One of the quickest ways to test educational achievements is to pit students taught by different instructors against each other in a competition.
According to the original setting, only the exceptionally gifted Killua could be considered an "SSR of extraordinarily rare talent," capable of disregarding age differences and fighting above his weight class. The other Zoldyck children were at a normal "SR" or "R" level of talent. This is likely why Kikyo and Silva both believed Illumi, who was a year younger than me, was naturally weaker than me in overall strength.
Glancing at Illumi, who was half a head shorter than me, I admitted that the physical differences caused by age were quite apparent between children. My greatest advantage lay precisely in this.
Perhaps with the intention of making the competition "fun while teaching," they explained the rules in a game-like manner.
Huh?
How is this different from the original setting? Where was the strictness and terror they were supposed to instill?
My personal conclusion was that they adapted their teaching to the individual. Because Killua's talent was so astonishing, the Zoldycks directly escalated his training difficulty to a hellish level to fully tap into his potential. This is what they call "the capable should bear more burdens," isn't it? Poor Killua.
Then, how much potential do I have? They've been relatively lenient with me, haven't they? The progress of my "specialized curriculum" was also delayed by a year to accommodate Illumi's schedule, so my primary role was actually to be Illumi's sparring partner.
Or, thinking more darkly, a source of sustenance?
Well, the Zoldycks didn't raise me for over five years for nothing. It's only right that I repay them to the best of my ability. It doesn't matter.
The game was called "Hunter Game," with a time limit from 12 PM to 8 PM, and the area was the entire back mountain within their territory. There were two ways to win.
For the "prey," the victory condition was to hide until the time limit expired without being caught.
For the "hunter," the victory condition was to catch the "prey" and seize its heart.
"Seizing the heart" meant snatching a red sticker placed on the lower left side of the chest, where the heart is. Does that sound familiar? Yes, in the "real world," there's a similar game called "Name Tag." The difference is that the penalty for failing in the "Hunter Game" is being whipped, with the number of lashes determined by the final results.
After affixing the sticker to Illumi, who was playing the "prey," Kikyo took out a second sticker and attached it to me.
"?" According to the game rules, only the "prey" should have a sticker.
"So, I can also snatch?" Illumi immediately understood the meaning of the second sticker.
"Yes, there are no eternal prey, nor eternal hunters," Silva affirmed. "The strong rule, that is the unchanging truth."
Ten minutes after the prey Illumi departed, it was my turn as the hunter to set out.
In terms of environmental familiarity, Illumi, who followed me around to collect leaf specimens, had also roamed the entire back mountain, making his familiarity not much worse than mine. Coupled with his exceptional intelligence, he certainly wouldn't be easy to find.
Kikyo had taught me tracking and counter-tracking methods in the "specialized curriculum," and Illumi would naturally have learned the same from Silva. Although he was young, he had received professional training, so any obvious traces he left in the forest were likely intended to mislead me.
No, not just misdirection. I discovered the first trap: a deep pit filled with sharpened wooden stakes.
There were no traps here before, and it wasn't a trap that Illumi could have made alone in such a short time. So, were these added specifically for this game?
Oh, yes. They needed to test the results of their training. They believed that after training, I should be able to avoid these common, dangerous traps. Yes, you are not unfamiliar with these things at all. They are part of the "specialized curriculum."
Aside from electric shocks and whipping, the content of the "specialized curriculum" was quite extensive, but I'm too lazy to mention it all. It was just the usual training exercises to improve reaction time, judgment, speed, and physical fitness, etc. What else could there be? Learning to refine chakra? (Laughs)
Speaking of chakra, looking at this vast forest, these deadly traps, and the pursuit to snatch the target objective, it really has the vibe of the Chunin Exams from "Naruto."
No, I can't let it bleed into that. I must remember this is the set of "Hunter x Hunter." Even though there aren't any S-rank rogue ninjas like Orochimaru lurking about, losing the game means getting whipped.
The additional traps in the game made me more cautious, and their existence was also an obstacle for Illumi, preventing him from running as far as expected.
As the saying goes, "stand high and see far." I climbed a relatively tall tree nearby. I couldn't leap onto it in one go, but I could manage to jump between branches at short distances. Moreover, I didn't have to worry about broken branches leaving traces, because I was the "hunter," and it was the "prey" who should worry about leaving footprints.
Illumi was hiding very well, possibly preparing for a prolonged engagement. Maintaining high-speed movement would undoubtedly consume too much energy, so I jumped down from the tree and switched to walking.
Children have much less stamina than adults. Enduring until today with a child's body but an adult's mind, experiencing countless moments of powerlessness, I understand deeply.
Also, their stomachs grow hungry quickly, and after eating, they easily feel sleepy. This is the stage where they most follow their biological instincts.
...I'm a little tired.
Since I'm the "hunter," I don't have to fear being discovered by the "prey." I decided to be a bit kinder to myself. Using parts scavenged from the traps, I went to the riverbank and speared a few fish. Then, gathering resin and dry leaves along the way, I created friction to start a fire and roasted the fish on the spot. The taste wasn't exactly praiseworthy.
I remembered a team-building event I participated in once in the "real world," which involved barbecuing. Unfortunately, no one was skilled at it, and in the end, we barely ate any meat, mostly just smelling the smoke.
