Holder of Magia Erebea Starting in HxH

"We finally made it!" sighed Touta in relief, tossing aside yet another scented tissue—he'd lost track of how many he'd used—and took a deep breath of the refreshing, though slightly humid, air.

Despite the dampness in the air, which hinted they might be in a swamp, the mist smelled far better than the overwhelming stench of sweat that had been unavoidable among the hundreds of applicants crowded together.

Having composed himself, Touta glanced over toward the tunnel. He had managed to get ahead of Satotz, ensuring that he could make it out as quickly as possible. Thus, he was the first to arrive.

"I won!" echoed Gon and Killua together, their voices overlapping in a playful yet competitive tone.

Just at that moment, Gon and Killua emerged from the tunnel simultaneously, while Satotz stood at the entrance, observing the other applicants who were trailing behind.

"Don't be ridiculous; I got here before you!" declared Killua, clearly not thrilled about the idea of losing to Gon, even if it was a trivial competition.

"That's my line! It's obvious I reached the finish line first!" responded Gon, frowning slightly as if it were crystal clear that he had, indeed, arrived just before Killua.

"…," Touta observed them for a moment, then simply shook his head and moved toward Satotz.

"Satotz-san, have we reached the location of the Second Phase?" Touta asked, placing a hand on Satotz's shoulder. He discreetly left a trace of a distinctively scented perfume on the spot he touched. Touta had considered resting if they hadn't yet reached the Second Phase, and marking Satotz with the scent would make it easy to track him. After all, it would be difficult to locate Satotz in this fog-filled swamp without following him directly.

"No, we haven't arrived yet," Satotz replied, briefly glancing at Touta's hand out of the corner of his eye. Though he noticed what Touta had done, he said nothing, as it didn't technically violate any rules.

Satotz had to admit, however, that the perfume Touta applied had a particularly pleasant fragrance, sparking his curiosity about its source. Yet, as the examiner, he refrained from asking.

"I see… Thank you," Touta nodded, glancing over to Kuroumaru, who was nearing the exit. He intended to walk over and share his plan, but he was interrupted by Gon's voice.

"Touta, you saw who got here first between Killua and me, didn't you?" Gon asked, knowing that arguing with Killua wouldn't resolve anything. "Can you tell us which one of us arrived first?"

"From what I saw, you both arrived at the same time," Touta replied, genuinely curious if they had deliberately synchronized their arrival, as their movements were so precisely aligned it seemed as though they'd practiced it many times.

"I see… what a pity," Gon sighed, disappointed yet not doubting Touta's words, knowing that Touta wasn't the kind to deceive.

"Sorry for the delay, Touta-kun," Kuroumaru said with a smile as he reached Touta, taking a look around. "Is this where the Second Phase will be?"

"Not yet," Touta replied, shaking his head as he sat down on the grass and leaned against the wall. "It seems we'll have to cross this swamp to reach the location of the Second Phase."

"But I'm not planning on heading there directly. I'm going to rest here for a bit before moving on," Touta added, closing his eyes to relax. However, he didn't fall asleep immediately, as he expected Satotz to give them information about the swamp soon. "What about you? Will you stay here with me or follow Satotz-san?"

"I'll stay with you," Kuroumaru replied without hesitation, sitting beside Touta. "But won't it be hard to track Satotz-san in this swamp if we wait here too long?"

"It'll be fine; you should know how strong my senses are," Touta said with a proud smile. Though his keen senses had caused him some trouble in the underground tunnel, they were something he took pride in. "I even applied a little bit of Yukihime's perfume on Satotz-san. So even if he's 50 kilometers away, I can follow him easily."

"I see," Kuroumaru nodded, not doubting Touta's words, knowing that vampires had extraordinary senses. Touta, being a High Vampire, likely had senses even sharper than most vampires. From what he'd observed in the underground tunnel, Kuroumaru could tell Touta's sensory abilities were exceptional, even by vampire standards.

Touta and Kuroumaru fell into a comfortable silence, closing their eyes and simply savoring the fresh air after more than a quarter of a day of non-stop running.

After about ten minutes, the tunnel's exit was sealed, and Satotz began explaining the Milsy Wetlands, also known as Swindler's Swamp.

Everyone quieted down to listen, focusing intently on Satotz's explanation, including Touta and Kuroumaru. Although their eyes were closed, they paid close attention to his words, knowing that it would be foolish to ignore instructions from the examiner.

"That's why you all need to be cautious, as the creatures in the Milsy Wetlands will use every possible tactic to deceive and kill you," Satotz said with a serious tone that sent shivers down the spines of many applicants.

"I don't think we'll be easily deceived, especially knowing they'll try to trick us," muttered Leorio under his breath, feeling as though Satotz was underestimating their intelligence.

"Don't let him fool you!" At that moment, a voice rang out from beside Touta, and a man none of them had seen before appeared before them.

"This… This is magic power," Touta thought to himself, examining the stranger who had appeared beside him. It was evident that this man was no human, as humans didn't possess magic power, let alone reek of something that smelled distinctly like a monkey.

"Don't be deceived by him. This man is a fraud, and I am the real examiner," declared the newcomer, clutching an object in his hand and lifting it for everyone to see. "Take a look at this!"

"I see… so this is one of the dangers of this swamp," Touta thought, closing his eyes nonchalantly, seemingly indifferent to the magical beast standing beside him.

...

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