Chapter 32: Stuck at the Most Unexpected Place
Clocking in, Asher started the day—another chapter in the life of a diligent worker.
As he sat down at his desk, Asher found his thoughts wandering to an unresolved question:
'Affinity and synchronization levels can be improved, mental energy can be cultivated, and there is a clear path for both special and fire-attribute skills. But what about True Fire?'
True Fire—a manifestation of the innate flame honed by fire-attribute beasts through mastery of their abilities. It was a rare phenomenon, one that might not appear even among a hundred fire-attribute creatures.
He glanced at Little Raven.
The Oriental Peacock's natural attribute leaned toward the special category, but the Three-Legged Golden Crow—the target evolution—sounded distinctly fire-aligned. Perhaps it was a dual-attribute beast: fire and special.
"Mastering fire skills without a fire attribute and then cultivating True Fire…" Asher smiled wryly. Surely, his talent skill wasn't setting him up for failure? There had to be some prerequisite condition he hadn't unlocked yet, right?
He decided to shelve the thought for now. Life was already challenging enough; no need to make it harder for himself.
"Maybe once Little Raven masters fire skills, its latent bloodline will awaken, and its fire attribute will skyrocket," he consoled himself.
———
The workweek flew by quickly.
Little Raven's training regimen grew increasingly rigorous, occupying most of its time and yielding significant progress. It was now teetering on the edge of a breakthrough to Tier 2 Advanced. Even its mental energy had improved, moving past the previous "-" designation.
The only outlier was the affinity stat—still stubbornly stuck at 49. Like a threshold it simply refused to cross.
But Asher wasn't in a rush.
After all, he and Little Raven had only been together for less than a month. These things took time. Little Raven would come around eventually.
Saturday arrived, and as soon as his special alarm went off, Asher grabbed Little Raven and headed into the city.
Their destination? The NY City Beastmaster Alliance.
The front desk was familiar, but the receptionist's attitude had shifted dramatically.
The same young lady he had met twice before widened her eyes in surprise the moment she saw him, clearly recognizing him.
"Y-you're Mr. Asher, right?" she stammered, offering a nervous smile.
Asher was puzzled. What's with this formality? "That's me. Just call me Asher. Here's my provisional Beastmaster ID."
The receptionist quickly scanned his ID, confirming his identity. Then, rather than simply returning it, she stepped out from behind the desk and handed it back to him with both hands, her smile visibly forced.
"Please follow me. President Robb is waiting in his office," she said.
Asher nodded and followed her down the hall.
Once she left him at the office door, the receptionist returned to the front desk, where she collapsed into her chair with a dramatic sigh of relief.
"Whew—that scared me to death!" she muttered, visibly shaken.
One of her colleagues raised an eyebrow. "What's there to be scared about? That guy looks so gentle."
"Yeah, you're such a scaredy-cat," another chimed in.
The receptionist shot them both a glare. "Then why didn't either of you handle it? The moment he walked in, you shoved me forward."
Her coworkers wisely shut their mouths.
After all, compared to ordinary people like them, Beastmasters were on another level. Who knew if someone as seemingly mild-mannered as Asher would turn out to have a temper now that his reputation was growing?
The receptionist sneered inwardly. If this were a lesson in teamwork, her colleagues had just flunked it spectacularly.
Meanwhile, Asher stepped into President Robb's office.
Behind the desk, Robb was deeply focused on a stack of documents. The moment he spotted Asher, however, his expression transformed into a beaming smile.
"Right on time! Not a second early or late—9:01 sharp." Robb strode over, extending a hand before Asher could even react.
Caught off guard, Asher found both his hands clasped tightly in Robb's firm grip.
"President Robb," he greeted politely, his smile unfaltering.
"No need for formalities. Call me Uncle Robb." Robb released his hands only to pat Asher's shoulder affectionately, guiding him further into the room. "I knew the moment I saw you last time—you're not an ordinary young man. And now, you've proven it by helping Little Iris so much."
Asher nodded at appropriate intervals, neither agreeing nor disagreeing too much.
Robb's enthusiasm might be genuine, but as the President of the NY City Beastmaster Alliance, he wouldn't treat someone with such warmth without a reason. Asher hadn't forgotten how Robb had behaved during their first meeting: polite but distant, his words tinged with a faint condescension when offering help.
Still, Asher didn't hold a grudge.
In the adult world, relationships were often transactional. Back then, he hadn't demonstrated much value.
But now… Asher glanced at the overly genial Robb, curious about what had changed.
He couldn't figure it out, so he set the thought aside.
As long as it didn't involve his talent skill being discovered, everything else was secondary.
After some polite conversation, Robb finally retrieved a document from his desk and handed it over.
"This is the special subsidy I applied for on your behalf. Take a look, then sign the form at the end. You'll need to provide a photocopy of your ID card too. Starting this month, you'll receive the subsidy," Robb explained concisely.
"Thank you, Uncle Robb." Asher skimmed through the document, his eyebrows raising slightly.
He looked up, surprised. "Isn't this amount a bit too high?"
When Robb had initially mentioned the subsidy in a message—2,000 yuan per month—Asher had already been impressed by the Beastmaster Alliance's generosity.
After all, while 2,000 yuan wasn't a lot for someone raising a pet beast, as a supplementary allowance, it was a significant sum.
But seeing the actual terms today, Asher realized that 2,000 yuan was the highest tier of subsidies, reserved for those who met exceptionally stringent criteria.
"It's not too high at all. Honestly, it's still too low for your contributions," Robb said with a wave of his hand. "You discovered the critical point in Honeybug evolution and provided valuable verification—that's a major achievement."
"If not for your age and current academic status, I'd have applied for the Evolution Research Special Grant for you instead."
Hearing this, Asher froze.
The Evolution Research Special Grant wasn't just another subsidy; it was for professionals specializing in beast evolution research, aged 20–40, with a minimum monthly amount of 100,000 yuan.
Asher's jaw nearly dropped.
A gap from 100,000 to 2,000 yuan? That was a bit much to process.
Still, he quickly composed himself. He hadn't expected any extra compensation from the Honeybug evolution research, so even 2,000 yuan felt like a windfall.
After filling out the necessary paperwork and signing his name, Asher handed the form back to Robb. "Once I get into university, I'll trouble you to apply for the grant again, Uncle Robb."
"Absolutely! As long as you're admitted to a suitable program in this province, leave it to me," Robb promised with a hearty laugh.
He was just about to lead Asher to the copier when his phone rang. Raising a hand in apology, he stepped aside to answer it.
"…Follow my earlier instructions. The mine's opening must wait until I've confirmed everything with the experts…"
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