Monster Hunter: I can hear the monsters' thoughts

Chapter 387 Lin Lin: Bu Hao!
"I received an urgent message from the guild in Kokot Village."

The supervisor, his face taut, nodded, then looked up at the tall hunter standing beside the dragon corpse and said softly:

"Kid, take off your helmet and let me see your face."

Lin Lin paused for a moment, then nodded silently, reached out and took off his helmet, revealing a face that looked very tired.

Lin Lin's spirits were indeed not very good at the moment. Even though the Dispelling Fruit helped suppress the virus and prevent the Mad Dragon Disease from fully taking effect, the burning pain caused by the virus eroding his body was still very real.

To be honest, the feeling of being woken up by the burning pain shortly after falling asleep was really unpleasant. And after waking up, if he didn't eat a "Dispelling Fruit" to suppress the virus, he wouldn't be able to fall asleep again.

The supervisor stared intently at Lin Lin's face for two seconds, then nodded.
“I brought a doctor with me. Let him take a look at you. This condition does seem quite troublesome.”

Lin Lin took a deep breath, suppressing his physical discomfort:
"Thank you, supervisor, but I have something else I'd like to report."

The guild leader had already turned around and waved to the person behind him, wanting to call the doctor over. Upon hearing this, he stroked his beard, his tone carrying a hint of reproach, but Lin Lin could still hear the concern in his voice.

"The details of the matter have been explained clearly enough in the letter. What you should do now is not to force yourself to report here, but to cooperate with the doctor to cure your illness."

"What I want to say was probably not mentioned in the letter."

Lin Lin shook his head and pointed to Melalu, who was hiding behind the cabin door, looking somewhat fearfully at the group of guild knights surrounding the airship:
"That was a wild Meralu I met during this hunt. It had been wandering around because its tribe was attacked by a monster, and finally it met me in the Forest Hills."

"When I was fighting that sick dragon, it was also watching from the sidelines. According to it, the way that fire dragon behaved when it was sick was very similar to the monster that attacked its clan."

"The exact region where its tribe lives is not certain, but it is definitely in a large desert. Coincidentally, there was a lot of sand hidden in the gaps of the dragon's shell, which indicates that it must have been active in the desert area for a long time."

The guild leader stroked his beard. "So you mean you suspect that the monster that attacked the Meralu tribe is the pathogen that infected the fire dragons?"

"Yes, because this is just my subjective speculation, so it wasn't mentioned in the previous letters. If we want to investigate the source of this virus, we can look for clues in the desert area. Given the contagiousness of the Mad Dragon virus, as soon as that guy appears, the monsters around him will quickly show symptoms of infection."

The guild leader stared at Lin Lin's bloodshot eyes for two seconds, then slowly nodded.

The hunter contracted the virus simply by fighting a monster infected with it, demonstrating its remarkable transmissibility. However…

"Dragon Virus... did you come up with that name?"

Lin Lin was stunned for a moment before he realized that because he had been in a bad mental state for the past two days, he had forgotten that the Mad Dragon Disease had only just been discovered and had not yet been named.

"Yes, after that fire dragon went berserk, its aggression became extremely strong. It completely disregarded the damage that excessive movements would cause to its body, as if it had gone mad. That's why I gave it that name."

"That's quite fitting."

The guild leader gave Lin Lin a deep look:
"Alright, kid, the future belongs to you young people, but we old bones haven't fallen yet. It's not time for you to push yourselves to the limit. Take a good rest when you need to, and don't put too much pressure on yourselves."

Lin Lin blinked. In fact, given his understanding of the Black Corrosion Dragon and the Heavenly Returning Dragon, it was impossible for him not to feel some pressure. But was he really that obviously showing it?

"Hehe, I've lived for so many years, if I couldn't even see this, wouldn't I have lived in vain? Your furrowed brows are almost enough to hold a pipe... cough cough, relax, don't think about anything, the guild has the ability to handle these things, just cooperate with the treatment."

Lin Lin nodded emphatically:

"Yes, sir, I've learned a lot."

