Pariston had deliberately said that because he knew exactly how to take advantage of Cluck's personality, and the facts proved that Cluck acted exactly as he had expected.
"Then first of all, allow me to congratulate Roy-san on becoming the Monkey of the Zodiacs. Everyone, let's welcome him with a round of applause."
As he spoke, Pariston was the first to clap, and then a sparse round of applause rang out.
"Now, what I would like to say next is this: every Zodiac present here has made outstanding contributions to the Association. Even Saiyu, who just left, has captured many troublesome criminals for the Hunter Association over the years. So..." The smile on Pariston's face did not diminish.
"Just say it," Roy said, looking at Pariston.
"In that case, I hope Roy-san can first become a One-Star Hunter before taking over the position of Monkey. That would also make the Zodiac members present here more convinced."
Pariston clapped his hands as he said this.
When the other Zodiacs heard those words, their expressions varied.
Cheadle, who was standing off to the side, frowned.
"As expected, there is some kind of connection between Pariston and Saiyu. He is probably planning to use the time Roy spends obtaining One-Star Hunter status to erase what Saiyu did and make some kind of move regarding the Monkey position."
However, what Pariston said did make sense. Although Cheadle frowned, she did not speak up to refute him.
"That's only natural."
After hearing Pariston's suggestion, Roy nodded, clearly showing his approval.
"Then..." Pariston smiled and was just about to continue speaking when Roy suddenly interrupted him.
"Right, I'd like to ask something. During the committee meeting earlier, didn't they approve Story Hunter as a Hunter profession?"
"Yes, that's right," Cheadle answered.
She was somewhat puzzled as to why Roy had brought this up, but in the next moment, her eyes lit up. She had clearly guessed Roy's intention.
And it was not just her. Pariston had also guessed it, and the smile at the corners of his mouth disappeared once again.
"In that case, the Hunter profession I choose is Story Hunter! I will use my achievements in the field of manga storytelling, including works such as Dragon Ball and Fist of the North Star, to apply for the title of One-Star Story Hunter!"
The entire room fell silent.
Everyone was stunned by Roy's move. Kanzai and Ginta stared at Roy with their mouths wide open, wanting to say something, yet suddenly not knowing what to say.
"Hohoho!"
Netero's cheerful laughter rang out, finally breaking the slightly stiff atmosphere.
"You really are... really something!"
Kanzai held it in for a long time before finally squeezing out that sentence.
There was absolutely nothing wrong with what Roy had said. The profession of Story Hunter had officially been established through the meeting, and with his achievements in the manga industry, he was fully qualified to become a One-Star Story Hunter.
But why did it feel so strangely awkward?
The other Zodiac members silently thought the same thing in their hearts.
"Your achievements are enough for you to receive the title of One-Star Hunter. Later, just go down to the office responsible for star-rank upgrades and have them stamp it for you."
Cheadle said this. Although she had guessed what Roy intended, and although she also felt that it was somewhat awkward, was it not best that Pariston's plan had been successfully ruined?
Besides...
Cheadle glanced at Netero, who was chuckling cheerfully.
Perhaps Chairman Netero had planned the creation of the Story Hunter profession from the very beginning.
Cheadle thought this silently.
"Then everyone has no objections now, right? From now on, we are colleagues. I hope you will all support me as we work together."
As he spoke, Roy straightened his clothes and gave his phone number to Gel.
"If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving first. See you all later."
Roy waved his hand and leisurely walked out.
"That means the meeting is over, right? Perfect. I just remembered I still have something to do, so I'll be going too."
Right after Roy left, Ging also stood up and chased after him.
Far too many things had happened today. An original Zodiac had been expelled, a new Zodiac had joined, and the new member had displayed powerful strength, rare abilities, and more. Everyone needed time to properly digest it all.
Seeing that everyone's thoughts were no longer here, Netero coughed.
"Meeting adjourned!"
...
Ging walked out of the meeting room and looked around. Sure enough, he found Roy waiting for him beneath a large tree. Ging could not help smiling in tacit understanding, then walked over.
"You're a real bastard. After leaving Gon with his aunt to raise alone, you barely asked about him afterward. You didn't even meet him."
After taking the cigarette, Roy tucked it behind his ear and mercilessly mocked him.
With Ging's ability, he should have long since learned about the relationship between Roy and Gon.
"Yeah. All my friends say I'm a bastard. I also know that I'm pretty irresponsible and not a qualified father."
Ging merely scratched his head.
"But I firmly believe that everyone has their own path to choose. If Gon wanted to spend his whole life happily on Whale Island, then I wouldn't disturb him. But if he wanted to come find me, then I'd let him come."
Ging smiled freely.
"So you deliberately arranged for Kite to meet him, and then you even designed Greed Island specifically to improve his strength?"
"Yeah. If he wasn't interested in me as his father, then he wouldn't have walked the path of a Hunter, and naturally he would never have come into contact with the game Greed Island."
"You really are carefree. For the sake of a son whose path you didn't even know, you spent so much manpower and resources building Greed Island. What if Gon never walked the path of a Hunter? Wouldn't all those arrangements have basically gone to waste?"
Roy teased him.
"But I believe in Gon. I became a Hunter at twelve, so he definitely could too. He would definitely make it to Greed Island!"
Ging's words were full of confidence.
"And the facts proved that I didn't guess wrong. Those efforts weren't wasted either. Haha!"
"Then did you also guess that Gon would figure out the truth behind the name Nigg?"
Nigg was the fake name Ging had used when he brought Gon into the game while Gon was still a baby.
"Huh? You even know about that? Haha. If Gon is as smart as I am, he would definitely recognize it. Then, after clearing the game, he would use a clever method to bring out a card that could find me. That could also count as his reward for properly playing through the game I designed."
Ging laughed heartily. Clearly, he was very proud of his child, Gon.
"Then why did you specifically design it so that Accompany would fly to Kite, while only Magnetic Force would fly to you?" Roy asked faintly.
(End of Chapter)
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