MHGA Chapter 222 – David Is Being Watched
Just ten-some minutes after those two sneezes, David had only just arrived at the mission location handed down by a fixer—along with Maine and the others—when he received a call.
Answering while blocking incoming fire with the Gunlance's shield, David looked at the caller ID—
It was the principal of Arasaka Academy, wearing that familiar irritating face, albeit with visible tension this time.
"Mr. Martinez, it sounds rather noisy on your end… Are you free to talk right now?"
The principal spoke with urgency and forced calm:
"Regarding your recent withdrawal from school… we've learned that your mother, Ms. Gloria, encountered an accident, is that correct?"
"Considering your family's situation and your outstanding academic record, we've decided to apply for a scholarship for you—sponsored by Arasaka Corporation. This way, you'll be able to return to school, and—"
David stared blankly at the screen as the principal continued to ramble.
Because he had anticipated trouble after using the Sandevistan to beat up Katsuo Tanaka, he had simply listed "family accident, unable to afford tuition" as the reason for withdrawal.
But why was the principal still eyeing him?
Was someone trying to snatch him up for experiments again?
Had his use of the Sandevistan already caught someone's attention that quickly?
Why so fast?
David kept pondering while parrying bullets with his Gunlance.
Then he hung up—
Flat-out rejecting the principal without hesitation, and not bothering to see the man's reaction.
But on the other side, the principal grew even more frantic after being hung up on, and immediately placed another call—
To report the matter up the chain.
Very quickly, someone in Night City sprang into action.
A squad of individuals, dressed in civilian attire, moved in on David's apartment building.
Their pace was methodical.
Their destination—David's floor.
And Gloria, currently resting at home, was still there…
That was public knowledge—one of the key points in David's profile.
Arasaka's response was faster than David had anticipated.
A mere three minutes after he rejected the principal's offer, Arasaka operatives arrived at his doorstep—
Already attempting to crack open the lock to his home.
And David… along with all the Hunters…
remained completely unaware.
Soon, Arasaka's team had unlocked the door.
They entered cautiously, scanning the interior with cybernetic optics, weapons raised—
preparing to extract Gloria by force.
But…
The first operative through the door was greeted not by a resting Gloria,
but by a waist-high, furry bipedal cat…
…And behind it, a large chest and a small tent.
"…?"
The Arasaka grunt had just begun to react when the Felyne vanished from sight—
—and the next moment, his thoughts were extinguished.
He collapsed limply to the ground.
On his armored helmet was a perfect paw-print stamp.
"The Camp… must be protected at all costs, nya!"
Roughly two hours later—
Returning from Monster Hunter World, Joseph had just wrapped up his training for the day and decided to explore Night City's "local flavor," which reminded him vaguely of home.
Upon arriving at David's apartment and emerging from the tent—
He immediately noticed something strange.
The front door was wide open.
"Huh? Did someone forget to close the door?"
Joseph scratched his head, then walked out and froze at the scene before him.
Right next to the door, a small mountain of people had been piled up.
A jumbled heap of unconscious bodies—
all with just enough breath left to be technically alive.
The sheer visual threat of it was intimidating.
"What the heck happened here?"
Joseph retreated back inside and questioned the Felyne:
"Who are these guys?"
"No idea, nya."
The camp's guardian Felyne shook its head.
"In any case, they came armed and tried to invade the camp, so I knocked them out first."
"I gave them a whiff of the Tranq Bomb! They shouldn't wake up for a while, nya!"
The Felyne beamed with pride.
"Hunter! Hunter! Did I do well, nya?!"
"Uh…"
Joseph sniffed faintly and caught a whiff of the lingering scent of capture-grade tranquilizer…
The kind meant for monsters several meters—dozens of meters—tall.
Used on ordinary people?
Joseph figured these guys were likely beyond saving, even if technically still alive.
"Why would anyone attack this place…"
Joseph muttered, puzzled. Then a thought struck him.
He dragged one of the unconscious Arasaka grunts into the apartment-turned-camp.
From a vantage point normal people couldn't perceive, purple vines began to sprout from Joseph's hand—
Slowly stretching toward the unconscious man's cyberware…
As Hermit Purple entered the man's implants,
he jerked upright, as if jolted to life.
Grabbing a nearby ad flyer, he bit his finger and began writing in blood—
Scrawling feverishly.
Once he finished writing the word "Arasaka," he collapsed again.
"…Spirit Writing really works, huh."
Joseph stared at the now-bloodied flyer, stunned.
His Stand wasn't as combat-capable as those in Part 3—like his grandson's team—
but as a support-type ability, it was ridiculously handy.
To think he could get intel even in this situation…
"So these guys are from Arasaka?"
Joseph scratched his hair.
"Why the hell would Arasaka target this place, and send this many people?"
"…Could it be they've already discovered us?"
Frowning, Joseph decided to make better use of his Stand.
He tossed the first grunt back outside and dragged another one in.
This time, he prepared pen and paper in advance, hoping to extract more data.
After a few cycles of Spirit Writing, he compiled the following keywords:
[Arasaka Corporation], [Saburo Arasaka], [Yorinobu Arasaka],
[Hunters], [Potion], [Gloria], [David], [Hunter Guildmaster]…
"???"
Joseph was full of question marks.
"What does the Guildmaster have to do with this?"
Just then—
The next man subjected to Spirit Writing scrawled a single line on the floor:
[The ravenous elder beast pursues atop the spire.]
"…Huh?"
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