Underground Order

Fills Garu sat in a luxurious stretch limousine outside the manor and put down his phone with satisfaction.

Wild Dog was dead...

He had thought Oboro would be a smart man. Facing an entire gang alone could only end badly.

As a gang boss, the Fills Family might not rank among the very top underground powers, but it still occupied a middle-tier position. According to the rules of the underworld, if he wanted to climb higher, conflict with other families and making enemies were inevitable... Which meant he needed powerful security around him.

Sam and the others were decent enough... but judging from Kuga's description, Oboro was at least far stronger than the men currently under his command... Rhode had been taken out instantly.

He had wanted to recruit such talent, but unfortunately... the other man did not know what was good for him.

Getting out of the car, he entered the manor in his trench coat. He glanced up at the upper floors of the castle, saw the windows that had been dark light up, and hurried over.

After entering the castle, his one-armed secretary and the bespectacled Kuga followed at his sides.

The upper floor had already gone quiet, meaning the battle was over.

The only Nen user who had stayed outside the fight asked his boss a few questions. Upon learning that Bort had called to report the news, his thoughts stirred. The notification should have been security captain Sam's job... but remembering Bort's relationship with Sam, the secretary understood.

That guy Bort... was probably trying to claim credit.

Before long, the group arrived outside the second-floor hall in great numbers.

They smelled blood and thought nothing of it... Seeing blood was perfectly normal. Oboro had probably been tortured terribly.

They just did not know whether any of their four men had been injured.

The doors were pushed open. Completely unguarded, Fills stepped inside with a smile on his face... imagining Oboro's corpse.

He would send out the man's body and photos, telling everyone what happened when they skimmed money from casinos under his control... as a warning.

"Hi!"

The moment Fills Garu stepped forward and looked up, he saw a familiar figure sitting in his seat, raising a hand in greeting.

His expression froze, and for a moment, he failed to react.

Wasn't he... dead?

"Protect the boss!!!"

The only Nen user standing at the door cried out.

After all, he made his living doing this. He was the first to recover his senses.

Whoosh! Fills instinctively took a step back as well.

Everyone saw the ruined hall and three corpses, each dead in a different manner.

Then, in the blink of an eye, Fills Garu discovered that Oboro had vanished from the boss's chair...

A burst of chaotic noise came from behind him.

Just as Fills was about to turn around, his body sank as an arm draped over his shoulder.

A light drizzle began falling from overhead... The rain struck his face, red... and salty.

Blood!

As an ordinary man, he had no time to react and no idea what Oboro had done.

But Bort, cowering in the corner, saw everything clearly... In an instant, Oboro had rushed into the crowd. Blade rising and falling, like the Bleach of death come from hell to reap lives... dozens of heads flew neatly into the air like bottle caps.

The bespectacled Kuga and his companion Smith—the man whose arm Oboro had torn off—were both dead.

They had been utterly helpless.

Before Oboro, they had been like paper.

It was as though the hall had suddenly become a black-and-white painting, only for someone to splash a basin of blood across it... All he could see was glaring crimson.

Blood rained down as heads hit the floor one after another... Some rolled to Oboro and Fills's feet.

The two stood bathed in warm liquid.

"You know... I actually don't like killing people. But after coming to this world, there are times when you really can't afford to be soft-hearted... Sigh, I don't even know whether something is wrong with me. I'm too nervous. I think this world is too dangerous... If I don't overcome certain things, it'll be really hard to deal with them..."

As though catching up with an old friend, Oboro held Fills Garu around the shoulders and spoke calmly.

"But you're different. You seem to... really enjoy killing people... Human lives are worthless to you, aren't they?"

"..."

Listening to the words by his ear, Fills Garu's expression and body stiffened completely.

Even when the cigar in his hand burned his flesh, he did not notice.

"What do you want?! If anything happens to me... the entire gang will never let you go. You'll be wanted and become a rat crossing the street! You'll only ever be able to hide in the sewers." Fills Garu forced himself to stay calm. It was clear he had not climbed to his current position for nothing.

"I can give up the money... I can even meet whatever price you name."

Before Fills could finish, Oboro's fingers had already gripped his right cheek.

"Don't be naive!"

Oboro was expressionless. "Dozens of people on that bus were all killed by you... To you, they were worthless, like weeds by the roadside. Haven't you heard the saying? Those who kill will one day be killed. You should have been prepared for that... Like me, the reason I feel so much pressure is that I'm afraid someone will take me out someday..."

"So... I understand you. Because from where I stand, you're just a weed too..."

"Now our positions have merely switched. You'll understand me, right?"

As he spoke, Oboro's fingers gradually tightened.

"Ahhh..."

Fills's face warped as he struggled and screamed.

But to Oboro, his strength was no different from that of a chick.

"Shh... Quiet down. You're a gang boss, aren't you? Why don't you have any backbone at all..."

"There were children on the bus I rode... Before they died, none of them were as pathetic as you."

