Occasionally, Queen Oito, Steiner, Melody, and others would come over for brief exchanges, but that was the extent of it.
The banquet gradually came to an end without anyone realizing.
The other guests departed one after another.
Queen Oito was escorted back to her quarters by her guards.
Naturally, Germain and his group were asked to stay behind by Admiral Mike.
He, along with Steiner and a few others, led them away from the banquet hall.
It was only then that they noticed — the entire floor was cleverly divided.
The banquet hall occupied the front.
And in the back, taking up just as much space — was his office.
In the office, besides them, there were many soldiers armed and ready.
They were like executioners hidden behind the curtain—ready to act on a single command from Admiral Mike.
Of course, such a situation would only arise if Admiral Mike had gone mad.
First, Admiral Mike praised everyone for their crucial role in quelling the great chaos and maintaining order.
He also commended Germain and the others for retrieving the "Hope."
He promised to honestly report these achievements to V6 and ensure they received proper rewards.
However, in the "true feelings" Germain sensed, Admiral Mike showed a very different face.
Admiral Mike would soon send a fleet back to the Six Continents to report on the situation.
But he planned to exaggerate his own role in the report while downplaying everyone else's contributions.
He intended to claim most of Chairman Netero's months-long efforts in stabilizing order as his own.
He would even present Germain's squad's recovery of the "Hope" as the result of his strong support.
Even though, by the timeline, his fleet was still at sea heading to the New Continent—making such claims impossible.
Yet, he knew exactly how to make it appear believable.
All these twisted intentions were heard clearly by Germain.
Admiral Mike's attempt to deceive was, to him, like a child trying to perform a backflip in front of an expert.
Germain finally understood why Chairman Netero looked so confident—he had clearly seen through Admiral Mike's true nature.
Everyone realized that this guy was bound to mess things up; it was only a matter of time.
After that, there would be many opportunities to act.
Admiral Mike spoke at length, his words flowing freely before he finally stopped.
He took a puff from his pipe and exhaled a cloud of smoke.
Under the light, his frog-shaped sunglasses gleamed faintly.
"If I'm not mistaken, the cause of the Great Chaos was the King Kakin royal Seed Urn Ceremony going out of control. It summoned many terrifying Nen beasts, leading to what they call the Night of Slaughter, right?"
Chairman Netero answered on behalf of everyone, "That's right."
This was the investigation result that the Hunter Association disclosed to the military about the cause of the Great Chaos.
There was no mention whatsoever of concepts like the 'God of Curse of Resentment.'
What they revealed to the public was even simpler—
A rebellion army dissatisfied with the second prince's succession released many fearsome magical beasts.
Combined with the various beasts already existing in the New Continent, it caused the chaos of that night.
"Truly terrifying…" Admiral Mike said.
"But now, I have some questions."
"What questions?"
Admiral Mike turned to Germain.
"The one who finally resolved the Great Chaos and recovered the 'Hope' was you, Germain, correct?"
Chairman Netero smiled and glanced at Germain.
"Yes."
"Chairman Netero, I remember when I was a child, you were already the world's strongest Nen user. So does that mean he is even stronger than you?"
"Hahaha… indeed. I'm getting old after all. The young always surpass me."
Admiral Mike also laughed.
"If I could witness it with my own eyes, perhaps it would be even better… Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't believe you, I just want to see it for myself."
On the northeast side of the coastal fortress stood a towering canyon.
Between the steep rock walls stretched a wide expanse of wild grass, covered in vegetation resembling tumbleweeds scattered everywhere.
A dozen or so gray-green military jeeps were parked at the foot of the cliff.
Groups of strong, sturdy soldiers jumped off the trucks, passing along heavy spotlights as they unloaded them.
Where the beams of the spotlights intersected was also the focus of everyone's gaze — a battlefield.
Admiral Mike, pipe clenched between his teeth, removed his toad-shaped sunglasses and clipped them onto the pocket of his uniform.
He stepped out from the shadows into the bright floodlight, drawing attention like a lead actor walking from backstage onto the stage.
"Germain," Admiral Mike said to a hunter in a black suit nearby, "your opponent is Morton, one of my subordinates."
From behind Admiral Mike came a man, tall as an iron tower, with a crew cut and a neck as thick as his head.
His large muscles were all taut and ready for action.
Morton grinned widely at Germain, revealing a mouth full of white teeth that stood out even in the dim light.
Admiral Mike stepped aside, smoking his cigarette as he spoke, "There are no limits to the fight rules. If one falls and can't get up within ten seconds, that counts as a loss."
Standing surrounded by soldiers, he raised his chin proudly.
"Any questions?"
"Report, Admiral, no questions!" Morton responded loudly and decisively, cracking his knuckles as he flexed his arms.
Germain also answered clearly, "No questions."
"Good." Admiral Mike laughed a few times.
"You may begin whenever you're ready."
Morton swung his arms, and his aura spilled out like white mist, clinging to his strong body.
In an instant, it conjured into a suit of knight's armor.
The protrusions on his helmet looked like sharp spikes from a pit trap.
Clad in heavy armor all over, he held a chain in his right hand, the end of which was an unusually large iron ball.
Although Morton looked like someone from the medieval times, the strength of his armor was enough to withstand a rocket blast—perhaps even more.
Likewise, when he swung his meteor hammer, he could easily split mountains and crack rocks.
These abilities made him one of Admiral Mike's personal bodyguards.
*******
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