Half an hour later, in Rakshala's office, the group gathers, including Kieran and the captured Gatekeeper, who was hidden in a box and is currently heavily sedated, as he is for most of the day.
Rakshala carefully looks at his body. "I listened to the tapes you sent me once you were back within range. What a curious find... a Gatekeeper. You did well by hiding him from everyone else. This has to be treated with the utmost secrecy."
"I'll personally talk with him; perhaps there is a deal to be struck. Auren... I may need you to heal him, including the restoration of his limbs," Rakshala states. "With the right exorcist... we may be able to partially undo or at least weaken or circumvent the oath. He's an important source of information. Though I don't know a Nen Exorcist who could even attempt something like that... we have two, but I can't even imagine them trying. I won't sacrifice them for such a meager chance of success, especially if the backlash could kill them."
"The one working for the Administration isn't promising either," Auren admits. "While it worked for Killi and Ella, it took months, and in the end, I needed Eternity to fully get rid of the Entity. You could argue the exorcist failed. An Oath like that..." Auren continues, looking at the Gatekeeper, "is out of the question."
"However..." Auren continues. "I have a lead...."
Nen Exorcist... Greed Island. That's all I remember. I also know that it's not the time yet. The Exorcist is probably a player, and not one who will join for a while.
For the events I vaguely remember to come true, it's vital that things play out like they are supposed to... meaning... I should probably be careful during the exam. With my notes, I've written down a few key events. On the other hand, if I can just find out when and why the Exorcist enters Greed Island, I can ignore this arduous task and do what I want. For now, I'll play it safe, though.
"Really?" Rakshala asks. "Can you tell me the details?"
"I am sorry, I can't quite... it's a vague lead. I'll be working hard on it. I'll make it my primary task, I promise you," Auren says.
"Good, it takes precedence over everything else. I'll also try to find some leads. With that being taken care of, the rice... have you noticed an effect? You used it during the travel here, right?"
"I did," Auren replies. "I feel training is more effective, and I feel energized. But... while I feel better and also think it's beneficial for my training. It's not on a level that makes a huge difference for me. Maybe, I also need to simply consume more, that was seemingly the approach and solution the Gatekeeper came up with, which is why his farm was so large, for just a single person. I just wanted to be careful... I'll slowly raise the amount I consume."
He then lifts his hands, vaguely pointing at the others, gesturing for them to state their opinion.
"Well, I feel pretty great as well! I feel like training is way easier, and I've made a lot of progress. I even managed to finally make some real progress with some advanced Nen techniques!" Neffi says, looking pleased. "It definitely helped me more than Auren."
"I didn't make any progress with En..." Vanessa says, a hint of regret in her voice. "Aside from that... I've eaten a little more than the others, and I feel my Aura has definitely increased. In the last two years, I've only made small improvements through daily training, but I'm guessing I'm advancing at least two to three times as fast as before. The rice is definitely a treasure."
"You indeed surprise me, Vanessa," Rakshala says, stepping close to her and gently touching her shoulder before placing one hand on her cheek. "Your overall Aura... it's quite impressive, especially since you learned Nen not too long ago; just five years have passed since then. Your potential is probably close to Auren's."
Vanessa visibly blushes, her calm act immediately dropping, her face looking decades younger. "R—really?!" she asks, sounding extremely excited, her eyes looking like they're actually sparkling.
"And yet..." Rakshala continues, "you chose to invest all that talent into a single Hatsu focused purely on causing as much destruction as possible. You're a deeper and more interesting person than I've ever imagined. Your fight with Auren was also quite spectacular. I'd like to spend some more time with you."
"Deep my ass," Konrad mutters from behind, causing the others to smile, while also looking at him with pity as Vanessa angrily glares at him, her Aura filled with a sense of hostility that couldn't be more obvious. However, Auren notices that Konrad is actually wearing his glasses, instantly catching his attention.
Not a surprise that Rakshala managed to destroy her until now flawless facade in just a few seconds. Hopefully she doesn't give up because of that one setback... for my own sake... more importantly though....
I need to talk with Konrad later... not many... almost no one knows about his Hatsu, and those who do, like Neffi, wouldn't just spread that information around. I wonder... did Rakshala tell the truth?
Rakshala then continues. "We'll be working hard on analyzing and cultivating the rice you found. As for the fruits and the beasts, we are not quite sure if they have any sort of value. I have someone in mind who specializes in brewing alcohol. He immediately asked for the fruits, and I've promised him some. While this idea might sound silly, he has a Hatsu. The results might be unexpected, and it's worth a try in my opinion. Since the tree is dead, it's influence should have waned.... We'll also try to find a place where a new sapling of the Revals Tree can grow. Leira is also doing her best to grow at least one or two new ones on the island."
I want more trees for myself as well... Eternity really benefited from sucking one dry.
