Found

Yenna woke up and sat in her bed for a few minutes, letting the sleep wear off and her mind clear. She then got up and slowly went downstairs. The house was quiet, with only the faint hum of the refrigerator breaking the silence. As she reached the bottom of the stairs, she saw Vell already awake, sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee in hand, deep in thought. 

"Morning," she greeted him softly, trying to shake off the awkwardness from the night before. 

"Yeah, morning," he replied, looking up at her with a half-smile. "I made some coffee if you want." 

She nodded and poured herself a cup, the warm aroma hitting her face and making her feel relaxed. They sat in comfortable silence for a few moments, each lost in their own thoughts. She kept glancing at him until something moved in her peripheral vision, and her instincts kicked in. She lunged with the intent to apprehend, but she wasn't fast enough. 

"What the hell? Why is it so fast...wait, is that?" 

The weasel slid onto the table, stopping in front of Vell while giving Yenna a cocky look. She took in the weasel's new appearance and was confused about what was going on. 

"Is that the same weasel? What happened last time? It's giving off such a powerful aura, and that speed earlier...this is kind of pissing me off." 

The weasel had changed completely. She sat calmly on the table, looking like a new creature. Her fur was sleek and dark, a mix of silver and black with streaks of electric blue that almost seemed to glow. Her eyes, once soft, were now sharp and golden, with narrow pupils that missed nothing. She looked dangerous, like she'd been through a lot and come out stronger. 

Her claws were longer, shining like metal and sharp enough to tear through anything in her way. The tips of her fangs showed from her mouth, giving her a fierce, hunter-like look. Her tail was thicker and strong, ready to help her balance or strike if needed. Small, faintly glowing marks covered her forehead and shoulders, a sign of their bond, as she carried a bit of his strength within her. 

Yenna was stunned; she was cute but also looked dangerous, and Vell being nonchalant about it all didn't help. He didn't once open his eyes during this whole time and just kept sipping from his cup. 

"H-hey, what is that?" 

She slowly sat back down, with the weasel just staring at him with a smirk. She felt like the weasel was showing off to her master. Vell finally finished his coffee, put the cup on the table, and looked at her while stroking his beast. 

"This is Wren, my beast. I am a tamer." 

Her eyes drifted back to Wren, who was playing with his hand like a cat. She could hardly believe her eyes, beast tamers are rare after all. "Oh, so you are a beast tamer, huh?" she said, disappointed. "Well, that's cool, I guess. At least you have something to protect you." 

'Well, that's disappointing. I thought he would be cool and powerful, but I guess I was expecting too much... haahhh, my luck with guys is so bad.' 

He knew exactly what she was thinking; his system told him all about how tamers are viewed, but he didn't care because he was no normal tamer. "You are that disappointed, huh?" 

"H-huh? No, it's nothing like that... I am sorry." 

She felt bad about her thoughts; that was what she had been led to believe after all. But Vell was still smiling at her, not caring about her opinion on him. 

"How many tamers have you met?" 

"None. They are rare."

He chuckled softly, reading her reaction like an open book. "So, you're saying you've never actually seen a tamer in action." 

His tone was playful, trying to lead her in the direction he wanted as he leaned back with a grin. 

"Well… no, I haven't." 

Her eyes glanced at Wren, who was still lounging smugly by his side. 

"But I've heard they're not as strong as warriors, mages, or any other combat types out there. Their strength mostly comes from their beasts, right? If that's truly the case, doesn't that just mean that the tamer themselves are weak?" 

He exhaled slowly, a playful look in his eye. He had her where he wanted. 

"Think so? Wanna test that theory?" 

She was confused. He knew he was weaker than her, so why was he asking this? 

"What, like a fight?" 

"Nah, I know I can't beat you. How about an arm wrestle? Just a quick test of strength." 

He suggested, casually rolling up his sleeve to reveal his toned forearm. 

"If you're so sure tamers aren't that strong, you should have no problem taking me down, right?" 

She wanted to reject this, but her pride refused, and she played into his hands, moving closer to him. 

"Fine. I am not sure what you are after, but I will entertain you at least." 

She put her elbow on the table, her hand ready and waiting. 

They locked hands, and she instantly felt the strength in his grip, stronger than she'd expected. He seemed relaxed, his smile never fading as they stared each other down. His goal was not to win but to prove her view on tamers wrong. 

'Okay, I will sneak her and win in a flash.' 

He looked at their hands and wasted no time using a lot of strength to try to move her. But no matter how much he pushed, her arm didn't budge an inch. The look she gave him said it all: he was not strong enough, and she felt good dominating him. 

"So, what now?" 

He looked at her smug face. She knew she was stronger, but this also made her cocky, and this was what he had been waiting for. His grip suddenly tightened so hard that she actually felt a slight pain, but before she could register what was happening, her hand was already touching the table. 

"Huh?" 

She continued staring at her hand in shock. After taking a glance up, she saw Vell staring back at her with a proud smile. 

"W-wait, rematch! I was off guard." 

"Don't wanna." 

He picked up Wren and walked out of the kitchen without looking back. She followed him, still insisting on the rematch, but he kept refusing. He sat down in the living room, relaxing peacefully and ignoring Yenna as she kept talking. 

"Come on, just one—" 

She dashed, grabbed her sword, and got into an attack pose directed at the door. Vell could not sense anything, so he was a little confused about what was happening, but he was smart enough to know that whoever was behind that door meant bad news if she was on guard like that. 

"Mrs. Yenna, can you please let me in? It's Kell…....Yenna?" 

She looked at him, and he signaled her to calm down and answer. 

"Sorry, I just came downstairs. Can I help you, Section Chief?" 

"Yes, it's nothing special. It's just that we didn't receive your report on the mission your team was assigned yesterday. I am just curious as to why." 

She tried to remain calm; one slip and they would both be in trouble. 

"Ah, about that, I went home early. Did you ask Jolly? She is the team leader, after all." 

'She is not bad, but I don't think that will be enough… I will prepare, just in case.' 

"That's exactly why I am here. Jolly said she was sick yesterday and stayed home, but according to your team, you were the one leading the mission." 

Yenna's heart skipped a beat. She looked at Vell, who was already up; Wren was nowhere to be seen. 

"Oh, I must have mixed up the days. Sorry about that. The mission went fine; I'll submit the report right away." 

Her thoughts began getting tangled. 

'What? Did they betray me? No, they wouldn't do that; we are a team… they wouldn't...' 

She glanced at Vell for help and noticed that he was already up and ready. She pointed at the drawer under the TV. 

"Mrs. Yenna, are you feeling alright? You seem… distracted." 

She could hear the suspicion in her voice. The Section Chief was no fool; she was one of the sharpest minds in the association. 

"I'm just tired. I didn't sleep well last night." 

"I see... and you're alone?" 

The question hung in the air for a while; she knew Kell was aware. She glanced back at Vell, who was already looking in the drawer, pulling out a short sword but putting it aside and continuing to look. 

"Yes, why wouldn't I be?" 

There was a pause, followed by a deep sigh from the other side of the door. 

"Mrs. Yenna, we detected unusual energy signatures in your area last night. Very unusual. The kind that might be associated with… certain individuals we've been tracking." 

Her grip tightened on the sword. If they knew about Vell... 

"I don't know what you mean, Section Chief. Maybe it was just—" 

"Open the door, Yenna." 

The voice had changed. Gone was the professional courtesy, replaced by a cold, commanding tone. Her blood ran cold, and she didn't know what to do. Fighting the section chief was tantamount to suicide. 

"Now."