I don't own HxH!

"And there you have it, the Second Phase will involve…cooking!"

Sora blinked. Had she accidentally dozed off again and this next trial was a figment of her imagination?

"C-cooking?" She heard someone from the crowd say and squinted to see the owner of the voice. #294, a bald ninja with very impressive looking eyebrows.

"Hold on a second. Did you say cooking?" The guy next to him spoke up after that. #255, probably a wrestler looking at his body built with equally impressive long, tied blond hair. "We are here to try out the Hunter Exam."

"You heard correctly. Your challenge for the Second Phase is to make a dish that will satisfy us!"

"Why a cooking test!" Some more complaints were heard.

"That's because the both of us were...Gourmet Hunters!" The green haired examiner, Menchi, declared as she stood proudly on her podium with both hands on her hips

Despite the rather rare—read unique— Hunter title, Sora couldn't help but be impressed. It seemed that there were a wide range of professions within the Hunters themselves, even to something as obscure as cooking. She wondered for a bit. What should she choose once she became one?

Not to her surprise, laughter erupted among the crowds as if they couldn't believe what they had heard.

"This must be a joke." "What's this about Gourmet Hunters?"

They were now blatantly mocking the examiners? They must have not learnt their lessons not to doubt nor underestimate the examiners. Did the incident on the First Phase have flown past their heads now?

"So, Ms. Gourmet Hunter, what are we supposed to make?" #255 asked while sneering. He must have felt good with so many other examinees sharing the same thought as him.

"Buhara," Menchi called out, clear annoyance on her face at being belittled.

The giant man stood up from his seat and the ground shook as soon as the man took a step forward.

"The main ingredient will be pork," he announced.

"Pork? You mean from regular pig?"

"Any type of pig in Visca Forest Reserve will do. It doesn't matter what type. You will use the tools and appliances here to prepare us a dish using the pig. If we are both happy with the dish, you will pass the test," Buhara ended his explanation.

"And it's not only about the taste. Don't underestimate the complexities of cooking. You hear me?" Menchi added from the side.

She frowned. An annoyed examiner was never a good thing.

"The test will conclude only when we are full."

"We get it. We get it. Let's just start." #255 waved his hand, completely at ease.

"Then, the exam's Second Phase…" Buhara cheered and hit his stomach, creating a gong-like sound.

"Start now!"

"Make a dish using a pig," Leorio said confidently, breaking the silence. "Compared to the First Phase, this is way easier."

"I sure hope so," Kurapika muttered at which Sora nodded in agreement.

"You don't know their exact taste and palate. How can you satisfy both people at the same time? Besides, they probably have a higher standard for foods," She added, looking around for any sign of pink snouts.

"...you've got a point."

Gon noticed the slope on the hill and proceeded to slide on it, followed by Killua whose eyes lit up at the sight of new entertainment. Curious at what Gon has found, Sora followed suit with Leorio then Kurapika at the very back.

A sudden jam was created when Gon stopped sliding down the hill, causing others to bump into each other in the process. Sora bit down on her lips to prevent a howl of pain to be let out when her chest collided with Killua's back and she curled up without her knowing which Leorio noticed.

"Are you okay, Sora?"

She gave him a thumbs up, a bit shaky, not noticing the glance Killua sent her from the front. "Yeah, yeah."

"What was that about, Gon?" Killua scolded.

"Found them," Gon declared and looked over to the right.

"Huh?"

Just like Gon said, pink snouts appeared to her view but way, way bigger than a normal pig should have. The giant pigs were standing near them and hadn't noticed them yet.

"Pigs!" Leorio stated the obvious fact.

Silence.

"...They are chewing on bones."

"Don't tell me they are carnivorous," Kurapika commented.

As if confirming what the teen said, the pig snapped the bone in half and screeched, it's large snout flaring up. And the next second, the group of five found themselves running away from the herd of pigs.

"You might want to run now if you don't want to get killed," Sora called out helpfully to the fear-stricken examinees that saw their current predicament. They began running away in vain as the pigs slammed their large snout onto a few unlucky participants, sending them flying into the air like bowling pins.

"What kind of pig are those?" Leorio yelled.

