Author's note: You know nothing author... The leatherworking part was kind-off troublesome since whenever i google it i only get World of Warcraft as references... so, please have mercy on my soul for not making it as detailed.

Also decided to splits what was supposed to be one chapter up in yet another part, since this chapter alone is 3K words and I'm pretty sure the next 3 crafts (bonecrafting, carpentry and mining) will take about the same amount of words.

edit: the table struggle is real.

________________________________________________________________________________________

After a short walk Zaran arrived in front of the beast trainer’s small house. Compared to the large pavilions that other guilds boasted this was a remarkably small building and if Zaran hadn’t asked for directions he never would’ve found it. It was a little shack, almost completely build in redwood besides the four corners of the house that were build out of cobblestone. The shack had two very small windows in front of the house and those were covered by shutters, seeming as if not a single ray of light should ever enter the shack.

Zaran didn’t spot any users around either, and it was remarkably quiet in the area. He knocked on the door.

“Who is it?!?” An angry stentorian voice resounded from within the house.

“I would like to learn everything there is to know about beast mastery.” Zaran replied. He could hear creaking sounds as someone walked towards the door. After removing a large wooden bar from the door and opening three locks, the door finally opened and an old bulky dwarf appeared in the door stil. The dwarf looked like he was more than hundred years old but still gave off the appearance of being filled to the brim with energy.

“You really want to learn about beast mastery? Wait… aren’t you… the first adventurer that appeared today?” The bulky dwarf asked.

“Yup that’s me!” said as a big smile appeared on his face. I was wondering how i would convince him to do it for free but i see that he just “knows” about it! Glad to see it works that way, really saves me the hassle.

“Allright, since it seems that you really do want to learn everything about beast mastery i will tell you everything i know! Please, please enter my house!”

Zaran stepped in the house and saw that although it looked shabby on the outside, it was impeccable on the inside, not even a single speck of dust could be seen. The dwarf led him towards the back of the house and opened the trapdoor to the cellar. “Come, come, down here is where i keep the beasties!” the dwarf said. Zaran felt a little hesitant… Who keeps his pets in the basement?

“Ah… it seems i need to do some explaining as to why we’re going to the basement.” the dwarf said as he saw Zaran hesitate to go to the basement.

“A few years ago i actually had a very large pavilion like the other guilds, but after an unfortunate accident where a disciple refused to listen to me, that disciple got killed by one of the tigers that we used to train them. Afterwards the major decided to close my guild… After a lot of pleading i was able to keep the guild but… the pavilion and most of the animals got taken away. Instead i got this little shack and the only animals i could keep where the night crawlers, since they didn’t dare take them away. They’re quite vicious and normally i wouldn’t let new disciples near them, which led to this guild being empty since no one wants to learn about beast mastery without actually having hands on practice available. But i can see that you should be able to handle some meager beasties like i got in my basement!” the dwarf said as tears dropped drown his cheeks without him noticing. The memory of his pavilion and animals taken away filled him with great pain.

Zaran felt bad as he saw the emotional dwarf. “I’m sorry master, I didn’t know…” Zaran said as he cupped his hands.

“It’s okay it’s okay! And please don’t call me master but call me Henry!” The dwarf said as he rubbed his eyes.

“Ah! That’s right, I never said my name… “ Zaran said once he heard his master’s name. “My name is Zaran Karaz.”

“Ah, that seems like a fine name! It sounds strong and powerfull! But come, come! No time to waste!” Henry said as he urged Zaran to enter the basement.

The dwarf and Zaran entered the cellar and closed the trapdoor as Henry lit a few oil lamps around the first room of the basement. The basement had cobblestone walls, a single table with a few chairs and double iron doors sealing this area of the basement from the next. “This room i was planning to use to teach new disciples once they were eligible to learn about these beasts i’ll be showing you in a minute. But none could stand to stay long enough to learn about them. They hoped they’d get to handle a lot more beasties and thus most of them left for the guilds in the other cities, but you my boy, you’ll be handling them from the get to!” Henry said as he happily walked towards the large double iron doors that sat opposite from the stairs. He lifted the iron bar that sealed it and opened the door.

Immediatly a heavy dark aura befell Zaran and he took a step back. “Ah…” Zaran exclaimed. HeLoud roaring and barking welcomed Zaran as he stepped inside the next room.

The dwarf smirked. “No reason to worry, they’re all locked up and won’t hurt you!”

With oil lamp in hand the dwarf led Zaran inside. A large variety of iron cages were in a long hallway, a hallway that extended far longer than the cabin was. “T’was a real pain in the ass to convince the major to keep these ones, but there’s no one beside me that can handle these young’uns in the whole kingdom!”

“Look, this first cage here, this’ll be the one i’ll be teaching you with.” the dwarf said as he pointed towards the smallest cage in the hall. As the dwarf shone it’s oil lamp towards it a cute bark was heard. A little hellhound ran towards the front of the cage and growled towards Zaran. “Hey pup, be nice to this one okay?” Henry said as he threw a sausage towards it.

