Lu Ou hadn't been idle the night before.
First, he recalled the basic information of this body. According to the residual memories left behind, the original owner had been completely alone—no family, no notable background. Aside from a Genie card with over a hundred thousand Genie on it, there was nothing else.
No relatives was probably a good thing. Otherwise, he wouldn't know how to face them.
Next, Lu Ou carefully reviewed everything he remembered about the Hunter × Hunter anime plot. To avoid forgetting anything important, he made it a habit to replay the story in his mind every morning.
As for the Face Fruit Nen ability, Lu Ou had come to understand one thing for now:
To activate Ability No. 2 — The Rights of the Face Fruit's Owner, a dining table and plates were required. Only then could the ability force the other party to immediately come over and eat, unconditionally.
Back to the matter at hand.
To meet Gon's Foxbear friend, the journey was unexpectedly long. Trekking through the mountains and forests left Lu Ou feeling exhausted—even with Nen reinforcing his body. Gon truly lived up to his reputation as someone who ran across mountains on a regular basis.
Lu Ou suddenly stopped and stood still for a moment.
Gon noticed immediately and asked with concern, "Ou, what's wrong?"
Lu Ou shook his head. "Nothing."
His gaze drifted behind Gon. Earlier, Gon had still been dragging the King Fish along—he intended to release it.
Usually, people released birds or turtles. Gon, on the other hand, was releasing the Lord of the Swamp.
This was basically the equivalent of releasing a shark in the real world.
That alone deserved respect.
After walking for about another half hour, they reached the water's edge. Gon gave the King Fish a powerful toss.
Splash—
The King Fish plunged into the water, flicked its tail a few times, and vanished without a trace.
Maybe it had heard Lu Ou wanted to eat it?
That aside, the King Fish's vitality was truly impressive.
Gon even shouted a couple of times at the water, telling it to hide well and not get caught by anyone else.
Lu Ou was completely at a loss for words.
This King Fish had already been caught by Gon—and by Gon's father, Ging—before. Who knew what kind of karmic debt it owed the Freecss family?
Just as Lu Ou was silently complaining in his head, something new happened.
Boom—boom—boom.
After a series of earth-shaking thuds, a massive creature appeared.
Brown in color, neither quite a bear nor quite a fox, it stood nearly three meters tall. Only by standing in front of it could one truly feel how small they were.
The creature happily ran up to Gon, poked him with its paw, then opened its palm to reveal several pearl-sized red fruits, shimmering beautifully.
"Ou, come quick! This is my Foxbear friend—Ah Gong! Look, these are the fresh fruits he picked. They're super tasty!"
Gon excitedly pulled the Foxbear toward Lu Ou.
"Uh… hello!"
Staring at the snarling giant beast, Lu Ou forced himself to greet it as though it were a person.
The Foxbear bared its teeth at the unfamiliar human—probably trying to show friendliness—and opened its mouth even wider in greeting.
Unfortunately, it only looked more ferocious.
Lu Ou found the situation… difficult to describe.
That said, this Foxbear could help him test a hypothesis.
He needed to clarify the basic operational scope of the Face Fruit before the Hunter Exam. Otherwise, entering one of the most dangerous worlds in fiction without preparation would be suicidal.
"Ah Gong, have some fruit."
Lu Ou took out the wild fruit he had picked.
"Pfft!"
The Foxbear sniffed it, sneezed loudly, turned its head away in disdain—and presented its backside to Lu Ou.
"…I just got rejected."
By a Foxbear.
The words rejected flashed endlessly through Lu Ou's mind, leaving him with a complicated, hard-to-describe feeling.
"Ou, Ah Gong usually eats the fish I roast. He doesn't eat fruit. Even when he does eat fruit, it has to be very rare—like those red beads. If he's hungry, we can grill fish."
Gon pointed at the red fruits in the Foxbear's paw.
Foxbears liking fish made perfect sense.
"Gon, go catch some fish. I'll gather firewood. Let's get started."
Lu Ou gave instructions, sending Gon toward the lake while he himself headed into the forest to collect wood.
Along the way, he spotted several plants that looked suspiciously like cumin and Sichuan pepper. Figuring they were probably spices, he picked quite a bit to save for later.
Thankfully, although he was a single man, Lu Ou liked watching outdoor survival shows and frequently browsed camping and picnic forums. His theoretical knowledge was extensive.
By the time he returned, Gon had already cleaned the fish. The Foxbear was squatting nearby helping out, with a pile of fish like a small mountain in front of it—clearly its own haul.
Lu Ou remembered from animal documentaries that bears caught fish easily—just stand downstream, wait for the fish to swim by, then smack them onto shore with a paw.
"Ou, you're back! The fish are almost ready!"
Gon grinned like a fish himself.
"Let's skewer them first—it'll be easier to grill. You'll get to try my cooking soon."
Lu Ou built a fire pit, made a simple grill, and processed the spices he'd gathered. His movements were practiced and professional.
His posture was correct, seasonings ready. The fish Gon caught weren't species Lu Ou recognized—long, spindle-shaped bodies with large heads, somewhat resembling bighead carp.
Everything was perfectly prepared.
Based on his usual cooking level—two dishes: tomato-scrambled eggs and scrambled eggs with tomato—this should have been manageable.
And as someone who frequented gourmet forums, Lu Ou had absolute confidence.
Indeed, under his full concentration, a golden-brown grilled fish emerged.
Gon and the Foxbear stared without blinking.
Lu Ou gave the first fish to Gon, the second to Ah Gong, and only ate last himself.
The grilled fish wasn't necessarily a testament to superior skill—it was just proof that wild food really did taste better.
"Ou, you're amazing! What was that grass you put on it? It smells so good!"
Gon asked in admiration while eating.
Lu Ou smiled but said nothing.
In theory, he could become a Gourmet Hunter—introducing spices and seasonings this world had never known.
In the original canon, becoming a Three-Star Hunter required immense contributions. Ging, for example, discovered countless ruins to become a Three-Star Ruins Hunter.
Shaking his head, Lu Ou set those thoughts aside for now.
Watching the boy and the Foxbear, he couldn't help but think—
Calling their stomachs "stomachs" was inaccurate.
They were bottomless pits.
By the end, they were grilling five fish at a time.
Hours later, the two humans and one Foxbear were all leaning against trees, bellies bulging.
"Ah Gong, you roam the forest all the time—you know it best. Give me some face and help me find the most precious fruit in the forest. Pick some for me."
Lu Ou narrowed his eyes and suddenly spoke.
Gon, who understood the Foxbear best, immediately said, "Ah Gong doesn't like moving after he's full. Ou, if you want fruit, I'll get it for you."
That made sense—humans didn't like moving after eating either.
But just as Gon finished speaking, the previously lazy Foxbear suddenly stood up, let out a roar, and sprinted deep into the forest.
As expected—
The Face Fruit's ability wasn't limited to humans.
Even animals were affected.
A smile spread across Lu Ou's face.
Gon, meanwhile, was completely stunned.