“ROAR!!”
No one could tell which side roared first. But the moment that roar echoed through the air, the Fire Wyverns charged at one another at full speed.
Originally, Logan had planned to face off against the Flame Rathalos, to settle the score from that earlier ambush.
But unexpectedly, among the Ancient Tree Fire Wyverns, it was the strongest one—the Tempered Rathalos that had returned alive from the hellish Elder's Recess—that rushed toward the Flame Rathalos first.
Their battle ignited in an instant. One was the aberrant Flame Rathalos, a rare variant among Fire Wyverns. The other, a veteran tempered Rathalos, had survived the brutal conditions of the Elder's Recess and fought against countless powerful foes.
In Logan’s eyes, even if there was a gap in strength between the two, it shouldn’t have been that large.
But reality quickly proved him wrong.
A monster capable of leading an entire Fire Wyvern pack on a migration couldn’t be underestimated—even if it were just a standard specimen. And this one wasn’t—it was a Flame Rathalos.
The moment it stopped suppressing the flames within its body, the entire wyvern became engulfed in fire, appearing more like a creature born of flames than flesh and bone. The overwhelming presence it radiated made Logan feel it was no less terrifying than that Deviljho which had been killed only by a full-scale siege.
Tempered monsters were indeed absurd beings—creatures whose stats had been pushed to extremes, enhancing their capabilities far beyond their base form, sometimes even reaching the brink of breaking the limits of life itself.
But even among tempered individuals, the differences were as vast as among their original species.
Clearly, this particular tempered Rathalos hadn't reached the level of being able to rival the Flame Rathalos in its standard state.
Though it could hold its own briefly, after just a few exchanges it began to fall behind and started calling for reinforcements.
“You picked this fight, didn’t you!!”
Logan couldn’t help but want to curse out loud. They were already outnumbered. If it weren’t for the fact that all the Ancient Tree Rathalos present were either tempered or close to it, they might not have been able to suppress so many mated Fire Wyverns.
Still, as he listened to the roars of the tempered Rathalos and the thunderous explosions of fireballs, Logan let out a sigh.
He no longer held back. His entire Charred Body was unleashed, transforming him into a blazing dragonlike figure, just like the Flame Rathalos.
Flammable fluids surged from his body and ignited on contact, instantly detonating—blasting the two Fire Wyverns that had been grappling with him straight out of the air.
His wide flaming wings spread open, whipping fiercely in the wind.
Letting out a sharp, piercing roar that drew all the Fire Wyverns’ attention, Logan carved a blazing arc through the sky and dove straight toward the Flame Rathalos—switching places with the tempered Rathalos.
In the skies above, two true Fire Dragons hovered opposite each other, wings beating against the scorched air. The temperature across the entire hunting ground began to soar, as if three suns were roasting the world. The moisture in the air evaporated rapidly.
Though this was a forest, it now felt more like a scorching desert.
Amid the blazing heat, two dragon-shaped infernos collided, tangled, and chased each other through the sky.
After a round of probing, Logan realized just how lopsided the Flame Rathalos’s specialization was.
Leaving its fire aside, in terms of speed, strength, and agility, it did surpass ordinary Rathalos—but only barely matched up to the tempered one.
If it were facing a tempered Rathalos specialized in raw physical prowess, it would definitely lose in close combat.
But with its flames added into the mix, the situation changed entirely.
And it wasn’t even using its breath attack—just raw physical clashes. Yet the flames coiling around its body still made Logan feel the heat through the impact!
But just heat. Nothing more.
With his Acceleration, Powerhouse Trait, Mind's Eye, and Charred Body, Logan fully dominated the Flame Rathalos in close combat at that moment.
It was clear the Flame Rathalos had realized this too.
Having completed its probing, it immediately shifted its strategy and actively widened the distance.
Massive spinning fireballs came hurtling toward Logan as if they didn’t cost any energy at all.
At first, Logan had intended to take them head-on, hoping to give the Flame Rathalos a small “Ignition” shock.
