Chapter 20: Auren’s Growing Collection! The Start of the Exam!

Auren carefully examines the showcase with the knife. It’s heavily reinforced—the glass is extremely thick, and there are two separate locks securing it, clearly to prevent theft.One of the employees, noticing Auren’s growing interest, approaches him. It’s an old man, probably in his late sixties, who gives Auren a gentle smile.

“Interesting knife, isn’t it, boy? Young folks like you always seem drawn to these things, but I’d recommend staying far away from this one—it’s got a rather sinister story behind it.”

“Hehe, you just say that to make me even more interested, old man. You’re quite the schemer. I just sold something expensive to your store, which’ll definitely bring in a nice profit, so why don’t you entertain me a little?”

“Hehe, let me tell you the story, then. There once was a famous blacksmith named Benny Delon. But as it turned out, he was also a sick, twisted serial killer. He murdered 288 people, and after each kill, he forged a new knife—each one inspired by the victim and the method he used to kill them. These knives are known as Ben’s Knives.”

No way?!

The old man then confidently unlocks the showcase and pulls out the knife. “If you look closely, this one is numbered 241. It’s considered one of his more mediocre works, but personally, I really like this one.”

Carefully studying the man, Auren notices that his aura is extremely calm and serene. Far too composed and beautiful to belong to someone untrained.

A Nen user… I can’t afford to do anything stupid two days before the exam. There are bound to be Hunters in this city. Getting branded a thief now would be a disaster. At worst, the man has a Hatsu that prevents the theft of items, or somehow manages to affect me in other ways.

Auren then makes a decision. He pulls out his own Ben’s Knife and quickly shows it to the man, reading out the number. “223.”

“Unbelievable, kid… You’re a collector, huh?” the man responds, clearly surprised.

“Not yet, I only have one… but I’m certainly interested in starting a collection! Can you let me take a look? You can inspect mine in exchange,” Auren suggests with a smile.

“Sure, lad,” the elderly man replies, his eyes gleaming with curiosity as he examines Auren’s knife.

As Auren studies the Ben’s Knife with the number 241, his desire begins to grow even stronger.

I need to have it… I don’t know why, but these knives fascinate me.

“I’ll buy this knife… but 10 million is a little expensive... I thought they were only worth 5 million, so 10 seems like a steep price!” Auren says.

“Boy, these are priceless treasures. Five million? That’s the lowest number I’ve ever heard. Sorry, but I think 10 million is already severely undervalued. You probably don’t know, but these are forged in a way that can’t be replicated. They are individual masterpieces. It’s just a rumour, but it says that Benny Delon managed to capture the very soul of his victims in those knives. However, I’ve been encouraged to sell this one, it’s just gathering dust here.... how about 9.5 million—as thanks for showing me your own?”

Auren haggles a bit more and eventually manages to buy the knife for 9 million, leaving him with only 6 million left.

“Boy, one word before you leave. These knives carry a trace of pure evil. The story I told you isn’t just a tale—it’s the truth. Don’t use them lightly.”

Auren grins, “A trace of evil? I’d call it a trace of life, or like you said, a trace of a soul! You have a very grim outlook on things, old man. Evil lies in the eye of the beholder.”

The man nods, seemingly agreeing with Auren.

Satisfied, Auren returns to his hotel room.

As he sits down on his bed, he holds his two Ben’s Knives, one in each hand, using Shu and smiles in satisfaction as his Aura courses through them, empowering them.

After the exam, I’ll ask the Instructors if they know someone who can teach me some real knife or dagger skills. There’s bound to be someone in Hollow Blade who has some skills. I’ll just have to pay that person. I may like these knives, but my technique—the bits taught by Buno and Bunu—aren’t nearly enough to wield them skillfully. These knives deserve more.

With this new ‘toy’ in his possession, Auren sleeps soundly, his expression peaceful and satisfied.

When Auren wakes up, he immediately takes a shower and begins his daily Ren training to increase his Aura reserves. By now, he can maintain Ren for three and a half hours—of course, only while remaining still and not using any Hatsu.

