One of the areas on Mount Kukuru, Dertora Region, Bartochia Republic, with no surveillance coverage in the back mountain, I followed the mobile phone positioning sent by Illumi.
Sensitivity to all forms of "line of sight" is a killer's professional instinct; discovering areas without surveillance coverage is not difficult. Even 3-year-old Killua has a unique sensitivity to line of sight. Oh, he is truly a genius, a born killer. I don't need to elaborate on this; the entire Zoldyck family believed so in the original work.
"By the way, what was the last step we reached?" After greeting each other, Illumi tapped his chin with his index finger, appearing to be in deep thought. "I was really sleepy last time, and some things were hazy, so I don't remember clearly."
"..." What's with the act? Who is he kidding?! I don't believe Illumi's shrewd little brain would easily make mistakes.
Forgetfulness is even less likely; he is 15, not 150.
"Do you really need to wear such a serious expression, Sister?" Illumi said in a relaxed tone, as if he were not fully engaged. "Hmm, I know Sister chose to appear in my room because you wanted to talk to me alone? If that's the case, isn't it better to do it here? Unlike the enclosed space last time, there are sufficient escape routes for both of us."
Ah, escape routes, contemplating escape routes, and always being ready to retreat is a killer's professional habit. As expected of the excellent Zoldyck student Illumi, Zoldyck owes him a "Three Good Students" award.
In other words, Illumi is very cautious, and no matter the situation, he will prioritize ensuring that the final outcome does not deviate from... his control.
Plan before acting. Although Illumi is only 15, the characters in this game are generally precocious. Illumi's schemes are already heavy, and I feel pressure on my intelligence, anticipating that today's battle will not be simple.
Since the confrontation was initiated by Illumi, the initiative is naturally in Illumi's hands. Do I have the ability to seize the initiative?
No, dealing with a prepared Illumi is disadvantageous to me. I should retreat early.
Just make some perfunctory remarks and then retreat. Of the thirty-six stratagems, fleeing is the best.
After thinking this through, I relaxed outwardly and casually ran my hand through the ponytail I had tied up for easy movement in the training ground.
"Although I don't dislike Sister's recent inexplicably clingy behavior..." A gust of wind blew, messing up Illumi's bangs. He raised his hand to brush the bangs out of his eyes and continued, "I'm not a child anymore. If this continues, it will cause some unnecessary misunderstandings."
"..." What misunderstandings?
"So, what is it that Sister wants to talk to me about alone?" Illumi changed the subject.
In an environment dominated by Illumi, it is not suitable to discuss real issues, as I might be led by the nose. Therefore, I chose to avoid the difficult parts and answered with lip-reading: "I want to tell you that due to some unforeseen circumstances, your sponge cake has been given to your great-grandfather."
"Oh." Illumi did not ask for specific reasons. "It's alright. Doesn't Sister always have a backup when she buys things? Just give me another one."
"!" How do you know I have a backup?! That brat Kalluto's mouth is too leaky. I feel like the entire Zoldyck family knows about my backup.
Forget it. It's just a sponge cake. I still have 4 left in my game backpack. It's better to spend money to avoid trouble and not offend petty people.
Illumi took the sponge cake with both hands, without neglecting the etiquette. "Thank you, Sister."
On the surface, he seems like such a good brother. Hmph, only I in the whole world know that his character setting is a super scumbag!
"Sister's 'game backpack' is indeed very convenient." Illumi opened the packaging bag and smelled the sponge cake. "It smells good, like it was just baked. Hmm, a pleasant aroma."
"Then I still have training. I'm leaving now." I hope this sponge cake chokes you to death.
"Wait a moment." Illumi called out to me.
He casually hung the sponge cake packaging bag on a nearby tree branch. "To eliminate some misunderstandings, let's do a short test for a few seconds."
A few seconds? A short test? What does he want to confirm? What is his purpose?
Not knowing his intentions, I focused all my attention and nodded, waiting for his performance.
Illumi activated his "Nen."
"..." He had already informed me in advance. If I were still to be on high alert, it would be a bit like seeing a grass or tree as an enemy, which would not look good for my image.
I suppressed the urge to enter a combat state and did not activate "Ken." But I was also prepared for combat, ready to respond immediately if the situation turned unfavorable.
Illumi now had several needles between his fingers, needles with yellow metal round heads, exactly matching the appearance of his usual weapons.
Targets hit by his needles would be completely controlled by Illumi, a typical characteristic of the Manipulator Nen ability.
A one-hit kill. Being hit means failure, with no chance of a comeback. Even the battle-crazed Hisoka feared it.
I stared at Illumi's actions with extreme caution. Unexpectedly, Illumi inserted all the needles... into his own face?!
