In truth, before seeing that SOS Flare, Altaïr had always harbored doubts.
The Estrellian were very cautious; they had never been able to find definite clues to the group's movements, and the location method provided by Sheila was just a chance-based approach for when intelligence was lacking.
The ambush Nymera and the others had encountered during their assault had, more or less, "flushed out" the Estrellian.
Even so, they had only managed to roughly pinpoint a target area, and that area spanned several square kilometers.
Even if they rushed to that area in time, the odds of running right into the Estrellian group were astronomically low.
After all, Estrellian possessed some kind of wide-area reconnaissance ability, otherwise the Yian Kut-Ku couldn't have intercepted them with perfect timing every single time. If the Estrellian group was determined to play hide-and-seek with them, they could be groping blindly in the dark even while sharing the same space.
Everyone understood this clearly, yet no one voiced any doubt. They buried their heads in effort because there was simply no better option; they could only charge ahead on sheer momentum and see if they could genuinely flush the Estrellian group out.
And now, the flare rising into the sky gave him confidence.
That Nymera, though occasionally eccentric in subtle ways, was always extremely reliable in serious matters. Since she had fired a signal flare, she must have made a definite discovery.
Finally, no more blundering around blind!
His excitement surging, Altaïr pushed his footwork another two notches faster. Kagetsu, straining to keep up behind him, noticed the distance between them steadily widening and was so frustrated she wanted to scream.
A Long Sword user decked out in heavy full-body armor runs faster than me, an Insect Glaive user, is there no justice in this?!
The several-kilometer trek passed in a flash. Along the way, two more Yian Kut-Ku dove down, trying to block their path, but this time Altaïr didn't even reach for his blade. Before the two Yian Kut-Ku could even land and steady themselves, he had already vanished from sight, leaving the monsters rooted to the spot in confusion.
"Perfect! Let me get a swig!"
Kagetsu, following close behind, ducked low and slipped right under one of the Yian Kut-Ku, directing her Kinsect to drain essence from the monster's leg along the way.
Without the monster essence her Kinsect gathered to enhance her athletic performance, she truly couldn't keep up with Altaïr, who had downed a Mega Dash Juice and was making the entire trip in Demon Mode.
Feeling a sharp pain in its inner thigh, the Yian Kut-Ku realized it had been bitten and screeched furiously, lunging to snap at the fleeing Insect Glaive user.
Sensing the danger, the Insect Glaive user immediately vaulted upward with her Insect Glaive, evading the pounce from the Yian Kut-Ku behind her.
"Scared me half to death." Kagetsu landed and shifted her stance, flipping her Insect Glaive to launch a cloud of pheromones at the Yian Kut-Ku behind her.
The Kinsect attached to her arm shot out again, striking repeatedly, harassing the pursuing Yian Kut-Ku to distract them.
And without stopping her stride, she kept sprinting. "Can't beat you lot, goodbye!"
Amid the dense, lush foliage and complex terrain of the Jungle, the Yian Kut-Ku simply could not match the Hunters' pace, left only to watch helplessly as those two wind-swift figures flew off into the distance. Wild animals won't waste stamina chasing prey they can't catch. The two Yian Kut-Ku shook their heads and were just about to leave, but at that moment, a dark-colored Star Butterfly crept out from between the lightless shadows of the trees.
It fluttered its wings, dark red like the color of magma, and circled before the two Yian Kut-Ku.
The two Yian Kut-Ku's gazes instantly glazed over. Staring blankly, they followed behind that Star Butterfly, spread their enormous wings, and prepared to rise into the air, chasing after it toward the direction the Hunters had fled.
But just then, a golden shadow shot forward like lightning. Catching the strange Star Butterfly off guard, it rammed straight into its back.
It was the Kinsect named Glint!
With its pincer-shaped mouthparts, it tore an insect wing off the back of the Star Butterfly. Then, without the slightest interest in a prolonged fight, it went whoosh into the forest and vanished from sight.
The Star Butterfly, now missing one of its wings, fell to the ground, struggling helplessly. The two dull-eyed Yian Kut-Ku pounced on it as if gone mad, tearing it to shreds in the blink of an eye and fighting over the pieces as they devoured them.
