Whale Island may just be a small island, but its unique geographical location makes it a crucial stop on a maritime route. Because of this, it has become a registration and boarding point for the Hunter Exam.
Candidates registering for the Hunter Exam can board the ships headed to the exam venue from the island's harbor. Moarik plans to board the ship here and start his journey, getting a head start on some of the exam's trials.
As for Gon, Moarik has no intention of interfering with him. Ging has already meticulously planned out Gon's path for growth: the Hunter Exam, Heaven's Arena, the Yorknew City Auction, Greed Island, and the investigation of the NGL Autonomous Region. Every step along the way, Ging has put in considerable effort to create a comprehensive environment for Gon's growth.
Moarik has no interest in disturbing the unique relationship and interaction between father and son, let alone disrupting Gon's growth trajectory and affecting the development of the story. He is more interested in following the main plot of the Hunter world, set to start next year, and enjoying the excitement of the unpredictable twists and turns!
The Hunter Exam starts annually on January 7th. The exam Moarik is participating in is the 286th exam, held at the beginning of 1998, right before the official 287th exam that marks the beginning of the main storyline.
"This is also the exam where Hisoka beats up an examiner, rendering twenty candidates unable to ever recover…" At Whale Island's harbor, Moarik quietly recalls the events of this particular exam.
During this exam, "Toilet God" Hisoka, finding a particular examiner annoying, severely injured him and was disqualified as a result. In addition, he killed or seriously injured twenty other candidates. The incident was so severe that no one qualified from that exam. As Netero would put it, it was a very interesting exam.
"But because of this, Hisoka's assault on the examiner is a famous scene. I might even get a good surprise from it…"
As Moarik was contemplating, a ship cut through the waves and approached. The figurehead of a goddess at the bow was particularly striking. The moment this official Hunter Association ship docked at the pier, Moarik promptly stepped onto the deck. His first official Hunter Exam journey in this world was about to begin!
...
Before leaving the Nostrade family, Moarik confirmed the procedures with Shachmono Tocino, a professional Hunter who holds a Hunter license. Each year, candidates must use the sparse information they obtain to find the exam venue, which is itself a form of test and screening. To reduce the number of applicants, the Hunter Association sets up various traps along the way. The exam venues change each year and are located in hard-to-find places. Without a guide, candidates have a slim chance of reaching the venue.
Candidates must first find a guide, have their abilities assessed, and only then will the guide lead them to the venue.
"And this ship, the Sea God, is one of the trials before reaching the venue."
After the Sea God set sail, Moarik casually leaned against a corner of the deck, observing his surroundings and the people. The deck was packed like sardines with candidates preparing to take the exam. These people were covered in tattoos, decorating every visible part of their bodies. Their faces were fierce, and they wielded weapons, sporting all kinds of vicious expressions.
"If they were going to a cosplay event, they'd probably attract a lot of people wanting to take photos with them," Moarik evaluated.
Looking at this group of people, there wasn't a single formidable character among them. Most of them were weaklings, not even as good as the worst sailor on this ship. To be fair, being a sailor on the Sea God, a ship officially sanctioned by the Hunter Association, requires some skill. Comparing this bunch to the sailors is almost unfair.
But the group on this ship… no, they aren't even candidates yet; they're merely registrants. They seem completely unaware of their shortcomings. Some have such a restless nature that they can't stand still without causing trouble. With so many people crammed together, conflicts are bound to arise.
Sure enough, after the Sea God set sail from Whale Island and sailed for a while, these people couldn't restrain themselves and began to stir.
*"What are you looking at?"*
*"Looking at you, so what?"*
After exchanges like these, which weren't even proper provocations, the deck turned into a scene of fighting, with people beating each other into swollen-headed fish.
Moarik coldly observed from the back, not getting involved in the foolish actions of these idiots. He also noticed that some sailors were subtly instigating these conflicts. It seemed like they were deliberately provoking disputes.
Sailors wouldn't normally cause such disturbances unless instructed to do so, suggesting that their actions were sanctioned.
"In other words, the test began the moment we boarded the ship, and..."
He slightly shifted his footing to avoid a candidate who was thrown in his direction. The candidate flew over the edge of the ship and plunged into the sea with a splash.
"... it's happening at all times."