Facing the "Demon King," which was launching charge after charge without pause, the Hunters scattered to evade it.
The first to reach safety was Morgan, who had been firing from the edge of the battlefield. He retreated straight into the narrow pass where the "Demon King" had been trapped earlier.
That place had become forbidden ground for the "Demon King." Nothing could make it venture back inside.
Morgan crouched there, braced his Bowgun, and began firing suppressive shots.
The target was far away and moving at tremendous speed. Combined with the violent air currents swirling around it at full sprint, this made it difficult for Bowgun Ammo to hit accurately, and even the shots that landed had disappointing results.
To ensure his attacks packed enough power to threaten the "Demon King," distract it, and cover his companions, Morgan ignored the fact that his Bowgun's frame had already loosened slightly from its earlier "violent use" and once again loaded volatile powder into the chamber.
"Bang!" Amid recoil powerful enough to throw him off balance, a round of Piercing Freeze Ammo blasted from the barrel.
The round crossed more than a hundred meters in an instant, punched through the raging air currents around the "Demon King," and bored into its thigh.
"ROAR!" The "Demon King" howled in pain but did not stop charging. Instead, its eyes reddened as it accelerated even further.
Sword and Shield users were accustomed to hanging small items from the hooks and straps behind their shields, allowing them to use those items quickly without sheathing their weapons.
Serl threw a Sonic Bomb and then a Flash Bomb. He was clearly adept at using all kinds of items, and both landed precisely where he intended.
However, neither the Sonic Bomb nor the Flash Bomb had the desired effect.
The "Demon King" was like a tireless chariot, charging back and forth across the battlefield without end and forcing the Hunters to scatter in every direction.
In truth, Serl and Altaïr were agile enough to escape danger, but they could not abandon Isis.
Clad in heavy armor and carrying a Gunlance with a Large Shield, Isis was slow on her feet. The "Demon King" seemed to have singled out the target with the "shortest legs," charging at her again and again.
She had dodged its first two passes by using shelling for quick bursts of movement, but her shells were limited. The "Demon King" refused to give her another chance to reload, wheeling around and charging once more.
Altaïr, Serl, and even Morgan, sniping from a distance, did everything they could to disrupt the "Demon King," slow it down, and buy Isis a chance to escape.
But the "Demon King" was simply too fast while sustaining its charge. Even Altaïr, with Demon Mode active, struggled to keep pace and could barely remain on its heels.
As the "Demon King" bore down on her yet again, Isis saw no better option and decided to take a dangerous gamble. She turned and sprinted away.
Turning your back on a Monster in the middle of a charge was a mistake even a Rookie Hunter would never make.
Everyone knew that human Hunters had almost no chance of outrunning a Large Monster at full speed in a straight line. The difference in stride length was simply too great.
Of course, Isis had not lost her mind in the face of danger. She was trying to reduce the relative speed between them as much as possible.
As she sprinted, she readied her Slinger and repeatedly glanced back to gauge the distance between herself and the "Demon King."
That was right. She intended to use the Clutch Claw to latch onto the "Demon King." Once she was clinging to it, no matter how powerful its charge was, it could no longer threaten her.
But she could not fire the Clutch Claw indiscriminately. Letting it pull her straight toward the face of a Monster charging head-on would be even more terrifying than standing still and allowing it to hit her. She would probably be crushed into pulp on the spot.
Ideally, she would run in the same direction as the Monster, then fire the Clutch Claw and latch on at the instant it passed her. The speed would still be tremendous, but her body should be able to withstand it.
Altaïr, racing close behind the "Demon King," guessed Isis's plan, and every hair on his body stood on end.
The plan was feasible, but the risk was immense. Could Isis really evade the impact in the split second the "Demon King" reached her from behind, fire the Clutch Claw, and complete the climb?
Her evasion technique was one factor, but luck would be decisive.
The "Demon King" was enormous. Even with a full-force dive, Isis could not clear the full width of its frontal charge. She could easily fail to fire the Clutch Claw in time and be trampled underfoot or knocked away by a sweep of its hammer-like tail.
Isis might always have been lucky, but this was a matter of life and death. She could not stake everything on luck.
Still racing behind the "Demon King," Altaïr gritted his teeth and pushed his legs to their limit. He managed to gain a little more speed and fired his own Clutch Claw before the "Demon King" could run beyond his Slinger's range.
Because of the angle, the Clutch Claw caught one of the "Demon King's" wing claws, hardly a suitable place to climb.
The retracting rope pulled Altaïr toward it. Before the "Demon King" could react, he pushed off with all four limbs and launched himself again, landing on its shoulder before scrambling up beside its head.
The sight made the others break out in a cold sweat. Scrambling over a gigantic Diablos charging at full speed? Only someone with no regard for his own life would attempt such a thing.
Less than ten meters now separated the "Demon King" from Isis. With no time to think or even draw his blade, Altaïr swung his Clutch Claw and raked it viciously across the "Demon King's" eye socket.
"ROAR!" Struck in a vulnerable spot, the "Demon King" jerked its head sharply to one side.
Its tremendous core strength and balance kept it from toppling over mid-charge, but the sudden movement successfully altered its path and saved Isis just before it caught her.
Isis had been sprinting ahead and preparing to dive aside. Startled to see the "Demon King" whip its head around and charge past her, she immediately raised her hand, fired her Clutch Claw, and launched herself onto the side of its head.
The two Hunters now clung to opposite sides of the "Demon King's" head as it charged at full speed.
The "Demon King" thrashed its head, trying to fling them off. The Hunters clung tightly to the carapace and bony plates around its head to steady themselves, while its own frantic struggle threw its charging stride slightly off balance.
"Two o'clock!" Altaïr shouted.
Isis glanced to the side and saw a massive stone pillar rising in that direction. She immediately understood.
She released her handholds, deployed the Gunlance from her back, turned her wrist to point the muzzle downward, and drove it deep into the "Demon King's" right eye socket. Then she pulled the trigger and fired the last Wyrmstake Cannon loaded in the chamber.
With a muffled bang of gunpowder, the steel spike drove into the "Demon King's" eye socket.
The "Demon King's" struggles and the awkward angle kept the Wyrmstake spike from piercing its eyeball, but the spike lodged in the orbital bone still blocked its vision on the right side.
With her attack complete, Isis dropped to the ground. She rolled to absorb the impact, sprang back to her feet, and looked up at the receding "Demon King" and Altaïr, who still clung to its head.
Gauging the distance and angle, Altaïr waited until the "Demon King" was about to turn, then swung his Clutch Claw again and raked it viciously across the "Demon King's" left eye.
The "Demon King" reflexively whipped its head to the right. This time it successfully flung the Hunter away, but with the vision in both eyes impaired, it failed to notice that it had already charged right up to the stone pillar.
By the time it realized, it was too late to stop. All it could do was lower its head and crash straight into the massive pillar, which measured a good four or five meters thick at the base.
Altaïr hit the ground, rolled back to his feet, and pumped his fist in triumph.
But the outcome he had hoped for never came. The "Demon King" was not left wedged in the pillar and unable to move, nor did its horn snap and leave it sprawled on the ground, howling in pain.
Charging at full speed, the "Demon King" slammed headfirst into the stone pillar and shattered it to pieces...