"Killing two birds with one stone, is it?"
"Just because this old man went out to take a dump..."
"You little brats start bullying my grandson behind my back, huh?"
Suddenly...
A killing intent so intense it felt solid slammed into the conference room.
Bang! The door to the conference room was kicked open from the outside.
It was kicked with such heavy force that it flew straight off its hinges.
The people inside felt a cold wind scrape past their scalps as the door smashed through the south wall of the conference room, its momentum undiminished, and flew straight into the horizon, disappearing in an instant.
That leg strength... was that something a human could do?
Pariston, Saiyu, Cheadle, Pyon, and Saccho Kobayakawa tightened up inside, immediately going on alert. They saw...
An empty doorway, through which a small old man wearing casual home clothes walked in expressionless.
That terrifying killing intent swept out with him at the center. The conference table seemed unable to withstand its pressure, with the surface cracking to varying degrees.
'What terrifying killing intent!'
'He said Sean Zoldyck is his grandson... then who is he?'
'Is it the famous Zeno Zoldyck, known for One Kill A Day?'
Shocked by the killing intent washing over their faces, Saiyu, Cheadle, Pyon, and Saccho Kobayakawa dared not move a muscle.
Pariston also put away his rare smile, his eyes locking dead onto Maha. His gaze was uncertain, and he couldn't control his throat— gulp —he swallowed a mouthful of saliva. He had a feeling... this old man really wanted to kill him!
And he seemed truly capable of doing it! Pariston had lived a long time and had never encountered such a direct intuition. Even facing Ging or Netero, he hadn't felt this way. But today, his eyes were opened!
"Hey? Didn't you leave?" Beans shrieked like he had seen a ghost when he saw Maha.
Step, step. Maha threw him a dirty look. "Who told you I left?"
The old man scoffed and walked forward slowly. Every step felt like it was stomping on everyone's heartstrings. Then, he stood still, looking across the long conference table, his gaze sweeping past Netero to look calmly at Pariston. "You have a lot of guts. Why don't you repeat what you just said?"
"This old man is hard of hearing and didn't catch it clearly. What were you planning to do to my grandson?"
"I didn't think..." Smack. Just as Pariston opened his mouth, a slap appeared in his field of vision. The movement was clearly slow; he even felt he could easily dodge it. But unexpectedly, that slap seemed to have a tracking system installed. He locked straight onto him. No matter what skills he tried to use, he couldn't escape it. He could only watch helplessly as his handsome face forcibly took the hit.
Smack. A crisp sound. Pariston, along with his chair, was directly embedded into the wall behind him.
Seeing this, Saiyu, Cheadle, Pyon, Saccho Kobayakawa, and the others trembled physically. Avoiding Maha's gauze, they lowered their heads. No...that's not right! This person could absolutely not be Zeno Zoldyck!
To beat Pariston like this with one slap... Zeno Zoldyck should logically be on par with the Chairman in strength, definitely not strong to this degree!
So... who is he? The Zoldyck family has such a terrifying figure?
Fear was spreading. Fortunately, the Chairman was still there!
"That's enough, old man." Netero said faintly. "This is the Hunter Association, not your home."
"It's not your place to discipline my subordinates for me."
"I... have already given you enough face." Maha shook his hand and said calmly, "If this weren't the Hunter Association, I would have killed him already!"
"Cough, cough..." A trail of blood flowed from the corner of his mouth. Pariston, embedded in the wall, moved his hands and feet to pull himself out. Clutching his chest, he coughed a few times, his gaze locked dead onto Maha. The corners of his mouth outlined a shallow arc, and he smiled. "Thank you, old man, for sparing my life."
"It is my, Pariston's, honor to meet you here today."
Tsk. "Vice Chairman, huh? Your life is certainly tough enough." Maha pulled over a chair and sat down boldly, resting his two legs on the office desk and folding his hands over his stomach. He rocked the chair as if no one else was present. "I'll give you one more chance. Vote again..."