"An aggressive one, of course." The girl shrugged before sprinting to a different direction from the group while leading a pig behind her. Sora spun on her heels before jumping up and landing on one of the tree branches to the pig that was barreling toward her.

"Uwa, it could drag down this tree if it kept doing that," the girl muttered monotonously, holding the trunk for dear life as she watched the pig keep slamming his snout over and over again toward the tree.

From a higher ground, Sora could see a wider view of the clearing, blinking when she saw Gon knocking out a pig by hitting its forehead.

"Huh." She looked down at the still fuming pig under. "Why didn't I think about that? There must be a reason why they have such a big snout in the first place."

With that thought in mind, The girl jumped down and slammed her tonfas at the pig's forehead even planting her feet firmly at the spot. The pig dropped dead not a second later and she strapped her weapon back.

"You're really weak once your weakness gets exposed, huh?" She mused while lifting the pig over her head with much difficulty.

Sora's certainly glad that her weight training with Shax finally showed a fruitful result.

After heaving the pig back to her own kitchen counter, she laid the pig on the ground before dazedly contemplating what she should make.

"What are you doing? Trying to become a pig yourself?" The only person who would just casually insult her just like that as if he was talking about the weather, Killua, asked, raising his eyebrows.

"I'm deciding on what to cook, shush. Go back to your dish."

Killua joined her crouching down—which she was surprised but said nothing about— to stare at the pig. "I can't cook anyway so it's useless. From how long you're drilling your gaze to the poor pig, you must have a lot of recipes, yeah?"

He's not insulting her for once. What an achievement.

And also no, she only had one recipe in her mind. The reason why she was staring was her trying to remember all the ingredients and process. Shax's recipe was too godly and complicated for her to master but she managed to do it years ago. If she could replicate it just like how he cooked it, she was 100% sure she would pass.

Now though, she barely even remembered the basics, much less all those additional fancy condiments and garnishes.

Fuck it, she should just wing it.

Sora abruptly stood back up while Killua watched her curiously. She brandished a knife from the counter.

"Oh? You got an idea already?"

The girl nodded, carefully cutting a large chunk of meat out of the pig's belly, grimacing when blood spurted out and nearly hitting her face. The examiner never said that they have to serve a whole pig so she's exploiting that fact.

"Brutal."

"Let me have my peace for once, Killua." Sora sighed.

Much to her fascination, the boy didn't utter anymore words after that and settled on simply watching her dashed around the counter. To her satisfaction, almost all the ingredients that she needed were there. Lettuce, onion, garlic, cherry tomatoes, even the condiments were complete. The one thing it didn't have was unfortunately the most crucial one of all;

Which was cheese and what kitchen didn't have any cheese?

The girl frowned at that and her hands immediately made quick work to cut the meat into four pieces, stopping just before it reached the bottom so it could fan out like a book. Next, she sliced the onion and tomatoes thinly before stuffing them inside the cuts she had made.

After that, she chopped the garlic, dumping it into a bowl before sprinkling in some salt and pepper. She then added a few spoonful of mustard before stirring it to mix them together then spreading the sauce all over the slices. Sora firmly pressed the pork together and wrapped it in aluminum foil.

Now, the next was the hardest part.

The girl glanced at the griller then back at the wrapped pork.

How to stop herself from losing control once she started the fire?

Shax's stern, disapproving gaze flashed in her mind and she mentally sweated.

Because of the hood covering the side of her face, it was easy for her to ignore all those raging fire from other examinees' griller and focus on the dirt covered path before her. But now, when she was going to start one, all her attention would be directed solely to it.

She might have to break Shax's request at this rate but darn it, she didn't want to disappoint him even when he wasn't looking.

"You're not going to roast it?"

Killua's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She had completely forgotten that there was an audience literally behind her. "It's nothing. I was thinking for a bit."

Oh, she got an idea.

Sora didn't give any chance for the white haired boy to rebuke when she approached the griller with the pork before placing it on top while mentally memorizing the direction for the medium heat. And then, she closed her eyes, letting her fingers turn the knob to start the fire. She should keep them close for at least twenty minutes instead of the real time the dish was supposed to be cooked, hence why medium instead of low heat. Because first, there's a time limit and second, there's no way she could keep her eyes closed for an hour and half.

