Gourmet Hunter (HxH Fanfic)

In this situation, Chrollo, despite being an outsider, held control over the overall situation.

The Elder had given Chrollo a deadline, which was equivalent to the time for Law to escape. This could be interpreted as the Elder showing Chrollo some respect.

From this, it can be seen that Chrollo and the elders have a close relationship, and it can also be seen that Cook's death was not serious enough to make the Elder angry, otherwise, he would not have given Chrollo a time limit.

However, no matter how big or small the matter is, Law must be responsible for it. This is the fixed outcome and the difference lies in the process.

For Machi, Uvogin, and Nobunaga, Chrollo was determined to ensure their safety. As for Law, he also fought for a chance for him to survive. Whether Law can survive afterwards is no longer his business, though Chrollo believed Law's odds of survival were slim.

That was Chrollo's mindset before coming to the church. Now, he changed his mind.

"What do you mean?" Machi frowned. She noticed the certainty in Chrollo's tone. She felt relieved by this, but she didn't know on what Chrollo's confidence was based on.

At this moment, there was a knock on the door and their conversation paused.

Except for Chrollo, everyone else's expressions changed slightly. After all, after hearing Chrollo's words, the East District's Elder had become a sword hanging over their heads, ready to be descend at any time.

"Come in." Chrollo said calmly.

As soon as he finished speaking, the door opened, and it was Pakunoda with her neat, golden short hair. She held two wooden crutches in her hands.

"Am I interrupting?" Pakunoda glanced at the positions of the three in the room.

"No." Machi shook her head.

Upon hearing this, Pakunoda nodded slightly. She walked into the room and closed the door behind her, then handed the crutches in her hand to Machi. The latter was a little surprised, thanked her and took the crutches.

With the crutches to support her body, Machi finally freed herself from the awkward posture she'd been maintaining and escaped from Law's grasp.

Bringing the crutches was not something Chrollo had instructed in advance, but was Pakunoda's own initiative. From this point of view, it can be seen how attentive Pakunoda is.

Law glanced at the people gathered in the room: Chrollo, Machi, Nobunaga, Uvogin, and Pakunoda, the five future core members of the Phantom Troupe, and they were now standing in the same room with him.

But instead of marveling at this, Law was weighing the pros and cons of staying in Meteor City.

His gaze shifted to the Hand of Ominous Signs that Chrollo had deliberately held in his hand, and said, "You mentioned the Elder of East District has a penchant for collecting treasures and antiques. Were you planning for me to trade the Hand of Ominous Signs to settle this matter?"

After hearing what Law said, Chrollo was not surprised and nodded and said, "Correct."

The Hand of Ominous Signs the key to Chrollo's confidence that the Elder would drop the issue.

Of course, if Chrollo hadn't developed an interest in Law now, even if he realized the value of the Hand of Ominous Signs in the church just now, he wouldn't have said so much. He would have simply maintained his usual quiet and enigmatic demeanor.

Exploring someone's depths was akin to peeling an onion layer by layer, and Chrollo enjoyed this process.

He thought Law was worth exploring further, which is why he didn't want Law to leave Meteor City right now.

"You saved Machi and the others, so I secured you four hours as a gesture of thanks. However, as long as you give the Hand of Ominous Signs to the Elder, he won't pursue the matter any further." Chrollo explained.

"That's great, Law! You don't have to leave." Machi turned to Law with a delighted expression.

Law, however, remained silent. At this moment, his thoughts were racing.

'Machi had only seen the surface of the situation, and most likely, she was already indebted to Chrollo in her mind. I believe that after this incident, Machi and Uvogin would trust Chrollo even more.'

From meeting Chrollo until now, roughly fifteen minutes had passed.

In this short span, it can be seen that Chrollo's behavior is well-intentioned, but in fact, it is not the case.

If Chrollo had no intention of stealing his Nen Ability in the church just now, then Law might have genuinely felt indebted to him.

Knowing full well that the Elder would pursue the matter, even securing four hours of time for Law wasn't truly helpful. The real key to evading pursuit lay in Law's Nen Ability, but Chrollo had planned to steal them before informing him to flee, which was equivalent to depriving him of the chance to survive.

Although he didn't know why Chrollo changed his mind at the last moment, this act alone was not something Law could let go of.

Because he wanted it, he can easily disregard the safety of others and even indirectly take their lives.

Even though Chrollo's actions were due to the values ​​​​formed by the special environment of Meteor City, Law could not forgive him.

However, what Law didn't know was that Chrollo had only recently developed [Bandit's Secret], and that he was Chrollo's first subject for the experiment.

"Machi, this thing is worth 8 million Jenny." Law slowly suppressed the spiraling thoughts in his head, looked at Machi who was full of joy, and said in a joking tone.

"And?" Machi stared at Law.

For some reason, Law felt an inexplicable pressure, and his smile became slightly awkward. He chuckled bitterly and said, "Nothing else."

Machi nodded slightly, then retracted her gaze. She looked at Chrollo, and said calmly: "If this piece of wood can solve this problem, then Chrollo, you should take it to the Elder as soon as possible."

"It's called the Hand of Ominous Signs."

Law muttered in a low voice, but Machi ignored him completely.

Chrollo looked at Law and said, "I can't go alone. Law has to come with me."

Meeting Chrollo's gaze, Law sighed softly, then said seriously: "I think I'd rather just run away."

Truthfully, Law no longer wanted to stay in Meteor City. After all, the feeling of being constrained wasn't something he could tolerate for long. Besides, he still needed time to develop his Nen Ability, and a safe and unrestricted environment would be better for it.

Rather than offering the Hand of Ominous Signs to the Elder in exchange for peace, Law thought it would be better to leave it with Machi to improve her living conditions.

"No way." Machi rejected it directly.

"Since this broken piece of wood can be used to solve this problem, why do you still need to run?" Uvogin looked at Law with a puzzled look on his face.

Chrollo and Pakunoda didn't say anything.

"Broken wood..."

Law rolled his eyes and said seriously: "Fine, even if it's a broken piece of wood, it's worth 8 million Jenny. Think about it, what could you do with that kind of money?"

"What could we do?" Uvogin asked like an obedient child.

Hearing this, Law's mouth twitched slightly. He rubbed his forehead, and said helplessly, "It's enough for you to eat so much meat every day that you'd be sick of it. And look at Machi's skinny body. Three bowls of rice soup a day? It's obvious that she's seriously malnourished. With this money, her diet could improve. This is related to Machi's future self-confidence."

Having said this, Law was stunned for a moment, as if... he had said something wrong.

In the room, Nobunaga was still sleeping soundly.

Meanwhile, Machi, Uvogin, Chrollo, and Pakunoda were all staring at Law quietly. From what he said just now, it seemed that something extraordinary was revealed.

'The dreaded silence…'

Law laughed dryly, then glanced at Machi cautiously. The latter frowned slightly, so Law subconsciously took a step back.

"So it was you."

Machi said and raised one of her crutches.