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Gelman spoke slowly.

"You have one more chance to make an offer. Think it over. For a poison whose ingredients are still unknown, an antidote will be hard to find in a short time. That's what makes it valuable."

The more often a poison was used, the more likely someone was to develop an antidote—and the easier it was to leave clues pointing to an assassination.

The most dangerous time for any poison was when people still knew nothing about it.

Of course, there might be Nen users who could remove any toxin without any explanation. That was another matter entirely.

"I understand, I understand..." The black-market dealer wiped the sweat from his forehead with a white cloth. He thought for a moment, then gritted his teeth. "Then one million Jenny!"

"But I can't scrape together a million all at once. I'll give you five hundred thousand now, then pay you the rest in two days."

Gelman remembered Killua of the Zoldyck Family. The bounty on his photograph alone seemed to be one hundred million Jenny.

Selling this syringe of venom for a tenth of the price of Killua's photo was a pretty good deal.

He wasn't worried that the black-market dealer would renege later. At worst, he'd go back to his old line of work as an assassin and give the dealer a reminder of what he could do.

"Deal."

Only after Gelman agreed did the black-market dealer let out a sigh of relief.

Gelman confirmed that the five hundred thousand Jenny had arrived in his anonymous account, then returned to the mine.

This time, though, he didn't rush to sell another piece of loot. Instead, he deliberately went to a different town.

On the thirtieth, he arrived in another city and sold the Gale Ripple Moth's severed wing, which was as large as a bed sheet.

The wing sold for less than the venom, but its unknown origin gave it some collectible value. It fetched four hundred thousand Jenny in the end.

The remaining five hundred thousand Jenny from the venom sale was also deposited into his account.

In the blink of an eye, Gelman had become a small-time tycoon.

Rolling in money, Gelman didn't hesitate to book the presidential suite at a hotel that night.

He stood on the balcony, enjoying the pleasant evening breeze as he admired the cityscape.

From the highest point in the city, the distant ground below looked as though it were covered in a drizzle of stars, all blurring together.

One or two bright specks appeared in the night sky, moving slowly overhead.

For various reasons, this world's technological development differed significantly from that of the era Gelman had lived in.

Smartphones and computers existed, as did a real-life computer game that could transport players to an island. It all seemed very advanced.

There were airplanes, too, but they were mostly for private use. The vast majority of public air transportation consisted of airships.

The specks that had just passed overhead were airships flying through the area.

There was no reason civilian airplanes couldn't be widely available in this world. It seemed more likely that some kind of restriction was in place, perhaps related to the V5 nations or the Dark Continent.

Gelman sat quietly in a deck chair, pondering these questions.

Suddenly, his phone rang with a chime from inside his black robe. He took it out and unlocked the screen, discovering that someone had sent him a text message.

Little Grandma: Hehe (smiley face)!

Little Grandma: Do you remember who I am? Have you missed me?

It was Biscuit. A month ago, she'd promised to help Gelman get straight to the Hunter Exam venue, but she'd been completely out of touch ever since. Gelman had nearly forgotten about it.

Gelman waited a while, but Biscuit didn't send anything else. He set his phone on the round table beside him, then got up to pour himself a glass of water in the living room.

When he returned, his phone was chiming again, its screen lighting up.

He had no choice but to unlock it again and see what was going on.

As it turned out, the messages were still from Biscuit.

--Five minutes ago--

Little Grandma: Huh? Are you there? Why aren't you replying?

--Four minutes ago--

Little Grandma: Could it be... you're mad at me?

Little Grandma: I'm sorry. I couldn't help it. I've just been so busy lately!

Little Grandma: I haven't forgotten my promise to you! I have good news!

--Three minutes ago--

Little Grandma: Still, ignoring someone like this is a little rude. I'll give you one minute to reply.

--Two minutes ago--

Little Grandma: Reply to me (angry face)!

Little Grandma: Reply to me (angry face)!

Little Grandma: Reply to me (angry face)!

His phone chimed, and Biscuit sent another message: "Reply to me (angry face)!"

Fortunately, phones in this world didn't have the obnoxious "read but no reply" feature. Otherwise, Biscuit might have completely lost her temper.

Gelman opened the on-screen keyboard and began to reply at his leisure.

Gelman: The Hunter Exam registration office sent a text saying the venue is somewhere in Anisha City.

This time, Biscuit replied almost instantly.

Little Grandma: Everyone knows that! Isn't it listed on the website?

Little Grandma: The Hunter Exam's location changes every year. Anisha City is huge. Are you going to search every street like a hound?

Gelman: Where exactly is the venue?

Little Grandma: You're still as blunt as ever (helpless sigh face).

Little Grandma: Do you want to know? You really want to, don't you? If you do, you'll have to call me "Beautiful Princess" from now on!

Little Grandma: And one more thing! Don't ignore my messages! Honestly, that habit of yours reminds me of another difficult guy...

Gelman didn't give in to Biscuit's unreasonable demand. Instead, he got up from the deck chair and went back to the bedroom to find the Sucking Meat Zhu Worm's Color-Changing Stone.

This should count as a "gemstone," right?

Gelman put it on the floor, recorded it gradually turning the color of the tiles, and sent the video to Biscuit.

Then he placed it beside the door, recorded it gradually changing to the color of the wood, and sent her that video too.

This time, Gelman waited three minutes, but Biscuit still didn't reply.

He assumed she wasn't interested, so he put his phone on the bedside table, took a book from the shelf, and settled onto the soft bed. Leaning back against the pillow, he began to read.

Before he could finish a paragraph, his phone rang. It played a piece of instrumental music he'd recently grown fond of.

Gelman reluctantly put down the book and picked up his phone again. As expected, the caller ID read "Little Grandma."

The moment he answered, a high-pitched, girlish voice came through, sweet and coquettish.

"Um... Big Brother Gelman, is that gemstone specially for me?"

"Thank you so much. It's the best present I've ever received! Those messages I sent earlier were just me teasing you, so please don't take them to heart..."

Gelman quickly cut off her rambling. "An equal exchange. Where exactly is the exam venue?"

"Aw, don't be such a stranger!" Biscuit drew out her words.

"Knowing the exact location won't help you. Only when the Guide says the 'password' will the staff open the passage for you."