With Logan's order, Tonkotsu dropped to all fours and bolted off, summoning the cats to gather every last Nulberry in storage.
These fruits, capable of curing abnormal conditions, had always been kept in reserve by the cats for emergencies. Ever since they'd come into contact with the Research Commission and learned the true value of the fruit, they had been stockpiling even more. Some cat warriors even carried one or two with them as a habit.
And because the Research Commission's plantations weren't all that large, the Nulberry had even become one of the key commodities in trade between them and the Commission.
Thanks to the vine ropeways, the cats' speed in passing messages had increased greatly.
As time ticked by in agonizing slowness for the Pink Rathian, Tonkotsu soon came back with a sack full of Nulberry slung over his shoulder.
At Logan's signal, the bag was handed to the Azure Rathalos, so it could carry the fruit to its mate.
After all, the Pink Rathian's condition was dire. If it couldn't hold out until Tonkotsu arrived, and happened to erupt right then, what if the cats got hurt? As for why they were sending an entire sack—Logan had reasoned that if a hunter, with such a small body, needed a whole fruit, then a Rathian of that size would surely need many more. Since there were no real side effects, they might as well test it. Desperate times called for desperate measures.
Before long, the Pink Rathian—eyes clenched shut against the pain—was roused by the low calls of the Azure Rathalos. When it finally opened its eyes, bloodshot threads were already crawling across the edges of its pupils.
For the sharp-eyed Rathalos, this change was noticed instantly. A ripple of unease passed through the group, and they all tensed, ready.
Every Fire Wyvern there knew just how deranged Frenzied monsters could be. And this time, it was a Pink Rathian. To minimize the Ancient Tree's losses, the males were fully prepared to strike with lethal force at a moment's notice.
The Pink Rathian, however, noticed none of this. Too weak to spare the energy to observe its surroundings, it trusted its partner's urging and stretched out its neck, gulping down the Nulberries.
Juice splattered everywhere as it devoured the fruit. With every swallow, a warm current spread outward from its stomach.
Wherever that warmth flowed, the Pink Rathian's immune system surged, gaining a massive boost in mere moments. Though brief, it was enough to stabilize what had been on the verge of collapse.
And as the warm current kept flowing, its body began to mount a counterattack against the Frenzy Virus.
In Logan's eyes, the Pink Rathian was still weak when it swallowed the first fruit. But with the second, the third… it suddenly stood up.
Like a lost traveler in the desert who finally stumbled upon an oasis, it drank and regained its strength.
In no time, the entire sack of Nulberries was gone. The bloodshot streaks faded from its eyes, and the black mist no longer seeped from its breath. The wyvern was still terribly weak, but the threat had passed.
Watching it gaze longingly at the now-empty sack, even lowering its head to snatch up and swallow the scattered scraps on the ground, Logan finally exhaled in relief.
"Another bag!"
Tonkotsu nodded knowingly. So, the Nulberry worked even on the Fire Wyverns—good. That made things simpler.
Soon, two more sacks of Nulberries were placed before the Pink Rathian.
This time, without the Azure Rathalos urging her on, the Pink Rathian buried her head and devoured them eagerly.
For a top-tier carnivorous monster like a Fire Wyvern, this desperate, fruit-craving display was almost comical.
By the end of this round, whether the Pink Rathian would be fully cured or not, the cats' Nulberry reserves had already been depleted by two-thirds.
These fruits couldn't be harvested in just a day or two. Even so, Logan still couldn't be sure if the Pink Rathian had truly overcome the Frenzy Virus.
Looking at it this way, even though the New World had Nulberry capable of curing Frenzy, monsters had no way of consuming so many before the virus broke through their immune systems.
For ordinary monsters, the Frenzy Virus remained unsolvable.
On the surface, the Pink Rathian seemed back to normal. Only then did the surrounding Rathalos relax, dispersing to their nests.
The Azure Rathalos, no longer surprised at Logan's lingering presence, let out a triumphant roar. It spread its wings wide, wrapping them around the Pink Rathian, their necks rubbing together as it poured out its joy.
The Pink Rathian, still frail after her ordeal, gave a soft snort and curled into his embrace. Resting her head against his rough back scales, she entwined her tail tightly with his.
Now fully conscious, she knew exactly what her mate had done for her. If the Azure Rathalos hadn't stood firm against the pressure of so many Tempered Rathalos and other Azure Rathalos, shielding her at all costs, then the moment she showed signs of Frenzy infection, the enraged males would have torn her apart.
As a Pink Rathian newly integrated into the Ancient Tree's Fire Wyvern swarm, she still didn't understand the clan-like nature of the group. But she knew enough to realize just how dangerous her mate's stance had been—he had even risked angering Logan, the leader himself.
Was this what it meant to share life and death?
"Roar!"
A thunderous cry jolted the new pair awake.
Only now did the Pink Rathian notice Logan still hadn't left. Startled by the terrifying silver-gray figure before her, she instinctively shrank back behind the Azure Rathalos.
