Nightmist and the others exchanged glances.
Isis's idea was somewhat crude, but it had the virtue of being direct.
The Small Monsters were continuously gathering around Shen Gaoren. Wiping them all out would be impossible, but even eliminating a portion of them would undoubtedly make a difference.
A hundred Ioprey charging into town would naturally cause far more damage than thirty or fifty.
There was no time to worry about the ecological balance. In an emergency, human lives came first.
Even the Professor, despite being a scholar, raised no objection. Instead, he offered a suggestion. "If you find an Iodrome, take it down first. Without their leader to command them, the scattered Ioprey will pose far less of a threat."
"We can deal with ground-dwelling Small Monsters like Ioprey, but what about flying ones like Remobra?" Griffin asked, still frowning deeply.
"Remobra may be dangerous, but they cannot attack civilians inside an underground refuge. The real danger is a pack of Ioprey tearing open the entrance, forcing the civilians to scatter, only for the Remobra to chase them down or cut off their escape. Once we eliminate the Ioprey pack, we can deal with the Remobra afterward," the Professor continued.
"Then there is no reason to hesitate," Nightmist said with a slight nod. "Arrange for people to head there as soon as possible. We can transport them by Airship. Otherwise, a round trip of one or two hundred kilometers would take several days."
The Professor quickly warned them, "Be careful. The Airship cannot land near Shen Gaoren. There are too many Remobra, and they would bring it down."
Nightmist immediately amended the order. "Then have the Airship land ten to twenty kilometers away from Shen Gaoren. They can cover the final stretch on foot."
The plan won everyone's approval.
"I can ride Hibiki and get there ahead of them!" Isis sprang eagerly to her feet and scratched the Stinkmink beneath the chin as it lay on her shoulder. "I can also find a way to gather all those Ioprey in one place first, making them easier to hunt!"
Nymera stared blankly at Isis for a moment. Her Palamute was fast becoming the entire squad's shared means of transportation.
"That settles it." Nightmist swept her gaze over the Hunters. "Which of you are this Gunlance user's companions?"
Several Hunters from the Tidal Island advance team raised their hands.
Nightmist nodded in satisfaction. "The targets may only be Small Monsters, but their total numbers could be staggering. You will also be fighting near an Elder Dragon-level creature, so for safety's sake, I will have you 5★ Hunters make the trip. Both Gunners, bring plenty of Ammo and eliminate as many of those Small Monsters as possible."
Altaïr, Nymera, and Morgan rose one after another.
The three of them would take large quantities of Ammo and supplies aboard the Airship and head toward the target area, while Isis would ride Hibiki ahead of them and find a way to gather the Ioprey together.
Seeing Isis so eager to begin, Altaïr found himself wondering whether she might wipe out every last Ioprey before the three of them even arrived...
"I'm leaving now!" Isis made to dash out the door, but Nightmist called her back, a trace of helplessness showing beneath her impassive expression.
"A few hours will make no difference. Get a good night's sleep and leave in the morning."
—--
The sky had barely begun to lighten when Isis set out astride Hibiki.
For once, she was truly traveling light. She had brought very little food or water, knowing her companions would deliver more supplies later.
Apart from the antidotes she would need against Remobra and Ioprey, she had packed only some extra Gunlance shells, leaving Hibiki well below his carrying capacity.
Clawdia naturally went with her.
Clawdia's combat techniques would be of little use against a colossal Monster like Shen Gaoren. This time, however, their targets were Ioprey, Small Monsters with weak defenses and little vitality.
She could take on twenty of them at once!
Brimming with confidence, Clawdia sat behind Isis and honed her steel claws again and again, planning how best to tear open those Monsters' throats and show Isis the results of her training with the Meowcenaries.
"Mrrp~"
A furry little head poked out of the saddlebag. The next instant, a white blur darted onto Clawdia's back and clung to her like a cloak.
Clawdia's entire face scrunched up.
For some reason, Rice Cake seemed to prefer clinging to her rather than Isis...
She desperately wanted to peel the little pest off, but then it would only scramble pitifully onto Isis instead... Clawdia endured it.