The Kinsect, carrying the dark red wing in its mouth, darted swiftly through the woods, soon returning to its master's side and landing on Kagetsu's arm.
"Why are you back so late?" Kagetsu muttered, then noticed the wing clamped in her Kinsect's mouth. "Huh? This is..."
On the other side, Altaïr, already several hundred meters ahead of Kagetsu, heard a familiar cry. He looked up instinctively and saw his Cohoot circling high overhead. A smile crept across his face.
He slowed his pace, put his fingers to his mouth, and let out a sharp, clear whistle.
Soon, the sound of rapid footwork approached. Nymera burst from the forest shadows riding her Palamute, screeching to a halt in front of him.
Her hair was a mess, and the corners of her mouth bore traces of dried blood. She seemed to have taken some hits, looking rather battered and disheveled.
The moment she saw Altaïr, she blurted out urgently, "Where are the others?"
Altaïr wasted no words, briefly explaining the current situation.
Just as Nymera was about to speak, Kagetsu's loud shouting rang out from the forest again. "Wait for me! Wait for me! I have a major discovery!"
Altaïr, Sajji, Nymera, even Hibiki, all instinctively turned their eyes in her direction.
Kagetsu sprinted up to them, too out of breath to catch it. "Huh? Senior Nymera, what are you doing here... Never mind, forget that for now. Look at this!"
She brandished the dark red wing in her hand. "Glint got this!"
"A Star Butterfly wing?" Altaïr recognized what it was immediately. "But the color doesn't seem quite right..."
Kagetsu spoke rapidly, "After we escaped the pursuit of those two Yian Kut-Ku, this thing appeared. It was leading the Yian Kut-Ku to keep chasing us, so Glint bit it and got this off its body!"
"That is exactly what I was going to say!" Nymera spoke so urgently that she nearly forgot her usual slow and deliberate verbal tic. "There is a darker-colored type of Star Butterfly active in the forest. They are the ones luring the Yian Kut-Ku into their various actions. Mochi was attacked by them!
"I included a carapace fragment inside the map I sent back. Did any of you see it?"
"Darker color? Are the wings purple..." Altaïr didn't even finish asking before he realized it was a stupid question. The wing was right there, clutched in Kagetsu's hand. It was neither the dazzling orange-red, like a sunset, of the Star Butterfly they had first encountered, nor the unsettling purple of the Subspecies Estrellian they had seen before.
Instead, it was a dark red, somewhat akin to magma, and somewhat reminiscent of fresh blood.
Altaïr quickly sorted through his thoughts.
There were three types of Star Butterflies, with orange, purple, and dark red wings respectively, and the carapace color of the latter two was noticeably darker.
The Professor had once said that the Star Butterfly is a unique creature completely dependent on the Estrellian, growing and changing alongside them.
That meant there were three corresponding types of Estrellians as well.
The orange-winged Star Butterfly corresponded to the gentle, somewhat timid Estrellian hatchlings, and most common Estrellians.
The purple-winged Star Butterfly corresponded to the aggressive, almost crazed, pale-white Estrellian Subspecies.
Then what did this third type of Star Butterfly, with its dark red wings and the ability to control the actions of the Yian Kut-Ku in the forest, correspond to?
That was the true target they were looking for!
Without any unnecessary words, Altaïr urgently asked Nymera, "Your earlier SOS Flare, was it because you discovered an Estrellian herd?"
"Mochi hasn't directly sighted the Estrellian herd yet." Nymera's first sentence disappointed Altaïr, but her next words made him sharp again.
"But those dark-red-winged Star Butterflies are moving back and forth frequently in the Jungle. The location I marked with the flare is where they are all heading.
"We're very close now. Mochi is patrolling high above; we'll find that one soon!"
"Star Butterflies moving frequently in the forest... Using them to control packs of Yian Kut-Ku to attack us relentlessly? I see."
As Altaïr spoke, he looked up at the Cohoot circling high above. "You said earlier that kind of Star Butterfly attacked Mochi. Is it okay for it to circle at that altitude?"
"Don't worry!" Kagetsu looked up at the sky. "Other than butterflies drifting on the wind, no insect can fly that high.
"With her keeping an eye on them from above, those guys can't escape!"
(Translated by yourtl.app)