Kain looked at his first selection that resembled a finely crafted antique magnifying glass with a bronze frame covered with intricately carved sigils.
"The Mystic Analysis Lens. A magnifying lens used by the alchemists of X that contains basic enchantments to identify the magical properties and purpose of analyzed spiritual materials. Only rudimentary results are provided and only materials below Yellow-grade can be analyzed."
Its large lens was made of a crystal that shimmered with a soft multicoloured glow. The handle though was surprisingly bare. It had a smooth rectangle without any design along its side. Based on the description, this is where the information about the analyzed material will be provided.
Kain was considering using his exchange opportunity on this item because he has several materials that he doesn't know the identity of and he'd need to pay an appraiser in order to find out. If he were ever out in the wilderness or in a relic, having an item that could help him identify new things would be useful.
The next piece of equipment was a large circular ring made from a dark, weathered bronze with sigils engraved all around it.
"The Beast Bonding Collar. An ancient piece of equipment of the long-forgotten Kairo Nation of Blue Star. Unfortunately, the knowledge on how to produce such collars has also been lost to time. This enchanted collar is used to control spiritual creatures no higher than red-grade.
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The binding of the collar is not as restrictive as that of a contract, and spiritual creatures can attack the owner of the collar if the relationship is extremely poor."
It featured a broad, adjustable band that comfortably fits around a beast's neck, with a series of small, embedded gemstones that emitted a soft, calming glow.
The collar is fastened with a secure but easily adjustable clasp, and the inner side is lined with a padded, enchanted leather for comfort.
Kain was considering exchanging for this collar due to the particularities of his affinity. Although he likes Bea and Eve, he could hardly hold and be affectionate with them like Bridge is with Lady and Princess.
A small part of him did still desire to find a spiritual creature that could almost act like an emotional support dog. freeweɓnovel.cѳm
However, he knew that this collar would hardly be of any benefit to him. He is at the cusp of upgrading to 3-stars, and Bea after evolving will also be orange-grade. This collar would really not provide any boost to his strength.
Finally, Kain turned to the last item, which is probably the one that only someone with an affinity like his would desire.
It was a piece of lab equipment that Kain was extremely familiar with since it greatly resembled a similar piece of equipment he used while back on Earth—a Microbiological Incubator.
"The Arcane Incubation Nexus. A magical incubator invented by X on Blue Star designed to maintain the perfect living conditions for a wide array of microorganisms at or below orange-grade."
This was the first time that Kain had seen any evidence of someone else on this planet being aware of, and even studying microorganisms. Kain was curious though about why their name was censored when previously all information about equipment originating from Blue Star had not been.
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It resembled the incubators back on earth, but more high-end in appearance. It had a sleek, rectangular design made from polished bronze and reinforced glass panels. The main chamber was a transparent, temperature-controlled box, featuring adjustable internal shelves to accommodate various cultures and specimens.
On each shelf were transparent orbs, 10 in total, that were likely meant to house the different microorganisms. These orbs are meant to resemble low-grade versions of a beast-tamer's star space, and will provide a suitable environment for any inserted microorganism. Although the quality of the environment will be far inferior to that formed from a star space with a contract.
The front of the incubator had a digital control panel displaying real-time data on temperature, humidity, and magical energy levels, along arrows to make precise adjustments to any values.
Unlike the incubators back on Earth that would only maintain the necessary temperature, humidity, and oxygen levels for optimal growth of microbes, this piece of equipment will provide an all-around suitable environment with renewed resources for each microbe added.
Considering that Kain was currently keeping Aby and her progeny in a glass vial full of beer that he changed every couple of days next to his nightstand, this was a much better option.
Not to mention this incubator would allow him to collect many more microorganisms he wasn't contracted to, without having to worry about caring for them.
Although it was rare to find spiritual creatures that were also microbes, similar to Aby Kain could just make them when he found a chance to in the future. Not to mention he may come across some interesting ones in the wild, that are maybe not suitable to form a contract with, but have unique abilities that he doesn't want to let go of.
Decision made, Kain exchanged for the Arcane Incubation Nexus, and returned to the laboratory. When he returned he saw the new addition in a corner of the room. And after reconfirming with System on how to bring an unbound spiritual creature into the Laboratory, he poured Aby into one of the empty glass orbs.
Quickly the orb took on a dark amber colour resembling beer, likely to mimic Aby's ideal living environment, and Kain could see that a continuous supply of spiritual power was now being funnelled into that orb. If he wanted Kain could decrease or increase the spiritual power supplied. However, he decided to keep it at the default setting for now until he better understood the equipment.
Looking around at his laboratory, Kain admired the space that was finally starting to come together and no longer looked like a cold and barren white room.
With the new pieces of lab equipment settled, Kain decided to focus on the next item on his agenda—Bea's evolution.
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For Bea's evolution, he had exchanged for the Mindleech Vine and Subliminal Orb as the Evolutionary Base Materials, and the Cerebral Core to stabilize his usage of multiple materials. He already had several yellow-grade Spiritual Orbs, and he had obtained a catalyst elixir already for free after speaking with one of his professors in the Evolutionary Planner major.
The only thing holding him back is that he'd impulsively also purchased the source of the Green-grade spider's mental threads—the Mindweaver Crystal.
Kain was quite satisfied with Bea's current planned evolution…but what if there was an even better option?
Therefore, Kain did one last simulation for Bea, this time using all 3 evolutionary base materials.
However, after the Simulation flashed with light, Kain was notified that the evolution was considered a failure.
He turned angrily to his new assistant, "aren't you supposed to prevent me from making more failed evolutions?!"
The robot faced the irritated Kain calmly, "I need a large amount of data in order to make accurate predictions. Considering that this was the first evolution I had personally witnessed, my predictions were off. However, I can help you to deduce the cause of the failure.
According to my calculations, due to you suddenly increasing the number of spiritual materials, and one being of Green-grade, the spiritual power contained in the yellow-grade spiritual orb you supplied is insufficient to support the evolution."
