Kastro could hardly believe his eyes.
Two figures had suddenly appeared not far away — and one of them, he actually recognized.
Back at Heaven's Arena, during his rematch with Hisoka, he had seen those two: Germain and Illumi.
Germain was the one who gave him advice about Nen training.
Illumi, on the other hand, had dismissed him with utter indifference.
As for Meleoron — this chameleon-like, beastly humanoid — why he was with Illumi, and why they were standing before him now, Kastro had no idea.
He was only temporarily hired by the Hunter Association. Naturally, he knew nothing about Meleoron, a Chimera Ant onboard BW1.
Illumi slowly rose to his feet, fingers gripping his golden needle tightly, and looked toward Hisoka.
"Hmm… how did you notice our presence?"
"You mean his ability?"
One of Hisoka's fingers detached from his already dismantled arm, floating midair and pointing directly at Meleoron.
"His ability is impressive, no doubt — but my sense is sharper. The moment you let out killing intent, I can sense you."
Illumi paused to think for a moment, then nodded in realization.
He showed no sign of panic or urgency.
"I get it. It's about priority, isn't it?"
"One ability erases presence. The other senses killing intent, which reveals that presence."
"When two opposing abilities clash, just like a game rulebook, the one with higher priority takes effect."
Meleoron was still violently coughing up blood. That blow earlier had crushed the green exoskeleton over his chest, caving it in.
His entire body felt weak. No matter how he tried, he couldn't get up.
As his jaw trembled, Meleoron listened to the conversation between Hisoka and Illumi — filled with deep regret in his heart.
I should've never listened to Illumi.
I should've never tried to attack that terrifying monster.
But Illumi's assassination skills—his flawless stealth and execution—were supposed to be perfect.
Who would've thought it would all fall apart before he even got close?
Even more baffling was how Illumi could speak so casually with Hisoka, as if they were old friends joking around.
Does Illumi not realize how close we are to disaster?
"How did you gain this kind of power… and form?" Illumi suddenly asked, his curiosity piqued.
"Interested?"
Hisoka's wide grin seemed to stretch even farther, his lips curling with an eerie tsk tsk tsk sound.
"Then answer my question first."
Illumi thought for a moment, then surprisingly agreed.
"Fair enough. Ask."
"Why are you here?"
Hisoka didn't seem the least bit surprised that Illumi accepted his request.
"Two reasons," Illumi replied calmly.
"First, someone hired me. No matter the cost, they want you dead. You were the target of my journey on this long voyage."
"Second, you once sent me a 'marriage proposal letter.' Then, in the Kakin Empire, you ruined one of my missions. Naturally, I had to respond."
"Oh? Who hired you?"
Before Illumi could reply, Hisoka raised his dancing hands.
"Wait, don't tell me. Let me guess."
"I've made quite a few enemies over the years... Germain? No, that's unlikely. He'd use you to get what he wants, but he'd never hire you to kill me while keeping his own hands clean."
"The Ten Dons? The other two mafia heads from Kakin? That doesn't fit either…"
"After two months at sea, two of them are already dead. And just now, Morena and I devoured the remaining ten."
"If they hired you… then this pawn was hidden way too well. What, were they planning to use you again after you reincarnated?"
"The 'Three Idiots' of the Hunter Association?"
"They do have a serious grudge against me, and plenty of motivation."
"But from what I know, they seem to have a grudge against everyone. That includes, but isn't limited to, their own Chairman Isaac Netero, Beyond, and even you."
"Those three act all righteous and dignified. They'd never work with you—unless they'd completely lost their minds."
"Ah... I see now. It's Chrollo."
Even with half his face gone, Hisoka still wore a look of realization.
"This was his final request."
Illumi confirmed Hisoka's guess.
"He knew... it would either be Germain or you who found him first—"
"—and that one of you would kill him and his already crippled companions."
"Germain could still be reasoned with, could still negotiate. But you? You're not interested in deals anymore."
"All you care about now is satisfying that increasingly greedy hunger of yours."
"You get off on the thrill—on the mental domination of another man."
"He paid me well. A very generous reward. All for one thing: to kill you. Whether I succeed or not, the payment is mine."
Illumi's dark, lifeless eyes fixed on Hisoka.
"I'm a professional assassin. At the very least, I have to make an attempt."
Hisoka let out that dry, hoarse laugh again.
"So that's how it is... I heard about his death and felt a little sorry, honestly..."
"But he wasn't wrong. I really did lose interest in that version of him."
"Still, killing his companions in front of him, and then killing him too... now that would've been something truly intoxicating. What a shame. Germain beat me to it."
"Oh, right. Where did Germain go? I thought for sure he'd be on this ship."
There was a trace of disappointment in Hisoka's voice.
"No idea."
Illumi shrugged. The golden needle between his fingers shimmered in the pale light of dawn.
"He came to my house twice. Aside from that, I haven't seen him since."
"Now you can answer my question, right? Hisoka, how did you and that woman behind you end up like this?"
Hisoka glanced at Morena, then looked away and said, "To be honest, I only know the basics."
He pointed at Morena and said, "The source is the bloodline of the Kakin royal family…"
"As long as you spend a year or so with someone who has this bloodline, and during that time you've killed for them or been stained by blood, you form a 'contract.'"
"After that explosion happened, some kind of power first affected the Kakin royal bloodline, whether they were alive or dead."
"Then it moved on to the 'contracted people'… Most of us mutated into unique monsters. At the same time, we gained the ability to absorb the resentment (Post-mortem Nen) of the dead to strengthen ourselves."
"There's also a small group who didn't mutate immediately, but it's only a matter of time… They're like ticking bombs."
"The usual resentments from the dead weren't enough to satisfy us. We quickly developed sharper senses, able to track aura and killing intent, no matter how faint…"
Morena stuck out her tongue, licking her lips with a hungry look.
This sudden power given to her was basically a stronger version of her Nen ability.
She used it with ease and without hesitation.
The man and woman kept partying wildly like this until now.
Illumi sneered, "Looks like I can't rely on your methods to turn the tide here."
He glanced once more at Meleoron, who still lay motionless on the ground, and then at Kastro not far away, who was on high alert.
Unlike Kastro, who had a deep impression of Illumi, Illumi had long forgotten Kastro's existence.
To him, Kastro was just a stranger he was seeing for the first time.
Illumi habitually considered the gains and losses, the positions of everyone involved.
Meleoron was injured and no longer able to control his breathing to activate "God's Accomplice."
That other Nen user over there was too weak; even cooperating wouldn't bring a good effect.
There was basically no room for maneuver between me and Hisoka.
He and his female companion would most likely not let the chance to absorb the resentment from me and grow stronger slip away.
Given this, I can only use my needles to control Meleoron and that Nen user to fight, and see if I can create some kind of turning point...
Buzz buzz buzz—
A strange, faint sound came, but it did not escape the notice of the sharp Nen users present.
They all turned their heads to look, and saw a mechanical flying ball with tiny wings, like a hummingbird, hovering in front of them.
The red mechanical eye flickered.
While everyone was confused, another figure suddenly jumped from a nearby branch and stood beside the mechanical flying ball.
This surprised everyone.
They sensed the mechanical flying ball, but did not sense this person.
How did he approach unnoticed?
When everyone clearly saw the face revealed in the hazy morning light, the atmosphere changed again and again.
Germain?!
His sudden appearance was completely unexpected.
Hisoka, who had been thinking only about Germain, lost the smile from his wide-open mouth at this moment.
*******
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