But on second thought—considering this Flame Rathalos’s resistance to fire—their battle was bound to end in melee combat anyway. If it discovered that its flames couldn’t harm him, it might resort to a hit-and-run strategy, constantly launching explosive fireballs while avoiding direct confrontation. That would be seriously annoying.
While he could absorb flames, he couldn’t absorb explosions. And if the fireballs were used as cover during its assaults, Logan might not even be able to catch up.
In that case, the fight would drag on until his Acceleration Trait was pushed to its limit—only then could the final battle begin.
But if he didn’t take the fireballs directly, then judging by the Flame Rathalos’s current behavior, it had clearly decided to win the fight with long-range flame attacks.
Even if he rushed in, it would just evade and avoid close combat—meaning the battle would still have to wait until his Acceleration Trait peaked.
Since either way it would be dragged out to that point… why not use this chance to test the limits of Flash Fire?
Back during the Chameleos hunt years ago, Logan had once pushed Flash Fire to its extreme—through Aki’s help.
But ever since then, Flash Fire had only been used as a way to circulate fire-elemental energy through his body, reducing overall energy consumption.
It had been a long time since then. Logan had undergone a second growth, and his physique had far surpassed what it was back then. He was genuinely curious—just what kind of boost would Flash Fire give him now, if pushed to its absolute peak?
With that thought, Logan pretended to try dodging the fireballs, but was “accidentally” hit due to their overwhelming density.
As the explosions rang out, he let out pained, anguished screams.
Every now and then, he even faked a collapse or crash-landing, just for effect.
Maybe he overdid the wailing—because he actually drew frequent glances from the Ancient Tree Fire Wyverns nearby.
“…That was so fake.”
Over the years they had spent together, Logan had become one of the strongest and most influential Rathalos in the Ancient Tree. Everyone knew that he could absorb flames.
The Flame Rathalos’s fire was indeed scorching—its temperature was outrageous. When the others first heard Logan’s agonized screams, they were genuinely worried that he wouldn’t be able to endure it.
But as time went on, rather than fading, Logan’s screams actually took on a tone that sounded suspiciously like he was… enjoying himself.
The Ancient Tree Rathalos stopped paying attention to that side altogether and focused on dealing with their own opponents.
Logan flew low to the ground, controlling his speed. The Flame Rathalos above was growing increasingly exhilarated as the fight dragged on. The fireballs were no longer enough to satisfy it—it had switched to unleashing constant streams of flame breath.
And that was exactly what Logan had hoped for.
Fireballs came with explosive force. Every time he took one head-on, he had to endure the impact of an explosion.
Flame breath, however, was different. Logan could bathe in it and absorb as much as he wanted.
Still, he had to admit—the Flame Rathalos, with its lopsided specialization, had impressively potent fire.
That first breath had nearly overwhelmed him.
But as more and more flame poured into him, the fire-elemental energy within Logan’s body became increasingly active. The temperature of his own flames steadily rose, and the power of his Charred Body Trait grew stronger and stronger.
Logan’s overall fire resistance was also climbing at a staggering rate.
Gradually, that accumulation finally triggered a transformation.
The outer edges of the flames surrounding him began to shift into a faint blue hue. Then, specks of violet started appearing amid the fire as well.
Under the effects of Charred Body, Logan’s scales were repeatedly reinforced. Once crystallized, they began to take on a metallic sheen.
And at last, as if some hidden barrier had been shattered—after five long years—his Flash Fire Trait once again reached its limit.
The flames enveloping Logan turned entirely blue-violet along the outer layers, with only the core near his body remaining a deep orange-red. They burned furiously across his form, now half-red, half-silver-gray from the crystallized scales.
Yet the Flame Rathalos, its vision blocked by its own flames, remained completely unaware of what was happening.
It only felt an ominous sense… that something terrifying was about to emerge.
At that moment, the air began to grow suffocating—choked by the sheer intensity of the heat.
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