Chapter 33 — Waiting Under a Tree to Catch a Rabbit?
After entering the spaceship, Tachibana Kyūjō didn't waste a single word on anything unnecessary. He simply reached out and lifted Frost's small body straight out of the captain's seat.
"I'll admit it—you're extremely lucky."
"I'll give you one month to find the assassin known as Hit. If you fail, I'll kill you."
"And don't even think about running away. I can find you no matter where you hide in this universe. If you don't believe me, feel free to try."
The moment those words ended, Tachibana Kyūjō casually tossed Frost out of the way, then calmly sat down in the captain's chair himself.
In Universe 6, there were only a handful of beings that genuinely interested Tachibana Kyūjō.
Unfortunately, Frost wasn't one of them.
If Frost couldn't help him locate Hit, then Frost's life would inevitably end by his hand.
— — —
Staring at the man who had just annihilated his entire fleet and now sat in his captain's chair as if it belonged to him, Frost—collapsed on the floor—let a flicker of hatred flash through his eyes.
But in the next fraction of a second, he buried it beneath a flawless mask of false composure.
'Where did this man come from? Why have I never heard of him?'
'How could someone this powerful exist without leaving a single trace in intergalactic history?'
'And why is he looking for the assassin Hit? Is he seeking revenge…?'
Countless speculations flashed through Frost's mind in an instant. Though he was unwilling to be ordered around like this, the overwhelming gap in strength between himself and Tachibana Kyūjō left him with no other choice but to comply.
After all, he didn't want to die.
As for the assassin Hit, Frost had indeed heard of him before.
Rumor had it that Hit was the most terrifying assassin in the entire universe—active for hundreds of years and never once failing a mission.
Some even called him the strongest being in the universe.
But now the real question was—how was he supposed to find such a legendary killer?
Fortunately, Frost had already begun forming a plan in his mind.
A plan that could benefit him twice over.
'You want to find Hit, don't you?'
'Very well. Then I'll place the highest bounty in the entire universe on your head—and make Hit come looking for you himself.'
With that carefully crafted scheme taking shape, Frost put on an extremely fake smile.
He slowly pushed himself up from the floor, looked at Tachibana Kyūjō with a flattering expression, and said, "Sir, the earlier firing incident was merely a misunderstanding. As compensation for that misunderstanding, I will assist you in locating the assassin Hit."
Naturally, such an excuse made absolutely no sense to Tachibana Kyūjō.
Kyūjō only responded with a cold sneer. His gaze, colder than ice, locked onto Frost as he said, "Spare me the nonsense, Frost. You have one month. If you fail to find Hit within that time, your death is guaranteed."
— — —
Meeting Tachibana Kyūjō's gaze—colder than the vacuum of outer space—Frost could only swallow hard and nod slowly.
In truth, he still wanted to probe this man for information.
Who exactly was he? What was his connection to Hit? Why was he so obsessed with finding him?
He couldn't allow himself to become a mere intermediary that reunited two old acquaintances. That would be unbearably humiliating.
But after thinking it through, Frost realized—
If they truly were friends, this man wouldn't need to search for Hit through someone like him in the first place.
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
At that moment, within the underground world of Universe 6, an assassination contract with the most shocking bounty ever recorded was released—personally issued by Frost.
The news immediately sent shockwaves through the entire assassin community, throwing it into complete chaos.
To ensure that Hit would truly be tempted to appear, Frost even poured out all the wealth he had accumulated over the years. He emptied everything—his reserves, his savings, even his retirement funds.
The contents of the contract itself were surprisingly simple.
It displayed only the portrait of a young man, accompanied by a few short lines of text:
"Twenty-seven days from now, I will bring this individual to Desolate Planet No. 103 in the Eastern Realm. Whoever succeeds in killing him will receive all the wealth I have accumulated over the years."
Note: This individual possesses extraordinary power. With a single attack, he is capable of destroying an entire planet. Those lacking sufficient strength are advised to reconsider.
That warning wasn't issued out of concern for the lives of low-tier assassins.
Frost simply didn't want them swarming in and interfering with his plan.
That was also why he chose Desolate Planet No. 103—a barren, silent place that wouldn't draw outside attention.
As for whether this strategy would truly succeed in drawing out Hit…
Even Frost himself wasn't entirely confident.
But for now, he couldn't see a better option.
Even so, none of Frost's secret maneuvers escaped Tachibana Kyūjō's notice. Although he was fully aware of Frost's suspicious movements behind the scenes, he didn't care in the slightest.
As long as Frost's actions managed to bring Hit before him, Tachibana Kyūjō couldn't be bothered with the methods used.
That was the privilege of someone who possessed absolute power.
In this universe, no matter who Frost sent to try and kill him, Tachibana Kyūjō wouldn't feel even a hint of fear.
Unless… Frost somehow managed to persuade the God of Destruction of Universe 6, Champa, or even his angel attendant, Vados, to personally intervene.
Other than that—who else could possibly threaten his life?
— — —
On the other side, the legendary assassin Hit had also heard about the assassination contract with its shocking bounty.
And just as Frost had hoped, the contract successfully caught Hit's attention.
However—
Hit's target this time wasn't just Tachibana Kyūjō.
It was Frost as well.
