This was the sign that his aura had become too dense, while his body still had not fully adapted to or mastered it.
Noticing Gotoh stepping forward and leaving a string of deep footprints in the floorboards, Zeno raised a brow and cast a sideways glance at Silva. The man's face was grave, his brows slightly furrowed, as if he were thinking about something.
His sharp, predatory eyes were locked onto Gotoh. The aura naturally rising from above his head faintly fluctuated, clearly showing that his heart was not as calm as he looked.
"What category is he?" Netero asked, stroking his beard.
"Emission," Zeno said with his hands behind his back.
He watched as the butler held the gun in one hand and walked toward Illumi at an unhurried pace. Once he got close, Gotoh threw a simple, brutal straight punch toward Illumi's chest.
The fist came out.
Faintly, one could see a flowing stream of aura-light driving waves along with it.
Netero gave a noncommittal hum and said meaningfully, "Interesting. That punch doesn't look much like Emission..."
Water Breathing and Ten intertwined, revealing their edge.
Facing that punch head-on, Illumi instinctively felt as though he were not facing a person, but a towering wave a hundred meters high. In an instant, he caught the scent of a Breathing technique.
"What you have..."
"He gave me too..."
Wind Breathing.
He abruptly inhaled a breath into his abdomen. Crouching on the window frame, Illumi faced Gotoh's incoming punch without dodging or retreating. He also reached out, clenched his hand into a fist, and met it head-on.
Whoosh—
A violent wind rose.
The doors and windows of the butler villa creaked under the force, as if groaning under an unbearable burden.
Much like Gotoh's punch, Illumi's fist was wrapped in a spiral of wind. It also flashed with a sharp wind-light. Though it came second, it arrived first, striking Gotoh's fist right as Gotoh's punch was about to hit his chest.
Then came a thunderous boom!
Sea wave collided with storm.
Water-light, wind-light, and aura-light exploded all at once, radiating outward in a ring.
Then—
a slightly smaller figure flew backward face-up with the trembling butler villa behind him.
Among the blurry shadows of the trees, Illumi's disheveled, battered appearance could faintly be seen.
"Illumi..."
The aura-wave arrived and was instantly scattered by a sweep of Zeno's sleeve. The old man narrowed his eyes and watched as the boy snapped three or four large trees in a row before finally stopping. The aura rising naturally above his head trembled almost imperceptibly. Just like Silva, his heart was clearly far from calm.
Creak...
Silva's fists clenched even tighter.
With his beautiful silver hair falling behind him, the man watched in silence.
Beside Netero, Beans stared with his tiny green-bean eyes wide open, almost unable to believe what he had just seen.
A butler defeating a master?
Was this real?
"Of course," Netero said, as if seeing through his old companion's confusion. He narrowed his eyes at Gotoh, who had sent Illumi flying with one punch, and smiled with interest. "Once the power is there, anything can happen."
The old man cast Silva and Zeno a meaningful glance.
"In terms of physique, Illumi lost..."
Beans opened his mouth slightly.
He quietly glanced at Silva and Zeno with Netero. One stood with his hands behind his back, the other stood silently. Neither spoke to refute it.
That silence was the greatest admission.
Bang!
After smashing through four thick trees in a row, Illumi was finally embedded in the fifth trunk and barely stopped.
He couldn't believe his eyes. He lowered his head and stared blankly at his swollen right hand. At one moment, his ears twitched, and he suddenly heard the sound of wind rapidly rushing toward him.
Still dazed, Illumi forced himself to focus and flicked out another Nen needle toward the source of the wind.
The needle struck the Nen bullet Gotoh had casually fired a moment earlier.
Boom!
One wave had yet to settle before another rose.
The explosion shook the sky, swaying violently.
Riding a wind spiral and using the blast wave as cover, Illumi flung out dozens of Nen needles. They came from east, south, west, north, above, below, left, and right—eight directions at once—stabbing toward Gotoh from every angle.
Whoosh... whoosh... whoosh...
The Nen needles howled, rolling up wind blades of aura and sealing every path of escape.
But the butler was unmoved.
He calmly drew the Infinite Handgun. His index finger pulled the trigger, making the gun spin once in his hand.
Then—
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Eight aura bullets screamed out. Like cats smelling fish, they accurately locked onto the positions of the Nen needles and shot them down one after another.
Static crackled across the blue-light glasses on Tsubone's nose, clearly broadcasting the battle.
