"Yah-hoo! Boy!" As soon as Johnson stepped out, Melone familiarly slung an arm over his shoulder. "How's your health? What's your zodiac sign? I'll show you a trick; I can tell your blood type in an instant."
He leaned in very close, almost giving Johnson a great sense of pressure.
"..."
"Ah, I forgot, you don't understand italian, do you?" Melone said with a laugh, "Di molto, I'm best at being a teacher. Anyway, everyone's in Naples lately, you can come find me, and I'll teach you italian."
"It's a long story, but I used to be a village teacher, specifically teaching a class of children."
Johnson looked up at him. Melone's clothes were similar in color to his hair, and he seemed to be the most approachable person in the Assassination Team.
"No need, Teacher Melone."
Johnson placed a hand on his chest, pushed him away with a smile, and then ran off as if escaping.
The moment Melone turned his back on Johnson, his expression subtly changed, and he muttered, "This kid, he's really annoying."
"Yo, Melone, you really were a teacher?" Illuso, passing by, teased him insensitively.
"You talk too much."
"You called for me, Captain?" Johnson sat on the sofa. Due to Gerard and Sobel's funerals, the Assassination Team was unusually gathered for something other than splitting money. However, Italy isn't that big; even a full circuit wouldn't take more than a day or two, so the Assassination Team members could still meet once a week.
"I just contacted the Boss."
At the mention of the Boss's name, everyone involuntarily shivered, their gazes turning towards Risotto. The shock from Gerard and Sobel's deaths was simply too great.
Risotto also felt everyone's gazes, then spoke words that were not what everyone expected. He said, "You must pass Polpo's test before you can join."
"That fat bastard?" Ghiaccio indignantly cried, "Are we, the Assassination Team, still under that fat bastard's control?"
"Watch your tone, Ghiaccio. Don't let others easily know what you're thinking." Risotto, uncharacteristically, lectured his team member, then turned to look at Johnson Joffrey. "This is a life-or-death test. I don't know what kind of questions he'll ask; it all depends on his mood."
"Especially given the current special situation of our Assassination Team, I'm worried he might make things difficult for you."
"I understand." Johnson nodded solemnly. It was that famous lighter test, no, perhaps even more difficult. He remembered Polpo's test wasn't fixed; sometimes it depended on his mood. Risotto's achievements might already be on par with his, so he might use me as a warning to the Assassination Team.
"This place is our secret base. You shouldn't have come here, so tomorrow, after you've taken the test, go straight home."
"Alright."
"Meow~" A meow caught Formaggio's attention. "Oh-yah, oh-yah, you're still alive, little cat?"
"Huh?" Johnson's eyes widened. He stared in disbelief at the lively cat. "What's going on? How is it still alive?"
"How come I feel like you've gotten heavier?"
Formaggio weighed the kitten in his hand and exclaimed.
"It got heavier?" Johnson quickly stood up. "Mr. Formaggio, please let me see the cat."
Although Formaggio was a bit puzzled, he was about to hand the cat to Johnson when the cat let out a fierce, high-pitched shriek, even louder than usual, seemingly despising Johnson Joffrey.
Johnson quickly summoned his Stand. The moment he summoned his Stand, Reversed Hierophant reached out and forcibly touched the cat... The string from the bottle had completely disappeared, gone entirely... The cat's claws became sharper... Johnson stood up, finally understanding what his Stand Ability was... The cat had absorbed energy from the beer bottle.
Was that string a conduit for transferring things?
[A Stand is a manifestation of one's inner self]
What was I thinking when I awakened my Stand? At that time, I kept thinking, if only I had more power, I could go upstairs... Absorbing energy from other places, what is the duration? What is the limit? What types of objects can be absorbed?
The string is not a substance; it's a concept.
—
"The meeting time is 15 minutes. No items are allowed to be taken out from inside. There's reinforced glass separating us, but you can still talk. Do not touch the glass, or the alarm will sound. Be mindful of your words and actions." After the female officer searched Johnson Joffrey thoroughly, he looked towards the door deep within the iron bars. A dim light emanated from inside, accompanied by the smell of mold, as if few people lived there.
The iron door made a loud clang as the iron bars were pulled open.
"You go in here, and the door will close. Remember, if anything happens, call for help immediately."
Johnson Joffrey stepped onto this path that Giorno Giovanna would inevitably take in the future. The green light appeared eerily strange, and his leather shoes made a clacking sound as he walked. Several Egyptian-style stone statues hung above the corridor, their mouths agape, the dark openings seemingly ready to swallow everything.
The light in one of the rooms ahead suddenly turned on. Johnson Joffrey walked to the glass in front of the room.
The room was bright and fully equipped with living facilities. A large bed on the floor suddenly stirred... "You are—" The large bed stretched out, suddenly transforming into a massive yellow humanoid figure, like a small hill. Its black eyes looked down at Johnson Joffrey, "Johnson Joffrey?"
"That's right." Johnson Joffrey nodded, looking at him.
Polpo remained silent, staring intently at Johnson with a poker face. This gaze made Johnson feel a little nervous. Four months of transmigration, although he had grown considerably in his fight with Tang En, almost completely transforming him, it was nothing compared to Polpo, who had walked on a knife's edge for many years.
He recalled that Polpo hadn't been so fierce when he first met Giorno.
Joining the Assassination Team was not Johnson Joffrey's original intention; he was more inclined to join the protagonist's Bucciarati's Team. However, fate intertwined, and he inadvertently joined the Assassination Team. This meant that for him—golden wind had already begun.
His goal was to kill Polpo, disrupt the entire golden wind plot, allow the Assassination Team to survive, and simultaneously learn Trish's secret in advance.
This was an extremely bold idea, essentially giving up his advantage of knowing the plot.
However, because I understand the plot, I know how to disrupt it, and disrupting the plot is also part of my plan.
But in the current situation, Polpo clearly isn't treating me with the same attitude he treated Giorno. Giorno could easily assassinate him, but I absolutely cannot. This is due to his vigilance against the Assassination Team.
I might very well become like what Risotto said—
"You are... Risotto's nephew?"
"Yes, Mr. Polpo."
"Well, that's good. Your test is to go die now."
Indeed... A Stand suddenly appeared behind him...
It was originally scheduled for twelve o'clock, but was changed to 12:30.
Mainly for this, alas, there's no other way, I'm just that loyal.
Everyone go check it out.
"When I Became a Ghoul!"