In the past few hours, Germain had been very busy.
He kept expanding his activity range near the fortress, rescuing, gathering, and guiding the suffering survivors toward the fortress.
Because of this, the number of people inside the fortress must have surged, probably exceeding two thousand.
He didn't wait for the statistics to come out. Instead, he left the fortress again, following the mechanical flying sphere's guidance to the next area.
However, during this time, Germain still hadn't received any news about Chairman Netero, Morel, Knov, or the others.
Later, a survivor spoke vaguely, pointing in a certain direction and saying they had seen someone with mysterious abilities over there.
So, Germain tracked that direction and unexpectedly entered this battlefield.
"Well, at least I found Meleoron," Germain thought to himself.
Meleoron clutched his chest, gasping for breath, eyes wide with shock and joy.
He didn't understand why Germain appeared here, but he knew the decisive battle night of the Republic of East Gorteau was about to happen again.
Yes, he was saved!
And it was Germain who saved him again!
Kastro was also staring at Germain in great surprise.
After following Germain's advice at the Heavens Arena, Kastro found a master in Nen abilities and had been quietly honing his Nen ever since.
Even so, Kastro had still heard many rumors about Germain—each more astonishing than the last.
On this journey aboard BW1, Kastro still wondered if he might meet Germain, who had become the "Rat."
But the Hunter Association informed him that Germain had not boarded the ship.
He felt a deep sense of regret.
Because on this trip, his goal was to find Hisoka and cut down his inner demon.
This might be the battle where he breaks through his limits, or it might be the last fight of his life.
Kastro held a strong respect for Germain, who had once given him crucial advice that changed his path.
The deeper he studied Nen, the more afraid he became—and the more he trusted Germain.
At that time, he had been mistakenly spending his talent on the Conjuration and Manipulation categories, which he was not skilled at, trying to create flashy clones.
If Germain hadn't awakened him, he probably would have kept running down the wrong path until he met a tragic end at the hands of another Nen user.
Though regret lingered, and respect remained, his emotions were nowhere near as strong as the moment he had actually seen Germain.
He was certain now he could never defeat Hisoka; the gap between them was simply too vast.
Hisoka was no longer just his inner demon.
An inner demon should be an obstacle that could be overcome with effort, not a force that utterly crushed him.
Hisoka was a demon.
And in the current situation—whether it was himself or Illumi and Meleoron, who had just failed in a surprise attack against Hisoka—they were all trapped in a desperate plight.
Germain's appearance felt like a glimmer of hope breaking through the darkness before dawn.
Illumi's reaction, by contrast, was much calmer.
"Yo." Illumi raised his hand casually, his black eyes unblinking as he greeted, "So you're nearby too."
"Yeah." Germain looked at him. "What are you doing here?"
"It's a long story," Illumi said, spreading his hands, the needles on his fingers glinting.
"To put it simply, Chrollo's last wish led me here, and I finally met Hisoka."
He pointed at Hisoka.
"But Hisoka, because of some kind of power, has become even stronger than before. I probably can't beat him now. Things are getting complicated."
"I see."
Germain had already pieced together the information he needed by listening to Illumi and hearing everyone's thoughts.
Illumi paused, then asked, "How has Killua been recently? Did he send you any messages for me?"
"He's fine. He's already won three matches in a row on the 200th floor of the Heavens Arena. Now he's on Greed Island… As for messages, there were none," Germain replied.
"Is that so?" Illumi tilted his head, his black eyes blinking at last.
"He didn't forgot, right? After all, our relationship is very close. I'm his closest family."
Germain was silent for a moment, then said, "If you say so, then so be it."
"Hey? Why are you reacting like that?" Illumi asked, puzzled.
Just then, Hisoka finally spoke up.
"Talking about family matters in front of me? Looks like I've really been underestimated."
Germain turned to look at Hisoka's eerie form—half-human, half-demon.
His shameless grin revealed sharp, wicked fangs.
His voice turned dark and heavy, surrounded by countless dark grudges as if his body was burning in black flames.
His crimson eyes fixed on Germain.
"Germain, be careful of him!"
Kastro, having been toyed with by Hisoka, knew better than anyone how dangerous he was.
"His shell is really tough. Even my 'Tiger Bite True Fist' couldn't break through it!"
