ATPnovel 0031 Nobody knows more about fire dragons than me.
0031 Nobody knows more about fire dragons than me.
In the evening, after the news of Azure Rathalos's entry into Forest Hills was posted in the guild hall, the hunters were filled with worry and began to discuss it heatedly.
Upon learning this, Instructor Lang, who was sitting at the round table, instead of enjoying drinking and chatting, held his barrel-shaped glass and fell silent.
Before long, a waiter named Elo ran over and whispered a few words in his ear.
"The village chief is holding a meeting with five-star or higher resident hunters. Excuse me."
After speaking, Langde got up and walked to the second floor of the guild.
"Is Instructor Langde a five-star hunter, meow?"
Kabu, who sat next to me, asked, somewhat surprised.
"I wasn't aware of that before, but instructors who are proficient in multiple hunting weapons do tend to have higher star ratings."
After Li Ai finished speaking, she took out her phone and looked at the dense markings on the map.
During this week, he meticulously recorded every piece of information about Senqiu that changed in the guild hall.
Among the team's target female Rathian, the high-risk individual "Heartbreak" and "Tail Broken" have not yet appeared.
"Matchmaker" and "Heavy Wing" have been confirmed to have been observed in Senqiu.
Unexpectedly, the extremely rare male Rathalos subspecies, Azure Rathalos, has just been confirmed to have appeared.
However, when Li Ai added the annotation, she not only drew a light blue question mark, but also added a pink question mark.
"I heard from the investigators that if rare subspecies of monsters are observed, doesn't that mean the area's ecosystem is thriving? Meow! Why do you and Instructor Lang look so serious?"
Kabu was puzzled.
The atmosphere at the dinner table was just lively, with everyone laughing and clinking glasses.
Everything changed after Azure Rathalos delivered a message.
"It is true that the subspecies was sighted deep in the wild, but it is the breeding season for Rathalos now. Azure Rathalos can adapt to most environments, and some can even build nests on the edge of Elder Dragon habitats. The reason why they came to the Forest Hills to breed must be that they have confirmed that another Pink Rathalos will also come to the Forest Hills. Once the two become mates, the threat to the ecology will increase significantly, and even a five-star hunter team will not be able to deal with it."
Li Ai provided an explanation.
"Didn't you say that some dragons might not find a mate even if they participate in the breeding season? So it can't be that much of a coincidence, right, meow?"
Kabu felt there was still a chance.
"As subspecies, Azure Rathalos and Pink Rathian will only choose each other as their mates."
"Ah! Doesn't that mean there's bound to be a super-powerful subspecies of fire dragon pair this time, meow?"
Kabu finally realized the seriousness of the problem.
"Yes."
"Hey~ You guys care so much about meow... Li Ai, could you use your Love Hunter abilities to try and help me out?"
"Even when I'm trying to seduce a regular female Rathalos, I have to find an inexperienced Rathalos to test against. Asking me to seduce a Pink Rathian in front of a Blue Rathalos is practically suicide."
Li Ai felt that even if the relevant commissions could be accepted regardless of the star rating difference, it was simply impossible to achieve at the moment.
An hour later, several hunters descended the stairs into the hall, none of them smiling, as if they had encountered a very serious problem.
It was unusual for Langde to treat everyone to a hot spring, so Li Ai took Kabu along.
Kabu used to just accompany Li Ai, going in and out of the Chamber of Commerce or the Guild Hall.
This was a first for Senegal, but his companion cat Jim was very experienced.
He gave Kabu a swimming ring and then jumped into the pool to demonstrate and instruct him.
After swimming around for a while to get used to it, Kabu was about to show Li Ai what he had done when he discovered that the three hunters who had come with him had all disappeared.
"Jim, where have they all gone, meow?"
"Don't worry about them, they went upstairs to smoke, meow, let's continue."
Inside the small second-floor room, where the roof had been blackened by smoke, three people were puffing away.
Underneath the small square table, there was a pile of green beer bottles from the "Brave the World" beer brand.
Li Ai had a cigarette dangling from his mouth and a six-star emergency hunting commission for "Heavenly Azure, Earthly Cherry Blossom" in his hand.
The reward listed above is 64000 z per person, which looks quite tempting.
The words "Azure Rathalos and Pink Rathian" as the hunting targets are enough to make one's eyes sting just by looking at them.
"Only a hero hunter team would attempt to accept this kind of commission."
After Li Ai finished speaking, she put the commission back on the table.
He felt that the five-star hunter alone could filter out the vast majority of hunter teams.
"The village chief said there's no need to rush, as the situation might still turn around, although the chances of that turning around are quite low. He hopes the Hero Hunter team can be prepared."
