Monster Hunter: Stars of Hope

Chapter Twenty: What Lies Ahead

This was it. A few days had passed since the Hopesbane had attacked Granport, and now Haldys had called for another gathering of the city's hunters, guild staff, and civilian officials in the guildhall. Whatever he was about to announce, it was something big; It simply had to be, given that a fair amount of people were impatiently waiting on answers regarding the progress of the investigation after the subject of its focus had done what it had, which was admittedly rather understandable. People trusted the Hunter's Guild, sure, but not enough to keep their concerns silent while white flames raged around them.

Though, this was not Nia's main concern, even though the resolution of this investigation meant so much to her. Sitting at the usual table with her friends, she turned back to look at Sariko, who even now still looked quite worn out, though she had visibly improved regardless, and inquired to her, "I know I've been asking this a lot... not like I'm short on chances to at the moment, but how are you holding up, Sariko?". Her friend, who had been atypically quiet since the loss of her home, let out a long sigh and responded, "I'm... I'm doing better, I think. If I'm being honest, I never want to have another conversation like that... but, I think it was exactly what I needed, so... thanks... for everything", Nia quick to reciprocate that thanks. It was the first time she had seen Sariko smile in days, even mildly, which was saying something given the increased time she spent around her friend since they started living under the same roof. Seeing this left Nia relieved to finally know that the talk she had with Sariko ultimately helped her out, and didn't simply dredge up bad memories for the sake of it.

A few moments of quiet followed, save for the murmurings of those gathered in the hall all around them, as everyone waited for the commander to make his appearance. Though, Nia soon broke the silence to bring up something that had been on her mind for a while, asking, "Hey, Bucket. That 'lesson' that the commander had for us a while back, the one with the Daimyo and the Lagiacrus? I still don't really know why he wanted you to learn it as much as he wanted me to", to which Bucket responded with a sigh, "Okay, so you know how I just despise Bullfango, right? Well... let's just say there's a few more pelts from them in my item box than there maybe should be".

"May I have everyone's attention?", Haldys' voice called out from the balcony above, almost immediately halting any attempt Nia could have made to seek further clarification from her friend, before the commander began his address upon having his request granted by his audience, "I need not reiterate what has happened to us, to this city. Much has been lost, though we are all fortunate that no lives were among those damages. Still, I will not ignore the fact that many have lost homes and businesses to the sudden wrath of the Hopesbane. Some of those who have experienced that loss are in this room with us today". Nia did not need to turn back to look at Sariko to know that she was likely quite discomforted by that statement, and was hoping the old man would change the topic swiftly. "I also will not ignore the fact that there has been a reasonable uptick in the demand for answers and solutions", Haldys continued, "Today... I am here to provide both". The tone of the room shifted. This was it: the moment which all of Granport had been waiting for. "Thanks to the efforts of all who have gathered and discerned data vital to our investigation, we have determined that the Hopesbane is in a state of being similar to tempered monsters of the New World, or even the frenzied, afflicted, or hyper monsters of the Old World that some of you may be more familiar with. That is to say, it is an empowered form of the base species, though that power, afforded to it by a measure of tainted bioenergy it has been consuming, comes at the price of constant agony, and possibly even its sanity", Haldys elaborated, giving a brief pause for all to soak in that information before he continued, "Those are the answers regarding the nature and power of what we are dealing with. Now, for the solutions".