The Brute Tigrex grew more and more frustrated the farther it went.
Although things like this had happened many times over the past five years, today, it simply couldn't take it anymore.
And so, it made a decision that went against… well, fine.
It decided to run.
It had never seen such a shameless Rathalos like Kael.
His strength clearly wasn't even on the same level, yet just because it couldn't fly, it kept getting bullied like this.
Unacceptable.
Absolutely unacceptable.
So the Brute Tigrex decided—right now, immediately, without delay—to leave.
It was going back to the depths of the Ancient Forest.
Back to its old territory.
After making up its mind, it climbed onto a hill with a clear view, identified the direction of the Ancient Tree, and after five long years, once again embarked on a migration journey.
This time…
It would be a king's return.
—
In the same direction, Kael and Aji were flying steadily through the sky.
Wingdrakes and other flying wyverns would veer away from them from afar, terrified of getting taken out along the way.
Meanwhile, Ved's team had been hiding in the ravine for a long time.
Because the Brute Tigrex had a history of ambushes, even after Ruby went out and confirmed that it was no longer nearby, the team still didn't dare act recklessly and continued waiting for rescue.
Suddenly, a cluster of insects that looked like fireflies, glowing green at their tails, flew into the ravine.
Under the team's wary gazes, they circled around Ved.
"It's here! Ved, are you inside?"
A familiar voice came from outside.
Ved immediately responded.
Soon, a man carrying dual blades climbed in. The insects, as if attracted by him, quickly flew back into the insect cage at his waist.
"Aerut, this is…?"
Ved asked uncertainly, excitement rising in his voice.
"Hehe, just like you see—Scoutflies! It took two years, and we finally succeeded the day before yesterday!"
Aerut proudly patted the cage at his waist.
The scoutflies flew out briefly, then returned when they found no new command.
After arriving in the New World, besides building their base, the Survey Corps' biggest difficulty in external investigations was the lack of effective tracking methods.
Old World tracking techniques simply didn't work well here.
On top of that, being unfamiliar with the terrain, they could only explore bit by bit. If they went too far, they might even get lost in the forest and have to rely on SOS flares to find their way back.
This method was inefficient and extremely resource-consuming.
Many investigations had to be abandoned as soon as the target moved slightly farther away.
Because of this, once the base was stabilized, the Acting Commander began searching for creatures in the New World that could be domesticated for tracking.
After years of effort, they finally found two.
One was the relatively gentle Wingdrakes, though no efficient method of using them had been developed yet.
The other was the scoutflies.
However, their training and breeding had progressed slowly, and it wasn't until two days ago that they were finally fully domesticated and ready to be issued to everyone.
While Ved and Aerut were talking, another person climbed in.
"By the way, how did you end up in such a miserable state? And why are you so far out here?"
Their current location was extremely far from Astera, completely within unexplored territory. Without the SOS flare, Aerut would never have risked coming here.
"Don't even mention it. We were ridiculously unlucky this time."
Ved complained, then briefly explained their encounter with the oversized Great Jagras and the Brute Tigrex.
"The New World really is full of strange things. That Great Jagras and that Brute Tigrex are both worth investigating. We should probably keep an eye on them," Ved concluded.
But Aerut's expression turned strange.
"Actually, besides rescuing you, I had another mission—bringing everyone back. The Commander and the Swordmaster have returned. There's a major discovery, and everyone needs to participate."
"A major discovery? Including the Commander?"
Ved was confused.
Their First Fleet operated very differently.
Because the Commander and the Swordmaster were on a completely different level from everyone else, and the Field Master and the Wyverian hunter had extensive wilderness experience, the four of them usually worked independently, conducting their own investigations.
The rest formed teams under the Acting Commander, following the Guild's usual mission system.
And since the First Fleet had so few members, everyone was always needed somewhere.
There had never been a mission requiring everyone at once.
"Yes. Apparently, the Swordmaster and the Wyverian discovered a massive creature in the Wildspire Waste that looked like it was forged from pure gold—possibly an unknown Elder Dragon. They've only confirmed its activity area so far."
"A golden… Elder Dragon?"
Ved's eyes widened.
The next moment, he struggled to get up.
"Let's go. Now. I need to get back to Astera immediately and join this mission!"
He was overflowing with excitement.
If slaying a rampaging Rathian had already earned him a lifetime of bragging rights and made him a legend back home, then participating in an Elder Dragon investigation would secure his name in history books.
And it was an Elder Dragon!
Every hunter dreamed of encountering one.
Even throwing a single flash pod at it from afar would be enough to satisfy him!
Aerut wasn't surprised at all.
Ved wasn't the first—almost everyone who heard the news reacted like this.
"Alright, alright. Let's move."
Rolling his eyes, Aerut helped Ved up, and they walked out of the ravine.
Outside, three unfamiliar Palicoes were already waiting with a cart.
They belonged to a Gajalaka-related Detrel tribe the Survey Corps had encountered by chance.
After friendly negotiations, they formed a partnership.
Whenever hunters fired SOS signals, the Detrels could choose whether to respond.
Each rescue only required them to transport the injured to a nearby camp, and in return, they received one-third of the mission reward.
For rescues outside missions, fees were negotiated privately.
Since hunter rewards were usually generous, one rescue could provide a week's worth of supplies for the tribe.
As a result, these Palicoes rarely refused rescue requests.
"Thanks, Detrels."
The cute Palicoes responded cheerfully.
After confirming that Ved was on board, they immediately pushed the cart toward Astera.
"Eh? What's this?"
On the way, Nori was briefly blinded by a reflection from a stone.
He looked down at the bluish-purple rock, thought for a moment, and picked it up.
"Hiss… It's so cold."
It felt icy to the touch, faintly emitting chill.
"Nori, hurry up!"
"I'm coming!"
Suppressing his curiosity, Nori stuffed the stone into his backpack and jogged after the group.
—
Sorry, everyone. The author had a bad allergic reaction to capsaicin and has been in pain all day. I could only write this chapter using one hand, and really couldn't keep going.
So I owe you one chapter today—I'll make it up tomorrow for sure!
Also, shamelessly asking for votes and continued support. Thank you!