After two hours of maintaining Ren, he hears his phone vibrate and notices a message from Bunu.

Maintaining his Ren, he reads it: “There will be an announcement in a few hours. It will instruct you to gather at Triangle Park on January 7th at 10 AM. It’s the triangle-shaped park in the center of Concordis. Be careful! I think the park will be blocked, and you’ll need a special visitor ticket. I haven’t figured out how to get one yet, but you'd better check out that park now! Of course, if you’re confident, you can try sneaking in—but you never know what kind of examiner is in charge of the exam. At worst, there might be checks, and anyone breaking the rules could be disqualified immediately. Some Hunters despise deception and value rules. Sneaking in seems too easy, so I recommend finding the correct solution to your problem.”

Auren immediately stops training and heads down to the hotel lobby.

At the reception desk, he approaches the receptionist with an innocent smile. “Excuse me, sir, I’d really love to visit the Park tomorrow, but I’ve been told it’ll be closed... Do you have any suggestions on how I might still be able to go?”

“Hehe, young boy, aren’t you a cheeky one. That hint wasn’t supposed to drop for a few more hours. Got some insider info, do you? Are you the son of some high-ranking Hunter? Well, not that it matters to me. Here you go, little Hunter!” the receptionist says, handing him a ticket that reads: “Triangle Park Entry Ticket – Valid on January 7th.”

Auren feels something is off with the ticket and uses Gyo, spotting the logo of the hunter association, written with Aura.

This luck is almost too scary… Yesterday, the knife. Today, the ticket. Even the tour guide I met when I first arrived was a jackpot. I really hope I haven’t already used up all my luck.

Auren spends the rest of the day checking out the area around the park. He confirms that the park is, in fact, closed today—just as Bunu and the receptionist predicted. Later, he, with probably all the other candidates, receives a message on his phone, and a public note appears on the official Hunter website for those without phones or who haven’t registered their number. The message says the same thing Bunu told him, only a bit more vague.

Despite the park being completely blocked off, Auren doesn’t notice anything unusual or interesting from the outside.

Choosing not to take any risks, especially not with seasoned Hunters around, he refrains from sneaking in now. Instead, he conducts some quick research on the park itself.

According to his findings, the park contains a massive arena used for concerts and musicals, with a capacity of up to 50,000 people.

Definitely large enough for the Hunter Exam!

Deciding he’s done enough for the day, Auren stocks up on fresh clothes and supplies one final time, then returns to his hotel room. He trains right up until midnight and then stops, deciding to sleep for eight full hours without any Nen activity, making sure his body is in perfect condition for the next day.

Shortly after falling asleep, he’s disturbed by sounds outside—sirens, police cars, ambulances, and a swarm of public service vehicles arriving all around the park.

I need to calm down. The exam starts at 10. I have to ignore all this noise and get some sleep in.

Returning to bed, Auren forces himself back to sleep and wakes up at exactly 8 AM, just as he planned—well-rested and in excellent condition. Outside, the scene resembles a high-level government event. The park is surrounded by thousands of police officers and various agents.

Auren quickly showers, gets dressed, and prepares himself. He also pays the hotel to extend his stay for another week, just in case. Returning to his room, he looks out the window and sees something even more intense—thousands of public servants and police officers are struggling to hold back crowds of people trying to force their way into the park.

It’s like a damn fortress. They’re blocking everyone who tries to enter!

Finally, at 9 AM, Auren leaves the hotel and approaches the park. He walks to the nearest entrance and finds it blocked not by police, but by a group of men in black suits. In front of them, dozens of people lie unconscious on the ground. The surrounding crowd watches cautiously, unwilling to get involved or try to enter forcefully.

Are those... Hunters? Examiners? Charging in through the main entrance with brute force looks like a terrible idea. They all know Nen and can easily stop any candidate. Anyway, I should be able to enter without any issue. Well, only one way to find out!