Chapter 159: Conquest

In a corner of the old castle where Battera keeps the G·I and the G·I warehouse, Sora made a phone call.

The caller was Kurapika. Naturally, what I had to report was what Kalluto had done to him.

"... So, I'm sorry, Kurapika. I leaked the information about the Exorcist to Kalluto."

"I don't care. On the contrary, it would be convenient if I could send someone who knows you. So don't worry."

Kurapika responded immediately to Sora's report and apology.

It wasn't just that he cared about Sora; Kurapika's words were sincere.

Of course, the actions of the Phantom Troupe member Chrollo were restricted, keeping him focused on "finding an Exorcist," and the longer the time spent sealing Chrollo's ability and keeping him separated, the better.

However, whether it was the Phantom Troupe members or Chrollo himself, they were a group of people who would even cut off their own heads to keep the Phantom Troupe alive.

It is precisely because I have insurance that I know whether my "knowledge" about Chrollo has been deleted, and it would be more troublesome for me to give up without deleting it.

Of course, Kurapika was not smug, saying "it's okay," because the "just in case" had not yet been removed. This is a place I want to grasp, regardless of whether it exists or not.

Therefore, it is better to know that "it will be discarded in the near future" than to have no information at all, and the fact that the exterminator is familiar with Sora and can obtain information is already a sufficient advantage.

Kurapika said to Sora, "Don't worry."

However, Kurapika knew there were others more dangerous than him, so he asked Sora for his thoughts on them.

"Kalluto is much more dangerous than me, isn't he?... Is he? I wonder if he is affectionate."

What Sora did was send Kalluto to the Phantom Troupe as a spy.

Although Kalluto himself voluntarily agreed to Sora's proposal, Sora did not want him to do so, but Sora did indeed put Kalluto in danger. Kurapika was worried about Sora and asked, as it was impossible not to care.

However, Sora's reaction was lighter than Kurapika had anticipated.

"Yeah. I was worried too, but after thinking about it calmly, I felt that even if Kalluto couldn't get into the Brigade, the chance of them being killed was low, so I proposed it."

That girl doesn't want to join the Brigade because she is attached to it, so she would flee without hesitation once she felt danger, and if she fled with all her might, she should have the ability to escape.

The Brigade probably wants to avoid making the Zoldyck family an enemy, so the possibility of them chasing too far is small.

I was surprised by Sora's ease, but Kurapika agreed after hearing the story.

In Sora's view, "His ability as a Kalluto Nen user is already on par with Killua, or if he isn't good at it, his accuracy is even higher than Killua's."

No matter how much talent Killua has, he only learned the basics in the heavens and didn't truly train in Nen until he met Bisque in G·I, so even if he awakened to Nen at the same time, Kalluto, who has always been educated by his family and Maids with Nen Abilities, spent more time and more intense training.

So for now, it is certainly not surprising that Kalluto can be on par with or slightly higher than Killua.

Moreover, although he is the youngest child, he is active as an assassin, so his sense of danger is strong and he knows when to withdraw.

If these conditions are met, Kurapika judged that the possibility of Kalluto falling into the worst-case scenario Sora mentioned is low.

"And, if Kalluto finds the Exorcist first, even if I think, 'What should I do?'"

Kurapika asked, "What do you mean?" to Sora's supplementary words, but he came up with the answer himself before he could say it out loud.

"... The Phantom Troupe members know that Kalluto is attached to you, so isn't it natural that Kalluto is against me?"

"That's right. Sorry."

From Kalluto's perspective, precisely because of his attachment to Sora, he is at best indifferent to Kurapika, and at worst, wants to kill him.

And if you don't know the specific situation in Yorkshin, and the relationship between Sora and Kurapika, Sora is more dangerous than Kurapika who directly controls Chrollo's life, I certainly don't understand.

Then, precisely because Kalluto worships Sora, it is natural to desperately look for an Exorcist, using it as a bargaining chip, saying "Don't miss Sora," which is persuasive enough.

Whether she is suspicious or not, if Pakunoda often reads her memory, she will find out immediately, but this may be why Kalluto accepted Sora's proposal.

If so, the chance of it being deceived is not low. After all, it is almost a fact that Kalluto wants to put Kurapika at a disadvantage, so his words and deeds will not be that unnatural.

Because I could understand this much, when I tried to confirm my answer, Sora immediately gave me the correct answer and then apologized.

"I don't have to apologize, but... just for the record, if the other party attacks, of course I will try not to kill, but I will counterattack normally."

"Yeah, I think we are all the same, so you don't have to hold back."

I know Kalluto doesn't like him, or rather, liking him is too mysterious for me; to be honest, Kurapika's feelings for Kalluto are the same, not as extreme as Kalluto's. There is no intention of being angry, but as expected, Kurapika's mood is complicated.

For this reason, I declare that I really don't want to treat him as leniently as Sora, but Sora himself did not force Kurapika to think "Kalluto's enemy is my enemy." He said it wasn't necessary.

"I don't know if you are really gentle or strict with children."

"Besides being strict, Kurapika is also kind. I don't care about my efforts not to kill Kalluto, and because he is Killua's younger brother, he was not involved in the Kurta Tribe massacre, so he was not hurt unnecessarily. Don't you want to?"

Kurapika retorted in surprise, but was countered curiously, and Kurapika pursed his lips. I wasn't particularly angry at this statement, I was happy that it was understood so much, but I admitted it with a bit of annoyance.

