Looking at Menchi's smug, triumphant expression, Liam naturally knew she had decisively won the cooking competition inside the bizarre pan world. Even though Menchi had patiently taught Machi everything about the environment inside the pan, offering her unlimited time to learn the physics and ingredients of that space, through three grueling cooking competitions, Machi had not managed to make Menchi lose even once.
If Machi lost, the rules dictated that Menchi could impose three absolute requirements on her.
When Shizuku had previously lost to Menchi under similar circumstances, two of the requirements Menchi gave her were to loudly greet Liam like a subservient maid and to personally cook his favorite dish. And that humiliating display had taken place several days after Shizuku actually lost the bet. This clearly showed just how strong and lingering the binding effect of Menchi's Nen "requirements" truly was.
"The first requirement," Menchi announced proudly, pointing a finger right at the silent, paralyzed Machi. "She will be my official cooking apprentice from now on. When she finally manages to become a one-star Gourmet Hunter, this requirement will be permanently voided."
Liam genuinely did not expect Menchi's thought process to go in that direction.
Machi remained completely silent, her eyes locked forward. Obviously, among the specific requirements Menchi had just imposed on her, there was no stipulation that she actually had to become lively, cute, or cheerful about the situation.
Menchi noticed Liam's confusion and explained, "Look at her. She has excellent, incredibly sharp eyesight and even more dexterous hands from her thread work. She is structurally perfectly suited to be a high-end chef! It is just a massive shame that her palate is not great. Her sense of taste is far too dull, and she clearly has very little interest in enjoying good food. Otherwise, her raw cooking skills might actually catch up with mine one day!"
Liam raised an eyebrow. "Why do you sound so disappointed that she did not catch up to you?"
"What are you even talking about?" Menchi huffed, crossing her arms. "Of course I want her to get better! I want to be able to sit down and taste delicious food that even I cannot cook myself!"
Since Machi was now officially her chef's apprentice, she naturally had to obey Chef Menchi's direct instructions. According to traditional, old-school kitchen concepts, she was essentially equivalent to being half a slave to her master. She could theoretically be beaten or severely scolded at any time and was not allowed to talk back. Of course, in turn, Menchi, as the master, also held the strict obligation to protect and take care of Machi's well-being.
"Alright," Liam said. "What about the other two requirements?"
"Beyond forcing her to completely abandon her identity as a member of the Phantom Troupe," Menchi said, raising two fingers one after another to emphasize her points, "my final rule is that, unless it is strictly in direct self-defense, she is absolutely not allowed to kill anyone ever again."
Machi did not seem to possess a particularly hyper-aggressive, inherently murderous personality to begin with, unlike some of the others.
As for formally leaving the Troupe...
Liam looked closely at the silent Machi. She maintained a perfectly cold face, entirely indifferent to his intense inspection. Even within the Phantom Troupe—a group that openly claimed its spider legs and even its head could be replaced at any time without issue—Machi was one of the few members who showed the most obvious, genuine concern for her companions' survival. In the original timeline, when Machi had heard Hisoka casually claim he wanted to kill the other Spiders, she had nearly exploded with rage on the spot.
Now that she was so incredibly cold and unresponsive, Liam figured two things were happening. First, Menchi's Nen ability was actively binding her actions, so throwing a violent tantrum was physically pointless. Second... Liam highly suspected Machi did not take the so-called "withdrawal" from the Phantom Troupe seriously at all. Even without the official title or the spider tattoo over her head, she would probably always be a Spider deep in her heart.
Liam suddenly shifted gears, asking a completely different question. "Meteor City. Are there any truly hidden masters living there?"
Machi finally reacted to that. She slowly raised her eyes to look at Liam, her gaze freezing cold.
Those eyes were indeed beautiful. The more discerning a person was regarding aura, the more beautiful they could see Machi's eyes truly were. She was born with a rare pair of eyes that could naturally see and trace aura flows even when they were wide open and unfocused.
In the Naruto world next door, that kind of visual prowess would absolutely count as a highly coveted bloodline limit eye technique.
