Monster Hunter: I can hear the monsters' thoughts

Chapter 440 Kevin's Attempted Escape
As Kevin walked out of the Grand Hall, he glanced back at Lin Lin with a complicated look. The scene of finding this kid in the Jieyun Stream area was still vivid in his mind. Back then, he was like a wild Palico, weak, pitiful, and helpless. In less than two years, he had grown to this level. If he hadn't held back, this kid would probably have already broken the record for the youngest high-ranking hunter...

Well, even if we wait another two years, it seems like the record will still be broken...

Thinking of this, Kevin patted Lin Lin on the shoulder with a touch of melancholy and sighed:

"You're truly a case of the younger generation surpassing the older one. It's only been less than two months since I last saw you, and you've already experienced so much."

"Come, come, tell your teacher about your great achievements."

Lin Lin curled his lips downwards: "Didn't the Grand Elder just say that?"

Kevin rolled his eyes: "The Grand Elder only gave a dry outline; I want to hear the detailed version."

Lin Lin had no choice but to recall the details briefly, discarding some trivial matters, and then recount the exciting and thrilling parts.

"...That's about it. I won't be staying in Dongdoruma for more than a few days this time, and I'll be setting off again soon."

"So, is your next stop that 'Sinard Village'?"

Lin Lin was quite eloquent; listening to his story was like listening to a storyteller. Even now that Lin Lin had finished speaking and stopped, he was still somewhat unsatisfied and wanted to continue the conversation. However, after searching his mind for a moment, he really couldn't recall the village they were talking about.

"Yes, it's in Xiqi Kingdom, near Fenglong region. To get there, you have to cross a sea."

Lin Lin gave a brief introduction, then turned his gaze to the muscular man beside him:

"By the way, Master, what were you doing in the Grand Hall just now?"

He sensed that even the Grand Elder seemed unsure how Kevin would pass away at that time.

Upon hearing this, Kevin's body suddenly stiffened.

Buhao was so shocked by the fact that the Grand Elder wanted Lin Lin to be promoted that he completely forgot what he was supposed to say when he went to the Grand Elder's Hall!
Kevin couldn't help but turn his head and glance back at the main hall on the mountaintop, then looked at the long staircase, remained silent for a moment, and shook his head.

"Forget it, it's nothing."

Lin Lin slowly typed out a question mark.

Kevin pondered for a moment, then suddenly turned to look at Lin Lin:

"Please ask your group leader if I can hitch a ride when we set off."

Lin Lin: "Huh?"

Would you like to visit the village of Sinard as well?

Kevin waved his hand:

"No, I want to go and see Jiangbo Village."

"Jiangbo Village?"

“Yes, Rhys went to Jiangbo Village before. According to him, it seems that he can’t handle the trouble there on his own. I’m going to go and see if there’s anything I can do to help.”

"Jiangbo Village is located on the southeastern coast of the mainland. If you want to cross the sea to Xinard Village, you should pass by Jiangbo Village. You shouldn't have to take a long detour, and you can also resupply there. Just tell him that, and I think your commander will agree."

Lin Lin could only nod and said that he would inform the regimental commander after he got the things.

Jiangbo Village... a problem that even a high-ranking seven-star hunter couldn't handle, could it be another Elder Dragon...?

These are truly turbulent times...

……

After parting ways with Kevin, Lin Lin found Ye Zi and the two cats, and together they returned to the detached villa surrounded by a courtyard wall in the residential area.

"The door is locked, meow. Do you guys have the key, meow?"

Nia looked at the large padlock made of sparrow stone hanging at the door, her face showing reluctance.

Ye Zi smiled, reached into the flowerpot by the door, rummaged around for a while, and pulled out a key still covered in dirt. She gestured to Nia Lu before turning the lock, and the two people and two cats filed in.

Brave and Shion had mentioned in their letter that they were going to Moga Village. Since they were leaving, and there was no one to take care of their pets, they had to bring them on the ship. Judging by the time, they should have arrived by now.

With their departure, whether it was the axe-beetle Guga, Yoko's toothed hound Shiro, Fukumoku Afu, or Bref's toothed hound Zaxiang, they were all taken to Moga Village. This detached villa had been uninhabited for a month, making it seem exceptionally deserted.