"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
His beautiful, androgynous face, which was Illumi's only redeeming quality, became distorted after being pierced with needles, transforming into an extremely ugly man with a long chin, narrow, upturned eyebrows, sunken cheeks, and a very sinister appearance.
Apart from his hairstyle not becoming a mohawk, it was almost identical to the guise "Gittarackur" Illumi used in the original work. So, what I saw today was an early work of Illumi as "Gittarackur."
No!!!!!! Why do you have to show me this! Why hurt my eyes! This is simply jumping back and forth on the inverse scale of my aesthetics!
The moment I saw Illumi disfigure himself on the spot, I understood how Hisoka felt when he was filled with fighting spirit, took off his shirt, tore off his spider tattoo, and was about to fight Chrollo Lucilfer to the death, only to lose all his spirit upon learning that Chrollo could not use Nen.
Frogs turning into princes, beasts turning into handsome men – that's a common trope in fairy tales, a surprise.
What if it's the other way around?
In a famous scene from a horror movie, the beautiful woman in the protagonist's arms suddenly turns into a decaying corpse. The shock factor is max, and one immediately wilts.
I remembered that when I read the original work, I would selectively ignore the parts where Gittarackur's face was revealed. Yes, I am that loyal to visual senses as a "face-con" (a person who values appearance).
Oh, my body is so honest. Gittarackur's face is too unappetizing. Forget continuing the conversation, I don't even want to look at this face for another second. kuAiδugg
This excellent taste in ugliness, Illumi's hobbies are indeed very twisted.
This person is utterly rotten.
He has no awareness that the only value of his villainous scumbag character is to please with his looks!
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I instantly achieved enlightenment and saw through the mundane world.
What Gittarackur said was no longer important. I turned my face away and walked away.
I remembered appreciating flowers, the moon, and Qiu Xiang. I found Milluki to be incredibly cute, Killua to be devastatingly beautiful, and Alluka to be a national treasure I was owed as a sister.
I need to hug the cutest Killua cat on Mount Kukuru to calm down and wash my eyes.
"Sister?" This time Illumi came up to speak, not Gittarackur.
"..." I glanced briefly at Illumi and then looked away.
No matter how sweet and delicious a cake is, once a cockroach crawls on it, even if you remove the part the cockroach crawled on, the lingering disgust makes it impossible to eat.
Typing "disgust" into the public chat, I impatiently gave Illumi the middle finger, telling him not to block the way, and then swept away.
The Zoldyck estate is a vast area encompassing the entire mountain and the surrounding forest at its foot. It is ridiculously large. In other words, finding someone on my own is troublesome. It's better to directly contact Madam Kikyo, the main surveillance operator of Mount Kukuru, to immediately know the precise location of our dear Alluka.
The only drawback is having to listen to her nagging, most likely about Alluka.
Although I like Alluka, listening to the same content repeatedly is annoying.
It's better to [wear] a voice transmission device and contact Milluki on my phone. I feel like he's gotten fatter again. He should also leave his room, move around, walk for a few minutes, and help me check the surveillance room for Alluka's whereabouts.
"Oh, little Killua? He's with me right now, and so is Alluka." Milluki said. "I'll send you the location."
"!!!"
Shocked!
The homebody is voluntarily participating in outdoor activities?!
Later, I found out it was Kikyo's request, saying Milluki needed more exercise, which made sense.
When I arrived at the scene, I saw Killua stepping onto a scooter with one foot, pushing off the ground with the other, and the scooter began to glide.
The latest red children's scooter. Alluka likes it very much. I bought it, hehe.
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Alluka and Milluki didn't pay much attention to my arrival. They were staring intently at Killua's receding figure. I followed their gaze with tender affection and realized something was wrong. The scooter seemed to be moving too fast, exceeding my common sense.
"Milluki, what are these for?" I walked behind them to the pile of tools on the grass.
"Oh... Oh!" Milluki turned around, then quickly looked back in Killua's direction. "We just modified them a bit, added an engine."
Killua's clothes were lifted by the wind from his high-speed movement, and his bangs were blown open, revealing his forehead. He excitedly shouted, "Oho!!!!!"
"Oho!!" Alluka raised his hands, shouting and jumping.
"Hahaha." Milluki laughed triumphantly, finally having time to shift his gaze to my face. He pointed in Killua's direction and boasted to me, "Sister. Look! Look quickly! Isn't that the fastest and coolest scooter in the world?! It can catch up to cars, no, trains!"
Milluki's (9 years old) practical skills are indeed impressive. However, that speed is still a bit short of catching up to cars, not that exaggerated.
"By the way, how does something that fast stop?" The one I bought was originally just a children's scooter, without an engine.
