Monster Hunter: I can hear the monsters' thoughts

Chapter 480: Lost in vain
"Hula-"

The crimson figure of the sky swooped down rapidly, and just before it was about to hit the ground, it suddenly spread its wings, which quickly slowed its body down, and then landed steadily in the forest clearing.

"Osora?"

Looking at the crimson dragon in front of him, which was over sixteen meters long and whose head was almost the same size as his own, Lin Lin felt a mix of joy and bewilderment.

Huh? Is this still my Da Kong? It's only been a short time since I last saw him, how come he's grown so much?
This physique is basically comparable to that of a fully grown adult at the Little Gold level, right?!
Also, the texture of these scales looks different from when we parted ways. They look much smoother, feel cool to the touch, and have a metallic feel.

Lin Lin reached out and touched Da Kong's scales. Before he could recover from his daze, Da Kong excitedly nuzzled his head against Lin Lin and rubbed against him affectionately.

"Hooooo——"

However, given the size of the Sky now, even though it didn't exert much force, the grazing still nearly caused Lin Lin to lose his balance.

Daikong's actions interrupted Lin Lin's confusion. He spread his arms as wide as possible, lay down on Daikong's head, and gently rubbed his face against the scales on Daikong's head.
"Hehe, Oozora, I miss you so much too..."

The man and the dragon, having been separated for so long, should have been enjoying a tender reunion, but an untimely explosion interrupted their moment.

Lin Lin straightened up, while Da Kong used his intact right eye to look in the direction from which the explosion came.

Being stared at by the sky, Boom became even more nervous. As a result, the slime on its body changed from a relatively safe, bright green to a bright yellow that symbolized warning.

"Don't be afraid, Bao Bao! This is your big brother Da Kong. He won't hurt you!"

Sofia quickly and gently patted Bao Bao's back, constantly soothing it. Protected by the mycological beads, the slime mold wouldn't explode.

Lin Lin gently nudged Da Kong's head, signaling it to step back a little so as not to scare the children, and then squatted down in front of Bao Bao himself.

"Don't be nervous. Didn't you and Jump Jump get along really well before? Big Sky is also my partner, and it was Jump Jump who helped raise it!"

Little Brachydios is practically the darling of the entire guild. It's become quite familiar with everyone in the guild, including Jumpy, who often tolerates this mischievous little guy climbing all over him. It's only when slime accidentally explodes on him that Jumpy uses its wing claws to grab the little guy off.

It was precisely because of this that the little dragon gradually developed a fearless and reckless nature. Lin Lin originally thought that this guy might become lawless in the future, but now it seems that at least the instinct in his genes is still there. When he sees a monster that is much larger than himself, he still knows to be afraid.

With Sophia and Lin Linyezi's combined reassurance, and the fact that Da Kong was indeed just quietly watching it without making any further moves, its emotions gradually calmed down. After staring at Da Kong for two seconds, it clearly became bolder again and began to tentatively approach Da Kong.

Da Kong turned his gaze to Lin Lin, let out a soft growl, and his eyes clearly showed a hint of resentment.

My mom won't let me come over lately. Is it because she's got a new baby and doesn't love it anymore?

Lin Lin: ...

What is this child thinking about all day long? This is your Aunt Sofia's child, what does he have to do with me?
Lin Lin rolled his eyes, walked up to Da Kong, and gently tapped the scales on Da Kong's forehead with his finger:
"Alright, stop overthinking. You've come a long way; shouldn't you rest for a while?"

Lin Lin was about to remind Da Kong not to hunt in the dense forest, lest he run into a Steel Dragon, when Da Kong roared with great spirit, indicating that he was in excellent condition and ready to set off immediately!
Lin Lin: Huh?

Although I know that fire dragons are good at flying, isn't your skill a bit too much, Great Sky? You flew almost halfway across the continent, and you didn't even need to rest?
Unconvinced, Lin Lin walked around Da Kong, occasionally reaching out to knead and press its muscles. He found that Da Kong was indeed in excellent condition, clearly having received ample nutrition during its stay in Jieyun, and showing no signs of fatigue.

