Monster Hunter: I can hear the monsters' thoughts

Chapter 371 Sunshine's Top Newcomer

"Taboo?"

The air in the hall seemed to grow heavy with those two words.

Mountain Vegetable Elder looked up at the Grand Elder, his tone more serious than ever before:
"Can you be sure?"

The elder nodded slightly. "I can tell that the child wasn't lying. That dragon retreated out of fear."

"And the only thing that can make even ancient dragons fear is probably the forbidden..."

Mountain Vegetable Grandpa's expression turned extremely grave:

"We were simply not prepared to confront taboos."

The elder, however, comforted Master Shancai instead:

"Actually, things aren't that bad yet. Looking at the details of the incident, the taboo hasn't appeared. Only the child and the blue dragon noticed its presence. We still have time."

Unfortunately, Grandpa Mountain Vegetable clearly didn't feel comforted:

"The powder keg in Xiureid City is already suffocating enough, and now there's another one..."

"Even if it's not now, it's probably in the not-too-distant future. We don't have much time, so we must hurry."

The Grand Elder sighed and nodded slightly.

"Yes, I'll make arrangements later to intensify the research and interpretation of ancient documents and see if we can find any relevant information so that we can be somewhat prepared. Yamana, you too, if you find any clues about the 'solar eclipse,' remember to send a message immediately."

"A solar eclipse? I'll remember that..."

"Actually, the child didn't bring all bad news. At least he showed me the possibility of using the power of other monsters. If we can get the help of the ancient dragon, we might have a chance of winning."

"Ancient Dragon? Is that really possible?"

"Whether it succeeds or not, we should at least give it a try."

The elder subconsciously reached out and stroked the wakizashi strapped to his back. "And the training of hunters, I'm afraid we can no longer proceed as methodically as before. We must accelerate it... Our high-ranking hunters are still far too few!"

"Hmm... I remember Rachel has been stuck at six stars for quite a while now, it's about time she got promoted."

……

Lin Lin emerged from the Grand Elder's Hall, still somewhat dazed. He never imagined that his first stop after arriving in Dongdoruma would be the Grand Elder's Hall, where he would have a long chat with the Grand Elder.

Standing on the long gray stone steps, surrounded by a deserted scene with hardly any pedestrians in sight, and no sign of his master and the others, Lin Lin was momentarily lost in thought.

Where am I supposed to find them in such a big city?

Left with no other option, Lin Lin turned to the guild knight guards who stood silently to the side like statues for help.

"You should be able to see Mr. Kevin soon."

Fortunately, the guild knights weren't real statues, and they were even quite polite when speaking to Lin Lin—Lin Lin wasn't sure if they were just like that, or if it was because he had come from the Grand Hall and wasn't considered an outsider.

Since Lin Lin had no particular destination anyway, and since they had already said so, he simply stood there and waited, while chatting with a guild knight next to him.

Hmm... I just don't know if striking up a conversation like this counts as interfering with someone's work...

Although they seemed a bit indifferent, at least they didn't kick him out, so Lin Lin felt at ease continuing the conversation. After all, all he could do now was chat while waiting.

Through the narration of this guild knight, Lin Lin learned some basic facts about the city.

For example, the Grand Elder Temple he had just visited in East Doruma was originally a place of prayer for warding off disasters and curing diseases. However, under the guidance of the Grand Elder's philosophy that "the Guard Corps protects the streets, and the Hunters make the streets prosperous," the temple was abolished from its function of prayer and instead became the political core and meeting place of East Doruma.

To further motivate hunters to improve their skills, the Grand Elder set a rule that anyone who advances to six stars and becomes a high-ranking hunter will have the freedom to enter and leave the Grand Elder's Hall and accept various high-level, high-reward commissions. Lower-ranking hunters, unless specially summoned by the Grand Elder, have no right to enter this mysterious building in the eyes of the public.

"So, it seems I'm actually quite lucky?"

Lin Lin touched his chin and realized that he seemed to be one of the very few exceptions who entered the Grand Hall during his time as a lower-ranking hunter.

