Chapter Summaries

Hayata risked her life to protect the unconscious Pine from a Blue Velociprey until an armored hunter and his Palico rescued the caravan. As the survivors retreated, Hayata watched the hunter fight the Blue Velociprey King and longed for the strength to protect those she cherished.

• The Blue Velociprey attacked the caravan, killing two people and overpowering the travelers who tried to fight back.
• Pine led several companions against a Blue Velociprey, but a blow to his head knocked him unconscious as it prepared to bite his throat.
• Hayata emerged from hiding and stood between Pine and the monster, dodging its bite and striking its neck with a short sword.
• A horn-blowing Palico distracted the monsters while an armored hunter killed the two Blue Velociprey threatening the caravan.
• The hunter fought the Blue Velociprey King and ordered Porkchop to escort the caravan southeast as the survivors abandoned their cargo.
• Hayata watched the hunter battle the king and longed to gain the strength to protect those she loved.

Gordon fought the Blue Velociprey King while allowing it to summon reinforcements to draw them away from the retreating caravan. He finally clashed head-on with the King, leaving both badly wounded and the battle’s outcome uncertain.

• Gordon killed the Blue Velociprey reinforcements he had drawn to himself while keeping the caravan safe.
• Gordon stopped the Blue Velociprey King from summoning more companions and wounded its shoulder with the Buster Sword.
• The injured Blue Velociprey King awakened its fighting instincts and launched a powerful leaping attack at Gordon.
• Gordon met the attack with a three-stage Charged Slash, and the clash tore open his chest and injured his hands.
• The clash broke several of the Blue Velociprey King’s talons and severed two ligaments in its right foot, leaving both fighters badly wounded.

After drinking a Mega Potion, Gordon drove off the Blue Velociprey King, tracked and hunted it, and advanced to a two-star hunter. He then chose a two-star gathering quest to collect a Rathalos egg for a wealthy client.

• Gordon drank a Mega Potion, recovered much of his strength, and forced the Blue Velociprey King to flee into the forest.
• Gordon tracked the wounded monster through the Schrade Hills and defeated it, cutting off its crest as proof of the hunt.
• Porkchop returned after escorting the caravan, and he helped stitch Gordon's wound before they celebrated Gordon's promotion with Instructor.
• After winter ended, Gordon set aside the one-star requests and chose a two-star quest to gather a Rathalos egg in the Schrade Hills for a reward of 8800z.

Gordon and Porkchop cautiously traveled through the Schrade Hills to reach a Rathalos nest and steal an egg. They arrived at a rocky hill marked on Ernest’s map, with sulfur in the air confirming the nest was nearby.

• Gordon reviewed the annotated map Ernest had given him and recalled the dangers of taking a Rathalos egg quest.
• Gordon set out from the hidden Hunter's Camp with Porkchop, planning to avoid monsters and rely on the hunting cat’s sense of smell.
• Gordon and Porkchop crept through the forest, avoiding a Mushroom Pig so they would not make noise or leave a scent of blood.
• After nearly an hour, Gordon and Porkchop reached the rocky hill marked on the map and smelled sulfur near the wyvern nest.

Gordon and Porkchop infiltrated a wyvern nest hoping to take an egg, but the returning Rathian forced them to hide. Their attempt to sneak out woke her, leaving them trapped in the passage as she searched the nest.

• Gordon sent Porkchop to check the nest, and Porkchop reported that the Rathian was away and three eggs were inside.
• Gordon entered the nest and found the eggs, but Porkchop heard the Rathian returning before he could take one.
• Gordon smeared fire wyvern droppings on himself and Porkchop to mask their scent, and they hid in a passage.
• The Rathian returned, inspected the eggs, and settled down to sleep after dismissing the unfamiliar smell.
• Gordon and Porkchop tried to leave, but the Buster Sword scraped the ground and startled the Rathian awake.

Gordon and Porkchop waited for the Rathian to leave her nest, then stole a wyvern egg and fled toward camp. A Rathalos intercepted them at the riverbank, and Gordon’s egg shattered as he narrowly escaped its attack.

