It was exactly as Selina thought. In the eyes of Law and Ging, her potential threat wasn't as important as the passing second right now.
Naturally, they did not strike. Instead, they directly passed by Selina, heading towards the location of their primary targets.
Selina stared blankly at the receding figures of Law and Ging. Of course, Pouf had also noticed them.
The sight of those two humans walking side by side fell upon Pouf's eyes like a glaring light in the rainy night, exceptionally piercing.
'They must not be allowed to approach the King.'
This thought flashed through Pouf's mind.
And so, he moved. He spread his swallowtail butterfly-like, colorful wings, wrapped in Nen, carrying an evil presence, and flew towards Law and Ging.
His flying figure resembled a swift meteor.
Law and Ging hastily exchanged a glance and suddenly split apart left and right.
The Nen Light radiating from the three figures briefly sketched the shape of an anchor.
The speed burst from the two humans exceeded Pouf's expectations, but he reacted extremely quickly, turning back and aiming to catch up and kill Law and Ging as fast as possible.
The next second, the field of view in Pouf's eyes suddenly became distant.
No!
It was his own position that had been instantly shifted far away.
Simultaneously, of the two humans in his vision, one had vanished. No, wait… behind him, like himself, had been abruptly teleported to this spot.
Pouf's reaction was almost instinctual. He whirled around and saw the human with the white cloth wrapped around his head.
Ging raised his hand. Nen seeped from his palm, coalescing into a sphere containing abundant and powerful Aura, yet not a hint of danger.
"So the price is indeed Potential Aura Capacity? Then here you go."
Ging looked at the Aura Capacity separated from his own body, not the least bit surprised.
First, he had set up the game field. Then, based on a [Playful Nature] framework, he had forcibly pulled Pouf into the game field.
Because it was a forced invitation, the [Entrance Fee Price] Ging had to pay was thirty percent of his Potential Aura Capacity.
This price was autonomously constructed based on the respective advantages of both sides.
In terms of Potential Aura Capacity, Pouf surpassed Ging. Therefore, thirty percent of Ging's Potential Aura was stripped away as the price for forcibly inviting a player into the game.
The principle was to make Ging's weakness even more apparent and the enemy player's advantage even stronger.
It's worth mentioning that games of a Playful Nature carry no risk to life. Regardless of win or loss, the winner receives some prizes, and the loser loses something, but never their life.
Therefore, compared to rule-based games of a life-or-death nature, the difficulty of inviting players into Playful Nature games is lower.
Just like moments ago, Ging didn't need to fulfill any overly complex conditions to select his target. He merely paid the [Entrance Fee Price] and, quite unreasonably, pulled Pouf into the [Safe Zone] before the game started.
The game countdown began. The sphere containing the abundant Aura suddenly moved.
Seeing this, Pouf's entire body instantly entered its highest level of alert.
But before he could even react, the sphere had already entered his body.
'Hmm?'
Pouf's eyes narrowed slightly. He clearly felt a portion of Aura increase within his body, and several rules were brutally imprinted into his mind.
This bizarre phenomenon made Pouf's delicate and sensitive nerves snap taut completely. His powerful, evil Aura swept towards Ging like a gale.
This Aura, which could have completely shattered Knov's will to fight, only blew aside the hem of Ging's clothes and strands of his hair.
"Don't doubt any of the rules. In a sense, they are ironclad."
Facing the violent Aura, Ging remained unfazed, offering a faint smile. "My companion has already gone ahead. But you, keep me company and play for now."
Pouf's heart jolted slightly. The first action he took upon spreading his wings wasn't to attack Ging, but to block Law, who was charging towards the throne room, outside the King's defensive line.
The moment he began to move, the air, the cold wind, the raindrops, and everything before and around him transformed in an instant.
Nen Space activation!
Ging and Pouf were transferred into the Nen Space. Sunshine was bright, yet both man and ant were soaked through.
This place was an utterly ordinary flower bed.
Red bricks were piled into a rectangular frame. The soil buried within seemed slightly damp, as if just watered.
Clusters of flowers vied for beauty, emerald green leaves adorned with many raindrops, various insects frolicking among the plants.
From a distance, it looked like a small flower bed built in the courtyard of an ordinary household, not particularly eye-catching.
However, the size of Ging and Pouf here was as tiny as water droplets on a leaf, or like ants crawling by the edge of the soil.
They hadn't shrunk… everything within this flower bed had grown larger.
Looking at the unfamiliar surroundings, a layer of black shadow instantly covered Pouf's face. The Aura swirling around him grew even more terrifying.
'The one isolated outside His Majesty's defensive line is not any of the attacking humans, but I, one of the three Royal Guards.'
'Dereliction of duty, dereliction of duty, dereliction of duty...!'
'Too rash, too negligent. That's why the opponent used a special ability to isolate me.'
'As a Royal Guard, to be completely stripped from the defensive system guarding His Majesty by a mere human.'
'Unforgivable!'
'I cannot forgive myself!'
Pouf raised his head, silently shedding tears.
"I have completely failed in my duty."
Pouf suddenly looked at Ging, shouting with madness and rage, "Then, I will use your life to atone for my failure!"
"Well done, you." Ging nodded.
'It's a recreational game right now, the kind where you don't lose your life, you insect...'
…
'So that's Ging's Nen Ability.'
Law glanced back at the empty courtyard.
When Ging and Pouf shifted backwards, Law had noticed. Then, moments later, he saw Ging and Pouf suddenly vanish.
'Nen Space.'
A flicker of interest passed through Law's eyes.
'Different from Knov's Hide-and-Seek, it seemed a higher-level application.'
'But now's not the time to think about that.'
Law steadied his mind, arriving at the base of the throne room. Even without using En, he could sense an immense, solidified Nen operating on the third-floor main hall.
Pushing off with his feet, he leaped onto the third-floor window ledge.
By the time Law infiltrated the third-floor throne room, Youpi had not come to stop him.
Because he had encountered the team composed of Kite, Knov, and Morel.
Before Law released any noticeable Nen or malicious intent, Youpi was not aware of Law's presence.
And so, Law arrived at the throne room faster and more easily than Netero and Zeno. He crouched on the large stone window ledge, looking into the game room where the King, Pitou, and Komugi were.
Of course, he also saw the doll treating the King… Pitou's Nen Ability.
'I see.'
Seeing the scene before him, Law understood, but did not act rashly.
To Law's arrival, the King and Komugi seemed utterly unaware… the former had sensed it but didn't care, while the latter was focused on the game board, plus being blind, so she didn't notice Law's arrival.
Only Pitou's expression changed drastically.
'Pouf and Youpi!'
Images of her colleagues flashed through her mind, followed by anger.
It was equivalent to complaining about what her colleagues were doing.
Then, even with her claws essentially gone, Pitou still bristled, immediately entering combat mode.
She recognized Law and knew his strength. But even if she couldn't use her abilities, she had to stop him.
"Stop."
The King suddenly spoke.
Pitou froze. Komugi also froze.
Then, the King spoke a second sentence.
"We will continue the game."
Two seemingly inexplicable sentences, yet Pitou and Komugi each understood clearly.
Stop the treatment. This was for Pitou.
Continue the game. This was for Komugi.
Pitou obeyed the King's command without hesitation, withdrawing her Doctor Blythe ability.
Thud.
The King's left arm, before the stitching was complete, fell to the floor.
However, although the arm wasn't reattached, the bleeding control was completed.
Having retrieved her Nen Ability, Pitou, at this moment, locked her gaze onto Law.
She understood what the King wanted her to do.
Do not disturb his game with Komugi!