Seneca sighed.
"The village chief has really high emotional intelligence when he speaks."
Li Ai sighed.
"The village chief always likes to leave people with hope... Tomorrow the Hero Squad will be stationed in the wild. Li Ai, you also need to be careful. This is your first time participating in the breeding season, so don't push yourself too hard."
"Don't worry, hasn't Senior Seifert returned to the team yet?"
Li Ai had personally witnessed the six-star spear hunter Layton and the five-star crossbow hunter Asani, but he had only heard of the last one, the five-star greatsword hunter Seifer.
"He will arrive soon, but the appearance of Azure Rathalos will disrupt everything, and the team will have to regroup in the wild."
"By the way, Senge, the guild confirmed hunting Uromion in the Arctic Circle two weeks ago, but why haven't any reports surfaced yet?"
Landes asked curiously.
"The specifics are unclear, but of the four members of the Bokai Village team who participated, three died in the hunt. Perhaps the casualties were too severe, which is why Bokai Village is unwilling to release the report to the public."
Clearly, Seneca did not have any further information and could only offer his own speculations.
"If that's the case, then it's destined to be a brutal battle."
After saying that, Lande flicked the cap off the beer bottle with his finger.
The next morning, at the village entrance.
Amidst the cheers and farewells of the villagers, Seneca led the group by car to the countryside.
Various gifts were thrown into the carriage by the villagers as if they were free.
"This is what a hunter should be like..."
Hearing Instructor Lang's sigh, Li Ai asked curiously, "Instructor Lang, will you accept the commission this time?"
Li Ai knew that the other party had suffered a serious injury when he was young, which led to his job as an instructor.
However, as long as the five-star hunter's consciousness is still intact, leading a team to accept some two- to three-star commissions should be quite easy to complete.
"As long as I don't make a move, I can still believe that I'm still a five-star hunter and continue to show confidence in front of the trainees. Once I make a move, I can only accept the fact that I've seriously regressed, so I should leave myself with some good memories... I'm not going to talk about it anymore. The mechanical dragon that was just introduced to the training ground is not yet assembled. I need to hurry up and finish it."
After patting Li Ai on the broad shoulder, Langde left.
Li Ai unfolded the map covered with markings and glanced at it. Feeling that it was time for her to make her move, she went to the Hunter's Guild Hall.
Find Becky at the counter and accept the four-star emergency hunting quest titled "Fierce Battle! Rathian".
The reward for 12100z is no different from usual.
The difference is that this commission does not have a clearly defined individual goal.
The time limit is until the end of May 390, which is roughly the end of the fire dragon breeding season.
The location is very flexible and there are no restrictions, as long as it is not close to the core mountainous area.
"You've only completed two of Samsung's commissions, and now you're going to challenge the Rathian alone? Are you really ready?"
"Receptionist Becky asked in a serious tone."
Samsung Hunters can indeed accept four-star emergency commissions on their own.
The problem is that very few hunters would take such a risk, especially during the Rathalos breeding season.
But Becky herself has limited knowledge of the Love Hunter and cannot offer professional advice.
"It's done."
"Alright, on behalf of the Hunter's Guild, I thank you for your brave hunting expedition during the breeding season. I hope you return safely, Li Ai."
As Becky spoke, she pressed the authentication stamp on the commission.
Li Ai returned to Yang Village and began the final preparations.
At this time, the farmhouse was being expanded into three adjacent two-story villas.
Carrying logs, Qingcao and Qingtian heard that an attack was about to take place, so they put down their work and began to prepare for the mission.
"Cissel and Clover, you guys should stop working too. There's an assembly job you can do at the guild training ground."
"Okay, meow."
Cecil jumped off the roof.
"This journey will take a long time. For your safety, if you return to Sheep Village, please stay in the cellar for now. If there is any unavoidable crisis, please use your mobile phone to contact support, and everyone will rush back as soon as possible."
"Is it that dangerous, meow? I remember the village always managed to survive in previous years."
"Two subspecies of fire dragons that haven't appeared in previous years have arrived this year, but with the hero team here, it shouldn't be a big problem... Don't worry about the farm. As long as we get through this crisis, even if it's destroyed, we can rebuild it quickly. Your safety is the most important thing."
Under the watchful eyes of the cats, Qingcao lifted the four-wheeled flatbed used for emergency rescue onto the top of the truck.
Sunny Day also placed the supplies that would be kept in the wilderness for an extended period, along with the supplies distributed by the guild, into the carriage.
Li Ai sat in the front of the truck, shouted "Let's go!", and the truck, pulled by the grass, began to speed along the road.
At the same moment, the lone wolf landed on a beach.
