Morin firmly believed in the saying, "As long as you dig well with a hoe, there's no corner you can't topple!"
After chatting with Ging for a bit, Morin glanced at the screen showing Gon and Killua battling the barber Binolt, then bid farewell to Ging.
"Here, take this!"
Before leaving, Ging casually tossed a card to Morin.
Card: Doraemon, No. 22, Designated Pocket Card, Difficulty to Obtain: A-Rank, Card Limit: 15.
Effect: An endangered beast with the habit of stuffing things into the pouch on its belly. Some Doraemon pouches contain very rare items.
Morin looked at the card's design, featuring an orange cat with a "king" character on its forehead and a tail resembling a spiky ball. The most noticeable feature was the bell on its neck and the pouch on its belly.
This description, this illustration, this name... It's like a weakened version of "Doraemon"!
"I don't know why, but I feel this cat really resonates with you. Maybe it's because, like you, it has some gadgets~?"
Isn't that the truth?
His own Nen ability was inspired by Doraemon???
Morin inexplicably pocketed the card.
[PS: This card appears in chapter 134, page 14 of the manga, obtained by Shalnark. It's a real designated pocket card. It's also a tribute to Doraemon by the author.]
Well, since the author pays homage to Doraemon, isn't it reasonable for me to use Doraemon's gadgets in the Hunter world?
Feeling justified, Morin stored the card and recalled another point.
"When playing the Greed Island game, I discovered a very interesting card tool, Card No. 007, the Designated Card Tool, [Pregnancy Stone]."
"Wearing this 3-kilogram stone for a month, regardless of gender, guarantees pregnancy after a week. There are male and female stones; wear the stone of the desired birth gender..."
Hmm, this is the card Gon and the others acquired by exchanging information about the Bomberman Genthru's abilities during a gathering.
The author subtly gave the [Pregnancy Stone] a prominent close-up.
The shapes of the male and female stones... well, how to put it, resemble a boy's third leg and a girl's stormy area.
Morin seriously suspected that the author intentionally drew these shapes.
[Those interested can check the manga. The shape is... well, you'll understand.]
Listening to Morin, Ging's lips and eyes twitched violently.
Usually indifferent, his face now bore rare dark lines, and his fingers trembled uncontrollably.
The joy of obtaining the [Contract] was now completely overshadowed!
"Hey, I say!"
Ging, with a darkened face, interrupted Morin, "Do you think I used the Pregnancy Stone for Gon...?"
Ging couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence.
Otherwise, why did you mention Gon's mother in the message you left for him?
Gon didn't listen, stopping the tape halfway through.
It's hard not to suspect that Gon is a product of the [Pregnancy Stone].
Perhaps even the author had this idea, otherwise, he wouldn't have designed such a card and given it a special close-up?
"No, I'm just making a guess, though it might be very close to the truth..."
Of course, Morin wouldn't say this out loud.
But what he said was quite close to his guess.
"Close to what truth!"
Ging couldn't hold back and shouted a curse.
"I've never used any Greed Island tools, never!!"
"Okay, understood. No need to get so worked up."
Morin waved his hand, looking calm and collected.
What's that saying?
Explaining is covering up, covering up is the truth?
Whether Ging used the [Pregnancy Stone] to conceive Gon... only he knows for sure.
"Well, I'll be off then."
Ging called out to Morin, who was about to leave.
"Didn't you say you went to the V5 Navigation Hall and got a lot of Dark Continent intel?"
"Yeah, I did."
Morin didn't turn around; he knew what Ging wanted to say.
So before Ging could speak, he said:
"I'll make a copy of the data and have it sent to you by old Ickshonpe. I'm off to handle some business now."
---
"If things go smoothly, we might be able to add a few new members to our team," Morin said before disappearing from sight.
"This guy..." Ging shook his head as Morin vanished. Clutching the [Contract] scroll against his chest, Ging's heart began to beat with a slow-burning excitement. He had been waiting for the chance to venture to the Dark Continent for years.
In a city on the Ejine Continent, inside a rather grand-looking hospital...
"Don't worry, your sister will be fine." A nurse comforted the man sitting on a bench outside a surgery room with a red light glowing above its door.
The man had a hairstyle resembling the back of a pangolin, similar to Ging's, with a fringe covering his left eye. He anxiously rubbed his hands together and occasionally looked up, revealing a face that seemed to blend directly into his neck without a chin. His entire demeanor exuded a melancholy aura as he stared unblinkingly at the red light that had been on for quite some time.
He was worried about the situation inside the surgery room. However, according to the doctors, the therapy had been quite effective, with at least an 80% chance of a successful operation, so there was no need for excessive worry. On the other hand, he was also concerned about his sister's post-surgery recovery and the debt from medical expenses.
These were areas that required money, and the amounts were not insignificant. In the Hunter world, with its six continents teeming with countless beasts and poisonous insects, the chances of contracting bizarre diseases were not low. Treatment was extremely difficult, and without considerable wealth, it was impossible to afford the medical expenses.
Leorio had learned medicine because he watched his dear friend Pietro suffer and die due to the inability to afford treatment. Even with money, some illnesses couldn't be cured, as in the case of the world's top billionaire, Battera. His loved one passed away under such circumstances, forcing him to pin his hopes on Greed Island when modern medicine failed.
This chinless man with a pangolin-like hairstyle had also been running around trying to gather funds after his sister fell gravely ill. But in the face of the exorbitant medical costs, it was like a drop in the ocean.
Fortunately, the owner of the welfare institution where his sister stayed was an angel, willing to use the institution's funds for her treatment. This barely covered the surgery costs but left the welfare institution with a huge debt, which even selling his Hunter license multiple times couldn't repay.
He had already sold his Hunter license while raising funds for his sister's medical expenses. Now that his sister's condition was about to be cured, he couldn't forget his gratitude and needed to gather a large sum to repay the welfare institution for covering his sister's medical expenses.
However...
The debt, amounting to over a billion, was suffocating him.
"Should I really accept that man's offer?" the chinless, melancholic man murmured, recalling the man with a scarred face and a Guan Yu-style beard, whose hearty laughter echoed in his mind. The offer was 1.5 billion Jennies for official personnel and 200 million Jennies for important pending participants, as quoted by the generous man named Beyond.
According to him, he planned to explore unknown lands, and the man's Nen ability matched his requirements perfectly.
"Fifteen billion Jennies..." the chinless, melancholic man calculated silently. "With that amount, I could barely cover the welfare institution's debt and my sister's subsequent treatment and nutrition expenses..." He pondered quietly.
Suddenly, the light in front of him dimmed, causing the chinless, melancholic man to instinctively look up. He saw a handsome man in a trench coat standing before him.
"You're Kelikuch, right?"
Morin smiled, extending his hand.
"I'm Morin, a Tool Specialist and a Professional Hunter."
"Tool Specialist? Professional Hunter?!" The melancholic, chinless man, Kelikuch, looked up, puzzled at Morin.
"What do you want with me?" he asked, standing up and shaking Morin's hand.
"Here's the thing: I'm planning to explore an unknown land sometime in the next year or two. I heard you're quite capable, so I'm inviting you to join us," Morin said bluntly.
Another exploration of unknown lands? Kelikuch was taken aback. How did this new guy, just like the previous one named Beyond, say the same thing?
"Has someone already invited you?" Morin could tell from Kelikuch's expression.
"Have you accepted their invitation?"
TN: Does anyone knows this Kelikuch I have seen the expedition wiki page but no name is similar.
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