In HxH with Doraemon Pocket

100 :D 

Helping him escape from prison, clearing his name, and allowing him to take revenge with his own hands was already an enormous favor.

What came afterward would depend entirely on his own choices.

Still, the fact that he managed to travel from Meteor City on the Yorbian continent to this place suggested he wasn't without some means.

After a brief conversation, Morin gave the man a pat on the shoulder, which made him wince in pain thanks to Uvogin's earlier slaps. Then, the vagabond left on his own.

Morin still had something to take care of—visiting the home of that older man.

"Shall we go?" Morin asked, stepping over the streams of blood on the ground without so much as a glance.

Without causing a stir, the three left the scene quietly and unnoticed.

Yet the blood-soaked corpses left behind spoke volumes about the chaos that had unfolded.

Beneath the court's emblem of fairness and justice, a message had been scrawled in blood:

"We do not reject anything, but don't think you can take anything from us. —Meteor City."

When the stench of blood finally wafted out and alerted those outside, they rushed into the courtroom.

And when they saw the scene before them—

Boom!

The entire Mosibia royal capital erupted.

Such a catastrophic case involving the deaths of more than 30 people, occurring during the Queen's birthday celebrations, was beyond shocking.

This wasn't something that could be dismissed with phrases like "vile nature" or "serious societal impact."

Digging deeper, it might even hint at a greater conspiracy—or worse, an affront to the royal family itself.

And then there was the bloody inscription on the courtroom wall, with its chilling signature: Meteor City.

"Meteor City…"

While the outside world was poised for upheaval, Morin, Uvogin, and Nobunaga returned to their previous location.

This outing hadn't required much effort from Uvogin and Nobunaga, but they had thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

After spending years in Heaven's Arena, they rarely had the chance to experience the world outside.

Sure, Heaven's Arena brought in strong contenders from across the globe, but it was still a confined environment.

While the internet could offer a wealth of worldly knowledge, neither Uvogin nor Nobunaga seemed like the type to sit and browse.

Relying on them to solve problems online? That was as likely as Feitan suddenly growing two inches taller.

Curious, Morin took the opportunity to ask them about their delayed arrival.

The two were straightforward in their explanation: they'd been exposed and subsequently hunted by Heaven's Arena.

After hearing the full story, Morin was at a loss for words.

Should he marvel at Machi's audacity and her ability to rake in money, or should he criticize her recklessness?

Given their superficial relationship and limited interaction, Morin decided it was better not to meddle in Machi's affairs for now.

The fact that the two had escaped unscathed suggested they could handle themselves.

Once back at their original location, Morin knocked on the wall.

Three seconds of silence passed, but no one came to open the door.

All three exchanged puzzled glances.

"Hmm?"

Morin knocked again, harder this time.

Finally, the wall shifted, revealing a pink door.

They relaxed slightly.

"For a moment, I thought the 'Something Out of Nothing Door Sticker' had failed," Morin joked.

But when the door opened, the person who greeted them made Morin pause.

"Shalnark?"

The one who opened the door was none other than Shalnark, whose demeanor always seemed somewhat out of step with the rest of the Phantom Troupe.

Shalnark didn't speak. Instead, he gave them a somewhat peculiar smile before heading back inside.

Uvogin and Nobunaga exchanged wary looks, sensing that something was off.

Morin, meanwhile, caught a faint clattering noise coming from behind the door and frowned.

"Could it be…?"

With an ominous thought in mind, he pushed the door open.

What greeted him made his eye twitch slightly.

In the center of the room was a standard eight-sided table.

Seated around it were eight people, all deeply engrossed in the game before them.

"Click."

Machi placed a white tile into the pile on the table.

"Pon!"

Across from her, Phinks eagerly shouted, his excitement palpable.

"Finally, it's my turn to make a move after all of you have been targeting me!"

With that, he grabbed the tile and added it to the three matching ones he already had.

"You idiot!" Feitan, holding his candy-covered book, scolded him from the side. "You broke up your winning hand just to make a move!"

The book-loving Feitan didn't even seem interested in his favorite pastime right now.

"Shut up, Feitan!"

