The Magician's Dilemma (Hisoka x Reader) (Hunter x Hunter)

Chapter 7

(Y/N)'s Point of View

"Welcome to the second phase of the Hunter exam."

The strange man addressed the crowd, causing the room to fall silent. The only noise was of wheels against track from the train moving in unknown directions.

"My name is Bein Orsher. I am a-"

The man was forced to pause as a loud screech was heard from the train. Without notice, the brakes were turned on and the train suddenly stopped. I braced myself, placing a hand on the side of the train car to stop my fall. As soon as the commotion died down, the man spoke once again.

"As I was saying, my name is Bein Orsher. I am a Treasure Hunter. Let's go outside and we will start the second phase." He gestured with one hand towards the door of the train car, which suddenly opened as if magic was used. The applicants, including myself, slowly began to file out of the locomotive. Soon, everyone had exited the train.

The first thing I noticed was the environment. The mountainous forest was left long behind, replaced by a strange area. I looked around in awe. We certainly were no longer in the forest, in fact, we were no longer even outside. We stood in some sort of underground cavern, lit only by the dim light coming from within the train. The ceiling of the cave must be high; other than looming stalactites it seemed to be invisible in the darkness. The walls on either side of the cavern were tight, leaving only one clear path to travel. This path, though wide and obvious, was anything but welcoming. It snaked around a winding corner and disappeared from sight.

"Follow me" spoke the hunter, Bein.

Without another word or a moment's hesitation, he took off down the ominous tunnel. I had no choice but to act like everyone else and follow his footsteps into the unknown. Within seconds, the only flicker of light had vanished and we could rely on sound alone to follow the man. In total darkness, I tried to stay as close as possible to the hunter leading us, although without my sight I had no idea if I was even close to him.

Time seemed to pass slowly, yet quickly at the same time. No one spoke; the only noise was the breathing and footsteps of applicants echoing throughout the cave. As we ran further and further, the noises grew slightly quieter. Some applicants had likely dropped out. I was determined to stay in the race. I had to prove my worth, especially after my near-failure in the previous phase.

The hunter's footsteps became loud and obnoxious the further we ran. His boots were loud as they resonated with the ground. Bam! Bam! Bam! They were fast as well, speeding through the never-ending tunnels like a cheetah on the hunt for prey. I followed them mindlessly, ignoring the pleas of my own tired legs to stop and rest.

After what seemed like an eternity, the footsteps suddenly stopped. Becoming alert, I halted my steps, as did most other hunter applicants. However, not everyone had the mental strength to pay attention. A desperate scream was heard. It amplified loudly, echoing, echoing, echoing throughout the cave's tunnels.

A grim mood could be felt in the air as everyone came to the same realization. We were facing a drop-off, and a seemingly lethal one at that.

Bein cleared his throat before speaking. "For any of you wondering, it's been about three hours since we left the train." He paused quickly, presumably to count the number of remaining hunter candidates. "So I see, there are 27 of you left. With some luck, you will all be able to pass this phase of the exam. This is the Freyburn Overhang. Rare crystals are found all over the walls of this drop-off."

He pulled out a flashlight and turned it on. It's light, the first I had seen in hours, was blinding. He directed the beam towards the drop-off, allowing us to see the crystals. They were a beautiful, shiny yellow color. The cavern walls were not sleek, and so the climb would not be particularly difficult, but after a three-hour sprint it would certainly be tiring.