Elsewhere, Feitan had regained his ability to move.
He sprang up with a whoosh, ready to charge out and settle the score with A Luo!
Fortunately, Pakunoda stopped him on the way.
"The boss said A Luo is part of his collection. Until he loses interest in her, we all have to keep our distance from his collectible. That includes not disposing of her without his permission."
Feitan gave a chilling smile and looked at Pakunoda.
"So what if she's part of his collection? Over the years... hasn't the boss personally destroyed or sold off plenty of collectibles once he lost interest in them?"
Pakunoda glanced at Feitan and said evenly:
"That's why everyone had her look after you. She's someone who's destined to die. There's really no need for you to care about her, is there?"
Feitan froze, then regained his reason.
He put away his umbrella and murmured an assent, but his eyes grew strangely conflicted.
Was A Luo destined to die?
She'd toyed with him like that.
He had been itching to skin her alive with his own hands. Yet now that he had heard she was destined to die, what was this faint reluctance to let her go?
Back with Chrollo.
He took A Luo out of the hotel and headed toward Heavens Arena.
A Luo couldn't help asking him:
"Boss, where are we going?"
Cloaked in an air of gentle refinement, Chrollo looked back with a smile.
"I don't know!"
A Luo: "..."
You're leading the way, and you don't know where we're going?
Forget it. Better not argue with the head of the Spider.
"Boss, are you looking for someone?"
Chrollo thought for a moment, then nodded.
"You could say that!"
A Luo perked up at his answer.
In the original manga, aside from the members of the Phantom Troupe, she hadn't heard of Chrollo having any friends.
A Luo asked curiously:
"Then who are you looking for at Heavens Arena, boss?"
Chrollo smiled faintly.
"Can't you guess, A Luo? Didn't I already tell you the purpose of this trip?"
A Luo: "..."
The young girl mulled it over.
Chrollo had told her the purpose of this trip? Aside from the Indoor Fish and the dagger he'd already acquired in the town and the Dark Alley...
What else had he wanted?
Right!
A companion.
After the assassination of the Phantom Troupe's No. 8, there was a vacant spot in the group. They needed someone to fill it.
But what sort of person would Chrollo look for?
Someone who would show up near Heavens Arena, at that.
Unable to figure out whom Chrollo had his eye on, A Luo looked up at him.
Whenever Chrollo let his bangs down to hide the inverted cross on his forehead, he instantly looked utterly harmless.
Anyone who didn't know better would never have guessed that he was the leader of the notorious Phantom Troupe.
Now, dressed casually, Chrollo was walking with her along Heavens Arena's shopping street. A Luo held her question in for ages, but eventually couldn't resist asking what was on her mind.
"Boss, whether you're out looking for a new member or hunting for a new Nen Ability, why didn't you bring Machi and the others? Aren't you worried that bringing a useless girl like me will hold you back?"
Chrollo smiled gently, bent down, and ruffled Lola's hair.
"I thought you'd worked hard looking after someone these past few days, A Luo. Being cooped up in the hotel every day must be boring, so I brought you out to unwind!"
A Luo: "..."
What exactly was the head of the Spider up to?
To A Luo, Chrollo was like those mysterious, delicate sea creatures: the gentler and more harmless he seemed, the deadlier and more poisonous he was.
Unfortunately, her intelligence wasn't remotely on the same level as Chrollo's!
Once things strayed from the plot, Lola could rack her brains all she liked and still never guess what wicked scheme the boss was cooking up in that head of his!
And so, looking to outsiders like a picture of warmth and affection, the pair happily continued down the bustling, crowded shopping street.
Until they passed a café.
Chrollo stopped without warning.
A Luo bumped headfirst into his thigh and asked in confusion:
"Boss, what's wrong?"
Following Chrollo's gaze, A Luo saw a tall man with a star and a teardrop painted on his face.
She instantly broke out in a cold sweat!
Hisoka?! That man wearing clown makeup, holding playing cards, and grinning lewdly in their direction... that had to be Hisoka, right?
OMG!
What kind of rotten luck was this?!
The storyline hadn't even begun yet, and she'd already met the two brothers from the Zoldyck Family and fallen into the Spider's hands.
And now she'd even run into this perverted fruit farmer ahead of time?
No!
She absolutely couldn't let him notice her. Hisoka was every bit as difficult to deal with as Chrollo and Illumi.
Unfortunately, just as A Luo was sweating bullets over Hisoka, Chrollo's voice suddenly reached her ear in a pointed whisper:
"A Luo, do you know that man? Who is he? How do you know him? Could it be through that miraculous precognition of yours again? Machi told me to bring you along this morning. She said there would be an unexpected surprise... looks like her intuition really was spot-on."
After hearing Chrollo's words, A Luo wished she could just lie down on the ground and play dead. How could she be this unlucky?!
A wolf ahead and a tiger behind, whether it was Hisoka or Chrollo.
Neither of these men was someone she could afford to provoke as she was now!
One was a Transmutation user, and the other a Specialist.
Their intelligence and strength were both far beyond those of ordinary people!
How was a beginner like her, who'd only just unlocked Nen, supposed to carve out a way forward for herself in the hands of these two freaks?
A minute later, Lola decided to play dumb to the bitter end. She turned to Chrollo and shook her head with an utterly earnest expression.
"Boss, what are you talking about? I don't understand any of it!"
At the same time, Hisoka, who had already noticed them, abruptly lost his bored expression.
Like a cheetah that had spotted prey, he curved his lips into an intrigued smile, rose, and walked toward A Luo and Chrollo.
Who knew whether he had his eye on Chrollo, that proud, aloof, fully ripened fruit, or had taken an interest in the wealth of expressions flitting across A Luo's face?
A Luo watched helplessly as Hisoka approached, with Chrollo pressed close behind her, his intentions unknown.
For a moment, A Luo could only feel like crying, yet had no tears to shed. "..."
Before you continue