……

The doctor who came to treat Lin Lin was also an old dragon man. However, Lin Lin felt that the man's attire and appearance made him seem more like a scholar than a doctor. He was wearing a purple robe, and the black-rimmed round glasses on his nose gave him the air of an old scholar.

Out of curiosity, I asked, and sure enough, it was true.

His real job is as an old professor at the Ancient Dragon Observation Bureau. He usually does work similar to developing and improving medicines and researching and utilizing the components of monster bodies. However, medicine and medicine are inseparable, and the long lifespan of the dragon race brings rich experience, which makes him an equally excellent physician.

"Hmm... your illness, you know..."

The old professor carefully examined Lin Lin, then stroked his beard.

"Can it be cured?"

"Hmm... it should be curable, but it's not curable right now."

To be honest, Lin Lin didn't have high expectations to begin with, but the old professor's words still left him feeling confused.

What do you mean by "it can be cured but can't be cured right now"?

The old professor adjusted his glasses and said slowly:
"This looks like a completely new virus, and without enough samples, I can't conjure up an antidote out of thin air."

"However, I heard you brought back that infected male fire dragon? If I can study that corpse properly, I might be able to find a way to deal with it... or at least suppress the virus to some extent."

"If we could increase the number of samples, or if we could extract antibodies from that... well, I heard from the supervisor that the source of the virus might be some kind of unknown monster, right? If it really is the source of the virus, I think I could extract antibodies from its body and thus completely cure this disease."

Lin Lin: ...

In the end, we still have to take down the Black Eclipse Dragon...

"Until then, well, just stay where you are now. Eliminating the fruit will at least help you maintain your current state."

Having not had high expectations to begin with, Lin Lin was naturally not particularly disappointed. He simply nodded and then asked about something he was more concerned about.

"Professor, is my illness contagious to my colleagues?"

So the old professor conducted another round of examinations, collected some samples, and tested them several times, finally dispelling his concerns.

Before the onset of the Mad Dragon Disease, the virus mainly absorbs energy to expand its scale, just like the male fire dragon before the onset of the disease. At this stage, it is not infectious. As long as Lin Lin keeps consuming the fruit, there is no need to worry about infecting his companions.

"That's good. Otherwise, I'm afraid I wouldn't even be able to self-isolate at home and would have to run into the wild and become a wild man..."

"If the incubation period is indeed infectious, then I would be even less inclined to go to the wild."

The old professor said slowly.

"Huh? Why?"

"Because if that happens, the wild ecosystem will quickly become a complete mess, which is much more serious than a few people getting sick."

Lin Lin: ...Okay, that makes a lot of sense.

So Lin Lin bid farewell to the old professor and returned to the four-story villa in Ziyuan with Yezao and Nia Lu, ready to complain to his companions about the troubles that had happened during the hunt.

But not long after entering the room, Lin Lin's expression began to falter:

"What do you mean Ye Zi took Tiao Tiao to the hunting grounds?"

"Because at that time, Tiaotiao seemed to be under too much psychological pressure. We were worried that if it continued to be cooped up in the yard, it would cause some problems. So we thought about whether we should take it to the wild to release some stress."

Ziyuan explained, while Brave added his own explanation from the side.

Lin Lin calculated the time based on their explanation, and then sighed.

It seems that the monsters that have formed bonds with me can sense my problem, though the intensity and clarity of their perception may vary.

"Where did they go? There's probably going to be a lot of trouble lately, so it's best to avoid wandering around in the wild unless absolutely necessary..."

While waiting for the airship in Kokot Village, he sensed that Da Kong was flying towards him through the connection stone. His heart almost stopped beating in fright. He quickly ordered Da Kong to return to Yuukun immediately and not to run around. Given that Yuukun and Yanhuo are located in the western continent, as long as Xiong Er, Puff, Da Kong, and Jin Leigong don't run around, there shouldn't be any problems.

He could wait for a cure to be developed for the Mad Dragon Disease he had contracted, but he didn't even want to think about what he would do if Da Kong and the others were infected with it...

"It seems to be a place called the Unknown Forest..."

"Oh, the Unknown Forest..."

Lin Lin nodded, then froze in place.