Although it was quiet, Lin Lin found that it was quite tidy. When he walked into the house, he saw that there was not much dust on the coffee table, which looked like someone cleaned it regularly. However, considering that the house was bought by Zi Yuan and that she was the daughter of a large merchant guild, it was not surprising that someone would come to clean it.

Although the main purpose was to get the ores to strengthen the Little Brachydios's shell, now that they were back home, it was impossible to just take these things.

For example, the two shield axes, one ice and one water, which were placed on the weapon rack in the room, as well as the Thunder Wolf Dragon Heavy Armor, which I didn't have time to bring when I was in a hurry to find Yoko, can be taken along this time. If we encounter monsters like the Armored Dragon that have good attribute absorption, it will be much easier to fight them.

Soon, Lin Lin and Ye Zao had packed a large box and carried it to the living room on the first floor, waiting for Ye Zi to finish packing so that the two of them could leave together.

Ye Zi was quite quick, and soon she and Nia Lu came downstairs. However, unlike Lin Lin, they didn't carry a large box; they were just carrying a large bag of ore.

"Don't we need to bring any equipment?"

Lin Lin asked with concern. Ye Zi gently shook her head, "No need. My two best suits of armor are on the Isana. The others are no longer up to the demands of current combat."

As for weapons, there's no need to mention them. Although the dragon bone staff has decent dragon element, its overall strength is just so-so. It's far inferior to the Diablos staff. The Insect Glaive doesn't require special elemental super attack like the Charge Blade. High physical strength is enough, and elemental attributes are just a bonus.

Seeing that Ye Zi didn't seem very interested, Lin Lin couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"

Yoko sighed softly:
"I miss Xiaobai and Afu a little."

"I didn't feel it much when I was with the group before, but now that I'm back here, I realize that I haven't seen them for two months. I've never been separated from them for such a long time before."

"I wonder when Brave and Aster will be able to bring them back."

That might take quite a while...

According to the letter, they went to Moga Village to try to help Anxia's hometown resolve the earthquake caused by the sea dragon. However, Lin Lin knew very well that although the sea dragon was indeed very strong as the king of the sea, it did not have the ability to create an earthquake. According to the 3tir storyline, the real cause of the earthquake in Moga Village was that a super-large ancient dragon, the Great Sea Dragon, kept hitting the seabed with its horn, which caused the rocky ground where Moga Village was located to tremble.

The reason the great sea dragon did this was because its right horn had grown abnormally large for some unknown reason, severely obstructing its vision. In order to wear down the horn, it kept ramming the seabed—until the King of the Boiled dived into the deep sea alone and broke off the great sea dragon's right horn in the battle, causing it to retreat on its own.

Speaking of which, now that the 3Tir storyline has begun to unfold, will Brave and Shion encounter the fledgling legendary Stew King in Moga Village? Damn, I suddenly really want to go and join in the fun!

"Let's wait until this group's journey reaches its end. If they haven't returned by then, we'll go to Moga Village and join in the fun."

"But the end of the journey... is to find out the truth about the pure white dragon scale belonging to the captain, right? If we don't figure it out by the time we get to Sinard Village, will this journey ever have an end?"

Seeing the faint trace of worry on Ye Zi's face, Lin Lin couldn't help but reach out and tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, saying gently:

"Don't worry, I have a strong feeling that we will definitely find the answer in the village of Sinard, and that day is not far away."

Ye Zi looked up at Lin Lin, a smile involuntarily appearing on her lips, and nodded vigorously, "Mm!"

Beside her, Yezao silently turned her head away and shook her head without a sound.

What a cheesy couple, and they're my eldest child! They're so pathetic...

……

Lin Lin quickly returned to the Isana with his belongings, only to find that in addition to the captain and the blacksmith who had stayed behind, Sophia had also returned.

Upon further inquiry, it was discovered that her main reason for returning to Dongdoruma was to see Bao Bao. However, she didn't have many close friends, and An Xia was her best friend. But upon further inquiry, it was learned that her friend had already returned to her hometown.

