Just as the Chameleos was about to strike, a member of the Provisions team came over carrying a freshly shed scale from a Pink Rathian.
"Provisions Manager, this is from a—"
The team member's voice cut off. He froze, staring straight at the sight before him: one hand pressing down the baby Chameleos, the other clutching the rope tight, his face still twisted with traces of lingering anger, looking faintly feral.
"Ch… Chameleos…"
The man's mouth opened and closed, struck dumb by the scene.
"Don't—don't shout!"
"Gwaa! Gwaa!"
The Provisions Manager suddenly came back to his senses, letting go of the baby's body as if to lunge toward the team member, panic all over his face as he tried to stop him.
But because the Provisions Manager had abruptly released his grip, the little dragon's body dropped. The rope snapped taut under the sudden pull of gravity, choking it tight. A wave of discomfort surged through it, and it let out another cry—this one filled with grievance.
Had the Provisions Manager not moved in such a fluster, had the baby not cried in such a pitiful voice, the team member might not have reacted so strongly.
But now, with his mind already jammed and stunned by the sight, the shock pushed the words out of his mouth before he could think.
"Bad news! The Provisions Manager is kidnapping a Chameleos hatchling!!"
At this, the Chameleos watching from the shadows finally relaxed, quietly lifting into the air to give way for the large Commission force that was sure to arrive.
"Damn it!" The Provisions Manager's face went rigid. He knew it was too late.
He glanced with pity at the little dragon, now struggling again in discomfort.
If no one else had seen, he might still have comforted himself in private, maybe even tried to set the baby free.
But now… he was the New World Elder Dragon Research Commission's Provisions Manager!!
With the commotion, most of the people working near the warehouse dropped what they were doing and rushed over in a panic, terrified they'd be too late to catch sight of the Chameleos.
All of them were elites, after all, able to restrain themselves. Consciously, they stopped at the warehouse door, each with an excited expression, whispering back and forth.
"No wonder he's the Provisions Manager—he actually captured a Chameleos hatchling!"
"Yeah, just look at that capture technique—it completely cuts off any chance of escape."
"You want to know what professionalism is? This is professionalism!"
"But if he kidnapped a Chameleos hatchling, won't that bring revenge?"
"Pfft, worst case, we just give it back later. Besides, that's an Elder Dragon!"
The voices of the crowd reached the Provisions Manager's ears. He opened his mouth, but didn't know how to explain himself.
All he wanted was to untie the baby Chameleos's bonds—how had it suddenly become that he'd kidnapped it?
But judging from everyone's expressions, no one looked like they wanted to hear an explanation, so the Provisions Manager could only give up helplessly, planning to wait until things calmed down before speaking.
The Provisions Manager stayed relatively calm—but the baby Chameleos did not.
So many creatures staring at it!
Even if it didn't sense any obvious malice, the little Chameleos still felt terrified, the shadow of death looming constantly over its head.
Under that pressure, the hatchling lashed out instinctively.
Blobs of purple venom spewed forth, and several of the people at the doorway who hadn't reacted in time were struck.
"Hiss—ha—an Elder Dragon's attack!"
"Damn it! You lucky bastard, why couldn't it have been me standing there just now?!"
The ones who were hit actually wore expressions of blissful satisfaction.
Those who had dodged instinctively were left pounding their chests in regret.
Seeing this, the baby Chameleos was plunged into utter despair!!
Perhaps it was because of genetics, or perhaps because it knew there was nothing it could do.
The little Chameleos sprawled out its limbs, completely giving up on struggling, choosing instead to meet these two-legged beasts with pure resignation.
"Tired… let it all end, gwa~"
Seeing how the once panicked little Chameleos suddenly went still, all the members of the Research Commission who had been keeping most of their attention on it instantly grew tense.
This was a living Elder Dragon hatchling!
Not the slightest bit of harm could be allowed!
They immediately prepared to rush in.
Fortunately, the Provisions Manager also noticed the little Chameleos' condition and quickly stopped them from barging in and making things worse.
He carefully reached out and lifted the little Chameleos' neck, wanting to see what exactly was going on.
The result—upon lifting it, he was met with the dead-fish eyes of the little Chameleos. Clearly pitiful, with a look of utter despair, yet for some reason, the Provisions Manager felt no stir in his heart—if anything, he even wanted to laugh.
"Gwa~"
The little Chameleos let out a weak cry, and when the Provisions Manager let go, its head drooped again.
Just as the Provisions Manager was trying to figure out its condition, the Research Commission leadership, led by the Admiral, finally arrived late.
The crowd instinctively parted, allowing them into the storeroom.
"Wow~ it really is a Chameleos!" The Field Master stepped forward in amazement, letting out a gasp of wonder as she looked it over.
Meanwhile, the Head of Research and his Deputy subconsciously opened their notebooks, and in perfect unison, each stood to one side and began sketching the Elder Dragon hatchling's features in simple strokes.
Yes—capturing that exact despairing, lifeless look while it hung there, without altering a single detail.
"Why does it look so listless? An Elder Dragon shouldn't carry itself like this."
The Admiral rubbed his chin between thumb and forefinger, then, just as the little Chameleos raised its eyelids to glance at him, he suddenly lunged forward and made a huge goofy face right up close.
