Encouraged by the compliment, the hip-hop guy lit up and started talking non-stop. He went on about his training, his techniques, and how his fists were “as tough as steel.” Larry responded with a few polite nods and the occasional “uh-huh,” but his attention was more focused on their surroundings. Under the dim glow of the cave, Larry soon noticed murals covering the right-hand wall. Unlike the decorative reliefs outside the ruins, these paintings were filled with eerie, unsettling imagery. ‘Could these murals hold the answers archaeologists have been searching for?’
Meanwhile, the rest of the group was more interested in scavenging the occasional trinkets and relics scattered along the path. Only the man with glasses seemed to notice Larry’s focused gaze. He glanced at the murals briefly but quickly lost interest, more concerned with the potential value of the artifacts around him. Larry’s fascination with the murals didn’t go unnoticed by the leather-clad woman. With an exasperated sigh, she grabbed the hip-hop guy by the collar and pulled him away. “Quit bugging Mr. Larry already!” she scolded, throwing Larry an apologetic glance.
The hip-hop guy just laughed, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. “Got it, sis.” With the distraction gone, Larry returned his attention to the murals. As they pressed forward, the story depicted on the walls gradually unfolded before him, painting a far darker picture than anything found in the outer ruins.
The murals depicted a time long ago when a group of explorers stumbled upon a mysterious circular altar deep within the land. By sheer accident, they discovered that sacrificing living creatures to the altar granted them immense power. This newfound power allowed them to manipulate emotions, materializing them into monstrous forms made of pure Nen energy. The creatures carved into the stone were identical to the ones on the door they had encountered earlier.
As time passed, these people began hunting more and more living beings, drawing humans to the altar and expanding their influence, eventually forming a kingdom. The first royal family was born from these individuals, wielding terrifying abilities to control emotions. But as their power grew, so did their greed. The nearby wildlife dwindled, forcing the royals to turn their gaze toward their own people.
To their horror—and delight—they discovered that human sacrifices yielded even greater power than animals, as human emotions were far richer and more complex. Thus, it became a grim tradition for each member of the royal family to perform at least one human sacrifice to cement their rule.
Larry’s eyes darkened as he absorbed the chilling tale. ‘In this world, hope and disaster often go hand in hand... The law of equivalent exchange applies to everything,’ he thought grimly. As he studied the murals further, a disturbing pattern emerged. Every time the murals depicted a sacrifice, the altar was represented by a void—an area completely blacked out, as if deliberately erased or damaged."Why would they remove the altar from the story?"
The tale continued, chronicling how one particular king, consumed by his insatiable hunger for power, began large-scale human sacrifices. However, his greed ultimately led to his downfall. The colossal negative energy created by his actions consumed him, birthing monstrous entities that ran rampant across the kingdom. The mural’s story ended abruptly here. The last section appeared hastily drawn, as if the artists were in a rush or interrupted before they could finish.
Even without a clear ending, Larry could easily piece together what happened next. The nen beast likely ravaged the entire kingdom, leaving nothing but devastation in their wake. Once all life was extinguished, the monsters, unable to sustain themselves, eventually dissipated. With no living creatures left to feed on, the Karym Ruins—once a grand palace—became a cursed wasteland, plagued by the remnants of countless souls, giving birth to the death aura that haunted it to this day.
Larry stood there for a moment, deep in thought. ‘If my guess is correct, this altar might have connections to the Dark Continent... It reeks of something far more sinister than just a relic of the past.’ A chilling realization crossed his mind. ‘What if the kingdom's obsession with art and emotions wasn’t just a cultural trait, but something engineered by the royal family? Did they deliberately cultivate emotional expression to increase the power they could harvest?’
Frowning, Larry continued examining the wall, his unease growing. Though the murals provided many answers, they left just as many questions. He turned to Gardevoir, who had been silently observing beside him. "What do you think?" he whispered.
Gardevoir’s serene gaze lingered on the murals before it gave a soft, knowing nod, as if sensing the remnants of deep sorrow etched within the walls. As Larry and the group passed the final mural, the narrow passage they had been following finally opened up into a vast chamber.
Stepping through the narrow entrance, their eyes widened at the sight before them—an enormous cavern filled with piles of gold and silver treasures, shimmering under the dim light. To the others, it looked like a well-earned reward after their arduous journey. But to Larry, it felt more like a carefully laid trap, set by an unseen predator.
In the far corner of the treasure-laden room, his gaze locked onto something far more ominous—an altar, flat and smooth, covered in intricate black patterns. It was unmistakably the same altar depicted in the murals. ‘After all these years, does it still possess the same sinister power? ‘Larry pondered, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. Before he could contemplate further, movement in his peripheral vision caught his attention.
A swirling dark green gust, entwined with fiery red flames, shot across the cavern—one from the left, the other from the right—both converging toward a single target: the hip-hop guy, who had just been admiring the treasures. The sudden attack took everyone by surprise, except for Larry, who had been keeping a close watch on their surroundings.
The combination of wind and fire intensified into a devastating force, the howling wind feeding the flames, sending them roaring forward with blistering speed. ‘The attackers?’ Neguro’s two bodyguards.
***
Name: Too lazy to think so let’s call him extra no 1.
Strength: C+
Nen Ability: Son of the Wind – A Transformation-type ability that allows him to convert his aura into wind-based attacks. When combined with Extra no. 2, the power scales exponentially.
Name: Extra No. 2
Strength: C+
Nen Ability: Son of Fire – A Transformation-type ability that allows him to convert his aura into fire-based attacks. Like No. 1, his power increases drastically when they work together.
***
Larry recalled how Transformation-type Nen users, like Killua, developed their abilities to mimic natural forces. Killua, for instance, had shaped his aura into electricity, enhancing his speed and using yo-yos as weapons to channel his attacks. Unlike Killua’s mastery execution, Neguro’s bodyguards simply exhaled their attacks directly from their mouths, reminiscent of techniques from Naruto, blending the elements like Fire Style and Wind Style jutsu.