As a relatively underdeveloped coastal city, Yoru had no outstanding features, no famous tourist attractions, and couldn't even develop a decent beach resort.
Even in summer, only a handful of tourists ever visited.
However, the video posted on a well-known website attracted nearly ten thousand outsiders within just one week.
The reason was the shadow that had enveloped the right half of Yoru City and a large area of the surrounding sea a week ago.
Someone had captured what could be considered genuine first-hand footage, showing part of the shadow's appearance.
The filming location was a watchtower on a coastal cliff. It had been a cloudy day, and the video's pixel quality was somewhat poor, but it captured the crucial part.
The true nature of the shadow seemed to be a giant avian creature.
One could only use the uncertain term 'seemed' because the video only captured a part of a wing visible through the clouds, which led to the theory that the shadow might be a bird.
If that shadow truly was a bird, then based on the area it covered, it would be the largest bird known in the Six Continents.
In terms of sheer volume, it would surpass the world's second-largest bird by more than eighteen streets.
Among the nearly ten thousand people who flooded into Yoru City, some were Hunters, mostly Beast Hunters. They were the ones who had rushed to Yoru City immediately after seeing the video.
According to multiple investigations in the surrounding areas, the shadow had disappeared over the sea outside Yoru City.
No one knew where it went or how something of such unprecedented size could vanish without a trace.
After a week of buzz, the unknown bird remained a mystery.
No matter what others were pursuing, the person who shot the video had made a fortune from this first-hand material.
They also couldn't avoid numerous visits from people pressing for details about the circumstances when the video was filmed that day.
As the hype grew larger, Yoru City also became livelier. The local government, sensing the trend, made some temporary adjustments.
For example, the only narrow snack street now had several brand-new trash cans, and the usually ubiquitous litter became scarce.
As more and more people came to uncover the truth, the previous local news interview was dug up. Consequently, the old man with the telescope suddenly became a hot commodity.
Because the content of the video correlated with what the old man had said, interested people were willing to believe his words, including the statement about people standing on the bird's head.
However, those who wanted to get more information from the old man didn't know he was purely boasting and he never expected his tall tale to actually take flight.
In the old man's view, whether it was mindless cursing or casual lying, Yoru City was a place where one could talk nonsense without consequences.
But he never imagined his wild fabrication would attract public attention.
He didn't panic or slip up. Instead, using his thick-skinned demeanor, he further embellished the words he'd spoken in front of the camera a week ago, thus earning himself one drinking fund after another.
Back then, he thought to himself that as long as his tongue was slick, he could make even falsehoods sound flowery, even scoring money for booze. It felt fantastic, regardless of whether it was all a farce.
Whether people were willing to believe that there were people standing on that giant bird varied. Even with polarized views, it couldn't stop more interested people from coming.
Along the coastline of Yoru City, rows of tents were pitched at wide intervals.
As the sun set in the west and night fell, lights lit up inside the tents. Viewed from above, they looked like sky lanterns rooted in the earth.
Dafifi was a seasoned Beast Hunter. As a Hunter who had once served as an examiner for the Hunter Exam, he was an association member well-regarded by Netero. While not top-tier, his strength placed him firmly in the first rank.
The discovery of each new Magical Beast was an achievement a Beast Hunter could heavily mark on their resume. As one of them, Dafifi naturally wouldn't be absent and had come to Yoru City early.
He had set up a pot of stew outside his tent. The fire burned fiercely, the thick soup inside the pot boiling continuously. The flames unrestrainedly lapped at his body, dispelling the chill of the night.
Ding ring ring.
His phone rang.
Dafifi perked up, immediately put down the ladle, quickly took out his phone, and answered, "So? Did you find anything?"
"No."
From the other end of the phone came a steady, vigorous male voice.
Hearing this, Dafifi's expression fell. He sighed, "Even you couldn't find a trace? Then this lead seems to be false."
There was a moment of silence on the other end before the voice spoke again, "A behemoth that can fly that high being an amphibious sea-and-air creature... only the 'current' you would believe that."
The male voice deliberately emphasized the word 'current', reminding Dafifi that his current mindset wasn't right.
In his pursuit of the truth, he was even willing to believe ridiculous clues that defied common sense.
Dafifi understood but wasn't angry. Instead, a sliver of hope emerged. Maybe his friend, due to his subjective views, hadn't investigated with full effort? If so, wouldn't there still be room for further investigation?
"Morel, did you investigate seriously?" Clinging to a thread of hope, he posed his final question.
"What do you think?" Morel didn't answer directly but countered with a question.
Dafifi was slightly taken aback, 'Considering Morel's personality, once he agreed to a request, regardless of how reliable it was, he would definitely help with all his effort.'
Thinking of this, a look of disappointment finally dawned on his face. He muttered to himself, "It doesn't make sense. Where did it go then?"
"Perhaps that unknown Magical Beast has always been above the cloud layer, which is why no one discovered its subsequent movements." Morel said.
"Hmm?" Dafifi seemed to think of something, "If that's the case, why did it lower its altitude over Yoru City?"
"How should I know?" Morel said helplessly, "Anyway, I did my best. If you have any more questions related to the ocean, you can come to me again. I'm hanging up now."
As soon as he finished speaking, the call ended.
Dafifi sighed softly and put away his phone.
Morel was a Single-Star Sea Hunter and also his friend. Because Dafifi had gotten a lead from an ocean fishing vessel, he had asked Morel to help investigate it.
That lead might be somewhat related to the giant bird over Yoru City, though it sounded utterly incredible.
Would a giant bird of enormous volume dive into the sea and stay submerged for a long time without surfacing?
If it could do that, it must be a unique amphibious sea-and-air creature never before discovered by humans.
Dafifi fell into deep thought, constantly organizing the intelligence he had collected over this period.
For a moment, he forgot about the stew pot sitting over the raging fire.
"This stew is ruined. What a pity."
A clear, bright male voice suddenly sounded beside him.
Dafifi's heart jolted in shock, his muscles tensing instantly in that moment.
'Someone had sneaked up beside me without me knowing...!'