[110] : Razor and the Fourteen Devils!
[A/N] Support & Read Up to 10 Advanced Chapters on Patreon!
...
"Plot of Beach?"
Mika was, of course, familiar with the "Plot of Beach" card. It was card number #002 and exceptionally rare.
As far as Mika knew, no one on Greed Island currently possessed this card.
Of course, this information was common knowledge among the players.
Having read the original work, Mika also knew that to activate this quest, a team of fifteen or more players had to use the "Accompany" spell card and travel together to the coastal city of Soufrabi.
The quest itself was called "Razor and the Fourteen Devils."
The victory condition for the players was to compete against these fifteen individuals in various sporting events, with the first side to achieve eight wins declared the victor.
Once the players secured eight victories, they could expel the Devils from the coastal city and obtain the "Plot of Beach" card from the quest-giver.
However, this was merely a facade.
The hidden truth was that those initial victories were inconsequential.
The most crucial match was the one overseen by Razor, the leader of "Razor and the Fourteen Devils": an eight-on-eight dodgeball game.
Since it was eight-on-eight, winning this single match would instantly grant eight victories.
In other words, to succeed in the quest, one had to defeat Razor and obtain those eight wins.
Razor wasn't just the organizer of this game; he was also one of the original creators of Greed Island, alongside Ging Freecss, Gon's father.
He was essentially the Game Master (GM).
This alone spoke volumes about his immense power.
"If I recall correctly, in the original story, Gon and his friends eventually recruited Hisoka and Tsezguerra's teams. After a fierce battle, they finally managed to defeat Razor and claim victory."
Mika couldn't help but smile at the thought.
In the original timeline, Gon and his friends should have reached Hisoka by now and recruited him to join their team.
However, Hisoka's presence on Greed Island was due to a request from Chrollo Lucilfer.
At that time, Chrollo's Nen abilities were sealed by Kurapika's chains.
Having learned of the existence of Nen exorcists through a fortune, Chrollo tasked Hisoka with finding the exorcist hidden within the game.
That was why Hisoka was on Greed Island.
But now, due to Mika's intervention, the Phantom Troupe, which had disbanded much earlier, wasn't involved in the game.
With his Nen abilities intact, Chrollo had no reason to send Hisoka to Greed Island.
Therefore, Gon and his friends wouldn't encounter Hisoka.
So, when they needed to find reliable teammates, they naturally thought of Mika, Airmid, and Mellie.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Mika smiled at Gon and Killua, who were looking at him expectantly. "Of course, I'm interested!"
"Great! That makes seven of us!" Gon exclaimed excitedly.
Mellie, seeing their enthusiasm, sighed and patted Killua on the head. "So, what's going on?"
"It all started with recruiting other players."
Seeing Mellie's confusion, Killua explained the situation.
After completing their initial training and beginning to explore the game world, Gon and his friends had received an invitation to a player recruitment meeting.
At the meeting, they learned that two groups, Tsezguerra and Genthru, were close to completing their card collections. They decided to form a temporary alliance to hinder their progress.
Their plan was to find the remaining unclaimed designated slot cards and monopolize them, thus preventing the other two groups from obtaining them.
After all, according to the game's rules, these rare cards had a limited number of designated slots.
Once the limit was reached, even if someone completed the required task or obtained the specified item, they couldn't convert it into a card.
Therefore, they set their sights on the "Plot of Beach" card.
According to the rules, only three of these cards existed. If they obtained all three, no one else would be able to acquire them.
After reaching a consensus, the group of over a dozen players traveled to the coastal city of Soufrabi.
Because they coincidentally met the fifteen-player requirement, they easily accepted the quest.
However, upon realizing the near impossibility of completing the quest, their alliance disbanded.
After all, their primary goal was to prevent Genthru and Tsezguerra from collecting all the cards and winning the game outright.
Therefore, once they determined that the quest was practically insurmountable, they abandoned it.
Only Gon, Killua, Bisky, and Goreinu remained, determined to find a way to complete the quest and obtain the card.
“I see. So that’s how the ‘Plot of Beach’ quest is triggered," Mellie remarked, impressed.
If they hadn’t coincidentally gathered fifteen people, who knew how long it would take for this quest to be completed.
“Whoever designed this quest must be a psychopath!” Mellie exclaimed in disbelief.
Ignoring Mellie's outburst, Gon turned to Mika, who had agreed to help. "We plan to seek out Tsezguerra's team and work together to conquer this quest."
"There's no need for such a complicated plan," Mika replied with a grin. "The seven of us are more than enough. We don't need anyone else."
“But with only seven of us, we don’t even meet the minimum requirement of fifteen players,” Killua pointed out.
“We just need to find eight more players who are trapped in the game,” Mika explained.
“If we promise to help them escape, they’ll surely follow our orders.”
"Players trapped in the game?" Gon and Killua exclaimed in surprise.
The players unable to leave the game were those who couldn't activate the console to exit. While activating the console required Nen, not all Nen users were Hunters.
Besides licensed Hunters, some individuals awakened Nen through unusual circumstances, but they lacked proper training and control over their abilities.
They were like the "Handicapped Trio" that Gon and Killua had encountered in Heavens Arena.
In fact, the trio's abilities were considered quite impressive among self-awakened Nen users, especially since they were skilled martial artists before awakening their powers.
However, even they were no match for the newly awakened Gon and Killua.
This demonstrated the general skill level of normal Nen users.
---
There were two ways to leave Greed Island.
First, obtain the "Leave" card.
