Unexpected Visitor

PS: Thanks to Old Qingke for the 104,003 gold Au and silver Ag book reward.

Like the black wings of a fallen angel, two chains formed from the back of Purgatory, one of the Dark Shadow Three Giants, sprouted from the other side of the rooftop and shot toward Netero's position. Purgatory knelt on the ground, a bloodstained dagger lodged in her stomach, her eyes vacant as she stared at the floor. This was the same method Jed 1 had used to trap Netero in the original story—a forbidden technique paid for with Purgatory's life.

"Damn it, I can't dodge." The two chains weren't fast; they hadn't even reached the speed of sound, and even Killua before learning Godspeed could outpace them. Netero, who had toyed with Killua on the airship, should have easily evaded them. But he keenly sensed that he was completely locked in—no matter which direction he fled, those chains would eventually bind him.

Sure enough, Netero leaped hundreds of meters away from Heaven's Arena in an instant. Yet the two chains wrapped around him at his original position in an impossible manner, as if the move had some connection to causality—not something you could just dodge. No wonder Jed 1 had kept this as a backup to subdue Netero. A guaranteed hit was too broken a property, upsetting all balance.

"Jed 1, even if you trap me or kill me, you'll never force the Hunter Association to release the Dark Notebook to the outside world." Netero struggled a few times, found he couldn't break free of the black substance, and gave up resisting.

"Hmph, Netero, don't you feel bitter saying that? The Association you've fought so hard to protect abandons you for the sake of those so-called human elites, refusing to reveal the truth. Don't you find that tragic?" Jed 1 seemed to have expected Netero's words. Maybe he'd known this outcome from the start, but he still pressed on despite it.

"Tragic? No, this is right. Sacrificing me for the happiness of more people is worth it. Jed 1, you've strayed from the path. Hunters aren't as simple as you think. We can give our lives for our ideals."

"Strayed? For the happiness of more people? Netero, the happiness you're talking about is the comfortable lives of those human elites. Ideals? You dare talk to me about ideals? You hunters are all a bunch of bastards who indulge your selfish desires, licking the boots of the powerful for money and gain! A pack of self-serving scum! I'll make the whole world know the bloody truth!"

"Jed 1, you don't understand. Sacrificing a few for the happiness of many—sometimes the truth isn't fit for everyone to know!"

"Don't give me that 'kill one to save a hundred' crap! Other people's lives are precious, but the Shadow Clan's lives are cheap? We deserved to be wiped out? To be imprisoned?"

"You were once a Hunter."

"But I'm not anymore! Now I'm an avenger crawling out of the abyss! I'll drag you bastards in one by one! I'll make you feel our pain!"

Two ideals clashed, only differing in where each stood. From ancient times to now, the victor is king. Only the winner has the final say.

"I don't want to argue with you anymore, Netero. I'll use you to pressure the whole world. I'll make the Hunter Association release the Dark Notebook."

"This won't work, Jed 1. You know that yourself."

"Shut up!"

"Asura, broadcast this live to the whole world, especially the Hunter Association!"

"What? Netero's been 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? How does anyone still know about it? What the hell is the Hunter Association doing, letting such top-secret info leak?" "Contact the Hunter Association! We need to convene an emergency meeting!"

With Jed 1's broadcast, world leaders received the news instantly: the Hunter Association Chairman had been captured, and someone was using him to blackmail the Association into revealing the Dark Notebook—the dirty history of the Association and every nation.

"What the hell is the Hunter Association doing?"

"How did this happen? Isn't Netero supposed to be the strongest in the world? How did some young punk catch him?"

"I refuse to release the Dark Notebook to save Netero! Compared to him, the former is far more important!"

"Hmph, letting such classified info leak to outsiders—this Chairman Netero doesn't seem so impressive."

"But Netero is still the Hunter Association Chairman, with huge public influence. If we don't trade the Dark Notebook for him, the common people..."

"Who cares what those plebs think? I won't agree to trading the Dark Notebook for a derelict Chairman!"

