Disclaimer: I do not own monster hunter.

Prologue

Life in Yukumo village went about as usual. Children ran about, immersed in their own make believe world of games. Villagers went to and fro, some visiting the blacksmith, others the farm and most to the hulking guild hall perched atop the highest point of the village. The number of hunters in Yukumo was small, but many were highly skilled, having slayed many a ferocious wyvern such as the rathalos, the tigrex and rarely; the famed nargacuga.

Then there were those who were average, good at hunting less dangerous monsters such as royal ludroths, barroth and maybe an occasional nibelsnarf.

And, there were people like me. The weak hunters who could only manage to kill or trap the monsters that were considered too weak to be considered true 'monsters'. The ones that fall in this category are usually the great Jaggi and their pack, Aoshira or bulldromes. My types are looked down upon by the higher ranked hunters, mostly due to our less than 'befitting' armor and weaker weapons. Most of them pay no heed to us actually. Ignoring us is the name of the game, and they play it as well as a fish takes to water.

Now enough of that depressing stuff, and let me continue with my day.

I do my morning stretches, sometimes wincing when I pull a muscle too hard. I am the daughter of the owner of the general store. Our family gets by pretty okay, since we're basically the only ones (other than the one in the guild) that sell basic commodities to beginner hunters or the residents of the village. Unfortunately for me, this gives me a certain stigma within the decent sized group of hunters. Basically, I am the daughter of a grocer, who sells things that can be (and mostly are) obtained in the wilderness. My family background does not give me a stepping stone in the world of monster hunting.

In fact, it is even brought out frequently by those annoying high ranked snobs. I usually dread failing a quest, because when I get back, I'm usually bombarded by stupidity from narrow minded idiots who can't mind their own damn business. Usually, they'll say dumb shit like 'Well, what did you expect from a store owner's daughter?' and other more degrading stuff like 'Just go back to selling whetstones already'.

Honestly.

Just listening to them makes me want to throw myself at a hungry Tigrex.

Once I finished with my morning routine, I pick out my usual hunting clothes, a pair of comfortable but flexible pants along with a patterned brown shirt. Then, I put on my only set of armor gifted to me by my parents, a full set of Aoshira armour. The armour has most definitely seen better days. There are numerous cracks on its azure blue surface, and some parts have been chipped off by a recent, but particularly strong great Jaggi. It is worn out, but I would say it is still capable of doing its job.

Unlike some hunters in this village, I don't spend a crap ton on zeni (Zs) on new armours, especially if my old set is still useable. One might argue that skimping on such things would get you killed, but a powerful set of armour on a tactless and weak hunter is pretty much nullifying whatever advantages it gives you.

My family doesn't exactly have the luxury of spending recklessly either. In the recent years, more and more hunters rely more on scavenging and crafting their supplies during quests, some even bring back items for their family and friends. The general store hasn't been hit that hard yet, but like my mother used to preach; don't put all your eggs in one basket.

Since I've reached the age of eighteen, we've also had an increase in taxes. Well, that was one of the worst surprises I ever got on a birthday.

I grab my iron gospel and strap it to my back, just in time to avoid the body hurtling towards me. I barely manage to avoid it, and come face to face with my pouting, younger sister.

"Onee-chan! Stop avoiding my hugs!" Akame says in mock anger and begins to pout. My sister has a small, but slender build. She's fairly attractive, with beautiful black hair that pours down her shoulders and sharp features that can make ordinary women weep with jealousy. Most of the young males in the village have tried to court her repeatedly, but it seems that some of their verbal diarrhoea directed towards me had reached her ears.

I laugh at her display of cuteness and pat her head. "I will. Eventually." I said in a mysterious tone which makes her roll her eyes. She pulls on my gloved hand and tugs me out of my small room and into the hallway which leads to the front of the store.

"Oh, you're finally awake I see." My father greets me jovially when we walk in, as he stacks the crates of fruits and vegetables at one corner of the shop. My mom is cooking in the kitchen, the smells of delicious gravy and meat wafting from the kitchen. My mother may not be the sharpest weapon in the shop, but she can capture the hearts of men and women alike with her near godlike skill of cooking.

Another unusual titbit from her was; everybody can hunt, but very few can cook. Weird but true. Nobody wanted to be paired with the hunter who couldn't roast meat to save their lives.

We are all brought out from our daydreaming when my mother shouts that breakfast is ready, causing all of us to stampede into the cramped kitchen like a bunch of starving jaggi. We ate (read gobbled down) the meal quickly, me faster than the others, before clearing our plates and piling them into the small wooden bucket on the wooden counter for it to be washed by my sister.

I leave with a wave and a smile before making my way towards the guild hall.

Konaha greets me cheerily when I walk through the doors. Her outfit is one I am accustomed to, a glaring and vibrant pink that makes her look childlike but mature at the same time. "Good morning, Konaha." I greet with a nod. Her face splits into a large smile which makes a small one appear on mine.

