Monster Hunter: I can hear the monsters' thoughts

Chapter 335 Inheritance
Lin Lin was deep in thought when he suddenly felt a heavy weight on his back, causing him to lean forward and fall to the ground.

Turning around, he saw that it was Tiaotiao, who had somehow gotten behind him and put its two front paws on his shoulders, giving him a crushing blow.

Lin Lin tried to stand up again, but Tiao Tiao's size and weight were no longer what they used to be. He was no longer the Huang Sulong who could be carried on his back for weight training in Lockheed. Lin Lin's attempts ended in failure, and he could only barely turn over, letting Tiao Tiao smear a lot of saliva on his face.

"Alright, alright, I can't carry you on my back now!"

Lin Lin reached out and rubbed Tiao Tiao's head, then gently scratched his chin.

His hand tickled Tiaotiao's spot, and Tiaotiao immediately quieted down, squinting its eyes and enjoying itself. With it quiet down, Lin Lin finally found a chance to sit up.

Why is Tiaotiao suddenly so enthusiastic?

Lin Lin was puzzled as he continued to "control" Tiaotiao with one hand. It wasn't until Tiaotiao quietly opened its eyes and gave a slightly smug look towards the sky that he finally understood.

Good grief, is she jealous because she saw me getting close to Osora after I came back?

Lin Lin sighed and gently tapped Tiao Tiao's head with his finger:
"You're a senior figure, how can you hold such a grudge against a junior like this..."

Tiaotiao turned her gaze to Lin Lin, exhaling a puff of white steam from her nostrils, which sounded like a hum, carrying an inexplicable air of arrogance.

Previously, Jumping had to rely more on tone of voice, facial expressions, and body language to guess the meaning of Lin Lin's words when communicating with him. However, since the appearance of the Bond Stone, it has been able to easily understand the thoughts that Lin Lin wants to convey. After all, as the senior that has been by Lin Lin's side the longest, its bond with Lin Lin is no weaker than that of Da Kong.

Having fully understood Lin Lin's words, Tiao Tiao directly expressed her disdain.

What's wrong with the old senior? The old senior should be even more eager to win favor! Otherwise, they might have been called Jumpy before, but now that the new dragon is replacing the old one, they'll be called Yellow Velociraptor King.

Lin Lin couldn't help but scratch his head, wondering why he felt like a scumbag who had a harem...

After thinking for a while, Lin Lin gave up and simply rubbed Tiao Tiao's head vigorously, speaking softly as if coaxing a child:
"Okay, okay, I was wrong. I shouldn't have been biased. I'll spend more time with you from now on, okay?"

"Gahhhh!"

Jumping excitedly let out a howl and then buried its head in Lin Lin's arms.

It's a deal!

Da Kong yawned, glanced at Tiao Tiao twice, then lay down on the spot and buried his head inside his wing.

I have no objection, and... since things have come to this, let's go to sleep...

Watching the interaction between the man and the dragon silently from the side, Iwata still felt it was quite outrageous, despite having already been quite shocked by Lin Lin's narration.

"Okay, are you two going to be all lovey-dovey a little longer? My feast at home is getting cold."

"Coming, coming, almost here!"

……

Life in Yuuki became leisurely again after returning to Yuuki.

Every day when she opens her eyes, she either plays with Jumpy Sky or discusses improvements to the new hunting equipment with Date. Yezi often tries to make delicious food for Lin Lin to taste. When she is short of ingredients, she calls Jumpy Sky to go out and collect them in the wild. In the evening, she takes two jars of honey and goes to find Xiong Er to wrestle and hone her strength. After that, she makes honey-grilled fish to restore her strength. Finally, she goes back to the bathhouse in the meeting place, has a drink, soaks in the hot spring, and falls fast asleep.

However, even in these ordinary and leisurely days, some things are quietly changing.

For example, the number of vehicles passing by or stopping at the village entrance is quietly increasing, and many unfamiliar faces with different clothes and accents are gradually appearing in the village. The hotel run by the village chief is fully booked, and the smiles on the faces of familiar villagers are noticeably more frequent. The children seen at the crossroads are full of energy, chasing and playing with each other, playing a game of tag.

