Weakest Beast Tamer Gets All SSS Dragons

Chapter 797 - Taming the Fifth Year - New Self

Mayo and Matilda released Larissaʼs hand and she just leaned with a small nod.

No excessive triumph in her expression. No dramatic relief.

Only quiet confirmation that her calculations had been correct from the start. That the result had been exactly what sheʼd anticipated before the battle even began.

Mayo and Matilda withdrew from the field with expressions mixing frustration and acceptance. Theyʼd lost decisively. But theyʼd given a decent battle with what they had available. There was no real shame in that outcome.

”Good luck with your inevitable humiliation!” Mayo called back from the distance with a cheerful wave.

Larissa nodded toward them politely while deliberately ignoring the continued nonsense.

But despite everything, there was respect between the warriors. Even in defeat, they maintained their dignity and camaraderie.

♢♢♢♢

TWO BRACKETS EARLIER

The Master had announced the pairing with a voice that resonated across the field.

”Team Twenty-Nine against Team Seventeen.”

Klein had felt something tense settle in his stomach a day ago when heʼd first seen the composition of the opposing teamʼs roster.

It wasnʼt a team from the academy he currently attended. It was a group from another institution participating in the fifth-year joint examinations.

Normally that wouldnʼt be particularly notable since it was standard for fifth year and heʼd already faced another external team in the first battle without issue.

Except Klein had recognized two names on the list immediately.

Feng.

Astor.

His former followers from ”darker” times.

The boys who had been with him during his most arrogant period. Who had fed his ego relentlessly. Who had followed his orders without question or independent thought.

Who probably hated him now for making them waste so much time as subordinates, time theyʼd now feel was squandered when Klein lost his family standing and political backing. And probably also for how heʼd changed since then. For how heʼd ”betrayed” what they represented by aligning himself with a ”commoner” like Ren.

Klein hadnʼt seen them in considerable time before this fifth year. Not since after his entire world had collapsed around him. Not since after heʼd realized how completely wrong heʼd been about... everything that mattered.

And now he would have to face them in direct combat.

In front of judges and spectators.

Part of him felt uncomfortable with that prospect. Not from fear of losing… Klein knew his capabilities had grown substantially. But from the inherent awkwardness of fighting against people heʼd once considered allies, however misguided that alliance had been.

But another part of him...

Part of him felt uncomfortable with that prospect. Not from fear of losing… Klein knew his capabilities had grown substantially. But from the inherent awkwardness of fighting against people heʼd once considered allies, however misguided that alliance had been.

But another part of him...

Another part felt strangely appropriate about this confrontation.

Like closing a circle. Like severing final ties with the version of himself he no longer wanted to be.

Klein walked toward his designated position on the field with steady steps.

And summoned his lion.

The lion materialized in an explosion of golden mana that made the air shimmer.

It wasnʼt the same beast it had been years ago in many ways. It was still a lion, majestic, powerful, with a mane that gleamed brilliantly under the afternoon sunlight.

But it had changed in subtle ways that only Klein could perceive completely through their bond.

It felt more stable in its power. More energetic without the previous fluctuations. As if energy flowed through it more smoothly, without the small blockages that used to exist in its mana circulation.

Because Klein had adopted Renʼs cultivation methods for his beast.

He hadnʼt been using them as long as most of Renʼs close associates. Most had been applying those techniques for years now. Taro had been using them longer than anyone else still.

Klein had only begun recently. After heʼd finally accepted that his family methods, the ones heʼd been taught since childhood with such pride, had the fundamental flaws that Ren had cited for him with devastating accuracy.

But even in that relatively short time since switching approaches...

The differences were remarkably noticeable.

The imbalances his family methods had created were gradually disappearing. The lion no longer showed that strange fatigue after certain exercises that had always puzzled Klein. No longer had those moments where its mana control failed inconsistently for no apparent reason.

The beast felt more complete now. More coherent in all its aspects.

And Klein could sense it clearly through their bond. The way mana circulated without obstruction. The way the lion responded to commands. The smoothness of each movement without the previous hitches.

From the opposite side of the field, Feng manifested his beast with dramatic flourish.

The red cobra... A creature now five meters long with scales that gleamed like polished rubies in the light.

But Klein noticed immediately something that many other observers probably couldnʼt see.

His beast displayed many of the same imbalances that Kleinʼs lion used to suffer from before the method change.

That subtle rigidity in certain movements. That minor inconsistency in mana control. Clear signs of cultivation methods that functioned decently but werenʼt optimal for the beastʼs natural development.

Because Feng and Astor werenʼt using Renʼs methods.

Probably from pride preventing them from accepting help. Probably because accepting those methods would mean admitting many things intrinsically about their previous approach.

Or simply because they didnʼt have proper access. Renʼs most complete methods were shared generously with those who trained near him regularly. But many beast-specific refinements werenʼt distributed massively to other academies yet.

Only the plant cultivation methods, which almost every common person had access to, were more complete in their public distribution.

Regardless of the reason...

Klein possessed an advantage they wouldnʼt anticipate.

”Begin,” the teacher ordered.

Feng immediately commanded his beast to attack first. Aggressively. As if wanting to prove a point through force.

The cobra fired venom from its mouth in a concentrated projectile. Not a simple spit but weaponized poison that crossed the distance in a fraction of a second.

Aimed directly at the lionʼs center mass.

Klein had already ordered evasion before the venom fully left the cobraʼs mouth. The lion moved laterally with smooth motion.

The venom passed by grazing range. Impacted the ground where the lion had been standing half a second earlier. Earth hissing and smoking where the acidic poison touched it.

Feng frowned at the miss. Fired again with adjusted aim. Then another shot. Four consecutive attacks, trying to predict the lionʼs movement pattern.

All failed to connect.