"BOOM!"
Amid the thunderous roar of the skyward Wyvern's Fire, the Yian Garuga, already struggling to stay aloft against the pull of the One-shot Binder's rope, lost its balance and plummeted to the ground.
Since it had been flying so low, the Deadeye Yian Garuga did not hit the ground particularly hard.
Its lightning-fast reactions even allowed it to extend both legs before impact and just barely land on its feet.
Before it could steady itself, however, Isis lunged forward and slammed her Large Shield into its face.
The Yian Garuga's head snapped violently to the side as though struck by a heavy punch.
Had it been an ordinary Yian Kut-Ku, that Shield Bash might well have shattered its skull.
The Yian Garuga's body was sturdier than a Yian Kut-Ku's, and this individual was exceptional even among its own kind, yet Isis's furious blow still nearly knocked it senseless.
Its precarious balance collapsed entirely, and its lean body toppled to the ground.
Nearby, Altaïr's Charged Slash had reached its final stage, a True Charged Slash.
He had predicted where the Yian Garuga would land, but had not expected it to remain standing after impact. Fortunately, Isis followed up with a timely Shield Bash and finally knocked the troublesome creature down.
That left the head, his original target, too far out of position. Altaïr swept his gaze across the Monster and swiftly chose a new target.
Relying on his exceptional coordination, he forced himself to pivot before the charge was complete and aimed at the joint midway along the Yian Garuga's left wing.
Striking there would not cripple it as directly as a devastating blow to the head, but destroying its ability to fly would largely decide the outcome of the Hunt.
A Yian Garuga in the air could easily shake them off. On the ground, breaking through Altaïr and Isis's combined blockade would be far more difficult.
"Hah!" Altaïr released the attack with a low shout.
Gleaming with fighting spirit, Tyrant Blade [Heaven Swallower] came crashing down on the joint of the Yian Garuga's left wing.
He had deliberately avoided the base of the wing. That area lay close to the back, bristled with bony spikes, and was protected by thick shell. A single True Charged Slash was unlikely to sever the massive shoulder joint completely.
The joint midway along the wing bone was another matter. It needed flexibility for flight, so no shell covered it. Only layers of scales and a very thin layer of muscle offered any protection.
Empowered by both physical strength and fighting spirit, Tyrant Blade [Heaven Swallower] tore effortlessly through the scales and bit into the seam of the joint.
The blade caught between the bones. Altaïr exerted all his strength and wrenched the hilt. With a sharp "crack," the cartilage connecting the two sections of wing bone snapped apart.
He had not severed the bone completely, but he could tell that the wing was ruined.
I'm still not skilled enough. If Mr. Gordon were here, he'd have taken this wing off in one clean stroke, wouldn't he?
The thought flashed inexplicably through Altaïr's mind. He immediately shook his head, swung the weapon behind him, switched it back into its Long Sword form, and pressed the attack.
"GRAAAW!"
The broken wing bone made the Yian Garuga throw back its head and howl in agony, but the cry had barely begun when an enraged Isis cut it short with another shield blow.
With a loud "BANG!" she smashed the Yian Garuga's head back to the ground, then rammed the butt of her Gunlance against its skull and completed her reload.
Altaïr was concentrating his attacks on the wing and the side of its neck, so Isis naturally targeted the common weakness of Bird Wyverns: the head.
Overhead Smash, Rising Slash, Wide Sweep, Full Burst. If she had not just used Wyvern's Fire, she would have shoved the barrel straight into the Monster's mouth and unleashed another blast.
That was a shame, but no matter. Isis found another promising target.
This Yian Garuga was known as "Deadeye" because it was blind on one side and could see only through its right eye.
If she destroyed that eye as well, the fight would end then and there.
With her shells spent, Isis took a sliding step to the side of the Yian Garuga's head. She executed a textbook Thrust, driving the muzzle straight toward its sole remaining eye.
The Wyrmstake Cannon was primed. The moment her Thrust struck the eye, she would pull the trigger and drive the steel stake deep into the socket, shattering the eyeball.
This was one of the most conventional uses of the Wyrmstake Cannon.
Faced with such an unmistakably targeted attack, the grievously wounded Yian Garuga seemed to receive a sudden jolt. A flash of red passed through its lone eye.
It abruptly braced its head against the ground and sprang up. Ignoring the searing pain of its broken wing, it thrashed its wings and long tail like a maniac, sweeping everything around it.
Even the Blademasters had to retreat temporarily before such a counterattack.
