Ready to set out

The rank stench of mud.

The gasps of survivors who had narrowly escaped death.

Luo Ye and Gon lay side by side in the muck.

They laughed for a good while, until both were spent and only their chests continued to heave.

Luo Ye closed his eyes.

Changes surged through his body.

The internal injuries left by the King of the Swamp were healing rapidly. Nen was the best medicine.

Bones, muscles, every single cell-all were being rebuilt.

A sense of power exploded from deep within him.

His total reserves of Nen had at least doubled.

Tch.

What a haul.

A top-tier sparring partner that money couldn't buy, giving me a full-body deep muscle activation session for free.

Beside him, Gon had recovered his breath as well.

He pushed himself up into a sitting position.

Not far away, the stranded behemoth had stopped moving.

Luo Ye stood and stretched, his joints letting out a string of sharp cracks.

"Hurry up and figure out how we're getting our trophy back to Aunt Mito."

"We did it!"

Gon sprang to his feet in excitement.

He ran over to the King of the Swamp's enormous corpse, sized it up with his hands, then turned to Luo Ye with a troubled look.

"Luo Ye, this thing's way too big. How are we going to carry it back?"

Luo Ye folded his arms and leaned lazily against a tree, looking thoroughly entertained by the problem.

"How should I know?"

"You caught it, you deal with it. Just drag it home."

Gon's face fell instantly.

Drag it home?

Never mind him-even ten more of him couldn't drag this mountain of a creature.

Gon circled the fish with a miserable frown.

Luo Ye couldn't watch any longer.

He walked over and pulled from his backpack the short knife that had accompanied them up the tree.

"Idiot."

He tossed out the insult as he walked up beside the King of the Swamp's head.

"Who said you had to drag the whole thing back? We're not running a seafood market."

Luo Ye picked out a palm-sized scale and pried hard at it with the tip of his knife.

The scale was harder than stone.

Only after he channeled Nen into the blade's tip did it pierce through.

Using the knife as a crowbar, he struggled for ages before finally levering the scale free with a sharp pop.

"Done."

Luo Ye tossed Gon the dark scale, which was bigger than his face.

It was extremely heavy in Gon's hands, with sharp edges and a savage presence.

"Take it. There's your proof."

"Come on. Let's go home."

They dragged their exhausted bodies back, stumbling through the uneven ground.

They appeared at the courtyard entrance covered in mud.

They looked like a pair of little mud figures.

Clatter.

The wooden basin slipped from Aunt Mito's hands as she was hanging out the laundry.

She rushed over and grabbed them both, her voice trembling.

"Gon! Luo Ye!"

"You went to the swamp? Are you hurt?"

Meeting Aunt Mito's reddened eyes, Gon said nothing at first. He simply held out the scale.

"Aunt Mito, we did it."

Aunt Mito froze at the sight of the enormous, menacing scale.

She reached out and touched it.

The presence of the King of the Swamp couldn't be faked.

She lifted her head.

She looked at Gon, then at Luo Ye.

The worry faded from her face, leaving her eyes hollow.

I can't keep them here anymore.

"Come inside first. Take a bath and change your clothes."

Aunt Mito spoke softly, weariness seeping into her voice.

Dinner passed in silence.

The table was laden with delicious food, but none of them had much appetite.

Aunt Mito kept her head down as she ate, saying nothing.

Gon tried to speak several times, only for Luo Ye to silence him with a glare.

At a time like this, giving her some peace and quiet was better than anything else.

After dinner, Aunt Mito cleared away the dishes and called them both into the courtyard.

The sea breeze was a little chilly.

"I'll keep my promise."

Aunt Mito's voice was slightly hoarse.

"Since you did it, our agreement stands."

"You can take the Hunter Exam."

Gon's face lit up with wild delight. He was just about to cheer when Aunt Mito's

next words cut him off.

"But you have to promise me something."

Aunt Mito looked at them, her eyes terribly red.

"You must come back alive."

"Come home safe and sound."

She spoke that last sentence slowly, giving every word weight.

Gon's smile froze. Seeing Aunt Mito struggle to hold back her tears sent a sharp pang through his chest.

He stepped forward and hugged her.

"I promise, Aunt Mito. I'll definitely come back."

Luo Ye stood to one side, making no wisecracks for once.

He walked over, patted Gon's back, and gave Aunt Mito a reasonably sincere smile.

"Don't worry, Aunt Mito."

"I'll keep a close eye on this guy. If he dares lose an arm or a leg, I'll tie him up and bring him back."

"After all, I'm counting on him to take me around looking for fun."

Night deepened.

Luo Ye and Gon sat on the roof, gazing at the star-filled sky.

"Luo Ye."

Gon suddenly spoke.

"Thank you."

"For what?"

Luo Ye's question came out muffled around the blade of grass between his lips.

"For coming with me."

"Without you, I never could've caught the King of the Swamp."

"Tch, cut it out."

Luo Ye snorted.

"I was just bored and looking for something to do."

He paused.

"Besides, without a trouble magnet like you, where would I find such a great chance to get beaten up and grow stronger?"

"That's what we call a win-win."

Gon smiled.

He looked toward the distant horizon, his eyes full of longing.

"The Hunter Exam, the world out there... there must be so many amazing people."

"Of course."

Luo Ye spat out the grass and looked into the distance too.

He was already making plans.

The Hunter Exam-the big dungeon in the starter village.

There should be a bunch of early-game minibosses.

How much experience would I gain if I took them on one by one?

This trip would definitely pay off.

He grinned like a fox.

"Gon."

"Yeah?"

"Ready?"

"We're going to raise hell."