It took a couple more minutes before the adrenaline that was coursing through Valen's veins finally ran out. And he noticed that Austin was already cleaning up his weapon… But also inspecting it, as it didn't escape the high-pressure jet from the monster unscathed. An impressive gash now marred the blade's flat, not that deep but still something that would be expensive to repair.

  "Ugh, it did a murder on my blade, explosive burst attacks I can deal with it fine by blocking the brunt of it, but a prolonged focused attack like that? It'll even damage a Lance shield." He sighed and stowed away the weapon on his back. "I'll have to go to the smithy once I'm back at Hart, thankfully I have some spare materials that'll be able to help fix."

  Valen nodded, he had inspected the axe part of his weapon more thoroughly and he had to admit he was lucky, a bit more damage and the internal mechanisms would have been impacted as well. "My weapon is wrecked as well, but since I was here for an upgrade anyway, it's not a big deal since it would have been reforged." He motioned towards the Plesioth carcass with his head. "I'm gonna start carving it up, can you flare the Felyne carriers in the meantime?"

  "I'll take care of it, take your cuts." He paused for a second. "I'm gonna accompany you back, then it's back to our ways. Nothing against you and I thank you for the save but… I just work better solo. Less distractions that way." He grunted. "Monsters ain't gonna die out themselves, and the more that can hunt solo, the more hunts can be done."

  Valen frowned, he didn't quite like the direction this conversation was going. Taking a moment carving up one of the Plesioth's fins to think about his reply, he answered. "Yeah, the more hunters that can hunt solo, the more settlements we can protect."

  Austin grunted, but stayed silent, probably having said everything he wanted to.

  It took a while for Valen to carve everything he needed, mostly the skin with the Plesioth's scales, but also the organs that were elementally infused, like the flood sac that was how it was able to store so much water relative to his body size. Cutting the claws out also took a while, and he had to take a few ribs and bones that would be the base of his new weapons. But in the end, what was left was a carcass that contained mostly muscle. They wouldn't be able to carry everything back to the town, so Valen took only what they could carry with a cart. The rest would be left to the scavengers to be reclaimed by the ecosystem.

  The Felynes arrived a while later at the top of the cliff and swiftly installed a pulley system so they could haul the materials and the hunters back up. Then they piled everything on the cart, and after a quick exchange, they set off back towards the town they left. The journey would take a few days but they would have to be careful while camping and journeying, the materials they were carrying would surely attract scavengers. For this reason, they had to take watches when they camped to sleep as well.

  Several days later, at midday, they found themselves at the gates of the town. After a quick chat with the guards manning it, the gates opened and they pulled the cart out, the Felynes helping them having scampered once they came in view of the town.

  Some people were walking in the street and offered congratulations to the pair of hunters bringing back their spoils. Valen responded with thanks, nodding his head, while Austin simply stayed silent and stoic.

  There weren't that many villagers about, but the few that they crossed were enough to improve Valen's mood and make him realize that Hunters were respected in general for the dangerous but crucial work of protecting the village. They arrived at the guild hall though and Valen stayed with the cart while Austin went to make the necessary steps to confirm the success of the hunt, as well as the report of the hunt. The guildmarm checked the cart, to confirm that it was indeed real Plesioth materials and not fakes or a mix of lower-ranked monsters. Then Valen filled out his part of the documents, and she thus gave both of them their prize, a lump sum of money to Austin, and the right to craft new gear along with the needed cash for it to Valen.

  Valen thanked the guildmarm for the money and the document she gave to him, and headed towards the local smith so he could deliver the required materials so he could get to work.

  It took a few minutes for the hunter to reach the blacksmith's workshop, but once he stopped in front of him, the man immediately stopped his hammering and looked at what disturbed his work, then he grinned.

  "Lad! So your hunt was a success eh?"

  Valen nodded. "Wasn't a solo hunt but I'm happy with how much I contributed to it. Kinda totaled my brand new weapon, but it was an emergency."

  The blacksmith frowned, especially when he saw the state of Valen's weapon once he handed it to him. "What kind of emergency caused this? Did you scrape it on a rock for a mile, that axe head is completely dull and scraped."

  "That… Is kinda what happened, I kinda used it to slow my fall after riding the Plesioth down the cliff." He embarrassingly said while rubbing his neck.

  "You youngsters and you crazy schemes… At least you knew you'd give it to me for reforge after this." He appraised it critically. "Sword part is fine though, so will reduce the work. And once it's upgraded, the same kind of maneuver would only barely dull it." Nodding to himself, he looked at Valen. "It's the full set right, both armor and weapon?"

