Chapter 149: The Game in Progress (Part 1)
The Phantom Troupe members had already gathered in the grand square before the palace, surrounded by a sea of people.
All around them, countless mafia bosses drank and laughed together in boisterous conversation.
The entire social hierarchy of the underworld was on full display.
Leaders of smaller factions flattered the heads of powerful corporations; every social class had its own circle of influence.
It was an extravagant outdoor banquet, with tables overflowing with fine food and drink.
At the center, musicians played pianos and other instruments, while waiters weaved through the crowd with careful precision, serving the guests.
But before long, the Phantom Troupe members noticed something unusual ...
the Ten Dons were nowhere to be seen.
"The Ten Dons rarely show themselves. They must be inside one of these palaces," Chrollo said, returning from his brief scouting.
They were spread out intentionally gathering all together would draw too much attention.
"Scatter and find the targets first," Chrollo ordered.
"Can we kill whoever we want?" Feitan asked coldly.
"Anyone you want," Chrollo replied.
Because at that moment, he'd already spotted someone watching them intently.
It was a shabby man wearing red-rimmed glasses and flip-flops, standing dozens of meters away. Through the moving crowd, their eyes met.
Beside the man stood a grotesque, inhuman creature.
"A Shadow Beast," Chrollo guessed, smiling faintly.
Without another word, he stepped toward it.
The rest of the Troupe saw it too.
"Pretty capable found us this fast," one of them muttered.
Chrollo followed closely.
If they could capture this Shadow Beast and interrogate it, they might locate the Ten Dons quickly saving a great deal of time.
This area was filled with powerful gang leaders.
The Shadow Beast had spotted them but hadn't made a scene… yet.
Once the fighting began, chaos was inevitable blood would spill, and the resulting confusion could cripple even the upper ranks of the underworld.
The Beast was trying to lure them out.
Chrollo understood immediately and accepted the invitation.
They would find a more secluded place to settle things.
Chrollo and five members wove through the crowd, following the Beast's pace. The others moved separately, carrying out their own plans.
"Two people missing," one of the Shadow Beasts muttered.
Owl and Worm didn't turn around. After noticing each other, they silently went in a different direction.
They had thought the Phantom Troupe would unleash chaos immediately but the group was calm, unnervingly calm.
"Aren't we going to tell them the truth?" Worm asked, glancing at the spiders tattooed on his back.
"Tell them? You're lucky you even know what side you're on," Owl replied coldly.
"Even if the Ten Dons hadn't been targeted by the Troupe, they wouldn't live past tonight anyway."
"They want to kill the Spiders, don't they? Let them try… You noticed too, didn't you? Their aura it's exceptional."
"They seem too confident. Even after being discovered, they're not panicking. Are they underestimating us?" Worm said bitterly.
Owl didn't respond.
Minutes later, their two groups quietly surrounded the palace's back garden, a place with relatively few people.
On the way, Owl had already used the walkie-talkie to summon Sick Dog and the others.
In the dark, gloomy night, Owl and Worm finally met up with them.
It was the only isolated spot in the palace, distant from the lively banquet.
When they arrived, Sick Dog and the other six Shadow Beasts turned toward them.
"What's the meaning of this? Why call us here, and to a place like this?"
"The fish have taken the bait… big ones," Owl said, adjusting his glasses and pointing behind him.
"Really?"
"The Shadow Beasts took the bait."
"We'll leave this to you," Owl added. "Worm and I have something else to catch."
Before anyone could question him, Owl and Worm blurred into the darkness and vanished.
Moments later, an eerie, oppressive aura swept over Sick Dog and the others. Their skin prickled pure instinct forced them into combat stance, Nen flaring to life.
"Huh? Those two ran off?"
"Looks like… there are only six of them. Aren't there supposed to be ten Shadow Beasts?"
"They think six of them can handle us? That's even more arrogant than we are…"
"Maybe the other four went to warn the Ten Dons. Doesn't matter. With Feitan and the others around, they won't escape."
As they talked casually, several dark silhouettes appeared before them revealing themselves one by one.
"The Phantom Troupe?!"
Sick Dog's tongue slid over his lips, a bloodthirsty grin spreading across his face.
The rumors Owl mentioned… were true.
"Excellent…" he whispered. "Hahaha! I know you. You and two others posed as bodyguards for the Field Family we already killed one!"
The Shadow Beasts stood their ground, glaring at Chrollo's squad without fear.
"Three of the five are women," Leech sneered, eyeing Machi, Shizuku, and Pakunoda.
"They look tough, but they're still weak. If we'd met earlier, none of this would've happened."
"Then it's not too late to make them understand their place," another Shadow Beast added.
That… was a mistake.
Machi stretched her hands, pulling thin threads taut between her fingers as she walked forward calmly.
Seeing that, even the Swordsman Beast realized Machi was angry.
"Leave one alive," Chrollo said quietly.
In an instant, eleven figures moved at once, each locking onto their target.
Sick Dog and his partner lunged for Chrollo.
The others clashed in brutal one-on-one duels.
Meanwhile, outside in the plaza, the situation changed drastically.
On the giant electronic screen, Cheko the newly appointed head of the Field Family had just finished his speech and received roaring applause.
