Beast Tamer's Rebirth National Treasure Edition novel Chapter 165

Chapter 165

Chapter 165

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The zoo Sierra was heading to was the richest in Harborty, and one of the rare few in the whole country actually turning a real profit. It was a total social media sensation.

The wild animals there were always up to some wild antics, so the place was packed with tourists every single day.

But what really set it apart was the jaw-dropping decor. It looked seriously high-end, like one’d stepped into a five-star

resort.

Harborty was just over 500 miles from Amberty, but the urgent official notice dropped so suddenly that by the time Sierra tried to snag a last-minute plane ticket, all the good ones were gone.

In the end, she had to settle for the high-speed train.

The night before Sierra left, Alyssa showed up to take Snowy, the crow Quickie kept apologizing to, back with her.

Alyssa was pretty old, and her recovery in the hospital was slow. But when she heard Snowy had saved her, she came to get it as soon as she got out.

Technically, Snowy was a protected species, so Alyssa wasn’t supposed to keep it. But Sierra wasn’t exactly a stickler for the rules.

Snowy could totally survive in the wild, so it qualified for release. Giving Snowy straight to Alyssa just wouldn’t fly, not by the book or by common sense.

That night, Sierra and the bird keeper set Snowy free out in the wild.

As for where Snowy would go after that, that was out of their hands now.

When Quickie finally realized Snowy was gone, it burst into tears.

It hopped over to Sierra’s feet and started whining about how miserable it’d been lately.

It kept apologizing to Snowy, but Snowy not only ignored it, but it even pecked at it.

Then Quickie tried dancing for Snowy, hoping its fancy moves would show how sincere it was, but Snowy just squawked at it every single day.

“Sierra, you finally got rid of that heartless jerk! Now I’m your one and only favorite bird,” Quickie said.

Quickie blinked up at her. Its fluffy feathers had all grown in, and its emerald-green plumage glowed in the sunlight like living jewels. The pale yellow on its belly stretched smoothly down to its tail.

Its eyes looked like ancient amber, bright and mysterious. Its red beak kept opening and closing, sometimes spouting human words, sometimes bird chatter.

It said, “I was just trying to apologize to that heartless jerk by dancing for it, and you know what it called me?

“It called me a pervert!”

Sierra felt like her ears were crawling with bugs, so she couldn’t help but reach out and cover Quickie’s red beak.

“Quickie, do you know why Snowy keeps yelling at you?” Sierra asked.

Quickie’s little amber eyes spun around, but it was just too clueless to get it, so it shook its head, looking all innocent.

Sierra finally said what everyone at the zoo already knew, “Because you were doing a mating dance.”

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Quickie just stood there, stunned. Its eyes bugged out, shrank to pinpricks, and then popped wide again. Then it let out a dramatic squawk and scrambled back to its nest like a total goofball.

It shouted, “Whoa!

“Seriously, who’d ever fall for a cold-hearted brat?

“Sierra, you’re so mean! Why didn’t you tell me? Humans never tell me this stuff! I used to dance just because it was fun, so I did it for it! Boohoo!”

Quickie felt totally mortified, like it was tainted or something. It poked its little head out of the nest, giving Sierra the saddest, most betrayed look. “Sierra, am I ever gonna get a girlfriend again?”

Sierra was speechless.

Watching Quickie sprawled out in its nest, acting like it was dying, Sierra couldn’t help but feel a little guilty.

She promised, “There are tons of parrots in the aviary. When I get back from Harborty, I’ll set you up with a parrot dating event, sound good?”

Quickie’s eyes instantly sparkled.

“You got it! Sierra, I want eight wives!” Quickie said.

Sierra was speechless.

With all its feathers grown in, Quickie looked pretty impressive at first glance. This kind of parrot was the biggest long- tailed parrot in the world. Their tails alone could be over a foot long.

But honestly, if you took away all that fluff, Quickie was just a tiny little guy underneath it all.

