Chapter 57: The Kurta Clan
"David, do as he says,"
Lily Fields whispered.
"Yes,"
the old butler replied, forcing himself to stand. He carefully stepped over a corpse and walked toward the door.
The clown-faced man standing before him—Hisoka—had suddenly appeared in the hallway. None of the guards, nor the newly hired psychics of the Fields family, had even noticed him enter. The intruder had threatened both Lily and David's lives, leaving them no choice but to obey.
David hadn't wanted to give out his master's number, but Hisoka had said just one thing—
"Then I'll kill Lily."
David didn't dare take that risk. He knew the tone of men like this from his years in the underworld—
and this one was not joking.
"Didn't he scare you?"
Hisoka's eyes glimmered with something unreadable as he stared at Lily—something dangerous.
The woman's beautiful eyes drifted slightly as she smiled.
"Haze… it seems he doesn't like you very much."
"Bingo! You guessed right," Hisoka chuckled. "Because I'm one of the few people in this world who knows him best. People like us hate being seen through. The less the world knows about us, the better. We dislike those who understand us too well…"
He flicked his wrist and the card between his fingers vanished instantly. Then he propped his chin on his hand, smiling.
"I didn't expect him to get involved with the mafia… but I can guess why."
"And why's that?"
Lily asked, feigning curiosity.
"Simple—for fun. For the thrill of getting stronger."
Seeing her faint frown, Hisoka laughed softly.
"From your face, I can tell you don't agree."
"Hisoka… may I call you that?"
"Of course."
"I don't know the Patriarch as well as you do," Lily said bluntly, "but I think you've misunderstood him. I don't believe he sees you as a friend… You and he are not the same kind of person."
They were alone in the room.
And Lily showed no trace of fear toward him.
"Hmm… seems he's changed a bit since we last met," Hisoka mused playfully.
"What do you mean?"
She wasn't interested in Hisoka himself—only in anything that concerned Haze.
"What do you think he'd do if I killed you and the butler right now?"
"He'd kill you," Lily said without hesitation.
"Why? Out of revenge?"
"...",
she had no answer.
"Because I ruined his plans," Hisoka replied, his tone light but cold. "You and the butler wouldn't matter to him much. He'd just use your deaths as an excuse to vent his anger. He's a very dangerous beast. Everything he does is a game—one that helps him grow stronger."
His words silenced Lily.
"As for you," Hisoka continued, "you're just touched by the warmth he shows in his spare time. Don't take it too seriously, or one day, he might devour you."
"The reason you misjudge him," he added, "is because you're not a threat. Your goal is to rely on him—and that's something he allows easily. But the moment you do something that displeases him… want to guess what he'll do?"
"..."
Her breathing grew faintly unsteady.
Hisoka stood, walked past her, then paused.
"Now I see why he kept you around."
Then, with a smirk:
"Can you tell me where his room is?"
Meanwhile, Haze sighed and slipped his phone back into his pocket, frustrated.
That Hisoka had found the Fields family was unexpected—but not alarming. Judging by Hisoka's tone, he didn't intend to betray him. Besides, that lunatic had no real interest in the mafia.
If Hisoka truly wanted to cause trouble, there were far more direct ways.
He wouldn't waste time on something this trivial.
After all, the mafia and the Ten Dons were not Haze's weakness.
If he really cared about them that much, he wouldn't be so carefree—traveling the world while holding one of the Ten Seats.
Hisoka knew that well.
And Haze's fear of Hisoka wasn't what it once was. His own strength had grown since they'd last met. At this point, Hisoka would struggle to defeat him.
Besides, Hisoka still owed him a favor.
This call was likely just Hisoka's way of testing him—
to see how far he'd come.
Becoming one of the Ten Dons was no small feat. Hisoka, with his intellect, surely knew Haze had slain numerous Nen users and powerful figures in the past year. That alone must have excited him.
"I bet he's in the Fields family mansion right now, digging through records—trying to guess my strength from my past fights," Haze muttered, smiling faintly. "Looks like I haven't changed that much after all."
Shaking his head, he dropped the matter and headed for the docks.
His next destination: the Luxon region—home of the Kurta tribe.
He wanted to see the Scarlet Eyes for himself.
When a Kurta becomes emotionally agitated, their eyes burn a brilliant red, and their physical state transforms accordingly. The telekinesis used by Kurapika's ancestors fascinated Haze—both their powers and their lineage.
The Kurta clan hadn't yet been massacred—
a rare chance to observe them up close.
He reached the port just before noon and boarded a large sailing ship departing from Whale Island.
After several stops, a week later, he arrived in Luxon.
Luxon was a mountainous land of rivers and valleys, dotted with small villages rather than cities. Its people wore distinctive clothing that hinted at an ancient culture.
When Haze asked about the "Red-Eyed Demons," most of the villagers he met were elders. Upon hearing the name, their faces twisted with disgust.
That reaction surprised him.
What had the Kurta done to earn such hatred? Or was it just fear—fear of the unknown?
A century ago, locals still hunted Kurtas. But over time, as the old generation died out and the Kurta withdrew from the world, the hatred faded—though not entirely.
After some investigation, Haze found a village where recent traces of "demonic activity" had been reported.
Apparently, the Kurta still sent people occasionally to buy supplies. While outsiders knew little about them now, they blended in well enough to pass as ordinary folk.
But Haze knew their traditional clothing and patterns well—he only had to wait.
The last such "incident" had happened twenty years ago. He suspected that a young Kurta had failed the Elder's trial and lost control in public.
Since their supply runners were rarely replaced, this was an opportunity.
Half a month passed before he finally saw them—two Kurta men, leading their birdlike mounts toward the largest store in town.
Their loose blue-and-orange clothes, flexible fabric, and unique vine-like embroidery were unmistakable.
Haze smiled.
He had another reason for his interest in the Kurta—their origins.
In another life, someone had noticed that the architecture, clothing patterns, and potion labels of the Kurta all contained a stylized "gate" motif—one eerily similar to the gateway to the Dark Continent.
And the large bird mounts the Kurta used were identical to a creature depicted in Dark Continent records.
Combine that with their scarlet eyes, unique physiology, and the legends of "demonic messengers"…
The connection sparked boundless speculation.
Perhaps it was coincidence—
but Haze couldn't help wanting to learn more about their mysterious bloodline.
(End of Chapter 57)