Kain's irritation calmed down at his assistant's answer. If he sat down to think about the source of his failure, he likely would have been able to reach that conclusion for himself, but it was nice to have it confirmed by his assistant within seconds.
"Ahem! Good work! I think you've finally earned yourself a name. Hmm… let's see… how about VERA because you're a Versatile Experimental Research Assistant!" Kain settled on the name quickly while patting himself on the back for his cleverness. Unfortunately, Vera didn't seem to appreciate the effort he'd put into choosing a name and just continued staring at him blankly.
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"So…let's try this again with a Green-grade spiritual orb." Unfortunately, using multiple spiritual orbs of yellow-grade was not possible due to the subtle differences in spiritual power between the original owners of the orbs.
Absorbing one source of spiritual power during the delicate process of evolution is stable, but from multiple sources, it would greatly increase the likelihood of failure due to so many types of energies, some of which may be conflicting.
Therefore, for the sake of a stable evolution with a lower risk of failure, it was customary to just use one spiritual orb.
Unfortunately, while Kain had many yellow-grade spiritual orbs from his kills, he didn't have a single green-grade one, but he had seen one previously and was able to use it in the simulation.
Therefore, after making the same selections but changing the power source, Kain started the simulation.
The glass chamber containing the simulation began to be filled with an extremely bright white light. Once the light faded Kain looked at the creature description that appeared on the screen.
"Huh?! There's more than one!" Kain thought while buzzing in anticipation while looking at one of Bea's potential future forms.
——————————
Kain had to sell the majority of the materials and spiritual orbs that remained in his space ring in order to exchange for a single green-grade spiritual orb.
However, the green-grade orb also happened to be from the defeated mental-attribute spider, meaning that it should be even easier for Bea to absorb during evolution.
Usually, matching attributes aren't so important for spiritual orbs since they mostly contain pure spiritual power and have very little amounts of remnant attribute energy, however during high-risk evolutions it may have a slightly beneficial effect of increasing the chances of success. After all, a 31% chance of a successful evolution is still better than a 30% chance of evolution.
And unfortunately, Kain's System as well as his assistant had concluded that the evolutionary form he was now planning for Bea would have two possibilities when supplied with the same materials. Both were excellent forms, but one was definitely better than the other. Unfortunately, Bea successfully undergoing the higher-quality evolution was around 20%.
With a spiritual orb of the same attribute, that percentage may increase slightly.
Additionally, Kain was planning to use credits to rent one of the college's attribute rooms. Attribute rooms are filled with a high concentration of a specific element and are usually used by students as a site of evolution, or to practice certain elemental skills.
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The room Kain wanted to rent would naturally be of the mental-attribute.
However, all attribute rooms provided by the college were extremely expensive. Kain had to sell practically everything on his body, aside from his weapons in order to buy the green-grade orb. He absolutely did not have enough credits left to rent out a room.
Therefore, Kain either had to grovel to borrow credits from a classmate or obtain a large amount of credits for himself. Since the attribute room is charged at 10 credits each minute, and Kain wanted to rent it out for one hour just to be safe, that would require at least 600 credits.
Although he knew that if Bridge had it he'd give, not loan, that amount to him in a heartbeat. He didn't have the heart to take that much from his brother, especially since the re-ranking was coming up soon and every moment taken to improve his strength was needed.
Kain also knew that he was preparing for Lady's evolution as well, and he didn't want Bridge to have to put that off for his sake.
Therefore, Kain decided to raise the amount of credits he needed for himself.
With his strength, he could defeat orange-grade spiritual creatures on his own. And the whole body of each orange-grade spiritual creature would usually be worth about 50 to 100 credits, so he could raise the needed amount after hunting only around 10 orange-grade spiritual creatures.
However, even without going into the wilderness, Kain had already heard about how difficult it was to find any spiritual creatures below yellow-grade due to most of them being killed during the beast-tide.
Therefore, Kain headed to the Mission Hall and went to one of the compartments to select his mission in privacy.
Considering that most Bronze, Silver and even Gold missions were completely insufficient to meet his needs, and that the Gold missions that did reward over 600 credits required hunting down more powerful than average green-grade spiritual creatures and blue-grade spiritual creatures, Kain knew he'd have no shot at completing them.
Kain then put all of his hopes onto qualifying to receive another Black Mission.
After completing another questionnaire similar to the previous time, Kain was notified that there were no suitable missions available for him at this time.
'Figures… Black Missions suitable for a 2-star beast tamer probably only occur once every 10 years. I was lucky to even receive the previous Black Mission.'
With a heavy heart, Kain returned back to the main mission selection screen.
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Within the dozens of minutes, it took for Kain to go through the Black Mission questionnaire there was a new addition to the Gold Missions window. One that rewarded 400 credits and was one of the few that rewarded so many credits and didn't require hunting a spiritual creature more powerful than he could handle alone.
Although it wasn't the full amount that he wanted, it could get him more than half-way there. Maybe he'd run into more than one orange-grade spiritual creature along the way.
Or if he was okay with rushing Bea, he could pay for just 40 minutes but considering that the probability of her getting the best evolutionary results was already below 50%, he didn't want to add any mental stress to her by rushing her during such a sensitive time.
The new Gold Mission Kain recalled seeing on the Silver Mission board earlier worth only 40 credits.
'Perhaps there were some new developments in the mission that suddenly warranted increasing the reward by 10 times…'
However, interestingly it was not a mission that required a beast-tamer to complete it. Rather it was an information-based mission. Specifically, one targeted more at evolutionary planners.
According to the mission description, a bronze-quality fire-type Glimmering Salamander had failed twice to successfully evolve into a gold-quality Infernal Salamander.
Similar to the affinity ceremony in which the soul can only handle 3 tries, typically each spiritual creature can only unsuccessfully evolve 3 times at the same stage without fatal damage to their soul.
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Not to mention that just after the first evolution the damage to the spiritual creature's vitality and soul will make future cultivation difficult, especially if they don't manage to eventually successfully evolve to restore the lost vitality by reaching a higher order of life.
