The defense of Loc Lac ended in a Pyrrhic victory for humanity.
The joy of victory was fleeting. What followed was overwhelming grief.
The upscale residential district, which had become a makeshift battlefield, was nearly leveled. Many streets and buildings across the city were destroyed beneath a pall of dragon flame, and the economic losses were incalculable. But these were secondary concerns. What truly made the mustachioed Guild Master's heart stop was the Hunters' casualty list.
Among the High Rank Hunters and the elite 4★ and 5★ Hunters who had fought Guanzorumu on the front lines, more than half had been killed or wounded.
The 1★, 2★, and 3★ Hunters who had been culling the invading Egyurasu swarms throughout the city also suffered grievous losses, as did the members of the Loc Lac Rangers and the Gunner Squad. The number burned to death by dragon flame or carried into the sky and dropped was beyond counting.
Between those killed and those forced to retire by critical injuries, Loc Lac lost a third of its Hunters in a single battle.
It would likely take a full generation, perhaps ten years, for the city to recover completely.
—--
Late that night, after the battle had ended, a high-speed Airship bearing the Hunter's Guild crest landed in Loc Lac.
Three Hunters, one man and two women, disembarked.
From the elevated Airship dock, they gazed out over a grieving city steeped in the acrid stench of char and gunpowder, and their expressions grew somber.
"It seems we're a little too late," the powerfully built male Hunter said with a sigh.
The petite Wyverian woman frowned. "His Immenseness should have sent people directly from Dundorma. Sending an urgent summons to Minegarde and then having us transfer here cost us at least two extra days."
The male Hunter shook his head. "Loc Lac already had plenty of High Rank Hunters. From what the archived records say, Guanzorumu is no ordinary Elder Dragon, either. There was no point in sending only a handful of people from Dundorma. That's why His Immenseness sent both of us and summoned you as well. It was the safest choice. The attack simply came sooner than anyone expected."
The group fell silent for a moment. Then the other woman, who was taller, spoke. "Let's go. First, we need to find the Guild Master and learn what happened."
As they walked along streets scarred by battle, the three lost any desire for further conversation and continued toward the Guild Hall in silence.
Inside the tavern-like Guild Hall, all was strangely quiet. On the night after a desperate, deadly battle, even the most carefree Hunters were in no mood for drinking or merrymaking.
The Guild receptionist took the identification documents they handed her. As soon as she got a clear look at the covers of their Hunter's Notes, she rubbed her eyes, then stared up at them in shock, mouth agape and momentarily speechless.
Fortunately, Lady Aisha, the Guild supervisor, arrived just in time. Her face drawn with exhaustion, she looked at the three figures before the Quest Counter and forced a strained, conflicted smile. "To think they would send the three of you..."
"We're old friends. There's no need to stand on ceremony." The tall female Hunter sighed softly, and an apologetic look crossed her face. "We're sorry. It seems we arrived far too late."
"And the Guild Master? We need to speak with him first and have him bring us up to speed."
"The Guild Master is at the medical clinic, visiting the badly wounded Hunters. I'll send someone to fetch him."
"We should go to him instead," the male Hunter said.
"Very well. I'll lead the way." Lady Aisha stepped out from behind the Quest Counter and guided them out of the eerily silent Guild Hall, striding briskly toward the medical clinic.
The Guild Hall, normally bustling with noise, was quieter than it had ever been. The medical clinic, a place meant for peaceful rest, had become the noisiest place in the entire city.
The clinic had long since run out of beds, so the nearby houses had been requisitioned. Doctors and Felyne assistants darted among the wounded, completely overwhelmed.
The three Hunters stopped in their tracks. Even with all their experience, they had rarely seen so many critically wounded people at once.
Burns, fractures, missing limbs. A single glance revealed at least thirty or forty casualties.
"This..." The petite Wyverian Hunter opened her mouth to speak, but no words came.
Just then, they spotted the mustachioed Guild Master.
The old man's face was haggard, and his usually well-groomed whiskers were now a tangled mess. Clearly, he had not tended to them in days.
When he saw the three figures standing at the clinic entrance, the old man froze for a long moment.
The three Hunters exchanged glances. They were old acquaintances of his, but they had never seen such a tangle of emotions on his ever-smiling face.
Shock, regret, frustration... and was that guilt?
The male Hunter was about to tell the old man, "We came too late," when the Guild Master bowed deeply to them first. "I'm so... sorry."
The man stared in confusion and instinctively reached out to stop the old man from bowing. Before he could ask what was wrong, he heard the Guild Master say, "Isis... is also in Loc Lac. She took part in the operation to repel Guanzorumu."
The male Hunter's face contorted with shock.
The tall female Hunter turned deathly pale. Unable to contain herself, she seized the old man's shoulders, her voice trembling. "Isis... how is she? Is she...?"
The old man knew that any hesitation would only make things worse, so he quickly said, "Her injuries are severe, but her life isn't in danger. She just hasn't regained consciousness. She's resting inside."
Without another thought, the tall female Hunter rushed into the medical clinic.
The petite Wyverian Hunter's expression turned cold and grim. "A repelling operation? Then it escaped. Do you know where it went?"
The mustachioed Guild Master was taken aback for a moment, then answered, "We don't know exactly, but it most likely fled north.
The Hunters who took part in the operation said it was badly wounded and bleeding heavily. It couldn't have gone far."
"That's all I need." The Wyverian Hunter's eyes glinted. She launched a Wirebug, let its Ironsilk pull her onto the rooftops, and vanished into the night in a few swift leaps.
Only the male Hunter remained before the Guild Master.
He was clearly more composed than his wife. Once he heard the old man say "not life-threatening," he calmed considerably.
He knew exactly how tough his daughter was.
"Guild Master, please tell me everything that happened."
"Very well."
"..."
"..."
After hearing the full account, the male Hunter pressed his fingers to his temple. "So, by sheer coincidence, all of Loc Lac's High Rank Hunters had left the city for one reason or another, leaving it with no High Rank defenders.
When you sent the dissection report to Dundorma, you hadn't yet confirmed that an Elder Dragon was involved; you only suspected it. On top of that, because the letter came from the Royal Paleontology Scriveners, you didn't inform headquarters that Loc Lac was short on High Rank Hunters. By the time Dundorma replied, it was already too late to request reinforcements?"
"That's correct. If I'd asked headquarters for help immediately–"
"That's not how it works." The male Hunter cut off the old man's regret, his tone resigned.
In his view, the mustachioed Guild Master had not been at fault.
If they requested reinforcements from headquarters every time something potentially related to an Elder Dragon surfaced, Dundorma would still be overwhelmed even with twice as many High Rank Hunters at its disposal.
The Hunter's Guild headquarters had also responded at the earliest possible opportunity.
Issuing urgent orders for all three of them to rush over as reinforcements was the strongest response His Immenseness could have made. But who could have guessed that the Elder Dragon would attack in less than a week?
Everyone knew that response times for a "State of Emergency Declaration" were generally measured in weeks. Issuing early warnings was the responsibility of the Elder Dragon Observation Team.
Since that team had not raised an alarm, it meant the Elder Dragon was not under human surveillance.
A situation like that was no different from a natural disaster.
"I understand what happened now," the Hunter said reassuringly. "As for Isis, you have nothing to apologize for.
Once that girl decided to become a Hunter, it became her duty to stand up in moments like this. She would have faced this sooner or later."
With that, he gave the Guild Master a nod, ducked low, and squeezed through the medical clinic's doorway, which was a little too short and narrow for his frame.
Clearly, his daughter's condition still troubled him.
(Translated by yourtl.app)