"My apologies, Miss Sophia, your threats and cajoling mean nothing to me."
The silhouette, illuminated by moonlight, advanced again.
"I suggest you look behind you first."
Sophia's voice turned cold.
"Your actions are unforgivable, these petty tricks are useless."
As the top enforcer of the guild's Night faction, Longyin felt no pressure facing Sophia, who was not skilled in combat.
But as soon as he spoke, rows of shadows stretched to Longyin's feet, cast by the moonlight.
He turned his head and found a large group of people, clad in robes and wearing wide hoods, surrounding the doll shop's display window.
"While I cannot summon the Black Dragon to burn the world, three prophecies have already come true, making it easy to convince people it will arrive. Or, perhaps, linking the Black Dragon's descent with my death. Often, despair itself is less terrifying than the prospect of it. If you can make a decision for the guild, then proceed."
After Sophia finished speaking, silence fell within the shop.
"Send my regards to Zuda and the Guild Master. I won't see you out."
*Jingle!* The door of the Monster Doll Shop was pushed open.
The gathered Dragon-Worshippers retreated to the sides, clearing a path for the blurred figure in the moonlight.
"Phew~ That was close. Without the protection of that charm, trouble has certainly increased. After my identity was exposed, we probably can't meet again, can we?"
Sophia's shoulder sagged.
On the Ignis, the Golden Hall culinary team prepared the evening banquet with a juggling act.
The four members of the Cat Treasure Hunting Squad, armed with knives and forks, sang their team song at the dining table, awaiting their meal.
Dielu and Parchi hung a cage of insects, containing Thunderbugs, from the mast and air bladder as decoration.
The guild had not announced the exact time for the celebration, but with the overall festive atmosphere in East Dondruma, the squad, like the public, spontaneously began their own festivities.
Overlooking from the bow, even amidst the ruined city, lights flickered.
"Li Fan... can I have a little drink, meow?"
At the dining table, Parchi tentatively asked.
"No."
Li Fan stated firmly.
"Okay, meow..."
Parchi's ears drooped.
"A little is not enough, you must drink heartily!"
"Huh? Alright, meow!"
Parchi hurried into the cabin and soon emerged with Dielu, carrying a large wine barrel.
"Strange, where did Eudora go?"
As his cup was filled, Li Fan curiously inquired.
"She said she had some matters to attend to at the guild, meow."
Dielu informed him.
"She wasn't at the dining table during dinner..."
Li Fan's expression grew serious, sensing that the matter was far from ordinary.
Guild Headquarters, Fourth Floor, Treatment Room.
With a cough, Gu Xing, who had just woken up, sat up abruptly from the sickbed.
An Felyne in full Arzuros armor rushed to the bedside.
"Eli, what's the situation outside?"
Feeling the mask still on his face, Gu Xing felt a considerable sense of relief.
"All crises have been resolved, meow. The entire city is spontaneously celebrating."
Eli said, looking out the window at the fireworks exploding continuously.
"Is Eudora alright?"
Upon hearing this question, Eli's ears shot up.
"What's wrong! Is she also seriously injured?"
Gu Xing asked anxiously.
Eli turned his head and pointed a paw towards the ceiling.
Gu Xing looked up and saw Eudora floating upside down at the top of the infirmary.
After a moment of eye contact, Gu Xing lowered his head and said, "The Guild Master went alone to confront Lao Shan Long. Her condition must be very poor. I need to go and visit her."
"Don't move!"
Eudora's shout made Gu Xing tremble.
His legs, which had just been lowered from the bed, quickly retracted.
"Do you know how much your mother and I have been looking forward to your return!"
Eudora's voice was both angry and somewhat helpless.
"Eudora, please let me explain..."
"I don't want to hear it!"
"Actually... your mother knows too."
Gu Xing hesitated before revealing this.
*Drip... drip...*
Tears fell onto the Hannya mask. Gu Xing still wanted to explain, but before he could speak, Eudora let out a sharp cry and then flew out the window.
Not long after, Eudora returned to the Ignis.
Facing the lively celebration feast, her face was icy as she sat at the dining table, eating roasted meat and drinking heavily.
Li Fan and Dielu exchanged curious glances, both feeling the other might know something, but neither knew what was troubling Eudora.
"Another cup, meow... *hic*..."
Late at night, as Parchi slumped onto the dining table, all the cats and Eudora were drunk.
Only Li Fan and Dielu, still sober, dragged them into the cabin to settle them in.
"Take me to the helm, I want to set sail, meow."
"Firi, setting sail now is drunk driving, it's very serious."
"Then... I won't set sail, meow."
Firi said, his head tilting as he fell asleep.
Li Fan covered him with a small blanket and turned off the lights before leaving.