"I mean," Liam clarified, thinking for a moment to phrase it right, "the kind of super master who can effortlessly injure the top-tier Nen users in the outside world. Is there actually such a person hiding in the Meteor City where you were born?"
Machi stared at him. "If you want to know so badly, go there and try to find out for yourself."
"There will definitely be a chance for that," Liam said with a faint smile. "But could you try to be a little more polite? After all, in terms of hierarchy, I am comparable to your new master's older brother. In a way, I can be considered your elder!"
"Who exactly is worthy of being called your brother?" Menchi said flatly, rolling her eyes.
Liam just chuckled and gestured for them to follow, leading Menchi and her new apprentice back through the winding streets to find Shizuku.
Shizuku was originally from Meteor City, and she might eventually want to return there in the future to settle things. Liam estimated he would probably end up following her there when the time came.
Meteor City's unofficial slogan was terrifyingly simple: Blood debts must be repaid in blood. Anyone who dared to take anything from Meteor City, be it a life or an insult, must pay it back tenfold. Years ago, someone had falsely framed a vagrant Meteor City resident who was wandering outside and unjustly imprisoned them. That single act had directly provoked Meteor City's ruling council to dispatch their infamous death squads to carry out massive suicide bombings in retaliation. A staggering amount of innocent people died just to make a point.
But, Liam reasoned, if he just quietly followed Shizuku in, kept his head down, and walked around for a day or two, it probably would not escalate to that kind of intense, explosive level.
However, thinking of what had recently happened to Bisky, who was currently trapped somewhere in Meteor City, Liam felt his confidence waver. He felt a little uncertain. Shizuku's "mother's" background was somewhat completely unfathomable. Judging from Machi's cold tone and guarded demeanor just now, he really did not know how much the Spider actually knew about the city's true elite.
That was right. During the chaotic days they had spent tracking and dealing with the Phantom Troupe in Vijarath, Isaac Netero had already arrived at Meteor City, riding on the back of the giant strange bird sponsored by the Zoldyck family's transport network, and successfully located Bisky. Bisky had been lurking deep in the city for a long time and had somehow suffered incredibly serious injuries...
Liam vividly remembered the training sessions on Greed Island, how Bisky had effortlessly pushed him to the ground and beaten him violently the moment she released her full, muscular true form. Her seemingly inexhaustible Transmutation-type Nen, which she converted into restorative lotion, meant her stamina was practically endless. She could easily be called a human-shaped perpetual motion machine. For someone like her to be severely injured—fierce Auntie Bi, of all people—he really did not know what kind of terrifying hell was hidden deep in that ghost-ridden junkyard of a city.
At that exact moment, his thoughts were interrupted. A strange, conflicting breath of aura that felt both freezing cold and blisteringly hot washed over the street and penetrated straight through Liam's chest.
Liam snapped his head up and saw a familiar, short figure walking slowly down the opposite side of the street. It was Feitan.
Apparently, he had just been released from Kurapika's Abyss book.
However, the assassin did not even raise his eyelids. He stared blankly at the pavement, acting exactly as if he did not see Liam standing there. Even when he walked directly past Machi, he did not react or acknowledge her presence at all.
Machi's beautiful eyes narrowed to sharp slits as she watched him pass.
Feitan's aura... it was completely gone. He did not even possess the most basic, fundamental Ten to keep his life energy contained. The faint, natural aura was slowly and uncontrollably evaporating from the top of his head, looking exactly like the fragile state of the ordinary, non-Nen-using tourists walking everywhere on the street. Kurapika had completely stripped him of his power.
Liam looked thoughtful for a second, then quickly adjusted his collar and quickened his pace.
Machi followed silently behind Menchi without saying a single word. Menchi hurried to keep up with Liam. The three of them quickly navigated the crowd and returned to the deep shadows of the original alleyway.
The scene had changed drastically. The floating Abyss book had completely disappeared, and Kurapika was missing from the alley as well.
