Intel for Victory

Verdantia Region, Duel Stadium City.

This is a specialized city spanning an area of over 12,000 square kilometers.

Unlike other cities bustling with commercial streets or lined with towering office buildings, this city is defined by arenas of varying sizes and a central stadium capable of seating up to 100,000 spectators.

It serves as the training ground for professional Beast Masters and the venue for numerous Spirit Beast competitions.

At the professional Beast Master level, Spirit Beast skills become significantly destructive.

In order to prevent collateral damage to surrounding buildings or streets during matches, cities like this—designed exclusively for Spirit Beast battles and competitions—came into existence.

Such cities are a unique feature of Gaia, reflecting the evolution of Spirit Beast battles into a competitive sport.

The same type of Duel Stadium exists in three other regions across Montis, positioned at the central locations of the Aquaris, Ignisa, Verdantia, and Cryora regions.

The Verdantia Region's Duel Stadium is located near Floralis Town.

It was a town with eternal spring where at least 200,000 people lived or worked year-round.

Currently, due to the Spirit Beast Department Practical Exam, Floralis Town is mostly occupied by official staff who already work there.

The university representatives sent from various institutions nationwide to evaluate candidates and local candidates from the region.

"Floracara, dodge the attack quickly!"

"Lemurush, now! Use High-Speed Impact!"

Walking casually down any street, you could hear candidates' commands or exclamations echoing from the arenas nearby.

It was the third day of the Verdantia Region's Practical Exam.

After a series of intense battles, the majority of candidates had already been eliminated.

Fewer than 40% remained, fiercely striving for those final victories.

Alexander was one of them.

However, he was far luckier than most of the other candidates.

His older brother, Richard Carstone, was a Rank A Professional Beast Master, renowned even within the Verdantia Region.

With his assistance, Alexander could form a contract with his starter spirit beast an Ignisquirl—a rare Spirit Beast with Ignis-type as its primary attribute and Aer-type as its secondary attribute.

The Ignisquirl is known for its high attack power and exceptional speed, ranking among the fastest of Spirit Beasts.

Thanks to this advantage, Alexander effortlessly secured victory in his daily battles and earning him the qualification to enroll in the Spirit Beast Department.

However, Alexander wasn't satisfied with just that.

In order to ensure both the candidates and their spirit beasts had enough time to recover, the exam rules allowed 2–3 hours of rest between matches.

The candidates could also choose to forego rest and continue challenging others immediately.

There was no restriction on the number of battles per day; if desired, a candidate could participate in just one match daily.

Having already secured his spot in the Spirit Beast Department, Alexander used the freedom afforded by these rules to focus on a different endeavor.

Together with his Ignisquirl, he roamed the Duel Stadium, gathering information about the remaining candidates and their victory counts.

He compiled this information into reports and sold them to other candidates.

It was, undeniably, a highly profitable business.

In just two short days, Alexander had already earned nearly six figures in income, and this was only from one small section of the Duel Stadium.

If he didn't have to prepare for his own battles, he would have likely expanded his business to other sections of the city with his Ignisquirl in tow.

After all, the city was enormous, and with official restrictions on personal phones, getting things done was inconvenient.

"Hey, want some intel?"

"I've got detailed profiles on candidates from zones A through D, including their win counts! Just tell me your opponent's number, and I can check if I've got their data. Who knows, I might have everything you need for your next battle! It's cheap, only 200 bucks!"

That noon, Alexander was, as usual, promoting his daily-updated intel outside the Zone D cafeteria.

In less than half an hour, he had made a small fortune, grinning ear to ear with satisfaction.

"Making money… doesn't seem that hard after all!"

After sending off another satisfied customer, Alexander couldn't help but sigh with contentment.

In just two days, he had unknowingly earned more than enough pocket money for an entire year.

Alexander decided that when he got home, he would boast to his brother and prove that he wasn't the "helpless fool who'd starve without help" he often accused him of being!

With that thought in mind, Alexander planned to find one or two more buyers to round uphisher earnings before heading back to prepare for the afternoon's battles.

Just then, he noticed a young girl in a black T-shirt descending the cafeteria stairs with two plastic bags in hand.

She was a new face—someone Alexander hadn't seen around Zone D over the past two days.

In the bustling staircase of the cafeteria, she stood out.

Why?

Because unlike everyone else, she also wasn't accompanied by a Spirit Beast.

Yet his youthful appearance made it clear that she was also a candidate, not a staff member.

Seeing a chance to expand his clientele, Alexander, with his Ignisquirl, quickly approached the young girl and blocked her path.

"Hey, do you want some intel?" Alexander greeted her enthusiastically while pulling out a thick stack of documents from his backpack and discreetly showing them to her.

"You look unfamiliar. Are you from another zone, or are you here to take the exam? Let me tell you—I've got detailed profiles on most candidates from zones A to D. It's only 200 bucks! I can tell you your next opponent's contracted Spirit Beast, its species, and its attributes. Interested?"

To dispel any doubts the young girl might have, Alexander deliberately flipped to the first page of her documents, holding them out for her to see.

"See this? These are the exam candidate profiles I painstakingly collected with my Sparkle over the past few days. They're 100% authentic!"

Alexander patted his chest confidently as he addressed the young girl in the black T-shirt.