Alex and Lucas, the two brothers, were clearly stunned, but soon Lucas broke into a smile.
He ignored Ed and Thomas, turning to Alex and saying, "Big Brother, since we've killed a bear demon, let's take it with us!"
"As the team leader, the resources of the team should belong to you."
Alex nodded and stepped forward, pulling out a magical storage pouch.
Ed immediately furrowed his brow. The bear demon had been killed by Thomas, yet these two brothers were just going to take it for themselves?
Could it be that they were taking advantage of the quiet, honest guy who didn't speak up?
Ed quickly looked at Thomas, expecting him to step forward and argue. However, when he looked over, he saw Thomas standing there with his face flushed, fists clenched.
But he didn't step forward, nor did he speak a word.
Although Thomas was clearly displeased with Alex's actions, he was hesitating to stand up for himself. He had to think carefully before taking action.
Alex, noticing Thomas's emotions, stepped forward and slapped him on the shoulder.
"Hey, buddy, don't think I'm doing this to take the whole corpse for myself," he said.
"As the team leader, I'm not a bully! We wouldn't do something like that, so don't feel upset."
"I'll give you half of the value of this bear demon's body since you were the one who killed it."
Upon hearing this, Thomas's expression immediately brightened, and the tension in his face eased. "Didn't expect the team leader to be such a good guy. Alright, let's do it that way."
Thomas then turned to Ed with a smile, clearly not too concerned about the split.
"A bear demon is worth a lot. Getting half is a nice sum of money!"
However, he didn't plan on keeping this money for himself but intended to give it all to Ed.
After all, if it weren't for Ed, he never would have been able to kill the bear demon.
But when Ed saw this, his expression turned cold.
Alex and Lucas thought that once Thomas was satisfied, they could safely take the bear demon's corpse. They were just about to act.
Suddenly, Ed lunged forward, grabbing Alex's hand that was holding the storage pouch.
"Huh?" Alex's face changed, and he immediately looked up, meeting Ed's cold gaze.
"What does this bear demon have to do with you two? Thomas killed it, and the experience was taught by me," Ed said.
"Do you two deserve to take half of the spoils?"
Hearing Ed's tone, Lucas immediately exploded. "Kid, what are you doing! You're just a rookie Hunter! It's a miracle we're letting you see the world!"
"But you dare lay a hand on the team leader! Do you want to die?"
Among Hunters, strength came first, followed by experience and seniority. That's how it worked in any profession.
Ed was just a newcomer, at the bottom of the hierarchy, and no one paid him any attention. So when the two brothers were splitting the spoils, they didn't think Ed was worth considering.
Alex's anger flared. "How dare you!"
With that, he tried to break free from Ed's grip and give him a lesson.
But as he tried to move his wrist, it felt like a steel claw had latched onto him, and he couldn't break free at all!
At the same time, Ed's expression was cold. "I said, this bear demon has nothing to do with you. Move aside, understand?"
As he spoke, Alex suddenly felt an immense force in his wrist!
It felt as if his wrist was about to snap right there and then!
In that instant, Alex's eyes widened in disbelief.
Impossible! This can't be happening!
He was a Level 2 Apprentice, and yet this young man in front of him was stronger than him in terms of raw power—much stronger!
Alex felt as though he was a child arm-wrestling a muscular man.
What was even more terrifying was that…
Judging by Ed's expression, the other party wasn't even straining at all.
Meanwhile, Lucas was still shouting from the side, "Big Brother, what are you doing?! Teach this kid a lesson…"
Alex immediately turned his head and snapped, "Shut your damn mouth!"
Alex had already concluded that the young man named Ed was no ordinary person. Although he didn't know why Ed had not revealed his true strength.
It was clear that it was best not to provoke him over a bear demon.
So, Alex turned back to Ed and forced a smile, saying:
"Brother Ed, I was reckless. The credit for killing this bear demon truly belongs to you, and I shouldn't have claimed it."
"How about this? We'll take 10% of the spoils from the bear demon's body, and you can have the remaining 90%. We'll just have a little bit of the soup."
Thomas, listening from the back, was stunned. Wow, 90%!
Alex was actually making such a huge concession. This was a great opportunity!
But Ed's expression remained icy, showing no sign of softening.
In fact, it grew even colder. "You'll take 10%? Do you even deserve that?"
"Did you actually do anything to deserve credit? If Thomas hadn't intervened, would you two have killed the bear demon, or would you have been killed or injured by it, or let it escape instead?"
