Chapter 64 The Assassins of Kukuroku Mountain 07 Forget what happened tonight...
After that suffocating dinner, Killua's doubts not only failed to be resolved, but instead snowballed and grew larger.
The eldest brother Illumi and the butler named Ayana are acting strangely in every way.
He decided to find out what had happened.
However, it was much more difficult than he had imagined.
Illumi seems to have completely brought Ayana into his protective circle, or rather, his surveillance circle.
Killua tried to meet her by chance a few times.
On one occasion, at the training ground, he saw Ayana organizing equipment alone, which was a rare occurrence. He casually walked over, intending to strike up a conversation.
Before he could even get close, Illumi appeared at the end of the corridor like a ghost, his empty cat eyes silently staring at him, leaving Killua with all the words he had prepared stuck in his throat, and he could only pretend to be passing by.
Another time, in the library, Killua saw Ayana wiping the bookshelves from afar.
He waited patiently for a long time, making sure Illumi wasn't nearby, before quietly approaching.
But just as he uttered the first syllable "you," Illumi's emotionless voice came from behind him.
"Xiao Qi, what are you doing here?"
Killua turned around abruptly and saw that Illumi had been standing behind him at some point.
Ayana, however, kept her back to them the entire time, focused intently on wiping the bookshelf, seemingly oblivious to the commotion behind her.
After several repetitions, Killua was almost certain that his older brother was doing it on purpose.
He was like a spider guarding its latest collection, using invisible threads to firmly ensnare Ayana in the center, instantly detecting and driving away any "flies" that tried to approach.
This constant obstruction only fueled Killua's rebellious spirit and thirst for exploration.
The more the elder brother tries to isolate this woman, the more it shows that she has a secret, a secret that she cannot let him know.
The opportunity finally arrived late one night.
That day, Illumi seemed to have received an urgent communication and needed to handle a request temporarily.
Because the commission fee demanded by the other party was too high, he set off quickly.
That day, Illumi seemed worried that Ayana would interfere with his high-commission mission, so for the first time, he didn't bring Ayana with him and just let her stay quietly in her room, not allowing her to come out.
Ayana nodded like a robot receiving instructions, then went straight to her room, closed the door, and seemed not to intend to show herself in public until Illumi returned.
Now!
Killua's heart was pounding with tension and excitement.
Like a real cat, he minimized his presence and quietly approached Ayana's door, skillfully pried open the lock, and went inside.
When the door was opened, Killua was terrified.
The woman stood there like a stiff corpse, the moonlight shining through the window onto her, making her skin appear deathly pale.
She seemed to have lost all her energy, standing straight with her eyes lowered, as if she hadn't even noticed Killua walking in.
She looks exactly like a female ghost.
Killua's heart pounded wildly in his chest, and he even subconsciously took a half step back, assuming a defensive stance.
The scene before me was truly bizarre.
A woman, in her room late at night, without turning on the lights or sleeping, just stood there stiffly facing the door, like a marionette suspended by invisible threads, or a standing corpse.
The pale moonlight outlined her stiff silhouette, casting a long, distorted shadow behind her.
Killua calmed himself down, lowered his voice, and tentatively called out, "Hello?"
The boy's voice sounded exceptionally clear in the deathly silent room.
There was no response.
Ayana remained in that position, not even a single hair on her head swayed.
A chilling atmosphere permeated the room, as if it were not a woman's bedroom, but a morgue.
Killua took a deep breath, forcefully suppressing the chill rising in his heart.
He's the heir to the Zoldyck family; what hasn't he seen?
Could this kind of scene possibly scare him?
But the bizarre and illogical situation before him still made his scalp tingle.
He carefully took a step forward, getting a clearer view of the woman's features.
The woman was wearing ordinary housekeeper's pajamas, her hands hanging naturally at her sides, her fingertips pale.
Apart from his unusually upright posture and lifeless appearance, he looked no different from the silent butler during the day.
"Hey." Killua moved closer, almost able to feel the icy aura emanating from her, so different from that of a living person. "Can you hear me?"
This time, there seemed to be a faint response.
The woman's eyelashes trembled very slightly, and her lowered head lifted almost imperceptibly, allowing the moonlight to illuminate her eyes.
Killua's heart sank.
The eyes were open, but the pupils were unfocused and lifeless, as if covered by a thick layer of dust, staring blankly ahead.
