Chapter 274: Conjecture on Alluka's Choice x Going Home! Going Home!
A string suspended deep in her heart suddenly throbbed...
Looking down blankly at Kurajin, for a moment, she was left speechless, choked with emotion.
No one is born liking to be a servant, waiting on others all day. Tsubone had to admit that even she, Scarface, and One-Eye—the older generation born as servants of the Zoldyck family—had wavered. What was the existential meaning of living solely to serve the Zoldycks?
Based on this, she wasn't without confusion in her youth. That was until one day, while serving dinner to Zzigg, which was also the eve before he sneaked out of Kukuroo Mountain to set off for the Dark Continent with Netero and Linne, she suddenly heard him say: "The fact that you have these thoughts shows you are a human, not a machine that only acts on orders."
Tsubone was stunned at the time.
It wasn't until many years later, when she met Young Master Roy again and heard him speak words identical to Master Zzigg's... putting "people first," regardless of whether they were the Zoldycks' "butlers," "maids," "gardeners," or "cooks"...
The old butler's two pink pigtails draped behind her head. She suddenly snapped back to reality, stretched out her sturdy, calloused large hand, placed it firmly on Kurajin's head, and gently rubbed her forehead, saying: "Congratulations on becoming an excellent butler."
Tsubone's old eyes hid reminiscence, and she sighed melancholically: "Young Master Roy is worth it, you are worth it, Gotoh is also worth it... That's good... really good."
Subsequently, under Kurajin's stunned gaze, she pushed the dining cart and brushed past her shoulder, the rumble sound leaving the young girl standing alone by the window frame, lost in thought...
After a long while, the young girl recovered her senses, turning to watch Tsubone's tall back disappear around the corner. She pursed her lips into a smile, as breathtaking as a fleeting night-blooming cereus: "Does this mean I'm acknowledged?"
To be acknowledged by the largest, highest-ranking, and most senior Head Butler in the Zoldyck butler world...
Kurajin tossed her high ponytail, pumped herself up with a "Heave-ho," and continued her training.
"Three hundred and seventy-one... three hundred and seventy-two... three hundred and seventy-three..."
The sound of silent counting and the soft sound of dripping sweat subsequently echoed in the pitch-black night...
From the top of the mountain to halfway down the mountain, separated by a mountain peak, in the Zoldyck family's ancient castle, after Roy diverted his attention to throw all matters regarding Meteor City to Taiyi to handle, he checked Gotoh's panel as usual.
The panel displayed:
[Believer: Gotoh (Note: Overflowing Loyalty)]
[Current Status: Evolving ing...]
[Physique +1+1+1+1...]
[Current: 924 compared to before evolution has increased by a hundred points -> 1078 (Note: Continuing to increase)]
[Manifested Aura Volume: C+ (14,210/100,000) -> C+ (20,412/100,000) (Note: Continuing to increase)]
[Potential Aura Volume: C+ (87,412/100,000) -> B- (70,000/1,000,000) (Note: Continuing to increase)]
[Nen Category: Emitter]
[Initial Nen Ability: Coin Guessing]
[First Embrace Nen Ability: Currently awakening...]
[Awakening Progress: 39%]
[Evaluation: C+]
[Note: Referencing Chimera Ants, your believer "Gotoh" already possesses the level of a top-tier Chimera Ant Squadron Leader, and is advancing towards the B- rank]
Roy compared him to Hisoka, whom he saw at the Pale Church today.
With two days remaining until the butler emerges from his cocoon, his [Potential Aura Volume] had faintly broken through to the B- rank. Presumably... in another two days, when he truly comes out, he wouldn't be worse than Hisoka, who had undergone the blessing of the [Truth Cult]...
Following a stir in his mind, he keenly sensed an abnormal movement in a certain [Karmic Thread] bound to him. The boy calmly closed Gotoh's panel, found this [Karmic Thread], and sent a Heart Worm to look down its end. Entering his view... Illumi was sitting in front of the mirror grooming himself, a bright silver wig resting on the vanity desk. He stared blankly at his reflection in the mirror in a daze. For once, he hadn't disguised himself as Roy, letting the [Heart Worm] burrow into his heart without even realizing it.
Roy raised an eyebrow. Out of novelty, he quietly peeked through Illumi's heart... A scene slowly unfolded, reflecting exactly his warning to Illumi in the afternoon: "Wait until you can beat Gotoh, then we'll talk."
Clearly, his unintentional words had fallen into Illumi's ears and invisibly dealt an unimaginable... lethality to his foolish little brother!
The corners of his mouth curved up into a smile. Subsequently, the Heart Worm followed his thought and was summoned back, turning into a wisp of Nen flow and returning to his body.
Finally realizing the crisis?
Very well, only with crisis comes progress.
