"Damn it! This feeling is beyond what any human should have to endure. No wonder that woman was so quick to sell off her ability; activating it feels like a genuine form of torture every single time. It seems this thing is fine for occasional use, but for actual debuff cleansing, I'll still have to rely on Shizuku's Blinky..."
Amidst the stream of curses, Allen struggled to climb to his feet, a slight, uncontrolled twitching visible in the nerves of his left cheek.
There was no need to ask; this was the aftereffect of deactivating the Hunter class template and concurrently amplifying his pain receptors.
Had his repulsion ability not activated quickly enough, driving most of the sensation of pain away from his body, he might have gone insane on the spot.
But complaints aside, and gripes aside, the power of this ability is absolutely beyond doubt, making the payment of pain a necessary price for its use.
In a way, this is an extremely powerful Limitation and Vow.
The more intense the pain endured, the stronger the resultant subjective repulsion.
For instance, the toxins and highly corrosive solution that splashed onto his skin just moments ago would normally be enough to kill a person within seconds. Even a Nen user would only last a minute at most.
Yet, stimulated by the intense pain, they vanished completely, without a trace, in just one second.
So, Allen felt that his hypothesis and developmental direction were correct; he had simply overestimated the upper limit of pain the human tolerance could bear.
Just as he was about to tear off the tattered, foul-smelling shirt that had been corroded by the solution, the cellphone in his pants pocket suddenly rang.
Operating on a primal instinct, he immediately pulled it out and pressed the answer button: "Hello?"
"Allen! Are you currently engaged in the capture of the A-rank wanted criminal, The Mad Chemist Perro?" Chairman Netero's familiar voice came through the receiver.
"Ahh… That's right. Is there a problem?" Allen asked, slightly perplexed.
"In the name of the Hunter Association, I order you to immediately cease all action! That man's ability is too destructive and will cause the deaths of a massive number of civilians! Especially his final move: once released, the entire city will be shrouded in a terrifying poisonous fog for two or three years, and millions of people will perish because of it." Netero's tone conveyed an unprecedented seriousness.
In fact, this is precisely why the Mad Chemist Perro has always acted with such impunity.
He is, to some extent, an enhanced, super biological weapon, and the more densely populated and prosperous the city, the more vulnerable it is to his threat.
"Uh… my apologies, your order came a little too late. Perro has already been taken care of by me. Also, the final move you mentioned... is it referring to a gigantic tank filled with a murky green solution? If so, that thing is currently standing in the center of the bustling district, and there are no signs of it shattering yet," Allen explained, glancing at the four-story high glass container behind him.
"What? You took care of the Mad Chemist Perro before he could detonate that tank?" Netero was clearly surprised by the news, but he quickly chuckled happily. "Ohohohoho! Excellent! Stay there and protect the tank. Absolutely do not let anyone approach it. I will immediately dispatch personnel to handle it."
"Guard it here and prevent anyone from approaching? Understood. But please hurry; I can't guarantee how long a glass tank can hold up under this immense pressure."
As Allen spoke, he walked closer to carefully examine the thickness of the gigantic glass vessel.
The result was astounding.
In reality, the thing was nowhere near as sturdy as he had imagined. It was barely able to withstand the static pressure of the solution inside, and the area that had just been grazed by Aura Burst was already showing spider-web-like cracks.
He had no time for further consideration; he immediately activated Shu to reinforce the glass tank's structural integrity.
Otherwise, if the tank shattered, over 753,000 liters of highly toxic solution would spill out, directly contaminating the land, air, and groundwater. If the solution also possessed a strong volatile property, it could spread throughout the entire city within a few hours.
"Cheadle, the specialist in handling such matters within the Association, is already en route. She should arrive at your location in about four hours. Remember, you must ensure the safety of that tank until she arrives, no matter what," Chairman Netero gave a very solemn, final command.
"Four hours, huh? No problem. I should be able to hold out," Allen agreed without hesitation.
After all, this was a mess he had created, and it was only right that he should clean it up himself.
…
Four hours swiftly passed, and when the airship bearing the Hunter Association's insignia appeared over the city, everyone present instinctively breathed a sigh of relief.
Especially the police and soldiers who had arrived later to set up the quarantine and maintain order; they immediately and unreservedly completed the handover of on-site command, while quickly dispersing the reckless reporters and media scrambling to get closer.
After concluding negotiations with the local government departments, Cheadle Yorkshire, wearing large, round-rimmed glasses, sporting long green hair, and a pair of adorable beast ears on her head, finally approached Allen.
The 'Dog' of the Zodiacs first scrutinized him from head to toe, then questioned him with an air of indignation: "Do you have any idea how dangerous a thing you just did? Do you know what kind of terrifying, catastrophic consequences the contents of this tank would have unleashed if it had been detonated?"
"I didn't know at first, but by the time I did, it was already too late," Allen shrugged helplessly.
He couldn't be blamed for this.
Capturing wanted criminals is one of a Hunter's core responsibilities.
Furthermore, when researching the file on the Hunter website, there was no intelligence indicating that the Mad Chemist's ultimate move could destroy a city and shouldn't be touched.
"Sigh, truly, ignorance is bliss! Well, forget it. Regardless, your initial intentions were good, you successfully eliminated this dangerous individual, and no major casualties were incurred."
Cheadle clearly noticed the lack of remorse in Allen's expression and decisively aborted the 'lecture' she had prepared during her journey.
After all, the Hunter profession is one where success determines heroism.
No matter how dangerous your actions, or what severe consequences they might have caused, as long as you succeed in the end, you are duly entitled to praise and commendation.
Evidently, killing the Mad Chemist Pero was a classic example of this.
If he succeeded, everything was fine and dandy, but if he had failed, the Hunter Association itself would have faced immense pressure from the V5.
"How do you plan to deal with the solution in these tanks?"
Seeing the 'Dog Sister' stand silently for a while, Allen broke the silence and asked, intrigued.
"We'll take it back for research, of course, and see if it can be applied in the medical field. Didn't you know? Solutions whose chemical properties have been altered by Perro's Nen ability are actually extremely valuable and rare materials. The Association has previously used certain components within them to manufacture some excellent pharmaceuticals. So, barring any surprise, you should soon receive an extra income bonus and, at the same time, be promoted to a Single-Star Hunter."
The moment her professional field was mentioned, Cheadle's spirits instantly lifted.
Especially while staring at the chilling, murky green liquid in the tank, her eyes were filled with excitement and anticipation.
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You can read the ahead chapter on Patr-eon if you're interested: p-atre-on.c-om/Overgod [Just remove the hyphen to access normally]