Chapter 37: Bullets in the Mist × Lakshya’s Grief and Fury

In the right-hand corridor of the second floor, a massive, sluggish line of Bizarre Fish glided silently through the air.

Lakshya watched them with cold, narrow eyes, walking fearlessly within inches of the school of monsters. Maror followed in similar silence.

'Regardless of where these fish are headed, that man Qi Peixin is undoubtedly there too.'

'Should I be grateful for this thick fog? Without it, I'd never dare to walk through here so brazenly...'

Despite the thought, Lakshya didn't lower his guard; in fact, the closer he got to the third floor, the more the pressure mounted. When they finally reached the entrance to the third floor, a bead of cold sweat rolled down his forehead. A terrifying, palpable malice emanated from the depths of the hallway.

The line of Bizarre Fish had all passed them by, silently pushing forward into the mist.

Lakshya had studied the building's blueprints before the mission. If his memory served him right, that corridor led to the main auction hall.

He took a deep breath and glanced at Maror. Maror understood immediately. He raised his uninjured left hand, and his Nen began to surge and boil. In an instant, a glowing thread appeared between them; he quickly stuck it to the hem of Lakshya's coat and signaled with his hands:

"Same as always. A tug on the thread and you'll fly back here. But it only works once for a quick return. After that, I'll have to pull you in manually."

The thread vanished the moment it touched the fabric. Lakshya nodded to confirm he understood, then turned and headed toward the main auction hall. Maror crouched quietly at the entrance to the corridor, watching their surroundings with lethal vigilance. This was their signature tactic: Lakshya, the superior assassin and combatant, took the lead, while Maror, less suited for dynamic combat, acted as a stationary "safe house," ready to yank Lakshya out of danger in a heartbeat.

Maror stared at the long, black filament that only he and Lakshya could see. It was Lakshya's lifeline. He had poured two-thirds of his total aura into that single thread to ensure it could never be severed and that the return pull would be instantaneous.

Minutes ticked by. Occasionally, earth-shaking roars and sporadic gunfire echoed from the end of the hall. Maror noticed the thread in his hand being pulled tauter and tauter.

'What is happening in there? Is Lakshya in a hard fight? Why hasn't he tugged the thread?'

Questions flooded Maror's mind, but he had no choice. He forced down the urge to go after his captain and waited.

Suddenly, the thread in his hand twitched.

'Here!'

Maror's nerves snapped tight. His aura flared, then clamped down onto his skin. Having learned his lesson from the loss of his arm earlier, he decisively activated Ken, preparing to cover Lakshya's retreat.

"Get the hell off me! Maror, run!!"

A frantic, thunderous roar erupted from the mist, hurtling toward him. Maror recognized that voice. It was Lakshya.

'Again? Did Lakshya get bitten by a fish too?!'

The thought had barely crossed his mind before Lakshya's figure smashed through the fog. And right behind him, locked in a chokehold by the man riding him, was a stranger staring at Maror with chilling, piercing eyes.

It's that guy, Dia!!

Maror's pupils contracted. He recognized the face he'd memorized the moment the bounty was posted.

Dia, riding Lakshya like a human vehicle, didn't intend to give him a second to react. He released his grip, and as his body plummeted through the air, he drew his pistol and aimed it straight at Maror's head!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

He emptied the magazine without a second's hesitation. The speed was so sharp and ruthless that Maror couldn't even process the movement.

Bullets infused with Metal Silver Ripple Nen crossed the short distance in a blink, too fast to react.

In that fraction of a second, time seemed to stand still for Maror. His body frozen, he could only watch as the silver-glinting bullets pierced through the white fog, heading straight for his face.

The bullets struck the Ken covering his skin. Maror felt a sudden spark of hope: 'The power of these bullets... they aren't as strong as I thought... As long as I keep my Ken up, they won't break through my defense...'

Then, Maror witnessed a sight that made his blood run cold.

The silver electricity swirling around the bullets was rapidly dissolving his Nen upon contact!

Before the first bullet had even finished spinning, the second arrived, slamming into the Ken layer that had already been thinned out. Then the third, the fourth...

Maror felt his Ken disintegrating, shattering. 'With only one-third of my aura left, the intensity of my Ken just isn't enough!'

Finally, the last bullet struck the weakest point with unstoppable momentum!

Splat!

The sound of a watermelon bursting echoed through the hall. Dia's bullet shattered Maror's skull with clinical efficiency.

"MA——RO——RRRRR!!!"

Lakshya's howl of agony erupted almost simultaneously.

Dia landed, rolled, and without even checking the result of his shots, lowered his body and sprinted back into the mist.

The moment Lakshya's feet touched the ground, he rushed to Maror's corpse. Seeing the gruesome sight, he could no longer contain his boiling rage. His eyes turned bloodshot, looking for blood. He spun around, fired a Nen blast without a second's thought, and charged at Dia!

However.

ROAR—!!!

A massive, violent Bizarre Fish tore through the mist, brushing past Dia's back. It swallowed the Nen blast in one bite and planted itself directly in Lakshya's path!

"What!"

Lakshya slammed his feet into the floor, skidding backward!

THUMP!

A split second later, a fish tail lashed out with terrifying force, slamming into the exact spot where Lakshya had been standing. The mist fractured into a perfect circular hole, and the ground let out a sickening, dull crunch.

Though he'd barely dodged it, the beast wasn't finished. It opened its putrid, gaping maw, snapping down toward Lakshya's waist.

Lakshya cursed his luck. With no other choice, he fired a newly condensed Nen blast directly into the giant maw.

BOOM!

The blast detonated the moment it left his hand, inside the creature's mouth. The shockwave blew Lakshya backward, sparing him from the lethal bite.

But Lakshya felt no triumph, only a suffocating, unbearable frustration. Seeing Dia's back already disappearing into the fog like a slippery eel, he could no longer suppress his grief and rage, and he screamed:

"Qi Peixin, you stupid fish!!"

"Why the hell are you only biting me?!"