Borksen (ボークセン, Bōkusen) is a private first class in the Royal Army of the Kakin Empire and a Provisional Hunter.^{[note 1]} She was formerly stationed on Tier 1, but due to a transfer request by Cpl. Gipper, changes posts with him and was stationed on Tier 3.^[3] There, she was abducted by the Heil-Ly Family,^[4] and unwillingly made a prospective member.^[1]

Appearance

Borksen has large, dark eyes and light-colored hair that falls past her ears but above her shoulders, curling up at the ends. She wears the standard attire of a Kakin soldier.^[3]

Personality

Borksen is an intelligent and observant woman and works smartly towards her goals of having a long life that she can float through.^[2] When suddenly placed in unexpected situations, she is able to keep relatively calm and think logically without being noticeably disoriented by the change in situation.^[4] While she is not particularly interested in doing what is right above all, she has a reasonable moral compass and is unwilling to be involved in crime, possibly motivated to some degree by maximizing her chances at an uneventful life.^[2] Among her group of friends, she is persuasive and influential.^[3]

Borksen desires a modest, ordinary life in her own corner of the world where she can contribute but not have very many responsibilities; in her own terms "somewhere between military prep school instructor or a fourth secretary for a [...] deputy director". She was taught during her time at the Kakin Royal Military Academy that her duty was defending Kakin's safety, but where some students might have jumped at the chance to defend Kakin, Borksen hoped that war would not break out during her lifetime. Her desire for Kakin to remain around and remain peaceful was not out of a sense of duty or responsibility, but because it reflected her chance to live an unbothered life.^[2]

By Borksen's own admission, she has some degree of academic intelligence, smart enough to enter officer training school.^[2] She has also displayed a relatively high level of observation, able to note the connection between the artist that tattooed her unit tattoo and Morena. She also reflects a level of emotional intelligence, having noticed the importance of Nen from the reactions of Theta and Salkov upon hearing it. She is also good enough at reading into the reactions of people to glean information even from a non-response to questions.^[3]

Borksen can be considered quite morally neutral. Despite knowing that Nen was classified information, Borksen wanted to probe into it and learn about it, though she was not given the opportunity to do so. She also sought to avoid Morena while appearing to be looking for her.^[3] When she eventually meets Morena and is forced to play a card game with potentially significant consequences, she is not above pushing the rules of what is allowed and trying to cheat. When Borksen hears of Morena's hears of her backstory, she feels sympathy for her because of the upbringing Morena had even though they met under terse and adverse conditions for her, though this was not motivation enough for Borksen to give up and assist Morena as requested.^[2]

Plot

Succession Contest arc

On the seventh day of the voyage, 4^th Prince Tserriednich, benefactor of Kakin's Heil-Ly Mafia Family is contacted by the Cha-R Family concerning the location of Morena Prudo, the new head of the Heil-Ly, about the Heil-Ly's possible involvement in a series of mass disappearances of people in the lower tiers. He checks and lets them know that she is not in the VVIP Area, and separately orders his soldiers stationed on the lower tiers to search their hideout.^[5] On the tenth day,^{[note 2]} a group of his soldiers on Tier 3, led by Corporal Gipper, forcibly enter the hideout and find it abandoned, largely empty save for the corpses of two Cha-R warehouse guards. As they leave, Gipper decides that Morena needs to be covertly captured before authorities unaware of the balance between the mafia families classifies one of the increasing number of incidents incorrectly, possibly leading to all-out war between the government and the mafia.^[3]

Private second class Otocin asks if they should consider if the Heil-Ly have Nen users among them, confusing Gipper. He explains that it is related to why Tserriednich had not yet responded to the emergency, and reveals that private first class Borksen, their friend and part of the royal quarters security detail, had shared this information with him. Gipper threatens to have Borksen be transferred to Tier 3 as an advisor, and Momolly chastises Otocin for provoking Gipper and involving Borksen, who justifies his actions with the belief that Borksen would support him. As part of the group's plan, Gipper places a transfer request to see if the situation is complicated enough that the request would be denied, and ends up changing posts with Borksen.^[3]