But the Azure Rathalos stayed calm. Lowering its body slightly, it stepped forward to show gratitude to Logan.
Logan ignored it at first, fixing his gaze on the Pink Rathian. Only after a long moment did he begin speaking with the Azure Rathalos.
After much inner struggle, the Azure Rathalos finally agreed to Logan's proposal.
Half an hour later, the Azure Rathalos carried a smaller basket filled with cats, along with some goods for trade with the Research Commission and the remaining Nulberries.
The Pink Rathian followed close behind. Together, they flew toward the Astera stronghold under the glow of the setting sun.
Logan wasn't sure if the Pink Rathian had truly recovered. But they were Fire Wyverns, not researchers. Since he couldn't be certain—and couldn't allow a potentially unstable Pink Rathian to remain among the swarm—he decided to send the pair to the Research Commission for examination. At the same time, they could serve as transport. Consider it a reward for the cats.
Moreover, Logan believed that the Research Commission would gladly welcome the arrival of such a rare pair of research subjects.
This was a mated pair of Azure Rathalos and Pink Rathian—not only high-tier Fire Wyverns, but subspecies. And the Pink Rathian had even been infected by the Frenzy Virus. Specimens like these were ones the Commission could never hope to find under normal circumstances.
...
The departure of the Azure and Pink Fire Wyvern pair left quite a few other Fire Wyvern couples breathing easier. After all, if that Pink Rathian were to suddenly lose control, even a tempered Rathalos would find it troublesome. A toxin of that level—just one careless strike would be unbearable.
Meanwhile, Logan was busy digesting the news he had received from the Pink Rathian.
The Coral Highlands had also seen an outbreak of the Frenzy Virus—and worse, it showed signs of being uncontrollable.
Logan couldn't make sense of it.
He had always thought the Ancient Forest was the source of the Frenzy outbreak. After all, just a few years ago, the forest had endured the miasma erosion of the Blackveil Vaal Hazak. Only recently had its ecosystem stabilized, creating the opening that allowed the Gore Magala to invade.
Never did he expect it to be the Coral Highlands.
The Coral Highlands! The very heart of the New World. While its biodiversity might not match the Ancient Forest, it was remarkably stable. And beneath the Highlands lay the origin of the New World's leylines—the Rotten Vale, the final resting place of Elder Dragons.
If something happened to the Coral Highlands, the Rotten Vale, bound to it in mutual dependence, would not be spared either.
Such an important place, yet the Frenzy Virus had broken out there.
Were no Elder Dragons stepping in? Or had the ones dwelling in the Highlands simply grown complacent?
According to the Pink Rathian, the Nergigante had been roaming the Highlands. But that one was a pure brawler—could a single Elder Dragon like that really resolve a Frenzy outbreak?
Logan doubted it.
It wasn't a question of the Nergigante's strength. But as a close-combat Elder Dragon, it could only cull the infected one by one. How long would that take?
Still, Logan only found it baffling, nothing more. If the sky fell, there were taller ones to hold it up. The Coral Highlands wasn't like the Ancient Forest out on the continent's edge, right next to the Elder's Recess. With so many Elder Dragons clustered there, just a few stepping out would be enough to handle the situation.
So Logan returned to his peaceful days.
Time passed, and that year's "mating season" finally drew to a close.
Logan's mood remained as steady as ever, but Aki was growing restless.
Quite a few female Fire Wyverns had already confirmed their successful pregnancies. Once their bodies had recovered, they reluctantly left the Ancient Tree to return to the Wildspire Waste, making their preparations for birthing in advance. But Aki showed no signs at all.
By her age, Aki should already have had offspring. Some of the more gifted ones would have begun training with the cats in hunting techniques by now. Only because of Logan had she delayed this long.
But now, with summer nearly gone and still no reaction, she was thrown into a panic—plunging Logan into days of fiery torment that were both painful and pleasurable.
Each day, other male Fire Wyverns passed by Logan's nest. After catching sight of him, they would leave satisfied.
After all, if even the chief looked like that, then their own struggles were only natural. More so since they had multiple mates to contend with, while the chief had only one.
In the end, Logan stopped wanting to leave his den. The stares from the other wyverns left him so mortified he wished he could crawl into a crack in the earth.
Those mocking creatures only saw that he had a single mate, yet completely ignored the absurd difference in strength between Aki and any other female Fire Wyvern.
Don't you see? Even those tempered Rathalos rarely have more than three mates—barely half compared to the six or seven that others keep!
And why is that?
Because their partners are tempered Rathians.
Now, the only one who could let Logan hold his head high was the Flame Rathalos.
The only two he could communicate with normally were that tempered Azure Rathalos, and the young Azure Rathalos that had joined the swarm just before the migration.
Yes… true brothers in misfortune.
As a side note, even that tempered Azure Rathalos's mate hadn't conceived.
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