Chapter 18 — Cooler and More Correct
The sharp-toothed old woman didn't say whether they'd passed or failed. The room was frozen in silence—something Leorio couldn't stand. Just like in the original story, he exploded.
"What the hell is this supposed to mean?! Is asking a question like that really necessary?! Maybe it's time we tried my way!"
Storming over to the wall, Leorio grabbed a thick wooden stick—about the size of a grown man's arm. He gave it a few test swings and seemed satisfied. His eyes locked onto the old crone, his face full of barely restrained violence.
"Maybe I'll just take her head and crash straight into the test center. Teach those freakish examiners a lesson! What do these twisted questions even have to do with being a Hunter? I've had enough of this whole damn exam!" he growled.
And make no mistake—Leorio wasn't joking. Nor was he bluffing. If he said he'd do something, he meant it. He had the guts to follow through.
"Times are tough. We should treasure our chances while we have them," Osren said, stepping up quickly and placing a steady hand on Leorio's weapon. "We finally made it through. Leorio, don't throw away our hard-earned victory."
"What are you talking about?" Leorio blinked in confusion and lowered the stick.
"We already gave the correct answer," Osren replied calmly.
"The correct answer? We didn't say anything," Leorio protested, frowning.
Gon was staring wide-eyed at Osren, then at the old woman, then back again. Eventually, he lowered his head, deep in thought, his face etched with serious contemplation.
"Exactly. Saying nothing was the correct answer," Osren said.
"Silence was the right answer?" Leorio muttered, catching on. He wasn't dumb—just impulsive. Now he was starting to understand.
Osren explained, "Like you said, there's no real correct answer to that question. And since the only two options were 1 or 2—both of which would be wrong—the only right thing to do… was to say nothing."
"Right. If there's no correct choice, then making any choice at all is wrong. There's no way to win based on the examiner's preferences, so it's meaningless," Leorio murmured, more to himself now.
At just the right moment, the old woman smiled with jagged teeth and said, "Congratulations."
They had passed.
Leorio was still mentally preparing to bash his way through the test with brute force—after all, he was the strongest one physically. To suddenly be told they'd cleared the stage so easily… it left him reeling. Life really was full of ups and downs.
The old woman had tested countless examinees over the years. To gain her approval, you either had to be so inherently kind that you couldn't bring yourself to answer… like Gon and his friends in the original story—or you had to be calm and clear-headed enough to realize that not answering was the only real answer.
The second type of answer—the correct one—comes from understanding what the question is really testing.
From the very beginning, this kid named Osren showed confidence and responded with silence. It was obvious he didn't fall into the first category. And examinees who can see through the real intent of a question like this are rare—even for someone like the old crone with the jagged teeth.
So she asked him, "Would you be willing to tell this old lady how you came to your answer?"
"Because it's the Hunter Exam," Osren replied. "The Hunter Exam is tough, sure—but it's still meant to be passable."
His words seemed to come out of nowhere, but in fact, they made perfect sense.
Kurapika nodded. "I get it now. Since it's an exam, there must be a standard answer. Otherwise, the whole test would be pointless. Just like Leorio said, both of the given choices were flawed. So the correct answer had to be the third option."
"That's what being clever means," said Osren.
Kurapika shook his head. "No—you're even more calm and perceptive than I am."
"This year's exam is going to be interesting. You're all quite impressive," the old woman with the jagged teeth said, clapping her hands. "The real path lies this way."
Clack.
Just as she finished speaking, two masked individuals with brightly colored hair stepped forward from the crowd. They walked to the left and, working together, pulled open two massive doors—revealing a long, dim corridor beyond.
"So cleverly designed," Osren murmured in admiration.
He was already familiar with the general plot and had a good idea of where the secret path would be. The moment they arrived, he'd silently examined the area, curious why so many others had failed to spot it.
After closely inspecting the surroundings himself, he realized the worn, mottled walls all looked the same—no visible irregularities, no patterns to follow. The clues were simply too scarce.
Only now, as the doors swung open, did the truth become clear. The right path had always been right under their noses. Without the right method, it was nearly impossible to find—harder than spotting the odd one out—because there was nothing to compare against.
"There's only one road ahead. Walk for about two hours, and you'll reach the mountaintop," the old woman said.
"If you still doubt me, then go ahead—take this old lady's head," she added, bowing slightly.
"Granny… I'm sorry." Leorio looked at the newly opened path, then back at Osren. Tossing aside his wooden stick, he bowed his head and apologized sincerely.
"There's no need to apologize. It's because I wanted to meet people like you that I took this job in the first place. Do your best to become fine Hunters," she said with a kindly squint.
"Yeah." The four of them responded with solemn nods before stepping into the tunnel.
"Take care. In a cabin under the cedar trees ahead, there lives a couple who serve as guides. If you qualify, they'll take you to the testing site," the old woman called out just before the door closed behind them.
"Phew…"
Gon exhaled a long breath and said, "Still… I can't figure out the answer, Osren."
Hahaha!
Before Osren could reply, Leorio and Kurapika burst into laughter.
Turns out Gon had been silently pondering the question this entire time—his earnest focus was both admirable and a little terrifying.
"You're still thinking about that?" Leorio grinned. "There's no need anymore!"
"Why not?" Gon asked.
"The test's over. We passed," Leorio replied.
"I know… but what if that situation really happened? What if you could only save one loved one? What would you do?" Gon asked, seriously.
That question silenced both Leorio and Kurapika. The joy of passing evaporated in an instant.
They hadn't considered that. They'd simply been relieved to pass. They never thought about the real implications. It wasn't meaningless—just something they had failed to notice.
"Gon, don't worry," said Osren, patting him on the shoulder. "As long as we become strong enough, threats like that won't matter. The only way forward is to keep getting stronger. If we can protect ourselves, then we can protect the people we care about."
That was the promise Osren made to himself as well.
Even though he now found himself in the deadly world of Hunters, he was fortunate to possess the power of the Face-Fruit. Strengthening himself and stockpiling "face" was his top priority. First survive—only then could anything else become possible.
This was just the beginning.