"Eh?" Milluki was startled. "It's... it's okay. It will stop when the fuel runs out. Besides, it's Killua... there should be no problem..."
"Should be? No problem?" I used a little "Nen" because I felt that Milluki's words seemed to contain another meaning. "Are you extremely confident in your brother who is only just over 3 years old, or... do you want to see him suffer a bit? Milluki?"
"...No, that's not it!" Milluki's expression changed drastically, and he hastily explained, "I didn't mean that!"
"?" Alluka was attracted by Milluki's sudden loud response and looked over with a confused expression.
Gittarackur, whom I saw a few minutes ago, had already put me in a bad mood. And Milluki, with his fleshy face and eyes squeezed into thin lines, was not exactly cute. My limited patience was finally running out.
"That's not okay, Milluki. Let alone if you meant it, even if it's an accidental mistake... no matter what Mom and Dad think, if Killua has an accident, even if he just gets a scratch, I won't let you go." I reached out and gently ruffled Milluki's head.
"..." Milluki remained motionless, shivering with fear.
I understood. In the original work, after Illumi dissuaded Killua during the Hunter Exam, his action of ruffling Killua's hair, besides showing their brotherly relationship, meant something else.
Status.
Dignity.
Taming and obedience.
The Zoldyck family members, rather than talking about ethereal emotions, prefer to respect the strong. That's why I have to work hard every day.
Actually, I really want to lie flat and be a salted fish. In terms of inner laziness, no one in the Zoldyck family can match me.
I'm just forcing myself every day, maintaining my training with an almost masochistic mood.
"Do you understand my attitude, Milluki?" Years of pent-up patience finally yielded significant results today. Tasting the flavor of power for the first time made me feel a bit happy and intoxicated.
Games are addictive because of timely positive feedback, constantly encouraging players to invest more time and energy, guiding players to achieve the next sense of accomplishment.
Sense of accomplishment.
What happens when someone who has tasted failure tastes accomplishment?
It's not like a hungry person tasting food.
It's not like a thirsty person tasting clear water.
It's not like a celibate person tasting desire.
This is a deeper desire, not only bringing joy and satisfaction, but it will add color to one's life, giving one topics to reminisce about years later, making one seem different, even superior.
Yes, it's just the luck of being born early and learning "Nen" that makes me "superior" to Milluki. I can threaten him, I can order him, I can admonish him.
Bullying the younger is truly despicable, but it's allowed in the Zoldyck family, right? Look at how Illumi treated Killua in the original work. As long as no major problems occur, the Zoldycks won't interfere.
"...Onii-chan?" Alluka tugged at Milluki's sleeve, curious about Milluki's unusually stiff posture.
No, Milluki is one of the few Zoldyck family members with common sense from the outside world. Using pure Zoldyck-style physical intimidation is not appropriate. Kikyo is the one who falls for this the most; not only does she not hold grudges, but she also gets excited. And Illumi, that dog who bullies the weak and fears the strong.
I withdrew the "Nen" suppression, and Milluki breathed heavily like a drowning person being rescued.
Damn Illumi, I should let him experience the shudder of being suppressed by "Nen." Don't ask, it's because I'm too weak. The weak turn their swords against the even weaker. Yes, I am a despicable and shameless person.
"I... I understand, Sister." He was sweating profusely, not just on his face, but sweat had also soaked his collar and back.
Knowledge of "Nen" is indeed necessary to conceal from the public. "Nen" is too destructive. If it were to become widespread, with everyone being a superpower user, ordinary disputes would escalate comprehensively, and humanity would perish faster.
"Sorry, Milluki." I [took out] a handkerchief from my game backpack and put it in Milluki's hand. "I didn't mean to target you. It's just that I'm not in a good mood right now. Hmm, it's displaced anger."
Without looking at Milluki's expression, I picked up Alluka and took him to chase after the distant Killua.
"Woah!!!!!" Alluka waved to the catching-up Killua. "So fast! So fast!"
So fast! So fast! Faster than Salamander!
Cough, the lines of the most scumbag female protagonist in game history are probably unnecessary!
"Ah, this." Killua opened his mouth in surprise, then filled with fighting spirit. "Then I'll accelerate! Oho!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Like a turbo boost device in a racing game, a large amount of gas sprayed from under the scooter, and the vehicle surged forward, kicking up scattered grass leaves. What a magnificent display of speed!
"!!!!!!!" x2
Alluka and I were stunned.
Milluki! What's with this overly high technical skill?! It really can catch up to cars?! This is too unscientific!
Because the Zoldyck mansion's courtyard is too large, the scooter ran out of fuel before reaching the end, achieving a safe stop.
This, this is the experience of being a wealthy family!