  He nodded. "It is, give me some time to take it off. Oh, here is the document for the use of the materials."

  The blacksmith studied the document. "Hmm, looks like I have to push back my other work, yours is deemed a priority. Not sure why, but I ain't gonna be the one to complain to the guild. Gonna still take a couple of days, but I'll give it all into it!"

  "Don't you need my help for some parts of it though?"

  The blacksmith waved him away. "Bah, only talk for apprentice smiths, true professionals can do all the work themselves, and I am a professional damn it! Been doing that for twenty years!"

  Something nagged at him, but he dismissed it, he only remembered a few words from this part of his training, and his other weapons and armor were made the same way. So he nodded and left the smith to his work, going to look for something to do while waiting, a couple of days of patience not enough to allow him to visit Nikki. He couldn't wait for him to show her his new gear though, she seemed impatient for him to receive it for some reason.

  He however found a pair of hunters that were staying while waiting for their partners and offered to celebrate his hunt in the wait. Valen accepted, deciding that a bit of relaxation after his ordeal was welcome.

  A couple of days later, Valen went to the blacksmith, who had sent a runner to him that the work was complete. Said blacksmith immediately greeted him once he was inside. "Lad! Or should I say, Hunter Valen! It is complete, and I'm proud of it, it is definitely one of my better works!"

  Valen raised an eyebrow at this proclamation but followed the smith inside at his beckoning. They entered the workshop properly, and Valen immediately gasped.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  Propped on an armor stand, was the full suite of equipment made from the Plesioth materials he brought back. He examined the armor first, which was the same sea blue as the monster, some more specific parts of the monster could be seen, such as the fins or a couple of its teeth. Testing the strength, Valen was satisfied, it was definitely sturdier than the Royal Ludroth armor he was wearing before.

  Pulling out the helmet from the whole assemblage, he put it on his head and was satisfied that it didn't restrict his field of vision too much, the slits in it large enough. He placed back the helmet on the stand, he would do a full mobility test later.

  Turning his attention towards the Switch Axe this time, he gingerly took it in his hands, gone were the scars created by him slowing himself down, now the weapon looked brand new once again, and even more dangerous for his foes. Valen picked it up and immediately went into his stance, the triggers and levers in the correct place. He could also definitely see that the Axe head had been fully reforged from up close, now having more in common with the Plesioth than steel.

  A couple of swings and he was satisfied. He would test the phial functions later, when in a less cramped environment. Placing the weapon back in place he turned towards the smithy and said. "Thank you, it is masterful work indeed."

  He waved Valen away. "Just doing my job. Now, assure that you don't have to come back after ruining it, it is much less fun to repair weapons than it is to forge them!"

  Valen chuckled and looked towards his new equipment. Then he picked up both of them, removing the armor from its stand and placing the weapon on the harness. But before he could leave the workshop, the smithy hailed him.

  "Oh right, I had some extra material in the end, but I still treated them so it won't rot, you should probably pick it up and store it in the hall. You may never know, you might need it later!"

  The hunter nodded, it made sense. Then he walked away, shuffling awkwardly with his hands full and heavy. Still, he managed, and not long later he was inside the guild hall, which immediately became quieter once they noticed him, knowing that a hunter equipping a new gear was a solemn moment. The receptionist smiled and motioned him towards the back room so that he could be allowed to change.

  Once he was inside the room, he put down his load and placed his new weapon against the wall. Then he started to fully gear up, which took him a few minutes to work out the new buckles, but he managed, he did study plans of Plesioth armor while he was waiting for it to be forged.

  When he had finally everything equipped, and his weapon hanging on his back, he examined himself in the mirror, and nodded, he definitely looked fearsome in that armor. Rotating his limbs, and his waist, he was satisfied, the armor did not impede his movement more than the basic one did, which was good enough.

  Taking a deep breath, he opened the door and exited the room, to a hush. Then finally applause resounded throughout the hall, the few hunters present congratulating him on his new gear. One, who even had a Rathalos armor shouted to him: "Now you're in the big boy court! YES, Plesioth qualifies as far as I am concerned." He said when one of his friends protested next to him. "Have you ever been the target of a hipcheck? He fucking have! That is enough for me."

  The cheers continued for a while, everybody seeming to want to offer him congratulations or wishes of good luck in future hunts. But eventually, it died down, hunters finally had to leave for their tasks while others were just here in passing and returned on the road. Valen decided to have a quiet afternoon before he would get into bed, but that was before Austin finally exited the shadowy corner he was in and motioned Valen to follow him.