However, Kurapika changed the subject to deceive him, because he knew that being dissatisfied with this also proved that he was a child.

"First of all, what was Killua's reaction?"

"Ah, I'm still keeping silent because Kalluto doesn't seem to want me to know. Unlike Chrollo, I didn't register my full name, so Killua noticed it on the list, but I think it's just the same name."

"It's not a very rare name, and he doesn't seem to think of himself as a candidate for the Phantom Troupe, and in G. I., because he knows him."

"Really. If they knew, they would try to contact the Brigade, so we want to keep it quiet."

Kurapika agreed with Sora's decision and felt sorry for Killua.

Sora knew that Kurapika wanted to keep it quiet, not because he wanted to put Killua in danger, so she agreed, and then suddenly remembered the story.

"Yeah, when Killua finds out, I have to think of an apology."

"Oh yeah. I forgot. I gave Kalluto information about the Exorcist, but it might be meaningless in the end. Maybe the Exorcist is in G. I. for some reason, the Phantom Troupe knows about this, so I think they are playing soldiers."

"!... What does that mean?"

Kurapika was burning with anger and asked seriously: "Don't worry."

"Ahaha, sorry. No, I don't have any basis, but you said you bumped into the Brigade members because of Kalluto, didn't you? This is just a hypothesis I put forward because I felt the child's reaction was problematic."

"For the time being, I have told Gon and the others about this hypothesis. I mean, I said I would report this hypothesis, and I came back from the game once."

"Uncomfortable?"

Sensing Kurapika's anger, Sora smiled deceptively and quickly pushed the story forward.

Kurapika almost wanted to shout "What are you doing!"

"Yeah. Isn't it very unnatural to play games with me?"

"First of all, when I met him, he didn't seem interested in the game, and he didn't seem to know much about the types of cards."

Once explained to this extent, Kurapika understood what kind of theory Sora had proposed to hypothesize "Abolitionists in G. I."

"... Chrollo is the one who stole the ability, and he performed fortune-telling for himself and the members. If that fortune-telling had the information that 'there is an Exorcist in G. I.', then it makes more sense why they are there."

Just as Sora said, speculating that "the Phantom Troupe has already obtained intelligence indicating that G. I."

The person who looks like Hisoka is there, not because there is a Phantom Troupe member there, but if he also had information about the Game Master, it would be more natural.

"So the information I provided to Kalluto is nothing more than insurance that neither I nor Kalluto can use; I will use it if there is an opportunity."

"Anyway, there is a high possibility that it will be abandoned in the near future. Okay. Let's be careful."

While Kurapika was thinking about how Sora and Kurt had met and summarizing his own story, Sora lowered his voice and made a whisper-like plea, "... Don't go too far."

The only answer to that request was, "... That's what I said."

"Originally, I understood that it was done to buy time, because I didn't know how long I could stick to it. Don't worry unnecessarily, because I have already taken all the measures you can think of."

"For you, this is much more dangerous than it is for me, and they might make a mistake in the Brigade.... Since I can't contact you, please, don't do anything unreasonable or irrational. Or rather, you've already done something wrong, haven't you?"

"You can't believe me! No, I have too many thoughts to protest, but other than this Kalluto incident, I haven't done anything dangerous! I'm just peacefully enjoying the game!!"

Kurapika also pleaded with Sora, but halfway through, he remembered what Sora had done so far, and finally, he asked him to interrogate him, so Sora offered a rather serious excuse.

Of course, since Sora knew this, Kurapika remained skeptical of this credibility.

"That's not it!!... Ah."

"... Hey."

"No, no! Something strange happened, but no trouble occurred! That's why I forgot about it, so I didn't hide it or conceal it! Or rather, I don't even know what it is!"

Sora immediately denied it, but Kurapika reacted right after the denial; he suddenly remembered "I know," and scolded him in a slightly low voice, so Sora frantically provoked Kurapika, insisting that it was not a secret.

However, Sora's statement was cut off by a sentence, "I am the one who judges."

When Sora was hinted to "speak quickly," he gave up and voiced his thoughts on the "troubles that might happen."

"Well, I told you that day, Chrollo's name was on the list, right? When I finished talking and returned to the game, the navigator explaining the game first gave me a bouquet of flowers. I heard you wanted me to give it to you."

"... What are you talking about?"

"I didn't want to say it because I thought you would say that! I want to hear it!!"

If I talk about the Lavender Bouquet that happened about a week ago, the reaction I get is almost the same as Killua and Biscuit, and Sora is a little angry.

Kurapika's words and situation were not clear, but like Biscuit, he read that Sora wasn't deceiving anything and obediently apologized for the time being, "Sorry.", Sora was really angry. It is easily extinguished because it is just a joke, not being in a relationship.

"Well, I don't know why, you've convinced me, but I don't have any strange aura or anything, and my master gave me a seal of approval that 'this seems pretty good', so don't worry."

The producers of this game, the Game Master, seem to be friends with Ging, so I think it's just that the general manager who heard about last year's work from Ging liked it.

When Kurapika made the most logical guess that there was no danger in the bouquet, referring to Biscuit and himself, Kurapika agreed and replied: "Yes."

He agreed, but perhaps now that he realized he had received a bouquet from a fan, he felt his voice was a bit sullen, and Sora chuckled, putting away Kurapika's anger.

Sora was busy venting his anger while laughing, but forgot about this matter.

Honestly, I think the most likely guess is the possibility of "G. M., a self-proclaimed fan who gave me lavender after hearing about it from Ging." No lies.

