The meeting stretched on for quite a while. After all, what they were discussing today would determine the strategic direction for the next decade. Any misstep could become a major issue—there was no room for carelessness.
At the main gate of the base, Carlos and the Huntsman stood with the Admiral, seeing him off.
The Admiral—now mostly recovered from his injuries—was clad in light armor and had a sword-and-shield set strapped to his back as he listened to Carlos’s final instructions.
This journey would see the Admiral representing the Research Commission, accompanied by Tonkotsu—now visibly bulked up after completing a stage of intensive training—and the Fire Wyvern Grimalkynes, who had just finished their basic Palico training.
Their destination: the Ancient Tree, where they would meet with the Grimalkyne sages of the Fire Wyvern tribe for an official discussion about the terms of deepening their future cooperation.
In addition to his diplomatic mission, once the discussions were concluded, he would also set out alone from the Ancient Forest to begin his investigation into the Nergigante.
“Anyway, take care of yourself. Everyone in the Research Commission will be waiting for your return.”
The Admiral nodded, then turned to the Huntsman. The man's armor had been repaired, but the cracks and damage were still clearly visible. Grinning, the Admiral teased: “You still can’t bear to part with that gear, huh? Didn’t you say that back in the Old World, you faced Teostra several times and eventually drove it off? So how come, now that you're in the New World and facing the same species, you end up getting your ass handed to you?”
The Huntsman wasn’t offended by the jab. He only replied with a hint of regret in his tone, “Just a matter of individual differences, that’s all. But if I run into that one again, I’ll definitely put up a better fight. Still, are you really giving up the lance?”
The Admiral smiled faintly, patting the shield crafted from Zinogre parts strapped to his arm, his gaze tinged with emotion.
“This one’s just a little more practical.”
Then, after a pause, he added, “And make sure you don’t die before I get back.”
With his departure, all Research Commission affairs would fall fully under Carlos’s authority. As for the Huntsman, his position had also been restructured—he would no longer operate as a regular Hunter.
Instead, he would receive special assignments directly from Carlos, the Commander-in-Chief.
In other words, every mission the Huntsman accepted from now on would be classified as strategic-level danger.
“You should save that line for yourself,” the Huntsman replied.
The Admiral and the Huntsman exchanged a look and smiled—a silent understanding born of both camaraderie and rivalry. They both knew neither of them were the kind to die easily.
After their farewell, the Admiral waved one last time and strode off with a light-hearted air toward the squad of Fire Wyvern Grimalkynes waiting for him.
High atop the lookout tower at the base, Sita stood with arms folded and his jagged blade strapped to his back. Watching the Admiral’s fading figure, he muttered under his breath, “I’ll prepare meals exactly the way you like them... so make sure you come back safe.”
...
Time passed. The Ancient Forest basked in bright, golden sunlight.
Deep within the Ancient Tree region, a massive Rathalos measuring over 19 meters—far beyond standard size—launched itself toward Logan in a sudden assault.
Early this morning, the Ancient Tree was unusually lively. The reason? A mated pair of Fire Wyverns had suddenly attempted to move in.
For reasons unknown, this fairly robust couple didn’t follow the long-established rules of the Ancient Tree by issuing a formal challenge. Instead, they landed directly on the tree amidst the furious roars of the other Fire Wyverns—and set their sights on Logan’s nest.
Without a word, they launched a direct assault on Logan, clearly intent on driving him out.
At first, Logan assumed they were just some foolish upstarts, bold enough to ignore the deeply ingrained rules of the Ancient Tree—rules practically etched into the genes of all Fire Wyverns.
But once he took to the air, Logan noticed something unusual.
The attacking Rathalos had only three wing bones.
Its scales were slightly pale and gray, and its internal life energy felt depleted.
It was unmistakably a Rathalos from the Old World.
Astalos, Seregios, and now Rathalos!
Three apex Flying Wyverns specialized for aerial combat, all appearing in succession—if Logan still couldn’t tell that a large-scale migration from the Old World to the New World was underway, then he’d truly be a fool.
Engulfed in blazing flames, Logan unleashed a dazzling aerial onslaught and easily brought the intruder down. The victory was swift and overwhelming. As he watched the Fire Wyvern couple flee in panic, he found himself deep in thought.
It wasn’t that he found it odd how easily he had won.
What troubled him was the behavior of the Rathalos during the fight.
