Several days later, life in Grand Cliff Bastion took on a new, faster rhythm as the competition between the Black Hyde Gang and the Band of Dawn intensified. It started mild at first, but soon the rate of activity from each faction kept increasing, with each group doing everything they could to surpass and suppress the other. This, in turn, caused the smaller factions and individuals within the bastion to double their efforts as well—they couldn't let these groups snag everything.
Overall, all Catalyst activities within the bastion had pretty much doubled in such a short span of time. No one wanted to fall behind in this sudden race for growth.
And it seems someone in the bastion's higher management was wise enough to capitalize on this momentum. If you visited any task hall now, you'd notice a considerable increase in missions—a smart move by the administration. With every Catalyst scrambling to grow faster, they'll all need funding, which naturally pushes them to take on more work thus more missions get completed, but there aren't enough to go around. So by expanding the work pool, the bastion essentially hitches a wagon to these dashing steeds, letting their race for power pull its development forward.
In this fierce competition, Grand Cliff's biggest beneficiary might just be the bastion itself. Its growth is set to accelerate thanks to the burning ambition of its Catalysts.
Right now, in one of the mission halls, people scrambled back and forth between mission boards and registration desks—each trying to snag the best deals before someone else could. The hall was more crowded than ever before, and weaving through the chaos was Courage, sprinting toward the nearest available receptionist.
He had to hurry. With the constant flood of people coming and going, receptionists were always busy—no one idled for even a second. If he missed his chance, he'd have to wait until another freed up.
Standing before the receptionist, Courage spoke in a rushed tone, already activating his implant: "Yes, hello—I finished a task. Please register it."
The receptionist skipped the usual formalities. Without a word, he scanned Courage's details, then confirmed: "Courage Petacos… Black Tip Grass gathering mission. Correct?"
"Yes."
The receptionist worked swiftly. "Mission accomplishment registered. Payment transferred. Anything else?"
"Sign me up for another mission, please."
"Here's the latest list. If you choose quickly, I can process you now. If not, please clear the stand—others need service."
Courage browsed quickly until he stumbled upon a mission that said: "A new mineral deposit has been discovered. Beasts that are capable of digging or hard labor are needed to complete the construction of the initial mine shafts."
Right now it was a snooze-you-lose atmosphere, so the moment Courage found a mission that suited his beast, he didn't bother to look anymore and chose it immediately. The receptionist registered him right away and gave all the information he would need for the mission.
Courage didn't say anything else before heading out to the mission site immediately.
These past couple days, Courage had also joined the rush train. He too had begun increasing his efforts. Although he had a stable source of cash thanks to hunting the Silver Vices, he thought that he should also join the mission frenzy to adapt to the bastion's new competitive environment and not get left behind. Besides, it was a great way to get field experience.
So there he was. He had already completed four different missions in the last couple days, the latest of which was the Black Tip Grass gathering mission. This grass was a catalyst for some beasts, but it had a type of poison that could seep through skin and clothes, making harvesting this grass difficult. But thanks to Kabuto's [Jade Bone], which give him great resistance to poison, they managed to collect this grass easily.
Leaving the plato, dashing through the Stacks, and finally pushing through the now-crowded docks, Courage had to share the lift platform with several others heading out. Then he was off to the mission location.
The dig site was in a stone quarry positioned in a small valley. It took Courage about an hour to reach it, but upon arrival, he joined a large group of people - presumably others who'd taken the same mission. A Grand Cliff official soldier supervised the digging operations, instructing everyone to split into teams of three and begin working on the marked areas.
After some time, Courage paired up with a guy named Grod and a girl named Molly. Grod had a gorilla beast while Molly commanded a large mole beast. Once organized, the trio settled into this rhythm: Kabuto would crack the tough rock walls, the mole beast would tunnel through the fractured stone, and Grod's gorilla would haul away the debris.