The right side of Fills's face began to cave in. His twisted features made his eyes bloodshot, while blood seeped from his nostrils, ear canals, and mouth... Oboro deliberately slowed the pressure and force of his fingertips.

Letting him experience the pain little by little...

Several full minutes passed before Fills Garu's limbs finally went limp and his breath became faint.

Half his face was deeply embedded with Oboro's finger marks. It was easy to imagine the agony he had suffered.

After a while, seeing that he had stopped breathing, Oboro coldly flung him aside like trash.

Bort, standing nearby, was scared out of his wits and trembling.

Oboro walked aside and removed his clothes... With his back to Bort, he said calmly, "Before dawn, no matter what method you use, I don't want to see a single living person in this manor."

"Yes."

Bort nodded frantically.

He understood what Oboro meant.

Even with his severe injuries, he did not dare refuse.

Even with one leg gone, dealing with ordinary people would not be a problem... The only concern was excessive blood loss.

To be honest, Bort was already showing signs of anemia, and his vision was swimming.

But there was no choice...

Fortunately, he was a member of the Fills Family himself. Using that identity to lure in the guards outside and deal with them one by one would not be difficult.

Oboro simply could not be bothered to do it himself. Since he had ready-made labor, why not use it? He would let Bort make himself useful.

Then Bort went out through the main doors...

Oboro was not worried that he would run, because he could not escape... Even a car would not help.

Bort understood that as well.

Next, Oboro found the bathroom and began taking a bath...

As time passed, he could hear disturbances from inside and outside the castle.

After a long while, the hall finally brightened as sunlight rose beyond the windows...

When Bort returned, weak and so pale he looked like a corpse, Oboro had already changed clothes and was waiting by the window.

Suits were standard gang attire. Oboro had easily found an outfit in his size on the second floor.

Clap, clap, clap...

Oboro turned around, applauding with a smile.

Bort was terrified, but he forced out a fawning smile as well.

"I want to ask you a few things." Oboro spoke casually.

"Please."

Bort nodded immediately.

"Now that the Fills Family's boss is dead, can I smoothly claim his assets for myself?"

"Yes, but..."

Bort paused before quickly explaining.

What he meant was that Oboro could transfer money through the Fills Family's accounts, but there was a time limit... It had to be done before the other gang forces noticed that something had happened to the Fills Family!

As for casinos and other real estate, Oboro would have difficulty touching them.

The underground powers were extremely chaotic. Gangs often fought each other over slices of the pie, but... that was internal conflict. If outsiders interfered, the gangs would unite against them. The Ten Dons were the foundation that kept this massive force as solid as a fortress.

Gangs had their own rules... Internal fighting was unrestricted.

If a family was destroyed or broke apart, the other forces would definitely want to swallow it up, but they first had to seek approval from the Ten Dons. More commonly, the Ten Dons themselves distributed the resources... Even succession within a family had to be reported to and recognized by the Ten Dons... Therefore, it was impossible for Oboro to replace Fills Garu as the new head of the Fills Family! Once news of Fills Garu's death got out, Oboro, as the killer... would immediately become a target.

The gangs were not simply banded together... The Ten Dons were protecting their own authority and status.

No matter which gang or family it was, or how it had made its fortune... it had to pay tribute to the administrator of its territory, one of the Ten Dons.

Those ten men were the emperors of the underworld.

"So I still can't get rid of my troubles... Instead, I've gotten myself into an even bigger mess." After listening, Oboro made that remark.

"...That's right..."

Bort echoed him.

"Looks like... I won't be able to take this year's Hunter Exam after all..." Oboro sighed.

"Where is the Fills Family's headquarters? Tell me about Fills Garu."

"Yes."

Bort told him everything he knew: the Fills Family's key members, information related to its businesses, its standing within the gang organization, and more. The more he spoke, the stronger his desire to survive became.

"What are you planning to do?"

After a while, Bort asked cautiously.

His tone made it sound as if he had already begun following Oboro's lead.

"What else can I do..."

Oboro gave a dry laugh and rolled his neck. "Since the Ten Dons are the only ones with the final say... I can only sit in that position myself. Otherwise, even if I kill one, there are still nine left... The mess I'll have to clean up will only get bigger, and this will never end."

Bort choked on his words... Even he had never dared imagine such a method! "Right, let's handle the important matter first."

"The important matter?!"

Bort froze.

What else was there?

"I said not to leave anyone alive before dawn..." Oboro smiled.

"I killed them... I killed them all! I checked. Not a single one was left!"

Bort's heart clenched as he hurriedly replied.

"Is that so?"

Oboro frowned slightly. "My exact words were that I didn't want to see any living person anymore..."

"Yes, I did exactly as you ordered!"

Bort's legs trembled.

"Really? Aren't you a living person too? Did you... forget yourself?"

"..."

The moment he heard that, Bort was stunned.

A bone-deep chill ran through him.

"Do you need me... to help you?"

"..."