"Clack, clack."
With a harsh grinding noise, the tightly shut gates of Biscane Forest Park slowly opened.
The resting examinees gathered at the gates.
A spacious courtyard beyond the gates came into view.
The first thing Kaya noticed was the array of barbecue equipment filling the courtyard.
"Nice figure!"
Before he could think about it further, he heard Leorio's lecherous voice.
Only then did Kaya and the other youngsters turn their attention toward the distant steps.
On the steps, a petite young woman sat cross-legged on a loveseat, radiating an imperious air.
Behind the loveseat was a mountain of a fat man with an honest, simple face and an imposing presence.
"Thanks for all your hard work, everyone. Welcome to the second phase of the Hunter Exam. I'm Menchi, your lovely, beautiful examiner."
Menchi not only had a nice figure, but a pleasant voice as well.
In a nearby tree, Satotz was watching the situation inside the park closely through binoculars.
"Menchi and Buhara, the youngest Gourmet Hunters. Passing their test won't be easy. By my conservative estimate, fewer than ten people will make it through."
"Menchi is still too young and prone to impulsiveness, after all. And this batch of examinees is particularly outstanding. I'd better stay here and observe a little longer."
With female examinees so scarce, having a beautiful woman as the second-phase examiner greatly excited some of the more shallow candidates, Leorio included.
At that moment, Leorio was ogling the scantily clad Menchi with an utterly sleazy gaze.
"Scumbag." Kurapika shot him a disgusted look.
"Degenerate," Kaya muttered wearily.
Killua spread his hands and shook his head. "Good grief. It's so embarrassing to stand next to an old pervert like this."
Gon and Pokkle nodded without hesitation, expressing their wholehearted agreement.
"Oh, get lost. What do you little brats know? This is a man's romance," Leorio shot back.
Just then, the fat man behind Menchi slowly stood up. "I'm Buhara."
Leorio glanced at the mountain-like Buhara and covered his eyes.
"Ugh, why must you hurt my eyes?"
"Now do you understand how we feel? We have to look at you every day. We're practically going blind."
"Killua, you're getting there too," Kaya said expressionlessly.
"Kaya, I'm never speaking to you again!!!"
Leorio failed to control his volume, and his booming voice instantly rang across the entire exam site.
Menchi pointed at Leorio. "You there, old man! Keep quiet! If you don't want to take the exam, get out."
As she spoke, Buhara's stomach let out an astonishing growl, drawing cries of surprise from the examinees.
"What's wrong, Buhara? Are you hungry?" Menchi asked, turning around.
"Anyone could tell I'm about to starve to death. Menchi, let's get started." Buhara patted his somewhat "deflated" belly.
Menchi composed herself and swept her gaze over the examinees. "You've probably all guessed by now that we're Gourmet Hunters. So the second phase of the exam is cooking!"
"What?" Leorio dug at his ears. "Did I hear that wrong?"
"Cooking?" Killua froze as well.
"What's a Gourmet Hunter?" Gon looked puzzled.
Kurapika explained, "Gourmet Hunters are gourmets and chefs who pursue delicious food around the world and seek out rare ingredients to create dishes."
Although Kaya disliked cooking, he had picked up plenty of cooking techniques from Aunt Mito over the past two or three years. This was the perfect opportunity to put them to use.
Besides, back on Blue Star, his hometown had been the birthplace of one of the five great cuisines. Even if he had never cooked those dishes himself, he had eaten enough to know them inside out.
Judging by Kaya's five-plus years since crossing into this world, the food in the Hunter world really couldn't compare with the food on Blue Star.
If he introduced his hometown's cuisine to the Hunter world, its popularity would surely be unimaginable.
Ignoring the commotion in the crowd, Buhara continued, "First, each of you must prepare the dish I specify."
Menchi picked up where he left off. "Only after passing Buhara's assessment can you move on to making the dish I specify."