"In any case, Auren, I'll be providing you with enough rice; the same will be true for your friends, you have earned it... considering we only got access to this island because of you, it's the least I can do," Rakshala says, smiling. "Not talking about what you brought with me, but forever. Expanding the farm will be one of our highest priorities."
"I am grateful but... I wonder... why did Ging leave the island to me? Maybe he didn't see the Gatekeeper? I asked the Gatekeeper about it, but he never saw a human there in the last few years," Auren states. "But Ging... probably the best Hunter in the world, in terms of talent for exploring at least... could he have simply gone and returned without finding or discovering the truth?"
"You mentioned he was interested in the Dark Continent... and the snake you gave to him. If he came looking for a snake, perhaps he was satisfied with the Hellbell?" Rakshala suggests. "In any case, even if the rice does not drastically affect lifespan, it's definitely some kind of superfood that will improve training speed, recovery time, and overall health. Especially since it seems to affect Nen training as well. We need it... we need as much as possible. Though not yet proven, I expect that it won't be easy to grow it. Perhaps that island is the only place where it will grow. Even if not, I still want to settle it. On that island, we can grow more and without worry, and it's large enough to sustain a large number of people."
Grinning a little, Rakshala admits a truth: "Secretly... it would be advantageous if the rice could only grow there. That would eliminate any risk of it being stolen by someone else. As long as we control the island, we'd have a monopoly. The island is also large enough to house and produce enough for millions of people."
"Millions," Auren says. "If every one of Hollow Blade eats it, you'll end up with a species of superhumans, superior in every regard."
"Not quite as radical as that, I'd like to think... but we would definitely end up with truly well-taken-care-of citizens... exactly what we want, right? It will also allow us to groom more Nen users. Not everyone can master Nen, after all, which is why the overall number is so low... but with that rice..."
She wants to use the rice to groom more Nen users? That... sounds reasonable, alright.
"I don't understand," Goreinu speaks up, surprising the room. "I thought anyone could learn Nen."
"You are a talented Hunter, Goreinu, so while it appears easy to you, that isn't the case for the vast majority of people," Rakshala replies, smiling at him, causing him to blush a little.
"While it's true that anyone can learn Nen, there are two problems. A forceful initiation has a high likelihood of death. Even someone like Auren wouldn't easily succeed with his special Hatsu on someone with below-average talent. While he would be able to slowly guide them toward mastering Zetsu, the risks and the time requirement for Auren would be immense."
"A standard forceful initiation would lead to around 90% casualties, something I deem unacceptable. Even the survivors wouldn't necessarily be particularly skilled, and having gone through such an unorthodox method, it's questionable how long they would need to become skilled Nen users."
"The correct and orthodox way would lead to even slower results. If someone with average talent tries to learn Nen, they might need decades to perform a basic Ren and maintain it for half an hour. Those people are of no practical use to us whatsoever. I'd call those people 'lifestyle' Nen users. Enough potential to lead a long, healthy life and have a strong body, maybe a Hatsu with some niche use. We encourage people to learn, but not everyone is even willing to dedicate decades of their life for something that might only result in some minor benefits."
"Anyone truly skilled could take out hundreds of those kinds of Nen users. I only consider people worthy of being called true Nen users if they can learn a Hatsu in a reasonable amount of time, preferably less than five years. Of course, there are exceptions, such as Enhancers or maybe even Emitters or Transmuters who want to focus on simple combat."
Seeing Goreinu's eyes spin, Rakshala smiles a little brighter. "To make it easy to understand and to get to the point: a certain amount of talent is required to become a Nen user to further our goals. We have our ways to judge that talent by teaching the basics of Nen. Around ten percent of our new members, under a certain age, will learn the basics of Nen, but less than ten percent of those will ever go beyond Ten and Zetsu. The rice will make it easier for our members to progress and will probably allow us to double the number of members who are worthy of being actively taught. Even with three million people, we currently only have slightly more than 2000 Nen users, less than 200 with rare and useful Hatsus."
"So we could get twice the number of Nen users, the second half consisting of people who wouldn't be talented enough to be worthy of Nen training... at least without the rice. And everyone else who would be worth teaching on their own merit will progress even faster," Konrad summarizes. "Quality and quantity... it solves both problems."
"Exactly, but these are all guesses... these numbers could vary greatly..." Rakshala smiles, her blue eyes briefly reflected in Konrad's glasses.
... it's a scary thought.
"We have much work to do, I'll be sure to visit you all when time permits," Rakshala says, before looking at Kieran. "Once again, great job, Commander. You and your men have earned yourselves a few days of rest and a bonus. Please take care of it, okay?"
"Of course, leader," Kieran replies, looking slightly nervous.
After the meeting, the group returns home, everyone looking satisfied. The Gatekeeper is carried away by Kieran, and Rakshala promises to handle the interrogation... personally.
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