"Put away your weapons."
The voice of the special forces captain came from outside.
He was ordering his team members to put away their weapons to show they had no ill intentions.
Afterwards, his voice came again, explaining to Kevin and the others hiding behind the tree stump cover.
"We came here tracking a poaching group, found traces of their previous stay outside, and there are also some new traces here that only appeared last night."
"Therefore, please identify yourselves. As long as we confirm that you are not associated with those poaching groups, we will absolutely not make things difficult for you."
The captain tried his best to make his tone seem less serious; he just wanted to resolve the current situation through official phrasing.
After all, the other side had three Nen Users, and they didn't look like low-level amateurs.
He couldn't accurately judge the other party's strength, and on his side, only he, the captain, was a Nen User.
If conflict broke out, he wasn't sure if he could gain an advantage.
The few people hiding behind the cover exchanged glances.
Buhara was the first to walk out from behind the large tree stump where he was hiding.
He was large, and even with the stump blocking, a small part of his clothes was exposed.
The other party had already expressed their goodwill.
If they didn't want this inexplicable conflict to occur, they had to show their own goodwill.
He looked at the other party and saw that these people were indeed wearing field military uniforms and carrying firearms and weapons.
The captain also seemed to have a tacit understanding, slightly displaying the uniform he was wearing and the weapon in his hand.
Although the Kakin Empire is not a V5 member state, it is considered the strongest nation below V5, with immense national power.
It also has considerable prestige and influence in international diplomacy and is not just an ordinary small country.
Whether it was their military uniforms or weapons, they had certain independently developed characteristics.
Anyone with a little knowledge could tell at a glance, which could somewhat alleviate doubts.
Buhara observed, and his heart indeed began to believe the other party's words.
They had stayed in the Kakin Empire for some time and had some understanding of the country's situation.
He flicked his hand and revealed a hunter license.
"We are professional Hunters, not the poaching group you mentioned.
The camp you referred to, those fresh traces, were just where we rested temporarily last night."
The other party nodded.
In fact, he had already been speculating in this direction.
However, to prevent accidents, he observed more, but unexpectedly, he was discovered by the other party.
This was also why he felt the other party was not simple.
"That's right, the traces you left are indeed different from those of the poaching group."
After the misunderstanding was cleared, Kevin and Menchi also walked out from behind the cover where they were hiding.
However, both sides maintained a safe distance.
"Then let us escort you out of here."
Although both sides had established some basic trust, they were still in a state of mutual vigilance at this moment.
Kevin and the others couldn't be sure if the other party were truly special forces members, but based on the current situation, it seemed highly likely.
And the other party couldn't immediately confirm if they were genuine professional Hunters, and it must be admitted that there could also be professional Hunters among the poaching groups.
Therefore, the other party had to be even more vigilant.
Just like that, both sides maintained a relatively safe distance and silently walked towards the edge of the forest.
They walked all the way to a place near the edge of the forest.
They saw several off-road vehicles and special operations vehicles with the clear military emblem of the Kakin Empire printed on them.
Kevin noticed that among the personnel who stayed behind, there was also a Nen User.
That person first looked at Kevin and the others vigilantly, then walked to the side of the Nen User captain who had confronted Kevin and them, and spoke a few words.
After confirming the current situation, he said to Kevin and the others: "Alright, seeing this, I think your misunderstanding has been cleared up.
Now, please allow us to verify your Hunter identities."
The few people nodded, walked forward, and took out their hunter licenses.
"Hmm? All three of you are professional Hunters?" This Nen User was a little surprised.
He had originally thought only one person was a professional Hunter.
After all, many Nen Users are lone wolves, and even if they have a team, it's usually one professional Hunter leading a few non-professional Nen Users.
Or even operating with some ordinary people.
Kevin and the others had no interest in explaining this.
After confirming their true identities, the Nen User who was the special forces captain asked: "If you don't mind, could you tell us the purpose of your visit to this forest?"
"Looking for some 『materials』."
After Kevin and the others gave a brief answer, they didn't say anything more.
The other party just nodded and didn't continue to ask.
Hunters are like this, having all sorts of objectives.
It's not impossible to encounter Hunters in places like this wilderness.
If it were other people, they would definitely have to arrest them and interrogate them thoroughly, only releasing them after confirming there were no issues.
But these three were all professional Hunters, so they naturally couldn't do that.
Let alone them not being V5 members, even if they were V5 members, a normal department wouldn't inexplicably make things difficult for professional Hunters; it's a counterproductive behavior.
This would make your superior evaluate whether your work ability matches your current position.
Whether considering it from a legal perspective or other aspects, their activities in the forest were reasonable.
In fact, after seeing the traces of their camping, the special forces basically determined that these three were not related to the poaching group.
Thinking that the other party were professional Hunters and had specifically come here, perhaps understanding some situation, the captain spoke to himself: "We came here mainly because a monster that shouldn't appear has appeared in this area."
It's too close to the city.
Once this monster goes berserk and breaks out of the forest, it could cause serious casualties."
"A monster? We did find the lair where it used to live," Menchi recalled and said.
