"Attack range +95 meters, Health steal 100%!"
"That's enough!"
Another half month had passed, and after calculating the time, Oboro was deeply satisfied with the numbers displayed on the system panel. The skill effect of Absolution had already reached its maximum life stealing value. Now, only the attack range would continue to increase. His critical hit damage had also reached 100%.
From their hunts during this period, Oboro estimated that they had eliminated at least a quarter of the entire Chimera Ant nest. In the second half of their operation, the division commanders had become noticeably more vigilant, no longer taking the initiative to attack. Even the hunting routes of their soldier ants had become surprisingly covert.
Large scale hunts no longer possible
As warlike as the Chimera Ants were, their divisional commanders were no fools. Faced with absolute power, even they knew when to make strategic decisions.
Oboro believed that the curiosity and desire to explore Nen had reached its peak among the current division commanders. Their purpose had been accomplished.
Next, it would be time for the Hunters' Association to make its appearance.
The only attributes Oboro needed to improve were attack range, armor, and magic power, all of which had virtually no upper limit. Life steal and critical strike had reached their maximum potential. The stronger one's abilities became, the more difficult it was to advance, even though Oboro had reached this point with great difficulty.
In reality, the core elements that truly had no ceiling for him were attack range, magic power, and armor.
Aside from the effect of Absolution, his Nen rating on the board had also risen one rank to 6th.
Today was May 6th. Their team's hunt had taken more than a month longer than Oboro had expected. He'd originally expected Kite and the Association to arrive in NGL around mid-April, but reality had proven slower than his calculations, even though he'd asked Menchi to pass on the information in advance.
Killua and Gon had definitely left Greed Island too late, triggering a butterfly effect that caught up with Kite. If they delayed any longer, something catastrophic would probably happen. Once the Ant King was born and remained in the NGL, the Hunters Association would face more than just the king and his three royal guards.
"Let's go," Oboro said. "We don't need to worry about what happens next."
Soon, he led Anthony and Fant to a relatively hidden spot within the ants' territory where they could hide. The extermination of the Chimera Ants would come to a temporary halt.
"Captain," Anthony spoke as they moved. "The ants must know about us by now. Not to mention that the one called Korudo has been released. Once someone comes in contact with the ants, they'll learn of our existence. If the news reaches Pariston, even if it gets back to the Association, the management will realize that we've been aware of this crisis for some time, but didn't report it before.
"That's okay," Oboro replied casually. "Those who discover this won't leave alive. When the news inevitably breaks, Netero and the Association won't have the energy to focus on us."
Anthony seemed to understand.
At the Hunters' Association headquarters, Pariston sat in his small office, studying documents with a smile on his face. The papers contained detailed information about the Chimera Ants, a report from Kite's investigation team.
The problem, as Pariston understood it, was that Kite and his team, along with Ging's son and young Zoldyck, had traveled to South Pis after completing a month-long investigation in Kakin. They had just finished their journey and were on their way to the Mitne Federation.
In other words, Dragon had never been to NGL, so how did he know the Chimera Ant nest was there?
The report contained minimal information about the ants, only the location of the nest and the danger the species posed. Now the Association had issued a mission, sending professional hunters to the area. Although the document had raised the danger level of the Chimera Ants, these hunters still failed to take the threat seriously. Only when they arrived and suffered heavy casualties would their attitudes change completely.
Pariston's cell phone rang. After answering, he spoke briefly with the caller before hanging up.
Oboro is already in NGL!
Pariston trusted his intuition, but the person on the other end of the line had just suggested that Oboro's team was likely headed for the "Transit Station" instead.
The Transit Station was a checkpoint set up on an island at the farthest point humans could reach in the sea between the Human Continent and the Dark Continent. It represented the farthest edge of the human world, not the imaginary New Continent mentioned by Kakin. That "new continent" was closer to the Dark Continent and had long been beyond human control.
The informant had reported finding traces of Oboro's team members, which shook Pariston's earlier certainty.
Is he preparing to leave for the Dark Continent?
Was Oboro's plan to use the Chimera Ants to distract the Association and trap the President, choosing this very moment to achieve his true goal? If that was the case, Pariston felt he'd been completely duped!
What Oboro really coveted wasn't the Chimera Ants themselves, but their role and value in the current situation, creating a gap for him to break through Netero's blockade.
The game between him and Beyond had ended up making things unnecessarily complicated for Oboro.
The position of the President, the Chimera Ants, Netero, perhaps from the beginning to the end, Oboro hadn't cared about any of it, had deliberately tried to give Pariston the wrong impression.
Too cunning, this man.
The Dark Continent had always been Oboro's ultimate goal, and Pariston had reason to believe that Oboro would take the initiative and venture into this unknown world.
After some thought, he turned on his phone again and dialed a number. There was no waiting tone during the connection attempt, just busy signals and no reception.
No signal
Both NGL and the transit station were possible locations.
Is it the Chimera Ants or the Dark Continent?
Pariston felt the pressure building. The battle of wits between them hinged on who knew the other better, just as he and Beyond had teamed up to target the President and orchestrate the ant situation.
The problem was that both options were so confusing that it was almost impossible to discern the truth.
In his mind's eye, Pariston saw Oboro standing before him, staring at him with a mocking expression.
"Tell the President? Ask him to stop Oboro"
"But that would only delay matters, not only for the President, but even for V5, the seriousness of Oboro sneaking into the Dark Continent is no less significant than the Chimera Ant threat itself. Perhaps the President will be entrusted with the important task of intercepting Oboro, thus abandoning the ant mission. In that case, the chess game I so carefully prepared for the President would be rendered useless. V5 could eliminate the ants themselves, and the President would survive".
Pariston's mind was working feverishly.
Oboro forced him to choose between Netero and himself.
Would it be the old man who died, or Oboro who fell?
If Oboro broke his promise and ventured to the Dark Continent, Netero would move to stop him, and war would inevitably break out between them. Since Oboro would be violating a taboo, Netero would probably not hold back. This was a matter that affected the entire human world.
"It's really too difficult to handle," Pariston whispered, his eyes growing somber. Though he maintained his smile, the tone of his voice would make anyone cringe.
His original plan had been sound. If Oboro interfered with the Chimera Ants, he would inevitably reveal clues that Pariston could use against him. Then, after Netero's death, if Oboro successfully became president, Pariston would reveal the incriminating evidence that Oboro had discovered the Chimera Ant threat long ago but had concealed it, indirectly placing the blame for Netero's death on Oboro's shoulders.
Though Oboro was highly respected within the Association, he still couldn't compare to the President.
Moreover, Pariston intended to turn not only the entire Association against Oboro, but also the V5 behind him. He knew Oboro's background, that he had ties to the underworld. The Fells family had kept the V5 in check through various operations, but the balance was only temporary.
Pariston was certain that several V5 leaders had always been suspicious and hostile toward Oboro.
This incident could be the final straw that tipped the scales and made V5's top management determined to eliminate Oboro at all costs. Even if they failed, it would be a devastating blow to the Fells family.
But now Pariston had to make a choice: focus on NGL, knowing Oboro was there and would witness Netero's farewell? Or keep watching the transit station, looking for hard evidence of Oboro's crimes?
Oboro was different from Beyond. Beyond's fangs had always remained hidden from V5, but Oboro's were already exposed. Once Oboro broke the taboo, there would only be one outcome: death instead of being cornered like Beyond.
It was a fifty percent chance either way.
"We need to be flexible," Pariston mused, studying the documents again.