Specialists were often referred to as the wild cards of Nen. Their abilities defied conventional rules, making them unpredictable—and terrifying. Unlike other Nen types, Specialist abilities varied drastically from user to user. Some were subtle. While others were catastrophically destructive.
They were the rarest of Nen users, accounting for less than ten percent of the total in the Hunter x Hunter world.
While Specialists could technically use all other Nen types, their true strength lay in a single, unique ability—one tailored entirely to the individual. These powers often came with strict conditions or limitations, but in return, they granted overwhelming strength.
"Unique, huh?" Sylas muttered, rubbing his chin as he sank into thought.
***
Meanwhile, far above Sylas, in the upper layers of the Orcus Labyrinth—
A fight was currently underway.
"Don't break formation!" a brown-haired boy shouted, swinging his sword with all his strength.
A group of high school students—newly trained—fought desperately for their lives. Skeleton-like monsters surged toward them in an endless wave. Behind them loomed a massive, triceratops-like beast nearly ten meters long, its sheer size radiating menace. A true behemoth.
A black-haired girl clad in a white-and-blue uniform raised her staff, worry creeping into her voice as she chanted.
"Wind Wall!" A translucent barrier burst into existence just in time, blocking a rain of arrows and crude weapons that would have torn into their backline.
"More are coming!" another student in the front yelled as fear bled into his words.
Near the center of the group stood a quiet boy with short black hair—Hajime Nagumo. He remained slightly apart from the others, his expression tense but focused. He was analyzing the situation, figuring out the best way he could be of help to his class.
They had been teleported to the sixty-fifth floor of the labyrinth, because one of their classmates activated a trap when they touched an abnormally large Glanz Crystal around the twentieth floor.
Slamming his hands into the ground, Nagumo distorted the earth beneath the charging skeletons. The terrain buckled and cracked, disrupting their advance and buying the group of heroes a few precious seconds to regroup.
"Well done, Nagumo," Captain Meld said loudly before signaling the retreat. "Everyone, fall back to the stairs!"
The students and knights regrouped hurriedly.
"On my command, prepare to fire magic missiles to cover his retreat!" Meld ordered.
Mana surged in the air. "Ready," the captain said, raising his arm. "Fire!"
A volley of magic missiles streaked downward, smashing into the bridge beneath the behemoth. The massive creature roared as the structure collapsed, sending it—and countless other monsters—plummeting into the abyss below.
Nagumo turned to retreat with the others when something felt wrong. One of the spells veered off course, heading straight for him.
'Is that spell… heading for me?'
The missile detonated right in front of his escape route, propelling him back into the collapsing bridge.
"No—!" Kaori Shirasaki, one of his classmates screamed as she watched Nagumo fall into the Abyss, besides the monsters.
She surged forward, desperate to follow him, to save him—but Shizuku Yaegashi, her childhood friend, and classmate struck her from behind—knocking her unconscious.
"Why did you do that?!" Kouki Amanogawa, the hero of the class, shouted angrily.
"She did what had to be done," Captain Meld interrupted. "If she'd gone after him, she would've died too. We can't afford to lose anyone else."
Kouki clenched his fists, teeth grinding. He knew the truth, even if he hated to admit it. They had barely survived this floor. There was no saving someone who fell deeper into the labyrinth.
"Fall back," Meld ordered grimly. "We must regroup and head back to the surface at once."
***
Far below—deeper than anyone else had ever gone—Hajime Nagumo, was still falling.
The wind screamed past his ears as jagged rock blurred into a lethal nightmare. His body smashed against stone, again and again. His bones cracked. His blood sprayed in hot arcs before vanishing into the darkness.
'So this is it,' he thought weakly as he slipped in and out of consciousness. 'Guess… this is how I die.'
His body skidded across the rough stone before finally slamming into a wall.
Thud
He collapsed in a broken heap at the edge of an underground cavern.
…
Minutes passed, maybe hours, before his fingers twitched.
Nagumo's eyes snapped open, unfocused and hazy. Everyone of his nerves screamed at him in pain as he tried to move his body. "Still… alive?" he rasped, coughing up a small mouthful of blood.
He forced himself to look around. "Am I… still in the dungeon?" he murmured. "It's so dark… I can't see a thing down here."
As his vision slowly adjusted to the darkness, he noticed a creature was standing a few meters away from him. It had dark grey fur, strange red patterns along its lower limbs, and two large floppy ears protruding out of its head.
"…It's just a bunny?" he muttered. "Aren't monsters supposed to get stronger the deeper you go in the Labyrinth?"
"Rrrrrr."
A low growl answered his question for him.
Two gray-furred wolves with matching red markings lunged toward the rabbit.
Slash
Slash
In an instant, both wolves collapsed—headless.
Nagumo scrambled backward, landing hard on his backside. 'That rabbit's a nightmare beast—crap! I was wrong!'
Zmmm
The air vibrated. The rabbit vanished—then reappeared directly in front of him. It tilted its head, its crimson eyes studying him before launching the same attack that just killed the wolves.
Slash
The attack missed him by a hair's breath, kicking up a cloud of dust in the air.
Cough…
As the dust settled, the rabbit prepared to finish off Nagumo, when suddenly—it froze.
High up on a rock, a monstrous bear with grayish-white fur and a crushing presence that radiated danger was eyeing it with drool dripping from its mouth.
The rabbit fled for its life. Using its Quick Step ability, it tried to escape.
The bear roared, as its energy gathered around its claws.
Zinggg
Three green energy sickles tore through the air. Separating the rabbit's head cleanly from its body.
Seeing this, Nagumo forced his battered body to move—trying to run away. Every step he took, pumped massive amounts of adrenaline into his body, a response signal meant to help keep him alive.
Behind him, a wet crunch of flesh echoed through the cavern as the abyss bear fed on the rabbit.
He only managed to run a few meters before his foot tripped over a stone, barely managing to roll before slamming shoulder-first into the cavern wall. The impact knocked the air from his lungs.
"Gah—!" He choked, coughing up more blood as he scrambled to his feet.
"Graarrr…" A deep, rumbling growl rolled through the cavern.
The ground trembled as the bear rose to its full height, easily several meters tall. Its eyes quickly locked onto Nagumo with cold, predatory focus.
'I can't outrun that.' His mind raced. 'Think. Think!'
The bear charged.
Stone cracked beneath its weight as it closed the distance in seconds. Nagumo's instinct made him dive aside just as a massive claw slammed into the spot where he'd just been.
Before his body could register the pain, the second strike came.
Faster—far faster than his broken body could hope to react to.
Massive jaws clamped down around his left arm with a sickening crunch.
"AAAAAAHHH—!"
His bones shattered like glass. His flesh tore apart. He felt everything—the pressure, the ripping, the heat leaving him as blood sprayed across the cavern floor. His left arm was torn free with brutal ease.
He hit the ground hard, spinning as shock slammed into him. His vision went white. His left arm—gone.
The bear barely spared him a glance before lowering its head—eating his arm right in front of him. Chewing. Crunching. It was an obscene sound to hear.
Nagumo's body convulsed violently as blood poured from the ragged stump, pooling beneath him, the coppery stench filling the air around him.
To be Continued…