Speed Is King

Once Elliot had made sure that the Dark Brainwyrm's power had receded, he immediately took out a Beast Full Restore potion and poured it into the Specter Wolf's wound.

"Hey there." Elliot called out in the mindspace as he paid careful attention to his surroundings.. "The wyrm is gone. Sorry for before, I was just scaring the Brainwyrm into action. I wasn't planning on killing you."

"I understand." A gentle female voice sounded in his mind.

"Huh? You're a she-wolf?" Elliot was slightly surprised. Because he didn't check out the Specter Wolf's stats earlier, he had absolutely no idea that he was dealing with a she-wolf.

"Yes I am. My name is Aldera Amarok." Aldera said softly.

"Amarok huh, you must be Romulus's mate." Elliot deduced distractedly. Most of his focus was on their surroundings as he prepared to catch the Dark Brainwyrm once it appeared.

Apparently, so was Aldera.

"There!" Aldera cried out at the same time Elliot noticed it.

SPLAT!

His powerful paws struck out mercilessly and smashed the Dark Brainwyrm into pulp.

"Good." Elliot said with relief. "No level gain, but still good."

"Haiss." Romarok sighed regretfully. "He was a good wyrm."

"Too short sighted and inflexible." Elliot snorted.

With the Dark Brainwyrm dead, all of his immediate enemies were dead. He could relax slightly for a bit.

"Aldera. I-"

"He's willing to be your Fire Apostle." Romarok suddenly said.

"Hmmmm?" Elliot stopped what he was about to say to Aldera and turned to face Romarok. "Explain."

"Let Aldera go. And I will sign your contract." Romulus said as he gained control over his power of speech once more.

"Why should I? I have two King level powerhouses here. I have no reason to let one go when I can have both." Elliot replied with a slightly amused voice.

"If you do not let her go, then I will never sign your contract. You'll still end up with one King level beast." Romulus said without hesitation. "You might as well get me. I am the Alpha, and I am stronger than her by far."

"Do you really think I can't make you sign that contract without letting her go?" Elliot chuckled mirthlessly.

"You can't." Romulus replied stubbornly.

Both of them glared at each other for a quick moment before Aldera finally broke the silence.

"I am pregnant." Aldera said softly in Elliot's mind.

"Aldera!" Romulus cried out in shock and despair. "You shouldn't have told him that! Now he definitely won't let you go!"

"Huh? Wow… That's great!" Elliot exclaimed.

"And yes, he's right. Why would I let her go? Her being pregnant simply means that there are more beasts for me to tame!" Elliot thought privately to himself.

"Any contract I sign will automatically bind my unborn children to it. Let me give birth to them first, and let them live free, and I swear to you, I will sign any contract you want." Aldera said.

"No." Elliot replied resolutely.

"I'm not Elliot the Bringer of Life. I didn't set you free from the Brainwrym so that I can gain merits in heaven. I need your power. And if you have children, perfect. I need their power too. In anycase, your pups will be safer with me anyway. They will definitely die within a week if allowed to roam freely. Your best course of action is to sign a beast contract with me."

"Make your choice, Rom and Aldera. Sign contracts with me and surround your whole family with powerhouses that stand at the top of the food chain, or… die free." Elliot let his words hang in the air for a few moments.

Silence hung around them heavily. The only sounds they could hear were the sounds of Elliot's powerful beasts hunting the sub-King level beasts around them within the area of the Battle Royale.

A radius of ten kilometers was a whooping three hundred fourteen square kilometers. That's almost half the size of New York City. The number of beasts that could be found within such a huge area would be extremely high, especially if there were colony type beasts like the spiders or the ants.

There was definitely no shortage of farming available for Elliot's beasts.

Finally, after a few more moments of silence, Rom agreed.

"I… Accept." Rom sighed deeply. Was there truly a different option available for him?

"Aldera… You too. He's right. Our kids will just die without us. It is better to stick together… Alive."

"I understand." Aldera replied softly. She was rather reluctant.

But life is life. Sometimes it will give you many good things… Other times it will take many precious things. And for Aldera, life just decided to take her family's freedom away.

The only thing that remained constant and within her power was response. She could choose to respond badly and screw up her life further, or she could choose to respond well and make the best of the situation.

Response to life's many gifts, both good and bad, was the difference between a successful wolf and a dead wolf.

[Beast Apostle contract signed.]

[Received 100,000 XP]

[Congratulations, You have levelled up to level 258!]

[Please select an Apostle Element for Romulus Amarok.]

"Fire!"

[Fire Apostle Romulus Amarok has received a unique skill.]

[Flame Wolf Form - Turns Fire Apostle Romulus Amarok into a powerful Flame Wolf.]

[Flame Wolf will deal an additional 200% Fire damage on top of all damage skills.]

[Flame Wolf will gain the skill [Fire Blast] - Fires a fireball that deals 500% fire damage.]

(A/N: The Novel Cover is Fire Apostle Romulus.)

[Received Fire Apostle Romulus Amarok's Unique Skill - Flame Wolf Form.]

[Received Fire Apostle Romulus Amarok's Skill - Stealth.]

[Please select a skill to grant Fire Apostle Romulus Amarok.]

"I choose Azure Lightning Blast!" Elliot shouted excitedly.

[Unable to proceed. Chosen skill directly contradicts Fire Apostle Romulus Amarok's element.]

[Please select another skill to grant Fire Apostle Romulus Amarok.]

"Damn it. How about Lightning Slash?" Elliot asked hopefully.

[Fire Apostle Romulus Amarok has received [Lightning Slash].]

"Yes!" Elliot thought to himself. "With Lightning Slash, my bonus stats and his new Flame Wolf skill, Rom should be strong enough to deal significant damage to that damned Belcher!"

/ZqdTKhtn6z