"These aren't gifts. They're the weapons Pot ordered from Astera last time; I brought them along with me," the Admiral said with a smile.
"Pot and the others are too strong, meow," Leaf explained to Asterion, looking a bit embarrassed. "Weapons made by the tribe break after a short time, so we have to commission the Simian Wyverns, meow."
The evolved Grimalkynes possessed strength commensurate with their size.
"Roar." (It doesn't matter.)
Asterion didn't care about the trade or cooperation between the Glavenus tribe and the Astera Gathering Hub. He had Leaf send cats to take the seasonings brought from the Old World down to storage; he would try them out for his next meal.
He thought the hunters' greetings were over and that they would proceed to stay in their designated area to help the Grimalkynes prepare for the Feast Festival. However, what Asterion found interesting was that the Admiral revealed a somewhat embarrassed expression at this moment.
"Well, actually there is one more thing... I don't know if you'll be angry, Boss, since you never seemed to like interacting with us," the Admiral scratched his head. Hara elbowed him in the kidney from the side. "Calculating the time, the Elder Crossing is approaching again."
Asterion sat up straight. He had heard a keyword that whetted a dragon's appetite.
"Roar?" (The Elder Crossing?)
Leaf relayed his question.
"To explain the Elder Crossing, I first have to explain what Elder Dragons are. Back in our homeland, biological groups that cannot be classified are identified as Elder Dragons, and most Elder Dragons possess special abilities akin to natural disasters," the Admiral explained in detail.
"For example, the dragon with two wings that breathed fire and scorched that battlefield into a barren earth nine years ago—the one you, the Bazelgeuse, and the Nergigante defeated—was an Elder Dragon. We call it Teostra." The Admiral suddenly laughed. "Speaking of which, we also adopted the names you used for them—Bazelgeuse, Nergigante. Those names are indeed fitting."
Asterion's expression was a bit subtle. The hunters learned his names for other monsters from the Grimalkynes? Going around in a circle, he, the repeater, had become the creator. This shouldn't count as plagiarism, right?
"Anyway, back in our homeland, we observe the phenomenon of Elder Dragons crossing the sea every ten years. Whenever an Elder Dragon passes through, it causes devastating damage to towns or villages along the way. Therefore, more than twenty years ago, the Kingdom and the Guild assembled the most excellent hunters to form the Research Commission, following the crossing Elder Dragons, which finally led to the discovery of this New World."
"That's right, just as Hara said. Calculating the time, a new round of the Elder Crossing is about to begin," the Admiral said seriously. "I'm ashamed to say, despite coming to the New World over twenty years ago, our investigation progress into the strange phenomenon of the Elder Crossing is still zero."
"According to the scholars' speculations, Nergigante might appear again to prey on the Elder Dragon crossing the sea," the Admiral said with a solemn face. "After all, when Teostra approached the New World back then, Nergigante was the first to arrive and fight it. It seems to consciously prey on other Elder Dragons."
"Coming along with this Elder Crossing is the Third Fleet. Considering the dangers the Second Fleet encountered and the destructive power Elder Dragons possess when fighting at full strength, we want to commission you, Boss, to help defeat Nergigante or the Elder Dragon crossing the sea, to ensure the Third Fleet arrives safely... In this process, we will also do our best to assist you in defeating other Elder Dragons, Boss."
Saying this, the Admiral bowed solemnly to Asterion.
"Roar!" (I accept.)
There was no back-and-forth or negotiating conditions. At the moment, the hunters couldn't offer anything Asterion wanted. On the contrary, Asterion was somewhat grateful to the hunters for providing the news that a new Elder Crossing was approaching—living in this forest far from the coast and busy with evolution and predation all day, he had forgotten about the Elder Crossing if not for the Admiral's reminder.
That was a nutritionally rich feast.
Had nearly ten years passed without him realizing it? Asterion thought in a daze. His memory of snatching the Teostra Gem from the dragon's mouth was still fresh; even the pair of wings on his back had evolved using the life energy within that Gem.
When he was human, ten years felt quite long. Now, from a dragon's perspective, ten years really passed in a flash; it felt like just a couple of naps.