"Your dish looked complicated."

Thank god for Killua.

Sora snapped her eyes as she twisted around, completely blocking the fire out from her view. "I guess? It took a while to learn compared to others that I've attempted to make."

If Killua was suspicious by her actions, he didn't bring it up and instead cocked his head to the side. "You can cook other dishes? Didn't expect that from you, fish eyes."

"Some simple ones only," Sora answered, tapping her fingers on the counter to drown out the voice of the crackling fire at the back. "Omelette, sautéed vegetables, macaroni and cheese, and a few others."

"You called that simple?"

"Well considering I have a sort of brother figure that could cook food worth five Machelan stars, then yes," the girl replied, already drooling at imagining all the foods Shax has made for her. She has certainly taken his cooking for granted. "This dish is my favorite one so I bothered trying to learn it."

Killua looked interested in that one small info about herself. "You have an older brother?"

"He's more like my guardian but I see him as my older brother," Sora hummed as she leaned on the counter to look at the sky, watching the sun that has the exact same shade as Shax's eyes. "I missed him."

"...Is that why you joined the Hunter Exam?"

His tone made her blinked and snapped her head at the direction of the frowning white haired boy, his hands inside his pocket.

"What makes you think of that?" She asked, amused to how he could come to that conclusion.

Killua shrugged before he also leaned at the counter beside her. "Gon said he joined the Hunter Exam so he could find his dad. So I figured with how fond you spoke about him, you are also searching for him."

Come to think of it, Sora never knew why the same age boys joined the exam. She must have not been in the vicinity when they talked about it.

"No, it's not that. We actually parted on good terms and promised to send each other messages sometimes," the girl answered, purposely leaving out the info that Shax hadn't contacted her at all. "I have another reason."

"And that is?"

She looked at the boy right in the eyes.

"Would you believe me if I told you I joined the Hunter Exam just to simply see how strong I am?"

Sora watched as Killua's brow knitted in concentration, probably considering if she was playing with him or not before he let out a soft snort. "I don't believe you. You're like the least qualified to be a strong person."

"But that's the reason I want you to believe anyway."

It was silence as the maroon haired girl with a smile saw the boy's eyes widened before narrowing dangerously. Sora knew that Killua couldn't be fooled by a half-assed answer like that unlike Leorio and Kurapika. So, might as well lay out some truth.

"I do need Hunter License. I can tell you that at the very least," she continued, lightly tugging at the edge of her hood before giving a small smile. "Do what you want with that information."

The white-haired male stared at her for a beat longer, eyes cold with flashing judgements in his head and she lifted her hands up in a resignation. "I'm not lying. You know that, Killua."

The intensity of his gaze faltered as he shrugged. "True. I've met better liars than you but you're not completely honest at the same time either."

She couldn't be completely honest...yet.

"If it will make you feel better, my real reason is not important enough for you to mull over," Sora added, tapping her finger into the counter. "Believe me on that. Don't lose your braincells trying to figure me out."

The male raised an eyebrow almost challengingly. "Are you saying that you're that tough of a nut to crack?"

"No," she quickly interjected. "I'm not worth your time to poke into because I'll crack sooner or later."

She only needed time, some more time to affirm herself that the boy in front of her would be worth tearing her guard down. Sure she did try to befriend him first but she never considered the fact that she would have to put herself out in the process. But she's already tethering on the edge anyway, she only need a few more confirmation before she caved in.

Killua watched her for a few more seconds before turning away and she allowed her rigid body to relax. "Fine, I'm holding your words on that, fish eyes."

"Sure, sure. You can trust me." She waved a hand off before facing the griller smoothly with her eyes closed to turn the fire off.

The girl took the foil back to the counter to unwrap it. After placing the meat carefully on a plate and decorating it with some lettuce that she had ripped to shred, Sora could say she was pretty satisfied with what she had accomplished, counting that she only remembered the basic steps. And the sight of the delicious looking pork was enough to shift the earlier somber atmosphere because Killua's eyes lit up and immediately zeroed on it.

"Can I eat that?"

"No, I'm not even tasting it to preserve the look. Wish me luck," Sora said as she walked toward the examiners.

