Chapter 26 (continued)

What Qi Yue feared was not the Aberrants themselves, but the truth behind what had made them look so horrifying.

His extraordinary memory meant that he could never forget a single detail of the photos he had seen, much less the Aberrants themselves, which occupied much of the images. With his mind working at full speed and refusing to stop, the photographs and dissection images from the booklets played on a loop in his head. It was like watching an endless succession of horror movies inside his skull.

Hiss...

Beneath his cloak, a chill ran down Qi Yue's back. The more he thought about it, the deeper his frown became.

Whether it was to survey the actual terrain of every part of Area F in daylight and improve his chances against the level-three threats after nightfall, or simply for the sake of his own brain, Qi Yue knew he couldn't keep thinking about it.

There was a cave up ahead—

Let's take a look.

Desperate for something else to drive the images of the Aberrants from his mind, Qi Yue paused briefly before setting off again.

Caves are perfect places to hide things. I'll have to check it out myself.

In Area F, atop a high mountain peak.

The two assassins scratched their heads and looked around for a good ten minutes. Unable to find Beixing among the crowd concealed beneath cloaks identical to his, they lowered their binoculars and looked at each other.

Thinking of the scene they had just witnessed through their binoculars, they stared at each other for a long moment before one of them finally spoke.

"Third Brother, we should tell the boss about this."

"...Agreed." Third Brother had already dialed Ron.

Buildings were likely to become stopping points for the Esper Ability Students, so to make it easier to pick Beixing out from among the Class F students, the two assassins had chosen a mountain peak that was not a building, was far from the Aberrants, and was extremely difficult to climb.

Two sniper rifles were set up where they lay.

Though they didn't understand the abstract principle behind why Beixing could be hurt as long as they, as Old Humans, were the ones attacking him, they didn't care. As long as they could complete the job, that was enough.

But to their surprise, the job they had thought would be easy had somehow become difficult.

They even suspected the mission had been leaked.

Otherwise, why was almost every Esper Ability User in Class F wearing the cloak that only their assassination target, Beixing, wore in the photo their employer had provided?

Ron answered the call quickly.

"That fast?" Ron glanced at the time on his wristwatch and raised an eyebrow. "I knew it. A mere Beixing..."

"Boss, the job isn't done." Third Brother had no choice but to interrupt Ron's muttering.

"What?" Ron couldn't believe it.

"Here's the situation..." Third Brother explained that almost everyone in Area F was wearing a cloak identical to Beixing's, covering most of their face and making their features impossible to make out.

"..."

After hearing the explanation, Ron Flint began to question his life. He even suspected it was a prank or a scam call and held his phone farther away to check the number.

As it turned out, prank or scam, no one would dare pull one on him, Ron Flint.

Ever since Xiao Yiyuan had asked Atas a strange question on the day Atas returned, Atas had kept his distance from him completely, leaving Xiao Yiyuan with no choice but to stay by Ron's side. He naturally heard the voice coming from the phone as well, and promptly offered Ron a plan.

"Young Master Ron, everyone knows Beixing has no friends. So whoever's alone must be Beixing." Xiao Yiyuan reached his conclusion with confidence. "Have the two of them look for an Esper Ability User who's alone and wearing a cloak, then find a chance to get close and take a look. Once they confirm that the face beneath the cloak belongs to Beixing, they can strike."

After all, Beixing's Esper Ability targeted all Esper Ability Users equally. Even if Old Man Li had been acting crazy, trying to make everyone see Beixing as a companion and making Beixing persist in living like a normal student, he was still an enemy who could hurt them. Who wouldn't bear a grudge against an enemy?

Beixing would definitely be alone.

"Did you hear that?" Pleased with Xiao Yiyuan's suggestion, Ron haughtily questioned the assassins on the phone.

Third Brother: "...Boss, the fact is, every single Class F student right now... That's right, I said every single one of them, is on their own."

Ron: "?"

Xiao Yiyuan: "???"

What was going on? Both saw the same bewilderment in each other's eyes.

Weren't the weak supposed to huddle together for warmth?

"Every time we've had a Weekly Assessment before, they were clearly in groups of three or five!" Ron's incredulous voice reached the ears of the assassin duo.

Ron didn't know that, following Qi Yue's suggestion to use any means necessary to achieve their goal, and given the "absolutely reliable" image Qi Yue had cultivated earlier, the already less-than-strong Class F students had instinctively acted on his advice.

That had led to the present situation.

Seeing the ugly look on Ron's face, Xiao Yiyuan offered another suggestion. "According to the rumors about Beixing, he must be at the place closest to the cruise ship that will pick them up when the assessment ends in five days—in other words, on the beach by the sea in Area F!"

Although they weren't at the same academy, there were plenty of rumors about Beixing. Because he was ostracized, and because he was lazy and stupid and couldn't do anything right, he always obediently waited at the place where the students would be picked up after the assessment.