Some time passes, and the group of soldiers hide in a storage room and get updates on Tserriednich by an annoyed Borksen. She confirms that Tserriednich is being taught Nen by Theta, and tells them that the information is secret and could get them demoted. They ask her about Nen, and Borksen smiles but replies in an annoyed tone that it was classified and she had been about to probe into it. She calls out Otocin for snitching on her to Gipper, and brought up that he could be proposing to restrict communications with the lower tiers because of information leakage using her as a pretext.^[3]

Borksen sighs and relaxes, saying that they basically would not get any information regardless, since she was no longer on Tier 1 and that Gipper would not be able to get any information out of Theta, who she is friends with. She lets the group know that when Tserriednich found out about Nen, she and Salkov began to act weird. Borksen points out that she could have inferred an answer from how she asked a question, even without an explicit answer, but they would have to settle for doing what they could from Tier 3. The group agree that Morena most likely uses Nen, and so to protect their own lives, they would avoid her as much as possible.^[3]

The others celebrate having the Borksen that they knew back, but Borksen snidely tells them that she had not given up on her career ambitions, and points out how hard it is to avoid Morena while pretending to look for her, saying that the Heil-Ly probably knew them because the tattoo artist that gave them their unit tattoos was once a Heil-Ly member, recruited by Tserriednich early enough to avoid the massacre when Morena rose to power, but late enough for them to be in his client database. She confirms that Nen is the kind of weapon that should not be made public, something that Otocin had not been convincing enough to do so earlier. One of them wonders if they could learn Nen too, but Borksen says that she could not find out anymore and that protecting themselves was the priority, suggesting that they should make contact and cooperate with the Cha-R or the Xi-Yu Family to mitigate the disadvantage of their lack of information about the Heil-Ly. Momolly brings up the grim possibility that one of the might be caught by the Heil-Ly, and the group agree to make plans for that as well.^[3]

Early on the twelfth day, the group meet with the Xi-Yu and Cha-R, and confirm for them that the warehouse was abandoned save for the bodies of warehouse guards, and the area is currently closed off. The Cha-R's underboss Ken'i tells them that the secret hideout behind Room 3101 was found, and that Nobunaga plans to investigate it with two other Troupe members. He adds that he and the Xi-Yu's underboss Hinrigh will track the pair seen on Hinrigh's camcorder footage and try to bring them back alive to minimize police involvement. Borksen says that they are unable to help since the Heil-Ly know their faces, but another soldier volunteers to take the fall if the two Heil-Ly members are killed.^[6]

A Negotiation Game with Morena

On the twelfth day of the voyage, Borksen's friends gather on Tier 3 to let the group know that she is missing, and that the last contact they had with her was roughly 30 minutes before, when 9^th Prince Halkenburg's funeral procession passed by her. They have a short discussion about how it could have happened and prepare to assume the worst, that she had been abducted. They debate why and how she was abducted, and wonder if they are going to stick to their earlier-discussed plan that Borksen had told them to do if one of them was caught, to not negotiate or rescue the abducted friend. Their discussion is cut short by a corporal who notices them standing around, and tells them to spread out and do their jobs because they are still on high alert.^[4]

Borksen regains consciousness only to find herself facing a woman. After the woman welcomes Borksen to the Heil-Ly hideout and briefly explains their reasons for bringing her here, Borksen correctly guesses that the woman is Morena Prudo and asks Morena what she wants from her. As Morena begins a more detailed explanation, Borksen looks around and assesses the situation. Borksen notes that she is not being physically restrained, but is surrounded by six people and had her weapons taken from her. Morena tells Borksen that she wants Borksen to join them and be something like a "compatible donor" for them, and would do her best to convince Borksen to join them. As Borksen thinks about her lack of memory of being abducted and wonders at the possibility of Nen being used to abduct her, she tells Morena that she is not ready to answer. Morena tells her that it was wise of her to do so, but lets Borksen know that the more she explained, the harder it would be for them to back off and let her go. Borksen asks Morena if what she said was a threat, but Morena tells Borksen to take her response however she likes and explains that although she cannot reveal why, the risk for both sides increases the longer their exchange takes. Borksen calls Morena out for engineering such a situation, but Morena simply concedes Borksen's point and tells her not to expect a fair perspective from a crime syndicate.^[4]

