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Pegurose, Umbrella Corporation Headquarters.
Illumi sat on the sofa, his face calm as he gazed at the screen hanging from the ceiling. It was playing surveillance footage of Tenshin Kōsuke's battle with three men in black.
Behind him stood Caesar and Julius.
The room was quiet, no one speaking. Caesar, originally a spy, was already a man of few words, and Julius was an ascetic monk, making it even less likely for him to speak.
Pride remained seated on the sofa, reading a book. He had long since known the situation at the time, and Nen users of that level weren't worth his attention. King Bradley, on the other hand, sat in the office chair, eyes closed in contemplation, wondering about something unknown.
"Ding!"
Suddenly, the elevator doors opened, and Ahmed and a bald guard strode in.
"Those guards... I'm disappointed."
Illumi sat on the sofa, his left leg crossed over his right, his hands flat on his thighs. His face remained calm, but the words he spoke sent a shiver down one's spine.
"Segun, I believe that as Hannibal's former confidant, you shouldn't have made such a low-level mistake."
"My apologies, boss, this was my oversight."
"But next time, I will personally apprehend those two targets!" Segun immediately admitted his responsibility and mistake. After all, this was a task he had voluntarily taken from Pride, yet he had failed. His three subordinates hadn't even touched the opponent's skin before being taken down.
"There won't be a next time. Your rank is downgraded by one level."
"But, boss..."
"Dismissed."
Segun wanted to argue, but Illumi gave him no chance. He had no choice but to grit his teeth and retreat, feeling deeply unwilling.
"Boss, do you need me to take action?" Ahmed glanced at the unwilling Segun leaving, then stepped forward, a look of anticipation on his face. He hadn't been out for activity in a long time.
"You're not needed. Continue assisting Dr. Kippsiller with his research."
The anticipation on Ahmed's face instantly stiffened. He spent all day in that damned weapons research institute, researching Nen abilities for others, and was practically falling ill from idleness.
"Don't worry. In a while, when Dr. Kippsiller's research bears fruit, you won't have to stay in the institute all the time." Illumi chuckled softly. He was extremely satisfied with the work ethic of Dr. Kippsiller's research team. They were the most proactive team among Umbrella Corporation's scientific groups. They worked every day as if injected with stimulants, making rapid progress.
"They're just two small fry. The matter is very simple. Our strength is perfectly sufficient to handle it." Greed leaned back on the sofa, shrugging indifferently, a grin on his face.
"No, that's precisely where our problem lies." Pride, who had been reading, spoke up. He continued to read while speaking in a calm tone. "Although the situation is currently still within our control, a matter that was originally simple has repeatedly encountered twists and turns, which in itself points to a problem with the current Umbrella Corporation."
"While we possess influence, our system is, after all, just a corporation. Our security forces still need to be strengthened."
"Right now, our most urgent task is to construct the [Abyss Base] and establish the strongest security and defense in this world."
"After all, Umbrella Corporation is just a company, and its sphere of influence is limited to Pegurose."
"If they escape Pegurose, then we'll be in trouble."
Everyone heard this and felt it made sense. Caesar and Ahmed nodded thoughtfully. Everyone looked at Illumi, waiting for his decision. Illumi sat on the sofa, his face still very calm. He wasn't angry. After all, the person in the video was clearly an experienced Nen user with formidable strength, far beyond what guards who had only trained Nen for a few months could handle.
"We've found them. The new target's name is Tenshin Kōsuke, an Investigative Hunter registered with the Hunter Association."
"Also, this new target has contacted someone named Austin. Their current location is as follows."
Exhampe's voice sounded from the screen. At the same time, the current locations of Danica and Tenshin Kōsuke appeared.
"Hunter Association?" Illumi frowned slightly. Involving the Hunter Association might lead to a lot of trouble. Some Hunters in the Hunter Association had connections with each other, and there were even specialized Missing Hunters who investigated such matters.
"Right now, the most important thing is to ensure they cannot leave Pegurose."
King Bradley nodded upon hearing this, indicating his understanding. He immediately dialed a certain person's number. "Director Kendrick, there's something I need your help with..."
Ignoring King Bradley's call with a certain director, Illumi slowly stood up and turned to look at Julius and Caesar.
