Auren turns slightly, already moving on. "For now, let's supervise the workers and transport my goods into the truck. Afterwards, we're heading to the airport. It will take a while before your employees get my improved suit and wings ready, right, Neffi?"
"Yes," Neffi replies. "I'll stay here for a few days longer, and I'll pick up your suit when it's ready—don't worry. We'll be busy soon, and I'll make sure you get it before we have to leave." She tilts her head, thinking. "If you want, I'll also visit your other two employees and supervise how their work is going."
Meanwhile, Goreinu shakes Zepile's hand with a firm grip. "Me becoming a master, huh?" he mutters. "It's time I take care of someone, indeed. This is a great idea, Auren. As long as he is at least somewhat talented, I'll teach him all he needs to know."
"Move it, Goreinu," Neffi barks. "We can talk about that later. We wasted enough time here!"
Looks like she's finally growing up and taking things a little more seriously. Frankly, she is becoming more and more impressive. It's only natural, though—her company is the thing she really needs to advance, professionally and personally.
"You're really staying?" Auren asks, slightly surprised. "I like it, Neffi. You are making the right decision. Visit Oron and Ura too—I'd like a small update. It hasn't been that long, but they have succeeded where this damn event failed! Compared to what they provided me, this was a big disappointment."
Auren grabs onto his bracers and gauntlets, tightening them, and steps onto the ground a little harder than he needs to.
This was a disappointment. I got the Ben's Knives that I expected, but no Nen Regalia. If I could just find a few more, I would become almost unstoppable! I will find them... wherever I have to go, even if it takes years. With them, even Kite's Carbine looked like a harmless joke. With a full set I...
"Yes... to tell you the truth," Neffi continues, interrupting Auren's thoughts, "I've ordered more things for myself, and frankly, your little glider won't be able to even compare with what I've come up with for myself. With my Hatsu, I'll show you something you can't even dream about," she says confidently, appearing slightly smug.
"Show me then!" Auren says, grinning.
With Leira and a totally confused Zepile nearby, the group supervises and assists the staff in loading their new purchases into the truck.
When Goreinu drives it back to the airport, the entire group—helped by Jolt—quickly carries Auren's purchases inside their airship.
Finally, Neffi runs over to Auren, hugs him for a full thirty seconds, staying perfectly still and silent, and then runs away without looking back.
"Hehehe, young student," Goreinu says, looking at Zepile with an arrogant expression.
"I'm not that much younger than you..." Zepile mutters.
"It's time for your Nen training! Auren, I need your help. Since Zepile doesn't want to focus on fighting, we can use your shortcut."
"I suppose so," Auren states. "Jolt, let's lift off."
"Roger," Jolt says, heading to the cockpit, quickly followed by the others.
With the airship's cargo hold filled with Auren's purchases, Jolt immediately begins the lift-off, skillfully guiding the vessel out of Yorknew's large airport and heading south again, back toward Hollow Blade's Mountain Fortress.
Exactly as planned, Auren uses Azure Restoration to skillfully open Zepile's Aura nodes, a process he can do without any issue by now. After that, aside from a few visits here and there, he leaves Zepile's training to Goreinu, deciding to trust his fellow Hunter.
Auren focuses on training himself instead, using the gym inside the ship during the two-day trip. He trains continuously, and he uses Azure Restoration to make his physical training even more effective, quickly restoring his torn and exhausted muscles back to peak condition, allowing for rapid progress.
Finally, the airship arrives back home.
As they land, Zepile's eyes nearly fall out as he stares at the colossal, ever-growing mountain fortress.
"I… I just have to sign a contract not to reveal things, right?" he asks, looking genuinely scared.
"Yes," Auren replies.
"And then after my initial training, I can just leave? I should work for your employees in Yorknew, buying various items for your collection and for reselling? Using that Gyo technique you mentioned?" He asks, seeking clarification.
"Yes, indeed," Auren replies in the affirmative, yet again.
"I can also use their resources and look for my… regrets I left behind?" he asks.
"Yes, Zepile," Auren states, this time a little more forceful. "We help you find your forgeries if we can. I told you about Oron and Ura, with whom you'll be cooperating. Relax a little. I really just appreciate your work and want you to work for me. Together with my partners, you'll be a big help. I'm not interested in anything else or else we wouldn't take the time to teach you all these things. This is a good deal for you."
"I… I'm grateful!" he finally says. "Using Gyo to spot expensive items… that actually sounds like an ingenious way to find rare works. I'm excited to try it out."