"What! Really?" The captain said in surprise.
He didn't expect that a casual inquiry would actually yield an unexpected gain.
"Sorry, I haven't introduced myself yet.
My name is Lek."
The three nodded and introduced themselves.
"If you don't mind, could I trouble you to take us to see that lair?
We came here specifically tracking it."
What you don't know is that it's not just here; the same problem has appeared in another forest area several hundred kilometers away.
We just can't be sure if it's the same monster.
If it's not the same one, but multiple ones distributed in different areas, then the problem becomes even more troublesome."
Kevin and the others thought for a moment and felt that this wasn't a troublesome matter.
So Buhara agreed.
Led by Buhara, Lek's special forces team entered the forest again, arriving at the lair he had discovered last night.
The accompanying special forces members immediately began collecting various samples inside the lair.
Lek, meanwhile, was talking with Buhara.
Kevin and Menchi stood outside the cave, looked for a few moments, and then lost interest.
Kevin was more interested in these Nen Users affiliated with state powers.
He had speculated before that since Nen Users existed, these strong nations would definitely Train such powerful individuals.
This was almost beyond doubt; he just hadn't had the chance to see it until today, witnessing it firsthand.
"Are there many Nen Users like this who are affiliated with state political bodies?" Kevin asked Menchi.
Hearing Kevin's question, Menchi shook her head: "Don't ask me, I'm not sure either, but there should be quite a few.
Before, I was in—"
She recounted the situations she had encountered in other countries over the past two years regarding Nen Users affiliated with the state.
Within state powers, these Nen Abilities are more often used in special operations units or serve as security personnel.
Not long after, they seemed to finish their conversation.
"Thank you for your assistance."
It seemed the special forces would stay here to continue searching for clues.
After a brief exchange, Kevin and the others decisively left the forest, not wanting to get involved with these people further.
Watching their retreating figures, Lek answered the phone: "Hello, have you found their information?"
"Yes, we found it.
The possibility of them accidentally entering is high."
"Is that so?
That's good."
How could Lek completely trust these three professional Hunters?
Naturally, he would investigate their whereabouts.
This wasn't considered offensive; it was just a simple check of their activity traces within the Kakin Empire.
The result showed that Kevin had only recently become a Hunter and had come here with the Hunter Association Chairman, so there was nothing to suspect.
Countries generally have considerable trust in the Hunter Association Chairman.
Menchi and Buhara's activity traces in the Kakin Empire were also easy to find; they had come and gone quite openly.
On the other side.
The three returned to the city.
"How unlucky, always running into weird things," Menchi complained irritably.
Although no accidents occurred, it did affect their originally good mood.
"I think they lied. Compared to that so-called magical beast, that group of poachers might be their real target," Kevin analyzed.
Of course, investigating and tracking information on both isn't contradictory or mutually exclusive.
Buhara also nodded in agreement: "I saw them collecting information in the cave. Compared to the traces of the magical beast, they were more interested in the human skeletons.
I suspect they already know some habits of those magical beasts and are more focused on gathering information related to poachers."
"Then the poachers are also very strange, aren't they? Just like we speculated last night."
Menchi also became interested and joined the discussion with the two of them.
The three shared their speculations, exchanging ideas and thinking together.
"Ah,
Since we're so interested, we can just go check it out. It won't take much time."
Menchi was inherently impetuous. As she spoke, she directly pulled the two of them into a high-end internet cafe.
She took out her hunter license and swiped it on the card reader next to a computer station. The computer then connected to the Hunter Association's internal network. Menchi seemed very familiar with this process.
Kevin watched from the side, taking the opportunity to learn from her experience.
One thing he had to admit was that the hunter license really could be swiped anywhere that accepted cards and have a certain effect.
Machines in internet cafes like this, which were clearly used for temporary online access, could be accessed using a hunter license.
Also, hotels, various transportation departments, or even the military's standard card readers could recognize the hunter license.
It was truly inexplicably absurd.
On the computer.
The Hunter Association's internal network, even if you didn't spend money to buy information at a tavern, allowed you to get less confidential information for free on some other Hunter websites.
However, when it came to gathering information, Buhara was better than Menchi.
He took over Menchi's spot, his thick fingers nimbly tapping on the keyboard.
Soon, he pulled up some information they wanted.
"Hmm, this doesn't look like a small problem."
Looking at the information on the screen, Menchi couldn't help but say.
The collected information showed areas where magical beasts, inconsistent with the local environment, were appearing all over the world.
Starting three years ago, these magical beasts have appeared successively on different continents and in different countries, and without exception, the locations where they appeared were not too far from human settlements.
However, some Hunters have also discovered traces of these magical beasts in more remote dense forests.
From the collected information, it is known that several Hunters are currently investigating this situation.
Some small countries have even been deeply affected.
Buhara pulled up several more pieces of information and compared and analyzed them.
Finally, he logged into the Hunter Tavern's information system to check how much it would cost to obtain this information.
The result showed it only cost 5 million, which was indeed not high for the price of information at the Hunter Tavern.
