Qiudaozi called out to Cordis several times, but received no response.
Although the old butler had warned him to be careful of Cordis, Qiudaozi still couldn't believe that such an innocent-looking child would do something like this.
He was more inclined to believe that Cordis was fighting the people who had deliberately cut the power.
Just then, a deafening roar suddenly came from outside.
By the moonlight, the old butler spotted the helicopter that had arrived ahead of schedule.
"Qiudaozi! Hurry and get the boss and the Febola Stone onto the helicopter. You'll be safe once you're aboard!"
At that, Qiudaozi stopped looking for Cordis and escorted the boss and the Febola Stone toward the door.
Meanwhile, once Cordis's eyes had adjusted to the darkness, he headed outside.
Anyone who could cut the power without him noticing a thing...
Could only be someone from the Phantom Troupe.
If he wasn't mistaken, they had come for the Febola Stone too.
That was hardly good news.
Cordis wanted that gemstone badly, but so did Chrollo and the others.
Up against the monsters of the Spider...
Cordis really wasn't sure he could snatch the Febola Stone from them.
Chrollo and the others weren't fond of hiding, either.
When they saw Cordis leave the mansion, they stepped out of the corner where they had been hiding.
With his hands in his pockets, Chrollo walked up to Cordis and said solemnly,
"Cordis, long time no see. Though it's only been three or four days since we last met. I'd like an explanation for why you left without a word."
That left Cordis dumbfounded.
What did he mean, left without a word?
I'd clearly asked Hisoka to pass on a message for me.
Judging by Chrollo's reaction, that bastard Hisoka apparently hadn't passed it on.
Cordis explained how he had asked Hisoka to relay the message.
Chrollo rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"So that's what happened. It seems I misunderstood you. Hisoka certainly loves his little jokes, as always."
Chrollo sounded as though he didn't mind.
But the veins bulging in his neck and the murderous look in his eyes told Cordis just how much he hated Hisoka right then.
Seeing him like that, Cordis completely forgot about his plan to snatch the Febola Stone from Chrollo.
Cordis asked cautiously,
"Chrollo, are you here to steal the Febola Stone?"
Chrollo answered without much thought, still wearing that smile that so easily made people lower their guard.
"Of course. Are you after it too, Cordis?"
Cordis didn't know how to answer.
If he said yes, that meant he would be competing with Chrollo and the others.
If he said no, he would have to stop them from stealing the Febola Stone, making them enemies.
Neither being competitors nor being enemies sounded particularly good.
He had originally thought he could hold his own against Chrollo, but now he didn't dare say so.
After all, Chrollo looked so cute and gentlemanly that Cordis had assumed they would be about evenly matched.
But thinking about it, even Feitan was considerably stronger than him.
As Feitan's boss, how much weaker could Chrollo possibly be?
As the saying went, bully the weak and fear the strong.
Cordis was a textbook example.
Facing Gon and Killua, who were weaker than him, Cordis could shamelessly declare himself their big brother, then pat their heads and touch their faces.
But facing Chrollo and the others, who were clearly stronger than him...
He was like a child facing a parent.
He dared to be angry, but not to speak up.
After thinking for a long while, Cordis stammered,
"I... took a job. I'm supposed to protect the Febola Stone."
Toward the end, Cordis even lowered his head in fear, his voice growing quieter and quieter.
He remembered how he used to inwardly mock Killua for being so timid that he was afraid of his own brother.
Now that he thought about it, he seemed to be the timid one.
Chrollo deliberately put on a surprised expression.
"Oh? Really? I thought I saw you getting ready to rush onto the stage and steal it earlier. Was I mistaken?"
He then exchanged a few glances with the people beside him, looking thoroughly puzzled.
Standing opposite him, Cordis wished the ground would swallow him whole.
He truly lived up to his position as the head of the Spider.
He had seen straight through everything Cordis wanted to do.
Suddenly, a thunderous roar came from the sky.
Everyone looked up.
A helicopter appeared before them.
At the sight, Cordis inwardly cursed.
The helicopter was here early! If I missed this chance, the next one wouldn't come for hundreds of years.
He glanced at Chrollo in front of him, then at the helicopter that had already landed behind him.
Without another thought, Cordis abandoned Chrollo and the others and ran toward the helicopter.
Cordis was extraordinarily fast.
Almost instantly, he reached Qiudaozi and the others.
Seeing that Cordis had finally arrived, Qiudaozi felt a great weight lift from his heart.
The old butler felt differently.
Where had Cordis been all this time? He should have been at the boss's side, yet he had disappeared when the boss was in danger.
And now he had suddenly appeared again. What was he after?
Cordis stared fixedly at the Febola Stone in the young lover's hands.
It seemed even more beautiful in the moonlight.
Like a succubus, it kept tempting him.
The old butler was a seasoned man, and one look at Cordis's eyes told him they were in trouble.
In fact, the others could tell too. Cordis's gaze was far too obvious.
The old butler took out a check, wrote it for 700,000 JN, and held it out to Cordis.
"Here. You can leave now."
Cordis looked at the check in front of him and accepted it without the slightest hesitation.
He examined it again and again under the moonlight, then put it away once he was sure it was real.
Yet he showed no sign of wanting to leave.
Anyone else would have run far away as soon as they got their hands on 700,000 JN. Who would still care about the Febola Stone?
Unfortunately, the old butler had run into Cordis.
An obsessive gemstone enthusiast.
Rather than saying he liked gemstones, it would be more accurate to say he liked all luxury goods.
Anything expensive, rare, or one of a kind.
He loved them all.
As for the 700,000 JN, he wouldn't have cared whether they gave it to him or not.
But with the money offered right to his face, why would he refuse it?
His goal had been fixed from the moment he first laid eyes on the Febola Stone.
Cordis lifted his azure eyes and asked,
"Do you want your life, or the gemstone?"
"What?"
Qiudaozi cried out in shock.
He couldn't believe the boy before him would say something like that.
Seeing that money had been useless, the old butler turned to Qiudaozi and Nedepu beside him.
"Hold him off, even if it's only for a minute. I'll escort the boss and the Febola Stone onto the helicopter."
Before you continue