Chapter 197: Beast Taming (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 197: Beast Taming (1)
It was a good… party.
Probably.
I pressed my throbbing temples and sat up in my familiar bed.
Last night's memories were pickled in strong cocktails, leaving them spotty and disconnected.
The one thing I was sure of? I’d managed to escape thanks to two women who didn't know their own limits and drank way too much.
Not that I wanted to escape, but that's just how it turned out.
Today was the weekend. Starting next week, I'd be back at Gaon, returning to the normal routine of attending classes.
It seemed like a good time for me to prepare for what was to come as well.
I reached out and summoned a shadow from thin air.
First, the one who would be the biggest key to my growth.
– Flap… flap….
‘Bam.’
Bam looked down at me as if to say it had been a while.
His nickname was Flapper.
I needed an expert who could give me advice on Flapper's capabilities and growth—things I couldn't figure out on my own.
And as it happened, I had the perfect person in mind.
A skilled Beast Tamer from Vanquisher.
Lee Do-hyun.
He was proficient with dual swords, but he also commanded a pack of wolves as if they were family.
He was famous for being a master-level Beast Tamer, capable of communing with beasts and drawing out their potential.
His training fees alone would be astronomical.
I had sent him a message a few days ago.
Asking for help.
Not long after, a short, characteristically blunt reply came back: ‘Fine.’
He'd readily agreed.
I sent Flapper back into the shadows and changed my clothes to go out.
Now, I just had to head straight for the Vanquisher residence.
– Ding-dong.
“Hmm?”
Who could it be this early in the morning?
It was the weekend, a time when everyone without plans would be sleeping in.
Puzzled, I opened the door.
I opened the door.
Yoon Chae-ha stood in front of it with an awkward expression, dressed in a comfortable tracksuit.
She was famous for being a heavy sleeper.
What could she possibly want this early?
“What’s up?”
“Not really… I was just wondering… what are you doing today?”
She avoided my gaze, fidgeting with her fingers as she asked. A hint of anticipation laced her voice.
I hesitated for a moment, torn between Yoon Chae-ha and my plans… but Flapper's growth was a problem I couldn't put off.
“I have plans today….”
I said, trying to sound as apologetic as possible.
“……Ugh.”
Yoon Chae-ha let out a small groan and hung her head.
Her face flushed red.
It seemed she had worked up quite a bit of courage to ask.
I felt a little too guilty to just send her away like that.
I took a step closer to Yoon Chae-ha.
Then, I gently lifted her chin, making her meet my eyes.
– Chu.
I gave her a light kiss on the forehead as an apology.
“Ah….”
Her eyes widened.
I didn't stop there, pulling her into a light embrace.
My hand naturally slid down her back to rest on her round bottom.
– Pat, pat.
“Ngh….”
Her body trembled at the familiar sensation.
It seemed the formula for pleasure had been imprinted on her brain.
Only after confirming her conditioned response did I gently release her from my arms.
“I'll be back soon, okay?”
“Okay….”
I gave Yoon Chae-ha's head one last pat and saw her off.
Then, I grabbed my things and headed for Vanquisher.
*
I arrived at the Vanquisher penthouse.
Passing through a quiet hallway, I opened the door and stepped inside to the sight of a spacious, open living room.
“Oh, Hae-in, you're here?”
Seong Ara was lounging on the massive sofa in the center of the living room. She craned her neck languidly to look at me, dressed in a thin silk house robe that revealed the curves of her body.
“Yeah. Where's Do-hyun-hyung?”
“Oveeer there~”
Seong Ara pointed to the other side of the living room with a hand holding a snack.
Beyond the floor-to-ceiling glass was the penthouse's yard.
“What about the others?”
“Hmm… the Old Man's holed up in his study… Gae Gwang-cheol… no idea. Probably passed out sleeping somewhere?”
She shrugged, answering as if she couldn't care less.
I nodded and was about to head for the yard, but just then—
“Not going to ask about Sion?”
“Isn't Sion at the Gaon dorms right now?”
“Huh? He came back last night.”
Seong Ara said nonchalantly, crunching on her snack.
“……Is that so?”
I had planned on staying at the Vanquisher residence this weekend for intensive training with Lee Do-hyun. But Sion had returned home last night….
Considering Sion and I share a room….
I guess I'll have to call it a coincidence.
Forcing myself to that conclusion, I started walking again.
– Rustle.
Behind me, Seong Ara got up too.
“Guess I'll get to it~” she said, her voice lazy as she stretched. It seemed she was also heading to the underground training ground.
I gave her a slight nod and went straight outside.
“Work hard~ Ugh, that Lee Do-hyun is a bit much….”
Leaving Seong Ara's voice behind, I headed for the yard.
A yard in the middle of downtown Seoul, spacious enough for training?
It wasn't impossible given Vanquisher's wealth, but it was wasteful in many ways.
Therefore, this yard had an Illusion Barrier that expanded the space.
I headed to the end of the garden, where the air shimmered faintly like a heat haze.
I stepped into the Illusion Barrier.