Second, defeat the harbor captain and win passage off the island.
Both methods presented significant challenges for weaker players.
As a card essential for escaping the game world, the "Leave" card's value was exceptionally high.
For strong players, obtaining this card was relatively easy.
However, for weaker players, acquiring it was like searching for a needle in a haystack.
As for the second method, battling the harbor captain, it naturally excluded those with limited combat abilities.
After all, this game was designed for Hunters, so a certain level of difficulty was expected.
However, this difficulty trapped many Nen users on the island, unable to escape.
Thus, Greed Island held a considerable number of weak players imprisoned within its digital confines.
For these individuals, the promise of the "Leave" card was enough to secure their cooperation. They would readily follow Mika's orders and join his team, even as mere filler members.
"But even if we guarantee our own victories, we can only secure seven wins at most, right?" Killua asked, puzzled.
"Don't worry, we have more than enough people," Mika replied with a confident smile.
Having read the original work, Mika knew that even Nen beasts could participate in the competition. After all, Razor himself used Nen beasts to bolster his team's numbers.
And when it came to Nen beasts, Mika had a distinct advantage.
With his "We Are Familia" skill, he had no shortage of Nen beasts at his disposal.
If he hadn't been trying to avoid drawing too much attention, he wouldn't even need to recruit other players.
"Exactly! The seven of us are sufficient," Mellie chimed in, supporting Mika's claim.
Mika looked at her, surprised.
He hadn't discussed his plan with her beforehand, yet she seemed to understand his intentions perfectly.
"What's your plan?" Mika whispered, leaning closer to Mellie.
"Hmph! I have my secrets," Mellie replied with a sly grin, slipping away from Mika's side.
"That girl..." Mika shook his head with a smile, though a hint of amusement flickered in his eyes.
Even though he didn't know what Mellie had in mind, he was confident that with him around, failure was not an option.
Just like Razor.
Even if he were the only one participating, Mika was confident in his ability to secure victory.
"Alright, since you both are so confident, let's get going!"
"Let's find those poor souls trapped here and longing for a way out!" Mika proposed.
"Indeed. In times like these, trust in your teammates is key," Goreinu, who had accompanied Gon and Killua, added.
He wasn't concerned about the success or failure of the quest.
After all, if they failed due to a lack of strength, they could simply recruit new teammates and try again.
And they had no shortage of potential recruits.
Their main team wasn't even close to the fifteen-player limit.
"Exactly! Trust is paramount in team battles like this," Bisky, who had been quietly observing, chimed in with a smile.
With everyone in agreement, the "Plot of Beach" conquest team, led by Mika, Airmid, Mellie, Gon, Killua, Bisky, and Goreinu, was officially formed.
After a brief discussion, the seven of them used the "Accompany" card and flew to Antokiba, the city of prizes, to search for suitable teammates.
...
"Yes, these eight will do," Mellie declared, nodding in approval as she looked at the selected players.
Gon, Killua, and the others breathed a sigh of relief.
Upon arriving in Antokiba, Mellie had volunteered to handle the recruitment process.
Naturally, no one objected.
After all, in their eyes, Mellie was always meticulous and reliable.
However, to their surprise, Mellie's selection process was incredibly stringent.
Many applicants were swiftly rejected.
This unexpected turn of events left Gon, Killua, and the others speechless. They had initially agreed to simply recruit a few random players.
But Mellie's selection criteria were far more demanding.
They couldn't understand her reasoning.
Unlike the others, Mika had already grasped Mellie's intentions while she was conducting the interviews.
"Are you satisfied with your selections?" Mika asked.
"They're passable, I suppose. The best of a bad bunch. Just barely adequate," Mellie replied nonchalantly.
"After all, they'll all need to undergo some 'modifications' anyway."
A mischievous grin spread across Mellie's face.
...
A flash of light appeared on the beach of Soufrabi, the coastal city.
"It's over there!" Gon shouted, pointing towards a building perched on the edge of a cliff overlooking the sea.
"Alright, let's head towards our objective!"
Bisky glanced at the eight recruits standing silently behind them and led the group towards their destination.
However, as they walked, her gaze kept drifting back towards the recruits.
Bisky still remembered their initial encounter with the eight players, their faces etched with fear and uncertainty.
She could also sense the weak aura emanating from them, a clear indicator of their limited Nen abilities.
But after Mellie's training, everything had changed.
The once-fearful recruits now stood with newfound confidence and composure.
What surprised Bisky the most was their "Ken."
Despite their limited aura reserves, the quality of their "Ken" was remarkably high.
It was far beyond their expected level.
She instantly recognized that these individuals were being controlled.
However, she couldn't detect any trace of the control method.
This was highly unusual.
"Is something bothering you, Ms. Bisky?" Mika asked with a knowing smile, noticing her preoccupation with the recruits.
"I'm a bit curious. I've seen many Manipulation-type Nen abilities, but I've never encountered one that operates without any visible medium, especially with such precision and duration." Bisky didn't hide her suspicions.
"Well, there is a medium, of course," Mika replied cryptically.
"It's just that Mellie is a Specialist, and her methods are quite… subtle."
Mika chuckled inwardly.
Of course, it was subtle!
After all, the medium Mellie employed was magic, something that didn't exist in this world.
...
Support and read 10 Advanced Chapters, Ahead of the Rest!!
https://[email protected]/dragonnx
[Replace '@' with 'a' to Access Patreon Normally]
There is 6 more exciting Fanfics already available on my Patreon page!