Luo glanced at his watch. Only a little over two hours had passed. In the original storyline, this stage had taken six or seven hours.
It was about time to activate the backup plan.
His past life as a bug analyst hadn't been wasted—Luo had already considered many possibilities. He knew his stamina wasn't particularly strong, so there was no need to fight for first place.
Of course, that was just modesty. In reality, simply passing this test would already be an excellent outcome for him.
Meanwhile, Leorio's breathing had begun to grow ragged. They'd have to wait for Tonpa to lend a hand.
"Okay, Luo," Gon replied obediently, slowing his pace to run alongside him.
A lot of people immediately overtook their group.
"The distance probably isn't short. Conserving stamina is the best choice," Tonpa said attentively.
Speak of the devil.
No one knew where Tonpa had slipped off to earlier—there were too many people, and even Luo hadn't noticed him disappear. Now he suddenly popped back up, clearly trying to make his presence felt again.
It seemed he had his eyes on Luo and the others. After all, the stronger the target, the greater the sense of achievement when bringing them down. That was probably the pride of a so-called "rookie crusher."
"What perfect timing," Luo thought happily. He warmly welcomed Tonpa's habit of showing up just when needed.
"Tonpa-san, you've participated in so many Hunter Exams. You must know a lot of people. You should be quite familiar with everyone's abilities—could you tell us about them?" Luo said.
Since Tonpa clearly had ill intentions, they might as well squeeze every last bit of value out of him before dealing with him properly. Anything less would be a waste of resources—and wastefulness was shameful.
"Tonpa-san definitely knows a lot of people," Gon added.
"Well… I suppose so," Tonpa replied. Though he tried to restrain himself, pride still leaked through his eyes and brows—perhaps the pride of a perennial failure?
"Then please tell us about them! Everyone here must be really strong," Gon said excitedly. Perhaps his keen combat instincts were also telling him that knowing the enemy is the key to victory.
"Let me introduce them to you. First, Number 103—Snake Charmer Bourbon. He's someone with an extremely strong obsession," Tonpa said, pointing at a man who was rapidly approaching from behind and gradually passing them.
A gray-green headscarf, a dark purple muffler, a gray-white coat, and a large Number 103 badge—it really was Bourbon. Just from his choice of clothing and accessories, it was clear he was a serious and persistent man.
But remembering that room full of snakes on Zevil Island, even someone as mentally steady as Luo couldn't help but feel his scalp tingle. Not to mention how Bourbon had viciously screwed Leorio over back then.
Should I buy some frog meat to carry around? Luo wondered.
Wait—are there frogs in the Hunter world? If not, rats should exist at least.
"Amen, Leorio," Luo thought sympathetically, recalling the sight of him being swarmed and bitten by countless snakes.
"Next is Number 76, the martial artist Cherry—his skills are exceptional. Number 55, Tondo—he's not just strong, he's got a decent head on his shoulders too. Numbers 197 to 199 are the Amori brothers. Their teamwork is excellent, and they always get good results."
Tonpa truly did know a lot of people. He was extremely familiar with the recurring faces of the Hunter Exam, and his summaries were fairly accurate.
That said, Luo disagreed about Number 55, Tondo.
A huge, fat man with an axe strapped to his back—he certainly looked imposing. But often, overdeveloped muscles came with underdeveloped brains. After all, Tondo had later arrogantly questioned Examiner Menchi's qualifications as merely a Gourmet Hunter, only to be casually eliminated and turned into cannon fodder.
There was a reason his limbs were so well developed.
"Over there is Number 384, Geretta. Using only blow darts and a staff, he can capture all kinds of creatures. He's extremely capable," Tonpa continued, scanning the crowd until he finally found his target.
Geretta seemed to hear the introduction and even turned around to smile at Luo's group.
Even someone with poor eyesight could tell how distinctive that smile was. His entire body was pitch-black, and he wore oversized sunglasses. In the dark tunnel, he was almost invisible—but once he smiled and revealed a mouthful of white teeth, he became impossible to miss.
"These are all regulars of the exam," Tonpa said. Having introduced everyone he could, he prepared to stop. Saying any more and he'd look like a genuinely good person.
Unfortunately for him, with Luo around, becoming anything but a good person was impossible. Once on this path, there was no turning back.
"So everyone really is amazing," Gon said with admiration.
Growing up on Whale Island, Gon had rarely encountered trained fighters. This was his first time seeing people with such diverse abilities, and it filled him with excitement.
"As long as we pass, that's enough," Leorio said. Once he locked onto a goal, he never let go.
"Luo?" Gon asked.
"Yeah, don't worry. As long as we keep trying, we'll pass," Luo replied.
No one here understood Gon's potential and explosive power better than he did.
Clatter—scrape—
The sound of wheels sliding across the ground echoed as, in the next moment, Killua rode past on a skateboard, gliding smoothly in front of them—whether intentionally or not was hard to say.
No one knew what he'd been doing for so long earlier. Although this meeting happened much later than in the original timeline, Gon and Killua—the friends bound by fate—still met as expected.
"That's amazing," Gon exclaimed, marveling at how smoothly Killua rode the skateboard.
"Hey, kid! That's cheating!" Leorio shouted. "Isn't that against the rules?!"
Leorio was already struggling to keep running. Seeing Killua moving effortlessly with a skateboard naturally stirred envy and resentment.
"Who are you? How old are you?" Gon asked.
Seeing someone his own age made him genuinely happy.
"How am I cheating?" Killua asked.
"This is supposed to be an endurance test!" Leorio argued.
"That's not true. The examiner just said to follow him, right, Luo?" Gon said honestly. Facts were facts—but he still asked for Luo's confirmation.
"No matter what method you use, as long as you pass, it's fine," Luo replied.
For the sake of his next plan, he naturally sided with Gon. And personally, Luo believed that it doesn't matter whether the cat is black or white—as long as it catches mice, it's a good cat. The goal mattered more than the process.
The only reason he hadn't bought a skateboard or rollerblades himself was because that would've been too blatant—borderline cheating. He might act boldly, but outright future knowledge abuse would've been excessive.
"Gon, Luo—whose teammates are you, anyway?!" Leorio snapped angrily. Being unsupported felt absolutely miserable.
"Teammates?" Killua echoed, confusion flickering in his emerald-green eyes.
Having been raised as an assassin, the concept of companions didn't really exist in his world.