The northern ElDe Region was flat and largely unbroken by rivers or lakes, making it the perfect running ground for a Palamute.
Before the morning was out, they had covered nearly two hundred kilometers and reached the outskirts of the Latio volcanic mountain range.
As they drew closer to the volcano, the surrounding landscape grew increasingly barren and the temperature continued to rise.
It was not yet hot enough to roast someone alive, as the deepest reaches of the volcano could, but sweat was already beading on their foreheads.
Isis patted Hibiki's neck to signal him to slow down, then sat upright and took out the map to confirm their position.
If the position reported by the Elder Dragon Observation Team and the route inferred by the Professor were both accurate, they should not be far from the slow-moving Shen Gaoren.
"Look over there, meow!" Clawdia tapped Isis twice on the back and pointed toward the distant sky.
Beneath the clouds of ash raised by the volcano's frequent eruptions, faint black dots circled and hovered like a flock of birds.
Isis narrowed her eyes, then pulled out her binoculars and peered in that direction.
She soon identified the black dots. "Those are Remobra! Shen Gaoren should be right beneath them!
"You two, get ready to fight. Hibiki, let's go!"
"Rrruff!" Hibiki gave a low bark, drove all four paws against the ground, and accelerated toward the mountain range where the Remobra circled.
The Latio volcanic mountain range was infamous for its unstable geology.
As they ventured deeper, acrid-smelling hot springs, magma-filled fissures, and sluggish rivers of lava appeared all around them.
The temperature soared at an alarming rate.
To keep herself in fighting condition, Isis pulled out a Cold Drink and gulped it down beneath her heavy armor.
The bitter, icy liquid slid into her stomach. Isis breathed out a long stream of hot air and immediately felt refreshed.
"Boom!" A small volcano no more than two or three kilometers away erupted.
Massive chunks of lava shot into the sky and became a beautiful but deadly rain of fire. The ground shook violently, triggering a minor earthquake.
Isis raised her shield against the falling sparks and debris. Volcanic ash poured down, obscuring everything around them as though a dense fog had descended.
Just then, she sensed an unusual disturbance.
It was neither the roar of the eruption nor the tremor of the earthquake.
"Thump!"
"Did you hear that?" Isis shouted.
"I did, meow!" Clawdia shouted back from directly behind her. "It's coming from the valley ahead, meow!"
Isis instinctively jumped down from Hibiki. Clawdia and Rice Cake followed close behind. The more timid Rice Cake wrapped itself tightly around Clawdia and shivered uncontrollably.
"Thump... Thump...!"
The dull, slow, steady booms drew closer and closer.
A shadow so immense that the word "creature" hardly seemed to apply slowly emerged from the volcanic haze.
The Hunter, Palamute, Felyne, and Stinkmink all froze. Isis craned her neck higher and higher until she finally managed to bring the moving mountain into view.
"Thump!"
Another deafening impact rang out as a colossal leg, as thick and sturdy as an ancient tree, slammed down only a few meters away.
The tremendous impact drove the airborne dust outward in a visible shock wave.
With her solid stance and her armor's Tremor Resistance, Isis managed to keep her footing.
Clawdia, however, had Rice Cake wrapped so tightly around her that she could not brace herself in time. The violent tremor bounced her off the ground, making her hop comically in place.
Those were merely the creature's footsteps.
"Gyaaaah!"
"Kree-gah!"
Shrill, piercing cries came from ahead. One vicious crimson Monster after another emerged from the depths of the haze, broke into a sprint, and charged the "prey" before them.
Isis snapped out of the awe inspired by the mountain-like lifeform. As the pack of Ioprey lunged at her, she whipped her Gunlance around and reloaded it in one hard motion.
Clawdia moved to her side and unsheathed her steel claws.
Hibiki circled around Isis, urging her to mount at once. The Ioprey could never keep up with him.
A feverish grin, rare for Isis, spread across her face. "Give me a moment," she said. "Let's thin them out first!"
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5 Bonus chaps for every 100 powerstones