Northbound After Shedding the Armor

At dawn, in a port on the northern border of the NGL Autonomous Region.

Ryan stood alone beside the warehouse entrance on the pier, gazing at the slowly rising sun over the horizon. The morning breeze stirred his hair, while the tungsten-steel weighted armor that had accompanied him for so long sat neatly on a wooden crate at his feet. Now that he was lightly equipped, he immediately felt a long-missed lightness and relaxation.

"Hunter Ryan, are you sure you won't be needing this armor anymore?" a staff member in a Hunter Association uniform asked cautiously, a hint of confusion in his eyes.

"That's right. I don't need it anymore," Ryan replied indifferently. "Please send it to the Association's Materials Research Department. They may have more use for the materials."

The staff member nodded and summoned porters to pack up the tungsten-steel armor, seal it, and prepare it for transport aboard the Association's supply ship. Ryan watched as the heavy armor was slowly carried away, a complex feeling rising in his heart. The armor had accompanied him for several months, helping him achieve tremendous improvements in both physical ability and Nen Ability. But now, as his strength grew, the purpose of the weight had gradually vanished. Shedding the armor meant that real combat was finally close at hand.

He turned around and lightly moved his shoulders and wrists in his convenient combat uniform. His body, freed from the weight, moved with greater agility and flexibility than before. Even his breathing felt smoother.

At that moment, a Hunter Association staff member came running over, slightly out of breath. "Hunter Ryan, the medical freighter Notting has finished docking. Captain Corison sent me to inform you that the supplies have been loaded and the personnel are ready. We can depart at any time."