When we reach the town entrance, I check out the sign "Welcome to Antokiba, City of Prizes."

Killua spots a wall filled with events "Are those the prizes?" I look over the flyers "Looks like there are a lot of events..."

Gon smiles widely "Wow, all these are prizes?" Killua nods "Looks that way."

I check out the board as Gon responds "Oh, Killua... Look." Killua speaks up "Antokiba Monthly Tournaments Schedule. There's a rock-paper-scissors tournament this month. The prize is a sword of Truth." "

I turn around, looking at the same board as Gon and Killua.

Gon responds slightly confused "Is that an important item?" I reply to Gon "It doesn't sound like one... but it does sound useful, what do you think Killua?"

Killua thinks lightly on the topic as he responds "Probably... I think we should join."

Gon replies "What makes you think that?"

Killua looks in two different directions "Look over there and there." I peer in both directions, seeing two people that came through with us to Greed Island.

I nod at Killua "Looks like we will be participating in this event." Killua nods back "Of course."

Gon smiles "Then let's try to win all kinds of prizes."

Killua smiles "We should also gather information." Our stomach growls in response to Killua.

I smile, looking at Killua "Maybe after we eat..."

Killua nods as we search for a restaurant to eat at.

Time Skip

The attendant welcomes us in one of the resturants "Welcome! If you can finish this within thirty minutes, you don't need to pay! In addition, you'll also receive a Galgaida as your prize. Okay, begin!"

I look at the food, speaking calmly "I'm not into food compititions but, for this... I'll make an exception..."

I begin chow down on the food barely swallowing.

Killua speaks with his mouth full "Hey chef, do you know how to use magic?"

The chef looks at Killua "What's that?"

Gon asks "Who's the most knowledgeable person in this city?"

The chef responds "Knowledgeable? What's that?"

I cough, nearly choking on my food "Either this guy knows nothing or... his an NPC!"

Killua nods "He's just an in-game character."

After finishing our food, I pat my stomach.

The chef speaks up in response "Oh, no! You did it! here is your prize, Galgaida."

The chef hands us each one card. I hold onto mine as Killua speaks up while focusing on the card "1217. F-185."

Gon responds confused "What does that mean?"

The chef replies "Is this your first time seeing a card?"

I look up at the chef as he continues his explanation "The left number is the item's card number, and the sequence on the right ranks how difficult it is to obtain. There are ten ranks, form SS to H. F would be the third easiest. The number next to the rank is the item's maximum transformation limit."

I sway the card in my hand like a fan, speaking calmly "Which basically means it useless to us..."

After hearing an explosion outside, Killua bolts outside, running after to see what made that sound.

Gon and I follow Killua, reaching a crowd of people.

We push past a crowd, seeing someone lay on the floor "Hey, what happened?"

A stranger responds to Killua "His body suddenly exploded. From the inside."

I walk up to the body, checking to see if Nen was involved. It fades away as Gon responds "He disappeared?"

I turn around to the others as Killua responds "He probably went back to the real world. Game over."

I nod, at Killua, sighing at my failed attempt "I didn't have time to check it, so I can't tell if Nen was involved..."

Gon looks seriously between the both of us "Hey, Killua. Was the magic used on you earlier..."

Killua yells back quickly "I don't know."

I clench my fist as a man steps behind Killua, speaking calmly to us "Don't worry! There's no such spell in this game."

I sigh in relief as Gon responds "Spell?"

The man responds with a slight grin "As you said, it's something like magic. He died from another player's Nen."

Killua retorts lightly "Does that mean the players are trying to kill each other?"

Gon continues off Killua "Why?"

The man responds "Player Hunting."

I stare seriously at the man "PVP is allowed here?" The man nods in response "I can explain later. Anyway, are you interested in teaming up? We know a sure way to clear this game."

I stare at the man seriously as Gon and Killua are caught off guard "Huh?"

The man speaks "If you're interested, follow me. My allies are waiting ahead."

Gon turns to Killua and I. We talk amongst ourselves, seeing what we should do as a team.

Gon is the first to speak "What do we do?"

Killua frowns "Sounds suspicious. And we're already off to a bad start."

I nod my head at Killua "If he wants to prove us to be an ally why don't we ask him what happened to you?"

Killua nods. The man speaks up, sounding like he could read our mind "As I recall, on your way here, another player used an attack spell on you."

I retort "Are you a mind reader or something?! Because I was just going to ask you that..."

Killua looks at him quizzically "Were you watching us?"

He nods at us "And I wasn't the only one. Lots of people keep an eye on the starting point. If you come, I'll explain why. I can also tell you about the spell that was cast on you."

Killua retorts with a smug grin "You're being very nice. There must be a catch."

The man turns away "We have no choice. This game is difficult unpleasant, and frightening. Once you realize that, you'll be more willing to accept our offer. Well, it's your first time playing, so you could use the information..."

Killua retorts "What makes you think it's our first time? We could be returning players."

The man responds "Book."

He summons his book as Killua and Gon jump back.

I glare at the man as he continues "This proves that you're beginners. An experienced player would react by summoning his own binder. because you need spell cards to defend yourself."

I respond "Then the spell cast on Killua..."

Killua continues off my response "Could only be stopped by another card."

The man nods at us "Even when you aren't carrying any cards, you should still summon it. It's an important bluff."

The man un-summons his book.

Killua and Gon walks up beside me as Gon speaks "Hey, how do we obtain spell cards?"

The man responds to Gon "The easiest method would be to go to Masadora, City of Magic."

I lift an eyebrow in response "Masadora...? I've heard of that before... but from where?"

I look at Killua, hoping he could jog my memory. I get no response from him, seeing his face stuck in a permanent serious mode.

