The Scrap Tamer - Chapter 107

Chapter 107: The Rumors
Reid arrived at the cafeteria within minutes since it wasn’t far from Garrick’s forge.

Walking in, he was immediately greeted by the rich aroma of grilled meat, seasoned rice, and a mix of spices that made his stomach rumble even louder.

The scent of freshly fried food and simmering stews filled the air. Since it was during their lunch break, the place was full of military personnel ranking from cadet to some officers.

Each person was focused on the plate of food in front of them… that is, until Reid entered. As if on cue, conversations slowed, and a few heads turned in his direction. Some glanced at him briefly before returning to their meals, while others openly stared, murmuring to their tablemates.

“That’s him right, the leader of team 7?” A voice whispered.

“The ones who were able to fight a platinum tier simulated primal to a stand still?” another voice whispered, not quite low enough for Reid to miss.

“I heard they would have taken it down even if commander Ajax didn’t interfere.”

Reid’s brow twitched. He hadn’t expected rumors about their fight with the Platinum-tier Primal to spread so quickly—let alone become common knowledge across the military.

And, of course, each version seemed more exaggerated than the last.

There was even a version that suggested that he had single-handedly held off the creature while his team escaped, only for Commander Ajax to arrive at the last second and stop the simulation from collapsing entirely.

“I pity Darren,” a cadet whispered. “He just had to go and challenge someone like him.”

He subtly gestured in Reid’s direction—or so he thought. But Reid was well aware of the attention on him.

“Well, not all the rumors could be true, right?” the cadet sitting across from him said, skepticism clear in his tone “there’s no way someone capable of taking down a Platinum tier primal would be just a junior officer”

“I dunno man, I’m just telling you what I heard from rumors” the first cadet said “besides, even if he’s not capable of taking down the primal, I still think Darren shouldn’t have challenged him.”

Reid exhaled through his nose, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. With a sigh, he walked toward the food counter, ignoring the stares and ‘hushed’ conversations.

He had more important things to worry about than rumors—like satisfying his growing hunger.

As Reid stepped up to the counter, the chef barely spared him a glance before scooping a generous portion of seasoned rice onto a tray. The man was broad-shouldered, his uniform apron stained from a long day of cooking. His name tag read “Gus.”

“Meat or fish?” Gus asked gruffly, ladling sauce over a steaming portion of vegetables.

“Meat,” Reid answered.

With practiced efficiency, Gus slapped a grilled steak onto the plate, then finally looked up. His sharp eyes flickered with recognition—not of Reid himself, but of the murmurs spreading through the cafeteria.

“You’re the guy everyone’s whispering about,” Gus noted, setting the tray down in front of him. His tone wasn’t impressed—just mildly curious.

Reid exhaled through his nose. “Apparently.”

Gus shrugged, grabbing another plate for the next cadet. “There’s lots of rumors going around about you and your teammates. Some say you fought a Platinum-tier Primal to a standstill. Others say you took it down by yourself.”

He smirked. “Though, judging by how you’re standing here with , I’d say at least half of that’s bullshit.”

Reid raised his brow, grabbing his tray. “And what’s the other half?”

“Well, all rumors start from a little bit of truth,” Gus said, scooping a spoon of rice onto another plate. “Question is, how much of it is real, and how much is just a bunch of making you sound like a damn legend?”

Reid gave a noncommittal shrug. “Wouldn’t know. I also only just heard the rumors a few seconds ago.”

Gus huffed a small laugh. “I can imagine. But let me give you some advice, kid—if the rumors are gonna fly anyway, might as well make sure they don’t turn you into an idiot in the process.”

Reid tilted his head. “And what’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means,” Gus said, sliding another tray forward, “people love building someone up, but they love tearing ’em down even more. Sooner or later, someone’s gonna come looking for a fight—hoping to take down the so-called ‘champion’ and make a name for themselves.”

Reid smirked “I guess that has already happened”.

Gus gave him a look, then shook his head. “Figures. Well, try not to get your ass kicked too bad, or I’ll be hearing a whole different set of rumors tomorrow.”

Reid chuckled under his breath. “Duly noted.”

With that, he turned away, scanning the cafeteria for an empty table. He didn’t have to search for long before he spotted one.

Reid made his way to the table, setting his tray down and pulling out a chair. As he picked up his fork, about to take his first bite, the cafeteria door opened allowing the rest of team seven in.

A new wave of murmurs rose from the crowd again as the four walked in.

