Chapter 55: Facing the elders
There were eighteen elders and in the last two months, I’ve dealt with eight of them.
It has been a while since we started the whole ’battle’ for their acknowledgement, and each one was differently difficult to deal with than the other.
"You know you must do this if you want my acknowledgement, don’t you?" And I am still dealing with a lot of these old damn elders.
"I understand you want to see it, but why must I take in a partner that may help me in ways that I need going forward?"
Currently, I am dealing with an Elder lady that wants to see me tame a creature, any creature.
She insisted on having that one task as the only requirement for her acknowledgement. She did not want anything else and until now, I’ve just put off this one since I believed she would change her mind or something.
’But I was gravely mistaken.’
She was stubborn as a of Karol region. She did not change her mind and she did not listen to any logical explanation that I made.
"It does not matter, child. You can just choose and tame a simple basic beast, and then if you want, I will help you get rid of it–."
"I cannot."
The only way to deal with a tamed beast would be to kill them. And I cannot have her do that to an innocent creature.
In the first place, I dedicated my past life to prevent people from unnecessarily killing their own tamed beasts. I had many nations sanctions laws against doing such a thing as well.
In my last few decades, it was a grave crime to kill your own tamed beast... but then again, the world of that time was much different from the good place we see right now.
"You have no right to force me into this and you cannot make me do it either."
I don’t know how many creatures I can tame in my condition, but I am pretty sure it’s not as high as most others.
At most, I might just have enough space to fit six creatures around Nyx and my bond. Felix was extremely useful to me and she will remain a part of me, but just because someone wants to see me tame a creature, I cannot let an innocent beast suffer a tragic fate.
"I don’t know if I will tame any beasts anytime soon, but if you just want to see me do it, you are welcome to watch. But until I find the one, I am not playing your little game, great elder."
She was a taming master, a (Level-6) tamer who had more than fifty tamed beasts under her.
Of the existing schools of taming, she had made great contributions to the [School of Matter], the school of taming that focused on ’self’ as the central taming element.
Of the existing five schools of taming, the School of Matter was the second oldest and the people who followed this school of thought were called [Materialists].
As a materialist like her, my very existence was an anomaly that fascinated her far more than the creatures that followed me.
"We have been all around the five cradles to find you this ’special’ creature you want, young boy.
Every creature that sees you, likes you. Even Weapon-grade beasts are respectful towards your little bird, and you know how to have a way even with the most difficult creatures."
Of all the elders, she was the only one that walked around without her hood on. And she was old, it was obvious.
Her wrinkled face and hair that had gone white and dry were obvious signs of her age. And yet, her stark red eyes, the obvious proof of her Sungrade bloodline, were as sharp as any of the Ladies of the house.
"Be it the weapon grade beasts or the historical creatures of SSR-rank, all the creatures that showed affection towards you weren’t to your liking.
If you don’t choose any of the beasts the family has to offer, what is left?"
She was technically my great-grandmother. My late grandfather and the previous Sungrade patriarch was her brother’s son.
She was family, and that was more of a reason I didn’t want to disappoint her. But I just couldn’t do anything about it.
"You’ve seen it yourself. The creatures like me, and they would trust me if I asked them to form a formal bond with me. But that’s not the reason I want to have their services."
Yes I’ve been to all the cradles I could and yes I’ve already seen all kinds of creatures that I could in the family, but none of the beings I saw until now gave me the feeling that I had when I saw Felix.
"When I saw Felix in the sixth cradle, I just knew we needed to be together. You can call it anything you want. I know you’d think of it as the dumbest thing ever."
That’s what the materialists were like.
For them, taming was all about them. For them, taming was efficient and ’use’ of their creatures.
They sacrificed any number of creatures they needed to for getting what they wanted. And that was the philosophy that they followed. That was the way of their lives.
"You don’t strike me as a romantic, young one." I wanted to show her the way ’we’ tame as well. I’d have loved for an expert like her to see what was possible before the rest of the world sees it.
But I don’t want any creature to be in a relationship where they’re seen as a weapon or a means to an end. For [Synchronists] like us, the creatures that we tame were more than our own bodies.
"Haaaa... if that’s the case, we can’t do anything about it." She signed and sat down on a chair that materialised from the ground behind her.
She was stubborn but she was also the only elder that didn’t nag at him like the six others who gave him a hard time.
Aside from Elder Ran and Elder Frey, she was the only one that didn’t put me through hell.
’Some of them fought me and beat me up until I was in the clinic, or cut pieces of me for a sample in their experiments.’
They did not leave Felix and Nyx alone either. But, while my feline friend endured their torture along with me, they never got their hands on Nyx.
That one slipped through their hands every single time. One of the elders that I still haven’t won over had made it his life’s mission to capture my little friend and now, he was constantly hunting him.
’Well, good luck to him.’
It’d be monumental to see a human outsmart a literal personification of wisdom.
It was good to see Elder Frey’s and Elder Ran’s acknowledgement of my leave in the first month, but getting the rest of them over the last month was no easy task.
"I have made my decision, little one. And as you know-."
"You will not take back your words, yes. I know."
Well, I guess I’ll just have to forget about getting out of here for now.
"..."
I have come to know quite a bit about her in the short time we have spent together.
She was certainly the third most stubborn person I have seen. Even as a materialist, she is an individual I respect.
Her boundaries were clear. And, I cannot change her mind now if I haven’t succeeded over the last few weeks.
"I’m not supposed to tell you this..." I believed her silence was meant to be a silent apology for me.
Of all the elders I have met until now, she was the only one who genuinely seemed to care about my wish of the leaving the house.
"Hmm?"
At certain times, I had seen warmth in her ever-sharp eyes. And right now was one of those times.
"They have been calling for you ever since that incident."
"Hmm?"
She said it as if she was breaking some kind of a law.
"The guardians."
"...!"
And she certainly was breaking a law right now.
"Agnus just seems to be hesitant. That worrywort."
The guardians are the ones who look after the Sun sanctuary, the first cradle that no one can enter without their permission.
They aren’t humans but mythological beings that no one truly knows the identity of.
Ever since the Salamanders have existed on the Sungrade lands and ever since the Sun sanctuary has been standing, the guardians have looked after them.
The family members who have ever interacted with them or know about them have to keep anything regarding them a close secret.
"You will go there. And perhaps, you’ll find another special someone who wants to be with you."
Not all who enter the sanctuary are chosen by the legendary beings.
In recent years, after my father, only our eldest sister was chosen by a salamander... but she has been missing for a long, long time.
We don’t even know if she’s alive or not, but she could be out there somewhere, on an adventure of her own.
"I’ll see if I can accompany you there."
The elder, great lady Testerosa, was serious about seeing just how a ’cripple’ like me managed to tame a being.
She was fascinated by how I used my bond factors and synchronicity techniques.
She wanted to see more...
"Let’s hope you find someone over there."
It didn’t seem like she was going to let me leave this house before seeing me tame a beast.
’I don’t know whether I should feel good about this or miserable.’