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Black wings like those of a fallen angel extended from the back of Purgatory, one of the Dark Shadow Three Giants, forming two chain-like strands that shot toward Netero from the other side of the rooftop. Purgatory knelt on one knee, a blood-soaked dagger embedded in her stomach. Her lifeless eyes stared down at the ground. This was the method Jed had used to trap Netero in the original story—a forbidden move that cost Purgatory her life.
"Damn it, I can't dodge this." The two chains were not particularly fast. They had not even reached the speed of sound; even Killua before learning Godspeed was faster than this. Normally, Netero, who had toyed with Killua aboard the airship, should have been able to evade them easily. Yet Netero keenly sensed that he had been completely locked on. No matter which direction he dodged, the two chains would ultimately bind his body.
Sure enough, Netero leaped several hundred meters away from Heaven's Arena in an instant. Yet the two chains bound Netero, who was hundreds of meters away, at the spot where he had originally stood in an inconceivable manner. This move seemed to involve causality; it was not something one could dodge simply by trying to. No wonder Jed had kept it as his trump card for subduing Netero. The guaranteed-hit attribute was simply too overpowered.
"Jed, even if you trap me, even if you kill me, don't even think of making the Hunter Association reveal the Dark Notebook to the outside world." After struggling a few times and discovering that he could not break free from the black substance, Netero decisively gave up resisting.
"Hmph, Netero, doesn't saying that make you feel bitter? The Association you desperately protected abandoned you for the interests of those so-called human higher-ups rather than reveal the truth. Don't you find that tragic?" Jed seemed to have known all along that Netero would say this. Perhaps he had known the outcome from the very beginning, yet he had acted anyway.
"Tragic? No. This is the right thing to do. Sacrificing me alone in exchange for happier lives for more people is worth it. Jed, you have gone astray. Hunters are not as simple as you think. We can give our lives for our ideals."
"Gone astray? In exchange for more people's happiness? Netero, the happiness you speak of is the comfortable life of those human higher-ups, isn't it? Ideals? You dare talk to me about ideals? You Hunters are all bastards who do whatever you want to satisfy your personal desires, who would lick the higher-ups' asses for money and profit! A bunch of selfish scum! I'll let everyone in the world know those bloody truths!"
"You don't understand, Jed. Sacrificing a small portion of people can bring happiness to more people. Sometimes, the truth is not meant for everyone to know!"
"Don't give me that bullshit about killing one to save a hundred! Other people's lives are precious! So the lives of us Shadow Clan members are cheap? We deserve to die? We deserve to be exterminated? We deserve to be imprisoned?"
"You were once a Hunter too."
"But I'm not one now! Now, I'm an avenger who crawled out of the abyss! I came to drag every last one of you down with me! I'll make you feel our pain!"
It was merely a clash of ideals; the two stood in different positions. Since ancient times, the victor became king and the loser a bandit. Only the winner would have the last laugh.
"I don't want to argue with you anymore, Netero. I'll use you to pressure the entire world. I'll make the Hunter Association reveal the Dark Notebook."
"It's useless, Jed. You know that yourself."
"Shut the hell up!"
"Asura, broadcast this live to the entire world, especially the Hunter Association!"
"What? Netero was captured?" "Impossible! He's the Chairman of the Hunter Association! One of the strongest Nen Users in the world!" "Wasn't the Dark Notebook sealed away? Why does someone still know about it? What is the Hunter Association doing? How could such a top-secret matter be leaked?" "Contact the Hunter Association! We need to convene an alliance meeting!"
As Jed's broadcast went live, national leaders across the world received news that the Chairman of the Hunter Association had been captured. Someone was using him to threaten the entire Hunter Association and the nations' dark history—the Dark Notebook.
"What is your Hunter Association doing?"
"Why did this happen? Wasn't Netero hailed as the strongest in the world? How could he be captured by someone so young?"
"I refuse to reveal the Dark Notebook in exchange for Netero! Compared to Netero, the former is far more important!"
"Heh heh, letting such a top-secret matter fall into outsiders' hands—Netero, as Chairman, doesn't seem all that impressive."
"But Netero is still the Chairman of the Hunter Association. He has enormous prestige among the public. If we don't use the Dark Notebook to get him back, then those ordinary civilians..."
"Who gives a shit what those peasants think! In any case, I refuse to trade the Dark Notebook for a derelict Hunter Chairman!"
