Chapter 39: Reminiscing The Past
After the receptionist hands us the applications, we spend a good while in the reception area until we finally finish arranging the matches for everyone: I will fight Sadaso on May 24th, Gido on May 26th and Riehlvelt on June 12st, and Nicholas will face Sadaso on May 27th, Gido on May 31st and Riehlvelt on June 15th. I'm really sad I don't have the chance to fight Riehlvelt, but I don't want get in the way of his canon fights with the main characters.
Setting our matches, and receiving the keys to our new private rooms from the receptionist (2418 for me and 2419 for Nicholas), we say goodbye to the trio of rookie crushers and retreat to my newly acquired private room to discuss everything related to our current situation.
When we arrive, Nicholas get fascinated by the luxury the suite provides in contrast to the simpler accommodations on the lower floors. "Wow, it's impressive that the fighters on the 200th floor live in this kind of accommodation! It's on par with the guest rooms in my family's mansion!" He says, looking around at the luxurious furniture of the room.
"Yeah, it looks like a good place to get a respite from the chaos of the battles." I tell him, also appreciating the quality of the room. "For now, let's sit down to review our situation and discuss our next steps."
Receiving a serious nod from Nicholas, we both took our seats in the plush chairs and prepared to begin our conversation.
"Alright, boss. I'm ready to start." Nicholas says.
"Good. For starters, let's talk about the progress of our initial goals; build our reputation, train our combat abilities, and increase our financial resources." I say reminiscing the objectives I set for us when we first arrived at Heavens Arena.
"As far as combat skill is concerned, I can say that we have certainly met the expectations I had in mind at first. Not only have I improved my hand-to-hand combat skills between the tower fights and practicing with you and Wing, but you've also shown undeniable growth compared to a week ago."
"Your physical and melee combat abilities have improved greatly, and the use and intensity of your Nen have become more efficient in sparring. I'd say you're now at the level where you can start to handle yourself in low level Nen battles."
"Yes, but it's only thanks to your special ability. If I have been able to grow so quickly in this last week it is not because of my talent or effort, it's because I have had you by my side helping me all the time." Nicholas starts to say with a slightly sad tone.
"If it had been just me, it would have taken me a month of training to reach this level. Maybe even longer. I guess this proves that I can't do anything if—Aayy!" Nicholas exclaims as I stop his self-pitying speech with a flick to his nose.
"Stop talking about yourself like that." I tell him with an obviously annoyed expression. "All I did was improve the speed at which you grew and the capacity you can reach. If you have improved it is because of the seriousness and perseverance you have put into your training."
"And if you're worried about me helping you train, then rest assured that you've also helped me during my time at Heavens Arena. We help each other keep advancing because we're friends, so I don't want to hear you belittle your efforts again, understand?" I ask in a scolding tone to a Nicholas who nods with a stunned look.
"Good. That being said, you still need to improve a lot more for when we become Hunters and have to face all kinds of dangers and situations. That's why, after you battle Sadaso, we'll raise the level of your training and start developing your Hatsu."
"Does that mean you've already thought about what Nen abilities I should develop?" Nicholas asks with an enthusiastic tone that completely contrasts with his previous depressed attitude.
"Yes, I do have some ideas in mind. But before I tell you them, I want you to think about what kind of abilities you want to develop. Nen is very personal when it comes to creating abilities, so it's important that you have a good understanding of your character and what you want to achieve before you start creating them. The key is that it must feel right for you." I say.
"Okay, boss. I'll think about it every free moment I have." Nicholas replies.
"I hope so. With that out of the way, we can focus on the parts of building our reputation and increasing our monetary funds. Nicholas, can you give me an update on how we've been doing in those areas?" I ask Nicholas, who sets up his new laptop on the table between us.
"Well, as far as our funds go, we've accumulated about 840.000.000 jennies. It's well over the initial capital you said we needed, though I'm actually a bit dizzy about this amount." Nicholas states.
"That's a good amount, but it may not be enough. Between finding the most suitable properties, stock market shares, and resources for our agency, we have 470.000.000 jenny waiting to be spent. And that's not even taking into account hiring staff and other resources we may need." I say introspectively.
"I still don't understand why you wanted to invest 100.000.000 jenny in Kakin Empire companies." Nicholas comments, bewildered.
"Trust me, it's going to pay off big for us in the future." I respond knowing of the future events of the country.
"If you say so, I will trust you. Well, should I go ahead and buy all this now?" Nicholas asks.
