In the explosion just now, Chrollo used his "Sun and Moon" ability to imprint the patterns of the sun and moon onto the referee's hand and back, respectively.
Then, by approaching Hisoka and remotely controlling the referee with his phone, he had the referee place his hand on his back—triggering the explosion when the two symbols aligned.
"It's so sweet~"
Hisoka, who had been suspended mid-air, chuckled and dropped to the ground after hearing Chrollo's explanation.
"Are you underestimating me? Or~"
"Are you looking down on me a little too much?"
"If it's just a fight between us, then isn't the way we fight more important than the result?"
A familiar book materialized in Chrollo's hand. He slowly flipped through its pages.
"Convincing you to lose—that's more meaningful than just winning."
"Could you at least try to be more eager to win? Otherwise, I just can't get excited~"
"Oh, I fully intend to win. But what about you?"
Chrollo smiled faintly. A strange-looking bookmark appeared in his other hand.
"Double Face."
This was a unique support ability Chrollo developed after stealing the power to use both hands independently.
The main advantage of the bookmark is that it allows Chrollo to free up his hands. As he now explained to Hisoka:
"Once both my hands are free, my physical combat ability improves significantly. And while I keep the book marked, I can still activate other stolen abilities. Isn't that wonderful?"
"Now then, allow me to introduce a few other tricks I've prepared especially for you~"
"Very tricky indeed~"
Despite saying that, Hisoka didn't look the slightest bit afraid. If anything, he licked his lips in anticipation.
"To kill a person, the number of abilities used becomes a kind of achievement for you, doesn't it?"
As Chrollo spoke, he couldn't help but recall a battle on a rooftop in Yorknew City.
The man who severed his own arm... someone capable of wielding multiple abilities simultaneously, just like Chrollo himself. He had used a variety of combinations that day.
And yet, that man hadn't resurfaced since.
Even when Feitan and the others deliberately exposed the Phantom Troupe's identities to stir chaos in Yorknew City, creating dangerous vulnerabilities... that man still hadn't shown.
It was as if he had vanished from the world entirely.
A subtle unease crept into Chrollo's heart.
...
"Really now?" Hisoka flipped his palm, and a fresh spread of cards appeared as if by magic.
"No matter how many abilities you throw at me, I'll deal with them one by one."
"The moment I enjoy the most is when a smug bastard like you gets knocked to the ground... and I get to look down at your face, full of disbelief. 'I can't believe this is happening!' Ahahahaha~!"
That guy is a total freak.
Machi, Shalnark, and Kalluto, watching from the VIP room, fell silent. They quietly reached the same conclusion.
...
"Let's get back to the topic of abilities, shall we~?"
Chrollo's eyes gleamed. He flipped to a new page in the book.
"I also prepared this one just for you…"
A seal manifested in his free hand.
...
While Chrollo and Hisoka clashed, back at Beyond's base—
Ging was casually playing a game on the TV, fully relaxed. Behind him stood two very dejected men.
One was Usame, a grizzled fisherman with a rope around his head. The other was Kurley, a bespectacled intellectual with thick curls.
In the few days since Ging had arrived, both had challenged him—Usame in the game, and Kurley in interpreting ancient languages from around the world.
Both had been utterly crushed.
Usame, a respected in certain circles, and Kurley, the top professor at University—yet both were completely humiliated by Ging. The rest of the team quickly understood why Ging had become their number two—not just in title, but in practice.
Just then, Pariston strolled in.
"The latest Hunter Exam just ended. All the assassins Beyond planted failed."
During this period, while Ging and Ronnel had been doing their own thing, the Hunter Association had launched another round of exams—this one tailored to match the changing era.
And today, the results had come in.
"Oh? So your old allies all got weeded out during the vetting process?"
Without turning away from the screen, Ging commented lazily,
"Looks like the new folks who joined the Zodiacs in our place are pretty impressive~"
"Even the Association's defenses—didn't expect them to be this tight."
Pariston still wore that ever-present grin, as if the news meant nothing to him.
"To run background checks and then set up double-layered traps... those 487 suspects really got handled. Makes me wonder—why didn't I discover talent like that back when I was in charge?"
He chuckled.
"I'd love to meet whoever orchestrated it~"
"Are you trying to pick a fight with him?"
Ging curled his lip but didn't take his eyes off the screen.
...
Suddenly, noise erupted from the entrance.
The assassins who had been eliminated? They were back.
One of them growled, "That guy... it was like he had some kind of mind-reading ability. No signs of deception—no aura changes, no heartbeat fluctuations—and he still caught us."
Four figures walked into the room.
Three were tall, burly men. Leading them was a sharp-featured man in a black suit—he had the look of an elf prince.
"Muherr? Back already?" a quiet woman asked in surprise.
"Got kicked out before the screening even ended. You want me to hang around and wait to be laughed at?"
Muherr—the so-called elf prince—spoke with ease. Then, his gaze landed on Ging, still immersed in his game.
"Every single person who passed the lie detector test got sniffed out and eliminated. If I'd stuck with the escape plan we agreed on after we crossed the sea, I'd have been caught too."
"Lucky I bailed early."
...
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Fanfic is completed on patreon.com/FanficsHub (799 chapters in total)