Hunter x Hunter: The Sun Breathing Zoldyck - 137

Chapter 137: Zeno – Still Has to Be My Grandson × Netero Speechless Picking Up the Tab

It was not on the Ant King’s level yet, only at the Division Commander level.

Above the lion Leol, but still below Shaiapouf.

Crash. Waves smashed against the reef in Roy’s Cognition Sea, breaking into fine spray.

Specks of light gathered into a humanoid shape.

For the fourth time, he severed the link and exited re: Game of the Dead.

Roy "respawned" inside his Cognition World and carefully reviewed the Pig-Headed General’s last hammer blow. It already carried the weight of his father’s full-strength strike.

In the original story, Silva dropped from the sky and one-shot Cheetu, the cheetah-humanoid squadron leader, displaying monstrous speed and power. In raw physique, Silva should still edge out this Pig-Headed General, now promoted to Pig-Headed Commander.

Twenty-two minutes.

Exam venue, underground corridor.

Gel counted the seconds while maintaining the Divine character. Sweat began to bead on her smooth forehead.

Nen was the only thing keeping the Illusion character running. Once Nen consumption spiked, it meant something inside the illusion had shifted dramatically.

"That boy has run into the mutated Pig-Headed Man."

Without Roy’s Bestiary to appraise it, Gel could only call the Pig-Headed General an "aberration."

Shame burned at her. She had some strength and, in the future, would join the Zodiacs as the Snake, but combat was not actually where she excelled.

She could handle Sagin, Gul'dan, and the others. She could not beat the Pig-Headed General. It had snapped her neck on the spot. That was how they had gotten that first humiliating recording of her scrambling out of the illusion.

"Captain Yuke, assist her."

Even a blunt man could notice details now and then.

Botobai flicked a glance over and saw Gel forcibly sustaining Nen output, starting to strain. As chief examiner, he took the task on himself. He opened his right hand and let a stream of Aura drip to the floor.

In the blink of an eye, it shaped itself into a soldier with painted camo on his face, full uniform, and a beret.

The moment he appeared, his legs snapped together, his posture straight as a board. He raised his right hand and saluted Botobai.

"Captain Yuke, reporting for duty!"

"Go."

"Yes, sir!"

Right turn.

March.

The soldier’s form was crisp and drilled. He halted beside Gel, raised his hand, and saluted her as well.

Gel truly was at her limit. She stopped forcing it and handed the pharmacology text branded with the Divine character and Illusion over to Captain Yuke.

Relieved of the burden, she snuck a look at Botobai and wondered, half in awe, half in dread, "One man, one army… Is that a Nen beast or his actual Nen ability?"

Inside the illusion.

After a brief rest, Roy stepped through the Dark Continent Gate for the fifth time and returned to the Game of the Dead.

This time, the first thing he did was trigger the Eye of Shattering Delusions. He saw the Pig-Headed General’s hammer swing a heartbeat ahead, skimmed past the chain, and charged in with twin blades for its chest.

Screech.

The Bright Red Blades burned hot as they cut the air. Two flying slashes streaked across nearly thirty meters and slammed into the Pig-Headed General’s torso.

It neither dodged nor blocked. It simply trusted its Aura.

The blows shattered against its Aura armor, raising ripples across its chest.

"Ken." Roy’s pupils tightened.

He could feel that hardness clearly.

There was no way ordinary Ten could reach this level of defense.

He knew well how sharp his blades were. Bright Red Blades stacked with his Ten had pierced straight through plate and flesh on Barbarians like Sagin and Gul'dan. There was no way they would not even leave a mark here.

Only Ken, a level above Ten, could do that.

Ken—an advanced application formed by combining Ten with Ren. By wrapping the body in far more Aura than usual, it massively reinforced both offense and defense.

If Ten was a "membrane" of Aura laid flat across the skin, then Ken was a full "suit of armor," condensing Aura into a hardened shell. Strikes hit harder than Ten, and defense climbed several tiers.

That was why battles between elite Nen users were usually Ken against Ken clashes. Aside from intelligence, the key question was always whether you could pierce the opponent’s Ken—or drain their Aura until they could no longer maintain it.

That decided victory and defeat.

Bang.

His twin slashes failed to break through. The Pig-Headed General seized the opening, whipping the chain. It rattled with a clash of metal—

Then the axe came down in a brutal Heavy Strike.

It split Roy’s chest open in an instant.

Fifth reset. Failure.

Twenty-three minutes and forty-two seconds. The "recording" froze there.

Reality.

Barbecue shop at the exam entrance.

The two old men sipped their tea in silence. They had kept it up for a full fifteen minutes.

The heavy air grew thicker. Beans nearly suffocated from holding his breath, only saved when the Chairman finally spoke. "Zeno, tell that boy to stop."

Netero set his cup down and said quietly, "Over twenty minutes is already an incredible result."

"You and I both know what that child is actually facing."

Zeno’s white hair swayed as he rubbed his teacup, not even looking at Netero. "The old man called this morning. He was very angry."

"The reel was brought here because you asked for it. If Roy does not pass this test…"

He paused, then turned and shot Netero a sidelong glance. "You can forget about ever seeing Father again in this lifetime."

