Half of 1999 had already flown by, and as the millennium drew nearer, all kinds of terrifying "world-ending rumors" were spreading far and wide.
Whenever Kurapika rode in a taxi, an airship, or a train, he would hear similar rumors being spread among the chattering passengers.
He didn't believe a word of it and always dismissed it coolly.
His two companions, however, were different. They seemed to take the rumors quite seriously.
Killua and Gon were a few years younger than him, still at an age when their thoughts were young and immature.
Gon's birthplace was rather remote, but even Killua, despite hailing from the Zoldyck Family and having spent his life moving through the darkness, had less experience than Kurapika.
Since beginning to learn Nen, Kurapika had studied under Gelman, Melody, and Wing, one after another.
All three were exceptionally skilled Nen users, and spending time with them had greatly broadened his horizons.
Killua and Gon, by contrast, still had a certain innocence about them—especially Gon.
They would eat the chocolate candies Killua recommended, his personal favorite, while excitedly discussing what they would do when the various "world-ending crises" of the millennium arrived.
What they enjoyed talking about most was how they would build a fortress in the apocalypse, where they would reign as its two kings.
The two boys even promised Kurapika that they would let him in when the time came. All he could do was smile helplessly.
Kurapika occasionally joined their discussions, but more often, he did it for Gon and Killua's sake.
The three of them had hit it off well with Leorio, who had already left, and Kurapika didn't want to hurt that hard-won friendship.
In fact, it had already been more than a month since the three of them left the Sky Arena.