"..."
Seeing the defeated look on Kabru's face, Kairo Retsu didn't walk away immediately.
He stretched out both arms and firmly gripped Kabru's shoulders, locking eyes with him.
"You seem to see us as something too far removed."
"We're not the same as that demon—and I'm not telling you all to protect yourselves just so you can sit back and wait for us to save your world."
Kairo cracked a wide grin.
"What I want you to do is rally the elves, goblins, dwarves, tallfolk, halflings—every race on this island. There must be something they can do."
"Whether it's fighting monsters, creating barriers, casting healing magic—anything's fine."
He stared intently at Kabru.
"A world that's lost the will to save itself is destined to destroy itself."
"And that's not all. I've got something important I need you to do… Wait a second."
Kairo let go of Kabru and began rummaging through his backpack.
Kabru watched curiously as Kairo pulled out a small incense burner, which seemed to contain some kind of special aromatic material. Even unlit, Kabru could already catch a strange scent wafting from it.
"What's that?" Kabru asked, puzzled.
Kairo didn't answer immediately. He placed the burner on the ground nearby and lit it using a cheap plastic lighter—
The kind he used to sell at his little convenience store, before becoming the Guildmaster of the Hunters' Guild.
"This right here is our next super-duper miracle gadget!!!"
Kairo declared energetically, but then explained more plainly, "This is something from our world… a lure trace. It was given to me by Granny Felyne."
"Honestly, I'd love to fire a signal flare or something, but sadly, our gathering hall doesn't have that many hunters to spare… so we have to resort to a few clever tricks."
He grinned brightly.
"After all, we're Monster Hunters. Support doesn't have to come from other hunters, right?"
Kabru stared at him, utterly confused, feeling like Kairo had just done something outrageous.
What Kairo had placed was a Lure Trace (from the Guiding Lands in Monster Hunter: World).
A tool that can draw specific monsters into a designated area—a powerful device when used well.
Now that the Lure Trace was set, Kairo turned back to Kabru with a serious expression.
"All right, prep's done. What I need to ask of you now is this…"
"If you see any of us hunters… turn into that twisted form like Misurun, I need you to kill us—so we can revive."
Kairo grinned, drawing a thumb across his neck.
"There'll be some cat-like beastkin who'll take us away afterward."
"…?"
Kabru looked completely lost, but Kairo scratched his head.
"Yeah… that one's a bit hard to explain."
"I understand. I'll do as you asked." Kabru didn't press the issue further and simply nodded.
"Good!" Kairo gave a thumbs-up.
"In that case, I'll head out to face the Winged Lion with peace of mind!"
"Oh right! If you run into other hunters dressed like me later on, you can rely on them too."
"Our objective is unified, after all."
"…Got it." Kabru nodded and watched as Kairo strode off toward Marcille's treetop dwelling.
After a long hesitation, Kabru finally hoisted the unconscious Mad Sorcerer Thistle onto his back and headed off to find the Canaries, intending to relay Kairo's request.
No matter what happened, before things exploded out of control—
He needed to be ready.
Everyone on this island… no, the whole world, needed to be ready.
Because something big enough to change the world…
Was truly about to begin.
—
Marcille now stood outside her treetop home, gripping the staff she'd woven herself, gazing over the monsters she'd summoned.
Earlier, in her unease, she'd summoned more and more monsters, and now they had grown into an army.
Among them was a giant sea serpent with wings—based on the design of the Flying Stick—its immense body enough to strike terror into anyone who saw it.
"The monsters are ready,"
The Winged Lion stood behind Marcille like a loyal butler.
"From here, whatever you choose to do… is entirely up to you."
"Mm."
Marcille lifted her head and looked toward the barrier overhead.
"To the surface!"
With her command, the monsters around her began to stir.
The once-calm dungeon began to warp again. A massive fissure tore open at the center of the island.
And the largest monster Marcille had created—
The enormous Flying Stick—smashed through the barrier and thrust its massive form through the rift, making the entire island aware that something catastrophic was happening.
Inside the dungeon, people were struck dumb by the sudden appearance of the colossal winged serpent, and the gigantic rift in the ceiling filled them with dread.
"We should've just killed them all earlier!"
Some elves began to panic.
"What are we supposed to do now?!"
Marcille, standing before the rupture, was now fully prepared to descend to the surface with the Winged Lion and realize her dream—to alter the lifespans of all races.
But before she could give the monsters any further orders—
A lone figure stepped in front of the monster army.
"Nice! I'm the first one here!"
Kairo Retsu stood with hands on hips, facing Marcille and the Winged Lion.
"Looks like I made it just in time!"
"It's you…"
Marcille looked at him with concern.
She remembered what Chilchuck had told her—
That Kairo Retsu wanted to unleash a horde of monsters to form a new continent.
It sounded like something that would catastrophically upset the world's ecosystem.
"That's right, it's me!"
Kairo spread his arms wide.
"Laios's egg-snatching buddy! You've probably locked him up, right? So that means I have to be the one to talk now."
He extended a hand toward her.
"Hand over the title of dungeon master… to me."
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