𝖌𝖚𝖒𝖚𝖘𝖘𝖊𝖗𝖛𝖎

f o r t y . t h r e e

the auction had begun. [name], kurapika and melody silently inspected the area for any disturbances or threats. nothing seemed out of the ordinary until melody informed them of a commotion occurring inside of the auction house.

"i'm having difficulty hearing clearly, but there's a real commotion inside the building," she informed, making [name] cup her hands behind her ears and activate her nen.

"you're right. something must have happened. we should contact the leader immediately."

after informing the leader - dalzollene - the three were ordered to enter the building while he contacted the bodyguards inside the building.

the three hastily entered the auction house, avoiding contact with the mafia security who swarmed the building in a panic. it seemed that the guests and the merchandise had both disappeared.

from above the auction house was a single hot air balloon. in the hot air balloon was seven of the thirteen phantom troupe members. they all had unsatisfied expressions on their faces.

"there wasn't any merchandise?"

"no, the safe was empty. according to the auctioneer, the only one who knew the situation, everything in the safe had been moved a few hours earlier. exactly as though they expected this to happen," the caller informed, making the receiver hum in amusement. "don't you find the timing too perfect? we have.. a judas among us."

"you're saying that one of us is a traitor?" another member from across the hot air balloon asked, making heads turn.

"..there are no traitors. besides, judas wasn't a traitor in my view. it's said that judas sold jesus for thirty pieces of silver. but how much would a traitor ask from the mafia?" the receiver asked, making the caller lift their head and think. "consider the merits. what would the traitor gain by selling us to the mafia? money? glory? prestige? do you truly believe that any of us care for those things?"

"it's unlikely..."

"you see? besides, something else doesn't add up," the receiver claimed. "assuming there was a spy, the response was too tepid. if they had foreknowledge that class-a bounties would appear at the auction, they would have increased security. the auction goers were all uninformed and unarmed."

"that's true.."

"i believe that someone provided information that wasn't explicit. however, a mafia community leader believed that information."

"i don't get it.. who told who what?" the caller asked, waiting a moment before changing his mind on the question. "it doesn't matter. so what do we do?"

"did you ask the auctioneer where the merchandise was moved?"

"yeah, but he swore on his life that he didn't know. feitan tortured him, so he wasn't lying."

"he had the worst luck of them all today," the small black haired male commented, making the caller smile down at him.

"did you get the names of anyone who might know?"

"you bet i did. the auction is run by the mafia community heads, who lead gangs in each of the ten districts around the world. they're called the ten dons. this is the only time that all ten gather in one place, to discuss business and issue orders. their commands are carried out by a special force, the shadow beasts. this squad consists of each don's best combatants."

as the caller and the receiver conversed further on the matter, the hot air balloon began to close its distance to reach the destination; an isolated area called the gordeau desert. [name], kurapika, melody and other bodyguards headed over to the desert behind the mafia community in black cars at high speed.

[name] sat in between melody and kurapika in the backseat of one of the two cars the nostrade family bodyguards used. she had crossed arms and furrowed eyebrows. she could feel the danger from kilometres away. the person waiting in the desert would be incredibly powerful and the mafia would stand no chance, but she kept her mouth zipped. she needed some sort of entertainment while she was playing bodyguard.

~

as the bald man positioned and fired the super bazooka, dust and smoke enveloped the target. at the moment of fire, the nostrade family bodyguards had finally arrived at the desert in time to witness the scene.

"did i get him?"

the dust and smoke dispersed to reveal the fully intact victim. they were a man wearing a white singlet and had a muscular build and furry eyebrows. the man had a confident smirk stretching his face and an outstretched arm.

"that kinda hurt."

the mafia community screamed and scurried away in horror. the man had just survived a super bazooka which was powerful enough to destroy a tank. as the man dashed forward to attack the mafia, the nostrade bodyguards stared in shock.

"it appears the enemy can use nen.. and he's ridiculously strong. the advance force was obliterated. guns are ineffective against him," kurapika explained, pulling the binoculars away from his eyes.

"impossible," dalzollene whispered in disbelief.

"see for youself," kurapika spoke, holding the binoculars behind him to motion for the head bodyguard to take it. "his aura is unbelievable. as is the number of corpses.."

"..who is that guy?"

"he's tearing through people like scraps of paper. we're supposed to capture him? i won't be part of that!" screams a bodyguard in a purple sweater.

"indeed. however, we cannot abandon our mission and back off," dalzollene claimed, making the male open to mouth to contest.

"wait," melody suddenly interrupted. "i suddenly hear an additional heartbeat coming from somewhere.."

the bodyguards simultaneously turn around to find something underground behind them digging closer by the second. the bodyguards waited nervously as the digging ceased. the head of a strange, hairless creature popped out from the ground and slithered out.

"i am worm, a shadow beast. which group do you belong to?"

"..we are bodyguards for the nostrade family," dalzollene responded tio the question.

"i see.. it seems that you can use nen, but don't bother."

"these aren't ordinary thugs," a voice cut from the group's right. "to them, taking lives is like breathing."

"y-you could say they're professional killers," another voice spoke from the group's right.

"and a pro knows his trade best of all," another voice spoke from the same direction.

the nostrade family bodyguards were surrounded by strangers who seemed to be quite knowledgable. they introduced themselves one by one before heading off to meet their opponent head-on.

the group was silent, gawking as the group of shadow beasts - as they had stated themselves - walked away bravely.

so they're the shadow beasts, [name] thought, lips curving upwards slightly in amusement. interesting. let's see how long they can go for before they eventually fall victim to the phantom troupe.