"???"
Uvogin had been leaning forward more and more, and when he heard that, he almost toppled over face-first onto the ground.
The question marks practically popping out of his head—and the confused look in his wide eyes—perfectly showed his current state of mind.
But when he saw Arvin Locke calmly standing there with his hands tucked together, completely unbothered, Uvogin slowly bared his teeth.
"You definitely know, don't you?!!"
Uvogin's expression twisted as he spoke.
"You just don't want to tell us, right?!"
"Mm~~~ You could say that."
Arvin Locke replied calmly.
"And besides, I don't really have any obligation to tell you, do I?"
Uvogin: "..."
That logic… did seem correct.
But in Meteor City, logic wasn't exactly something people cared about.
Uvogin subconsciously clenched his fists.
But after glancing at Arvin Locke's calm expression, he hesitated.
After thinking for a moment, he pressed both hands firmly onto his thighs.
Just moments ago, Arvin Locke had held him down with one hand covering his face, which made Uvogin wary of acting recklessly.
Besides—
Arvin Locke had just treated them to a satisfying meal of sticky rice cakes.
And now, simply because he coveted the strange power Arvin Locke possessed, he would turn hostile and attack him?
Even Uvogin felt that would be too shameless.
Although values like morality barely existed in Meteor City—
The current Uvogin wasn't the same as the one who would later experience the Sarasa incident and become a ruthless member of the Phantom Troupe.
Right now, he was still only thirteen years old.
More impulsive, yes—
But also more straightforward and sincere.
"So what would it take for you to tell us?"
While Uvogin was baring his teeth in frustration, Machi suddenly spoke.
"You already explained part of it to us. Strictly speaking, this isn't something that absolutely can't be told, right?"
Machi might have been younger—only ten years old—
But when it came to seeing through the essence of things, she was far sharper than Uvogin.
"If we exclude the possibility that 'this power must not be revealed to people who don't know about it,' then the reason you're not telling us is probably related to your own personal motives."
"If you truly didn't intend to tell us from the start, then when you first made the sticky rice cakes, you would have avoided letting us see it—or used other methods to conceal it."
"But you didn't do that."
"Instead, you let us know this kind of power exists."
"And yet when we asked you about it, you said you couldn't disclose it…"
Machi lifted her head and looked directly at Arvin Locke.
"So is it because we haven't paid a sufficient price?"
"Hmm~~~"
Arvin Locke pondered for two seconds before turning to look at Uvogin.
"Now I understand why you've been able to survive in Meteor City for so long."
"Seems it's not just because of those muscles."
His gaze returned to Machi as he spoke meaningfully.
Uvogin: "??!"
What kind of statement was that supposed to be?!!
It sounded suspiciously like he was saying Uvogin had only survived thanks to Machi!
Just as Uvogin's face began filling with black lines, Arvin Locke nodded toward Machi.
"That's right. In this world, if you want to obtain anything, you have to pay a price."
"Even power itself is no exception."
Machi might not know the details about Nen.
But she understood something else perfectly well:
In Meteor City, if you want something, you must pay for it.
Fighting.
Stealing.
Killing.
They were already accustomed to it.
So Arvin Locke's condition didn't surprise her at all.
This was simply daily life in Meteor City.
There was no such thing as kindness without reason.
That's why Machi could grasp the situation immediately.
As for Uvogin…
"Well, earlier you gave us sticky rice cakes, didn't you…"
Uvogin muttered quietly.
"So just like with the sticky rice cakes, you could just tell us directly, right…"
"Before eating those sticky rice cakes, didn't you two work for them?"
Arvin Locke glanced sideways at the still-slow-to-process Uvogin.
"Hmm… I guess that's true… Alright then, just tell us what we have to do this time."
After thinking for a moment, Uvogin gave up trying to analyze things and said straightforwardly.
"It's actually very simple~~~"
Looking at the two pairs of eyes fixed on him, Arvin Locke slowly raised the corner of his mouth.
"All you need to do…"
"…is beg me."
"…???"
Uvogin tilted his head as question marks filled the space above him.
Machi, however, stared at Arvin Locke carefully.
Seeing that he didn't seem to be joking, she began thinking.
Does he have some strange hobby of making people beg him?
Or does he enjoy the sense of control that comes from having others plead with him…?
That would make him some kind of pervert too…
Well, people like that do exist in Meteor City…
While Machi's mind ran through its analysis—
Uvogin stared at Arvin Locke for a moment.
Then suddenly shouted:
"Are you kidding me?!!"