"You are Lanlong!"

"You are the Lanlong!"

"Stop arguing, I'll be the Storm Dragon this round! But next round I want to be the Hunter!"

"no problem!"

"Then let's begin!"

"Hahaha, I am the hunter! For justice, for everyone, I will punish you!"

"Awooo! I am the Storm Dragon! I will unleash a storm and destroy you all!"

"Ah! Run! We need to wear down Lanlong's stamina so he can't beat us!"

Lin Lin was walking along a path in the village when he saw a group of children running past him, playing and laughing. He smiled and was about to continue forward when another child suddenly rushed out from the side. The child didn't notice that someone was walking in front of him and ran straight into Lin Lin's backside.

The sneak attack from behind almost instantly reminded Lin Lin of the unpleasant memory of being nudged in the rear by a wild boar. However, compared to the wild boar, the force of the child's collision was negligible. Lin Lin's center of gravity didn't even change much, but the child who bumped into him was directly knocked to the ground by the recoil.

Lin Lin looked back down and saw that it was a little boy who looked about seven or eight years old, the age when he was most mischievous.

The little boy fell to the ground, and before he could even look up to see what he had bumped into, he immediately started baring his teeth:
"Damn humans! I am the Storm Dragon! How dare you block my path! I will destroy you! Ha!"

Lin Lin almost burst out laughing. This Haki Lan was even breathing out! If only real Lanlongs had this kind of imposing aura, how wonderful that would be?
He crouched down and extended his palm towards the boy who was sitting on the ground:
"You can't do anything sitting on the ground. Get up and check if you're hurt anywhere."

"Eh?"

The little boy stared at the large hand in front of him, then looked up and saw its owner, and was immediately stunned.

"Lord Lin Lin!"

Lin Lin tilted his head. Huh? Am I that famous already? Do all the kids know me?
"Yes, it's me, but there's no need to add 'adult' after it, it sounds weird."

Lin Lin shook the hand he was holding out in front of the other person again, "Can you still stand up?"

The little boy nodded nervously and then reached out to grab Lin Lin's hand. Lin Lin pulled him up from the ground with a light tug.

"Let's move around a bit and see if you're injured anywhere."

The little boy did as instructed, moving all his joints. Seeing that there was nothing wrong, Lin Lin was relieved.

He added, "Be careful and pay attention to your surroundings when you run in the future," and then Lin Lin stood up to leave.

But he had only taken one step when he heard a child's voice again behind him:

"Lord Lin Lin!"

Lin Lin frowned slightly, then turned around and squatted down again, bringing his gaze level with the little boy's:
"I already told you not to call me 'sir' anymore. If you really have to add a suffix, just call me 'Brother Lin Lin'."

The little boy lowered his head: "I understand, Brother Lin Lin..."

Lin Lin smiled gently and asked in a mild tone, "So, is there something you need?"

The little boy hesitated for a moment before raising his head to meet Lin Lin's gaze, as if he had mustered up his courage:
"Brother Lin Lin, I want to be as powerful as you in the future, so I can protect the village and safeguard peace! Can you tell me how to do that?"

Squatting to talk still felt a bit awkward, so Lin Lin simply sat down on the ground and asked:
"You want to be a hunter?"

"Yes! I want to be a hunter, not the hunter I play in a game, but a real hunter, like you, who is revered by everyone!"

Huh? I've become a revered hunter? That seems a bit exaggerated... I haven't really done anything...

Lin Lin subconsciously touched his nose, feeling a little embarrassed.

"Then let me ask you first, what exactly do you want? Do you want to become a hunter, or do you want to be respected by everyone? Being a hunter is very hard, you know. You often have to face life-threatening dangers. But to be respected by everyone, you don't necessarily have to become a hunter. Look at our village chief, she's not a hunter, but everyone respects her just the same, doesn't she?"

"As long as you make genuine contributions, everyone will see it. Becoming a hunter isn't the only path you can take."

The little boy thought carefully for a moment before looking at Lin Lin again and answering firmly:

"No, what I want to become is a hunter who can protect everyone. Although everyone respects the village chief, when the Storm Dragon appears, the village chief will still need hunters to protect the village!"

