Lambert rapidly plucked and tapped her Hunting Horn, weaving the melody at exceptional speed.
She was noticeably faster than she had been during her graduation assessment two months earlier.
Just as she was about to swing the Hunting Horn and release the Echo Wave building inside its resonance chamber, Altaïr raised his palm in a gesture for her to stop.
Confusion crossed her face, but she forced herself to halt the attack, pulled her attention away from the Small Monster hovering over the pond, and turned toward Altaïr.
"It's almost at the limit of my Echo Wave's range. If it gets away, don't blame me."
"It's fine." Altaïr showed her the Flash Pod loaded in his Slinger. "There are a few things I need to confirm."
Lambert's gaze sharpened. It suddenly occurred to her that this mission would have gone the same way with or without her.
As a Blademaster, Altaïr did lack long-range attack options, but with items such as Flash Pods and Barrel Bombs, or even throwing knives and boomerangs, he had plenty of ways to knock the target out of the sky.
So he'd dragged her along... just so she could share the reward? Lambert pressed her lips together. She wasn't used to such unsolicited kindness, but she really did need the money right now.
I'll find a way to repay him later, she told herself.
"Shwee!"
After stopping Lambert's attack, Altaïr whistled, drawing the small Flying Wyvern's attention.
The small Flying Wyvern circling overhead had clearly noticed the Hunters below, but it neither attacked nor fled in panic. It simply craned its neck and swallowed the fish it had just caught.
"Unlike Remobras, it isn't openly aggressive toward humans, but it isn't afraid of us either... Could it be a creature that never encountered humans in its original habitat?" Altaïr muttered before looking at Lambert.
"Shoot it down. I feel bad for it, but we need information."
"Yeah."
Lambert nodded, gave a short shout, and stepped forward, swinging the Iron Horn. A low "woom" resonated as a formless Echo Wave engulfed the airborne target.
The small Flying Wyvern had just gulped down the fish and was about to fly away when it shuddered as if struck by an invisible giant hammer. Its entire body convulsed, and it plunged headfirst into the pond below.
Without a word, Lambert shouldered her Hunting Horn again, followed through with a handle strike, then launched a second Echo Wave at the small Flying Wyvern struggling in the pond.
"Crash!" The surface of the pond erupted under the sound wave's vibration.
The small Flying Wyvern seemed to be in terrible pain after taking two consecutive Echo Waves and struggled even more violently, but it was clearly nowhere near death.
"Was the distance too great?" Surprise flickered across Altaïr's face.
He doubted Lambert's attack power was the problem; sound-wave attacks were her specialty. A Velociprey struck head-on by one would have no hope of getting back up.
But the small Flying Wyvern, roughly the size of a Velociprey, had taken two consecutive Echo Waves and was still full of fight. That was more than he'd expected.
Embarrassed by the poor showing, Lambert quickly wove another melody. After a brief preparation, she unleashed two more Echo Waves.
The small Flying Wyvern in the pond bled from its mouth and nose. Its struggles were noticeably weaker, yet it still wasn't dead.
Altaïr gave her a questioning look, as if asking, "Can you do it?"
Now thoroughly embarrassed, Lambert muttered, "Damn it, let's see how many more you can take!"
Another flurry of strumming made the Iron Horn vibrate violently, blurring the air around it.
Stepping forward, she twisted and swung her Hunting Horn, unleashing three Echo Waves in rapid succession.
The force of the Echo Waves was difficult to judge by sight, but the water plumes rising higher with every impact showed that she was going all out.
After taking seven Echo Waves in a row, the poor small Flying Wyvern finally went still. Its wings twitched faintly as its corpse floated on the water.
Lambert lowered her Hunting Horn, gasping for breath, and cursed, "Damn it, is this really a Small Monster? Even a Monster like Kulu-Ya-Ku wouldn't still be standing after seven Echo Waves, would it?"
Altaïr's brow tightened as well. "During your time in the Desert, you must have encountered Remobras, right? How many hits would a similar attack take to kill one?"
"I have. One Echo Wave knocks a Remobra right down, and one more at most would finish it off. If one took five, six, or seven hits, every bone in its body would probably be shattered," Lambert answered without hesitation.
"It seems this thing is about the same size as a Remobra, but its body is much sturdier. It really does have some Flying Wyvern traits. We're lucky to have found the target so quickly. Let's postpone investigating the other areas and take this corpse back first."
As he spoke, Altaïr raised his arm and fired the Clutch Claw at the corpse floating in the pond.
The Clutch Claw latched precisely onto the small Flying Wyvern's hind claw, and the attached rope instantly went taut.
—--
Just as another small Flying Wyvern was about to climb higher, it let out a strange "Gah!" Its body lurched downward and nearly slammed into the ground.
It barely managed to regain control. Its wings were narrower than a Remobra's but seemed thicker and more powerful as it beat them desperately to gain altitude.
"Ooh! What strength!" Isis cheered from the other end of the rope.
She pulled with both hands, lowering her center of gravity into an awkward stance halfway between a crouch and a seated position. She used her own weight and that of the weapon on her back to wrestle against the small Flying Wyvern trying to rise.
The force on the rope was fierce but not beyond her control. Even so, her weight wasn't enough to hold the creature down. It dragged her steadily forward until she was nearly hauled into the air.
"Of course, a Mernos has to carry a fully armed Hunter through the sky. It couldn't do that without some serious strength!" Isis muttered to herself as she struggled to keep her center of gravity low.
Suddenly, her eyes lit up.
A rock jutted from the ground just a few meters away.
It wasn't huge, but it had to weigh at least a few hundred kilograms. With a plan forming, Isis hauled down on the rope with all her strength.
The small Flying Wyvern's flight pattern immediately went haywire.
Seizing the moment while it screeched and struggled to regain control, Isis sprinted to the rock. She wrapped her long, powerful legs firmly around it, anchoring herself in place.
Anchored to the rock, she could finally bring to bear the full strength that her body weight alone had kept her from using.
Grinning from ear to ear, Isis gripped the rope tightly and hauled it down hand over hand.
The small Flying Wyvern struggled with all its might but was no match for her. It could only beat its wings uselessly as she dragged it inch by inch toward the ground.
"Heave-ho!"
After a burst of frantic flailing, Isis finally pinned down the small Flying Wyvern, which continued thrashing even after it hit the ground.
She pressed a knee against the base of its wings, preventing it from flapping. Faced with this "bullying," the normally gentle small Flying Wyvern twisted its head around and snapped at her.
Ready for it, Isis leaned back in time to dodge, then drew back her fist and slammed it hard into the small Flying Wyvern's head, stunning it.
She threw her whole body onto it, pinning its neck with her left hand. Raising her right fist high, she hammered down several more punches in quick succession.
Not enough? A few more punches!
After a solid pummeling, the poor small Flying Wyvern finally stopped struggling. Its eyes rolled back, its tongue lolled out, and its whole body went limp. It appeared to have lost consciousness.
Isis let out a long breath and bound the small Flying Wyvern tightly with sturdy rope.
"Phew! Dad's notes were spot on! When dealing with a wild, unruly Mernos, you've got to teach it a lesson with your fists! Wait, no, wasn't that part about Raphinos? Mernos aren't usually this hard to handle, are they? Whatever, let's just call this one a variant!"
Dusting off her hands, Isis stood and cheerfully addressed the immobilized "Mernos": "Now, you stay put, all right? Once I take care of that Tigerstripe Zamtrios rolling around everywhere, I'll drag you back with me.
Hehehe, you came right to me. How nice."
(Translated by yourtl.app)