Volume 1 Chapter 3 (1/2)
(”What's going on?”)
While getting ready to carve, Zeeg stopped his hand upon hearing the shout and instead reached for his Buster Blade's grip
He has heard rumors that there are hunters who steal materials from monsters hunted by other hunters- Could this be one of them?
The person that entered the cave, however, didn't seem to be a thief
Dressed in a white hooded robe, it gave the impression of a priest An unknown symbol was embroidered on the robe's chest
It's a sword inside a red circle, with a diagonal line crossing through it Zeeg couldn't quite
Next to Zeeg, Ele hostility towards the approaching person
This side of her wasn't seen even while fighting the Rathalos
Fradio's bowgun has already been drawn, thestance
Gannon, too, is readily on guard Even though his lance wasn't drawn, he held his shi+eld tightly, ready to ju were to happen
(”Is that person dangerous?”)
Zeeg didn't feel any hostility frorip just to be safe
The robed person approached, stopping at a short distance in front of the party, and removed her hood
The girl has blonde hair, slightly lighter in tone colossy, like water reflecting the sunlight
Judging frouessed that she's a little older than him
Befitting her elegant voice, her face was pretty, and her features without flaw
Her skin as white as the clouds, and her blue eyes as clear as the summer sky
Her firreat determination
”You again?”
El around the cave
”You're not alone, right? Just bring the others out, will you?”
With that said, a group of 30 people entered the cave and gathered behind the girl
They differ in physique, age, and gender, but all of theirl, with hoods obscuring their faces
Zeeg gripped his sword's handle tightly- they're hiding so behind their backs
Hunters are strictly forbidden fro their weapons at other people, but the case of self-defense is an exception
Even if they're not trained to fight against huth alone allows thehts of the kingdom
”Opposing the hunt!”
One person spoke up, raising up the previously hidden object
Acting in reflex, Zeeg almost rushed ahead to attack, but fortunately was able to stop himself in time
That is because what that person raised wasn't a weapon
It looked like so a wooden board to a pole
A e was painted on it:
[STOP KILLING WILD MONSTERS!!]
Everyone else except the girl in front followed suit
Each of thens- most ooden like the first one, and a feere cloth banners
[HUNTERS ARE DESTROYING NATURE!]
[STOP THESE BARBARIC ACTS!]
[DEMONS!]
[HUNTERS ARE DEVILS!]
[HUNTERS LIVE IN A PRIMITIVE CULTURE!]
Every sign and banner were raised in unison, each containing es of protest directed at hunters
The people began shouting theirthe silent cave as loud as a market
With all that noise, Zeeg felt the urge to cover his ears
(”Whwhat's up with these people?”)
Having only ever beenhis quests, this is the first ti their job
The et louder If this keeps up, Zeeg fears that those people would grab randos to throw at them
The cave's floor was littered with s
Even if the rocks are not capable of inflicting heavy injuries, one could get soht spots
And even if there are no wounds, that doesn't mean it's not painful
(”Daood mood, too!”)
More than anything, Zeeg was mad at their interruption in his moment of triumph
Even if all he did was just set a barrel, it counts as a contribution to the Rathalos hunt!
With all those people barging in, it totally ruined his moment
And more importantly-
”Hey! What's that supposed to mean!?”
With his right hand still gripping his sword's handle, Zeeg pointed at one of the signs
”We live in a primitive culture!? Don'tour weapons mindlessly!? If we don't constantly iies, on't be able to win against the wyverns!”
There was a brief moment of silence, and then-
”That's exactly why you people are primitive!”
”Don't say that thinking up ways to kill wyverns is good use of your knowledge!”
”You're inhuent beasts!?”
”They have families too, you know!”
”Demons!”
”Barbarians!”
”You people are the real monsters!”
Those people shouted in rage, causing Zeeg to take a few steps back in reflex
An incredible amount of pressure can be felt from beneath their hoods
Then, the girl in front, who has been keeping silent the whole time, raised her hand up, and the mob instantly calmed down
She glanced at Zeeg, s back to Elmeria
”It's been a while, El to see you”
”But I don't want to”
Elhed softly
”Please don't say that- Ah, is the boy your new member?”
”Me care of him for a while”
”Is that so? But he is a hunter, am I correct?”
Elmeria did not affirm nor deny her words- The fact that she didn't deny itfeel a little proud of himself
The girl nodded once, and assu stance
”So, have you thought about e discussed?”
”About what?”
”About you retiring as a hunter, of course”
The girl said with a straight face, as if it's so trivial
For hunters, however, asking theo die
Zeeg has seen people who said that get punched in the face so hard that their teeth broke
Even children know that it should never be said to a hunter
Zeeg could see El to himself whether or not he'll be able to stop her
With her incredible physical strength and Rathalos Vambraces, a punch could easily kill a normal person
However, Elant snort
”You sure you want to say that? I could punch your perfect nose out of shape right here and now, you know?”