"For this leakage incident, Julius, Caesar, you two will handle it."
Caesar and Julius both nodded in unison, indicating their understanding, then immediately turned and left. They needed to gather their men and set out.
After the two left, King Bradley had also finished his call. He put down his phone and spoke to Illumi.
"The situation in Pegurose has been resolved. They will frame Tenshin Kōsuke for murder, leading to a nationwide manhunt."
"However, he has a condition..."
"Grant it."
Illumi agreed directly. There were some ongoing experiments within the Umbrella Corporation that he had deliberately leaked to certain high-ranking officials. Even those at the top of the nation's power sometimes had to make compromises. And Umbrella Corporation could offer them a small bit of help in that regard.
Pegurose, Balan City outskirts, inside a dilapidated auto repair shop.
"Kōsuke, how's it going?"
Inside the workshop, Danica leaned against the wall, her butt resting on a car seat cushion she'd found somewhere. She was eating a bread roll and drinking a bottle of milk.
"Almost done. We can get back on the road now." Tenshin Kōsuke patted the car body. They had left in a hurry and forgotten to refuel the car, so it ran out of gas halfway. Fortunately, he found an abandoned auto repair shop here and managed to find some gasoline inside.
Tenshin Kōsuke looked up at the sky outside. The sky was gradually darkening. The faint, barely warm sunlight silently descended from the horizon, and darkness once again enveloped the land.
"Let's go."
Tenshin Kōsuke got into the car. Danica also got up, opened the passenger door, and sat down in the passenger seat. She turned to him, looking worried.
"How's it outside?"
Tenshin Kōsuke turned on the headlights, slowly started the engine, and drove onto the road outside.
"It's very troublesome. What we have to face now isn't just Umbrella Corporation." Tenshin Kōsuke's eyes flashed with a hint of gloom. He had still underestimated Umbrella Corporation's influence. The other party had actually used some unknown method to leverage the power of the Pegurose Federal Bureau of Investigation, framing him with a charge of first-degree murder.
Now, he was probably wanted throughout all of Pegurose!
Damn it, this kind of thing isn't something that can be done with just strength and money! To frame a Hunter Association Hunter with such a crime—the power used to do that is something even some conglomerates can't achieve!
What kind of secret does this Umbrella Biotechnology Company actually hold!?
And once he's arrested, all confessions, all truth, all of Umbrella Corporation's secrets, everything will become irrelevant; everything will sink into the sea.
"What do we do now?"
"How about we go to the Aztec Republic?" Danica continued to tear open a bag of bread. She had been on the run all day and was starving.
"Aztec Republic?" Tenshin Kōsuke knew what kind of place that was: chaotic and disorderly, full of criminals, drug dealers, and warlords. For his current situation, it was indeed a good hiding place.
"No, I'll send you to the Kakin Empire."
But Tenshin Kōsuke, after a moment of silence, refused.
"Kakin Empire? Why there?" Danica frowned slightly. She felt that while the Kakin Empire was better than the Aztec Republic, it wasn't where they should be going right now.
"There's someone there who can protect you."
Tenshin Kōsuke drove with one hand, pulled out a pack of cigarettes from the glove compartment, shook one out, put it in his mouth, and lit it with a lighter.
"Wait... Kōsuke, aren't you coming?" Danica suddenly realized something was wrong with his words and asked with a frown.
"Hmph~" Tenshin Kōsuke took a deep drag, rolled down the window, and exhaled two streams of white smoke from his nostrils. He flicked the ash off his cigarette outside and said, "Of course not. I can't just let this matter go."
"I always have to find out what this Umbrella Corporation is plotting."
"I can't possibly live with a first-degree murder charge on my back forever, can I?"
Danica immediately shook her head, speaking softly.
"I won't. If you don't go, I won't either."
"Without you by my side, I don't think I'll be able to live well in the Kakin Empire alone."
"At least with you around, I can sleep peacefully at night."
Tenshin Kōsuke sighed softly with closed eyes, then looked at the road ahead and said seriously.
"This is not up to you."
"However, the top priority now is to get you out of Pegurose. My friend can help us."
"He lives in a small town two hundred kilometers away. We've known each other for over ten years. He'll definitely help us."