When Logan became wreathed in fire, the Rathalos had shown clear signs of shock—and even fear. As if it had seen Logan before. In that instant, its fighting spirit vanished completely.
Such behavior was extremely unusual for a proud Rathalos—unless it had previously fought Logan, or at least a monster with a similar form… and had suffered such a traumatic defeat that it had left a lasting scar in its memory.
That alone could explain why this particular Rathalos reacted so irrationally.
"Left behind a shadow."
The first thing Logan thought of was the Teostra—but he immediately dismissed that idea himself.
This Fire Wyvern was strong, yes, but only relative to the Fire Wyvern species as a whole. If it had actually gone up against a Teostra, it wouldn’t have stood a chance. It wouldn’t have survived for even a second.
Besides, even though Fire Wyverns aren’t exactly the brightest creatures, they’re not so dumb that they can’t tell the difference between species. Clearly, the kind of presence that left it so terrified it didn’t even dare fight back could only have been another Fire Wyvern.
"Could it have been a Deviant? Or a Flame Rathalos?"
Those were the only two possibilities Logan could think of. After all, among the Fire Wyverns, the only ones wreathed entirely in flames—just like himself—were those two subspecies.
“No way… really?”
Logan muttered inwardly, watching the mated Fire Wyvern pair fly off into the distance—until they were nothing more than a black speck, even to his sharp eyes. Then he turned and returned to the Ancient Tree’s nest.
If the enemy comes, you block them. If the flood comes, you build a dam.
And anyway, even setting aside the fact that these types of Fire Wyverns usually made their nests near volcanoes or lava zones—so what if one actually did come to the Ancient Tree?0
As long as they didn’t follow the rules, there were plenty of tempered Fire Wyverns living in the Ancient Tree. Even if they couldn’t kill the intruder, they could definitely drive it out.
Sure, he was now one of the “tall ones” in the Ancient Tree—but that didn’t mean he’d take the initiative in every situation.
...
As the migrating monsters gradually made their way deeper into the New World, even the Ancient Tree region in the heart of the forest had begun to stir with unrest.
Fortunately, due to the fact that the majority of these migrating species were Flying Wyverns, the chaos was mostly limited to the middle layers of the Ancient Tree. The lower and upper layers remained relatively stable.
Still, going out on a hunt now required a lot more vigilance. You never knew when a Thunder Jaw Wyvern or an Electric Wyvern might suddenly drop out of the sky while you were happily eating in the field—turning a peaceful moment into a vicious fight.
Because of this, once the Fire Wyvern pairs living in the Ancient Tree noticed the growing unrest in the forest, all of them—except for the tempered individuals who were supremely confident in their own strength—chose to hunt together as couples to deal with any unexpected threats.
Under such conditions, the work of protecting and feeding the hatchlings naturally fell to the Grimalkynes.
And so, the Ancient Tree’s Fire Wyvern clan, already short on manpower, found itself stretched even thinner—busier than ever. Every day, Logan saw the Grimalkynes dragging handcarts up and down, hauling all kinds of supplies. Only when night fell—when the Fire Wyvern pairs returned to the nests bearing their “rewards” and resumed care of the young—did things finally quiet down.
After deliberately observing for a while, Logan found that the main monsters entering the Ancient Forest this time were the Seregios and Fire Wyvern groups. The rest—like the Astalos—were just isolated individuals here and there.
And most of them were intercepted at the edges of the forest. Many powerful monsters who normally kept to their own territories and never showed themselves had revealed their presence during this upheaval. They formed an invisible defensive line, keeping these foreign newcomers—who had yet to adapt to the ecosystem of the New World—from advancing even a single step beyond the boundary.
The most unexpected of them all… was the Bazelgeuse!
This kind of prolonged, constant chaos—Bazelgeuse absolutely loved it.
As the monster that considered the entire forest its personal hunting ground, Bazelgeuse was now encountering an endless stream of reckless newcomers or arrogant challengers every single day.
And their fates were almost always tragic.
Frequent deployments, coupled with an inexhaustible supply of fresh “ingredients,” kept Bazelgeuse in a state of heightened excitement for a long time. It couldn't wait to finish blasting one place so it could rush to the next.
And so, as time passed, and Logan realized that these new arrivals weren’t really stirring up much trouble—and that many of the monsters had even started following the rules of the New World and gradually integrating into the ecosystem—he finally began to lower his guard.
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