Hunter: I became stronger even after I died.

Chapter 355 The Wrinkles Are Smoothed Out

When Chimera's figure completely disappeared into the horizon, the joint attack by Bynd and Alita ended in failure.

"We are really embarrassing."

Alita's gaze swept over the burn mark on Bjorn's face, then looked up at the distant sky.

The two worked together and not only got Moro to send Kurapika away, but in the end, even Moro himself couldn't stop them.

If my other friends knew about this, I'd probably be laughed at for a whole year.

Hearing Alita's complaint, Beyond slowly withdrew his gaze, revealing a dead fish-like expression, and suddenly pointed at her: "Isn't it because your aim is too bad?"

"!!!"

Alita's metal chin clicked loudly, but she couldn't find any words to refute it.

Seeing this, Bi Yangde grinned and changed the subject: "Actually, there's nothing shameful about it. It's just that the other side only wants to escape. If they really wanted to fight to the death..."

He stopped abruptly halfway through his sentence, narrowed his eyes slightly, looked up at the sky again, and revealed a thoughtful expression.

Alita stared at his profile for a long time, but when she still didn't hear anything more, she finally couldn't help but ask, "What will happen if we fight to the death?"

"You really want to know?"

Bi Yangde suddenly looked down at her.

Alita remained silent with an expressionless face, but her meaning was already clear.

By stroking his beard, his gaze deepened, and he said, "In a two-on-one fight to the death, he will undoubtedly die, but you might be dragged down with him."

Alita was silent for a few seconds, then coldly uttered two words: "Absurd."

"Hahaha!"

By Yangde suddenly burst into laughter, then said seriously, "Then just pretend I'm talking nonsense."

As he spoke, he glanced in the direction of Kakin's capital.

Even now, he still feels a sense of unease and cannot understand Moro's choices in this encounter.

No matter how hard Byangde racked his brains, he could never have imagined that Moro's choices and motives were based on the secrets of his transmigrator identity and death rewind.

Yang De was too lazy to investigate further.

It was just to be on the safe side that they decided to alter Moro and Kurapika's memories.

Even if we fail, it won't affect the overall situation.

However, the mess left by Celidonich will require some effort to clean up.

However, he has the entire team to back him up, so any mistakes can be corrected in time.

"Let's go back; we need to speed up the plan."

By Yangde took one last look in the direction the Chimera had gone.

In his view, Moro was no different from a "dead man," and as for the other person...

It's not worth wasting any more energy. Speeding up the execution of the plan is the top priority. This is about him finally being able to challenge the Dark Continent again after fifty years!
"Ah."

Alita responded.

However, she didn't know much about Byrd's "plan." Of the entire team, only No. 2 Pariston was deeply involved in the plan.

All she knew was that once the plan succeeded, it would usher in an era in which the team, and even all of humanity, would challenge the Dark Continent.

………………

Schwadani City, Hunter Association Building.

Vice President's Office.

"If you discover anything during your work or if there's anything you'd like me to follow up on, please be sure to contact me promptly. Also, if there's anything that needs improvement, I'll make changes quickly."

Pariston, holding the landline microphone and beaming with a sunny smile, said to the person on the other end of the line:

"Oh dear, please don't say that. This is something the association should do its best to fulfill. So, do you have any other requests?"

"Okay, I will definitely convey your meaning."

"Rest assured, the professional hunter who accepted the commission will be dispatched within one day."

Pariston closed the deal with a smile, then hung up and dialed another number.

In this way, the association's members secured a lucrative job with good pay, little effort, and low risk.

Since Pariston took the position of vice president, he has been using this method to win over the association's members, gradually building connections and increasing his influence.

This could influence the decision of the "review committee"...

Netero would never engage in such underhanded and despicable dealings, but Pariston can accept it without batting an eye.

That's their biggest difference.

Therefore, when Netero was in the position of chairman, he was sometimes unable to do so due to the "review committee" or various external factors.

But Pariston thrived in his new environment.

After assigning the lucrative assignment to the associates over the phone, Pariston clasped his hands under his chin, a smile still clearly on his face, but there was no trace of amusement in his deep eyes.

"We need to speed things up..."

Pariston lowered his eyelids, staring at the pen on the table, silently muttering to himself.

"But I haven't had enough fun yet, I really don't want it to end so soon."

The smile on Pariston's face slowly faded as he thought about how his "play" with Netero was about to come to an end.

