Chapter 18 - Digging Through the Trap Tower × End of the Third Test
Chapter 18: Digging Through the Trap Tower × End of the Third Test
In the Trap Tower’s first-floor hall:
“Boom… Boom…”
The heavy stone door creaked open, and a figure quietly stepped into the hall.
“Hunter Exam, third round, second place finisher: Candidate 301, Gittarackur. Completion time: twelve hours, two minutes!” The examiner Libo’s voice echoed from the loudspeaker.
Gittarackur, his face covered with nails, glanced at Hisoka.
“I figured you’d already be here,” he said without moving his mouth.
Hisoka responded with a silent smirk.
Just then, another door opened.
Hanzo, the bald ninja, burst out, elated.
“First place! First place!”
His face froze upon seeing Hisoka and Gittarackur.
Clutching his head in frustration, he shouted,
“Third place: Candidate 294, Hanzo. Completion time: twelve hours, three minutes!”
Suddenly…
“Crack… Crackle!”
An odd sound echoed through the hall.
“What’s that noise?” Hanzo, curious, leaned against the wall, pressing his ear to it.
The next moment…
A hand burst through the wall, landing on Hanzo’s bald head.
“Agh! A ghost!” Hanzo shrieked, jumping back in terror.
“Huh? Someone’s there?” Lorraine retracted his hand and peeked through the hole, spotting the vast hall.
He fell silent, stepping back to observe the room. The identical iron door leading to the hall mocked him as it rumbled open, revealing the path he’d painstakingly bypassed.
Hanzo, now red-faced and embarrassed, snapped, “What’s with the ghost act?!”
A ghost?
Good idea.
This gloomy tower was perfect for a haunting. Maybe turning the examiner into a ghost wasn’t a bad plan.
Expressionless, Lorraine ignored the now-open path, kicked down the remaining wall he’d been digging through, and stepped into the hall.
Meanwhile, in the control room…
“Let’s see you exploit the loopholes and tear down my tower now!” Libo laughed heartily, pressing the announcement button.
“Fourth place: Candidate 406, Lorraine. Completion time: twelve hours, five minutes!”
Hearing Libo’s amused voice, Hanzo, Hisoka, and Gittarackur instantly grasped the situation.
Lorraine had clearly annoyed the examiner.
“Hey, brother, how’d you manage to tick off the examiner?” Hanzo asked, forgetting his earlier scare, grinning cheekily.
Lorraine rolled his eyes, unwilling to respond.
He ignored Hanzo’s antics and—wait… Hisoka?
Hisoka was smiling? At him?
Lorraine couldn’t believe it.
Hisoka… you’ve changed. You’re not the cool, aloof one anymore!
Feeling betrayed, Lorraine scanned the hall and spotted the exit.
As he approached, the door opened automatically, as if fearing it would be destroyed if he took another step.
“Candidate 406, please stay within the tower and return before the seventy-two-hour countdown ends,” Libo’s smug voice echoed from the speaker.
Lorraine: “…”
He said nothing and briskly left the tower.
“Wait, we can leave?” Hanzo’s eyes lit up, trailing after Lorraine.
“Toilet! I need the toilet! Been holding it in forever!”
Meanwhile, Hisoka and Gittarackur exchanged glances before silently exiting the tower one after the other.
They didn’t need words—after all, even Nen users have to use the bathroom.
In the forest:
Lorraine wasn’t out for a bathroom break, nor was he escaping embarrassment. He was here to train.
Yes. For experience.
What happened earlier?
Nothing of significance.
Serious face.jpg
[Level 100 Deity System]
Name:Lorraine
Level:1 (44/1000)
Vitality:1
Mental Strength:1
World:Hunter x Hunter
In twelve hours, Lorraine had gained 24 experience points—two points per hour.
Though less efficient than last night’s six-point burst, it was steady progress.
He felt capable of pushing for another twelve hours.
Of course, that was a joke.
Though he felt energetic, after twelve hours of nonstop action, rest was necessary.
Balancing work and rest, Lorraine planned to use the remaining sixty hours wisely—maybe hit 100 experience points.
Time flew by.
Two days later, the third round of the Hunter Exam was nearing its end.
In the Trap Tower’s first-floor hall, twenty candidates gathered, waiting for the test to conclude.
Leaning against a wall, Lorraine admired his 110 experience points.
Sixty hours in the forest had proven far more efficient than the tower. He had exceeded his target by ten points.
“One-tenth done. Leveling up isn’t that hard after all!” Lorraine thought, eagerly anticipating his first level-up.
“Three minutes until the test ends! Prepare yourselves!” Libo’s smug voice rang out.
Just then…
“Boom…”
The stone door slowly rose, and a staggering figure emerged.
“Finally… made it…”
The candidate, eyes filled with hope, collapsed.
A candidate approached, checking for signs of life before shaking their head. “He’s dead.”
“Idiot!”
“Why risk your life for this? Just come back next year!”
Mocking comments filled the hall.
“One minute left!”
Libo’s voice echoed again.
Another door rose.
The candidates turned, thinking another fool had risked their life.
“Candidate 404, Kurapika, 21st place. Time: 71 hours, 58 minutes!”
“Candidate 99, Killua, 22nd place. Time: 71 hours, 58 minutes!”
“Candidate 405, Gon, 23rd place. Time: 71 hours, 58 minutes!”
“Candidate 403, Leorio, 24th place. Time: 71 hours, 59 minutes!”
“Candidate 53, Tonpa, 25th place. Time: 71 hours, 59 minutes!”
“Time’s up!”
“The third Hunter Exam has concluded. 26 participants passed. One deceased.”
The sudden arrival of five candidates left everyone stunned.
“What is this, a manga protagonist’s move?”
They had just barely made it.