POV Narrator
When the Rathalos' body hit the ground, it bounced from the force of the impact—lifting a few centimeters before crashing down again.
Chryssia tried to seize the moment to finish it off, but a desperate fire shot forced her to retreat.
The King of the Skies had not been knocked out despite the blow. Even so, it struggled to stand.
It growled with a mix of rage and pain. The blow hadn't just caused a minor fracture in its skull—it had also ripped out several teeth.
Chryssia lowered her stance, arms extended forward, silent, just watching.
Small sparks danced across her skin thanks to [Thunder Core], while her muscles were visibly enlarged from [Demonic Blood].
The vents along the sides of her crest opened, though no sound came out yet.
The Rathalos' chest glowed, smoke escaping its snout, but no flames followed.
The two remained locked in a tense stare.
Until the Rathalos lost its patience and began bombarding Chryssia with fireballs.
She rolled to avoid the first shots, then ran in an arc to evade the rest.
The Rathalos had to stop its barrage once Chryssia left its range. It turned its entire body, and just as it repositioned—
A sound like a war horn burst from Chryssia's crest.
It was [Intimidation Song], which froze the Rathalos in place for a brief instant.
Taking advantage of the opening, Chryssia leapt with force and rammed the Rathalos' head with a shoulder strike.
The King of the Skies felt the fracture in its skull expand.
In a desperate move, it used the elevated position of its head to unleash a fire blast downward, throwing up smoke and distracting Chryssia.
Using that moment, it whipped its body around in a sharp 180-degree turn, striking her hard with its tail.
Chryssia staggered back a few meters, but she wasn't seriously harmed.
The smoke from the flame kept her from seeing, but she heard the beat of wings—Rathalos was taking flight.
She raised her arms to shield her face and braced herself, waiting to dodge either a claw attack or another fireball.
But the attack never came. When the wind from the Rathalos' wings dispersed the smoke, Chryssia saw it flying away—its back turned, moving with clear difficulty.
"Is it… running away?" Chryssia muttered, confused. In her mind, a monster titled the King of the Skies shouldn't flee—it should fight to the bitter end, like the Diablos.
What Chryssia didn't consider was that, at the end of the day, the Rathalos was an animal. And like any animal, it knew survival was the priority.
The only reason few of its prey ever escaped was because Chryssia didn't give them the chance—or because they knew escape was impossible.
As for the Diablos, it had been far too enraged from losing its horn to ever think about running away.
Still, Chryssia didn't remain frozen for long. She quickly thought of a solution.
The wounded Rathalos was having trouble gaining altitude or flying fast. It was skimming near the treetops and hadn't gotten far.
Taking advantage, Chryssia climbed a tree and started swinging between branches until she reached the Rathalos' level.
Before it noticed her, she leapt and landed on its tail.
The monster realized instantly that something had latched onto it—a quick glance confirmed it.
Chryssia held onto the tail with force and immediately began crawling up its body.
The Rathalos, partly trying to shake her off and partly struggling with the extra weight, began flying erratically.
In response, Chryssia only dug her claws deeper into the monster's hide.
When she reached the base of its tail, the Rathalos recognized that its tactic wasn't working.
So it began flying beneath low tree branches.
Chryssia had to shield herself from the branches to avoid being knocked off, keeping her from advancing further. Still, she was close enough.
Waiting for the right moment between wingbeats, Chryssia slashed at the membrane of its wing.
The Rathalos let out a scream of agony as it began to fall.
It tried to lift itself again, but with one wing useless and Chryssia's weight dragging it down, it could only drop like a stone.
With a heavy thud, the King of the Skies tasted the ground once more.
Chryssia got up with some clumsiness—she had fallen on top of the Rathalos, so it had cushioned her landing, though the impact threw her off its body.
Even so, she was in far better condition than the monster, which lay on the ground groaning in pain, unable to move.
Slowly, Chryssia approached, keeping her guard high in case of a last attack.
But all she received was a silent stare from the King of the Skies, completely drained.
Seeing no further movement, she created a spear about two meters long, positioned herself at the right angle—
And with a swift, precise thrust, pierced through the Rathalos' eye and into its brain.
The King of the Skies was dead.
Chryssia collapsed into a sitting position. She didn't want to waste time—the fight had been loud, and she still needed to eat the body.
But it was hard not to feel exhausted after a battle like that.
After a minute, she got back on her feet. There was still a lot to eat.