The sun blazed over the tiny village of Mudhole (yes, that was really its name), and Kael Arvendon—resident "trash-tier" orphan—was getting yelled at again.
"You want to be a WHAT?!" Old Man Gorms spat, his beard trembling like an angry sheep.
"A Beast Tamer," Kael repeated, grinning.
The entire village square burst into laughter.
"HA! Even farmer's donkeys are stronger than you!"
"Beast Tamers are just glorified pet-sitters!"
"Last tamer we had got eaten by a squirrel!"
Kael sighed. If only they knew.
Because three days ago, he'd woken up with memories of his past life—as the legendary Beast King, a man who'd tamed Storm Drakes and Volcanic Lions. And then he'd died.
Thanks, evil calamity.
Now, reborn in this no-magic backwater, he had to start over.
Current Beast Tamer Progress:
- Beasts Tamed: 0
- Reputation: "That weird kid who talks to birds."
- Life Savings: 3 copper coins and a half-eaten turnip.
That evening, Kael snuck into the Whispering Woods (which mostly whispered, "Go away, idiot").
Goal: Find any beast to prove he wasn't crazy.
Instead, he found hunters cornering a small, silver-furred fox—its leg trapped in a jagged metal trap.
"Back off, brat!" one hunter snarled. "This Moon Fox's fur'll buy me a new wagon!"
Kael's chest burned. An E-rank beast. Weak. But—
Memory Flash: His past self taming a fox just like this—
"Hey, fleabag!" Kael yelled suddenly.
The hunters froze. The fox's ears twitched.
"I bet you can't even outrun these losers!"
The fox hissed—then vanished in a puff of silver mist.
Illusion Magic!
The hunters stumbled, swatting at fake foxes while the real one limped behind Kael.
"Alright," Kael whispered, prying the trap open. "You're free. Now scram."
The fox stared at him. Then—
CHOMP.
"OW! Why'd you bite me?!"
A warm glow spread from the bite. Taming Bond: Activated.
System Voice (in his head):
"Congratulations! You've tamed: [Moon Fox – E-rank]. Abilities: Minor Illusions, Chronic Sarcasm."
The fox smirked. "You're welcome, idiot."
Kael marched back to the village, the fox trotting beside him.
"You're gonna help me prove I'm not useless," he muttered.
The fox yawned. "Doubt it."
At the village well, Old Lady Brenna screamed. "DEMON FOX! IT'LL CURSE OUR CROPS!"
The fox sighed—then made three illusion copies of itself.
Villagers: "AAAAH—wait, why is one of them wearing a tiny hat?"
Kael facepalmed. "Stop messing around."
The fox dispelled the illusions… except the hat-wearing one, which stuck around for three days and became the village's new unofficial mayor.
Next morning, Kael headed to the nearest adventurer's guild—a rundown shack called "The Drunk Griffin."
Guild Clerk (bored): "Occupation?"
"Beast Tamer."
"HA!" The entire guild burst out laughing. Even the drunk guy in the corner wheezed.
Kael's eye twitched. The fox grinned—then made the clerk's paperwork turn into origami cranes.
"I'LL KILL YOU—"
"WAIT!" A girl with wild red hair (Lia, fire mage) slammed her hands on the table. "That fox just used magic. How?!"
Kael smirked. "Told you I'm a tamer."
Lia scowled. "Fine. But if you wanna join, you've gotta pass a test."
Test: Clear out the guild's rat infestation.
Easy, right?
Wrong.
In the cellar, Kael sighed. "Just scare them off."
The fox's eyes gleamed. "Oh, I'll scare them."
It cast an illusion of a giant cheese monster.
The rats screamed—then organized into a tiny rat army and charged.
"WHY ARE THEY HOLDING TINY SPEARS?!" Kael yelled, sprinting upstairs.
The guild watched in horror as 200 armed rats stormed the main hall, led by a fox wearing a napkin cape.
Lia: "WHAT DID YOU DO?!"
Kael: "In my defense, this is technically 'clearing them out'!"
The guildmaster surrendered two pies and a wheel of cheese to end the siege.
Later, as Kael got his guild badge (stamped with "Rat General" as a joke), the fox curled on his head.
"You're still useless," it said.
"Yeah, yeah."
Then—a shadow passed overhead.
A royal messenger landed on a griffin, eyeing Kael's fox.
"You. The weird tamer. The Capital Beast Games start next month. Try n
ot to embarrass yourself."
Kael grinned. Time to show the world what a real Beast Tamer can do.
The fox groaned. "We're gonna die."