As the king of the skies, Rathalos was naturally highly sensitive to shifts in the air currents. Combined with the warning from Mind's Eye, he detected the enemy's position almost instantly after the attack was launched.
With a graceful 360-degree spin mid-air, he easily avoided the charge. Looking down at the creature that had glided some distance below him and was now roaring up in provocation, Logan's gaze turned icy. Flames coiled around his body as he stared coldly at the monster that had ambushed him.
A dark brown body, armor plating covered in jagged spikes that crackled with electricity, forelimbs lined with insect-like patterns on semi-transparent wing membranes—each tipped with strong, clawed wingtips—and a backward-curving crown made up of four articulated carapace plates… This was a Astalos that looked especially robust.
Among all known Flying Wyverns, Astalos were considered one of the most adept in aerial combat. In both speed and technique, they were not inferior to Rathalos.
However, unlike Rathalos, who was deeply familial by nature, Astalos lacked any concept of kinship. Once a female Astalos laid her eggs, she would abandon them immediately, leaving her unborn offspring to fend for themselves.
As a result, Astalos grew up without any parental protection, making their development especially harsh—and their temperaments exceedingly violent. They were known to cannibalize their own kind just to survive.
Because of their similar ecological niches and overlapping habitats, Astalos and Rathalos were often regarded as natural enemies. Their territorial clashes were fierce and frequent. And due to their elemental affinity, Astalos often had the upper hand in such confrontations.
Of course, that referred to the Rathalos of the Old World.
After all, compared to their Old World counterparts, the Rathalos of the New World were more agile and had far greater stamina.
And when it came to combat power, there was no need to even mention it.
Which was why Logan now found himself curious—were there Astalos in the New World?
And this was the Wildspire Waste. Even if an Astalos had made it here, this definitely wasn't its natural habitat.
So… did this one just migrate over from the Old World?
The thought sounded absurd. While Astalos could match Rathalos in flight, their stamina was still inferior. Add to that their solitary nature...
For one to cross the vast ocean alone and make it here—it would take an ungodly amount of luck.
Seeing that its provocative roar had gone completely ignored—Logan acting as though it didn't even exist—rage flickered in the Astalos's eyes.
With a violent flap of its wings, it lunged forward, talons outstretched, aiming to tear into Logan's chest with a savage slash.
"So slow."
Logan had been curious at first—wondering what special traits an Astalos capable of crossing the sea alone might possess. But now, just based on its speed… it wasn't even as fast as the burly Rathalos of the New World.
After casually dodging several more pounces, Logan lost all interest. He launched a counterattack.
Spinning once more to evade the Astalos's claws, he surged upward. In the creature's stunned gaze, he easily caught up and rose above it. Before it could twist around to strike back, Logan's claws locked tightly onto the base of its wings.
Liquid flame, flowing like water, cascaded from his talons—engulfing the Astalos.
The searing agony made the Astalos wail in pain. Its body began to thrash wildly.
But it was pointless.
Thanks to his Powerhouse Trait, Logan's strength far surpassed even the typical Rathalos of the same size. He pinned the Astalos down with brute force, effortlessly keeping it suppressed. Its naturally leaner build made it look like nothing more than a helpless chick—no amount of struggling could break free.
At that moment, Logan began his dive, and the Astalos finally felt true panic.
It activated its piezoelectric armor to the fullest extent, entering a charged state.
Currents of bluish-green electricity coiled around its wings, head, and tail. Under the Astalos's deliberate control, the strangely colored currents converged and surged upward—aiming directly at Logan.
A tingling jolt of pain shot through his claws. Logan's thoughts sharpened—his body immediately began secreting large amounts of combustible bodily fluids. A powerful burst of flame exploded outward, engulfing them both. Under the intense heat, the Astalos's piezoelectric armor was severely disrupted. Burns erupted across its body, rendering it completely unable to maintain its charged state.
And just like that, it was smashed helplessly into the sand by Logan.
Before the Astalos could even prop itself up, a massive fireball—briefly charged and already roaring through the air—slammed into it without pause.