"Why not hire assassins and kill them all? They're useless anyway!" Someone even proposed such an absurd suggestion, though it was ignored. Netero, one of the strongest in the world, had already been captured. Who could they hire? Even the Zoldyck Family, the world's strongest assassin family, could not accomplish such a mission.
The leaders of the various nations were arguing fiercely in the meeting. Bean Man, Netero's secretary as Chairman of the Hunter Association, felt his head swelling and growing dizzy from listening. Worse still, he sadly realized that virtually none of the national leaders agreed to reveal the Dark Notebook in exchange for their beloved Chairman.
At the same time, he thought of the Hunter Association's Vice Chairman—Pariston. That man was actually still smiling. How could someone like that exist in this world?
"Prime Ministers, Kings, Generals, Chancellors, and Presidents, why not allow me to resolve this problem for you?" Just as these normally lofty figures haggled like shrews at a marketplace, a voice cut in.
"Who is it?"
"."
"There are three hours left, Netero. It seems they truly don't care about your life. You are merely a discarded pawn, thrown away after being used." Jed glanced at his watch atop Heaven's Arena's rooftop and spoke to Netero.
"I already told you, your idea is too naive. It can never succeed. Besides, I have long been prepared to sacrifice myself at any time, because I have lived long enough." Netero spoke with the air of an enlightened master who had seen through worldly affairs.
"Do you really want to die that badly?" Jed looked at Netero with a complicated expression.
"Even if you die, my revenge will not be over. Since those selfish people refuse to reveal the Dark Notebook, I'll personally kill my way through them until they surrender."
"Jed, you cannot do it. There are many powerful people in this world who are not much weaker than you or me. They simply do not reveal themselves, remaining hidden in the mountains, forests, cities, and even villages. If you truly do something so outrageously cruel, they will definitely act against you! And you absolutely will not survive." Netero tried to persuade Jed to abandon this extreme course. Jed would indeed die in the end. But it would certainly result in the deaths of countless civilians. The price was far too great. Those ordinary people were innocent.
"So what? Even if I die, I'll carry my revenge through to the end. Even if I die, I won't let them off easy! I'll tear a chunk of flesh off them and let them know pain."
"Jed, don't you think this obsession of yours is a lot like us Hunters? You really are still a Hunter after all!"
"No!"
"Ahem, sorry to spoil the two of you's enjoyment. Good evening, Jed, leader of the Shadows, and Mr. Netero, Chairman of the Hunter Association." A familiar voice rang out across the rooftop, one that startled both Jed and Netero.
"Who is it?" Jed was startled when he heard the voice. He had not sensed anyone approaching at all, and logically, there should not have been a fourth person here. Everyone else should have been intercepted inside Heaven's Arena. Although his subordinates were not particularly strong, he acknowledged the strength of the Chimera Ants' three Squad Leaders.
"It's you! Why are you here?" Jed was even more shocked after seeing the newcomer clearly.
"Meruem!" The name came from the restrained Netero. Like Jed, he was astonished by Meruem's arrival. Hadn't the Chimera Ants scattered across various places? And shouldn't Meruem, the Ant King, have been in the East Gorteau Republic? Why had he come here? And what was his purpose? That move he had just used—could it have been...
"Yo, Netero, you guessed right. That was the ability of your little subordinate named Knuckle." Meruem seemed to have seen through Netero's thoughts.
"Stay calm!" Meruem said to Jed. Then he rose into the air and came before Netero, looking at Netero's right hand. "What an amazing Nen ability. It even gave you a brand-new arm."
"Hmph, Ant King, did you come here to kill me?"
"Found it." While chatting with Netero, Meruem had actually been staring near Netero's heart, seemingly searching for something. When he suddenly smiled, he had apparently found it.
"I came here to beat you up." Without warning, Meruem struck Netero. His fist landed precisely on the spot Meruem had been searching for earlier.
"The hidden danger has been removed. Now it's safe." As Meruem spoke those inexplicable words, he smiled again.
"You!" Netero was somewhat dazed by Meruem's sudden punch. Meruem's fist had not been particularly heavy or painful, yet the blow carried a strange dizzying sensation. Netero's mind spun for a moment.
"You bastard! What exactly did you come here for?" Meruem's actions made Jed inexplicably restless. His plan should not have conflicted with these Chimera Ants, but for some reason, he kept feeling that something was wrong.
"You mean me? Of course I came to kill you."
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