Huntsdon.
This is the most prosperous metropolis among the countries hosting this year's Hunter Exam. Even across the enormous harbor, Kisho could hear the clamor drifting from the city behind the docks.
And that skyscraper standing at the other end of the city—visible even from hundreds of miles away—gleamed with gold and jade brilliance. The lights at its peak still sparkled despite the morning sun.
...
The ship docked before the bustling harbor. Kisho and Kite stepped off the ship and walked toward the shore.
Behind them, the bearded captain followed them down.
"Captain, thank you for taking care of us these past two days~"
Kisho looked at him and said seriously, "I'm referring to the kind of care where you deliberately steered the ship into the storm zone."
Kite paused, listening to Kisho's words, the corner of his lips lifting slightly.
"Hahahahaha~"
The bearded man burst into hearty laughter.
"You're really to my liking, kid. If you don't pass the Hunter Exam, come be a sailor with me!"
Kisho stuck out his tongue. "No way."
The captain laughed loudly, then raised his hand and pointed toward a direction in the city.
"Well then, here's a hint for you two."
"The place you're heading to is the tallest building in this city."
Kisho and Kite followed the direction of his finger with their gazes.
The captain lit his pipe and took a puff, blowing out a smoke ring.
"Hope I won't see you again next year!"
He slowly turned around and walked back toward the ship. "Take care now~"
As he walked, memories surfaced and he curled his lips into a smile.
"Ging, looks like you've raised two fine juniors."
Kite turned back, pressing down the brim of his hat slightly, and called toward the captain's back,
"Thank you."
Kisho also waved toward the captain's departing figure.
"Captain, you take care too! Stop steering into storm zones all the time—what if the ship really capsizes?!"
"You brat! Even if you don't pass the Hunter Exam, my ship still won't capsize!"
The captain turned back and snapped, but satisfaction and appreciation lingered in his eyes.
After bidding farewell to the bearded captain, the two headed out of the harbor.
"Ah, right, Kite!" Kisho stopped and called out to Kite's back.
Kite turned around. "What is it?"
"The thing about me seeing Ging on Whale Island—if you ever find him, absolutely don't mention it in front of him!"
Kisho said seriously, "He said if I dared reveal his whereabouts, I'd be dead. But I don't want him beating me up again. He hits really hard!"
Kite: "…"
Looking at the nervous expression on Kisho's face, he smiled. "Okay."
The two arrived outside the harbor.
"If we're going to that tallest building, it feels pretty far."
Kisho gazed at the towering structure piercing the clouds in the distance, then glanced around. As expected, he spotted a bus stop.
"It'll probably be faster to take a bus~" He looked at Kite and pointed at the station.
"Mm." Kite nodded, then continued, "However, I need to contact the other companions participating in this Hunter Exam first."
He looked at Kisho, hesitated slightly after a moment of thought.
"Or… you could come with me?"
Kisho met Kite's eyes and smiled. "Tagging along like that all of a sudden would be a bit presumptuous. It's fine, don't worry about me."
"You go take care of your business." He waved with a grin. "See you at the actual exam site."
Kite looked at him and agreed, "Alright."
"Well, before we split up…"
Kisho pulled out his phone from his pocket and smiled at Kite.
"Want to exchange phone numbers?"
...
After getting the number, Kisho watched as Kite left in another direction. He waited a short while at the bus stop before successfully boarding a bus headed for the city center.
After several transfers, by the time the sun stood high in the sky, he finally arrived at the tallest building in the city.
"Wow~"
Kisho looked up at the skyscraper piercing into the clouds, letting out an exclamation like a country kid seeing the big city for the first time—though that wasn't far from the truth.
Several gilded characters hung on the commercial building: Melidos Mall. Reflecting the sunlight, they shimmered brilliantly.
"This should be the place the captain mentioned."
Kisho walked to the entrance of the mall, only to see a sign reading "Temporarily Closed" standing before the massive revolving doors.
"Closed?"
Kisho frowned. Then he noticed a giant poster affixed to the glass wall of the mall:
"The Customer Appreciation Celebration will officially begin at 8 PM on January 3rd."
Kisho immediately understood.
He turned and walked toward the enormous plaza in front of the mall.
"Well, since it only opens after eight tonight, no matter what kind of exam questions there'll be, it won't hurt to grab something to eat first!"
All around the plaza, vendors stood behind specialty snack carts, busy and drenched in sweat, yet the lines in front of them showed no sign of shortening.
Drawn by the mouthwatering aroma in the air, Kisho queued up behind one of the lines. After waiting a long while, he finally received a portion of snacks from a sweaty but satisfied-looking uncle.
Holding the snack in his hands, he continued walking forward as he ate.
A massive statue of a goddess stood in the center of the plaza. At its base was a fountain pool; crystal-clear jets of water shot into the sky and fell back down, refracting rainbows in the sunlight.
Beneath the statue, a scruffily dressed street musician was fully absorbed in playing his violin, producing beautiful notes.
On the ground before him sat a hat, already filled with banknotes and coins.
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The pleasant melody drifted into Kisho's ears.
"So, a fellow musician."
With that thought, he curiously walked over and crouched in front of the street performer, quietly listening to his performance.
The musician didn't seem to care whether anyone stopped to listen.
Perhaps for him, the joy lay in the act of playing itself; everything else was secondary.
The lingering notes fell from the sky alongside the fountain behind him, stirring countless tiny, glimmering droplets of water.
The piece ended.
Kisho stood up, took out a ten-thousand-jenni bill from his pocket, and placed it into the musician's hat.
The musician glanced at Kisho, nodded slightly in acknowledgment of his appreciation, then immediately began playing the next piece.
Kisho returned the smile.
He stood and continued forward.
Suddenly, he spotted a chestnut-haired boy with curly hair, most of his body hidden behind an easel.
The boy removed a sketch from the easel and handed it to a young woman standing before him.
She accepted the drawing, her eyes shining with amazement. She said something to the boy, then left, fully satisfied.
Kisho walked over, lightly steadying the easel with one hand, and said to the boy who was bent over organizing his tools:
"Hey, great artist, how much for a portrait?"
"Five hundred for a sketch, one thousand for color—"
The young artist spoke as he looked up at Kisho.
He saw the boy behind the easel curling his lips into a smile at him, eyes brighter than the sun.
Kisho grinned. "I'll take a sketch—but five hundred's a bit expensive. Can I get a ninety percent discount?"
"Sure." The boy curled his lips.
"A ninety percent discount doesn't suit you. I'll give you a fracture discount instead."
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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