However, although it was so small that Sora himself almost forgot it, he felt like something was stuck.

Sora didn't even realize that a few years ago, someone with a deeper connection to "Hana" said she was her "fan."

【1: Systematically use Risk Dice】

Although it was a bit troublesome, Gon and the others continued to collect cards smoothly.

Spell, they had already gotten used to how to use cards and trade with other players.

"What kind of cards can you get in this town?"

Gon asked Biscuit, and Biscuit replied, "Well, there are a few things..."

Gon wasn't worried about whether the mission was that difficult, but was waiting for an answer; the three of them were a bit stunned as usual.

"... Gon. This might be difficult, but I don't think it means what you expect."

"By the way, do you know what kind of place this is?"

"A"

Not knowing what to put for shock absorption, it was a pity to make people expect too much, so when Sora and Killua intervened, even Gon noticed and blushed a little.

This is the gambling city, Dorias.

If the activity to obtain cards in such a town is not gambling, it would be strange.

In this city, the difficulty of obtaining cards lies in the fact that it is equal for everyone in the sense that it is a game of pure luck, because it is impossible to gain power through Training.

"One is the Slot Machine prize; if you get three sevens, you hit the jackpot. The probability is 0.01%."

Gon and Killua, who would normally be restricted by age, were allowed to enter the casino by the NPC guards because they were playing the game, and Biscuit pointed and explained.

When asked "Is there an activity to obtain cards?", Biscuit might hesitate.

Since it's a slot, Sora thought about using his dynamic Sight Vision and reaction ability, perhaps he could find the eye he was aiming for, so he tried to look at the slot table he was using with "Ken" eyes, but that's probably it. It's impossible because there is a solid aura inside. I judged.

Instead of using a normal slot table, putting aura into it, or creating a slot table with aura, it is better to use Nen ability to manipulate the odds that are infinitely close to random.

In the name of the gambling city, it seems that elements other than luck are eliminated everywhere.

In a sense, I respect his thoroughness, but as Sora, I quietly thought, "What kind of father would almost force his son to gamble...".

I feel that Ging is a good and charismatic person as a human, but quite unqualified as a father, which is too regrettable.

Of course, Sora didn't say his thoughts out loud. I read that the air is Sora. The Mandragora incident was enough to make him feel like he wanted to fill a hole in his father, and he might respect and admire his father.

Fortunately, Gon didn't seem to notice that Ging was too disappointing. Remember the existence.

This is Risk Dice, an item I obtained during the first event called Ningen Sugoroku.

This is also an event that relies on luck, but no matter how bad the result is, as long as you stick to it, you will definitely reach the goal. Because it is such an event, not only Gon and Killua, but even Sora was amused.

Killua took out the extra dice that hadn't been converted into cards and threw them away.

Compared to a typical 6-sided die, the 20-sided Risk Dice is closer to a sphere in shape, so it rolls well and then stops.

Of course, if the eye that comes up is natural, that is a great success, which occupies 19 of the 20 faces.

After confirming, Killua sat on the coin machine triumphantly and inserted a coin. And if you press the button to stop the slot, the slots stop one by one as if teasing you, and what appears is...

"Ah!!"

"Amazing! One shot!!"

"Rainbow Diamond slum!!"

The three of them were excited about the three-seven that combined into one strike, and Sora clapped behind them. Sora was also happy, but because Sora had been thinking about this just now, he didn't take the three-seven in one go, but thought, "Is the key item to capture this town, in the end, also a gamble?" He passed by, much more sober than the other three.

Even if the probability of clearing is much higher than what is normally caught, what on earth does Ging want to train Gon to gamble for, his own son?

The courage and guts to take the big risk of a 5% chance of disaster? Even so, this is meaningless after all, because Killua is waving his hand. What on earth do you want, Ging freak?

"What are you looking so far away for?"

"No, he's a bit like a useless father, anyway, I'm looking at the wandering situation of the horse path."

Biscuit noticed Sora's reaction was out of place and rushed in, but Sora's answer was also off-track.

Fortunately, Gon did not notice Sora's lost state and scolded Killua for his countermeasures against the disaster, saying:

Gon showed his pure boy self as usual and appealed, "If something happened to Killua instead of the card, I would be in trouble!", but Killua did not take Gon's words to heart, but he also did not take them seriously.

"Don't worry."

Seeing Killua's optimism, Sora wanted to scold him with a "Pah", but fortunately, not only did Killua say "Don't say that", but there were also Biscuit and Gon.

Bang!! A cracking sound made my ears ache, and when I turned my gaze in that direction, the slot machine less than five meters away from the four people was emitting black smoke, and the upper half had been blown away, not retaining its original shape.

"It's terrible! The slot machine exploded, and the customer's face is a mess!!"

It was not the player who shouted, but the NPC. It reminded me that the slightly sticky and white lines were deliberately set lines.

And the fact that it was set meant that this must be a common occurrence in this city...

"I think this is strange."

"The customer who did this is also strange."

In addition, the onlookers, the NPCs, would also talk about their lines in a routine that might only change a few times.

The four people listened to the conversation with pale faces, but their eyes were not on the exploded slot, but on the floor... the bloody arm thrown out from the gap between the bystander's legs, and the twenty-sided die lying next to it.

... The side of the Adventure Dice looking up at the sky was the 5% "Great Evil".

"Did you hear that!? Killua, let's stop!"

