Chapter 120: The Beauty and the Beast: The Beast Whisperer vs. The Apex Predator

Chapter 120: The Beauty and the Beast: The Beast Whisperer vs. The Apex PredatorGabriel massaged his jaw, stunned, still processing the brutal impact. He looked up slowly, catching sight of Eratz stepping toward him with an eerie calm, each step deliberate.

Eratz's voice broke the silence, low and chilling, carrying a dangerous edge.

"You hurt?" Eratz asked, his tone almost amused. "Thought I didn't hit you too hard. Could've ended this battle right there..." His gaze narrowed, a faint smirk tugging at his lips. "But what's the point of coming this far just to get bored?" He tilted his head, his eyes sharp. "Get up."

Gabriel scowled, pushing through his shock. "You really don't care, do you? About Crystal? You're worse than that guy."

Eratz's expression barely changed, his eyes growing darker, colder.

"Care?" he echoed, a soft laugh slipping out, hollow and emotionless. "My care for them disappeared the same day my life changed. Regret? For them? Never felt it, never will." He let the words hang in the heavy air, his voice soft but biting. "Not then, not now."

Everyone from Genova watched in stunned silence, unable to process his words. Eratz's gaze swept across them, indifferent, as if dismissing the weight of their shock.

Softly, almost conversationally, he continued, his tone laced with an ominous calm.

"What I care about," he continued, his tone cutting like a knife, "Is what I have now. And that's none of your business. I live day by day, adapting to what's in front of me. A house calls for family. Training calls for effort. The forest calls for the hunt."

He took another slow step forward, his aura beginning to pulse, dark and heavy, saturating the air with an overwhelming sense of menace.

"And an arena..."

He paused, his voice dropping to a whisper.

"...calls for massacre."

A dark aura began seeping from him, like smoke curling out and blanketing the air around them. Gabriel's eyes widened, his connection with beasts allowing him to feel energy, but what he sensed from Eratz was different. Raw, primal. This wasn't human; it was something darker, a true beast.

"Stand up," Eratz commanded, his voice low and chilling, a final warning. "This will be the last time I offer you this privilege."

Gabriel swallowed, barely holding himself together as he jumped back, feeling the air shift with something dangerous.

"I expect a lot from you," he said softly, his voice reverberating through the arena.

Then, in the darkness surrounding him, six eyes gleamed, watching Gabriel with predatory intensity.

A wave of energy exploded out, filling the arena with pressure, powerful enough to shock the crowd into silence.

In the locker room, Sia, Kaida, and Raya instinctively flinched, feeling the weight of the aura seep through the walls. Catarina's hands shook as she stared at the screen.

Even Raya could sense the shift, the raw force filling the space.

Three spectacular beasts materialized beside Eratz, each one radiating deadly energy.

The evolved Thunder Lycaon stood fierce and crackling with electric power.

The Aetheri's emanated an eerie, silent calm.

And the monstrous Terrakrus loomed larger than ever, exuding raw, destructive force.

Together, their combined aura felt like it could consume the entire arena and annihilate the poor boy facing them.

Gabriel trembled, his mind struggling to process the beasts before him. His eyes fell on the Thunder Lycaon, a flicker of recognition sparking, but the shock overtook his thoughts, keeping him from realizing this was the same monster he had faced before, in that forest. The smoke dissipated, revealing Eratz standing amidst his beasts, his eyes a pure, glowing white, his smile a terrifying slash across his face.

His voice echoed through the arena, snapping him back to reality.

"Beast Whisperer," he drawled. "I heard you're an expert in beast battles. So..." He stretched out his arm, his hand drawing a trail of light in the air as his pack of monsters growled, their eyes fixed on Gabriel.

...let's have a showdown. My pack... against your pack. A real duel of alphas."

The crowd fell into an uneasy hush. Gabriel was loved, respected for his empathy and bond with his beasts, his gentle strength in stark contrast to Eratz's ruthless power.

But now, with Eratz's words hanging in the air, they could feel just how dangerous this clash was going to be, and for those knowing both of them, they knew a battle against Eratz always ended with one unable to stand.

"Oh no..." someone whispered from the stands, the tension palpable.

"Poor Gabriel..." another murmured, watching him with sympathy and concern.

In this ocean of pleas for Gabriel, Eratz's family alone stood undeterred, cheering his name with voices full of pride and encouragement.

The director of Genova watched in silence, the finality of Eratz's estrangement settling within her. She could see it now, clear as day, everything was pointless, there would be no alliance,

no reconciliation.

He was lost to them, and they to him.

Rowan's face tightened, realizing with a pang of guilt and despair how deeply Eratz must resent him, how irreparably he'd changed over the year.

Yet, facing a monster, Gabriel remained determined. Gritting his teeth, he raised his arm, his voice strong and commanding as he summoned his main team.

They appeared with a flash of light, each beast a testament to his mastery, a blend of power and elegance that left the crowd gasping in awe.

