Time slipped by, and five days passed.
Logan's heart, once excited and overjoyed after returning home, had gradually calmed. As expected, his body had fallen into a drained state. Each day he now drifted about like a retired old man, listlessly patrolling his territory, wandering among the branches of the Ancient Tree, and occasionally accepting Eggroll's invitations to sample the new Fire Wyvern meals it had been developing.
It had to be said—ever since Eggroll had undergone its successful mutation and embarked on the path of culinary mastery, it was as if its inner channels had been opened. Time and again, it produced new dishes, raising Fire Wyvern cuisine to an entirely new level.
Now, Fire Wyvern meals didn't just grant basic boosts like increased strength or faster stamina recovery. There were meals infused with mandragora and nitroshrooms to enhance fire-elemental power, meals with scales of Great Whetfish to strengthen defense, and meals with nulberries to bolster resistance against abnormal statuses.
Eggroll's cooking had earned unanimous praise from the Fire Wyverns. Even the Felyne assistants sent from the Research Commission to help run the great windmill often sneaked into the canteen to freeload meals.
So, when Logan—under the shining gazes of Eggroll and the other kitchen cats—happily devoured Eggroll's newly crafted Vitality Fire Wyvern Meal, he felt his once-emptied body grow warm from the inside out. The sensation rekindled within him even the desire to 'fight' again.
Logan understood—Eggroll had succeeded!
This Vitality Fire Wyvern Meal was destined to become the most popular among the Rathalos, without a doubt!!
If, in his past life, even something as simple as the little "blue pill" could sell so well, then a meal with effects this potent would surely have an even brighter future!
After giving the cats high praise for their efforts, Logan plucked several of his own scales and flicked his wings.
"Five more servings!"
Tonight, he would wash away his past shame!
Two hours later, Logan slowly flew back to his nest, not daring to flap his wings too forcefully.
The reason? He was stuffed.
But the results were more than worth it. At this moment, he felt strength surging through every part of his body. Even if he had to 'fight' Aki for three hundred rounds right now, he wouldn't be afraid in the slightest.
This was the confidence given to him by food infused with medicine!
"Meow! Boss, meow! You really came back, meow!"
As soon as he stepped into the cave, Tonkotsu—his Rathian armor polished to a bright shine—rushed over, his joy written all over his face.
"Tonkotsu?"
Logan recalled that when he had returned, he'd asked about him, and the leader of the Fire Wyvern Grimalkyne had told him Tonkotsu had gone out to train with the Admiral.
So if Tonkotsu was back, then the Admiral must be…
"Well now, old friend. Long time no see!"
Sure enough, that troublesome man was here too.
Logan couldn't even be bothered to complain. The guy had even set up his own tent and hut in the Fire Wyvern Grimalkyne settlement, as if the Ancient Tree were his second home.
Still, the moment Logan saw the Admiral, he remembered something important.
Before the Admiral could even speak, Logan went straight to the pile where he stored his spoils, fished out the identity scale with the First Fleet ribbon, and tossed it in front of him.
The Admiral picked it up, examined it closely, and confirmed that it was indeed a First Fleet identity scale. By the small markings on the ribbon, he immediately locked onto its owner.
"The supply squad leader? Why is his identity scale here?"
The Admiral looked up at Logan in surprise and curiosity.
Logan did not hide anything. He had Tonkotsu translate and explain the entire story behind the identity scale.
"What!!"
Sure enough, the Admiral's incredulous shout echoed through the nest.
The Admiral had long known that a Chameleos was most likely hiding in the rear mountains near the Research Commission. After all, he and the Huntsman had been the ones to initiate the first investigation of it.
He even knew a thing or two about the grievances between the supply squad leader and that Chameleos.
Originally, he had thought both sides could coexist peacefully. With only a small price, they could even gain a powerful guardian—something that would have been extremely worthwhile for the Astera stronghold.
But to his shock, this time the Chameleos had stolen the supply squad leader's Fire Wyvern identity scale, then posed as a First Fleet member to enlist the Fire Wyvern King himself to fight an unknown Elder Dragon.
And more importantly—they had actually won.
Driving off an Elder Dragon!
In the Old World, what a colossal achievement that would be!
The Research Commission would have to pay an enormous price just to give a reward worthy of such a deed!
Why hadn't he been there at the time!!
That was a battle between three Elder Dragons!
If only he could have witnessed it firsthand, even taken part in some small way—then even if he had died, his life would have been worth it!
Yes, for the Admiral, it didn't matter that the Chameleos had impersonated a Commission member, or how great a reward the Commission would have to pay.
What mattered was—why hadn't he been there to see such a once-in-a-century scene!
Among those three Elder Dragons, both Logan and the Chameleos had direct ties to the Research Commission!
Watching the Admiral's shifting expression—clouded one moment, regretful the next—Logan couldn't help feeling a little thrill inside.
He had been just about ready to pile on the tale of the eight Elder Dragons besieging the Shagaru Magala, planning to bleed the man dry in demands for payment, when—
Before the words could leave his throat, the Admiral suddenly clenched his right fist and slammed it into the palm of his left hand. The clap of air that burst out startled Tonkotsu beside him.
"Damn it! This was a clash between Elder Dragons! A collision of natural disasters! And I actually missed it!"
"Damn it! Damn it!!"
Logan's jaw twitched, and he forcibly swallowed back the words he had been about to say.
So that's what you care about?!
He realized then that trying to use common sense to predict the Admiral's train of thought—no, the thought process of any top hunter in this world—was meaningless.
For the truly elite hunters, unless they bore a duty like the hunters of Kamura Village, sworn to protect their homes, their entire lives were spent in pursuit of Elder Dragons or rare species.
Death, resources, and all else ceased to be priorities.
To track the steps of Elder Dragons, to unravel their mysteries, even to face them in direct combat—that was the pursuit of top hunters.
Once he understood this, Logan narrowed his eyes and spoke again.
"Later, to prevent the death of this land, aside from me and the Mist Dragon, there was also a pair of Flame Dragons, a Thunder Beast, the Abyssal Dragon, the Dragon of Destruction and Regeneration, and the Corpse Coat Dragon. Together, we brought down the source of that disaster. That, too, should count toward the reward."
"N-nine… nine of them!!"
The Admiral's eyes bulged wide as copper bells, his whole look resembling a human Golden Lion caught in bewilderment.
In that moment, he suddenly felt the meaning of life itself reduced to nothing.
To have missed such a spectacle—a sight perhaps unseen in ten thousand years—meant his life could never be complete.
Until the day of his death, he would carry this regret.
[Crack!]
The Fire Wyvern identity scale, specially processed through advanced craftsmanship, split with several fractures under the Admiral's unconscious grip.
The terrifying force made Logan's eyelids twitch.
The Fire Wyvern identity scale had been crafted from the hardest plates of a Fire Wyvern's back. Though long separated from the living body and stripped of vitality, though its defensive power had declined, its hardness and toughness were still no weaker than steel in Monster Hunter World.
And to crush it barehanded—what kind of strength was that?
Logan watched his shifting expressions and was about to signal Tonkotsu to calm him when the Admiral's eyes suddenly lit with a burning gleam, as though he had just realized something.
In that instant, Logan felt the scales on his back bristle, a bad premonition crawling over him.
Sure enough, in the next moment, the Admiral clutched the Fire Wyvern identity scale and shouted, trembling with excitement: "Fight me!!"
---
I will post some extra Chapters in Patreon, you can check it out. >> patreon.com/TitoVillar
---