"Boss, are we going to be okay this time?"
The man raced after the team leader, asking as he ran.
Weaving through this maze-like jungle made him uneasy.
The map of the Zoldyck Family's grounds was worth a bounty of one hundred million Jenie, after all.
That gave you some idea of just how complicated their grounds were.
If they charged in like this, wouldn't they end up losing more than they gained?
The man couldn't help worrying.
They were all just working for money. There was no need to risk their lives.
"Having second thoughts now? Why didn't you think of that earlier?"
The team leader snorted and shot the man behind him a disdainful glance.
He sneered. "You were pretty happy to take the money, weren't you?"
"But..."
"Relax. Our job is just to distract the Zoldyck Family's servants. There's no real danger. We just have to draw their people away and give those who really want to do something big a chance."
Put simply, they were supposed to tear a hole in the Zoldyck defenses and let people through.
All they had to do was run around aimlessly and draw the family's guards away.
The team leader glanced at the people chasing them and smiled.
It was just a game of cat and mouse.
An easy enough job.
There was no need to fear offending the Zoldyck Family, either. They hadn't even attacked.
They were simply running away.
Once they escaped, they'd collect a hefty bonus!
Enough money to last them for years!
What was there not to like?
The more he thought about it, the more pleased with himself the team leader became.
He glanced back at the people following them, only to realize that the group of guards in matching Zoldyck uniforms had vanished at some point.
"Stop!"
The team leader raised his hand and gave the order.
"Where are they?"
He murmured in confusion.
That didn't make sense. How could the Zoldyck Family's servants, known as the Mad Dog Guards, stop chasing them halfway through?
He looked around, taking in their surroundings.
They were in a dense forest.
Dark and lightless.
A gloomy place.
Cold winds swept through as leaves rustled in the trees.
It only made the place feel more eerie.
Crows croaked softly on the branches.
Their green, ghostly eyes watched the intruders.
With ill intent.
As if they were watching a group of pitiful clowns.
'Flap, flap.'
All at once, the crows beat their wings and flew away.
'Caw.'
'Caw.'
One or two harsh cries echoed through the desolate forest.
Like the tolling of a funeral bell.
They scraped at the intruders' nerves.
The team leader swallowed, suddenly trembling with fear.
Cold sweat beaded in his palms, but he forced himself to stay calm.
"Turn back! Keep them distracted and draw those mad dogs over!"
He shouted, perhaps to give himself courage.
Whatever the reason, they couldn't go any farther.
"Boss, shouldn't we keep going..."
The team leader, his eyes full of panic, cut the man off before he could finish.
His voice was icy, as if he were pretending to be calm. "Why are we leaving?! The people chasing us are gone! Why leave now?!"
He glared at the confused team member and pressed him. "Our job is to draw those dogs away! Not run around at random! Got it?!"
The man swallowed. His instincts, honed by years spent in the underworld, were already sounding the alarm.
They couldn't stay here!
They had to leave right now!
The team members were startled by the team leader's sudden outburst. They looked from one to another, baffled.
They didn't understand.
But they had no choice but to obey.
They turned around slowly. After running for an hour, they were exhausted.
They had little energy left to keep testing their enemies' patience.
But they couldn't disobey the team leader's orders.
"Hey, cute little intruders! Where are you going?"
A clear, sweet child's voice rang out behind them.
The team leader felt the alarms in his head blare.
Run, run, run!
The words looped endlessly in his mind.
But just as he was about to flee in a panic, a terrifying wave of killing intent burst from behind him, so intense it made him tremble.
His heart seemed to stop for an instant. The team leader couldn't tell what he was feeling.
He only knew that he couldn't move.
Time seemed to slow. He could even feel cold sweat sliding down his cheek.
His pupils shook, every muscle in his body tensed.
"I asked you, where are you going, uncles?"
The voice behind them continued.
It sounded confused and puzzled.
There was even a hint of hurt in it. "You uncles are so mean. Won't you even tell a child?"
With a stiff neck, the team leader struggled to turn around.
In the middle of the clearing stood a white-haired boy, holding a black book.
He wore a white suit and carried himself with elegant poise.
A smile played across his face, making him look harmless.
If not for the killing intent radiating from him, anyone might have mistaken him for a charming little gentleman.
Blood-red light swirled in his eyes as the boy slowly approached.
Smiling, skipping.
He hopped along, even stopping to twirl.
The people in front of him seemed frozen in time.
They could only stare blankly as the child came closer, one step at a time.
Their bodies trembled, but they were powerless to do anything. All they could do was watch in terror as he approached.
His presence brimmed with icy killing intent.
The team leader's heart turned cold.
He knew he wasn't getting away this time.
But he couldn't understand how a child could possess such terrifying killing intent.
It was enough to trigger the body's instincts, tensing every muscle until they went rigid.
It was like the instinctive reaction to encountering some enormous beast.
They couldn't move at all!
At last, just before the boy was about to touch the team leader, they realized they could control their bodies again!
They scrambled forward, crawling and stumbling, tears and snot streaming down their faces!
They screamed and howled.
Some could only gape, unable to make a sound.
At some point, their pants had been soaked with an unknown liquid.
But they had no time to care.
They knew this was their only chance to escape!
Run! Run!
But it didn't seem to help at all.
In the blink of an eye, the boy had raced ahead of them at an incredible speed.
Through his blurred vision, the team leader saw the child's lips move.
"Why run? You came all this way."
His vision dimmed. He could no longer hear the boy's voice and could only guess what he was saying from the smile on his face.
Then stay here.
The world blurred.
For no apparent reason, a thought surfaced in the team leader's mind.
Who was staying?
Me?
No, all of us.
Oh, right. We were being left behind.
A sharp pain ran through his body.
Then his perspective suddenly changed.
The team leader could suddenly see his own body sliding downward in a grotesque posture.
He watched in confusion.
Why was he seeing his body from a perspective he'd never experienced before?
'Thump.'
His head hit the ground.
Understanding dawned.
Oh. So I'm dead.
What a... shame.
His consciousness sank into eternal darkness.
He plunged into the abyss.
The boy standing in front of everyone merely glanced at them, then slowly turned around and put on his gentleman's hat.
Its brim was a little too large, hiding his eyes.
The corners of his lips curled upward.
An inscrutable smile.
He took a slow step forward.
'Slice.'
A faint sound rang through the air.
And then...
Behind the boy,
everything was red.
Fresh paint splashed through the air.
Red was everywhere.
Limbs were severed, heads separated from bodies.
Bloodstained threads drifted through the air.
They pulled the broken bodies along.
Shattered into pieces, they danced in the air.
Like a final elegy for life.
Beneath the new moon,
the curtain fell on their lives.
"Thud."
"Thud."
The sounds of heavy objects hitting the ground rang out one after another behind him.
Like a drumbeat, they accompanied the souls of the dead to their final resting place.
Heads rolled across the ground, their expressions varied.
Terror, fear, despair, sorrow, regret.
All frozen in the instant before death.
Vivid, yet desolate.
Coleman didn't even look.
He simply faced the wind and spread his arms.
He raised his head and gazed at the beautiful, serene night sky.
Softly, ever so softly, he said,
"Today is a beautiful day."
Death was laid to rest, and new life welcomed.
The Hunter x Hunter: Ultimate Elegance by Miao Shijiu.
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