"Chairman Netero, can I ask about the current status of the two candidates?"
"Oh?"
Upon hearing this, Netero looked at Moses in surprise.
Although he didn't know why Moses suddenly asked this question, he still nodded at Moses.
"Examinee No. 516 and No. 338."
Seeing that Netero agreed, Moses then gave out the numbers of Tonpa and Shalnark.
516 is for Tonpa and 338 is for Shalnark.
After hearing the numbers Moses reported, Netero looked at Beans.
Moses also looked at Beans.
Facing the two people's gazes, Beans, who was familiar with all the information, quickly gave a reply, "The rescue team found Candidate No. 516 trapped in a tree surrounded by a pack of forest wolves 23:41 last night. After rescuing him, he expressed his desire to withdraw from the Hunter Exam."
"According to the rescue team, Candidate No. 516 was in a very poor mental state at the time and was suspected to be overly frightened, so the committee member in charge of the matter at the time followed the candidate's personal wishes and cancelled No. 516's test qualification."
"As for Candidate No. 338..."
At this point, Beans paused.
Though he wasn't clear on the relationship between Moses and the two examinees, he explained the situation of Candidate No. 338 in a clear and orderly manner.
"The rescue team only found a blood-stained number tag, and found many traces of large wild animals and some blood-stained clothing scraps in the surrounding area."
"Based on these findings, the rescue team's report concluded that Candidate No. 338 has likely met an unfortunate end."
After relaying the situation of Tonpa and Shalnark, Beans looked at Moses. Noticing that the other party did not react much, he couldn't help but feel doubtful.
Netero also shifted his gaze to Moses.
He knew there must be a reason for Moses to specifically asked about the situation of these two candidates.
Moses looked down, somewhat surprised that Tonpa was able to survive.
'Doesn't this mean that the unknown creature that gave me the black eyeball did not attack Tonpa who ran into the temple?'
'Huh?'
'Does this make sense?'
'It can't be that the unknown creature has no interest in a weakling like Tonpa, right?'
'Or perhaps, it really wasn't the kind of monsters that would casually treat humans as prey?'
As for Shalnark, Moses wasn't surprised at all.
Shalnark's injuries were severe enough to incapacitate him or cause him to fall unconscious.
In addition, Shalnark's luck was not very good, as he was teleported to an unknown wilderness.
Judging from Beans's description, Shalnark had been devoured by wild beasts.
"Regarding Candidate No. 516..."
Thinking of this, Moses looked at Netero and said calmly, "Perhaps the association can ask him for some information about that unidentified creature."
"Reason?"
Netero asked.
Moses then told the story of how Tonpa ran into the temple and yet survived by sheer luck.
After hearing the information given by Moses, Netero immediately looked at Beans, who is next to him.
The latter understood and immediately took out his phone, left the room and started working on the matter.
.....
It was almost noon.
Tonpa was drinking alone in a tavern in a small town, trying to calm his nerves.
Although he had survived by luck, the shadow in his heart could never be shaken off.
Whether it was the terrifying existence that seemed to be a magical beast or Moses's figure, they always flashed through his mind from time to time.
'If I go to bed now, I might have a nightmare, right?'
Tonpa, who has been surrounded by a pack of forest wolves for a whole day, has not slept yet.
However, he resisted the urge to fall asleep and decided to stay awake until midnight.
Tap-tap-tap——
There was a sound of footsteps coming from behind.
Tonpa paid no attention to it and gulped down the wine in the glass.
The owner of the footsteps then sat down next to Tonpa.
Tonpa tilted his head to look at the newcomer and said in a muffled voice, "Haven't I already given up my qualification for the exam?"
"There's something we need your cooperation on."
The newcomer didn't care about Tonpa's reaction. He raised his hand to signal the bartender to bring a glass of beer. Then, he looked at Tonpa and said calmly, "It's about the specific situation you encountered in the 'temple'."
"Huh?"
Tonpa's face turned pale instantly when he heard this.
What he was thinking about was not the unidentified creature that looked scary, but why the people from the Hunter Association asked him about this matter.
The only possibility that can be thought of is...
'Was it that guy who revealed it?'
Moses's figure flashed through Tonpa's mind, and the color drained from his face, turning him even paler.
Mizaistom, the Ox of the Zodiacs, observed Tonpa's reaction at this moment, and a strange look flashed in his eyes.
He signaled the bartender with his eyes to put the beer aside, and then spoke to Tonpa in a rather authoritative tone, "This is a demand, not a request."
"…"
Tonpa opened his mouth when he heard this.
After a moment, he did not answer Mizaistom's question, but instead asked, "Before that, I want to know whether No. 1789 will continue to participate in the subsequent Hunter Exam."
"From what I know, he chose to continue."
Mizaistom looked at Tonpa's face calmly, and showed some kindness at the right time, "If you still want to continue taking the exam, I can restore the qualification you gave up before."
"No, I don't want to!"
Tonpa suddenly became agitated.
'You still want to take the exam with that monster?'
'What a joke!'
Looking at Tonpa's intense reaction, Mizaistom was deeply surprised.
Due to this unexpected accident, there are currently only twenty-one candidates qualified to take the third phase of the exam.
In other words, as long as Tonpa doesn't give up, his chances of obtaining a Hunter License were quite high.
However, Mizaistom didn't think much about it. His purpose in coming was to inquire about the situation 'inside the temple'. As for Tonpa's strange reaction, it was irrelevant to him.
......
Two days later.
The airship carrying Moses landed on a flat-topped mountain.
He already knew that there were only twenty candidates left for the third phase of the exam, so it was very likely that this year's Hunter Exam would end at the third phase.
After getting off the airship, Moses looked at the dojo-like structure standing in the mist in front of him, and roughly guessed the nature of the final exam.
'It's most likely a one-on-one battle.'
"Master!"
Just then, a figure ran towards him from a distance.
It was Menchi, who had also been sent here.
Moses smiled at her and then noticed the other candidates.
The candidates he rescued in the ruins and Bolton, who served as the temporary leader at that time, were also present.
They also saw Moses coming down from the airship, and they all had complicated expressions.
Moses didn't pay much attention to them and greeted Menchi with a smile.
The third phase of the exam quickly began.
Just as Moses had expected, it was a knockout-style one-on-one match.
The entire process took three days to conclude.
In the end, three people passed the Hunter Exam.
They are Moses, Menchi, and Bolton.
From this moment on, Moses officially became a Pro Hunter.