Sufficient Sleep

Machi went to the bathroom to wash her hands. When she returned, her hair was already tied into a ponytail, and she sat down on the single sofa next to Gelman.

She crossed her right leg over her left, her purple bubble socks overlapping, and stared at Gelman searchingly.

"What happened?"

Machi couldn't help but ask, her tone still icy.

Gelman had just had his wounds perfectly stitched up by her. Although it was a pre-arranged transaction, it wasn't good to immediately ignore her, so he gave a perfunctory answer.

"I encountered an unexpected enemy, but in the end, I won."

Gelman said nothing more.

Seeing this, Machi realized he didn't want to talk about it. She shrugged and didn't press further. "So? Do you need 'Nen Thread Stitching' these days?"

"Probably not for now," Gelman replied.

Machi nodded and then held out her palm to Gelman. "Then pay me. After the discount, it's twenty million Jenny."

Twenty million Jenny...

Gelman remembered that Machi had charged seventy million Jenny to stitch up Hisoka's severed arms.

Stitching severed arms and stitching wounds were not on the same level of difficulty. Plus, with the discount, it was reasonable for Machi to ask for twenty million Jenny.

However, this meant that after various large expenses over the past two months, Gelman's bank account would have very little left after paying another twenty million Jenny.

Thinking of this, he sat up straighter, his expression turning cold. "Send me your account number, and I'll remit the payment tomorrow."

Machi didn't care about this, as long as she received the money, so she nodded.

"I'm leaving."

Gelman stood up, picked up the Hunter Robe from the ground, draped it over his shoulders, and walked towards the door.

As he neared the door, he suddenly stopped and walked back.

Machi looked at him curiously. "Did you forget something?"

"Ah, right." Gelman pointed at the sofa and floor stained with blood and said, "Sorry, I made a mess here."

"Huh?" Machi frowned, looking a bit bewildered.

Gelman nodded at Machi and then turned around once more.

This time, he truly left Machi's room, closing the door behind him.

Huh?

After saying "Excuse me," he just left?

In the now quiet lobby, Machi's whisper came after a long while.

"Hypocrite... If you were really sorry, you should have cleaned up for me before leaving. Forget it, I'll call room service tomorrow, it'll be on his tab anyway."

Back in his own room, Gelman soaked in the bathtub, finally having time to summarize his gains from this trip.

He wasn't worried about the wound festering from the hot water; Machi's "Nen Thread Stitching" had already turned his injuries into minor superficial wounds.

In the bathroom's steam, the "Hunter Badge" materialized text visible only to him.

First, stat points.

Hunting the Lord of the Swarm had yielded an unprecedented 5 points at once. Combined with various other beasts from before, he had a total of 7 stat points.

So, he increased "Constitution" from 20 to 26 points, and "Aura" from 19 to 20 points, prioritizing physical fitness first, then aura.

Next was his "Stress."

The Lord of the Swarm's eyeballs increased stress, critical hits reduced stress, hunting beasts, and returning from the Dark Continent all increased stress.

After these fluctuations, his "Stress" reached 60 points. The continuously rising number made him feel a little uneasy.

"Critical Hit Stress Reduction" was too unstable; it had only happened once in over two months. Gelman needed to find a way to continuously and significantly reduce stress.

At this point, Gelman had already realized that the "Hunter Badge" was a Nen ability that merged elements of "Bloodborne Curse" and "Darkest Dungeon."

He had a rough idea of the ways he could try one by one.

In addition, Gelman gained a new positive "Trait"—"Genius," which allowed him to recover faster after being healed.

Combined with Machi's "Nen Thread Stitching," and Gelman's current "Constitution" of 26 points, his healing speed would be astonishing.

There were no negative "Traits" this time, but he had brought back a new element—"Disease: Sleepiness," which, as the name suggested, would increase his required sleep time.

Finally, "Grudge Bestowal."

He received a new "Lantern" and the "Lord of the Swarm's Shield."

With the new lantern, it meant Gelman's Dark Continent Journey could continue to explore.

As for the "Lord of the Swarm's Shield," it was a Black Winged Shield that Gelman could summon, sturdy and heavy.

After confirming all his gains from this trip, good or bad, Gelman climbed out of the now-cool bathtub and wiped himself with a soft bath towel.

As he touched the wounds, old and new, Gelman felt as if he could see the moment each injury occurred.

After 3 AM, they did not become Gelman's nightmares; instead, they contributed to his quality sleep. Perhaps the "Sleepiness" also played a role.

He slept from early morning until 11:40 AM, waking up groggily. Even his alarm clock couldn't rouse him.

Gelman scratched his messy, cloud-like black hair, forcing away the lethargy. He got out of bed and stretched his limbs in the sunlight on the balcony.

Bathed in the warmth, he twisted his neck and rotated his shoulders, puffed out his chest and sucked in his abdomen, none of which were hindered by his injuries.

"It seems your injuries are healing quickly."

Machi's indifferent voice came from the adjacent balcony.

Gelman turned his head and saw her lying on a lounge chair, sunbathing. She held a thick book open, reading intently, her legs crossed in bubble socks.

"Mm," Gelman thought for a moment, then added, "Have you eaten?"

Machi's gaze finally lifted from the medical book in her hands. She looked up, and again, with some surprise, at Gelman.

"I... haven't had lunch yet."

Gelman nodded and advised, "Nen users have much stronger bodies than ordinary people, but you still need to eat on time and make it a habit."

After showing some concern for Machi, he turned and walked back into the living room.

Machi watched the young man's figure disappear from the adjacent balcony. She blinked in slight disarray, then frowned with a hint of annoyance. She lowered her head and continued reading her medical book.

After a while, she grew impatient. She closed the book on her lap, picked up the glass beside her, and sipped her orange juice through a straw.

Gelman returned to the living room, ordered room service, and after a satisfying lunch, tidied up and left the room.

He went outside the Opera Hotel and, through the Hunter website, found a local courier company that specialized in serving Hunters. He sent out the Vermillion Bug's Chameleon Stone.

The recipient address was naturally the one Biscuit had given him earlier.

Gelman returned to the Opera Hotel again, and it was already past 2 PM.

The receptionist, a young woman, enthusiastically informed him that Machi had already checked out and left, not waiting until her scheduled departure on the 15th.

Gelman took out his phone and, indeed, saw a text message from Machi twenty minutes prior: "I'm leaving. Account is XXXXXX. Contact me if you need anything."

"Okay," Gelman replied with a single word.

Putting away his phone, Gelman accepted the bill for Machi's room from the receptionist. Staring at the list of services and the final amount, he fell silent.