Da Kong had been following Lin Lin's steps out of the corner of its eye. When Lin Lin reached its tail, Da Kong suddenly twisted its body as if playing a prank, and the long tail swung towards Lin Lin with a "whoosh".

Lin Lin instinctively bent down and squatted, but he soon realized that he had worried too much. Da Kong had obviously raised his tail high on purpose. Even if he didn't squat down, the tail would just swing over his head.

Da Kong turned 180 degrees and brought his head close to Lin Lin's side again, making a "whooshing" sound as he breathed, his eyes full of laughter, like a child who had successfully played a prank.

Lin Lin: ...

She still has the energy to play pranks on me; it seems she really isn't tired at all.

"Hooooo——"

Osora let out a soft roar.

During the battle at Lingfeng, it unleashed a flight capability beyond its limits, which seemed to trigger the ancient genes hidden within Dakong's body, stimulating its hidden potential.

Since then, its scales and shells, which were initially no different from those of an ordinary fire dragon, have gradually acquired a metallic sheen, and its flight ability and muscle endurance have also improved significantly compared to before the battle at Lingfeng.

That is why it was able to travel such a long distance to reach Jiangbo Village and still appear so relaxed and carefree.

"I see."

Lin Lin nodded solemnly, but in reality, he didn't understand the relationship between the two at all. He could only think that the battle on Lingfeng had brought great benefits to Da Kong.

"Alright, since you don't need to rest, let's set off!"

"Go back to Jie Yun first!"

"Roar!"

The growth of Da Kong's body completely exceeded Lin Lin's expectations. Therefore, his initial idea of ​​letting the two cats ride on Da Kong's paws was no longer necessary, as Da Kong's broad and long back could easily carry all of them.

With a sudden flap of its broad wings, the sky whipped up gusts of wind, propelling its body straight into the clouds. It left the dense forest and flew towards the shimmering sea, reflecting the golden light of the sun.

When the village chief of Jiangbo Village received the news from the village guards and stood on the lookout tower to observe the situation, he happened to see the flying dragon gradually disappearing into the distance.

After carefully observing through binoculars and confirming that there were indeed several figures on the dragon's back, the village chief of Jiangbo Village slowly smiled, waved gently in the direction they had gone, and murmured softly:

"Good luck, hunters."

Half a day after Da Kong took Lin Lin and the others away.

An airship bearing the guild emblem sailed in from the sea, circled Jiangbo Village once, and then slowly landed in the central square of the village. However, because a large whale-shaped airship was already docked in the very center of the square, the guild airship had to carefully adjust its direction and position during landing, requiring considerable effort from the pilot to complete the descent.

During this time, the village chief with the big nose received the news and rushed to the small square.

Watching the airship slowly descend, the big-nosed village chief couldn't help but rub the bridge of his nose:

"Well, it seems that in addition to the seaport, an airport will also need to be developed near the village in the future."

Of course, even if we were to build an airport, we would first have to eliminate the threat of the steel dragon. Otherwise, if the airport were to be built today and the airships that landed tomorrow were torn apart by a sudden storm, that would be a very bad situation.

Finally, the airship landed, and a female hunter dressed in a bulky General Crab suit was the first to jump off.

The big-nosed village chief immediately stepped forward to make contact:
"This must be the hunter the guild sent to provide support, right?"

But the hunter shook her head:
"No, I only accepted the commission to escort the airship. You'll have to ask that big-coat cat for details; it was sent by the guild."

She's not a high-ranking hunter, and normally, guilds wouldn't force low-ranking hunters to take on missions.

"Phew—this journey has been quite thrilling yet safe. I need to have a drink to calm my nerves. By the way, you must be the village chief of Jiangbo Village, right? May I ask how to get to the tavern?"

A question mark slowly appeared on the forehead of the village chief of Jiangbo Village.

He didn't know what expression to make, so he could only force a smile and point the girl in a direction.

"Thanks!"

Despite his doubts, the village chief of Jiangbo Village nodded, waved to the girl, and then turned his attention back to the people who had disembarked from the guild airship.

To be precise, it should be humans and Ailu.

