Then, unexpectedly, he charged straight toward Buhara and the others. Buhara had not anticipated it at all. By the time he realized what was happening, it was already too late to react.
Buhara was struck with a devastating blow on the spot.
The Freelance Gourmet Hunters were already at a disadvantage, and now that two members had been eliminated, the situation was only becoming more dire. Moreover, the ability displayed by the young Fallen One was deeply unsettling, enough to make people hesitate to even approach.
Only that A-rank Freelance Gourmet Hunter remained at the front line, still coordinating attacks with Misty in the distance. Misty's Dark Spark could pose a certain level of threat to the young Fallen One, but it also carried tremendous risk. The strange aura emitted by the young Fallen One was placing immense pressure on the A-rank Freelance Gourmet Hunter. On top of that, the young Fallen One was already stronger than him and had the added advantage of the backlash from the cursed coin, which had significantly weakened the hunter.
Before long, the A-rank Freelance Gourmet Hunter revealed an opening. The young Fallen One's attack landed cleanly, and the hunter's body was sent flying backward.
Just as the young Fallen One prepared to pursue and finish him off, an intense aura erupted from Misty's body, and her form shifted.
A massive black claw lashed out at the young Fallen One, disrupting him for a moment. The A-rank hunter fell from the air.
Sally grabbed a nearby fishing rod and flicked it out, hooking the fallen hunter's clothing and reeling him in.
The A-rank hunter spat out a mouthful of blood.
But he clearly didn't look fine. His injuries were severe.
Menchi bit her lip. "Damn it, I didn't think Senior Linne's preparations would be broken through even when he has weakened so much."
"I don't know how long it will take for the others to arrive."
The battlefield continued deteriorating. Only four people remained. Without realizing it, Misty had become the main force. Though she was a B-rank Nen user like the others, her actual combat strength clearly surpassed that of the remaining three. Both Shizuku and Sally were becoming anxious.
The current situation was this: either the young Fallen One would focus his attacks on Misty, or he would find an opening to retreat and link up with the mummy Fallen One, launching a pincer attack on Ron.
Suddenly, the A-rank hunter spotted a cursed silver coin on the deck—not one of the three coins currently held by the teams, but one dropped by a squad previously defeated by the Fallen Ones. He picked it up, holding it in his hand as his eyes flickered with indecision.
"What are you trying to do?"
Menchi's heart sank as she suddenly realized what he might be considering.
The A-rank hunter's expression turned grim. "If I use this cursed coin on the Fallen One, I should be able to suppress him for a while longer."
"That'll buy us some extra time."
Menchi frowned. "But you won't be able to withstand it. No one knows what the backlash of two cursed coins will do. It might kill you outright."
"That's still better than letting everyone die."
"This is the only option we have now."
Having made up his mind, the A-rank hunter poured a large amount of aura into the cursed coin. A beam of white light burst forth.
With a flick of his wrist, the cursed silver coin shot toward the young Fallen One. Like the three before it, the coin locked on and could not be evaded.
The cursed coin pierced the young Fallen One's body.
At once, his figure staggered.
"Ultra "Punishing Flash!"
A burst of light, resembling lightning, exploded from the young Fallen One's body. His body was launched through the air.
He fell into the sea, bubbles surging up.
When he resurfaced, his aura was visibly weaker.
Misty and the others widened the distance immediately. The young Fallen One glared viciously at the A-rank hunter, the hatred in his eyes nearly materializing into something tangible.
"I'll kill all of you!"
In this moment, the young Fallen One's hatred for Linne reached its peak.
He could no longer judge the status of the mummy Fallen One, but given his own power, he should never have been driven into such a corner by this group. His strength far exceeded theirs—but the cursed silver coins had tipped the balance.
Those coins carried Linne's aura. Linne was a genuine S-rank Nen user. That was why the cursed coins had such overwhelming suppressive power. Even the full-body version of the Fallen Ones had been restrained by the previous three coins.
A full-body Fallen One was a being close to S-rank.
It was obvious how much aura Linne had poured into those coins.
But the Fallen Ones also understood—Linne must have paid a steep price for this. Without an enormous sacrifice, it would have been impossible to create such cursed coins.
Their ability to craft cursed coins wasn't based solely on Nen ability. The silver used to forge them came from a special source—not ordinary silver, but a rare type brought back from the Dark Continent, imbued with anomalous energy.
To escape the restriction of the previous three cursed coins, the Fallen One had been forced to split his body in two. Yet now, another cursed coin used by the A-rank hunter had once again dealt a heavy blow to the young Fallen One, drastically suppressing his strength.
What would have been the full power of a top-tier A-rank Nen user had now been reduced to less than one-third. And Misty's group still held the advantage in numbers.
For the moment, the young Fallen One had no good solution.
Menchi alternated her gaze between the young Fallen One and the A-rank hunter, visibly anxious. Before setting out, Linne had warned them clearly: no one was to use more than one cursed coin. Doing so came at a cost—the side effects would be significant.
Menchi could feel those side effects already taking hold.
Now that the A-rank hunter had forcibly used a second cursed coin, just how severe would the backlash be?
It didn't take long to find out.
The hunter's body involuntarily curled inward, twisting into a fetal position as an expression of agony overtook his face. His bones, muscles, and skin all began to contort. Clumps of hair fell out in large swaths.
Cracking sounds echoed from within.