After a short talk, Scarlet released Rocky's arm from her embrace.
Rocky looked at her with a bit of curiosity—especially when his eyes landed on her beast.
"So, which zone did you find that dragon?"
Scarlet smirked.
"Red zone."
Rocky's eyes widened in surprise.
"R-Red zone?"
Well, his reaction was understandable. After all, beasts from the red zone always possessed the highest species ranks. Every beast tamer dreamed of stepping into that holy zone to tame a beast.
If they could enter it, they could at least obtain an apex-species beast. But reaching the red zone required countless strict conditions.
For example: the tamer had to be a genius capable of taming nearly any beast in the world.
Even though he had vaguely guessed it from her pet's stats, it was still hard to believe when she said it out loud.
And yet, the fact that Scarlet revealed such information so easily meant one thing—she wanted something from him.
"You shouldn't reveal that kind of information to strangers. If the whole world knows, even your clan won't be able to protect you. Humans are damned creatures. They can't accept anything beyond their control."
Scarlet tried to hide her blushing face when Rocky showed concern for her.
(You're not a stranger.)
"Of course, I know that very well. I showed my secret to you because I want to know about your beast."
Rocky scratched his head, confused.
She regained her calm and explained,
"Your beast comes from the deepest black zone, right?"
Rocky rubbed his chin. Truthfully, at that moment, he had only followed his instincts. He didn't even remember exactly when or how he encountered his beast in the black zone.
"I'm not really sure. Back then, I was desperate—just trying to find any beast I could."
Scarlet sighed. Her voice turned strict, like a teacher lecturing a student.
"That's bad. You should know the origin of your beast."
Then she added,
"I'm certain your beast comes from the deepest black zone—not only because of its species rank, but also because of its power… From what I know, the black zone is split into two parts. The shallow zone, as you know and as most people know. Beasts from there are quite hideous, and even then, the weakest."
"However, the deepest zone is different. No one truly knows their shapes or their traits… but I once heard a story from my father. He saw a broken beast from the red zone crawling somewhere. It looked like it had been through a brutal battle. And my father followed the trail of that beast's blood."
"Do you know what my father figured out? A bizarre beast was devouring an calamity-species rank dragon and dragging it into the deepest black zone."
Rocky's eyes widened in pure bewilderment. He had never heard anything like this before. It seemed his clan had fallen far behind the others in terms of information.
"Even I'm incapable of reaching the deepest black zone," Scarlet said. "You should be proud of that."
"But don't get smug. My beast is the daughter of the Dragon King of the red zone."
Scarlet smiled as she pointed at her dragon, which released a small flame in smug response. Yet, when dragon looked at Bobby, she just turned another place coldly.
Rocky nodded and rubbed his chin.
(It seems my beast is greater than I thought.)
***
"It's a herb that can help relax your tension." Scarlet plucked a herb and handed it to Rocky. She could tell he needed it more than ever.
It was a type of plant her clan had researched for months. As expected, a great clan never allowed itself to fall behind.
Rocky took the herb and devoured it. Almost instantly, his mind felt lighter, more at ease. All the built-up stress faded away.
Indeed, he had been living in constant tension, his thoughts fixated on the clan and revenge. Ever since that day, he had forced himself to grow stronger without rest.
He smiled bitterly as he fed some to his beast as well.
"Thank you so much, Scarlet… I think you'll be a good wife in the future. I feel jealous of that man."
Rocky summoned the system screen when he saw his beast in a good mood after the herb took effect.
—
Name: Bobby
Race: Ancient Ape
Compatibility: 100%
Species Rank: Calamity
Level: 12
Unique Skills: Basic Swordsmanship, Void Forging, Aura of Predator
Current Preferred Mana Core: [None]
Current Mood: Wants to go to the deepest forest.
—
Rocky sighed. Finally, his beast wanted something else. He glanced at Scarlet, who seemed frozen for some reason.
Maybe she was thinking about something. He'd better not distract her.
"Thank you, again. But now I need to take care of my beast. See you again when the sun rises."
3 hours passed.
Rocky thought he had arrived at the deepest part of the forest. He looked up.
Moonlight filtered through the tree leaves, and some animals began to stir. Their sounds echoed through the forest, forming a terrifying scene.
He summoned his system again, because if he stepped any further, he would enter the forest's forbidden area—where monsters were known to roam.
He wasn't sure if his beast wanted to do something crazy. Besides, he still had a mission to complete: collecting moonlight flowers. He remembered the professor's words clearly, even without needing much focus.
At 0:00 a.m., those flowers would bloom at the center of the forest. Yet his current distance from that place was still quite far.
(I hope I can return in time after satisfying Bobby's hobby.)
—
Name: Bobby
Race: Ancient Ape
Compatibility: 100%
Species Rank: Calamity
Level: 12
Unique Skills: Basic Swordsmanship, Void Forging, Aura of Predator
Current Preferred Mana Core: [None]
Current Mood: Wants to find a plant with six red leaves in the darkness.
—
Bobby pointed straight ahead, toward the deepest part of the forest—where glowing eyes lurked in the darkness, belonging to monsters from the forbidden area. That place held countless herbs humanity had yet to discover.
If he picked the wrong plant, it could be poison… but he believed in his beast. It would be a good herb.
Rocky nodded and summoned his armor.
"Let's do it."