"You first have to get to that point," Goreinu chimes in. "It shouldn't take too long, though, not with me in charge of your training. I'll teach you all I can! Maybe you can also take the next Hunter Exam? It looks like quite a few of our friends will be attempting it."
"Why not?" Zepile says.
"I might as well join, too," Leira says, "since that takes care of most visa issues."
"I even expected you to," Auren states. "Go ahead and take it… I might even be able to help you since I'll be participating in some capacity as well."
He walks forward. "Let's take care of my purchases and carry them home. I need to document them."
Auren then guides them back home and assigns new rooms to Leira and Zepile. He also introduces them to the others. Jolt's family, his wife Marsha, and their twin daughters Jean and Joanne. Konrad and Vanessa, Eren and his siblings, Mio and Kai, and, of course, his own two instructors, who by now are like his honorary grandparents.
A day later, Auren successfully expands his private museum with the new pieces, updates his documents, and takes brand-new pictures of the new additions to his collection, to finally update his own catalogue, which contains all the pieces he has collected thus far.
Inside Auren's home—his gym, to be precise—he suddenly receives another call.
"Pariston…" Auren says, glaring at the phone. Just seeing the name displayed on it somehow instantly manages to annoy him.
"What is it?" Auren asks, taking the call.
"Did you read a newspaper? It doesn't matter which. I believe almost all papers on the Yorbian continent, with the exception of a few backward nations, should have covered it," Pariston asks immediately, his voice cheerful.
"No." Auren replies bluntly.
"Oh my, why didn't you? You are a hero now, your reputation is soaring. Every child wants to be like you," Pariston says, his voice booming with confidence and passion.
Auren lets out a loud sigh. "Is that all you wanted to tell me? You still owe me. That cover-up story for whatever happened doesn't qualify."
"I heard some rumours… You met the mysterious, ever-disappearing boar?" Pariston asks.
"Yes, indeed," Auren replies. "I spared Kite. I didn't kill him, and I even rescued him. After that, Ging was surprisingly forthcoming. Apparently, he watched the fight and was even prepared to let Kite die."
"What a cruel and cold master, abandoning his student like that," Pariston says, his voice unfittingly cheerful, in clear contradiction to what he's saying. "Well, to be totally serious, you did a great job. I heard you one-sidedly humiliated Ging's student in battle."
What did he expect? Did he send me to fight someone that he expected me to lose to?
"You told me to protect those people," Auren states, now sounding frustrated. "Did you actually think I would lose to him? Turns out he's a strong and skilled conjurer with a versatile and tricky Hatsu. Still against someone like me, it turned out to be ineffective."
"Oh, no, of course I thought you would win, or else I wouldn't have asked you to interfere. My business with you takes precedence, after all... speaking of which," Pariston continues, pausing for a second. "Give me a few more months... I have found a few clients that will make us both very, very rich. I am depending on those funds. It looks like I can speed up my plans thanks to the additional revenue stream we're developing."
"... I see," Auren replies, losing interest. "You still owe me one."
Money is nice, but that's really all I care about apart from that favor he owes me, of course. He can keep his plans to himself—they'll probably just annoy people.
"Anything else you might want to tell me? What more did you discuss with Ging?" Pariston asks.
"Nothing... the guy was surprisingly lazy. Didn't even want to stick around to talk with Kite," Auren says. "He reminds me a little of you, unpredictable and weirdly annoying, though without a doubt competent. No... he mentioned something else. Apparently, he wants me to try his game, Greed Island. I obtained a copy for myself, but it seems like a hassle. It would take a very long time to finish it, and I'm quite busy."
Not like I'll tell him about the map.
"I'll take that as a compliment," Pariston says, his voice turning serious. "As for the game, you are correct. Though the rumoured reward piques my curiosity, I heard quite a few hunters died. While I work hard to recruit more Hunters in the Association, the nasty boar continues to kill them off with his twisted idea of a game. Don't waste your time, Auren, we have important business to take care of. Forget about his silly game. I'll contact you soon."
"Fine," Auren responds, ending the call.
For now, I'll focus on our new territory acquisition. Whom should I take with me? I'll ask Rakshala about the details. I also need to tell her about the map. After an initial scouting party, it might be worth expanding there. We're recruiting tens of thousands of people each month, so we have the manpower. The money Rakshala has earned is also enough for an endless supply of boats or airships. There is also the Battle Olympia, which starts in a few months. After that, the Hunter exam. Things will get busy.
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