The trio had a great synergy and worked with impressive efficiency, quickly finishing their required dig length—so quickly that they could start working on other areas. They proceeded to dig several more tunnels before the supervisor announced they'd achieved the day's goal. Turning to Courage's team, he praised, "You three—good work out there. Expect a bonus."
The news brightened the trio's mood. Grod and Molly, pleased with how well they'd worked with Courage, offered to exchange contacts in case they want to do missions together In the future.
Courage agreed.
Though this new, intense climate brought challenges, it also created opportunities. With Catalyst activity surging, more people were bumping shoulders—which meant more chances to build connections. This spontaneous cooperation was sparking new teams and partnerships daily as people pursued shared goals. Seeing the advantage in having reliable allies, Courage accepted their offer.
After the mission, the trio returned to the bastion together, chatting along the way. Once there, Courage bid them farewell and trudged back to his shack, exhausted but satisfied after a long day's work.
After having a hot shower and treating himself to a hefty dinner, Courage slumped back into his comfy bed, relaxing his spine. With a long yawn, he activated his interface and checked on Kabuto's status.
Grand Fighting Kabuto (Level 1)
- Grade: High
- Growth: 66%
- Type: Vigor
- Traits: [Jade Bone]
- Abilities: [All Out], [Flurry Strike], [Flux]
"We're getting close," Courage muttered. He was talking about Kabuto's growth level nearing 100% - the point where it could attempt a breakthrough to Level 2. It goes without saying why Courage would be anticipating this so much. His beast reaching Level 2 would open more doors for him as a Beast Catalyst ,more than you might think.
Right now, Courage was determined to reach Level 2 as fast as possible. The fierce competition in the bastion had only just begun, and you could expect the situation to keep developing further. Becoming a Level 2 Beast Catalyst would certainly help, and he was willing to bet many of the rookie Beast Catalysts were thinking and planning the same thing. After all who would want to remain at the bottom of the bastion hierarchy .
Finished with his thoughts, Courage sprang into action. He pulled several items from his [Squirrel Cheek Pouch] , they were the cultivation catalysts he planned to use for today's session. There were three items called, the Tension Gem, the Empowering Ensence, and Carapace Polish Oil.
The Tension Gem was a reddish crystal ball about the size of a bowling ball. Despite its crystalline appearance, this catalyst had the strange property of being rubber-like - the tough-looking crystal ball was actually soft and bouncy. This was a body-strengthening catalyst. The ball would absorb all the tension from the beast's body as it squeezed it, storing and multiplying that tension before sending it back to strengthen the beast further. This process required effort from the beast and often left them tired, but repeated use had excellent strengthening effects.
The unique thing about this catalyst is that it wasn't a single-use catalyst - it could be used repeatedly until the crystal ball wore out completely, which would take a long time of consistent use. It was a good catalyst indeed. Courage had to spend nearly 60,000 credits on it, but in his eyes, it was money well spent.
You see, as a beast grows stronger, some cultivation catalysts start losing their effectiveness. Courage still remembered the Crimson Ginger and Growth Potion - after Kabuto surpassed 30% growth level, those two catalysts started losing their effect until they became useless. This forced Courage to constantly seek different or more potent catalysts over time. That was the nature of beast growth cultivation - it couldn't be sustained by a single catalyst forever. Masters always had to keep looking for new options if they wanted their beasts to continue developing.
Returning back to the catalyst, the second item - the empowering ensence - had the ability to empower a beast by its smoke, granting greater stamina and helping them recover it faster. Courage bought this item to complement the tension crystal catalyst as using it drains stamina. This item looked like thick essence sticks and had a herbal smell to them. This catalyst was considerably cheaper, being priced at 600 credits a stick, but Courage had to buy several to last him a while.
The last item, carapace polish oil, was a catalyst catered for shelled creatures. By using this catalyst, the creature's shell or exoskeleton would be improved in quality - becoming sturdier and better with the added benefit of giving them an immaculate shine. Currently, this was the body refinement catalyst of choice for Courage. This catalyst costs around 1,500 credits per bottle, but hey - you pay for quality. One downside however: this catalyst takes a while to show effects and you've got to keep using it until it does.