"Are you going to make an exception to admit my grandson? Or are you going to make an exception to admit my grandson?"
"This old man is watching you vote right here..."
Pariston, Saiyu, Cheadle, Saccho Kobayakawa, Pyon: "..."
They looked subtly at Netero. Netero's eye twitched. With a fake smile, he said to Maha, "Old man, didn't you oppose Sean joining the Hunter Association?"
"What, you've thought it through now?"
Thought it through, my ass. Maha coldly smiled. "If this old man opposes it, that's because I have the qualification!"
"What are you lot supposed to be? A bunch of crooked melons and cracked dates."
"So, your Hunter Association is useless, and instead you blame my grandson for being too strong?"
"Laughable..."
"Then tell us, what should be done?" Netero's mouth twitched as he glanced sideways at Maha.
Even a clay figurine has some temper. Netero had already given all the face he should.
Allowing Maha, an outsider, to interfere in Association business was something Maha would never have had the chance to do if it didn't involve Sean!
Jokes aside, trouble aside... Maha also sensed that Netero was on the verge of erupting. He immediately restrained himself a bit and said with a chuckle, "Reinforcements are fine. Isn't it just some bullshit Zodiacs? I trust my grandson can handle playing with them."
"It's just that, if you're specifically increasing the intensity for my grandson, shouldn't there be some compensation?"
"How about this." Maha extended a hand and waved it in front of Netero and Pariston. "I'll name a number. Fifty billion."
"Send whatever reinforcements you want..."
Uh... Damn it, so the Hunter Association has to pay money and provide people too.
The conference room fell into silence for a moment.
Cheadle, Pyon, Saccho Kobayakawa, and Saiyu kept their heads down and said nothing.
Pariston glanced at Netero and chuckled. "Since I proposed the plan, I should be the one to make the final decision."
Netero kept a dark face and remained silent, which counted as tacit approval. Seeing this, Pariston looked deeply at Maha and said, "Old sir, I'll offer sixty billion."
"I wonder, are you satisfied?"
Six...sixty billion? Pariston, are you crazy? Saiyu grimaced. He looked up to meet Pariston's eternal smile, shrank his neck, and sat back down just as he was about to lift his butt.
He understood... Pariston's mind was made up.
'Idiot, that extra ten billion is an apology from Pariston to the other party. Can't you even see that?' The Horse, Saccho Kobayakawa, also noticed Saiyu's movement. It was one thing for the monkey to be restless... but to be this stupid? He wondered how Saiyu was selected as one of the Twelve Zodiacs back then.
'Perhaps it was due to his relationship with Pariston,' Cheadle added silently in her heart.
As Netero's secretary and staunch supporter, she knew quite a few inside stories... Who wore the same pair of pants as the Vice Chairman?
It wasn't a secret to Cheadle. Perhaps only the simple-minded Pyon couldn't see this point.
"The kid has money, huh?" Maha looked at Pariston with some surprise. The guy took a hard slap from him, yet welcomed him with a smile and offered money. It had to be said, to sit in the position of Vice Chairman of the Hunter Association, the guy wasn't entirely useless. At least... he was rich!
'If I had known earlier, I should have asked for one hundred billion,' Maha muttered. Raising his eyes, he saw Netero's face gradually turning black. He cleared his throat and said, "Fine."
"It is sixty billion."
"Since it's settled, this old man... won't disturb your meeting any longer."
Goal achieved, Maha didn't stay any longer. He stood up, hands behind his back, and walked leisurely toward the empty exit of the conference room.
"Sigh... I was wondering why this Hunter Association was so stuffy... turns out it was the door. No door is good... it's cool. Heh heh."
Yeah... cool. You just pocketed sixty billion, how could you, you old immortal, not be cool? Netero watched Maha leave, his face so gloomy it could drip water. The Hunter Association had lost the lady and collapsed the army; a total loss inside and out.
"Hmph. Pariston, you set the plan, you choose the people!" The Hunter Exam was still ongoing; there was no time to waste now.
