"I thought Greed Island would be a challenge, but it's been a piece of cake!" Shalnark announced to the world as he trudged through the foliage. "Getting information's been super easy, plus the cards only have the obstacle of determining where they're located and the method in which you have to retrieve them. Now, there are the powerful players..." Shalnark continued to drabble on, about possibilities and theories, finishing with a neat, "Don't you think, Feitan?"

"Why am I here," Feitan muttered under his breath, pushing past him to move ahead on his own.

Shalnark froze in the middle of his next sentence and reached for the sleeve of his comrade, who immediately pulled away. He pointed. "Feitan, isn't that a good training space?"

Feitan spared a critical eye. A clear area, with high walls caused from industrial digging before it had been abandoned, the place was like a pre-dug out war zone. Lumpy and bare. "Too flat," he stated, walking on.

Shalnark shrugged at the rejection. "Anyway, back to the game. I find it peculiar how there was the result of having your physical body disappear when you entered. It seems kind of set up in a certain way, you know? Like they want us to find something out." A leaf crunched under Shalnark's soft slipper. "I think this is somewhere in the real world."

The world went still, as if hesitating to dissuade him of something so true. There was a stream nearby, and he bent down to dip his fingers in it, sipping the crystal clear water from his cupped hands. "It's all real," Shalnark said, wiping his mouth and hands dry.

Feitan convinced himself he wasn't surprised.

A glimmer appeared in Shalnark's eyes, the flowing stream reflecting the sunlight so his eyes swam, sparkling. "Should we test it?"

Feitan looked away, disinterested as he was set on looking for a training space himself, without help. He didn't care whether Greed Island was real or not, only about what was in the stupid game and whether he could take advantage of that.

Smiling and shaking his head, Shalnark followed as his comrade continued on the path without him. "Anyway, where exactly are you looking for in a training area? Somewhere with obstacles? Although I guess it also depends on what kind of training you're going to put them through. What kind?"

"The hard kind."

"So a difficult but rewarding improvement schedule. Physical or purely Nen?"

"Both."

After a silence, Shalnark's cheeks puffed out in the smallest huff. "You have to give me more specifics about what you have in mind or else I won't be able to lend you my help at all," he tried to argue, in vain.

"Didn't ask for it."

He shook off Feitan's coldness. It was nothing new. "What about there?" he suggested, gesturing at the waterfall they passed. "Lots of resources. Here, their skills at surviving in nature are going to improve, surely. Lucky could learn a thing or two about how to stay alive, don't you think?"

Before he knew it, Feitan had gone on without him. "Not good enough," was the justification.

Shal had to lightly jog to catch up, and immediately restarted the pointing and suggesting. "What about-"

"No." A fierce gaze was held for the slightest moment before Feitan dipped his head and continued on his way. "I choose," he said, tone a bit too forceful than he would have liked it to be.

A pause. "You know," Shal said slowly, starting to unravel the convoluted knot of emotions before him. "You seem awful determined to find a training space yourself, even if I was the one who suggested to go look for one."

Head forward but ears perked back, Feitan didn't respond.

"Training Lucky, whom Danchou approved of for giving further instruction, isn't set on you just because the title was temporarily bestowed upon you via coin toss. Both his and Rein's coaching in Nen could be done by any of us, and you should know this. This isn't your responsibility, and as such, I suggested to scout out a training area for their development in overall Nen ability. So why are you bitter? There's no reason to be. But to be discontent and to bring yourself along seems peculiar, doesn't it? The only logical cause for bristling at someone else trying to take charge of their set future instruction is: while fully knowing they aren't your responsibility, you want them to be." Shalnark's fingertip was placed knowingly against his temple, tauntingly frozen for a few seconds before he started to ramble again. "Of course, the concept of knowing what you want and denying it differ wildly—"

Feitan zoned out, unfeeling toward this blathering spectacle, the weight of his comrade's words flowing free and weightless but suffocating him all the same.

