Inside Meteor City, Chrollo stood at the third-floor stairwell, staring at the empty room.
That person was gone? Slipped away from a room with no windows, without a sound, and no one noticed. Did that mean if he'd wanted to assassinate them, the whole Troupe would've been wiped out?
And something felt off. He didn't think someone would go through all that trouble to get into the room only to leave so easily. If he had some goal, would he just walk away?
Pakunoda had said the boy didn't seem hostile. But she also said that no one ever mentioned the Phantom Troupe in front of him, yet he somehow knew all of their names—and even their plan to leave Meteor City.
Even though the boy could read minds, these details may have leaked through their own thoughts…
So Saiki Kusuo's short disappearance almost made Chrollo's brain overheat.
It wasn't until Machi called out from downstairs that dinner was ready that Chrollo turned to go down—when suddenly, there was a sound from inside the room.
?! Chrollo turned around and saw Saiki Kusuo inside the room!
Saiki Kusuo's eyes met Chrollo's as he was heading down the stairs. Surprised, he thought, *Man… did I forget to close the door? No way I'd make that mistake. Or is this door just so old it won't even shut properly?*
Well, guess I'll just say hi.
[Hey. Did you come up here to talk to me about something?]
Chrollo immediately put on his polite fake smile. "Ah, we're about to have dinner. Just wanted to see if you'd like to join us?"
Saiki Kusuo was going to decline, but then remembered it was safer to eat inside Meteor City. Going out would be risky. And if he said no now, they probably wouldn't invite him again tomorrow.
He had no choice but to accept. He figured he'd just pay them for the meal later. They'd need money if they wanted to get out of here anyway.
Although… thieves usually just take what they want.
[Thanks. I'll pay you for the food later.] Saiki Kusuo replied.
"Hey, Machi, looks like you made one of your specialties today!"
"Why are there only three cans of this stuff? I'm taking one—no one's gonna argue, right? It's barely two bites anyway."
"Phinks! The boss hasn't even sat down and you're already grabbing food?"
The rowdy mood kept going… until Saiki Kusuo's pink hair showed up behind Chrollo. Then the room fell into dead silence.
"Whoa, whoa, boss, seriously? This guy's eating with us?"
"We don't even have a spare chair for him."
Saiki Kusuo: There are only three chairs anyway… weren't you all planning to eat standing?
"I said this earlier today, didn't I? He's our guest. Guests sit at the table," Chrollo turned back to Saiki Kusuo. "I don't know if you're used to it, but here in Meteor City, we've got our own way of eating."
"Tch, yeah. At the table, you only eat what you can fight for," Feitan said with a smirk, raising his…
A chopstick? Saiki Kusuo noticed that what Feitan was holding didn't even count as a chopstick—it looked more like an ice pick or a small weapon!
And the others? Daggers, knives, or just bare hands… What the heck? Are we about to eat or start a war?
The others barely made some space for him. Machi brought over the last steaming tray of flatbread — the only normal-looking food on the table tonight.
She set the tray down in the center, then pulled out her small knife.
"Let me say this first — if you hurt yourself during dinner, I'm not patching you up. Three, two…"
What the heck is going on!! Do humans really hurt themselves while eating? Is this a fight? Aren't you all supposed to be on the same side!?
In a flash, a few plates flew into the air.
Saiki Kusuo immediately reached for what he considered the only edible item — the flatbread — dodging an attack from Feitan's hand along the way and pulling one piece back.
The grab-friendly foods on the other plates were all snatched up in an instant. Right after Saiki took his, Franklin's giant hand reached for more, Chrollo grabbed a bowl of something unidentifiable, and the rest each got their share in their own way.
The food war paused briefly.
"Franklin, I'll trade you a third of this dish for one piece of bread," Chrollo said first. Franklin, who only managed to grab flatbread, agreed right away.
Saiki Kusuo was already too tired to complain. He simply took a bite.
The others also started trading their dishes.
So this is just a game, right? Basically, if you're lucky or skilled enough to grab the good stuff, you get a decent meal. If not, you eat whatever you can. It's fair in its own weird way.
What a bizarre way to eat.
"Want some side dishes? Also, we haven't introduced ourselves, have we?" Chrollo offered.
[Yare yare… I'm fine with just the bread, thanks.]
Saiki Kusuo eyed the plate Chrollo was holding — whatever was in it looked too sketchy for him to trust.
[My name is Saiki Kusuo.] He reached out to introduce himself.
Chrollo paused for a moment, then reached out to shake his hand. "Chrollo Lucilfer."
Chrollo: [He's really used to social customs. Good at using manners in real situations.]
Chrollo had the looks of a gentleman. Everything about him was calm and refined — totally out of place in Meteor City. All of it, of course, was stuff he'd learned from books. Because in Meteor City, these things didn't exist at all.
"Outside this place, does exchanging names carry any special meaning?" Chrollo asked casually.
Saiki Kusuo thought for a moment.
[Not really. It's just a name, kind of like a codename.]
During the meal, it was unusually quiet. Saiki Kusuo wasn't sure if they usually talked during dinner or not, but maybe just because he was here, everyone had stayed silent.
After eating, Chrollo brought Saiki Kusuo to the living room.
To be honest, Saiki Kusuo was still worried about cockroaches on the first floor.
But then Chrollo opened a book.
"This is an ability I got by chance a while back. Luckily, I survived after getting it. It lets me control nearby bugs. It's got some detection abilities too, so I use it pretty often."
Chrollo opened the book and activated a Nen ability.
"Wouldn't have known without looking — there are actually three roaches on this floor."
Saiki Kusuo: Great. I'll be on the third floor. Let me know when you're done.
Chrollo pointed casually. The three bugs were drawn straight to Franklin's feet. Franklin just happened to be walking forward and crushed all three in a single step.
Saiki Kusuo: …Why would you crush them inside the house? Their bodies will attract baby roaches, you idiot.
"Now you should be able to sit without worry, right?" Chrollo patted the couch beside him.
Chrollo: Is he really just hiding from bugs? Who would actually believe that?
Saiki Kusuo sat down.
Chrollo paused: Okay… guess it's more believable now.
"Most of the text in this book, I guessed the meaning based on context. Some words I still don't know. Can you help me out? Consider it payback for dinner and the room."
The word "payback" hit Saiki Kusuo hard. He hated owing people. So he agreed.
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