Morena proposes a way to settle their negotiation quickly while also giving Borksen a chance to get what she wants to Borksen, adding that it is her first and only compromise. Morena holds up twelve cards and tells Borksen that they will decide with a negotiation game, and warns Borksen that if she withdraws from the game, she will lose the freedom to do anything other than say yes or no. Borksen decides to listen to Morena's explanation of the rules. Morena begins by explaining the setup of the game:^[4]

• The game is played between a dealer and a player. The dealer makes a request of the player, and through the game, the player makes a decision about the dealer's request.^[4]
• The dealer begins with seven cards with topics that the player can ask about, face up on the board, and the player begins with five cards that represent their possible final responses at the end of the game, face down.^[4]
• Each turn, the player picks one of the dealer's cards and gets an answer from the dealer about the topic represented by the card, and the card is then discarded to the graveyard. Then, the dealer picks one of the player's cards to reveal and discard it to the graveyard, eliminating it from being the player's final response at the end of the game.^[4]
• The process repeats, and the game ends when the player has one card remaining.^[4]

Borksen preemptively guesses that she has four "Yes" cards and one "No" cards, but Morena does not bother responding to her guess and tells Borksen to turn them over from the left. Borksen flips over a "Yes" card, then a "No" card, and then flips a third card over to see a "R" card. Morena explains that Borksen had just flipped over a "Return" card, which allows Borksen to return a card of Borksen's choice from the graveyard to her board. If Borksen ends with the "Return" card, she can use it to retrieve the response card she wants from the graveyard. Borksen flips over the fourth card and sees that it is a "Joker" card. Morena explains that the "Joker" can turn into "Yes" or "No", and also allows Borksen to decide on her response if it is her final card. Borksen believes that Morena could be lying by omission about what the card can do, and points out to Morena that she had just said she would take away her freedom to do anything besides say 'Yes' or 'No' if she refused to play, with the implication that she would not be allowed to leave until she says yes, and asks what the point of playing the game was. Morena does not respond and tells Borksen to flip over the final card. The card is revealed to be an "X" card, which Morena explains is neither "Yes" nor "No", allowing Borksen to not make a decision. Borksen asks to clarify if she could void the game itself if the "X" card is her last card. Morena confirms that Borksen's understanding is correct and promises not to find her and renegotiate after, but in exchange, tells Borksen that she would take full responsibility for the consequences of her answer, if the final card were any other card.^[4]

Borksen defuses the situation slightly by reminding Morena that she had not gone over half the rules yet, and could not give an answer yet. She thinks about how even with just the rules explained so far, it was clear that the odds were against her. She thinks through the cards and begins with what she calls the first trap, the "Yes" card. Since there is only one "Yes" card, Borksen believes that there is an illusion that the player is advantaged, but it actually means complete defeat with Borksen having to obey all the rules the Heil-Ly adds later. She moves on to thinking about the "No" card, and sees the possibility that it bares its fangs as soon as the game begins, depending on the explanation of the "Yes?" and "No?" question cards on Morena's side. Borksen imagines Morena explaining all sorts of horrible things that would happen around her if she says 'No' until she decides that saying 'Yes' is better, and decides that "No" and "Joker" (being only "Yes" or "No") are pointless, and her real cards are "Return" and "X". For a brief moment, she thinks about how 40% isn't bad odds considering the situation, but then becomes mindful that it is what she calls the second trap, that it did not matter how many cards are good for her as long as Morena gets to pick her cards. Borksen worries about a third, worse trap, as Morena continues her explanations.^[4]

Morena begins explaining the seven cards on her side and what she will do if they are picked:^[4]

• If the "Aim" card is picked, Morena will explain her goals, what they are trying to do by inviting Borksen and recruiting her.^[4]
• If the "Power" card is picked, Morena will explain her ability in as much detail as Borksen wants, until she understands.^[4]
• If the "Question A" card is picked, Morena will answer all the questions Borksen has for her, except questions relating to her goals or her ability. For "Question A", Morena will only answer with "Yes", "No", or "Yes and No".^[4]
• If the "Question B" card is picked, Borksen can ask more detailed questions about the final question she asked when "Question A" was picked, but only the final question.^[4]