"You agree? That's great!" The Admiral breathed a sigh of relief and laughed loudly. "I knew you wouldn't miss this opportunity, Boss. After all, last time you didn't—Oof!"
That was the third time. Hara elbowed the Admiral in the kidney again.
"Sorry, he's a bit delirious," Hara said with a smile, pressing his palm on the back of the Admiral's head to force it down. "We will take our leave for now. Once the Feast Festival is over, we'll invite you, Boss Glavenus, to come with us to Astera."
Asterion nodded in agreement. He was still thinking about what the Admiral hadn't finished saying.
After confirming the business was concluded, the hunters withdrew from Asterion's lair under the lead of the Grimalkyne guard. As soon as they were out the door, an accompanying scholar shouted excitedly.
"As expected of you, Admiral! To speak so bravely even in front of an Elder Dragon! Just standing in front of Boss Glavenus and being stared at made my legs go weak!"
"Well, it was alright, wasn't it? Hahahaha," the Admiral didn't bother being modest, laughing loudly. "No need to be so afraid. Boss Glavenus is different from ordinary monsters."
"You have the nerve to say that?" Hara said grumpily. "Teostra's skeleton is still there. The fact that there are no cut marks on it shows that Boss Glavenus failed the predation competition last time. And you dared to bring that up to his face?"
"Indeed, that wasn't very good," Bent pushed up his glasses and smiled. "Even if Boss Glavenus is very intelligent, saying that to his face counts as a provocation, right?"
"I actually think the Boss wouldn't care about such small things... I always feel like he doesn't care about a lot of things. Is this the mindset of an Elder Dragon?" the Admiral said, rubbing his chin.
"Who knows? We aren't Elder Dragons standing at the apex of the ecosystem, so naturally, we wouldn't understand what the world looks like in an Elder Dragon's eyes," another scholar shrugged. "I've already noted down the scene just now. I need to draw it quickly later."
"That's right, this is a major event that can go into the Wycademy history books. Remember to draw our faces clearly," Bent said with a laugh. "From the establishment of the Kingdom and the Guild until now, this is the first time humans have issued a mission request to a monster, right? And the monster accepted it."
"Yeah, this is the wonder of the New World," the Admiral lamented. "Who knows what kind of monsters the abundant bioenergy here has created? Remember to maintain a heart of reverence during the investigation."
This heavy sense of witnessing history wasn't just felt by Bent alone; everyone who saw the Admiral make the solemn request to Asterion felt the same way.
"If you don't count commissioning a Kulu-Ya-Ku to steal eggs," a hunter beside them quipped, "then this certainly counts."
"Uh, regarding the Kulu-Ya-Ku stealing eggs, that mission was more... well, you know..." Coughing continuously, Bent's words became vague for a moment, mumbling something unintelligible.
The team was filled with cheerful laughter for a while. The hunters chatted with the Grimalkyne guards, walking all the way to the campsite reserved for them every Feast Festival.
They indeed only started whispering after leaving Asterion's lair, but they underestimated the sensitivity of Asterion's ears.
Asterion couldn't hold back his reaction.
He didn't expect the words Hara elbowed the Admiral to stop were that. In the hunters' eyes, although he was also an Elder Dragon capable of preying on Elder Dragons, Asterion was the loser in the last predation competition with Nergigante.
It wasn't surprising. Over the years, the hunters had gradually figured out some of Asterion's habits: Boss Glavenus usually didn't leave even the dregs behind when he ate.
The many traces of teeth gnawing on rock surfaces found at the southern end of the Wildspire Waste were all left by Boss Glavenus. He wouldn't even let go of the blood dripped by prey during battle.
Considering it from that angle, the fact that such a large, almost complete skeleton of Teostra remained really explained the issue.
Being looked down upon, huh... After figuring out the whole story, Asterion lay back down.
Interesting.
Similar to the human New Year, the happiness of the Feast Festival didn't just start during the three official days; it began more than a month prior, during the preparations.
