16 Con man

Cyrus woke up to the sound of birds chirping outside his run-down home. The morning sunlight filled his room, signaling the start of a new day. After facing the dangerous Queen's ant on his first official hunter's gate delving, he decided to take a day off to recover both mentally and physically.

Instead of entering another gate, Cyrus made the decision to sell the skill book that he obtained after defeating the Queen's ant. Fortunately, he had access to the auction house provided by the Hunter's Association network. He was able to easily sell the item by taking a picture of it, providing a brief description of its usage, and posting it on the auction network from the comfort of his own home.

Cyrus reached for his cell phone to take the required picture for his post, but he was interrupted by a series of notifications on his phone's home screen. The notifications showed that someone with an "Unknown" number had attempted to call him multiple times. Luckily, he didn't have to return the calls since the person left him a voicemail to listen to.

"Good morning, Mr. Strongmen. I hope you slept well. This is Lieutenant Rosa, who you spoke to yesterday. I'm calling to let you know that the Queen's ant and an unidentified ant have been excavated and sold as you requested. Unfortunately, I'm unable to send you the payment at this time. I've been asked by a superior to ask you to come to the Hunter's Association Office to speak with them before you receive your compensation. Please make sure to come before the end of the day. Thank you for your patience and understanding. Goodbye."

*Clank*

Cyrus was taken aback by how quickly everything had been resolved, and he decided to put off selling the skill book for the time being. Instead, he focused on getting his credit from the association. After getting dressed, he made his way to the designated rendezvous point.

Cyrus arrived at the Hunter Association and informed the receptionist of his purpose for visiting and asked to be directed to whoever was expecting him. After a short while, he was led to a familiar room - the same one where he had obtained his hunter's license - which happened to be Dr. Hinks' office.

As Cyrus opened the door, he tried to recall who had wanted to meet him - was it Dr. Hinks? Inside the room, he saw four individuals, two of whom he recognized and two he did not. The room had a desk in the center, and to the left corner of it stood Dr. Hinks, who had provided him with his hunter's license, and Lieutenant Rosa, whom he had met briefly the day before. They both stood still, not wanting to show any disrespect or distract the person sitting next to them. This man had a commanding presence and was browsing through a documented file. He wore a luxurious and well-tailored ensemble and had a full grey beard, indicating his old age, yet he looked muscular and strong. Although his sharp eyes were fixed on the file, he spoke with authority, his voice echoing in the quiet room.

"Please, come inside," the man said, gesturing for Cyrus to enter the room. As he walked in, Cyrus couldn't help but notice his acquaintances looking down at the floor. The man instructed him to take a seat, and then began to leisurely flip through some documents.

After a while, the man spoke up, "Hmm... Mister Cyrus Strongmen. Age 17. Single with no parental figure present. Rank F Hunter. You broke the record for the evaluation assessment, surpassing even the sword saint. Your ability is manifested as an area of effect fire based skill. You've received a special license due to the potential danger you may cause against other hunters. And finally, you've proclaimed yourself as the killer of an unexpected Queen's ant monster."

"..."

As the man recited his biography, Cyrus noticed that he didn't once look at him. This was quite displeasing to Cyrus, to say the least. He looked at the man with malice, as he had searched extensively for information on him and tried to make it look like he was lying about killing the Queen's ant. The man's accusation was a clear indication of greed, which Cyrus despised about human nature. It disregarded the struggles and effort that Cyrus had put in to achieve such a feat.

"I must say, Mr. Strongmen, that's quite an impressive accomplishment for someone your age," the man said, breaking the silence.

Cyrus remained silent, unsure of how to respond.

"However," the man continued, "I have my doubts about whether or not you actually killed the Queen's ant by yourself. While it's true that the corpse found in the gate was identified as that of the Queen's ant, it doesn't necessarily prove that you were the one who killed it."

Cyrus's frustration grew as the man spoke.

"Perhaps someone else killed the ant and you simply took credit for it. Without concrete evidence, the Association has the right to claim the achievement and the reward that comes with it."

Cyrus's anger boiled inside him as he glared at the man in front of him, thinking to himself, 'This slimy bastard is trying to trick me.'

"I'm sure Lieutenant Rosa can vouch for me, right?" Cyrus asked, but he noticed Rosa avoiding eye contact and remaining silent. He wondered who this man was and what his true intentions were.

"You see, Lieutenant Rosa has no say in this matter. The fact remains the same, you will need to provide proof, such as a loot drop," .

realizing that the man's goal was to obtain the queen ant's drop from the beginning.

Cyrus was prepared to provide proof and reached into his backpack to retrieve a book. He tightly grasped the cover while showing it to the others in the room.

"Is this enough proof?" Cyrus asked, holding up the item for the man to see.

"This is it! The Sacrificial Birth skill, the only drop available from the Queen's ant drop pool," the man confirmed.

Cyrus quickly stowed the item away in his backpack. "Okay then, everything's clarified now. Please send my payment to my bank account. Thank you. I'll be on my way," he said, turning to leave.

But then a young lady suddenly spoke up. "Grandpa! He's trying to leave with my book!" she exclaimed.

Cyrus turned to see a girl around his age with a white ponytail and a short pink dress. She looked like a pampered rich princess.

"Sweetheart, don't worry. Mr. Strongmen didn't mean to take your book," said the person addressing the young girl.

The girl huffed impatiently, "Then make him give it back. I'm bored waiting."

The person turned to Cyrus, "Please, stay seated. I apologize for being harsh. Let me introduce myself. My name is Gulliver Gold, one of the main sponsors of the Hunter's Association. I'm interested in purchasing the skill book from you. What do you say?"

Cyrus thought to himself, 'This guy is trying to get his hands on the skill before I can auction it off. He knows he has little chance against the powerful guilds out there, so he's trying to use his influence in the Association to claim it first. Fine, let's play this game.'