"No!! I said I would do it!"

"Killua, you didn't manage to raise money in Yorknew, you really don't regret it!!"

Seeing the "Great Evil" end at a wonderful time, Gon hurriedly stopped Killua, but before Gon and the others could stop Killua, Killua threw the Risk Dice again, making Sora very angry.

Killua didn't understand the danger of gambling at all, possibly because he had never had any trouble with money. For a moment, Sora seriously considered having Illumi add a "don't gamble" brainwashing to the Needle he had planted.

Fortunately, a second stroke of luck appeared, so Killua headed to the poker table, where another designated card event was being held, to escape the Magic aura of Gon and Sora.

Of course, the result was a Royal Flush without any Exchange.

No regrets, a big victory, and obtaining the fastest "Gambler's Egg".

So even if Gon said: "Yes, then this is the end of the dice," and tried to end it peacefully, Killua would not return the dice to Gon and the others.

These were the only two designated card events, but the casino products included "Spell" prizes with many tempting rewards, such as "10-pack card free exchange vouchers", and Killua was completely fascinated by the thrill of gambling, and apparently he was still obsessively thinking "If only one more time...!".

Even Sora, who was always friendly to Killua, was angered by this shallowness.

"Killua"

Killua tried to roll the dice before Gon and the others could strangle him, but just before that, Sora called out quietly.

Hearing that voice, not only Killua, but also Gon, and even Biscuit shook their heads and looked back in fear.

When I turned around, there was a flower-like appearance Sora with a smile that should be called beautiful, but her bright eyes were not smiling at all. The three of them knew clearly that this was Sora's demon mode.

To be honest, even Biscuit didn't want to get involved with the crazy Sora.

And Killua, who knew his faults without being told his faults, had no excuses, so he said, "... It's over," in a state of enlightenment, waiting for a blow from Sora's angry fist or heel.

However, surprisingly, Sora's iron-fisted sanction, which served as the signal for the sermon to begin, did not come.

"Killua, if you want to swing it, then swing it."

"Eh?"

Unexpectedly, Sora allowed Killua to roll the dice.

Then, he smiled at the confused Killua and told him what "Great Evil eye is better" really meant.

"Next time I roll the Risk Dice, I will hit my butt here."

Killua froze due to the crackling sound.

Looking at the frozen Killua, Gon felt that for the 13-year-old Killua this year, this would be a terrible punishment, so much so that he would rather die from the Great Evil, but Gon was also angry. Killua did it. As a follow-up, I asked Sora.

"Sora... where are your pants?"

"Hmm! Gon is kind.... Sweet. Take off your pants too."

"I'm sorry for the trouble I've caused, I'm very sorry. I won't use it again. Please take all the extra dice away so I don't lose them."

Faced with Sora's more ruthless remarks than Gon's, Killua knelt down and respectfully offered the dice while expressing remorse.

【2: No. 74 Sage Sapphire A-15】

"Carbuncle!!"

"!?"

The moment they saw the animal photo that the client NPC asked them to capture, the eyes of Sora and the jeweler apprentice Biscuit sparkled and they shouted, scaring Gon, Killua, and the client NPC.

"Master, Master! It's Carbuncle! Although it's not real, it's Carbuncle! Carbuncle!!"

"Wow, I know! Ah, it's a pity it's not real!"

"... Huh? Is this something you guys are so excited about?"

Almost all the photos were stolen from NPCs, Sora reported to Biscuit with great enthusiasm.

Unable to understand the reaction of these two women, Killua asked suspiciously, and Sora said: "Of course!"

"This Carbuncle is a divine beast, and the stone on its forehead is said to be of top quality!"

Sora was even more childish than Gon and Killua, showing them the photos he had stolen from NPCs and pointing them out.

In the photo was a cat-like beast... From Sora's perspective, there was a beast that looked very much like the Pokémon Espeon, with a bright red stone that looked like an egg embedded in its forehead. It was definitely not the yellow rabbit-like mascot from the game that liked curry, where you put 4 slimes of the same color together and erase them. It was cute, but it was different.

Sora didn't just look at the pictures for a moment; he explained why the two of them were so excited about the Phantom Beast "Carbuncle," and why they themselves didn't even know the name and existence of this Phantom Beast. Gon.

Judging from Biscuit's reaction, it was very likely a creature that existed not only in Sora's world but also in this world, but was now likely extinct, or in a state infinitely close to it.

Needless to say, the reason for this was the Jewel, which was the greatest feature of this divine beast.

If they had been over-hunted by Poachers for this very purpose and had gone extinct long ago, it was no wonder they didn't know about them, and given Biscuit's Hunter domain and Sora's Magic, it was strange that they knew the name of this beast; I could see the tension rising.

That was what they thought, but their explanation was slightly off.

"So cute! Ever since I saw the restored plush toy at the Clock Tower, I've wondered why I wasn't born in the era when it normally existed. Or, do you have a way to copy it with a Nen Beast!!"

"Over there!?"

Killua and Gon went "Hey," "Hmm" while looking at the photos, and Sora excitedly started talking unilaterally about his passion for the cuteness of Carbuncles.

This woman, as a Jewel magician, had no interest in "top-quality Jewels" and seemed to only see the cuteness of Carbuncles.

"Come to think of it, Sora was really excited in the last episode of 'Squirrel and Squirrel.' He likes cute creatures."

"I love all creatures except cockroaches and worms!"

