"The time for reception is over. Here I am. Now the exam can begin. This way please."
Corona followed at a steady pace, with Hedwig flying ahead of her. She barely noticed when the pace picked up, until the point she was close to the head of the pack.
Six months on a ship doing hard work and having healthy meals on a regular basis had lead to a change in her physique. She had known she wasn't the most healthy of individuals, but she was still better off than some of the students in the castle. She could at least run up and down the stairs without having to breathe too hard.
After being on that ship for so long, actually working and exercising more than her legs, she could honestly say she could keep up this pace for a few hours.
And unlike the other applicants, she had the presence of mind to pack food she could eat on the go, along with several water bottles.
Energy drinks that supposedly had vitamins were good and all, but she had doubts on their efficacy. She'd stick to straight up water.
"So why do you want to become a Hunter?" asked the kid Hedwig took a liking to. His name was Gon. The blond was Kurapika and the old geezer was Leorio.
"I got tired of England, and becoming a Hunter means instant respect from people. It also means I don't have to rely on a title I could care less about, or play nice with people I hate."
Killua gave her an odd look.
"Title?"
"My dad was from some old blood family in England. You know, the one where you inherit some dumb title that no one actually cares about anymore except those of equal status, and you have to play nice with people who wouldn't hesitate to stab you in the back just to get an edge?"
"Ah, one of those," said Killua knowingly.
"Being a Hunter means actual respect, not faked because of some idiot thinks that they can marry into the family and get rich quick."
Killua made a face.
"Yeah, those idiots suck. Our family has a strict policy on who we marry, since we're fairly rich and famous."
"I hate being famous. You get zero privacy, people think they know you without actually bothering to see the real person, and if you don't fit whatever mold they put you in, the sheep turn on you like that," said Corona, snapping her fingers. Killua nodded in total agreement.
"What are you famous for?" asked Killua.
"Some idiot with a fancy stick tried to kill me after murdering my parents. I survived and somehow he died in the attempt. I wasn't even two at the time, and the powers that be thought it was a smart idea to ship me off to my maternal aunt who hated my mother enough to take it out on me."
Gon stared at her wide eyed.
"As if that wasn't enough, the moment I turned eleven I found out exactly how famous I was and haven't had a moments peace ever since. I came to the exam to get away from that nonsense."
"You're the Girl-Who-Lived," said Kurapika.
Corona shot him a dark look.
"I hate that name. There are no words to how much I loath being reminded of that nonsense. And because of it, I haven't been given a moment's peace in that world because everyone expects me to be the Second Coming or some nonsense. In this exam, everyone is equal and no one gets special treatment because of some name."
Kurapika nodded in agreement. It made a lot more sense for her to be here to get away from all that. To prove to herself that she earned that title, rather than have it shoved on her.
It was when they got to the stairs that Corona saw a problem.
There was no way in hell she could run up those and keep the pace.
Fortunately there were ways around that.
"We just have to keep up in order to pass this one, right?" she asked the proctor.
"That is correct."
Corona had an evil look as she pulled out...
"Is that a broom? Are you going to sweep yourself into the next part?" asked Leorio.
"Some people can use brooms to fly," explained Kurapika.
"And some were just born with the knack!" said Corona, jumping on to the broom while still running.
Leorio wasn't the only one who stared at how easily she balanced on the stick...or the fact that it was flying more than fast enough to stay at the front.
"That is so cool!" said Gon. He was doubly impressed when her owl promptly landed on the back of the broom and balanced perfectly on the bristles.
With her legs resting from all the running she did, Corona was one of the first to reach the outside just after the proctor. Thanks to how fast she was going, she was able to get a glimpse of a large building near the center of the swamplands. It didn't take a genius to figure out that was where the next phase would take place.
Thanks to the fact she wasn't stupid enough to run in a swamp, Corona was one of the few who kept up with the proctor all the way to the building. The other was Killua, as Gon had rightly worried about Hisoka killing his friends.
"Man, I'm actually thirsty," said Killua, occasionally looking back for Gon. It didn't help that Hisoka carried Leorio to the building and dumped him near a tree.
"Water, tea or prepackaged juice? Keep in mind that it's highly doubtful there's any actual fruit juice in the packages," asked Corona.
"...How do you still have hot tea in the middle of the swamp?" asked Killua.
"I'll tell you when I trust you more. No reason to expose something that could mean life or death in this exam to the rest of them," said Corona, nodding towards the more cutthroat potentials. Killua got what she was saying. "So what do you want?"
"Tea, please," said Killua.
By the time she had hot water in the pot and the tea leaves in the kettle, Gon and Kurapika had finally shown up.
Kurapika took one look at the cups, before asking "Do you have any more?"
Corona set out two more cups, before pouring a decent amount of tea into each of them.
"No more than three scoops for the sugar, but you can be liberal with the cream or milk," said Corona.
Kurapika thought she was being rather fair considering the size of the spoon and the size of the cup.
It didn't take long for Leorio to wander over to their area, or to accept a cup of hot tea.
"This is pretty good. Oolong?" asked Kurapika.
"Fresh from the ports. I always stock up on spices and books when I visit somewhere new."
She also had some tea plants in her massive garden, and had even bought an elf from a trader who knew how to tend to them and harvest when they came in season. Thanks to the wonders of magic, all she had to do was tell the elf what sort of tea she wanted and it would bring her fresh leaves to brew with in a mere twenty-four hours.