Shopping isn't fun without my best friend around. It's much more enjoyable to come back and take care of my little dragon than to enjoy a performance by a singer at the grand theater.

Two days passed in a flash. During this time, Chef Cat, the Dragonman Merchant, and Gemma all finished their business and returned to the Isana. Among them, only Gemma, seeing such a bustling metropolis for the first time, still seemed a little reluctant to leave.

Lin Lin had spoken to the leader about Kevin's request to hitch a ride, and the leader readily agreed. So, after Gemma returned to the ship, Lin Lin went to Kevin's place to call him and then bring Tiaotiao along before officially setting off.

Seeing that his good apprentice was about to take him away, Kevin quickly packed his things—actually, there wasn't much to pack. As long as he brought money, he could buy any items he needed wherever he went. As for his main weapons and armor... the Black Diablos shield axe and the Armored Dragon armor were destroyed by the Storm Dragon's water cannon. Helpless, he could only put on the Rathalos and Scyther crab mixed armor that he had already put away in his box—the same set he wore when he found Lin Lin two years ago.

As for weapons, after some selection, the standard Defence Force Combination Charge Blade was chosen. The grenades tinker Charge Blade is versatile enough, and its decent power, coupled with the added explosive attribute, makes it quite useful when there isn't a suitable weapon available.

Donning his armor and slinging his shield axe over his shoulder, Kevin stretched and sighed helplessly. Over the past two years, he'd fought Lunastra, then healed, then fought Storm Dragon, then healed again. Two sets of his equipment had been completely destroyed. The materials he'd acquired were only enough to craft some mismatched armor pieces… Even though they were Elder Dragon gear, the disjointed mix was just too awkward. After some hesitation, Kevin finally decided to keep the materials at the bottom of his chest, hoping to find the remaining materials later to craft a complete set.

"bang"

Just as the two were about to leave, the door was suddenly pushed open with such a loud noise that Lin Lin was startled. Looking closely, he saw a female hunter dressed in a velociraptor suit, who looked furious.

"So you're going to sneak out and have fun behind your mother's back again, huh!"

Sensing the palpable resentment emanating from the other person, Lin Lin resolutely chose to retreat and slip away, closing the door behind him. He decided to leave the resentment to his master.

No one knows how the two talked, but about ten minutes later, when the door opened again, Rachel walked out with a bright smile, as if the resentment Lin Lin had just felt was a complete illusion.

"Little Lin Lin, your commander shouldn't mind having one more passenger hitchhiker, right?"

Lin Lin nodded weakly.

Rachel raised her hand and tapped Lin Lin's helmet lightly:
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

Lin Lin glanced at Rachel, then at Kevin, whose face was all scrunched up inside the room, and said nothing, silently leading the way.

Come to think of it, when I first met Rachel, she seemed to have come to Yukumo Village chasing after Kevin. But when she arrived, she realized she was too late; Kevin had already gone to fight Lunastra. If she hadn't met me, she probably would have rushed to find the place where they fought back then...

He wasn't entirely clear on what had happened before, but based on his observations over the past two years, Lin Lin could clearly sense that the relationship between the two was growing increasingly intimate. Especially after his master was injured in the battle against Lanlong, Rachel had been taking meticulous care of him. And based on what Yezao observed at the Heroes' Festival, Kevin, though he didn't say it aloud, was clearly thinking about Rachel. He just didn't know why, but the two of them still hadn't made that promise.

Lin Lin turned his head and glanced at Rachel again, thinking to himself.

Well, not only did I not reveal the truth, I almost ran away secretly. I don't know what my master was thinking.

Is it because you don't want to be tied down like this and want to retain the freedom to roam around?
In other words, this ability to listen to one's inner thoughts can only serve the purpose of translating language for humans; otherwise, they would listen carefully to see what is really going on.

Back on the Isana, Lin Lin introduced Rachel to the captain. Just as the airship was about to take off, Lin Lin dashed off to the Grand Hall and "bailed" Tiao Tiao out of jail.

"Huh? It feels like you've grown a bit more in just two days!"

(End of this chapter)