Kill X Be Killed X Choose One

Qi Zhou slowly walked out of the concert hall.

The corridor outside was covered in blood and corpses.

He looked around blankly, then heard another scream-from the second basement level.

He ran toward the second basement level. Just as he was about to reach the stairs, he spotted Sith Lawn, the butler whose strength had terrified him, lying some distance away in a pool of blood, his eyes still open in death.

As Qi Zhou was about to step onto the last stair, he stopped dead. An instant later, he leaped backward, dodging a flash of a blade so fast it left no trace.

"Feitan, he's one of us."

"I saw him. Otherwise, would he have dodged?"

The voices of people he "knew" came from above.

Qi Zhou reached up and brushed the severed strands of hair from his forehead.

The exhibition hall floor was littered with the corpses and severed limbs of attendants in suits and ties, while everything that should have been in the display cases had vanished without a trace.

Shalnark was typing something on his phone. When he saw Qi Zhou, he smiled. "Ah, how did you end up looking so battered?"

"Are you hurt?" Machi walked over to him and asked softly.

Qi Zhou slowly shook his head. He pointed at the elderly people herded into a corner, who had looked vibrant and youthful only an hour ago. "...Them...?"

"Well done, Qi Zhou."

Chrollo's voice drifted over.

Qi Zhou felt his mind suddenly grow sluggish. He could barely understand what these people were saying or doing.

Chrollo said slowly, "These people are for you."

Qi Zhou didn't know whether he had understood, but he heard himself ask in a voice trembling beyond recognition:

"What...?"

"It's no fun if I spell everything out." Chrollo's lips curved slightly. "Must I explain? All right."

"Your final test to join the troupe: kill them."

The people pinned down in the corner had clearly heard him. They screamed and whimpered, "Don't kill me, don't kill me..."

Phinks walked over and dislocated their jaws, one by one.

"Mm... mm..."

Desperate, anguished whimpers came from their mouths, but Qi Zhou felt as though the sounds were coming from him.

He said quietly, "They... aren't a threat... to you..."

"They've seen our faces." Shalnark cut Qi Zhou off. "If there are any survivors, what Hilt Wood did will be pinned on us too."

Qi Zhou: "..."

Nobunaga sighed irritably. "Kid, this is for your own good too. None of these people are ordinary, and after you went in with them, you were the only one who wasn't affected. If you let them go now, do you think they'll let you off later?"

Qi Zhou said nothing. He seemed to be thinking about a great deal, and yet he also seemed to be thinking about nothing at all.

He slowly took half a step back. "I... won't kill."

He didn't mean he lacked the skill to kill. He meant he wouldn't take someone else's life.

Never.

"Tch, coward," Feitan said disdainfully.

Pakunoda looked at Qi Zhou and frowned slightly. "...Boss, he isn't suited to joining the Phantom Troupe."

She said slowly, "Strip away his memories and leave him to fend for himself."

Chrollo curved his lips and looked at Qi Zhou. "Have you decided?"

"...I don't understand."

Qi Zhou met his gaze. "Why kill them? They have nothing to do with you! If it's the things you want, there are other ways-"

Uvogin spat. "We're thieves, kid. What are you talking about? Of course thieves take what they want by force!"

He scratched his head, looking puzzled. "And so what if we kill people who have nothing to do with us? What's the big deal?"

Qi Zhou: "..."

He slowly repeated Uvogin's word. "Thieves?"

He gritted his teeth, stressing each word. "I will never join you! Never!"

Everyone fell silent.

Chrollo shrugged, turned away, and said, "Shalnark."

Shalnark pulled out his phone. "All right," he said softly.

Qi Zhou suddenly felt that he had lost control of his body.

He slowly moved, walking over to the people in the corner.

He slowly raised his hand, seized one of them by the collar, and lifted the person up with a casual tug.

He slowly brought his fingers together and channeled Nen into his fingertips, staring into the person's tear-streaked, pleading eyes.

His fingertips made a slight slicing motion-

Blood gushed out, splashing all over his face.

The sweet, metallic, slick blood slowly ran down his face.

His hand loosened gently, and the person's body fell to the floor with a thud.

...It was as though his soul had separated from his body.

...No matter what he did, he couldn't control even a single finger.

...He watched himself, one by one, take away these people's remaining time, the warmth of their bodies, and... their lives?

The last one.

A thud.

Qi Zhou knelt on the floor, retching, his face as pale as a dead man's. He had already emptied his stomach, but he still felt sick, as though he were about to vomit up his internal organs. A loud ringing filled his ears, like the wailing of the dead.

He didn't know whether someone had said something, but the others began walking outside.

As Feitan passed him, he tossed out a remark. "Useless."

As Shalnark passed, he reached out and patted Qi Zhou on the shoulder, then pulled an antenna from the back of his collar. He looked at Qi Zhou, his eyes still bright with a cheerful smile. "Don't look at me like that..."

Looking at Qi Zhou, whose eyes were full of killing intent, he continued, "It was the boss's order. I couldn't help it."

At last, Chrollo was the only one left in the room.

He walked over to Qi Zhou and looked down at the boy kneeling on the floor. "Now I can tell you what you wanted to know."

"I... won't... join you."

"We're the Phantom Troupe. We're on the B-rank wanted list-no, after this, it should be the A-rank list." Chrollo seemed not to have heard what Qi Zhou said and spoke slowly instead. "As you know, my name is Chrollo Lucilfer, and I'm the leader of the Phantom Troupe."

"I... won't-"

Chrollo said, "You did very well on this mission, beyond expectations, in fact. From now on, you are-"

Qi Zhou sprang to his feet.

Chrollo looked at him.

One of the boy's eyes had turned the "silver-blue" he had seen that day.

The boy's eyes held endless killing intent and a will to die. He said, stressing every word, "Even if I die, I will never, never, never join you!"

A violent Nen Ability exploded outward. A round pit two meters across lay where Chrollo had been standing.

Qi Zhou lay curled up on the ground.

Chrollo glanced at the floor, then looked at the boy.

This had surprised him. This time, the boy hadn't completely lost his mind during the outburst, instead choosing to seize the chance to escape when he hurled the flames at him.

Then, according to their agreement, if he dared run, Chrollo would take his ability, break his limbs, and shut him in a box.

Only... this brat had a secret more interesting than his support ability.