"I'm leaving."
On the morning of April 2nd, Milluki waddled out, his large belly leading the way.
His hands were shoved deep into his pockets as if trying to look cool, but the result was far from what he intended.
He stepped out through the gates of Limeiro Castle, planning to just walk away and be done with it.
"Wait!"
Milluki paused in surprise and turned around.
It wasn't his two younger brothers, or other two calling him back—it was Gon.
Gon wore that pleading expression, like a small animal begging...
Here we go again. This kid is really hard to deal with. But this time, I won't fall for it.
"What do you want?" Milluki tried to sound fierce and cold.
"Milluki, are you really not coming with us to the New Continent? It's bound to be exciting there." Gon kept trying to persuade him.
"I'm not going," Milluki said firmly.
"Two months of sailing to some godforsaken place with no internet? I'd have to be crazy to tag along with you guys."
Germain hadn't yet told them how they'd actually get to the New Continent this time, so naturally, they all assumed it would be by sea.
Gon said, "But we've been working together as a team for over half a year now, with such great chemistry... and now we're going to split up..."
Milluki cut him off.
"Separate things."
"I teamed up with you because the main story and side quests in Greed Island Z need a team."
"I don't like you guys," he added arrogantly.
"And now that I've completed all the content in Greed Island Z, I don't need you anymore."
Gon wanted to argue further, but Killua stopped him.
"Alright, Gon. You're not going to convince Milluki."
Killua leaned back, hands behind his head, shaking his head.
"Look at him — he's so fat, you know he hates going on long trips."
"I'm not fat," Milluki snapped, baring his teeth angrily.
"I'm strong!"
His small eyes flashed with indignation, and he almost bounced like a ball.
"Yes, yes, yes." Killua replied casually, showing no pressure at all.
After venting some anger, Milluki calmed himself and became serious.
"I'm about to start doing what our family needs to do. You and Illumi just slack off, and I can't follow along slacking too."
Killua thought for a moment and then nodded.
"That's true. Milluki, please say hi to Dad, Grandpa, Zebro, Gotoh, Canary, and Seaquant for me."
Milluki was a bit surprised.
This kid even remembers Seaquant but forgot Mom? Is that on purpose or just careless? he wondered silently.
"I will," he answered.
"I'll also tell them about you and Illumi going to the New Continent."
"Up to you." Killua shrugged, then put his hands behind his head.
"I think Germain, Illumi, and Chairman Netero are all in the New Continent now. Dad and Grandpa probably won't oppose what you and Illumi are doing," Milluki said.
"There was never any need to worry about that."
Milluki then turned his head toward Alluka, who stood behind Killua as a holographic projection.
"What about Alluka? She can't come with you to the New Continent, right?"
The room fell silent.
Killua looked back at Alluka and saw her—finally calmed down—on the verge of tears again.
Last night, when she learned her favorite brother was leaving for the New Continent, and didn't know when he would return, Alluka broke down crying.
She was crying alone in the room on Kukuroo Mountain, but the hologram faithfully projected her tearful figure to the dining table.
Killua tried for a long time to comfort Alluka, but couldn't fully stop her tears.
That made him hesitate first, forcing him to reconsider whether he really should go to the New Continent.
However, he quickly made up his mind to make the trip.
Because Killua's journey to the New Continent was not just for fun.
He had already guessed where Nanika, who shared a body with Alluka, came from.
Even if it was for Alluka and Nanika's sake, he had to personally go to the New Continent.
Only then could he more easily gather information from the Dark Continent.
But these reasons were hard for Killua to explain to Alluka.
Just when he felt at a loss, an unexpected figure came to help him.
Ickshonpe's hologram floated from the far end of the long table and appeared right before Killua and Alluka.
He looked like a strange ghost, staring at Alluka intently.
Alluka sniffled a few times, and surprisingly stopped crying.
Then she timidly hid behind Killua, even though she couldn't physically touch his body.
"Hey," Ickshonpe spoke roughly.
"During this time, how do you feel traveling between Greed Island and Kukuroo Mountain in this form?"
Alluka was still a bit scared and hesitated for a long while.
Only after Killua encouraged her did she reply softly, "It's… it's really fun…"
"Fun, huh…" Ickshonpe was silent for a moment, then suddenly laughed.
"Indeed, the life of network residents is supposed to be fun. Otherwise, giving up the body would be meaningless."
He pointed at Alluka and said, "Sooner or later, the connection between Greed Island and the New Continent will open. Then, we network residents can freely travel between the two."
"You'll be able to see your brother anytime, and you can also return to Greed Island or Kukuroo Mountain whenever you want. At that time, you will be truly free."
Alluka floated out from behind Killua, her eyes sparkling brightly.
"Can I really see my brother anytime?" she asked.
"When that time comes, absolutely," Ickshonpe answered confidently.
Then he turned back to Killua.
"I say, let your little sister stay on Greed Island as an NPC. I will teach her all the common knowledge she needs as a network resident."
Killua couldn't help but be taken aback.
Then, he noticed Alluka's hopeful eyes staring at him.
In the end, he sighed and agreed.
For Alluka, during the time Killua was away, she had something to hold onto in her heart.
Maybe, that was a good thing.
At that moment, Milluki's words suddenly made Alluka cry again, despite Killua having just comforted her.
Feeling a bit frustrated, Killua pulled out Ickshonpe's words to soothe his sister once more.
Soon, Alluka wiped her tears away and obediently nodded.
She understood everything deep down — but it wasn't easy to let go.
That reluctance was an emotion, not something that could be pushed aside like a stone.
"Being a net resident isn't bad either," Milluki said.
"After I'm done with my assassin work, I'll ask Ickshonpe if I can temporarily enter the network world."
He said this strange thing and then turned around.
But after just a few steps, he suddenly stopped.
"Alluka."
"Hm?"
"I won't use you guys to do boring stuff anymore."
"Ah? Oh…"
Without looking back, Milluki waved his hand and transformed into a ripple of energy, flying into the sky and teleporting to Elena's palace.
There, he would return to Kukuroo Mountain.
Gon blinked and said, "Killua, your second brother doesn't seem as bad as you made him out to be."
"Him? He's just okay…"
Killua lowered his hands from behind his head and stared in the direction Milluki had gone.
Then, he looked at the confused Alluka and said, "But… he really does look a bit more like a big brother now."
*******
Support me on my patreon and read upto 20 early chapters.
https://www.patreon.com/c/Unique_Writer