Leading his team was Solarius, a magnificent winged lion with a mane of shimmering gold and massive, feathered wings that cast a radiant light across the battlefield.

Beside him stood Sylphara, an azure, serpentine dragon with scales like gemstones and wings that rippled like water.

The air around her glowed with a mystical energy, her gaze sharp and piercing. At her side, Verdara, a towering, stag-like creature, stood firm.

Its antlers were a cascade of branching vines and blossoms, emanating a calming aura that seemed to breathe life into the ground it walked on.

The final member of Gabriel's squad was Ignarix, a fierce, agile phoenix with fiery plumage that flickered in shades of crimson and blue, flames licking off its wings as it hovered.

The crowd erupted in cheers for Gabriel's dazzling lineup, the elegance of his creatures starkly contrasting the brutal ferocity radiating from Eratz's beasts. The announcer's voice cut through the roar of the spectators.

"What a display! Gabriel has called forth an extraordinary team, beauty and strength in perfect harmony. But can they stand against Eratz and his fearsome monsters?"

Eratz raised his eyebrows, he was expecting a strong lineup, but a phoenix and a dragon were

the last of his guesses.

With a commanding gesture, Gabriel launched the first attack.

"Solarius, Sylphara, Ignarix, go!"

Solarius roared, his golden mane flaring like a sunburst as he soared forward, claws extended

to strike the Thunder Lycaon.

The Lycaon's body flickered in and out of shadow, evading the winged lion's blows with an unnatural speed.

But the Solarius, undeterred, circled, using his radiant wings to blind the Lycaon momentarily before slashing with claws that glinted like silver.

The Sylphara took to the skies, her azure scales glimmering as she twisted in midair, directing

a powerful jet of water toward the Aetheri.

The Aetheri countered with a wall of psychic energy, the water splitting around it, but the Sylphara pressed on, darting in and out, her serpent-like body flashing as she dodged the Aetheri's psychic blasts, her elegance matching the precision of her attacks.

Below, Verdara faced off against the Terrakrus. The stag's antlers glowed with green energy as he summoned vines from the earth, wrapping them around Terrakrus's legs.

But with a thunderous roar, Terrakrus shattered the vines, charging forward with the force of

an avalanche.

Each hit it received only fueled its power through Rockbound Fury, the earth around it trembling as it grew stronger with each blow.

The Verdara responded with a shield of thick roots, but the Terrakrus broke through, its massive claws tearing through Verdara's defenses, shaking the ground with each impact.

Ignarix swooped in from above, diving with a trail of fire aimed at the Aetheri. Flames engulfed the arena, casting a warm, crimson light as Ignarix weaved through the battlefield, releasing torrents of fire that Aetheri deflected with calculated precision.

But as Ignarix soared higher to avoid a counterattack, Aetheri unleashed a beam of electric energy, narrowly missing the phoenix but singeing the edges of its wings.

Ignarix retaliated with a burst of flames, circling and diving as he tried to outmaneuver

Aetheri's attacks.

In the midst of the chaos, the Thunder Lycaon lunged forward, shadowed and swift, launching a series of powerful electric strikes that crackled through the air.

The Solarius met each strike with a roar, his golden mane absorbing the shocks, pushing back

with ferocity.

But the Lycaon's attacks grew more relentless, its shadow form twisting and evading, striking

from every angle.

"Beautiful and powerful creatures, but they're up against something else entirely!" the announcer called, his voice filled with awe.

In the locker room, Catarina, watching the intense battle on screen, murmured, "He's better than I thought... I didn't think anyone could stand up to Eratz like this."

Raya, calm and sitting nearby, replied, "Underestimating someone is easy. Seeing the wall he's climbing is a better option." Catarina frowned, not entirely understanding, but Sia, watching with a keen eye, nodded

slowly.

"The real monster isn't the one fighting, but the one watching."

Back in the arena, the battle raged on. Gabriel's beasts fought valiantly, their strategy precise,

their moves coordinated under his guidance.

Ignarix struck from above, raining fire on the Terrakrus, who responded with an earthen Sёarᴄh the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

shield.

Sylphara circled, launching water blasts at Aetheri, who countered with beams of electricity

that sent arcs of light across the field.

The crowd was captivated, cheering Gabriel's skill and resilience. Even as Eratz's beasts gained the upper hand, Gabriel's pack adapted, each move calculated, each strike a response

to Eratz's unyielding onslaught.

But suddenly, the crowd hushed, a murmur of concern rippling through the audience.

"Oh no... Oh my God, Gabriel..."

In the stands, Zara leaned forward, a faint smirk on her face.

"Here we go..."

On the battlefield, Gabriel, still commanding his beasts with unwavering determination,

noticed a subtle shift.

His creatures instinctively drew back, forming a line of defense in front of their master, their

eyes fixed on the cataclysm.

Eratz had started walking.