Leaving the upper decks went without incident. When Joey arrived on Tier 4, he sent a message to Piyon.
Mainly because he couldn't get in touch with Knov—otherwise, he would've just asked him directly for an address.
Piyon responded quickly.
"Wait on Tier 4 for now. I've already contacted Knov, but I can't say when he'll be free."
Reading this, Joey felt a little helpless. Knov's ability was just too unique. And this time, unlike in the manga where he was only responsible for travel to the Dark Continent, things were different.
Since he hadn't been traumatized into baldness, Knov was still cautious about the Dark Continent, but not terrified. So this time, he would be traveling with the main force all the way to the continent.
That meant he had far more responsibilities aboard the ship.
The real issue stemmed from Kakin's poor setup in the lower decks of the Black Whale—no medical units, no proper security force—these had been draining Knov's energy completely.
Joey found an empty room on Tier 4, and the three of them entered.
Thanks to the Ayii family's ongoing massacres aboard the ship, there were plenty of abandoned rooms down here.
Tier 4 was managed by the Xi Yuu family, but their young boss had already been taken out by Joey, leaving the entire mafia in disarray.
Without a figure to hold them together, many had begun eyeing the vacant position of heir. The family head himself was obsessed with revenge for the Third Prince. Tier 4 was bound to be a mess.
Which made it the perfect temporary base for Joey.
"I'm heading out to gather intel. Momoze's in your care," Joey said, shaking his phone. "Once Knov gets here, hand her over. After that, you'll be free to act on your own—but I'm guessing Mizai'll contact you."
Kurapika nodded. "Right. It's about the Phantom Troupe, isn't it?"
"Yeah, he's worried about you," Joey admitted.
He wasn't exactly sure what kind of bond existed between Kurapika and Mizai Storm, but he knew both well enough to understand—these were men who always put others before themselves.
Back when the Troupe was first discovered aboard the ship, Mizai had already voiced his concerns to Joey.
Now that Kurapika had descended from the upper decks, some sort of contact with the Troupe was inevitable. Mizai's timing made sense, and Joey couldn't help but wonder what form that collaboration might take.
After all, the situation now was different.
Previously, Mizai didn't want Kurapika knowing about the Troupe's presence, worried it would disrupt his work upstairs—especially in those operations targeting Prince Tserriednich, where a single mistake meant death.
But now Kurapika was free to focus all his attention on the Troupe. That changed everything.
He might even become Mizai's most important ally.
The Troupe had been on Mizai's hit list for years. They were top-tier criminals, but notoriously tricky to handle. Mizai wouldn't move unless he was absolutely sure.
With that matter passed on, Joey didn't linger. He left the room immediately.
He wasn't particularly interested in how Mizai and Kurapika would collaborate.
He had no strong desire to deal with the Phantom Troupe himself—it was the kind of task that was all risk, no reward.
And if he really went that route, would he have to go after Hisoka too?
No way.
Those psychos weren't worth the trouble—unless absolutely necessary.
Joey had only one real objective: determine whether the Succession War was still active. If he could confirm the current state, and that it was safe enough to bring a few princes safely to the Dark Continent, he'd lay low.
He had a few investigative angles:
First, try to smuggle a prince off the ship. If they suffered some supernatural consequence or attack, then the Succession War was still in effect.
Second, track King Nasubi's movements. His actions could help Joey deduce the true state of the game.
Last, re-investigate the Coffin Zone at the Observation Deck on Tier 3.
By analyzing its connection to the Succession War, Joey hoped to extract the truth.
Also, he was curious about the state of the Thirteenth Prince's Guardian Spirit Beast.
With these goals in mind, Joey returned to Tier 3 via the secret passage.
Tier 3 appeared orderly on the surface.
But that was only because the Royal Army here was overwhelming in number—and every soldier was armed.
More importantly, they weren't afraid to shoot civilians.
Joey moved through the shadows, cautious. On his way, he witnessed several skirmishes between soldiers and civilians.
Each one ended the same: with the civilians dragged off—dead.
Joey didn't interfere.
Kakin soldiers killing Kakin civilians was none of his business. As an outsider, stepping in would've been foolish.
He also noticed something else: the Ayii family was behind many of the casualties.
Morena seemed to be stirring the pot—inciting public unrest against the Royal Army.
But the army was just too dominant.
No matter how angry the citizens were, without numbers or weapons, they were helpless.
The Hunter Association's influence on Tier 3 had been squeezed to the margins. They were little more than medics now.
And Joey didn't see a single member of the Zodiacs among them.
Clearly, the Association was deliberately keeping its distance from the Royal Army—to avoid an all-out clash.
The conservative faction's usual playbook.