Netero feigned anger as he dropped this sentence, too lazy to stay in the conference room any longer. He called Beans and left everyone's sight.
The oppressive and heavy atmosphere in the conference room was swept away, returning to normal.
"Oh my god, that scared me to death!" Pyon patted her chest and let out a long breath. blinking her big watery eyes, she looked at Pariston and said, "Hey... Pariston, who was that old man just now? He was kinda scary..."
"First, we can rule out Zeno Zoldyck." Cheadle pushed up the glasses on the bridge of his nose and said in a deep voice, "I once met Zeno Zoldyck with the Chairman. That man had a head of white hair, he wasn't bald."
"Then it can only be an elder of Zeno Zoldyck." Saccho Kobayakawa crossed his arms and analyzed, "We can also rule out Zigg Zoldyck."
"That man was Zeno's father and the Chairman's close friend. Unfortunately, he died after returning from the Dark Continent..."
"That means... the other party is likely Zeno's grandfather's generation. His seniority is even higher than the Chairman's, which is why the Chairman tolerated him in every way."
"Am I right, Pariston?"
'As expected of you, the master of reading hearts.' Pariston felt the stinging pain from his face. A flash of gloom passed through his smile. Facing the gazes of his colleagues, he said softly, "His name is Maha Zoldyck. Zeno's grandfather, and also the ancestor of the Zoldyck family!"
Ancestor?! Without the pressure from Maha and Netero, the monkey couldn't hold back. He looked at Pariston in disbelief. "You're joking, right?!"
"Doesn't it say the Zoldyck family history is long and can be traced back three hundred years?"
"If he's some ancestor of the Zoldyck family, doesn't that mean he's lived for over three hundred years?!"
Over three hundred years?!! What kind of concept was that?! Pyon, the rabbit, was shocked. Her drooping ears suddenly stood up.
Beside her, Saccho Kobayakawa and Cheadle, who were known for their deep shrewdness, were also stunned. They looked suspiciously at Pariston. It was hard to imagine someone could really live from three hundred years ago until now.
But... "You might not know that there is a type of grain in this world—Longevity Rice."
Pariston wasn't surprised at all by Pyon and Cheadle's reactions. He gave them a meaningful look and explained, "Rumor has it that as long as you eat this Longevity Rice, you can increase your lifespan by hundreds of years out of thin air..."
"So it's not a rare thing for the Zoldyck family ancestor to live until now."
Hmm??!!! "Holy crap! Does such a magical thing really exist?!" Saiyu was shocked. He bounced up, staring at Pariston with glowing red eyes. "You definitely know where this rice grows, right Pariston!"
One sentence dropped, and the four seas were started! No one didn't want eternal life. Pariston ignited the greed deep in the hearts of his colleagues with just one sentence. Even Cheadle, who never got along with him, showed a trace of desire. It showed just how strong this Vice Chairman's ability to bewitch people was!
Heh... Pity, wanting eternal life... it can't be achieved in the human world. Pariston looked at everyone with a smile, extended a finger, pointed toward the sky, and said faintly, "It's right above our heads—the Dark Continent..."
Um. Cheadle, Pyon, Saccho Kobayakawa, Saiyu: "..."
Isn't that the same as saying nothing?
The monkey rolled his eyes at Pariston and said gloomily, "Going to that hellhole, isn't that just seeking death?"
"I'm afraid before finding the Longevity Rice, one would be eaten by the magical beasts living there..."
"As long as you know." Pariston ignored everyone's disappointment and clapped his hands. "So everyone...let's talk business."
"Who is willing to go reinforce the exam?"
Don't look at me... Don't look at me either, I still have prisoners to interrogate. As soon as Pariston's voice fell...
Pyon, Cheadle, and Saccho Kobayakawa all suddenly "zoned out."
Leaving Saiyu alone, looking left and right. The monkey shrank his head back and sighed, "Don't look at me, I'm not going either..."
Damn, a guy even the Chairman couldn't beat, expecting me to go to my death? Do you really think I'm stupid!