”That would be nothing coh If you want to hit ive up until I finally stop you fro wyverns”
”What you do is up to you, but don't expect that kind of success fro as there's a contract”
”And why is that?”
El
”Zeeg, give her an answer You're a hunter too, right?”
”Eh- me?”
Zeeg got the responsibility thrown his way, and the irl turned to him for an answer
”Uuess?”
”That is not acceptable as an answer”
”That's right! That's right!”
The mob raised their voice in support of their leader, flustering Zeeg
Since his childhood, Zeeg was never the kind to think philosophically
He tried to think of another reason, but all the noise is preventing hiht, to the point that he wanted to attack them just to have them shut up
However, he got some unexpected support
”Really? I don't think there's any better answer than that though?”
It was Elmeria
”People may say that it's for money, fame, friendshi+p, or so excuses to hide their embarrassment, or haven't becoe the e live Retiring when you've had enough is one thing, but we definitely won't stop just because you asked us to”
”Even if thatover other lives? Of the monsters that you mercilessly killed?”
”Of course, all living things in this world always put their own lives above all else You eathere in front of us if you didn't Ad theant”
”You stand by your words, even if it o extinct?”
Elain
”Hunters don't do that, you know? Just think about it Our lives depend on the existence monsters If there are no monsters, hunters will also cease to exist Because of that, requests are thoroughly reviewed by each guild so that the hunt wouldn't disrupt the ecosystem”
”Lies! Didn't third princess recently request the hunters to kidnap an infant Rathalos!?”
”Isn't that because the Rathalos's nuions and disrupting the ecosystem there?”
”Then what about the stealing of the wyverns' eggs!?”
A woman shouted out
”Just because they want to eat sos!?”
”Of course we don't”
Elave an honest answer
”If we're considerate about the feelings of the things we hunt, ouldn't be hunters in the first place Now, let s of the rief those creatures must have felt before they end up on your plates? If you do, then how could you continue eating them? Isn't that even crueler than us?”
The woman fell silent, her face red with embarrassment
Seeing that, Elant snort
”You people are just fooling yourselves that your actions protect the wyverns Putting select lives over others We hunters don't bother with that stuff That monster is no exception”
Elmeria turned around and pointed at the Rathalos's lifeless body
”Today, on But in the event that we lost, ould end up as its food And don't even think about calling us cowards for using explosives! Than thing can breathe fire and has poisoned talons In ter compared to it”
”But the ot its powers from the nature!”
A young boy spoke up, his face obscured by his robe's hood
El
”Our armor and weapons are also made fros or claws, but we are blessed with the gift of wisdo what you said s Please consider changing that mindset”
Not able to think of a retort, tears welled up in the boy's eyes
”Let us stop here for today”
Feeling that there is no point in arguing any further, the girl raised her hand to stop her followers At least that's what Zeeg thought
”It is as you said”
The robed girl smiled softly
”We think humans are special And as you said, we have wisdom as natural weapons But weapons have practical uses outside of battles Of course, the same could be said for the Rathalos's poisoned talons In other words, our wisdom is not used exclusively for conflict Moreover, I wouldn't say that our existence is natural But as unnatural as we are, I believe that we have the right to live, and that we should not interfere with nature, or at least keep it to a ht path?
”By that, you ? Doriculture?”
The girl nodded firmly
”That e can live with minimum interferences to the nature If we need rains, we can plant thehtful role in this world for us humans?”
”And for that, you want us to change our way of life?”
”I believe that there are other ways for you to live”
”You say that because you're not a hunter No matter how much we discuss this, I don't think ill ever co”
”It is sad that you choose to give up before even trying”
”But that's the truth And what about you? You don't understand how great it is to be a hunter, right?”
The two girls stared calmly at each other for a moment
”That may be true”
The other girl spoke up
”However, I don't think the Hunter's Guild operates thoroughly as you said Judging fro number of fire wyvern hunts as of late, it doesn't seeuild is concerned about their extinction at all”
”? What do you mean?”
”If you're interested, please do soation in your own time The words from my ating this uild may be subject to prosecution Please remember that the existence of the Hunter's Guild is not officially approved by the kingdouild's eed as well”
”You're worrying too dom will be in trouble as well”
”That may be true”
With that said, the girl walked away, her followers opening a path for her Her steps were fir in a wyvern's nest
”Good grief”
As the tension lifted, Fradio holstered his Tanke, and Gannon also put away his shi+eld
”Hey Who are those people?”
Hearing Zeeg's question, Fradio blinked in confusion
”You don't know them?”
”Nope”
”You really are a country boy, hmm?”
”That doesn't matter!”
Seeing Zeeg like that, Fradio laughed lightly
”Hehehe Forgive anization 'Love Wyvern' Their general belief is that humans should not hunt monsters, and that they want to protect the wyverns frorounds like today, and sometimes in the streets or at the capital”
”What about the person in front? She seemed to be a leader of sorts”
”Narumi Wimberly”
Elmeria answered in Fradio's stead
”She's been the face of that organization since 10 years ago She erous, but she's actually a persistent activist There are ru Aptonoths, in order to prove that hu to hunt Words can only do so ain, it's just a rumor I heard”
”It's strange that the young lady decided to have a lengthy conversation with her this time You drove them away instantly last time, after all”
”I did? Well, that doesn't et back to work?”