Shalnark was skilled at analysis and digging deeper into the heart of a matter, discerning the root of any action and yanking it out to observe it even closer. In the process, he exposed rather fragile topics to the harsh world, naked, bare, and unprotected.

In short, Feitan did not like what was being implied.

Gray leather boots hitting the ground with a bit more kick to his step than he would have liked, Feitan tried to shove down whatever hostility he was feeling. Strong people did not become provoked. Strong people were not swayed by mere words. Strong people... Feitan looked back for a split second, apathetic. "I don't care," he stated, cutting him off.

Feitan turned his head to the horizon, hair slicking itself back from the breeze he stood against. He tried to stand tall, tried to stand straight and proud, tried to stand strong. It was hard, though. He could feel Shal's eyes burning pure rays of sunshine into his back. Knowing. Smirking. What right did he have to look at him like that?

Suddenly, he came to a complete stop. "There."

Shal shielded his eyes from the sun, his other arm settled comfortably on his waist as he looked at the view. "Is this going to be the place?"

Steep, sloping sides of cliffs, some smooth, some rough. Secluded from any major cities and nearer to the forest. Some larger, flatter areas were mixed in with areas of great difficulty to maneuver around. But most of all, silent. Silent and quiet and still.

This was the place. Here, they would sweat, bleed, and train. Feitan almost became excited. Almost. A side of Feitan's mouth tightened inwards and upwards, and he turned away from Shalnark to hide it, lest the idiot made any other wild claims and assumptions.

* * *

Lucky took a weight training class to build up his muscles and overall physical ability. He had to, if he was even going to dream of passing the Hunter Exam. But gyms have machines, and machines can break. There are heavy weighted plates, which break people's feet if you drop them hard enough. There are complicated plastic and metal structures that are extremely dangerous if they collapse on the people who happen to be bench-pressing at the moment. There are mirrors that when combined with a flying metal object... needless to say, Lucky was kicked out of the training class within a day, which meant he was back at square one.

It was almost comical how every time Lucky tried to give it his all, something had to happen. Something always happened. Always.

At this rate, would he even be able to qualify for the Hunter Exam? Would he pass? Did he have the potential that the Spiders thought he had? A small, tiny part in him whispered the contrary: 'no.' A small tiny part in him, of no significance. But it was this little negative voice inside that Lucky had fallen victim to many times.

Lucky hadn't been planning on taking the Exam anytime soon. He'd thought of it many times before, but he'd struggled to find the incentive. Plans, on which he procrastinated on with excuses of college, his unluckiness, and struggling to pay for his apartment. This had some sort of legitimacy. College and education in general was a tricky thing. It's very hard when you fear for your own safety and of others. And his apartment...

His college had dorms. He'd paid for it at first, but with everything that happened around him, he'd quickly been told to go find somewhere on his own or to attend a different school. In simple terms, he'd been evicted from his own dorm. Not knowing where to go, he'd slept on a bench in the park that night. It was only one night, and he'd been able to find an apartment the day after, so it was nothing, really. Nothing. He forgave the school. It wasn't their fault they wanted to stay safe from him. It was fine now, so why hold it against them?

Lucky was never able to hold a steady job, so as of now, he lived on the checks sent to him by the grateful relatives of the many people who's lives he'd saved. Still, rent was hard, not to mention insurance. To save as much as he could, Lucky usually lived in darkness, without the electricity. He wasn't sure to what extent it helped, but it did lighten the load on his shoulders a bit. But being one of the few people at his college who had to work to make ends meet and persevere to even have a roof over their heads... it was hard. It was hard assuring himself and everyone else that he was fine when deep down, he was never sure of where he would get his food or when he would rest or if anyone he cared about would stay safe.

For all the times he'd thrown a convincing grin and said 'I'm okay' ... would he ever be?

