Over the past two weeks, Liam and Shizuku had been moving steadily toward the airport, changing hotels every few days. Most of their time went to training. Occasionally, they'd take breaks to wander the city and pretend to be normal people.
Which meant their current hotel was close to the airport but far from the shopping mall where Liam had ordered the rings. Opposite directions, naturally.
Liam had sent Shizuku ahead to check airship schedules while he doubled back to pick up the order. Speed-wise, he was faster now. Plus, Shizuku had completely forgotten where the mall was and would need to look it up on her phone anyway.
The morning streets were packed. Commuters, tourists, delivery trucks. Liam moved through it all like water through cracks.
He jumped onto a lamppost, used the momentum to swing himself toward a building wall, and ran along the vertical surface for several steps before gravity caught up. Pedestrians on the sidewalk didn't even notice. Just another blur in their peripheral vision.
That was the advantage of being a Nen user in a world of normal people. You could break physics, and nobody batted an eye.
Training aura was way more efficient than traditional exercise, but Liam hadn't neglected the basics. Punching drills. Running. Footwork. His progress over the past two weeks had been absurd.
In the manga, Gon and Killua had run a marathon during the Hunter Exam without breaking a sweat. Liam was pretty sure he could do the same now. Hell, he could probably maintain Ken for 150 minutes while doing it.
He strolled through the streets with his hands in his pockets, navigating from memory. When he passed a drink shop, he stopped and bought something cold.
"Not bad," he muttered, checking his phone. Six and a half minutes since he'd left the hotel. He was already more than halfway there.
He tossed the empty cup into a trash can without looking and kept walking.
Then he heard it.
A loudspeaker blaring from a nearby electronics store: "The latest masterpiece from game master XCOM! The thrilling 'Fun Island' is now available!"
Liam stopped. "What island?"
He turned and walked into the store.
Greed Island. That was the name of the game Ging Freecss and his buddies had made using Nen. G-R-E-E-D I-S-L-A-N-D. Each letter taken from a developer's name. G for Ging, obviously.
It was a game only Nen users could play. Limited run of 100 copies. Out of print. Auction prices in the billions.
The shelves in this video game store were stocked with brand-new cartridges. A TV screen on the wall played a promotional video: fantasy landscapes, flashy abilities, online co-op, PvP battles.
A blond man in a suit stood in front of the display, watching with mild interest.
"What the hell is 'Fun Island'?" A young guy walked up beside him, squinting at the packaging. "Oh, it's a knockoff. Figures."
The blond man turned.
Liam turned.
Their eyes met.
Wait. Do I know this guy?
Liam studied the man. Blond hair, slightly messy. Business suit, but worn like someone who'd just been fired and couldn't be bothered to care. The vibe was distinctly unemployed-and-bitter.
The man's smile widened. "Kid, want an autograph?"
Oh no.
Liam's brain connected the dots. That smile. That face. That insufferable energy.
Pariston Hill. Future Vice President of the Hunter Association. Professional chaos agent. Walking disaster in a cheap suit.
"If you're a Nen user," Pariston said cheerfully, "you should know Greed Island is made with Nen abilities. It'd never be sold in a normal store like this. A single authentic copy goes for enough money to buy this entire building."
Liam pointed at the shelf. "This is Fun Island. Are you illiterate? Read it with me. Fun…. Island."
Pariston opened his mouth to reply, but someone in the store suddenly shouted.
"Wait, is that you? Pariston! Hey, everyone, it's that Pariston! The lawyer from the O.Zee case!"
"The bastard who got that wife-killer acquitted?"
"What's a scumbag lawyer doing here?"
Customers swarmed toward Pariston like sharks smelling blood. Even the store employees abandoned their posts to stare. The atmosphere shifted from curiosity to barely restrained violence.
"How could you defend that piece of trash?" someone demanded.
"And you won! You actually got him off!"
Pariston's smile never wavered. "As a lawyer, I take cases for money. Winning proves I have excellent professional skills. O.Zee walked free because Ochima's legal system has flaws. If you're angry, blame the system, not me."
He adjusted his tie. "Besides, I'm not a lawyer anymore. Ochima's legal community wasn't challenging enough. Too easy."
The crowd bristled.
Pariston's eyes flicked toward Liam for a split second, noting the kid's sudden change in expression. Then Liam turned and bolted for the exit.
This guy worked as a defense lawyer? For a wife-murderer? Liam felt a spike of disgust. Then again, it fit Pariston's whole deal. The man thrived on making people miserable.
But that wasn't what made Liam leave.
In the mirror facing the street outside the store, he'd seen three figures walking through the crowd.
One was a woman with messy pink hair tied in a side ponytail, dressed like she'd just left a gym. Athletic, sharp-eyed, dangerous.
Machi. From the Phantom Troupe.
Beside her, a short figure with long hair obscuring their entire face.
Kortopi.
And the third person. Average height, casual clothes, short black hair, white bandana tied across his forehead.
Chrollo Lucilfer. Leader of the Phantom Troupe. Spider's Number Zero.
Liam stepped outside and glanced across the street, just long enough to confirm he wasn't hallucinating. Then he turned and kept walking toward the mall, forcing himself not to stare.
Don't look. Don't engage. Just keep moving.
Behind him, Pariston emerged from the video game store, suit rumpled, smile intact. He looked in the direction Liam had been staring.
He didn't know who the kid had seen. But Pariston activated Gyo and scanned the crowd.
Three people. Walking casually down the opposite sidewalk. Their aura was massive, completely unrestrained. They weren't even trying to hide it. Anyone with basic Nen training could see they were dangerous.
Pariston's smile widened.
He had nothing better to do. Might as well follow.
Cosmo Airport.
The three Phantom Troupe members walked through the bustling terminal, weaving between travelers with ease.
"I hate airships," Machi said flatly.
Chrollo glanced at her. "Our luck hasn't been great on this continent. We've searched everywhere, and there's still no sign of the Wangu Hui Guo Rou treasure."
"Legendary treasures are usually just legends," Kortopi said. "It might not even exist."
"Are you listening to me?" Machi's eyebrow twitched. "I said I hate airships."
"Then don't buy a ticket," Kortopi suggested. "Just hijack one."
Machi sighed.
Honestly, she had a bad feeling about flying. Not fear. Just... unease. Intuition whispering that something was off.
"Someone's watching us," Chrollo said without breaking stride. "Four o'clock."
"Yeah. Noticed."
Machi and Kortopi didn't turn around. They didn't need to. Years of experience taught them to sense hostile attention. This wasn't hostile, though. Just curious.
"Gone," Chrollo said, glancing back. Among the crowd at four o'clock, he caught a glimpse of a dark-haired girl in a black sweater, already walking away. "Maybe they recognized us."
"It's because Machi's hair is too bright," Kortopi said.
"Your look is the problem," Machi shot back. "Want me to cut your hair?"
They kept walking, bickering casually, disappearing into the terminal crowd.
On the other side of the hall, Shizuku sat down in front of a massive electronic flight board.
"That was the Phantom Troupe."
She'd been curious. Wanted to get a closer look. But the boss had told her to check flight schedules, so she forced herself to focus.
She pulled out her phone and started scrolling through departure times.
The Troupe could wait.