Aji returned to her nest.
Kael tried to follow her inside—
And was immediately driven out without mercy.
He flapped his wings and hovered outside the entrance, staring at Aji inside.
The two dragons locked eyes.
Whenever Kael showed even the slightest intention of entering, Aji would respond with a deep, warning growl.
Yet strangely, she never took any real action to force him away.
And so, the two dragons ended up in a rare standoff.
"Whine~"
"Aji, I'm really tired. I can't keep flying much longer…"
He cautiously stretched one foot toward the entrance.
"Roar~" (Get lost!)
"Okay."
He pulled it back immediately.
After a while, Kael spoke again.
"Aji, I don't want to stay outside…"
"Aji, it's really sunny out here. It's so hot…"
"Aji~~~"
Aji, who was lying down to recover and ease her injuries, felt her brow twitch.
Kael's nonstop chatter was driving her insane.
"ROAR!!!"
Can you shut up?!
She glared at him, looking like she wanted to rush over and smack him with her tail.
"Whine~"
Seeing that she was genuinely angry, Kael immediately lowered his voice and whimpered obediently.
Aji stared at him for a long while.
After confirming that he had truly quieted down, she finally calmed herself.
With an irritated flick, she slammed her tail against the ground and lay back down.
The fight with that unfamiliar Pukei-Pukei had left her with serious injuries.
The worst was her wing.
Before being hit by venom, that area had already been torn open in the initial collision. When the toxin seeped in through the wound, it caused the membrane to start rotting.
What truly frustrated Aji wasn't the pain.
It was the fact that, until her wing healed, she probably wouldn't be able to hunt.
Which meant…
She would have to go hungry for several days.
Starving for a few days wouldn't kill her.
But that miserable feeling of hunger was something she never wanted to experience again.
Whenever she went hungry for too long, she couldn't help recalling her childhood.
Back then, when their mother went out hunting and never came back.
Six hatchlings in that nest.
Only three had survived to this day.
Thinking of that, Aji opened one eye—
And saw Kael secretly placing his foot on the entrance again.
When he noticed her watching, he instantly pulled it back.
That cowardly yet stubborn look made her unsure whether to laugh or scold him.
Watching him hover so skillfully outside the cave also made her feel puzzled.
Among her siblings, she had always been special.
She was the first to learn how to fly.
The strongest.
The smartest.
After their mother disappeared, she was the first to leave the nest and scout the surroundings.
She was also the first to decide to hunt alone while her siblings were still crying for food.
If not for her, those foolish siblings probably wouldn't have survived.
Under her leadership, they had even managed coordinated hunts.
Later, when they went their separate ways, it wasn't just because she believed they could survive alone.
It was also because she could no longer tolerate their stupidity.
Yet even someone as exceptional as her had only just learned to fly when she was Kael's size.
She definitely couldn't have joined battles like this back then.
Kael's earlier performance…
It was far too strong for a hatchling.
His combat awareness and decision-making were things she had never seen in any dragon except herself.
Her foolish siblings, even with guidance, could only repeat the same few moves.
They had no sense of cooperation.
No idea how to adapt.
She felt that Kael was the same kind of dragon as her.
And judging by his size, he should still be staying by his mother's side.
But his strength truly allowed him to stand on his own.
She couldn't pretend not to see that and keep treating him like a helpless hatchling.
This contradiction was what troubled Aji.
It was also why she wanted to drive him away—
Yet couldn't bring herself to do it completely.
After all, she wasn't his real mother.
She was only imitating what her own mother had once done.
She had never experienced being driven away.
And because of her talent, she had never truly suffered from hunger or cold after leaving her siblings.
On top of that, Kael was not only a hatchling, but also a male Rathalos.
All of this made her hesitant.
So she could only pretend not to notice his stubborn persistence.
Outside the nest, seeing that Aji had closed her eyes again and wasn't preparing to chase him off, Kael finally relaxed.
Just as he was about to sneak his foot forward again—
Grrr~
His stomach growled.
He had only eaten one Archaeopteryx as a snack today.
Then he had searched everywhere for Aji.
Then he had joined a battle.
After all that, he was starving.
Glancing at Aji, who seemed to have fallen asleep while healing, Kael turned around.
With a powerful flap, he flew straight toward the depths of the Wildspire Waste.
After he left, Aji sensed something.
She suddenly opened her eyes and stared blankly at his retreating figure.
A strange feeling rose in her heart.
Maybe it was just because she hadn't seen many of her kind lately.
That must be it.
She slowly walked to the entrance and watched him disappear into the yellow sands.
She didn't know if she would ever see him again.
But with the strength he had shown…
He probably wouldn't die so easily.
Returning to her nest, Aji lay down again and closed her eyes.
Only her tail, constantly swaying and slamming against the ground, betrayed her restless mood.
Aji had thought she would meet Kael again someday.
She just didn't expect it to be so soon.
She had only dozed off for a moment.
She hadn't even fully fallen asleep.
And Kael was already back—
Dragging a Kelbi in his claws.
Before she could even assume a driving-away posture, he dropped the corpse in front of her and hurriedly flew off again.
Aji stared at the neatly killed Kelbi.
Three invisible question marks slowly appeared in her mind.
…What is going on?
When Kael returned for the second time, he brought back another, slightly smaller Kelbi.
This time, however, he didn't toss it to her.
Instead, he openly started feasting right at the entrance.
While eating, he even looked up at Aji in confusion—
As if asking, "Why aren't you eating?"
Aji felt that her understanding of Kael needed to be updated once again.
Didn't you leave?
I even prepared myself mentally.
Why are you back again?
And this food…
Is this bribery?
Do you think I'll stop driving you away just because of this?
Who do you think I am?
Am I the kind of Rathian who can be easily bribed by a hatchling?!
"Amm~"
…Not bad at all.