Netero’s mouth twitched. "Hohoho. This old man only set the clear condition at ten seconds. Your eldest could have passed ages ago. If he insists on staying inside, how is that my fault?"

Zeno nodded in utter agreement. "True. This is on my grandson for being too strong."

Netero froze.

He pointed a finger at Zeno, but he could not get a single rebuttal out.

Because it was true.

Tick, tock. The timestamp in the corner of the monitor climbed second by second.

Roy exited the game, not discouraged in the slightest. He returned to his Cognition World, rested briefly, then reconnected. Sixth time through the Dark Continent Gate into the illusion, he lasted two moves longer against the Pig-Headed General. On the third, his skull was crushed, and he was booted back out.

Seventh time: four exchanges.

Eighth time: five.

Ninth time: Roy sacrificed an arm, triggered Total Concentration Breathing, then used Phantom Blade to stun the monster for a heartbeat and finally drove his blade through its Aura armor, leaving a faint white line across its chest.

Nine runs.

Then the enraged Pig-Headed General smashed his chest in with a hammer, and Roy woke again.

This time, he was forced completely out of the Cognition World and dumped back into reality. His mind was too drained to slip back inside.

His head swam. His body felt hollowed out. He staggered, only steadying when he grabbed Gotoh’s outstretched arm.

"Thirty minutes and six seconds. Clear."

Pop. The illusion shattered. Captain Yuke returned the Divine character.

Gel gave Roy a long, measuring look and stated the result.

Illumi crawled out of his corner, where he had been crouched. Kite, who had been leaning against the wall, pushed away as well. Both glanced at Roy, then said nothing as they walked toward the elevator. Illumi tugged his cap down. Kite fell in behind him.

In the vast hall, only Botobai and Gel remained as examiners, plus the two candidates who had passed—Kanzai and Roy—and Gotoh and Rika.

Caw.

Finally.

Sol wriggled free of Rika’s arms, flapped up, and settled back onto Roy’s head.

Kanzai was still dozing peacefully at the side.

Cuckoo. The cuckoo clock chimed three o’clock.

The pendulum struck the chime bar with a soft clang.

Hearts in sync, Roy let out a breath and looked up—just in time to meet Botobai’s gaze. Their eyes collided. A spark seemed to flash between them.

The future Zodiac Dragon stared at the boy for a long moment, eyes burning. Then he rumbled, "This time tomorrow, I will be waiting for you here."

Roy said nothing. With Sol on his head, he strode out, Gotoh and Rika falling in behind.

Rika lingered a step back to nod to Botobai and Gel on Roy’s behalf, then hurried to catch up.

Tap, tap.

Their footsteps faded away.

Clang. The elevator doors closed.

Watching them go, Gel tilted her head. "What are you planning to do?"

Botobai unfolded his arms and called Captain Yuke over, straightening the soldier’s posture. Without turning around, he said, "The Chairman already gave clear instructions."

"Do not hold back."

"Tch." Gel clicked her tongue and stuck it out, the forked tip flicking like a snake’s. She could already feel it.

Under that exaggerated face of Botobai’s, the part hidden from view, a fierce fighting spirit was starting to burn.

For something to make that "muscle-head" get serious…

Gel recalled the hard line of the boy’s jaw.

A Zoldyck heir was indeed worthy.

Clang.

The upward elevator opened again.

It faced the corridor leading straight to the barbecue shop.

On the counter along the corridor, two cups of tea still steamed gently.

The tea drinkers were long gone.

"Your grilled meat bowls, customers."

The kitchen curtain lifted. The owner came out carrying several plates of grilled meat over rice. Seeing Roy, he hurriedly waved them over to sit.

Gotoh frowned. "We did not order anything."

The owner chuckled. "Someone ordered for you."

"Who?"

"One of you has met him before." The owner gave Roy a conspiratorial wink.

Roy thought for a moment, remembered the old man he had met that morning, and sat down without ceremony.

He rolled up his sleeves and dug in.

Gotoh and Rika traded a glance and wisely kept their mouths shut.

They sat left and right of Roy, with one fat crow, and attacked the food in earnest.

Soon, a small stack of empty plates sat beside each of them. Even Rika, who usually did not eat much, went through three bowls. Sol was the most outrageous, polishing off ten all by itself. The owner’s heart nearly stopped at the sight.

At least they finished, turned, and left without mentioning takeout. That was a small mercy.

"Young Master, I will extend our stay." Gotoh had not expected they would be allowed to leave the venue again. He had checked out at noon and now had to go back to the front desk for another day.

"Go with him," Roy said to Rika.

Before the girl could respond, he was already walking alone toward the riverside.

The afternoon sun was just right, laying shimmering light across the water. Fish and birds broke the surface here and there, snatching prey before vanishing again.

The boy walked in silence. Before long, he reached the old man and copied his stance, leaning on the railing to watch the scene, letting his mind and Aura recover from what the illusion had drained.

"When someone treats you to a meal, just accept it. No need to feel awkward. Your grandfather put in work for it."

White hair fluttering in the breeze, Zeno spoke with his hands clasped behind his back.

Roy stood shoulder to shoulder with him and made a soft sound of acknowledgment. Then he asked, "Grandfather, is Great-Grandfather still alive?"

Zeno’s body stiffened.