Since the Observer was now being handled by Morel, Joey shifted his focus entirely to the charging giant.
And as the opponent approached close enough for Joey to observe with his eyes, he noticed a distinct difference from the previous cleaver-wielders—
He wasn't a pig-headed man.
Every previous wielder of the cleaver had, after some time, transformed into a pig-headed creature. But this giant, while massive and emanating overwhelming aura, had no features of the pig-men.
In fact, he looked more like a gorilla than anything else.
Wearing only overalls, his bare chest was covered in thick black hair. But his massive arms were hairless, instead lined with grotesquely bulging muscles and sinew, glistening red as though flayed of skin, with cords of raw muscle pulsating visibly, pumping aura into the massive cleaver in his hand—nearly the size of a door.
Unlike the previous pig-headed wielders, this one didn't seem to be overwhelmed by the cleaver's power, even while channeling massive amounts of Nen into it. The blade radiated a terrifying aura—but it didn't look like it was about to backfire or force him into action.
That detail alone made Joey suspect: Was this man the conjurer of the cleaver?
But something still didn't fit.
The cleaver's abilities were too diverse—each one potent in its own right and clearly useful in battle. For a standard Conjuration-type, even with a Vow and Limitation, this level of versatility seemed far beyond the normal scope.
Kurapika's Scarlet Eyes allowed him to wield all six Nen categories at 100% efficiency, but that was because his "Emperor Time" ability explicitly granted that. What allowed this man to access such power across multiple Nen categories?
Just the grotesque transformation of his body?
Could those muscles and this half-monster form truly justify the equivalent exchange in a Nen contract?
Not in Joey's view. A vow required a meaningful cost, and mere disfigurement or brute strength didn't seem like enough.
And even if ugly meant powerful—Joey wasn't buying it.
So if this wasn't just a Nen vow, then maybe the cleaver-wielder wasn't a Conjurer at all—
Maybe he was a Specialist.
And the abilities embedded in the cleaver—be it replication, parasitic growth, bloodsucking, or explosive aura—might all be manifestations of a Specialist Hatsu.
What exactly was his ability?
Was it the ability to split the cleaver into smaller knives?
To absorb flesh and blood?
To amplify Nen for devastating strikes?
Joey's thoughts raced, but his attack had already launched.
He ordered Killer Queen to hurl the Withering Heartpiercer Battle Chariot at the charging enemy.
Whatever power the cleaver had—no matter how terrifying the slash—if it struck the Heartpiercer, that would be ideal.
If not, then the Heartpiercer's explosion would be lesson enough.
The chariot wasn't just enhanced by Killer Queen's aura—it was also boosted by Weather Report's wind.
But before it could get close—
The sound-based attack struck again.
And that's when Joey spotted the figure he had overlooked: the soundmaker.
He'd assumed the screecher hadn't joined the charge because his En hadn't detected anyone.
Now it was clear—the soundmaker had hidden himself entirely within the cleaver-wielder's aura.
By using Zetsu, even Joey's En couldn't pick him up.
From behind the bladebearer's back, the creature peeked out—
Another grotesque face—like a shriveled monkey.
Skin clinging to bone. Something no longer human.
One word surged into Joey's mind—
A group he'd almost forgotten:
The Shadow Beasts.
If the cleaver-wielder wasn't already proof, this second arrival confirmed it—
These two were Demihumans.
Soldiers of the Royal Army.
Demihumans had natural advantages over humans. Their looks were grotesque by human standards, but physically they surpassed regular men—in strength, speed, and resilience.
And once exposed to Nen, those innate advantages often evolved into more potent expressions.
Joey couldn't tell what specific kind of Demihuman they were, but the soundmaker's voice was clearly non-human, and when enhanced with Nen, it could become a weapon—disrupting even the Heartpiercer.
Even with the wind's boost, the Heartpiercer was blasted off-course by a sonic shockwave just three meters from the cleaver-wielder.
But rather than feel pressure, Joey's eyes lit up.
Atmospheric combat was his specialty.
The screecher's sonic wave may have stopped one strike, but there wouldn't be a second chance.
Killer Queen's right hand swung again—
launching another Heartpiercer chariot.
The emaciated one, noticing the same trick again, prepared to release another screech.
