In the end, the restaurant gained two new temporary dishwashers.
"Damn it, even money has to be converted into cards to be used!!" Killua grumbled as he scrubbed the dishes. As a member of the Zoldyck assassin family, his hands were meant for killing, not washing dishes. It was truly a first for him.
"But then, how are we supposed to get change?" Gon questioned. "For example, if we use a ten thousand Jenny card to pay, the change should be eight thousand nine hundred eighty Jenny, right? That means we'd get one thousand Jenny card, two thousand Jenny card... In total, at least twelve cards for change!"
"That's true..." Killua nodded.
Gon: "But the free slots only hold forty-five cards. At this rate, won't they fill up quickly?"
Killua: "Exactly. Besides money, there will be other necessary cards, so we must carefully select the useful ones when choosing card items."
Gon: "But right now, we don't even know how to earn money. What do typical games usually do?"
Killua: "Let me think... Hmm, defeating monsters can earn you money."
Gon: "Huh? Why would monsters have money?"
Killua: "You're asking me? I have no idea!!"
Cat Boss: "Stop chattering, you two!! Hurry up and get to work~ Meow!!"
Finally, after Killua and Gon managed to clean all the dishes, they were relieved of their debt.
Meanwhile, as they were washing dishes, Feitan and Phinks had also arrived in the city. With their experience, they quickly found the people watching them.
"Join you?" In the city square, after locating the people, Feitan and Phinks were met with this question.
"That's right!!" A scruffy, middle-aged man with a beard spoke up: "We plan to monopolize the spell cards, turning the card limit restriction into an advantage! He clenched his fist, his expression full of excitement.
In the square, he wasn't alone; he had two companions. One was a burly guy with small eyes and a buzz cut, and the other was a thin, gaunt man with a shoehorn face, dressed in blue and white, wearing small round glasses.
Besides them, there were many new players who had just entered the game, drawn by the middle-aged man's team to listen to their speech. They explained various popular strategies and information within the game while trying to recruit people into their team.
"To possess all the needed cards and those we hope to acquire, as well as to gather intelligence and search for cards, we need a lot of manpower. Ideally, the team should have over seventy people!"
"Currently, we have fifty-three members and have obtained around eight hundred spell cards. Now, in the designated pocket, there are already sixty-seven item cards. Combined, the total number of cards among everyone is about seventy percent!!"
The thin man with glasses stepped forward, emphasizing their current advantages to give the new players a sense of urgency. People tend to follow the strong and want to join powerful forces.
Seeing this team nearing success, many people's eyes glimmered, clearly tempted. "We are now in the final stage of recruitment. This might be the last chance to join us. I believe it won't take long to collect all the cards."
The thin man with glasses said, delivering the final blow. If you don't join now, you won't have another chance!!
"So, will you join us or refuse?! Join us in ending this deadly game!"
"I can assure you, there's no better way to clear the game!!" After the team, which aimed to conquer the game within three months, finished speaking, someone immediately raised a question about the simplest and most straightforward interest: how the five hundred billion bounty would be divided.
When the middle-aged man proposed a relatively fair distribution of the prize money, no one had any objections. For new players, it was indeed a good choice. Going solo or with just two or three people could take years to clear the game, and they might even get stuck here.
Though the share of the five hundred billion Jenny would be small, the game could be cleared in a short time, within two or three months. Moreover, being part of an organized and efficient team was safe, without worrying about being hunted by other players.
This made it very appealing. After all, there were many professional teams outside, the most famous being the group led by Greed Island's creators. Their clearing speed was indeed fast, and going solo wouldn't beat them or even the current organization.
So, joining the team seemed to be the truly beneficial choice. Many people eagerly raised their hands to join. This scene brought smiles to the middle-aged man and the burly guy.
"And what about you two?" They turned to Feitan and Phinks, who stood silently aside.
"We've heard a lot of interesting information."
---
Without lifting his head, Feitan remarked, "This is far more comprehensive than the intelligence I heard from that fool out on the plains."
"Really, it's quite considerate of you to share so much with us."
"What are you talking about?!" The middle-aged man and the burly guy were somewhat perplexed.
Meanwhile, the thin man with small round glasses had a glint of something unusual in his eyes as he began to slowly retreat. Among those present, he was the most deeply hidden and powerful individual.
Known in the underworld as "Bomber" Kensru, he wasn't here to share the five hundred billion bounty fairly with the team. Kensru intended to swallow the entire reward with his partners by planting his bomb Nen ability, "Life's Sound," on the team members, using their lives to claim all the designated cards for himself.
Today, as usual, he came to recruit some new players. But upon seeing Feitan and Phinks, he sensed something was amiss. Being the strongest, he could tell that Feitan and Phinks were on a completely different level than these players. Their aura made it clear to Kensru that they were not to be trifled with, just like himself.
Their words were intriguing, and Kensru's instincts told him to back away slowly.
Feitan found the game intriguing, a true game of slaughter, perfect for hunting players.
"What do you mean?!" Even the middle-aged man and the burly guy, slow as they were, could sense something was off. Feitan and Phinks had no intention of joining them, and their words were anything but polite.
"Nothing much, just that your talk of teams and partners is laughable," Feitan said bluntly. "Since when can anyone form a team? Needing dozens of people to clear a game is quite pathetic."
Feitan's words were sharp and mocking. "What are you saying?!" The burly guy with a buzz cut was furious, "Say that again!"
"Are your ears not working?" Phinks retorted unkindly, "We're saying you people are pathetic. No, not pathetic, because the cause of your pathetic results is nothing but your weak strength. You're not pathetic; you're just weak."
Phinks grinned, twisting the knife in the burly guy and the middle-aged man's hearts. His smile was unmistakably mocking, showing utter disdain for their endeavor.
"Bastard!!" The burly guy could no longer hold back, lunging at Feitan and middle-aged man with his fists wrapped in Nen, aiming a fierce punch at Phinks.
However--
"Saying you're weak isn't unjustified," Phinks said, effortlessly catching the punch with his large hand. He looked at the stunned expression on the burly guy's face and sneered, "The force in your punch is so weak it wouldn't even scratch an itch!"
Phinks mocked, tightening his grip. "Ahhh!" The burly guy's face twisted in agony as he screamed, finally understanding what real power meant.
"Karmala!!" The middle-aged man's face changed drastically at the sight. "Stop!!" He shouted, gathering his own Nen. But he didn't attack rashly. Phinks' display of strength was intimidating, making him realize they were not to be trifled with. If Karmala was in such pain, he wouldn't fare any better, especially with another dangerous-looking companion beside them.
So--
"Since you've agreed to join us, we're a team now!!" He rallied the new players, "Let's take down these two dangerous individuals together!!" With strength in numbers, maybe they could overcome these two.
But the answer was no. Though the new players had passed Greed Island's entrance exams and had decent strength, they were nothing compared to members of the Phantom Troupe.
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