Gon turns to Killua "We should go with him. I'm worried about the spell on you. Okay?"

Killua looks at Gon in shock.

I turn to the man, looking back at Killua to whisper in his ear "One slight false move from him and I'm going to grab you and run..."

Killua looks mortified at me as I continue to whisper "Sorry but we've had a bad start... and I can't see you... you know..."

Killua sighs "After being with you so long, I know where your headed..."

I nod, turning back to the man "We will come with you... ONLY if it benefits us."

The man nods, leading us the way.

He leads us to a group of 7 people. Out of the group of eight, including the guy, I recognise three of them. The little girl in the pink dress, the older man in the blue uniform and Puhat.

The man we followed wearing a red shirt speaks up "Is this everyone?"

The man in the green shirt, that seems to be working with the guy in red speaks up "Yeah. Everyone else turned me down."

Another man wearing a blue scarf speaks up "Let's get started, then."

The man in red nods "Another player was just killed. He arrived with the rest of you. His stomach exploded. It was the bomber."

Gon looks up confused at the man "The bomber?"

The man with the blue scarf turns to Gon "The victims aren't killed by spells. No spell in this game is capable of injuring people. Which means that you won't be harmed or killed by any spell that's been cast on you."

The man in red, begins to explain about spell cards "There are forty different spells. The one cast on you was an inspection spell. Either Trace or Adhesion. Trace tracks your current location of the targeted player until he/she leaves the game. Adhesion gives complete data of one target player's restricted slots will be available at all times the effect also lasts until player leaves the game."

Talk about an invasion of privacy... That means Killua will be watched by the perverted man! I'm gonna kill him!

The man with the blue scarf continues "In short, once the enemy uses these on you, he will then know everything about you. Some players wait near the starting point in order to cast these spells on new players. As soon as a player obtains a valuable card, they'll show up and steal it. In some cases, they kill their target."

Puhat retorts "Like the guy who just died? I won't be that easy to kill."

The blue scarf man interjects "No, he was killed by something else. There is a violent faction hunting players. This was done by one of them... The Bomber."

I think out loud "The bomber sounds like a lame guy..."

A guy wearing a pink shirt speaks up "In this game, there are three ways to acquire item cards. Do you know what they are?"

Stealing, grinding... and trading?

Gon responds "Finding them yourself."

The man in the blue uniform speaks next "Trade with other players."

Killua responds "Steal them from other players." T

he pink shirt man nods "Yes, those are the three ways."

Damn! I was right...

The pink shirt man interjects "However, the number of players stealing from others has recently increased. That's due to the card's difficulty to obtain and the card transformation limit system. Players who can't obtain cards themselves choose to take them from others. If those players resist, they're killed."

I retort "Now that's just stupid! When they die the cards are lost"

The man nods "And also their ring. However, it increases the transformation limit of that type of card. If you kill a player, you can't take his cards. That rule was meant to keep players from killing one another."

The man in red nods "But now, it's backfiring. It's been over ten years since the game's release. If no one can find a way to beat it, the killing will only continue. That's why we're trying to end this mess. We're recruiting allies to clear this game. We need your help."

I look at Gon, turning to look at Killua next. I weigh the options in my head.

Trust or do not trust them... Don't try to over protect Killua this time. I want to make the right choice. And that choice is to trust Killua's instincts... If he says ok. I'm ok with it.

Puhat interjects "How do you plan to obtain cards? One, Find them yourself. Two, Trade for them. Or three, Steal them. Which method will you use?"

The man in red responds "Three..."

The man in the blue uniform retorts "I assume you mean to use all three methods, but three will be the primary method."

Puhat interjects "What, so you'll still use force?"

The man in red interjects "No! We won't use violence to reach our goal."

I respond slyly "How else do you expect to steal?"

The man in the blue uniform retorts "Spells."

We look at him confused as he continues "You'll use spells. Am I right?"

The man in red nods "Correct, there are certain spells for taking cards, and there cards that defend against those spells. We'll focus on monopolizing these cards. We're going to use the very card transformation limit that's frustrating the players. This is the only way to clear the game."

I grin slyly, thinking in my head.

That's not the only way...

The man with the blue scarf nods "I have met many players, and they all reach the same conclusion. Even if you search for cards, they'll be taken from you eventually."

The man in pink continues "Because this game is based on players taking cards from each other. We will ensure that we can take cards from other players, while mitigating our risk of losing cards."

I look away in disgusted, thinking.

All these men want is to just complete this game as quickly as possible...

Puhat interjects "You're leaving out something important. Upon clearing the game, how will you split the reward?"

A small over sized man interjects "You were hired by Mr. Battera, right?"

Puhat responds "So you knew who we were when you invited us."

The short guy responds "Yeah. Mr. Battera also hired us to play this game."

The man in red interjects "That means the reward will be 50 billion. We'll split it among everyone who helps."

The man in pink interjects "Currently, we have fifty-three players. it'll take two months to collect the remaining spell cards, and one month to get the cards we need. We can finish this in three months."

The man with the blue scarf interjects on top "Of course, if you join us, we'll remove any spells cast on you."

I look at Killua, seeing him have a face as though he looks wedged in-between choices.

Puhat puts up his hand first "I'm in. I don't like the idea of splitting the 50 billion. But I like the three month schedule for clearing the game."

The man with the blue scarf looks at the man in the blue uniform "What about you?"

The man with the blue uniform responds "I have a question. If I obtain an SS rank card on my own, what's my cut?"

The man in red turns to him "Naturally, you'd receive 500 million for a card of that rank."

The man in the blue uniform nods "Okay, I'm in."

The man in red turns to us three "What about you three?"

Gon responds "Killua, I'm-"

I interject "Sorry, but not interested!"

Gon and Killua look at me "Eh!"