Nobunaga still stood frozen in the exact same spot, still rigidly holding his katana out in front of him. But now, there was a massive person violently skewered entirely through the center of the steel blade. It was Uvogin's broad back. The bloody tip of the katana protruded cleanly from his chest, dark blood steadily dripping from the edge to pool on the concrete.
A few feet away, Shizuku was calmly putting away the idle paperback book she had been reading to pass the time. She stood up and hefted Blinky, the conjured bulging-eyed fish vacuum cleaner, clearly intending to suck in Uvogin's massive body so the gruesome scene wouldn't attract any unwanted police attention.
A sudden, violent burst of furious aura shot up from behind Liam.
Of course it was Machi. Seeing her oldest companions like this broke her forced calm.
Liam ignored her flaring aura. He pointed a finger at Uvogin, who was still gruesomely skewered on Nobunaga's paralyzed sword, and asked Shizuku, "What exactly happened here? Where is Suzaku?"
Shizuku adjusted her glasses. "After he came out of the book, the short one with the collar left the alley without saying a single word to anyone. The big one, however, did not leave immediately. He seemed to want to punch the paralyzed swordsman to death for some reason, and then this is what happened."
She pointed the nozzle of the vacuum at Uvogin, who had been impaled by Nobunaga's forced stance. "However, it seemed to me like he was already dead before he even threw the punch."
"As for Suzaku," she continued, pointing her free hand toward the distant, towering exhibition building, "he left. He went to find the Spider leader."
Liam frowned deeply. "He is still actively looking for Chrollo right now? His scarlet eyes have been active for so incredibly long today. Can his body even hold out much longer without collapsing?"
Without waiting for an answer, Liam waved his hand. Jade, who had been lurking invisibly nearby, immediately emerged from the solid ground. She gave a sharp nod of understanding and quickly fled, gliding through the shadows toward the charity exhibition building to provide backup.
Menchi watched the Nen beast leave and asked strangely, "Are you not going to go and help him yourself?"
Liam shook his head slowly. "He is attacking the head of the Troupe. If he cannot handle Chrollo with the abilities he prepared, we would be even more helpless in a direct fight. If it were not for him and his chains, we absolutely would not have been able to deal with so many of the Spiders so easily today. As for us..." He looked up at the clear blue sky. "We are almost out of time here. It is time to go pick someone up."
With a loud, sickening slurping noise, Uvogin's massive body was sucked entirely into the mouth of the vacuum cleaner. Nobunaga remained frozen in place, his katana now empty, his eyes so bloodshot they looked ready to burst from his skull.
"You..." Liam looked at Nobunaga, hesitating for a second, before waving his hand dismissively. "Forget it. Just find a quiet place to squat for a while and cool off. We will talk later."
He released the blood control command holding the samurai. Nobunaga instantly collapsed to his knees, gasping for air, his sword clattering to the pavement.
"I just handled the situation myself. Wasn't my method pretty simple and effective?" Menchi muttered proudly, looking at Liam, who had already turned and was leaving the alley with Shizuku.
When she looked back over her shoulder, she saw that Machi's face was terrifyingly gloomy, her aura flaring with barely contained, violent intent. Menchi let out a long sigh. "I strongly advise you not to even think about revenge..."
Menchi had witnessed with her own two eyes Liam's rocket-like improvement. He had gone from being relatively mediocre when they first met to his current, terrifying level, where he possessed absolutely no blind spots in any aspect of his combat strength. At this insane growth rate, Liam showed no signs of slowing down anytime soon. It was exactly as if there was a bottomless, hungry pit inside that guy's body, constantly devouring power.
Twenty minutes later, standing on the wind-swept roof of a high-rise building on the edge of the city, Liam stood silently, looking toward the southern horizon.
After waiting for a while, Shizuku blinked behind her glasses and pointed. She saw a tiny black dot appear on the distant, hazy skyline. Soon, the black dot was approaching rapidly, growing larger by the second. It was the giant, prehistoric-looking strange bird that Netero had been riding that first day they met.