Borksen interrupts Morena's explanation, and asks if she can ask a test question to properly understand the way Morena answers. As she asks, she prepares to ignore Morena's actual response, and identify an answer through Morena's tone and non-verbal cues. Borksen gets confirmation, and asks Morena, "You will not cheat within the game at any point, 'Yes' or 'No'?". Morena sees where Borksen is confused, and goes on a small tangent about how some cultures respond to negative questions with "Yes, I have not" and others go "No, I have not". As Morena speaks, Borksen guesses that the game works as both an initiation when soliciting new members and an interview, where Morena uses the exchange to observe the subject, examine their personality and intelligence, and judge their compatibility for her team. She asks Morena for her answer, and Morena says "No, I will not cheat", explaining after that if she responds with "No", she speaks from her own perspective.^[4]

Borksen senses a lot of anger from Morena, and wonders what she could be so angry about. She decides that Morena will not cheat because of her confidence, respectful treatment of her, and attitude and intonation despite the obvious absolute control she has over her cronies. Morena continues explaining the remaining cards:^[4]

• If the "Yes?" or "No?" cards are picked, Morena will explain what happens in detail if Borksen is left with a "Yes" or "No" card as her final card.^[4]
• If the "D" or "Deal" card is picked, Morena will ask Borksen to grant a "small request" of hers, and if Borksen does so, she can pick a card from the grave to return. However, if Borksen does not grant Morena's "small request", it becomes Morena's turn, and Morena can eliminate one of Borksen's remaining cards.^[4]

Morena ends her explanation by highlighting that the game ends when Borksen is down to one card, so her last chance to use Morena's "Deal" card is when Borksen is down to two cards. At Borksen's request, Morena allows her to decide which of her cards is picked during Morena's turn, and they prepare to begin the game.^[4]

The negotiation game begins with Borksen choosing the "Aim" card. Morena asks Borksen why she had chosen it. Borksen asks if small talk is allowed and joins in after checking that there is no penalty for doing so. Unexpectedly, Borksen turns to Morena's underlings and tries to figure out how many other members there were. They keep silent and Morena tells Borksen her that they wouldn't talk, before telling Borksen that there are other members and to use a card if she had any questions. Borksen condescendingly retorts that she "obviously" chose the "Aim" card to help her decide on her final response, and in a patronizing tone declares that she would not answer any of Morena's questions. Morena offers a concession to Borksen, offering to let her ask a question for every question she answered. Borksen thanks Morena as she guesses that the Heil-Ly have fewer than 50 members, judging from how Morena responded to her question.^[2]

Morena candidly tells Borksen that her goal is the destruction of the Kakin Empire, and after that she would keep trying until all humanity was destroyed. Morena tells Borksen that she needs her to do that, and smiles at Borksen, waiting for a response. Borksen is confused, and tells Morena that her explanation was not nearly enough, around a 3 out of 100, if 100 meant complete understanding. Morena decides to begin by explaining her upbringing and asks Borksen if she had heard of the term "Second-Track Faker" before. Borksen says it describes royalty like Morena without succession rights. Morena tells Borksen that it was true for the actual Morena Prudo, but her, the person speaking at the moment, is not even royalty—the real Morena is in a grave marked for the current Morena. Borksen is even more confused, and asks Morena who she is. Morena alludes to her background, which is enough for Borksen to understand and prove that she does by identifying Morena as a "Carnival Orphan", an orphan born from the "feast" held once every few years in a randomly-selected village, where the villagers "entertain" Kakin's Royal Family.^[2]

Morena smiles faintly and watches Borksen as she describes her unfortunate past. Borksen lowers her gaze as she listens, unable to respond. Morena tells Borksen that she needs people with special abilities to help her achieve her goal; with one most critical role that Morena hopes in particular Borksen will be able to fulfil. Borksen asks why she is the one, but Morena tells her that she cannot answer that with the "Aim" card, and slides it to the graveyard.^[2]

Orarge shuffles and neatly lays out Borksen's remaining response cards. Borksen flips over her choice to reveal that the "Joker" card would be the first one discarded. She next chooses the "Ability" card. Morena explains that Nen is like a superpower that anyone could learn with training. Borksen asks Morena what her ability exactly is, and Morena obliges her. As Borksen listens to Morena's explanation, she notes how cunning Morena had been, having structured her explanations so that regardless of which was chosen first you would want to know about the other. Borksen admits to herself that while she does not really care about protecting Kakin, the idea that someone could waltz in and interrupt her plans of floating through a peaceful, idle life was unnerving. She thinks about her time growing up in the Kakin Military Academy.^[2]