"Master! Tigrex is dangerous, don't go, meow."
Parchi mumbled.
"Chacha has joined, so it won't be dangerous, meow."
Dielu, carrying Parchi towards his room, said, looking back.
"Then where did Master go, meow?"
"Uh, I don't know, meow."
"Will he disappear forever, meow?"
Hearing this question, Dielu paused.
After settling the Felynes, Dielu passed by Li Fan's room. Seeing the door open but no one inside, he went onto the deck.
Seeing Li Fan sitting on a cargo crate, gazing at the deep night sky, Dielu sat down beside him.
"Go rest, Dielu. I'll take the watch tonight."
In the past, with the Ignis docked in the port, there would be no need to worry about security.
But currently, the Ignis was the only airship in the port, and its lighting system had been damaged and was out of order.
In the dark and empty environment, being within it truly lacked a sense of security.
"Li Fan... will you suddenly disappear, meow?"
Dielu asked tentatively in a low voice.
"Of course not."
"What if you did, meow?"
"Impossible, how could a living person disappear... Well, there's still a chance."
Li Fan said helplessly.
"Is there any way to find you back, meow?"
"That..."
Li Fan hesitated.
"It seems there's no way, meow..."
Dielu's ears drooped.
"If that time ever comes, you can try shouting my name. Perhaps if you hear your voice, I can find my way back."
Li Fan told him.
"That would work, meow?"
Dielu found it hard to believe.
"The names of all the disappeared hunters have been forgotten. This feels very unusual. Do you remember when I was influenced by some strange power? You kept calling Sophia's name, which made me acknowledge her existence. At that moment, Sophia's image, which had been ignored, immediately became clear in my mind."
Li Fan explained.
"Acknowledge existence... Okay, meow!"
Dielu's thoughts immediately opened up.
The sun and moon rotated, and East Dondruma welcomed the dawn.
"I'm the mailman, meow. Is this the Ignis, carrying the Chief Hunter's squad?"
On the sky bridge, a Felyne wearing a mailman's hat called out to inquire.
"That's right."
Li Fan replied.
"Great! There's an anonymous package for Chief Hunter Li Fan to receive, meow."
The Felyne said, pulling a box from his backpack.
"Anonymous package? It's not cash on delivery, is it?"
Li Fan muttered as he walked to the railing.
"Sorry, only Chief Hunter Li Fan can receive it, meow."
The Felyne informed him.
"That's me."
"You, meow..."
The mailman Felyne looked at Li Fan, who was wearing bear pajamas, and was momentarily unable to accept it.
"Rumor has it that Li Fan's neck is crooked, meow."
"Is that so?"
Li Fan said, skillfully tilting his neck.
"It's you! Please sign for it!"
Li Fan took the box and a quill to sign the receipt.
"Um... can you sign my clothes, meow?"
The mailman Felyne tentatively asked.
"Sure."
*Swish* The mailman Felyne quickly turned around, presenting the back of his vest to Li Fan.
"Great! Yahoo!"
"Be careful, don't fall."
"Thanks for the reminder, meow!"
Watching the mailman Felyne excitedly dancing on the sky bridge, Li Fan couldn't help but remind him.
Who would send me a delivery, and an anonymous one at that.
Li Fan curiously sat on a cargo crate and began to unpack.
Upon opening it, he found a frog plush keychain.
It's her. In this situation, shouldn't she be planning her escape first? She's too punctual.
Li Fan lifted the frog plush keychain and suddenly noticed the weight was clearly off. He reached into the bag.
Touching the smooth surface of the rectangular object, Li Fan froze.
"You must be kidding me..."
He took it out and saw it was indeed a 3DS.
Reaching into the bag again, he pulled out a purple charm.
Seeing that one side of the charm had the character '福' (fortune) and the other had '祸' (misfortune), Li Fan quickly determined the origin of these two items.
These were left by the legendary hunter for Sophia, and now she's given them to me.
*Click*
He opened the folded screen of the 3DS. In the center of the top screen, a Lao Shan Lung was advancing.
A yellow line extended with each step, constantly moving.
Li Fan couldn't quite understand its meaning, but after pressing the directional buttons, he found that this yellow line could be slid left and right.
Lao Shan Lung was at the forefront and could no longer move forward, so he slid backward.
Soon, Kushala Daora and Teostra were marked at the same point.
After selecting them, a specific time was displayed.
This 3DS can predict future timelines, no wonder the Dragon-Worshippers were able to make accurate prophecies!
Wait, if it was with Sophia all along, then she might be a high-ranking member of the Dragon-Worshippers.
Unfortunately, according to the game's plot, the exact time markers have reached their end.
