24 Meeting The King

__________ POV Netero__________

I wasn't expecting such a strong reaction from Zeno... Not many people that fought Ashton lived to tell the tale.

He's similar to Maha in that regard. But he proved to be stronger and wiser than the old assassin.

Zeno hiding his emotions from us didn't do much. I am already used to reading Ashton's emotions. This is nothing in comparison. And Ashton himself can easily see through Zeno's Pokerface.

Neither of us called him out on it.

Zeno and Ashton's level of strength isn't too far from one another. But Ashton's fighting style is impossible to counter effectively.

My attempt in the ant nest was just me testing out an old theory. But it wasn't helpful at all. It was only a stalemate because I wasn't attacking.

If I wanted to fight him then I'd have to attack him as well. And that would make his Nen stick to me.

His strange and powerful Hatsu is one of the reasons he's completely untouchable today. That and political immunity.

Even if some people still discretely try to kill him, they never have many chances. He always has his guard up...

It still bothers me that he looks so young after all this time. A lot of people tried to capture him to find out the secret to his 'eternal youth'. None survived for long.

But I guess that's enough reminiscing. I have a mission to do. It's my last one too...

__________ POV Ashton__________

I didn't think Zeno would actually be afraid of me...

But it's not really important to me. I am quite curious about his strength now. He's had quite a bit of time to develop his Hatsu.

"We should start heading over there... It's about time anyway." Said Netero in a somber tone.

Zeno just nodded. "I guess I'll be carrying you both there?" Was there even a need to ask such an obvious question?

I guess he was only told about transporting Netero there.

"Yes, I'll be coming as well." I smiled a bit, trying to sound cordial.

"Very well... Hop on!" He shouted as he rose into the sky. He seemed to be riding a dragon made of Nen.

That's quite new. He didn't have that ability the first time we met. I guess quite a few years have passed. He's had enough time to develop it properly.

I jumped on its tail and ran up the dragon until I reached Zeno's side. Netero was right behind me.

Netero signalled Zeno to start flying us towards the Royal Palace. Residence of the King of Ants.

And the flight wasn't exactly slow. We were going at a decent speed. We all could see the palace in a few minutes. And it seems that Pitou sensed us too.

She jumped up to meet us. Netero was about to interfere, but I don't really want him to break my toys. I can do that myself just fine.

I jumped down to meet her. I looked her in the eyes. She finally seems to have noticed me. Her eyes widening in fear was what I expected.

I didn't expect them to gain a look of resolution right afterwards. She showed her claws and tried to stab me with her hand as we came closer in midair.

I just extended my left hand to her. A purplish Nen came out of my glove, and just as I used Ken and reinforced my body it exploded.

Sending the Chimera Ant hurtling to the ground at unimaginable speeds. It also broke my descent and sent me back to the dragon.

I spun around in the air to break some momentum and grabbed a hold of the flying Nen construct.

Netero then looked at me and nodded. He also jumped off. I followed him. Zeno dispersed his big dragon into countless smaller ones.

His mission was to create chaos right? Well, he's doing a damn fine job of it.

The dragons rained down on the Palace. Somewhat aimlessly. But there weren't any humans around to get hurt by it. So Zeno could attack without any restraints.

We all landed near one of the towers. We could all feel the presence of the King inside. We decided to enter it without wasting much time.

And there he was. In all his glory. He had two long antennae on his ears and a large shell-like armour over his head.

There were dark pigmented areas on his arms, legs, chest, and head. He also had a tail equipped with a stinger. His appearance is quite intimidating.

He was holding an injured little girl. A look of absolute anger etched on his features.

Upon seeing that, Zeno's eyes widened in shock. It seems there was a human present after all. I didn't think he'd make such a big deal out of it though...

I guess we should preserve her life, at the very least.

The four of us were in a stalemate. One that I decided to break by walking towards the king. He tensed up, as his tail prepared to stab me.

"Hold on now..." I sidestepped his tail as I approached him and the little girl. He looked shocked, was he really not expecting anyone to be able to dodge his attacks?

I mean, it's quite easy when you can already guess what his next move is going to be.

"Put the girl down, you idiot..." He looked me in the eyes. His anger rising to match my growing frustration with his inability to read the situation.

He decided to listen to me. Laying the girl on the ground and standing up. I proceeded to ignore him as I ripped open my space and took out a few tools to aid my operation.

Her injuries weren't exactly light. They needed to be treated with caution.

I decided to ignore the king and his conversation with Netero. I already know where they're headed, I can just look after them when I'm done here.

Zeno looked at me and the little girl. His eyes carried immense remorse. Something you don't usually see in an assassin when he kills someone.

I guess Zeno isn't the bloodthirsty type. Even if he was, there's not much satisfaction to be had in killing a random helpless girl...

That would be unbecoming of a Zoldyck. They may be insane, but they have standards. At least most of them do.

I could sense Pitou coming in. Looking a bit burned and limping a bit. The king said something about making sure the girl gets treated.

He said her name, but I really can't break my concentration for too long. It's a bit of a shame that my attention is elsewhere during my first encounter with the king.

But that's fine too. I'll look him in the eyes in his last moments anyway.

Pitou looked at me as I treated the girl. She didn't attack or anything. She sat down and started treating her own injuries using one of her Hatsus. Doctor something, it was useful.

I guess we can switch seats for now. Pitou's Hatsu should aid the girl's recovery to a greater extent.

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