Once she realized Altaïr's true objective, Karin's stance became exceptionally firm.
Take you on a 5★ quest and then watch you take on a 5★ threat level Monster in a 1v1? Not a chance!
Seeing his teacher's stony expression, Altaïr knew that no matter what else he said, it would be useless. He only regretted that his head hadn't been clear enough earlier, causing him to blurt out his true intentions.
If he had thought of an excuse beforehand, something like 'I want to use this opportunity to understand the abilities of these Monsters to prepare for the near future,' Teacher Karin might have actually agreed.
Alcohol ruins everything! I'm never drinking again!
Haifa chuckled on the side, pointing at Altaïr as she spoke to Karin. "This kid still hasn't given up.
How long has it been since you were promoted to 4★? You haven't even updated your armor yet, and you're already thinking about soloing 5★ Monsters? Do you even know the strength of 5★ Monsters?
Don't end up so paralyzed by a roar that you can't even move your feet."
If it were anyone else, even Isis, Altaïr would never have been interested in such a petty argument.
However, in front of Karin and Haifa, the women who had watched him grow up, Altaïr felt a surge of indignation rush to his brain. He could stand being looked down upon by anyone, but not them!
Whether it was the lingering effects of the alcohol or not, the words poured out before his brain could filter them. "5★ Monsters? Hah, we've faced 5★ Monsters more than once or twice.
I participated in a Tigrex hunt back when I was 2★. Even if I wasn't the main force, I still traded blows with it face-to-face, alright?
And last month, I repelled a Lagiacrus with Isis and the others. Then last week, we hunted a Duramboros, and it wasn't just an ordinary Duramboros, it was a Hyper state individual. In terms of strength, that's at least 5★ material, isn't it?"
The moment those words left his mouth, Altaïr regretted them. He realized he hadn't told his teacher about the time he had risked his life to hunt that Tigrex with Senior Jara...
Sure enough, Karin's face instantly went dark, and even Haifa raised an eyebrow.
Realizing the situation, Altaïr quickly raised both hands in defense. "That was all a long time ago! I was young and reckless back then. Besides, the Tigrex incident was an encounter; we didn't seek it out!
The Lagiacrus just happened to be an emergency where a Monster attacked the harbor. The same goes for the Duramboros, at first, we thought it was just an ordinary Duramboros. We only found out it was a Hyper state from the scholars after the quest was over."
Karin lowered the hand she had raised to smack him, but her expression remained ice-cold. "It seems your experiences over the last two years have been quite 'colorful.'
Is there anything else that might make my jaw drop? Why don't you tell us everything at once?"
"Nothing, really, there's nothing else. Those were all accidents," Altaïr said with a forced laugh.
"Wait, don't be so quick to forgive him yet." Haifa crossed her arms and stared at Altaïr. "This brat just said 'hunting' a Tigrex, not escaping from one or merely repelling it, right?
The same goes for those other times. You shouldn't be the type with exceptionally bad luck, so why are all these troubles finding you? Are you sure you aren't the one looking for trouble?"
Altaïr guiltily averted his gaze.
Seeing his reaction, Karin's expression darkened once more. She grabbed Sajji, who had been watching the drama unfold from the sidelines, by the scruff of his neck and headed toward her room. "Haifa, interrogate that brat and find out exactly what happened. I'll handle Sajji.
Once you're done, we'll cross-reference your stories. If either of you dares to leave out a single word, you'd better watch your back."
Altaïr: "..."
"Meow-meow!"
Despite being brothers-in-arms, neither Altaïr nor Sajji knew exactly what the other might spill. In their helplessness, they had no choice but to pour out every detail.
Naturally, they couldn't escape a massive lecture. By the end, it wasn't just Altaïr and Sajji; even Haifa, who had been watching the show with a grin, was dragged into the crossfire.
That famous saying about "trying to run before you've learned to walk" had originally been told to Altaïr by Haifa years ago. On this matter, Karin believed she bore an undeniable share of the responsibility.
Haifa scurried out of the room, claiming she was going to buy dinner for everyone. Altaïr hurriedly chased after her, offering to help carry the supplies.
Only Sajji was a fraction of a second too slow to react and was snatched back by Karin.
It wasn't until they had bolted out of the Guild Hall as if fleeing for their lives that Altaïr and Haifa finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Teacher Karin wasn't this fierce before," Altaïr complained, tightening his cold-weather cloak. "It must be because you're always causing trouble; you've ruined her temper."
"Bullshit!" Haifa gave him a sharp elbow to the ribs. "Would she even be angry if you hadn't pulled such a reckless stunt?"