They'd always avoided direct confrontation with powerful state forces—V5 in the past, now the elite Kakin military.
Joey didn't blame them.
The army outnumbered them. And more importantly, they had unity of purpose.
Keeping Tier 3 stable was in the Association's interest—even if it meant sacrificing a few civilians.
Joey understood this all too well. So he kept his head down and ignored what he saw.
Everyone who'd boarded the Black Whale was here by choice—ambitious, capable, and driven. They could handle the consequences of their own decisions.
When Joey reached the Observation Deck, he spotted soldiers removing the reinforced glass.
Others were dismantling the Coffin Zone.
It looked like they were trying to sink it into the ocean.
Joey watched carefully and came to a conclusion:
The Coffin Zone must've been rendered useless after his last assault. Otherwise, there was no way King Nasubi would agree to discard such an asset.
He scanned for the Thirteenth Prince's Guardian Beast but saw nothing.
Had Nasubi taken it with him?
If so, that meant he still controlled all five Guardian Beasts—including his own.
If the Succession War had truly been suspended, Nasubi would have freedom to interfere in the princes' conflicts. That was a serious threat.
Especially considering the Fourth Prince's beast—already a major problem.
Its ability was tailored against people like Joey and Kurapika. Anyone who lied to Nasubi would be marked and attacked.
And the Thirteenth Prince's beast might allow Nasubi to recreate another VVIP-style sealed room—a whole different headache.
Even if no one helped him hide its activation, it would still be a threat.
The beasts of the Eighth and Third Princes were less concerning.
The Eighth's ability was slow and subtle—Nasubi probably wouldn't bother with it.
The Third Prince's beast, according to his own analysis, would only reach full power after he became king.
But now that Nasubi was king, that beast might be active.
Still, its power was tied to coins.
And since the beast could only produce a limited number of coins per day, Joey could track its usage based on timing.
He quickly organized all the intelligence in his head.
After one final glance at the stormy sky beyond the Observation Deck, he turned and left.
A new message from Kurapika popped up on his phone:
"Knov's here. I handed Momoze over. Be careful—looks like the Troupe is disguising themselves on Tier 3."
Joey figured that last bit came from Mizai.
Knov wouldn't waste time tracking the Phantom Troupe.
The fact that the Troupe was in disguise raised alarms.
Joey tried to recall who among them had such abilities. None came to mind—except Kalluto, who was dead.
Even stranger, the Troupe hadn't tried to reach the upper decks to find Hisoka.
That intel had been out for a while now. No way the Troupe didn't know the way.
Could Hisoka have done something?
The thought occurred to Joey.
Maybe the Ayii family was involved.
After all, Morena had immediately informed Hisoka when Joey took out Feitan. There was no reason she wouldn't do the same with the Troupe.
A classic Morena move—smart and strategic.
If the Troupe mistook the Ayii family for Hisoka's allies, they'd make enemies unnecessarily.
So better to hand over intel to defuse that misunderstanding and avoid retaliation.
Hisoka would welcome that kind of move. He wouldn't hold a grudge.
Morena had calculated well.
Joey had considered contacting her again—but now that he suspected her, that idea was gone.
Going to see her now would be walking into a trap.
She'd sell him out to the Troupe without hesitation, maybe even gain their trust.
Compared to Joey—now a wanted man on the ship—the Troupe was far more valuable.
"Got it. What's your next move?" Joey texted back to Kurapika.
If Morena was out of the picture, there wasn't much for him to do down here.
Only one path left: try smuggling a prince off the ship to test the Succession War's status.
But it couldn't be one of the three under his protection.
The best candidate would be a rival prince—First, Second, Sixth, or Seventh.
But snatching a prince was no easy feat.
Might as well ask Kurapika what he planned—maybe Joey could help.
"I'll be investigating a few things on the lower decks first. Could take some time."
Kurapika responded quickly.
Not super helpful.
"Alright. Let me know if anything comes up. The Royal Army isn't the only one hunting me—the Troupe is too."
Joey meant that as a reassurance—he was ready to cooperate. The Troupe was his enemy too.
"Thanks."
A moment later, the message arrived.
Joey smiled and pocketed his phone.
Then he turned and headed back toward the upper decks.
While he moved, a different storm was brewing.
Royal Army soldiers on Tier 1 finally began to mobilize again.
The doors to District 6 were knocked upon. They came to question Izunavi.
Districts 7 and 14 followed—Basho and Hanzo were also pulled in for questioning.
Even unrelated Hunters from the Association were summoned.
The Royal Army's sudden push made the prince zones more tense than ever.
A storm was coming.
You could feel it in the air.
Like thunder rumbling behind a door that wouldn't stay shut.
(End of Chapter)