With small hands tucked into his sleeves, he silently clenched them into fists. At this point, there was no other option but to bravely get off the bus...
"Click...click..." Nearby, travelers with their phones or with their cameras pointed at the "Gate of the Underworld" were snapping away... For ordinary people,
"The mysterious Zoldyck family..." The name of the "world's number one killer family" undoubtedly had great allure, and many people felt they had gained something to boast about after visiting.
Kurapika was cornered by Netero's few words, kept a stiff face, and dismounted... This trip was quite good; he hadn't met any criminals attempting to trade the Zoldyck Family for a bounty. But... to the boy, the old man and the strange creature with pea-like eyes following him off the bus were scarier than criminals...
However, since he was already here, Kurapika gathered his courage, tiptoed, raised his little face, and looked at the Gate of Trial. The towering and majestic gate seemed like a barrier blocking the mottled mountain gate from the outside world, like a giant beast that instilled fear and awe, exerting great pressure on people invisibly.
Kurapika suddenly paused, and his breathing involuntarily became rapid.
The red bus door creaked shut, and Netero, with Mamen Beans, was the last to get off. With a sweep of his large sleeves, he strode to Kurapika's side, glanced at him, and without continuing to tease, chuckled softly, saying, "Young man, I'm going ahead."
The single word "young man" subtly pierced Kurapika's lie,
Kurapika blushed and lowered his gaze, hearing in his mind the old man's leisurely words: "It's good for young people to know how to protect themselves; it's commendable to be smart, but learning to lie is ultimately a bad quality..."
Kurapika's face grew hot, and he glanced around, realizing only he heard this. Other people, like the ticket seller or travelers with cameras, were busy checking in and paid no attention to him,
Kurapika bit his lower lip, took a step forward, and sullenly followed Netero's footsteps...
"I didn't lie; my family is right there."
The boy insisted, then... following Netero's teasing laugh, angrily approached the towering "Gate of Trial,"
The movements of the three finally caught the attention of the ticket seller and fellow travelers...
"Hey~what are you doing? Come back, you can't go there!"
"Oh...what a recklessness, there's even a child; where is his family, how are they watching him? Are you trying to get yourselves killed?!"
The ticket seller and several kind tourists called urgently from behind....
Netero continued walking,
Kurapika bit his lower lip, not looking back,
Fifty meters... thirty meters... twenty meters... the old man and the young man with Mamen Beans disregarded the calls and steadily approached the Gate of Trial,
At a certain moment, with his hair and beard fluttering, Netero's old eyes cast a suspicious glance at Kurapika, for the first time showing a hint of surprise... this child was shrewd, certainly not foolish,
He still bravely forced himself to follow, could it be... he really has family inside?
As thoughts fluctuated, the distance to the mountain gate platform quickly disappeared... The Gate of Trial had arrived!
Netero stopped, glanced at Kurapika, and said in a deep voice, "Do you know where this is, young man?"
Kurapika lowered his gaze, stood silently facing the Gate of Trial, and took a deep breath, "I know...the residence of the world's number one killer family...the Zoldyck Family."
"You know, and you're not afraid?" Netero raised an eyebrow.
Kurapika clenched his fists, "I told you, my family is inside."
At that moment, footsteps resounded from the kiosk in front of the gate... Zebro, who spent every day in the kiosk either drinking tea or reading the newspaper, watching as his head grew balder, pushed the small door open and stepped out upon hearing the noise....
The first glance he saw was Netero standing with Mamen Beans in front of the gate,
Zebro's face changed, memories instantly flashed back to his childhood, where he had seen these two at this position and time, recognizing Netero's identity instantly because of etiquette, he doffed his hat and greeted Netero, "Zebro greets the President."
'They know each other?' Kurapika was startled,
The doffing uncle was wearing a security uniform, clearly a gate guard, yet he saluted this bothersome old man... Kurapika widened his eyes, glanced up at Netero, and received,
Netero's teasing wink,
"Ha ha ha... decades have passed in a flash, the brat once following Jager has grown so much...."
"The President has a good memory," Zebro replied, putting his hat back on, standing upright without servility or arrogance, "I wonder if you've notified the boss before coming, or should I make a call first?"
Zebro had seen Netero three times in his life, not counting this one, the first time he stood inside, but the second time was not so good; he was kicked out miserably with a "clang~"...
So, Zebro knew full well, this "strongest human," the honored and powerful President of the Hunter Association at present, was certainly not considered a guest by the Zoldyck family, and didn't have a "friendly" relationship at all!