She walked past a dejected looking Kurapika returning after his dish was compared with Leorio's cooking. The girl patted him on the back which the blond smiled weakly in return.

"Finally something that looks edible," Menchi muttered the moment Sora placed the plate on the table. The woman scrutinized her dish, which caused sweat to break out, before taking a piece of it and finally taking a bite.

"Hmmm…" The examiner muttered as if contemplating the right answer to give.

"Do you perhaps know a man by the name Shax Vasilye?"

Hearing her guardian's full name out of a person's mouth who she never even crossed paths with brought a huge shock to her. An even bigger chaos broke out behind her and Sora didn't even want to see what kind of accusation or theories they were spouting out.

"Ah, I'm sorry if you didn't know him," Menchi looked at the girl's frozen state, while giving her a light smile. "Your dish just has a lot of similarities with his so I'm surprised, not a lot of people know this recipe especially being cooked this kind."

"He's my...older brother," Sora struggled to get the words out after much consideration on how to address him in front of someone she didn't even know he had a connection with. "That must be why I could cook like him."

"Such a shame it didn't taste as good as his, just a little bit more spices and tenderness in the meat and I know you can slightly reach his level. I know you're missing cheese as a main component so that could play a major factor too." Menchi looked at the food apologetically before at her. "Unfortunately, I have to fail you, #210."

The girl nodded her head in understanding. There's no way they could satisfy someone's palate who had a taste of Shax's godly food and most probably ate that kind of food on a daily basis. It's not the cheese's fault. Her lack of skill is.

She bowed before walking back to her station, completely ignoring the stares directed at her while her own head was noisy with thoughts.

...Just what things Shax did without her knowing that caused him to know all these powerful people? First was Hisoka, now Menchi, what next, the head of the Hunter Association himself?

"You didn't tell me your brother knew the examiner herself," Killua said as soon as she stepped back to her kitchen.

"That was actually my first time hearing about that too."

The white haired boy simply stared at her before turning his attention back to the two examiners while pouting. "Pity, I want to try your food too. It looks good."

Sora smiled, watching Gon approached her with a visible look of concern on his face. "Sure, I could cook it for you if I got the chance and ingredients."

"You promised?"

She scoffed and lightly bumped her body to his which sent the boy to stumble a bit and a glare to pierce her. "I told you I never broke my promise."

"Sora! Don't look so gloomy! You're the first and only person whose dish got complimented" Gon tried to cheer her up once he was in front of her.

At his words, she tilted her head. Did she look that stricken because she failed the exam? Pretty sure the way she looked so shock was because of Menchi's word.

And partly because she failed the exam, yeah.

Sora paled just by thinking all the benefits that were slipping away from her hands. Well, she could just take the next exam and be on the run for another year. Not a big deal really.

"Don't worry, Gon. I'm not sad." Sora laughed before ruffling the boy's hair. "Thank you for being worried though."

A loud 'bam' caught their attention after the culprit punched a kitchen counter in rage, destroying it into smithereens, water shooting out from the broken pipe. It was #255 and a huge scowl was prominent on his chubby face.

"I won't accept this! I absolutely refuse to accept this!" The man stated while fuming.

"We will not change our minds about failing you," Menchi shrugged.

"What a joke! You two wanted pork, so we put our lives on the line…"

"Didn't I say to use the pig to make a dish that would satisfy us? But nobody prepared anything delicious. None of you cooked anything special or interesting. You should've put more thoughts into it. Those who put in more effort only care about the look. No attention was given to the flavor. No one cared enough to highlight the flavor of the food," Menchi ranted before pointing at Sora who immediately shrunk at the attention. She's not used to receiving this kind of scrutiny.

"#210 was the only one who came close so I appreciated such effort like hers. Why can't the rest of you guys do the same?"

The girl tugged her hood closer to hide her face, specifically her heating cheeks before tuning the rest of the bickering that escalated into a full blown scale battle in a matter of seconds.

"You're embarrassed?"

"No, I'm just protecting my identity."

She ignored Killua's knowing look.

The next thing she saw, #255 was sent flying into the wall.

"Buhara, don't interfere," Menchi said quietly. The giant man glanced down at her.

