Too strong. There was no way to win.
Lying amid dust and broken bricks, Shizuku kept coughing up blood. It quickly soaked through her top, and that was the only thought in her mind.
Fortunately, she wore a black sweater, so the blood did not show.
"Looks like I won't be going back today-"
She heard footsteps approaching from nearby, unhurried, like the dance steps of the Grim Reaper.
Was there really a Grim Reaper in this world?
Even facing almost certain death, Shizuku felt little stirring in her heart.
She did not know when it had started, but she could no longer feel fear.
Perhaps she had been like this since birth. Perhaps it had been that high fever in her childhood?
She did not care.
She did not care whether other people lived or died, and cared even less about herself.
Just as when she first laid eyes on the leader, she had known then that he was [her kind].
He was just as indifferent to whether others lived or died, and even more indifferent to his own fate.
The difference was that he had something he cared about, while [Shizuku Murasaki] had always been empty inside.
"Your ability is quite good. Would you like to become my companion?"
The scene of Chrollo inviting her flashed before Shizuku's eyes. Why had she agreed back then?
Perhaps because she had thought that, like Chrollo, she might find something she truly cared about.
"The [Troupe's rules] are everything that allows the Phantom Troupe to endure. Following the rules will keep the Troupe going."
That was what Chrollo had said:
"The most important of them is [Obey the Leader's Orders]."
But Chrollo rarely forced them to do anything.
Except telling her not to stay out for more than half an hour,