Dixie and Dox screeched happily as the family made their way to Finral's tent, the mana beast enthusiast spoiled the two birds rotten whenever they had the chance to visit and like any animal this quickly made the birds grow fond of him. It was a simple relationship, food for affection.
The carriage stopped in front of the tent while Paul hastily made an attempt to get the two birds under their best behavior before Finral could make his appearance, he'd long noticed how quickly the birds seemed to switch owners whenever the mana beast enthusiast dangled a few snacks in front of them and he wasn't going to allow that anymore. Once this was done he hopped off the carriage with his attention on the little girl tied up in the back.
At this moment Finral had finally made his way outside of the tent after hearing the familiar screeching birds outside and Pauls unmistakable voice but quickly felt the urge to turn around when he noticed the grey-haired man pulling out a little girl who was kicking and swaying with all her might and had the bloodied appearance of some brutal war survivor. He knew Paul was a shameless bastard but this was a new type of low that he never thought the thief would ever cross.
"Finral come help me out here, this is a very stubborn mana beast!!"
'Mana beast?!'
Finral contemplated the truth in those words till he finally noticed the curved horn on the left side of the girls head and sighed a breath of relief since this confirmed to him that Paul still held some humanity within him, the man dug into the pockets of his green trench coat and tossed a collar over to Paul who quickly placed it on the girl's neck. A light purple shock of electricity struck the girl causing her to spaz for a few seconds till her movements completely stopped.
The collar that Finral used was a simple slave collar for capturing demi-humans and beasts like the girl in front of them, it put the beast/demi-human under the capturer's control for the time being until the collar was removed or switched owners. After securing the little girl Finral made his way to Paul and stared at the girl who was shooting a glare of pure hatred and anger but there was nothing she could do.
"Paul..this is a mana beast right?"
"Of course, you think I'd kidnap little children?"
Arthur shot a glance and nodded internally since the girl in front of them was quite literally a child.
"Right.., so you came here too.."
"Analyse the price"
"Hm, well you can start by untying those ropes and I'll see what I can find"
Paul nodded and ordered the two ropes to untie themselves from the girl as Finral used the collar's authority to have the girl follow them to the tent, she was reluctant but the collar didn't allow her to disobey Finral's orders unless she was ready to experience the same hellish punishment from a few moments back and that wasn't even the worst of the collar's torture mechanisms.
The group made it to the entrance where Arthur turned to Mathew and told him not to mind the smell too much which was completely called for since once inside Mathew noticed just how stuffy the tent was. The air was filled with all kinds of smells that'd make anyone's nose wrinkle in discomfort but Mathew tried not to show this out of respect to the person in front of him, he noticed that the tent was piled with cages, books, rolled pieces of parchment, writing quills and various remains of mana beast stuffed inside open crates which was the reason for the stuffy atmosphere.
Paul and the others weren't affected by this as they'd visited the man enough to get used to it and just ignore, Finral urged the family and the girl to wait while he procured a few tools for his check-up which largely consisted of just spectacles with a large book and writing quill. Once he'd acquired these items he wasted no time circling around the girl who stood still against her own will.
His fascination for mana beasts had fully sprouted at this moment as he eyed the girl from head to toe, the spectacles he was wearing were also not for show as they were currently analyzing the mana signature coming from the little girl all while Finral took notes on her height and appearance. He ordered her to open her mouth which she begrudgingly obliged, revealing the rows of sharpened teeth inside. This was confirmation to Finral that she was indeed a beast but of what kind was still a mystery.
After several minutes of checks and analysis, Finral's spectacles were finally able to properly read the girl's mana signatures which caused the enthusiast to stop dead in his tracks as he stared at the girl with confusion and shock. What his spectacles read or at least saw was that the little girl possessed little to no mana at all like a walking husk, this perplexed Finral greatly as there wasn't a single beast, demi-human or human who didn't possess even a slither of mana inside them. Even the weakest species or person had mana within them yet the girl in front of him was completely empty of it.
The confusion didn't stop there as Finral couldn't link the girl to any of the countless beasts he'd met and researched as a scholar, this might have seemed insignificant to most but the truth of the matter was that Finral was a walking encyclopedia of beastly knowledge. He of course didn't know every single beast that existed but more than enough to call him a master in the genre, and even if he didn't know of a specific beast it still wasn't hard for him to get a rough idea of where it came from or what it might be by linking it with other beasts he knew of yet he couldn't do the same with the girl in front of him.
