Why is this bastard here!?
This is, after all, on an airship.
And Kalluto was certain that before the auction began, Morrow had been in Yorknew the entire time.
But the airship had departed early in the morning!
Could it be…?!
Kalluto's thoughts were in complete disarray, all traces of his usual calm gone.
Yet his mind flashed back to the alley battle yesterday, connecting the dots between the tracking Nen bullet, the image of Morrow stepping on the Nen bullet to chase after him, and the Star Mark he discovered on his body while bathing last night.
In the end, he arrived at what he believed to be the most improbable answer.
This bastard flew all the way here by stepping on Nen bullets!
He flew like that out of the United States of Saherta's borders, all the way to this airship currently over the ocean.
Is this really possible?
Even Grandpa Zeno wouldn't be able to do something like that, right?
Yet only this answer could explain the reality unfolding before his eyes.
Even in his shock, Kalluto's mind raced wildly, but the more he thought, the more terrified he became.
Morrow pushed open the window and jumped into the cabin, looking strangely at Kalluto, who was trembling all over.
"You suddenly called my name just now, so I figured you must have noticed me, and so I… Did I scare you?"
"!!!"
Kalluto snapped back to reality, his eyes trembling violently, and he blurted out, "How did you get here?!"
"I flew here."
Morrow replied casually.
So it was true!
Kalluto's heart surged with shock and disbelief.
Did that mean if he didn't find a way to remove the Star Mark on his body, this bastard could track him down anytime?
No, what's even more troublesome is not knowing when or from which direction a Nen bullet might suddenly come flying!
And the distance was at least half the span of the Yorbian continent.
What a terrifying ability…
Suddenly, Kalluto remembered something even more important.
Setting aside the potential threat of the Star Mark, he asked nervously, "When did you get here?!"
"Hmm."
Morrow raised a hand to his chin, estimating the time in his head. "About twenty minutes ago."
"So you saw everything?"
Kalluto felt the strength that had filled his body moments ago rapidly draining away.
Morrow nodded. "I saw."
He had just witnessed the changes in Kalluto's training, how he could so quickly stabilize his chaotic aura. He wondered if it might be the Zoldyck Family's unique meditation technique but thought it inappropriate to pry.
Speaking of which, the Shingen-ryu Style's training methods also place great emphasis on meditation.
Kalluto had no idea what Morrow was thinking.
At that moment, he was instantly engulfed by an indescribable sense of shame, then slumped to the floor as if all hope was lost.
The secret he least wanted exposed had been seen by this bastard.
At this thought, Kalluto's eyes turned bleak, feeling worse than if he had died.
If he had known it would come to this, why hadn't he just killed him yesterday!
Watching Kalluto's reaction, Morrow thought to himself that the Zoldyck Family's hellish education was indeed terrifying.
Just having an outsider witness the changes brought about by his meditation technique felt like a monumental secret had been uncovered.
"Don't be like that. I can keep it a secret." → The expressiveness during Zoldyck meditation training.
"Then go die!"
"That's a bit much. I only saw a partial aspect, after all." → Unclear about the specific application of that meditation method.
"Partial aspect... Even if it's juste a partial aspect, it's still not acceptable!"
Kalluto struggled to suppress the shame in his heart, his mind fixated on a single thought.
Only the dead can keep secrets!
But then, considering the gap in strength between himself and Morrow, he couldn't help but feel a wave of despair, once again slumping hopelessly against the wall.
Watching Kalluto slumped on the ground, Morrow could only sigh once more at the terrifying education of the Zoldyck Family.
This could be considered the fundamental reason why the Zoldyck Family has always stood firm.
Not intending to continue the previous topic, Morrow suddenly asked, "The one who hired you to kill me is Nolan Gambino, right?"
"..."
Kalluto merely glanced up at Morrow before slowly averting his gaze, pressing his forehead against the wall, looking utterly resigned to his fate.
Seeing this, Morrow shook his head slightly and continued on his own, "I've looked into it. You're an assassin from the Zoldyck Family, but what I'm curious about is, once a Zoldyck assassin fails a mission, what follow-up measures are taken?"
"I didn't fail!"
Hearing the family name and the mention of the mission, Kalluto snapped back fiercely, as if revived by a last surge of energy.
Morrow raised an eyebrow.
Kalluto glared at him and said, "The mission I accepted was to find you, and I completed it yesterday!"
"Oh?"
Morrow was taken aback and asked, "Then why did you attack me?"
"That's because... Hmph, no comment."
"Fine, if you won't say, then don't." Morrow didn't press further, instead voicing his true intention, "But I never expected the Zoldycks to have a people-finding business. So, do you have a Nen ability for 'finding people'?"
"..."
Kalluto remained silent.
"If you don't answer, I'll take it as a yes."