As Morena explains her goal of destroying Kakin, Borksen listens to her but is unable to agree with murdering people in her life she did not want around. As Morena explains how Nen abilities are influenced by an individual's personality and state of mind, Borksen decides that she cannot relate to Morena's goals, and so has to get out no matter what. Borksen returns her focus to their conversation, and asks Morena how she knows that her ability, which has yet to be acquired, is important to her despite barely knowing her. Morena reveals that Borksen is a Specialist to her, and explains how the Heil-Ly had identified Borksen as one. Morena shares that roughly 1 in 3000 people were specialists, and asks Borksen if she understands what the numbers imply. Borksen does not react. Morena explains that there were bound to be at least 50-60 more on board, and states plainly that with enough time, they could find another Specialist who identified better with their goals.^[2]

After Morena slides the card to the graveyard, Borksen asks to know more about "Specialization", specifically asking what kind of ability Morena would want her to have if she were granted one. Morena hesitates because of the relevance of Borksen's question to the "Yes?" and "No?" cards, but decides to begin by explaining that Specialization is a convenient Nen type to have because Specialists can take on challenging cross-category techniques, or even abilities that don't belong to any category at all. Morena reveals that she's also a specialist and that her ability is quite unique, much like a high-level hybrid technique combining elements from the other categories. She adds that this is why she has specific requests regarding Borksen's ability, but explains that saying any more requires Borksen to choose the "Yes?" card, which would be a discussion of what role she would be expected to have once she joins their team.^[2]

As Orarge shuffles the remaining cards, Borksen decides that Morena would give reasonable answers even after a card was sent to the graveyard. She worries about the time risk that Morena had mentioned, then reveals the "Yes" card to be discarded. Borksen notes the reactions of the Heil-Ly members present and decides that she can conclude that they had not witnessed any cheating in the past, though keeps in mind not to be complacent.^[2]

Borksen picks up on Morena's lead to choose the "No?" card and does so. Morena says that they would consider "No" to be a complete and irrevocable rejection. Borksen listens and prepares for a threat to force her to choose "Yes" between a choice of "Yes" and "No". Morena elaborates that Borksen and those around her would be viewed as "not one of [them]", one of the "other"s, simply points for the Heil-Ly to accrue and level up on the way to attaining their goal. Morena tells Borksen that she would not try to recruit her again, but now that she knew their secret, they could not just let her leave. Borksen senses the looming threat of the third trap, that even the "X" card is pointless and that the whole game is a trap to make her say "Yes". Contrary to her expectations, Morena explains that if the "X" card remains, Borksen's knowledge of their secrets would be included in the voiding of the game. Borksen looks up at Morena, unprepared to hear that response. Morena clarifies that Borksen's memory would not be erased, rather, they would trust Borksen and pretend that none of their negotiations happened, and the Heil-Ly would try not to make any contact with her or the people important to her. Borksen cannot understand this and asks Morena how it made sense for Morena to include the "X" card, seemingly having no merits for but high risks for her. Morena explains the concepts of vows and limitations, which she mentions is a very important component in Nen, and that the risks of a "No" being chosen strengthen her ability and the resulting team unity.^[2]

Borksen picks her third card, and reveals that the "X" card is next to be discarded. Her thoughts are cut off as an alarm blares. Borksen and Morena instantly look up, and hear that special martial law is declared.^[2] Instructions on how to behave during special martial law for the passengers are given; each tier receives different instructions. Instructions are given beginning from lower tiers and working up; Tier 5 is given instructions, and then Tier 4. As the instructions for Tier 3 are given, Borksen thinks about the implications of special martial law, that all royal army soldiers are now granted the right to shoot any suspicious person without warning, and have the duty to remove any armed citizens and eliminate subversives. Borksen notes that Morena appears to be a bit tense but does not blame her for it, aware that even she herself, having just come from Tier 1 a short while ago, did not expect this. She prepares to narrow down where they are, using the knowledge that upper tier announcements would not be broadcast to the lower tiers to confirm that they were above Tier 3, and quickly moves on. While hoping that instructions for upper tiers would be heard, Borksen tells Morena that she picks "Deal". Tier 2 is given instructions as Morena compliments Borksen for being calm despite the situation.^[7]

