"I said it already. A man like you, Rimo, would never choose to submit to those people from the outside world."
Chrollo gave Rimo a calm but sincere compliment.
"I'm the same. I won't leave Meteor City just to become someone else's tool. If I can't live according to my own will, then I'd rather die."
He spoke those words without the slightest fluctuation in his tone, as if he were simply stating an undeniable truth.
"But the problem is… compared to the entire outside world, our individual strength is still too weak."
"So you're planning to form a group, right?" Rimo directly completed Chrollo's sentence.
Chrollo didn't mind the interruption at all.
He simply nodded.
"Yes. You've lived in Meteor City long enough to understand this. Even here, in this lawless place where strength reigns, individual power still has its limits."
"Let alone when facing the structure of the outside world."
"So I plan to gather people and form a larger group. With collective strength, we can at least avoid being completely passive once we step outside."
Then Chrollo looked straight at Rimo.
"That's why I invited you here."
"I want to invite you to form a group together."
He paused slightly.
"I wonder… what you think?"
From beginning to end, Rimo's expression had not changed much, making it impossible to read his thoughts.
"Form a group…" Rimo repeated slowly.
"In principle, I agree."
"But there are problems."
"The group's positioning, its rules… and the issue of leadership."
The moment he spoke, Rimo directly pointed out the three most critical aspects.
Chrollo was not surprised.
He had already prepared for this.
When facing someone like Rimo, he had never intended to take things lightly.
"For the group's positioning," Chrollo said calmly, "I've thought about it for a long time."
"In the end, based on how people from Meteor City live… I think the identity of 'thieves' suits us best."
"We take what we want. We act as we please. We reject nothing…"
"But don't even think about taking anything from us."
The second half of the sentence was spoken in perfect unison by both Rimo and Chrollo.
For a moment, the two looked at each other and smiled faintly.
"Not bad," Rimo said. "I have to admit, that definition fits people from Meteor City perfectly."
"Then what about the rules?"
Chrollo continued,
"In my vision, the group doesn't need complicated rules."
"I don't want members to become subordinates who blindly obey orders."
"The purpose of the group is simple—to use collective strength to accomplish what we cannot achieve alone."
"So there is only one rule."
"Members are not allowed to attack each other."
After hearing that, Rimo shook his head slightly.
"The idea is correct."
"But what if there's a disagreement within the group?"
"Have you thought about that?"
Chrollo nodded.
"I have."
"The most straightforward method is to resolve it through force. But that would violate the rule."
"The second is voting. But that would inevitably split the group into factions."
"Neither outcome is what I want."
Rimo smiled faintly.
"I expected that."
"Then let me offer a suggestion."
"When there's a disagreement, use a coin toss to decide."
"Pure luck. No bias. No factions."
"No one should have any objections to that."
The moment Chrollo heard this, his eyes lit up.
A simple method.
But extremely effective.
It avoided conflict, prevented division, and maintained balance.
If someone lost, they could only blame their luck.
After a brief pause, Chrollo nodded.
"That's… a very good idea."
"In that case, the rules of the group will be just these two."
"No internal attacks. And decisions in disputes will be made by coin toss."
Then his gaze sharpened slightly.
"Which leaves one final question."
"Leadership."
This time, Rimo stared directly at Chrollo.
Although Chrollo had shown goodwill from the beginning—lowering his posture, even subtly accommodating Rimo—
Rimo didn't believe for a second that someone like Chrollo would easily give up control of the group.
Facing this question, Chrollo fell silent for the first time.
The atmosphere in the room became heavier.
After a long pause, Chrollo finally spoke.
"Before I answer that… let me tell you how I obtained Nen."
Rimo didn't interrupt.
He simply leaned back slightly and gestured.
Go on.
"I made a deal with one of the elders."
The moment those words were spoken, Feitan reacted immediately.
"What?"
His sharp eyes locked onto Chrollo.
"You never mentioned this before."
There was clear displeasure in his tone.
Feitan had always harbored deep distrust toward authority figures.
Even in Meteor City, where hierarchy was minimal, the existence of elders still represented a form of power.
Chrollo gave him a calm look.
A silent reassurance.
Then he continued,
"Have you ever heard of a weapon… called the Poor Man's Rose?"
The moment those words were spoken, Rimo's expression changed slightly.
The Poor Man's Rose.
The same weapon that, in the original records, had been used against the Chimera Ant King.
A weapon capable of wiping out even a being like Meruem.
"The Poor Man's Rose is a low-cost but extremely efficient bomb," Chrollo explained calmly.
"Its explosion can destroy everything within range."
"But that's not the most terrifying part."
"The true horror lies in the poison released afterward."
"An extremely lethal toxin."
"There was once an incident where a single use resulted in over one hundred thousand deaths."
As he spoke, the atmosphere in the room gradually turned heavy.
"With the emergence of weapons like this, the nations of the outside world have begun developing even more destructive tools."
"Many of them produce radiation… or large-scale toxic contamination."
Chrollo's gaze swept across everyone.
"Which brings up a question."
"When these nations create such weapons…"
"Where do you think the waste goes?"
Silence.
A suffocating silence.
Everyone's pupils shrank.
Even Rimo.
Because this was information that had never been explicitly stated before.
And yet, the answer…
Was obvious.
"Meteor City…" Rimo said slowly, his expression darkening.
The dumping ground of the world.
Everything the outside world wanted to discard…
Ended up here.