The scenery before me changed.
The charming little garden vanished, replaced by a vast, endless plain.
– Leap!
“Whoa!”
The moment I stepped inside the barrier, a huge shadow shot past over my head.
A black wolf the size of a truck leaped effortlessly over me, did a flip in mid-air, and landed right in front of me.
– Tap.
Its footwork was light.
“Fenrir?”
– Awoooo—!
When I called its name, it let out a mighty howl, as if to say it had been a long time.
I went closer and stroked its soft fur.
It rubbed against my hand like a child.
“You're here.”
A low voice sounded from behind me.
A man with twin swords at his waist.
It was Lee Do-hyun.
He had sharp eyes and greenish hair. Behind him, other wolves stood in formation.
“Yes.”
I nodded.
“An eagle… you said?”
“No, it's closer to a falcon.”
I replied, summoning Flapper from thin air.
He popped out of the void, revealing himself with a flap of his black wings.
– Tweet!!?
He was about knee-high.
Not exactly small.
But upon seeing the pack of giant wolves before him, he was too terrified to come down, flapping his wings desperately in the air.
“A peregrine falcon… still very young,” Lee Do-hyun muttered, looking at Bam.
Bam was actually quite large, but he was barely a month old. He was right on the mark.
– Tweet!!
Bam cried, looking at me.
‘What in the world is this dangerous place?’
I imagined that's what he meant.
I tried to reassure him, holding out my arm and gesturing for him to come down. I sent him a silent signal that everything was okay.
Dubious, Bam circled me once before slowly lowering his altitude and approaching my arm.
– Thud.
In the end, he briefly landed on my arm before climbing up to his usual spot on my shoulder.
– Tweet.
Then, as if he'd never been scared at all, he puffed out his chest and chirped majestically.
What a show-off.
I gently scratched the back of his neck.
“You two seem to get along quite well.”
Lee Do-hyun, who had been watching the scene, spoke with interest.
“Birds of prey, especially peregrine falcons, are usually too proud to rely on their masters so easily. But that one seems to depend on you quite a bit.”
So that's how they are.
“But that doesn't mean it's loyal. Mythical Beasts… are incredibly sensitive. Sometimes you have to handle them with more care than a machine.”
As he spoke, Lee Do-hyun mounted the giant wolf, Fenrir, in one fluid motion. The wolf didn't so much as twitch at its master's movement.
“Communion begins from a place of mutual lack.”
The moment he finished speaking, Fenrir lifted a forepaw and slammed it into the ground.
– BOOM!!
Along with a massive tremor, the aura emanating from the wolves changed in an instant.
“Try to run.”
“?”
Lee Do-hyun's voice echoed.
– Tweet.
– FLAPFLAPFLAPFLAPFLAP.
I turned my head.
Flapper, who should have been on my shoulder, was gone.
“Where'd he go?”
He was already fleeing like mad in the opposite direction of the wolves.
His animal instincts had grasped the severity of the situation before I did.
“You should run, too.”
– Whoosh!
The instant Lee Do-hyun finished speaking, the giant wolf Fenrir, who had been standing before me, kicked off the ground and charged.
“Ah.”
The training had begun.
I had to run, too.
*
Late evening.
– Save me….
Vanquisher Penthouse, second floor, Ha Sion's room.
With the sharp eyes of an archer, she was watching the scene inside the Illusion Barrier outside her window.
In the middle of the plain inside the barrier, Jung Hae-in and the cute little peregrine falcon, Flapper, were sprawled out on the ground side by side.
The two of them were stuck together like comrades-in-arms who had just overcome a life-or-death crisis.
They look close.
“Hehe.”
How cute, she thought.
She glanced at the clock by the window; it was already late evening.
Without even stopping to eat, they had endured Lee Do-hyun's training for nearly ten hours, from morning until now.
It seemed the training was about to end. In the distance, even Lee Do-hyun had a faint smile on his lips.
His wolves were still circling Jung Hae-in and Flapper, but they no longer showed any sign of pursuit.
Just then.
Lee Do-hyun turned his head while still mounted on Fenrir.
It was over.
After catching his breath, Jung Hae-in would be returning to his room.
Ha Sion placed a hand on her chest to calm her pounding heart.
Then, with a determined expression, she looked at the mirror in her room.
Perched atop her head were a pair of jet-black bunny ears.
Her sleek legs were clad in see-through mesh leggings.
And her entire body was wrapped in a latex outfit that revealed every curve.
Ha Sion had finished all her preparations.
But looking at her reflection in the mirror, the reality of the situation finally sank in.
“Is this… really the right thing to do…?”
A trembling voice escaped her lips unconsciously.
But why not?
There was nothing strange about it. Everything had been planned according to perfect logic.
Today, Jung Hae-in had learned how to tame a Mythical Beast.
How to understand it, commune with it, and in the end, make it submit.
“Since I'm a bunny….”
Ha Sion muttered, fiddling with the black ears on her head in the reflection.
And, as it just so happened, by pure coincidence…
Ha Sion… was also a bunny.
