"We're just going to let him go?" The lizardman finally gave voice to his discontent.
"What else? Don't forget our mission," the middle-aged man replied, eyes narrowing, a flash of menace flickering within.
The lizardman's body gave a subtle shiver. "Apologies."
"Stay sharp. That guy likely has allies," the third man, who had remained silent until now, frowned. His face was painfully average—instantly forgettable in a crowd. He glanced toward the warehouse entrance. "Is it wise to stay here? Just knowing someone's snooping around the Royal Guard's base should be enough."
"Not enough," the leader said, shaking his head. "We still don't know his identity or purpose. And based on what we've gathered, he may not even be searching for anything specific—just fleeing from the Phantom Troupe. That's likely why he forced his way in."
He paused, then continued, "Now that we're exposed, you should leave. Your ability is too important. If we need to engage the Troupe, it'll be dangerous."
"Alright." The ordinary-looking man didn't hesitate. Without another word, he turned and departed, his presence vanishing with him.
Only the lizardman and the middle-aged man remained.
Doubt and hesitation flashed in the lizardman's eyes, but he didn't voice them—he simply stood behind his superior, awaiting orders.
From afar, Joey observed everything.
Even without En, there was more than one way to surveil.
He had binoculars. He had the surveillance system looted from Pyorn.
The man who vanished had an utterly generic face and build—Joey didn't recognize him from the manga.
But based on observation, he had a rough idea of the man's Hatsu.
Unlike Meleoron's ability, this one only erased aura—not perception.
Joey couldn't sense the man's presence with Nen, but could still spot him with binoculars and surveillance feeds.
The Hatsu had holes—but used well, it was still a headache.
Seeing him separate from the trio, Joey's first instinct was to eliminate him.
But the guy knew he was being watched and still left alone. It reeked of bait.
Joey flipped a coin between his fingers.
Killer Queen appeared beside him, caught the coin, tossed it skyward. It became a swallow—then disappeared back into Joey's body.
Explosions still rang out from the warehouse entrance—Withered Heart Piercer in action.
Joey had left his severed arm behind in the corridor. He hadn't had a chance to retrieve it.
Which meant the Piercer would continue attacking until destroyed—or until Joey returned to neutralize it.
Joey assumed the former would happen.
To his knowledge, no Troupe member could target a severed limb to hurt its owner.
Still, just in case, he'd handle it himself when this was over.
For now, the Piercer served as excellent cover.
He figured the Troupe would eventually figure out its heat-seeking pattern—it wasn't subtle.
But based on his understanding, they wouldn't take it seriously.
He knew all four of them—their abilities, their styles.
None of them could easily stop the Piercer.
The only downside: a lot of Royal Guards might die from its attacks.
Nobunaga arrived quickly.
While Joey was still musing over casualties, the swordsman appeared at the same spot Joey had disappeared from—and was immediately intercepted by the lizardman and the middle-aged man.
There was no talk. They clashed instantly.
It ended just as fast.
Neither of them survived three rounds against Nobunaga's blade.
They weren't even in the same league.
Yet after the slashes fell, Nobunaga didn't move on.
He stood still, scanning the surroundings—searching.
Joey noticed this and immediately recalled the hummingbird-like surveillance drone.
He didn't want to waste it here—he still had binoculars. That was enough.
But was Nobunaga really looking for him?
Joey wasn't sure.
The man still gripped his sword, ready to strike at any moment.
Did he think Joey might ambush him while he dealt with others?
That didn't make sense.
Joey's behavior should've convinced the Troupe he didn't want a fight.
He was even missing an arm—hardly in fighting shape.
If anything, Nobunaga should think he was long gone.
Which made Nobunaga's cautious stance… curious.
Joey soon got his answer.
Through the binoculars, he spotted it.
Where the two corpses should've been—only two lizard tails remained.
They weren't lizards.
They were geckos.
Tail-shedding escape. Or maybe a tail-based decoy ability?
If the former, Nobunaga was guarding against a sneak attack.
If the latter—then the trick began with the first guy who left.
The thought had barely formed when Joey sensed it—
The swallow he'd sent, imbued with the First Bomb, was destroyed.
He shifted his binoculars.
The lizardman—who had stayed behind—was staring, shocked, at the spot where the swallow had turned back into a coin and fallen.