It normally took weeks.
By the time they finished their tea and the dregs cleaned out of the pot, the rumbling in the building had only gotten worse.
Corona raised an eyebrow.
"Whoever is inside must be really hungry," she commented. "I haven't heard a stomach growl that loudly since a certain fat pig was forced to go on his diet."
Dudley and Vernon had not been happy eating what they called "rabbit food", and it didn't help that Corona had managed to hide all the junk food in the house. There were only a few things left, and thanks to the timing of it, there was no way for the Dursleys to get back at her for the theft.
As if that wasn't bad enough, when she was within range she had an effective tool at keeping them from any payback.
"So why do you want to be a Hunter, Kurapika, Leorio?" asked Corona.
"I want to become a Black List hunter to avenge my clan."
"I want to become a Hunter to make a lot of money," said Leorio.
"That sounds...incredibly shallow. I mean I can fully understand Kurapika's position if the people he's after are particularly strong, but becoming a hunter for money sounds stupid. It's like joining one of those game shows and being humiliated for pocket change and to say you were on TV."
Kurapika snorted, before he managed to keep from laughing. Mostly because she had hit his opinion for Leorio's motives right on the head.
Leorio glared at them both, before he elaborated.
"I had a friend that was really sick. The only way to cure him was through an expensive operation, but his parents didn't have the money. With a Hunter's license most, if not all of the fees for medical school are waived. I want to be able to heal people like my friend and tell their parents that the cost is nothing."
"Now see, that makes sense. If nothing else, I'd be happy to sponsor you through medical school if you don't pass this time around."
Leorio stared at her.
"My dad was from old blood and old money. And it's not like I have anything better to do with all the gold in those vaults."
"Yeah, but as a Hunter I could cut down on expenses because the license allows you free access to most public places," said Leorio.
Before she could say anything, the Proctor alerted them that the first phase was over. Less than half of the original four hundred of them survived. Only a hundred and fifty had made it to the building.
Fifteen minutes later...
"So we have to cook pork. Alright men, how many of you know how to do more than roast a pig?" asked Corona.
Out of the four of the boys, only Killua raised his hand.
"In that case, you're with me. Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio, you catch the pigs. Killua, you're helping me set up a cooking station. If we do this right we can all eat fresh pig before we turn in the pork to the big guy," said Corona.
"Why should we listen to you?"
"Because out of the five of us, only one of us has cooking experience, recipes and the right spices. Not to mention pots, pans and skillets," deadpanned Corona.
"Works for me," said Kurapika.
"Same here," said Gon.
"What's my job?" asked Killua.
"You're helping me gut the pigs and making the sausages," said Corona.
"I can do that," said Killua.
"We're seriously going along with this?" said Leorio.
"Do I look like I could pick up a massive pig, much less carry them to the judge?" deadpanned Corona.
"...Point taken," said Leorio. She had to fly her broom all the way to the second sight because she couldn't run anymore. Odds were she couldn't carry a massive boar.
Corona turned out to be as strict as a drill master, as she was a bit of a perfectionist when it came to cooking. Menchi, the other Hunter, watched her with approval as she coached the hapless males through the process. The fact she bothered to taste test it and rejected certain spices only made her approval stronger.
This was a girl who knew what cooking was about.
In the end only seventy qualified to the second half.
"Alright boys and girls, my order is...sushi! Handmade sushi to be exact!" said Menchi.
Leorio looked at Corona.
"I know the basics, but I'd be better suited to prep at this stage than catching the fish."
"Fish?" said Leorio too loudly.
Corona snagged Gon before he moved out too far.
"You're a discerning eye with fish, right?"
"Yeah, I grew up on an island with a large fishing industry."
"Good, then you'll know what I mean when I give you a list of fish that are good for making sushi with."
Corona wrote something down in neat, but clean handwriting. She had Gon memorize it before sending him to catch fish. Once they were gone, she went to the prep stations checking for one that meet with her strict standards. It took her fifteen minutes to find one with a sharp enough knife (though they were all sufficiently sharp to make sushi), and the rice at just the right consistency for her demanding standards.
Gon, Leorio, Kurapika and Killua all came back with several fish from her list.
It wasn't long before she had them cleaned and had put them all in assembly line fashion.
Corona and Killua were in charge of slicing the fish, Kurapika had to get the rice just right for a decent sushi, Leorio made sure there weren't any bones, and Gon cleaned the scales off.
Menchi tasted Corona's first.
"Hmm... it's got the right consistency, and you have the ratio of rice to vinegar at the proper levels. But the taste is a bit iffy."
"To be fair, I blame the local fish stock. They just don't have the right seasonings permeating through the body."
"True. And you did get fish that are close equivalents of what are normally used. Not to mention you actually bothered to do the prep work first and didn't let the fish get too warm. I would say pass, but the taste isn't gourmet hunter worthy," said Menchi. "You were really close though. Try again!"
"Good thing we kept the fish cold."
They didn't get a second try, because most of the idiots who overheard Leorio's loud declaration had been watching them. It wasn't long before Menchi's irritation overrode her duty as a proctor.
"The exam time is over! I'm completely full!" she said cheerfully.
None of them had passed. Out of the seventy remaining applicants, only the five rookies had come even marginally close to passing.