When Gon recalled a villain combo in a recent event that couldn't attack because of cuteness, Sora answered triumphantly, then stuck back to the Carbuncle in the photo.

And to this answer, Gon and Biscuit involuntarily let out a strong sound of satisfaction: "Ah!" while looking at Killua.

"Hey, what do you guys mean by that?"

Killua asked faintly at his temple, but he knew it himself. Killua himself actually believed from the bottom of his heart that if Kurapika was of course the object of his affection, then this woman was definitely more of a cat person than a dog person.

However, I don't think that's true, but if Sora's feelings for him were "cat-like," that would be too frustrating, so Killua kicked Sora's calf quite seriously for the time being.

"Ouch! What are you doing, Killua!"

"You're rotten."

"Huh? Seriously? What did I do?"

"... Are you guys willing to accept this request?"

After being kicked, Sora made a face awkwardly and said: "It's your fault." Gon gave a bitter smile at Killua's usual inflexible driving. The tone, whether because he couldn't stand it, or because the time limit had already passed.

I think even a GM wouldn't have thought that one day they would use the line "the player gets excited without listening to the client" set to a certain degree. Or rather, I thought it was good to some extent.

After receiving the request to capture a Carbuncle, it took five days.

It was said that the grassland where the Carbuncle appeared had almost no trees, was covered with knee-high soft grass, and there was simply no place for humans to hide. Couldn't find it.

Although it was a high-difficulty mission, the Carbuncle was still cautious.

Unless you used "Zetsu" or "Shadow" to erase your presence, it wouldn't come out, and as long as you made the slightest sound, it would run away as fast as it could.

Moreover, because the Carbuncle also used "Shadow," it was difficult to find it. What's more, it was smart, so it wouldn't fall into traps at all, and if it wasn't good, it would lead the chasing humans and put them into the traps they had set themselves.

At the end of the day, I thought I had finally caught it, but in the few seconds of lag before it turned into a card, the cat-like Carbuncle scratched and bit me with its sharp claws...

If you didn't have "Zetsu" or "Shadow," you would run away before you caught it, so when you were unarmed, this attack hurt a lot. So even if I caught it, I missed it several times.

After much hard work, the four of us finally found and caught it, and even if it was scratched or bitten, Sora wouldn't let go, pretending to be Nausicaä, so we could turn it into a card.

By the way, although his arms were covered in blood, Sora was probably moved by holding the red Carbuncle in his own arms, and continued to laugh happily. Rice field.

Biscuit and Killua thought it would be fine to just catch it, but if they could hand it over to the client, but...

"No! Absolutely not!! I won't hand you over to such a tasteless old man!!"

"Don't give it a name! Just give it to me!"

"No! If you're going to give it to that guy, I'll let him go now!! I mean, I'm going to keep it!!"

Even after the Carbuncle scratched and bit her and her arms were covered in blood, Sora still kept a bright smile and hugged her.

Apparently, Sora's admiration and passion for the Carbuncle were even greater than Killua and the others had imagined.

And, if only Sora was selfish, then the three of us should tie our wings together to steal the Binder and confiscate the card, but...

"Even I don't like it! After all, the explanation on the card is that Carbuncles whose Jewels are taken away will weaken and die!

No! If you say you want to have a Carbuncle like Sora, then I don't want to give it to that guy who said from the beginning that he wanted the Carbuncle Jewel!!"

Seeing the description of the Carbuncle on the card, Gon stood in front of the teary-eyed Sora, holding the Binder to protect him.

Unlike Sora's "I want to keep it," this one was 100% pure, "I don't want to kill animals for selfish human desires," so even Killua and Biscuit didn't dare to take tough measures. Unable to look directly at Gon's innocence, he looked away.

"... You know, Gon. Your thoughts and what you said are completely correct. But this is a game world, and the Carbuncle isn't real..."

"It's not real, so you're saying you can let it die!?"

"That's right! It's not a living creature because it's 'just in case,' and if you say it's fake, then my master isn't a Loli Baba, she's just a monster witch!"

"I'll forgive Gon, but I won't forgive you! Get over it!"

While Biscuit avoided Gon's gaze and tried to persuade him, before Gon could finish speaking, Gon shouted out the problem, and Sora followed the trend, dismissing little Biscuit for no reason, which angered her.

Since this kind of teacher-student interaction was a daily occurrence, Gon naturally ignored it and asked Killua with teary eyes.

"Although it's a 'just in case' existence, it's living just fine! It's a living thing!! Killua! Killua wouldn't say 'it's not a living thing,' right?!"

"Uh..."

Remembering what happened a few weeks ago, Retsu, a poor girl who was pretending but everything was real, Killua couldn't speak.

If I didn't know her, I would have answered: "No, she's not a living thing," but now I couldn't say that. Even if the Carbuncle was different from Retsu, being a creature that didn't think for itself and had a routine, just like an NPC mob in the city, Killua couldn't deny that it was a living creature.

... I know, if I made a mistake and hadn't met Gon and Sora, I would be no different from an NPC, just repeating the routine of killing in my work. I can't deny it.

Of course, Gon did not think that much. This was why Gon's questions and pleas pierced through Killua's conscience.

However, Killua's rational and game-experienced mind satisfied their selfish motives for being here, and he calculated that obtaining this event-designated card through a trade would be a terrible move.

It took four people, even with Biscuit and Sora who possessed Hunter professions, as well as Gon and Killua who were better at erasing symbols than the two of them, five days to take down a Carbuncle; it could be said that the difficulty level was quite high among card acquisition events.

