Maybe it was the cold indifference in Logan's eyes… or maybe it was that he'd been staring at them for too long without saying a word.
But the atmosphere suddenly grew tense.
From Sita's perspective, Logan now looked like he was weighing whether to attack them or not.
After all, monsters were born with a natural hostility toward any creature they perceived as a threat.
One moment you're united against a common enemy—next moment, you're back to fighting each other. That wasn't uncommon at all.
So Sita instinctively became alert. Never letting your guard down around a monster was one of the most basic rules of hunting.
Sensing the shift in mood, Tonkotsu quickly glanced between the Admiral and Sita—then, without hesitation, leapt in front of Logan, striking a defensive posture against Sita.
Tonkotsu's split-second decision made Sita open his mouth to speak… but no words came out.
He understood what Boss Fire Wyvern meant to the Grimalkyne of Fire Wyvern Grimalkyne's tribe. Tonkotsu's actions were entirely expected.
Just like any other Felyne, Grimalkyne's heart was small—there was no room for extra choices.
"Oi, oi, what are you doing?" Admiral said with a sigh. "No need to get so tense. This 'Boss Fire Wyvern' isn't hostile—probably just curious, that's all."
The Admiral suddenly burst out laughing. He slung his damaged shield onto his back, stepped forward proactively, and raised his head to meet Logan's gaze.
Grinning broadly, he said, "So we finally meet. You're a little different from how I pictured you all these years, but still—just as imposing as I imagined, Boss Fire Wyvern."
Logan tilted his head slightly. For the first time, he felt the frustrating downside of not sharing a common language.
Although the Admiral didn't seem hostile—in fact, he seemed to be greeting him warmly—there was something in that nostalgic yet knowing expression that left Logan completely puzzled.
Had they met before?
Impossible.
Since he couldn't make sense of it, he decided not to bother thinking about it. They likely wouldn't cross paths again anyway.
He called out to Aki, preparing to take off—when suddenly, something struck him. He'd forgotten something.
Lowering his head, he saw Tonkotsu staring up at him, eyes filled with worry.
After a moment's thought, he reached up and tore off a badly damaged, half-loosened scale from his wing, tossing it in front of Tonkotsu. Without looking back, he spread his wings and flew off.
Tonkotsu picked up the scale and cradled it in his arms, eyes fixed on the cracks that ran through it. He couldn't stop the tears from falling.
"Meow! Boss Fire Wyvern, I'll get stronger! I promise, meow!"
The Admiral and Sita exchanged glances as Tonkotsu broke down in tears.
They both wanted to tell him: That's probably not what your Boss Fire Wyvern meant to say…
The Admiral looked at the two Fire Wyverns disappearing into the distance and let out a wistful sigh.
"Hard to believe that the owner of those two scales from back then has grown this powerful. If those guys who keep applying to investigate the 'Evolved Gold and Silver Fire Wyverns' ever find out, they'll be green with envy."
"Hahaha—ow… damn it."
He clutched his arm, inhaling sharply through clenched teeth.
"Meow… Teacher Sita, I'm sorry, meow…"
Tonkotsu lowered his head in embarrassment, ashamed of how he'd acted just now.
"No need. Your decision was the right one, meow."
Sita nodded calmly.
Just then, the cry of a Wingdrake echoed through the sky.
Looking up, they saw the Huntsman arriving with two hunters in tow.
Staring at the mess on the ground and the corpse of the Rajang with its heart pierced by a lance, the Huntsman let out a sigh.
"Didn't expect we'd still be late. You've improved again, haven't you?"
"Haha, not at all. I just had help from two big friends. Otherwise, who knows how much longer that fight would've dragged on."
The Admiral chuckled in reply, without mentioning Logan or the others.
But to the Huntsman, it was clear at a glance what had happened. Since the Admiral didn't bring it up, there was no need to press. Once they were back at base, he trusted the Admiral would quietly fill in the old crew on the details.
"What do we do with the Rajang's body?"
"Find a way to bring it back. Oh—and half of the materials carved from it go to Tonkotsu."
Just like that, the Admiral and Huntsman settled the matter of the Rajang's body and its resource distribution.
Logan, who was already flying back toward the nest, had no idea that the Huntsman had arrived mere moments after he'd left.
With the addition of another legendary hunter, the battle against the Rajang would've been far easier—and he wouldn't have needed to rely on a strategy that hurt both sides just to bring the beast down.
Not long after returning to the nest, that familiar surge of life energy returned once more.
Logan relaxed, passively absorbing the flow of life energy into his body. He could finally enjoy some time idling again.
Turning his head, he glanced at Aki beside him. She had already closed her eyes, drifting into deep sleep from exhaustion.
As Logan focused carefully, he noticed something strange—Aki's body seemed to have a limit. Even as the flow of life energy entering her increased, after circulating through her system, only about the usual amount remained; the rest was expelled.
Though the pass-through of life energy still helped strengthen her physique and improve her constitution, it was far less effective than if she'd been able to store it within her body.
Perhaps this is the biggest difference between normal creatures and Elder Dragons.
Elder Dragons not only absorbed and stored life energy actively, they could also manipulate it.
Ordinary creatures, on the other hand, couldn't even sense life energy. They could only passively undergo its transformative effects. If they were lucky, life energy might eventually condense into a Wyvern Gem somewhere in the body, allowing for basic storage.
Logan squinted slightly. There was no helping it—the world was just this cruel. That's precisely why Elder Dragon-level beings that aren't actual Elder Dragons are so rare.
Part of it came down to physiological structure. But another part was the ability to utilize life energy.
Fortunately, after years of observation, Aki's passive absorption capacity hadn't remained static. Although the progress was painfully slow, it had indeed improved—if only a little.
Just as Logan yawned, enduring the lingering discomfort in his body and preparing to drift off to sleep, the panel suddenly popped up.
[Trait Extraction Complete]
[Regeneration: After being tempered by life energy, your body's cells have undergone a certain degree of mutation, accelerating your metabolism and granting a self-regeneration capability surpassing others of your kind.
In non-combat situations, you can actively manipulate the life energy stored in your body to stimulate your cells and further enhance your self-regeneration.]
"Hmm!!"
Right—completing the boss's mission didn't just reward him with life energy. It also boosted his trait extraction progress.
But this time, the progress bar hadn't just advanced—it maxed out completely and rewarded him with this new trait.
The moment the panel disappeared, Logan felt his body temperature begin to rise.
Warmth spread across his numerous wounds, dulling the pain. Some of the more superficial cuts had even begun to heal.
Though slow, the change was visible. Under Logan's unblinking gaze, they had completely closed up in less than ten minutes—without leaving a single scar.
In this world, the stronger a monster was, the greater its regenerative ability.
Before, Logan could naturally recover from wounds like those in under twenty minutes—but he'd still be left with faint scarring that took time to fade.
Compared to that, his regeneration had at least doubled.
And that wasn't even considering the fact that he could now spend his stored life energy to further enhance the process.
Consuming life energy wasn't the same as accumulating it.
Storing life energy was like expanding a massive water tank—the larger the tank, the more life energy it could hold. And the more energy it stored, the faster it could reinforce and reshape the body.
As long as the size of the tank remained unchanged, any water (energy) consumed could be replenished quickly.
Now fully focused on mobilizing his life energy, Logan felt his body temperature climb even higher. His wounds didn't just feel warm anymore—they itched.
It was like every single cell was rejoicing.
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