HBWnovel Chapter 46 – Two Star Hunter
Chapter 46 – Two Star Hunter
In the crowd, Illumi—who had been absentmindedly tilting his head back and forth, producing faint "click-click" sounds—suddenly stopped. His expression, which had remained neutral up until now, turned slightly curious. "...Larry." Where had he heard that name before?Satotz quickly snapped out of his initial shock, forcibly reining in his composure. He cleared his throat and turned back to the room, now filled with murmuring examinees. With a firm, authoritative voice, he cut through the noise. "The Hunter Exam has now officially begun."he sheer pressure radiating from Arcanine was undeniable. It was stronger than him. Even the dog Larry was riding… was stronger than him. Hisoka’s lips curled into a twisted smile. The more he looked at Larry—his relaxed posture, his easy-going expression, the carefree way he rode his beast while others struggled to run—the more terrifying the gap between them seemed. "Mr. Larry… is this also a Nen beast?" Satotz's voice wavered slightly as he turned to glance at the giant dog running beside him.
The hot air it exhaled was enough to distort the space around its breath, creating a visible heatwave in the tunnel. Even though it wasn’t doing anything threatening, Satotz couldn’t help but feel its presence pressing down on him. A chill ran down his spine. ‘This beast… was dangerous.’ Even his normally fluid running rhythm stuttered slightly. What Satotz didn’t know was that Arcanine had a natural "Intimidation" ability.
Even when it wasn’t trying to exert pressure, its sheer presence was enough to unsettle people around it. And yet, Larry simply patted its head and grinned. "Yeah, this is Arcanine. It’s my mount. Cute, right?" He ruffled the thick, fluffy fur on its head with both hands, clearly enjoying the sensation.
"WOOF!" Arcanine let out a happy bark, its massive tail wagging so fast it blurred. Sparks of electricity crackled from its mouth. Satotz could only stare. Larry was petting a creature that exuded a presence stronger than most Hunters.
At this point, Satotz was numb to being surprised by Larry. But there was one thing that had genuinely caught him off guard earlier. Larry… wasn’t even a Hunter yet.
Just moments ago, in front of everyone, Satotz had unintentionally revealed his shock at seeing Larry here. The reason? He had assumed Larry was already a licensed Hunter. Just like Menchi before him, he had taken one look at Larry and believed he was someone who had passed the exam long ago. The idea that someone like him was only now taking the Hunter Exam was absurd. And yet, here he was.
As if reading his thoughts, Larry raised an eyebrow. "Hmm? What is it?"
Satotz snapped out of it and exhaled. "Actually, Mr. Larry, there’s something I should inform you about." Larry glanced at him curiously. "After Pyorn and I submitted our reports about your past achievements, the Hunter Association reviewed them. As a result, they’ve officially drafted your merits and submitted a proposal for your rank."
Larry’s eyebrow twitched slightly. "My merits?"
"Yes. You’ve made three major contributions. First, you eliminated the Death aura infesting the Karym Ruins, also known as the 'Land of Death.' Second, you purged the lingering Death aura from the Solvren Ruins. And finally, you took down two S-Class criminals from the infamous 'Seven Deadly Sins'—Envy and Wrath. Given the significance of these achievements, the Association has deemed your contributions exceptional." He paused briefly, then let out a wry smile. "Because of that… they’ve decided to directly promote you to a Two-Star Ruins Hunter."
Larry blinked. "...Huh?" To become a One-Star Hunter, you had to make a major contribution in a specific field. To reach Two-Star, you needed to train a One-Star Hunter as your disciple—an entirely different level of prestige. But Larry… had skipped all of that. His achievements were so overwhelming that the Association had decided to make an exception and award him the Two-Star status directly. It was unprecedented.