Chapter 17: Setting Off! Stuck at Yorknew!

Auren spends the most interesting week of his life in his instructors’ comfortable home.He trains daily, focusing on mastering Eternity. He’s figured out most of the sword’s abilities: he can conjure it in under a second, and make it vanish in half that time. Besides being incredibly sturdy and able to turn invisible, using In, the sword’s main strength lies in its perfect compatibility with Auren’s Aura, especially Limitless Waters. Shu becomes devastatingly effective—if Auren focuses his entire Aura into the blade, he can cleave through anything, even thick steel. He’s even tried damaging the sword, but it’s impossible. After all, it isn’t a real blade—it’s just a projection of Eternity, the original still pierced into his chest, lodged inside his heart.

This sword is incredible. It might not have flashy abilities, but it fits my style perfectly. I can use this for the rest of my life. Is Post-Mortem Nen involved? I swear my Aura feels like it is getting amplified if I focus it into the sword. This sword... it's tempting. But I can’t rely on it too much. It should stay as my trump card!

Auren also uses Azure Restoration to heal the remainder of Buno’s injuries on his hands. It takes nearly the whole week to completely eliminate the lingering damage—to heal them, or more accurately, to restore them to their original condition.

“I swear, in all my 45 years, my hands have never felt this good! This is incredible!” Buno exclaims, transforming both of his hands into monstrous-looking claws.

It also takes nearly a full week for Bunu to finish analyzing all the books and material they recovered from Lidor’s mansion.

“Brother, Auren—listen. I don’t think we should sell this material outright. Here’s what I propose: we make copies and sell only a limited number. We’ll carefully select what information we share. We need to be cautious. This treasure should go straight home. No one will attack us for it—our city is strong. Auren, while my brother and I are leaders of our people, there are several others as strong as us. Even the most powerful Nen users would think twice before trying anything. We’ll handle the materials, and we split any profit 50-50. But officially, you remain the owner of Lidor’s research material.”

“I agree. I don’t even have the contacts to sell something like this in the first place, so if you two are handling that, I’m more than fine with it,” Auren replies, satisfied.

I think I can trust them at this point. It’s pretty clear they want to recruit me too… and since I’m basically alone and don’t want to be tied to Meteor City, I might as well go along with it—for now.

“What is your… country, or sect—whatever it is—called?” Auren asks, realizing he’s never heard the name.

Bunu takes a deep breath before answering.

“We call ourselves the Hollow Blade. Our community is hidden within a mountain range. Part of the city is actually carved into the rock itself. It’s just south of the Yorbian border, in a narrow mountain pass. We’ve lobbied to ensure that neither Yorbia nor the small republic beneath it claims our valley as their territory. So even though we’re not internationally recognized, we function as an independent city-state.”

“Interesting. Anyway, it’s early December—exactly six years since I arrived here. If I want to make this year’s Hunter Exam, I need to register soon, right?” Auren asks.

Buno sighs. “We haven’t told you yet, but this might not be a great year to apply. We talked to a few contacts, and apparently, the location of the 283rd Hunter Exam is easy to find this year. But… there are rumors. Someone truly vile and twisted is in charge of it. We don’t have details, but there’s a good chance the exam won’t be combat-focused. That could make you fail without ever getting a real chance. I’m sorry, Auren—you’re strong and smart, but you still lack knowledge. And real-world experience.”

“It’s fine!” Auren shrugs. “Even if I fail, it’s not like I’ll die.”

“In that case, take this,” Bunu says, handing him a heavy, beetle-shaped phone.

“It’s a Beatle Phone. Clunky and heavy, but it works anywhere in the world. You’ll need it, especially if you become a Hunter. Every member of Hollow Blade has one—our community doesn’t have normal phone infrastructure,” Bunu explains.

“Thanks!” Auren says, recognizing the device from his inherited memories.

A day later, Elder Nibana personally visits Auren and hands him his ID.

To his complete surprise, the name on it reads: Auren Nilum.

“That’s… my name… my actual name,” Auren stammers.

“The Republic of Hass is one of the countries we work closely with. Didn’t take long to get you a real ID—in fact, not just any ID—your old one. Do you want information about your family?” she asks, her eyes sparkling with interest.

“I have no family. I only have this city—and my Instructors,” Auren responds coldly.

