Chapter 59

Nen users heal their wounds much faster than most people imagine.

Of course, aside from the "Nen user" setting, there are some people whose physical abilities are already superhuman. For example, Killua was shocked with electricity and whipped by his brothers when he was young, yet he still survived unharmed without a single scar on his body.

From my observation, Kurapika might also belong to this group.

In just a few days, he went from being exhausted and haggard to being in a sharp, ready-to-fight state.

Her gentle appearance, which was originally incredibly alluring thanks to the buff of her frail health, is now shrouded in a swirling aura of darkness, completely obscuring the clarity of her features.

"Every time I see him like that, I feel like nothing good is going to happen..." Leorio muttered to himself, "He's definitely plotting something again."

“Let him go,” I said nonchalantly. “We can’t stop him anyway. He’s the kind of person who won’t give up until he hits a brick wall.”

Leorio sighed and muttered:

"He needs somewhere to go back first, then we can talk about it. In his situation, he simply can't stop."

He spoke too vaguely, and I tilted my head in confusion, but Leorio kept his mouth shut and didn't continue the topic.

“While we still have time,” he said to me, “let’s discuss your next goals.”

He rubbed his hands together, then asked impatiently, "No matter what, Adrian is your home, right? You're really not going back? That's the Adrian family—even if there are unpleasant things happening there, it's different from Killua. You're the sole heir, and Killua seems to be— um! umm!"

He was interrupted halfway through his sentence by Kurapika with a punch that landed squarely on Leorio's head. Leorio rubbed his head in pain, his eyes welling up with tears as he protested:

What are you doing!

“A family that can form a large-scale monopoly in that kind of industry is obviously not a good place,” Kurapika said coldly. “Since you can understand Killua’s choice, you should also understand her choice.”

“The Zoldycks and Adrians are different—” Leorio shouted, “And Rae is different from that brat! It’s really worrying to see a girl wandering around alone!”

"Ah, are you worried about me?" I pointed to myself. "...If that's the case, don't worry too much. Although I can't handle monsters like Killua and it's a bit difficult for me to fight Kurapika, I can easily handle someone like Leorio."

"What do you mean by my level?!" he exclaimed, waving his limbs around.

"Very little combat experience, almost no skills, a little strength but not enough to suppress me... that's about my level." I said honestly, "Anyone at this level can't do anything to me. I've been pushing open the gates of the underworld and fighting off enemies since I was eight years old."

Leorio stared in disbelief: "How much...!"

“Eight years old,” I repeated.

He stretched out his hand and suddenly said, "Let's arm wrestle! I don't believe it... Am I the weakest person around here? Impossible, absolutely impossible!"

Weakest... probably not.

Leorio is such a headache, I think.

I was just saying that he can't do anything to me yet.

Furthermore, I absolutely dislike arm wrestling. What if I don't control the force properly and one side dislocates their joint?

I have seen one of my mother's bodyguards, who was in training, dislocate his shoulder so often that it was a habitual injury; the scene was quite terrifying.

Unless absolutely necessary, people should cherish their health.

So I shook my head.

Leorio is still persevering.

Thinking that if all else fails, I might give in to the other person this once, I wavered slightly and tried to extend my hand, but Kurapika slapped Leorio away again.

“You,” he said, then gave Leorio a rather cold, disdainful look, “you’re not going to try and take advantage of me, are you?”

Leorio: "..."

Kurapika: ""

Leorio chuckled and scratched the back of his head, one hand on his hip, the other twirling around the back of his head, looking quite busy.

"No, how could that be—" He deliberately raised his voice.

Kurapika squinted.

Leorio turned his head and looked out the window.

Abandoning his suspicious companion, Kurapika turned to me and suddenly began to scold me:

"I've wanted to say this before, no matter what, you were way too careless!"

Why are they suddenly starting to hold me accountable?

I pointed to myself, feeling innocent:

"What's wrong with me? What does it have to do with me? What advantage can I gain from an arm wrestling match? What's the big deal..."

"That's exactly why!" His face darkened, and his tone became increasingly serious. Behind him, Leorio awkwardly tiptoed away, only to be grabbed by the collar by the quick-witted Kurapika, who then punched him.

"...It's precisely because you didn't clearly define the boundaries from the beginning that you're still facing constant trouble!" Kurapika said. "I heard you encountered many problems during your part-time job, and you almost had your wages withheld once because of this, right?"

Me: "That's...what does that have to do with me? It's clearly that the employer there has bad character!"

