Kevin opened the box.
Inside, arranged neatly, were a series of scales that had been carefully removed.
Under the light, these scales shimmered faintly with rainbow-like colors.
Each scale was perfectly sized, and upon counting, there were exactly twenty-three of them.
"Are these fish scales?" Kevin asked.
Biscuit nodded.
"These came from a type of dangerous beast. That monster fish lives near the Lulubao gem mine at the bottom of the sea and feeds exclusively on gemstones.
Who knows how many beautiful gems it's ruined—an absolute pest!"
As she spoke, Biscuit furiously shook her fists and shouted, clearly filled with righteous anger toward the beast.
Eats gems, huh? Definitely a menace from your perspective, Kevin thought to himself, silently reaching out to touch the scales.
In an instant, a strong sense of longing surged through him—only slightly less intense than what he'd felt when touching the molted horn of the twin-headed wolf.
But compared to that short, hollow horn, here were twenty-three full scales.
Kevin quickly slammed the box shut, eyes wide, and then immediately pounced on Biscuit, hugging her leg.
"Thank you, Master! You're like a mother to me! I'll be sure to repay you with the utmost respect!"
Kevin was a thoughtful kid, and Biscuit was quite pleased inside.
But the whole "mother" comment? Unforgivable.
Biscuit kicked Kevin straight across the room. He slammed into the wall with a loud thud.
Impressive technique.
Big on sound, light on pain. He took the hit and still learned something.
"I'm a beautiful eighteen-year-old girl! I'm not planning on being anyone's mother!"
Their back-and-forth left Yungu sweating at the forehead.
After the playful scuffle, Biscuit asked, "You can tell the effects of materials just by touching them?"
Kevin nodded. "The higher the grade, the more potent the materials are for making high-quality potions, the stronger the desire I feel when I touch them."
"Desire?!" Biscuit's expression turned serious. "Are you sure it's not some other emotion?"
Kevin nodded again, firmly. "It's definitely desire. The feeling is very clear."
"I see…"
Biscuit seemed to realize something, though it was hard to put into words for now.
They turned to the laptop in the room and began researching data based on Kevin's needs.
This time, Biscuit didn't need to do the work herself.
Yungu pushed up his glasses and pulled out his Hunter License to start digging through information on the Hunter database.
"You're a Hunter?" Kevin asked, surprised.
"Got my license earlier this year."
"Damn, I was planning to take the exam next year and even wanted to ask you to go with me. Didn't think you'd already made it."
"I only learned Nen because I got the license…" Yungu said with a hint of melancholy.
"Huh? Do you get a teacher once you become a Hunter?" Kevin asked, curious.
Flipping through a magazine nearby, Biscuit nodded.
"Exactly. Every licensed Hunter is assigned a veteran to guide them.
Not every mentor is as talented in teaching as I am, but they at least make sure newbies don't end up learning the wrong way."
"So does that mean Nen users with Hunter licenses are all really strong?"
"Idiot!" Biscuit rolled the magazine and lightly bonked Kevin on the head.
"Hunters aren't all combat experts—they're just top-tier professionals in their own fields!
Don't be obsessed with fighting. Combat is just a means to protect yourself, not the goal of life."
She looked at Kevin seriously. "Don't become a slave to your thirst for battle."
Kevin nodded earnestly and gave a small defense of his own. "I just lack a sense of security. I'm not actually all that into fighting."
"Good. I trust you two in that regard."
One's a sloppy bookworm and the other's a clever but unreliable type, she thought.
Kevin turned his attention back to the laptop screen.
Before long, he spotted something important.
"Hold up—what are these 'Secret Realms' and 'Forbidden Realms'? Sounds like some video game terminology."
He had done plenty of online research before, but had never encountered these terms.
"That's because this is the internal Hunter network. These documents aren't public.
Although the Hunter Association is technically a civilian organization, it collaborates closely with the V5. As a group made up of top-tier talent, Hunters have access to a lot of confidential information—even stuff regular people and some governments don't know."
"Seriously?" Kevin was genuinely amazed this time.
He had already been impressed with the Hunter Association based on public info, but this far exceeded his expectations.
"Why else do you think so many people fight tooth and nail to join?" Yungu said with a smile.
Kevin nodded in awe. "Now I'm even more hyped for the Hunter Exam."
While continuing to browse, Yungu gave a brief explanation:
"A 'Secret Realm' refers to a hidden zone that usually contains rare materials.
These items are either extremely hard to harvest or require very specific conditions to obtain—and they're almost always dangerous to collect.
Treasure Hunters, Beast Hunters, Ruins Hunters, Secret Realm Hunters—any of these professionals would be interested in such locations and would often take commissions to explore or retrieve things from them."
"Oh! That sounds awesome!" Kevin's eyes sparkled with excitement.
Biscuit chimed in, "Those fish scales we just saw came from a secret realm in the ocean. That weird fish was probably a mutated version of its species."
Kevin's curiosity only grew stronger.
Yungu continued, "Now, 'Forbidden Realms' are something else entirely.
Most of these are sealed-off zones created due to various reasons and are filled with danger.
They may contain hostile species, extreme environments, mysterious ruins, or even Nen-related hazards.
Monster Hunters, Ruins Hunters, Problem-Solvers, Poison Hunters—any of them might deal with Forbidden Realms."
That definitely sounded more dangerous, but also a lot more intriguing.
"Once you get a Hunter license, can you just go into these places freely?"
Yungu nodded. "Of course. Most of these areas are officially categorized by Hunter HQ.
Pretty much all nature reserves are accessible to licensed Hunters. So yeah, getting your license is definitely worth it."
Kevin stood behind Yungu, watching him dig up information on all kinds of rare materials.
After scrolling through everything, Kevin felt like he had just gotten a peek into a whole new world.
Beasts that looked like dinosaurs, some even said they'd seen giants as tall as mountains.
Creatures of every shape and form—like something straight out of a fantasy novel—paraded across the screen.
And even birds that lived atop trees 1,700 meters tall and were ten times the size of a human.
Wait.
1,700 meters tall?! What even is that supposed to mean?
Sigh, whatever.
This is basically another world already—nothing should surprise me anymore.
After reading through it all, Kevin noted down a few things that caught his interest and couldn't help but marvel, "This world is amazing… There are even unknown lands beyond the outer seas. Just how big is this world?"
"Beyond the world itself, huh?" Yungu muttered, stroking his chin. Exploring uncharted territories had always been the dream of many Explorers.
Watching the two young men's wonder, Biscuit—seated behind them—watched with thoughtful eyes.
As expected, most Hunters ultimately can't resist their curiosity about the Dark Continent.
patreon.com/HRT862 for 20 chaters ahead