Now, the suspect from a year ago had actually appeared in Yorknew City.
Butsidora, who was about to board an airship to leave Yorknew City, turned around. He gazed at Illumi's retreating figure, then observed the four bodyguards around him and the accompanying middle-aged man. He decided to follow them.
"Hey! Are you going to board or not, goddammit!? If not, scram!" At this moment, a blond man behind Butsidora pushed him forcefully, his tone arrogant.
"Ah~!?" Butsidora slightly turned sideways, looking down at the blond man who pushed him. His height, well over 1.9 meters, was quite imposing.
"Uh..." The blond man opened his mouth, instantly shriveling up.
Butsidora paid him no further mind. He stepped directly out of the boarding line and quickly strode to catch up with the already moving extended black sedan.
Butsidora tracked them all the way. He watched with his own eyes as the extended sedan stopped in front of the main entrance of the five-star hotel next to the Southernpiece Auction House. But for some reason, Illumi, whom he was tracking, never got out of the car. Only four bodyguards got out, guarding the sedan on all four sides.
"Coming here at this time, could it be to participate in the auction?" Butsidora's gaze shifted to the nearby Southernpiece Auction House. He didn't intend to act just yet, wanting to see if he could follow the clues and unearth more information.
Perhaps, behind this person, there were even bigger fish. Moreover, although Butsidora was very confident in himself, he had actually seen the crime scene from back then, that destructive power... In short, the chances of acting alone were too small, so he planned to call for reinforcements.
He acted on his thought. Butsidora pulled out his phone and dialed a number.
"Butsidora, what's up?" A young man's voice, with a hint of frivolousness, rang out from the phone.
"Rupei, I need your help with something." Butsidora explained the full story, in precise detail, to the person on the other end of the phone.
"I understand. Continue tracking them; I'll get there as soon as possible." "If you're short-handed, notify Tielading. He has enough manpower to support us." "Also, I'll immediately notify the Hunter Association's Clear Stream Squad. I remember they have a team going to participate in the Southernpiece Auction House." "Alright, thank you."
Butsidora hung up the phone, and with a solemn expression, looked up at the five-star hotel. The sign above read—[Southernpiece Hotel]. Clearly, this hotel and the auction house belonged to the same owner.
"He's out!" Suddenly, Butsidora saw Illumi step out of the sedan and, accompanied by four bodyguards and a middle-aged man, walk towards the hotel lobby. Butsidora opened his case, took out a camera, and was about to take a photo, but stopped.
"No, people like that are very sensitive to everything around them. It's better not to take photos." "In that case, I'll have to take a bit of a risk." Thinking this, Butsidora pulled down the brim of his hat, and carrying his case, followed them into the hotel lobby.
Butsidora quickly went to the lobby front desk, pretending to take out his wallet and ID to check in, but his gaze was subtly and continuously fixed on Illumi and his group.
Illumi and his group did not check in at the front desk; they went directly towards the corridor on the left side of the hotel lobby, clearly having had rooms prepared in advance.
"Hello sir, do you have a reservation?" The front desk attendant asked him with a smile. Butsidora's gaze was drawn back by the attendant. He pointed to the corridor where Illumi and his group had left and asked,
"Which area is that?" The front desk attendant looked in the direction Butsidora pointed. "That side is Zone B and Zone C, sir." "Would you like to check into Zone B or Zone C?" "I'm with my friends, thank you." But Butsidora merely retrieved his ID, and with a calm expression, followed after Illumi's group into the corridor they had taken.
"Tap... tap... tap..." Butsidora's footsteps weren't fast, yet he was able to steadily keep up with Illumi's group. The hotel's central corridor was over a hundred meters long and seven or eight meters wide. If it were a time with fewer people, Butsidora following Illumi's group like this would certainly be very conspicuous.
But fortunately, today was when the Southernpiece Auction House was holding its auction, so there were exceptionally many people who had come from all over the world to participate. Especially today, with the auction about to begin, many people dressed in expensive suits came and went, walking in the spacious corridor, which was not particularly empty.
"Boss, someone's following you." At this moment, Illumi, who was about to reach the end of the corridor, his expression slightly changed as Ikushampé's voice sounded from the miniature earphone behind his ear.
"Have you identified them?"
"Butsidora Ambush, Hunter Association Bounty Hunter."
Illumi remained calm and continued walking as if nothing was amiss. As he passed the bend at the end of the corridor, he glimpsed the person tracking him out of the corner of his eye.
White Zhongshan suit, white wide-brimmed hat, red cloak—it was indeed the person he remembered, one of the three minor characters who thought they could win the Chairman election.
Illumi's expression was as usual. He, Sheldon, and the four bodyguards slowly turned the corner. Seeing Illumi and his group about to vanish from his sight, Butsidora quickened his pace, turned the corner, and continued to follow. The five-star hotel was large; even within the same area, there were many turns.
"Not moving anymore?" Butsidora followed Illumi's group to a corner, cautiously peered around, and found them standing still. "Have they reached their room?" Butsidora wondered.
"Wearing such conspicuous clothes, who are you trying to follow?" Suddenly, a low voice sounded from behind Butsidora.
"What!?" Butsidora sharply turned his head, only to find that Illumi, whom he had been tracking, was now standing in the corridor behind him, blocking his escape. "So there really was someone tracking us..." In front of him, Sheldon and the four bodyguards also turned around,
looking at Butsidora, their expressions somewhat grim. As the boss's bodyguards, they had to be reminded by the boss that someone was tracking them; this was a huge embarrassment for them. The four bodyguards and Illumi, from front and back, cornered Butsidora.
"When did you notice me?" Butsidora also looked at Illumi with a grim expression and asked. He was very sure it was Illumi who had discovered him, not the four bodyguards.
"Butsidora Ambush." But Illumi didn't answer his question. He slowly walked towards Butsidora, stopping seven paces away. His right arm slowly rose. Wisps of dark, chakra-like aura, imbued with dense killing intent, surged from within him, transforming into fine black lines that danced wildly beneath him. He looked at Butsidora, expressionless.
"Choose one."
"Do you want me to use my Nen ability to make you experience all possible pain before dying miserably, or will you spill all the information you have about me and get a quick end?"
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