God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.
But God never said where that light came from, or where it goes.
Roy, however, knew that no matter what some damn god said, the sun rises in the east and sets in the west—day after day, month after month, year after year—spilling its light over the world and saving it in its own way.
The next day, 4:00 a.m.
The clock in the corner chimed the hour.
Roy slipped out of the Demon Slayer World, opened his eyes, and returned to the Hunter World.
He rolled out of bed as usual, got dressed, and went for his morning run. Leaving the Zoldyck manor, he headed down the mountain path. As he cut through the forest, the sound of a blade cutting air reached his ears. He glanced over—
By the lake deep in the woods, he could just make out a tall figure with a scruffy beard and gold-rimmed glasses, both hands on the hilt as he carefully walked through Water Breathing forms.
Gotoh.
Roy smiled, didn't disturb him, and kept running down the mountain.
Soon he reached the lower gate, where he saw a familiar white-haired "pig-head" boy: Kastro's swollen face from yesterday was puffed up again today. Roy couldn't help it—he opened his En to eavesdrop on the kid's thoughts.
Kastro was confused.
Yesterday he'd picked another fight with Gotoh and gotten beaten worse than the day before.
He couldn't understand how someone could suddenly become that strong. His nen recovered faster, his coin shots were snappier, and he could maintain them longer. It was everything Water Breathing is supposed to do for a person, right in front of him, reshaping him from the inside out.
You can't imagine things beyond your own experience. Let the kid stay confused for a while.
Favor had levels.
Roy liked Kastro's potential. He planned to let the boy simmer for a bit—wait until Gotoh fully mastered Water Breathing and got even stronger—then pick that ripe, sweet fruit. No need to rush.
Lost in thought, he moved closer.
Kastro heard footsteps and bowed. "Good morning, Young Master!"
Roy ran past his shoulder without slowing, leaving the boy with the sight of a not-so-tall yet impossibly upright back. He couldn't help thinking back: once upon a time, he and Roy had traded a couple of moves in Heaven's Arena. Now he couldn't even beat Roy's personal butler—and from what he'd heard yesterday…
The meteor that almost flattened Kukuroo Mountain had actually been summoned by the young master.
Kastro's feelings were complicated. Like someone had kicked his insides over—sour, spicy, sweet, bitter, all mixed together. In his frustration, he'd challenged Gotoh again… and walked away with an even bigger pig's head than before, twice as depressed.
Still, he could clearly feel himself improving—and faster than he had in Heaven's Arena. That was something to hang onto. Enough to keep him from falling into outright despair.
Roy's steps faded into the distance.
He kept his pace—not too fast, not too slow—each stride precise as if measured with a ruler. The fine control he had over his body had become completely effortless.
He soon passed the gate, arriving at the Trial Door.
From a distance he saw a balding uncle with a receding hairline showing Kuraging how to tense her muscles and generate power.
The girl had her long blond hair tied in a single ponytail, awkwardly adjusting her stance and breathing. After a rough start she slowly found the rhythm, then thrust her palm at the Trial Door—
The massive stone slab didn't budge.
Her own hand, however, stung like hell. She hugged it to her chest and hopped in place, hissing in pain.
"Ai, you're rushing it," Zebro chuckled, then looked up to see Roy jogging over. He quickly tugged Kuraging back, doffed his cap, and bowed.
"Good morning, Young Master."
"Mm." Roy glanced at Kuraging.
She clutched her hand, teeth in her lower lip, still managing a proper bow despite the pain. The stubborn line of her jaw made it clear she cared a lot about passing the butler exam.
"You can't rush it," Roy said lightly, then turned and headed back up the mountain.
Kuraging watched his back disappear, drew a steadying breath, and said, "Again, Uncle."
Zebro just shook his head. "Like master, like servant," he thought. "The Zoldycks' most famous trait is their hard-headedness, and their butlers are no better."
Kastro had been the same. Now this girl too. These days, every new recruit was harder to handle than the last.
He thought back to his own youth and had to laugh at himself. "I was just as bad."
Kuraging pouted. "You look way too happy seeing me crash and burn, old man."
"Hahaha—no, no, I'm happy even when you don't crash and burn."
Their laughter drifted up the mountain and brushed Roy's ears. He smiled to himself, slipped back into his room, took a quick shower—and started adding points.
He'd taken out a few more demons last night and had a little over twenty points of Life Energy saved up. All at once, he spent them.
The pain had become familiar. When he stepped out of the shower this time, his frame hadn't changed much, but the lines of his muscles were a little more defined, a little sharper.
In the chilly weather, he sat bare-chested at the table, opened West Continent Notes, and flipped to the sections on faith. As he hunted for how to use the two points of Faith that had appeared on his panel—
Gotoh finished his morning practice and, right on time, pushed a cart into the room.
He served breakfast as usual, then gave his report.
"About the bounty you posted on the Hunter website, Young Master—someone took it."
"Who?" Roy bit into a sandwich, looking up.
Gotoh pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose.
"A woman named Elena."
"She says that in a secret place she once saw a creature called an 'elephant tapir'—a beast that can make things disappear with a flick of its trunk. She suspects it's just the kind of 'reverse-materialization' beast you're searching for."
Roy washed down the last of his sandwich with a mouthful of milk and listened without a change in expression.
Saying "Elena" was really the same as saying "Ging."
By the current timeline, he should already have landed on Greed Island, using the island as a blueprint to build the Greed Island game.
"Did she say when?" Roy wiped his mouth with a napkin.
"That's the strange part." Gotoh squinted slightly.
"She said to wait for a letter. And before that…"
He glanced at Roy carefully.
"…she wants you to agree to a condition."
"What condition?"
"She wants to see how strong you are, Young Master."
"Oh?" Roy arched a brow. "And how does she want to do that?"
Gotoh hesitated, then answered honestly.
"She wants you to go break someone out of prison with her."
~~~
Patreon(.)com/Bleam
— Currently You can Read 50 Chapters Ahead of Others!