But just as he opened his mouth—
Several of the floating eyeballs, even while fending off the Purple Smoke Soldiers, turned to face him and performed an odd, shaking motion, like they were saying "no."
The soundmaker's mouth snapped shut instantly.
In that moment, the cleaver-wielder raised his weapon—aimed straight at Joey.
They were now just ten meters apart.
At that range, it was essentially point-blank.
The Heartpiercer reached him first, slamming into his empty left arm.
His muscles tensed, veins bulging with power, and he tried to swat the chariot away.
But the instant of contact triggered its explosion.
The blast and the impact overlapped—
and so did his swinging cleaver.
Blood sprayed.
The chariot went flying.
But Joey—Joey wasn't hit.
The cleaver's full-force swing passed through his body, splitting it apart—
but not like flesh and bone. More like slicing a reflection on water.
The cleaver hit the floor with a thunderous crash.
Around them, several untouched eyeballs radiated a clear sense of disappointment.
Neither attacker had realized—
What stood between them and their target was just a mirage.
So where was the real Joey?
The cleaver-wielder raised the blade again, muscles already drained from the previous strike.
But the aftermath couldn't be denied—
The massive cleave had created a huge hole in the floor, revealing a prince's cabin in the mid-tier of the ship.
The strike had come so fast that the guards and personnel below hadn't even had time to respond.
But the most important detail—
The armor plating between upper and middle decks was half a meter thick.
Why such heavy defense?
And more importantly—the cleaver had cut through it.
That confirmed it—the cleaver's destructive power was enormous.
But Joey also saw clear weaknesses.
The enemy placed too much trust in the Observer.
But the Observer was preoccupied by the Purple Smoke Soldiers and couldn't send reliable intel.
That gave Joey the chance to bend light and create illusions.
He had known from the start that the Observer's communication had lag—the use of phones had revealed that.
And with Joey's atmospheric control, he could mute any sound from the Observer.
Which meant they had to rely on hand gestures—and those couldn't relay precise intel fast enough.
So the only real threat was the soundmaker's echolocation. If he could bounce sonar off Joey, the illusion would fail.
That's why Joey wasn't alarmed when the soundmaker attacked the Heartpiercer.
He knew it meant the enemy wasn't scanning the room.
Neither of the two used En to scan their surroundings—
A mistake Joey quickly took advantage of.
Using En in battle wasn't a given—
It was an advanced application of Ten and Ren.
The cleaver-wielder had channeled all his aura into the blade for a killing blow. There was no way he had the mental bandwidth to use En too.
And the soundmaker?
His failure to use En shocked even Joey.
If you're not attacking, not defending, and still not using En…
then you're just incompetent.
Now, after the failed strike, the bladebearer's body visibly shrank.
Not fatally—but the once-massive frame had become noticeably leaner in seconds.
Nen backlash.
Joey had experienced it when wielding the cleaver with a clone.
He hadn't expected the backlash to affect the true user too.
But this was no time for reflection—
The moment their strike missed, Joey's counterattack began.
The Observer had a special shield that could mitigate Joey's attacks.
These two didn't.
Nen bullets, fire, wind blades, and lightning—they all struck simultaneously.
Joey had never planned to approach them.
He was an Emitter—his survival depended on staying at range.
Meanwhile, the two previously launched Heartpiercers, still active after being deflected, now circled back—charging again.
As Joey's barrage rained down, they arrived at the enemy's feet.
Just then, the soundmaker's mouth opened wide again—
silent shockwaves rippling outward.
But before the waves could spread—
Weather Report, already prepared on Joey's shoulder, slammed its hand downward.
In that instant, the atmosphere around the two enemies was completely frozen.
The shockwave vanished.
No matter how powerful a sound attack—
it needs a medium to propagate.
Joey had waited for this moment.
He'd compressed the air—creating a vacuum zone right in the path of the soundwave.
Sound couldn't pass through it.
Joey had practiced vacuum manipulation many times.
Since the battle with Gyro, he'd been improving—albeit slowly.
Now he could momentarily evacuate a small patch within his En—
around three meters in radius.
For the soundmaker, that was enough.
Joey could've used simpler methods, but this one had offensive potential too.
(End of Chapter)