Playing Cards

Outside the door, Menchi said helplessly, "Are you really not going to relax at all today?"

Listening to Menchi's footsteps fade away, Jing Yang sat in the cabin, feeling the ship sway with the waves. He turned to look through the round porthole at the rolling sea outside.

"Death Qi..."

He felt a little speechless. He really had been careless.

Just then, a familiar wisp of Death Qi, cold yet hot, had slipped into his chest.

He had thought there'd been some murder aboard the ship...

Jing Yang carefully considered it and recalled that the wisp of Death Qi had seemed to come from "below." Because of the ship's course, it had been more toward the "rear and below."

It had risen from the sea.

An image formed in Jing Yang's mind: in the deep ocean, a shark opened its jaws wide, its mouth full of sharp teeth, and bit a giant octopus to death. As the latter died, ink poured from its body, and a strand of utterly yang yet utterly yin Death Qi became an arrow, broke through the waves, and chased after the ship's wake straight toward him, curled up in his cabin practicing Nen Abilities...

"My range for absorbing Death Qi is around one kilometer. That said, is this stretch of sea even a thousand meters deep?"

Jing Yang frowned and thought to himself, At this ship's speed, even if there were fish below hunting and fighting, it couldn't be that easy for the ship to happen to be directly above the spot at the exact instant a sea creature died, right? Only then could it fall within the range where my cursed heart absorbs Death Qi...

He sat quietly on the small bed in his room for a while. Sure enough, Death Qi did not keep coming from the sea one after another, which eased his mind somewhat.

After tidying up, Jing Yang took his phone and the cash he had left, then opened the door and went out.

Jing Yang had let the two accompanying crows roam free on the outer deck. Little Gray Bird Rock Sparrow, meanwhile, had casually been shut in the room. It was currently chirping in displeasure as it pecked at the door.

The balding young man Slooe was, after all, an official from Ochima. He had booked several numbered rooms along this "first-class" corridor. To Jing Yang's right were Shizuku and Menchi's rooms; to his left were Dago and the others' rooms, while Slooe and the other Ochima personnel occupied the rooms at the far end.

Dago's room was tightly shut, and no sound came from within. It seemed they were out.

Jing Yang glanced at Shizuku and Menchi's room to the right, thought for a moment, then turned and headed for the spacious cabin not far outside—a place he couldn't decide whether to call a little shop, a little bar, a recreation room, or a social plaza for chatting and shooting the breeze.

"Ha ha ha ha!"

"I'm luckier than you. I saw a Fanged Moon Tiger once—a live one! It was truly beautiful. The trip was totally worth it."

"What's so special about a Fanged Moon Tiger? The Blue Moon Pearl I bought is the real treasure. They say a Fanged Moon Tiger only produces one precious gem in its entire life!"

It truly was a plaza for bragging. The spacious ship cabin, with a view of the outer deck, was bustling with noise. The instant Jing Yang entered, heat, alcohol fumes, the aroma of food, and voices in every sort of accent washed over him. Ghost Island was a tourist island. Those traveling to and from it were either businessmen or tourists. On this ship leaving Ghost Island, everyone chatted without restraint, talking about everything under the sun. There were all kinds of topics, and Jing Yang found it all rather novel.

"If you ask me, Okjeski is definitely the murderer! Screw that judge, and screw that damned lawyer!"

"What a beautiful wife. How could that dead fat pig Okjeski bring himself to do it..."

"That lawyer who defended him is no good either! When the final ruling came down, my fists were itching just reading it!"

Amid all that absurdly noisy chatter, Jing Yang came to the ship's little shop, pulled out a bill, and asked while looking up, "Do you have a world map? Oh, and two decks of cards."

"Cards?" The old man sitting behind the counter reading a newspaper pushed up his glasses and stood to look down. A little guy barely over a meter tall wanted to buy cards. Amused, he looked behind the boy. "What does a child need cards for? Where are your parents?"

Jing Yang clicked his tongue. There were too many people around, and he wouldn't be able to get off the ship anytime soon. Pulling out his Hunter License would probably be troublesome—he couldn't exactly beat up everyone who came looking for trouble, or kill them and toss them into the sea, could he? Come on. He was already worried enough about Death Qi.

"Jing Yang, did you run into trouble?" Dago suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

Jing Yang glanced at him and grunted. "Buy me two decks of cards and a world map." As he spoke, he handed him a bill.

Dago wanted to refuse, but he was afraid this young master would flick him again, so he could only accept it with a smile and buy two decks of cards and a world map for him.

