Master Inventor from Hunter x Hunter - Part 3

Running into the Uvogin and Machi duo this quickly, Mog hadn't expected it.

But though surprising, it wasn't incomprehensible.

With Uvogin's loud and boisterous personality, he was easy to find.

And compared to the other old-timers from Meteor City and the residents he wasn't familiar with, he was also the type easier to deal with.

Back in Meteor City, when Uvogin faced Chrollo bringing Shalnark and Franklin to snatch things from his turf, He'd chosen to intimidate first, then fight.

And to stop them from escaping, he'd thrown the broken wooden stick from Machi's hand, not something more harmful like a jagged piece of iron.

He'd even gone head-to-head with Franklin in a real man's brawl.

It wasn't until later, when Chrollo and his group of kids put on an animated show for the children of Meteor City, that Uvogin grew to admire him, and the two sides began to bond.

In other words, the current Uvogin was still just a thirteen-year-old kid who could be reasoned with normally.

Of course, if he had any other ideas, Mog's body might be weak, but his solid Nen ability was no joke~~~

"All here?"

At the doorstep, Mog glanced back. Behind him, Uvogin stood with arms crossed and chin raised, Machi at his side, both planted in place.

"Come in."

Without waiting for Uvogin to ask, he casually opened the door and stepped inside first.

Seeing this, Uvogin raised an eyebrow, silent for two seconds.

"In I go, no big deal."

He snorted with a laugh, then strode through the doorway.

Having come this far, turning back would just make him a laughingstock.

Uvogin didn't want to hear people mock him next time, saying, "He got all the way to the doorstep but didn't dare enter the guy's house."

Besides~~~ Machi's sixth sense had never been wrong, and he believed in it firmly.

"What the hell?!"

The moment he stepped in, Uvogin swept his gaze around the interior.

Finding it empty, almost completely bare and destitute, he couldn't help but complain:

"Machi's place has more stuff than this!"

"..."

Little Machi shot a glance at the big oaf Uvogin, didn't bother arguing, and turned her attention to Mog, the kid who'd brought them here for some unknown reason.

Though she trusted her sixth sense, that didn't mean she'd let her guard down completely.

Chapter 004: [Request] and [Commission]

"Didn't you say there was food here, that you wanted to treat us?"

Uvogin plopped right down on the floor, his tone casual after sensing no danger:

"With a place this empty, you still claim there's food?"

"Or maybe~~~"

He looked up at Mog, flashing a mouthful of stark white teeth:

"You planning to offer yourself as the meal?"

"With skin as tender as yours, you wouldn't even be enough to fill the gaps between my teeth~!!"

Mog ignored Uvogin's bluster and provocation, asking again:

"You're hungry, so you need me to treat you, right?"

"Didn't you say there was food and tell us to come over?!"

Uvogin was getting impatient: "Sure, say it that way if you want. Just bring out the good stuff for me!!"

"Of course, if what you pull out to serve us is some moldy, stinking bread~~~"

"Don't blame me for tearing... tearing off your roof~!!"

Uvogin had meant to say flip the table, but realizing there wasn't even a proper table here, he changed his words.

"Relax."

Mog said no more, sinking his mind inward.

Uvogin and Machi fell silent too, just staring at Mog.

After about ten seconds or so...

"Uh..."

Mog slowly opened his eyes, then gave a light cough:

"Is there anything specific you want to eat?"

"Something specific to eat?"

Uvogin scratched an itch on his body. "What, you're saying whatever I want to eat, you can just whip it up right here on the spot?!"

"Then I'll say it—if I want to eat..."

"Sticky Rice Cake."

Machi, who had been silent the whole time, suddenly spoke up, cutting off Uvogin's rambling.

This was the first time she had opened her mouth, and also the first time she lifted her head to look Mog straight in the eye.

"Sticky Rice Cake, huh..."

Uvogin smacked his lips, recalling it.

That was the food they had snatched a while back from Feitan and Phinks, that motorcycle duo.

And Feitan and Phinks had taken it from another kid who had been devoutly praying at the church, earning Father Zhol's approval to receive food.

On the other side of their garbage heap ruins stood a lavish church building.

Inside was Father Zhol. In Meteor City, whenever someone died, he would collect their bodies, pray for them, and set up tombstones.

The people of Meteor City didn't want to suffer while alive, only to have their corpses tormented after death.

So basically, no one bothered the church.

And the church seemed to have ties to the outside world, often bringing in food from beyond.

Father Zhol would distribute it to the children who prayed devoutly there.

Sticky Rice Cake was one of those things—sticky, chewy.

It wasn't as fragrant as the meat others talked about, but for a bunch of kids who had barely eaten proper meals, it was already a pretty decent taste.

"Sticky Rice Cake, huh? I got it~~~"

Mog nodded and closed his eyes again.

Well, he had just gotten the [request] for food from Uvogin, which fulfilled the conditions.

But he had overlooked another important issue.

Whether his aura capacity and Nen were enough to support his inventions.

As everyone knew, anything produced by a Nen ability had to come from consuming Nen and aura.

Only if his Nen and aura were strong enough could he sustain increasingly "unreasonable" and "difficult" demands.

For example, if someone gave Mog a [request] to destroy the world.

Then, for Mog to invent an item that could achieve that effect, the Nen and aura required would be astronomical.

Just like now.

Uvogin had issued a [request] for food to Mog. If he were to invent something that could create food out of thin air—

Say, something like Doraemon's classic [Gourmet Tablecloth]—

The Nen and aura needed would be far beyond what Mog could currently support.

So he had no choice but to compromise, narrowing the food request down to a specific type.

"I still need strength, huh~~~"

Mog's resolve to improve his strength—especially his Nen and aura—hardened once again in his heart.

If only he could be like that one transmigrator with Doraemon's [Fourth-Dimensional Pocket], just using items directly—wouldn't that be simple and easy?!!

Mog let out another sigh.

"Maybe I could try using [Restriction and Vow] to reduce the consumption of my inventions..."

As his thoughts churned, Mog didn't forget to work on inventing the [Sticky Rice Cake] food.

Soon, just as Uvogin's gaze was starting to grow bored and he wondered if he had gotten carried away playing this staring game with the dumb kid—

Suddenly, a layer of bright light began to emanate from Mog's hands.

"Huh?!!"

Uvogin snapped his head up, and Machi's gaze also shot over immediately.

Under their intense stares, their focused eyes suddenly contracted.

Right in their field of vision, a peculiar purple machine gradually took shape out of nothing, materializing in the empty space before Mog!!

It had a chimney-like top, and below that, an opening—a small slot that seemed to output the finished product.

On one side of the machine was a lever, apparently for starting it up.

"What the hell is that thing?!!"

Uvogin's eyes bulged as he shot up from the ground.