Gourmet Hunter (HxH Fanfic)

Law just glanced casually at the red-haired boy, who is sitting on the roof while chewing gum. Law felt that he looked a little familiar, but didn't pay much attention to it.

After determining the correct direction, Law continued leaping across rooftops. When he finally had a clear view of the church, he chose a nearby alley, jumped down, and made his way to the main street, then walked toward the church.

Although the church is not a hospital, it is a place that provides treatment. The room where Uvogin and Nobunaga were staying could essentially be considered a ward.

When Law returned to the room, Pakunoda was no longer there, and Nobunaga was still sleeping with his head buried under the covers. Uvogin was lying obediently on the bed, while Machi sat silently in a chair.

As soon as Law entered the ward, he was greeted by a gloomy atmosphere.

"What's wrong with you all?"

Law looked at Uvogin and Machi, who looked like they had lost all hope in life, with a puzzled look on his face.

Uvogin glanced up at Law, then lowered his head in dejection after a moment.

"We're in a lot of debt," Machi replied weakly.

Law was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized that it was the medical expenses Chrollo had covered for them. So he immediately asked, "How much?"

Machi sighed deeply and said in despair, "Three million Jenny."

"What?!" Law was a little dumbfounded.

'According to the exchange rate between Jenny and USD, this is almost $20,000. This place is definitely a shady hospital. Wait… this is a church.'

Machi slumped over the table and sighed helplessly, "That three million Jenny doesn't even cover future expenses. Even if we split it three ways, I don't know how long it'll take to pay it off."

Not to mention Machi, who was in a poorer condition, even Uvogin couldn't afford such a huge debt.

"Chrollo won't ask you to pay the money back as soon as possible, right? Is there any need to be so pessimistic?" Law asked, trying to console them as he sat down next to Machi.

Machi shook her head slightly and said, "Chrollo will definitely not urge us to pay back the money, but Pakunoda said that three million Jenny is pretty much all the money Chrollo has, and he can't help us cover the subsequent expenses."

"Seriously? So it all comes down to how shady this church is, right? Is there a complaints department?" Law exclaimed with wide eyes.

Machi rolled her eyes at him and didn't even have the mood to refute Law.

"I heard from Pakunoda that the remaining money would only last for two more days." Uvogin said, then raised his hand to gesture toward the still-sleeping Nobunaga on the adjacent bed, and added, "And that guy's just sleeping like a pig."

"So, what now? Are there any ways to quickly make money in Meteor City?" Law was also worried and rubbed his forehead.

'With Nobunaga sleeping without care of the world, Uvogin not be able to get out of bed for a short time, and Machi's legs injured, losing her mobility, it seemed that I am the only one who can be relied on now.'

Upon hearing Law's question, Uvogin and Machi glanced at each other, and then said with certainty: "No."

"Seriously? Then where did Chrollo get all that money?" Law asked skeptically.

"If I knew, I wouldn't be so poor." Machi muttered.

Law nodded in understanding, and said, "That's true. If you knew, you wouldn't be living off rice soup every day."

Hearing Law mentioning rice soup again, Machi immediately stared at Law with a deadpan glare, but the latter simply ignored her.

"Do I really need to open a restaurant? But that would require capital. A pound of rice in Meteor City costs five hundred Jenny. The prices here is really outrageous. I wonder if other goods are just as expensive." Law lowered his head and muttered to himself.

Machi couldn't quite hear what Law was mumbling to himself, so she asked, "What are you mumbling about?"

Law looked up at Machi and said seriously, "I was thinking that if I opened a restaurant on Meteor City, I might be able to make a lot of money in a short period of time."

Hearing this, Machi and Uvogin fell silent, and then looked at Law again with a very familiar look, as if they were looking at a lunatic.

The prices of ingredients in Meteor City are terribly high, so there are no places like restaurants in Meteor City. Places like churches that provide cooked food are exceptions, and the prices are as shady as the medical expenses.

A full meal like the one they had today would cost 4,500 Jenny.

Although there are no restaurants, the city did have shops that sold daily necessities and bars for entertainment. Though the lifestyle system wasn't fully developed, there were basic elements in place.

These everyday shops were all under the control of the recycling station, and the people behind the recycling station are the four Elders.

The residents of Meteor City send recyclable materials to the recycling station, and the people at the recycling station will give them a very unreasonable price. As a result, income was disproportionate to the city's exorbitant cost of living, and only physically strong could live out a slightly better life.

Machi, who is still young, didn't fall into that category, so her living conditions were quite poor.

Facing Machi and Uvogin's familiar looks, Law could only show a wry smile. Explaining his idea to these two was like talking to a wall, so he simply ignored them and lowered his head to think of a solution himself.

Opening a restaurant was an idea that had come to him suddenly today, but it was just a passing thought. After all, he had no intention of settling down in Meteor City permanently.

Like people usually say, plans always fail to keep up with changes.

Originally, Law just planned to improve his diet a bit and then leave after staying in Meteor City for a while. But now, not only was improving his meals off the table, he also had to solve the living expenses and medical debts of three injured individuals. Oh, also the money they owed to Chrollo.

Three million Jenny! If it was a normal city, Law would still be confident that he could earn it in a short period of time, but this is Meteor City.

'If I had known earlier, I would have just left the Hand of Ominous Signs to Machi and the others, and then ran away from this place. But if I had done that, I would have no chance to come into contact with the Elder's collections.'

When Chrollo had paid the fee, he'd done it so nonchalantly, as if it was no big deal. But it turned out, it was practically all his savings.

He succeeded in showing off, and ended up luring Machi and the others into a trap. They thought they didn't have to worry about medical expenses at all, and could just pay them back slowly in the future.

If they really knew this would be the outcome, maybe Machi and Uvogin would have just asked Law to run away, and the Hand of Ominous Signs he left behind would have been just enough to exchange for money to offset the medical expenses.

'Even if I want to open a restaurant, it will be a problem if I don't have the capital. As expected, I still have to go to that guy Chrollo. He's twelve years old and already has three million Jenny saved up. He must have a way to make money."

Law also slumped over the table, tilting his head as he fell into deep thought.

Although this matter required urgent attention, the events he experienced today had left Law feeling drained. He decided to meet Chrollo tomorrow.

'It would be great if Chrollo could provide a way to make money quickly. But if there is no way to make money quickly in a short period of time, then I can just ask Chrollo to use up all his remaining savings to open a restaurant. But I don't know if Chrollo will be interested in this.'

As for the business itself, Law was confident in his cooking skills. However, before opening a restaurant, he has to go to the market to search for ingredients. After all, even the best chef couldn't cook without ingredients.

From the beginning to the end, even though it wasn't strictly his responsibility, Law never considered avoiding the problem. It's because Machi had helped him before.

"Alright, it's settled. I'll find out where Chrollo lives and go talk to him tomorrow morning."

Law's gaze, which had been wandering, gradually refocused. Then, he saw Machi's wide eyes, paused, and said unhappily: "What?"

He still hadn't forgotten the way she'd looked at him earlier, as if he were crazy.

"Law."

Machi said solemnly.

"Hmm?" Law raised an eyebrow.

"Why don't you go find another piece of wood?" Machi suggested earnestly.

"…"