Suddenly, he paused, sensing something was amiss:
"Wait a minute, if the Grand Elder Hall takes on the function of the meeting place, but only high-ranking hunters can enter, what about low-ranking hunters? Dongdoruma can't possibly prevent low-ranking hunters from hunting, can he?"

The guild knight chuckled, seemingly amused by Lin Lin's question.
"Of course not. In East Doruma, the function of the meeting place is divided into two parts: the meeting place for high-ranking hunters is in the Grand Hall, while the meeting place for low-ranking hunters is over there."

The young man pointed in a direction and said, "Go to the end and turn left. You'll see that's the busiest building in the central area."

"lively?"

"Yes, it's lively. After all, the gathering place for lower-ranked hunters is also called the 'Public Tavern.' Sometimes I go there for a drink after get off work."

As the knight talked more with Lin Lin, he became more talkative. However, after sensing the gaze from his companion on the other side, he quickly became serious.

"Ahem, no idle chatter while on duty. If you don't need any other help, please don't interfere with my work."

"Um, okay, then I won't bother you any longer? Anyway, thank you for answering my questions!"

After hearing the strange name "Popular Tavern," Lin Lin had become very interested and couldn't wait to see the meeting place of Dongdoruma. Since he hadn't seen his master and the others after waiting for a long time, he decided to go to the meeting place to see if he could find out any information.

Following the young man's directions, Lin Lin walked along the wide street and soon arrived at the front of a magnificent stone building.

It's built so grandly, like a temple, a stark contrast to the hastily constructed open-air meeting place in Lokrak. And its name sounds even more unrestrained than Lokrak's; it's simply called a tavern.

As soon as he pushed open the door, he was greeted by a cacophony of voices chatting and laughing in various accents, along with unrestrained, wild laughter. The rich aroma of ale mixed with the sizzling scent of bread and roasted meat filled the air. Lin Lin almost instantly understood what it meant to say, "There are no wrong nicknames, only wrong names." With such a lively atmosphere, if you said this wasn't a pub, Lin Lin would be the first to disagree!
"Ha, the Popular Tavern lives up to its name!"

Although the building was grand with high ceilings and a spacious area for hunters to drink, the lively atmosphere was just like that of Lokrak. For Lin Lin, who had been in Lokrak for quite some time, it felt like home, and he blended in perfectly.

Lin Lin didn't rush to register with the management staff. Instead, he found an empty seat and sat down. He then called over a waiter and started ordering. The airship was supposed to land around noon. His original plan was to find a place to stay before eating, but he was called away by the elder as soon as he landed. His stomach was already rumbling.

After picking up the menu and looking at it for a moment, Lin Lin felt his mouth involuntarily secrete a lot of saliva, forcing him to swallow it down with a "gulp".

It's not that he's embarrassing himself; the blame lies with the fact that Dongdoruma's cuisine is simply too outrageous, and with the barren state of the food industry in Jieyun Village...

My eyes scanned the menu back and forth, and every dish looked so tempting that I even had some difficulty making a choice.

After hesitating for a moment, Lin Lin decided to give up thinking, casually ran his fingers across the table a few times, and handed it back to the waiter: "These are all I have!"

"Okay, let me confirm, are these the correct ones?"

"Honey-glazed grilled grass-fed dragon ribs, black truffle bread, lemon butter moccasins, crispy fried crab claws, specialty mushroom cream soup, caramelized tropical strawberry pudding?"

Lin Lin listened and thought the combinations he randomly pointed out were pretty good, so he nodded. "That's all for now, thanks. Oh, and one more glass of ale!"

"Okay, 200z will be yours."

Huh? So cheap?

While 200z is almost enough for an average family to eat for a week with some left over, look at these ingredients: moga clams, specialty mushrooms, shield crab claws, tropical strawberries... these are all common items in gathering quests. Gathering these things would cost more than 200z in quest fees alone. It's true that it's cheap.

Lin Lin readily took out his money bag and paid the bill. Before long, the table in front of him was filled with a large pile of plates. The rich aroma was so tempting that people couldn't help but want to eat. Even the hunters at the surrounding tables couldn't help but turn their attention to this guy who wanted to order a whole table of dishes right away.