Sitting beside Machi, Franklin frowned and barked, "No outside comments during the game!"

"Tch."

Feitan stuffed his hands into his pockets, pouting, but he said no more.

"Phinks, you haven't drawn your tile yet," Shalnark reminded him.

Phinks retorted, "Of course I know that! I was just checking my tiles!"

He reached out to draw from the neat stack of tiles.

"You drew the wrong one," Pakunoda pointed out from across the table. "When you declare a meld, you draw from the back of the stack."

Shizuku helpfully gestured to the correct spot.

Phinks, embarrassed, cleared his throat and continued the game, acting as if nothing had happened.

"See?" Feitan glanced at his tile and smirked. "If you hadn't declared the meld, you'd have drawn a winning tile just now!"

"Shut up!" Phinks snapped. "If I hadn't melded, I wouldn't have even gotten this tile!"

"So, you're admitting you're no good?"

Feitan narrowed his fox-like eyes, his fingers beginning to twitch. "If you're that bad, just step aside and let me take over."

"I might be bad, but who was it that just lost big time and got kicked out of the game?" Phinks shot back mercilessly. "And let's not forget, you lost with a triple payout, feeding three hands in one go!"

"That was just bad luck!" Feitan refused to acknowledge that it was due to his lack of skill, much less admit he was worse than Phinks.

"Stop saying useless stuff." Phinks settled back into his seat. "Either way, I'm not giving up my spot!"

"If you two are going to argue, do it outside!"

Franklin, the group's elder brother figure, looked displeased. For some reason, his mood seemed particularly sour.

"Feitan, a bet's a bet. Accept your loss and follow the rules of the game. One more word out of you, and I'll shoot you in the head."

"And Phinks, how long are you going to hold onto that tile?! Play already!"

Bang!

Phinks scratched his head and finally tossed out what he considered a less important tile.

"Six of Circles."

And then—

Tap.

Three players simultaneously laid their hands down on the table.

"Won."

Machi, Shalnark, and Pakunoda declared in unison.

Phinks: "..."

Feitan: "...Heh, heh, heh (￣︶￣)"

Feitan chuckled openly, his sly gaze filled with mockery, which only made Phinks even more annoyed.

"How is this possible?!" Phinks slammed the table in frustration. "Why is my luck so terrible?!"

"No, I'm playing another round!" Phinks demanded, desperate to redeem himself.

"Not until you settle your losses," Machi cut off his ambitions swiftly.

"Uh..."

The mention of money instantly deflated Phinks's bravado.

"How much...?"

Reluctantly, he pulled out his wallet. Being an Enhancer, he didn't have much in savings to begin with.

"Well, first of all, you fed three hands in one go, so you owe the three of us," Shalnark began calculating at lightning speed. "Then Machi made a meld, and so did Pakunoda, doubling the payout.

"Lastly, you fed the winning hands after declaring a meld, which shifts the penalty. So on top of everything else, it's doubled again."

Shalnark snapped his fingers. "In summary—

"You owe me twice the payout, and Machi and Pakunoda four times each."

"Pay up."

With the tally complete, Machi was the first to extend her hand toward Phinks.

Phinks:

Just hearing their calculations left him feeling utterly defeated.

He shook his wallet, emptied its last contents, and still owed Shalnark, Machi, and Pakunoda a significant amount.

And so, the completely bankrupt Phinks could only leave the table dejectedly.

"Let me take over this time," Feitan said as he pushed aside the dazed and self-doubting Phinks. Rubbing his hands together, his eyes narrowed with sharp determination.

"This time, I'm going to dominate the table!"

A hint of killing intent even seemed to rise in his gaze.

Clack-clack!

The crisp sounds of tiles being shuffled and clinking together filled the air.

Morin: "..."

He rubbed his eyes and confirmed once more that he wasn't imagining things. His expression turned faintly bewildered.

Machi and the others were... actually playing mahjong?!

That's right. What Machi, Feitan, and the rest of them were currently engrossed in was none other than mahjong—the national treasure of Morin's previous life!

It was something Morin had left behind for the Phantom Troupe as a way to pass the time and alleviate boredom before he left.

Read 2 months ahead at:

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