"There's not a soul on the beach..." Third Brother's voice sounded again.

Ron: "?!"

"Has Beixing changed his ways?" Xiao Yiyuan was stunned.

"Did someone leak my plan?" Ron gave Xiao Yiyuan a sinister look. Apart from the two Old Human assassins he had sent out, Xiao Yiyuan was the only one who knew about it.

The successive "blows" forced him to consider the possibility.

Xiao Yiyuan understood what Ron's look meant and hurriedly waved his hands in defense. "Young Master Ron, you're definitely overthinking it. How would I dare, right?"

Ron: "..."

On closer thought, that was true. How would someone the Xiao Family had sent over to serve as a dog for the Flint Family's next head dare turn around and bite his master?

Then...

"P-Precognition?" Xiao Yiyuan ventured.

Ron's gaze settled on Xiao Yiyuan. If there had been no betrayal, that really was the only possibility.

After the mutation, the New Humans had all sorts of bizarre Esper Abilities. Their innate mutations were uncontrollable, and the First Hunter Academy couldn't possibly have a complete record of them. It wouldn't be surprising for an Esper Ability User to possess an ability like Precognition.

Seeing Ron's expression, Xiao Yiyuan felt reassured and continued his speculation. "It should be one of the Class F students who has Precognition... No, everyone hates Beixing. It should be a teacher at the Seventh Hunter Academy or someone close to Dean Li who has the ability. They foresaw that you were going to send assassins after Beixing, so they made these arrangements for the Class F students during this Weekly Assessment."

"Then what now... Boss, what should we do?"

As an Old Human, Third Brother didn't care about Esper Abilities. All he cared about was how to complete the job under these circumstances.

"What else can you do? You have Beixing's photo..." Ron said through gritted teeth. "You're already there, so get close and check them one by one. When you find the face that belongs to Beixing under a cloak, strike."

Beep, beep, beep...

Without waiting for an answer, Ron hung up, his face dark. He switched to his messages and tapped away at the screen.

"What... are you doing?" Faced with the hot-tempered Ron, Xiao Yiyuan didn't dare act as freely as he did around Atas. Too afraid to peek, he asked out of curiosity.

"What else?" Ron didn't spare Xiao Yiyuan a glance. A twisted expression appeared on his face. "Of course I'm reporting to Dean Zong that an Esper Ability User with Precognition has appeared at the Seventh Hunter Academy. Even our First Hunter Academy doesn't have a precious Esper Ability User with Precognition. What gives the Seventh Hunter Academy the right to have one? Their pile of junk?"

"...Haha, you're right." Xiao Yiyuan looked embarrassed.

He could guarantee that Ron wanted the First Hunter Academy to demand the person from the Seventh Hunter Academy, so he could then find a chance to take revenge for what had happened today.

Xiao Yiyuan observed three seconds of silence for the Esper Ability User who had awakened Precognition. Finally, he wouldn't be the only one Ron beat and cursed at.

The Real World.

After the latest installment of Season Two of "Chronicles of the Young Hunters" came out, the Manga Forum exploded.

[Precognition! Qi "King of BKing" Yue might have two Esper Abilities!!!] [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] hot

[0L: Have you all read the latest installment, darlings?! Just as I thought, I knew our great Qi, the King of BKing, couldn't have suddenly chosen a cloak during the Weekly Assessment for no reason, or traded for so many Physical Defense Items to protect Beixing from Old Humans!

When I saw the Old Human assassins transported to Katebis Island, it finally dawned on me: everything great Qi did had a reason behind it!

He anticipated Ron's move and prepared a response in advance, and he even said things like "just as I thought" and "exactly the same." There can only be one truth—great Qi doesn't just have an Esper Ability similar to Beixing's, he also has one related to Precognition!

Aaaaah, that's Qi Yue, the King of BKing, for you! Two Esper Abilities are the best of all time! He looks so handsome in that cloak! Who's for it and who's against it?! (Ps: anyone against it gets snipped by me (devilish whisper))]

[1L: But so far, the only one with two Esper Abilities is Number 8792, the failed Artificial Esper. Are you saying great Qi is an Artificial Esper?]

[2L: ??? What nonsense is 1L spouting? My Brother Qi could never be an Artificial Esper!]

[3L: Strongly agree! He was born with two Esper Abilities. Is one ability really the limit of your imagination? I'm betting great Qi has Precognition. After all, he said things like "I have something of my own to do," "just as I thought," and "exactly the same." More importantly, everything great Qi has said and done since arriving on Katebis Island has been extremely confident and certain. What does that mean? It means this isn't great Qi's first time on the island, that he came to Katebis Island with some unknown plan, and that he may have seen something in the future he foresaw!]