Borksen guesses that Morena was momentarily confused because she was either distracted by the announcement or needed to buy time to organize her thoughts, since the announcement should not have been loud enough for Morena to be unable to hear her. She decides that the interruption benefits her regardless of which it was, because Morena's choice to continue the game despite the emergency indicates Morena's confidence in either the hideout's location remaining a secret despite the special martial law, or that any soldiers that found them would not be able to neutralize them. Again, Borksen decides that both options roughly mean the same thing, that the game continues without a hitch, which means that there would be no argument over the results of the game. As Morena begins introducing what happens when the "Deal" card is chosen, Borksen continues thinking about how special martial law might affect the game, that it would be best if the royal army comes in and neutralized the Heil-Ly, but that risked her being hit by a stray bullet, or perceived as one of Morena's allies and if not shot, taken into custody, questioned, and tortured. She decides that to get out of the game as peacefully as possible, she needs to leave with the "X" card.^[7]

Morena reminds Borksen that the "Deal" card means that Borksen's choice of a card can be retrieved from the graveyard if her "small request", which she had already decided to be a kiss, was fulfilled. Morena cuts off a stuttering Borksen and flirtingly taps her fingers together as she clarifies that she wants just one, but it would last until she was satisfied. Morena clarifies that the kiss has to do with her ability, and warns Borksen that the kiss is one of the conditions to grant her ability to her followers. Morena explains that Borksen needs to fulfill three conditions, including the kiss, to join them, further clarifying that the order does not matter, but all three must happen or Borksen would not be considered to have joined them.^[7]

Instructions for Tier 1 are heard, making Borksen jump to the conclusion that they were on Tier 1. She wonders if it was possible to be kidnapped and transported onto Tier 1, and after re-evaluating the situation, realizes that they could be anywhere on the Black Whale; Morena simply had to use her second-track Faker status to set up her base to hear announcements from all tiers. Borksen decides that there's something she needs to know and that she also needs to get the "X" card back, and agrees to do Morena's "small request". Morena asks Borksen to step over to her side.^[7]

After they kiss, Morena teases Borksen, and in response, a flustered Borksen asks for the "X" card back and rushing Morena to continue. Orarge reaches out to pick up the three cards to shuffle, but Borksen tells them to hold on. Borksen asks to turn the two remaining face down cards on her side over and look at them, saying that she took her eyes completely off the cards during Morena's sexual harassment session. Borksen ignores Morena's sarcastic dig in response and asks if it would have been a problem if she was not cheating. Morena says it is not, but it was sad, and says that Borksen's actions say that she doesn't trust her. Borksen ignores her and declares that she would be flipping the cards over, and reveals that they were indeed the "No" card and the "R" card. Orarge shuffles and Borksen slides the leftmost card up, then flips it over to reveal that it is the "X" card that she had just returned. Morena tells Borksen that it was too bad, and tells her to pick her final card.^[7]

Borksen picks the "Question A" card, and Morena begins answering as many questions as Borksen wants to ask. Borksen begins by asking a series of questions to determine what tier they were on. After learning that they were not on any of the tiers, Borksen asks if the hideout is on the Black Whale and hears her first "Yes", then pauses for a moment before asking if the hideout is made with a Nen ability, and hears a "Yes and No" in response. Borksen continues to be confused, but suddenly hears and feels a loud rumbling. In a moment of realization, Borksen asks if the hideout is between Tiers 2 and 3, and Morena says "Yes". Borksen connects the dots and realizes that the situation had been planned all along, even before the Black Whale was build, having recognized the sound as the sound of the central gate connecting Tiers 2 and 3 being completely shut.^[7]

