Hunters Flock

Biscuit pursed her lips, crossing her arms. "At the time, I was nearby and originally planned to buy the 'Promise Ruby' for a large sum. I didn't expect you to snatch it first. So, I went to the crime scene to look for clues."

"Upon seeing the spider pattern on the wall and your mark, I immediately searched the Hunter Association website for information about you."

"Your origins, your Nen ability, your assassin career—I know it all. After that, I tracked the traces you left behind, following you all the way here."

Gelman leaned his back against the rough alley wall, hands stuffed into the pockets of his black overcoat, calm and collected.

"I should have been cautious and didn't leave many traceable clues."

Biscuit smiled and shook her head.

"The night you committed the major crime and left the Phantom Troupe's symbol, you had already become the focus of the Hunter Association website and the 'Dark Web'."

"Someone always saw you at a certain time and place. Piecing together these fragmented clues, along with the help of some Hunter friends, was enough for me to find you."

"Don't underestimate the information-gathering and tracking abilities of Hunters; it's our specialty."

Gelman nodded in acknowledgment.

A group of Hunters, information brokers, and gangsters were hunting him, and he was eventually discovered. There was nothing he could do about it.

It seemed the Hunter Association website was a good information hub, but unfortunately, it wasn't accessible to him without a Hunter license.

Suddenly, a "beep beep beep" sound came from Biscuit's princess dress.

She raised an eyebrow, reached into a hidden pocket in her hem, and pulled out a small mobile phone.

The phone was covered in cute, colorful animal stickers.

Biscuit unlocked the screen, looked at it for a moment, and a slight smile curved her lips.

She cheerfully turned the phone screen to face Gelman.

Gelman peered closer and saw a photo of the "Promise Ruby" on the screen, with a heart-stopping price below it, and the words "Transaction Complete" at the very bottom.

Biscuit proudly jiggled the phone screen before putting it away.

"I had a feeling you might have already handed off the 'Promise Ruby,' so I asked a friend to keep an eye on the black market for me. In the end, I had to pay double the previous price to buy it."

Gelman began to think.

It definitely wasn't Chrollo who put the "Promise Ruby" up for auction on the black market.

He probably just casually sold it to someone he knew, and after changing hands several times overnight, it appeared on the black market.

Biscuit was tracking Gelman on one hand, and on the other, she had her friend monitor the black market. In the end, her friend intercepted it.

As for "paying double the previous price," it likely referred to the price quoted by the gem merchant.

However, as a seasoned Hunter, Biscuit wasn't short on money. A treasure one desired was worth any price, and obtaining the "Promise Ruby" was worth paying double.

Gelman looked at Biscuit and decided to test her.

"Since the 'Promise Ruby' is in your hands, I'm of no use to you anymore, right? Or are you planning to act as a bounty hunter?"

Biscuit shook her head again.

"Even though I spent a large sum of money, your bounty wouldn't cover it... And I don't plan to make a move on you next."

She suddenly extended her left hand, clad in a white glove, towards Gelman.

Gelman looked at Biscuit, puzzled.

Biscuit smiled, keeping her hand raised, her fingers swaying like jellyfish tentacles.

"We've been in this alley for almost five minutes. If we don't get out soon, it might attract unnecessary suspicion. A gentleman should be protecting a beautiful young lady by holding her hand."

She winked playfully at Gelman.

Gelman understood there was more to Biscuit's words than met the eye, so he took Biscuit's small hand.

They walked out of the alley side-by-side and onto the bustling street outside.

Biscuit deliberately moved closer to Gelman, swinging their joined hands with a radiant smile, making them look like siblings out together.

She lowered her voice.

"The Phantom Troupe is the most notorious group of thieves in history. Eliminating a Phantom Troupe member would undoubtedly bring fame, fortune, and status..."

"You're suspected of being a new member of the Phantom Troupe, so you've naturally become a target for Hunters and assassins. You can check online when you have time to see how much your bounty has increased in just a few hours."

"I'm not the only one who found your trail. There are so many people on the street; did you notice anyone following you?"

Gelman was silent for a moment, then nodded.

"Since I entered Cross Town, besides you, three other people have been following me. Their auras are unusual, very sustained."

Biscuit glanced at Gelman with surprise, then deliberately bumped him with her small body, feigning a younger sister acting spoiled towards her older brother.

"You're quite perceptive. I thought you'd only notice two, maybe three people... But actually, there's a fourth."

"The four of them are a team of assassins. Two deliberately released their auras as 'open cards,' one slightly concealed as a 'hidden card,' and one was always in Zetsu."

"The fourth person, hidden in the shadows, is their true leader and the ultimate trump card in case of emergency. If you only noticed two or three people, you would have fallen into their trap."

Gelman calmly continued walking, holding Biscuit's hand.

"Why are you telling me this? We should be meeting for the first time, and our social circles probably don't overlap."

Biscuit didn't answer right away. Instead, she took Gelman's hand, had him buy her a cotton candy from a street vendor, and then began eating it in small bites.

"As hunters, when tracking prey, we organize the prey's image, behavioral patterns, thought processes, and so on in our minds based on the clues left behind."

"Before I found you, I had roughly sketched out your overall image. However, after observing you for a while in person, I realized you are vastly different from what I imagined."

"How should I put it? You're like an interesting gem I discovered. It should have been a diamond, but after I got it, it turned into amber. That's strange, isn't it?"

Biscuit finally let go of Gelman's hand. While holding her cotton candy, she tapped her phone screen with her finger, showing Gelman several pictures.

The pictures showed candid shots of three people killing people. They were a bit blurry, but one could basically make out that they were the Phantom Troupe's Feitan, Uvogin, and Phinks.

"This is the tragedy that happened in a nearby town and village last night. According to my original profile, you should be the same kind of bloodthirsty person as those three."

"But you've been quiet the whole way, eating noodles normally, paying your bills, withdrawing cash from the bank, and ignoring your pursuers. I don't understand where the problem lies."

"Hunters are always driven by curiosity. You're clearly hiding a secret, and it would be a shame to die at the hands of four killers without knowing what that secret is..."

Biscuit took a few steps back, gave Gelman a girlish, innocent smile, waved her hand, and raised her voice.

"Big brother, my home is right here. Thank you for walking me back. Let's hang out again sometime."

She turned and skipped away.

Gelman watched her back disappear around the corner, knowing she hadn't gone far but had merely hidden somewhere she could observe him more easily from the shadows.

What a nasty personality.