The reason for approaching Argo was to plant a reliable informant who could track Feitan's movements at any time.
This was to avoid all efforts going to waste in the end.
Yet, unexpectedly, Argo happened to possess intelligence on the Phantom Troupe.
This surprised Morrow and immediately brought to mind the two instances of member replacements the Phantom Troupe had undergone.
Although the original work provided very little information, it at least confirmed the general direction.
One member had been replaced by Hisoka, while another had been killed by Silva, the current head of the Zoldyck family.
However, Morrow wasn't clear on the exact timing of these replacements, only remembering that it was three years before the Yorknew City arc, meaning this year…
Given that, could the bounty contract targeting the Phantom Troupe that Argo mentioned have been accepted by Silva?
If that were the case…
Judging by Silva's attitude as revealed in the original work, as well as his warning to Killua and the others not to provoke the Phantom Troupe, the assassination contract must have been quite challenging to fulfill.
And if memory served, Silva had even clashed with Chrollo…
From this, it was likely that Silva had eliminated his target right under the noses of multiple Phantom Troupe members.
At this thought, Morrow suddenly felt a twinge of concern.
Would there be any butterfly effects?
For instance, what if Feitan had been present and, by sheer misfortune, ended up in Silva's crosshairs?
If that were a possibility, then he would be in danger.
Because the "Death Threshold" could only be broken by his own hands. Before that…
If Feitan died an unnatural death, the existence of the "Death Mark" would drag him down as well.
However, the likelihood of this was very low.
The reason for his worry stemmed mainly from a particularly memorable scene in the original work where Silva and Zeno teamed up against Chrollo.
In that moment, Zeno had instantly recognized Chrollo's intent to stall for time and, without hesitation, restrained Chrollo himself, urging Silva to attack both of them without holding back.
Despite having the advantage of a two-on-one situation, they had opted for a riskier strategy purely to "save time."
This extreme professionalism in prioritizing the mission revealed a hint of madness in Zeno and Silva, one that emerged almost unconsciously.
It was this very madness that concerned Morrow.
As his thoughts raced, Morrow shook his head slightly.
Until the intelligence was confirmed, his speculations were meaningless.
"Keep tracking it, but I have one condition."
Halting his wandering thoughts, Morrow met Argo's questioning gaze and, without waiting for a response, spoke in a grave and serious tone:
"The Phantom Troupe has an intelligence expert among them. So, no matter how you gather information, I only ask that you be extra cautious; you absolutely cannot leave any traces."
"Tch, you don't need to remind me of that."
Argo's usually lazy eyes sharpened in an instant, brimming with rare focus:
"Let's just say I value my life a lot. You don't actually think I took on such a dangerous job just because the pay was good, do you?"
"..."
Morrow could only remain silent.
His eyes, however, seemed to retort: Isn't that exactly why?
Argo read the unspoken message and immediately straightened up in her chair, crossing her arms indignantly:
"You're so shallow! I took the job because I was confident and capable, absolutely, definitely not because you offered too much money."
"Oh." Morrow nodded, thinking to himself what an absolute duet this was.
Argo could tell Morrow was being dismissive.
"Seems like you still don't get it," she said with a cold snort, tilting her chin up.
"Actually, within a second of your call, I already had your basic information. It's only because I wanted to see you that you got to meet me."
"Impressive. That puts me at ease."
Hearing this, Morrow nodded again. He had already given his warning and didn't plan to pursue the topic further.
"I knew you wouldn't believe... huh?"
Argo's words abruptly halted as she stared blankly at Morrow.
"Why are you reacting like this?"
"What else should I do?"
Morrow looked at her strangely.
Argo widened her eyes. "Convincing someone is hard work! So at this point, you're supposed to keep doubting me, and then I'd show off a little more to make you submit wholeheartedly!"
"…"
Morrow was at a loss for words, silently considering whether to ask for a refund and find another intel source.
As if she could peek into his thoughts, Argo narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "What are you thinking about right now?"
"Nothing. In any case, I'll leave the follow-up investigation to you."
Morrow's expression remained calm.
Argo waved her hand dismissively. "I'm getting paid for this, so skip the pleasantries."
"Fine. I'll wait for your update."
With his objective achieved, Morrow prepared to leave.
Argo watched him but didn't continue her earlier attempt to "prove her intel prowess." Instead, just as Morrow turned to leave, she suddenly said:
"Since you're a big client, I'll throw in a basic piece of intel for free."
"Huh?"
Morrow stopped and turned back to look at her.
Argo, however, swiveled her chair back toward the row of computers on her desk.
"Someone's investigating you. And not just one group; clearly, they're up to no good. Oh, and just to be clear, if you end up dead, I won't be burning that two billion for you."
Morrow's gaze sharpened, ignoring the latter half of her words. "Can you find out who's investigating me?"
"Of course. Intel is a two-way street. If someone's digging into you, then as long as you have the ability, you can dig into them too."
Argo leaned back in her chair, serious now. "But like I said, this is just a free basic intel. Any follow-up investigation comes with a price. So, should I deduct it from the two billion?"
"Deduct."
"Heh, expect results by midnight."
Argo grinned.
Suppressing his unease for now, Morrow didn't linger and left Argo's hideout.
—--
Thanks to Argo's free intel, Morrow remained on high alert the entire way back.
Who the hell is investigating me...?
Is it the people from the mental hospital?
Because I killed those two delivery guys, so they're coming for payback?
Too bad I didn't bother learning more about them back then, otherwise, I wouldn't be stuck guessing now.
But judging by the shady business the mental hospital was involved in and their methods of illegally issuing death certificates, the mastermind behind them must have considerable influence.
After all, issuing a death certificate against the facts is equivalent to erasing someone's identity records.
And in the Hunter world, international law explicitly states that anyone who illegally destroys another's identity records will be charged as a murderer. The power behind the scenes was truly remarkable.
After all, even a mere delivery man was a Nen user...
And who could the other group be?
Were they trouble left over from intercepting Senro, or had they drawn attention by making too much money recently?
Whoever they were...
He would need to be even more cautious in the coming days.
—--
Morrow drove along the road.
The private shooting range where he was temporarily staying was located in the suburbs. After leaving the city's main avenue, the density of buildings along the roadside noticeably decreased, replaced by groves of trees.
Under the cover of night, the interplay of light and shadow created an even more serene atmosphere.
Hmm!?
Suddenly, a killing intent struck without warning.
In the darkness, a fleeting bullet trajectory was barely visible, aimed directly at the moving car.
The next moment, the windshield shattered violently.
Screech!
Amid the piercing sound of brakes, the car spun out of control and crashed into a tree by the roadside.