Zaran was taken aback as he saw the dog. It was small, about 50 centimers high, had pitch-black fur, glowing red eyes and something that seemed like bones growing among its fur, revealing it’s skeleton. How did that cute bark come from that? Zaran thought.

Henry opened the cage and put a leash around the little hellhound and picked it up. “Come, back to the first room Zaran, no need to check the other ones out for now. You might not sleep at night” Henry chuckled as he walked back to the first room. Zaran quickly followed suit.

Henry put the pup in a small cage that he drew from his storage ring and then closed to the door to the hallway. He then walked back to the table and fed another sausage to the hellhound which cutely barked again after she ate it.

“Why does it make such a cute sound?” Zaran asked.

“Ah… this one is a little special, isn’t that right Kirin? Agoo good girl!” Henry said as he took the hellhound from the cage and started petting it. “Normally hellhounds are pretty vicious at birth and the whole litter devours the mom shortly after she gave birth… however, this time the litter didn’t do that and turned against this small one after it barked once. Luckily i was there and saved her. It’s the first time in all my years training hellhounds that such a thing has happened. Such smooth fur, these bones growing on her and that cute bark… amongst all the beast masters i know, none have ever seen one like this. Normally they have mangled fur and none of these bones growing on top of her. But, while talking about this cute little one is quite entertaining… that’s not what you came here for right?” Henry said.

“Allrighty so… first things first. What do you think being beast master entails Zaran?” Henry asked with an inquisitive tone.

Zaran wracked his brains over that question, trying to remember the answer to that question from one of his previous lifetimes. “Being a beast master doesn’t mean mastering animals as being able to dominate them and basically making them your slaves, but means that you should understand their needs, desires and nature. Instead of making them your slave you should treat them as your companion, as your friend as they will return that friendship to you with ever-lasting faithfulness. Although not every beast can be tamed that way, it’s the only way that really counts as being a beast master.” Zaran replied.

Shock filled Henry’s eyes. That was a perfect answer. Among all of his disciples how many had come remotely close to this answer? None. Absolutely not a single one grasped even a strand of what it meant to be a beast master. Most of them thought all they needed to know was how to dominate a beast. They never thought that they should befriend it or make it a companion. “This answer… Who told it to you?” Henry asked as he stared at Zaran in disbelief.

“It is the answer that comes from my heart. Beasts are not to be treated like slaves.” Zaran said as he sighed, thinking about all the so called beast masters he had met in previous lifetimes. Most of them didn’t grasp this simple truth either and viciously mistreated their animals as they thought supremacy over their animals meant to master them.

“I see… boy, do you wish to walk on a path different from any beast master?” Henry asked. A message box popped up in front of Zaran.

Do you wish to change one of your two sub-professions to Hellbeast Master?While a normal Beast Master can tame hellbeasts with some degree of difficulty, danger still lurks as the nature of hellbeasts is vicious and vile. Hellbeast Masters however, are able to understand the heart and nature of hellbeasts, making them capable of truly mastering these animals and are able to tame them in the true way.

"Master, I truly wish to walk the path that is meant for true beast masters." Zaran said as he accepted the sub-profession change.

Henry smiled contently and placed Kirin on the table. "Please touch this little one then, she won't bite." Henry said in a mysterious tone. Zaran placed his hand on top the small hellhound's head. "Now, try to feel what it feels, see through her every will, desire, need. See past your misconception about her kind. See what she really is." Henry said. Zaran closed his eyes and tried to forget about his misconception about hellhounds. I can' think about her as a monstrous being. What is this one truly? Zaran thought as he tried to peer through her soul. Minutes passed... an hour passed... two hours passed... until finally Zaran started to feel connected to Kirin. After two more hours Zaran finally opened his eyes. "She is not vile nor vicious. She's kind towards you for saving her, she distrusts others because of what happened that day, which is the reason why she barked and growled at me. She needs love and care, which she will reward with endless trust and friendship. And right now... she is hungry. " Zaran said with a small smile as he took out a sausage and handfed it to Kirin, who happily ate it and pushed her head against Zaran's hand, telling him that he should pet her. Zaran gently pet Kirin and a messagebox appeared.

Your subprofession has been succesfully changed to Hellbeast master.

Two skill confirmations popped up in front of Zaran.

You have learned the skill beast mastery.Beast mastery lvl 1 (advanced)You are able to tame large beasts with some difficulty.

You have learned the skill beast mastery.Hellbeast mastery lvl 3 (beginner)You are able to understand and tame small hellbeasts.

Henry sat there smiling contently. "You have seen her for who she really is. Do you understand now boy? Although hellbeasts generally are vicious and vile, it's not always because of their nature, just like us every animal is different. Through misconceptions people think they're all the same. But they're definitely not."

Zaran nodded in agreement. "Master, thanks for your lesson and insights thusfar."