"Well, if I hadn't interfered, you'd have killed him, right?" Menchi shrugged lightly and stood from her seat, butcher knives in each hand.

"That's true," she simply said as she descended down the stairs.

Sora's respect for her just grew tenfold.

"Let me clarify this. In search of ingredients, we Gourmet Hunters are used to coming face-to-face with ferocious beasts. As for our fighting skills…" Menchi began juggling the knives she had in her grip.

"We had to master them despite our lack of interest," she continued, the knives being juggle even faster than before.

"Without an attention to details and the guts to take on new challenges, it is reasonable to say none of you are fit to become a Hunter," The green haired examiner ended her words, expertly catching all her knives to the participants.

Silence fell among the participants. No one dared to raise their words against the examiner who had clearly shown her dominance and wouldn't hesitate to cut down anyone who protested.

"That said, it would be excessive to fail every single participant," a static voice called out from above.

Sora, along with others, looked up to the source and saw a blimp flying on top of the site.

"That's the mark of the Hunter Association!"

"Is it a committee member?"

Right after that, someone fell down from the blimp and Sora squinted for a better look but even so, the speed of the person's descent was too quick for her to catch. The hard ground broke at the impact of the person's landing, sending a large wave of dust into the air. The shock caused her to inhale quite an amount and she immediately coughed it out.

An old man stood at the center of the explosion, his long beard and white hair fluttering in the breeze as he walked toward the examiners.

"Who is that old man?"

"He's the Head of the Selection's committee, the person in charge of the Hunter Exam, Chairman Netero," Menchi answered the question, looking at the old man with respect.

"Rather than being in charge, you could say I'm working behind the scenes. In other words, someone who comes to fix a problem such as this." Netero closed his eyes before re-opening them to address the person in front of him.

"Menchi-kun."

"Yes."

"While testing their readiness to take on new challenges, you concluded that they all lack the proper attitude and so you failed all of them, right?"

"No, the participants said some degrading things about Gourmet Hunters that didn't sit well with me," Menchi calmly gave the real reason without any attempts to excuse her own actions. "So, I became more strict with the selection process."

"That means you realize your mistake in failing to judge fairly, right?" The Chairman continued.

"Yes, I tend to lose my focus when it comes to food. It's not something an examiner should do," Mechi bowed her head slightly before looking back up. "I will step down as an examiner and let you judge the test once more."

"Hmm, but it would be a problem to find an examiner at such short notice."

"I'm so sorry," the examiner bowed down once again.

"Alright then, let's do this," The Chairman brightened up and lifted a finger. "You will continue to be an examiner. But this time around, I want you to take part in the test by giving a demonstration."

Menchi's eyes lit up in wonder.

"This way, the participant will be more willing to accept the results," The Chairman ended his suggestion and glanced at the anxious participants.

"You're right. As for the new task, it will be hard-boiled eggs!" Menchi declared.

It was as if a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Sora heaved out a relieved sigh and let a smile grow on her face. Thank god she didn't have to be a fugitive for another year.

"Chairman, can you take us to Split-in-Half Mountain in your airship?" Menchi pointed at the airship above them.

"Split-in-Half Mountain? Alright. I can help with that," Netero agreed and the participants followed him to the airship.

"Isn't that great, Sora?" Gon chirped beside her as they walked.

"Yeah." the girl smiled, eyeing the blimp, her excitement bubbling at being able to ride that. "Yeah it is."

"Everyone. Take a good look over the cliff," Menchi said to the participants currently looking down in a mixture of worry and curiosity.

Sora looked down to see the bottomless pit with spider-like webs stretched from one side to another, making assortments of shapes as if they were weaved baskets. Occasionally, winds from downwards will blow upwards, nearly tumbling over Sora's hood as she leaned a bit further to get a better look, heart thumping in anticipation.

What would it be like to just fall?

"W-what is that?"

"That is the lair of spider eagles," the green haired woman explained, confidently looking down with hands on her hips.

"It actually builds a lair in such a place," Gon commented in awe at her side.

"Take a good look below there. Those are the spider eagles' eggs," Menchi replied.

