Beside the New World, in the coastal waters near a small continent that would later be named the Guiding Lands by the Research Commission, a battle that looked like the end of the world was erupting. The entire sea was being beaten into surging waves, meteors were falling from the sky, and all kinds of attacks capable of easily reshaping continental terrain, destroying ecological environments, and altering the flow of the leylines were appearing one after another.
Ordinary living things—whether large monsters or the micro-organisms responsible for decomposition—would have no chance of survival even if they were only brushed by the shockwaves.
In the past, the Tempered Elder Dragons that acted as ecological overlords, hiding throughout the Guiding Lands and responsible for its ecological structure, were now all sensing the clash of energy over there. Without any prior agreement, they each chose to suppress their own auras and stay quietly within their own territories, with absolutely no intention of going over to join in the commotion.
In a land of ice and snow, the Ruiner Nergigante, with half its body armored in adamantine spines, had its jaws clamped around its own foreleg, letting drool drip down continuously as its eyes turned red and it forcibly resisted its own instincts. With such abundant and immense life energy present, if there had been only a single source of it, it might still have tried to go over and look for an opportunity.
However, right now, outside the Guiding Lands, it was no longer as simple as one or two targets. Among the auras of a whole group of fully unleashed Elder Dragons, that one cold presence that was fighting many on its own and not even falling into disadvantage was the real reason why the Ruiner Nergigante would rather endure the pain of suppressing its instincts than dare to go over and join in.
It had not the slightest doubt that if it dared to go and join the fun, the Regeneration it was so proud of would not be able to protect it at all. Just one close encounter, one blast of that being's breath, and it could say goodbye to this beautiful world.
Finally, under such chaotic oppressive force, some Elder Dragons could no longer sit still. A Tempered Chameleos, looking back again and again, furtively flapped its small wings as it left its own territory, gritting its teeth as it flew with all its might in the direction of the New World.
As one of the least important components of the Guiding Lands' ecological structure, it had originally chosen to run over here to retire and vacation just to escape those seemingly endless family responsibilities. After all, in order to compete for a mate, it had once stayed in that hellish place, the Elder's Recess, for nearly a hundred years before finally managing to become a Tempered Elder Dragon.
And now that it had completed the task of reproduction with its mate, surely it was finally its turn to enjoy itself a little, right?
However, with things like this now, there was no telling when the Guiding Lands would be smashed apart by that terrifying group of Elder Dragons. Rather than stupidly staying there, hearts pounding as they waited for the final outcome, it was better to leave early; coming back later when there was time would not be too late.
There was more than one Elder Dragon who shared the same idea as the Tempered Chameleos. Several Elder Dragons took to the sky after it; the only difference was that their destination was merely the Elder's Recess.
...
"In the New World, inside Astera, Mother Chameleos was lying on the roof converted from a ship canopy, listening to the drinking conversations of the hunters who had returned from the Wildspire Waste in the Gathering Hub. All of a sudden, she felt the scales over her body, which had already turned completely orange-yellow, go cold, and deep in her heart she inexplicably felt as if some filthy thing had returned to the New World once again.
However, Mother Chameleos quickly tossed that feeling aside, pulled out a pile of Hardfruit, took one, bit open the shell with a crack, and chewed on the kernel as she perked her ears up excitedly to continue listening to the gossip below.
"Ugh, I really envy you, you lucky dog. The news that Radiant Crystal Butterflies can be raised into a new type of Kinsect has only just reached us, and the Commander is still racking his brains over how to negotiate with the Ancient Tree about whether we can start a related collaboration. But you, of all people, actually got a fully grown Kinsect directly from Lord Sunblaze Dragon. Just how lucky are you?!"
A hunter with short golden hair put down a wooden beer mug he had drained to the bottom, his eyes half-squinted in a tipsy haze as he looked with open envy at the fantastical crystal butterfly quietly hanging on the Insect Glaive user's shoulder.
The Insect Glaive user only smiled without saying anything. He simply reached out and stroked the Radiant Crystal Butterfly, its body surface warm to the touch. As the Radiant Crystal Butterfly let out indignant chirps, he took a leaf from a Terastal sprig out of his pouch and, right in front of the other Insect Glaive users at the table, proceeded to feed it.
That instantly set off the atmosphere at the entire table.
"Hey, hey, are you trying to get yourself killed, you lucky bastard!"
"You've broken my heart. You'll have to drink three—no! Five mugs of beer before I can forgive you!"
"I'll have one too sooner or later!!"
At the edge of the Gathering Hub, the Commander watched this lively scene and took a sip of the beer in his hand.
This expedition had been to cooperate with Sunblaze Dragon in wiping out the ecology of an entire small region; the danger involved went without saying. However, this was the Research Commission's "self-redemption," so not a single hunter chose to back out.
But the outcome was good. Every last one of them had returned safe and sound; it truly was something worth celebrating.
"How about it? You've observed the Radiant Crystal Butterfly as well. After all these years, you should have moved on. Since you're unwilling to raise the kind of Kinsect you used to, why not try these new little ones instead?"
The Commander set down his beer and looked with a smile at the Wyverian hunter who had returned from the Wildspire Waste with the main party.
In that battle back then, his Kinsect completed the final dance of its life, and the Commander, who was his companion, also lost a leg for him.
Under the influence of many intense emotions, the Wyverian hunter had never raised a new Kinsect since then. For long-lived Wyverians, their emotions were comparatively subdued, but once they invested themselves, they committed completely.
Therefore, whenever the Wyverian hunter thought of raising a new Kinsect, he would recall his old partner. Rather than letting his unsettled feelings torment him and at the same time prevent a new Kinsect from receiving proper care, it was better to let it go and live as an Insect Glaive user without a Kinsect.
However, these past days, with the Commander's persistent persuasion and the continuous Radiant Crystal Butterfly materials he provided, his heart had finally been pried open a little.
Seeing that the Wyverian hunter stayed silent yet no longer rejected the idea outright as before, the Commander knew this guy had finally agreed.
The Wyverian lifespan was extremely long, and as his dearest friend, the Commander did not want this companion of decades to remain sunken in the past through such long years.
"The first batch of Radiant Crystal Butterflies carefully selected by the Fire Wyvern Grimalkynes of the Ancient Tree will arrive together with the next transport team. When the time comes, remember to go and take a look at those young little ones."
The Commander raised his mug. The Wyverian hunter's eyes shifted slightly, but his face remained expressionless as always. He lifted his mug and clinked it against the Commander's, then drained it in one go, as if trying to cool the warmth that had suddenly ignited in his heart.
"I'm telling you, when Lord Sunblaze Dragon gathered its power back then, it was like a second sun hanging in the sky—"
The Gathering Hub was lively. Tonight, there were no quests! No work! Everyone drank to their heart's content, celebrating the resolution of yet another major event!
...
On the Ancient Tree, Logan gazed at the moon. Once again, he had been caught by Aki while rolling the little one into a ball and playing with it in the dragon nest, and had been kicked out.
Feeling the uniquely warm breeze atop the Ancient Tree, he murmured, "It seems like it's about time to give the little one a name~"
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