The basement became a temporary place for Zzigg Zoldyck—Saiki Kusuo's great-grandfather.
Alluka didn't move into the basement as expected, but she was put into a separate room. Even her brothers Killua and Milluki, who were born and raised with her, could only visit with an adult.
In the afternoon, Saiki Kusuo brought a can of soda, using his x-ray vision to wait until the maids taking care of Alluka had stepped away.
Yes, the maids always step away. Because of Alluka's powers and the risks they pose, there were always greedy people trying to make wishes. The time the maids could stay was limited, and they worked in shifts.
But in exchange, there were cameras in all four corners of the room, with someone watching 24/7.
Once you step into this room, whatever you do is under Mom and Dad's watchful eyes.
Even so, Saiki Kusuo wasn't worried.
His telepathy doesn't show up on electronics. As long as the footage doesn't look weird, the family will just think he's there to play with Alluka.
But Saiki Kusuo came here for one reason.
He had a thought—while he could go to the future world himself eventually, since Alluka was here, maybe she could help him grant his one and only wish.
Yeah, it should be Nanika.
As soon as Saiki Kusuo entered, Alluka, who was playing with blocks in the middle of the room, lit up and ran over.
"Big brother! It's been so long!"
Saiki Kusuo kept a safe distance.
[It's been a while. I want to talk to Nanika about something. Can you let her come out?]
[Okay.]
Saiki Kusuo heard the reply—it was from Alluka, but the voice was Nanika's from inside.
As he waited, Alluka blinked and suddenly said mischievously, "Big brother, give me a spaceship!"
So she could've switched just like that, but instead she made it a wish?
Well, no big deal. Nothing's too hard for a psychic.
But Saiki Kusuo knew that if he wanted Alluka's help, there'd be no "easy mode" this time. He came prepared.
Of course, he didn't have a spaceship in his pocket. What kind of logic is that?
He brought something that could be exchanged for anything.
Money.
The currency here was "Jenny." Every child in the Zoldyck family got an allowance each month after they turned four. If they went out on assassination missions, they could earn more.
Saiki Kusuo didn't work, but over the past few years, he barely spent any money. Any desserts he wanted were usually made at home, or his older brother would buy them for him whenever he came back from a mission.
Back when he was the only younger brother his big brother could spoil, the amount of sweets his brother brought back every time was so much that he couldn't help but wonder if Milluki in the manga got fat because of that same older brother. Good thing Saiki, being a psychic, couldn't gain weight.
In short, he had barely spent any money.
Just two days ago, his power of equivalent exchange finally awakened. As long as he had money, he could trade it for anything in the world to fulfill Alluka's wishes.
Saiki Kusuo pulled 1,000 Jenny out of his pocket and traded it at a small village shop for a cheap toy.
There was a catch to this exchange ability: he couldn't combine bills to buy something. Each item had to be exchanged with one single bill of the exact amount.
So, might as well use the cheap ones first.
When a toy spaceship appeared out of nowhere in Saiki Kusuo's hands, Alluka's eyes lit up.
"Big brother, you're amazing!"
"Alluka wants a pyramid!" Alluka stretched out her arms in a big circle.
How do you even buy that? Should he just get a bunch of building blocks and stack them up for her? Actually, there were some blocks right here…
Saiki Kusuo grabbed the nearby building block and noticed it was extremely light—so much so that he crushed it instantly.
That caught him off guard. Weren't Zoldyck things usually carefully made and weighted? At this age, Killua already had his blocks replaced with heavier ones. Alluka and Milluki should've been treated the same. So why weren't they?
Or maybe… because of Alluka's unpredictable nature, the family had given up on raising her seriously?
With some thoughts in mind, Saiki Kusuo kept stacking the blocks. Unexpectedly, Alluka noticed what he was doing and came over to help.
The two of them quietly building blocks together—a peaceful scene—was caught on camera by Kikyo, who was watching closely.
"Dear, hey, dear."
"What is it?" Silva was reading through some documents, but after hearing Kikyo call twice, he finally turned to look.
"Do you think Kusuo might be trying to help Alluka make a wish for something like power? I mean, this child…"
Silva stopped what he was doing and also started watching the monitor.
The feeling of being watched.
Saiki Kusuo could feel it. But right now, he and Alluka had finally finished building the "pyramid."
[Does this count as a pyramid?] Saiki Kusuo asked.
"Yay, Kikyo says it does!" Alluka clapped her hands, clearly happy.
"Big brother, Nanika wants the whole world to go dark!"
?
Did the parents just hear that creepy wish?
Saiki Kusuo felt a new layer of concern about Nanika. As expected of a Zoldyck kid—naturally gifted in dark thoughts.
Still, this wish was actually easy to grant. Saiki Kusuo leaned over and covered Alluka's eyes with his hand.
Total darkness—just close your eyes, and there you go.
In the end, money wasn't needed at all.
Then, a pair of small hands held onto his. Saiki Kusuo knew that at that moment, someone else had taken control of his body.
Nanika tilted her head.
"Hmm."
[If I asked you to take me across worlds, could you do it?]
Nanika tilted her head again.
[Just like you came from the Dark Continent, my brother has a place he was born too. He wants to go back there. Do you know that?]
That kind of question was probably too difficult for a three-year-old child.
Nanika thought for a while and said, "Wishes... can be granted."
Any wish can come true.
But the price must be paid by the next person who makes a wish.
Right now, Alluka's abilities are being tested and made known to all the Zoldycks.
Saiki Kusuo knows that the cost of Alluka's power doesn't always go up depending on how hard the wish is. For example, bringing back their great-grandfather from the Dark Continent cost a huge amount of energy from Alluka, but the punishment afterward was surprisingly small.
Later, everyone also learned from Killua that if Alluka uses her power to heal someone, the next person doesn't need to pay any price at all.
Nanika is kind. Her punishments only fall on people who make evil wishes.
But her power still has limits. If the wish is too unbelievable and no one else takes on the cost, she has to bear it herself. Saiki Kusuo didn't come just to ask Nanika to send him home. If it failed, he'd be in big trouble. Instead, he wanted Nanika to send him to the Dark Continent. He needed to understand just how far her power could go. That way, he could calculate how old Nanika would need to be in the future to send him back to Earth—or even to the moon or the sun.
Saiki Kusuo only needs a little help to get home. Whether it's now or later, he can cross time or find a way across parallel worlds. But right now, it feels like he's trapped inside the entire world of Hunter x Hunter, and beyond it there's only darkness. No clues, no way out.
And maybe Nanika is the key to leaving this place.
But he doesn't like owing people.
Before he makes a wish, he has to change Alluka's fate in return.
[Nanika, send me to the Dark Continent.]
Nanika didn't think about whether the wish was right or wrong. She didn't worry about how Saiki Kusuo would get back. She just obediently answered, "Okay."
At the same time, Saiki Kusuo's father, who was watching the monitors closely, also heard him speak words that didn't match what was in his heart.
"Send me near Illumi."