The two bickered as they walked. If the relationship between Altaïr and Karin was like mother and son, then Haifa was like an older brother who was many years his senior.
As for why not an older sister, well, few older sisters went around elbowing a brother ten years younger than them like that.
After some playful shoving, Haifa draped an arm over Altaïr's shoulder, their armor clanking and creaking against each other. "Whether you're steady or reckless, as long as you keep your life in the end, that's what matters.
I was your age once. I know that feeling of being full of drive, thinking every single day about how to get ahead of everyone else.
But once you've experienced more, you'll realize that whether it's yourself or the comrades by your side, everyone staying alive and well is the most important thing.
An impulsive moment can bring a lifetime of regret."
"..."
Haifa's tone was level, as if they were just having a casual chat, lacking any of Karin's harshness. Yet, the emotion hidden beneath her words felt far heavier than any of Karin's scolding.
"I understand."
This wasn't the dismissive "yeah, yeah" he had used while being lectured earlier. Altaïr stopped in his tracks and nodded with genuine sincerity.
Haifa gave his back a firm slap, and they continued walking. "Alright, I'm not Karin. I've said my piece, and I won't nag you any further.
Oh, one more thing. Did you notice when we walked out? Karin gave me a look. She was reminding me to tell you what I'm about to say.
She knew she had been nagging for too long and was worried you wouldn't take it to heart."
"...Is it really okay for you to just come out and say that?"
"Whatever. You mentioned earlier that you also ran into a Hyper Duramboros, right?"
"Yeah. If we hadn't used a few tricks, hunting that guy wouldn't have been easy."
"Do you know? What actually makes us break into a cold sweat is that incident. At least with the Tigrex, you had a senior hunter there to hold the line." "As for the Hyper Duramboros, all I can say is that your luck was too good. A Duramboros is slow and its weaknesses are obvious; if you use the right tactics, it's not hard to counter.
If you had encountered any other Hyper Monster that was already at a 4★ threat level in its base form, like a Hyper Rathian or a Yian Garuga or something, you would all be dead right now."
"That's a bit much..."
"Think I'm joking?" Haifa glanced at him with a half-smile. "Hyper Monsters are so rare that the term itself is practically foreign; most Hunters have never even heard of them.
I didn't really take them to heart either, until I experienced their difference firsthand.
Remember that time a few years back when I came back severely injured and was bedridden for two or three months before I recovered?"
Speaking of this, Altaïr had some memory of it. He nodded, "I must have been thirteen or fourteen? You'd just been promoted to High Rank back then, I think."
"Right, that was the time. Out in the stony desert northeast of Loc Lac, a Diablos appeared. It was exceptionally violent; two 5★ hunter groups failed to challenge it in a row, and more than one Hunter was lost.
The mustache Guildmarm realized something was wrong and suspected that some filthy Deviant creature from deep within the Desert had wandered out. He sent out Palicoes for reconnaissance, and they confirmed it was just an 'ordinary Diablos.'
The Guildmarm still wasn't at ease, so he specifically arranged for two high-rank Hunters to suppress it. I was one, and the other was Omar, you've probably heard of him?"
"That 7★ Switch Axe user?"
"Right. The two of us against a single Diablos, and that fight was still a desperate struggle. I was sent flying by a charge attack that was impossibly fast; my blade snapped, and I lost consciousness.
If Senior Omar hadn't been strong enough, I'm afraid I would have met my end right there.
One 7★, one 6★, two high-rank Hunters hunting a Diablos that should have only been a 5★ threat level, yet it turned out like that. Do you understand now?"
Haifa swept a glance over the silent Altaïr and continued: "The ranks of Hunters and Monsters are just a metric. It's not a game of cards where the bigger number automatically wins.
There are differences even among Hyper individuals. If you need a benchmark, you can do some simple addition: take the base species and add two levels. That's essentially the danger level a Hyper Monster should have.
So remember this well, kid. In the future, if you see a Monster with black mist swirling around its body, even if it's just a Bulldrome, don't get careless.
It might just turn around and gore you to death."
(Translated by yourtl.app)
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TL NOTES — LORE SECTION
Some terms and creatures referenced in this story may be unfamiliar to readers new to the Monster Hunter universe. The following entries provide additional context.
CONCEPTS
Deviant — A rare and exceptionally powerful variant of an otherwise standard Monster, distinguished by abnormal size, dramatically enhanced abilities, and unique attack patterns that far exceed what hunters would expect from the base species. Deviants are typically the result of surviving repeated encounters with hunters over many years, developing hardened bodies and instinctive counters to conventional hunting tactics. Because of their rarity, many hunters go their entire careers without ever encountering one.