"Start by investing in Kakin Empire stocks and buying the weapons. For the buildings and the cars, make appointments with the vendors to take a look before buying them." I answer.
"I will tell them that we will be available starting next month. Now, about our reputation, it seems that we have already gained some notoriety among the public attending the tower. It seems that they even talk about us on social media. So if our performance on the 200th floor goes as planned, it shouldn't take long for us to make an impression in the Hunter community as well." Nicholas says typing on his keyboard.
"If that was the case, we would be able to get in touch with influential people and could start accepting jobs for our mercenary agency. But to do that, we first have to become Floor Masters." I say leaning back on the chair. "So for now let's discuss about the approach we're going to take from now on until we meet that goal."
With a nod from Nicholas, we spend about 2 hours discussing what changes we need to implement in our combat performance and in our daily routine from now on.
As far as routine goes, since we no longer have to worry as much about fight availability or our accommodations, I intend to increase the training load and time, as well as begin to implement the practice of advanced applications of Nen into Nicholas's training.
As for combat performance, I tell him that my goal is to achieve 10 victories without incurring a single defeat or for my opponent to score a single point against me. At this, Nicholas looks frightened, but quickly calms down by telling him that this is just a personal goal, and that I don't plan to impose it on him. The only thing I require of him is that in his fights and mine he always keeps his guard up and tries to analyze and study the Nen abilities of his opponents.
After talking about this and our future actions as Heavens Arena fighters and Blacklist Hunters, Nicholas says goodbye and leaves my room. Left alone, I decide to turn on the TV to check what time and what floor my fights with the famous trio of rookie crushers are.
"My match with Sadaso tomorrow will be at 12:00 pm on the 212th floor. I guess I'll leave the training for the afternoon then and take care of everything else in the morning. I'll send a message to Wing to postpone our sparring to the afternoon." I think out loud as I take out my phone to send the message to Wing and tell him that he can come with the rest as spectators if they want.
As I wait for his reply, I look out the window at the moon shining in the darkness of the night, reminding me of my home on Gu Island.
It's been 5 months since I left my home and my people to embark on my journey in the world of Hunter x Hunter, and I still haven't heard from Captain Bone about how things had been going there. I'm not surprised since he said he was mostly traveling the sea, but I still feel disappointed.
Even though I had to leave the island to explore this new world full of adventure, it was still the home I had lived in for almost 15 years, so it's normal for me to feel homesick from time to time. And even though I had tried to take care of every detail before my departure, I can't help but feel uneasy about not knowing the current situation.
How are my parents and the other inhabitants doing? Are they making progress in their Nen lessons and other subjects? Have Captain Bone and his crew been meeting the export quota? And if so, how has that affected the mentality and way of life on the island? Questions like these keep coming to my head as I stare at the bright moon in the sky until I feel my phone vibrate.
Looking at it, I see Wing's message saying he's looking forward to seeing my first 200th floor match with Zushi and the others, so I finally change my clothes and go to sleep in my new bed.
Date: May 24th, 2011 12:00 pm
Point of View Switch: Reader
On the 212th floor of Heavens Arena, the atmosphere is filled with the hustle and bustle of spectators waiting for the start of the battle.
As the two walk towards the tatami in the middle of the stadium, Kai can't help but hear the cheering from his now expanded fan club. Nonetheless, his gazes isn't focused on them or in Sadaso, but in his group of five friends who he's able to discern between the large crowd of spectators thanks to his enhanced sight.
Among them, Killua stands out for his obvious expression of annoyance. After all, after breaking his promise and forcing Gon to sign up for a fight with him, he had decided to threaten him with death before their fight so that he would back off and never show his face in front of them again.
When Kai informed the group that his first fight was going to be against Sadaso, his first thought was to go ahead with his plan and go threaten him in his room right away, but when Kai told them that he was very excited to show everyone his first fight on the 200th floor and that he hoped nothing would get in his way, Killua decided to let Sadaso go this time. After all, Kai was his friend.
'He better beats the shit out of that bastard, or else I'm gonna get really pissed at Kai for taking a match prior to mine.' Killua thinks as he watches with the rest as the two fighters arrive at the ring.
"It's a pleasure to be your first opponent. I hope this fight will benefit both of us." Sadaso says in a condescending tone.
"I say the same." Kai replies completely unfazed as the referee positions himself between the two.
"Points system and knockouts, no time limit! BEGIN!!!" The referee shouts, raising his hand to signal the start of the fight.