Victory Is Within Reach

Despite his fierce appearance, he had a kind heart and a strong sense of justice, often caring for stray dogs and other small animals. He never cared about societal norms, always acting according to his own beliefs with an open and unrestrained attitude.

Thus, while bystanders stared at him in speechless astonishment, he continued strutting through the streets with flags planted on his shoulders.

"At midnight tonight, if you're a real man, show up on time and face me in battle!"

He issued a letter of challenge there, which was indeed very manly.

But…

"Where is the location?!!"

The surrounding crowd, now sweating from either their foreheads or the backs of their heads, couldn't help but question: "Where's the duel supposed to take place? At least tell us that!"

Yet, Knuckle remained oblivious, continuing his passionate declaration. Meanwhile, the flag on his back, emblazoned with "Top-Tier Bravado," made him look almost like a clown.

"Is that guy outside challenging us?"

Killua, who was focused on training, heard the shouting outside but didn't even bother to turn his head.

"Ah, it seems that he wants to duel with us..."

Gon replied while struggling through his training. "But I didn't hear him mention where the duel will take place."

"And..."

"Even if we know the location, we won't go there!!"

Swoosh!

Bang!!

Just as the conversation between the two ended, a small aura bullet flew over and hit the foreheads of the two.

"I told you, be serious when training, don't be distracted!!"

Biscuit shook her fingers there, ready to fire small aura bullets at the tip of her fingertips at any time.

"Ah, it hurts!!"

Gon and Killua, who were hit, both screamed, but they could do nothing but concentrate on their training and ignore the shouts of Knuckle outside.

Meanwhile, Palm barely restrained herself from rushing out after hearing Knuckle's voice. She sharpened her knife, itching to get involved.

But fortunately, she hadn't lost all reason and managed to hold herself back.

Knuckle was Morel's disciple, and aside from his over-the-top manly personality, his combat skills and professionalism as a Hunter were top-notch. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been considered a candidate for the Chimera Ant Extermination Team and would have been personally entrusted with half of the wooden tile by Chairman Netero.

Moreover, it wasn't just Knuckle who they had to deal with; his fellow disciple, Shoot, was also part of the other side.

The two of them always work well together, with Knuckle leading the way and acting as a vanguard to attract firepower. 

And Shoot hiding in the dark, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

It can be said that the two of them are inseparable.

Don't look at Knuckle being so ostentatious outside, exposing himself to everyone's eyes.

In fact, he is just attracting everyone's firepower on the surface, and Shoot hiding in the dark is the fatal killer.

Palm knows this very well, so she especially finds Gon and Killua.

Seeing Knuckle's behavior at this time, she can only suppress the desire in her heart as much as possible and hopes Gon and Killua will grow up quickly.

Palm quietly retreated, Knuckle continued to swagger outside, and Gon and Killua in the house were studying seriously with Biscuit without paying attention to what was happening outside.

Their days passed in this fulfilling yet unremarkable routine.

But for the Chimera Ants, things were much more dire.

With external pressure from Morel and the Hunters, the Chimera Ants' forces had split up, dispersing into smaller groups to scavenge for food.

During this period, many Chimera Ants had fallen to Morel and Knov's relentless attacks.

But finally, some Chimera Ants survived with great difficulty and brought some human prey back to the nest.

These captives were opportunistic scavengers who had come after hearing that the country's leaders, including Gyro, had been wiped out by the Chimera Ants. They hoped to profit from the chaos, unaware of the true horrors awaiting them.

Of course, these lowly criminals weren't nearly enough to satisfy the Chimera Ants' hunger.

If things continue as they were, the Chimera Ants would gradually weaken due to infighting and starvation, eventually facing complete annihilation.

Even the Chimera Ant King itself might fail to develop properly due to malnutrition.

For Knov and Morel, this was the ideal scenario, the most efficient and low-cost way to resolve the crisis.

As a professional hunter, nothing would be more comfortable and acceptable than achieving such a perfect goal with the least casualties and cost.

But things are often not subject to human will.

"What did you say?! Let those guys in?! Be eaten by Chimera Ants?!!"

When Morel received the emergency notice from the Hunter Association, his tone immediately rose eight degrees.

His eyebrows were raised, and his face was full of anger that even sunglasses could not hide. 

He almost scared the pigeon that was specially sent by Cluck, one of the Zodiac Twelve, to deliver the message.

"We were so close to success! Everything was going perfectly, the Chimera Ant extermination was nearing completion, and all circumstances were in our favor…"

Morel put the big pipe in his mouth and took a big puff of the cigarette.

"So why, just when victory is within reach, are they suddenly issuing this kind of order?!"

His face darkened with disbelief.

"According to the instructions in the letter, this is the order from V5..."

Knov took the letter and read it carefully: "And the Hunter Association has also approved it."

Morel clenched his jaw. "I don't believe Chairman Netero would do something this stupid!!"

"This didn't come from the Chairman's office or the Association's secretariat..."

Knov adjusted his glasses.

"The approval came from the Vice Chairman's office, someone with equivalent authority."

"...Pariston, that bastard!!!"

With a furious roar, Morel slammed his massive pipe against the ground.

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