However, it was surprising that the Glimmering Salamander wasn't able to successfully evolve. The evolution to the gold-quality Infernal Salamander was a pretty low-risk evolution. In fact, it was extremely rare for it to fail to evolve as long as enough energy and the correct materials were provided.
However, considering that the mission wasn't solved when it was a Silver Mission, Kain assumed that the issue wasn't that easy to solve.
Normally, as a first-year student of the Planner major, Kain would not have any confidence in taking on a mission like this. However, after the most recent System update, if there were any special evolutionary conditions that needed to be met by the Glimmering Salamander he was hoping that the Simulator would shed light on it.
Not to mention, that he would just need to come up with a confirmed explanation for its failed evolution, not even come up with a complete evolutionary plan.
It didn't cost him anything except time and maybe some GP to give it a shot, and it was the highest-valued mission he felt like he'd even have a shot at completing. Therefore, he decided to give it a try.
After accepting the mission, it disappeared from the mission board, and it will only reappear if Kain fails or gives up the mission.
However, Kain didn't immediately leave to complete the mission. Tomorrow was his appointment date with Barret to look at the results of using Aby in the beer.
————————————–
The next day, Kain arrived at Barret's modest home and knocked on the door.
Barret answered promptly, his eyes holding a mixture of guarded expectation and reluctant hope. The dark circles around his eyes and unkempt beard betrayed the tension of the past week.
As he led Kain into the room where the barrel had been stored, he shot Kain a skeptical glance. "So, it's been a week. I hope you're not just wasting my time."
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Kain nodded, trying to match Barret's seriousness with his own resolute demeanour. "I understand your doubts, but I'm confident you'll see the difference."
Barret rolled his eyes slightly at Kain's confident statement.
Barret's eyes followed Kain as he approached the barrel, his arms folded defensively. Kain carefully unsealed the barrel and took a sample. The aroma that emerged was rich and inviting, a noticeable improvement from the smell released from the barrel a week earlier.
Kain poured a small amount of the beer into a glass, its deep, amber color gleaming in the soft light of the room. He handed the glass to Barret with a hopeful expression. "Go ahead. Try it."
Barret took the glass, eyeing Kain with a mixture of skepticism and curiosity. He sipped the beer slowly, and as the complex flavors—notes of caramel, toasted malt, and a subtle yet distinct hint of spice—danced on his palate, his eyes widened in surprise. The beer was smooth, well-balanced, and possessed a richness that was both familiar and novel.
A flicker of appreciation crossed his face, and he took another, more deliberate sip.
"Well, I'll be damned," Barret muttered, setting the glass down with a hint of awe. "This does taste exceptional. Far better than anything I've managed before. I've got to admit, you've improved the flavor."
"However," the Barret's face darkened again, "this does not at all prove your claims about preserving the spiritual power contained in the beer."
Kain nodded thoughtfully, acknowledging Barret's lingering mistrust. "Here's what I propose. Reseal the barrel and continue to sample it every few days. Track the changes in flavor, texture, and spiritual power. Normally, once the barrel is opened for the first time after fermentation, the spiritual power and quality would rapidly decline, but the method I used should slow down that process."
Barret's eyes narrowed, but he seemed to consider the suggestion seriously. "And you think this will work?"
"It's the best way to prove it," Kain said confidently. "If my method works, you'll see a much slower decline in quality."
Barret gave a curt nod, still skeptical but willing to give it a chance. "Fine. I'll do as you suggest. But remember, if this fails, it's on you. I can't afford any more setbacks."
Kain smiled, relief washing over him. "Thank you for giving it a chance. I'm confident you'll be pleased with the results. I am going away for a while due to a mission, but I trust that you'll sample it as we agreed."
As Kain prepared to leave, he saw Barret taking another, more appreciative sip of the beer. Despite the lingering doubts, the slight glimmer of hope in Barret's eyes was undeniable.
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!The location of Kain's mission was the second most populous city in the eastern region, Moonstone City. Fortunately, it was not too far from Dark Moon City, and after meeting with Barret and opening the beer barrel, Kain was able to arrive the very same day after only a few hours of travel by train.
The second Kain left the train station he noticed the stark difference in the local architecture from Dark Moon City. While the gothic-style of the cities remained similar, the buildings in Moonstone were largely made from locally-sourced moonstone, which gave off a soft, iridescent glow under the moonlight that gave the entire city a dream-like quality.
By the time Kain arrived in the city, the sun had already fallen therefore he was able to see the glow of the city in all of its glory.
Walking away from the train station, Kain entered into the central plaza which featured a grand moonstone archway, which served as both a beautiful architectural centrepiece and a symbol of the city's identity for tourists like Kain.
In the center of the plaza stood a tall moonstone fountain, its cascading water catching the light and creating an enchanting sparkling effect that further added to the dreamy quality of the city.
The surrounding streets were lined with moonstone lamps that provided both illumination and aesthetic charm, casting a soft glow that guided visitors through the city.
Since it was late, Kain decided to book a hotel room at one of the nicer hotels in the city before meeting the individual who issued the mission tomorrow.
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————-
The next day Kain headed towards the address provided on the mission information while munching on Moonstone Scone—a local specialty.
Contrary to the stone in their name, the scones were light, airy, and melted in his mouth. They were also sprinkled with a white edible glitter that the worker called "moonstone dust," but really was probably something much more normal.
He eventually arrived in front of a sprawling manor that sat behind large wrought-iron gates.
Kain wasn't given any other means of contacting the issuer of the mission and so just pressed on the intercom button next to the gate. After a brief moment, a cold, detached voice came through the speaker.
"State your purpose," the voice demanded, its tone stern and unyielding.
Kain took a deep breath before responding, "Hello, I am Kain Newman. I'm here regarding the mission about the Glimmering Salamander. I received the mission to investigate its evolution issue."
There was a pause on the other end, followed by a skeptical tone. "And who might you be? Another admirer of our young lady's residence, perhaps? You seem rather young for such an important task."
