STRIKER: Independent Beast Tamer

Unexplored Region

Bernard, the team leader, felt they had made the right decision to leave the place. He looked at the others. Then he said, ”Everyone, there is a great terror hidden ahead. We should leave right away.”

Hearing that, the others sucked in a cold breath of air. They believed their team leader. The next second, the old man Bernard took the lead. He changed direction and started heading forward.

The team members started following from behind. The giant sparrow was still in the air. It provided support from above while the team leader led them forward.

Boom!

A second earth-shattering noise sounded from the green land filled with flowers. Something moved beneath the flowery soil. It made the full-grown flowers react.

They started releasing even more fragrance. It immediately spread across the area. The fragrance traveled fast. The green sparrow felt a sense of crisis.

It was coming from the beautiful land. It alerted the contractor, who was none other than the team leader, Bernard. His expression filled with fear. The land of the unexplored area was filled with unknown terror.

Swoosh!

Upon his order, everyone increased their speed. In the blink of an eye, the 15-member group fled from the fragrance terror.

One Hour Later

The group was resting under a giant shade tree. They had traveled non-stop before arriving here.

Old man Bernard was serious. He was glad they were able to escape on time. His gaze fell on the other members. They were exhausted, but their faces were still filled with terror.

Old man Bernard said, ”I have read stories of unspeakable terror in the unexplored regions. I think we just witnessed one of them.”

Hearing that, everyone’s face filled with dread. They hadn’t witnessed the full scene of the beautiful land themselves; they had only heard it from the old man’s mouth. Yet, the words made them tremble with fright.

”I know you guys must be wondering right now. The fragrance was one of those terrors. If it were to land on a city filled with people, everyone would die in an instant.”

Gasp!

The members sucked in a cold breath of air.

”Was it a colossal beast?” one of the veterans asked.

Hearing that, the others turned towards Bernard. Bernard felt everyone’s gaze and nodded his head.

”It’s possible, but I don’t know for sure. Records show that there are certain terrains which are lands of death. Anyway, we are not going back to that place.”

”But we will add this place to the map. The higher-ups will definitely reward us,” the old man said with a smile.

Then, everyone let out a sigh of relief.

...

City A: 5th Zone

Red Moon Chamber

After many days of isolated practice, Jeremy Night felt the barrier. Normally, his lifeline beast would breakthrough first, then he would get feedback from the breakthrough.

But this time, he felt a limit from his own body. To evolve to the next stage, the lifeline beast needed to break through first.

He had credit points left from previous missions. He decided to buy resources for the unknown beast egg. He knew the unknown beast egg would react if there was a suitable treasure nearby.

After getting ready, he left the room. He didn’t mention this to anyone. He went to the lobby, his gaze sweeping across the room before he exited the building.

20 Minutes Later

He was standing in front of one of the beast-taming stores in the city. This time, he didn’t visit the store that was part of the Association. He went directly to a less-visited shop.

His unknown beast egg could find suitable treasures. Who knew? He might pick up a fortune here.

He made a decision before walking into the store. He met with the staff and stated his request. A male staff member gave him a device.

The device had a list of all the Grade 4 and Grade 5 treasures. He accepted the device before going through the list.

Each of them was in the 10,000+ price range. He started feeling disappointed. He knew that one treasure might not be enough.

He perhaps needed to buy more than one. He had 40,000 credit points. If there were leaks, it would be better.

He stopped viewing the list and gave the device back to the staff member.

”Guest, what happened? Didn’t you like the treasures?” the man asked.

Hearing that, Jeremy smiled and said, ”To be honest, I couldn’t find a suitable one. Can you take me to the treasure room? Maybe I can find a suitable one there.”

The staff member was taken aback. Then he said, ”I’ll ask the manager for permission.”

After saying that, the staff member left. Jeremy Night waited. Not long after, an old man arrived.

Their treasure shop was ranked at the bottom because they sold mostly common treasures found in the wilderness. People who were too lazy to collect treasures in the wild came here.

Upon seeing the young man, the old man assumed the same. But he wouldn’t disrespect a guest. He saw the uniform of the Red Moon Chamber.

It was an organization that had grown recently.

Since the young man was from a recognized beast-taming force, he gave permission for the young man to enter the treasure room.

At the same time, he decided to accompany the young man.

Jeremy Night was happy. He thought the Red Moon Chamber uniform played a role. If he were a nobody without a background, he doubted they would have reacted this way.

He stood up and followed them. When he entered the treasure room, he saw a lot of treasures inside glass containers. They were placed in rows.

From the first glance, he understood they were common treasures, including treasure plants, natural energy liquids, and soil. There were natural energy fruits as well.

No wonder the shop was ranked at the bottom. But still, the place offered hope for the locals who wouldn’t be able to reach a higher tier in their lifetime.