Examinees Eliminated by Gelman

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Faint sounds of projectiles slicing through the air reached his ears.

Without even looking, Gelman tilted his head to evade the three incoming poisoned needles. Then, pretending to draw the Meat Saw from his coat, he spun and chopped off the heads of the two venomous snakes that had slithered up beside him!

"My snakes!" Ba Peng, his head wrapped in gray cloth, cried out in panic.

Grita, dark-skinned and the one who had fired the poisoned needles, visibly changed expression and took a step back.

They were all examinees in this Hunter exam.

Not long ago, the "Rookie Killer" Dopa had approached them with a proposal to work together.

Rather than search all over Anisha City for cards like needles in a haystack, they could band together outside the church, intercept examinees returning there, and take their cards.

Dopa had powerful laxatives, Grita had poisoned needles that could paralyze the body, and Ba Peng had terrifying snake venom. The three poison experts hid among the crowd and selected their prey together.

Using this method, they had successfully seized two cards. They only needed one more before they could go find Izunabi.

But this time, they had waited a long while without seeing anyone. Just as their patience was about to run out, Gelman appeared.

However, the three disagreed over whether they should attack Gelman.

Grita opposed attacking Gelman, but Dopa was resentful over Gelman threatening him with a Blunderbuss earlier and strongly urged the other two on. Ba Peng was tired of waiting as well.

So, with two votes in favor and one against, Gelman was chosen as their final prey.

But now, Gelman ignored Dopa's interference, effortlessly dodged the poisoned needles, and killed the venomous snakes. How did he look anything like prey?

Was this guy really a rookie?

Dopa's smug smile froze. Seeing that things were going badly, he immediately sold out the other two. "I have nothing to do with them. It looks like there's some misunderstanding between you. Take your time sorting it out. I'll be leaving first."

He turned and broke into a trot, his shoulder bag bouncing at his side.

Grita and Ba Peng inwardly cursed Dopa for being cowardly and sly, but they also began thinking of retreating.

Yet without another word, Gelman vanished from sight and caught up with the fleeing Dopa in the blink of an eye, before either Grita or Ba Peng could see what had happened.

Dopa stared in shock at Gelman, who had suddenly appeared beside him. Gelman stuck out his right leg in Dopa's path and tripped him before he could react.

Dopa's short, fat body sprawled across the ground. He let out a painful cry as his head struck the hard floor, splitting open and bleeding instantly.

"Don't hit me! Don't hit me! It was all their idea!" Dopa wailed, clutching his bloodied head.

Gelman's eyes swept toward the other two still standing.

Grita felt a chill down his spine. Having opposed choosing Gelman as prey from the start, he had no desire to keep this up. He threw every poisoned needle he held at Gelman.

The poisoned needles shot through the air with a series of whooshes.

Gelman raised the Meat Saw and cleanly swept them all aside.

After launching the needles, Grita was just about to slip into the crowd when he heard several sharp clangs.

Before he could even see how his poisoned needles had been blocked, his vision blurred, and Gelman was already standing before him.

So fast!

Gelman swung a fist into Grita's cheek, leaving stars dancing before his eyes and his head spinning before he dropped to his knees.

Grita felt a hot, stuffy sensation in his nostrils. When he wiped them with the back of his hand, he found blood. Something foreign was in his mouth as well. He spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, mixed with one of his teeth.

In an instant, Gelman had taken down Dopa and Grita, then turned to look at Ba Peng.

Ba Peng adjusted the cloth on his head, then raised both hands.

"I surrender."

The people passing through the plaza all stared over in surprise. To them, the entire string of events had taken less than half a minute.

Yet in that brief half-minute, two people from the side with the numerical advantage had gone down, while one had surrendered. Everyone was dumbfounded.

Some people recognized Gelman as the man who had stopped that rampaging Beetle in the morning. Now, in the afternoon, he had taken down three people who looked like highway robbers, leaving them clicking their tongues in amazement.

Dopa, Grita, and Ba Peng all knew they had kicked an iron plate. They looked at Gelman anxiously, waiting for his judgment.

But Gelman did something unexpected.

"Hand over all your Jenny." His black eyes blinked as he spoke.

The three of them were stunned, looking at one another.

The onlookers were stunned too.

Could it be that they had misunderstood? Was this black-haired young man the real robber... But what kind of robber robbed three people all by himself?

They had never seen such a thing before, but now they had.

Gelman urged them again.

Only then did Dopa, Grita, and Ba Peng realize that he did not intend to kill or cripple them. They only had to hand over their money to save their lives. It was worth it.

So, they handed over all the Jenny they had on them.

Gelman counted it. There were over ten thousand Jenny in total. He pocketed it, but he did not let the three off just like that. Instead, he reached out, snatched Dopa's shoulder bag, rummaged through it, and took out three cans of drinks.

"Drink them. One can each, and I won't pursue the matter any further."

Dopa had put powerful laxatives in the drinks. Even a single sip would keep someone squatting in the restroom for a long time, let alone an entire can. They definitely wouldn't be able to take the Hunter Exam afterward.

And the antidote for those powerful laxatives was in the shoulder bag Gelman held.

Gelman knew it. Dopa knew it. Grita and Ba Peng knew it too.

The three looked at one another, and Gelman showed them the Meat Saw again.

Gritting their teeth, they accepted the cans, popped open the tabs with a crack, tipped back their heads, and drained them in one go.

Soon after, all three turned pale almost at once. Clutching their stomachs, sweat rolled down like soybeans, dripping onto the ground and soaking it like rain. They all looked pitifully at Gelman.

"Go on." Gelman jerked his chin.

As though they had been granted a pardon, the three immediately got up and hurried off to find a nearby restroom.

Ignoring the looks from the people nearby, Gelman tossed Dopa's shoulder bag into a nearby trash can, turned, and walked into the church amid their strange stares.

No matter how one looked at him, he did not seem like a man of faith.

Not long after Gelman left, Hunters disguised as homeless people approached the trash can and retrieved Dopa's entire bag of laxative drinks.

They silently handled the logistical work, doing their best to avoid being noticed by the citizens and examinees.

Gelman did have faith, but he did not believe in the gods worshipped in churches or secret chambers. He believed in himself.

Following the same route, Gelman no longer needed Priest to lead the way. He pushed open the church's back door and entered the fog-shrouded cemetery.

The front of the church was bright and sunny, while the back was steeped in deathly gloom, the fog refusing to disperse. It surely could not be explained by the climate alone.

Following the familiar red brick path, Gelman returned to the place where many examinees had first gathered. Several dozen people had already assembled there.

After all, the first trial had not been particularly difficult.

Izunabi had changed locations. He sat cross-legged beneath a large tree, his upper body leaning to the left. His left palm supported his chin, while his right hand rested on his knee, its fingers tapping rhythmically.

Before him lay a stack of cards, every one bearing the Hunter Association's emblem.