MHGA Chapter 165 – New Duties and… a Stand?!
"Huh?!"
Kairo Retsu froze for a moment before breaking into a delighted grin. "New hunters are coming?!"
"Yes, nya!" the Felyne nodded, continuing to explain to Kairo Retsu, "Granny Felyne said there will be quite a few new hunters arriving at the Gathering Hub this time, so we hope to prepare a proper welcome to prevent the usual chaos that happens when new hunters first arrive, nya…"
"And there's another important matter, nya!" the Felyne added. "Granny Felyne also wants us to prepare facilities for Handler Dormitories and a new Arena Tournament site, nya!"
"Eh?"
Kairo Retsu blinked again. "Handlers…? Wait, what? We don't have anything like that here."
Handlers—partners of hunters who assist in quests.
Handlers are hired by the Guild. They assign quests and manage requests… and for the strongest hunters, personal handler partners are always by their side.
But in this world, there's no Guild. There aren't even humans or Wyverians.
"Of course, just like the Guildmaster and the other hunters, they're also coming from other worlds, nya!" the Felyne said cheerfully. "Hunters can now hire personal handlers of their own, nya!"
"Hmm… I'll bring this up with the others later," Kairo Retsu said, stroking his chin—until another thought struck him. "Wait, what's this Arena Tournament about?"
"Well… Hunters need to improve their skills now, right?" The Felyne tilted its head as it explained. "Didn't you say to Granny Felyne before that your own combat technique wasn't enough to match the monsters you were facing, nya?"
"Ah… yeah, I guess I did mention something like that…" Kairo Retsu scratched his head.
Sure, he had learned how to wield a weapon when he became a hunter—but learning it and mastering it were two different things.
Kairo Retsu was still just an ordinary civilian with no prior combat experience… and when he fought Kokushibo, he had run into this exact problem.
His technique simply couldn't keep up with his physical capability. Against someone like Kokushibo—who could see through the Transparent World—it was like being shackled at every turn.
Overwhelming power can beat technique… but if the enemy has hundreds of techniques, brute force becomes wasteful.
"Alright, so the main things are: Welcoming the New Hunters, Handler Assignments, and the Arena Tournament, yeah?"
Kairo Retsu stroked his chin again. "Hunters definitely need some structured battles to sharpen their combat skills. We've got a long road ahead—we can't just cheese every boss fight forever. Even wheelchair strats* have their limits…"
(*Wheelchair strategy = carrying weaker players in MMOs/games)
"Then, Guildmaster, I'll get to work, nya!" the Felyne saluted and took off.
But no sooner had it left than someone else appeared before Kairo Retsu—with a serious expression on his face.
"Guildmaster, I've got something important to discuss with you."
It was Joseph.
Soon, the two sat down at a table in the dining hall, facing each other. Joseph finally opened his mouth:
"Guildmaster! I've been possessed by an evil spirit!"
"???"
Kairo Retsu couldn't hold back his reaction—Joseph's opening line nearly made him crack up.
You… you wrinkly-faced kid in a young man's body… You haven't even seen Jotaro's Bizarre Adventure yet, and here you are quoting your grandson's lines already?!
"What evil spirit?" Kairo Retsu muttered, resisting the urge to quip further. "Did something happen?"
"Hmm…"
Joseph looked awkward. "Guildmaster, you… don't see it?"
He made some sort of motion, and though Kairo Retsu could only see Joseph waving his hand through the air… the cup on the table suddenly floated up, as if lifted by an invisible string.
"!"
Kairo Retsu's eyes widened. He immediately grabbed Joseph's hand to confirm—yup, this was the 19-year-old Joseph, not the wrinkled geezer with an invincible grandson.
"So the Guildmaster can't see it either… I asked Tanjiro and the others earlier, and they couldn't see it either." Joseph grew more serious. "I only noticed it after the battle in Delicious in Dungeon. When I think about it, something only I can see appears—attached to me…"
"Is it… purple vines?" Kairo Retsu licked his lips, struggling to hold back his excitement. "Purple thorns?"
"! Guildmaster, you can see it? How did you know… the future?" Joseph quickly caught on—this must be an ability he develops in the future, which is why Kairo Retsu looked so familiar with it.
Now Joseph was excited too. "So it's an ability I'll have in the future? What does it do?! It must be powerful! I mean, this is Joseph Joestar's power!"
"That's right! It's well known that among all Stands, two stand at the top!" Kairo Retsu grinned wildly. "One is your grandson's Stand—Star Platinum, the most powerful!"
"Stand? My grandson's is the strongest?" Joseph asked eagerly. "Then what about mine?"
"And yours! The most useless Stand—Hermit Purple!" Kairo Retsu gave him a big thumbs-up. "You old fart! Yours is the most useless of all!"
"!"
Joseph flinched… then squinted his eyes at Kairo Retsu suspiciously.
"You're just memeing."
He wasn't fooled by Kairo Retsu's joke and quickly deduced the truth using his sharp mind.
"In my Bizarre Adventure, I'm the main character. But all the way up to defeating Kars, I never had this kind of ability. Not until I met my grandson as an old man…"
Joseph's mind clicked into place. "So my grandson is the new protagonist, and I'm his support, right?"
"So…"
Joseph gestured with his hand, manipulating the purple vines and thorns that moved with his thoughts. "Even if I don't understand what a Stand is yet… it's probably a support-type power. Something to help my grandson."
"Damn! Galaxy brain!" Kairo Retsu gawked. "I was trying to mess with you—how'd you figure it out so fast?!"
"So, what exactly is a Stand?" Joseph looked down at the purple vines and thorns forming from his hand. "Hermit Purple, huh… weird name."
"A Stand…" Kairo Retsu began with a brilliant smile, "is a powerful manifestation of one's life energy, taking on a tangible form…"
"In simple terms: a superpower!"
"Congrats, Joseph! Didn't you say before you were glad your world didn't have weird enemies like Blood Demon Arts or other confusing powers?"
"Well guess what—now you do!"
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