Dropping the Aptonoth carcass, Logan stepped past the Admiral. The two Felynes were visibly nervous as he walked up to Aki. After thoroughly examining her from all sides and confirming there were no abnormalities, he finally let out a breath of relief.
Then he turned his head, his gaze somewhat conflicted as he looked at the Admiral, unsure whether he should drive them off—or something else entirely.
He really couldn't understand the Admiral's intent.
Perhaps sensing Logan's inner turmoil, the Admiral gave a signal to Tonkotsu and said: "Don't worry. I know you're wise enough to understand what I mean."
"We come with no malice, and we're not asking for anything. We simply want to make friends—with you, and even with the Fire Wyvern clan in the Ancient Tree."
After Tonkotsu translated, Logan lowered his head slightly, his gaze fixed on the Admiral's seemingly sincere expression, as if trying to judge whether his words were true.
The Admiral didn't look away, meeting Logan's eyes with complete calm and openness.
A long silence followed. Then, as the two Felynes took over Tonkotsu's role and, with trembling legs, carried over a large platter of rare grilled meat to Logan, the Admiral spoke again.
"Why not give it a try? Sita trained under a real master—his cooking is top-notch!"
After Tonkotsu translated, Logan exhaled two blasts of hot air through his nostrils. His eyes landed on the thick slab of grilled meat. Under the Admiral's hopeful gaze, he cautiously took a bite.
And damn—it was good.
The flavor exploded across his tongue, completely different from the unseasoned tenderness of raw meat.
Even though his sense of taste differed from a human's, the rare steak preserved the juicy blood and tenderness of the flesh while adding a spicy sauce that awakened the palate.
The taste could be said to perfectly match a Fire Wyvern's palate.
To Logan, this flavor was no worse than the tender belly meat of an Aptonoth freshly hunted, still warm with blood.
To produce grilled meat with such flavor… it could only mean that Sita had put real thought into it.
Seeing that Logan had begun to eat as well, Aki—who had been holding back—quietly finished off the half skewer she hadn't yet eaten, doing so without the slightest change in expression.
At the sight, the Admiral's face broke into his usual hearty smile.
"Felynes! Give me a hand—let's carve up that Aptonoth!"
Following his command, the two Felynes drew out a pair of long carving knives. Working in tandem with the Admiral and Sita, they quickly stripped the Aptonoth down to bare bone.
And just like that, under Sita's masterful culinary skills, the Aptonoth was divided among those present. The innards—except those that were inedible—were handled by the Felynes. The remaining meat was devoured by Logan, Aki, and the Admiral.
It's no wonder they say hunters are human-shaped monsters.
Even after consuming such an absurd quantity of grilled meat, the Admiral was totally unfazed—and even had the energy to compete with the Felynes for the organs.
The feast lasted more than two hours. Once everyone had eaten their fill, the Admiral's eyes suddenly widened.
He was actually witnessing Logan and Aki heading to the nearby stream to wash up!
Were these even monsters?
The Admiral muttered inwardly: So this Fire Wyvern couple, capable of forming a symbiotic bond with Grimalkynes, really can't be measured by common standards.
It wasn't just that Logan and Aki's behavior reflected rational thought surpassing beastly instinct—he could faintly sense a trace of civilization from them.
Civilization… appearing on the body of a monster—how unthinkable was that?
If word of this got out, it might overturn many academic theories and spark an entirely new wave of scholarly debate.
They had eaten, washed up—and now, staring at the Admiral who showed no sign of leaving and seemed deep in thought, Logan pondered for a moment.
His mind turned to the Electric Wyvern he had killed with a single blast of fire.
Although that Astalos's corpse had suffered extensive burns and then smashed into the ground from a high altitude, who knew how many parts were still usable?
And several hours had passed since then—its body had likely taken even more damage.
Still, no matter what, this was the corpse of a Flying Wyvern that occupied a high-level niche in the ecosystem, and it belonged to one of the rarer types. It probably still held some value.
Logan didn't like owing favors. Since he had enjoyed their grilled meat, it was only right to repay the gesture if he could.
After Tonkotsu translated for him, the Admiral gave Logan a knowing look. With a nod, he left the Felynes behind to pack up the grill.
Then, together with Sita, he swung a rope and fastened it to the Wingdrake's feet, flying off in the direction Logan had indicated.
Even if he hadn't hunted it himself, it was still Electric Wyvern material gifted by a Fire Wyvern friend—not something to feel ashamed of!
Once the two Felynes finished tidying up and were brought up to the cliffside above by Tonkotsu, Logan finally took the liberty to openly examine Aki.
After all these years of living together, he never expected her to be such a fickle female Fire Wyvern.
He'd seen it all today.
Facing Logan's unfiltered gaze, Aki turned her head nonchalantly, as if shy, avoiding eye contact with him.
Logan leaned in and gave her neck a gentle bite, playfully. The lingering scent of grilled meat in the air, the two of them began to tussle and wrestle like usual.
Meanwhile, deep in the Wildspire Waste, the Admiral had flown for some time before finally spotting the corpse of the Electric Wyvern Logan had mentioned.
After landing, he drove off the scavengers and examined the scorched corpse with a frown.
He asked Sita to take a look and assess what materials could still be salvaged, then circled the Astalos's body once.
"…Something's off. This Electric Wyvern doesn't seem to be a native of the New World."
The Admiral couldn't quite explain the basis of his judgment, but he could feel it instinctively—the creature's traits were significantly different from the local ecosystem. It was probably a species from the Old World.
"Maybe we should get a few scholars over here to figure out what's going on."
The Admiral pondered deeply, trying to analyze—based on his own experience—what exactly set this Electric Wyvern apart from the native creatures of the New World.
"Meow!"
A sharp, urgent cry from Sita snapped him out of his thoughts. He instinctively turned to look and saw the Felyne shaking his paw and then blowing on it.
"It's hot, meow!"
The commotion startled the Admiral for a second, but he soon walked over to Sita's side and reached toward the most scorched part of the Electric Wyvern's back.
"Hm? Still hot?"
He tapped the blackened scales with his fingernail. They were brittle. With a little pressure, they cracked, and a wave of heat escaped from within.
It had been at least three hours since Logan had slain this Electric Wyvern. Yet, to the Admiral, it still felt as though the body had only just stopped burning a few moments ago.
He recalled the battle against the Rajang—how those embers trailing from Logan had kept burning along the Rajang's arm, only snuffed out after several heavy slaps from the beast.
And then he thought of those blazing fireballs—wild, uncontrolled, and almost scorching him as collateral damage.
After carefully piecing everything together in his mind, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he chuckled.
"As expected of a special specimen—his flames are truly something else."
"Meow?" Sita cast a sidelong glance at him.
"The flames are hotter, stickier, and last longer. His physiology is unlike any known special variant of the Rathalos. If we submitted what we've observed so far to the Guild, this guy might even get a secondary classification."
The Admiral looked in the direction of the Fire Wyvern's nest and let out a chuckle. "But this is the New World. If there's going to be a new name, it should come from us."
Sita sighed, too lazy to bother with the Admiral's sudden bout of madness. Based on his investigation, at least two-thirds of the Electric Wyvern's hide couldn't be harvested into complete materials. And from the remaining third, not much met the quality needed for forging armor—definitely not enough for a full set. At best, maybe a decent weapon.
The Admiral then fired a special signal flare. Hunters and Grimalkynes stationed near the Wildspire Waste would soon arrive with their carts to retrieve the Electric Wyvern's carcass.
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