As his thought took hold, the screen that had been showing the twelve Zodiacs and other details suddenly switched to the caller's live image.
On the other end of the phone was a man whose voice immediately caught Larry's attention.
As Larry's eyes narrowed, he felt a flicker of surprise; he truly recognized the caller.
Though they had never met in person, Larry was familiar with him from the original novel he had read.
From that first moment, Larry quickly grasped the purpose behind the call and promptly answered.
"Hohohohoho, is that Mr. Larry?" came the hearty laughter, reminiscent of Ging's tone from that day.
Even as the caller spoke right
After Larry picked up, there was a brief pause, an unmistakable sign that he hadn't expected the call to be answered so quickly.
"It's not disturbing at all," Larry replied. "I'm free to chat."
"Beyond Netero," Larry said with a slight smile, deliberately using his full name.
At that, Beyond's expression shifted noticeably.
His mouth parted slightly, and he paused, clearly surprised.
It was no small thing for Larry to recognize him, not only because Beyond's reputation was relatively obscure and his activities kept secret, but also because Larry used his full name, showing he knew the connection between Beyond and the old man, Netero.
That information was rare and precious; few across the six continents even knew Beyond was Netero's son.
Beyond briefly wondered if the old man had told Larry, but quickly dismissed the thought.
Netero wasn't the type to share such things.
'Did Larry uncover it on his own?'
The more Beyond thought about it, the more mysterious Larry seemed.
"Oh, as expected of Mr. Larry, you really are impressive," Beyond finally said, a note of respect in his voice.
After a moment of hesitation, he openly confirmed his identity.
"Yes, I am Beyond."
Everyone had named them, but it wouldn't matter if they refused to acknowledge it.
"Then what's the point of your call?" Larry asked, already guessing the answer but needing confirmation.
"That's right. You should also know that I am President Netero, the old man's son," the voice replied. "Thanks to your involvement during the Chimera Ant incident, my father's life was spared."
"I wanted to thank you personally. Are you available sometime soon?"
Beyond's words felt genuine, and with the help of Lucario's aura, Larry could easily tell he was sincere.
It was clear he truly wanted to express his gratitude.
Thinking back to Beyond's role in the original story, Larry began to realize that Beyond and Nasubi weren't exactly the same person.
At least when it came to their attitudes toward Netero, their views diverged.
As Netero's son, Beyond was too compassionate to kill his father or break their agreement.
Nasubi, on the other hand, didn't care about that.
His main concern was that until the agreement was lifted, Beyond wouldn't be able to venture to the Dark Continent, and their dealings couldn't move forward.
That's why the Chimera Ant incident happened.
It was decided that Netero should be killed with the Chimera Ants' help.
Now that the old man was still alive, setting aside Nasubi's reaction, it made sense for Beyond to want to thank Larry.
But it was clear there was more to it than just gratitude.
"I'm free later, so if you want to thank me, let me know when and where," Larry said.
"Hohoho, perfect! You pick the time and place," Beyond laughed.
Beyond laughed, a laugh that was unmistakably Netero's son's.
Not only did they look alike, but even their laughter was the same.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Larry ended the call with Beyond.
The TV screen switched back to the image of the twelve zodiacs and others.
Beyond wanted to meet him, and Larry was sure there was an element of thanks involved.
But to say it was only to express gratitude? That seemed unlikely.
Considering the Dark Continent team Beyond had formed in the original story, Larry guessed he might be trying to recruit him.
Just as he was pondering this, another alert sounded on his phone.
This time, it wasn't a phone ringing, but a text message that caught Larry's attention.
It was from President Netero: "Come on, there's something good!"
Larry squinted at the screen, his eyes flashing with curiosity.
The twelve zodiacs were leaving the conference room one by one, which probably meant the election rules had already been decided.
After wrapping up the meeting, the old man messaged him again, asking Larry to pick up some items.
Hopefully, the things collected by the Hunter Association would be more interesting this time.
Later, in the Hunter Association's president office, Larry asked, "Old man, is there a secret door in your room? Or are the items collected by the Hunter Association kept here?
Seems a bit too little, doesn't it?"
He looked around the spacious office.
Apart from the usual sofas, coffee tables, desks, office chairs, two large file cabinets, and a big TV, there was nothing out of the ordinary.
Larry doubted the treasures would be just sitting among these everyday objects.
They had to be hidden deeper somewhere.
Netero chuckled, digging his little finger into his ear and flicking away the dirt before replying, "Wow, of course they're not just lying around here. Don't underestimate the Hunter Association's legacy."
He waved at Larry and approached the only two cabinets in the room.
His tight sportswear showed off his muscular frame like a finely crafted sculpture.
As he applied force, his muscles flexed with clear definition.
With a sharp, teeth-gritting "Zi~" sound, Netero swung open both cabinets at once.
"See? There is a secret door here," he said, "but maybe not what you're expecting."
Standing in front of the wall, Netero pressed his palm firmly against it and focused his mind.
Time passed slowly as he channeled a large amount of his aura into the wall.
Then, as if triggered by his aura, strange lines started appearing on the previously blank surface.
The writing looked like a child's scrawl, crooked and uneven, but quickly, the words spread across the wall like a rapidly multiplying virus, covering the entire small section in an instant.
There was a strong aura connected to it.
"Is this... Divine Script?" Larry asked Netero, who was standing beside him, noticing the strange but familiar script.
He had seen something similar before with Ging and Pyon in the Death Cave.
Although the divine script looked different this time, they all shared one key trait: they didn't resemble ordinary words.
Instead, they appeared more like distorted patterns than text.
Netero confirmed, "Yes, this kind of divine writing has a hiding function."
He explained that you needed to put a significant amount of aura into it to reveal what was concealed.