Borksen guesses that they must be near the center of the area between the tiers, and resumes her questioning. Borksen asks if the entrance to the hideout is somewhere regular people can access, and hears a "Yes and No". She asks if there are multiple entrances and hears "Yes", then asks a series of questions about how many entrances the base had until she hears Morena confirm that there are five doors. Borksen picks up on Morena's pause before her answer, and interprets it as Morena counting in her mind to ensure that she remains truthful. Borksen determines to use the vows and limitations to her advantage so that the Heil-Ly would not be able to get any of them after she leaves. Borksen moves to asking how many Heil-Ly members there are, and hears Morena confirm that there are 21 members. She then confirms her understanding of what happens if "Return" is the final card, and if "No" is the final card, then asks about the Nen type breakdown of the current Heil-Ly members, learning that Morena is the only specialist, that there was at least one enhancer, and that Morena did not know all 20 of their abilities.^[7]

Finally, Borksen gets to her last question, and tells Morena that she was actually glad to talk to her and get to know her. She asks Morena if she intends to change her goal, and repeats the question four times, hearing a "No" each time. Borksen dejectedly accepts this, and Orarge holds up the final two cards, confirming that they are "No" and "R", before shuffling them and laying them in front of Borksen. Morena tells Borksen to decide which card to discard and to slide it forward, telling her that this was it, her final card. The Heil-Ly underlings watch closely as Borksen slides the right card forward with a single finger, before locking eyes with Morena and suggesting that they open the cards at the same time. Borksen clarifies that if the card she slid to Morena was "Return", she would die, but if the card on her side was "Return", she would forget everything that happened at the Heil-Ly hideout and leave. They count down from "3" and flip the cards over at the same time, to see that Morena has the "No" card and Borksen had kept the "Return" card on her side. Borksen immediately grasps the card in her hands, and expresses her relief. Morena applauds and congratulates Borksen, telling her that it was a shame, but the results were what they were. She tells Borksen to exchange "Return" with the card she wants, and the game would be over then. The Heil-Ly underlings spectating the game slowly leave as Borksen apologizes for crushing the "Return" card. Morena reassures her that it is alright and they use a new set every time. Borksen leans forward and picks the card she wants returned. Morena is surprised, and asks her if she had made a mistake. Upon hearing this, the Heil-Ly underlings look back and see that Borksen had chosen the "Yes" card, which she confirms is not a mistake.^[7]

Morena sternly asks Borksen to confirm her choice one final time, telling her she cannot change her answer after this. Borksen looks Morena in the eyes, and expressionlessly confirms that it was her final choice. Internally, Borksen shouts and tries to fight back, not wanting to confirm "Yes" as her final choice. Borksen tells herself to stop, that it wasn't true that she wants to choose the "Yes" card, but points to it and confirms that the "Yes" card is the card she chose for her final card. Morena accepts Borksen's response and tells her that she is happy that she would join them, but that she was also a little disappointed.^[1]

Morena accuses Borksen of cheating. Borksen continues looking forward, expressionless. The underlings who were previously observing the game return and surround Borksen, as Morena suggests that Borksen cheated after using the "Deal" card, by marking the "Return" card with a tiny indentation on the front along both sides when she stopped the shuffle to double-check the cards on her side. Borksen remains expressionless. Morena reveals that the card game has a manipulative aspect that automatically triggers if Morena's opponent cheats, forcing them to only pick Yes or No. She tells Borksen that she only had herself to blame for choosing to cheat, and that she should have intuited that cheating is tantamount to abandoning their serious game.^[1]

Morena asks Borksen once more, that if by "Yes", she would join the Heil-Ly. Borksen affirms that she will join them, and the Heil-Ly underlings applaud. Borksen finally finds herself released, and falls to her knees. She looks up to see Morena in front of her, who begins to explain the "Yes?" card that Borksen did not choose during the game, to welcome her to the Heil-Ly. Morena explains that as long as Borksen is alive and on the Heil-Ly's side, the Heil-Ly would not come after her or the people dear to her. She explains her ability in more detail, and tells Borksen that she always knows Borksen's level, number of points, location, and status, and tells Borksen that the ability until she either reaches Level 100, dies, or Morena dies.^[1]

Morena lets Borksen know that she was largely free to do as she wish, including that infighting and backstabbing are not forbidden as long as it was not too flagrant. Borksen gets up onto one knee as Morena tells her that she is currently at Level 0, not yet having fulfilled all the conditions of joining, but would be formally at Level 1 once the final condition of witnessing a murder by a Heil-Ly member is cleared. Morena continues explaining the level system to Borksen, ending her explanation by telling Borksen that while things like leveling up and her choice to remain with them or return to her friends was up to her, the Heil-Ly would betray her the moment they realize that she is of no use to them, and reminding her that their goal is to kill people.^[1]

