"Hayden?"
"Yohoho~ That kid's fine, but he wouldn't call me an old woman."
Sure enough, the phone connected, and the rough voice of the red-nosed captain, Hayden Maxey, came through.
"Old woman, you're still alive?"
The corners of the old woman's eyes twitched. "Thank you for your kindness, but yes, I'm still dying~ Sorry to disappoint you!"
"Haha…" Hayden chuckled at the sarcasm. "You sound like you've still got some fight left."
"I thought that kid wouldn't have the patience and might make things difficult for you. Guess I was worried for nothing…"
After finally seeing off Roy—the plague god—Hayden still felt a lingering heartache just hearing his name.
Damn… that kid almost scammed my entire retirement savings. If I hadn't sold my flying fish to get some of it back, I might've had to rely on fishing for scraps the rest of my life.
"Yohoho~ Old lady, I may be old, but I'm not as frail as you think."
"At least, I could still teach you a thing or two with one hand," the old woman replied, her murky eyes flashing with pride. "But… if the boy you're talking about is that blind man…"
She paused.
"…Then maybe even you wouldn't be able to handle him."
Behind the stone gate, footsteps faded away. Even though Roy was gone, Amy Woolund's heart trembled as she recalled the way he had glanced in her direction—casual, unintentional, yet utterly piercing.
"So, he passed your test?" Hayden wasn't surprised. He sighed with emotion. "A man who can split a storm with a single swing… I doubt anything can stop him. Even the Vicious Fox Clan would struggle."
"Wait… what do you mean, split a storm?"
Though she was old, Amy wasn't deaf or senile. She demanded, "Explain yourself!"
"Literal meaning," Hayden said plainly. "That blind man you met—he really split a storm. One that rivaled the power of the Sea God."
"You didn't see it. I've been on the sea for decades, and I've never witnessed anything like it…"
"I just called to talk to you about it…"
And so, Hayden told her everything that happened that day.
On the other end, silence.
Only heavy breathing could be heard, growing more frantic by the second—
Plop… Plop… Plop…
Her heartbeat thundered in her chest.
Amy Woolund was shocked.
No wonder Roy could locate her instantly! With that level of power, of course he could master En without any formal training.
But to split a storm in one strike? If she didn't know Hayden was honest and down-to-earth, she would've called bullshit right there.
"…Did you report him?" the old woman asked, taking a deep breath to steady herself. "Hayden, a genius like that needs to be logged with the higher-ups."
"Of course I reported him." Hayden lit his newly bought pipe and blew a smoke ring. "Guess what they said?"
"How'd they respond?" Amy asked, ears perked up.
Hayden took another puff, then said solemnly, "They said they already knew."
"What…"
Amy's heart skipped a beat.
"…I thought the higher-ups might take him more seriously this time. But this… sounds like every other year."
"The same?" Hayden chuckled. "The one who said it… was the President himself."
!!!
The old woman froze. Her mouth opened, but no words came out.
The weight of those words depended entirely on who said them.
In the Hunter Association, she'd never met anyone whose voice carried more weight than Isaac Netero.
"If my memory isn't failing me," she muttered, "even President Netero's own son, Master Beyond, didn't receive this kind of attention back then."
Beyond Netero, Porter Bai Gigante, Biscuit Krueger—these were legends of the Association. Even Ging received special treatment from Netero himself. But Ging was a lazy bum—out of 160 workdays, he missed 150 or was en route to skip.
Shameful…
"Now," Hayden murmured, blowing out another ring of smoke.
The phone fell into silence.
No one spoke.
Amy took a while to process everything. When she finally did, she sighed deeply. "If the President personally acknowledged him… then that kid's identity must be anything but ordinary."
"What's his name?"
Even someone with one foot in the grave couldn't help but be curious.
"Roy Zoldyck. Also the author of the wildly popular manga Pirate King: Tao."
"…???"
Pirate King? Heavenly fate? Amy didn't hear a word of that. Her mind stuck on one name—Zoldyck!
As expected, no fame ever comes without reason…
"If he's a genius from the Zoldyck family, then I suppose this kind of feat is understandable."
"Understandable, sure," Hayden replied, tapping out his pipe. "But what if I told you he was once considered mediocre? Overlooked by the family since birth."
Amy stiffened.
"And that's not all," Hayden continued. "There are three Zoldycks here this year."
"Three? I thought there were only two!" Amy exclaimed. "That white-haired boy—Killua—I met him just yesterday."
"Nope. Three."
Hayden's eyes narrowed. "The boss of the Zoldyck family is here too… under the alias Gittarackur."
"...No wonder the President is paying such close attention," Amy whispered.
"Hayden… I have a hunch. Something big is going to happen during this year's Hunter Exam."
"…I already feel the same." Hayden nodded, letting his pipe cool down.
The two chatted a bit longer, then ended the call.
Evening had fallen.
Far across the ocean, the wind began to howl.
Dark clouds rolled over the horizon.
The sea roared, waves rising, crashing, and spinning skyward—
The storm… is coming again.