• The Rathian woke at dawn, warmed her eggs with ash, and flew away from the nest.
• Gordon drank Dash Juice, took the smallest egg, and ran through the forest with Porkchop.
• Gordon and Porkchop crossed several kilometers of mountain trails and reached the exposed riverbank near camp.
• Porkchop warned Gordon of an approaching threat, and Gordon threw the egg aside and dodged a diving attack.
• The egg broke on the riverbank, and Gordon recognized the enraged Flying Wyvern overhead as a Rathalos.

Gordon fought to escape the Rathalos and was badly wounded by its venom and fireballs. With Porkchop’s help, he reached the river and escaped into the current, leaving the furious Rathalos circling overhead.

• Gordon tried to reach the river, but the Rathalos blocked him and attacked with a fireball and a charge.
• The Rathalos struck Gordon’s back with its venomous talons, but Porkchop distracted the monster long enough for Gordon to take an antidote.
• Porkchop burrowed underground as Gordon used a Flash Bomb to stun the Rathalos and continued toward the river.
• The Rathalos fired a volley of fireballs, and one blast hurled Gordon to the riverbank and left him gravely weakened.
• Porkchop emerged from underground and dragged Gordon into the surging river while the Rathalos circled overhead.

After recovering from his near-fatal battle with a Rathalos, Gordon apologized for his recklessness and resolved to become stronger. The Instructor and the village chief summoned him to discuss his future, and the Instructor began explaining that Kokoto Village offered too few suitable quests.

• Gordon woke after several days with severe injuries and learned that Porkchop had saved him by calling nearby Felynes for help.
• Once he could walk, Gordon apologized to Porkchop and admitted his mistakes to the Instructor, while reaffirming that he would not give up hunting.
• After more than a month of recovery, Gordon finished rehabilitation and put on a new Alloy Armor Set made to replace his damaged Blue Velociprey Armor Set.
• Gordon went fully armored to the village chief’s home, where the Instructor and the chief told him they needed to discuss something important.
• The Instructor praised Gordon’s potential and explained that Kokoto Village’s lack of challenging quests had limited his opportunities.

After deciding to leave Kokoto Village to broaden his experience, Gordon chose Minegarde City as his first destination and prepared for the journey with Porkchop. The villagers gave them an emotional farewell, and Gordon promised to return once he was strong enough to defeat Rathalos.

• Ernest persuaded Gordon that Kokoto Village could not offer enough opportunities for him to keep growing, and Porkchop agreed to go wherever Gordon went.
• Gordon sold most of his collected furs and herbs, while Ernest warned him to manage his money carefully in the city.
• The Village Chief recommended Jumbo Village or Minegarde City, while the Instructor urged Gordon to go to Dondurma.
• Gordon and Porkchop ruled out Jumbo Village and chose Minegarde City as a familiar stepping stone before visiting Dondurma.
• The villagers gave Gordon and Porkchop gifts and said goodbye as they departed, and Gordon promised to return after becoming strong enough to kill Rathalos.

After surviving a monster attack, Hayata insisted on becoming a hunter despite her uncle Pine’s fears. Pine finally accepted her choice and took her to meet his old friend Amos, whom he hoped would train her.

• Hayata told Pine she still wanted to become a hunter, and he worried about the danger and her safety.
• Pine recalled how Hayata’s resolve had persisted for more than a month, even through being grounded, until he finally gave in.
• Pine rejected the Hunter’s Guild training camp and decided Hayata should learn through one-on-one mentorship.
• Pine chose his old friend Amos, a high-rank Long Sword hunter whose wiry build suited the kind of training Pine wanted for Hayata.
• Pine and Hayata set out early in the morning to visit Amos’s home.

Gordon and Porkchop arrived in Minegarde City after a ten-day journey, and Gordon reported to the Hunter Gathering Hall. There, he offended the hunter Oshura by calling her “ma’am” before another hunter teased her about their age difference.