  Surprised, he followed him still, and once inside Austin's room, the latter locked the door up and said. "I have been informed by the guild that you have to go to Harth as soon as you are able. They only told me it was to give you your new assignment. The tone of the message I received didn't leave anything up for discussion. How soon are you able to leave?"

  Taken aback, Valen took a moment to think before answering: "Tomorrow morning, should that be enough?"

  "Good enough, I don't need to accompany you, and I know you can take care of yourself anyway. Don't disappoint me and get yourself killed. Now get out."

  Kind of surprised by the abrupt end, he took a couple of moments before exiting the room, but then headed towards his own room, he started packing everything up, everything that he didn't really need in a hunt, he had left in the room, but now he made sure he left the room as clean as he found it when he arrived. And several minutes later, he had his backpack full to the brim, that he equipped over his weapon. It made him carry a heavy load on his back, but he also had way worse during training.

  Then he did a quick final trip to the blacksmith, to grab the spare materials in a bag the smith prepared for him, and after consulting his map, headed towards Harth, which was a journey of several days… But not before a quick visit to see Nikki.

  Nikki was indeed happy to see him, however he managed to convey to her that he couldn't stay. "Me, required, guild." He told her. She huffed at that, then studied the armor he was now donned in. She turned around him, studying him in every detail, then nosed at the weapon stowed on his back but mostly hidden by the backpack, so Valen put down the bulky bag and unsheathed the weapon, touching it with her nose, she seemed to close her eyes and enter a small trance, before she pulled away sharply. Then she looked at him, a calculating look in her eyes, and huffed. Then she signed:

  "Good, strong." She said while tapping the weapon with a claw. "You, worthy."

  Then she pulled away and after a last look at Valen, took off. The hunter was puzzled by the end of the interaction, he didn't know what Nikki did, and the fact she left immediately meant at least that she didn't want to delay him further… He shrugged though, he was sure he'd never completely understand her mindset, she wasn't human after all. So he put back the Switch Axe on the harness, picked up the backpack, and set off towards Hart, for real this time.

  Harth was for sure a mining village, populated mostly by Troverians, being that Valen would qualify as "Workaholics", that always tried to find ways to do more mining than they should. But the important part was that a guild headquarters was located in the city, the defensible place and access to mining making it a trade center.

  Most of the trade caravans that existed on the continent passed by Harth at one point of their route, as the quality of mined ore sold in Harth was without equal, the active volcano nearby expelling quality minerals constantly. It was also heavily suggested to drink a cold drink while in the city, due to the proximity of lava flow. Troverians withstood the heat without issues but passing or living Wyverians, Humans, or Felyne need to drink a special version of cold drinks sold at the city's entrance. Or to wear appropriate equipment that cooled the wearer down.

  Valen had of course purchased and drank the necessary cold drink, and upon presenting his ID, was immediately directed towards the headquarters, as the guards received special instructions about Valen.

  This worried a bit the hunter, as it showed something was odd with the whole situation, but he complied still and headed towards the headquarters.

  The headquarters were the biggest building in the town, towering above the rest of them and reinforced with monster bone. Valen could see several Felyne carrying missives in and out of the building, and also what seemed to be an airship platform at the top. It was a symbol of how powerful the guild's influence was in the big towns. Thus he took a deep breath and entered the building.

  When entering the building, he was immediately hailed by the guildmarm, who asked to see his ID. Upon producing him, she nodded and said. "I had been asked to look out for you, give me a moment before I inform the relevant parties." Then she wrote a quick note and passed it to a Felyne, who excitedly took it and dashed upstairs.

  Not long after, a Guild Knight commander descended the stairs with the note, and upon seeing Valen, nodded to the guildmarm and motioned Valen to follow him. Knowing not to disobey a commander's order, he obliged.

  They walked several floors up until they reached the office of the commander, which was comfortable but not in excess. Taking the seat that was offered to him, he also removed his helmet to be polite, and then the Commander explained to him:

  "Before you had even returned… We have received a report of the possible desertion of your post. However, given the circumstances, we were willing not to take harsh action should you return and your reasons were valid. Once you gave your full report, we classified the matter as a panic decision made in a moment of great pressure."

  "I do assure you, that should you know the full reason I panicked, you'd be hard pressed to not do the same. It is still the biggest regret of mine… Letting Flynn die like he did by causing him to focus on me instead of the real threat…"

  "Then… You should tell him that. Yourself." The Commander said while nodding at the door.

  Valen immediately looked behind himself, and there, at the doorstep, in a wheelchair, was Flynn.