Moreover, while trying to seize others' gains, they also had to guard against dangerous individuals like the veteran residents of Meteor City who might harbor malicious intentions toward the two of them.
It could be said that the two of them were huddling together for warmth, and their lives were considerably more difficult.
Therefore, compared to Uvogin, Phinks and Feitan were more like those who had nothing to lose, caring neither about this nor that.
If there truly was a way for them to change their current lives and become stronger...
As long as the price was not overly severe or excessive, the two of them would absolutely not hesitate for a moment.
It was precisely for this reason that Phinks felt cautious about the seemingly "simple and lenient" condition proposed by Moge.
Such a condition was practically being given away for free!
This was almost the same as the favor they had previously asked of Moge regarding food!
However, Moge had already made it clear: No, it was different.
Strictly speaking, a commission and a request were not the same.
When Moge developed the ability Standing on the Shoulders of Giants, he gained a general understanding of his Master Inventor ability as a whole.
That is, although he could use his invention ability by accepting others' commissions and requests, the degree of sincerity behind the commission or request also had to be taken into account.
In other words, for a simple commission or favor where the desire behind it was not very strong the amount of Aura and Nen required to sustain Moge's invention would be greater.
But if it was a request made with great sincerity and an intense desire, then the amount of Aura and Nen required to sustain Moge's invention would be greatly reduced.
Simply put, everything depended on how strong the requester's desire was.
The stronger the desire behind the request, the less Aura and Nen would be consumed and vice versa.
If the other party's request desire was extremely strong, and it combined with Moge's Standing on the Shoulders of Giants ability
With the mutual superposition of the two abilities,
Moge might even be able to forcibly Invent some extremely powerful items that would normally require a tremendous amount of Aura and Nen to produce.
Therefore, what he told Phinks was "ask," not "favor."
The desire behind a request was clearly much stronger than that of a simple favor.
"Is it really true that just a request is enough?!"
After confirming that there were indeed no additional conditions or hidden costs, Phinks' eyes almost began to shine.
If such power could really be obtained through such a simple method
"This is an absolute steal!!!"
Phinks shouted wildly in his heart, and immediately felt the urge to open his mouth and make a request to Moge.
"Moge, please"
Before Phinks could finish speaking, he suddenly felt someone tugging hard at his clothes.
Phinks: "Huh?!"
He subconsciously lowered his head and saw Feitan pulling on his tattered shirt while giving him a meaningful glance.
"What is it?!"
Phinks followed the direction Feitan's gaze indicated.
Then he saw Uvogin standing nearby with his arms crossed, pretending to look indifferent yet his ears were obviously perked up.
That was clearly the posture of someone eavesdropping.
Eavesdropping?!
Phinks was startled for a moment, and then suddenly realized something.
That's right.
When he and Feitan saw Moge produce that kind of food earlier, they had felt shock and confusion.
But Uvogin and Machi clearly had prior contact with Moge.
They must have known long ago that Moge possessed such an ability.
Phinks instinctively judged others by his own perspective.
Since he himself desired such power so strongly, there was no reason why Uvogin wouldn't be tempted by it.
Anyone facing such miraculous power would naturally want to obtain it.
Yet during his previous fight with Uvogin, Uvogin had never displayed such an ability.
Instead, Phinks had managed to beat him around quite a bit.
That meant one thing.
Uvogin knew about this power, but he had not obtained it.
Furthermore, judging from Uvogin's current behavior, it clearly wasn't that he couldn't learn it it was that he still didn't know how to acquire it.
Moge had just offered them the two newcomers—a condition where this power could be obtained simply by making a request.
There was no reason Uvogin and Machi wouldn't have the same opportunity.
Therefore, it could only mean one thing.
That muscle-headed idiot Uvogin, because of his pride or unwillingness to lower himself to ask Moge, had not managed to obtain this power yet.
Phinks instantly sorted through this chain of reasoning in his mind.
A look of sudden realization appeared in his eyes.
At the same time, the way he looked at Uvogin carried a trace of strangeness and mockery.
Pride? Refusing to lower himself?
In a place like Meteor City, how much were such things worth?
Only strength and survival mattered.
Only what you gained and used to strengthen yourself truly counted.
That idiot Uvogin couldn't even understand something so simple.
He had a treasure chest capable of unlocking power right beside him, yet stubbornly refused to open it for such a ridiculous reason.
It was practically laughable.
And Machi…
It was one thing for the big idiot Uvogin to not realize the importance of the matter.
But she was actually following along with him.
No wonder those two stuck together.
Phinks muttered inwardly.
Of course, when it came to this matter, Phinks and Uvogin clearly had completely different attitudes and approaches.
Given the harsh environment of Meteor City, along with the differences in their strength and living situations, it was difficult to say who was right or wrong.
However, this difference clearly reflected their personalities and ways of dealing with things.
It was also one of the reasons why, in the future, when the Phantom Troupe would eventually be formed, Uvogin, Nobunaga, and Machi would naturally get along better.
Meanwhile, Feitan and Phinks would remain an inseparable pair.
Furthermore, when Chrollo was later captured by Kurapika, Feitan and Phinks chose a more rational perhaps even colder course of action that prioritized overall value.
Compared with Nobunaga, Machi, and Pakunoda reacting more emotionally after Chrollo's capture, the two of them appeared far more pragmatic.
Thus, at this moment, the quick-thinking Phinks immediately changed his tone.
"Moge, please take us to visit your home first!"
He decisively changed his words.
"Since you treated us to such delicious food, we also have the responsibility to escort you home safely!"
The moment these words came out, Machi's eyelid twitched slightly.
Uvogin almost stumbled on the spot.
Escort him home…?
Did he think everyone here was a three-year-old child?
This clearly meant he didn't want to talk about this power in front of them and didn't want anyone else overhearing.
Escort him home?
What a clumsy excuse.
"Escort me home?"
A trace of confusion appeared on Moge's face.
"My house is very small and run-down. It probably can't fit so many people."
"It's fine, it's fine!"
Phinks waved his hands repeatedly.
"Our main purpose is escorting you. If we can't fit inside, we'll just stay outside for a while."
With a fierce expression that somehow looked extremely sincere, he added:
"The most important thing is that you get home safely."
Then, privately, he could properly ask Moge about that power.
Phinks grinned inwardly.
He absolutely couldn't let certain unrelated idiots eavesdrop.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Uvogin's extremely unpleasant expression and almost laughed.
Seeing Uvogin suffer a setback like this felt incredibly satisfying.
"Alright then. You can come along."
Moge smiled and agreed.
Whether they escorted him or not didn't really matter to him.
With the Nen ability he had already awakened and the amount of Aura circulating through his body, ordinary residents of Meteor City couldn't approach him easily anyway.
However, Phinks had just said something interesting:
"Moge, please take us to visit your home first."
He had said "please."
That was perfect.
Moge had just been thinking about improving his living environment.
Wasn't this practically a ready-made request?
Ignoring Uvogin's ugly expression and his silent grumbling,
Moge led Phinks and Feitan back toward his dwelling.
Naturally, Uvogin and Machi followed as well.
"Seriously, why are you two following us?"
Standing in front of Moge's house, Phinks shot an annoyed sideways glance at Uvogin, who was trailing behind them like a tail.
"If it's about escorting him, Feitan and I are more than enough."