"Where? The Unknown Forest?!"

Lin Lin's voice rose an octave.

How could it be the Unknown Forest? Why would it be the Unknown Forest?!

"Hmm? What's wrong? Is there a problem with that place?"

Bref was a little confused. He had heard that Yoko had gone to such a new place, and he was also itching to go and see it in a couple of days.

What's the problem? There's a huge problem!

In the game's storyline in the 4G timeline, Sunshine Bro and his friends were beaten up by the Black Devouring Dragon in the Unknown Tree Sea and had to flee in a sorry state. If it weren't for the timely rescue by the Phantom Troupe Hunters, Sunshine Bro and the top gunner might have died there. There would have been no story of the legendary Burn-resistant King saving Azure Star from the fire.
Although that was just one of the locations where the Black Eclipse Dragon appeared in the game, according to current real-world information, the Black Eclipse Dragon is more likely to appear in desert areas. The probability of Yoko and Jump Jump encountering the Black Eclipse Dragon is not high, but it is not zero!
Lin Lin wearily pinched the bridge of his nose, sighed, and turned to look at the world map hanging in the center of the hall, searching for the location of the Unknown Tree Sea.

"Stop looking at it, that map is from two years ago, back when the Unknown Forest hadn't been discovered yet!"

Seeing Lin Lin's actions, Bref, though not understanding why Lin Lin cared so much about that place, still took out a parchment scroll and handed it over:

"This is the new version of the map I got from the guild, take a look."

Lin Lin thanked him and then followed Bref's directions to find the area marked in green, north of the border between the Ruins Plain and the Barbare Desert.

Then his expression suddenly changed.

Buho!

Next to this unknown sea of ​​trees is a vast desert!

Lin Lin felt his temples throbbing. Although he was quite exhausted, he couldn't sit still any longer and got up to leave.

"Senior brother, where are you going?"

"The Unknown Tree Sea... Yoko and Jumpy might be in trouble..."

Ziyuan and Brave exchanged a glance. Clearly, neither of them understood why Lin Lin immediately assumed that Yezi and Tiaotiao would be in trouble upon hearing about the Unknown Tree Sea, especially since he had just finished a hunt and exuded an aura of exhaustion...

However, neither of them said anything in rebuttal. Instead, they got up, prepared to pack their equipment, and set off with Lin Lin.

However, after Lin Lin noticed their movements, he suddenly turned his head, his tone unconsciously becoming somewhat irritable:
"What are you doing?"

"Didn't you say they might be in trouble?"

Ziyuan felt a little wronged after being scolded by her senior brother for no reason, while Bref frowned, vaguely sensing that something was wrong.

Lin Lin's return this time, in such a short time, has given people a completely different feeling than before.

"Did something happen?"

Lin Lin was silent for a moment, then said sorry.

"Something did happen, and I'm not in a good mood."

"That……"

"The matter is complicated and cannot be explained in a short time, but you absolutely cannot go with us this time. It is best to stay in Dongdoruma for the time being. If possible, even the hunting activities should be suspended."

Brave frowned, carefully observing Lin Lin, before speaking again after a moment:
“This time, I can listen to you and not ask what happened, but if you rush over in your current state, even if Yezi is really in trouble, how much do you think you can help her?”

Lin Lin took a deep breath, pinched his brow with his fingers, and after a long while, finally exhaled heavily.

"You're right, I was indeed too hasty. Even if I have to rush over, I need to replenish my energy first."

He walked to the sofa, lay down heavily on it, and tried to relax his body.
"There's a reason why I didn't let you go. This hunt for the fire dragon has gone terribly wrong."

"It's probably like this..."

Lin Lin took off his helmet, pointed to his bloodshot eyes, and slowly recounted everything that had happened since he went to Kokot Village.

However, under the dual pressure of immense psychological stress and the burning pain in his body caused by the mad dragon virus, he had accumulated too much fatigue in the past two days. Now that his emotions had calmed down, he unconsciously felt sleepy. As he spoke, his words turned into ramblings in his sleep, and finally dissipated into the air as soft murmurs.

(End of this chapter)