In front of the mall's exit, dozens of checkout counters were lined up in a row. Behind each one stretched a long queue of customers waiting to pay.
Kisho hummed a tune as he stepped into one of the lines.
In just a few seconds, the line behind him grew even longer.
The queue moved forward at an extremely slow pace, and at a certain moment, Kisho's eyes suddenly turned sharp and cold.
He abruptly reached out and seized the wrist of someone who had silently stretched a hand toward his shopping cart.
Then he slowly raised his head, his piercing gaze fixing coldly on the middle-aged man standing behind him—the man was holding one of the books from Kisho's cart, not yet having had the chance to put it back.
"Sir."
Kisho curled his lips into a faint smile.
"What are you trying to do?"
The middle-aged man: "…"
He had never expected the brat to react so quickly. Caught completely off guard, his eyes instantly filled with shock and panic.
Then, as if feeling provoked by the brat, his expression turned equally cold. He forcefully shook his arm—
Only to discover, to his extreme astonishment, that he couldn't shake the brat's hand off at all.
A look as if he had seen a ghost appeared on his face. His expression changed several times before he finally forced out a stiff smile.
"Ah… I just wanted to see what kind of practice book you bought. It looks pretty good. I was thinking of getting one for my son."
"Oh? Is that so."
Kisho let out a soft hum and slowly released his grip.
The middle-aged man quickly pulled his hand back. A red mark had already formed around his wrist.
"Is that so? I thought you were a thief."
Kisho smiled.
"If it were a thief, their hand should be broken, right? Sir."
The middle-aged man: "…"
Grinding his teeth, he said, "…Right."
Kisho chuckled, shrugged, and turned around.
After that, the man standing behind Kisho became noticeably more well-behaved.
If even a single item was taken away, the final price would no longer meet the requirement—which meant failure in this Hunter Exam.
Even if one immediately turned back to buy the item again, setting aside the issue of time, the "limited-purchase items" that might serve as core tools for the exam could already have been snatched up by others.
This was the "Hunter Exam."
The real test hadn't even begun yet, and candidates were already doing everything within their power to eliminate competitors.
...
"Beep, beep."
After scanning Kisho's items, the young cashier said, "Sir, your total comes to ___ Jenny. Will that be cash or—"
"Card."
Kisho pulled out his anonymous credit card and swiped it on the POS machine. Payment successful.
"Speaking of…"
Kisho stared at his credit card, which was nearly out of balance.
He had obtained this card on the Bankro family's merchant ship. The 15 million Jenny inside it was hardly enough for someone like him, who spent freely and had little concept of money.
He thought again of the enormous debt he owed to Machi and Shalnark, as well as Chrollo's signing fee, and irritation flashed in his eyes.
"Damn it! A bunch of people who clearly don't lack money yet still squeeze every last cent!"
After venting his frustration, Kisho had to face the unpleasant reality.
He muttered to himself, "After this exam, I need to find a way to earn some money…"
"Sir? Sir?"
The cashier called out several times before Kisho finally snapped back to his senses.
"Here is your receipt and your lottery ticket. Please head to the top floor's celebration event to draw your card~"
As she spoke, she handed him the receipt and the lottery ticket. Kisho thanked her and took them.
Behind the checkout counters, there was a logistics service that delivered large items to customers' homes.
Kisho directly filled out a delivery form and sent everything he bought to Whale Island in one go. Feeling light and unburdened, he then headed to the top floor of the mall.
A celebration was being held there.
Red carpets covered the floor. Numerous beautifully packaged prizes, tied with red ribbons, were neatly arranged throughout the room.
On the other side stood several tables covered with red tablecloths, each holding opaque lottery boxes.
Several staff members stood behind the tables, smiling at passing customers.
"Customers with lottery tickets can draw at the corresponding table based on the last letter of your ticket number~"
There were quite a few people drawing prizes, and long lines had formed behind the tables as well.
Amos was leaning against the wall. When he saw Kisho step out of the elevator, he walked over.
"You finally made it up. Slower than I expected."
"Ah, I picked out quite a few nice things to send to the kid I met recently and his family."
Kisho smiled.
"The kid will definitely be happy when he receives them, ha~"
Seeing the sly grin on Kisho's face, Amos raised an eyebrow.
"Let's go. The draw's waiting for you."
Kisho nodded.
He pulled the ticket out of his pocket, glanced at it, and asked, "Mine's A. What about yours?"
"Mine's A too."
Amos had already checked the letter on the back of his ticket and answered directly.
After a pause, he continued, "I'm guessing the numbering is based on spending tiers and whether the test requirements were met. It distinguishes ordinary customers, candidates who passed, and those who failed."
Kisho nodded thoughtfully and pointed at the line behind one of the tables.
"So the ones lined up there—"
Amos continued his sentence.
"Are candidates like us."
"…I don't see anyone who can use Nen."
Kisho activated Gyo and scanned them one by one.
"But their aura is indeed much thicker than that of ordinary people."
The two exchanged a glance and walked to the back of the line.
A moment later…
"Tch. Fourth prize."
Amos looked at the ticket in his hand, veins popping on his forehead.
"What about you?"
Kisho grinned and waved his ticket in front of him.
"First prize for me!"
"Damn it!" Amos snapped. "That shouldn't be possible. My luck can't be this bad!"
"That's what you get for treating people like summoned beasts. After leaving Meteor City, you must've played plenty of gacha games, right?"
Kisho snorted.
"Maybe you've already used up all your luck on your pulls!"
Amos widened his eyes.
"No way, no way…"
Bickering as they walked, the two arrived at the prize redemption counter.
"Here's your first prize~"
The staff member took Kisho's ticket in surprise and placed a box containing a computer on the table.
Then he pulled a small box containing a lighter from another box at his feet and handed it to Amos.
"And here's your fourth prize~"
Amos looked at the lighter in his hand, then at the computer on the table, dark lines forming on his face.
"There's another reward inside the box."
The staff member winked at them and smiled.
"Hope you two gentlemen enjoy your shopping tonight."
The two exchanged a glance.
Kisho slid a fingernail across the seal and opened the box, finding a slip of paper tucked between the layers of foam.
On the other side, Amos also pulled out a rolled slip of paper from his box.
Kisho frowned slightly and spoke in a voice only Amos could hear.
"It's… a train ticket?"
"That's right."
Amos nodded lightly.
"Departure time is tomorrow evening—the 4th at six o'clock. Boarding point is Huntsdon Station."
Kisho looked at Amos.
"The train's name is the G·T."
Amos met his gaze.
"Carriage number 13."
Kisho grinned.
"Looks like we'll be traveling together again."
"Seems so."
Amos shrugged and cast him a sidelong glance.
"What a headache."
"Hey!"
Kisho snapped.
"Are you saying you dislike me?"
"Hah~ What do you think?"
During their conversation, Kisho made another trip to the logistics desk and added the computer to his large shipment.
The two left the mall together, found a nearby inn, and checked in, waiting for the next day to arrive.
The Hunter Exam's third pre-exam trial was about to unfold before them.