Silva not only escorted Law down the mountain, but also arranged a car to take him to the airport. His courtesy that was nothing short of impeccable. The butlers took note, and it undoubtedly highlighted Law's special status.
The Hunter Association's Headquarters and the Zoldyck Family's estate were located on the same continent. From Kukuroo Mountain, it took just over a day to reach the Hunter Association's Headquarters… first by car to the airport, then by airship.
After returning from Demon Island, Netero had been swamped with work. After assigning rooms to Law and the others, he essentially left them to their own devices.
Before going to the Zoldyck Family's estate, Law had already stayed at the Association for several days. Now that he was back, he headed straight for his room with practiced ease.
To reach the upper-floor rooms, he had to pass through the Hunter Association's office area before transferring elevators.
Ding!
The elevator doors opened and Law stepped out. As he walked through the office area, a familiar gaze locked onto him.
Law instinctively looked in the direction of the stare, only to see a blond young man in an orange suit watching him.
When the blond man noticed Law looking back, he immediately flashed a warm, breezy smile and casually raised his hand in greeting.
'Pariston...'
'Every time I passed through the office area, this guy would inexplicably stare at me. His gaze was unscrupulous, as if he was deliberately trying to draw my attention.'
Law knew this man, who would eventually become the Vice Chairman, appeared amiable on the surface but was actually two-faced guy. He's a troublesome character to be tangled with. And being targeted by him never meant anything good.
Law responded with a polite smile, then calmly shifted his gaze and went to another elevator.
Pariston maintained his smile, resting his chin on one hand as he quietly watched Law disappear around the corner, but he never looked away.
This time, he wasn't just occupying some girl's seat. Currently, he had already begun infiltrating the Hunter Association's clerical staff, securing a spot for himself in the office area.
Moreover, the Demon Island incident had left Netero overwhelmed and there are signs that he will delegate some authority to him.
'This is a good thing.'
Pariston chuckled softly, his relaxed demeanor starkly contrasting with the busy atmosphere around him. After all, he had already finished all the tasks assigned to him.
If he wanted to infiltrate the Association faster, a diligent work ethic would be the best way to speed up his progress.
However, Pariston had no intention of doing that. He had accepted Beyond's mission and would deliver the results to Beyond. As for how he achieved those results, that was entirely up to him.
Beyond was Netero's son, and Pariston is a spy sent by Beyond.
Law didn't know Pariston's identity, nor did he know Beyond, let alone that Beyond was Netero's son. It's because he only watched the Anime, so his understanding of Hunter x Hunter only extended up to the World Tree and a certain conversation between a father and son.
Upon returning to his room, Law learned that Machi and the others had left. It seemed that the Troupe had summoned them for some urgent matter.
Meanwhile, due to the Demon Island's incident, Netero had assigned Sanbica to assist the International Permit Agencies with information gathering.
Suddenly, the people who had always been around Law were gone, leaving only Buhara behind.
After checking on Buhara, Law headed to Linne's room. He had agreed to the condition she proposed, but before fulfilling it, he needed to visit the World Tree first.
Perhaps out of some old-school reunion vibe, Linne would visit Netero from time to time to reminisce and share new culinary discoveries.
She didn't stay long each time. But this time, because of Law, she stayed for a long time.
She had thought it was about time to leave, but now it seemed she'd have to stay a while longer and wait for Law to come back.
"Ging? I know him."
After hearing Law's plans, Linne's reaction was indifferent, as if she didn't mind at all.
Linne had learned about Ging from Netero. After all, he was somewhat connected to the Dark Continent, so Netero had mentioned him once. Therefore, Linne knew Ging and was aware of his talent and strength.
"Ging's reputation should be pretty big, right?" Law said.
"I don't know." Linne replied indifferently. If not for Netero mentioning him, she wouldn't have known Ging at all. After all, she had always lived a reclusive life, completely uninterested in the outside world.
Law chuckled awkwardly, not knowing how to respond for a moment.
"If you have important matters to attend to, go ahead. No need to report to me specifically." Linne looked at Law and said calmly, "I asked you to follow me, not to tie you down. You might lose some freedoms, but overall, you're still free."
She said this deliberately, as if she wanted Law to change his mindset.
"I feel like I'm getting an incredible deal for nothing." Law paused and said seriously, "Can you tell me the real reason?"
"Is 'Dark Continent' not reason enough?" Linne asked back.
Law fell silent.
In the next few days, aside from preparing meals for Buhara, Law spent most of his time chatting with Linne.
While it was called a chat, it was basically Linne talking while Law listened.
What Linne was talking about was the adventures she had with Netero when she was young, including traveling to various parts of the world and breaking the rules to secretly set foot in the Dark Continent.
Listening to Linne telling about the experiences that had been precipitated by time, Law never interrupted, no matter how bizarre or puzzling the stories got. From start to finish, he remained a devoted listener, quietly absorbing every word.
After several days, Law gained a deeper understanding of the Dark Continent.
If he were to sum it up, it would only be in four words: Unimaginably vast, unimaginably dangerous!
With only three days left until his meeting with Ging, Law set off for the region where the World Tree was located.
The agreed-upon time was noon three days later. It would take about three days to sail from the Hunter Association to the World Tree's location.
Three days later, Law arrived alone at the town beneath the World Tree. The place exuded a strong retro aesthetic, yet was paradoxically saturated with commercialism, creating a faintly contradictory atmosphere.
The World Tree is a famous tourist attraction, and the town's style deliberately avoided modern influences. Yet the streets were lined with shops selling souvenirs and local delicacies.
It was around half past ten when Law arrived in the town. He thought he had plenty of time, and the enticing aromas of specialty foods wafting through the streets proved irresistible, so he started sampling dishes from the first shop he passed, working his way down the street.
One bite was all it took, as Law was completely captivated by the local specialties.
These local delicacies were made from ordinary ingredients, yet their flavors were uniquely exquisite. Even someone like Law, who had tasted countless high-grade ingredients, found himself unable to stop.
Once he started, he couldn't quit. Law seemed to have turned into Buhara at this time, eating almost half a street before finally stopped.
Glancing at the time, he realized it was already half past twelve.
Standing in the bustling street, Law looked up at the towering World Tree in the distance.
After a brief silence, he hurriedly bought a random specialty food from a less crowded shop, and without even looking at it, he ran towards the World Tree. After signing the liability waiver at the registration office, he scaled the World Tree in under ten minutes.
By the time he reached the top of the World Tree, Ging had been waiting for a while. When he saw Law finally coming, he just stared at him with dead fish eyes.
Facing Ging's unreadable gaze, Law raised the takeout bag in his hand and said earnestly, "I figured you might not have eaten lunch yet, so I brought you something good. I had to wait in line for a long time to get this."
After talking nonsense for a while, Law took out a red brick from the packing bag, 'Huh… It's a brick?'
Law stared blankly at the rectangular object in his hand. He was in such a hurry to pack it that he didn't pay much attention to it. He pinched it with his hand and it seemed to be some kind of pastry, probably with filling inside.
'Damn it, why use bricks when there are so many other shapes? No wonder their business is so bad.'
Ging's eyes moved to the 'brick' in Law's hand. His eyelids drooped slightly as he said flatly, "Thank you so much."
He often came to the town where the World Tree was located, so how could he not recognize this infamous red brick pastry?
The taste wasn't bad, but the shop was the least popular in town, solely because of its unappealing shape. But despite the lack of customers, the stubborn owner refused to change it.
The point is, other stores might have lines, but this store never did.