The strange bird flew directly overhead, its massive wings casting a huge, fleeting shadow over the roof, but it did not slow down or attempt to land at all. However, as it passed, a petite, familiar figure leapt casually from the bird's back and landed lightly on the concrete rooftop, her boots making a soft thud.
Standing before Liam and the others was Bisky, who had been away for what felt like a very long time.
Shizuku stepped forward, her eyes widening. She looked directly at Bisky's right arm, or rather, where it should have been. The space below her shoulder was completely empty. The shriveled, blood-stained sleeve of her dress swayed gently in the desert wind.
Meanwhile, back in the messy, completely looted exhibition building.
"Your companion is completely dead, and you did not even change your breathing rhythm to react."
Silva Zoldyck's five fingers were hardened like steel knives. He had ruthlessly pierced his hand straight through Linka's chest, leaving the pale young man hanging bloody and lifeless on his thick arm.
After being violently killed, the completely transparent person the assassin had been searching for so long had finally lost his invisibility and appeared in the physical world. After closely examining the face and confirming the target was indeed correct, Silva gave a short, satisfied nod. Even though only half of the boy's head was left intact after the initial strike.
Chrollo Lucilfer stood directly behind the massive assassin. He was holding a large, conjured book with the words Skill Hunter written on the cover in one hand. In his other hand, he gripped a simple, vicious-looking knife with strange, glowing totems and archaic runes heavily engraved along the steel. He was in the middle of slashing the cursed blade directly into the back of Silva's head.
"Dead is dead. At least his sacrifice allowed me to easily catch you off guard, right?" Chrollo said calmly, his voice echoing in the empty hall. "I really wonder exactly how much the King of Killers' head is worth on the black market?"
Silva did not flinch as the blade bit in. "I said from the very beginning, he was the only one I was hired to kill."
Chrollo pressed the knife down harder. The strange, glowing blade cut deeper into Silva's skull, slicing through skin and bone inch by agonizing inch, almost cutting down into Silva's thick neck.
Chrollo spoke slowly, his voice almost conversational. "Those who are cut by this specific knife will find that their wounds never, ever heal. The afflicted body will deteriorate day by day, minute by minute, second by second, entirely within the span of a single year, until it is completely rotten and withered away to dust. It is really a curious thing. I wonder how you will feel, watching your own inevitable death slowly approach you every single day."
"..."
Silva did not scream or pull away. He merely shifted his eyes and casually glanced to the side. "Your real opponent has arrived."
Chrollo's pupils contracted sharply. He had not been distracted by Silva's words and had kept a close, highly trained eye on the assassin's muscle movements. As a result, right under his intense gaze, Silva simply... disappeared. The bloody corpse of Linka that he had just stabbed to death also vanished into thin air.
Instead of the giant man, there was only a vague, shimmering figure—a pure Nen phantom—taking Silva's exact place where he had just been standing. Incredibly, even the deep, fatal wound on the phantom's head, which had just been split open by the weird cursed knife, was replicated exactly.
Pop. The Nen shadow quietly dissipated into the air, leaving nothing behind.
Chrollo stood in the empty hall, momentarily speechless. With a quick, practiced flick of his wrist, he placed the strange knife back onto the open page of Skill Hunter, the weapon dissolving into the paper.
He turned around slowly. Standing there coldly in the aisle between the empty display cases was a young man with bright blond hair and blazing red eyes. He was holding a heavy book in his hand with the word Abyss written boldly across the cover.
"I see. So you possess a Nen ability that is very similar to mine," Chrollo said, his tone analytical. He faced the young man, holding Skill Hunter open in his hand, casually flipping through a few pages with his thumb.
Directly behind Chrollo, entirely unnoticed, a beautiful humanoid Nen beast quietly emerged from the polished floorboards. Jade held the glowing Yin Nen Sword hidden behind her back with one hand, and delicately held a Chainsaw Woman talisman pinched between two fingers of her other hand, staring unblinkingly at Chrollo's exposed back.
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