"To protect their eggs from aerial enemies, they build their lairs in deep cliffs and lay their eggs there. As such, the eggs are one of the most difficult ingredients to collect. They are also known as "Dream Eggs"," The Chairman added his explanation.

Sora watched as Menchi dove down without any ounce of fear in her body and instinctively leaned down further to the open chasms to get a better look.

"O-oi Sora! Stop that or you'll fall!" Leorio cried out in alarm from her side.

The girl looked down at her hands gripping the edge, then at the man, then at the green haired examiner who let go of the webs she's holding to grab the eggs on her way down. She shrugged helplessly before switching her attention to wonder about what Menchi would do.

"I'll fall sooner or later."

"Oi!"

A hand shot out to grab her hood, preventing her from leaning down and she landed on her butt as a result, her hair spilling all over her shoulder. She's having the sudden flashback of her falling from the skateboard all of the sudden.

"Now, Killua. That's not how you treated a girl, okay?" Sora looked at the culprit who was still gripping her hood tightly, a frown on his face.

"What do you mean a girl, you look more like a boy himself," Killua scoffed as he retracted his hands. "I'm saving you from your idiotic death, you fish eyes."

The girl looked at the boy strangely for his once in a blue moon consideration before she felt the sudden brush of air along her cheeks and she smiled.

"I don't think you have to be worried about that."

As if on cue, the sudden updraft pushed Menchi up back to the cliff they were standing on as all participants looked at the examiner in shock and fear of what's about to come to them. The kids have a different idea though.

"That looks fun…" Killua muttered out in excitement with Gon and Sora nodded along, the girl practically vibrating in her seat.

"The updraft from the bottom of the valley helps newborn larvae to float into their nest," The Chairman said, watching Menchi landing lightly and easily on the ground.

"Yes, we will be using the eggs to make hard-boiled eggs," the green-haired examiner declared with a giant smile, one hand holding up the egg.

"You must be joking. Nobody sane enough would jump from such hei—"

To prove a point, Sora pushed herself off the cliff while looking at the boys with a grin, making sure to stare at Leorio a beat longer.

"I told you I'll fall sooner or later!"

Her laughter rang out in the air at the same time Killua yelled, "Hey! I wanted to be the first!" before following suit, then an enthusiastic Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio. She grabbed a web and swung around lightly before stopping, eyeing which egg she should target.

Killua landed beside her while Gon on her left. Kurapika and Leorio landed on Gon's other side. Slowly, the web was filled up with participants who were courageous enough to jump down and it was getting increasingly too heavy to bear all the weight.

One particular participant didn't think long enough and jumped down to his death which once again, Leorio almost did impulsively too if not for Gon stopping the man because of course, the draft didn't continuously occur.

The web started to snap suddenly.

"Oh hey," the girl calmly looked at the web attached to the ravine that was straining to keep the additional load at bay.

"What?!" Leorio yelled in panic as the thread dipped down dangerously.

"The webs won't hold us all!" Kurapika stated the obvious.

"Gon, how much longer?" Killua questioned the now-closed eyes Gon, trying to accurately pinpoint the time for the updraft by sniffing the air.

A few impatient participants decided to let go of their webs and were met with their deaths. Honorable sacrifices really, she thanked them for their patronage.

More threads snapped, only a few strings left were attached to the walls and they were getting thinner and thinner. All participants were looking at Gon in anticipation.

"It's going to snap!" Leorio yelled in distress.

Sora felt the sudden soft breeze fluttering her hair and looked at Gon for confirmation.

"Now!" Gon's eyes snapped open as he yelled and let go of his grip that was soon followed by the rest of the people, including her.

Sora grabbed an egg and clutched it close to her chest while still making sure not to pressure her wounds as her body freefall to the ground, a strange calmness feeling her once more. A laughter left her mouth when the gust of wind lifted her back up to the cliff.

A few minutes later, the freshly boiled eggs were ready to be eaten.

The girl positively glowed as she took a bite of it. The yellow yolk melted in her mouth and the white shell was so soft it felt like eating a pudding. She wondered if Shax had ever made a dish with such a delicious thing like this. Knowing him, most probably.

"I can see why they're called Dream Eggs." Kurapika sighed in contentment, enjoying every bite. The others nodded in agreement, silence fell around them as they enjoyed the dream eggs.

