Chapter Thirty-Three: The Tale of Damar

After Andor agreed, he painfully removed a magical contract from his son's body and handed it to Chu Tian. "Bandis is yours now."
Chu Tian took it, smiling as he stored it in his space ring. Elated, he thought: At last, I have my own magical beast! With Bandis and the items in my ring, I finally have the means to survive in the continent of phantom beasts, where the strong are as numerous as the trees in a forest!
"Don't say I didn't warn you—it's only an equal contract!" Crimson Flame, standing behind Karnas, suddenly spoke. "Without sufficient strength, you can forget about commanding that little spider!" The excuse that dragon's blood could mask magical fluctuations might fool others, but Crimson Flame knew Chu Tian's real situation. Out of gratitude for Chu Tian saving him, he offered a warning.
"Praise be to the Goddess of Life! Even if my strength is lacking, the goddess will surely sway it! Besides, I'm an eighth-level professional!" Though Chu Tian wore an expression of holy purity, his thoughts were anything but: He had already considered this issue. If Bandis could abandon Anderson under Damal's threat, it proved its intelligence was high. As for deceiving a sentient creature, Chu Tian, the master trickster, was quite experienced in that...
"Enough, Vladino. This matter is settled," King Ludi III gave his final verdict on the duel.
Chu Tian had achieved his goal, but another question arose. Though the duel had descended into chaos, it was hardly enough to alarm Ludi III. "Your Majesty, surely you've come to the arena for more than this?" Was it really just for the smashed arena, prompting the king and a host of ministers to come and spectate?
"There is indeed another matter." Ludi III cast a look of appreciation at Chu Tian, then glanced helplessly at the clueless Damal. It seemed the position of Minister of Magic was truly up for change. "But since you were injured in the duel, attend to that first. Tonight, come to the palace to receive your orders."
Orders? Chu Tian narrowed his eyes. What command could be so important that Ludi III would personally deliver it? Clearly, this was no simple affair! Though curiosity gnawed at him, the joy of obtaining his first magical beast made him set it aside for now. "Your Majesty, then I'll go for treatment first."
Ludi III nodded. "Remember, tonight you must come to the palace to receive your orders." With that, he said his farewells to Chu Tian and the others, then departed with the ministers.
Seeing the king leave, Damal hurried after him, eager to make a good impression. But unexpectedly, Chu Tian secretly tugged him back.
Once everyone else had gone, Damal, baffled, asked Chu Tian, "Vladino, why did you keep me here?"
Hearing such a foolish question, Chu Tian shook his head in resignation. "Don't you remember? I still need to borrow money from you—fifty thousand gold coins!" Yet there was another reason Chu Tian didn't voice: Without Damal, the Grand Mage, how could he dare summon Bandis, who had just been battered? He needed Damal's help to tame the beast!
"Right! Right! The money!" Damal laughed heartily, excited. "Heh, thank you so much! Here I am, borrowing money from you, and you have to remind me..." He rubbed his hands awkwardly, trailing off in embarrassment.
"No need for formalities between brothers!" Unconsciously, Chu Tian had elevated his relationship with the Minister of Magic to that of close friends. "So, what do you need so much money for? And what happened to your own funds?"
"Since you ask, I'll be honest." Poor Damal, step by step, had fallen under Chu Tian's influence, becoming his elder brother in spirit.
Damal's story was almost cliché, like a fantasy version of a charity project: In a remote village of the Empire, a pitiable child, orphaned from birth, was raised by kindly villagers. One day, by chance, it was discovered he possessed exceptional magical talent! The impoverished villagers pooled their resources and sent him to the Imperial Magic Academy.
Years of diligent struggle saw him rise to become the Empire's Minister of Magic, and he began to repay the villagers who had nurtured him, sending all his generous salary back to the disaster-prone village.
But misfortune struck again; recently, the village was battered by tragedy—a plague and a year-long drought. In a few days, Damal's meager savings were wiped out, leaving him in dire need of funds.
After hearing Damal's story, Chu Tian was deeply moved, feeling a pang of guilt toward the Minister. Damal might not be a perfect official, but he was undoubtedly a good man.
Sighing, Chu Tian patted Damal's shoulder, calculated the amount in his crystal card, and handed it over. "Brother, I have a hundred thousand gold coins left in my card—take them all."
"This..." Damal stared blankly at the colorless crystal card in Chu Tian's hand, and after a moment he finally reacted, hurriedly refusing, "I can't accept that—it's too much. Fifty thousand is enough, and you'll need to repair the arena..."
Chu Tian shoved the crystal card into Damal's hands, stopping him mid-sentence. "I have enough at home to fix the arena. Just take it! And you don't need to pay me back!"
Damal's eyes reddened. With trembling hands, he put away the crystal card and choked out, "I thank you on behalf of my fellow villagers..."
Chu Tian smacked his lips, speechless. Who would have thought he, ever greedy and calculating, would one day do a good deed?
"Come on, let's go to my house!" Chu Tian pulled the still-moved Damal along, revealing his true intention. "If you want to thank me, help me tame Bandis!"
Praise be to the Goddess of Life! It seemed the goddess truly favored Chu Tian, the fake priest. Though he still felt a pang at parting with a hundred thousand gold coins, soon Chu Tian would discover that this small investment would bring him a tremendous surprise!

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Marquis Vladino's estate, in the vast garden behind the main building
Chu Tian was holding Little White, discussing the matter of Bandis with Damal and Barbosa.
"Brother, why do you need my help to tame Bandis? With your strength as a High Priest Mentor, surely you can handle a seventh-rank magical beast?" Damal now treated Chu Tian almost as a blood brother, and his tone had grown much more casual.
"That's right, sir. Bandis hardly requires Lord Damal's intervention," Barbosa chimed in.
Chu Tian looked helplessly at the two old men, thinking to himself: My eighth-level professional status is a sham! Just as he was about to explain, Little White in his arms reacted first.
"Woof woof~~" Little White barked twice to catch their attention, then pointed its paw at Chu Tian's wound and glanced toward the palace.
Damal was still confused, but Barbosa, accustomed to Little White's ways, understood immediately. "So the master was injured earlier, and His Majesty has important duties for you soon, meaning you can't waste your magical energy on Bandis!"
Chu Tian smiled, approving of Barbosa's imaginative reasoning, and stealthily patted Little White twice—signaling: two jars of premium Foster are yours!
"So that's it," Damal agreed. "Summon Bandis, then, and I'll handle it!"