Chapter 78
The situation with the twin sisters was dire.
The young man in the suit, though only a B-ranked Nen user, wielded combat skills and experience that far outmatched his rank. He was even stronger than two A-ranked Nen users. As a result, Old O struggled to gain the upper hand.
To make matters worse, the white-haired boy's assistance complicated things further. His Nen ability allowed him to influence Old O's actions with just a word. Moreover, Old O had already lost an arm in his previous battle with Zeno and Ron.
Meanwhile, a fleeing member of the Mad Beast returned to the Elders' city.
"Great Elders..."
"What's the situation?" The Elders immediately gathered to meet her. They couldn't afford to ignore this. After all, the KUTE gang was formidable, and the Mad Beast was Meteor City's most powerful force.
"Great Elder, we are no match for the KUTE!" the girl said. "Before I left, five members of the Mad Beast had already fallen to them. The leader told me to bring this information back."
"We need more support."
The Elder's face darkened. "Even the Mad Beast can't match them? Are they really that strong? Are you truly the Mad Beast, the supposed strongest Nen group in Meteor City?"
The girl clenched her teeth and hesitated, then spoke. "Great Elder, could you bring in the one who severed Old O's arm?"
"You mean the Zoldycks?" the Elder frowned. The girl nodded. "If the Zoldycks were able to sever Old O's arm and leave him defenseless, they should be able to handle this threat too."
"To hire the Zoldycks, I'll need to consult the other Elders." Their services came with a high price, and often, money alone wasn't enough. For costs like these, the city's Elders would have to share the burden.
"KUTE are troublesome. I wonder what demands the Zoldycks will make," the Elder muttered as he entered the meeting room. Inside, the twelve Elders were deep in discussion. After a while, they reached a decision.
"Regardless of the cost, we must eliminate the KUTE gang. If not, Meteor City faces disaster. The cost for the Zoldycks' services is worth it." One of the Elders left the room to make the call.
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*Outside Meteor City, a Small Town*
In a hotel room, Zeno's phone rang.
"Grandpa Zeno, your phone's ringing," Ron said.
Zeno nodded and picked up. "Hello... I understand. I'll take the job, but I have a few conditions. If you meet them, I'll accept."
After Zeno hung up, Ron asked, "Grandpa Zeno, was that call from Meteor City?"
"Yes," Zeno replied. "The KUTE gang has hit Meteor City hard. Even their elite group, the Mad Beast, was devastated, leaving them no choice but to seek help."
"Mad Beast?" Ron repeated, surprised. He'd only heard of the Shadow Beasts, the elite squad under the Ten Dons of the underworld. But the Mad Beast sounded new.
"Meteor City has twelve Elders, and the Mad Beast members are each Elder's strongest Nen user. They're considered the city's elite," Zeno explained.
Ron raised his eyebrows. In the original stories, only Meteor City's garbage dump, the Phantom Troupe, and the Elders were mentioned. If the Mad Beast was so powerful, how did they compare to the Phantom Troupe?
"Currently, the Troupe is still forming," Ron calculated. "Chrollo, Nobunaga, and Feitan are young. The rest are barely in their twenties, and Machi and others are around sixteen or seventeen. They might not even have all thirteen members yet."
"Grandpa Zeno, did you agree to the job?"
"Once they meet my conditions, yes," Zeno said. "In the Zoldyck family, only two people can take on the KUTE gang: me and your Uncle Silva. Illumi still needs time, and your great-grandfather is in seclusion."
"So only you or Uncle Silva can do this?" Ron hesitated.
"Earlier, you mentioned, Grandpa, that in a one-on-one fight, you'd win against a KUTE member eight or nine times out of ten. With Uncle Silva, you'd handle at least two, right?"
Zeno shook his head. "Ron, you're forgetting something important. We are assassins. An assassin must guarantee a 100% success rate. Eight or nine out of ten isn't enough."
"If I team up with Silva against a KUTE member, we need absolute certainty. That's our principle."
"Grandpa Zeno, what if the Elders of Meteor City can't meet your conditions?"
"Then we'll abandon the mission."
"But won't that damage the Zoldyck family's reputation?"
"Affect our reputation?" Zeno chuckled. "Ron, do you know how many mission requests we get in a year?"
"I don't." Ron shook his head.
"Thousands. Tens of thousands. Right now, only a few of us actively take on missions. Your great-grandfather rarely takes action. I've mostly retired. Only Silva and Illumi are fully active. Milluki is part-time, and Killua and Kalluto are too young. You're just starting."
"All our butlers don't take missions either," Zeno continued. "With only a few active members, we can't take on every request."
"So we simply select the high-value ones. Too simple, we ignore. If it's difficult but worthwhile, we accept. But most importantly, we need 100% confidence. We are assassins, and killing is just a job. Who would risk their life for a job? That would be foolish."
Ron nodded thoughtfully. "Grandpa Zeno, I understand."
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