As the dust settled, carried away by a passing breeze, the figures became clear.
They were Franklin, Feitan, and Phinks.
"Seen the new members?" Feitan asked, hands tucked in his pockets.
"Haven't met them," Franklin replied.
"Heard the Boss recruited them from that shithole," Phinks said flatly.
"Shithole?" Feitan's eyes narrowed slightly. "Isn't that your hometown?"
"Got a problem with that?" Phinks glanced sideways at Feitan.
The 'shithole' they referred to was Meteor City, and all three of them hailed from there.
"Nope," Feitan gave a cold smirk and said mildly, "Just wondering how strong these new members are."
"If they're meant for the assault role, they're probably Enhancers," Phinks speculated.
"Very likely," Franklin agreed.
Within the group, the support and auxiliary roles were already filled. What they lacked were frontline assault specialists.
If they were recruiting new members, Enhancers would logically be the priority.
Of course, this was mere speculation until they actually met them.
The initial summons was simply to assemble in Yorknew City, with no details about the mission.
But judging by the assembly date and Yorknew's annual major event, the mission was most likely to steal the auction items.
…
Hotel Room.
Ellie lay sprawled on top of Law, her cheek rubbing against his chest as if he were a favorite stuffed toy.
"Alright, time to get up," Law said with a wry smile.
"No! How long has it been since you came to see me?" Ellie lifted her upper body, staring intently at the face that haunted her dreams, and let out a displeased huff.
"Been busy with a lot of things," Law explained, instinctively avoiding Ellie's adoring gaze.
Nowadays, Ellie was the head of one of the Six Continents' foremost transportation and shipbuilding conglomerates, renowned in political and business circles, with countless suitors.
In the eyes of many, Ellie was the very definition of a powerful, successful woman. Marrying her would mean a life free of worries.
However, no one could possibly imagine that this Ellie, their ideal partner, was currently draped over a man, acting coquettishly.
If a paparazzo caught this scene, their bonus would likely multiply tenfold.
As Law tried to explain himself to Ellie, Salin's languid voice cut in, "Don't listen to his excuses. He's had plenty of free time, ditching company work to wander around doing who-knows-what."
"..."
Law was momentarily speechless, turning to look at Salin, who smiled and raised her glass to him in a mock toast.
"Anything else to say for yourself?" Ellie pouted.
Law raised his hands in surrender. "No, I beg for mercy."
"Hmph, then you have to come with me to the Southernpiece Auction," Ellie declared, still sitting squarely on Law, completely unconcerned about the indecorous position.
"Fine, fine, fine," Law could only agree for the moment.
Hearing this, Ellie finally relented and climbed off.
Law also got to his feet, finally able to get a proper look at the present-day Ellie.
She had cut her long hair into a sharp, short style. Looking closely, he almost did a double-take.
She somewhat resembled a template of Biscuit in her twenties.
Come to think of it, when he first met Ellie, she had looked like a living doll, bearing a certain resemblance to Biscuit back then.
In any case, after so long apart, she had changed dramatically once more, and then there was... Stargie.
At that thought, Law looked toward Stargie, who stood by the entrance holding a large suitcase. Her hair, black and smooth as satin, was particularly striking.
Before the trip to the Dark Continent, Stargie had clearly had short hair, but now it was long.
Thinking about it, Ellie had cut her long hair short, while Stargie had grown her short hair long. This exchange of styles highlighted the passage of time.
"Didn't Kenda come with you?" Law asked.
"No, he stayed behind to manage the company," Ellie replied, then glanced at Stargie and instructed, "Let Goldie out."
Stargie gave a slight nod and opened the suitcase. The human puppet, Goldie, crawled out.
Law observed Stargie and Goldie, 'After years of nurturing, their strength was indeed sufficient to protect Ellie. No wonder she traveled with only them.'
Then, Law noticed Kurapika staring fixedly at Stargie. He walked over and patted Kurapika's shoulder. "Look at you, can't take your eyes off her."
"That's not it. It's because she gives off a very dangerous feeling," Kurapika quickly explained.
"Oh?"
Law raised an eyebrow in surprise. He didn't feel that way himself, and he considered Kurapika's current strength to be firmly within the top tier.
'Yet, he sensed danger from Stargie?'
Nen wasn't something that simply vanished upon death, and sometimes, it could become even stronger because of it.
Items like the Surprise Box and the Nyoi-bo were proof of that, and Stargie essentially represented Nen strengthened after death.
But if that were all, it shouldn't have made Kurapika feel threatened. Her true terror lay in the fusion of two fundamentally different types of Nen.
The Nen of the living and the Nen of the dead.
Nen and Post-Mortem Nen.
Light and Dark.
Their combination might have created a monster.
As Law was still pondering this, Stargie suddenly walked towards him.
Kurapika, not yet accustomed to Stargie's presence, instinctively tensed at her movement.
The feeling was akin to a tourist seeing a lion tamer with his lion for the first time. Even with the tamer present, the inherent danger of the lion couldn't be ignored.
To become accustomed to that sense of danger, one would probably need to spend considerable time near the lion.
Stargie came to a stop before Law. Even with her tall stature, she was still nearly a head shorter than him.
Looking at Stargie up close, many memories associated with her surfaced in Law's mind.
Her eyes were no longer dull and lifeless.
'Had Ellie's [Soul Mimic] truly achieved a resurrection effect?'
It seemed far-fetched, yet the evidence was right before his eyes.
"Thank you."
Stargie gazed quietly at Law, her voice like pearls dropping onto a ceramic plate.
Hearing this, Law was momentarily stunned, unsure why Stargie was suddenly thanking him.
Then, he saw the corners of Stargie's lips curve upwards into a faint smile.
In that moment, he thought any man would be moved by that smile.
"Don't look at Stargie with those lustful eyes," Ellie said, coming over, standing on her toes, and covering Law's eyes with her hands.
'Was I...?'
Law let Ellie keep her hands over his eyes.
"Her name is Stargie? Why did she thank Law?" Kurapika wondered curiously to himself.
The human puppet, Goldie, quietly observed everyone in the room. Salin refilled her wine glass, a faint trace of a smile seeming to linger at the corner of her eyes.
…
That night, in the unfinished buildings on the outskirts of Yorknew City.
The flickering light of white candles dimly illuminated the interior.
The soft rustle of turning pages seemed to be the only sound.
A man in a coat sat broadly on a large stone, slowly turning the pages of a book.
Apart from him, there were eight other people in the building.
Before midnight tonight, there needed to be thirteen people here.