"We're drinking tea and chatting over there. Want to join us?" Dago pointed nearby, where several tables had been pushed together and all sorts of people had gathered. Among them were the few Amateur Hunters traveling with Dago.

In this world, Professional Hunters were clearly a privileged group that could not be ignored. On the surface, this was naturally because the international order represented by V5 granted the Hunter Association all kinds of privileges and benefits. At its core, though, it was because every Professional Hunter was a Nen User—superhuman by default.

By extension, civilian Hunters also enjoyed a good reputation. Experienced Amateur Hunters like Dago and his group already appeared imposing and unfathomably powerful in the eyes of ordinary people.

Even when they were just bragging and chatting, listening to Hunters brag somehow seemed more interesting. Naturally, Dago and his group were the center of attention.

Jing Yang took the cards and map, then casually said, "I won't interrupt you guys while you show off. If you feel like it, show off for me too. See you around."

He waved, shoved his hands into his pockets, and slipped away through the crowd like a fish. On the outer deck, a few tourists enjoying the breeze were laughing as they tried to feed the two crows. Jing Yang did not need to worry about their meals.

Dago smiled and shook his head, then returned to the chatting group. Someone else asked, "Who was that kid, Mr. Dago? Don't tell me he's your son?"

Dago's expression changed, and his face darkened. The man was startled too. Why such a huge reaction?

"Some jokes shouldn't be made," Dago said sternly. "They'll get you killed."

Everyone was shocked. Even more shocking was that Dago's companions all nodded in wholehearted agreement.

The Hunter world really was full of monsters everywhere... everyone thought, skipping over the boy from before and returning to their bragging.

Knock, knock, knock.

Hearing the knock, Menchi did not open her eyes. "The door isn't locked. Come in."

"You're here too?" Sure enough, it was Jing Yang's voice.

Menchi, sitting cross-legged on Shizuku's bed while maintaining Ten, opened one eye and said irritably, "Can't I be here?"

"I mean, isn't this convenient? Saves me the trip of calling you next door." Jing Yang had the world map tucked under his arm and weighed the two unopened decks of cards in his hand. "I was just about to ask you to come play cards."

Shizuku sat at the only table in the little cabin room, an old book spread open before her. She looked over curiously as well.

"Aren't you practicing?" Menchi snorted.

"You need a balance between work and rest." Jing Yang hooked a foot behind himself to close the door, then craned his neck to take a look. "Shizuku's reading? Stop reading and come play cards."

"She's been reading this whole time." Menchi feigned anger. "We're practicing too! We don't have time!"

Jing Yang did not get upset. He pulled over a little stool and a folding table, set the box of cards aside, and spread out the newly bought world map. "Fine, then I'll play by myself for a while."

"I'm not practicing, though?" Shizuku closed her book, walked over, braced her hands on her knees, and leaned down to look at the world map spread across the little table. "What are we playing?"

"Shizuku!" Menchi sounded a little dissatisfied.

"We're planning where to go next." Jing Yang smiled and looked up, meeting Shizuku's eyes just as she bent over.

She still wore her usual blankly adorable expression. Because of her posture, her already large-looking glasses had slipped even lower, making her violet eyes seem especially clear.

Shizuku looked at him in confusion.

Jing Yang took off her glasses, put them on, and lowered his head. "Actually, we're just looking for famous places we might want to visit..."

In truth, he was a little worried that if he stayed alone in his room and accidentally absorbed too much Death Qi, he might suddenly transform, leaving Shizuku and Menchi unable to recognize him... Staying with them meant that although his "transformation" might expose some things about him, at least it would not lead to misunderstandings or unnecessary trouble.

Besides, he seemed to pass out whenever he transformed. He probably had no ability to protect himself during that time, so it was better to have two teammates standing guard.

"Fine, cards it is!" Menchi sat cross-legged on the bed and patted the space beside her. "Will that tiny table even fit us? Come up here."

And so, the three of them played cards in the cabin. Shizuku was very quiet and could not remember the cards, so she ended up with the most paper strips stuck to her face. Menchi laughed herself silly.

Or the three of them would huddle together over the map, finding something to eat when they got hungry. The boring time spent at sea passed in the blink of an eye...

It was only when they were about to disembark that Jing Yang belatedly realized that during the unknown number of hours they had been traveling, several scattered wisps of Death Qi, cold yet hot, had apparently slipped into his chest. He had simply been having too much fun with the two girls to notice at all...

The ship entered port and docked. Jing Yang and the others stepped onto the deck, looking at the sunset glow on the horizon and the city ahead. It was not particularly bustling, but it was still far more modern than the two towns on Ghost Island. Many people around them let out relieved breaths.