Flames burst in all directions. Sparks flew wildly.
Amid the cloud of smoke left behind by the explosion, the Astalos's 17-meter-long body collapsed in silence. Wisps of fire continued to burn over its charred corpse.
As his Acceleration Trait faded, Logan stared at the Astalos's scorched body, a flicker of doubt in his eyes.
"So that's all? Just an ordinary Astalos in the end."
He began to wonder if the Rajang had rattled him a little more than he'd realized. The sudden appearance of a new monster had made him instinctively assume it must be extraordinary for no good reason.
But this Astalos's combat strength was probably only on par with a standard adult Rathalos. Let alone a Tempered Rathalos—even a regular one that had barely managed to build a nest in the Ancient Forest could have taken care of it.
Logan figured he ought to reflect on himself a bit. In this world, truly unique individuals or naturally gifted monsters like that Rajang were still few and far between. There was no need to keep getting so worked up.
But for such an ordinary monster to have crossed such a vast ocean entirely on its own—that was definitely out of the ordinary.
Could it be related to this wave of Elder Dragon migrations?
Logan pondered for a moment.
In this world, no matter how bizarre something seemed, it almost always could be blamed on an Elder Dragon. And whatever couldn't be directly traced back to one usually had something to do with them anyway.
Unable to figure it out, Logan didn't bother to dwell on it. He changed direction and flew off into the distance.
When he returned to the nest with the body of an herbivore in tow, he noticed from afar that thick smoke was rising from the nest.
The sight made Logan's heart lurch—he thought something had happened and immediately accelerated, racing back in a panic.
But when he reached the nest, the scene that greeted him left him at a complete loss for what kind of expression to make.
There, on the platform at the nest's entrance, a massive grilling rack had somehow been set up.
At that moment, the Admiral's Felyne companion, Sita, was busy directing two unfamiliar Felynes as they hung enormous slabs of meat over the flames, while brushing on all sorts of sauces with practiced ease.
The Admiral himself was seated cross-legged to the side, holding a giant platter piled high with grilled meat, happily feasting away.
Each time the meat on the rack stopped dripping blood and was roughly a third cooked, Sita would slice it off with a Great Sword and toss it onto the platter Tonkotsu was holding.
Then Tonkotsu would carry the fresh meat over to Aki.
Watching Aki devour each cut in just a few bites—then let out a satisfied hum—Tonkotsu would gleefully dash back to the grill to await the next piece.
As it turned out, the thick smoke Logan had seen earlier from high in the sky had simply been barbecue smoke.
And when the Admiral saw Logan flying in with the massive carcass of an herbivore at the cave's entrance, he even cheerfully waved to greet him—completely unfazed, not the slightest bit embarrassed!
...
'So while I was out hunting, you guys not only set your sights on my mate, but even had the nerve to throw a barbecue right at the entrance of my nest?!'
Logan couldn't make sense of it. Aki had a far fiercer temper than he did. Even now, when dealing with the Fire Wyvern Grimalkyne Tonkotsu, she was still icy and indifferent—let alone the fact that it wasn't just Tonkotsu here. The Admiral and three Felynes were all standing at the entrance of the nest!
And yet, Aki not only made no move to drive them off—she was actually eating the barbecue without the slightest psychological burden!
Not normal. This was eleven levels beyond abnormal!
Noticing Logan's return, Aki suddenly froze mid-bite. Then she realized what she was doing.
She decisively bit off the rest of the meat and let the remaining half fall into the dish. With a cool air, she lifted her upper body slightly, striking a posture that completely ignored the presence of the little creatures nearby.
Seriously?
What's more, Logan's sharp eyes easily caught that even with her mouth shut, Aki's lower jaw was still subtly moving. Did she really think such a covert chewing trick would fool him?
And what Logan also couldn't understand was—when had those two helper Felynes arrived? And how had they managed to haul up such massive slabs of meat?
It wasn't until he saw two Wingdrakes circling in the distance, bundles strapped to their feet but too wary to approach due to his presence, that he understood.
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