The worst part was that she was a mana beast with a human form which are generally rare so finding the origins of such a beast should be easy yet Finral couldn't link her to any of the mana beasts he knew of that had such a form, even after asking her to transform into her beastly state which was that of a red-maned wolf with black fur and a single horn on the left side of her head there was still zero connections. Except for the exotic mana beast currently being hunted but he was quick to realize that the two were of a completely different species.
"I-I don't know what type of mana beast this is,...I can't even say it's a thing in general.."
Finral finally voiced his words after at least half an hour of analyzing the girl in front of him, no matter how much he searched and theorized there wasn't a single thing he could come up with. The words he said were quite literally his emotions in audible form.
"You don't know what kind of mana beast she is..?"
Paul repeated Finral's words as if making sure he hadn't misheard anything since Finral not knowing a certain mana beast or even finding something like where it might've come from was an impossibility he wasn't able to accept.
"You heard me, I really have no idea what she is"
"Isn't this your thing, you're a scholar in this type of field so how do you-"
"I've never seen anything like her, wherever you found this thing it's definitely not from here"
Paul blinked a few times and waited for a laugh or chuckle from Finral, something that'd confirm this to be a joke but none of that came.
"Then just what is she?"
"A new species? I don't know but it's definitely something I haven't seen before"
"Well can you give me a possible price?"
"For the mere fact that she's a beast with a human form you could probably get her price to silver rank but if I don't know exactly what she is I can't give you a definite answer and you might actually end up losing possible profit"
"Tsk"
Silver rank wasn't a bad prize but it was a far cry from the prices of normal beasts with human forms which usually ranked in gold-platinum rank, in other words, it would be a complete loss on their side to just sell her as she is.
"Then she's useless.."
"For the time being..yes, however, with some time I could probably do more research and find out just what kind of beast she is and give you an answer by then"
"But..cash, I don't want to wait so long"
"Look at it this way, she's a possible hidden gold mine just waiting to be discovered. If not even Finral knows what she is then she might be something rare and special and once we find out just what that is we can make some serious money and live worry-free for generations to come"
Said Olivia while imagining the sea of gold she could be swimming in if Finral comes back after researching the girl and finding her out to be some ancient rare race never seen for centuries, the money they'd earn would put them in the realm of emperors and kings.
"Exactly, it's best we keep her as a valuable asset for later"
Arthur had also butted in but his intentions were not greed but simply ensuring the girl's life, he was still guilty of the fact that she was merely an eleven-year-old that they'd not only severely injured but kidnapped as well. He obviously couldn't suggest the beast be let free due to the greedy nature of his parents who'd either sell her as a slave or as beast material where she'd be killed, at least if they kept her then her fate wouldn't be so gloomy.
"And how do you plan on keeping her exactly?"
Paul looked to both Olivia and Arthur who glanced at Finral as he waved a hand and a short chain appeared on the little girl's collar. Finral then gave the family a paper to write their names and signatures.
"This is a..slave contract.."
"It's the best solution to your problems and she's practically for free, all you have to do is write down all the names of her new masters and signatures"
"Wait, you're doing this for free?!"
Finral shrugged since in his mind the payment for this was to simply keep the girl alive, she was right now an unknown species of mana beast he had to somehow uncover the origins of and this excited him more than what a few bags of coins could ever do. The family was skeptical at first but Finral urged them that there was no catch or malice in his plans and that they'd only need to bring the little girl over whenever he had the opportunity to further analyze her, this put the family at ease since Finral was at least asking for something in return.
"Ah, should we give her a name?"
"There's no need to worry, a slave contract has the authority to find a beast's true name if they have one"
True names were a rare thing among mana beasts since one would have to either give themselves a name or be granted a name by others, a mana beast granting itself a name was a rare thing for the sole reason that most didn't have the intelligence nor dialect to do such a thing and was only possible for those possessing a human form.
Mana beasts being granted a name was more plausible, especially by those that already had one like a high-class mana beast with a human form wanting to grant a name to another, but this rarely happened due to how such mana beasts chose to seclude themselves. A master of a mana beast could also grant a name but it would just be a name and not a true name, in order for it to be a true name the said mana beast would have to acknowledge and see the name as something that truly defines who and what they are. Something that mana beasts rarely ever did in such circumstances.
So a true name was a rarity but worth a shot since the mana beast in front of them already had a human form and it wouldn't be a surprise if she'd somehow procured a true name, once all the family members had written and signed their names on the contract the collar on the girl's neck began to glow as words began engraving themselves onto it. Since the girl was now officially under the family's will the contract had already begun searching for her true name, if one was to be found then it would engrave itself on the girl's collar and could be changed by the master/masters if they so wished.