This time, I improved. I managed to eat until I was about eighty percent full—eating meat is the true meaning of life!
As the sunlight began to fade, I finally found Illumi.
Alright, being a hunter isn't that easy. This profession requires skill, and even more so, it requires a mind. I admit my mind is at an ordinary level. Regrettably, I only inherited the Zoldyck family's physical prowess and not their intellect. Hmm? If my mind also changed, then I wouldn't be me, would I?
Alright, I also admit that as an immigrant character, I can't compare to native-born Zoldycks in hunting talent. It's an instinct that stems from the soul, driving the young Illumi Zoldyck to make the optimal choices.
The law of the jungle has always existed, but the law of the jungle in the "real world" is clearly different from here.
We distance ourselves from bloodshed, we praise civilization, we uphold virtue, we call for nobility.
We also have cruelty, we have indifference, we have violence, we have crime.
But we have been tamed by civilization; we have shed our claws and teeth.
I don't need to swing my fists or fight. I only need to invest time and labor to live a normal life. The rules here, however, are more direct and primitive than I imagined.
The evidence for this is that weapons were forbidden in the game, so Illumi chose to bite and wrestle with me.
I was very surprised at the time. I thought the quiet and well-behaved him wouldn't do something so wild, like a beast losing its mind.
I had intended to exchange a few polite moves with him and snatch his sticker to win the game, then be done with it.
I never expected him to be not a docile pet cat, but a wild cat that only bites, unusually ferocious.
In comparison, I am not a hunter. I am merely a herbivore with no offensive capabilities, just slightly larger than him.
Yes, I am a corporate slave, a seasoned corporate slave.
I recall that since coming to this otherworldly game, apart from the infant stage when I was unable to care for myself and had to interact with others, I have not had any intimate contact with anyone other than hugs and pats on the head.
As for the interrogation training in the "specialized curriculum," the pain I experienced was on a level I had never felt in the "real world," and it always felt strange and unreal.
At this moment, perhaps due to the threat to my life, my primal survival instinct surged, and my sensory acuity amplified several times, causing time to slow down.
I felt the touch of his teeth so clearly, the touch of my tongue beneath his teeth, the warm, moist breath exhaled between them, mixed with the taste of blood and saliva. The details were excessively abundant, incredibly delicate, no longer explainable as an "otherworldly game." It was intense and real.
So real, in fact, that my heart felt a stinging pain.
If, if this wasn't a game but reality, then were my health bars and dialogue boxes just my own crazy imaginings to satisfy myself?
If this is a game, but just too real for my comprehension, then dying here could verify whether this world is a game.
Am I a calm madman, or a player in a game?
Either way, it points to a destructive end.
Now is a good opportunity. If I am killed by him, I can learn the truth of this world.
I released my hand from Illumi's neck and calmly ceased resisting.
My carotid artery was right against his teeth. He knew my pulse and wouldn't be deterred by my surrender. If he wished, he could kill me with absolute certainty.
Come on, kill me.
Without further thought, I looked up at the sky.
So high, and so far away.
Just like what I saw during my final descent in life.
It was new every day, while I decayed day by day on the ground, crawling like an insect, waiting to be allowed burial.
So tired.
To live is to breathe, to run, to toil.
I long to be buried in the earth, to be scattered into the sea, to fall into the belly of a vulture. Anything is fine, anything at all. I wouldn't have to think about anything, do anything, without hope or despair, only freedom—eternal slumber, so captivating.
"...Sister?" A voice filled with confusion, even a hint of panic.
Illumi hadn't killed me. He held the sticker from my chest—his objective was victory, not my life.
"..." Sister is very disappointed in you.
Whatever.
"Millus! Why did you suddenly give up!!!!!!" Kikyo, who had rushed forward, her voice clearly laced with anger, exclaimed, "You clearly..."
Speaking of which, why was I competing with Illumi?
"No!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Kikyo's electronic eyes flickered red with alarm as she began to scream, startling the nearby birds. Her dialogue box could barely contain the surging exclamation marks, "No! No!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Why did I even try?
"Millus!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Why did I even think?
"You can't!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Why am I even alive?
"No! No! No! No! No!!!!!"
And so, I gave up thinking.
"No! This child, this child, she's done it again!!!" As Silva placed a hand on Kikyo's shoulder, a hint of pain mixed into her anger, "She's got that look again! It's the look of the dead! I can't stand it anymore! No! No!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I must..."
Must what?
It doesn't matter anymore.
I will no longer think about anything, or any consequences. Therefore, the furious Kikyo could not move me at all.
Just like when I was born, Silva did not stop Kikyo. This time, Illumi was present at the scene, so he also held down Illumi's shoulders.
They watched as Kikyo dragged me to one of the classrooms used for the "specialized curriculum." At this point, there was no need for unnecessary subtle remarks. Let me call it the "interrogation room," or perhaps the "dungeon." Either would do; it no longer mattered.
What mattered was that Kikyo's anger had reached its limit.
I had misjudged earlier. Illumi was too young and hadn't tasted killing, so he wouldn't do it. But Kikyo, with her extensive experience, definitely would. I would finally receive the end I had long awaited.
Game over.
With my head bowed, I secretly smiled.