Kain's eyebrows furrowed at the misinterpretation. "No, I'm not here for that. I'm here to address the Glimmering Salamander's evolution issue. I have the official mission form right here." He pulled out the form from his space ring, ensuring the intercom speaker could hear the rustling of paper.
"I assure you, as an Evolutionary Planner major at Dark Moon College I'm equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge for this issue." Kain decided to exaggerate his skills and neglected to mention that he was a first-year, but that's not important.
"Even if I can't solve the issue, you won't lose anything by letting me try."
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The voice hesitated, clearly grappling with the unexpected nature of Kain's response. "Very well. Please wait at the gate. I'll inform the young lady of your arrival."
The intercom clicked off, and Kain waited patiently as the gate slowly creaked open. He followed a stone pathway embedded with moonstones. It'd probably make a mesmerizing site at night as the path to the manor lit up.
Inside, the manor exuded an aura of understated luxury. The entrance hall was expansive, with high ceilings and large, arched windows that let in an abundance of light from outside.
The floor was a shiny polished marble that reflected Kain and the butler's figures as he was escorted to the waiting room.
The room was furnished with velvet armchairs and sofas arranged around an antique wooden coffee table. The furniture was a deep, midnight blue, complementing the moonstone accents in the room. Along one wall, a grand fireplace crackled softly, its warm light providing a cozy contrast to the cool-toned colours of the room.
Bookshelves lined the walls, filled with neatly arranged volumes bound in leather. Many of the books Kain could tell were several times older than himself. And the occasional antique item on the shelves between books for decoration also hinted at the family's refined taste.
A large, moonstone-framed painting dominated one wall, depicting a serene night sky with a silvery moon casting its glow over a tranquil landscape.
Kain took a seat in one of the armchairs, his mind racing with thoughts about the mission ahead and the impression he needed to make. He had already anticipated the butler having doubts about his ability, but this mission required for the issuer to confirm that Kain had found the solution. Even if he does find the solution, how would he get them to believe him?
Judging from the scale of their home and the age of many of the items Kain saw along the way, he could assume that this was probably a relatively old and prominent beast-taming family.
They probably already called upon many more established and experienced evolutionary planners prior to each try at evolving.
In particular, after the first failure, they probably had dozens of planners examine the Glimmer Salamander to no avail. Why would they trust the words of a first-year college student?
Especially, when this time, should the evolution fail, it would likely spell the death of the Glimmer Salamander.
After waiting for what felt like an eternity, and finishing all of the refreshments and snacks provided, the large doors leading to the waiting room were finally opened and the butler re-entered followed by a smaller figure dressed in white holding a burnt orange bundle in their arms.
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The young lady that entered the room had golden hair and green eyes and was undeniably beautiful.
Kain wasn't surprised that she would have admirers infatuated enough to come to her front door. However, her appearance still greatly paled in comparison to Serena's. It wasn't even as good as the pink-haired senior that Kain had met during the beast-tide.
Without any preamble, Kain reached for the dark orange figure she was holding.
However, she moved it away from his reach.
"Proper manners would dictate that you introduce yourself when you meet a new person." The girl said. Her face had noticeably darkened after Kain had reached for the salamander.
However, rather than due to the lack of manner as she said, it was more so because she was offended by the lack of attention that Kain had paid to her. She was used to members of the opposite sex staring entrancingly at her unable to focus on the task at hand. However, this annoying guy looked at her no differently than you would the average rock by the roadside.
Kain felt his patience wearing thin as he watched the girl's haughty demeanour. He had wanted to quickly get to the task at hand, especially since he'd been made to wait here for over an hour.
'Remember you need her to sign off on the completion of the mission.'
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"My apologies," he said through gritted teeth, his tone respectful despite his irritation. "I'm Kain, a first-year Evolutionary Planner at Dark Moon College. I'm here to assist with the Glimmering Salamander's evolution issue."
The young lady's expression remained guarded, her hair cascading down her shoulders like a golden curtain. She shifted the dark orange bundle in her arms, revealing the Glimmering Salamander more clearly. frёeωebɳovel.com
The creature was clearly in a terrible state due to the failed evolutions. In contrast to the burnt orange colour it currently possessed, Glimmering Salamanders were usually a brilliant shimmering gold colour that could be spotted from miles away.
The girl's eyes narrowed slightly as she studied Kain. "I'm Alaina Ashenclaw," she said coolly. "This is Yara, the Glimmering Salamander. She has failed to evolve twice already, and we've had experts in the field try to resolve the issue without success.
I'm not sure what you can do to help." Her voice clearly reflecting her doubts about his abilities, but her tone of voice also revealed her frustration with the repeated failures and her worry for the salamander
"I understand your doubts due to my young age. But, I'm here to ensure Yara's successful evolution. I can assure you that I have my own methods as an evolutionary planner that may have not been tried by the previous individuals you sought out."
Without waiting for a response, Kain turned his attention to the Glimmering Salamander. He approached the table where Yara lay and began to examine the creature with focused intent. Despite his irritation at being left to wait for over an hour and then repeatedly doubted, he knew that showing any additional emotion could undermine his professionalism.
Alaina watched him, her expression a mix of curiosity and residual irritation. Kain could almost hear the wheels turning in her mind as she grappled with the fact that someone as young as him was taking charge of a task that had stumped more experienced experts.
"I hope you understand the gravity of this situation," Alaina said, her tone softening slightly but still tinged with an edge of defensiveness. "Yara's failed evolutions have put her at serious risk. We need results, not just theories."
Kain nodded, determined to prove his competence. "I get it. I'm here to find a solution, and that's what I intend to do. If you could provide me with any additional details or previous assessments related to Yara's failed evolutions, it would be helpful."
Alaina hesitated, and there was a long pause where Kain wasn't sure if she'd abide by his request. Fortunately, she soon stood up and walked over to a nearby desk. She retrieved a stack of documents and handed them to Kain. "These contain the reports and observations from the previous attempts. Review them carefully. If you find anything useful, let me know."