El knife and approached the Rathalos
Thrusting the knife between the wyvern's broken shells, she started to carve away like a fish seafood
”Please observe closely”
Fradio whispered to Zeeg
”With her skills, the young lady could turn the Rahalos into a pile of raw materials within minutes”
”Whoa”
As Fradio said, she's great at this It was like she kne to cut out each part just by muscle memory
With Gannon helping her, the process goes twice as quickly
”You're not helping them, Fradio?”
Zeeg turned to ask thenext to him
”I'm a Gypceros specialist, you see If this was a Gypceros, I wouldn't even let anyone touch it, but for a Rathalos, I'll pass”
Fradio said, shaking his head
As for Zeeg, he wanted to help, but understood that he would get in their way
The mob from before also wasted them quite a lot of time
If the materials are not harvested promptly, the wyvern's corpse will start to rot, and the deco smell will attract Velocipreys
The process of carving large ainst time
Moreover, it's a Rathalos All of theirwouldn't want to risk breaking any of them
”By the way, the young lady seems to be interested in you quite a bit”
Fradio snickered while watching the carving process
”What makes you think that?”
”Why do you think the young lady dragged on her conversation with Naru?”
”Who knows?”
”The young lady was trying to teach you the spirit of a hunter, and about our standing in this world But she's too embarrassed to speak about if face-to-face, so she used that conversation to teach you by example instead”
The reason was so far-fetched that Zeeg alhed
”Now, that's impossible”
”You don't believe h the exact same conversation once before, so the only reason that I could think of for her to repeat it was to teach you Well to be honest, I was quite surprised by your performance today Even if the wyvern was stuck in a pitfall trap, I've never seen anyone brave enough to get that close to a Rathalos in their first encounter Most people would be scared to death even from a distance, you see This isn't about skills, but the power of your heart However-”
Reaching this point, Fradio narrowed his eyes
”-Please don't forget that there is a difference between bravery and recklessness Bravery can save your comrades' lives On the other hand, an equal amount of recklessness can end their lives just as well”
”Yeah”
Nodding fir took those words to heart
Then, he turned back to observe the carving
With all of the scales removed from the Rathalos's back, Elmeria carefully cut off the wyvern's muscles until its spine was exposed
Gannon took out a thin bag and placed it on his knee, before nodding to Elmeria once
Eled the knife into the wyvern's spine
(”Wah!”)
As the knife dug into the bone, a fla away the Rathalos's muscles
Not stopping her hand, Elmeria pushed in deeper, then pulled out a section of the spine A flanited at the piece's core
She passed it to Gannon and carried on carving, repeating the same process for the other sections of its spine
After she was done, Gannon swiftly inserted all of the at its bottoets expelled
”What's that?”
”It's a special vacuu Fire Wyvern Marrows You see, theis needed to transport it”
”Hm So that's it”
Elht her breath and wiped the blood off her knife before putting it away
The Rathalos still has scales left on its body, but she gathered what she collected and walked away
”Why're you stopping?”
Hearing Zeeg's question, Elmeria tilted her head in confusion
”Stop what?”
”Isn't there a lot more to harvest?”
”Ah, we've taken enough”
El
”Enough You're letting theo to waste!?”
”Of course not”
El's breastplate
”We have to give back to nature as well! Velocipreys will co the nu hunted The scales can be used by insects to build nests and reproduce And as its flesh and bones deco plants and row With the cycle of nature uninterrupted, a neyvern will eventually make its nest here It's a hunter's common sense, you know”
Zeeg hadn't thought about it up until now
”I never knew that”
Muiven a pat on the shoulder from Fradio
”That can't be helped You never needed to know these things before, after all While hunting alone, you wouldn't possibly be able to carry all of the spoils, so they will be returned to the nature regardless”
”But it's an i to know”
Ele
”For hunters, that is”
She exited the cave, with Gannon following her, until he caught up and assumed the lead position
”We should go too Our quest is complete”
”Right”
As he walked out the cave, Zeeg turned around to look at the Rathalos again, thinking about what Elmeria said
However, he couldn't quite grasp the trueof those words just yet
”By the hat do you think?”
Suddenly, Fradio raised his head and asked a question
Currently, the party is on their return trip
The carriage was filled with Rathalos materials, mainly scales and marrows
Supplies and disassembled tent parts were packed inside wooden boxes
Zeeg and the others spent most of their trip in silence
Thethe parts covered with Gypceros hides with love and care
It has been two days since the Rathalos hunt, and the party has corounds
Everyone is still fully ar
Before the trip, they washed thes' shly cleaned and polished to prevent rust
The city is just a few hours away
However, the fla's heart has not calmed down