Ancient Forest.
Silence.
Leon staggered a few steps and finally leaned against a tree trunk to slowly sit down. He exhaled deeply and muttered, "Phew... Finally took it down... a High Rank Great Jagras..."
Ramsey ran over from a distance, lingering shock still written on his face. "Holy crap... You actually hunted a High Rank monster by yourself? That's insane..."
"What? Are there no High Rank monsters in the Old World?" Leon still wasn't entirely clear on the power scaling of this world.
Logically, as an A-List member from the Old World, Ramsey should have been stronger.
"How should I put this..." Ramsey thought for a moment before answering. "For one, not having the right gear is part of it. Secondly, I'm not familiar with the monsters of the New World yet. Regardless, you're seriously strong!"
Leon remained noncommittal to Ramsey's answer. After all, the lore of the Monster Hunter world was fragmented to begin with.
Retcons were a common occurrence...
Heh.
Leon couldn't help but smile bitterly at the thought.
Although he had been isekai'd, he was a bit unlucky.
If he had ended up in Naruto, One Piece, Bleach... or any anime world, or even an infinite-stream world, at least the power levels would be clearly defined and follow a pattern.
But Monster Hunter...
There were no clear-cut levels. Without adequate preparation or if one grew careless, things could go south at any moment...
It was a gamble between humanity and nature.
Because of this, Leon still wanted to return to his original world—that peaceful and comfortable place.
Just then, Dumpling hopped onto Leon's shoulder.
His eyes sparkled with admiration as he chirped happily, "Newbie! You've really made something of yourself, meow! To think you killed that big daddy Great Jagras, meow."
"That was a High Rank Great Jagras." Leon looked down at his palms; he knew he needed to become even stronger.
"Meow?" Dumpling blinked, seemingly not understanding Leon's point. He quickly jumped to the ground and scurried toward the Great Jagras's carcass. "Whatever rank it is... carving for materials is much more practical, meow!"
Seeing this, Leon forced himself to stand up. He walked over to the massive carcass and pulled out his carving knife.
*Schlick—*
The blade sliced through scales and muscle with a dull cutting sound. Yellow-green scales curled back, revealing the reddish-brown flesh and shimmering bone beneath.
Ramsey stood nearby, lost in thought.
Dumpling held up a blood-stained bone fragment with his tiny paws, his eyes shining. "Taking this dragon bone back should get us a lot of canned cat food, meow!"
Once the carving was finished, Leon took a short rest and brushed the dust off himself. He no longer expected to look heroic; he just wanted to make it back to the base in one piece.
"Say..." Ramsey said with a wry smile. "Don't you think it's time you gave my sword back?"
"Oh." Leon handed the Great Sword back and patted Ramsey on the shoulder. "The Great Sword is pretty handy."
"As long as... you can use it..." Ramsey felt like crying. He found it hard to imagine a Dual Blades user performing a three-stage Charged Slash so fluently in actual combat.
"I've shown you the monsters of the New World," Leon said softly. "If you have any more questions, ask the Commander to arrange something. I still have missions..."
Ramsey took the hint. "Don't worry, I prefer hunting alone anyway..."
He paused and looked at Dumpling. "But you still need to introduce me to a hunting partner."
"No problem, meow! I'll bring Tofu to see you once we get back." Dumpling lay on Leon's shoulder like a proud mascot.
"To... Tofu?" Leon turned his head curiously toward Dumpling. "Is that your little brother?"
"No way, Tofu is my big sister!"
"No way, Tofu is my big sister, meow!" Dumpling puffed out his chest, his tail held high.
"You have a sister?"
"Of course, meow! And Sister Tofu is the gentlest cat in our family, and she makes the best fish soup!"
"Oh?" Leon's eyes brightened slightly, his expression softening unconsciously. He muttered, "Makes fish soup... sounds like a real keeper..."
"Hey! What's with that face, meow?" Dumpling narrowed his eyes and pointed a paw at Leon, his tone suddenly serious. "Do you have a crush on my sister, meow?"
"What?" Leon was momentarily speechless, his mouth twitching awkwardly. He quickly denied it. "No... I just think your sister sounds like a nice person—cat."
Dumpling puffed out his cheeks and warned, "Hmph! I'm telling you, meow, my sister is very picky, meow! Besides, you already have me, so don't even think about swapping cats halfway!"
Hearing this, Ramsey tried his hardest to stifle a laugh, but his facial muscles were twitching uncontrollably. He hadn't expected things to turn out like this, looking almost like some kind of love triangle drama.
Seeing Dumpling's angry face made Leon's head throb. He had no choice but to pull out a few seemingly ordinary fresh twigs from his pouch.
"Felvine! It's actually Felvine, meow!"
Felvine twigs contain iridoid substances like nepetalactone. To humans, they are just common medicinal herbs, but to Felynes, they are extremely precious luxuries, akin to fine wine or gourmet food.
After absorbing the scent, a Felyne's brain becomes briefly paralyzed for about ten minutes, inducing a state of euphoria...
Handing the Felvine to Dumpling, Leon gently patted his soft head to soothe him. "Don't be mad. You're my most important partner."
"That's more like it!" Dumpling took a deep whiff of the Felvine and went limp on Leon's shoulder. In a syrupy tone, he said, "Wake... wake me up when we get there..."
And so, the two men and the cat set off on their return journey, passing through the Ancient Forest to return to Astera.
***
Astera.
The Resource Center.
After changing out of his blood-stained gear and a quick wash, Leon headed straight for the Provisions Manager's stall.
His goal was clear.
Sell the High Rank materials and buy charms.
"Yo, you're back?" Behind the stall was a middle-aged man with a bright smile wearing a brown vest.
He was looking down while organizing the counter. Catching Leon in his peripheral vision, he greeted him warmly. "I heard you hunted a High Rank Great Jagras. That's impressive!"
"It was nothing, just a bit of luck." Leon smiled without explaining further. Instead, he said, "I want to buy those two charms."
His eyes swept over the shelf and quickly locked onto two charms emitting a faint glow—
[POWERCHARM: 36,000Z]
[ARMORCHARM: 36,000Z]
Leon looked at the two charms solemnly—
Although they were just sitting quietly on the shelf, he knew their value. As long as they were carried, they provided a permanent boost to attack and defense, making them the most cost-effective items in the early to mid-game.
Leon had had his eye on them since he first arrived in Astera, but the high price had kept him from buying them.
Now, having sold the High Rank Great Jagras materials, his pockets were much deeper. He had to get them today!
Leon took a deep breath, pointed at the two charms, and said, "I'll take these two charms."
"Oh?" The Provisions Manager raised an eyebrow and said unhurriedly, "These are high-quality goods. That'll be seventy-two thousand."
"No problem." Leon pulled out his wallet, which held just over ninety thousand, and placed the money on the counter.
After collecting the money, the merchant placed the two charms into exquisite small pouches and handed them to Leon.
"From your expression, did you just sink all the money you've made over the last few days into this?" the merchant asked casually. "The price is high, but the boost is very noticeable."
Leon nodded. "I know."
"Heh, you've got a good eye." The merchant lowered his voice and said, "Unlike many hunters in the base who still refuse to buy them. I've got high hopes for you."
Leon gave a wry smile and silently checked the remaining balance in his wallet—
8,100z...
A standard Hunter's Platter was 500z...
Fortunately, Leon wouldn't starve to death.
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