Roy gently stroked the back of his left hand, listening to the [Curse] ticking away his life second by second with a tick-tock. He tilted his head, glancing at the remaining one [First Embrace] opportunity lying in the panel. After a moment, he took a deep breath, flipped his hand, and grabbed the wooden box gifted by Leon Zeppeli.
Since Guzman had shown his hand, Roy naturally didn't intend to sit and wait for death. Putting other things aside, he had to find a way to sever the [Karmic Thread] connecting to the top of his head!
It was because of that [Karmic Thread] that he could cross the blockade of Lake Mobius and appear on the island in the center of the lake.
It was also because of that [Karmic Thread] that bestowed him the Nen ability of the [Scapegoat Rag Doll], allowing him to resurrect repeatedly and become unkillable.
Roy thought of the [Targeted Tracking Technique]. Since the other party could [Locate] and had achievements in the aspect of [Karma], could there... also be other methods to solve this problem? Adding to that... the profound conversation the mysterious skeleton had with his Great-Grandfather on the day Killua was born, explicitly and implicitly hinting at the wooden box's extraordinariness...
Roy felt that perhaps he had still underestimated the wooden box, underestimated... the significance of Leon Zeppeli giving it to him as a birth gift!
Buzz Deep into the night, a lamp glowed like a bean.
Roy sat quietly at his desk, grabbing the wooden box in the palm of his hand. Imitating the last time, he injected Nen aura into the wooden box... Glowing Nen light enveloped the wooden box, but this time, a stream of information didn't shoot out and merge into the center of his brows like before.
So, my aura volume isn't enough yet?
If one-tenth of his "Nen aura" wasn't enough, then one-fifth.
Buzz Opening his aura nodes, a burst of Nen aura burst forth like a breached dam, transforming into an even more majestic flow of Nen and entering the wooden box... The wooden box vibrated, and like a glutton, never getting enough to eat, in the blink of an eye... it swallowed Roy's Nen aura empty again.
Roy frowned, then used half of his Nen aura... eighty percent of his Nen aura... until all his Nen aura, the sudden tremor making the bedroom ceiling shake along with it. Unexpectedly, he heard Maha curse angrily: "Brat, are you trying to tear down the house?"
Only then did Roy sheepishly let the wooden box go, resentfully apologized to Maha, washed up, and went to sleep.
Dong~ At one o'clock in the morning, the wooden grandfather clock in the corner struck... Not long after Roy put the wooden box in the drawer, somewhere in the void...
A vast elephant trumpet shook the wilderness, telling of the unease within...
"Leon, you scared me to death! I thought he really opened Jörmungandr's shed skin!"
As the spatial turbulence darted wildly, it was abruptly shattered by a thick elephant trunk. The elephant corpse, which had already turned into a corpse, unexpectedly spoke human words. As its four legs paddled, it was clearly severely frightened. Beside it,
The mysterious skeleton, Leon Zeppeli, gently stroked the massive elephant ear of the corpse. In his hollow eye sockets, two miserable green flames suddenly ignited. Reflected in the flames was precisely the scene of Roy trying to open the wooden box again. This... existence that once stirred the winds and clouds, making it impossible for even Ging to pry into his background, remained silent for a long time.
Only then did he speak faintly with emotion: "A clan that could be chosen by [Ai], how could his older brother be any lesser?"
"It's just that," Leon Zeppeli's gaze was distant. The green flames in his eye sockets changed abruptly, revealing a corner of the future—a scene of Alluka locked in the basement. He said deeply: "I guess, even [Ai] itself wouldn't have thought that a mere human from the lower realm would be outstanding to this extent. It truly makes one... astounded..."
[Ai]... that [Ai] who was once a [God]... that [Ai] who forged a [Dream Kingdom] through [Dream Building]... subsequently appeared in the elephant corpse's memories. At a certain moment, making him snort, he suddenly turned his head to look at Leon Zeppeli and said: "Do you think, [Ai] chose the Zoldycks because the other party is that boy's younger brother?"
Leon Zeppeli froze suddenly. The green flames in his eye sockets flickered uncertainly, and he fell silent...
After a long while, he looked up at the boundless spatial rifts stretching endlessly, and said faintly: "If what you say is true, I think, Roy Zoldyck is far more extraordinary than you or I imagined!"
Crack... Suddenly, a spatial turbulence was crushed to pieces by the elephant corpse's raised hooves.
The void vibrated as a result, just like the hearts of the elephant corpse and Leon Zeppeli, unable to calm down for a long time...
On the other hand, the certain boy being watched,
After a simple wash, he collapsed on the bed and fell into a deep sleep in less than a moment.
Wheeze~ Faint snoring sounds drifted out...