Kain took the documents with a curt nod. "Thank you. I'll start right away."
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Thankfully, she did not remain after handing Kain the documents and left the room followed by her butler.
Now alone with the Glimmering Salamander, Kain entered the Laboratory. In front of the Simulator, he looked at the new addition for Glimmering Salamander. However, the simulated salamander had the standard golden scales for their species, so it wasn't an accurate reflection of the Glimmering Salamander right in front of him.
However, Kain did note that there was an exclamation mark that contrary to usual had been greyed out.
"System. Vera. Can either one of you explain why the exclamation mark is greyed out here?"
His assistant didn't respond to his question, likely because it doesn't know. As a newborn artificial intelligence, it was still learning about the world around it.
*The model of each spiritual creature in the system is the default average member of its species. However, if the Host has come into contact with a mutant of that species, the Host can instead substitute the default model for the mutant model. Would the host like to do the substitution?*
"Yes!" Kain was really pleased with this new feature. And this also provided him with the information that the likely reason for the failed evolution was that it was an unidentified mutant.
Suddenly the Glimmering Salamander on the screen changed to have scales and eyes of a slightly lighter gold colour.
If Kain hadn't immediately seen the normal salamander, the difference in colour would have been so slight that he wouldn't have even noticed the difference.
After the substitution was made, the greyed-out exclamation mark became the familiar red colour.
Kain clicked on the red exclamation mark in anticipation and received the pop-up notification that the skill Light Shroud needed to be learned in order to successfully evolve and that this condition had already been applied to the simulated version of the salamander.
However, most likely the resulting evolutionary form will require the use of new light-attribute materials or may require both fire and light-attribute materials. Unfortunately, the Simulator does not help Kain with narrowing down what items would and would not be suitable.
'Sigh…One step at a time I guess. Focus on it learning the necessary skill and then we can figure out its evolutionary materials.'
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However, after getting a clue about the issue, Kain had to figure out a way to convince Alaina about his explanation.
Kain exited the Laboratory and returned to the waiting room. He saw the stack of papers next to the listless salamander and started to rifle through the papers.
The first pages were an observation report, likely written by one of the previous evolutionary planners that they'd hired.
"The Glimmering Salamander was subjected to the standard evolutionary process aimed at evolving it into a gold-quality Infernal Salamander," Kain read aloud.
"The evolution procedure commenced with the standard preparatory phase, including mental conditioning to ensure a calm psychological state for the salamander before the catalytic elixir was ingested. A yellow-grade spiritual orb the necessary fire-attribute materials were either held or left within close proximity of the salamander."
"As normal, the light of evolution began to emanate from the Glimmering Salamander. However, approximately midway through the process, anomalous reactions were observed."
"The salamander's scales, which normally shimmered with a rich gold hue, began to exhibit erratic fluctuations in colour, transitioning sporadically between deep orange and an unsettlingly pale gold. The expected stabilization into the fiery orange of the Infernal Salamander did not occur."
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"Instead, a violent surge of raw energy erupted from the salamander, creating a dissonant clash between the fire-attribute materials and the salamander's inherent energy that would normally readily absorb the escaping energies from the fire-attribute materials."
"After the light of evolution had completely faded, the weakened salamander emerged from the turmoil in a weakened state, its vitality severely depleted, and with a noticeably darker shade of scales. Further analysis is required to determine the precise cause of the aberrant reaction during the evolutionary process…"
Kain finished reading through the report and could see faint hints within the report that may have pointed to an undiscovered recessive light-attribute. However, it may have only been obvious to Kain who already knew what to look for.
Kain turned to the next sheet. It has the insights from multiple evolutionary planners who collaborated and eventually settled on a reason for why they felt that the previous evolutionary attempt failed.
According to them, the failure was completely the fault of the previous planner who obviously did not accurately calculate the fire-attribute energy within the two materials used or use a stabilizing material. The fire attribute energy was then too strong for the young salamander to handle, which caused a failed evolution.
Kain could understand how they reached such a conclusion. But really the evolutionary formula that the first planner had used, while not perfect and tailor-made to every Glimmering Salamander, was a well-established protocol.
And considering that this evolution was typically fool-proof even without fine-tuning the amount and energy levels of the different ingredients, it was understandable that he hadn't put in the extra effort.
'Poor guy is being blamed and completely labelled as incompetent…I wonder how this group justified their own failure after the deed was done.'
"For the second attempt, adjustments were made to rectify the issues arising due to the previous planner's incompetence. Specifically, the quantity of fire-attribute energy within the evolutionary materials was reduced, and a stabilizing agent was introduced to mitigate the risk of excessive energy surges. The second evolution ceremony commenced under the revised conditions."
"However, while the evolution had initially appeared to progress more stably and the light of evolution persisted for a longer period of time, there was still a re-occurrence of unstable energy discharges.
"The Salamander once again emerged from the light in a debilitated state, its condition even worse after the second failed attempt. Our group of Planner's has collectively determined that perhaps this salamander is an anomaly with low potential, destined to never reach a higher order of life."
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'Trash! This group of idiots just couldn't figure out the root cause and decided to blame the Glimmering Salamander itself. No wonder they were forced to try a long-shot attempt at recruiting help through the university.
Many of the evolutionary planners they contacted may have read this report and not even wanted to try.' Kain also understood why Alaina showed a slight hesitation in handing over the reports.
Kain then flipped to the last pages which were general details about Yara the Glimmering Salamander's life.
Apparently, Alaina was a senior high-school student who would be undergoing the awakening ceremony at the end of this year. Therefore, she was not technically contracted with Yara. Like many noble children, she had a young spiritual creature with high potential raised with her from young in order to cultivate a stronger bond and give her a head start over her peers.
Yara was currently red-grade and likely will hold off on breaking through to the next level, so as long as Alaina awakens an affinity suitable to bind her she will have a spiritual creature one grade higher than most of the other newly awakened students. And because of their close bond established from childhood, there was little to no risk of Yara unilaterally breaking the contract.