If a true name was not found then it would be left blank and the master could openly bestow a name which would also be engraved on the collar once bestowed, the words carried on engraving till it finally stopped and the girl's true name was there for all to see.
"Lilith, so she has a name...how interesting"
Finral's curiosity had reached new heights at this point, not only was she a complete mystery of a mana beast but she also possessed a true name as well. He now wanted to know more than ever just where the girl had come from, he even felt regretful for letting Paul and Olivia keep her and would've asked to change their agreement but the two had also acquired an interest in the mana beast's true name and shared an expression of appreciation since this only increased the girl's value.
Arthur and Mathew were both in awe of this and stared with curiosity and interest, the girl in front of them was truly a mana beast of an extreme rarity since not only did she possess a human form but a name as well. They couldn't help but feel intrigued by what mana beast she could be once Finral did his digging.
"Well that settles it, I guess we're done here"
"Yep, yep, we'll be seeing you Finral"
The two were more than adamant to leave before Finral's fetish got the better of his actions, they were now more than happy to keep such valuable merchandise.
"Tsk, you don't have to be so worried she's your slave not mine"
"We understand but this is also your collar, can't take chances you know?"
Said Olivia, Paul nodded causing a pang in Finral's heart as the two were practically saying he had a serious problem and couldn't trust him in the same room as long as a mana beast was present.
*Cough*
"W-well, you should probably also put some conditions and rules on the collar"
"Is that necessary?"
"Not really but it does make it clear on what the slave can and cannot do"
Paul stared at Lilith for a while before imagining the thought of her running away like a bag of gold that suddenly grew legs and jumped straight out of his hands.
"Right..I'll keep that in mind"
"Mn"
Finral nodded as the group made their way out of the tent however both Paul and Olivia stayed behind, leaving Mathew and Arthur outside while the two parents stood to consult Finral on a much more sensitive topic.
"I can already guess what's bothering the both of you"
A pamphlet flew in their direction as Finral turned to face one of the souvenirs in his tent, Paul opened the pamphlet to see an illustration of a beast oddly similar to the one they'd been chasing however this time it was standing in front of what looked like a circus crew.
"This is…"
"A Black Lotus Dire Wolf, very valuable mana beast bred for nobles and the one you've been chasing was owned by a circus director"
"So that's why it's worth so much.."
Commented Olivia while Finral nodded.
"It's been on the run and ended up here but I'm afraid you've most likely missed it by now, thanks to your little detour"
The two sighed in disappointment since they expected such an outcome, catching Lilith wasn't a massive hassle but it took a relative chunk of their time, they weren't aware that the beast was on the run but its massive bounty told volumes of its origin not being from here so there was most likely a time limit before the thing jumped ship to another area miles from here, there was also the commotion caused from subduing Lilith which might've hastened that result.
The two hung their heads slightly since this expedition was now for naught and in the eyes of that man would be a complete failure, a failure they wouldn't pay lightly for. Finral noticed the change in mood and felt like comforting the two since he was well aware of their circumstances but stopped when Olivia suddenly lifted her head with a warm smile.
"Thanks again Finral, I honestly don't know what we'd do without you"
The woman suddenly gave him a friendly nudge on the shoulder and turned to Paul whose head was now raised as well but the depressing expression hadn't left yet, he gave the man a tap on the shoulder with a forced smile that Finral found hard to look at but could slowly see it brightening up.
"Ah! I almost forgot you wouldn't happen to have treats for Dixie and Dox would you"
Olivia asked in her seemingly normal tone.
"Oh, I'll go hand it to them no-"
""NO""
Both Paul and Olivia said firmly before just asking Finral to hand the treats over who was reluctant at first but relented once he saw the two's unyielding gaze.
"You know I could've just given them the treats, the birds seem to like me"
Paul gave Finral a clap on the back with a much better smile than before and answered.
"Finral…your love for mana beasts is terrifying, we have to be safe"
Olivia stifled a laugh and waved goodbye to Finral as the latter only paled to Paul's subtle reference to the past.
"See you sometime Finral"
"M-my pleasure"
Finral smiled as they finally left the tent, once on his own he quickly began contemplating whether his interest in mana beasts truly needed therapy.
'It's just simple interest, what I did back then wasn't too far right?'
Truth be told it was but he couldn't admit it, after all, it was merely..simple interest.