Phantom Troupe's Web

Chapter 8.

Upon reaching Mt. Split-in-Half, the remaining applicants file out of the aircraft and onto the surface of the towering mountain. Trailing behind the group, Iris walked closer to the centre of the peek, peering down the ravine where she spotted a web patching either side of the cavity walls. 'So this is why it's called Mt. Split-in-Half. How fitting' she thought with a grin, admiring the deep cavity. Looking down the ravine beside her was her younger brother and the boy she and Hisoka had encountered during the second part of Phase One; she had failed to ask for the child's name.

"A Spider Eagle's web," Menchi tells the group, standing at the edge with the trio who were admiring the cavity. "Look below the web. Those are Spider Eagle eggs," she informed them.

From behind the applicants, the chairman walked over to them and began educating the mass of participants about the creature. "Spider Eagles build their webs in deep ravines to protect their eggs from predators. This makes their eggs one of the most difficult ingredients to obtain," Chairman Netero explained. "The eggs are also known as dream eggs," he added.

"W-wait a minute...You don't mean we..," the cocky participant from before stutters, falling backwards in shock at the deepness of the cavity the others had been eyeing with either caution or interest.

The blue-haired Hunter nodded confidently, approaching the edge of the cavity and jumping into it, hanging from a web strand. At the top of the ravine, Illuki watches the woman's actions with amazement, grinning as Menchi releases her grip on the web strand and grabs onto an egg, safely floating back up to the surface with a smile.

"This ravine has updrafts that help the hatched chicks fly up to the web," Netero clarifies to those surprised by the examiner.

"There. Now I just need to boil the egg," Menchi told the group, holding out the egg with pride.

Without warning, Iris hops down the cavity alongside the two children beside her and their friends, gripping the nearest strand and hanging as the professional had done previously. 'Hanging here isn't necessary for me...I could just summon my griffin but where's the fun in that?' the magenta-haired woman thought with bored eyes, deciding against the notion and waiting for the next draft to appear. Impatient candidates dropped too early which, inevitably, led to their deaths however when she was sure; the former assassin dropped from the strand as everyone else did and grabbed onto one of the eggs, floating to the top with a large grin.

"That was fun~," she giggled childishly, munching on the egg once it had been boiled, standing between her brother and Hisoka who watched her.

Concluding the Second Phase of the exam, those who passed the assignment were offered a ride on the aircraft to the next phase by the chairman. The examinees now stood in a room located on the aircraft, the elder standing before them with his hands behind him and a carefree aura emitting from his figure. "Allow me to properly introduce myself to the 43 remaining applicants. I am Netero, Chairman of the Selective Committee of this year's Hunter Exam," he introduced himself with a carefree tone, smiling with closed eyes.

Beside him, the blob figure that had been handing out badge numbers at the start of the exam greeted the horde, smiling politely at them. "I am his secretary, Beans," they introduced themselves.

"Originally, I had planned to make my appearance during the final phase of the exam, but since I'm already here...I'll accompany you for a while," Netero said. "And enjoy this edgy atmosphere," he chuckles as Bean stood forward, giving an estimated time frame of their arrival to the Third Phase site, permitting the participants to roam the airship or rest during their travel.

After getting dismissed from the meeting, Hisoka and Gittarackur informed the disguised woman of their plans to find a vacant room to occupy until they landed at the Third Phase site. Though resting would've been an ideal choice, the emerald-eyed beauty chose to explore the aircraft, her mind consumed with the thoughts of the troupe and their wellbeing. She turns the corner, stumbling back to hide behind the corner when she noticed her younger brother and another child sitting at a table, talking.

"I'm from a family of assassins. They're all assassins, and my family has really high hopes for me – well besides my older sister," the white-haired boy tells the boy. From his statement, Illuki knew he was sharing his home life with a potential new friend of his. "But I can't stand it. Who wants to have their life planned out for them?" he huffs in annoyance, ignoring the way the child beside him sweat-dropped at his statement. "When I told them I wanted to decide my own future, they all flipped out! My mother had tears streaming down her face as she told me I have the potential to be a top assassin like my sister," the woman's brother elaborates while Iris silently chuckled, amused by the story. She had to agree with her mother that her younger brother would have been an excellent assassin, yet, she felt proud to see him standing up for himself against their parents, especially their overbearing mother.

"They're terrible parents, right? It's only natural their kid would go bad. That's why I like my older sister, she would have been proud of me!" Killua continued before sighing, recalling the events that occurred a few years before he ran away from home. "We ended up fighting. So I slashed my mother in the face, stabbed my older brother and ran away from home. I'm sure they're stirred up right now. But if they find me, I'll send them packing," he smiled at his new friend. "When I become a Hunter, I'll start by capturing my family. I'm sure they're worth some hefty bounties...Well except for my older sister. She's the best," he added.

Iris smiles at his words, adoring the way he spoke about her in comparison to the rest of their family; though she recalls Illumi telling her about Killua running away from their family estate and how he had attacked their mother and Milluki in the process. Her twin had informed her about the event after it occurred, along with how he had been tasked by their mother to supervise their younger brother since she was no longer living with nor had been in contact with them since joining the Spiders.

Pivoting on her heel, the former assassin treks to where Hisoka and Gittarackur were, a smile spread across her face as she thought about the white-haired child. "You've grown a lot, Kil. I'm glad you've found your independence," she mutters to herself.