Face the obstacle, overcome the obstacle.
Then seize victory in your hands.
After this ordeal, Morrow's mindset had undergone subtle changes.
He gazed at the mansion under the night sky but was in no hurry to approach. Instead, he waited patiently, both for Kalluto to recover and for his own potential aura to replenish.
Moments later.
Kalluto struggled to get down.
Morrow released his hold, letting Kalluto land on his feet.
The moment his feet touched the ground, Kalluto staggered and fell.
Morrow watched from the side, making no move to help.
Because he knew Kalluto neither needed nor wanted assistance.
Kalluto swayed as he stood, barely steadying himself.
Morrow studied him and asked, "Can you manage?"
"I can."
Kalluto's breathing was ragged.
The stubbornness in his nature was unmistakable at this moment.
Morrow carefully observed Kalluto's injuries.
Normally, for someone of Kalluto's age, even if they were a Nen user, such severe injuries would have rendered them unable to stand, let alone conscious. The sheer pain alone would have triggered the body's protective shutdown.
Only a freakish family like the Zoldycks could condition a six- or seven-year-old child to possess physical capabilities far beyond their years and a pain tolerance that defied common sense.
No.
Perhaps that was too absolute.
In the hidden corners of this world, there might not be any existence quite on par with the Zoldycks, but there were likely many close contenders.
For example, Hanzo's organization, Shinobi, from the original story.
That, too, was a hellish organization where members endured brutal training from birth.
"He won't escape. No need to rush."
Seeing Kalluto still unsteady, Morrow remarked casually.
Kalluto didn't respond, his gaze fixed on the mansion.
His mission was to kill Nolan, and it wasn't over yet.
Reading Kalluto's reaction, Morrow knew persuasion was futile and didn't bother.
The two stepped over the scattered corpses and entered the mansion side by side.
Soon, they arrived at a corridor outside a study on the second floor, guarded by seven or eight armed men.
Before they could even raise their guns, Morrow's Shooting Stars cut them down.
With a series of dull thuds, the corridor was littered with twisted corpses.
Morrow stepped over the bodies, activated En, and pushed open the double doors of the study.
Kalluto followed closely behind.
Inside the study, an opulent desk stood before a bookshelf.
Nolan, the founder of the Menu Organization, sat behind it, his expression blank as he watched Morrow and Kalluto enter.
Morrow paused at the doorway, retracting En, and studied Nolan. He could see the steam-like aura radiating from Nolan's body.
The man was a Nen user.
This didn't surprise Morrow.
But judging by the intensity of Nolan's aura, he was weaker than expected, around Level 20.
"Not planning to run?"
Morrow observed Nolan, who remained seated, and said calmly, "I thought someone like you would value their life more."
"Value my life? Most people wouldn't sit around waiting for death. I'm no exception."
Nolan's face remained impassive, but his eyes flickered briefly toward Kalluto.
It was precisely because he understood Kalluto's tracking abilities that he knew fleeing would be pointless.
Rather than scrambling away only to die with a stab in the back…
It was better to stay and seize the slim chance of negotiation, his only hope for survival.
"Let's talk price."
Nolan's gaze fixed on Morrow as he got straight to the point. "Whatever your client is paying, I'll offer ten times that amount, just to buy my own life."
Morrow remained silent.
Beside him, Kalluto maintained an impassive expression.
A subtle shift crossed Nolan's eyes as he controlled his emotions, speaking calmly, "No offense intended. If tenfold isn't satisfactory, name your price."
"Kalluto."
Morrow glanced sideways at the younger boy.
"Hmm?"
Kalluto responded with mild curiosity.
Morrow asked evenly, "In your opinion, would 'I' accept his proposal?"
…
After serious consideration, Kalluto answered listlessly, "Grandfather or father wouldn't. If it were Illumi… he might accept it."
"Then it seems 'I' should accept this offer."
Morrow nodded slowly.
Seeing this, Nolan exhaled slightly in relief.
The outcome of previous contracts had altered his perception of the Zoldyck family.
Knowing escape was futile, he'd chosen to remain dignified precisely for this bargaining opportunity.
His gamble appeared to be paying off.
Tenfold, twentyfold, it didn't matter.
If money could preserve his life, everything lost today could be reclaimed.
Just another ten or twenty years of rebuilding.
The founder of Menu Organization, a man of considerable ambition, hadn't misjudged the situation.
Had it been the notoriously mercenary Illumi standing here, the deal might have succeeded.
Unfortunately.
The man before him was an impostor.
"Thirty billion. I won't kill you."