Confirmation.
His ability was a decoy tail clone, and it could mimic others.
It was the clone that had attacked the swallow. The lizardman had seen it destroyed.
But from the middle-aged man's earlier motion, he had probably thrown something to kill it—
Meaning the clone was just bait. The original had left long ago.
Joey had been right.
That departure had been the trap.
Had he acted rashly back then, he would've been attacked and possibly killed.
Piecing it all together—
If the one who left erased aura,
The lizardman used tail-based substitution,
Then the middle-aged man likely had invisibility.
Together, a perfect assassination combo.
Joey had seen countless assassins on Tier 1.
This trio's setup reeked of killer intent.
Even with En active earlier, he'd never sensed them.
But their cloaking had one flaw: speed.
Despite Nobunaga's arrival, they hadn't gotten far.
Maybe 100 meters at most—slower than walking speed.
Joey didn't know if the clone couldn't stray far from the original, or if the invisibility had a range limit.
Either way, that gave him an opening.
He summoned another coin—turned it into a cockroach, one Nobunaga would definitely recognize.
It scuttled rapidly toward the swordsman.
Then he readied a second coin—another First Bomb.
This one also became a swallow, but before launching it, Joey tied a small pouch of coins to its talons.
The swallow launched, circled wide, then dove toward the trio's last known location.
As predicted, the cockroach was the first thing to catch Nobunaga's eye.
He'd seen them too often by now.
They always appeared at key moments.
And the direction they came from? Same as his current route.
This one's reappearance meant someone was still watching.
But before he could act—
A sudden, silent explosion.
The swallow had detonated in midair.
Nobunaga froze.
As the smoke cleared, three figures were exposed—
The same middle-aged man and lizardman he'd supposedly killed, plus the third man.
Nobunaga didn't move.
Because he now understood—Joey wasn't with them.
He had just forced them out.
The cockroach. The swallow. The blast.
It was all Joey, manipulating both sides for gain.
Nobunaga had never cared about the Royal Guard.
He'd only acted because they got in his way.
The trio stared back at him, equal parts shocked and afraid.
Even if they'd only clashed with Nobunaga's clone briefly—they knew: they stood no chance.
Getting this far without dying was already a miracle.
But when they saw Nobunaga not attacking, they exhaled—relieved.
That relief didn't last.
The middle-aged man noticed something scuttling on the ground—
Dozens of cockroaches, pouring from nearby, skittering as if seeking cover.
He frowned in confusion, then glanced up—
Nobunaga was gone.
"Shit!" he gasped.
Too late.
Nobunaga reappeared at his side—katana at his throat.
"Talk. Who controls these cockroaches?"
He had a hunch it was another trap—Joey baiting him to incriminate the trio.
But honestly, killing them was easy.
He wanted answers.
That "Shit!" had sealed it—this guy knew something.
Whether allies or enemies—these three had been in contact with Joey.
That made them valuable.
Far away, Joey watched it all unfold.
Everything was going according to plan.
The swallow's detonation had been calculated.
Even if First Bomb only affected a 3-meter radius, that was enough to disrupt their cloaking.
It would reveal them—
And force Nobunaga to rethink their relationship.
Joey didn't need Nobunaga to kill them.
He needed him to question them.
To believe they were tied to Joey, directly or not.
To act.
Joey's real move was the pouch tied to the swallow's claws—
Dozens of coins that became cockroaches, scattered upon detonation.
That swarm was the final trigger.
Even if Nobunaga thought it was all a setup, one thing was clear—
These three were weak.
So weak that if he wanted, he could crush them effortlessly.
That alone would make him act.
Joey didn't want them dead.
He wanted Nobunaga to probe them—
To draw conclusions about Joey's abilities, allies, reach.
If that investigation also revealed deeper secrets about the Royal Guard?
All the better.
And as for the idea of the Troupe working with the Royal Guard?
Joey wasn't worried.
These three had secrets—and the Royal Guard would never ally with the Phantom Troupe.
Just as Joey predicted—
When Nobunaga's blade touched the middle-aged man's throat,
The other two didn't hesitate.
They turned and ran.
The one Nobunaga caught?
Grabbed the blade with both hands, blood be damned—
Willing to die if it bought his comrades enough time to escape.
(End of Chapter)