• Pine brought Hayata to Amos's home so she could begin learning to hunt under him.
• Gordon and Porkchop traveled from Kokoto Village to Minegarde City with a merchant caravan.
• Gordon marveled at Minegarde's defenses, bustling streets, and the hunters' equipment as he made his way to the Hunter Gathering Hall.
• A female hunter pushed Gordon through the Gathering Hall doors and asked where he was from.
• Gordon introduced himself as a seventeen-year-old from Kokoto Village and called the hunter “ma’am,” offending her.
• A long-haired hunter laughed and teased Oshura that Gordon was nearly ten years younger than her.

Gordon arrived at Minegarde to stay for a while and joined its Hunter Gathering Hall with Oshura's help. After Oshura and receptionist Tiji began arguing, the hall's head, Vantikasya Mo Lagoma Tiratina, arrived and introduced herself to Gordon.

• Oshura learned that Gordon was a seventeen-year-old two-star hunter from Kokoto Village who planned to make Minegarde his base.
• Oshura led Gordon to the gathering hall counter and introduced him to the receptionist, Tiji.
• Tiji processed Gordon's Hunter's Notes and letter of introduction while Oshura warned him about her laziness and fondness for Felynes.
• Tiji called Oshura a gorilla woman, and Oshura lifted her over the counter as Gordon tried to shield Porkchop.
• Vantikasya Mo Lagoma Tiratina stopped the argument, apologized to Gordon, and introduced herself as the gathering hall's head.

Gordon met the Chairwoman in Minegarde and learned that the old village chief of Kokoto was the legendary Hero who founded the Hunter’s Guild. The story left Gordon hiding the fact that he had once pulled the Hero’s Sword from its pedestal as a child.

• The Chairwoman reviewed Gordon’s Hunter’s Notes and letter of introduction, then asked after the health of Kokoto’s village chief.
• When Gordon, Oshura, and Tiji failed to recognize the village chief’s importance, the Chairwoman explained that he was the legendary Hero.
• Amos joined them and recounted how the Hero slew a Monoblos and became the world’s first hunter.
• The Chairwoman described the Hero’s role in founding the Hunter’s Guild and the tragedy behind the four-hunter party limit.
• Amos recalled visiting Kokoto to see the Hero’s Sword, while Gordon concealed that he had pulled it from its pedestal as a child.

Gordon transferred his affiliation to the Minegarde Hunter Gathering Hall, received special permission to join certain three-star quests, and settled into a room there. The next morning, he decided to begin his new life in the city with a hunt.

• The Chairwoman welcomed Gordon to the Minegarde Hunter Gathering Hall and completed his transfer from Kokoto Village.
• Tiji marked Gordon’s Hunter’s Notes with a hollow star, allowing him to join three-star quests as part of a higher-ranked hunter’s party with the Chairwoman’s approval.
• Gordon rented a cheap room at the gathering hall and treated Tiji and Oshura to a meal.
• Gordon and Porkchop relaxed in the communal bathhouse before returning to their new room.
• After exercising and eating breakfast the next morning, Gordon decided to go hunting instead of sightseeing around Minegarde City.

Gordon visited the Minegarde Hunter Gathering Hall and accepted a two-star quest to slay twenty Shakalaka in Metabe Forest. There, he encountered Amos and his apprentice, who turned out to be Hayata, a girl Porkchop remembered from a caravan.

• Gordon met Tiji and Machi at the service counter and explained that he wanted an easy quest after spending over a month recovering from his Rathalos injuries.
• Gordon offered Tiji ten minutes with Porkchop in exchange for her choosing a suitable quest, and she selected a well-paid Shakalaka slaying quest.
• Gordon accepted the quest and let Tiji pet Porkchop, who protested as she held him.
• Amos arrived with his apprentice and asked Machi for a one- or two-star quest so the girl could experience combat.
• Porkchop recognized Amos's apprentice as Hayata, the girl from the caravan.

Hayata thanked Gordon for saving her caravan, and Amos offered to team up with him so Hayata could observe a hunt safely. Gordon agreed, and he and Hayata chatted while they waited to leave after lunch.

