The creature growled in pleasure, and its demeanor began to shift—its entire evolution began to be affected.
Eiran recoiled as something snarled at him from within the blood.
"Haha!" A burst of laughter came from the audience.
"He's trying to cure a beast that is becoming an annihilator. He's really a daring healer." A Spector comment
"But that is an achievement. Any beast turning will never calm before any healer. This Prince is truly exceptional." Another one replied
"Yes, but we all know the Annihilator Beast will mark him as an enemy!"
The audience proved to be great sources of information for Eiran. His gaze turned toward the commentator.
"We want you to fight, not heal it. In dangerous environments, not all beasts will fall to their knees before you," he spoke, and people nodded.
Someone added, "We won't admit it, but it's impressive that the beast's rage disappeared. But we just want to see carnage."
"What if they all bow?" Eiran didn't raise his voice, but it reached everyone's ears. Slowly, unknowingly, the arena quieted down, wondering if this was arrogance or part of his talent.
The commentator was one of the Candidates, but older—Phase 2. He was from the previous wave, now turned Guide. He remained silent for a moment before standing and waving his hand. The beast was yanked up and dragged to a steel-barred cage, which then closed.
The cage rose into the sky toward the source of light. Floating, perhaps held by something, were numerous cages. Another one fell down with a damning sound.
The steel bars fell away, revealing a green-skinned beast. Green vapor wisped from its nose as it breathed, its skin leaking liquid—all poisonous.
The beast's gaze landed on Eiran and it lunged.
No expression crossed his face as the beast's speed seized and it skidded on the ground, coming very close to Eiran's boot. It didn't touch, lest it smear him with poison. Its poisonous breathing also ceased as it lay down, eyes closed, sleeping.
No comment this time. But there was one thought—Eiran was a tamer of beasts.
The commentator smiled and nodded before waving his hand. More than ten cages fell down.
Bam
Bam
Bam
They surrounded Eiran from all directions. Nyara Dume sighed, hand clenched. This had passed the point of a test. No candidate was asked to face multiple beasts at the same time.
But she couldn't interfere either, since this might not be a fight—unless Eiran was in danger.
The cages opened, the beasts freed themselves like every other and lunged forward. But once they were within twenty meters of him, their rage shifted. They skidded, some slowing into a jog, until they were before him.
They snarled at each other, competing for who could be closer, before they shuffled themselves and each came very close. Making a circle around him, they lay down and closed their eyes.
"Is that your talent?" a spectator asked. Eiran didn't respond, his eyes on the beasts. They were ugly, but they were in pain, confused.
His passive healing did aid them, but also, his presence gave them more than healing—calm and mental rest.
Eiran didn't actively heal them but allowed them the benefits of his presence alone.
ROAR!
Eiran's gaze snapped up. He wasn't the only one startled—the whole arena was. Hands reached for weapons, some ready to use their abilities. Even the high-ranking spectators, the Princes, stiffened and looked up.
"This isn't funny anymore!" Nyara snarled, but didn't emerge yet.
The roar shook the humans, but it was the beasts around Eiran that shook the most. They all looked up, eyes shrinking in fear.
ROAR!
The beasts began to rise on their limbs but didn't move as the second roar came.
The commentator waved his hand, and the cage of the roaring beast fell.
"He's releasing the annihilator?" some exclaimed.
Eiran frowned. He'd heard that name before.
Bam!
It didn't have a steel-barred cage but steel walls with only a small window for air. Eiran felt it—there was no calming the blood of the beast in the cage. It was like a raging volcano.
The cage walls fell away and it came into view. A gorilla with four arms—two large and robust, befitting the beast, and two smaller, thin ones with long, sharp nails. What attracted Eiran's attention was the presence of an object above its head, pulsing with raw power.
Eiran's head tilted as he observed the beast. Its body was strong, but what made it dangerous was the power flowing from the object to the beast continuously.
It leaned forward, supported by its large arms, and stood on two. Its gaze fell on Eiran, then on the beasts around him. By now they all looked up, staring back in fear.