The village chief of Jiangbo Village immediately noticed an Ailu in the center of the group. It was wearing a coat that almost made its entire body into a cylinder. Upon closer inspection, it was discovered that this Ailu did not seem to have a beard; its beard was simply a feature of the coat's collar.

With such a unique aura, there's no doubt that this is the "Coat Cat" that the carefree young girl just mentioned.

(As shown in the picture, it is a very rare individual among the Ailu race that does not add "meow" to the end of its speech - but in fact, it has been trying to suppress this instinct in order to maintain the dignity of the guild leader. Sometimes it still accidentally lets it slip. It appears in P2G Pokai Village.)
"You must be the village chief of Jiangbo Village?"

The big-coated cat had already seen the information about the village chief of Jiangbo Village in the guild's archives, so it naturally had a deep impression of the big-nosed dragonman in the portrait. At this moment, it spotted the village chief among the onlookers and quickly walked over.

The big-nosed village chief composed himself and went forward to greet them:
"Yes, it's me. Are you the envoy sent by the guild?"

His gaze swept left and right behind the cat in the coat, but he didn't see a second person dressed as a hunter. He basically knew what was going on, and his eyes showed a hint of disappointment.

It seems the guild really hasn't sent any more support...

"Yes, I have come as a messenger to deliver the guild's instructions."

"Please tell me."

"The guild is fully aware of the situation reported by Jiangbo Village. However, the entire continent is currently unstable, and even the guild has no resources available to provide support."

"The guild has approved the battle plan submitted by Seven-Star Hunter's Flute Envoy Rikers, allowing the operation to repel the Kushala Daora. However, at the same time, Jiangbo Village needs to prepare for the evacuation of the entire village. If the hunters' operation fails, they need to immediately abandon the existing village and relocate to ensure the safety of the personnel."

This instruction was not a secret order, so the cat in the coat did not try to muffle the sound, and the curious villagers who gathered around could hear it clearly.

When the villagers learned that they needed to prepare for the evacuation of the entire village, they were immediately in an uproar.

Jiangbo Village is a village they painstakingly built from scratch, and they have poured a lot of emotion into it. To ask them to give it up now would be to ask them to give up the most important part of their lives, and such a thing cannot be ended so easily.

"No, I'd rather die than die with the village!"

"Hunters, you must win! I don't want to lose my home and my land, please!"

"I believe in them! They're monster hunters! They'll definitely win! I'm not going anywhere; I'll stay in the village and wait for the hunters to return victorious!"

The place was filled with noise, and even the village chief of Jiangbo Village, with his prestige, had to raise his hand several times to quiet the crowd down.

"Everyone! Everyone! Quiet down and listen to me!"

“This village was built by me and everyone else together. I know that everyone, like me, has poured a lot of effort into it and it’s normal that you don’t want to leave. I feel the same way.”

"The hunters will bravely go to fight the Steel Dragon to protect the village, and we, the ones being protected, although we can't provide them with any combat assistance, can at least not hold them back, so that they can fight without any worries!"

"Yes, we all believe in the brave and fearless hunters. They successfully repelled the Steel Dragon, which is naturally a cause for celebration. But what if something unexpected happens?"

"If the Steel Dragon really comes towards the village and everyone is not prepared to evacuate, the Steel Dragon's storm will only become an obstacle that ties the hunters' hands and feet, preventing them from fully engaging in the battle!"

"Even if the village is destroyed, it doesn't matter. As long as the people are still alive, we can rebuild the village sooner or later. But if the people are gone, then we will really have nothing left!"

"If you save the land but lose the people, you will lose both the land and the people; if you save the people but lose the land, you will save both the land and the people!"

The village chief's words plunged the villagers into a long silence. Finally, in the suffocating atmosphere, scattered voices began to emerge saying, "The village chief is right," and "That makes sense." Then, these voices gradually gathered and grew louder, like a gust of wind that swept through every corner of Jiangbo Village.

The cat in the coat watched this scene quietly, feeling a sense of relief, and couldn't help but admire the big-nosed village chief.

"correct."

It seemed as if it had remembered something:
"There's one more thing, Village Chief. Where are the two five-star hunters of the Phantom Troupe, Lin Lin and Ye Zi, now?"

(End of this chapter)