In the original story, the old butler had used these glasses to carry Kikyo's Nen ability and track Killua in real time.
Now, truly witnessing this battle, Tsubone felt her mind shake. Watching Gotoh's almost flowing, seamless movements as he fought Illumi back and forth—and even clearly took the upper hand in that earlier clash of fists—the old butler quietly glanced at Roy.
The boy was expressionless.
As usual, after finishing his meal, he simply greeted Maha and started walking toward his bedroom.
Step... step...
The boy walked as if nothing had happened through the timeworn corridor of the Zoldyck family castle.
Boom!
Nen bullet against Nen needle.
The fight at the butler villa was in full swing, as if none of it had anything to do with him.
But whether it was Tsubone, Silva, Zeno, or even Netero, all of them knew very well—
the reason the butler currently fighting fiercely with Illumi, even faintly suppressing him, could act so calmly and easily was entirely inseparable from the boy.
Boom!
Another explosion rang out.
A Nen needle Illumi had thrown was shot down with perfect accuracy by Gotoh.
The black-haired boy stood on a thick tree trunk, gazing through the shifting tree shadows at the butler in front of the villa window.
At one moment, the Nen around his body abruptly vanished, making everyone's eyes sharpen.
"Zetsu?" Netero raised a brow and smiled. "Ho ho... not stupid."
A Manipulator competing in Nen bullets against an Emitter was basically using one's weakness to challenge the opponent's strength.
Netero had already seen Illumi's category after a few glances and was just feeling a bit appreciative when a heavy breathing sound suddenly exploded across the sky like muffled thunder, accompanied by the roaring pull of a bellows.
The old man's fingers paused around his beard. He suddenly lifted his head and looked through the swaying trees toward the mountainside.
A figure wrapped in a wind spiral had activated Zetsu and closed his aura nodes. In that state, with terrifying speed, he left behind several afterimages and charged straight toward Gotoh.
Netero frowned. He split off a glance at Zeno and Silva, looking deeply at them.
"I didn't know you Zoldycks had this kind of assassination technique."
An assassination technique that could change breathing rhythm—and from the look of it, even the breathing method itself.
How was that done?
Netero's gaze deepened.
He had lived for most of a century and had encountered countless martial artists. He had believed there was no martial art he did not understand.
But watching Illumi, in a state of Zetsu, use Total Concentration to drive Wind Breathing and shoot toward Gotoh like lightning, Netero had to admit he had been too arrogant.
"Don't look at me. I don't know it," Zeno said, hands behind his back as he leapt onto a large tree.
Netero turned his eyes toward Silva.
Silva's face was set. He immediately thought of the sword style Roy had practiced when he first learned the sword. At that time, Silva had imitated it a few times as well, but he had only grasped the form, not the essence. He had thought it was simply a martial art.
He had never imagined...
martial arts also had ranks.
Clearly, he had underestimated this Breathing technique.
Silva's eyes flickered as he said in a low voice, "That belongs to Roy."
Netero gave a unsurprised hum.
Something never seen before, never heard before, and beyond all common understanding—
perhaps only that boy could do it.
He really is like you, Zigg. If you were here and saw him, you'd surely clap your hands in joy...
The Zoldyck who least resembled an assassin.
Netero lifted his chin slightly and looked toward Roy's bedroom in the distance.
The boy pushed the door open and walked inside. Netero faintly heard him smile and say, "After all these years, he's finally made a little progress."
Then—
Illumi, moving as fast as wind and lightning, burst into Gotoh's field of view like a ghost. In his hand was a wooden nail. He thrust it straight toward the butler's chest.
Shoot to kill—
Divine Spear!
The Nen tool wooden nail engraved with one of Roy's sword techniques abruptly extended, crossing the distance of space itself.
In the blink of an eye, it arrived before Gotoh.
At that near point-blank distance, Gotoh could even feel his skin sting through his tailcoat.
For the first time since waking, his expression became truly serious.
"This is the Young Master's swordsmanship. It must be respected."
Peak Contraction, activate.
The wind arrived.
At the tip of the wooden nail, a point of cold light bloomed.
At this critical moment, Gotoh's right bicep, gripping the Infinite Handgun, suddenly moved—and loosened.
With a 2.7-times amplification applied instantly, a Nen bullet flashing red shot out of the chamber.
It blasted straight into Illumi's lightning-fast thrust.