"Hold on boy, we're not quite done yet. There's one more thing you might want to learn." Henry said. "Do you know how to identify a beast's strength?"

"I'm afraid i don't Henry." Zaran exclaimed.

"Ah! Well look here then, to identify an beast's strength you need to..." Henry said as he explained the identify skill to Zaran.

You have learned the skill Identify.Identify lvl 1 (beginner)You are able to get specified information about npc's and users within a 5 level range of you.

"Now, it is time for you to go out there and experience the world outside. Remember what I taught you today. And when the time comes that you get your first true animal companion, be sure to drop by to show it to me. If there's ever any questions, you're similarly free to drop by whenever, no matter if it's day or night." Henry said excitedly with his stentorian voice. The old bulky dwarf stood up and led Zaran back upstairs, but as the two were going towards the staircase Kirin jumped off the table and ran up to Zaran, barking cutely at him. Zaran stopped and turned around. Kirin ran up to his leg and rubbed her head against it. Zaran patted her head and Kirin wagged her tail happily.

"Seems like she took a liking to you! How about you take her along on your journey?" Henry asked.

Zaran used inspect on Kirin to see her level.

Kirin, HellhoundLevel 20hp: 500Skills:

Bite lvl 3

Scratch lvl 3

Dark flame lvl 1

Zaran shook his head. "I can't take her with me for now. I am still too unexperienced in handling animals. Once I get more experienced i'll come back to take her along" Zaran gently stroked Kirin's back and stood up. Kirin cocked her head and stopped wagging her tail, not sure as to what was going on. Henry walked up to Kirin and placed his hand on her, then whispered a few words in her head. Kirin seemed as if she was nodding after those few words and quietly sat down.

"She'll be expecting your return. Don't let the little thing down." Henry said as he walked upstairs.

"I won't, I'll surely be back for her." Zaran said. "I'd be more than happy to take her along now but... I really need to get more experienced in handling animals. I'm not all too sure i can handle her just yet."

"At least you know yer limits." Henry said, grinning a little. Was that a test? Zaran thought.

"Good, now off with ya! Go play with all them beasties and then return for Kirin." Henry said as he waved Zaran off.

Zaran bade henry farewell and walked to his next destination. Leather working is up next, if I remember correctly the leather working guild should be at the far east of the town. Sure enough after a few minutes walking the smell of leather started entering his nostrils. Zaran followed his nose and soon stumbled upon the enormous leather working guild's pavilion. A guard greeted him at the front door and after a few words, Zaran entered the pavilion, the smell of cured and processed leather almost clouded his mind, so strong it was. A short leopard man only clad in shorts and an apron greeted him. "Y-you here to learn?" he asked.

"Yes I wish to learn the leather worker's craft." Zaran replied.

"G-good, f-follow me!" the stuttering leopard man said. The leopard man wandered towards a workbench surrounded by a tanning rack, a giant oaken toolbox with leather working tools and various other pieces of equipment.

"T-there are three major s-steps in the p-production of l-leather. F-first when you acquire leather y-you h-have to do all the n-necessary p-preparatory stages. T-these vary per kind o-of l-leather. F-for example..." the leopard man said as he started explaining the various preparatory stages.

"S-Secondly y-you have the tanning. This is a p-process that s-stabilizes the protein o-of the raw h-hide or s-s-skin so it d-doesn't putrefy, making it s-suitable for a w-wide variety of end a-a-applications. This is i-important b-because..." he continued as he explained the different tanning methods.

"F-Finally w-we have c-c-crusting, this is a process were we t-thin the leather, r-re-tan it and l-lubricate it. M-m-most of t-the time it also i-includes c-coloring the l-leather. This is done in the f-following m-manner..."

"A-Afterwards w-we can c-craft t-the l-leather in v-various e-end p-products. L-let m-me s-show you." Stuttered the leopard man as he started explaining the last part. While he was very knowledgeable, Zaran had to focus to his utmost to understand the leopard man. During the middle of the explanation a not so surprising message showed up in front of Zaran.

Through concentrating to your utmost to try and understand someone with a stuttering voice, perception has raised!Perception +5

Zaran didn't know whether he should laugh or cry at this message. When the leopard man was finished a couple of very much welcome skill confirmations popped up.

Leather working lvl 1 (beginner)You are able to use the correct preparatory stages for most types of leather aswell as being able to tan and crust them.

Leather working lvl 1 (beginner)You are able now able to craft basic leather end-products.

Zaran bade the leopard man farewell and quickly left the leather working guild. So glad I'm out of this place. that stuttering voice was driving me insane! Why do all these craftsmen have such an annoying voice! Do they not want people to learn their craft after all?!? Zaran thought as he sighed. Well only the bonecrafter should take a little while for now, mining and carpentry should be easy to learn, and i'll only go and get fletching and smithing after I get myself some wood and ore. Advertisement Support "Myth Online" PayPal Patreon Previous

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