Lisa entered first, her eyes scanned the cafeteria until they locked onto Reid. She led the rest of the team towards his table.

Clara hopped forward so she was the first to reach him. She pulled out a chair and dropping into it with a playful smirk.

“So, when were you planning on telling us we’ve apparently fought a Platinum-tier Primal to the death and lived to tell the tale?” she asked, amusement evident in her voice.

Reid chewed his food, swallowing before answering. “I only just found out myself.”

Marcushook his head. “At this rate, someone’s going to say we tamed the damn thing.”

Reid sighed. “Give it a day. By tomorrow, I’ll have apparently eaten it for breakfast.”

Clara laughed as Lisa shook her head and said “Well, before any more insane rumors spread, we should probably eat.”

She led the rest of the team toward the food counter, where Gus was already serving up plates. He gave them all a once-over before recognizing them as Reid’s team members, “Same as your friend?”

“Yep,” Lisa said, grabbing a tray. The rest followed suit, picking their meals before making their way back to the table.

Lisa placed her utensils down and leaned forward slightly. “Alright. Let’s focus. Darren’s fight is in an hour. You ready for this, Reid?”

Reid took another bite before answering. “Yeah.”

Marcus frowned. “You sure? You did just get out of the forge and with the amount of time you spent there, I assume you’d be too exhausted to fight.”

“Oh, I can just do this” with a thought, he summoned Rusty who used [rewind] on him, reversing the fatigue that had built up in his body.

Almost instantly, the soreness in his muscles faded, and his energy returned as if he hadn’t spent half of his day forging.

“Thanks, Rusty,” he said, petting the Forged-Beast’s little head.

“Squeak,” Rusty replied, nestling into Reid’s touch.

“That’s pretty convenient” Clara said.

Ethan, who had been ready to summon his Bio-Synth Lizard to help with Reid’s exhaustion, slowly lowered his hand and went back to eating.

“Speaking of which,” Reid started, glancing at his teammates. “Where were you guys while I was with Master Garrick?”

“Training with our new forged beasts” Clara answered.

Reid raised a brow as he took another bite of his meal. “The new Forged Beasts, huh? How’d that go?”

Lisa smirked. “Let’s just say we had our hands full.”

Clara leaned forward excitedly. “Oh, you should’ve seen it! My Shadow Ferret is ridiculously fast. The way it moves through shadows is insane—I managed to get a clean shot at Marcus five times before he even realized where I was.”

Marcus grunted, stabbing into his food. “You were cheating. How am I supposed to fight you when you don’t stay still?.”

Clara gave him a cheeky grin “Not my fault you’re built like a boulder—and I move faster than you.”

Marcus rolled his eyes but didn’t argue.

“Her salamander was tearing through the training dummies like they were paper. Plasma attacks are no joke.” Clara said, referring to Lisa and her forged beast.

“Yeah, the Plasma Salamander’s mobility is better than I expected. The way it uses ion bursts for short bursts of acceleration makes it a nightmare to pin down” Lisa nodded, a hint of pride in her voice.

“Sounds like you guys had fun.” Reid smiled.

Ethan, who had been silently eating, finally spoke up. “Fun isn’t exactly the word I’d use.” He set down his fork.

“My Cyber Slime… well, it’s terrifying. The way it can phase through solid objects and hack into things—let’s just say I may or may not have accidentally locked one of the junior officers in a horror training system for an hour.”

Reid blinked. “You what?”

Ethan coughed into his fist. “It was an accident.”

Clara grinned. “Sure it was.”

“Well… he was being an assh*le, acting like he owned the place. So honestly? I’m glad Ethan did it.” Lisa said with a satisfied grin on her face.

“So, what’s the plan for Darren’s fight? Are we just watching, or are we placing bets on how fast you take him down?” She quickly changed the topic.

Clara perked up. “Ooooh, I like that idea. I say under five minutes.”

“Five? You really think it’ll take that long?” Marcus asked with a small frown.

“I’m giving Darren some credit,” Clara replied, grinning. “But if Reid goes all out? Two minutes, tops.”

Lisa tapped her fingers on the table. “I’d say three. He might not completely incompetent.”

“Depends. Are we factoring in how long it takes for Darren to realize he made a mistake?” Ethan joined the conversation.

Reid sighed. “You guys do know I’m right here, right?”

“Yeah. And?” Clara said with a smirk.

Reid shook his head with a chuckle, finishing the last bite of his meal as the team continued placing bets on how long his match with Darren would last.