HxH: Ryomen... Satoru?

A group of examinees trickled into the private airship.

Maro led them into the training room.

"You'll be here for the next hour. It's best if you don't wander around."

"Oh, and no fighting on the ship. If you break anything, you'll have to pay ten times the original price."

Then he added, almost as an afterthought, "By the way, the lord said you few can move around as you like."

He pointed at a select few—

The Nailhead Man, Hisoka, Killua, Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio.

Gon looked surprised. Killua's expression was more complicated.

The rest of the examinees, however, were visibly displeased.

"Why do they get special treatment?!"

It was blatant favoritism, and blatant favoritism always bred resentment.

But fairness was never absolute in this world.

"If you don't like it, you're free to leave now and make your own way there." Maro's tone was indifferent, cold.

At that, everyone shut up.

Make their own way? The airship itself needed an hour to get there—running there wasn't just exhausting, it was impossible to arrive in time.

After issuing the warning, Maro left the training room.

—

An hour later, the ship arrived at the destination.

A canyon where Grapevine Spider Birds built their nests and laid their eggs.

The task was simple: retrieve an egg and boil it.

The challenge? To get the eggs, one had to jump off the canyon and move along the spider webs.

If someone lacked the skill or strength, they'd plummet straight down into the river below—where they'd be swept away to the ocean.

For an average person, this meant a 99.9% chance of death.

Those confident in their abilities jumped immediately after Menchi finished explaining.

Those who weren't confident but had too much pride to admit it… clenched their teeth and followed suit.

In the end, 42 candidates passed.

"The second exam is officially complete." Menchi let out a relieved sigh.

"The rest is up to you and Lippo." Her attitude toward Cyr had visibly improved.

Like Cyr, Lippo was also a bounty hunter.

The two of them would serve as examiners for the upcoming phases.

As for that "observer" nonsense Cyr had mentioned earlier? He'd made that up on the spot.

—

Clap, clap—

Cyr clapped his hands, drawing the examinees' attention.

"If you failed, wait here for the committee to escort you out."

"If you passed, get on the airship. The next phase will begin at the third exam site, which we should reach by 8 AM tomorrow." He leaned lazily against the airship, raising an eyebrow as he spoke.

The successful candidates cheered and rushed onboard, while the ones who failed stayed behind, looking dejected.

Logically, Cyr should've boarded the ship as well, signaling for takeoff.

Instead, he remained seated on the white tiger's back, arms crossed, speaking in an unhurried tone—

"Are you coming out on your own, or do I have to drag you out and break your legs?"

The remaining candidates instinctively turned toward the airship.

"Three… two…" Cyr started counting lazily.

Before he could reach one, a cloaked figure emerged from the top of the airship.

Examinee No. 111—a woman with black hair and green eyes.

Seeing that the woman had come down, Cyr stopped counting.

"Failed candidates aren't allowed on the airship. Be sensible and don't add to my workload."

He turned to leave, but Candidate 111 suddenly shouted in anger, "I need to get on and kill that Zoldyck brat!"

There was more than one Zoldyck on the ship…

If she was after Killua, well, at least he had a decent temper and might not kill her outright.

But if she went after the other one… Illumi wouldn't mind adding another body to his count.

Cyr paused, then turned back, giving her a very fair chance at deciding her own fate.

"Alright. Which one?"

"What do you mean?" She frowned, confused.

"I mean, there's more than one Zoldyck on that ship. Which one are you after? Or do you want them both?" Cyr asked patiently.

The woman fell silent.

More than one Zoldyck assassin? If she went after both, she'd be dead for sure.

But if she had to pick… how was she supposed to choose?

"Of course, you could always pick me." Cyr stroked his chin, offering a new idea.

If she was dead set on picking a fight, it was his job as an examiner to intervene.

So if she really wanted an opponent, why not him?

"You're a Zoldyck…?" The woman's eyes widened. Then, suddenly, it clicked.

If this guy was from the Zoldyck family, then that other one—the one who looked practically identical to him—must be a Zoldyck too!

She clearly had no chance against Cyr, but that other one—Candidate 99—was worth a shot.

"I want to see No. 99!" she declared.

…This woman was completely mistaken.

Well, not that it mattered. Whenever he and Killua were in the same place, people always assumed they were family.

They looked too much alike.

Cyr didn't care either way. Letting people believe it was far more entertaining.

Of course, he knew for certain he wasn't a Zoldyck.

Why? Simple. Because he had transmigrated here.

This body was his own. Back in his original world, he had been stabbed—a blade buried deep in his heart.

When the system pulled him into this world, he was already on the brink of death. It repaired and optimized his body… or rather, modified it.

The first thing he did after transmigrating? Rip the knife out of his own chest.

Honestly, that hurt even more than getting stabbed in the first place.

—

Shaking off those thoughts, Cyr waved at Maro.

"Go get Killua."

There was no way he was going to fetch the kid himself. Neither Killua nor this woman was worth that kind of effort.

Killua arrived quickly, hands stuffed in his pockets, looking as cocky as ever.

"What?" he asked, stopping in front of Cyr.

"Pretty sure someone in her family got killed by a Zoldyck. She was hiding on the ship for revenge. I figured I'd give you two a nice little face-to-face moment."

As he spoke, Cyr casually shoved Killua toward Candidate 111.

"Alright, good luck." He raised a hand in a half-hearted gesture of encouragement, then turned to the woman with a tone so insincere it was almost mocking.

"Do your best."

Losing interest in the scene, Cyr turned and headed back onto the airship.

Ten minutes later, Killua boarded as well, his face completely blank.

As for the woman who had been screaming for revenge… she was now sobbing as if she'd been utterly crushed, stumbling away with the other failed candidates, completely devastated.

She had lost all will to seek vengeance.

Her carefully polished, self-righteous version of the past had been shattered. She was forced to accept the truth—that her father was not a good person.

That was why the one who hated him had hired the Zoldycks to eliminate him.

As Killua stepped onto the ship, the first thing he saw was a familiar figure leaning against the hallway window.

"Do you really believe that every person an assassin kills deserves to die?"

The voice was lazy, indifferent. The other white-haired boy lifted his chin slightly, pale eyes gazing at him through half-lidded eyes.

But the rumor was clear—Zoldycks would kill anyone, as long as they were paid.

"Your family once received a contract to kill me too, you know."

"Do you think I deserved to die, Killua?" Cyr sighed, his voice heavy with something unreadable.

Killua had no idea how to respond.

If—if Cyr really was a Zoldyck… but had been abandoned at birth for some reason… and then their own family had been hired to kill him later on…

What kind of messed-up fate was that?

No matter how he answered, it felt like he'd be saying the wrong thing.

Yeah. He was definitely going to ask his dad about this when he got home.

But before Killua could say anything, Cyr was already gone.

He had vanished before an answer could be given.

Just around the hallway corner, Cyr stifled a laugh.

Good thing he left fast—any later, and he would've completely broken character.

°°°

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