Shoot noticed everyone looking at him.
Ever vigilant, Shoot narrowed his eyes and scrutinized Merion. He stared at Merion for a long time, but found nothing suspicious.
In the end, he could only look away helplessly.
"I don't mind, but for my own safety, I'll stay as far away from him as possible."
No one said anything in response. They all understood Shoot's temperament. Though everyone trusted Gon, Merion was still a Chimera Ant.
Some reservations were inevitable.
And so, they stayed at that location for the time being, remaining in hiding.
They waited for further instructions from Morel and Knov.
Over the next few days, Gon did everything he could to improve his strength, starting his training the moment he opened his eyes each morning. Meanwhile, Merion and Knuckle unexpectedly became close friends.
They seemed to have an endless supply of things to talk about every day.
True to his word, Shoot stayed as far away from Merion as possible, hiding up in some tree or other.
One morning, as Cordis was watching Knuckle and Merion arm-wrestle out of sheer boredom, his phone rang without warning.
At first, he thought it was Morel and Knov calling with instructions for their next move.
But when he looked at his phone, he saw an unfamiliar number. Puzzled for a moment, he eventually answered.
"Cordis speaking. Who's this?"
The voice on the other end could barely contain its excitement. "Cordis! You finally picked up!"
Hearing that voice, Cordis's eyes widened, and he asked in disbelief, "Is that you, Killua?"
Killua found Cordis's reaction a little strange. Resting a hand on his hip, he said helplessly, "Idiot! Who else would I be?"
When Killua called him an idiot, Cordis would normally have snapped back, but this time, he felt surprisingly reassured.
At least