Instant Kill - Silva's Trial

Roy paid no mind to Illumi.

Even though his younger brother had passed out, he was still glaring with those dead fish eyes, clearly refusing to accept his defeat.

I, Illumi, have never been weaker than anyone in my life. Roy could almost faintly hear what was going through Illumi's mind when he had firmly chosen to switch to the electric rod.

He simply sat on him for a while, then beckoned for Luke to go outside the courtyard to dig a hole, and tossed Illumi straight into it.

"Young Master, is this really appropriate?" Luke was genuinely worried that Illumi would kill him the moment he woke up. He hid to the side, watching with trembling fear as Roy shoveled dirt over Illumi, swallowing his saliva frantically.

Don't let his ferocity when shocking people fool you; that was just him following Silva's orders out of necessity—it was his job. If he were to truly defy or annoy the Young Master, he could guarantee that by the next day, he would be tossed to Mike as a snack.

Roy gradually regained control of his body as he finished filling the hole, leaving only Illumi's head exposed to the air. He said languidly, "Don't worry, he likes sleeping like this."

Luke didn't believe him, but when Roy finished the last shovelful of dirt and leaned on the shovel to catch his breath, he was astonished to find—

The eye that Illumi had been glaring with had actually closed...

"Bring me an umbrella, the glare is blinding."

Compared to sleeping in the garden under the scorching sun, Illumi preferred the hole in his own room, but unfortunately... his body was still numb, and he couldn't move at all, so he was forced to make do.

"Yes..." Luke lowered his head and went to fetch an umbrella, walking quickly and not daring to look back, terrified that Illumi might notice his strange gaze and hold a grudge against him.

Roy rested his hand on his forehead to block the sun, stuck the shovel into the ground, dropped a "rest well," and turned toward the training room.

Illumi's closed eyes snapped open again, watching silently as Roy bypassed the corner of the corridor and was about to disappear, when he suddenly spoke up:

"Next time, I will wake up before you."

"Bang—"

The heavy doors of the training room slammed shut.

Directly blocking Illumi's line of sight...

Roy said faintly, "Let's hope so."

He immediately picked up Snow Walk, which was leaning against the corner of the wall, and drew the blade!

"Clang~"

The blade reflected the sunlight, forming a dazzling spot of light that made it impossible for anyone to keep their eyes open.

Roy held his breath and focused, not immediately practicing Sun Breathing, but instead settling his heart to purge the restlessness hidden within his five viscera.

Only then did he slightly open his mouth, take a deep breath of air, hold the sword with both hands, and slash out diagonally.

"Sun Breathing, First Form: Waltz!"

"Whoosh—"

The blade light stirred up a heatwave, carving out an arc... one could faintly see a spark of fire erupting from the edge of the blade, leaving a scorched mark as it grazed the wall.

"No, it wasn't concentrated..."

Roy's gaze was deep and focused. He twisted his wrist, swept upward from below with lightning speed, and as the tip of the blade rubbed against the air, it ignited, carving out another ring of fire.

"Still no, it's still not concentrated..."

Then...

"Third Form: Burning Sun Mirror..."

"Fourth Form: Fake Sun Rainbow..."

"Fifth Form: Fire Wheel..."

Roy swung blade after blade, each one better than the last, tirelessly trying to capture that elusive "feeling of concentration." He even brushed off Gotoh when he called him for lunch, claiming he "wasn't hungry."

"Are you an Enhancer?"

Illumi finally woke up.

The boy shook the dust off his body and climbed out of the hole, peering through the window at Roy. It wasn't until Roy finished his practice that he realized with a start that he seemed to have slept through the entire day.

Come to think of it, sleeping in the garden under a parasol seemed like a decent choice... Illumi had never tried it before. He immediately stepped through the evening glow, walked into the training room, and stood still in front of Roy.

"I think you need an opponent."

The boy loosened his wrists and revealed his hand-blade.

The opening of his aura nodes seemed to have brought him great confidence.

However, the next second...

Following a flash of a black shadow...

His afro was grabbed by Roy and slammed directly into the ground.

"I'm hungry, no time to play with you."

As Snow Walk returned to its sheath, Roy heard his stomach growling. He stepped over Illumi's body and reached out to push open the door.

"Creak~"

The training room door slammed shut heavily.

Illumi stared with his hollow eyes, blankly watching the ceiling, unable to snap out of it for a long while—

Until...

Silva appeared...

Only then did he tilt his afro-haired head, asking stiffly, "Is he truly an Enhancer?"

[Enhancement]: Strengthening the properties of oneself or one's weapons.

The "developmental" path focuses on reinforcing the physical body through Nen to increase one's attack and defense.

The most famous representative of this is the "strongest human"—Netero.

"I don't know." Silva rested his feet on a stone pedestal, stretching his legs into a full split.

He had agreed to accompany Zeno on a mission tonight, but Zeno had changed his mind at the last minute, so he had to... come alone.

After all, it was a one-billion-dollar contract; it would take some effort.

Illumi climbed up from the floor, staring straight at Silva: "He must be an Enhancer!"

Otherwise, there was no way to explain it—that explosive speed which was too fast to even track.

"He didn't use 'Nen' to hit you." Silva glanced at the corner of the wall with his back to Illumi.

A new camera had been installed in the corner, encased in an iron box; clearly, it wouldn't be pierced by a single sword strike again.

"Then what did he use?"

"Shadow Step."

Illumi: "..."

His body visibly stiffened...

He stood there blankly for a long while, then lifted his feet toward the window, propped his hands on the ledge, and vaulted out...

Silva glanced at him. The boy found the pit he had dug that morning and jumped in... mechanically shoveling dirt over himself with both hands, as if only the earth could bring him a shred of comfort.

"Weak... you are too weak, Illumi..."

Separated by a long corridor, the Zoldyck brothers seemed to share a telepathic connection, the same sentence appearing in their minds simultaneously.

However, in a place where Illumi could not see...

Roy strolled across the mottled stone floor of the ancient castle, received the system notification of "Constitution +0.05," and glanced casually at "Shadow Step"...

[Shadow Step: Proficient (89/100)]

It wouldn't be long before he could advance further and reach the "Mastery" realm.

It must be due to the enhancement of my constitution.

Roy understood this clearly, and his heart began to stir; he could no longer suppress the urge to "sleep."

But considering there seemed to be a rigorous training session at night.

He decided to fill his stomach first and take a medicinal bath.

Fortunately, Gotoh had followed him for so long that they had finally developed a bit of rapport...

As soon as he learned Roy had passed out, he had prepared a medicinal bath in advance.

Roy waited until he had finished eating, then sat with a towel on his head, hands resting on the edge of the tub, closing his eyes to rest while soaking.

Gotoh held a ladle, pouring water over Roy's back again and again, taking the opportunity to report the day's findings: "The Master heard about it and said nothing, only giving an order..."

"In half a month, he will examine the results of your training, Young Master."

"What 'training'?"

"[Zetsu]." Gotoh took off his fogged-up glasses and said in a deep voice, "The Master said that as long as you can take three lashes from him, you will pass."

Roy's expression stiffened. Recalling the feeling of the million-volt electric baton poking his body that morning, his chest began to ache again.