"How come I've never heard you mention him before?" Danica's narrow eyes squinted, staring intently at Tenshin Kōsuke, her lips pouted in dissatisfaction.
"Because he and you are from two different worlds; it's impossible for you to have had any contact," Tenshin Kōsuke glanced at Danica, explaining helplessly.
"Is he reliable?"
"Heh heh, you probably won't believe it, but he's even more reliable than my terrible old man."
"We should arrive in about four more hours."
Accompanied by the roar of a car engine, the black jeep disappeared into the distance on the highway.
At this moment, at the abandoned auto repair shop where they had been, four black multi-purpose SUVs slowly approached and stopped outside the auto repair shop.
"Thump thump..."
The doors of the four vehicles opened one after another. Julius and Caesar, accompanied by a group of guards armed with assault rifles, got out of the cars and swiftly surrounded and poured into the abandoned auto repair shop.
"They're gone."
A guard squatted down, picked up a cigarette butt from the ground, pulled down his black mask, sniffed it, then pinched it with his fingers, and looked up. "They left not long ago, no more than thirty minutes."
Caesar and Julius slowly walked in. Hearing the report, they nodded. With a wave of a large hand, everyone returned to the vehicles.
"Based on his escape route, the place he's heading next should be here." In the car, Caesar held a tablet computer, drew a map, and marked a small town a hundred kilometers away—Tenshin Kōsuke's destination.
"Let's go."
At Caesar's command, the SUVs started and drove towards the end of the road.
Julius remained silent throughout. Caesar was a professional; he wouldn't doubt that.
Four hours later, Hukaro Town.
"Phew, finally here."
A black jeep arrived in a sparsely populated town. It was already past midnight, and the townspeople were asleep, leaving the entire town perfectly silent.
He looked at Danica sitting in the passenger seat. After four hours of driving and a full day of fleeing, she couldn't hold on any longer and had fallen into a deep sleep. Tenshin Kōsuke didn't disturb her. He looked at the map and continued to drive the car onto a small path beside the town road.
"Crunch..."
Tires rolled over, crushing branches and leaves, as they entered the dense forest. He had been here three years ago, but three years had passed, and some of the roads had changed. Even he needed to rely on a map to find the correct path.
His friend, Austin, didn't live in the town. Austin liked tranquility and had always lived about ten kilometers from the town, where there was a small grove and a small lake. He had built a forest villa in that grove. Tenshin Kōsuke greatly envied his old friend's life. He felt that such a life would be very comfortable and free.
Half an hour later, Tenshin Kōsuke stopped the jeep. Its high beams illuminated the distance ahead. Indeed, a villa built by the lake came into view. Tenshin Kōsuke's lips curved into a smile, and he pressed hard on the car horn.
"Honk honk honk...!!!"
Tenshin Kōsuke pressed the horn violently and relentlessly. The noisy, piercing honking not only startled the surrounding animals into a panic but also woke up Danica from her sleep.
"Kōsuke! What's wrong!?" Danica was terrified and nervous by the honking. She looked around after waking up.
"We're here." Tenshin Kōsuke, however, looked at the distant villa ahead, a smile on his face.
"Bang!"
As his words fell, the villa's large door was suddenly pushed open. A muscular man in blue overalls and a white T-shirt rushed out, clutching a powerful rifle, and roared fiercely.
"Damn it!"
"Which bastard is tired of living!?"
"Daring to honk in front of your grandpa's house!!!"
As he spoke, the muscular man noticed the jeep with its high beams on opposite him. Without another word, he directly pulled the trigger.
"Bang bang bang bang..."
A series of "thudding" sounds immediately echoed from the ground in front of the jeep, and large amounts of dirt splattered. The jeep itself was hit by powerful bullets, sending out "clinking and clanking" sparks.
"Damn it!"
"Austin, put down your damned gun!"
"It's me!"
Tenshin Kōsuke pulled out a megaphone from the car, yelled loudly, and at the same time, opened the car door, got out, and raised his hands.
"Crap! Kōsuke!?"
"Why are you, you trouble-making bastard, here!?"
The muscular man had already released the trigger the moment the voice appeared. He looked at the familiar figure standing beside the car and heard the familiar voice. He put away his machine gun and grumbled as he retreated back into the villa.
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