A faint smile appeared on Morrow's face. "Since you've already completed your previous employer's mission, there's no further connection between you and them, right?"
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
After a few exchanges, Kalluto gradually regained his usual composure, frowning as he looked at Morrow.
Morrow said seriously, "I want to hire you to find someone. Of course, this is a formal commission, and the fee will be based on your asking price. Moreover, I can guarantee not to reveal the secret I just saw."
Hearing this, Kalluto gritted his teeth hard.
Is this about revealing the secret?
It's about you, this bastard, having seen it!
Though he thought this, when it came to a family commission, Kalluto had to force himself to adjust his mindset.
"10 billion."
So expensive.
That was Morrow's first reaction upon hearing the price.
But the importance of finding Nolan Gambino far outweighed those 10 billion.
"Agreed."
Morrow paused only briefly before agreeing to the price.
"Who are you looking for?" The moment Kalluto entered business mode, he instantly returned to normal, as if his earlier hopeless demeanor had been nothing but an illusion.
"Nolan Gambino."
Morrow stated the target with a light laugh.
Kalluto's eyes slowly widened.
Noting Kalluto's reaction, Morrow raised an eyebrow and asked, "What, can't you take it?"
"Hmph."
Kalluto snorted coldly, not bothering to respond to the question, and simply said in an icy tone, "Five billion deposit."
"Deal." Morrow took out his phone, about to transfer the money, but suddenly thought of the Zoldyck Family's true line of work and couldn't help but probe, "If, on top of the search commission, I also want to hire you for an assassination, how much would that cost?"
"That depends on who you want killed."
Kalluto had completely regained his composure by now.
Morrow thought for a moment and asked with interest, "Nolan Gambino is definitely surrounded by plenty of mafia members. I want you to kill as many as you can, or just take out Nolan Gambino directly."
"If your target is solely Nolan Gambino, then provided you withdraw the search commission, you only need to pay three billion to hire me for this job."
Killing Nolan Gambino would be quite challenging for him. After all, the target was the son of one of the Ten Dons, the shadow leader of the Menu Organization, commanding a large armed force and multiple Nen users.
As for the potential consequences of assassinating Nolan Gambino, the Zoldyck Family had no need to worry about such things.
So, given the difficulty of the assassination, a quote of three billion wasn't unreasonable.
Of course, if it were just some common local mafia boss, one billion per person would suffice.
"Deal."
Morrow's eyes gleamed as he agreed without hesitation.
Fortunately, he had made tens of billions at the Yorknew Auction; otherwise, he wouldn't have had the funds to pay the commission fee.
It felt like money came easily and went just as easily.
But thinking about those wealthy bidders at the auction casually throwing around huge sums, tens of billions didn't seem like much.
In reality, though, it was extremely difficult for a Nen user to earn that much money.
"However, I have two small conditions."
Completely unfazed by the impending loss of three billion, Morrow smiled and raised his index finger.
Kalluto pursed his lips and said coldly, "You can state them, and I can refuse."
"Naturally. First, I'll join you on the mission to help reduce the difficulty of the commission."
Morrow chuckled as he made the suggestion.
Kalluto narrowed his eyes slightly, then heard Morrow continue, "But I require you to eliminate all enemies encountered during this assassination. If you find it too difficult, that's fine, you can leave the Nen users to me."
"I don't understand."
Kalluto looked up at Morrow and asked, "What's the point of you doing this?"
"For fun."
Morrow casually tossed out his usual excuse without a second thought, then added his second condition without waiting for Kalluto's reaction: "Also, if your family has no taboos, help me disguise myself as one of your family's assassins, anyone will do."
Hearing Morrow's two conditions, Kalluto wasn't foolish and immediately grasped the purpose behind these seemingly unnecessary steps.
From his perspective, considering these conditions, the real beneficiary was still him.
After all, he wouldn't have to worry about issues like "exposing his identity."
"Fine, I agree."
With that thought, Kalluto consented.
When the time came for action, he could just hand all the Nen users over to Morrow to deal with, while he only needed to kill Nolan.
It was a very cost-effective deal.
"I'm not good at disguises, but I can provide you with a photo."
Kalluto suddenly took out his phone and pulled up a picture.
Hearing this, Morrow leaned in to take a look. In the photo was a woman with a high-piled hairstyle, wearing an electronic eye device on her face and dressed in a black kimono.
Isn't that your mother?
Morrow paused for a moment, barely holding back the urge to say it outright, his gaze slowly shifting to Kalluto's face.
Kalluto, feeling uneasy under Morrow's stare, said, "Didn't you say anyone would do?"
"Pick another."
Morrow smiled faintly.
Kalluto shuddered abruptly and quickly pulled out another photo.
Morrow glanced at the photo.
This one was fine.
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I'll release a bonus chapter later.