After dealing with the "Ghoul," a figure of some notoriety in the Bounty Hunter community, Allen quickly sent the evidence of the kill and the photographs taken at the scene to the Hunter-exclusive website.
Before long, the 600 million Jenny bounty was wired into the designated bank account.
Allen was not stingy; he immediately split the total into three parts. One share was wired to Luna's account as promised, and the remaining two shares were split equally between himself and Bodoro.
Although the martial artist completely refused to take the money, Allen's insistence led to them each taking an even split.
With all that settled, the two finally took the woman they rescued from Zebulun into a café. They ordered some drinks and food, and then began discussing how to handle this victim who had suddenly awakened her Nen ability.
"What exactly is your ability?"
Once the waiter had served everything and left, Allen proactively asked.
The woman first chugged the entire cup of hot coffee in one breath, then answered with a wry smile: "I don't know either. I just desperately wanted to relieve the physical and mental pain I was in. Ever since that plush rabbit held me, it felt as though all my fear, despair, and physical pain vanished instantly."
"In other words, you weren't thinking about healing yourself, but about rejecting or repelling the pain," Allen said, a thoughtful expression on his face.
"Exactly! Also, I heard this is a power called Nen, right? Can you tell me what Nen actually is?" The woman's gray eyes scrutinized her savior sitting across from her.
Allen gently shook his head: "Don't rush. Let's first figure out the essence of your ability, and then confirm whether you truly want to join this community. Otherwise, telling you the secret of Nen now would not only not be a good thing, but it could actually harm you."
"The essence of my ability?" The woman instantly activated her ability, summoning the plush rabbit and gently poking the doll's soft head. "Isn't it simply to quickly heal the target's injuries through a hug?"
"No. Of course not. Because when you awakened your Nen ability, you weren't thinking about healing yourself, but about rejection and repulsion. This means the plush rabbit's true ability isn't recovery; it's the repulsion of everything you reject from your body, whether it be an emotion or a physical wound. As for the healing, that is merely the inevitable result of the repulsion process," Allen said, stating his guess with interest.
It must be said, this ability was truly powerful, so much so that even he couldn't help but entertain the thought of stealing it.
"Re... rejection and repulsion?!" The woman's face showed an expression of disbelief upon hearing this.
But quickly, she picked up a small knife used for cutting cake on the table and sliced a small cut on her finger. She then concentrated intensely, desperately trying to mentally repel the pain coming from the wound.
The large plush rabbit immediately embraced her from behind, and in less than a second, the wound instantly healed.
Seeing this, the woman couldn't help but exclaim: "It really is the power of rejection and repulsion! As long as I generate an intense thought of rejecting the pain in my heart, the wound completely disappears, without even leaving a scar!"
"Then try to see if you can make this coffee cup disappear through rejection," Allen said, handing over an empty coffee cup.
He needed to test and confirm the range of targets for this ability, as well as its potential limitations.
Over the next few minutes, the woman continuously activated her ability until she was breathless and had exhausted most of her Aura before stopping.
The testing established a few key points.
First, the power of rejection needed to be completed through the plush rabbit's embrace; this was a necessary prerequisite. If the target could not be embraced, the ability could not be activated.
Second, the rejection had to be a subjective desire, and if that desire was not strong enough, it would not produce any effect.
Finally, and most importantly, the ability could only be used on living things. When faced with a non-living object, the plush rabbit would stand motionless.
"An interesting ability. And very rare, with high potential for development," Allen commented, stroking his chin with a slight smile.
"Phew, can you tell me what Nen is now?" The woman wiped the sweat from her forehead, looking quite exhausted.
Allen nodded lightly: "Of course. But before that, I need to briefly tell you about the situation in the Nen user community. The truth is, there aren't many people in the world who can use Nen, and most of them are registered Hunters with the Hunter Association. Apart from that, there are wanted criminals like Zebulun who kill indiscriminately, and bandit groups. This means if you join the Nen user community, you are exposing yourself to an environment full of hidden dangers."
"Wait! Are you saying... all Hunters are Nen users, right?" the woman suddenly interrupted.
"Yes. I believe that fact alone should make you realize how dangerous it is to become a Nen user. Especially since your ability is so unique; once it's known by certain people who steal others' abilities…"
Allen paused deliberately here, intentionally leaving the rest of the sentence unsaid.
"Damn it! Stop talking! Just tell me what I should do now."
The woman was clearly terrified. Even the joy she had experienced from gaining a superpower had quickly vanished, replaced by a deep, visceral fear.
After all, the terrifying death rate of the Hunter Exam was well-known, and those who obtained their license weren't much better off; the number of disappearances and deaths among registered Hunters remained consistently high every year.
Compounded by her recent experience of being kidnapped, tortured, and abused by the "Ghoul," nearly being killed, dismembered, and eaten, it was inevitable that such a dangerous environment would cast a huge shadow over her psyche.
"It's simple. You now have three choices. The first is to pass the exam and join the Hunter Association, where you can learn and train with powerful veteran Hunters on how to better use your ability for combat, ultimately achieving self-preservation. The second is to pretend nothing happened, never use your ability for the rest of your life, and live out your remaining years as an ordinary person. The third is to sell your ability to me. In return, I can transfer all the money in my card, which is over one billion Jenny, into your designated account."
Allen calmly presented the three options.
He didn't even try to hide his desire for the ability, stating upfront that he was willing to offer all the money he had in exchange.
"Sell it to you?" A flicker of interest flashed in the woman's eyes.
After all, over a billion Jenny was quite tempting for an ordinary person.
Especially for someone from her civilian class, whose monthly income did not exceed 300,000 Jenny.
"Yes. I won't lie to you, I am the type of Nen user who possesses the power to steal others' abilities. So, all we need to do is sign a contract, then you attack me once and immediately declare that you give up. Your Nen ability will be taken by me, and you will never possess Nen again for the rest of your life. What do you say? Is this the path you choose?" Allen asked, his expression serious.
The woman was clearly torn, but she finally grit her teeth and gave a definite answer: "Yes! I don't want this power, and I certainly don't want my future life to be full of danger. I just want to live a quiet life, preferably with endless money."
"Everyone has their own ambitions, and there is nothing wrong with wanting a stable life. Furthermore, this choice aligns perfectly with some of the characteristics your ability exhibits. Come, let's sign the contract and complete this transaction…"
As Allen spoke, he pulled out his phone and logged into his bank account.
In less than five minutes, he had transferred every last penny of his savings to the woman.
Upon seeing the long string of extra digits in her account, the woman just as decisively relinquished her ability and left to live the luxurious life she desired with the money.
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You can read the ahead chapter on Patr-eon if you're interested: p-atre-on.c-om/Overgod [Just remove the hyphen to access normally]