Chapter 40 Beginning the Investigation

September 3rd, 10:42 AM, the southern outskirts of Yorknew City, the temporary base of the Phantom Troupe.

The members of the Phantom Troupe stood in the gloomy hall, their faces solemn.

Uvogin and Shalnark still hadn't returned; something had definitely gone wrong.

"Didn't they say the target was just a common thug working for the mob? How could Shalnark and Uvogin both fall when they were working together?!"

Feitan, the fierce-looking, eyebrowless brute, roared in anger.

"Keep it down. Didn't you see the text message Shalnark sent back? It's highly likely that the Nen-Cutting Blade and the chain user ambushed Shalnark and Uvogin together." Feitan's voice remained cold and sinister.

Screech—

The heavy doors creaked open. Pakunoda, the alluring blonde woman, walked in alongside a tall, slender man of about two meters, carrying a package in his hands.

Franklin, sitting quietly in the corner, asked, "Well, Pakunoda, any news?"

With an ugly expression, Pakunoda slowly spoke, "Uvogin... has been killed."

"What!?" Though everyone had vaguely suspected it, hearing it still made it impossible to accept.

The leader, Chrollo, maintained a semblance of calm. "Tell me the details."

Beside Pakunoda, the tall, slender man suddenly had Nen surge across the surface of his skin, transforming him into his true self: Bonolenov, a bizarrely thin and elongated figure entirely wrapped in bandages.

This was one of the application techniques of his Conjuration Nen ability, [Battle Cantabile]: [Transformation]. As long as someone assisted him with analysis and provided data, his Nen allowed him to arbitrarily transform into any humanoid shape. It was an exceptionally formidable technique for infiltration and ambush.

Bonolenov's voice was as eerie as his appearance: "Pakunoda and I went into Yorknew City to gather intelligence. At around 7:10 this morning, rumors spread through the underworld that they had captured one of the culprits behind the attack on the underground auction."

"Pakunoda and I immediately investigated, only to discover that the mafia had recorded the entire process of dismembering Uvogin's corpse and posted it on a website, while also distributing numerous video tapes. We watched the video; it is almost certainly Uvogin's body."

"Where is the tape?"

"We brought it back. It's in the bag, and we even bought a VCR."

Fortunately, there was a television set in the base. The members quickly hooked up the VCR and began to play the tape.

The content of the recording could only be described as cruel. A group of mafia members whose faces were entirely uncovered first displayed Uvogin's corpse in its entirety, and then proceeded to systematically dissect the body step by step. As they carved him up, they hurled insults and mockery, eventually reducing Uvogin's remains into a fragmented mess with only his head remaining relatively intact.

That was not all. The mafia members in the video even threatened to cross-reference DNA, dental molds, fingerprints, medical records, and all personal information to hunt down every last one of the audacious madmen who dared attack the auction. They declared they would spare not even the most distant relatives, vowing to capture them all, subject them to slow and brutal torture, and finally execute them.

Click. The video ended, and Pakunoda switched off the television.

A murderous silence fell over the hall of the base.

"Heh... relatives? What are those?" Feitan let out a dark, sinister chuckle.

Bang! Nobunaga, who had been closest to Uvogin, kicked away a stack of discarded furniture in front of him and roared, "I'm going to kill them! I'll make them pay with their lives!!"

"Calm down, everyone. Listen to the Boss's arrangements." Machi calmly pacified the agitated members.

Everyone turned their eyes toward Chrollo. The Phantom Troupe referred to themselves as the [Spider], with the twelve members acting as the Spider's limbs, while the Leader was the indispensable head. Following the Leader's instructions in all operations was the iron rule of the Phantom Troupe.

Chrollo crossed his arms over his chest and fell into deep thought. After a moment, he asked, "What is the situation in the city?"

Bonolenov replied, "The photographs of the seven members who attacked the auction house have been made public. The police are searching for any suspicious individuals on the main streets, letting not a single vehicle pass unchecked."

"The police?" Phinks asked, sounding somewhat puzzled.

"Sixty percent of the campaign funds for the current mayor of Yorknew City, Kidunoda, came from secret mafia donations. It wouldn't be difficult for the mayor to order the chief of police—whom he personally promoted—to set up roadside checkpoints."

Pakunoda explained:

"Furthermore, the area within a one-kilometer radius of the 'Cemetery Building,' the venue for tonight's auction, has already become a lawless zone."

It should come as no surprise how Pakunoda managed to acquire such highly classified information. Her Specialization Nen ability was called [Memory Bomb]. By simply touching a target, she could read their memory data and materialize those memories into bullets, loading them into a conjured revolver. Firing a bullet into someone else's head allowed her to share memories, while shooting the bullet back into the head of the person whose memories were extracted would erase their memory entirely, reverting them to an infant-like state.

She had used this ability to approach several high-ranking mafia figures, reading their memories and then wiping them clean without leaving a single trace.

Chrollo asked again, "Is there any news regarding the Nostrade family's hideout?"

Pakunoda shook her head. "No. Ever since arriving in Yorknew City, the Nostrade family has kept an extremely low profile. We only know that their boss, Nostrade, rose to prominence rapidly in recent years by relying on [Prophecies] for high-ranking figures. The only known hideout of the Nostrade family is the Summer Flower Hotel."

Machi explained, "That's the same hotel where we previously rescued Uvogin."

Chrollo nodded. He thought for a moment and continued, "Did you find out who handed Uvogin over to the mafia?"

Pakunoda recalled, "A freelance bounty hunter named Bopuzan."

Hisoka suddenly chimed in, "I know this guy. He has some reputation in the industry, but he could never be a match for Uvogin."

"By your logic, what's his score?" Machi knew Hisoka all too well.

"Fifty-fifty~ By the way, would you like to know what score you have in my heart?" Hisoka replied with a beaming, perverted smile.

Machi ignored him entirely, turning her gaze back to the Leader.

Pakunoda pressed a hand against her chin, frowning as she muttered, "With Shalnark gone—the only one capable of accessing the hunters' private network—it's very difficult to check Bopuzan's recent employment history."

"............"

A heavy silence fell over the group. Kortopi, whose long hair draped across their face like a banshee, suddenly spoke up: "...Hisoka is a Professional Hunter too, isn't he?"

Hm?

Everyone turned their gazes back to Hisoka. He usually kept such a low profile that they had almost forgotten he was also a Licensed Hunter.

Hisoka narrowed his eyes and raised both hands. "Understood, but I'll need to find a computer with internet access."

Just as he started to stand, Chrollo raised a hand to stop him. "There is a laptop in Room 2. Phinks, go get it."

"Alright." Phinks nodded, stood up, and left the hall.

After Phinks departed, Chrollo remained seated atop the mound of discarded furniture in the hall. He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and sent a text message to Illumi—

[Where is the Nen-Cutting Blade?]