"What? Did I hear that right?" Phanas was beyond shocked, not even daring to believe his ears. Only after the assistant's urging and him seeing the recording did he believe. In his mind, he began reevaluating Haiser.
One man had managed to turn his impending defeat into a resounding victory. He had also fought against a team of elites and managed to guide his people away from the onslaught of bullets, blocking a considerable number.
Without a doubt, Haiser was an expert. His abilities and movements had demonstrated that much. If he could manage to pull such a powerful man to Iresal's camp, Phanas couldn't even explain just how strategic a role Haiser could play.
Raising experts was no mere feat, even among the large corporations. There was a reason why, while half-step experts were a dime a dozen, real experts were as rare as a phoenix's feather.
That dividing line, where one could manage to exert a technique in the real world, was not something just anyone could cross. It required a lot of talent, training, and nurturing. Even that would barely be enough.
Phanas had managed to gather a lot of nutritional fluids. While they were definitely not top tier, he hoped that quantity would make up for the lack of quality. He also had virtual cabins to train his experts, and a number of techniques they could learn.
He was still lacking a proper guide, someone to train his experts and guide them. This was why the importance he placed on Haiser had risen by leaps and bounds. If he could somehow manage to get his team back, then he could very well recruit an expert. That was like finding treasure lying by the side of the road, even the heavens would curse him if he did not take this chance.
Quickly, he mobilized several rescue teams. Watching the various hovercrafts take to the air, he hoped that they would not be too late.
Meanwhile, in another luxurious room, a young man was fuming. While he was a member of the Morrilton family, Maxiell was not that close to the main family. All he could was linger from the outside, looking in. Meanwhile, his family, the Morriltons, run one of the larger corporations in planet Tres, namely, the Levantine corporation.
A chance had finally fallen in his doorstep. The higher ups had tasked him with eliminating many of the weaker organizations. The main family was in charge of the company's hunting, so they needed someone to operate in secret, whittling away the enemies that were not qualified to stand on the same stage as them.
Sparing on expense, The company had even gone so far as to assign a powerhouse like Golden Kirin, one of their corporation's most iconic fighters, to him. They had also given him plenty of resources to arm his dark force. With this, Maxiell felt that was set to succeed. He could even see his place in the family rising.
Any corporation that did not present their kills in the plenary would be eliminated. This was why, for most of these competitions, the most dangerous time was the return journey. Whether they could return was not always guaranteed.
The rule requiring the broadcast to end right after the hunt was over was meant to protect the reputation of the corporations. Not that it was needed, but it had always been a rule, so they took it in stride.
Maxiell had planned for Kirin and his men to take down several hunting parties. He had already silenced one team, and collected their harvest. Naturally, with the advantages he had, he had not thought much about the Iresal team, until he saw Haiser's performance.
It had been his idea to try and recruit Haiser, and Golden Kirin had also agreed. He too could see how talented and powerful Haiser was. None of them could predict the events that would follow, definitely not the death of Golden Kirin.
How was Maxiell supposed to explain a loss of such magnitude? He cursed at Golden Kirin for being too careless. He cursed his own greed, mostly, he cursed Iresal's teams for not sitting down and awaiting for their death.
"Find them! Kill them all!" By now he was livid, form coming from his mouth. He even mobilized those under him to go hunting. In his mind, this loss could only be made up by killing the Iresal's hunting party.
All this while, the party in question had just barely gotten out of the river. Haiser did not know that this was the same river that had swallowed him and Alma way back then. This time, he was the one dragging his fellow teammates out of the water.
Haiser was busy working on Felix, who was spotting a minor injury on his shoulder. It was nothing but a flesh wound, but it had given him the heebie-jeebies. In the group, he was the one with the least combat experience. However, he had been the farthest from the enemies, and he posed little threat. The hidden attackers had barely given him a second look, and that was the only reason he was alive.
"What the hell was that?" Joel was visibly shaken. While Haiser had been busy brandishing his spear, he had barely managed to get into the water. As a skilled warrior, he had faced off assassins and long ranged enemies before. However, this time, he felt as though the bullets could trace his movements.
Cate was still in a daze. Everything had happened too fast, and she had been the one who was at the center of attention. She felt she would have died a hundred times over, if Haiser had not been there to protect her. It had yet to dawn on her that she had lost her hunting harvest.
Haiser also wore a serious expression. Unlike many of the people here, he knew exactly what kind of weapon had been used. He had had to face it heads on, and had he made the slightest calculation, he would not be breathing.
Looking at Joel, he simply said, "They were using smart bullets."