Monster Hunter: I can hear the monsters' thoughts

Chapter 400: One wave comes after another

It hurts so much, it hurts so much...

My whole body felt like it was being roasted in a hot coal fire; the intense pain burned through every nerve. I felt like I was being pulled into a bottomless abyss, constantly falling without any support.

I wanted to reach out and grab something, but my powerless body struggled to even move. I felt my consciousness being swallowed up by boundless chaos and frenzy.

Someone please save me! I'm so scared...

Suddenly, a cool sensation spread from within him throughout his body, like a handful of sweet spring water poured onto a raging fire, slightly reducing its intensity.

Although the burning pain persisted, it was not as intense as at the beginning. It was as if a faint light shone down on my feet just as I was about to be swallowed by endless darkness.

More, I want more!

I want more sweet spring water to extinguish the burning fire; I want stronger light to dispel the chaotic and frenzied darkness!

As if the heavens had heard my cry, I felt the cool sensation growing stronger and stronger, spreading throughout my body. It started as a drizzle, gradually intensifying into a downpour, slowly suppressing, cooling, and extinguishing the arrogant flames until only smoldering embers remained.

Cool and refreshing, the beam of light expanded beneath my feet, illuminating everything around me and finally banishing the darkness. I felt my vision brighten.

Its daybreak?
I felt my consciousness gradually returning, although my body was still so weak that I couldn't muster the strength to move at all, but my senses were slowly returning.

I remember now, I think I fell into a coma because of poisoning?

But now it seems I don't feel so bad anymore. Has my body pulled through? Or have I been saved?
There was a rustling sound nearby, but it didn't sound like a monster. Looks like I was just rescued... What good luck...

"Boss Meow, how's Yoko?"

That sound... it sounds like a date?! What's it doing here? Shouldn't it be with Brother Lin Lin in Kokot Village?!

And the boss...

After a moment of silence, a familiar voice rang out:

"It looks much better now. If we feed it another Dispelling Fruit, it should be able to completely suppress the virus."

It really is him! But... how could it be?
A huge surprise hit my mind, but the doubts that followed made me wonder if I was hallucinating because of the toxins.

Hmm? Why do I feel like my lips touched something?
Soft and warm... Wait! This, this is!

Wait a minute! I'm not ready yet!
It's sticking in!

What should I do? Should I respond? If I do, will it seem like I'm being too casual?
"Coo-choo"

Huh? What is this? It has a bittersweet fragrance, like the taste of dried fruit? But why does it also have a sweet aftertaste? It's clearly a cool, slightly stimulating sensation, yet there's also a burning feeling...

Yoko felt dizzy and lost all ability to think. She simply followed her body's instincts, swallowing the juice of the fruit. Her weak body couldn't muster any strength to move.

It must be due to the effects of toxins...

"Boom~"

Lin Lin raised his head, licked his lips, and casually wiped the thin layer of sweat from his forehead:
"Hmm...it seems like there's a reaction? Looks like the abstinence fruit is working well...it should wake up in a little while, right?"

After a long day of work, although the sensation was wonderful, Lin Lin felt more tired than if he had fought a battle with a Rathalos. He had to concentrate to maintain the efficiency of feeding the medicine while controlling his wandering mind.

He stretched and turned to look to the side. Nia was sitting next to the dates, glancing at him every now and then, seemingly whispering something.

Out of curiosity, he tilted his head slightly and listened carefully:

"Senior Date, what is Lord Lin Lin doing, meow?"

"That girl is the one the boss came to Barbare to find this time, meow. Judging from the symptoms, she has also been infected with the Mad Dragon Disease, meow, so the boss is going to feed her the Antidote Fruit, meow."

"The 'disappearing fruit,' you mean that blue fruit, meow? But why are you feeding it to meow with your mouth?"

"Because Yoko is unconscious right now, I was worried that if I fed her directly like that, it would block her airway, so I chewed it up and fed it to her."

The date explained things very patiently.

Nia tilted her head and asked curiously:

"But if that's the case, then why not use that mixing tool, meow? I remember you mentioned before, Date-senpai, that thing can grind things very finely, meow?"