There was no life in their eyes; they didn't look like the eyes of a living person at all.
But just when Killua thought she had completely lost consciousness, a faint glimmer of light flickered across her empty eyes with extreme difficulty.
The light vanished in an instant, so quickly that it seemed like an illusion.
Immediately afterwards, Killua saw her right index finger, which was hanging at her side, twitch very slightly.
The woman seemed to be rebelling against something.
Her will to control her body was fighting against some terrible force.
This realization gave Killua a jolt of energy, but at the same time it sent chills down his spine.
What exactly did her older brother do to her?
“You…” Killua was about to ask something else, trying to communicate with her consciousness.
But suddenly, the woman's body trembled violently, as if a powerful electric current had passed through it.
The faint light in her eyes vanished instantly, her unfocused pupils were once again covered by a deathly gray, and her head, which had just been raised slightly, drooped down abruptly.
Killua froze on the spot, his heart pounding.
Just then, a very faint sound of footsteps came from the corridor outside the door.
Killua didn't have time to think. He instantly flipped over the window, leaned against the wall, and waited for the person outside to open the door and come in.
The cold wind blew in through the window, making Killua's silver hair dance wildly, but he didn't care about that at the moment.
He pressed himself tightly against the wall, perfectly concealing himself in the shadows beneath the window, even holding his breath.
The footsteps stopped outside the door.
The key was inserted into the lock, and the person outside came in.
Killua peered intently into the room through a tiny crack at the edge of the window.
The visitor did not turn on the lights immediately. His empty eyes scanned the dark room before settling on Ayana, who stood frozen like a statue in the center of the room.
He paused for a moment.
Illumi slowly walked up to Ayana, getting so close that he was almost touching her.
He extended his long, cold fingers and gently lifted Ayana's drooping chin, forcing her empty, lifeless eyes to look at him.
The master and servant seemed unusually strange.
The two of them were like exquisite dolls without souls, and the other was like the master who controlled everything about the dolls.
Just then, Illumi's gaze suddenly turned to the open window.
His tone was devoid of any emotional fluctuation; he simply said, "I remember, I didn't ask you to open the window."
It is a declarative tone.
Illumi didn't immediately go to the window; he just watched quietly, the corners of his mouth curving upwards almost imperceptibly. His voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached Killua's mouth, like a demon's whisper.
"Xiaoqi, it's very windy outside, be careful not to catch a cold."
Killua's pupils suddenly contracted.
He suddenly jumped out of the window and entered the room, meeting the pair of empty eyes in the room.
"Big brother! What did you do to her?!" Killua's voice trembled with excitement as he pointed at Aiana, who was like a doll in the room. "How could she have become like this?!"
Illumi slowly lowered his hand.
Ayana's chin lost its support, and her head drooped limply again, returning to its lifeless state.
He turned to Killua outside the window, his tone still calm and even: "I'm helping her grow, Killua. Just like I helped you before."
Ilmi tilted her head: "She's learning how to become more perfect, more in line with the Zoldyck family's requirements, and more satisfying to me."
"Perfect?" Killua could hardly believe his ears. "Turning her into a mindless doll is what you call perfect?!"
Illumi's voice carried a chilling undertone: "She is quiet and obedient now, she will not disobey any of my orders, nor will she show any unnecessary emotions. Isn't this the ideal state?"
He took a step forward, closer to the window, where the empty cat's eyes appeared even more profound and terrifying in the moonlight.
“But you, Killua.” Illumi’s gaze was like an invisible shackle, tightly binding Killua. “You always seem to be focusing on things you shouldn’t be focusing on, which is not good.”
A jet-black mental nail quietly appeared at his fingertips, gleaming ominously in the moonlight.
"It seems I'll have to intervene in your affairs again, Xiao Qi."
Killua looked at the familiar Nen nail, and a sudden, dull ache began to throb in his head.
A fear and aversion that came from the depths of his soul made him want to run away immediately.
But he gritted his teeth, forcing himself to stand still, glaring at Illumi.
"I won't let you succeed, big brother!"
Illumi didn't seem surprised by his resistance, nor was he angry; he just looked at him with the kind of eyes one would use to look at a disobedient child.
“It’s not up to you, Xiaoqi,” he stated calmly. “I’m doing this for your own good.”
Before he finished speaking, Illumi's figure vanished from the spot like a ghost.
Killua's hair stood on end, and he retreated rapidly, almost instinctively.
