The grudges and feuds between these beasts? Prince wasn't interested at all. Just listening to them gave him a massive headache.
He wanted to go out and let loose.
Asher: "...He's giving off some serious husky vibes."
Next to him, Freya nodded like crazy.
'Exactly the same.'
"Why don't we leave it for today?", Asher suggested, "It's getting dark soon. Who knows how dangerous it is outside at night? Better to rest for a night. Whatever plans we have, it's safer to move during the day."
When the sky's still bright, even if they encountered a terrifying creature like the Sky-blanketing Poison Box Jellyfish, they could notice something's wrong right away.
If it were nighttime instead... the danger level would skyrocket.
Prince looked a little regretful, but he still nodded, "Professor Asher, you have a point."
Rest first.
Whatever plans they have can wait until daylight.
Delaying for one night isn't that big of a deal.
"Is there a place here where we can rest?", Asher looked at the unicorn.
The unicorn led Asher and the others to another cave, not far from the one it was originally in.
["Then we won't disturb the pioneers' rest for now. Tonight we'll give it some proper thought."]
Asher and the others nodded.
After the unicorn left, Freya quietly scooted over next to Asher, "So?"
"Do you believe what they said?"
Asher glanced at Freya. She straightened her chest slightly, clearly trying to look like a reliable senior.
"Hmph!"
Seeing the look in Asher's eyes, Freya let out a light snort, then continued in a near-whisper.
"I'm still a Tier 7 Beast Tamer, you know."
"I've got way more experience than you. Is it that weird if I sense something's wrong?"
Asher didn't respond.
He just looked over at Prince.
'Yeah, bouncing all over the place. Looks full of energy.'
Didn't have even the slightest bit of caution.
If you didn't know any better, you'd think this was some kid on a spring outing.
If it weren't for the Ivy Velvet keeping watch nearby...
Everything was understood without needing to say it.
Freya understood what Asher's gaze meant: "..."
All of a sudden, she didn't know how to explain anymore.
"...Ahem, that's Prince's personal behavior. Please don't associate it with us other Tier 7 or Tier 8 Beast Tamers," Freya didn't sound so confident anymore.
She clenched one fist and lightly coughed into it, deciding to skip over this topic.
"My sixth sense and instincts might not be as sharp as yours," Asher didn't need to explain, Freya had already offered him a convenient excuse.
Asher smiled without saying anything.
"But I do know one thing," Freya held up one finger, her expression turning serious.
"Beasts, especially those that haven't been tamed, there's no way they'd be this friendly toward humans, or be so completely open with us right from the start," If she could say it outright, she was already prepared to fight that seemingly badass unicorn.
Whether or not they could win...
Well, they had Prince, didn't they?
Tier 8 Ace-level Beast Tamer.
He could at least pull his weight in a real way.
Plus with her holding the line, even against this unknown, possibly very powerful beast, they'd have a fighting chance.
But what no one expected was how cooperative the unicorn was.
Very cooperative.
So cooperative, in fact, that it was a bit much.
Prince simply wasn't thinking about it at all. His mind wasn't going in that direction.
Felter, on the other hand, lacked experience.
Because the unicorn displayed such a friendly attitude, he instinctively thought the other side was benevolent and could be communicated and collaborated with.
"Talking, communicative beasts have this advantage," Freya muttered.
It wasn't like she hadn't encountered similar creatures before.
Humans just tend to feel more goodwill and trust toward beings that can talk to them.
But some things never change.
Beasts are still beasts.
Whether or not they can talk to humans, they're still not human, and they can't understand humans.
They definitely can't be treated like pet beasts.
That would only lead to loss.
"I noticed your gaze has stayed sharp this whole time," Freya looked at Asher again, a little surprised.
She had thought, 'Someone like Asher, a pet beast professor, will be more likely to fall for it.'
Not for any bad reason, but because he'd spent so much time with pet beasts and beasts, he might be softer-hearted.
Yeah, right.
The moment she met his eyes, she knew she'd overthought it.
Soft-hearted? No chance.
If Asher hadn't taken action yet, it was only because he looked like he was still calculating something.
"Yeah, I think more or less the same as you," Asher nodded with a smile.
"But the fact that they haven't shown any hostility is also true," He sighed, "But who says not having hostility means they won't lie to us, help us deceptively, or use us for something?"
The two of them exchanged glances, and saw the same feeling in each other's eyes.
Partners! Finally, a reliable companion.
They'd be the key from here on.
"Should we tell Felter?", Freya didn't even bring up Prince.
Don't ask, because brute-force fighters don't need brains or IQ. They just need to follow orders at the right time.
Asher: "Better not for now."
"They've set the stage already, we should at least see what kind of show they plan to perform," Asher shook his head.
"And I don't trust his acting skills."
You want Felter and Prince to put on a flawless act in front of the unicorn?
Sorry, Asher just didn't have that kind of faith in them.
Freya was instantly convinced.
Because Asher's reasoning was just too spot-on.
"Then we'll leave it like this for now," Freya nodded, "Tomorrow we'll see what those rainbow ponies really want from us."
And with that, the two of them ended the conversation.
Whatever it was could wait until tomorrow.
Turning hostile now was absolutely not an option.
This was still the unicorns' turf.