'Argh… it's so unfair. Down with the rich!'
This Glimmering Salamander is actually the child of her parents' contracts, who were each bound to one half of a mated pair of diamond-quality Blazing Ember Wyrms—the evolutionary form following the Infernal Salamander that had some of its extremely remnant dragon's blood activated.
Usually, mutations could happen in 3 ways: completely by chance, which is the rarest occurrence; due to strange occurrences while the spiritual creature's parent was conceiving, such as eating a rare spiritual plant or entering a strange relic; or occasionally when cross-species pairings manage to result in a conception and the other parent's attribute or other characteristics was retained by the offspring.
However, considering that cross-species conceptions were extremely difficult, especially when the parents aren't even of the same attribute, the last option was also extremely unlikely.
The likelihood of a whole new attribute being attained due to a chance mutation was also completely unheard of. Usually, such mutations only result in cosmetic changes or an amplification (or reduction) of the qualities that species already possess such as a stronger-than-normal shell or a hotter-than-average flame.
Therefore, Kain was going to operate from the theory of the mother having eaten something or gone somewhere unusual while forming the egg.
With that plan in mind, Kain delicately picked up the fragile Glimmering Salamander and exited the room. Fortunately, a lady, who Kain presumed to be a housekeeping staff, was waiting for him outside of the door, and he was instead able to request the presence of the young lady of the house instead of having to search for her in this enormous place himself.
Kain returned to his seat with Yara and thought about just how he was going to present his findings to her so that she'd believe him.
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Kain sat across from Alaina who was now holding and stroking the head of the Glimmering Salamander Yara, the butler standing behind her.
Fortunately, this time she did not leave him waiting as long, and Kain had already thought about a feasible story for how he figured out the reason behind the failed evolution.
Alaina's demeanour was a mix of cautious optimism and lingering skepticism. He could tell she was bracing herself for another potential letdown.
"Alaina, I believe I've identified the issue with Yara," Kain began, trying to keep his voice steady and reassuring. Kain saw her face momentarily shift into one of shock, before once again falling into one of doubt.
Kain continued without waiting for her to express her doubt. "There's a unique evolutionary condition at play here, one that hasn't been accounted for in the previous attempts."
Alaina's eyes widened slightly. "Go on…"
Kain cleared his throat, putting on an air of confidence that he hoped would be convincing. "From my examination, it appears that Yara has a rare mutation involving a previously unidentified recessive light attribute.
This wasn't detected previously because you had never before tried to have her learn a light-attribute skill and because the difference in Yara's appearance from a normal Glimmering Salamander is quite subtle." Kain took out his phone to show the photo that he'd saved of a normal Glimmering Salamander.
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"The gold colour of the scales for most salamanders is usually slightly deeper than Yara's scales."
Alaina stared at the photo thoughtfully, before finally raising her gaze to Kain. "This is an interesting story. But how am I supposed to just believe that Yara is really a light-attribute mutant as you said based off of a slight difference in scale colour? There are slight variations in colour and pattern within a species, that doesn't at all mean that it's due to a second light-attribute."
Kain took a deep breath, he knew his next story would be the important part of convincing Alaina. "I have a gift." Kain paused for added effect while feigning arrogance.
"A gift?" Alaina asked with a raised brow in disbelief.
"As I'm sure you know, Dark Moon College provides beast-taming students with an opportunity to increase their chances of awakening a gift. A method which is a secret to outsiders." Kain said with his chin raised as he mimicked what he felt a prideful top 5 college student should appear as to outsiders. He made sure to pre-emptively add the last part so that she would not ask for details.
Considering he hadn't yet undergone whatever opportunity it was, as it was only provided after the first re-ranking, he knew very little about the specifics.
Alaina turned to her butler in confirmation, and thankfully he nodded in support of Kain's story.
Kain mentally breathed a sigh of relief.
"During this opportunity, I was fortunate enough to awaken a gift. My gift allows me to sense and identify hidden evolutionary conditions and mutations. When I manifested this talent, the professors were astonished. They saw it as an extremely powerful gift for the field of Evolutionary Planners, and so an exception was made and I was admitted into the Planner major under special consideration.
They were convinced that this talent of mine could be of great benefit."
"It was this gift that activated when examining Yara. From my examination, it appears that Yara has a rare mutation involving a light attribute and on top of that she needs to learn the skill Light Shroud in order to successfully evolve"
'Bullshit. Bullshit. Bullshit…But I really hope that her sense of smell isn't good enough to smell it.'
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There are all kinds of weird gifts in the world. Kain had even heard of an absurd one that can create a 'mood lighting' that instantly puts all humans in the vicinity in a very 'frisky' mood.
His so-called gift is hardly unbelievable.
Alaina still seemed doubtful. "That's impressive, but… how can I be sure you're not lying or exaggerating?"
'You can't. Because I am.'
Kain nodded, with a forced calm. "I can't expect you to take my word for it without evidence. Let me show you why I believe Yara has a light attribute mutation. The evidence is also in the words of the so-called experts that you'd hired previously."
He pulled out the stack of documents and pointed to the sections detailing the previous failed attempts. "These reports indicate several anomalies. Yara's scales fluctuated between a pale gold and a deep orange-gold, and there were erratic flashes of light. Also, Yara didn't absorb as much of the fire-attribute materials as expected."
Alaina leaned in closer, her eyes scanning the reports. "You're suggesting that Yara's mutation is a combination of fire and light attributes?"
"Yes…or no." Kain took a deep breath. "Since Yara's evolution will not be an Infernal Salamander, it means that all current knowledge about the evolutionary path from Glimmering Salamander to Infernal Salamander to Blazing Ember Wyrm will be useless. We really don't know what she'll evolve into, if it will have one or both attributes or, although unlikely, if it will even remain as a Salamander.
Therefore, we'll also need to account for the possibility that Yara's eventual evolutionary form might not align with your affinity, especially since you haven't awakened your affinity yet."
