Chapter 47: Hey
"Ugh, look at this. With the sun already setting, it looks like we're stuck here," Kanzai announced, his voice filled with an exaggerated, world-weary sigh.
The group of Hunters and officials stood on the docks of the port city of Gerebo, the chaotic energy of the disembarking crowd swirling around them. Kanzai, the Tiger Zodiac, was the first to speak. He stretched his arms wide, looking up at the sky, which was already bruising with the deep purples and oranges of dusk. "Our plans are shot. We won't be able to set off again until tomorrow morning. 'The best-laid plans of mice and men,' right?"
Is that... is that even how you use that expression? Kai was momentarily stunned by the man's complete misuse of the idiom. He turned, giving the Zodiac a long, flat look. "I'm surprised you're still here, Kanzai. I thought you'd have vanished the second your contract on the island was up."
Kanzai just looked at him, genuinely confused. "My mission isn't over," he stated, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Why would I leave?"
Menchi sidled up, a teasing grin on her face. "We didn't see you once on the entire trip. Were you hiding?"
Kanzai just laced his fingers behind his spiky, tiger-striped hair, his expression perfectly serious. "I'm a bodyguard. It's my job to be near my client. If I was running all over the deck, that's when you should be worried. That would be unprofessional."
"That's logical," Shizuku said, pushing her glasses up as she processed this. She nodded once. "Your grasp of idioms is poor, but your professional experience is clearly very high."
Menchi visibly flinched. Ouch. She stared at Shizuku, amazed. This girl, who looked so delicate and harmless, had a tongue like a razor. And yet... looking at her perfectly placid, innocent expression, Menchi realized with a jolt: she wasn't trying to be mean. She was just... stating a fact as she saw it.
Kanzai just beamed, completely unfazed by the backhanded compliment. "Of course I am! I'm a Pro Hunter! What else would you expect?" he said with a proud laugh.
Does he... does he only have the brain capacity to process the last half of a sentence? Kai wondered, dumbfounded. He glanced over. Even Dako and his team of freelance Hunters looked embarrassed for the guy.
Sloe, the balding Ochima official, stepped in to smooth things over. "Alright, team. Let's find a hotel for the night. We'll rest and set out again in the morning."
He then turned to Kanzai, his smile a little too smooth. "Tomorrow is the 16th... Mr. Kanzai, your short-term contract is with us until the end of January. It's such a rare opportunity, having a Hunter of your caliber on the payroll. I was thinking... we might have a few other small problems to 'handle' on our way back. That shouldn't be an issue, should it?"
Kanzai just shrugged. "Whatever. I'm the bodyguard. I'll do the job."
Dako's team, who were still hoping to negotiate a bigger payout, quickly agreed. They had nowhere else to be.
Sloe looked at the last, and most unpredictable, members of the group. "And you three?"
Kai didn't answer. He just looked at Menchi.
He was remembering their conversation back on the ship. The three of them had spent hours huddled around the new world map, the cheap paper spread across the small cabin bed. Kai had pointed out all the "famous" spots he wanted to see: the Hunter Association's headquarters, the Numere Wetlands, the Heaven's Arena. He even half-joked about making a pilgrimage to the Zoldyck estate on Kukuroo Mountain—it was a tourist attraction, after all. He'd even considered scouting the NGL.
Shizuku, as usual, had no preference. "I'll go wherever the Boss goes."
But Menchi had her own plan. "I'm not leaving the continent," she'd said, her finger tracing a wide circle around Ochima. "I'm already here. I'm going to travel all over North Ames, discover new culinary traditions, and hunt for never-before-seen ingredients! After all," she'd declared, "I'm a Gourmet Hunter!"
...And now, back in the present, the entire group found a decent hotel. As expected, Sloe put everything on the Ochima government's tab.
After a short rest to drop off their bags, everyone reconvened in the hotel restaurant to solve their collective hunger problem.
Kai found himself sitting near Kanzai at the long table. He was still genuinely curious about this simple-minded powerhouse. He leaned over, his voice casual as he attacked a steak. "You don't look that old, Kanzai. How long have you been one of the Zodiacs?"
Kanzai didn't even look up. He just speared a massive chunk of meat and shoved it in his mouth. "Dunno," he mumbled, chewing. "A few years. Don't really remember."
"I heard that Chairman Netero picks every member of the Zodiacs himself," Kai pressed.
Kanzai finally stopped eating. He fixed Kai with an intense, animalistic stare. "You want to join?" he asked. "Roster's full." He grinned, then let out a sharp laugh. "The Chairman just... saw that I was the best fighter around, so he invited me. Hey." His grin widened, showing all his teeth. "If you think you can beat me, I'll recommend you take my spot. Wanna try?"