• Hayata recognized Gordon as the hunter who had saved her caravan and thanked him, while Amos introduced himself as her teacher and offered his gratitude.
• Amos invited Gordon to join a quest so Hayata could gain experience in the hunting grounds, promising Gordon the entire reward.
• Gordon accepted the team hunt, and Amos went to speak with the guildmaster before their planned departure after lunch.
• Gordon and Hayata chatted in the Tavern Area while Porkchop hid from Tiji, and Hayata learned Gordon was not yet an adult.
• Hayata tried lifting Gordon's Buster Sword, failed, and decided to follow Amos's advice to start with a Sword and Shield.

Amos delivered Xia Zuo’s report to the guildmaster and warned her about a dangerous omission in Gordon’s quest notice. After the guildmaster canceled the quest, Amos joined Gordon and Hayata for lunch and decided to offer Gordon further instruction.

• Amos told the guildmaster that Xia Zuo had returned badly injured after investigating Chameleos and explained that its poison mist could not be treated with an ordinary Antidote.
• The guildmaster explained that she had sent Xia Zuo to track the missing Chameleos for the Elder Dragon Observation Bureau, then agreed to let Amos focus on training his apprentice.
• Amos warned the guildmaster that Gordon’s two-star Shakalaka festival quest omitted the possibility of a nearly high-rank King Shakalaka appearing.
• The guildmaster canceled Gordon’s quest and promised to discipline the staff member who had rated it, while Amos said he had already joined it and would handle the King Shakalaka if necessary.
• Amos treated Gordon and Hayata to an extravagant lunch, admired their potential, and resolved to teach Gordon more.

Amos, Gordon, Hayata, and Porkchop traveled to Metabe Forest for a Shakalaka subjugation mission, with Gordon assigned as the main hunter. As the hunt began, Amos used Gordon’s fieldcraft to teach Hayata that hunting involved reading the environment as well as fighting monsters.

• On the journey, Amos explained elemental weapons and monster weaknesses to Hayata, including why elements benefited fast-attacking weapons more than Great Swords and Hammers.
• The group arrived at Metabe Forest and rested at camp, where Hayata endured her first hard, salty Rations and impressed Amos with her determination.
• Before setting out, Amos told Gordon he would lead the subjugation while Amos stayed back to protect Hayata, and he warned Gordon not to provoke too many Shakalakas at once.
• As they followed Gordon through the forest, Hayata asked about his inspection of the grass, and Amos explained that Gordon was judging the soil’s humidity and recent rainfall from the roots.

Gordon tracked freshly harvested mushrooms and Shakalaka footprints into the Metabe Forest, while Amos guided Hayata and Gordon toward Shakalaka territory. The chapter ended as two Shakalaka appeared and dodged Gordon’s opening Great Sword strike.

• Gordon found a patch of specialty mushrooms that had been cleanly harvested and identified fresh Shakalaka footprints nearby.
• Gordon followed a narrow trail deeper into the forest with Porkchop, while Amos and Hayata followed behind.
• Amos called a rest when Hayata grew exhausted, then warned the group that they had entered Shakalaka territory and might be watched.
• Amos sensed two Shakalaka approaching and retreated with Hayata as Gordon readied his Great Sword.
• Two Shakalaka leaped from the bushes and dodged Gordon’s downward slash, revealing themselves to Hayata.

Gordon defeated two Shakalakas, and Amos used the encounter to teach Hayata to face the sight of monster corpses. The group continued through the forest, where Amos prepared to demonstrate his technique against a second group of at least three Shakalakas.

• Gordon baited the Shakalakas into attacking, killed one with a rising slash, and defeated the other after a series of Great Sword strikes.
• Gordon searched the Shakalakas' travel bags but found only assorted rubbish.
• Amos brought the pale-faced Hayata to the corpses so she could get used to seeing them, then sent her aside to rest when she neared her limit.
• Amos told Gordon to look after Hayata and said he would demonstrate better technique against the next group of Shakalakas.
• The group set off with Amos leading, while Gordon and Porkchop protected Hayata and Gordon studied Amos's quiet footwork.
• Amos sensed at least three approaching figures, drew the White Ape Naginata [Extreme], and advanced toward five figures emerging from the forest.