According to Gon, the only Carbuncle I had found in the past five days was the same one. This meant that in this event, each team might only be able to capture one Carbuncle, and it might be impossible to obtain extra cards.

So this card was a tiger cub to its owner. Rare spells are copied and cloned on the card, and so on; unless you have more than one, no one will accept a trade, and even if you did accept, you would be able to see your own feet.

Because it was an A-rank combination of "Lottery" and "Adventure Dice," Killua thought of a terrible strategy for a moment, but if he did that, Sora would definitely execute that prophecy, so he drove it out of his mind.

However, in reality, there were only two ways to respect these two opinions, and if they were obtained, they wanted to clear the event straight away to get the reward, so Killua was worried.

However, far from being able to focus my thoughts, Gon and Sora let out whimpering sounds, "No No No way!!"

"Don't worry, you guys!!"

"You really should be careless!!"

Except for Biscuit, Killua desperately tried to find a way to make their wishes come true, but as they continued to complain, he was really angry and yelled at them. Busy protecting the Binder he was trying to steal, he did not pay attention to Killua's efforts.

"Master's Demon!! Demon Witch!!"

"I'm sorry for being a demon! Just for the record, I wouldn't kill a real Carbuncle for those who only see it as a gem! But this is a game! This is the only way... no!!"

Sora, who was too excited to shout "Book" again to put away the Binder, did not grasp the basic line of thought; while shouting and holding the Binder, he grabbed the edge of the Binder and pulled it away from Sora while struggling.

Biscuit was not blinded by the gem, nor did he have any disrespect for the life of the Carbuncle. Since he had only heard of Lettu, he did not have the same consciousness as Gon and Killua, "a creature that aims for 'justice' is a normal creature," so Biscuit himself was able to do this. Understood. I also felt that this event was disgusting.

But this had nothing to do with Sora and Gon, as Gon held Biscuit who was trying to steal Sora's Binder, while shouting.

"Impossible! I absolutely hate it! I won't allow such a thing to happen! Ging couldn't possibly do such a thing!"

"………………Hmm?"

"……One"

After a moment's pause, I noticed Gon's shout.

And the other three also sensed the same "discomfort" and raised their voices.

"……Isn't this matter very strange?"

Just realizing something was wrong, tears streaming down, letting the three confirm it, all three nodded with wide eyes.

What I remembered was the Mandrake, which showed the disappointment I did not want to remember.

The Mandrake caused so much shame damage to Gon, but it was a symbol of the thoughts of Gon's father, Ging, even though it was ruined by himself.

A Mandrake that could only be obtained by sacrificing someone's life. The main victims were innocent dogs.

I am sure this might not be an illusion based on Gon or Sora's expectations; precisely because he hated this kind of sacrifice, he largely eliminated or changed the characteristics of the original Mandrake and turned it into something else.

This is why this event is interesting.

Although unwilling to sacrifice a "just in case" dog to obtain a Mandrake, because the breeding of phantom beasts that were slaughtered and went extinct due to human ugliness was killed again by human ugliness. Like such a terrible contradiction, the four realized that this behavior was the worst kind of Hunter, regardless of what Ging's intentions were.

"……Master. What exactly did you hear about the card event happening here? Are you saying you want me to give the Carbuncle to that rich person?"

"……He didn't tell me the specific content of the request, but I heard it was a reward for accepting that NPC's request. I said it, but didn't say the specific content of the reward!"

Sora asked Biscuit to confirm, and Biscuit put his hand on his chin and began to dig into his memory. The client was a gem maniac, and the designated cards that could be obtained in this town were all gem-related, so everyone had an impression, but I noticed the client didn't say a word about what the reward was.

"First of all, what kind of card can you get here?"

And when Gon was completely oblivious to some basic information because he was focused on capturing the Carbuncle, Killua and Sora each answered with a thoughtful look.

"It's 'Sage's Sapphire'."

"...... The effect is like 'the person who possesses it will get a smart friend', right?"

Sora's answer fell into silence.

As a Hunter, you will obtain a gem that has the effect of "making a smart friend" in case you do the worst thing.

It was obvious that not confirming this event was nothing more than unnatural and uncomfortable.

"……Now, let's go back to town to collect information about that client."

"Agreed."

The three immediately responded to Sora's first proposal, "accompany a company," and then returned to town.

＊＊＊

In short, the event of "capturing the Carbuncle and handing it to the client" was the biggest bluff.

Most of this client's collection was stolen from others through immoral means of deceiving others. A person who looked dirty.

He was an NPC set up to be deceived by the client's forged will, while all his property and his parents' mementos were cheated away.

As he wished, obtaining evidence of the client's fraud and intimidation, removing his status as a "town celebrity," and recovering his parents' keepsake jewelry was the real event to obtain the designated card. A malicious trap.

As for which side was malicious, if the "capture Carbuncle and hand it to the client" event occurred, the real event would not be capturable.

The real event NPC would not talk to you several times until they told you their situation or asked you to help them. Instead, because they knew they were a suspicious person, they would run away when you talked to them at first, but if you talked to the servant NPC at the Residence, you could hear the client's notoriety, and the real event NPC information was also obtained.

However, once the Carbuncle was handed to the client, the NPC participating in the real event determined that the player was "the same type of trash as the client," so they would no longer hand over any information, and although they talked to the man many times, she only said "you too," and the event did not happen.