Dates blinked:

"Huh? It's a meow! Why is it meowing?"

Lin Lin: ...

Brother, you're drenched in sweat.

Why didn't you think of this? You started biting him as soon as you realized he wouldn't eat?
"Concern leads to confusion. When I get anxious, I can't stay absolutely calm and forget things."

Lin Lin sighed, turned to look at Ye Zi, who was still "unconscious" with her eyes closed, pondered for a moment, and then turned back to say:

"Niaru, you're right. Using the mixing tool is the best approach. That's why I used the mixing tool to save the person just now, understand?"

He wondered what kind of look Yezi would give him if she woke up and found out how he had saved her. Would she think he was a wicked person who took advantage of her vulnerability? He was worried about what to say later, but Nia's words had given him a wake-up call.

Since Ye Zi is still unconscious, as long as the three of them agree on their story, they can pretend that nothing happened before, and at least keep the relationship between the two sides as it was before.

"Boss, do you mean you kissed him but don't plan to take responsibility?"

Yezao crossed her arms and squinted at Lin Lin.

Lin Lin laughed:

"Do I look like that kind of person? I'm just worried that if Yoko finds out about this, she might think I took advantage of her and caused a rift between us, or even led to us going our separate ways. That would be bad..."

Date shook her head, then turned to look at Yoko lying on the ground. It seemed that dispelling the fruit had indeed been quite effective; Yoko's originally pale face had now become much rosier.

"Boss, you don't need to worry about that, meow. Don't you feel anything, meow? Yoko has always liked you, meow!"

Lin Lin shook his head slightly: "I still prefer to let the relationship develop naturally. Telling Ye Zi about this now would feel like forcing her to make a choice, and I don't want to do that, whether she accepts it or not."

As he spoke, Lin Lin looked up at the blazing sun in the sky:
"Besides, it's hard to say whether breaking the ice now would be responsible or irresponsible of her..."

After Lin Lin finished speaking, Yezao pondered for a moment and nodded in agreement. What the boss said was indeed correct.

Yezi, weak and unsure how to face what had just happened, didn't open her eyes after regaining consciousness, pretending she was still asleep. Having overheard the conversation, Yezi secretly breathed a sigh of relief, a subtle sense of regret lingering beneath the surface.

When she was in dire straits, Lin Lin once again descended from the sky and pulled her out of the boundless darkness. This was the moment when her heart was pounding the most. If Lin Lin really wanted to take this opportunity to establish their relationship, she would have no reason to refuse.

But upon closer reflection, Lin Lin's words did seem to make sense. Doing so did indeed feel somewhat coercive, although she wouldn't harbor any resentment because of it...

Going with the flow is good, but things are fine as they are now...

Ye Zi thought that the natural development of their relationship was quite good, and she liked Lin Lin Ge even more for his consideration for her.

Her heartbeat quickened, pumping blood throughout her body. Yoko felt she had regained some strength, so she opened her eyes and tried to stand up.

"Huh? Yoko, you're awake?!"

The slight noise instantly drew Lin Lin's attention back. He quickly reached out and held Ye Zi's shoulder, using his own body as a backrest.

"Don't move around too quickly. You've been infected with the Mad Dragon virus, and your body's energy has been depleted too much. You need to eat something to recover."

Lin Lin took out the food he was carrying, but his movements stopped in mid-air. This stuff was too dry and hard to chew, and it wasn't suitable for Ye Zi at this moment. It would be better to cook it into a paste with water.

"It doesn't matter……"

Ye Zi smiled, her gaze lingering on Lin Lin's face, especially his lips, for a couple of seconds, before she reached out and took the dry rations.

"I'm not some delicate little girl. What hunter can't eat the food they carry?"

Chewing and swallowing, seeing Ye Zi's brows furrow, Lin Lin quickly handed her a water pouch:

Let's just go with the flow.

"Um……"

Ye Zi responded. Although she was still weak and powerless, the food had an immediate effect. She was no longer so weak that she could only lean against Lin Lin. Although it was comfortable to lean against him, now was not the time to indulge in that comfort.

