"S-Say, Aisha! What are you planning to do after leaving here?!"
Just as dinner concluded and I was preparing to retire to my room for the night, Milluki blurted out the question.
"After leaving here? Well... I will be running around searching for something I need. And of course, I want to find Gon and the others—my friends. I departed without saying a proper goodbye, so I owe them an apology."
...And honestly, I just miss my friends.
"I-I see... What is this thing you're searching for?"
"I don't know if you've heard of it, but it's a video game called Greed Island."
"—! That game..."
As expected, he knows about it. The Zoldyck intelligence network was vast, and Milluki clearly had a passion for games.
"Getting your hands on Greed Island is going to be exceptionally difficult..."
"I figured. But now that I have my Pro Hunter License, I plan to leverage the Hunter network to dig up reliable leads."
"I-If you'd like... I could look into it for you. Both Greed Island and the current whereabouts of Gon and his crew."
"Eh?"
"I'm quite skilled with computers, and our family intelligence network can track down people easily! I can find them far faster than you searching on your own!"
That was an incredibly generous offer. But burdening someone I had met just hours ago felt wrong.
"No, I couldn't possibly impose on you or your family like that..."
"It's no trouble at all! I don't mind in the slightest! Right, Father?!"
"...As long as it remains within your personal authority, I do not object," Silva rumbled calmly.
"You see?! The staff are paid to gather intel anyway. It's just part of their job! I-If it makes you feel better, consider it a favor you can repay later!"
A favor owed to a Zoldyck... While that sounded intimidating, owing a personal favor to Milluki was something I could easily manage within my capabilities.
"Understood. If you insist, I gratefully accept your help. I promise to return the favor."
"A-Awesome! It will take a little time to gather concrete leads, so feel free to stay here as our guest until then!"
"Such transparent motives..." Silva muttered softly. "Aisha, you heard him. Finding specific individuals takes time. Stay as long as you require."
"Are you certain that's alright?"
"Of course."
"Then I will gladly impose on your hospitality for a few days."
Bowing deeply, I thanked them. I never imagined I would spend multiple days lounging at the Zoldyck estate.
◆
Mil is completely smitten with Aisha... Zeno mused to himself the following morning. Good grief, he chose a terrifying woman to fall for. She is far beyond his grasp.
Yet Aisha herself is astonishingly oblivious. To notice my presence with pinpoint accuracy while remaining completely blind to a boy's romantic infatuation... How ironic.
Still, having her stay at the estate provided an excellent opportunity to glean more insight into her capabilities.
After breakfast, Zeno invited Aisha for a morning walk across the expansive grounds.
"Beautiful weather today."
"Indeed. Splendid day for a stroll."
...A remarkably peaceful ambiance for an assassin and a martial master.
"Tell me, Aisha... About Netero."
"Netero? What about him?"
"You referred to him as your rival... Are you familiar with his personal Hatsu?"
"I am. But I won't reveal it to you. A martial artist does not casually betray another's Nen abilities."
So she is indeed a Nen user, Zeno noted. "No need to be so guarded. I am already well aware of that old fossil's ability, the [100-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva]. I suffered quite the headache from it in the past."
"Ah, you know it? Good grief, I've swallowed bitter defeat against that technique more times than I care to count."
"Understandable. In direct combat, that Bodhisattva is his most absurd asset."
She has traded blows with the Bodhisattva repeatedly, Zeno deduced. To face that onslaught and survive confirms she belongs to the pinnacle.
"If you were to break the [100-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva], how would you do it?"
"That's strictly classified."
"Naturally—"
"—However, while I cannot share my personal countermeasure, I don't mind discussing the theoretical principles."
"Ho? Are you not concerned we might use such theory to assassinate him?"
"Not at all. Knowing the theory and executing it are two entirely different realms. Besides, if you were to threaten Netero's life, I would simply stand by his side and fight you."
A sudden, suffocating wave of quiet pressure rolled off her.
"Haha... We have no desire to make an enemy of that old monster. ...Or of you, for that matter."
"Thank you. I prefer to remain on good terms. Consider this theory compensation for your hospitality."
Aisha continued:
"First, one requires sufficient raw durability to survive the initial onslaught. The Bodhisattva is an unavoidable, instantaneous strike; its first palm will always land before the opponent can initiate an action."
"Indeed. I could weather a handful of blows myself."
"Second, even the Bodhisattva cannot unleash continuous strikes without microscopic intervals. Between the completion of one palm and the initiation of the next, there exists a vanishingly small fraction of a second."
"And?"
"If an opponent endures a strike and executes a decisive counter precisely within that microscopic interval, a path to victory emerges. Whether that means instantaneous teleportation into his chest, fulfilling a manipulation condition, or deploying a lethal status Hatsu."
"That sounds practically impossible."
"Precisely. Because the time required to activate any complex Nen ability is vastly longer than the split-second Netero needs to chamber his next palm. And masters who rely on specialized conditions typically possess poor physical enhancement, meaning they would be pulverized by the very first blow. In an honest brawl, defeating the Bodhisattva head-on is near impossible."
Zeno chuckled. "In the end, you're merely bragging about your formidable rival like a proud lover."
"PROUD LOVER?! Why would I ever view that wrinkled old fossil romantically?!"
