When it came to dealing with Nolan and the Menu Organization, Argo always adhered to the principle of "safety first."
But he could also help Morrow handle some trailing issues.
Now, suddenly receiving Argo's warning, Morrow guessed that Argo had infiltrated the mansion and, through some means, detected a signal approaching the estate.
Before Morrow could fully process the situation, Kalluto suddenly collapsed unconscious, startling him slightly.
As expected, he was still pushing himself.
Quickly moving to Kalluto's side, Morrow swiftly checked his injuries; things didn't look good.
No matter how strong one's physical constitution, a six- or seven-year-old body still had its limits.
And with injuries this severe...
The fact that he had held on until now was likely due to sheer willpower.
Morrow didn't even know what to say about Kalluto's stubbornness anymore.
After storing the parchment and black envelope, Morrow picked up the severely injured and unconscious Kalluto and headed out of the mansion.
Before leaving, he casually set the place on fire, then turned and walked away.
As for issues like surveillance, he left them entirely to Argo to handle.
Ever since paying Argo two billion Jenny, Morrow had been able to delegate many tasks, big and small, to him.
Even the trip to the Kukan'yu Kingdom had been initiated based on intelligence provided by Argo.
In a way, Morrow felt the money had been well spent.
—--
The mountain forest was dark and silent.
Morrow carried Kalluto as he moved swiftly. Though Nolan had been completely dealt with, he remained vigilant.
After all, there was still the unknown signal Argo had mentioned, as well as the contact labeled "Index Finger" he had seen on Nolan's phone earlier.
I need to get Kalluto to a hospital quickly.
While moving at high speed, Morrow kept a close watch on any signs of movement around him.
Suddenly, he came to an abrupt halt, narrowing his eyes at the shadowy figures ahead, headless silhouettes standing motionless.
A Manipulation-type ability?
Seeing the motionless, headless black figures, Morrow didn't hesitate to change direction, sprinting toward another path.
Whoever was coming, he immediately identified them as the signal approaching the mansion earlier.
It was also almost certain that the signal belonged to someone under Nolan's command.
To ensure Kalluto received medical attention as soon as possible, Morrow had no intention of engaging in a prolonged fight and decisively adjusted his course.
However, just as he had covered some distance, the trees along the path suddenly rustled violently overhead.
Morrow tensed.
Starlight Convergence.
Almost the instant the noise reached him, his aura spilled outward like scattered starlight.
At the same time.
Dark figures burst through the dense canopy, dropping down toward Morrow like dumplings in a pot.
The radiant specks of light surrounding him were instantly thrown into chaos, and the overwhelming flood of information nearly overloaded his "Processor."
This could be considered a limitation and weakness of "Starlight Convergence." When too many attacking elements flooded the Starlight Domain, it created an overwhelming surge of data, making it difficult for Morrow to process and integrate the information.
Nen abilities were like that, similar to human nature.
They were often born from a person's character, inheriting both its strengths and flaws.
Just as there were no perfect humans in the world, there were no perfect Nen abilities either.
All headless people?
Morrow was momentarily bombarded with information, but fortunately, his ability precision was well honed, allowing him to barely process it at the last moment.
Immediately, he utilized the explosive turning force of Gazelle Steps to swiftly evade all the headless figures raining down upon him, following a pre-planned optimal route.
Without pause, he sprinted toward the distant darkness.
"Zoldyck!!!"
A furious female voice echoed from the shadows behind him.
Morrow glanced back.
Under the faint moonlight filtering through the trees, he saw a woman with striking makeup and revealing clothing, standing atop a grotesque, misshapen body.
The body seemed to have been molded from human forms as if they were clay, exaggeratedly kneaded into something resembling the chassis of a car.
On either side of this chassis, rows of normal human limbs extended from the edges, resembling the segmented legs of a centipede.
At that moment, those limbs were rapidly clawing at the ground, propelling the chassis-like body forward at high speed.
"…"
With just that glance, Morrow further confirmed the nature of her ability, undoubtedly a Manipulation Type.
Judging by the sheer number of controlled individuals and their ability to freely reshape their bodies, the deliberate removal of their heads was likely the limitation of this ability.
However, Morrow's potential aura was currently low, and he had to prioritize getting Kalluto medical attention. He had no intention of engaging in battle.
So even if he could analyze the ability at a glance, it held no practical significance.
Averting his gaze, he ignored the woman's furious killing intent and distanced himself from the battlefield as quickly as possible.
—--
The woman controlling the horde of headless figures was none other than the belated Index Finger, Amanda.
Her calls to Nolan and the others had all gone unanswered.
And the towering flames in the distance struck her heart like a hammer.
Amanda had already received a message from Adam, informing her that assassins from the Zoldyck family were attacking the mansion, so she had rushed over at full speed.
Then, she encountered Morrow and Kalluto here.
At that moment, Amanda had braced herself for the worst.
Seeing Kalluto cradled in Morrow's arms, she immediately understood that Kalluto was seriously injured and that Morrow was likely not at full strength either.
Before heading to the mansion to assess the situation, she intended to eliminate Morrow and Kalluto first.
But to her surprise, the carefully laid trap had been dodged by Morrow at the last second.
"You useless trash, move faster!!!"
The human centipede car couldn't keep up with Morrow, who was rapidly pulling away.
Amanda's face twisted in rage as she stomped on the human centipede car beneath her.
If others could do it, she would never lift a finger herself.
This had always been Amanda's way.
Even after repelling Bushidora at the semi-abandoned mall, she had relied on human-powered vehicles to travel.
Now was no different.
She could only depend on the speed of the human centipede car to pursue Morrow.
It wasn't that she was inflexible, it was simply that her own speed couldn't match that of the human centipede car.
This heavy reliance on controlled entities, to some extent, determined the upper and lower limits of a Manipulator.
As Morrow grew farther away, Amanda's eyes burned with fury and killing intent.
"I will find you, I swear I will find you!!!"
Her furious voice echoed through the mountain forest.
—--
In the distance.
Go ahead and search, I'll be waiting for you at Kukuroo Mountain.
At the same time, Morrow felt a twinge of relief.
He hadn't expected Nolan to have such a powerful Manipulator under his command, one capable of controlling so many headless humans.
Fortunately, this Manipulator hadn't intervened in the earlier battle; otherwise, the situation would have turned far worse.
Unbidden, Morrow recalled the scene from the original story where Hisoka was buried under a flood of dolls in the Heavens Arena.
The sheer numbers of a Manipulation Type's tactics could be particularly troublesome at times.
Especially with an ability like Starlight Convergence, if the Starburst's range was completely filled with headless humans, it would be rendered nearly useless, let alone trying to win against overwhelming odds.
Lv.44… still far from enough...
Morrow gazed ahead, his eyes flickering with thought.
--------
Bonus chapter for every new review and for every 10 Power Stones the story gets.