As his voice faded, Xiaoxiao, who had been lying lazily in his arms, suddenly propped up her body to sit upright, shook her head towards him, her eyes sparkling with human-like illumination.
âEh?â Li Tutuâs eyes flashed with a hint of surprise, âXiaoxiao, youâ¦â
Through Contractual Sensing, Xiaoxiao clearly conveyed her thoughts to him.
She was already a Pet Beast capable of handling things on her own, not just a pet that lay in the palm of Li Tutuâs hand every day!
âSo thatâs what youâre thinking,â Li Tutu said, his face showing a touch of embarrassment, âBut why didnât you say anything before?â
âSqueak~â
Xiaoxiao made a few gestures, then glanced at Xu Ran.
Li Tutu understood.
Because they had always interacted in this way, Xiaoxiao didnât know how to speak up.
It was Boss Xuâs question that brought the issue to the forefront, making Xiaoxiao brave enough to express her thoughts.
From the time Xiaoxiao awakened into a Golden Whisker Mouse until now, he hadnât conducted any Skill Training for a Pet Beast, nor used the Golden Whisker Mouseâs Skills, still raising her as a pet that couldnât do anything, keeping her company.
This way of interaction was not what Xiaoxiao wanted!
âI understand,â Li Tutu nodded with a sudden realization, âIn that case, from now on Iâll treat you as a contract partner!â
âSqueak~â
The Golden Whisker Mouse nodded with satisfaction, stood up from the palm of Li Tutuâs hand, and climbed nimbly up his arm, soon perching on Li Tutuâs shoulder, rubbing against his face, and then looking around seriously, as if keeping watch for him.
Seeing the Golden Whisker Mouseâs departure from her usual indolence, Li Tutu also realized that his past approach might have been somewhat improper.
He looked gratefully at Xu Ran, âBoss Xu, with that said, weâll be taking our leave now.â
âTake care, and welcome to visit again next time,â Xu Ran said with a smile, waving at the departing duo, then stretched leisurely.
The casual chat had delayed quite a bit of time, so that would be it for the morningâs business.
Sensing someone entering outside the door, Xu Ran called out without turning back, âHello, the morning hours are over, please come back in the afternoon.â
The response came with a voice tinged with a bit of confusion.
âSqueak?â
Huh? Not a human?
Hearing the sound, Xu Ran couldnât help but turn his head to look.
Standing at the entrance of the store was a round-headed, round-bodied creature, about one and a half meters tall, looking a bit like a honey badger, but not as slender, appearing somewhat short and stout, and a little slow-witted at first glance.
In one look, Xu Ran recognized its species.
Fighting Pet Beasts, Combat Badger.
Despite its name and appearance relating to being slow-witted, its combat power ranked amongst the very top in the Fighting Attribute Leading Race, possessing four Two-star Talent Skills.
So, was this a wild Combat Badger?
After waiting for a while and not seeing its Beast Master, Xu Ran subconsciously made this judgment.
He quickly approached the Combat Badger, âAre you here for Washing and Protection as well?â
Handling the Washing and Protection for wild Transcendent Beings was not a first-time experience for him.
No problem!
Hearing Xu Ranâs question, the Combat Badgerâs little ears twitched, its eyes shimmered with intelligence, and soon it shook its head.
âSqueak~â
âNot for that?â Xu Ranâs face took on an added expression of surprise, âThen why are you here?â
Seemingly aware of the difficulty in communicating with the human before it, the Combat Badger didnât continue to speak. It looked around, quickly finding the Price Menu on the walls of the Foster Shop.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
Waddling over to the Price Menu, the Combat Badger scanned through the various numbers, finally settling on one.
âSnap!â
With a crisp sound, the Combat Badger slapped one of the Price Menus.
[Elite Stage Pet Beast Foster Care: 6666/Day]
Looking at this particular Price Menu and then back at the Elite Stage Combat Badger, after a long moment, Xu Ran spoke with an uncertain voice.
âYou want to foster?!â
ââââââ
âSo thatâs what youâve been thinking,â Li Tutu said with increasing embarrassment. âBut why didnât you say anything earlier?â
âSqueak~â
Jin made a few more gestures and then glanced at Xu Ran.
Li Tutu understood.
Because their interaction had always been this way, Jin didnât know how to broach the topic.
It was only after Boss Xuâs questioning put the issue in the open that Jin bravely expressed its thoughts.
Since awakening as a Golden Whisker Mouse, Li Tutu hadnât provided any Skill Training for it as a Pet Beast, nor had he utilized the Golden Whisker Mouseâs skills. He continued to take care of it as if it were a pet that couldnât do anything, letting it keep him company.
This way of interaction wasnât what Jin wanted!
âI understand,â Li Tutu nodded, his face showing a dawning realization. âIn that case, from now on, I will treat you as a Contractual partner!â
âSqueak~â
The Golden Whisker Mouse nodded in satisfaction, got up from Li Tutuâs palm, and nimbly climbed up his arm. In no time, it was standing on Li Tutuâs shoulder, rubbing against his face, then looked around earnestly as if keeping watch for him.
Seeing the Golden Whisker Mouse shedding its usual lazy behavior, Li Tutu also realized that his past actions might have been somewhat improper.
He looked gratefully at Xu Ran, âBoss Xu, given the circumstances, weâll take our leave now.â
âSafe travels, and youâre welcome to come again,â Xu Ran said with a smile as he waved goodbye to the departing pair and then stretched lazily.
The casual conversation had taken up quite a bit of time, so he decided to call it a day with the morningâs business.
Sensing a presence outside the door, Xu Ran called out without turning around, âHello, the morning business is over, please come back in the afternoon.â
The response he received was a voice tinged with a bit of confusion.
âJi?â
Hmm? Not human?
Upon hearing that sound, Xu Ran couldnât help but turn to look.
Standing at the entrance of the shop was a round-headed, approximately one-and-a-half-meter-tall critter, looking somewhat like a badger but not as sleek. Instead, it looked rather short and plump, and utterly endearing.
With just a glance, Xu Ran recognized its species.
Fighting Pet Beasts, the Combat Badger.
Despite its name and appearance being related to clumsiness, it possessed a Combat power among the top tier of the Fighting System Leading Race, with four Two-Star Talent Skills.
So, was this a wild Combat Badger?
After waiting for a bit with no Beast Master appearing, Xu Ran subconsciously came to this conclusion.
He quickly approached the Combat Badger, âAre you here for Washing and Protection?â
He had hosted the Washing and Protection of wild Transcendent Beings before.
No big deal!
At Xu Ranâs question, the Combat Badgerâs tiny ears twitched, and its eyes sparkled with intelligence. It quickly shook its head.
âJi~â
âNot for that?â Xu Ranâs face showed a bit of surprise. âThen why are you here?â
Realizing the difficulty of communicating with the human before it, the Combat Badger didnât continue speaking. It glanced around and soon found the Price Menu on the wall of the Foster Shop.
It wobbled over to the Price Menu, scanning over each one until its gaze settled on a particular entry.
âSlap!â
With a crisp sound, the Combat Badger slapped one of the Price Menus.
[Elite Stage Pet Beast Fostering: 6666/day]
After looking at the Price Menu and considering the Elite Stage Combat Badger, Xu Ran finally spoke with a tentative voice.
âYou want to foster?!â
ââââââ