But although he was fast, Illumi was even faster.
A dark shadow suddenly approached like a leech, its cold fingers carrying the deadly psychic nail aimed straight at his brow.
It’s over!
The thought flashed through Killua's mind.
“Young Master Illumi.” A dry voice suddenly broke the silence of the room.
It's Ayana.
*
[Detected that the affection level of the good boy [Illumi Zoldyck] is 35%.]
[Detected that the affection level of the good boy [Illumi Zoldyck] is 40%.]
[...]
[Detected that the affection level of the good boy [Illumi Zoldyck] is 80%.]
[Congratulations, host...]
[Host, please wake up.]
If this continues, you will be unable to return to the real world, forever trapped in the Zoldyck household, and completely become Illumi Zoldyck's appendage.
【Host. 】
Ayana suddenly opened her eyes, feeling a sharp pain in the back of her head.
She instinctively reached behind her head and pulled out a handful of needles.
The memories of the past few days flooded into Ayana's mind all at once, giving her a splitting headache. Before she could even organize her thoughts, she heard Illumi's calm and unwavering voice.
"Looks like I'll have to intervene in your affairs again, Xiao Qi."
"It's not up to you, Xiaoqi. I'm doing this for your own good."
She looked in the direction of the sound and saw Illumi walking towards Killua with a Nen needle in his hand.
[Special ability [Biomanipulation] has been activated. Please confirm the command.]
Without the slightest hesitation, Ayana threw the needle at the back of Illumi's head and shouted.
"Illumi, forget everything that happened tonight."
"Illumi, go back to your room and do what you need to do."
Illumi's movements suddenly froze.
For the first time, an expression of disbelief clearly appeared in his perpetually empty cat-like eyes.
A strange yet eerily familiar mental force forcefully invaded his nervous system, compelling him to forget what had happened that night.
"You...?!" Illumi suddenly turned to look at Ayana, trying to resist, but he was no match for that powerful force.
His consciousness seemed to be thrown into a powerful vortex, and all his memories of tonight began to become distorted and blurry.
Soon, the shock in Illumi's eyes was quickly replaced by a blank emptiness, and the hand that was holding the Nen nails up fell limply to his sides.
He shook his head, seemingly confused as to why he was standing there, holding the thought nail in his hand.
“…It seems he’s too tired,” Illumi said softly, his tone unusually weary and puzzled.
He didn't even look at Killua, who was standing right next to him. He just rubbed his temples, turned around, and walked out of the room with slightly slow steps, as if sleepwalking, and closed the door behind him.
Killua stared in shock at the scene before him, his eyes wide with disbelief.
He stared at Ayana, stammering, "You...you...you..."
[Special ability [Biomanipulation] has been activated. Please confirm the command.]
Ayana turned her gaze to Killua and said, "Killua, forget everything that happened tonight and go back to your room."
Killua stared in shock, feeling a powerful force surge into his brain.
Then, the surprise and doubt in his eyes were quickly replaced by a bewildered weariness.
Killua looked around, seemingly puzzled as to why he was standing in this unfamiliar room so late at night.
"Strange... how did I end up here..." He rubbed his eyes, yawned, and like a child waking up from sleepwalking, he staggered towards his room, full of confusion.
The room finally became completely quiet.
The moonlight still shone palely on Ayana, but she was no longer the stiff doll.
She collapsed to the floor, her back against the cold wall, panting heavily. Cold sweat had completely soaked through her pajamas, and her face was as pale as paper.
That Illumi is terrifying!
They actually controlled her for so many days. If the system hadn't awakened her, she probably would have become a complete puppet, at Illumi's beck and call.
【Host, you've worked hard.】
[Illumi Zoldyck is an extremely dangerous individual. I will expedite the mission. I wish you a speedy departure from here.]
Ayana clenched her fists, her nails digging deep into her palms.
[Furthermore, host, because you used biomanipulation on Illumi Zoldyck and Killua Zoldyck, they are currently unaware that you have broken free of Illumi's control.]
You will need to continue pretending to be controlled by Illumi; this will help you complete the mission.
Ayana replied irritably, "Okay."
She lay in bed, rubbing her hair, wanting nothing more than to leave this world as soon as possible and never have any contact with Illumi, that control freak, again.
"Then, I will give you your final task in this world."
[Mission Objective: Help Killua regain his memories and break free from Illumi's control.]
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