He took a deep breath; in and out. It felt like inhaling poison. Gulping on a dry throat, he set his head back against thin walls, comfortingly sturdy. When he closed his eyes, the only telltale sign that he had done the action were the shadows taking up his entire view.

He didn't mind the fact that he was alone, really. He'd gotten used to it. In the beginning, he lived with his family. But as each of them either passed or drifted away and Lucky found himself surrounded by less and less people, he'd come to the realization that he didn't have many friends. He couldn't make any, since no one wanted to risk being near him. He'd learned how to be alone, and he was fine. Really, it was okay. From very early on, this had been his world.

It... It meant less people to lose. That was an upside, right?

Not many people voluntarily hung around Lucky. This made absolute sense of course, the last time anyone tried they nearly got hurt, and Lucky didn't blame them. It wasn't their fault they wanted to stay safe, and if they wanted to stay safe, they... they should stay away from him. He wanted people feeling safe and secure, so this... this was the best course of action.

Lucky was used to getting by on his own, used to being alone with no one relating to him. It was his life. It was fine. It was his normal.

So when the Phantom Troupe crashed into his life and completely shattered that normal, it was strange, sure. He'd been scared, who wouldn't have been? He'd been confused and physically hurt, and had been forced to exercise. But beneath all of that, he felt a twinge of gratefulness. Because even after he'd nearly hurt them, they made him stick around. They made him run laps, they made him learn Nen, they made him promise to come back for the Hunter Exam.

Instead of shunning him for his unluckiness, they'd forced him to stick around because of it, and so, somehow, that was better. It felt a lot better, at least to him.

They'd given him the motivation to try again. And not because that if he didn't try he would be hunted down. In fact, he had every intention to train as hard as he could and to try his very best when the Hunter Exam rolled around. Seeing all them, with their passions and skills and goals... it was amazing. It was amazing, and he would have to try. He'd promised, didn't he? He'd promised Red they would meet again, and a bond through weaving friendship bracelets was not one that was easily severed. No matter what happened, he had to pull through and try.

He licked his lips. Try. It had been a foreign word until now.

Before he knew it, he'd smiled at its familiarity. The word had a nice ring to it. This word he would have to make his own one day, and perhaps he would be able to make his name his own as well.

A few months until the Hunter Exam. He would stay at his current college for one more week to wrap up loose ends before switching to the online college he'd found, and the online didn't officially start the school year until next month. In that short period of time, he had to find somewhere to train, and even better if he found someone to train him in Nen.

Do some simple estimation, and Lucky only had eleven weeks to prepare for the Exam in total, and that was assuming he found a trainer right off the bat. On his own, he wouldn't be able to do anything in time, that was a given. But if he employed outside assistance, it had the potential to change the outcome, hopefully for the better.

He pulled up his list of contacts on his phone. Quite a few people in this world were alive only because Lucky had been there to save them. Not to mention he'd helped many injured people as well, and had even stuck around to deliver babies. Many families owed him, and he had each and every single one of their contact information stored on his outdated phone.

He scrolled through the list, and the short description of why and how they had met. He didn't know if anyone knew nen, as he'd only recently learned of its existence himself. Still, there was that one particular person from a few years ago who'd done something that had to be of Nen power... Lucky was sure he'd seen his name last time he looked through the sea of contacts. Crud, where was he?

Wait. He scrolled back up, eyes coming to rest on a single name. Lucky smiled. This was the person he needed to find. As the outside flickered, the black, pixely text winked right back up at him.

Zian, Wing.

* * *

Far away, a conversation was being held. Both recipients were far from the other, and hardly even knew the person they were speaking to. But...

"I trust you will succeed."

A gulp. "I will do my best, sir."

The line cut off.

* * *

Wing was a morning person. An early bird, if you will.

He liked the silence of a brisk new morning, before the bustle of the city had truly begun. The air, free of the shouts from the night fights, untainted by the honking of horns from the late night traffic. He could exist here, above all else in chill quiet, tea in hand.