If they got kicked out of here, what would they do tonight? What if they got hunted down again by a Box Jellyfish?
———
[The Next Day]
Q City. It was still early morning, the sun not yet up, when Langdon Q and Lisa Q left the house with millet porridge and other food prepared.
"Mom and Dad are already awake. The treatment costs from now on won't be as high," Langdon, carrying the heavier food containers, said to his sister, "The money left in the card should be enough."
"But if we want to transfer them to another hospital…"
Langdon frowned, face full of distaste.
Lisa couldn't help it either, she wrinkled her nose in disgust.
"That President Q is seriously annoying," She whispered.
"And all those publicity stunts…", Just thinking of the words that had been passed on from President Q's assistant, the way they wanted to use them for hype, and even set up an academic press conference for them.
Lisa glanced at her big brother, "Brother's amazing, but compared to Professor Asher…"
'Yeah, no need to finish that sentence.'
In Lisa's heart, her brother was great, really great. He'd held their family together during their parents' illness.
But being honest, trying to use them to piggyback on Asher?
Didn't President Q feel even a little bit guilty?
They sure did. Back then, they had to work with President Q for the medical bills, pretending to go along with his nonsense.
But now, they'd sold a batch of potions at a price ten percent cheaper than the original and still earned nearly a million in one go.
For a good long while, Q City and the nearby cities wouldn't lack this kind of potion.
Unless they expanded their market or registered the formula, it'd be hard to make more money anytime soon.
So they could do whatever they wanted now, right?
Cooperate? Not happening.
Of course, that came with its own troubles...
Case in point, just after delivering breakfast to their parents at the hospital, President Q personally came knocking with a group of people.
Seeing President Q blocking the hospital room door, both Langdon and Lisa felt a little panicked.
No matter how much they tried to reassure themselves, their age was what it was.
Compared to President Q, they were still kids, literally.
Before this, President Q had always sent subordinates to communicate.
This was the first time he'd come himself.
And that made both of them nervous in an instant.
Lisa quickly looked back at their parents on the hospital bed.
They had just woken up and were still weak. They hadn't finished breakfast before falling asleep again.
And now, with President Q blocking the doorway, they couldn't go in or out.
"President Q," Langdon stepped forward, lowering his voice.
Partly to avoid waking their parents.
Partly to try softening the mood.
"Can we talk outside?"
"My parents still need rest. I don't want to disturb them."
President Q looked at the posturing Langdon and the clearly flustered Lisa and let out a heavy snort, showing no intention of going along with their request.
"I'm pretty sure I already gave you a polite notice to come to the Beast Tamer Alliance today, didn't I?"
"What time is it now?"
"What are you doing?"
"Or were you just planning to brush me off!", President Q's voice, which was already raised, got even louder as he spoke.
And with it, a harsh, scolding tone.
The not-fully-asleep father and mother immediately began to stir.
Now even Langdon couldn't help but panic a little.
"President Q, I didn't mean—", Langdon hurried to explain.
But President Q shoved him aside and walked a few steps into the room, staring at the parents in bed and saying, "I think it's time I had a good talk with your parents!"
"And told them everything that's happened during this time!"
The Q parents woke up.
President Q didn't hold back, he launched into a long speech, dazing the already groggy parents with his words.
What do you mean, it was all thanks to him that their unconscious bodies made a recovery?
But hadn't the kids said—
"I think there's been some kind of misunderstanding," Father Q, knowing his children's character, frowned and tried to speak with President Q.
"I'm helping them," President Q cut him off, full of superiority, "As their parents, you should at least be able to tell right from wrong."
"If you can't even do that… well, you're failures as parents."
"President Q!", Langdon was truly angry now.
He strode to his father's side, who looked even paler under the pressure, and quickly helped him lie back down, glaring at President Q.
"My parents are still patients!"
"They haven't recovered yet!"
"If there's something to discuss, talk to me! I can make decisions myself!"
President Q remained unmoved, still looking down his nose at Langdon, "You can make decisions?"
"And your decision is to throw a tantrum and not show up?"
"Do you know how much effort I put into organizing that academic press conference for you?"
"Do you know how many moving parts I had to coordinate?"
He was getting angrier by the second, "If it weren't for your age, the fact that you have a sister, and that you make for a good story…"
"And if you weren't a bit capable, you think I'd bother promoting you?"
"Don't overestimate yourself!"
"Cooperating with my plan is what's best for you!"
After his outburst, President Q calmed down.
He waved to the people outside the door, "Alright, come with me now. If we hurry, we can still make it to the press conference."
A few people entered the room, and immediately grabbed Lisa by the arms.
One person per arm. The scene looked just like a kidnapping.
"I'm not going!", Lisa shouted in anger, "If you think we're not good enough, go find someone else!"
"Don't try to con us!"
"We're not going to help you hype up Professor Asher either!"
The people holding her ignored her completely.
Someone else headed toward Langdon.
Seeing this, the sick parents in bed tried to sit up, reaching out to stop them.
But they were still far too weak.
The whole room descended into chaos.
"Yo."
At that moment—
A voice sounded at the door
═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═
patreon.com/AmbitiousTranslator
🥳Joining Patreon keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please consider joining.🥰 You can access upto 40 advance chapter through Patreon.
https://discord.gg/bYAfGyp98y