"As long as we both say your food tastes good, you'll pass the second test."
"Your time is up when we're both full."
Kaya glanced at Buhara's and Menchi's builds and analyzed, "Looks like they put plenty of thought into the order of this exam. Just look at that male examiner. You can tell how much he can eat, so relatively few examinees will be eliminated in the preliminary round."
"The woman has a smaller appetite, which means more examinees will be eliminated in the second round."
Kurapika nodded in agreement. "Exactly. That also means managing our cooking time will be crucial. Whoever finishes their dish faster will have a better chance of passing."
Pokkle scratched his head and asked worriedly, "But what if we sacrifice flavor to save time? What do we do then?"
Killua seemed unconcerned. "That depends on what dishes the examiners ask for."
Leorio wore a bitter smile. "Man, I've never set foot in a kitchen in my life. What am I supposed to do?"
"The dish I want is a whole roast pig!" Buhara announced loudly. "Any breed, any size."
Like rockets igniting, the examinees raced toward the forest, scrambling to get ahead of one another.
Watching the dust they kicked up, Menchi frowned slightly and said to Buhara, "Aren't you going a little too far?"
Buhara laughed and shook his head. "No matter how far I go, I can't beat you in that department. Plenty of them are strong. Even if the Great Stamp, the only pig species in Biscane Forest, is formidable, I believe many of them will pass easily. After all, my test only measures their combat ability and judgment."
"But you, Menchi? You could count the people who'll pass your test on one hand."
Menchi shifted her position on the loveseat and said calmly, "True. That will depend on their ability to grasp what's required."
Unlike the Wetlands they had passed through, this forest was bright with sunshine and brimming with life.
Kaya and his companions strolled leisurely through the woods, searching for prey.
"Could someone take care of getting a piggy for me? I've got something to do."
Kaya asked tentatively. In truth, he just wanted a chance to slack off.
The moment he finished speaking, Gon, Killua, Kurapika, Leorio, and Pokkle answered almost simultaneously, "Me!"
They agreed so readily mainly because Kaya had just been injured, and everyone was indulging him.
"Tch. I shouldn't have answered."
Killua didn't know what had possessed him to respond. Maybe it was because Kaya had treated him to chocolate balls earlier?
Seeing everyone so eager and decisive, Kaya suddenly felt terribly guilty.
He decided on the spot to search for plants they could use as seasonings to help his friends pass the test.
"Kaya, be careful," Gon reminded him.
"I know. Stop nagging!"
After saying goodbye to the others, Kaya ventured deeper into the forest alone and reached the boundary between the forest and the Wetlands.
He had once read a Herbal Encyclopedia Guide, which mentioned something a legendary Botanical Hunter had said:
"The boundaries where terrain and environments meet often conceal the most mysterious and precious rare plants. Thirty percent of the plants growing there have yet to be discovered by humanity."
At the time, Kaya had only skimmed over it without giving its meaning much thought.
He had known the claim without understanding the reasoning behind it.
Only now, surrounded by a ground full of strange plants, did he truly appreciate how accurate those words were.
Continuing along the boundary, Kaya suddenly stepped into empty air. He immediately leaped away, avoiding a trap-like hole in the ground.
"That was close."
Curious, Kaya lay down beside the opening and used the available light to examine the pitch-black hole for a while, then jumped in.
Heavy moisture filled the cave. The sunlight streaming through the opening above couldn't penetrate the dense haze at all.
Relying on his reasonably good night vision, Kaya walked toward the sound of flowing water.
But the path ahead came to an abrupt end, with a wall of earth blocking his way.
Kaya threw a tentative punch at the wall. His fist pierced it as easily as a sheet of thin paper.
A beam of silver light shone through the hole in the wall, bringing a glimmer of brightness to the dark cave.
Delighted, Kaya no longer hesitated. In a few quick motions, he dug through the earthen wall.
As the wall crumbled, his surroundings instantly brightened.
Before you continue