Playing his role as fake Illumi, Morrow raised his index finger to quote the price.
Nolan's cheek twitched at the figure, perfectly displaying hesitant distress without crossing into offensiveness, a practiced maneuver.
"Agreed," Nolan said solemnly, placing both hands flat on the table.
Morrow immediately took out his phone, texting Argo, "Give me a clean account."
Within ten seconds, Argo replied with account details.
Morrow recited the numbers to Nolan, who promptly transferred thirty billion via his desktop computer.
"Please verify."
Transaction complete, Nolan gestured gracefully.
Morrow glanced at his phone displaying Argo's new message: "Wowza! 30 billion! Tempted to retire somewhere sunny~"
Ignoring this, Morrow typed "Work now" before pocketing the device.
"Received."
Morrow nodded at Nolan, then suddenly opened all his aura nodes, releasing maximum aura output.
The abrupt action wiped the composure from Nolan's face, replaced by incredulous fury.
"This is the Zoldyck way?!!"
"You misunderstand one thing."
Raising his right hand with aura sharpened like a spear, Morrow stated calmly, "I'm no Zoldyck. Just a piglet you almost disposed of as trash."
"W-What!?"
Nolan abruptly stood up, his gaze fixed intently on Morrow.
Fragments of memories flashed rapidly through his mind.
But how could this be?
As realization of the so-called "true identity" dawned on him, his eyes slowly widened in disbelief.
"Don't worry."
Morrow's expression remained as calm as still water as he spoke, "Since I've taken the money, I'll keep my word. Hmm, what I mean is, I won't kill you."
"!!!"
In response to Morrow's words, Nolan's aura output surged with violent fury.
Not long after.
Nolan lay lifeless beside the office desk, his eyes wide open in death.
A sharp, blade-like wound stretched across his neck, from which copious amounts of blood flowed.
This wound had been inflicted by Kalluto's paper fan.
"Buzz… buzz… buzz…"
The vibration of a phone rang out from the inner pocket of Nolan's suit jacket.
Morrow walked over, reached in, and pulled out the phone, glancing at the illuminated screen.
Incoming call: Index Finger.
The screen displayed.
Morrow casually tossed the phone back onto the corpse and then approached a painting hanging on the wall.
"What's wrong?"
Kalluto watched Morrow's inexplicable actions and asked weakly.
Morrow casually removed the painting, revealing an ordinary-looking wall.
Without hesitation, Morrow drove his fingers into the wall and, with a slight exertion of force, pried out a perfectly fitted square brick, exposing an embedded safe behind it.
"Here."
Morrow pointed at the safe, answering Kalluto's earlier question with action.
This safe, hidden within the wall, had been detected at the very edge of his En's range earlier, an unexpected boon.
Discarding the square brick, Morrow approached the safe and instinctively reached for his waist, only to grasp at empty air.
The Poultry Scarlet Knife wasn't on him.
Realizing this, Morrow figured he'd have to resort to slightly more forceful means, hoping not to damage the contents inside.
Kalluto glanced at the safe, then at Morrow's back, before weakly lowering his eyelids.
He thought about how Morrow had just extorted thirty billion from a dying man and now had inexplicably uncovered a safe. For a moment, he didn't know what to say.
"I'm… a little sleepy…"
Muttering to himself, Kalluto lowered his head and leaned against the office desk, using it to support his increasingly weak body.
By then, Morrow had already dragged the safe out and placed it on the floor, then concentrated aura into his palm.
Despite the enhancement from his aura, it still took considerable effort to safely pry open the safe.
Creak…
The warped and twisted safe door swung open.
Morrow peered inside, but instead of the expected treasures like gems or gold, there was only a rolled-up piece of parchment tinged with yellowing age, alongside a black envelope.
Seeing only these two items inside the large safe, Morrow was taken aback.
He carefully retrieved them for closer inspection.
The parchment was rolled twice and tied with a string.
The black envelope was sealed with an eye-shaped wax stamp, an odd design featuring a pinpoint-sized pupil set against a vast expanse of white.
Morrow examined the black envelope but found no signs of tampering.
Just to be safe, he even used Gyo to inspect it, and everything seemed normal.
"Buzz."
Just as Morrow was about to open the envelope, the phone vibrated again. Taking out his phone, Morrow saw a text from Argo: "A 'signal' is heading your way."
Reading the message, Morrow slightly raised an eyebrow.
Thud.
Suddenly, there was a sound behind him.
Turning around, Morrow saw Kalluto collapsed on the ground, unconscious.