She transformed into a monster girl and gazed at the endless sea. This was the starting point for crossing the sea to the dense forest. Once she took off and began her journey, it would be difficult to turn back.
Based on the migration schedule of previous years, the lone wolf should have already completed its crossing of the sea and arrived at the dense forest by now.
However, after parting ways with Yang Kuku this year, her mind was always in turmoil, and she flew the wrong way several times.
Looking at the surging seawater now, I felt an indescribable resistance and no longer wanted to go any further.
"Foolish sheep Kuku, why didn't you choose to come with me into the forest...? Was it because I wasn't resolute enough...?"
Just as the lone wolf was bowing his head in dejection and lamenting, a sudden gust of wind from above instantly alerted him.
From confusion to sharp eyes, they looked up at the sky.
The shadow of a fire dragon with outstretched wings flashed across the beach.
The lone wolf quickly observed the enemy's information and confirmed that it was an adult female Rathalos.
The numerous old wounds on his body and the casual attitude he displayed by simply slowing down his flight both indicated that the opponent had extensive combat experience.
Upon seeing purple venom dripping from the missing part of its tail, Lone Wolf immediately recalled this strange female Rathalos.
Although it is a fire dragon, its relationship with the Forest Hill fire dragon clan is very bad.
All of this is because of this individual, who not only tries to prevent the male and female Rathalos from contacting each other, but also suddenly attacks the male Rathalos.
Such an unconventional individual naturally left a deep impression on Lone Wolf.
However, an enemy is an enemy after all. The lone wolf did not let its guard down, transforming into its monster form and raising its head to roar and drive them away.
Unlike the usual irritable and easily angered fire dragon, it behaved quite calmly.
It circled leisurely twice, as if taking a moment to rest gracefully in the sea breeze, before continuing to spread its wings and fly away towards the direction of the forest.
"If Li Ai wants to transform into a monster girl, she wouldn't choose this kind of individual, would she?"
The thought that Yangkuku might be fighting such a powerful individual made Lone Wolf's mind race again.
"Since we can't go back anyway, Yangkuku, please don't die."
After sighing, the lone wolf made up its mind, spread its wings, leaped up, and flew towards the sea.
Three days later, the truck arrived at the edge of Senqiu.
Here, small hills rise one after another, and beyond that, there are endless grasslands and plains, offering excellent views.
In the mountains during springtime, the vegetation is growing wildly and lushly.
Because of its remote location, there was no campsite established by the hunters, so Li Ai found a cave and set one up temporarily.
After lunch, Li Ai carried the rope and led Kabu to climb towards the summit.
Upon reaching the top, a rappelling route leading to the camp below will be set up.
Then the person and the cat put on a leaf camouflage net and began their observations.
The difference lies in the fact that Kabu observed the terrain around the camp that allowed emergency flatbed trucks to reach it.
Besides observing the environment, Li Ai also needed to be wary of the fire dragon.
"It really is an ideal place."
"Uh... isn't this a bit too remote, meow? There seem to be very few fire dragons here."
Kabu shared his opinion.
"The key is to have fewer of them. At this time of year, the ones heading to the core of the forest are all confident and powerful Rathalos, which are easy targets. In contrast, these desolate corners are mostly frequented by marginal dragons. Also, the female Rathalos that were severely injured by the hunter team fled to these remote areas."
"So that's how it is, meow. Just like some solitary Pallas, they choose to live apart from the group... But wouldn't it be more likely for abnormal individuals to appear among these fire dragons, meow?"
"Yes, but for the Love Hunter, the more anomalies there are, the greater the chance."
A gust of wind came from above, and the man and the cat watched in silence.
A small male fire dragon circled twice and landed on a mountaintop not far away.
Call ~
With a wisp of black smoke exhaled from its mouth, the Rathalos swung its neck and headbutted a giant rock protruding from the mountaintop.
Boom!
The rock then shattered.
Awooo! Awooo! ...
A fierce dragon roar echoed through the mountains, and flocks of birds took flight and fled.
Until it looked up and saw a slender green silhouette in the sky, the Rathalos shook off the rock dust on its head and took off again to give chase.
"Is there an enemy? What's going on, meow?"
Kabu was puzzled.
"It's obvious it was rejected. Judging from its frustrated expression, the rejection must have come from a female Rathalos that's even bigger than it."
"Oh, I see... Wait, how did you know about this, meow?"
Kabu was puzzled.
"I am a hunter of love, that's my specialty."
Li Ai persisted until sunset, and even in such a remote area, he still managed to observe four female Rathalos active in the vicinity.
What delighted him even more was that it was currently the breeding season, and every female Rathalos was there looking for a mate.