"Hahaha, you sounded awfully delighted praising him."
◆
Later that afternoon, Milluki excitedly knocked on Aisha's door and invited her to his room.
His room was unexpectedly pristine, outfitted with supercomputers, multi-monitor setups, and immaculate bookshelves.
"Here is what I uncovered regarding Greed Island," Milluki explained. "It is an exclusive real-world Nen game. When activated, Nen triggers to transport the player into the game world. Non-Nen users cannot play. The game cannot be halted by unplugging the console; it only ends if the player dies or reaches a save point."
...WAIT.
Aisha froze in sheer horror.
A Nen ability that transports the player into the game?!
MY [BOSS TRAIT] WILL PROBABLY NULLIFY THE TRANSPORTATION AND LOCK ME OUT!
No, no, don't panic! Giving up means staying a girl forever! I'll worry about that when I actually get my hands on the console!
"What's wrong, Aisha? You look pale."
"N-Nothing! Please continue!"
"Right now, obtaining Greed Island through normal channels is nearly impossible," Milluki continued. "Billionaire Battera monopolizes every copy that enters the market. However, Battera is hosting a player screening trial in Yorknew City this September to hire skilled Nen users to beat the game on his behalf."
"A player screening in September... In Yorknew City!"
"Yes. You don't need to buy the game; you just need to pass the screening to play it."
"Milluki, you're amazing! Thank you so much! Please tell me if there is anything I can do to repay you!"
"A-ANYTHING?!" Milluki's eyes widened. "T-Then... please put on cute, feminine clothes!"
"Eh? That's all?"
"Y-Yes! You're so pretty, wearing plain training clothes is a total waste!"
Relieved, Aisha returned to her room, consulted the coordinate notes Bisky had slipped into her luggage, and put on an adorable stylish dress.
Returning to Milluki's room:
"Is this okay? It's a bit embarrassing..."
"QWERTYUIOP..." Milluki choked, blood rushing to his face at the sight of her angelic figure.
"Are you alright?"
"A-Aisha... By any chance, a-are you wearing a bra...?"
"No? I don't wear those."
"I HAVE NO REGRETS IN THIS LIFE!!"
Milluki threw his right fist toward the heavens and collapsed backward into dead faint.
"MILLUKI?!"
Just then, a butler entered, saw Milluki unconscious on the floor, and smashed the emergency alarm:
"EMERGENCY! MASTER MILLUKI HAS BEEN INCAPACITATED BY THE GUEST! POSSIBLE HOSTILE ASSASSIN!"
...How did it come to this?!
Alarms blared across the entire mansion. Butlers swarmed the corridors. Aisha nimbly leapt and parried them with non-lethal Aikijujutsu throws.
Chief Butler Gotoh fired a high-speed barrage of spinning coins; Aisha smoothly caught them mid-air and crumpled them into a ball of metal.
Kikyo arrived shouting for her execution, and Zeno stepped outside with a grin, unleashing his Transmutation technique: Dragon Head / Dragon Lance.
Aisha evaded the homing aura dragon and lightly tapped the aura stream with a reinforced palm.
"Fascinating," Aisha noted mid-dodge. "Zeno-san, your natural affinity is Emission, isn't it?"
"Ho? You deduce that from my Transmutation dragon?"
"Indeed. The dragon form is Transmutation, but the kinetic force and aura density indicate roughly 60% conversion efficiency, which points to Emission as your primary affinity."
Zeno laughed heartily. "Splendid insight! This is getting fun!"
"I am not having fun at all!" Aisha protested.
◆
Two hours later, Milluki regained consciousness, cleared up the misunderstanding, and the chaos settled.
A week later, Milluki provided the locations of Aisha's friends:
Gon & Killua: Competing as fighters at Heavens Arena.
Leorio: Studying medicine in his hometown.
Kurapika: Seeking employment through the Senritsu / Chizuru Employment Agency to pursue the Phantom Troupe.
Bidding farewell to the Zoldycks, Aisha boarded a private family blimp provided by Silva.
As she departed, Milluki approached Silva with fierce determination:
"Father... Put me through six months of your hellish training. Make me strong enough to stand by her side."
Silva smiled faintly. "Prepare to see hell, Mil."
Four days later, Aisha arrived at the city outskirts and tracked Kurapika leaving the employment agency.
"Kurapika-san!"
"Aisha?!" Kurapika turned in astonishment. "What are you doing here? And where have you been?"
"I was recovering from an injury. I heard you visited Kukuroo Mountain, and I wanted to make sure you were safe."
Aisha then addressed his true goal:
"Kurapika... Are you still pursuing vengeance against the Phantom Troupe?"
"I will never abandon my revenge!" Kurapika's eyes flashed with fierce resolve.
"Then I must teach you Nen. Without it, facing the Phantom Troupe is pure suicide."
To demonstrate, Aisha lightly touched a boulder half her height, shattering it with raw physical force, then delivered a light, Nen-infused tap that obliterated a titanic five-story boulder into fine dust.
Kurapika stared in stunned silence.
"This is the power of Nen. The Phantom Troupe are all master Nen users of the highest caliber. I don't want you to die, Kurapika. Because we are friends."
Kurapika bowed his head with deep gratitude. "Aisha... Thank you."