You won’t get to me through them. That was a nice try, but I simply do not care about my past.

“I see…” Nibana replies, her expression unreadable.

She then explains a few ways Auren can contact them—by phone, PC, or mail—before quietly taking her leave.

As soon as the door closes behind her, Auren releases his Ren, his Aura surging chaotically.

This bitch… she thinks she can blackmail me? Not a chance. I’m really starting to despise these Elders. Once I have enough power… I’ll…

A few days later, Auren is ready to set off. He carries a brand new backpack packed with non-perishable food, spare clothes, water bottles, essentials, ten million Jenny in cash, and his new phone.

“We’ll send you a message. You applied for the exam, right? We already got a lead,” Buno says. “This year’s exam will be held in the Federation of Ochima—one of the V5 countries. It’s the greatest nation in the world, if we are only talking about size.”

“We’ve got a few contacts who may be able to help you once you arrive there. We’ll contact you once we get some tips from our acquaintances there. Like we said, this year’s exam will be… different,” Bunu adds.

“I’ll talk to you soon then,” Auren replies with a smile.

Finally! I can’t wait to get out of here. I’m sick of Meteor City. Sick of the damn Mitene Union as well. I just want to leave.

“As soon as we make some copies of Lidor’s books and sell them, we’ll wire your share of the profit. But the ten million should last you a while,” Bunu says.

“Thank you, Instructors. If you ever need me—or my ability—call me. Just make sure you keep my circumstances and everything about me secret,” Auren says, his tone serious.

“Heh, don’t be silly, kid. You can trust us,” Buno replies.

Auren waves them goodbye and begins his journey north, planning to reach the next large city on foot.

Ten hours of trekking? No problem. Not even enough to call it training!

Even with a heavy backpack, Auren feels light. For the first time since arriving in Meteor City, he has nothing to do—and a whole month of free time.

Training Ten and Zetsu as he goes, Auren quickly reaches a small city, then hops on a bus to a larger one with an airport. From there, he books a flight to Yorknew City.

Whenever he has downtime, Auren trains: maintaining Ten, practicing Zetsu, applying Shu to random objects, and using En at least twice a day. His range now extends to an impressive 18 meters.

Upon arriving in Yorknew City, he tries to book the next flight to Ochima—only to learn that due to political turmoil and overbooked flights, the earliest flight he can get on is in 10 days.

Ten days… great. Guess I’m stuck here.

This city is massive… what should I do? Just stay in my room and train? No… I need to think. It’s been a while since I received those memories… Yorknew… Auction? No, not yet. What else…? Markets! The Bull Market!

He checks into a mid-range hotel for the night and leaves his backpack in the room—none of the contents are particularly valuable, so he can risk leaving them in his room. The next morning, he heads straight to the legendary Bull Market.

The Bull Market is a mix of auction, garage sale, and flea market. You spot an item, write your name and a bid on a small tag, and if no one outbids you by closing time, it’s yours. If there’s already a bid, you can write a higher one.

Of course, the inventory is constantly changing, but I bet most stuff takes a while to sell. I’ll spend the next few days combing through everything. Maybe I’ll find something special. Armor, equipment, trinkets, weapons… anything useful. Of course I’ll obtain everything that has an Aura as well. I can simply resell it after getting it appraised!

As soon as Auren enters the market, he’s overwhelmed by the crowd. It isn’t just a few hundred people—thousands swarm the streets. Small wooden stands line the roads, with some people simply sitting on blankets, their wares chaotically spread out before them.

Activating Gyo, Auren begins searching for anything that shows even a trace of Aura—a huge indicator of value.

Thirty minutes in, he suddenly feels a tug on his pants. Smiling knowingly, he turns and punches the culprit straight in the face.

The would-be thief—a boy probably just a few years older than Auren—hits the ground hard, blood gushing from his nose.

The crowd doesn’t even flinch. A few nearby voices mutter dismissively:

“Another street rat.”

“Filthy thief. Nice hit!”

“Serves him right. Let ’em all die.”

Auren sees more than just a thief. He sees potential.

Without hesitation, he grabs the boy and drags him into a nearby alleyway, yanking him away from the crowd.

“Your attempt to pickpocket me is going to cost you,” Auren says with a calculating smile, startling the bleeding thief.