If it can eat so much, then this guy must be very strong!

Well, although it may sound a bit far-fetched at first glance, it's not just a wild guess without any logic.

Eating more indicates a strong digestive capacity and a higher energy intake. Higher energy intake often means stronger life energy, which in turn means greater strength, faster reaction time, more agile movements, and better physical fitness for the hunter.

While strong physical abilities don't necessarily make someone a high-level hunter, there are no high-level hunters with poor physical abilities.

For a moment, Lin Lin, who was engrossed in showing off, became the focus of attention for the surrounding hunters.

Grabbing a crab claw and taking a bite, the tender and juicy crab meat brought an unparalleled enjoyment. Lin Lin wiped his mouth and was about to take another sip of cream soup when he noticed someone walking towards him, sitting down opposite him as if they were old friends.

"Do you mind if I sit here?"

After everyone had already sat down, they asked me if I minded...

Lin Lin shook his head speechlessly, not because of the other person's overly familiar manner, but because of the person's appearance.

His armor set looked ordinary and unremarkable, and the bright blue one-handed sword he carried was obviously made from materials from a lowly monster like Velocidrome. He looked like a newbie who had just become a hunter. He would be inconspicuous in the entire tavern and could be found everywhere.

However, this person had a head of red hair and a rather unique hairstyle, with the sides completely shaved, leaving only a small tuft on top. When he sat in front of Lin Lin, he had a sunny smile on his face.

In short, it looks familiar.

"Hey friend, my name is Aiden, wanna get to know each other?"

The young man, with a sunny smile, raised his oak wine glass to Lin Lin.

It really was you... no, I should say it's just like you, who starts by toasting a stranger right away...

Lin Lin muttered to himself, then raised his glass and clinked it against his:
"My name is Lin Lin, and I just arrived in Dongdoruma."

Upon hearing Lin Lin's name, the sunny young man's eyes lingered for a moment.

Forest Kirin? What a strange name, but why does it sound so familiar?

"Gurgling..."

The young man raised his glass and took a big gulp, then let out a satisfied sigh:

"I remember now, I've heard of you!"

"Eh?"

Lin Lin paused slightly as he was stuffing meat into his mouth, swallowed hard, and then looked back at the sunny young man opposite him.

"I've only just arrived in Dongdoruma, how did you hear about me?"

Aiden put down his glass, thought for a moment, and then said somewhat uncertainly:

"Hmm... if I remember correctly, I heard it from my master, right?"

Lin Lin blinked, opened a Moga clam, sucked the clam meat into his mouth in one gulp, and asked indistinctly:

"What did your master say about me?"

Aiden scratched his chin. "I don't know, but every time I hear your name, my master makes me do extra training soon after..."

Lin Lin almost burst out laughing. Had he become someone else's child in Julius's eyes?

He saw Aiden's gaze subtly sweep over the large table of food in front of him, and unconsciously swallowed. He then pushed the plate of mogabe toward him and gestured for him to proceed.

Aiden didn't stand on ceremony with Lin Lin, smiled, picked up a moccasin, and started eating.

While Aiden was eating seafood, Lin Lin wiped his mouth and said:

"Actually, I've heard of your name before, top newcomer Aiden."

"Hmm...steamed buns?"

Aiden swallowed the food in his mouth, scratched his head sheepishly, but couldn't hide a hint of smugness in his eyes.

I'm already this famous? Hehehe, I'm so embarrassed...

"Yes, I've known about you for a long time..."

"It can't be that bad, can it? When? How early could it be?"

If I were to say I'd seen him before, that was almost ten years ago. And the only time I truly remembered his words was when I witnessed the birth of the legendary Burnt King in Shured City.

However, those things happened before I transmigrated. In this world...

"Well, I first heard about it from the signboard girl in Jieyun Village. Dongdoruma has produced a top newcomer who has advanced at an ridiculously fast pace."

"Later, I heard it from my master. I don't know what his relationship with your master is, but he seemed to really want me to surpass you..."

(End of this chapter)