Chapter 20

On the advanced beast realm numbered 12768, the tiny cub was completely unaware that with the fierce advance of Warrior Candidate No. 2, the support rate for its own candidate had begun to show strange fluctuations.

Of course, as System 001 of Su You was directly connected in real-time to the main system, it had access to the candidate data fluctuations—but expecting a mere three-and-a-half-year-old cub to comprehend such data was simply unrealistic.

...Forget it.

The cold and powerful Warrior System 001 chose not to force premature growth; after all, its host had yet to grasp the true concept of competition.

Just moments ago, as various warrior systems and candidates received news that the hybrid winged tribe member, Silva Rando, had tamed an S-grade brown bear, its host was deeply engrossed in lively play with some ‘furry’ friends.

...Or, more ‘accurately’ put, the gray wolf warrior Wolberly and the golden lion warrior Belliman were jointly “training” its host.

—Yes, the two high beast tribe warriors who not long ago had the attitude of “I don’t want to serve” subtly shifted their demeanor after Su You devoured the faith energy of the half-orc Salvador.

First, the gray wolf Wolberly awkwardly flicked his massive wolf tail and wrapped it around the cub’s body. Then, the usually antagonistic golden lion Belliman shook his head and snuggled up next to Wolberly, choosing a spot close to the cub to lie down again.

The tiny cub had never before enjoyed such ‘being embraced on both sides.’ Surrounded by the golden lion and gray wolf, sitting amidst the soft fur, the cub couldn’t help but reach out with small hands—touching the wolf’s fur on the left and stroking the lion’s mane on the right, its small face full of curiosity and wonder.

Yet, the little one still showed some restraint. After fondly brushing the wolf’s tail and the lion’s mane, the three-and-a-half-year-old cub turned its gaze to its good friend, Tongtong.

“Tongtong, is it training?”

Warrior System 001: [......]

Warrior System 098, who had been quietly observing nearby: [......]

In fact, ever since the little one began pestering System 001 about what to do, Warrior System 001 had tentatively planned to get the cub exercising again.

But compared to Su You’s astonishingly powerful and almost surreal mental strength, the cub’s combat ability was truly that of a mere toddler...

Or rather, compared to some naturally lively and active ordinary cubs, Su You’s mobility seemed even weaker—classic faceplants were a regular occurrence.

As the cub clenched its tiny fists, preparing under System 001’s guidance to attempt a flatland sprint across the plains, the serious little one once again performed a classic faceplant—this time because its left foot accidentally tripped over the right.

Just as System 001’s heart skipped a beat, the half-orc warrior Salvador, who had been crouching nearby since the start, suddenly leapt up and caught the nearly face-down cub in his arms.

The cub hadn’t even realized it was about to fall before the tall half-orc carefully cradled it in both hands.

Only then did the two relaxed high beast tribe warriors raise their gaze towards the cub nestled in Salvador’s arms.

What was this foolish half-orc doing?

For both the gray wolf Wolberly and the golden lion Belliman, a cub falling while playing was perfectly normal—in a fully bestial realm, a cub must work hard to gather nutrition and strengthen its body to improve its chances of survival.

To Wolberly and Belliman, even a cub with the bloodline of the Beast God did not require excessive caution at such moments.

Thus, whether gray wolf or golden lion, when the cub crawled away from them, assuming a playful posture, neither showed any intention of stepping forward to intervene or protect.

But now, as the half-orc lifted the stumbling cub high into the air, the cub was momentarily stunned before happily smiling up at the half-orc: “Thank you! I’m Youyou, who are you?”

Salvador couldn’t understand Su You’s language, but the cub’s loyal followers accurately extracted the word ‘Youyou’ from the complex sounds.

After a moment, the half-orc carefully held the cub with one hand and pointed to his own nose with the other: “Salvador. My name is Salvador.”

At that moment, the gray wolf warrior Wolberly and the golden lion Belliman could no longer sit still. As members of the same faith, even if they couldn’t confirm Su You as the child of the Beast God, they certainly could not allow a foolish half-orc to claim the cub’s heart.

So, while Salvador held the cub, the two previously indifferent high beast tribe warriors stood up, swished their tails, and approached the half-orc, baring their teeth in warning to reclaim the cub.

System 001: [......]

What a remarkable scene!

The mighty and cold-hearted Warrior System 001, whose host’s ‘training spirit’ had just revived ten minutes ago, found itself fading back into ashes within a brief ten minutes.

Even the most composed System 001 found it difficult to maintain calm at this moment.

The only consolation was that the cub, surrounded by furry beasts and the tall half-orc, still firmly remembered its objective to ‘train.’

Thus, in the time that followed, Salvador was quickly edged out, and the cub gained two high beast tribe mentors—

The powerful gray wolf warrior took charge of overseeing the cub’s running; whenever the cub was about to stumble, Wolberly would curl his tail and scoop the cub up onto his back.

At such times, the cub would joyfully hug Wolberly’s large tail, rubbing against it happily and adorably saying, “Thank you, Lili! Youyou likes Lili the most!”

As for the golden lion Belliman—this handsome lion also wished to coax Su You like Wolberly did, but lacking a fluffy tail, he couldn’t wrap the cub onto his back in the same way.

Though he considered his mane far more magnificent than the gray wolf’s fur, it was clear that at times like these, the wolf’s bushy tail was more practical.

Belliman growled irritably, flicked his tail, turned his head away, then gave a loud roar to catch the cub’s attention. After stepping back a couple of paces, he dashed forward and quickly leapt onto the giant tree where he had been resting.

—Though he couldn’t carry the cub on his tail, in his bestial form, that foolish gray wolf couldn’t climb the giant tree.

Belliman was demonstrating his skills to the cub.

Below, the cub, previously delighted under the protection of Wolberly’s tail, turned its head at Belliman’s movement and saw the massive lion scaling the tree at lightning speed.

The tiny cub’s eyes widened in awe at the golden lion’s swift ascent, then immediately burst into applause with excited clapping.

So, in the time that followed, the cub, still unskilled at running, gained a new ‘learning goal’—climbing trees.

But it was clear that neither the cub’s delicate fingers nor its weak limbs could tame the towering giant tree before it.

Just as the cub made its one hundred and first attempt to grasp the bark and mimic the golden lion’s leap upwards, a series of distant, resonant beast roars suddenly echoed from deep within the jungle—these were the calls signifying a gathering for the high beast tribes.