The Team's Gem Appraiser Is a Beast-Taming Expert

In Star Calendar Year 3210, two major events involving stone-appraisal masters shook the Beast-Taming Competition League.

First, the League's third attempt to recruit the legendary stone-appraisal master [echo] failed. They lost it and posted an announcement, drawing ridicule across the StarNet. Second, the stone-appraisal master for SOUL, a veteran base team, was killed in a once-in-a-century interstellar turbulence event. The team posted an announcement that same night, searching for a replacement.

Everyone knew the transfer window had closed, and nearly all the stone-appraisal masters eligible to compete in the League had already been signed by the major teams. At this point, landing a good one was practically impossible.

To make matters worse, SOUL's results had worsened year after year, and anyone with eyes could see there was no future there.

The StarNet buzzed with excitement. Plenty of people were waiting to witness SOUL's downfall with their own eyes.

Before long, SOUL posted a photo and account for its new stone-appraisal master on the StarNet.

Slender arms, a petite and adorable figure, dressed in a dark blue ceremonial uniform, with a school sports field in the background.

[SOUL: Welcome to the SOUL family! @Jiang Lingzhi]

[SOUL couldn't find anyone, so they just gave up, huh? 666, first time I've seen a team recruit someone with no idea where they came from.]

[A student??? Can that frail little thing even lift a crystal?]

[Even a desperate gamble needs the League's approval. @Beast-Taming Competition League Events Team, check whether this girl even has a license.]

The outside world was in an uproar, but SOUL was peaceful and quiet, right up until the teams announced their rosters before the league began. Beside Jiang Lingzhi's name was a familiar ID.

[echo].

That day, the StarNet's trending topic was:

#Jiang Lingzhi Legendary Stone-Appraisal Master echo# [Viral]

-

Jiang Lingzhi was reborn ten years in the past.

In her previous life, she was a star competitor in League events and led her team to a string of championship titles. After working diligently for ten years, she was repaid with ruthless betrayal and murder.

The spirit beast she had contracted was maimed, and she herself died in an explosion.

Now that she had another chance, she wanted to uncover the truth and take her revenge herself.

And of all the teams in the year she had returned to, there was only one she could be certain had nothing to do with what happened later:

With no stone-appraisal master, SOUL announced that it was disbanding right before that year's competition.

Jiang Lingzhi showed up at SOUL's door with her luggage and knocked without hesitation.

Reader advisory:

▲ Rebirth + revenge + competition + beast taming + stone appraisal. This is my own take on the setting, and stone appraisal and beast taming work differently from the usual versions. Expect a lethal dose of original worldbuilding.

▲ Writing this for myself. No unsolicited writing advice.

▲ Plot-focused. The male lead is set: he is nonhuman, a bird, and the beast the female lead contracts. The romance is a major part of the story.

Theme: Dawn will always come