"Thanks for the warning." Germain glanced at him, then pointed toward Meleoron not far away. "Please keep an eye on him for me. He's my comrade."
Meleoron was breathing heavily, looking at them gratefully, but couldn't speak.
"All right, don't worry." Kastro also had injuries, but compared to Meleoron's, his were much lighter.
He stepped over to the chameleon-type humanoid and stood protectively by Meleoron's side.
Illumi then moved beside Germain, facing off against Hisoka and Morena.
"One each." Illumi said. "I'll hold this woman back. You take care of Hisoka as fast as you can, then come help me. Deal?"
Illumi had no hesitation asking Germain for help. He would only feel guilty if the mission failed or if they died here.
An assassin must do whatever it takes to complete the goal.
Illumi could have just left Germain behind and fled, but after thinking it over, working together was the best chance to succeed.
If there was still a chance, he was going to try.
At that moment, Morena smiled sweetly at Germain. "But I like this man better…"
She felt it—the aura Germain gave off was the most appealing scent she'd encountered so far.
"That won't do." Hisoka said in a cold tone, not even turning to look at her. "He's my favorite target."
"You're saying he's your favorite too?" Morena was surprised. "How many favorites do you have?"
Hisoka laughed, pointing at Germain and Illumi.
"These two—I want them both... Not being able to kill Chrollo with my own hands is my lifelong regret. I absolutely won't let them die by anyone else's."
Morena let out a soft laugh.
"Alright then."
At that moment, Hisoka's limbs began to split apart one by one, twisting and dancing wildly in the air as if in chaos.
From Germain's perspective, he saw pink aura swirling everywhere.
Hisoka's pink aura was so full and vibrant, it was like a tree blooming with cherry blossoms right there.
Without wasting any words, Germain conjured his Sacred Moonlight Sword.
At the same time, he broke free from his own restraints and released even more aura.
Boom—
The sudden sound startled Irmie, who was originally heading towards Morena, almost causing her to stumble.
Everyone turned in surprise and realized that from the moment Germain appeared, he had been suppressing and holding back his aura.
Morena's expression darkened.
She could feel a taste she liked even more now, but to savor it, she knew she might have to pay with her life.
Not as reckless as Hisoka, she quietly felt relieved she hadn't stubbornly attacked earlier. This way, the trouble wouldn't fall on her.
Hisoka's grin never changed, as if he had expected all this all along.
"It seems you've grown much stronger."
"I still remember our last fight, back at the beginning of 1998's Hunter Exam…"
"Germain, let me see if you can satisfy me now…"
Boom—
A pillar of blue light blasted forward like an unstoppable cannonball.
Hisoka's eyes suddenly widened, pushing himself to the limit as he stretched and pulled his many limbs aside with Bungee Gum!
But the force of the blast was still terrifying, destroying some of his limbs and sending him flying like a marionette missing its left side.
Hisoka's head tumbled on the ground a few times before coming to a stop. His eyes flickered and locked onto the figure stepping forward in the morning light—Germain.
"Is this enough for you?" Germain raised his Sacred Moonlight Sword, preparing to strike.
But then Hisoka let out a sinister laugh—deep and terrifying.
Dark resentment (Post-Mortem Nen) surged through his body, making every part of him spring back up as he flew into the air again.
At the same time, the flesh and broken limbs torn apart by the blue blast bounced back as if pulled by countless pink rubber bands, snapping back onto Hisoka's wounds!
His horrific injuries rapidly healed—bones, blood vessels, and flesh all regenerating and reshaping, even though they had been shattered beyond what the naked eye could see.
A single finger that had flown off pointed directly at Germain.
"Do you understand now?"
"I am already immortal. Every death—whether my enemy's or my own—only fuels the resentment inside me, making me stronger…"
Hisoka's words were cut off halfway as he suddenly felt the dark resentment twisting and spiraling out from him, rushing toward Germain.
He had lost count of how many times Germain's appearance had surprised him.
Germain held the Sacred Moonlight Sword in one hand, and in the other, he gripped the Hunter's Badge fragment—a tiny shard that was absorbing the dark resentment.
"You're very unlucky to have met me," Germain said.
"I might just be the one person in this world who can control monsters like you—creatures filled with resentment."
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