Consciousness immersed,
Accompanied by a deep sleep, Roy, as usual, passed through the [Gate of Cognition] and arrived in his [Cognitive World]. Entering his view, beside the colorful dream corridor, two small dream vortexes were slowly spinning, waiting for his summon.
Roy briefly calculated the time. He still needed one night before preaching to Vanessa and Old Kohler, so he let them erect statues and pray to him. Stepping into the dream corridor, he appeared on the boundless blue sea.
Whoosh The waves crashed against the shore, the tide rising and falling.
From time immemorial, several portals stood permanently connected in a line... The boy's silver hair draped behind his head. He simply rolled up his trouser legs, waded through the seawater, letting the dampness flow through his heart. He walked past the [Gate of Naruto], the [Gate of Bleach], the [Cartoon Gate with a Blue Cat Pendant], and the [Gate of the Dark Continent] branded with intricate patterns. Finally, he stopped in front of the very first door he opened—the [Gate of Demon Slayer]. He paused silently for three breaths, reached out, pushed the door, and walked in.
Closing and opening the eyes is a day; closing the eyes and never opening them is a lifetime.
Muzan is dead, the sky is clear and bright... Roy stepped from the dream into reality, slowly opening his eyes. Entering his view was a... bright sunny day with a blazing sun high above.
Whoosh A gust of mountain wind blew, carrying his fiery red long hair, fluttering wildly.
At that moment, descending upon this world once again as Eiichiro Kamado, many emotions, memories, and yearnings flooded his heart. Instantly, all the depression and suppression in Roy's heart vanished, replaced by an indescribable relaxation and joy.
This joy contained Muzan's death, the annihilation of evil demons, and the victory of humanity, but mostly... an eagerness to go home.
The boy stopped in the forest, spreading his arms. Letting his Nen aura surge, through [De-Conjuration], he grabbed a few boxes of medicine in the palm of his hand and stuffed them into his jacket. With a movement of his feet, he Photified instantly, patrolling the mountain forest along with the sunlight. In a short moment, he heard the sound of chopping wood and saw a woodcutter. That person was also a young boy, possessing the same fiery red hair as him, with a faint scar on his forehead that wasn't hideous, but rather added a touch of endearing innocence. As the axe in his hand swung around, wood chips flew. Under his feet... a partially carbonized firewood log struck by lightning snapped in two. The cut was flat and smooth as a mirror, clearly demonstrating—
The boy possessed excellent swordsmanship!
"Chopping wood..." The wind blew, the sun was warm, and the snow was melting. Roy leaped out from the sunlight, landing lightly behind the boy, and said with a smile.
The boy, who was wiping the fine sweat from his forehead, stiffened visibly. The axe in his hand dropped with a clank. He stiffly turned his head, and upon seeing Roy's face clearly, a tremendous surprise abruptly surfaced in his eyes, making him uncontrollably shout out in excitement: "Nii-san!" Following that, with a big leap, he jumped onto Roy, hooking his arms around Roy's neck just like when they were kids, his mouth pouting, ready to cry.
"Nii-san... it's you... it's really you... you're back~"
Roy stroked the boy's forehead with one hand, took a deep breath, and said: "Yes, I'm back."
"You've grown taller too, Tanjiro."
"Not as tall as Nii-san. Nezuko, Takeo, Shigeru, Hanako, Father, Mother, Grandma, and I all saw it! Nii-san flew into the sky!" Tanjiro gestured excitedly, spit flying, recounting... The day Roy killed Muzan Kibutsuji, his body and mind unified, his soul briefly leaving his body, merging into the great sun. He was spirited and incomparably majestic, making people kneel on the ground and shout that a miracle had manifested... Roy neither refuted nor admitted it, just smiling, listening, watching, experiencing this long-lost warmth that was hard to come by... Just like this, carrying Tanjiro, he picked up the basket full of firewood with one hand, slowly carrying him, just like when they were little, trudging through the snowy forest spanning the mountains and plains, forging a path home.
"Nii-san, I should still get down."
Perhaps he was tired of talking, or perhaps the excitement had passed, or perhaps he had grown up and realized that it wasn't good to always hang on his brother like when they were little.
Tanjiro felt embarrassed to hang on Roy, struggling to get down. However, Roy's hand possessed extraordinary strength, holding him as easily as holding air. Feigning anger, he glared at him and said: "Am I still your brother?"
"Are you still my little brother?"
"Then be obedient."
"Okay."
Tanjiro lowered his eyes and, just like when they were little, hung peacefully on Roy's back. As Roy carried the basket in one hand, they advanced slowly and firmly towards the depths of the forest.
In a short moment,
They saw curling smoke from kitchen chimneys, and a couple, a few children, and an old woman living in a courtyard built with wooden cabins shaped like the character "品" (pin), slowly appearing on the horizon...
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