“They all have their problems, but you have yours too—” Kurapika said. “Arm wrestling is fine, even in an emergency, but carrying you while running away is also fine, and the basic accommodations are no objection. Don’t you think you’re being too submissive?”

I was shocked: "Apart from the arm-wrestling, everything else you mentioned is related to you personally, right? You're using things you're undeniably involved in to settle scores with me."

Kurapika covered his head with one hand, his expression a complex mix of emotions: "I can't communicate with this person."

"...It's precisely because I'm also a party involved that I'm protesting to you," he said. "Please, be more firm and ruthless. If you don't refuse when your boundaries are violated to this extent, you're bound to be bullied."

It was very vague and ambiguous; he seemed to have a hard time making his words simpler and easier to understand, but suddenly I understood what he meant a little bit.

When you refuse someone, you should say no from the beginning, rather than waiting until it's too late to protest. Last-minute resistance always seems weak and futile.

“For example, Leorio,” Kurapika couldn’t resist teasing his companion at this point, “If he suggests arm wrestling with you, unless there are special circumstances, you must refuse him.”

Leorio, unable to contain himself any longer, clenched his fists and shouted:

"Why are you bringing this up? I haven't committed any irreparable crime! Stop tarnishing my image in front of girls!"

"Of course, someone like you, with weak willpower, who always succumbs to temptation and fails to stay true to yourself, deserves criticism—"

"Ugh, this is so annoying! All I've done is not hold a girl's hand in a long time—! Surrounded by lousy men like you, I can't muster the energy to face life's challenges! And you yourself have been living in the same room with pretty girls for so long and getting taken care of!"

"Lay didn't take care of me at all; it's good enough that she didn't ask me to take care of her. Besides, I've been very weak these past few days, so there's nothing like the situation you're envious of. Clear your mind of all that nonsense. So, the reason you say you have a weak will is..."

...

They started arguing, arguing so fiercely that they completely ignored my presence in the room, their eyes fixed on each other, glaring at each other menacingly.

I stood aside, thought quietly for a moment, and then reached out and grabbed the hem of Leorio's black suit.

He stopped his ferocious movements and looked at me strangely, while Kurapika also turned his gaze towards me.

"If you want to hold hands, I have no problem." Then I tilted my head back and asked, "Want to?"

Kurapika: "..."

Leorio: "..."

After a moment of silence, Leorio let out a miserable "Ah!" as if he had seen some kind of insect or something, and suddenly yanked the clothes back from my hand and jumped a few steps away.

"I just acted impulsively! I absolutely didn't mean to offend you!" he shouted. "Don't do things like that all of a sudden!"

“No,” I said. “I don’t think it’s offensive. I mean it, if you want, I really…”

A pillow suddenly hit my face.

Kurapika called out my name in annoyance:

"Ray!"

I haven't recovered from the shock of the pillow yet.

“No matter what you learned in Zoldyck… I’ve heard a little about it and met him in person. Killua’s older brother seems to have a very twisted personality… Killua was tormented and suffered a lot, and you probably aren’t much better off.” He said a lot in one breath, “But since you’ve made up your mind to leave there, you have to realize, like Killua, that he was wrong, and that the things he instilled in your mind were also wrong.”

"Don't casually say 'yes,' draw clear lines from the beginning. Unless your desire is really strong, reject all other people's suggestions."

Leorio finally managed to slip away as he had hoped.

Staying here seems to put a lot of pressure on him.

The door opened and closed again. I put down the pillow beside me, turned my head somewhat blankly, and looked at the blond youth on the other side.

“But it’s not that I don’t care,” I said.

"...What?" He looked like he didn't understand what I was talking about.

“It’s not that I don’t care,” I said, “I am…”

I struggled to find a suitable adjective to describe my feelings, but in the end I realized that this feeling could only be described with that corny, outdated adjective.

"I... like you and Leorio." After a brief pause, I said this to Kurapika, "That's why I think it's okay. Holding hands isn't a serious problem, is it?"

"Not holding hands, I mean, after that... there were other things..." He seemed a little hesitant to say it.

"That kind of thing won't happen, right?" I blinked and asked. "You guys should all fall into the 'good people' category, right?"

"..."

silence.

The long silence felt like a fleeting moment.

Kurapika was defeated, clutching his head again, and forced out an uncomfortable whisper from his throat:

"You really are...always..."

"...No wonder Killua was almost going crazy."

I:"……"

“You’re really… painful, Ray,” he continued.

--------------------

Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!