"Buzz." The end of the Kusanagi Sword vibrated.
The straight blade sank into the arena floor like it was cutting tofu.
Chairman's Office.
Even through the screen, Netero could feel the sharpness of the Kusanagi Sword. That was a sword that had once broken his defense.
"Hohoho. It seems that kid Sean values that young man quite a bit, doesn't he?"
Netero glanced at Maha and chuckled. "To actually lend him the sword... Old man, you might not even get that kind of treatment after you die."
"Thanks for your 'kind words'. The day I die, I'll definitely take you down with me."
Maha rolled his eyes in annoyance. "If I'm not mistaken, that young man should be a survivor of the Kurta Clan from back then."
"After their eyes turn red, they switch from other five categories to Specialization."
"It's only normal for my grandson to look highly upon such a talent."
"No need for you, you damn old man, to lecture me about the Kurta Clan here." Netero saw through Maha's little trick to change the subject. He looked at Kurapika on the screen with a profound gaze and said, "That young man seems to have never killed anyone before."
In other words, "That kid Sean is forcing him to kill."
"People?" Maha lay diagonally on the sofa, lifted his shirt, and patted his belly, making soft smack, smack sounds. He sneered, "Bullshit about killing people. It's just slaughtering a beast."
"Kid, don't try to pin crimes on my grandson here. Don't think I don't know. The 'humans' who died at your hands aren't few."
"Hohoho. Being admired by a killer... my mood is somewhat complicated." Netero rolled his eyes at Maha and simply shut his mouth. If he chattered any more with this old thing, he might die of anger.
"Smack, smack, smack." Maha patted his belly, too lazy to waste more breath. The two turned their faces away at the same time and looked at the TV.
On the arena, Kurapika lowered his head, staring blankly at the Kusanagi Sword stuck in the ground at his feet. His fists hidden in his sleeves were clenched tight, his sharp fingernails digging into his palms, sending waves of stinging pain.
Kill or be killed? Even a fool knows how to choose.
But to ask him, Kurapika, to lay a hand on an irrelevant person... The young man froze in place, struggling.
"Kurapika." Gon stared at Sean with his big innocent eyes, then looked at Kurapika, his gaze filled with worry.
With his small brain capacity, he couldn't imagine why things had turned out like this. But in Leorio's opinion... Sean was doing the right thing.
This was the Hunter Exam, cruel to the point where it was either you die or I die. It was impossible to cast aside the whole team just because of a moment of soft-heartedness. Moreover, the opponent was a violent criminal, with every sentence exceeding one hundred and twenty years. Such a guy didn't deserve pity even if he died eighteen times. What was there to hesitate about?
"Think of your clansmen." At this moment, Sean took a sip of wine indifferently and said coldly, "When the Phantom Troupe killed them, I didn't see them showing any mercy."
Smart people are often bound hand and foot by "believing themselves to be smart".
Kurapika was visibly trembling. The blond teenager's bangs fluttered, his head hanging low without saying a word. Those images rooted deep in his mind were reawakened. It "hurt" so much that his back teeth ground together tightly, making creak, creak sounds.
"Hey... Kid, let me remind you of one thing. Majtani is a fraudster. He has never killed anyone. Do you really have the heart to lay a hand on him?" On the opposite cliff, Bendot noticed something was wrong. It seemed like the other side was having "internal strife". This was God letting them off the hook.
As long as Kurapika couldn't bring himself to do it... according to the rules of the game, the other side would lose. Plus, with one less person on the other side, they would naturally lose a match. So, as long as they won one more match after this, they would be free.
Free... Young man, it all depends on you.
"Damn it... At a time like this, what mess is that guy opposite causing?!" Leorio looked at Bendot and the others crossing their arms and gloating. He shouted at Kurapika in exasperation, "Kurapika, what are you waiting for?"
"Are there few instances where fraudsters deceived people into bankruptcy and hanging themselves?"
"Or is it that you really want to die?"
The word "Die" suddenly awakened the "dreamer".
Kurapika raised his head and ran head-on into Sean's pair of pale, sightless blind eyes. The young man looked down at him, his expression indifferent.
In an instant, Kurapika understood—Ben An does what he says. As long as he didn't make a move, Sean would definitely kill him.
But... 'My clansmen are still waiting for me? Their vengeance, I haven't exacted yet! I absolutely cannot die here!'
Reason delivered a KO punch to conscience. Kurapika took a deep breath and tremblingly pulled out the Kusanagi Sword in front of him slowly.
"Hey, hey... Young man, do you know what you are doing?" Bendot's expression changed. He looked at Kurapika with a gloomy face and said, "If you kill Majtani, you will become a murderer too."
"What difference is there between that and those guys from the Phantom Troupe you spoke of?!"
"You seem to have a lot to say?"
"Whoosh." Condensed dew fell from the top of the passage and was easily caught in Number Two's hand. Then, with a flick of a finger, it hit Bendot's shoulder.
Bendot only felt a chill on his right shoulder. He looked down—
A bloody hole abruptly entered his vision, transparent from front to back, with light even faintly shining through. Only then did he realize he had actually been crippled in the shoulder by a flying finger flick.
"Ah..." A miserable scream exploded—his nerves finally reacted, transmitting pain signals to Bendot's brain.
Bendot tried painfully to cover the bloody hole with his hand. But the blood spurted out as if it didn't care about life; the more he covered it, the more it flowed.