Buhara bought it directly without hesitation.
For a Hunter, five million to satisfy their curiosity was no problem at all. Hunters are naturally curious creatures, seekers of the unknown.
Not to mention, they might even encounter this information themselves, as they often live outdoors and need to hunt in the wild.
Immediately, the screen began to display detailed information.
『Based on analysis of the obtained magical beast bodies, these magical beasts are not products of natural evolution, but rather appear to be artificial organisms.』
『It is speculated that a person or organization is conducting research in the field of biological fusion.』
『These magical beasts are being released into various areas, seemingly for some kind of validation.』
『Individuals of magical beasts with no aggression or low violence have been observed.』
『Currently, several Hunters have accepted requests from different countries and are conducting investigations into this matter.』
『The organization researching these magical beasts has no specific identifying information, but it is speculated to be a biological research company on the market.』
『—』
Although a good amount of information was provided, there wasn't actually much secretive or crucial content. As long as you were willing to take the time to investigate, most of it could be found. "Artificial organisms, genetic engineering? What is all this? I don't understand any of it."
Menchi scratched her head, but she probably understood that it meant some kind of technological means were used to create magical beasts that didn't belong to the realm of natural evolution.
"What's the point of doing this?" Buhara also seemed unfamiliar with this area and asked in confusion. "There are many points. If you can freely construct and combine, you might be able to create organisms that better suit human needs through artificial means.
This depends on the purpose of this company or organization. If they have ill intentions, they could completely create biological weapons."
Kevin thought for a moment and expressed his thoughts.
This was not an exaggeration. If you thought about it carefully, most research in the field of bioengineering is engaged in this kind of study.
After satisfying their curiosity, the few of them left the internet cafe.
Kevin was still thinking about the issue of bioengineering because it reminded him of something.
That was Bergette. If there were no surprises, Bergette might be one of the people currently investigating this matter.
Because the information characteristics given above were too consistent with the situation he encountered in the swamp last year.
Looking at it this way, the strange poacher camp in the forest also fit these characteristics.
Forget it, don't worry about it for now.
Kevin was temporarily uninterested in these matters. He still had many things to be busy with now.
Like making money.
He was about to be short on funds.
Although Red Stone Pharmaceuticalss was already on the right track, a lot was invested in the early stages, and it would take some time for the drugs to be listed and profitable.
At least a few months.
Currently, he could only rely on selling potions to recoup some funds. He needed to carefully consider this aspect of planning and refine his ideas after returning.
Suddenly, Kevin seemed to remember something and looked at Menchi and Buhara, asking: "Do you know any doctors? Preferably Nen Users,
And the kind with good professional skills."
He thought that Pairo's problem still needed to be solved urgently.
Since they were already Hunters, it might be better to hire professional Hunters for help. There are all kinds of Hunters, so there should be quite a few doctor Hunters, right?
After all, being a doctor is not a niche profession.
The two of them instantly turned their gaze towards Kevin.
"Aren't you one?" Menchi asked strangely.
"—Half of one, I guess. I think I'm more of a pharmacist," Kevin said somewhat helplessly.
A pharmacist and a doctor are completely different professions.
Buhara thought for a moment and said: "If you need someone urgently, you can hire a Hunter. There are definitely doctor Hunters in the Hunter Association, like the current Zodiacs - Dog."
"What are you talking about?" Kevin momentarily suspected he had misheard.
The Zodiacs have appeared?
"It's an organization formed by the Hunter Association Chairman, responsible for managing some affairs of the Hunter Association.
There are a total of twelve people, named after twelve animals with special significance in a certain ancient country."
Hearing this explanation, Kevin nodded.
Forget it, this is another world, nothing strange is surprising.
After all, he had even encountered Chinese characters before.
"Is she very powerful?"
"Of course, she's a three-star Hunter," Menchi said.
"Three-star?" This time Kevin was truly surprised.
It was said that Hunters of this rank were few and far between, and each one was a widely renowned existence.
Judging strength solely by rank, it seemed like she was even more powerful than Biscuit and Ging.
However, he also understood that it couldn't be compared so simply, as rank was more focused on specialization in a professional field rather than pure combat ability.
This world isn't just about martial power.
To some extent, for the world and society, professional ability is far more important than so-called martial power.
"Then there's probably no chance. She's a three-star Hunter, how could I afford to hire her?"
Kevin also knew a little about the hiring prices for Hunters.
The starting price for professional Hunters is in the billions, and troublesome tasks cost tens of billions or even more.
If a task has a certain degree of danger or requires a longer time, the cost also increases.
For famous and powerful Hunters, the fee standard varies depending on their profession and the Delegation they accept.
But for a three-star Hunter, wanting to commission her to do something isn't just a matter of money.
Such Hunters are not short on money at all; they are more interested in the task itself.
"Idiot, think about your potions!" Menchi reminded him.
Buhara also chimed in from the side: "Are you that lacking in confidence in your own potions?"
"Okay, since you both say so, I'll give it a try. But here's the problem, do you have her contact information?"
At this, both of them fell silent.