"Why not just hire assassins to kill them all? They're useless anyway!" Someone even suggested this absurd idea, but it was ignored. If one of the world's strongest, Netero, had been captured, who could you hire? Even the world's top assassin family, the Zoldycks, couldn't handle a job like this.

The world leaders bickered fiercely in the meeting, while Bean Man, Netero's secretary from the Hunter Association, listened until his head throbbed. He sadly realized that almost none of the leaders agreed to release the Dark Notebook to save their beloved Chairman.

Then he thought of the Hunter Association's Vice Chairman—Pariston. That man was still smiling. How could someone like that exist in this world?

"Your Excellencies, kings, generals, prime ministers, and presidents. Perhaps I can solve this problem for you." A voice cut in as the usually lofty dignitaries haggled like fishwives at a market.

"Who's there?"

"..."

"Three hours left, Netero. Looks like they really don't care about your life. You're just a used-up pawn they've discarded." Jed 1 glanced at his watch on the rooftop of Heaven's Arena and spoke to Netero.

"I told you, your idea is too naive. It'll never work. And I've long been ready to die. I've lived enough." Netero looked like a master who had seen through the mortal world.

"Do you really want to die that badly?" Jed 1 looked at Netero with a complicated expression.

"Even if you die, my revenge won't end. Since those selfish bastards won't release the Dark Notebook, I'll kill them myself until they surrender."

"Jed 1, you can't do it. There are many strong people in this world not much weaker than you or me, hiding in mountains, cities, even villages. If you do something so heinous, they'll come for you. And you definitely won't survive." Netero tried to persuade Jed 1 to abandon this extreme path. In the end, Jed 1 would surely die, but it would cause massive civilian casualties. The cost was too high. Those ordinary people were innocent.

"So what? Even if I die, I'll see my revenge through. Even if I die, I won't let them off easy! I'll tear a piece out of them and make them feel the pain!"

"Jed 1, don't you think this obsession of yours is just like a Hunter? You're still a Hunter at heart!"

"No, I'm not!"

"Ahem, sorry to interrupt your chat, but good evening, Shadow leader Jed 1 and Hunter Association Chairman Netero-san." A familiar voice rang out on the rooftop.

"Who's there?" Jed 1 startled at the voice. He hadn't sensed anyone approaching, and there shouldn't have been a fourth person here. The others should have been stopped inside Heaven's Arena. His subordinates weren't that strong, but the three Squad Leaders of the Chimera Ants were formidable enough by his admission.

"You! How did you get here?" Jed 1 was even more shocked when he saw who it was.

"Meruem!" This came from the bound Netero. Like Jed 1, he was astonished by Meruem's arrival. Weren't the Chimera Ants scattered everywhere? Shouldn't the Ant King, Meruem, be in East Gorteau Republic? What was he doing here? And what was his goal? But that move he just used—could it be...

"Yo, Netero, you guessed right. That's the ability of your little subordinate, Knuckle." Meruem seemed to read Netero's thoughts.

"Calm down!" Meruem said to Jed 1, then floated up to Netero and looked at his right hand. "What a fascinating Nen ability. It even gave you a new arm."

"Hmph, Ant King, have you come to kill me?"

"Found it." While bantering with Netero, Meruem had been staring at the area near Netero's heart, as if searching for something. When he suddenly smiled, it seemed he'd found it.

"I've come to punch you." Without warning, Meruem struck Netero, his fist hitting exactly the spot he'd been looking at.

"Threat removed. Now it's safe." With Meruem's cryptic words, he smiled again.

"You!" Netero was dazed by the sudden punch. It wasn't heavy or painful, but it carried a strange dizziness. For a moment, Netero's mind felt foggy.

"You! What are you really here for?" Seeing Meruem's actions, Jed 1 grew inexplicably agitated. His plan shouldn't conflict with these Chimera Ants, but he had a bad feeling.

"You mean me? I'm here to kill you, of course."