But there is nothing we can do about it.

Have fun when it's time to play, and be meticulous when it's time to do serious work.

In order to advance the plan to explore the Dark Continent, it is necessary to use that alien creature to corner Chairman Netero.

"You need to carefully choose a suitable 'location'."

Pariston's thoughts turned to the next plan.

Regardless of how far this plan can be implemented, it will ultimately benefit BYY's objectives.

If the Hunter Association is willing to take on the heavy responsibility, Pariston has his own ways of interfering with the "Judgment Committee's" decisions, thereby greatly reducing the support Netero can receive.

Then he single-handedly pushed Chairman Netero into a desperate situation.

If the Hunter Association fails and the disaster spreads to all parts of the world, that would be a situation more acceptable than Yang De's.

Then we can make a big deal out of this and get people all over the world to accept all the information about the "Dark Continent" as quickly as possible.

This will also help advance the plan to explore the Dark Continent.

Moreover, they don't even need to clean up the mess; "V5" will take care of that.

This is the kind of "either/or" game that Pariston excels at.

right now,

For Parstone and Bynd's team, the only thing missing to quickly advance the plan was a suitable location to set up the stage.

In addition, in recent years, the Kakin Kingdom's Biological Investigation Bureau has issued long-term commissions to many creature hunters...

Once a good principal-agent relationship is established, it is easier to secure the next principal-agent relationship.

There needs to be a stage, and there also needs to be a role to set the stage.

It should not be too early, nor too late.

The role's screen time should also be just right.

Finding the right balance is probably the most difficult part of this plan.

Pariston pondered for a moment, and as time passed, his usual sunny smile returned to his face.

........................

Dentora region, Kukuro Mountain.

Kurt walked alone on a deserted mountain path, and when he reached the fork in the road leading to Chasmwood Town, he stopped involuntarily.

"..."

Looking in the direction of Chasing Wood Town, Kurt's wooden clogs darted forward half a step before slowly retracting.

There's no need to buy chocolate beans anymore.

Because Killua has been away from home for a long time.

I want to eat sugar pancakes.

But if Mom finds out, she will be punished.

Kurt pondered silently, then turned his gaze away and headed towards Kukuroo Mountain without looking back.

A lot has happened to the Zoldycks lately.

But the things that shouldn't have changed haven't changed at all.

Killua finally gained his freedom and could make his own decisions. He no longer wanted to work as an assassin.

But Kurt couldn't.

As a result, many things naturally transferred to Kurt.

This includes family responsibilities and various assassination commissions, as well as the almost pathological manipulation of psychology by Kikyo.

She wanted to get anything from Killua that she couldn't get from Killua.

For her, as long as she could keep Kurt firmly under her control, she could gain a sense of security that brought her peace. Kurt was no longer the submissive little child he once was.

But the "result" remained unchanged.

The only difference—

I used to be obedient and compliant, never daring to complain no matter how hard or tiring it was, because I wanted to gain my family's approval.

I am now fulfilling my responsibilities and still yielding to my mother's controlling nature because I know my family needs me.

Kurt followed the mountain path to the Gate of Trials.

Jebtie habitually greeted Kurt.

Kurt nodded politely in acknowledgment, then pushed open the trial door.

With a rumbling sound, the heavy stone door slowly closed, completely concealing Kurt's figure.

As Jie Bujie gazed at the tightly closed trial gate before him, he raised his hand to scratch his increasingly thinning hair and let out a barely audible sigh.

The image of Moro flashed through his mind.

When was the last time I saw Moro here?
All the divination tools shook their heads slightly.

As the gatekeeper of the Zoldyck family, he has seen his masters leave countless times and welcomed them home countless times.

And it was Bu Jie who was most aware of the changes in Kurt.

In the past, Kurt would not have even given servants like them a second glance, let alone greeted them.

And all of these are the effects brought about by Moro.

but now……

Jie Bujie silently withdrew his gaze.

Kukuroku Mountain Forest.

Kurt followed the familiar path and soon returned home.

Pushing open the heavy front door of the main house, a familiar atmosphere greets you.

Father Shiba usually had a calm and composed expression, revealing neither joy nor anger.

As always, Mother Kijuh came to greet her, her electronic eyes flashing with excitement, and she kept praising the perfect execution of the mission in her ear.

Kurt was like a robot with a pre-programmed sequence of actions, precisely executing every expected response.

