Chapter 146: Genthru
At the starting tower, Ronin and Neon welcomed the remaining three members of
the team into the game.
Kurapika hadn't yet been briefed that Ronin had already pinpointed the Phantom
Troupe trio, but seeing the sharp, predatory smile on Ronin's face, he could
guess the news was good.
"Productive scouting?" Kurapika asked as they shared a brief hug.
"Very," Ronin said. He then turned to Shizuku, who had stepped forward for her
own hug—Ronin obliged, not wanting to play favorites. "I've found their trail.
Three members. It's the perfect size for a trial run."
"Three?" Kurapika mused. "That's exactly the limit of what we can reliably
'consume' without risking a total breakdown. Did you stay undetected?"
"Completely," Ronin shook his head.
"And Shalnark isn't among them?" Kurapika asked, his mind already spinning
through the data.
"He's absent."
"As I thought. If Shalnark were in the game, they would have secured [Breath of
Archangel] days ago."
During their preparation time outside, Kurapika hadn't been idle. He had
memorized every card effect and acquisition route in the game's database. He had
analyzed the mechanics and concluded that with a Manipulator's ability to
"command" information from NPCs or other players, cracking the game's riddles
was trivial.
With the Spiders lacking their "Brain," their progress in collecting the forty
spells required for the Archangel was sluggish. Shalnark was likely still in the
real world, scouring the globe for the remaining Scarlet Eyes to prevent Ronin
from growing stronger.
"Even without their strategist, they're nearing the finish line," Ronin noted,
checking his Binder. "They're only missing a few rare spells now."
He didn't actually care if Bonolenov got healed. In fact, Ronin preferred
fighting a Spider at their peak over a crippled target. He wanted a real test of
his Mangekyō.
Kurapika glanced at Ronin and read his thoughts immediately.
"The issue isn't the healing," Kurapika corrected. "The issue is that once they
use the card, they might decide to use a [Leave] card immediately after. We have
to trap them before they can exit the digital world."
The team assembled in a tight circle. Ronin pulled a card from his Binder.
"Spell: [Accompany]! Target: Masadora!"
A pillar of light engulfed the five of them, and they shot into the sky,
hurtling toward the center of the island.
The game world had undergone a drastic shift recently.
A sense of unprecedented crisis had gripped the player base. First, there were
reports of elite contractors hired by Battera systematically purging "parasite"
players—those who sat on slots without contributing to the clear.
Then, there was the "Demon Trio."
These three were treating the game like a slaughterhouse. They weren't
interested in clearing the game; they were "Terrorists" who attacked
indiscriminately to harvest Spell Cards and high-rank loot.
The Spiders' decision to occupy the only spell shop in Masadora had brought the
game's economy to a standstill. For most players, Spell Cards were a necessity
of daily life; being cut off from them was a death sentence.
Genthru was among those feeling the heat.
He had entered the game three years ago. At the time, he was a relatively fresh
Nen user looking for a place to sharpen his teeth. Along with his brothers, Sub
and Bara, he had devised a long-term plan to win the 30 Billion Jenny bounty.
While his brothers operated solo, Genthru had infiltrated a large alliance of
players under a false persona. Together, the trio had developed a collaborative
Hatsu: Countdown (Life's Sound).
It was a terrifyingly efficient execution ability. Once the conditions were met,
a Nen bomb was placed on the target that would detonate when a counter hit zero.
But now, before Genthru could even reveal his "Bomber" identity to finalize his
heist, these new intruders had disrupted everything.
Worse, some of the people the Spiders had killed were members of the alliance
Genthru was currently "managing."
Genthru had spent years positioning these pawns to collect cards for him. Now,
their cards were being looted by the Spiders. From Genthru's perspective, the
Phantom Troupe was essentially stealing from his personal vault.
Inside a damp, hidden cave, the ten remaining members of Genthru's alliance
huddled together.
Nickes, the de facto leader who looked perpetually exhausted, spoke first. "We
need to suspend all external operations. These new killers... they don't leave
witnesses. Anyone they touch dies."
Initially, the Spiders had only stayed at the shop. But in the last forty-eight
hours, they had hit the gambling city of Duliary, leaving a trail of bodies.
Nickes was terrified. He had spent years building this group, and while they
were expert collectors, they weren't frontline combatants.
Genthru adjusted his glasses, his eyes sharp behind the lenses. He stepped
forward before the panic could spread.
"Has anyone here actually made contact with the Trio?" Genthru asked.
Two men stepped forward, looking ashamed.
"I was robbed at the Masadora shop," one muttered. "They took every Restricted
Slot card I had."
Genthru nodded. He had expected this. "I have bad news for you two. Having
survived an encounter with them, you have been marked. To those three, you
aren't people; you're 'Granaries.' They let you live so you can collect more
cards for them to harvest later."
The room went pale.
"My suggestion is simple," Genthru continued, taking control of the narrative.
"We pool every high-rank card we have onto a single person. That person will
immediately suspend all activity and go into deep hiding in a secure location."
"I have a feeling these killers won't stay in the game for long. Their goals
seem... specific. They aren't trying to Clear."
"I don't know how long they'll stay," Nickes interjected, "but I know some of
the other factions are already organizing a 'Spider Hunt' to take them down.
Still, I agree with Genthru. We can't let two years of work be erased in one
night. We hunker down and wait for the storm to pass."
☆☆☆
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