In other words, Biscuit seemed to be misled by the player to hand over the Carbuncle as a real event to the Bluff event.

Biscuit was enraged and told the player who passed the information to him, "Magnetic, magnetic, off-topic, I went to see him all the way, and ended up being knocked out."

Temporarily, thanks to Gon's trust in Ging, everyone did what they didn't want to do, avoided the despair of not getting the card, cleared the real event, and safely got the "Sage's Sapphire" as a reward. I am glad I put it in, but...

"Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo, I'm going to keep you!!"

"This is impossible! Waste of extra pockets, get out!!"

"Are you saying that if you keep telling me not to push myself too hard in the 'Fountain of Forgotten Time', you will spend the rest of your life here?"

"I'm telling you! I can't leave you alone because you look and feel like Kurapika!

I will make you happy for the rest of your life!!"

"Ah, that's why I don't want to let go... but Sora, therefore, I think Kurapika's permanent residence in G would be complicated, right?"

Sora persuaded her to keep the Carbuncle, a divine beast Sora admired, somehow seeing the resemblance to Kurapika. It took me a whole day to escape.

【4: Elder's Energy Booster A-20】

"Hey, Gon. Should I teach you how to castrate?"

"Please."

"Wait, Gon. Don't be in such a rush. I understand how you feel, but don't be in a rush."

When Sora asked Gon with a gaze full of pity and sorrow, Gon answered with a look of a Death God that even Mito, let alone Killua, had never seen before, and Killua rushed forward to stop him.

However, just as Killua said, Gon even understood Sora's proposal.

Even for Biscuit, the items available in this mission could only be described as "scummy."

"... I never expected that the foreshadowing about not using Mandrake in 'Witch's Aphrodisiac' would come to life here."

Biscuit muttered to herself while looking back at the memo that listed the card name and the Material needed to be collected for the mission.

Once again, the name of the item obtainable in the Material collection mission is "Elder's Vitality Booster"... don't make me tell you how bad it is.

The mission content is similar to "Witch's Mysterious Medicine," which is to Collect Material. Since this card has a higher rank, the content itself is also similar, just with a higher difficulty for the task of obtaining the Material.

And just as Biscuit said, he collected the foreshadowing that Sora didn't treat Mandrake as the mysterious medicine he was soberly concerned about.

Just as Sora said, it doesn't work unless you use the stock of the opposite sex, so unlike the mysterious medicine, it is an item exclusively for male use.

Or rather, according to the NPC Elder, Mandrake is stronger than Mandrake, or rather, the effect seems too direct, so it seems the aphrodisiac used Alraune, which is considered backward-compatible with Mandrake.

You are doing a useless, elaborate setup, Ging. Needless to say, everyone sees very far.

Making Gon do such a pathetic card acquisition mission, so I wanted to finish it quickly without saying anything; I don't know if it's Malice, but anyway, I was reminded that Ging's character is bad.

"... Well, I wanted to prioritize teaching you castration, but I can't keep dragging it out. Do you want to do it?"

"... I agree."

Killua's persuasion was of no use. After Gon confirmed that he would take shameless actions against Ging, Gon nodded helplessly with dead, dull eyes, as if he had already given up.

Seeing Gon's sad expression, Biscuit smiled gently, as if saying, "You're not bad at all," with a look of pity in her eyes.

"Discovery!"

Boom! With a sound, the unpacked card, held in Biscuit's hand, squirmed, resisted, and screamed.

"Woooo! It smells like Mandrake!!

Pollination eeeeeeeeee!!"

"............"

Just as the three of them suddenly became silent and stiff, the equally silent Biscuit looked at them, as if saying, "Hurry up!", and tied it to a Mandrake that had been pulled too hard.

Please don't look at me with strange eyes. This is the best way to obtain a Mandrake.

Unlike Mandrake, Mandrake does not crawl out of the ground and run around on its own. If you ignore them, they will stay in the soil, just like ordinary plants.

So if you say it's easier to obtain than Mandrake, it's the opposite. Each Mandrake has different leaf shapes, colors, and even flowers. It mimics the surrounding plants, blooming in the same color and shape as the most common flowers in the area, so unless you pull it out, you cannot tell which one is a Mandrake.

It is temporarily created with Nen Ability, so if you look at it with "Hard," it has the characteristic of "piercing" Aura, but the forest where Mandrake flowers bloom is too necessary; you need to visit other Material collection missions, a forest full of Material.

That is to say, besides Mandrake, there are many plants full of Aura, all made of Aura, so the only way to finally find a Mandrake is to pull up the surrounding flowers.

However, I don't have enough free time to continue doing things like this, and most importantly, it's too pitiful to let Gon continue this mission.

So, thinking that this would be more pitiful, I decided to use Mandrake to find Mandrake.

It's not a designated card, but an essential item to obtain a designated card, so I thought if I had one, it might be a trading Material, so I found an extra one, grabbed it, and kept it, but this judgment was correct in an unexpected direction.

It goes without saying, but Mandrake can be distinguished from Mandrake and other plants.

So, knowing that if you use a running Mandrake in a state of Hatsu, it will go straight to Mandrake.

After confirming that the binding was tight and wouldn't come loose, Biscuit let go of the Mandrake, and the Mandrake ran while shouting "Pollination!"

Killua followed behind like walking a dog, and the three of them followed behind him.

Regardless of whether everyone was worried about Gon or didn't want to think about anything else, they silently chased after the Mandrake, and the soul-stirring cry of the Mandrake echoing in the forest was "Pollination!"