Congratulatory messages from the Ten Dons echoed through the loudspeakers.
Videos of real-world representatives appeared next…
The crowd still buzzed with excitement when, suddenly, fights erupted among the gang leaders.
The Field Family's private guards rushed to intervene but even Nen users fell under the same influence, losing their minds and slaughtering one another.
Tables overturned, expensive drinks shattered, and the elegant music stopped.
Only screams and chaos remained.
At the center of the madness stood Duan, the Phantom Troupe's No. 7 a frail-looking man with a blank expression.
Even as bodies fell and blood sprayed, no one attacked him.
In fact, it was as if no one could even perceive him.
Soon, another group of Nen users arrived not from the Field Family.
They were the personal guards of the Ten Dons, about forty in total.
Duan's cold gaze swept across them, then his body melted into the shadows, vanishing completely.
He and Quartz could easily annihilate these weak Nen users.
And though they were many, it was the perfect setting for Duan's ability ...
"The Solitary Hypnotist."
As the name implied, it was a hypnosis-based Nen ability the larger the crowd, the greater its power.
Once all key figures had been confirmed, Hisoka, Feitan, Korps, and Pedrolev began infiltrating the palaces, eliminating minor enemies and searching for their primary targets.
Korps and Pedrolev worked as a pair;
Hisoka and Feitan acted solo.
During his "search," Hisoka secretly contacted Illumi and arranged a meeting.
He was sure now: Chrollo had dropped his guard.
Not long after, inside a secret room, Hisoka entered and found David, Field Lily, Kalmod (Illumi's younger brother), and Kurapika waiting.
"Oh… you're here already," Hisoka said with a wicked grin.
"Not bad. Been a while, hasn't it? Your eyes have changed. Seems like… Haze's taken quite an interest in you."
Kurapika leaned silently against the wall, conserving his strength.
Inside, he felt a mix of tension and exhilaration ...
Tension, because if the Troupe caught on, everything would collapse.
Exhilaration, because he was about to take revenge.
"What's happening outside?" Illumi asked.
Though the room had surveillance feeds, the view was incomplete ...
only showing Duan and Quartz fighting the Ten Dons' private army.
Duan had hypnotized several of them, turning allies into enemies a dangerous, confusing Nen ability.
"Some went after the Ten Dons," Hisoka replied lazily, folding his arms.
"Chrollo and the rest are having fun with the Shadow Beasts.
Looks like your Field Family doesn't have many Nen users… It's just the setting that looks grand."
"Most of those Nen users were Ten Elder men," David explained calmly.
"And those gang leaders? They're from all over the world mostly the Elders' subordinates. Once they die, the entire power structure of the underworld will collapse. Then, our Field Family will rule it all."
His voice carried barely hidden pride.
"What I want to know," Hisoka said slyly, "is how he got here."
Of course, he meant Haze.
Haze was now involved with the Zoldyck Family ...
and Hisoka was certain he'd appear… but how?
Neither David nor Lily answered.
"They've found the Ten Dons," Illumi suddenly announced.
The surveillance feed zoomed in revealing a fierce gunfight and chaos as Feitan burst through a large hall door, his umbrella-sword drawn.
Inside, ten people including Cheko sat at a round table.
A dozen Nen bodyguards surrounded them.
As Feitan appeared, the Ten Dons immediately began yelling at Cheko, demanding to know the Field Family's motives.
Cheko, drenched in sweat, frantically dialed numbers on his phone.
At the same time, David's phone buzzed he didn't answer.
Then, before their eyes, Feitan blurred forward, slicing through the bodyguards like paper.
His blade flashed, a whirlwind of precision and cruelty.
In seconds, the hall became a slaughterhouse.
Feitan, expressionless, turned his gaze toward the terrified Ten Dons.
With a flicker of movement, he decapitated nine of them instantly, leaving only Cheko alive.
Cheko screamed as Feitan's blade crushed his legs, forcing him to kneel.
Under the watchful eyes of Hisoka and the others, Feitan grabbed Cheko by the hair, asking something but Cheko remained silent, even as Feitan slowly broke his arm and subjected him to agonizing torture.
When Cheko refused to speak, Feitan executed him mercilessly ...
then looked up at the security camera, locking eyes with those watching from the dark room.
The feed cut out instantly.
"Impressive…" Illumi murmured, clapping softly.
Even with his calm demeanor, he was impressed.
That small man, Feitan, possessed terrifying strength.
"What's his rank in the Troupe?" Illumi asked.
"Including myself," Hisoka said with a smirk, "I'd place him around fourth."
"So you're in the top three, then?"
"In raw power, there are several not weaker than me," Hisoka admitted.
"But overall… aside from Chrollo, the rest are just average."
For once, Hisoka spoke truthfully ...
not from arrogance, but because Haze's influence had changed him.
His combat strength was far greater now than in the original timeline.
"Chrollo…"
Kurapika's quiet murmur drew both men's attention.
The chain on his right hand trembled faintly.
"Heh…"
Hisoka grinned dangerously.
"In this game, you play your role, and I'll play mine. Don't steal what's mine."
Kurapika said nothing but his crimson eyes burned silently in the dark.
(End of Chapter)