Its giant hand moved to the chain and pulled. It didn't break—it knew it couldn't break it—so it just stood there and roared, the smaller hands spread with long claws waving.
The beasts around Eiran reacted and ran behind him, away from the Annihilator Beast.
'Is it trying to control them?' Eiran thought. The smaller hands couldn't be useful in a brute fight and the way it spread them.
Suddenly, the chain holding the annihilator snapped open, freeing it. The beast lunged faster than all the beasts that had come down before it.
Eiran's eyes widened. He hadn't expected to be facing more beasts. Nyara had only said "Beast"—singular. not to mention annihilator.
The annihilator was halfway when the beasts behind Eiran lunged forward to intercept the annihilator. Even Eiran was surprised.
The annihilator frowned and jumped high, avoiding them. Some jumped, but its hand smacked them away as it came down toward Eiran.
Nyara had indeed made a move but found her body frozen, muscles straining. Someone had bound her in place. She couldn't even speak, not even twitch a muscle.
ROAR
High above, it roared. A shockwave came down, but the beasts that remained all collectively roared, their collective power crashing and canceling each other out.
A long tail from the green poisonous reptilian wrapped around Eiran and pulled him away in time.
Boom!
The beasts lunged at the annihilator, but it waved its hand. Force slammed into them and they were pushed away with minor injuries. It moved, its speed breaking the ground as it reached Eiran, punching down with its fist larger than Eiran's torso.
Bang!
A beast with a turtle shell met the beast's fist, and Eiran was pulled away again by the green reptile. The reptile could send its tail up to a hundred meters and snap it back at incredible speed.
A beast with elephant tusks slammed into the annihilator, halting its movement, as an eagle beast released a shockwave, further delaying the annihilator as the beasts sent away all reached it, adding their weight.
"They're protecting me!" Eiran was more shocked than the spectators. 'I only helped them snooze a little in peace!'
Others might assume that was his talent, but he knew that wasn't it specifically.
But he also noticed the annihilator didn't want to injure them—it wasn't killing them as he had expected.
The object above the beast glowed, the smaller hands stretching like ropes. They waved around; some beast's mind was controlled and pulled back, but they snapped back and attacked again.
'It's trying to take control of them. The control I broke!' Eiran grasped.
Then the object glowed, and its light dwarfed the source of light. Eiran felt irritated, but many in the spectators became dazed.
'Crack!'
A crack sounded on the object above the annihilator. Then it grabbed one beast—a large monkey—and threw it to the other side of the arena.
"Ekkkh!" A wailing sound escaped the monkey. Eiran gazed at it, reminded of what he'd seen in that red woman's eyes—the pleading, the self-pity.
The monkey expanded and, like a magnet, all the beasts were attracted to it.
"This is out of control. We shouldn't let another Annihilator be born!" an older woman shouted.
"Relax. It's under control!" a young voice retorted.
It became like a storm, swirling. An unimaginable force rose inside as Eiran felt eeriness under his skin. All the beasts slammed together, merging and forging something unnatural.
The gorilla was free and sped up, reaching Eiran with fist raised, coming down at him.
'Dub Luv.'
His nameless Blood Art activated. Things slowed, his eyes glowed, shifting toward the gorilla at his side, leaving crimson streaks. His right hand flickered to the blade and pulled.
Vooooo!
Raging flames covered the gorilla, blasting it back to the arena wall. That wasn't Eiran—that was one of the Princes. He'd interfered with his flame power, faster than Eiran's movement.
Eiran only had the sword drawn a little. His gaze turned to the prince, who stood erect, eyes cold, crimson but of burning coal rather than blood.
His hair was fiery red; just gazing at him made Eiran feel warmth on his skin.
"This is pointless. He has proven himself. Why push it too far?" His voice was deep, filled with command. Then he walked away.
The rest of the Princes stood and walked away too.
Nyara Dume appeared beside Eiran, hand on his shoulder. They flickered away. "That thing will explode and birth an Annihilator designed to hunt you!"
"What?" Eiran was shocked.