This Beast-Tamer is a Little Strange

The loud alarm blared relentlessly through the corridors, an earsplitting ringing that would make sure that everyone in or around the building would hear it.

The once empty hallway within the sleeping quarters erupted into chaos. Doors burst open, and over a dozen heavily armed guards stormed into the corridor, their expressions ranging from groggy confusion to razor-sharp focus.

The first wave of spiritual creatures appeared almost instantly. Most of the guards were 5-stars, but due to their higher ranks than those guards without the privilege to enter this level, they mostly all had at least one blue-grade spiritual creatures, one level higher than their masters' five-star level of strength, not to mention that there were two six-star guards among them

They were completely outnumbered.

Their only saving grace was the wish made by Balens was still active, ensuring that the blue-grade spiritual creatures were not much stronger than their own contracts, while the green-grade spiritual creatures were not much of a threat.

Kain barely had time to process the overwhelming force before the first wave of attacks came.

Serena dove into the fray with her twin blades, slicing through a water-element beast that lunged at her.

Lina, now mostly recovered from her previous injury, summoned a light-attribute butterfly, the same species that Leonara contracted, which formed protective barriers around each of them. Along with the walls of stone formed by Aegis, and a shimmering shield of starlight formed by Serena's Starweaver, they were able to buy precious seconds as Kain began the process of leveling the playing field.

They were outnumbered, badly. Even with their wish weakening their opponents, the sheer volume of enemies and the presence of the six-star guards tipped the scales against them.

Thankfully, he had Bea.

Bea's spiritual link pulsed, and Kain could feel the ripple of control she exerted on the guards stationed in the less confidential areas of the facility. Moments later, the sound of heavy boots and growls of spiritual creatures approached.

The controlled guards and their beasts flooded the room, seemingly rushing to assist their supposed allies. But as they entered the battle, Bea issued a silent command to attack their "allies" from behind.

Chaos erupted.

The controlled guards turned on the unsuspecting high-ranking personnel, catching them off guard. The room descended into pandemonium as friends became foes, and confusion spread like wildfire.

Spiritual creatures turned on individuals who were previously friendly with them, and the air was filled with screams of betrayal and the visceral sounds of combat.

One of the six-star guards roared in frustration, rallying the remaining uninfected guards. "They've likely controlled them! Focus on the intruders!"

The distraction bought Kain, Serena, and Lina some breathing room, but it wasn't enough to turn the tide entirely.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Therefore, while many of the guards and their contracts were distracted by the betrayal of their former allies, Bea's barely visible mental threads darted out, seeking targets among the remaining weaker 4 and 5-star guards and any green-grade and lower contracts. Even one more turned guard will greatly ease their pressure.

Then, amid the chaos, one of the researchers bolted toward a console at the far end of the room. Stay updated with empire

Kain's heart sank. His instincts were telling him to stop him.

"Stop him!" he shouted, but Serena and Lina were both too preoccupied to act.

Kain could only send one of the Vespid guards after him, and it did manage to send its stinger straight into the spine of the running researcher, but not before he hit a button.

The researcher used the last of his life force to slam his hand onto a control panel as he felt his energy and blood being drained from his body.

A series of metallic clanks echoed from the walls. A dozen concealed openings in the ceiling were revealed. They must lead to the cages in the levels above, releasing a variety of hybrids. Who immediately attacked those around them.

Kain braced himself for an assault, but the hybrids ignored him entirely, their savage eyes locking onto Serena and Lina instead as well as many of the controlled guards.

He realized the reason in an instant: the key ring that he currently had in his pocket. The hybrids had been trained—or conditioned—to identify some aura emanating from the ring as a marker of authority.

Serena's eyes darted to him, her face grim as she deflected a hybrid's claws. She seemed to have made the same conclusion.

Fortunately, Serena and Lina weren't their only targets. Unfortunately for the controlled guards, many of them lacked the ring to access this floor and became instant targets.

As the hybrids tore through their ranks, Kain took advantage of the confusion to strike at the six-star guards.

He and Serena's contracts attacked together.

One of the blue-grade contracts of the opponents, easily one of the most powerful on the field, was a hulking lava-coated bear.

Currently, Serena's Starweaver was using a huge amount of its energy to suspend it in the air like a fish on a hook. Meanwhile, her Elemental Guardian, now in its water-attribute serpentine form was bombarding it alongside many of the Vespid guards.

Its hide was thick, so most stingers did not penetrate deeply; however, the ones that did were constantly draining its energy, and the strung-up bear was helpless to remove them.

Bea's threads, meanwhile, snaked toward the one green-grade contract of the same 6-star beast-tamer wrapping around his mind. Bea made a conscious decision to not try to control any of the Blue-grade contracts—even if Kain boosted her abilities with the spiritual skill, it would still take a massive amount of her energy and concentration. While wrestling for control of a 6-star beast-tamer or a blue-grade contract, she may end up losing control of the individuals she already has working for her.

Indeed, the green-grade contract bound to a 6-star beast-tamer was different. There was a wave of energy coming through its contract, preventing them from controlling it easily. The resistance was formidable, but Kain activated the spiritual skill and Bea pushed harder.

With a guttural scream, the spiritual creature, a green-grade fire-attribute serpent succumbed, and turned on its former ally, unleashing a torrent of flames that seared the corridor at the blue-grade spiritual creatures it shared the same master with.

It didn't do much harm to them, but it was the most formidable distraction. After all, they couldn't kill it since the broken contract would cause severe backlash to their shared beast-tamer.

Kain had used just one of the beast-tamer's contracts to limit the movements of his remaining 5 contracts. And not only did Kain not feel bad about 'playing dirty,' seeing the twisted expression on his opponent's face, he revelled in it.

'It really is true that victory favours the cunning, not the noble…'