Boom!
A sudden flash swept across heaven and earth.
Crack—
The window frame, along with an entire wall of the room, shattered on the spot.
Amid startled cries, Kurtina covered Kurapika's ears and huddled in the corner of the bedroom, quietly looking out.
Behind the light, Illumi, whose hair had been blasted into a bird's nest, stood amid the wreckage with his whole body ragged and torn. He stared straight at Gotoh, opened his mouth, and exhaled a stream of black smoke.
Then he pitched forward.
"You win..."
"The Young Master won."
Which young master?
Young Master Roy.
Gotoh put away the Infinite Handgun. He moved just in time to catch Illumi before he hit the floor, gently holding him in his arms.
The butler stood amid the wreckage. Through the shifting shadows of the trees and scattered flecks of light, he looked toward the clear pool deep in the forest.
Holding Illumi, he nodded to Silva, Zeno, and Netero.
At that moment, none of the three spoke.
They looked at him in silence—not like a butler anymore, but like an opponent standing on the same starting line.
There was no trace of contempt left in their eyes.
After a long while, Netero gave a cheerful laugh and said loudly, "Silva, Zeno, this old man is liking Roy more and more..."
"Tell him to take this old man on a dream journey too. How about it?"
Silva looked deeply at Gotoh, then turned and left.
Zeno cast Netero a sideways glance and said quietly, "Grandfather hasn't even gone before. You can forget it."
Netero: "..."
He stood stunned for a while, clearly not expecting that even Maha had never entered Roy's dream world.
After he came back to himself, he sighed dejectedly, swept his sleeve, and left with Beans.
He was hungry.
Time to eat.
Step... step...
The strongest human alive left in a huff.
Soon, the vast forest no longer held their figures.
A few seconds later, as Gotoh walked over slowly while holding Illumi, Zeno waited beside the clear pool with his hands behind his back.
He opened his arms toward the butler.
"Give him to me."
Unexpectedly, Illumi forced himself to remain conscious and refused Zeno.
"No. I want to see him."
Zeno frowned.
"Treat your injuries first."
Illumi leaned on Gotoh with his chicken-nest head and insisted, "See him first..."
Zeno opened his mouth and was about to say something else when Roy's voice drifted through the forest.
"Bring him to see me."
Gotoh respectfully answered yes. He bowed slightly to Zeno, then turned and carried Illumi quickly toward the mountaintop castle.
Whoosh.
A gust of wind rose, making the leaves rustle.
Zeno's white hair swayed as he watched Gotoh carry Illumi away.
He laughed at himself.
"Grandfather, when children grow up, they stop listening..."
Inside the dim little room, the rocking chair creaked, and a cold snort faintly came out.
"Has the child grown up, or are you just too useless?"
"You useless thing. Don't go outside saying you're my Maha's grandson."
"This old man can't afford that embarrassment."
Zeno: "..."
The corner of his mouth twitched hard. Like a stone, he simply weathered away in the wind.
Dong.
It was six o'clock. The red sun had fully leapt above the horizon.
Light and heat poured down freely, and the summer heat had already begun to rise.
When Gotoh arrived with Illumi, Tsubone had already turned on the air conditioner and silently stepped aside.
With Gotoh awake, her role as acting head butler had come to an end.
The old butler's pink twin-tails swayed as she gave Gotoh a slight nod.
Gotoh returned a smile and walked in carrying Illumi.
"Young Master."
"Put him on the bed."
Roy was sitting at his desk, writing something on a sheet of white paper. A bright aura pocket was quietly attached to his chest. His silver-gold hair fell around him, and he spoke to Gotoh without raising his head.
Just now, a possibility had flashed through his mind—
a way to remove the curse.
Using gadgets.
A curse that Nen exorcists could not remove might not necessarily be beyond the power of gadgets.
Since he had already manifested the Four-Dimensional Pocket through Shallow Intervention, Roy naturally had no reason not to use it.
Scratch... scratch...
His pen moved like a dragon across the paper.
As Roy focused on sorting through the gadgets, faint words like Time Cloth, Forgetting Stick, and Anti-Curse Charm could be seen. Without turning back, he asked, "Go on. Why did you insist on seeing me?"
Illumi lay on Roy's bed like a torn plush toy, staring up at the ceiling with dead-fish eyes.
Weakly, he said, "I'm not satisfied."
"You know I can't be worse than him."