Chapter 35: I, Kai, Never Lie
That night, the entire group of hired freelance Hunters gathered back at the hotel, in the room of the balding Ochima official, Sloe.
Sloe looked surprised. "A real ghost? You're serious?"
Kai replied, "We're Hunters. We don't lie to our clients."
"Of course, of course. I'm not doubting your professionalism," Sloe said, nodding as he nervously rubbed his balding scalp.
Kanzai, the bodyguard, frowned. A ghost? he thought. It's just some kind of Nen.
He might be simple-minded and borderline illiterate, but he had some professional standards. He knew you didn't talk about Nen in front of Muggles (normal people).
He exchanged a quick glance with Kai and the others. They were all on the same page.
The only difference was that Dako and his team were staring daggers at Kai. They were convinced the "ghost" was just Kai's Hatsu, a cheap illusion to fake a "discovery" and scam the bonus pay.
Shizuku, never one to beat around the bush, asked Sloe directly, "So, does this count as a concrete result?"
Ahem. Dako and his men shifted awkwardly. They weren't about to object. If the kid scammed the client, they all got paid.
Sloe looked troubled. "The Blanchett Company escorts who were with you reported seeing... nothing. And hearing nothing. I can't very well submit 'a feeling' as a result... I must ask you to keep trying. Bring me something tangible. That way, you get your bonus, and I have something to show my superiors."
He had a point. Dako and his team nodded in grim agreement.
Shizuku left with Kai and Menchi. The remaining Hunters looked at each other, sighed, and rubbed their weary faces before heading back into the dark reserve. The Blanchett guards, grumbling, followed them.
Kai looked to his left. Menchi. He looked to his right. Shizuku. Not a bad team.
"Well, if we're hunting ghosts, night is the best time for it, right?" he said with a grin. "Let's go!"
Shizuku followed without a word. Menchi just shook her head and ran to catch up.
A short distance away, Babimaina—the broccoli-haired Kakin soldier—emerged from the trees. He watched Kai's team (and their assigned Blanchett escorts) head back into the woods, then nodded to his own men. They, too, began to follow.
...
As they walked, they began to hear familiar shouts echoing through the dark woods.
"We've heard... Kakin Kingdom..."
"If you have a grudge..."
"If you hate Kakin..."
Menchi rolled her eyes. "It's Dako and his team."
Kai laughed. "Are they just shamelessly copying my homework?"
"Well, your method did work," Shizuku pointed out.
"Lightning doesn't strike the same place twice," Kai said. "That ghost-kid said his piece and vanished. Yelling at the trees won't bring him back. And it's pitch-black out here. Finding anything is going to be tough."
"This was your idea, Mr. 'Ghost-Hunting-Atmosphere'," Menchi grumbled.
"So what do we do?" Shizuku asked. "None of us knows how to use En."
Kai thought for a moment. "No... we don't."
He suddenly turned and looked back, past their Blanchett escorts, at the figures trailing them in the distance. "But he does!"
...
"En?" Babimaina's face was a mask. "What makes you so certain I know such a technique?"
"You look like a pro," Kai said simply. "Back when I fired that Divine Flick, you were the only one who didn't flinch. A Muggle would have freaked out, like Sloe. So, just give me a straight answer. Can you use En? Yes or no."
"I have no idea what this 'ghost' of yours is," Babimaina said. "Even if my En were to pass over such a thing, I can't guarantee it would even register."
Menchi looked skeptical. "Your Kakin Kingdom really has no idea what's going on here?"
Babimaina just reminded them, "This land has been here for almost 25 years."
The implication was clear: whatever Kakin had known about it was now hopelessly outdated.
"So that's a yes," Shizuku stated.
Babimaina's gaze swept past Menchi and Shizuku, landing on Kai.
"I'm not asking you to find a ghost," Kai said.
"Then what?"
"God Script."
"The Hunter Association is the world's foremost expert on Nen research," Babimaina replied.
Kai got the message: He has no idea what I'm talking about.
"It's a special kind of script or symbol that's been infused with Nen," Kai explained, mixing truth and lies. "I'm no Association specialist, so I only know the basics."
"I've been lucky enough to see it a few times," Kai half-lied. "Once, on a knotted string, designed to break when it sensed Aura. Once, on a wooden box, making it indestructible. I even saw it on an island, drawn on a fighting ring to enhance a Hatsu..."
Babimaina listened, his expression thoughtful.
Menchi, on the other hand, was just impressed. He's really seen a lot... Maybe he really is 20?
Kai smiled. "The most recent time? Over there." He pointed toward the amusement park. "Shizuku and I found some in one of the attractions."
He didn't need to say more. Babimaina connected the dots: Blanchett's founder is a Pro Hunter. His amusement park contains 'God Script'. His company has managed this reserve for years. If they're hiding something, this is the key.
"What, exactly, does this script look like?" Babimaina asked.
Menchi held up her hands. "Don't look at me, I've never seen it."
Shizuku just said, "I forgot."
"It just looks like a bunch of complex symbols," Kai said. "Sloe mentioned you've been here for two weeks. Don't tell me you still don't have a single lead?"
Babimaina's expression remained neutral.
Kai just smiled. "The place you suspect the 'ghost' is... is probably the exact same place we'll find more of that script."
The night was inky black, but the moon was nearly full, bathing the core zone in a frosty light. As they walked, they began to see them. Ahead, in the clearings and among the rocks, were clusters of pale, glowing, jade-green light.
They were the Pale Moon Tigers.
As the group approached, dozens of pairs of luminous eyes turned to watch them, a field of ghost-lights glowing in the dark.
Babimaina, who was now leading, stared calmly at the pack. The Blanchett guards nervously raised their tranquilizer guns.
Menchi tapped Kai's shoulder and pointed. To the side, watching them, was Butch, and with him, the other tiger they had rescued from the poachers.
Kai gave Butch a subtle wave, signaling him to stay back. Butch, though confused, obeyed, keeping his distance.
"Found it," Babimaina said suddenly.
He began to walk straight forward. As if parting for a king, the glowing pack of Pale Moon Tigers silently scattered, melting back into the night like a constellation dissolving.
(End of Chapter)