Chương 111: Greed Island

"Greed Island is a game made exclusively for Hunters. They call it a game, but I think it is closer to a training ground built for newly awakened Nen users. That is the next training site I arranged for you."

"The game was created by a very powerful Nen user named Ging Freecss and his team. At its core, the goal is to find one hundred specified cards inside the game. Collecting all one hundred clears it."

"Greed Island is different from the games you know. It was designed specifically for Nen users. The creators infused Nen into the console. When a player uses aura on the console, the Nen inside activates and pulls the player into the game."

"The stages and systems inside are basically designed to train how a Nen user applies Nen. As the player advances, their understanding and use of Nen improves without them noticing. Learning through play, in other words." Inside the VIP cabin of an airship headed for Yorknew City, Aren reclined on a sofa and explained his plan to Machi and Uvogin. Light Nostrade had chartered this airship for them. Three days earlier, Aren had called Light and told him to prepare for a trip to Yorknew.

When Aren's group left Heavens Arena, a group of black-suited men was already waiting downstairs. After a respectful send-off, they boarded the airship Light had arranged in advance. After receiving Aren's support, the Nostrade Family had grown quickly. With Bart and Adam, two Nen users, as its foundation, the family's power expanded like a rolling snowball. Aside from those two, three ordinary Nen users had joined later.

Recently, the Nostrade Family had begun integrating the underground forces of the Republic of Vesley, the country where Gambi Town was located. As the family's influence grew, the number of things it could do for Aren increased as well. Knowing that Aren often needed airships during his training with Biscuit, Light had even started preparing to buy an airship company for his future travel. The Nostrade Family did not have enough funds yet, so this airship was only chartered.

In another year or so, that would likely change. The Nostrade name had already drawn the Ten Dons' attention. According to Adam's recent reports, the Ten Dons were considering taking the Nostrade Family in as one of their direct subordinate organizations. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. Aren had no interest in those matters. He let them decide for themselves as long as his interests were not affected. Overall, Aren was quite satisfied with Light Nostrade.

Light had not disappointed him, nor had he become careless after the family's power grew. He was genuinely useful.

"Greed Island?" After hearing Aren's explanation, Machi frowned.

"I feel like I've heard that name somewhere." With Aren's reminder, she suddenly understood. Some time earlier, when they had gone to the Almeria Commercial Center near Heavens Arena, Machi had seen a Greed Island advertisement. The name had been strange enough for her to glance at it, but once she realized it was a game, she lost interest.

"So we're going to Yorknew to buy the game?" Machi asked.

"No. If we enter Greed Island through the normal method, Neon cannot go in yet. She has not opened her aura nodes." Neon, who had been eating dried mango beside him, immediately panicked. She put down the snack and looked up at Aren with wide, pleading eyes.

"Master, are you going to leave Neon behind?" Aren rubbed her head.

"Don't worry. I won't leave you behind. If the normal route does not work, we can use another route." Hearing that, Neon relaxed and picked up her dried mango again.

"Greed Island is not a virtual game. The game world is actually a real island somewhere in the world. When people say the game pulls players inside, it is really teleporting them to that island."

"So if we find the island in the real world and take a boat there directly, that counts as smuggling ourselves in." Aren smiled thinly.

"And that island is east of Yorknew." Aren had chosen Greed Island for two reasons. First, it was genuinely suitable as a training ground for Machi and Uvogin. The monsters, stages, and systems inside were perfect for new Nen users. The second reason was connected to Aren's object creation. His object creation could reproduce things he had touched. Greed Island happened to contain many magical items with strange effects.

If Aren's guess was correct, his ability should be able to create those items after he touched them. That made the island worth trying. When he learned Machi was struggling with training, Aren suddenly remembered the year. It was 1987. In the future he remembered, Gon and Killua would both be born this year, and Ging Freecss would bring Gon to Greed Island in the same year. That meant Greed Island should already be complete.

After remembering the timeline, Aren searched for Greed Island online and found an advertisement from Marilyn Inc. Many countries in this world allowed privately owned islands to be bought and sold. Maps sold to the public often hid private islands for the owner's privacy. Now, Aren stood at the bow of a yacht arranged by Light Nostrade, looking at the outline of an island gradually appearing in the night. He compared it with the map in his hand. According to the map, the sea ahead should be empty.

In reality, an island stood there. Uvogin also saw it rising from the horizon.

"Deputy Leader, is that Greed Island?" Aren folded the map away.

"Looks like it." As their yacht approached the island, somewhere inside Greed Island, in a sci-fi room lined with black-and-white lights, a silver-haired girl wearing a black-and-white mechanical cap suddenly stopped typing.

'Intruders? How?'

'We considered that someone might eventually guess Greed Island exists somewhere in the real world, but the game has not even been released yet.'

'There are no players. No one should have made that connection.'

'Drifters? No. The currents could never bring anyone here by accident.'

'I should notify Razor first. Whether they are intruders or drifters, he can use Eliminate to send them back.' The girl typed a few commands.

"Eta? What is it?" A deep voice sounded from her mechanical cap.

"Razor, a yacht appeared on the western sea. It is heading toward Greed Island. Please go send them back to the mainland."

"No problem. Leave it to me."