” He glanced at the clock on the wall. “It took about a minute for the Mana to stabilize. Then another minute for my body to calm down.” He sighed tiredly. “So realistically, I can only consume about thirty cores per hour.” Gaelion whistled softly. “That’s slower than I expected.” “Yeah.” Rhys stretched his shoulders. “I’ll probably limit it to sixty cores per day.” Gaelion blinked. “That’s it?” “I also need time to train my body,” Rhys said. “Physical conditioning matters too.” He stood up from the bed. “If a Beast Tamer collapses from exhaustion during battle, the enemy won’t politely wait.” Gaelion grinned approvingly. “Good.” He flicked his tail lazily. “I’m glad you understand that I shouldn’t be the only one doing the fi