Chapter 82 — Gon's Choice
Some candidates managed to balance effortlessly on the thin spider silk—
Killua, for example, moved as if walking on flat ground.
Kurapika was steady as well.
And then there was Gon, hanging with one hand and swinging playfully like this was a game.
As for Osren—
He was lying comfortably on the Human-Faced Ape's back,
and by the time Gon and the others descended,
Osren already had a dozen eggs in his hands.
A very solid harvest.
"Over there."
Osren spotted another cluster of eggs and directed the ape to leap over.
With a few swift picks, he collected another five or six.
He stopped after that.
Even the greediest person had to admit—
carrying too many eggs while hanging off a cliff was inconvenient,
and storing them safely would be even harder.
The Spider Eagle population should probably thank him for his restraint.
"Whoosh!"
A sharp wind-cutting sound.
Osren looked up.
A massive purple blob was plummeting straight toward him.
He squinted.
Of course.
It was Todo.
Truly—
good and evil will each meet their due; the time just hasn't come yet.
---
"Go this way!"
Osren reacted instantly.
He pointed to a nearby strand of spider silk, and the Human-Faced Ape sprang onto it.
The silk strained under the weight of two bodies, thin cracks appearing along its surface.
But misfortune never comes alone.
Todo, by sheer dumb luck, fell right in front of that same strand
and grabbed it like a drowning man clutching a life raft.
---
"Skreeee!"
A piercing screech split the air.
Flocks of Spider Eagles swooped in from the distance.
Seeing humans stealing their precious eggs, they didn't bother asking questions—
they attacked immediately.
The canyon exploded into chaos.
Sharp beaks like daggers targeted every candidate clinging to silk threads.
One vulture jabbed straight through a man's hand—
the wound deep enough to expose bone, blood gushing like a fountain.
"AAAAH!"
Several candidates screamed as they lost their grip.
Their bodies dropped into the raging river below—
and within seconds were swept far out of sight.
---
Todo, somehow, survived the first wave.
Dragging his hefty body upward, he narrowly avoided being skewered.
---
Osren had already gathered plenty of eggs.
He knew when to quit.
He guided the Human-Faced Ape upward along a lower thread, passing by Gon's position.
To his surprise, Gon still hadn't taken an egg.
---
"Gon, haven't you chosen one yet?"
Osren called out.
"Not yet! But I found one I like—right there!"
Gon pointed enthusiastically.
Osren followed the direction of his finger…
It was the egg on the very thread Todo was clinging onto—
larger than the others, noticeably plumper, and with a healthier sheen.
"A good choice," Osren nodded.
But as he turned away—
"Eh? Gon, what is that?"
Osren's eyes narrowed sharply.
Beyond Gon's chosen egg—
partially hidden behind a protruding rock—
lay another egg.
A massive one.
Easily three times the size of a normal Spider Eagle egg.
He had only caught glimpses through gaps in the rock,
but it was unmistakable—
huge, rare…
and absolutely extraordinary.
A thrill ran through him.
"That must be something special."
And for Osren—
the best way to protect a rare ingredient was to put it safely into his own backpack.
Osren still needed confirmation.
He called out to Gon—whose eyesight was just as sharp—because he had to make sure.
Wasting effort on nothing was never on his to-do list.
"It looks like an egg… a big one."
Gon squinted in the direction Osren pointed.
But the egg was much farther out than the one he had chosen, almost impossible to see clearly.
It hung dangerously close to the raging river below; no human could descend safely.
Jagged rock formations made the spot even more inaccessible.
"But it's too steep, and there's nowhere to brace your feet.
It's hard to reach." Gon added, seeing Osren's interest.
"Exactly—hard for a person.
Not necessarily for an animal."
Osren glanced down at the Human-Faced Ape beneath him and grinned mischievously.
This was the moment he had trained for—
Ape raised a thousand days, used in a single moment.
He was certain: that egg was definitely not some ordinary Spider Eagle egg.
More likely it was a king-tier egg—exceedingly rare, exceptionally delicious.
Leaving it uncollected would be an insult to gastronomy itself.
Gon followed Osren's gaze to the ape and instantly understood his plan.
"Then you go get your egg.
I'll climb back up first—then you can send the ape down again."
Osren said, already preparing to move.
"Got it, Osren."
Gon nodded.
He stepped nimbly across the web, heading toward the egg he had chosen.
His movements were light and natural, almost catlike.
Even when a Spider Eagle vulture swooped at him, he barely seemed bothered.
Osren climbed upward, greeting the other boys along the way.
He needed to return the eggs he already collected—his bag was full.
"This is the one!"
Gon reached out and plucked his chosen egg with ease, smiling brightly.
"Thud!"
A heavy kick struck him from behind.
Todo.
In one motion, Todo punted Gon off balance and snatched the egg from his hand.
Gon tumbled downward—
even with perfect footing, a thread of spider silk was still just a thread.
But mid-fall, Gon reacted instantly—
he snagged another strand of silk and stabilized himself.
"This egg is mine."
Todo said triumphantly, gripping the silk with one hand and the egg with the other.
"Crrrkk—"
The weakened silk groaned in protest.
It had already endured Osren, the ape, Gon, and now Todo's weight.
It finally reached its limit.
Todo had been irritated since seeing how easily Gon navigated the threads.
Watching Gon grab an egg so effortlessly made him burn with jealousy.
So he took the egg the moment Gon let his guard down.
But the proud fall the hardest.
"SKREEE!"
A massive Spider Eagle vulture dove with a shrill cry.
Its razor-sharp beak stabbed straight into Todo's only supporting hand.
"HELP!!"
Todo reflexively let go—
but it didn't matter whether he let go or not.
At that exact moment, the thread snapped with a crisp twang.
Even if his hand hadn't been injured, he would've fallen anyway.
He plummeted, screaming, terror hollowing him out from the inside.
Gon saw Todo falling.
He bent his knees, pushed off the silk with explosive force,
and accelerated downward like a missile.
He caught up within moments—
one hand grabbing Todo's wrist,
the other flicking out his fishing rod to hook a thicker, sturdier thread nearby.
"GON!!"
Leorio shouted from above, nearly falling himself in shock.
Only when Gon stopped his descent and settled into a stable position did Leorio finally exhale in relief.
Watching this, Osren smirked.
So Todo really thought Gon was just a harmless good boy?
No.
A lesson delivered too quickly has no flavor.
A good story must simmer slowly.