Borksen keeps in mind that she has an undetermined time limit, that she would no longer be valuable to the Heil-Ly if they find another specialist candidate. She decides to assume that Morena installing her ability in her means that it comes with spyware that lets Morena see everything she sees and hears. She remains aware that she needs power to go against them, but also remains aware that the quickest way to get an ability involves killing someone. Borksen gets up, faces Morena, and declares that she is going back to her people. Morena reminds her to remember that the Heil-Ly are now their people as well, and Borksen turns and leaves with a newfound purpose. As she walks away, Borksen looks back, and asks Morena to show her around, saying that she wants to know more about her new comrades before going back.^[1]

Abilities and Powers

As a Provisional Hunter,^[3] Borksen is likely a capable combatant. However, her Hunter status and license will expire after the voyage to the New Continent.^[8]

Keen Intellect: Borksen is extremely intelligent, managing to strategize in precarious situations while remaining calm.^[4]

Nen

Borksen has likely awakened to Nen after her interactions with Morena,^[1] but she has yet to develop an ability or her talents as a Specialist.^[2]

Manga Appearances

v • eSuccession Contest arc
340. Special Mission	Absent
341. Threats	Absent
342. Challenge	Absent
343. Invitation	Absent
344. Author	Absent
345. Signature	Absent
346. Options	Absent
347. Inauguration	Absent
348. Resolve	Absent
349. Worm Toxin	Absent
350. Prince	Absent
351. Battle to the Death	Absent
352. Troublesome	Absent
353. Cold-Blooded	Absent
354. Heat	Absent
355. Detonation	Absent
356. Unfortunate: Part 1	Absent
357. Unfortunate: Part 2	Absent
358. Eve	Absent
359. Departure	Absent
360. Parasite	Absent
361. Withdraw	Absent
362. Resolve	Absent
363. Nen Beast	Absent
364. Speculation	Absent
365. Choice	Absent
366. To Each His Own	Absent
367. Synchronization	Absent
368. Foul Play	Absent
369. Limits	Absent
370. Observation	Absent
371. Mission	Absent
372. Disappearance	Absent
373. Inheritance	Absent
374. Ability	Absent
375. Persuasion	Absent
376. Determination	Absent
377. Scheme	Absent
378. Balance	Absent
379. Collaboration	Absent
380. Alarm	Absent
381. Predation	Absent
382. Awakening	Absent
383. Escape	Absent
384. War	Absent
385. Warning	Absent
386. Hypothesis	Absent
387. Recreation	Absent
388. Reflection	Absent
389. Curse	Absent
390. Clash: Part 1	Absent
391. Clash: Part 2	Absent
392. Information	Absent
393. Plea	Absent
394. Hypothesis	Debut
395. Founding: Part 1	Appears
396. Founding: Part 2	Absent
397. Founding: Part 3	Absent
398. Search	Absent
399. Expulsion	Absent
400. Secrecy	Absent
401. Moonlight	Absent
402. Letter	Absent
403. Results	Absent
404. Speculation	Absent
405. Performance	Absent
406. Regalia	Absent
407. Negotiation	Appears
408. Negotiation: Part 2	Appears
409. Negotiation: Part 3	Appears
410. Negotiation: Part 4	Appears

Competitions

Competitions
Succession Contest arc: Borksen vs. Morena Prudo (card game)[4][2][7][1]

Trivia

Intertextuality and References

• Borksen's name ボークセン(Bōkusen) appears to have been derived by taking homophones of the first few kana of the first few clauses of the song 僕(ぼく)たちの()戦(せん)争(そう)()()()()()()(Bokutachi no Sensou, lit. Our War), performed by a subgroup of frequently-referenced J-Pop idol group Keyakizaka46. This naming pattern is also seen in the names of her comrades Otocin and Momolly from Tserriednich's private army.
  • The subgroup performing 僕(ぼく)たちの()戦(せん)争(そう)()()()()()()(Bokutachi no Sensou, lit. Our War) is named FIVE CARDS, which, perhaps coincidentally, is the number of cards Borksen begins with during her play of the negotiation game.

References

Notes

Navigation

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