Listen, nod, and respond.

For Kurt, perhaps only when lying in bed and watching the Big-Eyed Frog cartoon with his great-great-grandfather Mahal could he vaguely feel a sense of freedom belonging to himself.

It's exhausting, both physically and mentally.

But it has to be this way.

Because someone has to fill the gap left by Killua.

night.

After Kurt finished eating, Maha called him to watch the Big-Eyed Frog cartoon.

The two sat on the sofa in silence from beginning to end.

The only sounds in the room were the constant whirring of the television and the flickering light on the dark walls.

It wasn't until the television began playing the upbeat ending theme that Maha slowly turned his head and carefully examined Kurt's profile with his eyes, which bore a resemblance to those of a big-eyed frog.

Kurt noticed his great-grandfather's actions and met his gaze with some confusion.

Maha said slowly, "Remember when I said... your friend Moro reminds me of someone?"

"Ah."

Kote nodded.

Maha said, "That man's name is Netero."

"Is that the president of the Hunter Association?"

Kaldor had accompanied Killua to the Hunter Exam last time, so he naturally knew Netero's name, but the possibility of it being a case of the same name could not be ruled out.

Maha chuckled and said, "It's him."

"..."

Kurt paused for a moment, then hesitated and said, "But Morrow and Netero are nothing alike. That old man... he looks very unreliable."

"Ah."

Maha didn't correct Kurt's statement, but narrowed his eyes into slits, concealing the glint of reminiscence, and slowly said, "They did the same thing... So when I saw you and Morro before, it reminded me of Netero back then... and your great-grandfather Jag."

"what?"

Curt's deep purple eyes revealed a look of doubt and curiosity.

Maha laughed and said, "Would you like to hear this story?"

"Ok!"

Kurt instinctively straightened his posture.

Maha continued in his usual slow, deliberate tone: "This story begins when your great-grandfather first ran away from home..."

Soon, only Maha's voice echoed in the room.

After a long time.

Kurt came out of Maha's room, his head slightly bowed.

It turns out that my great-great-grandfather, whose whereabouts are still unknown...

He insisted on leaving the family despite his great-grandfather's objections, so that he could travel with Netero.

With mixed feelings, Kurt returned to his room and pulled a life paper figure from under his pillow.

This is Moreau's life paper figure.

I've kept it with me ever since it was created during the Hunter Association's testing.

"!?"

When Kurt took out the life paper figure, the strange sensation from his fingertips made him tense up, and he quickly looked down.

The once smooth paper was now covered with hideous wrinkles, especially the parts representing the left hand and legs, which were almost curled up into a mess.

This phenomenon indicates that the target being represented by the life paper figure may have suffered near-fatal damage and lost too much life force, which is why it exhibits such severe wrinkling.

"What happened to Moro...!"

Kurt panicked and hurriedly pulled out his phone to dial Morrow's number.

The system has been shut down.

I then dialed Kurapika's number, but it was switched off again.

Kurt grew increasingly flustered, losing his usual composure.

at this time,

Kurt noticed that the overall wrinkles on the Life Paper Man were smoothing out at a slow pace.

In particular, the wrinkles on the left arm, which were almost tightly packed together, have begun to slowly smooth out, giving the impression that the arm is growing back.

The outcome implied by this change was like a reassuring pill, putting Kurt at ease.

only--

"No, I have to go find Moro!"

Kurt carefully placed the life paper figure into the strap, then hurriedly pushed open the door and headed towards the mansion gate.

The flickering candlelight in the corridor mirrored Kurt's current mood.

"Kurt, where are you going?"

In the last corridor leading towards the gate, Kikko's slightly shrill voice came from the shadows.

Kurt instinctively stopped in his tracks, looking at Kijou who was blocking his way, unsure how to answer the question.

Upon seeing this, Kijuh's electronic eye began to fluctuate violently, and his tone suddenly turned cold: "Don't make me ask a second time."

"..."

Kurt suddenly looked up and met Kijou's gaze, which was always as heavy as a mountain.

But at this moment, nothing is more important than the worries in my heart.

"Leave me alone!"

Kurt said, enunciating each word clearly.

Kijuh's red electronic eyes suddenly expanded to their limit, as if he had heard something incredible.

"Kurt, what...what are you saying?"

"I said."

Kurt firmly repeated, "Leave me alone!"

"...!"

(End of this chapter)