"Who is it?!"
Squala's expression changed as he turned and shouted, thinking it might be a mber of the Phantom Troupe's gang below.
Suddenly, lody's ears twitched. "It sounds like there's an extra heartbeat approaching."
No sooner had she spoken than mounds of earth began to rise beneath Kurapika and his companions. Then, a face resembling a jellyfish or maggot erged from the ground. Following it, a completely crimson body wriggled its way out of the hole.
"I am Worm of the Shadow Beasts," he said, glaring with his murky eyes. "Who are you people?"
"We are bodyguards of the Nostrade family," Basho replied.
"I see..." Upon hearing the family na, Worm gave them a second glance. Even he knew that the Nostrade family had a fortune teller particularly skilled in prophecy.
It was thanks to their divination that they had been able to move the auction items in advance.
"Even though you can use Nen, it's best not to interfere. That guy isn't just any ordinary thief."
With disheveled hair, protruding teeth, and a sickly appearance but with a fierce gaze, Rabid Dog approached with his hands in his pockets. Beside him, other mbers of the Shadow Beasts began to reveal themselves.
"Never engage in a test of strength with an Enhancer-type! And there's more than one of such formidable individuals. Killing is second nature to them; simply put, they are murder specialists."
In a tracksuit, with no nose and an oval bald head, Porcupine trotted in with small steps. "So, they're people like us," he remarked, glancing at the group.
With hair parted in the middle, a big belly, and wearing tattered sneakers, Leech had a sly smile on his face. "Experts should be dealt with by other experts."
The strongest ard team under the Ten Dons, the Shadow Beasts, had gathered four mbers here!
"The Shadow Beasts under the Ten Dons have been mobilized," Squala said in disbelief. "Even if it's to make a statent by taking soone's life to show the Ten Dons' authority, is the enemy really this difficult to handle?!"
"If it's the Phantom Troupe, such a lineup is justified," Kurapika understood.
"The world's top criminal group, more vicious and possibly stronger than the Kuta Bandit Group, with S-class bounties."
Rabid Dog didn't even glance at Kurapika or Squala but still explained, "The one below, if I'm not mistaken, is a mber of the Phantom Troupe nad Uvogin. Back in the day, he and another mber nad Nobunaga were both Floor Masters at the Heaven's Arena.
Later, they mysteriously disappeared, only to reappear in the Kingdom of Mosibia, causing great chaos and subsequently being placed under bounty. This is how the na of the Phantom Troupe began to spread across the world," Rabid Dog explained to the others.
Why explain? Because the stronger the opponent, the more impressive it would be when they subdued them, thereby showcasing their own prowess. That's the most effective way to boost prestige!
Kurapika had, of course, heard of the na Uvogin. What Rabid Dog said was indeed true.
"A mber of the most vicious criminal group, and once a Floor Master at the Heaven's Arena..."
Squala swallowed nervously again. "No wonder the Ten Dons pay so much attention to the guy below."
"And you have to realize, there's more than one such formidable individual."
lody looked at the Shadow Beasts stepping into action and at Uvogin, standing in the center with his arms crossed. Then, she glanced at the top of another slope where Nobunaga watched, with shadowy figures behind him.
"There are other mbers, and their leader as well."
The others fell silent again. Just one mber of the Phantom Troupe displayed such imnse power. And there were thirteen of such mbers, plus their unfathomable leader and deputy leader...
No wonder the Phantom Troupe was labeled as an S-class top criminal group, one that even the many bounty hunters of the Hunter Association couldn't subdue.
"Yo, are those guys the so-called Shadow Beasts?" Nobunaga perked up a bit as he saw the four bizarre figures enter the scene from his vantage point.
"They look pretty intimidating, but their strength...?" He sized them up, then let his eyelids droop again. "Just so-so."
---
Nobunaga yawned, losing interest in the Shadow Beasts. He had expected that the leaders of the underworld, the Ten Dons, who gathered the strongest forces among global gangs, would be formidable and powerful. But at a glance...
Well, it seed he had wasted his anticipation.
In truth, the Shadow Beasts weren't as weak as Nobunaga made them out to be. In the original storyline, they could put up a decent fight against Uvogin.
However, eventually, Uvogin took them down in one fell swoop, Shizuku eliminated four more, and Feitan took out another while capturing one. So perhaps they weren't that impressive after all?
Shizuku was considered one of the weakest in combat within the Phantom Troupe, aside from Kortopi. If even she could handle a few Shadow Beasts, it spoke volus about their strength.
Moreover, Nobunaga and the others had grown significantly stronger since then, making the Shadow Beasts hardly worth his attention.
"What? So they're just this level of opponents?"
Not only Nobunaga, but Uvogin below also found the encroaching group rather uninteresting. "With such bizarre appearances, no wonder their strength is diocre," he remarked, scratching his chest hair in disappointnt. "I really wasted my anticipation."
"Judging an opponent's strength by appearance, I think Uvogin and Bonolenov should have a good chat," Franklin comnted dryly from the mahjong table, glancing at Uvogin below.
"Hahaha, he's just using small talk to provoke those Shadow Beasts, not specifically targeting you," Shalnark said, drawing a tile and smiling broadly. "Self-draw, I win!!"
Franklin leaned in, his expression turning odd. "Three ten-thousands?"
Machi glanced at Shalnark's tiles without expression and then overturned her own hand. "I have four ten-thousands right here." The four tiles stood out conspicuously.
"So I'd like to ask, where did your extra ten-thousand co from?" Machi asked calmly, looking at Shalnark.
Shalnark: "?????? You clearly have four ten-thousands, why didn't you declare a kong?!"
"Why do you care if soone declares a kong or not?!" Feitan's narrow eyes narrowed further. "I just want to know why you have an extra ten-thousand!"
"You're cheating, Shalnark. Does that an...?" Feitan's gaze grew dangerous, a hint of killing intent flashing through his eyes. "You've been using these tricks to win all along?!"
Shalnark: "…Hahaha, the weather is really nice today!!"
"Don't change the subject!!!" Feitan brandished a knife, stepping onto the mahjong table. Shalnark quickly backed away to a safe distance.
"Looks like this ga won't be finished," Morin sighed, pushing his tiles away and leaning back in his chair. He listened to Feitan's interrogation while observing the situation below.
At that mont, Rabid Dog, Porcupine, and Leech, the three Shadow Beasts, were closing in on Uvogin, forming a surrounding formation.
"Where are the auction items?" Uvogin asked casually, stretching his shoulders.
"Where did the guards and guests go?" Rabid Dog bared his fangs.
"I killed them all. You should be able to sll the blood," Uvogin replied, a murderous aura rising from him again. "I'll ask one more ti, where are the auction items? If you don't tell ..."
Before he could finish, a shadow suddenly erged behind him.
User Comments
0 comments from readers