"Gwa!!"
The effect was excellent—the little Chameleos instantly burst back into energy.
The Admiral, very pleased with the emotional response, laughed heartily in satisfaction.
Only the others stood there staring at him in disbelief.
'This… this is how you treat an Elder Dragon?'
That was the only thought left in everyone's minds.
'This is an unbelievably precious Elder Dragon hatchling! And you dare scare it like that—aren't you afraid of causing real harm?!'
Others might have had opinions about the Admiral's methods, but out of respect for his position, they didn't voice them aloud.
The Head of the Ecological Research Center couldn't care less. He had lived for over two hundred years—what kind of people hadn't he seen?
He jumped up outright and slammed his notebook hard against the Admiral's knee.
And so, even after being hit, the Admiral had no choice but to keep apologizing to this senior Wyverian scholar.
"Alright, put it down first."
The Commander rubbed at his brow with some helplessness. At his order, and with help on hand, the Provisions Manager quickly untied the ropes, and the group carefully lowered the little Chameleos onto the platform.
The moment it touched the ground, the little Chameleos shook its wings in excitement, then instinctively tried to slip into invisibility.
But with that unknown paint still firmly clinging to its scales, slipping away with camouflage was completely unrealistic.
Seeing the members of the Research Commission faintly surrounding it, the little Chameleos wisely stayed quiet, crouching on the table. Its tiny claws even pulled over the scales its unreliable mother had left behind to cover itself, trying to add a sense of security.
Unaware, that very posture instantly made the eyes of all the women present—Field Master included—light up.
"It's just too cute!! I want to take it home with me!"
The little Chameleos buried its head into the wooden platform, trembling.
"There are too many people. Let's disperse them first."
The higher the intelligence of a creature, the richer its emotions.
As an ecological expert, the Field Master made the suggestion to Carlos.
Carlos nodded, went out personally, and persuaded the others to leave. When he returned, he saw the Provisions Manager rummaging around. Aside from the Admiral and the two Wyverian scholars, everyone else was also helping.
"What's going on?"
"I remember we just stored a new batch of Mega Nutrients. How come I can't find them all of a sudden?"
The Provisions Manager frowned as he searched. His memory was flawless—yet he simply couldn't find them.
"What do you need Mega Nutrients for?"
Before Carlos could even finish his words, a loud grumble came from the little Chameleos' belly. There was no need for anyone else to explain—he immediately joined the search himself.
But after a chorus of clinking jars and bottles, aside from some Potions and some herbal medicines laid out in front of the little Chameleos, that box of thirty freshly stored Mega Nutrients could not be found no matter what.
"Strange."
Newly stored supplies shouldn't have been placed too deep, and everything in the warehouse was categorized. They couldn't have ended up somewhere else.
"Forget it, I'll go see if any of the hunters still have some."
Carlos gave up the search and was about to head out.
"Also have the plantation send over some medicinal insects. According to the recorded ecological habits of Chameleos, various bugs are one of their staple foods."
The Head of the Ecological Research Center, with his back to the Commander, gave the reminder as he leaned in toward the little Chameleos, opening a bottle of Potion to try feeding it by hand.
Unfortunately, the little Chameleos was not having it at all. Though its nose twitched, its body gave not the slightest response.
"Understood."
The Commander nodded and went out to arrange it.
Soon, in less than ten minutes, he returned in high spirits carrying six Mega Nutrients and a small cage of bitter bugs.
But in the warehouse, the Research Commission members looked somewhat dejected.
At a glance, the Potions were still untouched, the herbal medicine the same—everything exactly as it had been before he left.
Because of its irresponsible mother's behavior, the little Chameleos' wariness was especially high now. Even with its belly grumbling loudly, it stubbornly refused to take a bite.
It buried itself under the Chameleos scales, not raising its head, carrying a look that said: do whatever you want, but I won't cooperate.
When the Commander returned, the Provisions Manager hurried forward to take the items from his hands and laid them out carefully in front of the little Chameleos.
"Come on, these should all be things you like—try a bite?"
The little Chameleos' nose twitched, seemingly drawn to the Mega Nutrients.
It poked its head out a little, drool dripping from the corner of its mouth.
But in the next second, under the expectant gazes of the Research Commission members, it abruptly shrank back again.
The smile slowly faded from the Provisions Manager's face, and he cast a pleading look at the others.
The others quickly averted their eyes—only the Field Master, after a moment of thought, spoke.
"Hmm, probably it's just not used to the environment. Perhaps we can try leaving it here alone."
Seeing everyone's gaze turn to her, the Field Master only said they would explain once outside, then was the first to leave the storeroom.
The others looked at one another, but had no choice but to follow.
Once the warehouse door was locked from the outside, the little Chameleos quietly lifted its head.
Suddenly, by the small platform under the lights, a shimmer of light and shadow appeared—and the Chameleos' figure manifested.
Its eyes gleamed as it stared at the pile of food in front of the little Chameleos. Cheerfully scampering over, under the hatchling's incredulous gaze, its tongue flicked out, snatching up two Mega Nutrients and an entire bottle of Potion in one go.
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