The One-shot Binder's rope soon snagged the Yian Garuga's frenzied movements. The Hunters were about to close in and launch another assault when it hopped furiously in place twice.
It lowered its head, clamped its beak around the shaft of the One-shot Binder jutting from its abdomen, and jerked viciously, tearing the projectile free along with a huge chunk of flesh.
It then used the same method to tear off the useless half of its left wing, which now hung at its side as dead weight.
The sight of flesh and blood flying everywhere made the Hunters' scalps crawl.
"This thing is about to go berserk," Altaïr warned Isis beside him.
"I can see that." Isis tightened her grip on her shield. "Do we retreat first, or...?"
Against a Monster driven mad by desperation, the safest option was to withdraw temporarily, let it vent its rage, and then move in to finish it off.
That was what the training camp instructors and their senior mentors had always taught them.
From another perspective, however, retreating would mean giving up a chance to train under manageable risk.
"How about letting me have this one?" Altaïr flicked his blade, shaking off the blood and scraps of flesh.
Having already guessed his answer, Isis curled her lip, stepped back, and raised a hand signal at the same time.
Morgan, who had been firing from a distance, also ceased fire.
Altaïr grinned and strode toward his opponent.
As though sensing the Hunter's intent, the Deadeye Yian Garuga stopped its frenzied hopping and snapping. Its blood-red eye met his gaze.
"I know it's a little shameless to say this now." Altaïr quickened his pace as the glow of Demon Mode shimmered over his body. "Let's settle this one-on-one."
"GRAOO!"
The Deadeye Yian Garuga roared wildly, spread its tattered wings, and lunged at the Hunter.
Its scarred, massive beak gaped wide, ready to clamp around the approaching Hunter's waist. Altaïr suddenly dropped into a slide, attempting to use Sliding Slash to slip behind it.
The Deadeye Yian Garuga's body was riddled with wounds, but its reactions had not slowed in the slightest. It immediately dipped its head to snap at the sliding Hunter.
Altaïr halted his slide midway, sprang to his feet, and swung his blade upward, using Sliding Slash to parry the massive beak crashing down on him.
Although he failed to slip behind his opponent, the short slide successfully closed the distance and placed him directly beneath the Monster.
For a Large Monster, this was a poor position from which to exert force, and it lay within the blind spot of many Monsters' attacks.
That did not apply to this old maniac after a lifetime of fighting. It raised a sharp talon and kicked down at the Hunter beneath it.
Barely back on his feet, Altaïr braced his Long Sword horizontally and put all his strength into an upward block, using Tempered Spirit Blade to deflect the talon.
"So fast..." A thrilled grin spread across Altaïr's face.
Compared with the Monsters that had spent so long confined in the Arena, this creature was the better whetstone.
To sharpen a blade, the whetstone itself had to be hard and sharp enough!
The parry drove Altaïr back half a step, but he immediately charged again. In the blink of an eye, a blur of slashes opened more than a dozen wounds across the Yian Garuga's chest and belly.
The Deadeye Yian Garuga drew a deep breath. A high-frequency roar erupted a moment later. It did not sound particularly loud, but its force penetrated straight to the internal organs.
Altaïr's vision instantly blurred. His head swam, and the entire world seemed filled with afterimages.
It was the special roar Lambert and the others had warned them about!
Isis pointed her Gunlance behind her, ready to launch into Storm Rush and intervene, when another roar like a dragon's howl drowned out the Yian Garuga's shriek.
As Beast Soul Possession activated, pitch-black fighting spirit enveloped Altaïr's body.
Under the combined amplification of Demon Mode and Beast Soul Possession, the agonizing sensation of his body being torn apart by fighting spirit returned. Coupled with the internal shock from the Yian Garuga's high-frequency roar, it sent blood pouring from his mouth and nose.
Once the pain became overwhelming, one torment was indistinguishable from another. Amid that bone-crushing agony, his blurred thoughts suddenly snapped back into focus.
Altaïr drew a deep breath and stoked his fighting spirit even higher.
A vast cloud of blood mist burst from his body, then condensed into a dark crimson gleam over his blade and eyes.
Devouring Demon activated!
Let's see who falls first!
Altaïr strode forward and swept his blade diagonally across the Yian Garuga's chest and belly with a Fade Slash, carving open a wound that sprayed blood.
Madness flickered in the Yian Garuga's blood-red eye as well.
It lowered its head and wrung out the last dregs of its strength. Firelight billowed inside its massive beak, and a searing torrent of flame poured down, engulfing Monster and Hunter alike.
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I'll release the 5 bonus chapters later