Courage first lit one essence stick, letting its smoky herbal scent fill the room. Then he offered the tension crystal to Kabuto to start training with it. The crystal glowed brighter and brighter as Kabuto squeezed it, until it dimmed back again - signaling one complete cycle. Kabuto repeated this process many times over the next several hours, only stopping when Courage decided it was enough.
As Kabuto rested, Courage brought out the carapace polish oil and began applying it all over the beetle's body. Kabuto gave a low rumble, clearly enjoying the care. After thoroughly applying the ointment for several minutes, Courage was done. Kabuto's already crystal-like body now shone even brighter, becoming slightly reflective. Any more polishing and it might start reflecting light.
Finally checking the interface to assess progress:
Grand Fighting Kabuto (Level 1)
- Grade: High
- Growth: 71% (+5%)
- Type: Vigor
- Traits: [Jade Bone]
- Abilities: [All Out], [Flurry Strike], [Flux]
"A 5% increase in growth level - not bad," Courage mused. It seemed all the money he'd spent was well invested. Increasing a beast's growth level becomes harder as it gets closer to the peak of its level, so a 5% increase in one session could be considered decent at this stage. Plus, with the delayed effects of the carapace polish oil, Courage could expect more growth increases soon. All in all, it had been a good session.
Once done, Courage slumped back into his bed. He was finished for tonight, but he still had plans. He'd actually spotted a new ability catalyst for Kabuto, though unfortunately his usual outlet had sold out by the time he found them. But no worries - he knew where he could get some. That was tomorrow's plan.
Browsing through the forums earlier, he'd found a hunting group that was short a couple members for an upcoming expedition. After some digging, he discovered they were going to hunt in the exact location where the catalyst he wanted could be found. Without hesitation, he offered to join them. The expedition leader accepted after Courage confirmed his strength by sharing his beast's growth level. Now all that remained was to meet them at the specified location before they embarked on their hunt.
The next day, Courage arrived at the meeting spot. After looking around for a bit, he found his group. The leader greeted him:
"Hello there, Courage Petacos?"
"Yep, that's me. Fogi, right?"
"Yes, that's me. Pleasure to meet you."
"Same."
"Let me introduce you to the rest of the team," Fogi said as he brought Courage over to the group.
First was a blonde guy wearing hunter's attire with a feather in his hat. "This is John. He has a water-type totem beast that specializes in long-range attacks."
John gave a quiet nod in greeting.
Next was a stocky, muscular guy with a shaved head. "This is Rolf. Don't let his appearance fool you - his totem beast is an electric type, and he prefers hit-and-run tactics."
"Pleasure to meet you," Rolf said with a chuckle.
Then came a pair of twins wearing matching clothes. "This is Len and Ran. They have light and sound type totems respectively. They prefer using trickery to mess with their enemies, but they're also pretty capable as scouts."
"Hi there," "Hi there," they said simultaneously.
"And finally, there's me - Fogi. I have a corpus-type totem beast and I'm the leader of this party, so I'm usually at the front. And that's everyone," Fogi finished.
"Pleasure to meet you all," Courage replied politely.
"Now that introductions are out of the way," Fogi suggested, "why don't you tell us a little about your totem beast and what it can do? That way we can decide your role in the group."
"Of course. My totem beast is a vigor type, so it's pretty strong and usually fights head-on. But it also has pretty good defense, so I can be your vanguard if you want."
"Vanguard, eh? This kid's got spunk!" Rolf complimented, while the others chuckled.
Fogi gave Courage an approving smile. "Vanguard then? You've sure got spirit for a rookie. But are you sure you can handle it?"
"You bet," Courage answered confidently.
Fogi's smile widened. "Well, I sure hope so! Then without further ado... let's go!"
And with that, the group was off.