After the Bazelgeuse fell, the whole area seemed to sink into a brief deathly silence. Only unextinguished embers remained, emitting a bitter scent of scorched earth and sulfur.
"This isn't the normal smell of lava." Vos crouched and sniffed the ashes, his brow furrowed. "Teostra... it's still nearby..."
"You can smell it?" Leon glanced at Vos while repairing his Clutch Claw.
"After fighting them for over a decade, you pick up a few things." Vos grinned, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.
Dumpling and Biscuit were jumping around the Bazelgeuse carcass, gathering materials—
Bazelgeuse Tail, Bazelgeuse Hardened Shell, Bazelgeuse Scale+, Bazelgeuse Talon...
But the materials clearly showed signs of trouble, especially those strange red flying insects that darted out from time to time.
Qurio...
'Why would Qurio appear in the New World?'
Leon's brow furrowed. He tried to catch one, but they all vanished once the Bazelgeuse was dead.
As a hunter born in the New World, Vos naturally didn't recognize the Qurio or the threat they posed.
Qurio absorb the essence of monsters and inject a virus, causing them to go berserk and eventually lose control.
If this really was the work of the Qurio, there had to be an even more dangerous monster lurking in the shadows...
'Was it Gaismagorm or Malzeno?'
"This dragon... something's not right, meow..." Biscuit stopped and pricked up his ears. "Its blood seems mixed with some kind of foreign energy, like it's been... contaminated, meow?"
Hearing this, Leon's pupils shrank.
Because that was exactly the influence of the Qurio.
'Eerie...'
The New World seemed to be heading toward a plot Leon didn't recognize. Logically, once Ramsey hunted Xeno'jiiva and Shara Ishvalda, the story should have ended...
Suddenly, a dragon's roar interrupted Leon's thoughts.
He slowly stood up and looked toward the abyssal rift that was constantly spewing black flames.
There was no point in overthinking now. He could only follow the mission's instructions and find Nergigante first.
"Let's go," Leon said. "We didn't come here just for one Bazelgeuse."
Vos made a quick fix to his heavy shield and nodded. "We still have six days to find Nergigante."
"Yeah," Leon said coldly. "I just heard its cry coming from the deep canyon."
"Getting close to that rift isn't a good idea, meow..." Dumpling bit his paw. "Teostra and Lunastra are Elder Dragons. They might be in there!"
"We won't provoke them," Leon said with determination. "We're just going in to scout and find Nergigante."
Dumpling worried, "What if they find us, meow? It's terrifying, meow..."
"Then we run," Vos shrugged. "Two of us and two cats—we won't die that easily, right?"
Dumpling: "...Meow."
Dozens of minutes later.
The two men and two cats quietly approached the rift.
The crystals beneath their feet gradually turned glowing red, and in some areas, magma began to seep through the cracks. The searing wind sliced across their cheeks like blades.
"Damn, even the air is scalding," Vos cursed under his breath, taking a Cool Drink.
Dumpling and Biscuit followed suit, while Leon remained silent, searching for any clues in the surroundings.
Rumble—!
Just as they reached the cliff top, the entire rift shook violently, and a massive figure slowly stepped out from the flames.
It was a kingly dragon, entirely crimson with a mane burning like fire, and two large horns atop its head.
Every step it took caused the ground to burn and crack. A flick of its tail shattered crystal pillars into dust.
The crown-like mane of flames spread out, radiating an aura of destruction through the heatwaves.
Teostra, the Emperor of Flame, had appeared!
"Hiss..." Vos took a sharp breath. "This guy is a real messenger from hell. The pressure is insane..."
Teostra didn't notice them, as if it didn't even care about the four tiny creatures.
It paced slowly toward the center of the rift.
Then—
It spread its wings and roared at the heavens!
In an instant, the temperature in the area spiked.
The scorching wind seemed to solidify into a wall of flame, searing every inch of their skin and nerves.
Leon watched Teostra's movements closely, but a sense of foreboding grew in his heart.
This Elder Dragon... something was wrong.
Normally, even if Teostra lived in the Elder's Recess, it wouldn't release such intense pressure.
It felt more like it was... declaring its territory?
Or driving away an enemy?
"What's it roaring about?" Vos whispered, leaning against a rock wall as sweat dripped from his forehead.
"A warning," Leon replied quietly. "Warning nearby creatures not to approach its domain..."
Dumpling peeked out and whispered, "Does that mean... Nergigante might be nearby, meow?"
Leon didn't answer, only tightening his fists as a flash of resolve appeared in his eyes.
Next, Teostra suddenly unfurled its wings and took flight, whipping up a searing blast of air.
"Retreat!" Leon barked.
Everyone immediately pulled back, with Dumpling and Biscuit nimbly leaping into the crystal crevices and holding their breath.
Teostra flapped its wings and flew out of the rift.
"Is it gone?" Vos peered out.
"No," Leon's eyes were complicated. "It's likely... going to hunt..."
Vos scratched his head. "You mean it sensed a dangerous aura and chose to face it head-on?"
"Perhaps."
"Then should we...?"
"Follow it."
Ten minutes later, they arrived at the other side of the rift.
New marks appeared on the ground—
Charred footprints in irregular shapes.
"These aren't Teostra's..." Vos crouched to inspect them, his brow furrowing.
"Nergigante," Leon confirmed.
They looked ahead to a low-lying lava basin surrounded by towering crystal pillars and rock walls, resembling a natural arena.
In the center of the basin, a dragon—pitch black as if cast from iron slag, with sharp bone spikes on its back—slowly raised its head. Two large horns sat atop its brow.
Its eyes were devoid of any emotion.
"Nergigante."
And Teostra, circling high above, finally spotted this walker of death.
"ROOOOAR!!!!!"
The two Elder Dragons finally faced off.
The battle was about to erupt!
"What do we do now?" Vos swallowed hard, his back soaked with sweat. "Should we sneak in for a surprise attack while they're fighting?"
Leon didn't answer immediately. He looked at those hollow eyes and suddenly spoke: "No... Nergigante's state is wrong. It..."
In the next second, Nergigante threw its head back and roared, a black whirlwind exploding outward.
Looking closer, red dots were actually writhing on its body.
"Qurio!" Leon cried out. "This Elder Dragon... is infected too?!"
"What does that mean?" Vos asked, confused.
Simultaneously, Nergigante lunged with a distorted, unbearable shriek, pouncing toward the Teostra in the sky.
The slaughter between two Elder Dragons...
Was about to break out before their eyes!