Upon hearing these words, Alex's face darkened.
What the hell, this young man named Ed didn't even want to share a single drop of soup with them.
But the thing was, what Ed said wasn't wrong.
The bear demon's strength was immense. Just relying on the two brothers alone, they would have been easily suppressed. Even if they somehow managed to defeat the bear demon, killing it would be an impossible feat!
If the bear demon realized it couldn't win, it could simply run away, and there was no way the two brothers would be able to catch it!
Alex conceded defeat. He sighed heavily, "Then… what do you think should be done?"
Ed's expression remained as cold as ice. "Simple. The entire corpse goes to Thomas!"
"Also, the bear demon's ears go to Thomas as well! The ears are the key to scoring in this hunt. Their value even surpasses the value of the entire body. They should belong to the killer. Do you two want to keep it all for yourselves?!"
Upon hearing Ed's words, Thomas suddenly snapped to attention.
Right! The bear demon's ears! How could he have forgotten such an important detail?
This thing, the bear demon's ears, was indeed far more valuable than the body itself. But Alex, that sly guy, hadn't even mentioned it!
For a moment, Thomas's eyes were filled with gratitude.
If it weren't for Ed stepping in, he would've ended up with a raw deal without even realizing it!
Alex had nothing more to say. Though it pained him, he had no choice but to accept Ed's decision:
"Fine, we'll do it that way. Brother Ed, you can let go of my hand now!"
His wrist was throbbing with pain, as if it were about to snap in half!
Ed gave a slight nod and finally released his grip on Alex's wrist.
Alex let out a sigh of relief, and as expected, the distribution of the bear demon's spoils followed Ed's suggestion.
Thomas, with a joyful expression, bent down to collect the bear demon's body, and he also cut off its ears!
At that moment, over at the viewing arena.
The secondary screen on the darkened backdrop switched to Ed's team.
Iris immediately spoke up, "Dad, look!"
Since she had seen Ed earlier, Iris had paid attention, and as soon as the screen changed, she recognized him instantly.
On the screen, Ed was standing there, and a dead bear demon was lying on the ground, its ears freshly severed!
Uncle Du, watching from the side, was surprised. "Mr. Ed's team has made a kill, and the monster they defeated was a bear demon!"
As a well-traveled merchant, Uncle Du knew the bear demon was a difficult foe to deal with.
He added, "It looks like one of their team members even died. It seems like they must have had a fierce battle earlier."
Viktor slapped his chest with relief. "That's great! It looks like Lord Ed has a very strong team. His risks have been greatly reduced on this trip."
Uncle Du nodded in agreement. "Yes, as long as Ed sticks with these people, he should be able to make it back safely."
After all, they hadn't seen the battle footage, but they could tell that the people around Ed bore signs of combat and injuries, except for Ed himself.
So, they instinctively assumed that the bear demon had been killed by someone else.
Iris wasn't sure whether to feel happy or not, muttering to herself, "This guy really is lucky…"
At that moment, Phirna leaned over and said:
"Hey, Iris, your friend wouldn't have entered this competition just to beat my uncle for your sake, would he?"
Iris's eyes widened in surprise. "What are you talking about? He's just my family's tenant, not my friend. And besides, who would want to compete with you?"
Phirna just chuckled. "Alright, fine. But in any case, it doesn't matter. He's just a minor character."
"All I care about is quietly watching my uncle."
As the host of the viewing arena, Jason sat in the front row, holding a magical amplification device to provide commentary for the audience.
In terms of services, the government of Dorey City really went all out—they had a service concept ahead of its time!
However, Jason was only one person, so he obviously couldn't comment on everything. Most of the time, he focused on the content displayed on the main screen, which was primarily about the major associations.
More than half of the time, it featured the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association, as they were the most powerful and had the most attention-grabbing performances.
As for the secondary screen, Jason barely glanced at it—until now. This time, he raised his eyebrows slightly.
"Ladies and gentlemen, it seems that even individual Hunters have some impressive teams."
"Look, one of the teams has taken down a bear demon. Well, as they say, even the weak have their own ideals!"
"Whether they are strong Hunters or weak ones, everyone is giving their all for the competition! That's a life philosophy…"
Jason was a skilled host, speaking effortlessly about various topics, enhancing the atmosphere in the arena.
He then turned his eyes, noticing that he was now talking about individual Hunters, so he seized the moment to drop a big revelation.
"Now, everyone might be thinking that the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association is definitely going to win this time."
"Well, let me tell you, maybe that's not the case."