He had beaten his fear. Even if it meant lifelong injury or death, he would not surrender today.

Chrollo stared at the clarity in his eyes—something that shouldn't belong to someone about to lose his freedom forever.

Knowing the cost and still continuing… The rightful source is NoveI(F)ire.net

Could he really have that kind of resolve?

"Even if I die, I'll never surrender! If my hands break, I'll bite the fishing rod! If my legs break, I'll crawl forward bit by bit! I just can't give up here. If I give up here, I'll never see my dad again!"

"That's just what you think," Chrollo replied, but before he could go on, Gon shouted again.

"You said if I didn't give up before your next words, you'd break all my fingers! You haven't done it yet!"

…

He was actually reminding Chrollo? Did he want the pain faster?

Everyone looked shocked.

Chrollo seemed surprised too. He looked at Gon for a few seconds, then simply said, "Alright."

It was just a Hunter Exam. Most people here were below the level of using Nen. Apart from a few exceptions, Chrollo hadn't expected much from the rest—but he hadn't expected to meet someone like this.

Willpower wasn't a bad thing. It might seem foolish now, but once this kid learned Nen, this unshakable resolve in the face of life and death would surely grow into great strength.

Humans really are interesting, Chrollo thought.

As if you're not human yourself.

Just when everyone thought Chrollo would act, as he had each step before, he suddenly turned away and said, "I give up, referee."

Huh?!

Everyone was so shocked their jaws nearly dropped. Only Saiki Kusuo, who had heard it in advance, muttered in his heart, "Good grief."

"Why?!" The one asking was Gon.

"Because you really wouldn't give up until you die. Too much trouble. I'll just find the next one," Chrollo answered simply.

"No way! I don't agree! That's too sneaky! Even if you give up like this, I won't be happy at all!"

Everyone: …

Killua and the others put a hand to their forehead. That was just how Gon was—he had his own sense of fairness, and if it wasn't a win earned through strength, he wouldn't accept it.

Chrollo stared at Gon, surprised that things had once again gone differently from what he expected.

But faced with this strange Gon, Chrollo didn't get mad. He raised one finger and said, "You've already lost four fingers. That's the price of winning. I'm a demon who takes part of your soul from those fingers. I'm satisfied."

Saiki Kusuo: Chrollo, do you even hear what you're saying?

"Liar! You're not a demon! You weren't happy at all when you hurt my fingers!" Gon shouted.

[He noticed that too? But I didn't have any bad feelings, I was just calmly doing what I had to do.] Chrollo's inner voice.

What should I do with this kid named Gon? A perfect mix of stubbornness from an Enhancer and the willfulness of a child—impossible to reason with.

"Rock, paper, scissors. If you lose, will you admit defeat?" Chrollo reached out his hand. "Let me make it clear, I'm going to play paper. This is a test—it's not pure luck. Win or lose depends on your own decision."

Gon hesitated. He'd seen this kind of rock-paper-scissors trick before in the Trick Tower.

"If you're willing to admit defeat if you lose, then I won't give up now. But if you're going to cheat when you lose, then there's nothing to talk about," Chrollo added.

"Hey, what are those two talking about?" Leorio didn't get it.

Kurapika slowly explained, "Well… Chrollo wants to give up, but Gon won't let him. Now they're… fighting over who gets to give up first. Yeah, you could put it that way…"

[It was supposed to be a cruel match. How did it turn into this? I don't get it!] Killua's thoughts.

[Hehehehe… Gon… you're just too interesting. Just like me back then—he wouldn't even take my number badge, hahaha…] Hisoka was laughing like crazy.

Illumi's eyes moved between Gon, Killua, and Alluka, feeling a little uneasy.

And for the first time, Saiki Kusuo found himself impressed by Gon.

"Alright! Let's do it!" Gon decided. "If I lose, I'll admit defeat!"

"Good. I don't want to give you time to think, so let's go three seconds from now." Chrollo put his hand behind his back, while Gon, whose hand could barely clench or open, also had an injured arm. He used one hand to cover the other and held his fist at his waist.

"Three, two, one." Chrollo counted down.

When Chrollo reached one, Gon threw out his hand. Everyone saw the scissors—index and middle fingers out, thumb tucked in. Right now, Gon could only use three fingers on each hand, and probably couldn't even throw a proper fist or paper.

Saiki Kusuo: Oh, so that's why you chose paper?

Yes, Chrollo chose paper and really did play paper. This time, he didn't use any tricks.

[I already decided to give up. This is just a little game to stop a kid from causing more trouble.] Chrollo thought.

Saiki Kusuo looked at them both: Don't find common ground in weird places like this.

"Ref, I lost," Chrollo reminded him.

The referee froze at the situation before finally announcing, "In match seven, Gon Freecss versus Chrollo—Gon Freecss wins!"

…

The matches went on.

Hisoka beat Bodoro. Illumi surrendered to Saiki Kusuo. Killua forfeited to Leorio. After a full round, it was quickly Chrollo's turn again.

Gon insisted on watching the matches while Leorio treated him.

Chrollo stepped up again, and this time his opponent was Alluka.

Saiki Kusuo already had a bad feeling.

Before Alluka went up, Killua had loudly told him to give up right away—everyone heard it. Chrollo also thought he'd finally met a normal opponent. But once Alluka stood in the ring, he actually said, "Chrollo, can you please give up?"

Chrollo looked at the kid in front of him, then at Saiki Kusuo, who was covering his face at the side of the arena.

"…Do I look like I'm running a charity?" Chrollo tilted his head. "I may have let that kid pass just now, but I'm not going to keep giving up forever."

Saiki Kusuo: Come to think of it, Chrollo's opponents are all basically kids, right? If you replaced Chrollo with Hisoka, it'd be perfect. Hisoka would be thrilled.

If Alluka got a bye, then it'd be against Killua. If Killua got a bye, then it'd be against Illumi, and after Illumi would be Buhara or Bodoro.

In the end, he would still win.

But if the leader of the Phantom Troupe kept losing on purpose all the way until the last round, what pride would he have left?

Still, even fighting the younger brother depends on the older brother. Chrollo looked at Saiki Kusuo and actually asked the audience, "Do you agree?"

Who? Illumi paused for a moment, wondering if he was talking to him.

Saiki Kusuo: Thanks, he was asking me.

And my answer… [No way. Even if they were just friends I'd known for a dozen years, I wouldn't allow anyone to hurt them.]

No one was allowed to hurt Alluka. Alluka was someone he had decided to protect, and as long as Alluka didn't want to be hurt, nothing and no one would so much as touch a hair on him.

But here's the problem.

Alluka, get ready to be hurt!

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