Weakest Beast Tamer Gets All SSS Dragons novel Chapter 629

Chapter 629: Chapter 629 - Taming the Fifth Year - First Exams

Three months had passed like water does through open fingers.

Ren waited outside in the stands of one of the ten ’temporary auditoriums’... ’Small’ buildings for evaluations that earth elementals had generated.

The structures were impressive in their uniformity, each one identical to the others.

He was waiting his turn for what was a semi-private exam where only some acquaintances could be seen being evaluated since they’d been distributed "randomly". Luckily he and Min were together.

Min descended from the platform showing mostly relief with a bit of frustration. His posture was slouched in a way that spoke of bone-deep exhaustion.

"How did it go?" Ren asked when his friend approached, making room on the bench beside him.

"Nine out of ten," Min responded, dropping into the seat with the grace of a dropped sack of potatoes. "Failed the posture before his majesty one. Apparently my back was too ’stoic’ according to the evaluator."

His voice carried bitter irony on the word ’stoic’, as if it were a huge insult.

"I guess forcing it so much with those tutors of yours left it numb?"

"Ah." Min’s expression shifted, realization dawning.

"Yeah. ’Ah’," Ren sighed, feeling sympathy for his friend’s plight.

"But well, nine out of ten. I can live with that..."

Was it that taking everything with so much stress had been the problem like Aldric claimed?

The thought was seductive, tempting. But Ren felt something cold slide down his back despite the warm afternoon sun. Min had taken this incredibly seriously. Ren had seen him practice postures until late at night, memorize protocols while eating, murmur etiquette responses in his sleep.

And he’d still failed one.

Min, who had good form. Min, who had studied exhaustively. Min, who Ren had thought would pass everything without problem.

If Min could fail with all that effort...

Ren shook his head, physically trying to dislodge the thought. No. No point in worrying too much now. Being tense and stressed like everyone else wasn’t going to help him. If there was anything good he could take from Aldric’s teachings, it was that: staying calm.

Keep the confidence. Don’t let nerves control you.

"At least you already passed," he said finally, optimism in his voice. "And nine out of ten is excellent when you have fifteen opportunities to fail."

With minor rewards, students could fail up to fifteen exams total over the year before serious consequences. Min had used one failure. He had fourteen left.

"I hope so," Min murmured, though he didn’t sound convinced.

The next students were called one by one. Some came out with smiles of relief, their shoulders light, their steps bouncing with the joy of success. Others with tears escaping even as they bit their lips or clenched their mouths shut, trying desperately to maintain dignity in the face of failure.

A boy from another of the three main academies approached out pale as death after failing four out of ten. His friends surrounded him immediately, but he seemed not to see them, staring at nothing with hollow eyes.

Four failures already. He only had eleven left for the entire year.

"Klein Goldcrest," the announcer’s voice resonated in auditorium number 5, where Ren found himself waiting with Min.

Ren straightened slightly, watching as Klein walked toward the platform with measured steps. The ex-Goldcrest heir had changed. He still had that ingrained noble posture, but there was something different in how he moved now.

Less arrogance, more... More awareness.

In Ren’s opinion, he deserved that small nobility they’d gifted him despite everything that had happened before. Some people could change. Perhaps Klein was proof of that.

Klein’s exams were a spectacle of technical perfection. Each bow at the exact angle, not a degree off. Each answer articulated with aristocratic clarity, every syllable precisely formed. Each gesture executed with the precision of years of training since childhood. It was like watching a master craftsman at work, every movement deliberate and flawless.

"Ten out of ten," the head evaluator announced at the end.

The auditorium erupted in polite applause. The sound was restrained, proper, but genuine. Ren found himself clapping too, genuinely impressed by the display of technical mastery.

Klein descended from the platform, and when his eyes met Ren’s, something strange happened. The boy who before had looked at him with disdain now... blushed. Slightly. His pale cheeks tinged with color. And he averted his gaze quickly before hurrying toward his section, his steps just a touch too fast to be entirely dignified.

"What was that?" Min murmured, eyebrows raised in surprise.

"I have no idea," Ren responded, equally confused.

EXAM 1: FORMAL PRESENTATION PROTOCOL

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