Jack didn't know how long he stood there after the woman disappeared into the trees.
He only knew the island felt different.
Not because the wind changed, but because something inside him had shifted.
He still had the system in his head, but it didn't feel like a blessing anymore. It felt like a responsibility.
He didn't want responsibility.
He wanted power.
But power without purpose was useless, and the system had made it clear: the first purpose was survival. The second was choice. The third was consequence.
Jack took a step away from the shoreline and headed toward the center of the island.
His body moved without thinking, like he was being guided by instinct.
He was aware of the trees, of the sounds of insects, of the small life forms that lived here. The world seemed more detailed now, like a hidden layer had been pulled back.
The Nen activation felt like a lock opening.
Jack had heard about Nen in stories. About how it was the hidden force that governed the strongest people in the world. About how it was the key to becoming a Hunter.
About how it could turn a normal person into something dangerous.
He didn't care about the stories. He cared about the outcome.
The first thing he noticed was that he could sense things he couldn't before.
He could feel the movement of living creatures, not through sight, but through a subtle pressure in the air.
He could feel the difference between a plant and an animal.
He could feel the presence of something moving underground.
It wasn't magic. It was perception.
Jack stopped near a large rock and crouched.
He closed his eyes and focused on his breathing, trying to control the sensation inside his body.
The air felt thicker, like it contained something invisible.
His mind tried to push through the new awareness, but it kept returning to the system. The choices. The consequences.
The first task was survival.
The second task was time.
The system had already given him one reward. The next rewards would be based on how long he stayed alive.
Jack didn't know how long he had to wait.
The system hadn't said anything about the first task. Just survive.
The woman's words echoed in his mind. The world doesn't care about your plans.
Jack didn't care either. He had no plans. He only had instincts.
He stood up and continued walking.
He needed food. Water. Shelter. The basics.
The island was supposed to be calm.
But calm islands were usually calm for a reason.
The reason was that they were either boring or dangerous.
The ocean was the easiest thing to survive on, but it was also the hardest to trust.
Jack reached a small stream and drank.
The water was cold and tasted like metal. He didn't care. It was water.
It kept him alive.
He looked around.
The trees were dense. The shadows were thick. The island was hiding things.
Jack knew that. He had always known it. The world had always been full of hidden threats. That's why he had survived in his old life. That's why he had learned to be ruthless.
He continued walking, scanning the area with his newfound senses. The pressure in the air told him there were animals nearby. Small ones.
Not dangerous.
But alive.
His body moved with the awareness of a predator.
The island wasn't quiet anymore. It was full of life. Full of movement. Full of things that could be used.
Jack's mind went to Gon.
Gon's face appeared in his mind, bright and innocent.
Jack didn't like the feeling. He didn't want to care about anyone.
But he did. He had made a choice. And choices had consequences.
He pushed the thought away and focused on what he could control.
He found a fallen branch and tested its weight.
He sharpened it against a rock until it was pointed. It wasn't a weapon yet, but it was something he could use if he needed to.
He walked until he found a cave hidden behind a thick layer of vines. It was dark, but it was safe. It would keep him out of the weather and out of sight.
He entered and sat down. He didn't light a fire. Fire made noise and attracted attention. He didn't want attention.
He sat in the dark and tried to focus on the sensation of Nen in his body.
The feeling was strange. Like a faint buzzing in his veins. Like a whisper.
He needed to learn how to control it.
He remembered what he had heard about Nen categories.
Ten. Zetsu. Ren. Hatsu. Manipulation.
Emission. Conjuration. Enhancement. Transmutation.
Specialization.
He didn't care about the names. He cared about what they could do.
Jack closed his eyes and focused on the simplest concept: breathing.
He forced his breath to slow.
He tried to push his awareness outward, like he was sending his senses into the air.
His body resisted at first. His mind tried to pull away. But he forced it.
The buzzing became stronger.
The pressure in the air became more defined.
He could feel the difference between the cave and the outside world.
He could feel the presence of something else.
He opened his eyes.
A faint shimmer in the air.
Something moving.
A creature.
Not a human. Not a monster. Something like a large insect, but with a strange energy.
Jack didn't hesitate.
He grabbed the sharpened branch and moved toward the creature.
The creature didn't attack. It just moved, as if it was curious.
Jack's hand tightened around the branch.
His body was ready to strike.
He felt the Nen in his body surge, like a pulse.
He struck.
The creature fell.
Jack didn't feel anything.
No satisfaction. No relief.
Just the fact that it was dead.
The system pulsed in his mind.
[First meaningful kill detected.]
Jack's body didn't react to the system. His mind didn't race.
He was used to death. He had seen it before.
But the system was different. It didn't feel like a story. It felt like a rule.
The three choices appeared again.
Jack looked at them without blinking.
He didn't need time. He didn't need to think.
The choices were a tool.
He was going to use them
.
CHOICE 1 — "The Hunter's Edge"
Reward: A skill from the Hunter X Hunter world
Consequence: You must leave Whale Island within 7 days
CHOICE 2 — "The Beast's Power"
Reward: A beast-like transformation power from any fiction
Consequence: Your humanity will be reduced over time
CHOICE 3 — "The God's Mercy"
Reward: A random power from any fiction
Consequence: Someone you care about will be hurt badly
Jack chose without hesitation.
He chose the one that would make him stronger without making him sentimental.
He chose the one that would let him survive without becoming soft.
He chose the one that would let him control the world around him, not be controlled by it.
Choice 1 — "The Hunter's Edge."
The system accepted his choice.
Jack felt a sudden rush of information.
Skills. Knowledge. Patterns. Weaknesses.
Not just about the Hunter Exam. About the world.
About how to survive.
About how to fight.
About how to win.
The system gave him a gift.
Not a power.
A method.
Jack smiled once, without happiness.
He was not going to be the strongest yet.
But he was going to become a predator in a world full of prey.
He sat in the cave, surrounded by darkness, and thought about the only thing that mattered.
Gon.
He didn't care about anyone else.
But Gon was a problem he couldn't ignore.
Jack's eyes narrowed.
He wasn't doing this for morality.
He was doing it for survival.
He was doing it because Gon was the only thing that mattered to him.
He didn't know what the future held.
But he knew one thing.
He was not going to lose.