No, Lao Shan Lung is still advancing. Is it creating a new marker point?
The amount of information received at once was too much, and Li Fan's mind was a bit chaotic.
At this moment, the blinking light at the top of the upper screen caught his attention.
There were five words there: Determination, Physique, Wisdom, Courage, and Luck.
Among them, Wisdom and Courage were glowing, while Determination, Physique, and Luck were displayed in gray.
What did this mean? It didn't seem to have any practical function.
Li Fan found that the words above could not be selected, they were purely for display, and he fell into confusion.
After a moment of thought, he roughly understood the situation of the Guild's legendary hunter.
The person had traveled with the 3DS and, along with the Guild Master and Sophia, had formed the Hunter's Guild.
In terms of personal combat power, they didn't seem as formidable as Parchi's master, but the timeline marking provided by the 3DS offered a lot of room for planning.
In such a situation, being resourceful was very important, hence leaving the impression of being exceptionally wise.
Eventually, he even found Kushala Daora, established communication, and became partners, asking it to help protect East Dondruma.
It could be considered a perfect plan, but where was the person?
Right, Deus said the legendary hunter was obsessed with research related to luck.
Li Fan wondered if this "Luck" was related to the markings on the screen.
He picked up the charm and observed it for a moment, then tentatively put it around his neck.
The word "Luck" at the top of the screen began to glow. Although it didn't reach the same brilliance as Courage and Wisdom, the difference was significant compared to the gray Determination and Physique.
He tried taking it off, and the word "Luck" quickly turned gray.
When worn, "Luck" lit up again.
Confirming its connection to himself, Li Fan opened his PSP and checked his stats. He had a full 500 points in [Turning Misfortune into Fortune].
According to the conversion of old equipment skill points, this meant a level 50 effect.
No wonder Sophia could act with impunity under the guild's nose.
Disturbing causality, even distorting people's perception, this was clearly not a game ability.
He didn't know if [Turning Misfortune into Fortune] inherently possessed these abilities, or if they were triggered at a high level.
In any case, this charm was incredibly powerful.
Speaking of which, why were the abilities related to luck all related to monsters that could cause ecological destruction, like the Wind Dragon, Thunder Dragon, and Dalamud?
The two items Sophia mailed brought a lot of shock and confusion.
Li Fan continued to explore with the 3DS and suddenly discovered something incredible.
The photo album!
According to the label, there were a total of 204 photos stored within.
Upon clicking it, a long list of photos appeared.
Qurupeco, Jagras, Great Jagras, Nerscylla, Dalamud, Great Devourer, Giga Lao Shan Lung, Shen Gaoren, Kushala Daora...
About 100 close-up photos of various monsters. The remaining 100 photos were selfies of Sophia from various angles.
"You should have taken a picture of the legendary hunter," Li Fan muttered as he flipped through Sophia's selfies.
Finally, a colorful photo appeared at the end.
It was a group photo of all the members of the Legendary Hunter's Guild, taken on a street decorated with colorful flags.
In the center, carrying a Insect Glaive, was the legendary hunter!
But Li Fan couldn't be happy at all.
"Ah! Why are you wearing a Great Boar headgear in the group photo!"
Li Fan said in frustration.
After a brief moment of dejection, he continued to examine the photo.
He noticed that except for the person wearing the Great Boar headgear whose expression couldn't be seen, everyone else had smiles on their faces, giving a very warm feeling.
Thinking that the hunter's guild in the photo was now a thing of the past, a faint sadness welled up.
"If the legendary hunter hadn't disappeared, perhaps Sophia wouldn't be like this today. But what does she mean by giving me these two遗留物 (relics)?"
Li Fan reached into the frog backpack again, but found no letter or explanatory note.
"Wait, if this charm wasn't with her..."
Li Fan mounted the Sky-Dweller and sped towards the commercial street.
Upon arriving at the entrance of the Monster Doll Shop, he found that the shop was closed, all items inside had been cleared out, and an uncle was dismantling the shop's sign.
"Uncle! What happened to this shop?"
"Alas..."
The uncle on the ladder, holding a hammer, lowered his head and sighed.
"Could it be..."
Li Fan had a bad premonition.
"That's right, the rent is due."
The uncle looked at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle and said mournfully.
"Uh, there's nothing to be sad about, right?"
Li Fan was a bit speechless.
"A tenant as generous as Miss Sophia suddenly stopped renewing her lease, how can I not be sad?"
The uncle's face was dejected.
"Uncle, did Sophia say where she went?"
Li Fan inquired.
"No, but she seemed very happy. Of course, it might just be my imagination."
The uncle said uncertainly.
"She's a truly unfathomable woman," Li Fan said, looking at the frog plush keychain and sighing.