"Larry, thank you," Kurapika whispered softly, lowering his gaze.
"Too early to say thank you," came a familiar voice from nearby.
At that sound, Kurapika sprang up instantly, as if propelled by springs beneath his feet.
He spun around, and silver chains suddenly coiled around his fingers, gleaming brightly in the red light.
The chains shimmered with a crimson tint, as if stained with blood, adding a fierce intensity to their appearance.
'Someone's broken in?!' Kurapika thought, his mind racing.
There was no time to hesitate. His reaction was automatic, born from countless battles as a gang member.
Every move was muscle memory, honed through experience and necessity.
Through battles filled with blood and fire, Kurapika's fighting instincts gradually sharpened.
When he was fully prepared and even had his chain fingers materialized, a glowing door suddenly appeared before his eyes.
This door wasn't just illuminated, it was literally made of light, materializing out of thin air.
For the first time, Kurapika witnessed a passage through space itself.
As he clenched his fists in awe, Larry slowly stepped through the doorway.
"Larry?!" Kurapika exclaimed, his tension easing as he recognized the figure.
Larry smiled appreciatively.
"Looks like your combat awareness has really improved. With that kind of vigilance, you'll have a better chance of surviving in this world."
Kurapika hesitated, then asked, "But... why did you come here all of a sudden?"
Larry replied thoughtfully, "I'm here for two reasons. First, to bring you a big gift.
Want to guess what it is?"
His gaze flickered toward the jars behind Kurapika, which were filled with flaming red eyes.
Compared to the entire Kurta clan, this was only a small collection.
Out of 128 clan members, Kurapika was the sole survivor, and only ten pairs of these unique eyes were gathered here.
Larry's eyes shifted back to Kurapika, who was deep in thought, then to the glowing door behind him, where a wave of pink thought aura shimmered inside.
Suddenly, countless bottles and jars appeared around them as if by magic.
Fortunately, the basement was spacious enough to avoid feeling cramped by all these containers.
Kurapika stared blankly at the fiery red eyes before him, struggling to believe they were real.
"These are the eyes of your clan members, the ones I wanted to bring you as a gift," Larry explained.
Since Nihilego took control of those five individuals, Larry had been searching for anything valuable among them, or perhaps in the country's collections, like mind tools or the so-called "Seven Wonders of the World."
While confiscating a large number of aura devices, Larry also found many flaming eyes.
Among the Seven Wonders, these eyes were actually the easiest to come by, since more than a hundred pairs were circulating worldwide.
Rare items like liquid titanium ore are incredibly scarce. There might only be two or three pieces across all six continents.
That's why there were so many flaming eyes stored in V5's treasury, and Larry simply handed them over to Kurapika.
As for the rest of the flaming eyes, they're likely in the hands of individuals, especially collectors fascinated by human body parts.
I remember the fourth prince of the Kakin Empire had quite a few in his collection.
Seeing this impressive sight before him, Kurapika's pupils shifted again, now shining a bit brighter than before, clearly showing his inner calm.
There were so many tribal eyes gathered here, far exceeding the number he had collected himself.
At that moment, Kurapika felt a deep connection with those eyes, his emotions stirred in a way he couldn't easily settle.
Surrounded by the eyes of his people, he couldn't tell if he felt joy or sorrow.
"Larry, thank you so much," Kurapika said sincerely, wiping away tears.
"It was nothing special," Larry replied casually. "But if you really want to thank me, please agree to the second reason I came here."
"You know I'm the new president of the Hunter Association now, right?"
Kurapika nodded.
"Yes."
He didn't ask Larry how he managed to get all those eyes, because anyone named Larry represented endless possibilities to him.
Kurapika had never seen anything that could stump Larry.
"There's something you might not know. The Rat of the Twelve Zodiacs has resigned. The second reason I came is to invite you to join the Twelve Zodiacs as the new Rat."
Larry had decided to come in person.
With Porygon Z, it only took seconds to arrive.
Since he was just here to invite Kurapika to become the "Rat," there was no real need for a grand appearance, just to hand over the items.
"Me? The Twelve Zodiacs?" Kurapika whispered in surprise.
It wasn't that he didn't want to accept, but it felt sudden and almost unworthy.
He understood what kind of position the Twelve Zodiacs held. Aside from a select few in the Hunter Association, they were among the highest authorities.
Kurapika couldn't help but feel overwhelmed.
"I'm just a gangster, am I really qualified to be the one?"
His first reaction was surprise, followed quickly by the urge to refuse.
He opened his mouth to say no, but the words just wouldn't come out.
Larry had done so much for him already, and yet, Kurapika still wanted to turn down the offer.
It felt unreasonable, almost ungrateful.
Then, gathering his resolve, Kurapika's eyes hardened with determination.
"I... I'll do my best to take on the role of 'Rat'!"
Whether he was truly capable or not, he vowed to give it everything he had.
He couldn't let Larry down, not now, especially since Larry was the president.
Being a "Rat" meant working for Larry, and that alone was enough motivation.
"Relax," Larry said calmly. "With your skills, you're more than qualified to be a 'Rat.'"
His words weren't just meant to reassure; they were the truth.
Kurapika still felt a little nervous, worried he might not live up to the responsibility of such an important role.
But in reality, his abilities were impressive enough to handle the duties of one of the Twelve Zodiacs.
"I have to leave now," Larry added, "but Mizaistom is upstairs at the tavern. He'll fill you in on the details."
As Larry turned to step through the glowing light gate, he paused, a sudden thought crossing his mind.
"I might ask you to go somewhere later. I just want to warn you, so you're not caught off guard."
He hesitated before adding, "Maybe you'll even get to see your people."
Larry didn't finish the sentence. He couldn't promise anything.
The higher the hope, the deeper the disappointment could be.
Then, with a flash, Larry disappeared through the gate.
Kurapika blinked, still puzzled.
"Too surprised?"