Chapter 195: The Brigade and the Kagin Gang Join Forces
"Whether you're human or ghost, a test will tell." Feitan reached for the door handle and found it locked, though this was expected.
Just as Feitan was about to force the door open, the trio noticed something new.
Almost simultaneously, all three turned around.
Tap, tap, tap.
Footsteps echoed from the other end of the corridor.
The newcomers were none other than the young master of the Cha-R Family, Glasses Guy, along with his lackeys.
Hands in his pockets, Glasses Guy looked at Feitan and the others and directly stated his identity: "I'm the young master of the Cha-R Family. I've already found the person you're looking for. I could've just sent a subordinate to notify you, but I don't like dragging things out, so I came myself."
"Never expected such a situation to arise suddenly. Now we must prioritize dealing with the matter at hand."
Glasses Guy stared at Feitan and the others.
"Was it you who attacked our warehouse manager?"
"Definitely not us," Franklin raised his head and met the other's gaze, his voice low.
"But if you're looking for a fight, we're absolutely ready to oblige."
Glasses Guy said, "After learning of your movements, I informed the warehouse manager in advance that you'd be coming to collect weapons."
"There's no reason they would have conflicted with you."
"Since you already know the situation, this makes things clearer. It's obviously the work of someone trying to exploit the circumstances," Franklin responded.
"Then who do you think it could be? People from the other two families?" Glasses Guy asked.
"Who knows? It might be them, it might not be. In any case, it definitely wasn't us," Franklin said calmly.
The two locked eyes.
The atmosphere grew tense.
"I see." Glasses Guy broke the silence first, seemingly accepting their explanation. "Behind that door is the Cha-R Family's base. Just now, a man carrying the blood-soaked warehouse manager showed up, and our two idiot subordinates, scared out of their wits, let them into the base."
Shalnark nodded. "I see. So after entering—bang—instant explosion?"
"Not exactly."
Glasses Guy replied, "According to witnesses inside the base, the guy who delivered him was also covered in blood, completely unrecognizable. He kept shouting that the Troupe did it."
"We already told you, it wasn't us!" Feitan's face darkened.
Glasses Guy continued calmly, "Yeah, I know. After all, that guy vanished without a trace, and the warehouse manager was already dead—no evidence left."
"What's truly irritating is that they thought such a clumsy monkey show could easily trick us!" As he said this, Glasses Guy's expression turned ferocious.
The anticipated conflict didn't occur.
The terrifying killing intent emanating from Glasses Guy vanished as quickly as it appeared, and the tension between both sides finally eased.
"Fortunately, you all understand reason and can speak with us calmly. It appears this incident was likely carried out by assassins from other organizations hoping to stir up trouble." The bespectacled man's words completely framed the warehouse manager assault incident, while also representing their goodwill towards the Troupe.
Feitan and the other two exchanged glances before Feitan responded: "That bastard's goal was probably just to infiltrate your stronghold."
"How so?"
Feitan explained: "Among the many activation conditions for spatial movement abilities, there's one called marking. The ability user can only move to places they have actually visited before. He most likely came specifically to fulfill this condition!"
"If you're also a Nen user, you should understand how dangerous the current situation is now that he has met the conditions."
Feitan's words similarly represented the Troupe's goodwill towards the other party.
Because they had clearly heard just moments ago that the Cha-R Family had found the person their Troupe was looking for!
During the earlier conversation, the bespectacled man had been carefully observing Feitan and his two companions.
He assessed in his mind:
Completely unrelated to the concept of balance, caring neither for enemies nor companions, loyal to themselves while possessing the strength to act as they please!
The bespectacled man pulled his hand from his pocket, adjusted his glasses, and said: "If I were to propose cooperation on behalf of the Cha-R Family now, would you agree?"
"...Of course, using the information you want as the condition!"
...
After Morena used her ability, her subordinates transformed into murderous maniacs one by one, creating an atmosphere of murder crisis that quickly spread throughout the Black Whale.
It's important to note that most of Kakin Kingdom's guards and soldiers were deployed to protect the nobility on floors 1 and 2, leaving almost no law enforcement in the lower three floors. Currently, they were completely relying on outstanding hunters from the Zodiac Twelve to maintain order.
Such as Mizaistom, who was serving as temporary commander of the Kakin Royal Army on the 4th floor, and Uncle Dragon who was stationed at the central courthouse on the 3rd floor.
Through the recent murder cases, Mizaistom had already detected a troubling atmosphere.
To prevent further deterioration of the situation, he immediately gathered all officers from the lower three floors.
"This meeting will address the serious criminal cases occurring aboard the ship, particularly the frequent murder cases on the 3rd floor." Mizaistom spoke from the podium in the Royal Army conference room.
"The murders began frequently from the third day of the voyage, thus eliminating the possibility that they were caused by pressure from long-term isolation from the outside world. Whether analyzing from crime scene investigation results, victimology, motivational behavior studies, or statistical perspectives—all lead to the same conclusion. Multiple bizarre murders have erupted simultaneously aboard the ship—this is an extraordinarily serious situation!" Mizaistom looked seriously at the Kakin Royal Army officers below.
"The crimes display characteristics of both random killings with the sole purpose of murder, and ritualistic killings to fulfill certain conditions. The numbers and verbs the perpetrator mutters during the crimes are likely part of their established conditions."
It must be said that the Zodiac Twelve truly live up to being the twelve individuals standing at the pinnacle of professional Hunters.
Mizaistom, the Ox, deduced nearly the entire truth of the matter based solely on the criminal's motives, the circumstances at the scene, and the credible testimonies of the victims.
Of course, he was not omniscient—he had no idea that all these murders were orchestrated by a madwoman, Morena. Instead, he linked everything to the Succession War for the throne.
"Considering the special event currently unfolding on this ship—the Gu Poison Ritual to select the next king—this case is likely a series of murders initiated by multiple individuals and carried out independently in various locations!"