Hunt Failed

That heavy blow left the Horned Dragon unable to recover for quite a while. The Dragon Person Hunter nimbly leaped down from its head.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, the hunters lying in ambush nearby revealed themselves one after another.

The Light Bowgun Users, heavy bowgun users, and archers provided ranged suppression, while the remaining hunters threw out prepared ropes to ensnare the Horned Dragon from every direction.

The other ends of these specially made ropes were tied to wooden stakes nearly a meter long.

The hunters who had long been prepared swung their hammers, driving the stakes into the ground with only a few blows.

Sensing immense danger, the Horned Dragon struggled frantically. Unfortunately, this was a carefully planned hunt, and it would not be allowed to escape so easily.

The purpose this time was to capture it alive and bring it back as a substitute for the failed Elder Dragon investigation.

That was right. This Elder Dragon investigation plan had ultimately failed.

The Investigation Team had overestimated their own strength and underestimated the density of monsters in the New World.

From the first day they arrived at the Great Antlion Desert, they suffered an average of three attacks by large monsters every day. During the scattered intervals between them, they were also harassed by small pack-dwelling creatures.

As the Investigation Team pushed deeper into the Great Antlion Desert, their supplies began to run short. They had become completely surrounded by monsters, isolated and without aid.

Nature once again showed the hunters its cruel side.

Day or night, all manner of creatures constantly attacked them. Their dwindling supplies, the wounded produced in battle after battle, the lack of water sources and food, and their long-strained nerves—each weighed on everyone's hearts like a massive boulder.

Moreover, they were tracking the Unknown Ancient Dragon this time, which inevitably meant entering many complicated environments and intruding into the territories of numerous powerful creatures.

Even with three powerful leaders—the Great Leader, the Sword Master, and the Dragon Person Hunter—two fists could not beat four hands, much less against colossal beasts surviving in the barrenness of the desert.

Even someone as powerful as the Sword Master had been injured in one battle and had yet to fully recover.

Greatly slowed by the environment, the Investigation Team eventually lost track of the Unknown Ancient Dragon. Left with no choice, they collected some of the Elder Dragon's remnants and searched everywhere unwillingly, hoping there might still be another chance.

After being stationed in this area for quite some time, the Great Leader and the others finally accepted reality and could only reluctantly declare their mission a failure.

In the end, to give everyone an explanation and to gain something after consuming so many supplies,

at the scholars' suggestion, the Investigation Team set its sights on the ruler of this region: a Horned Dragon in the prime of its life.

In order to obtain the greatest amount of information possible, the ultimate goal of this hunt was to capture it alive.

A living Horned Dragon could provide far more information than a dead one.

Once they confirmed that the Horned Dragon was indeed bound, a scholar carrying paralysis bombs rushed forward, intending to throw the prepared bombs at the still-struggling Horned Dragon's face.

"Come back! Everyone, come back!!"

A short-haired woman keenly sensed something unusual beneath her feet. She swiftly drew a homemade hand crossbow and shouted at the scholars running ahead.

Without the slightest hesitation, despite already nearing their target, the scholars still trusted this woman without reservation. For no other reason than that she was the sole disciple of the Dragon Person Hunter, the legendary figure who had disappeared fifteen years ago and was renowned as a solitary adventurer; an absolute elite specially invited by the Hunter's Guild, and a veteran explorer bearing the title of Wilderness Master!

Her judgment could not possibly be wrong!

The hunters who had also heard the Wilderness Master's shout immediately became alert as well. At her warning, they began watching for abnormalities in the ground beneath their feet.

The Great Leader, who had just pulled himself down from the Great Antlion mound, immediately spotted the disturbed area due to his position as soon as he landed.

"Everyone retreat! Something big is coming!"

Everyone quickly moved away from the Horned Dragon. Less than two seconds later, the ground began to shake, and sand flowed toward the low-lying areas.

Then, an even larger Horned Dragon burst from underground with a flap of its wings. Its tail club, seeming to weigh a thousand pounds, smashed away the wooden stakes fixed into the rocks along with the rocks themselves.

Its violent eyes swept over the hunters preparing to surround it before it let out a deafening roar. The caught-off-guard hunters covered their ears, pained expressions appearing on their faces.

This Horned Dragon had no intention of fighting. While the hunters were still affected by its roar, it quickly began burrowing with the previously restrained Horned Dragon and vanished underground beneath the cover of the shifting sand.

The recovered hunters looked at one another. Their hunt plan of so many days had been ruined by a Horned Dragon that had not been in the intelligence.

Everyone felt somewhat dejected, but all present were seasoned hunters. This was not the first time a hunt had failed due to some new uncontrollable factor. Without anyone needing to comfort them, they quickly steadied themselves and waited for the Great Leader's further instructions.

"Seriously! There was actually another Horned Dragon that huge. What a headache~"

The Great Leader casually picked up the greatshield that had been knocked away earlier and rubbed his aching shoulder.

"Let's leave it at that for now! Let's head back to camp and rest."

There was no rallying speech and no summary, yet his bright, slightly frustrated manner relaxed everyone. They teased each other as they packed up their things and headed toward camp.

It was only one failed hunt, and no one had been hurt. There was no reason to make a fuss over it.

At night, the starry sky over the Great Antlion Desert was especially brilliant.

Beside the campfire at the center of camp, the Great Leader took a huge gulp of water, accepted a large plate of stew offered by a logistics Felyne, blew on it, and began eating in big mouthfuls.

"Whew~ Amazing! Aunt Cat's stew still tastes as good as ever!"

"Hey, Xita, didn't you say you wanted to find time to become Aunt Cat's apprentice and learn its cooking? Why haven't you made any progress after all this time?"

The Great Leader's Felyne coolly raised a brow at the teasing Great Leader and kept blowing hard on the meat broth in its bowl.

It had already become an apprentice. It just had not officially begun learning yet!

Its master's stew was delicious, but it was simply too hot. It was not at all friendly to cats!

"Sigh! You little rascal!"

The Great Leader laughed heartily. He knew his companion Felyne's personality well, and he liked its quiet, efficient manner.

"Great Leader, today's supply statistics are out. They don't look too optimistic."

A gentle-looking man wearing gold-rimmed monocle glasses approached the campfire with a report sheet in hand. Even covered in dust from the journey, he still appeared remarkably mild-mannered.