"Easy, big guy. I'm not a 'treasure,' you're a Treasure Hunter," Kai said, not flinching from the man's intense, predatory gaze. "You're staring at me with that killing intent... you're making me nervous."
"Hmph!" Kanzai just snorted, grabbed another piece of meat, and went back to eating. "Yeah, well. I'm a magnanimous guy."
A 'genius with idioms,' Kai thought, shaking his head as he went back to his own food.
After dinner, everyone went to their own rooms. Kai, carrying a bottle of juice, walked into his room and immediately slid open the balcony door. The city lights were dim below. Almost immediately, three small, dark shapes zipped out of the night sky: Rock Sparrow and the two "Kai-Crows."
The city's light pollution made the moon look pale and washed out. Kai poured some of the juice into his palm, dipped his finger in the sticky liquid, and carefully drew a small, precise crescent moon shape on the stone railing of the balcony. He then focused, a small, dense ball of Aura gathering at his fingertip. He pressed it onto the juice pattern. For a split second, the sticky liquid glowed, and then it was gone, leaving behind a faint, permanent, dark-gray Crescent Moon (Jiao Yue) mark, etched into the stone itself.
'So, it works,' Kai thought, satisfied. 'Unlike Star Marker, which needs a living host to 'power' its control, the Crescent Moon is just a communication anchor. The 'target' doesn't matter, only the mark itself. This is much more versatile.'
He was lost in thought, analyzing his new ability, when he heard a sliding door open. He looked over. On the adjacent balcony, Shizuku had come out to stand in the cool night air.
Kai smiled and gave her a small, casual wave.
Shizuku tilted her head, as if processing the gesture, then slowly, almost robotically, raised her own hand and waved back.
The next morning—January 16th, 7:00 AM sharp—the train station was already a chaotic mess of human activity.
Menchi stood by the platform, a simple backpack slung over her shoulder. Tucked into the back of her denim shorts, in plain sight, was her massive, gleaming chef's knife. With her Hunter License, she could carry that weapon onto any public transport, no questions asked. That was privilege.
Kai and Shizuku had come to see her off. Her train was leaving now; their own, which would take them to the much larger metropolis of Kosumo, wasn't for another two hours. Sloe had told them Kosumo was the main international hub. From there, they could buy airship tickets to any continent.
"Wait a minute." Kai suddenly stopped, a thought striking him. He leaned in and whispered to Shizuku, "You don't have a License. How are you traveling? You don't have a passport. You can't have a visa."
Shizuku looked at him, her expression unchanging. "My hometown... Meteor City... has people who are very good at making any kind of document you need."
"Wow, that's highly illegal," Kai said, his face a mask of mock-disapproval. "I should get a stack of those made for myself."
"What are you two whispering about over there?" Menchi called out, her hands on her hips. "Are you here to see me off or to gossip?"
"Oh, you're still here?" Kai asked, his face a mask of perfect, innocent surprise.
Menchi snarled at him, baring her teeth, but she couldn't hold the expression. She burst out laughing. "Whatever! I know we'll see each other again! And when we do, I'm going to blow your mind!" She was practically vibrating with excitement. "I've figured it out! My new Hatsu! It's perfect!"
Kai just scoffed, but he was smiling, too. "Oh yeah? How 'perfect'? I bet I could still take you down in two hits. You'd better train hard. Next time we meet, if your P.O.P. isn't at least 20,000, don't even talk to me."
"That goes for you, too!" Menchi shot back. "Without my Rainbow Seasoning to power-level you, let's see how fast you grow! Don't you dare let me surpass you! Hehehe..."
Kai just held out his fist.
Menchi's grin softened. She bumped it with her own. "I'm a Hunter, too. Stop underestimating me."
They both held the pose, then turned to look at Shizuku, who was just watching them with mild curiosity.
"Ah." Shizuku, realizing what was expected, solemnly held out her own fist, bumping it against theirs.
A loud hiss and a gust of hot wind washed over them as Menchi's train pulled into the station. The platform was flooded with the sound of steel and steam.
"That's your cue," Kai said.
Menchi nodded, walking backward toward the open door. She waved, her expression bright and full of promise. "See you guys!" She turned, and was swallowed by the crowd.
Kai and Shizuku turned to leave, needing to find Sloe and Kanzai before their own train. But just as they took a step, Menchi's voice shouted one last time from the platform.
"HEY!"
They turned back. Menchi was leaning out of the train car, her hand cupped around her mouth, pointing straight at him. "KAI! YOU NEVER TOLD ME! WHAT'S YOUR REAL NEN TYPE?!"
Kai just stared, a slight smirk on his face, trying to think of one last, witty comeback. But before he could, Menchi just... laughed. It was a bright, happy sound that carried over the crowd. She gave him one last, final wave, then turned and disappeared into the train for good.
(End of Chapter)