"Okay, got it."
The examiner didn't say much more and simply winked at the young, pretty waitress.
She smiled politely, led them to a private box, opened the door, and said, "Please, come in."
Roy nodded with a calm smile and entered first.
Gon, Leorio, and Kurapika followed closely behind.
In the blink of an eye, only the fierce fox-like man stood at the doorway. He casually tossed them a few number plates.
"These are your admission numbers."
"There are millions—if not tens of millions—of candidates who take the Hunter Exam each year."
"And only one in ten thousand makes it this far."
"As 'newbies'…"
Pfft~ Can a blind guy really be considered a rookie? More like a monster.
The fox-faced examiner glanced sideways at Roy and twitched the corner of his mouth.
"As rookies, you've already done enough. Come back next year—and make sure to find someone to guide you. I'm not waiting."
Bang!
The door slammed shut.
The four number plates flew toward Roy, Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio—each caught theirs effortlessly.
Kurapika and Leorio exchanged glances… then peeked at Roy.
Roy remained expressionless. He didn't even look at the number plate, just clipped it casually to his chest.
"Hey, Uncle! Look, we got matching numbers! I'm 405, you're 406! What a coincidence!" Gon chirped.
"Gon, you idiot… we came in together, of course our numbers are in sequence!"
Leorio was 403, Kurapika 404…
It wasn't just a two-person connection—it was a four-person set.
"But that guy was really rude," Leorio muttered, aggrieved.
"What does he mean, 'come back next year'?! Is he sure we're going to fail?"
"Not us…" Kurapika glanced at Roy and said seriously, "That doesn't include him."
"On average, only one newbie passes every three years. Most can't endure the brutal test and drop out. Many get injured and can't take the test again…"
"…Some even die during the exam."
"Huh?" Gon scratched his head, confused. "If it's so difficult… why do people still want to become Hunters?"
Seriously?
Are you for real right now? You don't even know that and still came to take the Hunter Exam?
Leorio and Kurapika stared at him like they'd discovered a rare Pokémon. Gon began sweating profusely.
"You idiot~ Listen carefully!" Leorio declared, "Being a Hunter is the highest-paid, most profitable, and most respected profession in the world!"
"Huh?"
Leorio and Kurapika blinked in surprise, then simultaneously turned to glare at each other in contempt.
Leorio: "Why are you pretending to be noble?"
Kurapika: "Then why do you care about money?"
Gon was stuck between the two of them, unsure of what to do. His brain practically overheated trying to process it all.
In desperation, he turned his head to Roy, eyes wide and glimmering like a puppy begging for help.
Uncle… help me…
Too bad.
Roy stood still, stick-blade in hand, completely unmoved.
Leaning against the elevator wall, silently descending, his "eyes" swept over Leorio and Kurapika with a complicated expression.
As the saying goes, misfortune strikes the poor, and fate loves irony.
A man obsessed with money ends up becoming a noble doctor who treats the poor for free.
A man full of justice eventually becomes the head of an underworld family, his hands drenched in blood.
Both strayed from their original ideals. Truly ironic.
Can one escape fate's cruel joke?
Maybe there's only one way:
Grab fate by the throat before it comes knocking. Kill it.
Only then can one gain true freedom.
But… the prerequisite for that is—
Strength.
Roy silently warned himself, his grip on the stick-blade tightening.
"How about it, Gon?" Leorio barked. "What's your answer?"
Both Leorio and Kurapika pressed down on Gon like two arguing parents forcing a child to pick a side.
The poor boy backed up to the corner, flustered, and finally shouted, "Don't ask me! Ask Uncle! I don't know!"
Then immediately hid behind Roy.
…The hell?! Who would dare ask him? Are we looking to die?
Leorio and Kurapika wisely gave up, snorted, and turned away in opposite directions.
Ding.
At that moment, the elevator reached the 800th floor. The doors opened.
Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio instinctively held their breath and followed Roy out with serious expressions.
Clack. Clack. Clack.
The sound of Roy's stick-blade tapping the floor echoed crisply.
A blind man leading a child… with two teenage dogs—ahem, youths—emerged before the crowd.
At that moment, the previously quiet exam hall erupted in whispers.
Far away, a white-haired kid holding a skateboard froze.
"…Onī-san?!"
Killua instantly turned and backed against the wall, clutching his skateboard like a lifeline.
He whispered to himself, "You can't see me… you can't see me…"
Hands in pockets, fingers gripping mini-bombs. He was already prepared. If anything went wrong, he'd blow up the exam hall and flee.
Unfortunately… his ostrich tactic was nothing in the face of Roy's overwhelming perception.
The moment Roy stepped into the room—
He locked onto him.
Heh~ Killua, meow… you beloved brother Roy is here.