Lin Lin paused for a moment, and his gaze toward the little boy softened considerably.

This child is so pure. Most hunters in this world probably join this profession with aspirations and ideals, just like this child.
It's a pity that talent is really important for hunters. Too many hunters spend their entire lives stuck at the two- or three-star level. I wonder if this child will become one of them.

"Alright, it seems you really want to become a hunter. Then I'll tell you the secret to becoming a hunter!"

Hearing that his idol was going to tell him the secret, the little boy nodded excitedly, his eyes shining with excitement as he stared intently at Lin Lin's lips, not wanting to miss any of the words he was about to utter.

"The secret is to eat every meal on time, play hard when you play, and go to bed properly at night instead of staying up late."

"Eh?"

Seeing the little boy's obvious disappointment, Lin Lin couldn't help but chuckle, "Did you think I was just teasing you?"

The little boy pursed his lips; although he didn't say anything, it was tantamount to acquiescing.

"I'm telling you this from the bottom of my heart. Think about it, to be a hunter, don't you need to have a strong enough body?"

The little boy nodded.

"So, to have a healthy body, you must eat well and eat more so that you get enough nutrition. When you play, you should play hard and run and exercise more so that the nutrients can be converted into muscle instead of fat. You should also get a good night's rest and not stay up late so that you can be full of energy the next day and it will not affect your studies or sports."

The little boy nodded as if he understood, but for some reason he felt that what Lin Lin said made a lot of sense.

But this didn't seem to be the answer he wanted to hear.

Children this age can't hide their feelings; everything is written on their faces. Lin Lin could tell what the other person was thinking just by looking at his expression.

"Did you think I was going to talk about what to pay attention to when choosing weapons, what to focus on during combat, or what to prepare for the hunting process?"

The other person nodded. Yes, that's exactly what he wanted to hear.

"These things are still too early for you right now. Your body hasn't fully developed yet, and you don't even know what your strengths are. You can't even determine whether you're good at melee or ranged combat. As a shield and axe user, a lot of my experience isn't transferable to other weapons."

"Oh, that's how it is……"

Seeing the somewhat disappointed expression on the other person's face, Lin Lin couldn't help but smile and comfort them:

"Don't be discouraged. You just can't access these things right now. When you're old enough to start hunter training, they'll teach you all of these things."

"Well... if we can't find a suitable person to train you, and I'm still alive, then I can give you some pointers."

"really?"

The little boy's eyes shone brightly, and he looked incredibly excited.

"Of course it's true."

"Then it's a pinky promise! Let's pinky swear!"

"well."

"Hooking the hook and catching the fish is a promise that must remain unchanged for a hundred years!"

Lin Lin smiled, reached out his hand, hooked his little finger with the other person's, and swayed it from side to side.

"So, little hunter from the future, what's your name?"

"Olben! My name is Olben! My mother said that this word means inheritance, and I also want to inherit the spirit of the hunter and protect everyone in the village!"

Inheritance...

It's quite easy to remember: inherit, then surpass; that's always been the way of the hunter.

Lin Lin patted the child's head and said, "Well then, goodbye Alban, go play with your friends!"

Watching the little boy run off into the distance, his spirits high, Lin Lin couldn't help but smile gently.

"I didn't realize you were so good at coaxing kids."

Hearing the voice behind him, Lin Lin subconsciously turned his head and realized that a female hunter wearing a velociraptor set was standing not far behind him without him noticing at all.

As expected of a high-ranking hunter known as "Rachel the Stealth Assassin"? Her unpredictable appearances and disappearances are truly terrifying...

"Um... actually, strictly speaking, shouldn't it be called 'coaxing'?"

"Children are just young and immature, but they're not stupid. They can tell whether adults are being perfunctory or serious when they talk to them. I just didn't just talk to him perfunctorily."

Rachel stared at Lin Lin intently for a few moments, seemingly lost in thought, before shaking her head.

Forget it, the relationship isn't even confirmed yet, so thinking about who will take care of the children in the future is a bit too far-fetched. Let's focus on the problems at hand first.

(End of this chapter)