Chapter 57: The Examination Begins!

The Hunter examination testing ground was packed with people and filled with a clamorous uproar.

Soon, the official start time for the exam arrived.

Creak—

The small door, originally the fire escape exit of the underground parking lot, opened, and a flashy middle-aged man dressed entirely in hippie leather clothing walked out.

"Welcome, everyone."

The middle-aged man spread his hands:

"I heard the number of attendees reached one thousand four hundred and ninety-one this year. Too many, way too many. The examiner for the second test asked me to prune the numbers down to around three hundred. What a headache, how should I test them... Oh, how about you all beat each other to death?"

The crowd was shocked. This old bastard...

"Anyway, there is still plenty of time, two hours until lunch. During this period..."

The middle-aged examiner glanced at the watch on his right wrist, then raised his right hand, spreading five fingers:

"Each of you must defeat five people. Knock out your opponents and take their identification badges... Gather five badges and then come find me. I will be waiting for you at the fire escape stairs. Pay attention: once I step through this door and it closes, the test officially begins. Good luck~"

Almost all the examinees assumed fighting stances, eyeing their surrounding competitors with hostility. Only Heather, Killua, and Shinotaro Miki remained unresponsive.

Snap!

As the fire escape door opened and closed, the underground parking lot instantly turned into a martial arts tournament.

Listening to the boisterous commotion from behind the door, the middle-aged examiner sat down on the steps of the fire escape, lit a cigarette dangling from his lips, and exhaled a puff of white smoke. Counting the ties, there should be around one hundred and fifty to two hundred people advancing... Every Hunter exam should be conducted like this, because anyone who wants to be a Hunter must be stronger than others!

The underground parking lot behind the door was already in absolute chaos.

Heather tilted his head to dodge a blowdart flying from out of nowhere and looked at Killua: "Split them fifty-fifty?"

"Okay! Let's see who's faster! But first..." Killua stretched his arms and legs with a mischievous grin.

Both of them simultaneously looked toward Shinotaro Miki at the other end of the parking lot:

"Eliminate the competitor first!"

Shinotaro Miki was so frightened his soul nearly left his body. Being targeted by Killua was one thing—at worst, he would just be eliminated—but running into the [Demon King] probably meant instant death!

His body immediately erupted with Nen, and he turned and bolted toward the fire escape. All four elevators he had used to enter were completely locked; the fire escape where the examiner was located was the only way out.

Killua looked puzzled: "Huh? Does this guy know you? Why is he shaking all over with terror the moment he sees you, not even daring to exchange a single blow?"

As the greatest assassination prodigy in the history of the Zoldyck family, Killua possessed extraordinary discernment. He could tell at a glance that the other guy was not afraid of him at all, but rather of the older brother figure Heather right beside him. To be scared to this extent, had Brother Heather done something inhumane to him?

Heather tilted his head: "Never seen the guy before. Judging by that outfit, maybe he's a fan of Chrollo? Doesn't matter, we can just catch him and ask. I'll leave the others to you; I'll go handle him."

"OK!"

Heather slightly lowered his stance, and as Nen enveloped his entire body, he pushed off hard with his feet and gave chase to Shinotaro Miki! Like a swallow before the arrival of a rainy night, Heather nimbly wove through the brawling crowd without injuring a single person, rapidly pursuing the frantically fleeing strange man.

Shinotaro Miki knocked over everyone in his path regardless of consequences as he fled, keeping nearly ninety percent of his attention fixed on Heather in the distance. The moment he saw Heather get up to chase him, he was almost scared out of his wits, and the speed at his feet became even faster.

Unfortunately, Heather's speed even surpassed Feitan's, who was the fastest in the Phantom Troupe. How could Shinotaro Miki, a mere beginner in Nen ability, hope to compare?

In a mere two seconds, Heather bypassed everyone along the way from one end of the underground parking lot and caught up with Shinotaro Miki at the other end.

As the saying goes, a dog will vault over a wall when cornered, and even a rabbit will bite when pushed to the limit! Facing the greatest desperate crisis of his life, Shinotaro Miki suddenly burst forth with overwhelming Nen, setting his left hand in a defensive posture while hiding his right hand behind his waist. An eerie Chinese character [Prison] manifested on his palm, and he thrust it fiercely toward Heather, who was right in front of him.

Manipulation-type Nen ability: [The Prematurely Declared Verdict Sentence]! As long as one knows one or more of the three pieces of information about the opponent—their 'true name', 'date of birth', and 'Nen ability effect'—and touches the opponent with the [Prison] character on the palm of their right hand, various effects can be triggered: fulfilling one condition briefly seals all the opponent's actions for 3 seconds; fulfilling two conditions drains sixty percent of the opponent's Nen and transfers it to oneself; fulfilling three conditions rewrites the opponent's mindset, turning them into a loyal servant for 9 days.

Ordinarily, he relied upon this ability to conquer the famous and powerful Nen users in manga. Once the effect was exposed, it would likely be nipped in the bud by powerful Nen users beforehand, but at this moment, he could no longer worry about that.

Even though Shinotaro Miki did not know Heather's Nen ability effect or date of birth, he at least knew the 'true name'. Considering the "mythical weapon" abilities that had plunged the original world into madness and despair, trying to guess the 'Nen ability effect' wasn't entirely out of the question. Just imagine: sixty percent of [Demon King Heather]'s Nen! If it were given to him, wouldn't he instantly become a top-tier powerhouse on the level of the world's top five Nen users?

If he gambled on the 'date of birth' and happened to hit it right, he might even acquire an invincible, ultimate servant! Then he could go...

His right arm rotated before his eyes, and Shinotaro Miki stared in a daze. What was that streak of golden flame?

The instant Shinotaro Miki reached out his right hand toward him, Heather directly severed the man's arm using 'Absolute Authority'. Please, with a character as huge as [Prison] plastered on his palm, did they think he was blind? It was obviously either Manipulation-type or Specialization-type, and a troublesome ability that took effect upon contact. Looking at that excited and confident expression, he was probably very certain about activating the ability? Where did that confidence come from... Was it because he knew a lot about him, and that information would further influence the ability's execution, which was why he was so confident?

Whatever effects you have, I'll cut you down with Absolute Authority first!

In a single instant, seventy percent of Shinotaro Miki's entire body's Nen was burned away! Coupled with the severe trauma of his severed arm, the extreme terror generated by facing [Heather] retook control of his body and mind, and this transmigrator collapsed limply to the ground, utterly deflated.

Heather glanced around. Killua was still enthusiastically harvesting other examinees and casually taking their identification badges. Every single hand-chop struck with extremely precise force to knock the examinees to the ground without causing any sequelae or injuries; it was clear he had received guidance from an expert teacher during these past three months.

What a poor, silly kid. Hopefully, he won't cry when I forcibly rob him of the examinee badges he worked so hard to collect later.

Since the exam aspect was temporarily fine, it was time for the joyous interrogation session.

Heather grabbed the limp Shinotaro Miki off the ground and walked toward a secluded corner where no one was paying attention.

He shook all over with terror the moment he saw me, seemed to know a lot about me, and not only knew Chrollo's true appearance and attire but also brazenly imitated him...

Come on, let me see what secrets you're really hiding.