Raising Beast Cubs to Find a Husband-Chapter 60: Training The Roar

The Tiger Estate’s private training hall was a masterpiece of architecture. It was a wide, open-air pavilion made of ironwood and stone, surrounded by a tranquil koi pond. It was designed to withstand the sparring of grown Tiger warriors.

It was not designed for a six-year-old with a sonic cannon in his throat.

General Rajah stood in the center of the mat, his hands clasped behind his back. He had changed into a simple white training gi.

Arjun stood opposite him, vibrating with energy. He was also wearing a tiny gi, his tail twitching back and forth like a metronome set to fast.

Barnaby stood at the edge of the mat, holding a tray of earplugs.

"The Roar is not about volume," Rajah instructed, his voice cutting through the morning air. "It is about Will. You must project your intention, not just your voice. If you shout with a scattered mind, you break everything. If you shout with a focused mind, you break only what you choose."

Rajah pointed to a row of five heavy wooden training dummies lined up ten feet away.

"Target the middle dummy," Rajah commanded. "Do not touch the others. Use the Roar to knock it down. Just the middle one."

Arjun grinned. "Easy peasy! Watch this, Dad!"

Arjun planted his feet. He took a deep breath. He stared at the middle dummy.

Okay, middle guy. You’re going down!

He focused. He felt the buzz in his chest. He opened his mouth.

"HAA!"

BOOM.

It wasn’t a precision strike. It was a shotgun blast.

A wave of distorted golden air ripped out of Arjun’s mouth. It hit the middle dummy, yes. But it also hit the two dummies on the left, the two on the right, the weapon rack behind them, and the stone wall at the back of the dojo.

The dummies exploded into splinters. The weapon rack turned into shrapnel. A large crack appeared in the back wall.

Barnaby politely shielded his face with the silver tray as wood chips rained down like confetti.

Arjun coughed, waving the dust away. "Did I get him?"

Rajah sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "You got him. And his family. And the wall. And my favorite spear."

"I missed?" Arjun’s ears drooped. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

"You overpowered it," Rajah said, walking over to kneel in front of his son. "You are treating it like a grenade. You need to treat it like a needle."

"But needles are boring!" Arjun complained, stomping his foot. "I want to be big and loud! I’m a Tiger!"

"Being a King means knowing when not to be loud," Rajah said sternly. "Arjun, listen to me. Yesterday, you saved Clover because you released everything you had. But what if the enemy was standing behind Clover? What if you had roared, and the shockwave hit her too?"

Arjun froze. The color drained from his face. He imagined Clover flying backward like the Bear-kin.

"I... I would hurt her?" Arjun whispered.

"If you lack control, yes," Rajah said softly. "Power without control is just a disaster waiting to happen. Do you want to be a protector, or a hazard?"

Arjun looked at his small hands. He clenched them into fists. "Protector. I want to be the Guard Tiger."

"Then we start with the basics," Rajah stood up. "Breathing."

Barnaby stepped forward and placed a single, lit candle on a pedestal in front of Arjun.

"Blow out the flame," Rajah ordered. "Using the Roar. But do not knock the candle over. And do not melt the wax."

Arjun stared at the tiny flame. It looked so small.

"That’s it?" Arjun scoffed. "Piece of cake."

He leaned in.

"POOF!"

WHAM.

The candle didn’t just go out. The candle, the candlestick, and the pedestal were blasted backward ten feet, clattering across the floor.

"Try again," Rajah said calmly.

Barnaby set up a new candle.

"HA!"

SMASH.

The candle disintegrated.

"Again."

"HUP!"

CRASH.

By noon, the dojo was littered with broken candles and bent pedestals. Arjun was panting, sweating, and frustrated. His throat hurt. His energy was draining.

"I can’t do it!" Arjun yelled, his voice cracking. "It just wants to explode! It doesn’t want to be small!"

"It is a reflection of you," Rajah said, handing him a water bottle. "You are hyperactive. You are everywhere at once. So your magic is everywhere at once. To control the Roar, you must calm the Tiger inside."

"But how?" Arjun whined. "I can’t sit still! I have ants in my pants! Always!"

Rajah smiled. A rare, genuine smile.

"I know. I was the same way at your age."

Rajah walked behind Arjun and placed his large hands on the cub’s shoulders.

"Don’t try to sit still," Rajah advised. "Tigers are not rocks. We are motion. But we are purposeful motion. Imagine the sound is a ball. Hold the ball in your mouth. Don’t throw it. Just... hold it."

Arjun closed his eyes. He imagined the golden buzz was a ball. A bouncy ball. It wanted to bounce out.

Stay, Arjun thought. Just stay.

He felt the energy build up. It tickled. It burned. But he didn’t let it explode. He squeezed his abs. He focused on the flame.

He opened his mouth and let out a tiny, sharp exhale.

Phht.

A small, golden ring of air shot out. It hit the candle flame.

Snuff.

The flame vanished. The candle didn’t move. The pedestal stood firm.

Arjun blinked. He looked at the smoking wick.

"I... I did it?" Arjun whispered.

"You did it," Rajah said, squeezing his shoulder. "That was a Whisper. The first step to a Roar."

Arjun jumped up, throwing his arms in the air. "I DID IT! I’M THE MASTER! I—"

"YAAAAAY!"

BOOM.

His celebration scream released a shockwave that blew the roof tiles off the dojo entrance.

Barnaby sighed, pulling a notebook out of his pocket. "I shall call the roofers, sir."

Rajah chuckled, watching his son run victory laps around the destroyed mats.

"Yes, Barnaby. And order more candles. Thousands of them."