"Mornin' Hana!" She chirps brightly. I regard her in amusement for a moment. Konaha is the total opposite of me. Most people describe me as cold, sarcastic and somehow mildly rude while people describe her as bubbly, friendly and caring. I don't know how we get along so well, but who cares about the technicalities?

"Anything for me, today?"

"Well, we have a request for hunting a barroth in the sandy plains…" She trails off, eyeing my reaction. I shake my head. I rather not have to travel so far, especially since I don't want to have to buy or use any cold drinks. A barroth would be troublesome too, since my weapon wasn't sharp enough to pierce through its thick hide.

"Hmm…" She looks down at her paper. Scrunching her eyebrows in concentration she asks again. "We need someone to slay some Jaggia's at the misty peak." She says.

I perk up at that. While most people considered jaggi and jaggia's to be troublesome, selling their skins at the market would fetch a reasonable price. It wouldn't bring in as much as another monster but it was still a pretty okay sum. "What about the reward?" I prod which makes her laugh in amusement. "Around 1200z." She replies with a small grin.

"That'll be the one then."

"Great! I'll let the elder know about it. But seriously Hana, won't you take one of the harder quests?"

"I rather not risk it." I reply wryly. "Remember that time I decided to hunt a Royal Ludroth? I was nearly boiled alive."

"It wasn't that bad."

I sighed and shook my head. "It sure was. Nearly took off my head with that jump. Not to mention the many potions I had to buy after that little escapade."

"Zeni again? You're not that poor." She tells me, her bubbly demeanor decreasing slightly.

"I'm not. But anything can happen. Especially with that annoying guy in town."

I growl at the thought of him. Even the mere picture of his face in my mind makes my blood boil. And lo and behold, speak of the devil and he shall come.

"Hmph, what have we here?" A smooth, male baritone echoes from behind me. "The uglier and less talented of the two sisters."

I spin around, the armor clanking noisily and eye the boy in disdain. Said boy was wearing an obviously expensive and well-crafted set of Tigrex armor and was holding his helm between his arms which made him look more brutish than usual. I wondered if the helmet could cover that ugly mug of a face.

"Little words from a little man." I shoot back with a deadpan stare.

"Why you little–"

"Hey, don't blame me if my sister doesn't like you." I smirk and throw him a jab at his manly pride. "She usually doesn't go for brawn without brains."

Kenichi glared at me, looking as if he wanted to throw me into a den of wyverns. The guild was silent before soft rumblings began to erupt from the corners of the room. It was a usual sight to see the son of the Yukumo chief to be quarrelling with the older daughter of the general store. His mother, the village chief, was unrivalled in kindness and beauty. She was looked up to like an elder, despite not even being close to their age. She was wise and forgiving, and rumor has it that she was impregnated by a good for nothing hunter who died while on a quest.

Kenichi was her son, and I found it unbelievable. He hadn't a single polite bone in his muscular body, and his face was usually adorned with a playful and flirty smirk or an ugly scowl which made him look like a pig. It was no secret that Kenichi used his position to abuse his power. He was a skirt chaser too, going for anything that had two legs and breasts. Thankfully though, his victims were usually the less than brainy hunters who worshipped him. The smarter ones tended to keep their distance.

Finally, the tense silence was broken when he snorted angrily and addressed one of his 'team members'. "Let's not waste any more time with this third rate hunter." He told her boredly, and I felt my annoyance at his insult rising. I kept from lashing out, because I know it would give him the satisfaction of riling me up. "We have a Gigginox to slay and Zeni to earn."

With that said, his small group sauntered towards the exit. The girls in his group all gave me a scathing look as they passed me by. I countered this by staring, which made them uncomfortable at the blatant look of dismissal in my brown irises. They disappeared out of the door with a flourish.

"You really don't like him, do you?"

I snort. "That's too weak a word. 'Detest him' is closer to what I am feeling." I said, my hands reaching behind me to touch the hilt of my longsword. "How long is he going away for, this time?" I ask.

"Most likely about two weeks or so. They took the quest to slay a gigginox." Konaha shrugged in disinterest. "The hunter's festival is coming soon. I guess he wants to show off some new armor or whatnot."

"Most likely." I answer, satisfied at the information. Good riddance. The less he was in the village, the better off Akame would be. Snot nosed brat. What I wouldn't give to see someone kick his ass. I would do it myself, but he was unfortunately a better hunter than I. The greatsword on his back was also a testament to that. He was a horrible person, but a good and respected hunter in Yukumo. Another one of the reasons why people didn't go against him. I was one of the select few which could insult him and get away with it, since my family was an important part of the community,

"Oh, what about the quest?" I ask konaha, suddenly remembering where we left off. She gave me the details of what I would be tasked with, and I thanked her before leaving and making my way to misty peak.

I had a quest to do.