Gourmet Hunter - Chapter 425 (Patreon)

Chapter 425: Recording

This is a stage filled with a heavy artistic atmosphere, with red curtains drawn back, and rows of seats in front dominated by a red theme.

On the stage lies a silver-haired child, one cheek swollen high, eyes closed, limbs twisted into a ghastly angle, already unconscious.

A tall, skinny man stands nearby, foot on the child’s back, holding a phone, speaking with someone.

The silver-haired child is Killua, and the tall man is Saiyu.

The butler's delay was limited, and under the amplification of his Nen, Saiyu easily caught Killua.

He first broke Killua’s limbs, then, finding Killua's pain tolerance not weak, punched him in the face, knocking him out.

Then, he brought Killua to a poorly managed, temporarily closed grand theater.

Ten seconds ago, he found a phone on Killua and dialed Luo’s number.

Unlike the already famous Ging, Luo’s information was not classified, so finding his number wasn't difficult.

Saiyu used Killua’s phone deliberately to enhance persuasiveness.

"Shakespeare Grand Theater."

Saiyu coldly stated the location and hung up immediately, then crushed the phone with his hand.

The light from above the stage shone down, illuminating the stage clearly. From the stage, one could barely make out the rows of seats in the audience.

Saiyu had chosen this place to set up a trap for Luo, understanding the theater’s layout in advance.

“Next…”

Saiyu kicked Killua up with one foot, lifting him with one hand. He had many arrangements to make before hanging Killua up.

...

In the taxi, Luo silently put his phone in his pocket, eyes cold.

No matter who made this call, it was clearly aimed at him, dragging Killua into it.

To deal with him, the other party clearly used Killua as bait or a hostage, likely setting a trap at the Shakespeare Grand Theater, with an unknown number of people involved.

“The old Seiren Squad?”

Luo frowned. The only enemies he could think of were the old Seiren Squad members hidden within the nation's top ranks.

“Thinking too much is useless. The priority is to rescue Killua.”

Luo took out a bill from his pocket, silently placed it on the seat, then opened the car door and jumped out, heading quickly towards the Shakespeare Grand Theater.

The taxi was moving at 90 kilometers per hour. The driver, hearing a slight noise from the door, looked up at the rearview mirror, suddenly startled.

“Customer?”

The young man who had been sitting in the back seat seemed to have evaporated, disappearing without a trace.

The driver shivered, slowly reducing speed, and after ensuring safety, carefully checked the back seat, only to see a bill, immediately showing a ghostly expression.

At this moment, Luo had put on a human skin mask. After jumping out of the car, he moved from the avenue to the sidewalk, transforming into a swift black shadow, creating gusts of wind, leaving pedestrians in a daze.

After running a kilometer, Luo suddenly stopped, turning into an alley between shops on the shopping street, because his phone rang.

He took out the phone and answered, hearing Silva’s voice.

“Half an hour ago, the two butlers I stationed near Killua were killed,” Silva said solemnly.

He had stationed two butlers to secretly protect Killua, not in real-time surveillance. Even so, receiving the news half an hour later reflected the Zoldycks’ confidence in Killua’s training.

However, an incident had occurred now, and it was quite serious. In truth, it wasn’t entirely the Zoldycks’ fault; much of this situation was Luo’s burden to bear.

“The opponent came for me. Just half a minute ago, they called, stating they had broken Killua’s limbs and told me to go to a place. I can’t judge the truth of their words, but the possibility of Killua being alive is not low.”

Luo recognized Silva’s voice, guessing the Zoldycks had learned the news through some means from far away at their home.

“The opponent’s identity is unknown, number unknown, strength unknown. They acted after I left, indicating at least five days of surveillance. I want to assure you I will definitely rescue Killua, but given the current situation, I can’t be certain.”

Without knowing the enemy's details, Luo dared not promise Silva he could safely rescue Killua.

“I will send you the recording made by the butler before his death to your phone. Before I arrive, please take care of Killua.”

Silva’s tone was calm, without saying much or blaming Luo. He made other preparations, planning to head there immediately, but needed Luo to scout the situation first. If there was an opportunity, it would be best to save Killua.

However, the rescue was based on Killua still being alive. As Luo said, he couldn't confirm Killua’s survival.

“You could make a wish to Alluka,” Luo suggested before Silva hung up.

“The risk is too great. I will set off now. If Killua is alive, I leave it to you.” Silva didn’t explain much and hung up.

Making a wish to Alluka could directly send Killua back to Kukuroo Mountain, but the risk was too great. Any mistake could lead to the family’s destruction.

Silva was very worried about Killua, but he wouldn't let the family bear the risk of annihilation, not even a bit.

Luo held the phone, sighing lightly, “Just understanding part of the rules already makes them so wary of Alluka.”

Beep.

The phone rang, Silva had sent an audio file.

Luo opened it, hearing a highly recognizable man’s voice, the same as the one from the earlier call.

The audio file was of high quality, even recording the wind's movement clearly. Most of the file consisted of the man talking.

From this recording, several useful pieces of information could be gathered. Firstly, the person fighting the two butlers was alone, the same man who made the call. Secondly, information about his Nen ability could be inferred from his words.

Two unidentified Nen Beasts, under certain conditions, could make the target unable to hear or speak. Normal people suddenly losing these functions would be somewhat affected.

“Because the Nen Beasts successfully activated their abilities, making the butlers lose their hearing, he dared to brazenly reveal the ability’s effects?”

The man, during the fight, directly introduced the Nen Beasts’ abilities to the butlers, specifically mentioning the information that there were only two Nen Beasts.

Assuming the butlers lost their hearing, this might be the man’s sadistic tendency, also suggesting he was highly confident. But lip-reading isn’t difficult; professional killers should understand this ability.

So, was he too confident?

This deduction was reasonable, but caution was always necessary. Before understanding the opponent’s true motives, why reveal his Nen abilities during a fight? It seemed suspicious.

“Two Nen Beasts, hearing, speech.”

Luo thought while heading towards the theater.

“If the condition is direct contact, while Nen Beasts with special abilities usually don’t have significant physical attack power, it’s no reason to forgo offense.”

“Assuming direct contact is the activation condition, then after success, the butler would be defenseless. The Nen Beasts could then inflict physical damage instead of just touching and leaving.”

Analyzing the information from the recording, Luo arrived outside the Shakespeare Grand Theater twenty minutes later.

He called out his black cat, saying, “You have ten minutes to scout inside, not missing a single cockroach.”

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