Alaina's expression turned sombre. "I understand. But… Yara has been with me for years. She's more than just a spiritual creature to me. I don't want her to die, and she will soon if she can't evolve."
Kain could see the emotional turmoil in her eyes. He nodded sympathetically. "I understand. I'll do everything I can to help her. However, considering that this is a completely new evolutionary path we don't know the exact material requirements for this new evolutionary path. Unlike other evolutions that have been repeatedly tested and confirmed by our predecessors, we'll be moving forward blindly.
It will take a lot of work and luck."
Alaina's demeanor firmed up. "So, what's the next step?"
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Kain coughed into his hand awkwardly while covering up a slight smile at the corner of his lips.
'Now it's time to put the rest of the plan into action.'
"Given the new circumstances, my job is technically complete once I've identified the problem. However, I understand the need to confirm the evolution. If you want me to see this through to a successful evolution, I'll need more resources and support. And, of course, a higher reward…"
Seeing that Alaina wasn't responding and just staring at him in silence, Kain continued, "The mission was initially not intended to include the actual evolution. It was only about identifying the problem. But considering the complexity of this situation, I think we'll need to revise the current reward amount you agreed upon with the college."
After a moment of deliberation, Alaina looked at him with a resolute expression. "If you can get Yara to successfully evolve, I'll increase the reward to 800 credits."
Kain's eyes widened slightly. He had only needed 600 credits, so the offer was more generous than he had expected. "Ahem! I suppose that amount will be okay… just barely."
"Great," Alaina said while nodding in satisfaction. "Geoffrey, will you please settle this matter with the college?" After a curt nod and a slight bow to Alaina, the butler left the room.
"To achieve this, there are two main tasks at hand—having Yara learn the necessary skill, and determining the new evolutionary materials. However, it will be difficult for me to take charge of both tasks…" Kain said, hoping that she would get the hint.
Alaina's eyes lit up with understanding. "I can arrange for a professional trainer to teach Yara the Light Shroud skill while you focus on determining the necessary materials."
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"Excellent!" Kain said with a bright smile. "In order to narrow down the required materials, I suggest we start by investigating the source of Yara's mutation. It might have been caused by something her mother ingested or encountered."
"I see… I'll escort you to speak with my father. He's bound to Yara's mother and might have some insights into this."
"Perfect," Kain said. "Let's get started."
Alaina led him through the sprawling estate to the garden where her father was reportedly located. The garden was lush and meticulously maintained with a large amount of fire-attribute spiritual plants. freewebnvel.coɱ
As they approached, Alaina pointed to a man tending to a variety of exotic plants. "There's my father. I'll introduce you."
Kain took a deep breath, preparing for the conversation that would hopefully lead to the information he needed to help Yara. Alaina made the introductions between Kain and her father—Darius Ashenclaw.
Then Kain began to outline the situation, carefully balancing the need for useful information with the need to maintain credibility in his fabricated story.
"Hmmm…" Kain was examined by a pair of piercing green eyes identical to Alaina's but much colder, "I didn't take my Yanna to any unusual locations around the time that she would have been pregnant. So according to you, Yanna may have ingested something… but if she did, I'm not aware of it. I'll take you to her to ask."
Darius gestured for Kain and Alaina to follow him toward the expansive garden area where two Blazing Ember Wyrms were resting.
As they approached, Kain saw the pair of majestic wyrms basking under the sun, their red-orange scales shimmering in the light. The larger wyrm, who Kain assumed to be the father, was lounging comfortably on the grass. The smaller, more delicate wyrm, who Kain presumed to be the mother, was nuzzling close to him. The two wyrms' interactions showcased their deep bond.
Darius called out to the mother wyrm with a voice that carried both authority and affection. "Yanna, come here, please."
The mother wyrm gracefully rose and moved towards them, her movements fluid and elegant. As she approached, her large, expressive eyes studied Kain with a mix of curiosity and a hint of wariness.
Despite not being in a hostile relationship with her, Kain couldn't help but be intimidated by her imposing figure. She and her partner both possessed dark, volcanic-red and molten-orange scales that seemed to flicker like embers.
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While slightly smaller than her male counterpart, her body was still muscular and possessed fierce claws and a powerful tail tipped with a flame that left a trail of heat waves as she moved toward them.
Along both of their backs were jagged, sharp ridges that shifted in colour as she moved and gave the appearance of moving flames.
Darius introduced Kain. "Yanna, this is Kain. He's been helping us figure out the reason for Yara's failed evolutions. He has discovered that Yara might have a unique mutation involving a light attribute."
The wyrm's gaze shifted to Kain, who offered a respectful nod. "Thank you for meeting with us, Yanna. We're trying to determine if there's anything unusual that might have happened during the time you were pregnant with Yara's egg?"
Yanna's face was an impassive mask, though Kain thought he glimpsed a fleeting look of something unusual in her eyes—Worry? Sadness? Panic? It was difficult to identify. Perhaps it was due to parental concern for Yara?
Darius prompted, "Did you eat anything or go somewhere I wasn't aware of? I know it was a few years ago, but can you remember anything?"
Yanna's deep, rumbling voice echoed softly as she replied, "I do not remember consuming or encountering anything out of the ordinary during that time."
Despite being shocked by his first conversation with a spiritual creature, he knew that higher-level spiritual creatures may eventually develop the ability to speak, Kain had the presence of mind to study her expression closely. She had a calm appearance and a lack of any visible signs of distress. However, his gut was telling him that there might be something hidden beneath her composed mask.
But it's not as though he could force a blue-grade spiritual creature to speak if it didn't wish to. He just hoped that she wasn't really hiding anything due to her concern for Yara's well-being being great enough.
"Thank you for your cooperation," Kain said, trying to keep his tone neutral. "It's crucial that we gather as much information as possible to address Yara's issue effectively."
Darius nodded in agreement. "I understand. If there's anything more you need from us, please don't hesitate to ask."