"Alright, Brother Lin Lin, I'm fine now. It seems like Tiao Tiao has also been poisoned. Go check on it!"

Upon hearing Tiaotiao's name, Lin Lin remained silent for a moment. In fact, a question had arisen in his mind when he first found Ye Zi, but after seeing Ye Zi's condition, his mind was in complete turmoil, and he didn't have time to investigate.

"Isn't it with you?"

"Eh?"

Ye Zi was stunned for a moment. What did this mean? According to her vague memory, Tiao Tiao seemed to have been by her side until she completely lost consciousness!
Lin Lin looked around, his sense of unease growing stronger.
"I found this place after seeing the distress signal, but when I got here, I only saw you and didn't see Jumpy at all."

"How...how could this happen?"

After eating three pieces of the food she had brought with her, Ye Zi gulped down a large mouthful of water. She stood up, her steps slightly unsteady, and looked around.

Sure enough, all around were undulating ground and lush trees. If Jump Jump were still nearby, there would have been no way he could have missed that more than ten-meter-long figure.

"I remember, before I fainted, it seemed to be... in this direction..."

Ye Zi assessed her surroundings and staggered off in a certain direction. Lin Lin quickly followed to support her, lest she lose her balance and fall.

Dates and Nia exchanged a glance and followed.

Lin Lin supported her, and Ye Zi didn't try to be strong, leaning most of her weight on Lin Lin as they walked, glancing around as they went.
"Not only is Tiaotiao missing, but Xiaojia has also vanished without a trace..."

"What exactly happened while I was unconscious? And I have absolutely no memory of firing the signal flare..."

Yezi tried hard to recall, but felt a sharp pain in her head. Perhaps it was a side effect of the mad dragon disease. She felt extremely tired after thinking for a while.

Lin Lin didn't speak. The joy he felt from finally rescuing Ye Zi was mostly dissipated. He just looked around, trying to discern all traces in his surroundings and find Tiao Tiao's whereabouts.

Based on Ye Zi's brief remarks, Tiao Tiao was probably also infected with the Mad Dragon virus. Now that Tiao Tiao has mysteriously disappeared, could it be... that the Mad Dragon disease has flared up?

Lin Lin quickly shook his head, banishing the terrible thought from his mind.

No, that shouldn't be the case. If Yoko and Jump were injured and infected around the same time, barring any special circumstances, given Jump's large monster-like body's metabolic rate, the onset of the infection should have been much later than Yoko's...

Supporting Yoko, they walked for a while, and then a rather conspicuous scratch appeared on a tree not far away.

Having spent so much time with Tiaotiao, Lin Lin recognized it at a glance—it was definitely Tiaotiao's scratch!
Ye Zi also noticed the mark. The two walked closer so they could see it more clearly. Lin Lin even reached out and scraped a tiny bit of dark purple powder from the scratch, then carefully rubbed it between his fingers.

The two fell silent almost simultaneously.

After a moment, Yoko slowly spoke, her voice somewhat hoarse:

"The dragon that injured and poisoned us also emitted this kind of dust."

Lin Lin took a deep breath, clenched his fists tightly, and launched an attack infused with the Mad Dragon Virus. This was a classic manifestation of a Mad Dragon-like monster. Even if he didn't want to believe it, Lin Lin couldn't tell himself that there were other possibilities.

Although I don't know why it happened so fast, it seems that Jumpy has already developed a severe case of mad dragon disease...

Monsters that have gone berserk will lose their minds and become extremely aggressive. The claw marks left on the tree are probably the marks left by Jumpy when he attacked, as he was already suffering from berserk disease.

"Buzz..."

The sound of vibrating elytra rapidly approached. Lin Lin looked in the direction of the sound and saw a rhinoceros beetle with bright red shells wobbling towards him from the depths of the dense forest ahead.

Upon seeing Lin Lin and Ye Zi, who was being supported by Lin Lin, the rhinoceros beetle seemed to relax all at once. Its flight path became erratic, and it finally crashed into Lin Lin's waist with a thud, which Lin Lin caught with lightning speed.

Now he roughly knows what's going on...

(End of this chapter)