The torrential rain finally came to a sudden stop, as if a war drum had just ceased its beat. The scent of dampness filled the air in every direction.
Steiner casually straightened the suit hanging crookedly on his body.
But after a moment's thought, he simply took it off. The suit, now heavy with water, was tossed to the ground without hesitation.
After what had just happened, he realized something — while escaping, he didn't need extra baggage slowing him down.
The others watched his actions and more or less understood what was going through his mind.
No one objected. No one asked Shizuku to store his expensive suit with Blinky either.
Taking off his tie and suit — it was a sign that Steiner was becoming stronger, more resolved.
Everyone was happy to see this change in him. It would only help in what lay ahead.
Tokarine, seeing that Steiner had a minor injury, reluctantly helped him clean and bandage it.
Steiner quickly and politely thanked her. Then he noticed everyone was looking at him.
Feeling a little awkward, he adjusted the glasses on his nose and finally asked the question Tokarine had already brought up earlier.
"How are you all even here? I've checked the Hunter Association exploration team roster, and I met every member on BW1. I've never seen any of you before."
After finishing the bandages, Tokarine crossed her arms and looked over with the same confusion.
Bisky stepped in smoothly to cover for them. "That's because we were never on the official list. We weren't on the upper four floors of BW1 either. We were at the very bottom."
Tokarine squinted her small eyes and thought for a while. Then her eyes lit up as she raised her hand and tapped her palm in sudden realization.
She didn't need Bisky to explain further — her mind quickly filled in the blanks with a whole string of deductions.
"I see now! This must be the 'special mission' Chairman Netero assigned to you all!"
"That's why your names didn't appear on the official roster!"
"Chairman Netero and a few of the core members in the Hunter Association's expedition team must've kept your existence secret—so you could act as hidden arrows, only to be unleashed when the time was right."
"I was wondering why Chairman Netero wouldn't bring the three of you. I thought maybe you were meant to lead the next wave of expedition forces. Turns out... you've been on the ship this whole time!"
Bisky snapped her fingers, then gave Tokarine a big thumbs-up.
"That's right, exactly what you just said!"
Then, without warning, she turned her head and winked her right eye at Germain, the kind of smug expression that practically shouted, "Told you so."
The situation was too urgent for nitpicking. Even if there were plenty of holes in the story, neither Tokarine nor Steiner had the time—or the need—to dig deeper. They even helped patch the gaps themselves.
After all, who would want to anger the very people who had just saved their lives?
"Mr. Steiner," Germain suddenly said, "We just inspected the BW1. More than half of it is destroyed. Several ships docked inside the internal hangar were also annihilated."
"In a case like this, does V6 or the International Permit Agency have any emergency protocols?"
"We do."
Once the conversation shifted to his area of expertise, Steiner became far more serious and composed.
"We left a team stationed at the refueling base."
"If they don't receive any communication from us within a month and a half, they'll use passing small airships to inform both V6 and the International Permit Agency that contact with us has been lost."
"V6 and the Authority will then hold an emergency meeting to discuss and decide whether to dispatch reinforcements or search fleets to the Hypothetical Continent."
Everyone present already knew that the land they stood upon wasn't the real Dark Continent—but a so-called 'Hypothetical Dark Continent'—so there was no need for Steiner to hide that fact.
Ging listened while nodding thoughtfully.
"From the Six Continents to the refueling base, that's about a three-week voyage. From the refueling base to the Hypothetical Continent, around five weeks…"
"Factoring in the potential bureaucratic back-and-forth between V6 and the IPA, the next fleet might not arrive for another half a year."
The very thought sent chills down Steiner's spine.
And yet, as someone entrenched within the system of the International Permit Agency (IPA), he knew all too well—this scenario wasn't just possible.
It was likely.
Would the original V5 be willing to send another team, when the scope of the losses was still unknown?
Would the major powers left behind in the Kakin Empire still want their king to survive?
After all, this could be their perfect chance to seize power.
These were all uncertainties.
Half a year wasn't a conservative estimate — in fact, it was optimistic.
Germain didn't want to let Steiner lose hope before the future had a chance to become clear.
He clapped his black-gloved hands together, the muffled sound echoing in the quiet air.
"Anyway," he said, "let's start by finding other survivors. Once we regroup with more people, we'll figure out our next move."
—
1:38 AM
A woman crouched behind a thick patch of bushes. Her long black hair was tangled, her body filthy from head to toe.
She gently parted the branches, just enough to peek through, breathing heavily.
In the clearing ahead, two injured figures stood side by side.
They were facing off against a terrifying beast — so grotesque and savage-looking that even a glance sent chills down the spine.
Before confronting it, the two had told the woman to stay hidden, no matter what happened — no matter what she saw or heard.
Her name was Oito, the eighth queen of Kakin King Nasubi.
Though born into lowly origins, her status had risen far beyond what anyone had once imagined.
At least on the surface, no one dared show her disrespect — nor did anyone mention her past.
But not long after the chaos broke out… Oito realized something chilling.
*******
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