"Let's move. The Chimera Ants that escaped won't just sit around," Kite said, leading the way out of the Queen's nest.
The fresh air outside invigorated the group. The piles of meatballs and bones within the Chimera Ant nest were beyond stomach-turning.
Joey really couldn't comprehend how Morel, after witnessing that hellish sight, could be moved afterward—let alone choose to shelter the Chimera Ants who had surrendered.
Maybe it was because Joey's perspective was too limited, his understanding too shallow. Or maybe he just wasn't the sentimental type to begin with.
In any case, he didn't hold much goodwill toward the Chimera Ants. The fact that he didn't immediately demand their extermination after seeing that den was his last concession to the idea they might retain fragments of human memory.
But even if they had memories—could these monsters truly still be considered human?
Joey didn't know the answer, and he didn't plan to dwell on it. He would act according to his own judgment—he could cooperate with Chimera Ants when necessary, but he would never truly accept them as allies.
Human nature was diverse. Joey didn't need others to validate his beliefs, nor would he force himself to embrace someone else's.
At the very least, when it came to Chimera Ants, he and Kite were on the same page.
No matter the situation, neither would drop their guard.
Even knowing that, in the manga's final battle, Chimera Ants allied with the humans proved helpful—Joey's ingrained values made it impossible to trust non-humans so easily.
Perhaps in a world filled with magical beasts and demi-humans, society could be more accepting—but Joey would need time. Time to understand, to observe, to decide for himself.
Maybe one day, he could change his mind.
Or maybe not…
"The checkpoint sent a message—everyone stationed there is dead. Each of them had their brainstems and cervical spines ripped out in an instant."
André had been in constant contact with the outside world as they traveled—both to track Chimera Ant activity and to monitor Hunter movements.
Now, the grave look on his face deepened as he shared the intel.
"Probably the leopard-type Chimera Ant I saw," Joey muttered, thinking of Cheetu.
"He's not our problem," Kite said coldly. "Our mission is to eliminate regular soldier ants. We leave the tougher ones to the Chairman."
"That doesn't sound like something you'd say," André commented, surprised.
"Our team's assignment is the same as Knuckle and Shoot's—subdue scattered Chimera Ants and gather intel on the Royal Guards and the King," Kite explained as they walked.
"Be extremely cautious. Avoid any contact with the King or the Royal Guards at all costs. If contact is made, losing teammates might be the best-case scenario."
His words were grim but sincere. As the only one among them to have fought a Royal Guard, Kite's warning carried undeniable weight.
"Any new leads on Hunters targeting Joey?" Kite pivoted the topic.
"There are. Pokkle's in trouble—he's gotten tangled up with people from the Kakin Empire," André said with a confident smirk. For him, uncovering this level of info was no big deal.
"Kakin? What does that have to do with anything?" Joey blinked in confusion. The Kakin Empire wasn't even located on the Baloose Islands.
"Because of the drug trade. Yoshikage Kira used to travel to Kakin frequently. Based on the intel, he even had ties with Kakin's Fourth Prince."
As Kite spoke, he retrieved a file from his coat and handed it to Joey.
Tscheridnich Hui Guo Rou—Fourth Prince of Kakin. His mother was the Queen, Unma.
He was deeply entwined with the Kakin Mafia, particularly the Ai-I Family.
The drug trade in Kakin was essentially monopolized by the Mafia, and two months ago, during a major transaction, Yoshikage Kira encountered the Fourth Prince. The two became "friends."
But that "friendship" was forged in blood—the entire convoy of one of Kakin's Eighth Prince's units had been slaughtered.
That convoy belonged to Salé-salé Hui Guo Rou, the Eighth Prince, and it had included several beautiful women. The carnage enraged him.
He offered a massive bounty and hired professional Hunters to investigate the incident. Their search led them straight to the Fourth Prince and the drug syndicate.
The detective Hunters in charge had even managed to deduce the killer's general ability type based on leftover clues.
That's as far as the investigation got. Neither the Fourth Prince nor a major narcotics syndicate embedded in NGL was someone the Eighth Prince could afford to cross.
But things didn't end there.
Unable to openly challenge the culprits, the Eighth Prince kept the bounty active to pacify his private forces.
Meanwhile, the detective Hunters passed the case to Criminal Hunters they trusted. They connected the dots across similar mass disappearances, linking them back to this one.
Thus, the "serial killer" was officially pinned on a high-ranking member of the drug syndicate.
And the killer's ability was described in chilling detail—someone capable of making people and objects disappear without a trace.
That was the key intel: within the drug syndicate, there was a Nen user whose power could erase corpses from existence—without leaving a shred of evidence.
With this report circulating, any Nen user in NGL who had witnessed Killer Queen's ability would immediately assume Joey was the killer.
Joey frowned as he studied the file.
"Kakin's Fourth Prince is dangerous," André warned, voice grim.
"Wait, then… these people coming after me, are they trying to claim the bounty from the Eighth Prince?" Joey asked, confused.
A 200 million Jenny reward wasn't enough incentive to risk entering NGL—not when the cost-to-benefit ratio was so skewed.
"No. They're trying to deliver you to the Fourth Prince," Kite corrected him, voice flat.
"The drug syndicate is finished. With your protection gone, your mysterious background makes you a unique 'specimen' in the Fourth Prince's eyes—or an ideal candidate to create one."
"…A specimen?" Joey's expression twisted.
"Tscheridnich enjoys collecting human organs," Kite explained with terrifying calm.
"He's particularly fond of 'live-prepped' pieces—anything handcrafted from a living subject, he considers a treasure."
Joey's scalp prickled.
"These people coming after me… are they strong?" he asked. In his memory, Tscheridnich hadn't yet awakened his Nen ability.
"Unknown. But they're likely Mafia elites. Nen users, at minimum," Kite replied evenly, turning his eyes toward Joey.
"Number of enemies unknown. Their abilities unknown. Your job is simple: eliminate them."
"By myself?" Joey balked.
"Yes," Kite replied without hesitation.
"Once we reach the designated location, André will prepare a solitary cell. After that, we'll leave. From that room, you'll receive Chimera Ants at random intervals."
"Your task," Kite said with perfect calm, "is to stay alert—and kill every single one of them."
To Kite, it sounded no more difficult than asking someone to drink water.
To Joey, it was enough to make his skin crawl.
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