"Bendot!" Sedokan, Leroute, and Johness were dumbfounded. A second ago, they were celebrating early, gloating as if they had already seen the dawn of freedom. Who would have expected that the next moment, the young man would press their heads down and teach them a lesson?
"That really is terrifying enough." In the Vice Chairman's office, Pariston swirled the goblet in his hand and took a shallow sip of red wine. His vision was not something that trash like Sedokan, Leroute, and Johness, who didn't understand "Nen" and hadn't even opened their aura nodes, could compare with.
He saw clearly that what pierced Bendot's right shoulder wasn't a water bullet at all, but should have been a "Nen" bullet.
"To attach Nen to a water droplet and still have such great power... I must say, a threefold limit break in 'aura capacity' is amazing."
Pariston glanced at the mobile phone placed on the desk with a smile on the corner of his mouth, not forgetting to remind a certain monkey, "Saiyu, it's time for your performance."
"Understood." In the monitoring room at the bottom of Trick Tower, Saiyu hung up Pariston's call with a beep. He glanced at Sean on the screen, took a deep breath, stood up, slung his Ruyi Jingu Bang over his shoulder, and said to Lippo without looking back, "Send me over."
"I told you long ago that those pieces of trash of yours couldn't be counted on at all."
"What Lord Saiyu says is true." Lippo pushed the flashy pink glasses perched on the bridge of his nose with an embarrassed smile. With a wave of his hand, the "Heng and Ha" generals behind him moved out, bowing and scraping to open the secret door for Saiyu.
"Lord Saiyu, please."
"Hmph." The monkey adjusted the golden fillet worn on his head, flashed out of the monitoring room, followed the passage, and headed straight for the cliff.
"Creak." The stone door of the monitoring room closed heavily.
Lippo finally got a chance to "rest". He felt for a chair and lay down. Accompanying a piece of Daifuku, he chewed with crunch, crunch sounds.
"Uh... Boss, do you think Lord Saiyu will be beaten to death?"
Watching Saiyu leave, the "Heng and Ha" generals returned to their original positions. Without the pressure from Saiyu, they visibly sighed in relief.
"You said it yourself, that Sean Zoldyck is strong enough to exchange a few moves with Chairman Netero without falling to a disadvantage. Then isn't Lord Saiyu in for it this time?"
"Do you know what kind of crap you're saying?" Before Lippo could speak, "Ha" on the right rolled his eyes at "Heng" on the left and reached out to give him a flick on the forehead. "That is Lord Saiyu of the Zodiacs!"
"You know Lord Potclean Gigant, right? He is also a Zodiac, and the existence admitted by the Chairman himself to be closest to him!"
"Lord Saiyu can be ranked alongside him as a Zodiac, so his strength certainly won't be too bad."
"If he can't win, running definitely won't be a problem."
"Hey... I say, you two, if you want to argue, get out of here to argue." Lippo glared angrily at the "Heng and Ha" generals. Damn it, he couldn't even have peace eating a Daifuku. Did they really think that without the monkey, a pig could be king in this Trick Tower?
Damn it... It's all your fault for farting. It's your fault.
The "Heng and Ha" generals glared at each other, then bowed to Lippo in unison. "Boss, Sumimasen."
Lippo snorted coldly and took a fierce swig from a bottle of cola. Only then did he feel the anger in his chest dissipate quite a bit. Subsequently, he widened his fox-like eyes and stared unblinkingly at the screen. Saiyu and that Sean Zoldyck, who was weaker and who was stronger?
Did this even need thinking about? My grandson would definitely win.
In the Chairman's office, Maha felt that patting his belly wasn't satisfying enough. He glared at Beans. "What are you standing there dazed for? Why don't you come over quickly and massage this old man's shoulders?"
Beans: "..."
He looked at Netero for help. Netero chuckled. "What a coincidence, isn't it? This old man just felt my shoulders were a bit heavy too. Beans, come over and help this old man massage them."
Beans said happily, "Coming, Chairman."
He turned around and said sorry to Maha, then trotted obediently behind Netero and began massaging his shoulders diligently.
Heh... What a good dog. Maha glared at Netero in annoyance and said coldly, "Seeing your subordinate being beaten so miserably by my grandson, to think you, the Chairman, still have the mood to enjoy yourself."
"Tsk... Sure enough, anyone named Isaac is cold-blooded enough."
Hiss... Why did these words sound familiar? For this damn old man to say this, didn't his conscience hurt?
Netero cast a sidelong glance at Maha and responded with a sneer, "You saw it too. This old man didn't stop them. If these kids want to toss and turn, just let them toss and turn."
So... "Who wins and who loses is not certain yet."
"Heh... Giving up?" Maha replied with a noncommittal sneer. "Heh."
"Stinky brat, not that I'm saying it, but your Hunter Association has really declined."
Netero: "..."
He blew into his beard and glared at Beans. "Massage harder. Didn't you eat?"
Beans: "..."
Damn it, are you sure you are the Chairman... and not the clone of some terrible old man?
So, I just have the fate of a slave.
Beans wanted to cry but had no tears. He smiled bitterly and endured this unexpected disaster, casting his gaze toward the TV.
In the picture... From the depths of the dark passage came a series of tap, tap footsteps.
"Hey... If you want to make a move, hurry up. You guys don't wish for time to be wasted either, right?"