A Temporary Conclusion

Kakin's royal capital was draped in a steady drizzle.

With the king's birthday approaching, even the princes who were usually scattered across the country—or studying abroad—had gathered in the palace for the rare occasion, attending various banquets and events.

Slanting rain pattered beyond the window. Inside the quiet room, Babimayna stood at attention with his hands behind his back.

Behind the desk before him, First Prince Benjamin resembled a male lion wearing human skin, imposing and immovable as he calmly yet swiftly reviewed the mission report Babimayna had submitted. After finishing each page, he handed it to Balsamilko, the bald, scar-faced Black adviser at his side. Balsamilko read through them one by one until he reached the final page.

Benjamin closed his eyes in thought. The Black adviser sorted through the information in his mind as well.

Blanchette, the Hunter Association's One-Star Hunter, had indeed made contact with True Martial King's empty tomb...

The vicious Nen beast left behind by the late young royal uncle, Nastie, had been properly dealt with by Blanchette. For the time being, it could be considered no threat to the Hui Guo Rou Royal Family...

The Deposed Consort and all her guards were dead...

Babimayna had seemingly been monitored by someone using birds...

And that bastard was nowhere to be found. Whether he was alive or dead remained unknown.

Benjamin opened his eyes and asked in a deep voice, "The Hunter employed by the Deposed Consort—his Hunter License wasn't found on his corpse?"

"No." Babimayna stood ramrod straight. "First, he may not have carried it on him. Second, he may have dropped and lost it during his fight with Muser. Third, it may have been picked up after his death by a passing beast or traveler."

The Black adviser Balsamilko said, "He was hired to protect the Deposed Consort. It is impossible that he would not have carried his Hunter License with him. We will set aside the other possibilities that cannot currently be confirmed and assume someone picked up that Hunter License. Then..."

Benjamin flipped through Babimayna's report, skimming countless words at a glance before stopping at "seemingly monitored by someone using birds" and "the Professional Hunter Jing Yang, who appeared to be only five years old." His thick finger tapped the page. "Let's use the process of elimination. Could this Jing Yang have picked up the Hunter License? Better yet, could he be that missing bastard?"

Balsamilko said, "He is an Emitter, but we cannot rule out the possibility that he is actually an Enhancer posing as an Emitter, or..."

"Or a Manipulator," Babimayna said. "If so, then the bird that seemed to be monitoring me may have been his work."

"Nen Abilities come in countless varieties. It is not entirely impossible for a newborn infant to grow into the body of a five-year-old."

Balsamilko pondered aloud, "But who could have done it? The Deposed Consort was just an ordinary person. A Nen Ability awakened at the moment of her death? The possibility is too small. And even if an infant's body could be forcibly matured, Jing Yang's knowledge, abilities, mentality, and capacity for thought are difficult to explain. Unless this person called Jing Yang is actually a puppet conjured by someone hiding in the shadows—but then we would descend into endless suspicion and never reach an answer."

Benjamin nodded and made his final decision. "Since no corpse was found, assume that bastard is still alive. Since we do not know where he is, assume he bears hostility toward us and will seek revenge against us ten or twenty years from now. Always remain prepared for battle."

"Yes!" Balsamilko and Babimayna answered.

"Also, retain all information related to Jing Yang and every Hunter mentioned in Babimayna's mission report. This matter ends here for now. I'm leaving first."

After saying that, the First Prince rose to his feet. Rather than his usual military uniform, he was dressed in formal attire for the ball. His black suit was stretched tight over his massive frame.

As he pushed open the door and stepped into the red-carpeted corridor, he happened to encounter a tall woman in an elegant gown, dressed to the nines.

According to Kakin Royal Family tradition, all of the king's children, male or female, were called princes. There was no concept of inheritance by the eldest legitimate son. Succession was determined solely by the outcome of a bloody war of succession, one that the reigning king would declare open someday in the future. The victor became king.

The woman in the grand gown was Camilla Hui Guo Rou, the Second Prince of this generation of Kakin.

"Kami is surprised. A gorilla like you is still hanging around?" The Second Prince wore an elegant smile, but her words were anything but polite. "Are you trying to pollute the air in the palace Kami will inherit someday?"

Benjamin appeared enraged, his face twisting viciously. "Stupid woman. When the war of succession begins, I'll make you regret this."

With that, he turned and headed for the ballroom. Watching the First Prince's departing figure, Balsamilko thought that outsiders were always deceived by Prince Benjamin's seemingly crude behavior. How could they know that he was in fact both brave and shrewd, possessed strength and patience, planned before acting, and never angered easily? He truly was the ideal candidate to inherit the Kakin Kingdom.

Kami already made a wish. Why haven't these annoying princes obediently died on their own? This world makes no sense at all!

The Second Prince complained inwardly as she entered the ballroom, where celebrities and nobles had gathered, her face expressionless.

After leaving Ghost Island, Ging sat at a table, staring at the Laptop screen before him.

There was no record in the Hunter Association files of a Professional Hunter named Jing Yang. He was not on the list of prospective Hunters who had passed the exam, nor among the candidates who had officially taken the Hunter Exam. He was not in the records of the past twenty Hunter Exams, nor could he be found among the past fifty...

"An alias?" Ging tore open a bag of chips and crunched away. "If it's as he said, and his situation is similar to Senior Biscuit's, then even a complete change in physical appearance is possible. If he also changed his name, then he would effectively become an entirely different person... Unless I get his DNA and access the international server to check his identity records, it will be impossible to determine who he really is."

Or perhaps Jing Yang's identity was in a more confidential Association database?

Though Ging was one of the Zodiacs and a high-ranking member of the Association, he could not look up everything. For example, Ging, another Zodiac, had virtually no records at all. Even Chairman Netero might not know what that wanderer was usually up to. In the end, the Hunter Association was not a tightly organized institution and did not impose strong restrictions on its members.

"Should I ask Biot for help? She's never without her laptop or phone. Her technical skills are definitely far better than mine..."

Crunch, crunch, crunch...

Ging ate chips for a while and downed two bottles of carbonated drinks.

On second thought, he decided against it. Strictly speaking, he and Biot of the "Rabbit" were on opposing sides among the Zodiacs. He leaned toward conservatism and stability, while Biot's faction was more radical and reform-minded. They were not that familiar with each other to begin with.

At least judging from Jing Yang's behavior, aside from concealing his personal identity, he seemed quite sincere. He bore no ill will toward Menchi, his "junior," either.

Ging put the matter completely aside. He was a Poacher Hunter, not some kind of secret Hunter. He had legitimate work of his own to do.

Meanwhile, aboard a ship sailing toward Geleburg, the port city of Ochima, Menchi pounded on the door to Jing Yang's tiny cabin.

"Jing Yang, let's go for a walk! Shizuku's coming too!" she called out carelessly.

Jing Yang's voice came from inside. "Ren! I'm busy!"

Jing Yang clutched his chest, a slight frown forming on his face.