After absorbing other Wildspire Waste protector tribes that chose to defect to them back then, and after so many years of reproduction, the Glavenus Tribe was no longer a small tribe with a scarce population. The food consumption of several thousand Grimalkynes over the three festival days was not a small number, not to mention the amount of meat Asterion, who was confirmed to attend this year, would consume.
For this reason, the Grimalkyne hunting and gathering teams had been working around the clock since last month. Especially the evolved Grimalkynes led by Pot—stronger than before, they held higher status in the tribe but also bore heavier responsibilities: more prey, more meat.
The capable Grimalkynes went out, and those remaining in the tribe weren't idle either. They busily decorated the giant tree from the middle layer to the canopy layer where Asterion lived, trying their best to create a style distinct from the primitive forest landscape.
Woven decorative vine products and statues of Asterion were everywhere. The only profession in the entire Glavenus Tribe ranked just below warriors and gatherers was perhaps the sculptor. Before, they carved stone; now, they carved wood.
And honestly, the things carved by these dexterous cats were quite similar to Asterion, capturing both his form and spirit.
"Oh? How much is this Boss Glavenus?" Stopping in front of a Grimalkyne's stall, the Admiral squatted down and asked.
He was pointing to a wood carving of Asterion, about half a meter tall, featuring the huge evolved wings. It was carved exquisitely. Although it couldn't move or be disassembled like the toy gifts the hunters brought this time, every scale and shell was carved clearly, depicting him roaring with his head raised.
"One fish, meow. A fish about as tall as a meow," the stall owner stood up and gestured—about one meter.
"That expensive?" The Admiral was shocked. "Then what about this Boss Glavenus next to it?"
"Two fish, meow! But they can be smaller, meow. About as high as half a meow is enough, meow," the stall owner said.
This more expensive carving was clearly Asterion's appearance after his first major evolution; even the wings on his back were the small, cute type.
"That's still very expensive, right?" Seeing things develop this way, the others also got interested. Hara squatted beside the stall to help bargain. "And this Boss Glavenus doesn't even have wings. Why is it so much more expensive than the previous one?"
"This is what Boss Glavenus looked like before, meow," the owner stroked his whiskers and said. "Future kittens won't be able to see this form of Boss Glavenus anymore, meow. At most, they can only look at the Little Boss Glavenus... but we old-timer cats all know what Little Boss Glavenus is missing, meow."
"The forelimbs, I know," the Admiral said with a proud face. "So the statue on the far side sells for even more, right?"
He pointed to a wood carving placed closest to the stall owner, which had neither wings nor long forelimbs; at a rough glance, it looked no different from an Acidic Glavenus.
"You have a good eye, meow!" The stall owner got excited too. He jumped up and high-fived the Admiral. "This is a big secret only we elderly cats know, meow!"
"Boss Glavenus's appearance when he was young! I know all about it!" As a loyal fan of Boss Glavenus, the Admiral said proudly.
"That's right, meow! When Boss Glavenus first appeared before our eyes, he looked just like this, meow!" The stall owner's mood suddenly became depressed as he spoke. "It's a pity that young cats nowadays don't like this kind of statue, meow. They only want Boss Glavenus's current look... Only older cats buy this kind, meow."
"That won't do," the Admiral also shook his head with a heavy face. "It's a sorrowful thing to forget tradition, meow. The kittens must be educated properly, meow."
"Don't suddenly turn into a Grimalkyne! You idiot!" Hara slapped his old partner on the back, speechless.
"Oh, oh! Anyway, I'll take this one!" The Admiral straightened his back and said, "I will protect Boss Glavenus's past, meow!!"
"Really?" The stall owner instantly became happy. "Since you have such good taste, I'll give you this statue for free, meow!"
"Oh? Is that so? Then thank—"
"Don't take advantage of the Grimalkynes, you idiot!!"
In the blink of an eye, Hara delivered another slap.
"Ahaha, just kidding, just kidding. I'll trade this with you."
After thinking for a moment, the Admiral pulled a dagger from his lower back and handed it to the stall owner. "If you like eating fish, this can scrape off fish scales very conveniently."
Calling it a dagger was only relative to the Admiral's size; when the stall owner grasped the dagger, it was like holding a short sword. It could even serve as a regular weapon.
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