Gourmet Hunter - Chapter 332 (Patreon)

Chapter 332: Well, Thank You for That

Silva not only escorted Luo down the mountain but also arranged a car to take him to the airport. The butlers who witnessed this could clearly see Luo's special status.

The Hunter Association and the Zoldyck family reside on the same continent. It takes just over a day to travel from Kukuroo Mountain to the airport, and then transfer to a ship to reach the headquarters of the Hunter Association.

After returning from Devil Island, Netero became extremely busy. After arranging rooms for Luo and the others, he left them to their own devices.

Luo had already stayed at the association for several days before visiting the Zoldyck family, so he smoothly returned to his room upon his return.

To reach his room on the upper floors, Luo had to pass through the association's office area and then take an elevator.

"Ding!"

The elevator doors opened, and Luo stepped out. As he passed through the office area, he noticed a familiar gaze.

Luo instinctively looked in the direction of the gaze and saw a blond youth in an orange suit staring at him.

The blond youth smiled warmly and casually raised his hand to greet Luo as soon as their eyes met.

It was Pariston...

Every time Luo passed through the office area, this guy would inexplicably stare at him with a deliberate, scrutinizing gaze as if trying to attract his attention.

This future vice president, though outwardly amiable, had a duplicitous nature and was a challenging character to deal with. Being targeted by him was never a good sign.

Luo smiled at Pariston and then calmly averted his gaze, heading towards another elevator.

Pariston maintained his smile, resting his chin on one hand, quietly watching Luo's figure disappear around the corner without ever withdrawing his gaze.

This time, he wasn't occupying someone else's spot. He had already started to involve himself in the association's administrative work, with his own place in the office area. The Devil Island incident had kept Netero extremely busy, showing signs of delegating some responsibilities to him.

"This is a good thing."

Pariston chuckled softly, his relaxed demeanor standing in stark contrast to the other busy office workers, as he had already completed his tasks.

If he wanted to infiltrate the association faster, a proactive work attitude would be the best way to speed up progress.

However, Pariston had no intention of doing so. He accepted Beyond's mission and would deliver results to him, but how he achieved those results was up to him.

Beyond was Netero's son, and Pariston was Beyond's spy.

Luo did not know Pariston's identity, nor did he know Beyond or that Beyond was Netero's son. His knowledge of the full-time hunters was limited to the World Tree and the conversation between a father and son.

Returning to his room, Luo learned that Machi and the others had left, summoned by the troupe, and that Sanbica had been assigned by Netero to assist the International Permit Bureau in collecting information regarding the Devil Island incident.

With only Buhara left by his side, Luo first went to see Buhara, then headed to Linne's room. He agreed to Linne's condition but had to visit the World Tree before fulfilling it.

It might have been like an old classmate gathering. Linne would visit Netero occasionally to catch up and share new delicacies, but her stays were never long. This time, however, she stayed longer because of Luo.

She felt it was time to leave but realized she might have to stay longer and wait for Luo to return.

"Ging? I know him."

Linne's response was indifferent when Luo mentioned his next itinerary, showing little interest.

She had heard about Ging from Netero, as it was related to the Dark Continent, which Netero had mentioned once. Thus, Linne knew about Ging and his talents.

"Ging's reputation should be quite significant, right?" Luo asked.

"Not sure," Linne replied indifferently. If Netero hadn't mentioned him, she wouldn't have known Ging, as she always stayed secluded and uninterested in outside matters.

Luo smiled awkwardly, not knowing how to continue the conversation.

"If you have important matters, just go ahead. No need to inform me specially," Linne said calmly. "I asked you to follow me, not to bind you. You might lose some freedoms, but overall, you're still free."

She seemed to be suggesting a change in Luo's attitude.

"I feel like I've gained a lot," Luo paused, then asked seriously, "Can you tell me the specific reason?"

"Isn't 'Dark Continent' enough of a reason?" Linne countered.

Luo fell silent.

In the following days, Luo spent time preparing meals for Buhara and chatting with Linne.

Though it was called chatting, it was mostly Linne talking and Luo listening.

Linne recounted her adventures with Netero in her youth, including their travels worldwide and their secret excursions to the Dark Continent.

Listening to Linne's time-tempered experiences, Luo did not interrupt with questions or wonder about the bizarre stories. He remained a loyal listener, quietly absorbing it all.

After several days, Luo gained a deeper understanding of the Dark Continent.

If summarized in eight words: immensely vast, incredibly dangerous!

With only three days left before meeting Ging, Luo set off for the area around the World Tree.

The scheduled time was three days later at noon. The journey from the Hunter Association to the World Tree also took about three days.

Three days later, Luo arrived at the town at the base of the World Tree, a place filled with a strong sense of antiquity and bustling commercial activity, creating a subtle sense of contradiction.

The World Tree was a famous tourist spot. The town had a rare traditional style, but shops selling souvenirs and specialty foods lined the streets.

Luo arrived at the town around ten-thirty. With plenty of time and the enticing aroma of local foods wafting through the streets, he started sampling the delicacies from the first shop onward.

Luo was thoroughly captivated by the local specialties.

These delicacies, made from ordinary ingredients, had a unique taste that made even Luo, who had tasted many high-quality foods, reluctant to leave.

He couldn't stop eating, almost turning into Buhara, eating his way through most of the street before stopping. When he checked the time, it was already half-past twelve.

Standing in the bustling street, Luo looked up at the nearby World Tree.

After a moment of silence, he quickly packed some local food from a relatively quiet shop and, without looking back, sprinted towards the World Tree. After signing a waiver at the registration office, he climbed the World Tree in under ten minutes.

At the top, Ging was already waiting, staring at him with dead-fish eyes.

Facing Ging's inscrutable gaze, Luo raised the food bag in his hand and said earnestly, "I thought you might not have had lunch yet, so I packed something delicious for you. I queued for a long time to get it."

After a few nonsensical words, Luo took out a red brick-like item from the bag. Uh, a brick?

Luo stared blankly at the brick in his hand. In his haste, he hadn't noticed it earlier. He squeezed it; it seemed to be a pastry with filling inside.

Why use a brick shape? No wonder the shop's business was so bad.

Ging's gaze shifted to the brick in Luo's hand, his eyelids drooping heavily as he said, "Well, thank you for that."

He often came to the town near the World Tree, so he knew this red brick well. The taste was decent, but it was the least popular shop in town due to the unappealing shape, stubbornly unchanged by the owner.

While other shops might have queues, this one never did.

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