Ats returo the campsite just as the sun dipped low on the horizon. The stillness in the air was broken by the relentless sound of water crashing against the rocky shore of the ke nearby.

  It didn’t take long for him to notice that not everyone had made it back yet. Most of the group were still out in the field, likely finishing their training sessions or pleting the final stages of their hunts.

  For ten days, they had been fully focused on hunting, gathering as many resources as possible. Every bit of what they collected would be essential for crafting the ons and armor their team would rely on in the ing battles.

  Ats joined Edrik at the ke side.

  “About y pert of the batants have hit level fifty,” Edrik reported. “The rest aren’t far behind. They’ll either catch up in the few days or hit that milestone during the Dominion Skirmish. We send the slower oo hunt on safer isnds with lower-risk targets.”

  “That’s good to hear,” Ats replied with a nod. “And what about their css advas?”

  “I’ve been keeping track,” Edrik said. “Not everyone’s pleted their css quests yet, but I’ve been guiding them through it step by step. They’re making progress. It’s only a matter of time before they’re all ready.”

  Ats went quiet for a moment.

  “If you’re paring it to yours…” Edrik’s voice broke through his thoughts. “Rex. Their quests aren’t nearly as brutal as what you went through.”

  “You’re sure?”

  “Positive,” Edrik smiled. “Your css is of a higher grade. That’s why your quest was so punishing. Theirs? Much simpler by parison.”

  “Good,” Ats said with a faint smirk.

  While waiting for the others to return, Ats spotted something cirg high above their campsite. His gaze narrowed, fog on the figure in the sky.

  It was the monster bird!

  He reized it instantly. It was the same bird mohat always appeared whes trained in this area.

  Without hesitatioepped away from the keside, searg for a patch of solid ground with rocky footing. Once he found it, he crouched low, muscles coiling in preparation. Then, with a powerful leap, he shot into the air.

  And… surprisingly! This time, he soared higher and faster than ever before.

  As he reached the peak of his jump, Ats activated his Mana Glider Cloak. The cloak unfurled behind him, catg the wind and holding him steady for a brief moment as he floated in midair.

  Just then, the monster bird dived toward him from one side.

  Ats grinned.

  The bird smmed into him head-on, but he held himself, gripping the creature’s massive body with both arms. The impact sent him spinning untrolbly through the air, tumbling in wild circles as he plummeted back toward the ground.

  Yet, despite the brutal hit, his expression remained calm. His releraining had hardened him to experiences like this.

  Until—bam!

  The monster bird looped back, ramming into him again from below. But this time, Ats didn’t fall.

  Instead, he nded squarely on the creature’s back.

  With a fierce grip, he grabbed hold of the bird’s thick feathers and tightened his grasp. The beast thrashed beh him, but Ats g on like his life depended on it.

  “Got you,” he muttered.

  The bird soared through the sky, cirg above as the sun dipped lower on the horizon.

  “Hey! Want to e with me?” Ats shouted, his voice cutting through the wind.

  Could monsters uand human nguage?

  Some people had the Beast Taming css, which allowed them to unicate with monsters more easily, even tame them and turn the creatures into loyal panions who fought by their side.

  Ats wondered if he could do the same — without needing the required css.

  He’d already made a tract with Zefyros, his Spirit Beast. But Zefyros wasn’t a monster like this bird. He was different.

  The distin between Spirit Beasts and monsters was clear. Spirit Beasts were made of pure energy — even if their bodies were destroyed, they could reform over time. Monsters, oher hand, were living creatures. They bled. They could be ihey could die.

  “Hey, you, e with me!”

  The bird gave no verbal response, but when Ats tapped its shoulder, it suddenly tilted its massive wings and dove toward the ground.

  The wind howled in his ears as they desded rapidly. When they were close enough to the earth, Ats leapt from the bird’s back without hesitation.

  He hit the ground hard, his boots sinking into the dirt as the impact rippled through his legs.

  Standing tall, Ats gnced back at the bird, who tio circle above the camp.

  “Bird, e with me!” he yelled again.

  “I’m building a bigger isnd. You’ll love it.”

  The bird gave a loud screech, but still didn’t leave.

  Kurogasa approached from the side and stood o Ats, his gaze following the same dire — up toward the monster bird that still circled above them.

  “Looks like it’s thinking about it,” Kurogasa muttered.

  Ats turo him. “You uand them, Kurogasa?”

  “ly, My Lord,” Kurogasa replied with a faint shrug. “But I tell… the bird is sidering it.”

  “ they uand me?”

  “Not in the way you mean,” Kurogasa expined. “They don’t uand human nguage. But they uand your iions.”

  Ats nodded slowly, processing the information. His gaze remained locked on the bird. “I want t it to my isnd.”

  For a moment, both men stood in silence, watg the creature glide effortlessly through the sky. The light was fading fast now, but the bird didn’t e down. It tio circle, keeping its distance.

  “We return to this pother time,” Kurogasa suggested. “The bird won’t disappear.”

  Ats remained quiet for a moment.

  Then he spoke softly. “What if someone kills the bird while we’re away?”

  Kurogasa didn’t answer immediately.

  Monsters like this didn’t linger long in one pce. And in a world filled with hunters, nothing was guarao be there tomorrow.

  Especially if Karian spotted a bird monster like this. He’d probably decapitate it with his greatsword without a sed thought — and then roast the bird for his dinner alone.

  Time passed, and the troops begaurning to the camp. They staggered in from all dires, colpsing wherever they could find a spot, their bodies battered and worn from battle.

  The hunting had taken a toll on everyo wasn’t just a matter of stamina; it had draiheir energy and focus. Still, they had done well. Now, at least, they’d have some time to rest before the Dominion Skirmish began.

  Kurogasa leaned in slightly to Ats and murmured, “My Lord, we have a visitor.”

  Ats shifted his attention to where Kurogasa gestured.

  Walking toward their camp, he saw familiar figures — the man who had previously offered him a p their alliawo panions fnked him as they crossed the rough terrain.

  Even after all these days, they hadn’t left the isnd. It seemed their offer to Ats wasn’t something they po give up on so easily.

  The question now was, had they e with a better offer? Or was this their final attempt to sway him before he cut ties with them food?

  Ats exged a quice with Edrik and Kurogasa before stepping forward to meet the visitors.

  The three men approag weren’t ordinary batants. They carried themselves with the unmistakable authority of Rank-2 Lords.

  “Let’s see what they want this time,” he murmured as he approached.