Sierra remembered all the gossip from the other parrots in the aviary about Quickie, and for a moment, she was at a loss for words.

She thought, ‘Eight wives? Please. With the way Quickie’s reputation is, it’ll be lucky if a single female parrot even says hi to it.

Sierra couldn’t help but snark to herself, but seeing Quickie so over the moon, she didn’t have the heart to crush his dreams. So she said, “If you want, I could get you eighty wives.”

Quickie’s eyes popped wide, and then it broke into a happy dance. “No way no way! Eight wives is plenty! Any more and this bird’s gonna be wiped out!”

Sierra was speechless.

***

After promising Quickie a matchmaking event, Sierra hopped on the high-speed train to Harborty bright and early the next morning.

The trip was set for three days and two nights. Since only Sierra was invited, apart from Sophie, Ethan and the rest stayed behind at WonderWild Zoo.

The four-hour train ride started at 6 A.M., and by 9:50, Sierra was already at Harborty High-Speed Railway Station, even a bit ahead of schedule.

Harborty Zoo knew Sierra was coming, so they’d arranged a business van to pick her up.

The deputy director himself showed up to greet her.

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Chapter 165

“Ms. Sterling, I’m Kichard Lane,” he said, introducing himself.

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Richard looked to be in his forties, dressed in a designer suit with a prominent logo. His hair was slicked back with gel, and behind his narrow-rimmed glasses, his eyes were warm and smiling.

Harborty Zoo really had deep pockets. When Sierra saw the Mercedes van waiting to pick her up, she couldn’t help but size things up against WonderWild Zoo.

WonderWild Zoo had been holding its own lately, and ticket sales alone were enough to keep the place running. But things were only going to get tougher as more animals came in.

So even with some cash in the bank, the zoo still only had one seven-seater van, constantly being used for staff trips.

Once she got back, Sierra made up her mind to buy a few more vans for her crew. She could handle roughing it herself, but no way was she going to make her team put up with that.

When they rolled up to the entrance of Harborty Zoo, Sierra eyed the flashy, blinged-out buildings, played it cool and asked, “Mr. Lane, looks like business is booming here.”

It was already eleven, but the lines were still packed with tourists waiting to get their tickets checked.

Richard squinted and let out a chuckle. “Oh, please, we can’t compete with WonderWild Zoo. I heard you guys got taken over by the government, so you’re basically riding the gravy train. We’re not like that.

“Harborty Zoo is totally private, and every animal here costs us real cash. That’s why our tickets are the priciest in the country. Gotta flex that big money vibe, you know?”

Sierra just kept her mouth shut.

The whole point of these visits was for zoos all over the country to swap ideas and pick up some new tricks from each other.

Harborty Zoo was one of the few private zoos that actually turned a profit, so they must be doing something seriously right.

Richard thoughtfully arranged for Sierra to stay at the hotel located within the zoo.

“Ms. Sterling, please rest here for now. Tomorrow, I’ll give you a tour of the zoo,” he said.

“I’m good, thanks,” Sierra said, glancing at her watch.

She went on, “It’s not even noon yet. My friend and I will just grab a quick lunch, and maybe you could give us a tour afterward?”

She paused, and then added sincerely, “Time’s pretty tight, and I’d really love to learn as much as I can from you.”

Richard looked surprised for a moment, then chuckled and nodded, “Alright then.”

As soon as Richard left, Sierra and Sophie started settling in and organizing their luggage.

Just a few minutes later, there was a knock at the door.

Sophie set down her luggage and went to open it, but when she did, there was nothing there, just an empty hallway.

Just as she was about to close the door, Sierra said, “Sophie, wait, look down.”

Sophie glanced down.

Suddenly,

a tiny red panda stood up on its hind legs, ears twitching and showing off a pair of cute little fangs.

“Hello, human! Your red panda is at your service!” it said.

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