Level Up

Humans—

They are the species most prone to developing twisted desires.

On the foundation of "pleasure," they often create countless ways to satisfy their perverse cravings.

Unanimously, they name these actions "indulgence."

Torture, cannibalism...

In the world of Hunter x Hunter, these things are not uncommon. Hidden in the shadows where sunlight cannot reach, such acts abound.

The only difference is that some people do these things secretly, while others feel an insatiable urge to share their deeds with others.

Thanks to the communication revolution, global communication systems have become well-established, and technology in phones and computers has grown ever more sophisticated.

With the rise of the internet, people can now communicate and share content in real time over great distances.

Thus, certain dark corners of the web have emerged, providing platforms for people with grotesque urges to showcase and discuss their exploits.

The video Argos found came from one such site dedicated to sharing videos of torture.

This footage helped Moro confirm his suspicions.

If he hadn't coincidentally met Morlena after arriving in this world...

As someone with no strength to resist, he might've suffered an even more gruesome fate than the person in the video.

But what enraged him the most was that the "menu" behind this system was determined to eliminate them all.

A fire of rage ignited within Moro.

If not for the "Fraudulent Star" ability's restriction mechanics—

Given his current mastery of Nen, how could he possibly have killed a sniper from a kilometer away?

Without a strategy centered around the Fraudulent Star, how could he have successfully taken down the Nen user lying dead beneath him, despite being at a disadvantage?

A single misstep in fate, and he wouldn't have lived long enough to answer Argos' call.

This realization made him extremely thankful that he had chosen a path in the emission type focused on control rather than pure offense.

If Moro had prioritized sheer destructive power, he wouldn't have gained the flexibility needed to survive the early stages of growth.

Let alone using control techniques to circumvent his weaknesses and achieve victory through strategy.

After this battle, Moro became even more certain of his chosen path in focusing on emission and manipulation.

Pure offensive strength through enhancement and emission was too one-dimensional—strong but lacking versatility.

Sure, at the mid to late stages, emission-enhancement abilities became much more deadly.

But if he couldn't survive the early stages, raw offensive strength alone wouldn't matter.

He needed flexibility.

And once his Fraudulent Star ability was perfected, Moro could create mobility-based sub-abilities from the same foundation.

That was something pure enhancement abilities could rarely achieve.

And when it came to raw power...

His Fraudulent Star's secondary phase of "Return Shot" doubled his attack output to compensate for any lack of strength.

Step by step.

The path forward had to be walked one step at a time.

Nen was not a power to be handled recklessly.

It had to be built piece by piece like a house of bricks—deliberate and methodical at every stage.

With that in mind, Moro would continue to make the most of the level-up system granted by his wheel-shaped tattoo.

His thoughts wandered and slowly settled back as time passed.

He lowered his gaze to his hand—

Lv.5

After killing two people, his level had jumped from Lv.2 to Lv.5.

The experience boost from fighting stronger enemies was palpable—he could clearly feel the increase in his aura capacity and latent potential.

"It seems that leveling efficiency is directly tied to the strength of my opponents."

Leveling up from battling strong opponents—

It was expected, but still surprising.

That's why the attempt to forcibly awaken someone's Nen had failed earlier.

The Nen user beneath him had far superior aura and a more well-rounded ability compared to the knife-throwing man he'd fought before.

That difference led to a much bigger leap in experience.

Moro pressed his palm against the tattoo on his hand.

This tattoo was the very reason he could disregard the limitations of natural talent and continue pushing forward without hesitation.

He took a deep breath, suppressing his turbulent emotions.

He picked up his phone again. After some hesitation, he chose not to delete the disturbing video. Instead, he redialed Argos.

When the call connected, Moro had already stood up.

He faced the cool night breeze sweeping across the plains and said, "Argos, I need to take care of some trash. Could you compile everything you have on this other person—Clyde—and send it to me in text form?"

"No problem."

Argos' voice on the other end sounded quieter than usual.

After digging up this intel, she had seen far too many horrific videos.

After a brief pause, she spoke again in an even tone, "Big spender... there's another update. I've also found new information about that Phantom Troupe bounty. I'll send it all together, but I need to warn you about something first."

"I'm listening."

"Regarding the Phantom Troupe, I'm not too worried about my safety even if I investigate further. Those people aren't normal—they don't seem to care if someone buys information to track them down. But the mafia... that's a different story."

Her voice grew cautious—an unfamiliar wariness that hadn't been there when she first accepted the Phantom Troupe job.

"The mafia doesn't just retaliate. They obliterate. They'll kill their enemies' friends and family and post videos of the slaughter online. You can say I'm scared if you want, but I'm not risking my neck over this. I won't dig too deep into the mafia side of things."

Moro stayed silent for a moment but didn't press the issue.

"Alright. Just do what you can handle."

He ended the call, pocketed his phone, and bent down to grab the body.

After all, corpses could reveal a lot of information.

An experienced Nen user could glean key details—such as aura type or specific ability features—from examining a body.

Even though Moro doubted that Nolan's subordinates were on the same level as someone like Biscuit—a seasoned master—it was still best to get rid of any evidence.

It was simply a good habit to have.

Dragging the body over to the burning wreckage of his car, Moro suddenly remembered something—

If this guy had been wearing a live feed camera or some kind of listening device...

"Damn... I overlooked that."

Moro furrowed his brows and dropped the body onto the ground to check it thoroughly.

After searching every inch, he found no surveillance equipment or transmitters.

He let out a sigh of relief, silently resolving to be more cautious in the future.

Argos' call had come in right after he'd killed his enemy.

In his exhaustion, he had sat directly on the body to take the call without immediately considering that there might be hidden devices.

If their conversation had been intercepted...

Forget about anything else—Argos could've been in serious danger.

Moro shook his head, picked up the corpse, and tossed it into the flames.

Then he went to retrieve the sniper's body and disposed of it the same way.