Beast-Tamer: Limitless Evolution
Chapter 36: First Exercise II

Chapter 36: First Exercise II

First Exercise II

Osho’s group was assigned to a teacher along with 4 other groups, making them 25 in total.

The teacher was male, and he appeared to be in his mid-forties with a receding hairline. Not that he was ugly, and he was probably older than he looked since Mana did things like that, a prime example being their principal.

His name was Stan, and his beast was a translucent spider that would make anyone with arachnophobia pass out on sight.

"Alright everyone, I’ve been tasked with being your caretaker for this exercise, so I hope you all listen to me to avoid problems. Alright?" His voice was noticeably nicer than Mrs Jane’s and didn’t hold nearly as much impact, but there was still a hint of sternness in it that made them inclined to agree.

When everyone nodded, he also nodded with satisfaction.

"Good, Krin?" He turned to the spider that had been weaving absurdly long strings of web out of thin air, or Mana, and setting them to the ground.

As soon as it heard its name, the spider’s head perked up and it looked between its master and the students, then the strings suddenly levitated and shot toward the students. Most of them were startled, but instead of an attack, the strings simply wrapped around their waists and fastened like belts.

Everyone exclaimed and Osho inspected the string curiously. It was so light that he wouldn’t have noticed it if not for how snug it was around his waist. He gently tugged at it and was surprised by its durability. It reminded him of a steel thread, and he was suddenly worried that it would cut into him if he moved too violently. But the more he inspected it, the more he realized that was unlikely because no matter how hard he pressed his finger into it, he never got the sensation of his skin being cut into. The thin thread was somehow very blunt, which he decided to chalk up to Mana fuckery.

"Now I’m sure you’re wondering what these are for." Stan started.

"To put it simply, these are a security measure. I can’t watch all of you, but I can increase your safety. These threads are very receptive to vibrations. So that means not only will Krin feel your movements, whether casual or urgent, but he can also feel the vibrations brought about by your internals, so if your heart is beating faster than normal, lungs filling and deflating at a concerning rate, and most importantly, if you get injured. The moment he detects danger, he will yank you away via the threads around your waists." Hearing this, everyone had a new appreciation of the spider.

While the knowledge that he could feel their internal organs through vibrations alone was unnerving, it was oddly comforting, especially in the situation they were in.

"Alright, now remember, you have 8 hours. Keep your things close, use your limited resources sparingly but not overly so, and don’t be afraid to tug hard on the string if you feel something off or out of place, I’ll be as fast as I can to assist you." As he said that, everyone nodded.

Turns out, one person in the team would act as a porter, carrying their equipment, while another person would be in charge of documenting everything they learned.

Osho volunteered to be the porter while Kurt was assigned to be the one who documented their information simply for virtue of his neat and comprehensive style of writing.

With this in place, the groups set out into to forest, heading in different directions to avoid bumping into each other.

"Alright, formation everyone, just as we discussed," Ellie said and they moved. They decided that since this was an exercise where combat was heavily discouraged, they’d take an approach that mimicked their desire for simple scouting.

Gale flapped his wings and shot into the air, stopping at about 70 meters (229.658 feet) into the air. Not enough to clear the canopy of trees, but still enough for the bird to get a, well, bird’s eye view of the surrounding terrain. The bird silently circled overhead as they proceeded.

On the ground, Kurt moved forward slightly, stopping just behind Ellie with his fox. The beast, Clyde would use its sharp hearing to detect any distant activity, and its sound manipulation would also aid in detecting any sounds from the rear

In the middle, Sam and Blackie would monitor the flanks, with Blackie using their stealth to quietly move some distance away from the group. Sticking to the shadows as it watched for any potential ambushes.

Osho would be right in the center of it all.

Irene would be in the rear with Inagi, slightly off to the side of Ellie. They that while it would be a good vanguard, its high durability would make it a good rear guard. Moreover, it could always just move to the front if the need arose.

With this set, the group set off.

___

Mrs. Jane watched as the students went into the forest in different directions, the teachers in charge of watching them intentionally lagging behind as they each had their measures for making sure nothing bad happened in place.

As she sat atop one of the military vehicles, giving herself a good view of the terrain. Despite the dense trees, she could see miles into the forest even with all the obstructions, and right now, her gaze kept lingering on one group of students.

’Interesting formation.’ She noted as she watched Osho’s group sort itself.

’Glad to see he isn’t narrow-minded in using Gale’s abilities.’ She thought as she watched the bird soar and observe things from above. She was a bit worried that, upon seeing Gale’s combat strength, Osho would fail to see the other ways the bird’s abilities could be displayed, like scouting. But it seemed like her worries were unnecessary, which she was glad for.

"So far so good." She said aloud and stared up for a few seconds, then she shifted her gaze to the side.

"Will you not watch your young lady?" As soon as she said that, a being emerged from her shadow. It was shining on her side so it wasn’t behind her.

The being was the same man Osho had pointed out to Ellie, the one who always followed her around.

"This is just a copy of mine. Moreover, the master wants to see what that boy is capable of. He isn’t a normal boy, that much is certain. Ever since he came into the picture, he’s been reacting to our young miss like he’s known her for a long time, and nothing she does perturbed him. Nor is he perturbed by my presence. Now that he has hatcher a beast, and one as talented as that, my Master has taken interest in him." The man explained calmly.

"Is that why you told me to pair them together?" Jane asked.

"Think of that as a personal desire of mine. I’m quite curious to see how this plays out, to see how the boy will react to the wilderness, and see just how much he is willing to do for our young miss." Hearing this, Mrs Jane’s eyes sharpened slightly.

"I hope you aren’t implying that you intentionally set up something to put them in danger." The man shook his head.

"Don’t worry, even I’m wary of your wrath, I wouldn’t try to provoke you, not intentionally anyway." Jane snorted.

"I hope not."

___

For the first thirty minutes of their journey, the group had avoided all danger so far. Gale served as an excellent scout, easily spotting and directing the group away from danger. Much of the danger they’d avoided was groups of monsters, and they doubted observing an entire group would be wise, let alone fighting.

It wasn’t just Gale either, as Clyde with his keen senses had alerted them of creatures lurking out of sight numerous times. This made Osho curious about how they could be watched without feeling the intent of their observer, and Sam explained that beasts, especially ambush predators, know how to keep their intent hidden until the last moment when their prey is close enough for them to strike and unable to defend themselves, which was unnerving to think about.

But that was under the premise that they had been discovered in the first place, and such predators hadn’t just been waiting for any type of prey to appear beforehand.

They also didn’t worry about being followed as they had all applied their Concealment powder to their bodies, specifically the parts that released their smells the most, reducing their chances of being tracked or found out by anything.

Moreover, Osho had them walk on rocks and roots jutting out of the floor instead of the ground to prevent themselves from being tracked by anything that possessed such an ability via their footsteps. As such, their progress wasn’t swift, but their safety took priority.

It was around the 50-minute mark that Osho suddenly signaled for them to stop and everyone came to a halt.

He took out his watch and sent a message to all of them.

[Beast ahead.]

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