So he couldn't say that he wasn't displeased when the doorbell rang for him downstairs. He was still an Enhancer at his core and veiling his emotions was not his strong point. When he opened the door to whoever thought it was a good idea to disturb him this early, he expected to be masking his displeasure. He didn't expect having to conceal surprise.

A man stood on the street, a few rips on his jacket sleeves, an puckering scar on his cheekbone, hair oily and drenched with sweat. On its own, every point about him screamed with red flags. Yet his demeanor didn't seem threatening. He just seemed... tired.

"Uh, hi. Are you..." The man cleared his throat before looking down at his phone for confirmation. "...Wing?"

"Yes..." he replied slowly, still somewhat wary of this panting young man dripping with sweat on his doorstep. "May I help you?"

"I saved your grandmother once," the man rushed out, words hurried as if afraid that the door would shut in his face. "You were at a bakery and while you were in the bathroom, I helped her from choking and I got both your numbers in case you ever wanted to pay me back but yours seemed to be changed so I couldn't find you so I went to your grandmother and got a hold of this address, I'm not creepy, I swear, I just need help right now." He finally took a breath. "Back then, you broke the wall when you attacked me. You know Nen, right? That was some crazy strength. I wasn't sure of why you attacked me then, since I don't look that much like a thief or mugger—" His body tensed, self-conscious. "Wait, do I?"

Wing shook his head no, trying to wrap his mind about it all. The memory certainly wasn't fresh, but... yes, he did remember. It had been a couple of years ago, and he wasn't proud to admit the fact that he had indeed caused damage to the bakery when he suspected his grandmother of being attacked by a Nen-user. Back then, he'd been impulsive and rash to a fault, failing to realize that the man helping his grandmother had good intentions. The nature of the man's Nen had been so bizarre and untamed that he hadn't been able to get a good grasp of the situation. "I do apologize for attacking you. That was my own mistake."

"It's fine. But you know Nen, right? I know it now, so thinking back, you probably attacked me because you could see my destructive aura." Wing nodded in response, allowing the man to continue. "And you seem to know a lot more about this whole thing than I do. I don't have any where else to go for this, so—" The man seemed to debate whether he should bow and settled for an awkward, half-hunched position. "Teach me! Please."

Wing drew up, hands folded neatly behind his back. "I already have a student, and I'll have to consult with him. But for now, you have a yes from me."

"Really?" The man looked ecstatic, but he didn't move. Almost unbelieving. "You'll teach me Nen stuff?" With a short, sweet nod from Wing, the man looked close to exploding with surprised joy. "You're serious? Oh man, yes! Thank you, thank you so much! I wasn't sure where to go if you ended up turning me down," he said, almost sheepish. "I actually didn't have much of a plan if you refused."

Zushi came down the stairs in his pajamas, suppressing yawns. "Master?" he asked, rubbing tired eyes. "Who are you talking to?"

The man's eyes widened at his pupil, surprised at Zushi's young age as a student before his expression set back into one of calmness. "Hey," he called softly, jutting out his slender chin. "I'm Lucky."

As soon as the words left his mouth, the staircase railing came loose under Zushi's hand and clattered booming to the floor.

Zushi's hand flew back, his entire body leaning away from what had just happened. His eyes, squinted against the light earlier, were now as wide as saucers. Wing's carefully folded hands were now clamped and rigid behind his back as he stared at the phenomenon of the sudden unprecedented destruction. Both their gazes shifted towards the man—Lucky—who merely chuckled through clenched teeth.

"Yeah, that... it happens a lot." The lights flickered before going out entirely. "You'll get used to it."

Okokok sorry, late chapter, but I just had an IDEA which made me rethink a lot of what was going to happen just so everything goes well together at the end—But before that we have to character development and foreshadow and make Hatsu and... ugh this'll take forever but I hope you tag along on this journey!

I now have an art book, and a HxH short stories book so go check them out if you want!

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Get singing everybody, because the title for the next chapter is...