With that, Kain and Alaina separated from her father and walked back to the house. Kain couldn't help but take a peak back at Yanna who, likely not realizing that she was being watched, had dropped her guard.
Finally, Kain could identify the emotion that showed briefly in her eyes—pure panic.
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!Alaina walked beside him, "What do you think? Any other ideas on what could have caused the mutation?"
'Yeah. I do. But you're not gonna like it.'
"Nope. It may just be a random mutation…"
"For now, could you perhaps show me the collection of spiritual materials your family has at its disposal? Preferably only those of fire and light attributes."
She hesitated for a moment. After all, who lets a stranger they knew for less than 24 hours have access to their family's inventory?
Seeing her hesitation Kain quickly added, "Due to the current quality of Yara and the likely quality of her evolution being at gold-grade, it is only necessary to see materials yellow-grade and under."
Finally, she nodded in agreement. Yara had already been taken away to meet with a trainer skilled in light-attribute
Alaina led Kain through the opulent halls of the Ashenclaw estate, their footsteps echoing off the marble floors.
They reached a large wooden door intricately carved with flames and sigils. Alaina hesitated for a moment before opening it with a key she retrieved from a necklace around her neck.
The door swung open to reveal a vast room lined with shelves and display cases. Inside were numerous items, each meticulously organized and labelled.
"This is our collection of spiritual materials," Alaina said, the pride in her family's rich heritage was obvious. "I hope it's enough to allow Yara to evolve."
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Kain's eyes scanned the room eagerly. His gaze landed on the various items: enchanted weapons, delicate vials of glowing liquids, and numerous talismans. He followed Alaina toward another aisle where the spiritual materials were located. By far, the majority of everything there was of the fire-attribute. However, there were still materials of other attributes although they were few and far between.
"Excellent," Kain said, allowing a small smile to form on his lips. "I appreciate your trust. This will definitely help narrow down the potential evolutionary materials needed for Yara."
He began to methodically examine the items, noting the various fire and light attribute materials. As he picked up a vial of golden liquid and a shard of pale crystal, he murmured to himself, pretending to be deep in thought.
Of course, it was all a show. He didn't learn enough theoretical knowledge to accurately calculate what materials would be best to evolve a spiritual creature. Once he was left alone, he was going to use the Simulator.
Alaina watched him closely, her expression a mixture of curiosity and skepticism. "Do you need any assistance? I can help you identify specific items or provide information about their origins if that would help."
Kain waved his hand dismissively. "No need. No need. I've got it covered. What I need is just some privacy."
Immediately she got a suspicious look on her face. "Just so you know, every single item here is cataloged, so don't even try to steal anything."
Kain rolled his eyes, "I am a respected student of Dark Moon College. You literally recruited me through the college. If I steal from you it's hardly like I can run off into the night. And I'd hardly jeopardize my college career to steal yellow-grade materials."
Alaina blushed slightly at the sound reasoning, however she still didn't leave the room. Instead, she stood by a nearby table, observing Kain's every move.
An hour passed as Kain continued to pick up random items and pretend to examine them while humming thoughtfully. At some point, he'd even taken a notepad out of storage space to take "notes." Really he was just drawing random doodles.
As he continued his examination, Alaina's phone buzzed. She glanced at it and her expression shifted to one of concern.
"I'll be right back," she said, stepping out of the room. "There's an urgent matter I need to attend to."
Another 30 minutes passed before she returned and Kain prepared to leave. It was already pretty late in the afternoon once Kain had entered the inventory, now the sun was beginning to set and it was about time for him to leave.
"I hope everything is alright," Kain said, glancing up from a fire and light dual attribute sunstone he was examining.
Alaina's expression noticeably darkened, "Yara collapsed after only some light exercises and was barely breathing. I don't know how long it'll take for her to learn the skill in her current condition. Maybe months, if she can hold out that long."
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'Oh no no no! I do NOT have time to wait around for months until she learns the necessary skill and I get paid. Light Shroud is only a B-level skill, I thought it'd be learned in a few days with a skilled trainer. Especially since the Glimmering Salamander already knows a similar fire-attribute skill, Ember Shroud.'
Kain thought about a method to speed up her learning of the skill. Unfortunately, due to the lack of a contract, he could not bring her into the Training Arena. Maybe in the future, that limitation will be lifted. However, for now, Kain only had one thing he thought might be of use.
"I have an item that may be of some use in improving her condition…"
Alaina shook her head, "No need. We have access to some of the best elixirs on the market. None have been particularly effective. The damage to Yara is at the level of her life force—her soul—it's not like healing a wound."
"I understand. But still, I would like to try my method. It's not as though you have anything to lose anyway. I assure you that Yara's condition with either remain the same or improve, but it will definitely now worsen.
Finally, she relented. Although she didn't seem to have any faith that what Kain would do would have any effect.
Kain was planning to use Queen's royal jelly produced by her skill the Essence of Life. The strong life-attribute energy in the jelly should have an affect on restoring lifeforce.
Kain took out a small amount he'd already stored in a jar in case of emergencies. After all, it was more effective than most healing elixirs at and below yellow-grade.
Compared to regular honey which was more of a deep amber colour and translucent, it was an opaque cream colour.
Retrieving a spoon from his space ring, he spooned some into Yara's mouth. This was the first time Kain was getting to try the effects of the royal jelly, so he was also filled with curiosity. freewebnσvel.cm
Within seconds there was a noticeable improvement to her appearance. Although her scales did not return to their previously golden hue, they much more closely resembled how they probably looked in her prime based on the simulated version of her provided by the System.
Alaina's eyes widened in shock at Kain's unexpectedly effective treatment.
Meanwhile, Kain hid the great shock he felt under a calm mask. The royal jelly produced by the SS-level skill Essence of Life was even more effective than he'd thought.
"I will focus on developing the evolutionary plan, but we can't delay Yara's training for so long. Whenever her condition begins to decline, please call me to treat her again."
Kain then left the manor for the night and returned to his hotel room after a luxurious dinner in the heart of the city.
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