The underground hall was packed with elite mafia members, streaming continuously through the security checkpoint into the opulent lobby.
Before the auction officially began, the mafia members gathered in small groups, chatting casually and looking completely at ease, utterly unaware that the scythe of death already hung over their heads.
This auction was a stage for mafia bosses to elevate their status.
Therefore, the absence of many bosses had caught the attention of some observant individuals, but none paid it much mind, as notable lieutenants had been sent in their place.
The bodyguards sent by Dalzollene to bid were Baise, Ivlenkov, and Tocino.
Apart from Baise, who was newly hired by Nostrade, the other two had been with the Nostrade Family for a long time and had experienced many such scenes.
"Captain Dalzollene said the auction would be attacked tonight, but judging by the security the organizers have deployed, it shouldn't cause much trouble," observed the veteran bodyguard, Ivlenkov, as he scanned the security personnel. The defenses were well-established, with at least four armed guards stationed at every key passage.
Before entering, the corridors outside were also heavily guarded. Anyone daring to disrupt the auction would likely find it impossible to escape once inside.
Baise and her two companions headed towards the auction hall entrance. Behind them, three individuals in black suits were about to pass through the security checkpoint.
These three were Franklin, Feitan, and Shalnark, all dressed in black suits.
With Shalnark's skills, obtaining entry credentials wasn't difficult. The three passed through security without issue. For this operation, only six of them had come, while the remaining members were holding down the fort at their temporary base.
"Franklin, if we killed everyone here in under five seconds, do you think Cipher would throw a fit?" Feitan asked, his narrow eyes crinkling slightly as he looked at the noisy lobby, his voice low.
Franklin stared straight ahead, his tone indifferent, "Don't know, don't care."
"You two," Shalnark shook his head with a smile.
Although they hadn't interacted much with Cipher, their sharp eyes could tell he was a bloodthirsty person. Stealing his prey might indeed make him livid.
However, Shalnark wasn't worried. Even if Franklin cleared out everyone inside, the corridors outside held enough prey for Cipher to vent his frustrations on.
Time passed, the hands of the clock gradually approaching nine. The entrance to the underground venue opened ten minutes early.
The guests filed orderly down the stairs into the auction hall.
Within ten minutes, the hall was filled with over five hundred people. Including the surrounding security personnel, the total number present exceeded six hundred.
Feitan's group of three also descended but did not take seats. Using Shalnark's ability, they manipulated a key staff member to lead them backstage.
Franklin and Feitan stayed behind, while Shalnark notified their companions outside to prepare for action and headed towards the vault.
When the clock struck nine exactly, Franklin and Feitan emerged from backstage onto the stage, standing before the auctioneer's podium.
The guests in the hall didn't notice anything amiss, nor did they sense the impending danger.
"Welcome, esteemed guests. Let's skip the pleasantries."
A chilling killing intent flashed in Feitan's narrow eyes as his calm voice, amplified by the microphone, echoed through the hall.
The guests were momentarily stunned. Then, they saw Franklin raise his hands towards them.
"Just die, all of you!"
Franklin's ten fingertips dropped away, revealing dark, hollow openings.
As Nen surged, countless Nen Bullets poured forth like a meat grinder, mercilessly tearing through the guests present.
In less than a second, the guests in the front rows were the first to fall, their bodies hit by the barrage of Nen Bullets, ripped into pieces, blood spraying everywhere.
In barely a second, the front section of the audience was reduced to minced meat, scattered across the floor.
Baise and her two companions were seated further back, giving them enough time to react.
"Quick, get behind me!"
Tacino shouted, his right hand swiftly pulling a balloon from his pocket. Nen surged as he infused the balloon, creating eleven black-clad figures that formed a barrier in front of them.
[Eleven Black Children]
Using balloons as a base, shaping them with Nen, and then controlling them. Enhanced by Nen, they were more than capable of blocking bullets.
Seeing this, Baise and Ivlenkov moved to take cover behind Tacino. However, the next moment, a look of horror spread across their faces.
The eleven black-clad figures were torn apart like tofu by the relentless hail of bullets. Immediately after, Tacino met the same fate.
"To think it could..." Tacino spat out a mouthful of blood, his words unfinished as his body was shredded by the Nen Bullets.
He died, but his sacrifice absorbed the Nen Bullets, buying Baise and Ivlenkov a precious moment to breathe.
Before the next wave of bullets arrived, Baise and Ivlenkov dodged the onslaught in a panic.
They were closer to the exit. They slammed through the doors and fled the hall.
"Heh."
A sharp, mocking laugh sounded in their ears.
Ivlenkov, who had just burst out of the hall, was stunned to find his vision splitting into several segments. Before he could process what was happening, darkness swallowed him.
Baise, running ahead, glanced back and turned pale with terror.
Ivlenkov's head had been sliced into four or five pieces. Standing beside his corpse was a gaunt, horse-faced man with long, sharp nails resembling beastly claws.
The horse-faced man looked back at her, grinned, and a snake-like tongue flicked out.
A chill ran down Baise's spine. Releasing her Nen, she accelerated, sprinting towards the staircase.
Whoosh...
A faint breeze brushed past her.
Baise's eyes widened in shock. The horse-faced man who had brutally killed Ivlenkov had somehow overtaken her and now stood before her.
This horse-faced man was Cipher, tasked with handling the mafia members at the outer side. He gave Baise a cold smirk, his claw-like fingers wrapped in Nen, and thrust them towards her heart with lightning speed.
Baise's hair stood on end. Gathering Nen in her hands, she tried to block Cipher's strike.
But Cipher abruptly changed his move. Pushing off with his feet, his hands aimed directly for Baise's face as he lunged forward.
Sssshhk!
As they passed each other, droplets of blood splattered.
Cipher now held a complete, bloodless face skin in his hand. Baise stood frozen in place, her face a bloody, mangled mess, bone faintly visible beneath, a horrifying sight.
A moment later, excruciating pain hit her. Baise screamed, instinctively bringing her hands to her wet, slick face.
The moment her fingers touched the raw flesh, the pain intensified.
Even the slightest movement of her mouth sent tearing pain through her.
"Lovely scream. You can give me another thirty seconds of fun."
Cipher watched the screaming Baise, licking the bloodless face skin in his hand, a cruel light shining in his eyes as he contemplated his next move in torturing her.
As soon as he finished speaking, a figure silently approached Baise… it was Shizuku.
She swung the mouthpiece of her Blinky, smashing it against Baise's head.
With a dull thud, Baise's screams ceased instantly. The back of her skull shattered, and she collapsed dead on the spot.
"Ha-yo!"
Blinky let out a sound.
It was the vacuum cleaner Shizuku had conjured. The suction hose had teeth and a tongue, and the dust container body had a pair of eyes.
Seeing Shizuku suddenly finish off Baise, Cipher complained. "I wasn't done playing with her yet."
"Mission comes first," Shizuku replied bluntly, then commanded Blinky, "Suck it all up."
Upon hearing this, Blinky responded, opened its mouth, and sucked Ivlenkov and Baise's corpses into the vacuum cleaner.
"Tch." Cipher snorted coldly at the sight.
After cleaning up the corpses on the floor, Shizuku looked at the face skin in Cipher's hand and said, "That too."
Cipher glanced down at the skin in his hand, the corner of his mouth twitching, then tossed it forward. He pushed open the hall doors and walked inside.
Shizuku raised Blinky, flipped the switch, and the gaping maw opened again, sucking Baise's face skin from a distance.
After completing the peripheral's cleanup, Shizuku followed Cipher into the hall, which is now littered with flesh and blood.