Chapter 38: Taking Action!

As Killua prepared to confront his brother, a sense of tension gripped him, causing his muscles to tense up.

"...Damn it," he muttered quietly as he walked into the arena, feeling a bit uneasy.

If he had known he'd be facing Illumi, he might have put in more effort against Hanzo earlier.

Meanwhile, on the sidelines, Hisoka's mood shifted dramatically.

He lost interest in the proceedings and slowly left the arena, leaning against the wall with a downcast expression.

"Making fun of himself just like a clown does," Raymond remarked under his breath.

He sensed Hisoka stealing a few glances his way, causing Raymond's lips to twitch speechlessly.

Observing from the sidelines, Netero also took notice of their interaction before shifting his attention back to the arena.

Killua had already made up his mind to surrender as soon as the battle began.

However, he knew facing Raymond would be pointless since Raymond could easily outmatch Illumi.

"...At least he's not giving me the creeps," Killua muttered to himself.

He then looked at Illumi with a mix of fear, anger, and a hint of disgust.

This prompted Illumi to frown as he sensed other emotions besides fear in his brother.

Killua couldn't figure out what was going through Illumi's head as he glanced at Illumi's useless arms.

"...Should I give it a shot?"

Considering the possibility, Killua's determined gaze slowly cleared, his eyes shining with resolve.

"...Why would you dare to show such determination against a stronger opponent, Kill?" Illumi's disappointment was evident as he observed the scene.

"..."

"I'm disappointed..."

Illumi's voice was flat.

He shook his head and continued, "I heard about you cut Mom and Milluki to escape. You made Mom cry..."

Hanzo nodded, chiming in nonchalantly, "Well, any mom would cry if her son did something like that..."

"...crying tears of joy."

However, Illumi's next words left Hanzo speechless.

Raymond chuckled softly, convinced that every member of the Zoldyck family must be a bit off.

As he watched their exchange continue, he couldn't help but notice that Illumi seemed like a total killing machine from the get-go.

Illumi's eyes were as lifeless as a dead fish.

Then, he shifted his gaze to Killua and shook his head.

"But those eyes don't look like an assassin's..."

Killua's eyes resembled Gon's—bright and filled with curiosity about the world, just like any kid his age.

Illumi slowly described to Killua how he should be, just like how their father had raised him.

He stressed the need for Killua to be a dedicated assassin, showing no emotions and only concentrating on the job at hand...

—eliminating the targets assigned to him.

In Illumi's view, this made the ultimate killing machine.

"Being a Hunter isn't for you, Kill..."

"Hey, you don't know anything about Killua!"

A sharp shout broke Illumi's monologue, causing everyone to turn and see Gon.

His face was flushed with anger.

"Gon?"

Killua stared at Gon in astonishment.

Turning to Gon, Illumi's expression remained emotionless as he asked, "And who are you?"

"I'm Killua's friend! You are not worthy to be his brother!"

Gon's small frame nearly reached the arena, stopped only by the staff holding him back.

He declared, "Killua's coming with me to see the world!"

"..."

Illumi's expression faltered at Gon's words, noticing the strong emotions they stirred in Killua.

Killua took a deep breath as he quickly regained his composure once again.

"So, this kid is the reason you're different now, huh?"

Illumi's face returned to its usual emotionless demeanor, while Killua's eyes widened in shock.

Turning to Gon, Killua shouted, "Gon, get out of here!" 

But Killua was too late.

In a flash, Illumi vanished and reappeared right in front of Gon, who was left in a state of confusion.

"What?"

Gon could only watch as a foot neared his neck.

Veins bulged from it, and the nails looked as sharp as knives—just like Killua's hand when he killed the prisoner.

"...Am I gonna die?"

Just as Gon felt like his life was on the line, a figure suddenly appeared in front of him.

There was a loud clash as someone stopped Illumi's attack with their hand.

The impact created a booming sound that sent shockwaves, knocking Gon and everyone else nearby to the side.

Gon struggled to get back on his feet before stumbling on the ground.

On the side, Hisoka and the others managed to regain their balance easily.

"Ohoho, let's not go around attacking fellow participants during the exam, or we might have to disqualify you..."

Netero's cheerful voice rang out as things began to calm down.

His figure came into view, effortlessly halting Illumi's attack with just a hand, firmly grasping Illumi's ankle.

"Hmm, that would be quite troublesome if I were to fail..."

"Ohoho, I have faith you won't repeat this mistake..."

Observing that Illumi had no intention of continuing, Netero released his grip, allowing Illumi to step back slowly.

Raymond glanced at Netero with indifference, but his eyes narrowed at how easily Netero thwarted Illumi's assault.

It was obvious to Raymond that Illumi had been genuinely trying to kill Gon just moments ago.

"And yet that old man stopped it so effortlessly," Raymond thought to himself.

Raymond was not one to fight in such a manner.

He believed dodging was usually the better option over directly blocking an attack. Only when absolutely necessary would he resort to completely blocking an attack.

With a rough estimate of Illumi's strength, Raymond realized he wouldn't be able to stop an attack like that without potentially breaking Illumi's feet.

"As expected of the Chairman of the Hunter Association, I suppose..." Raymond smiled.

He was feeling satisfied with the result of his little stroll on the Hunter Exam.

Not only had he gained an approximate understanding of Netero's strength, but he also gleaned insights into Netero's intentions and views on the Celestia Consortium through their subtle interactions.

"Gon! You all right?"

"Yeah, I'm good..."

Killua's worried tone echoed as he assisted Gon in standing up.

Illumi, on his way back to the arena, abruptly glanced back at the pair upon hearing their exchange.

"Ahem..."

But before anything more could happen, Netero cleared his throat.

This managed to stop Illumi from doing anything reckless as he swiftly redirected his attention forward and continued walking to the arena.

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