From the corner of the room, the other three shifted slightly.
Conrad could sense them clearly now.
The man gestured with his thumb over his shoulder.
"Would you mind sitting with us?" he asked.
"Just to talk. No pressure. We might find some common ground."
Conrad inhaled slowly.
First day in Kakin.
Already surrounded by potential enemies.
He did not want to consider anybody as friends.
Especially if the target is the same object.
In the end, if they wanted to get the Staff of Germanis. It meant only one thing.
They were bound to fight and become enemies.
They hadn't threatened him.
The invitation didn't carry the feeling of a Nen condition being triggered.
If this were a trap, it was a social one, not a supernatural one.
At least, that is how he felt.
And more importantly…
He didn't want four Nen users as enemies on day one.
"Okay," Conrad said at last.
"Let's sit and talk."
The man's smile turned genuine.
"Good choice."
They moved together toward the corner table.
The other three shifted to make room.
Conrad took a seat opposite the man with the goatee, placing himself where he could see all four of them clearly.
The man extended his hand.
"Name's Ravel," he said. "And these are my associates."
He gestured one by one.
"That's Mora," he said, indicating the young woman in the group.
Mora inclined her head slightly, eyes never leaving Conrad.
"Brunn," Ravel continued, a broad-shouldered man with scarred knuckles.
Brunn snorted but said nothing.
"And the quiet one is Seln."
"He listens more than he talks."
Seln gave a faint smile.
Conrad nodded in return but did not offer his own name.
Ravel noticed and didn't push.
"So," Ravel said, leaning back in his chair.
"You're not a Hunter. You're not military. But you're looking for the Staff of Germanis."
"Yes."
"Most people who ask about that either vanish or already know more than they should."
"I can see that you are a Nen user, so that should be the reason you are confident."
Conrad met her gaze.
"I don't vanish easily," he replied. "And I'm still learning about Nen..."
Ravel steepled his fingers.
"Let's be clear," he said. "Germanis isn't just a relic. It's political poison. It's history; the Kakin Empire would rather keep myth than fact."
"And yet, people are still searching for it."
Ravel nodded.
"Because myths don't leave Nen traces," he said. "But that staff does."
That confirmed it.
Conrad felt a spark of interest, quickly buried under calm.
"You said you're not a Hunter," Ravel continued.
Conrad's eyes narrowed just a fraction.
Ravel then added.
"But, you move like a hunter."
"By the way, I and my people are all hunters."
"We are Artifact Hunters..."
Conrad nodded.
"I thought you guys were hunters from the start."
"An organized group of people also known as users..."
"It is more than likely that they are hunters or a criminal group; sometimes it happens to be both."
"Then you also know that the Staff of Germanis is already drawing attention from groups far more dangerous than us." Ravel added.
"Hunters like you?" Conrad asked.
"Among others," Ravel replied.
"The royal intelligence division. Black-market Nen brokers. Even a few fanatics who believe Germanis was chosen by fate."
Brunn cracked his knuckles.
"And if you're serious about getting it," he said, "you'll need allies."
Conrad studied them carefully.
They weren't lying.
But they weren't telling everything either.
"What do you want?" Conrad asked.
Ravel's smile faded slightly.
"We want information," he said. "And leverage. If the staff truly exists, whoever finds it first controls the narrative."
Conrad leaned back and said.
"I don't have much information about the staff or its location."
"I want staff for my personal wishes; it is not tied to any kind of a mission or something along those lines."
Ravel thought for a moment and then asked.
"So, you are working to get the staff for yourself, not archiving it or getting it to show to the people, or selling it."
Conrad nodded and felt that the atmosphere was little changed.
"That is right."
Ravel shared a look with his friends and then nodded.
Conrad asked as he looked deeply at Ravel.
"By any chance, are you guys looking to get it or just trying to gather information?"
Ravel smirked hearing the question.
"We are hunters..."
"I think you know our purposes."
Conrad stopped talking for two seconds and added.
"It means our goals are the same."
Ravel.
"Yeah."
Conrad also added.
"Which makes us…?"
Ravel smiled again, this time looking at his friends.
"Opponents."
Conrad thought
"How nice of him to put it like that; I thought he would say 'enemies."
Conrad then nodded.
"Then, it does not make any sense to keep talking."
"If we are targeting the same object and we are adamant about getting it."
"We are bound to encounter one way or another."
This time, silent one, the thin guy Seln spoke.
"What would you do if we get the staff before you?"
"Would you try to do something not nice?"
Conrad put his finger on his chin.
"I am not sure."
"I did not think much about it."
"But, I presume, I would try to do something to get it, not violent but something."
Seln nodded and then closed his eyes.
Conrad knew the talk had come to an end and got up from the seat and walked towards the innkeeper again and then continued on his mission.
Ravel and others were thinking deeply.
Conrad was sure that they were thinking along the lines of two ways.
"Let him do whatever he wants to do."
"Take care of him now so that he will not be a problem later on."