Furykov relied on his years of Nen combat experience to assess the situation in the hall, all while secretly planning to stir up some of the other guards to help confirm his suspicions.
Babimyna—whom he still missed dearly—as well as Slakka, Sakata, Hashito, and others dispatched by the Third Prince, Zhang Lei, were currently working with Ronnel to protect Queen Oito.
Queen Oito had been alarmed by the scream that came from outside, but after Ronnel calmly offered an explanation and Kurapika swiftly took charge of the situation, she felt herself relax again.
Myuhan's left eye had indeed been taken out by Ronnel. He used Leorio's ability—long-range physical strikes—to deliver the attack at blinding speed.
As for the supposed conditions that Furykov had guessed about the attack... those were nothing more than figments of his own imagination.
They sounded plausible enough, but in reality, his assessment had been flawed from the start.
...
Afterward, Kurapika asked everyone present to introduce themselves. During the process, Ronnel managed to collect blood samples from several Nen users in the room—including Furykov—and absorbed them.
Among them was the disguised guard who had activated the ability [They Were Eleven: Silent Majority] from the beginning, waiting patiently for an opening.
Nen Ability: [They Were Eleven: Silent Majority]Type: Assassination-type Conjuration, Manipulation ability
Once activated, the ability summons a humanoid beast specialized in assassination.
This beast possesses targets based on the user's intent, excluding the user themselves. Those who are possessed gain the ability to see the beast.
A branch ability of the humanoid mind beast is [White Snake]. Once possession conditions are met, the humanoid form transforms into a white snake-shaped mind beast, which wraps around the target and drains their blood.
Up to four white snakes can be manifested at once. A single one can drain a person's blood in 44 seconds; all four acting together can do it in just 11 seconds.
Trained Nen users can defend against the white snakes using aura. Ordinary people, however, would be helpless unless protected by a Nen user. Once the snake wraps around its target, it becomes visible.
Restrictions:
The ability can only activate if there are more than ten people in the crowd.
When conditions are met, the mind beast will randomly select ten eligible targets for potential possession.
From those ten, the user can choose who to possess.
The possessed individual isn't harmed and can see the beast, allowing them to raise an alarm.
If the beast is activated but fails to possess or kill in a short time, the user suffers a curse backlash.
...
It's a complex ability—so much so that Togashi, that old fox who writes manga like novels, probably spent half a chapter just explaining it.
Ronnel, upon seeing the sheer number of restrictions and the risky payoff of this assassination ability, quickly dismissed it as not worth the trouble.
Clearly, its original creator had designed it to blend into crowds and chase the thrill of elaborate assassination scenarios.
Back in the beginning of the Succession War, several of the Fourteenth Prince's royal guards died from the White Snake, their bodies drained of every drop of blood.
Now, with the incident involving Mao Han, the current user of [Silent Majority] likely wouldn't make another move any time soon.
Unfortunately, he had already activated the ability earlier. Since he failed to kill anyone in time, he now suffered the curse backlash.
That meant he was now forced to keep going with his assassination attempts, despite knowing how exposed he was.
In such a twisted scenario, he had no choice but to grit his teeth and continue hunting for a viable target. The desperation in his heart, the bitterness, the sheer frustration—it was palpable.
What kind of lunatic just provokes someone for no reason?!
Angry and cornered, he scanned the room again, trying to find someone both safe to possess and easy to eliminate—anything to reduce the risk of being discovered.
...
While he hunted, the guards—Danjin included, who had just returned from the infirmary—continued introducing themselves one after another.
Furykov turned his attention back to Kurapika, carefully analyzing his body language and aura type.
"His movements suggest he's right-handed, yet he holds his gun in his left. That's likely a deliberate tactic—he's freeing up his dominant hand for something. Classic behavior for Manipulators or Emitters.
"There's a heavy concentration of aura winding around his right hand. The balance is deliberate. This isn't from inexperience—he's probably a Manipulator, always prepared to materialize something.
"He wears long sleeves, likely to hide what his hands are doing. His right hand must play a crucial role in his ability."
He narrowed his eyes further.
"To most people, these differences are practically invisible—but I can spot them! Based on what I'm seeing, one of his abilities must be to force others to reveal the truth!"
Furykov was mostly correct. Kurapika's known information matched up with around 80% of his deductions.
His analytical skills were certainly top-tier... though something about this felt eerily familiar.
Come to think of it, someone else had once made a similar analysis of Kurapika.
That guy's name?
Uvogin.
And let's just say, the grass on his grave was already three inches tall.
...
Once everyone had introduced themselves, Kurapika clapped his hands and went straight to the point.
"Next, I'll begin teaching everyone Nen. Even though everyone learns at different speeds, with two weeks of practice, you should all be able to grasp the basics. So please don't worry.
"But before we start, there's something I need to confirm. If you answer honestly, I'll be very grateful…"
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Fanfic is completed on patreon.com/FanficsHub (799 chapters in total)