Chapter 40: Lippo's Call
Just as Mord was troubled about his first bucket of gold, his phone rang.
"Hello, this is Lippo."
A familiar voice came from the other end of the line.
"What, surprised?"
"A little, indeed." Mord nodded. Based on his performance during the Hunter Exam, he should have thoroughly offended the other party. He hadn't expected Lippo to seek him out.
"I have a commission here. Listen to the details first before making your decision," Lippo began.
"Evil Monk Mierji, know him?"
Mord quickly recalled the wanted criminal information he had browsed through earlier, retrieving the relevant details about Evil Monk Mierji.
Lippo on the other end of the line paused briefly before continuing, "Evil Monk Mierji, a B-class wanted criminal, successor to the Esoteric Buddhism sect of Wa Country."
"The wanted notices issued jointly by V5 are divided into five levels, with D being the lowest and S the highest."
"Generally speaking, the higher the wanted level, the stronger the individual's capabilities."
It was worth noting that even the Phantom Troupe were only A-class wanted criminals. Mord hadn't expected there to be an even higher level above that—he hadn't seen any S-class wanted criminals on the internal Hunter website.
"According to your explanation, Warden, since Evil Monk Mierji is a B-class wanted criminal, his strength shouldn't be something a newly-minted Hunter like me could handle."
"Why come to me?" Mord asked the most crucial question.
"Although Evil Monk Mierji is classified as a B-class wanted criminal, his actual combat ability is weaker than that rating suggests. The main reason he reached B-class is largely due to his threat level. His true strength falls short of most C-class wanted criminals."
"That's not the reason you're approaching me."
Even if Evil Monk Mierji was weak, Lippo, as an experienced Hunter holding an important government position, could easily find someone more capable for this mission.
Lippo also knew that with Mord's intelligence, such an excuse wouldn't be enough to brush him off. After a moment of silence, he said, "The commission from above requires capturing him alive."
"I saw your performance in the Trick Tower. If it's you, you should be able to fulfill my commission quite well."
Lippo deliberately emphasized the words "my commission."
"Is Evil Monk Mierji a Nen user?" Mord neither agreed nor refused outright, instead asking for additional information.
"Yes, a Manipulation-type Nen user."
"Give me a reason I can't refuse," Mord stated.
"Aside from the bounty on the wanted notice, I'll owe you a personal favor—anything within my power."
"I'll take the commission. You better remember what you said today." Mord inside the room drew back the curtains and glanced at the distant horizon before adding, "Send me the specific intelligence on Evil Monk Mierji."
Since Lippo had sought out Mord, he must have already located Evil Monk Mierji's exact hiding place.
Just when he needed to sleep, someone offered a pillow, and he could even get a favor from a senior Hunter for free.
This deal was worth taking.
Lippo worked with high efficiency, soon sending all the intelligence on Evil Monk Mierji to Mord's computer.
Mord quickly scanned through the information, scrolling to the end.
Last known location... Aftab City!
What a coincidence.
Mord's mind conjured the sleazy image of the prison warden Lippo—this guy clearly wasn't simple.
According to the intelligence provided by Lippo, the mastermind behind the newly emerged Shinto religion recently gaining traction in Aftab City was the monk Mierji.
Shinto religion...
Mord recalled that the lady next door happened to be a follower of this religion.
As a Hunter, before renting this place, he had naturally thoroughly investigated the surrounding environment.
...
Taya was an ordinary office worker. Due to her husband's circumstances, she believed herself deeply sinful and had long been trapped in self-blame.
By chance, she encountered the Shinto religion.
After listening to the master's teachings and receiving guidance, she felt her entire body, including her soul, had been liberated and elevated.
The master was like a living Buddha, capable of guiding her lost boat through the sea of suffering toward a clear direction.
From that day on, she became a devoted follower of the Shinto religion.
Every weekend, she would attend the activities held by the church.
And today happened to be a weekend.
After bathing and freshening up, Taya spent a long time applying an extremely delicate makeup, then grabbed her bag and left the house. She quickly drove away, completely unaware of a dark figure tailing her from behind.
To avoid alerting anyone, Mord planned to use the devoted Shinto follower Taya, the wife next door, as his entry point by following her.
After several days of trailing her, nothing unusual had occurred.
At times like these, Mord wished he had a hypnotic or mental-type Zanpakutō ability—it would save him a lot of effort.
However, after two attempts, he found that drawing Zanpakutō attributes was entirely random.
The chances of directly obtaining the desired Zanpakutō ability were likely almost impossible.
The red luxury car drove straight toward the outskirts and eventually stopped in front of a manor.
Mord looked up—a typical Japanese-style manor. At that moment, the parking lot outside the manor was filled with all kinds of vehicles, at least a hundred of them, many of which were high-end cars.
They likely all belonged to Shinto followers like Taya.
At the manor's entrance stood two men. They weren't regular security guards; judging by their attire, they resembled monks, though they seemed a bit too secular.
After verifying her identity, Taya was quickly allowed entry into the manor.
Today was probably the day for Shinto religious activities.
Mord glanced at the two monks at the entrance and directly scaled the outer wall from the side.
Not only at the entrance, but the manor also had monks patrolling inside. However, with Mord using Zetsu to deliberately conceal his presence, these ordinary guards had no chance of detecting him.
It seemed the intelligence was likely correct.
This level of security was far beyond what an ordinary emerging religion should or could possess.
"Patron Taya, the ritual is about to begin," a monk leading the way said, his sidelong glances repeatedly assessing Taya.
Following behind, Taya quickened her pace upon hearing the word "ritual."
Mord trailed them, entering the villa at the center of the manor and ascending to the second floor.
In an immensely spacious room, over a hundred devotees had gathered. They knelt devoutly on cushions before them, hands pressed together in prayer.
Each believer was accompanied by a monk, and the monk who had guided Taya earlier was now seated beside her.
At the front, a monk with a large head and plump face sat in the chief seat, eyes closed, chanting unfamiliar scriptures.
"Cleanse your sins, return to your true nature."
"The Dharma Assembly begins!"
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