Hit had long since grown sick of Frost—that number one scumbag in the universe who constantly disguised himself as a benevolent figure. He had wanted to kill him for a long time already, but simply couldn't be bothered to actively look for him.
Now, the timing was perfect.
He would take Frost's wealth.
And he would take Frost's life.
After all, everyone knew Frost was no good person to begin with.
— — —
Eastern Realm of Universe 6 — Desolate Planet No. 103.
This was an enormous planet. Compared to Earth, its surface area was nearly ten times larger.
Long ago, this world had once been a thriving cradle of life, boasting a rich ecosystem and countless diverse species.
But for reasons unknown, one day the planet was suddenly struck by a series of catastrophic natural disasters.
Hurricanes that swept across the entire surface.
Tsunamis that towered into the sky, swallowing continents whole.
Volcanic eruptions that scorched thousands of kilometers of land.
There was even a massive earthquake that caused an entire continent to sink completely into the depths of the ocean.
Fortunately, by that time, the intelligent inhabitants of this planet had already developed extremely advanced technology.
In the end, they constructed a colossal spacecraft—one the size of an asteroid—and carried all surviving species with them, beginning a new existence as "intergalactic wanderers."
After reviewing the historical data of this planet, Tachibana Kyūjō couldn't hide his shock.
"This is… another-world version of The Wandering Earth?"
— — —
Inside the spaceship's control room, Tachibana Kyūjō carefully observed the planet below, attempting to sense whether any powerful auras were hidden beneath its surface.
Not far from him, Frost stood awkwardly. When he saw Kyūjō curl a finger to summon him, he immediately stepped forward and spoke respectfully,
"Sir, the assassin you're searching for—Hit—is very likely somewhere within this planet. However, to determine his exact location, we'll need to enter and search it directly."
Tachibana Kyūjō gave a faint nod, then looked at Frost with an indifferent expression and said, "Do you really think I don't know what you've been doing?"
"Pray, Frost. If Hit truly appears on this planet, I'll spare your life. But if he doesn't… then today will be the end of you."
Those icy words instantly drenched Frost's body in cold sweat. He forced a stiff smile and hurriedly ordered his subordinates to land the ship on the surface of the desolate planet.
But—
Just as the ship began descending through the atmosphere, hundreds of powerful energy beams suddenly erupted from the planet's surface, streaking upward at high speed and slamming toward their vessel!
Tachibana Kyūjō merely watched the scene with an expressionless face, not moving in the slightest.
Frost's face, on the other hand, turned deathly pale.
'Damn it… so there really are a lot of troublemakers gathered here…'
In the blink of an eye, Frost had already appeared outside the ship. He raised both hands toward the sky, forming a massive dark-purple energy sphere, then hurled it downward with overwhelming force!
At this point, Frost no longer cared about the fate of the planet.
If Hit wasn't actually here, then so be it—everyone who dared attack him would be buried along with this world.
But if Hit truly was here, then he would surely appear to stop this attack.
The gigantic energy sphere shot downward and instantly obliterated all the energy beams that had been assaulting the ship.
Yet just before the sphere could crash into the planet's surface—
A purple humanoid silhouette suddenly appeared directly in front of it!
With both hands tucked casually into his pockets, the figure stared straight at the massive energy sphere rushing toward him. Only when the blinding energy was about to touch his body did his hands slowly slide out of his pockets.
Then, in an instant too fast for ordinary eyes to perceive—
He threw a single, straight punch.
After that, his hand slipped back into his pocket.
— — —
"Back then… I stood with my hands in my pockets, and the world didn't even understand what a 'worthy opponent' meant…"
Before Hit could finish his sentence, the massive energy sphere Frost had launched suddenly froze in midair.
A moment later—
Fine cracks spread across the entire surface of the purple energy sphere, and in the next instant, it detonated with a thunderous roar, vanishing without leaving a trace.
And at the center of the explosive vortex, that mysterious man still stood upright, completely unscathed. A soft purple aura flowed gently around his body, shielding him from the aftermath of the blast.
— — —
When Frost saw that figure, his eyes immediately lit up with joy.
'Stopping an attack of that level so effortlessly… that has to be Hit!'
But before his excitement could grow any further, Hit's figure vanished from its spot—and in the next instant, he was already standing directly in front of Frost!
An invisible blow struck Frost's body before he even realized what had happened.
Fresh blood sprayed from his mouth, and Frost stared at Hit with a mix of shock and fury.
"What the hell are you doing?! You attacked the wrong person! I'm your client! Your target is still inside that ship!"
However, when Hit glanced toward the ship Frost pointed at, he showed no reaction at all. He merely replied in a cold voice,
"Killing that man would indeed give me all your wealth… but killing you doesn't require payment. Consider it… a bonus."
The moment those words ended, Hit's body vanished from sight.
In the very next second, a circular impact mark clearly appeared in the center of Frost's forehead.
The rage-filled expression on his face froze solid—silent, motionless.
His entire body collapsed without any sign of life.
Frost was dead, killed by Hit with a single blow.
After that, Hit—still standing with both hands in his pockets—slowly turned his body and looked to the side.
There, the man who was meant to be the true target—Tachibana Kyūjō—was already standing, though no one knew when he had arrived.
Their gazes finally met.
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