Everyone was thinking, "What is this situation?", but fortunately, we chose a way to get rid of the embarrassment, making us feel helpless; within five minutes, the Mandrake discovered the Mandrake.

"Here it is, Mandrake woooo!!"

The angry Mandrake pounced on this plant with jagged leaves like a dandelion and flowers like lily of the valley, hugging it and screaming.

Looking at it, Gon must have thought, "Okay! The rest is to pull it out and turn it into a card!" Don't sell it wholesale!

"Mandrakeuu!! It's me! Pollinate it!"

"!?"

As expected, even if they found the Mandrake, they would still scream too low, but seeing the Mandrake actually pull out the Mandrake's leaves itself, everyone was stunned.

Once the head came out, the Mandrake started screaming.

"What are you doing!? You pervert! You beast!

I like thin books, physical books! I like thin books, physical books!!"

"'Cow!?'"

"That old man is really the worst!!"

Unlike the Mandrake, the Mandrake's voice was high-pitched but cute.

Are you also a product of midnight tension?!

Biscuit and Killua burst out unexpectedly and squatted down on the spot. Unlike the other two, Gon fell into a relatively serious feeling of wanting to die, sitting on the spot with his face buried in his knees.

Although Sora sincerely sympathized with Gon, whose ears were flushed red, he still gave a heartfelt stab, and even his ears were flushed red, but the Mandrake, of course, didn't care, listening with a meaning different from the truth, and continued to scream murder.

"No No No!"

"So that's it! Who came up with this line!?"

Killua, who was closest to the Mandrake rope, jumped in and pulled out the Mandrake.

By the way, do you know what Killua means? Then, if you don't know what a thin book is, that's a line that's hard to understand, isn't it? Sora thought about it and still thought it was all Milky's fault. I believe it is peaceful.

When Killua pulled it out, the Mandrake raised its voice and said, "Kyaa!?"

When I saw this, Killua, and of course Sora and Biscuit, thought the only thing left to do was to turn them into cards.

Boom!!

"Hmm!?"

"!? Killua!!"

Before the cards could even be played, the lily-like Mandrake flower suddenly burst open, and a yellow, pollen-like powder hit Killua in the face.

"Huh!? Why is the pollen a female plant!?"

"That, it doesn't matter now! Hey, Killua, are you okay!?"

"Killua!? Killua!!"

Sora interrupted Biscuit's worry.

"Ah! Ptooey! It got in my mouth and nose! It got in my eyes! It hurts like hell!!"

"Wow! Mandrake, woooo!!"

"No way!!"

However, contrary to the worries of Gon and Sora, Killua did not faint after being hit by the pollen-like substance, nor did his complexion change at all; he threw it hard into the depths of the forest and discarded it.

Apparently, this was not the kind of Poison that even Killua could not resist; although it was terrible for Killua, who was crying so much he couldn't even open his eyes, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"Ah, yes."

Seeing this, Gon laughed and said, "Good thing Killua didn't."

"That's right. I mean, if you think about it, both Datura and Mandrake only have aphrodisiac Poison effects, so unless you have a high tolerance or a large amount, you'll die..."

Having said so much, Sora froze. Gon stiffened, a smile on his face.

Both of them must have noticed. It wasn't that it didn't work on Killua, it was just that it wasn't in an effective situation yet, and that was more likely.

"Master! Stay away from Killua!"

"Killua! Don't open your eyes!!"

"Gon?"

The two of them froze for a few seconds, but when they realized it wasn't a freeze, they shouted.

However, for Killua, who had never heard of Sora's instructions, they were too vague, and he raised his head and opened his eyes.

Fortunately, Biscuit, who was beside Killua, had heard Sora's story, or knew the effect after reading the Mandrake's description; if it entered Killua's field of vision, it would have an effect. Of course, he probably also knew that even after the effect wore off, it would be very embarrassing.

So, as expected of a master, her movements were fast and accurate.

"Ha!"

"Ptooey!!"

"'Eh?'"

Without waiting for Killua to open his eyes, Biscuit grabbed Killua's head with both hands and turned it.

Because he turned his head so forcefully, Killua let out a groan, his eyelids opening completely due to the reflex of pain.

Then I swallowed the thing that looked like Mandrake pollen, a trap that even caught my eye, and the first thing I saw was not the nearby Biscuit...

"............ Gon?"

"... Hey, Master, what are you doing?"

Aiming at Sora, who was at a certain distance from Killua, Biscuit not only adjusted the angle of Killua's neck, but also adjusted it.

Last time I intended to write it in the afterword, but I forgot the information.

Last time Sora and Lily wore nursery school cosplay. For some reason, I had intended from the beginning to make Sora a loli and have her do nursery school cosplay, so I was happy to write it.

And the last story this time is the one I originally intended to write two years ago in the witch's aphrodisiac episode.

Initially, the Mandrake story was supposed to start immediately after finding the Mandrake.

The reason I deliberately split the story into two parts is because I really wanted this development to be 2 instead of 1, but the witch's aphrodisiac was the first card I got when I looked at the original work, so the timing was wrong.

I originally wanted to change the order, but the appearance of Datura was already fascinating enough, and Gon and the others got a convenient item that could be used naturally, which could be used for the aphrodisiac in the second half, so I split it. I did it, but as a result, I felt very sorry for Gon.

Gon, I'm sorry. But I don't feel sorry for Ging.

What kind of medicine is this old man seriously thinking about?