Killua didn't say much during the whole time but his expression clearly showed the joy of a satisfied cat. And he definitely looked ready to jump back down to get another egg when he was done, which Sora shared the sentiment because she too would be willing to jump as many times as it took just to feel the adrenaline rushing when the draft lifted her back up.

And of course, the egg.

But time seemed to be ticking and she certainly didn't want to be left alone on a barren mountain.

"Here, you look ready to kill to get some more." Sora split the rest of her half-eaten egg into another half, nudging the boy's side with her elbow.

Killua looked at her as if she was visibly mutating in front of him so she simply shoved the egg to his unoccupied hands while she ate hers.

"No need to say thank you."

"I wasn't going to, fish eyes," Killua grumbled but munched on his newly given gift nonetheless.

Sora felt as if she had unlocked the secret to befriend a stray cat in that one alley she used to walk past before.

Once she finished her food, she turned around and was ready to go back to the airship when she was abruptly pulled away by Menchi with the Chairman tagging behind her.

The girl blinked while tilting her head, not liking where this was going. "Can I help you?"

"Here she is, Chairman. Shax's younger sister," Menchi announced while patting her head.

Dammit, she was only joking when she thought about Shax knowing even the head of the Hunter Association.

"Ah…" Sora bowed awkwardly. "Yes, I'm Sora, Shax's younger sister. I didn't know my brother knew a very respected figure like you, Netero-san."

Oh wait, should she even say her name to the organization hunting her down?

But the Chairman only laughed good-naturedly while stroking his beard. "No need to be so formal, Sora-kun. It's a pleasure to meet the sister of a world class chef like him."

Chef?

"If it's possible to know, where do you exactly meet my brother?" Sora finally asked the question that has been bugging her mind since Menchi asked if she knew Shax.

Menchi was the one who answered for him, huffing proudly. "There's a yearly event where exotic foods are served, made out of rare ingredients and crafted only by those who possess the skills and nimbleness in their fingers. We, Gourmet Hunters and Chairman Netero regularly attend it and one of the most famous and awaited dishes was made by your brother."

Sora blinked, trying to process the information. So you're telling her that the dish she had been eating almost regularly since she was a kid was highly sought by people with exquisite taste and was so rare that people could only eat it once a year?

The love she had for Shax just soared.

She truly had been spoiled rotten.

"Oh wow, I didn't know that. My brother continued to do amazing things without me knowing," Sora said, scratching her cheek because truly, she didn't know.

Menchi merely sent her a smile before patting her head once more. "Once you become Hunter, send our greetings to him, okay?"

She hesitated, pondering if she should lie or not at the fact that she herself didn't even know where he was.

Her dilemma was solved when Menchi spotted something from afar and shooed her off. "Looks like your friends were waiting for you. You should go back to them."

The maroon haired girl was surprised and looked behind her. Standing in the distance with sun dipping down the horizon and coloring the sky into a pretty orange, Gon was waving at her, Killua had his hands in his pocket while Kurapika and Leorio stood at their backs talking to themselves.

Sora's heart warmed at the sight and a soft smile appeared on her face.

"Ah." The girl turned to the two highly respected figures before giving them a bow. "I'll be sure to send your greetings to my brother once I meet him."

When would that be? She didn't know herself.

Without hearing their answers, Sora turned on her heels and ran toward the quartet, her steps much lighter than before.

Friends, huh. Who knew she could get them along the way?

Ey ey chapter 3 done done done~

So yeah, as usual tweaking from the original chapters. Some scenes are omitted, a lot of new scenes are added. It's a slow process I know.

Yes, Machelan stars are Michelin stars, okay? Don't look at me like that.

Thank you so much for all the favs and follow, it means so much to me! And also we got our first reviewer!

Audley Moore: Hi! I'm glad that you found that it has a promising start so far :D And you really don't have to read the former edition XD There's a reason why I rewrite it in the first place. And yeah, Sora has been with me for more or less 6 years so I could say I've known her quite well! Hopefully you'll be able to stick around for the rest of the trip!

And that's it! I would love to hear your opinion about this chapter!

Bye!