I Got Killer Queen in Hunter x Hunter ?!

The hawk was released by Joey—and it wasn't a real bird. It was a surveillance camera in disguise.

Which meant Joey had watched Hisoka's entire fight through it.

Now that the battle was over, he had no need to keep playing cat and mouse with Phinks and the others.

In fact, the task had turned out to be far simpler than expected.

With just a slight lure, Phinks and Feitan had chased all the way to the warehouse.

Noticing the oddities of the place, they started to investigate and explore on their own.

Only Franklin hadn't followed them in—he stayed near the main entrance, likely with the same intention as Nobunaga:

To block escape routes and prevent anyone from leaving.

But Joey figured Franklin wouldn't stand guard for long.

Soon, members of the Xi-yah (Kachia) mafia family would enter from that direction.

If he didn't want unnecessary conflict, Franklin would likely move inward.

And with the warehouse breached so severely, the King's military and the Hunter Association would have to send people.

Even if this was originally a deliberately hidden royal military facility.

So whether it was Joey or the Phantom Troupe, everyone needed to wrap things up fast and get out—

Or risk being cornered inside.

After all, even a powerful Nen user could die under overwhelming firepower.

Joey put away the binoculars and ran toward the exit where Hisoka had last been, dragging the captured middle-aged man along.

Midway, the hawk returned—transforming back into a surveillance camera, which Joey stashed away.

By the time he reached the warehouse exit, the place was deserted.

No Hisoka. No Nobunaga.

Joey didn't mind.

He slipped out quickly and returned to a standard room on Tier 5.

Hisoka didn't keep him waiting long.

An hour later, he arrived alone at Joey's room.

"Ready to tell me what's in that space?" Joey asked the moment he let him in.

"You're so impatient~" Hisoka chuckled, then got serious. "I told you before: inside that space are Weapons. More than one. As for anything else, I don't know."

Joey frowned.

He had expected some gaps in Hisoka's intel, but not this unreliable.

Not that the intel was useless—but Hisoka had already paid it during their earlier deal.

Now it just felt redundant.

"I never lied to you," Hisoka said casually, sitting wherever he liked.

"My clone entered the warehouse and immediately landed in another space. It was destroyed before doing anything."

"I was just hoping you'd dig up something more useful," Joey admitted, sitting across from him. "Anyway, forget that. Let's talk about heading up to Tier 1. The Third Prince thinks your ability is cosmetic disguise. He wants me to swap in a clone, so I'll need you to pose as his makeup artist."

"That's it?"

"You can come with a clone if you want." Joey nodded.

"So you're going back up and not coming back down?" Hisoka started playing with a deck of cards, stacking them like blocks.

"I thought we were getting along so well."

"I told you—I'm looking for the coffin zone," Joey said plainly.

Hisoka shrugged. "Is that really necessary? Let the Kakin royals kill each other. All we need is to survive and reach the Dark Continent.

You're not exactly the 'hero of justice' type, either."

"You don't still believe Nasubi Hui Guo Rou really plans to follow V5's designated path to the fake continent, do you?"

Joey raised an eyebrow.

He had documents. Kakin had already sent expeditions to the Dark Continent.

Nasubi knew the destination assigned by the V5 wasn't real.

Especially with Beyond Netero backing him—and the Weapons from the ancient Labyrinth City temporarily cooperating.

And yet…

Nasubi still agreed to V5's plan?

Just deliver people to a fake continent and call that his "great journey"?

That made no sense.

Joey was certain the real purpose of this expedition—and the Succession War—had nothing to do with the fake continent or even the Dark Continent.

And if Nasubi wasn't stopped—or if the war wasn't ended—

Almost no one aboard this ship would make it.

Possibly, everyone would die.

Even with the Zodiacs, Beyond, Zzigg Zoldyck, and maybe even Ging hiding somewhere…

Joey never underestimated a kingdom that had survived a thousand years.

A country strong enough to shake V5's balance and potentially become the Sixth Great Nation.

What that kingdom's trump card might be—no one knew.

But judging from Nasubi's Nen…

It was no small thing.

His ambition was even bigger.

"I don't think I'll die," Hisoka replied casually. It sounded more like instinct than logic.

"And who cares how many others die?"

"That's the difference between us," Joey said, not pushing the point.

They weren't on the same side to begin with.

Hisoka could stay detached.

Joey couldn't.

The ship carried not just himself, but people he cared about.

People he'd fought alongside in East Gorteau—like Morel, Knov, Knuckle, and Shoot.

And newer friends like Beyond's team, Mizai, even Kurapika.

He didn't want to see any of them die.

If Nasubi kept going unchecked, they might not even reach the new continent.

So, if he could, Joey would stop Nasubi himself.

End the Succession War.

And if possible, he wanted to get his hands on the Egg of the King—the urn used in the ritual.

It had serious research value.

Even the Twelfth Prince's gifted sweater, and the Tenth Prince's trusting eyes—

Joey couldn't ignore those feelings.

He was too softhearted.

Even when he tried to keep emotional distance, he still ended up treating people like friends.

That was probably the core difference between him and Hisoka—

And the reason people like Kurapika trusted him.

Joey didn't respond to Hisoka's attitude.

Instead, he activated Golden Experience, cutting off the life of the ladybug left with the Eleventh Prince, turning it back into a button.

That was his signal to Fugetsu.

When she saw the ladybug return to button form, she'd use the space tunnel on Tier 5 to bring him back to Tier 3.

"When are we leaving?" Hisoka didn't notice Joey's move.

"Why? Got something to do?" Joey asked.

He still had over twenty hours before the Third Prince's deadline.

So if Hisoka had business, they could reschedule.

As for Nobunaga—Joey never planned to ask.

Whether Hisoka killed him or let him go—it was irrelevant.

Once Joey had helped lure Phinks and the others away, his role as Hisoka's ally was locked in.

"Yeah. Still have some messes to clean up. I wanna see the look on their trashy little faces."

Hisoka smirked like a mischievous child waiting to be praised.

"What a twisted hobby. Fine—tomorrow, same time."

Joey glanced at the clock.

It was already 2 p.m. on Day 13 since the Black Whale's departure.

Pick up Hisoka on the 14th, head back to Tier 1, contact Sakata.

"Got it."

"Don't screw it up. You cut off a spider's leg and the whole thing can go berserk."

Joey warned him.

"I'll wait for you one hour tomorrow. If you don't show, I'll assume you're dead."

Hisoka twitched. "Jeez, is that how you talk to friends?"

"I'm just stating facts. I'll even send flowers." Joey didn't flinch.

Just then, a door appeared on the room's wall.

Joey stepped forward and knocked using the agreed signal.

It opened from the inside—to reveal Fugetsu and Kacho.

"Oh? You're here too?" Kacho smiled, unfazed by Hisoka.

"Hello, Tenth Prince," Hisoka greeted her politely.

Fugetsu, though, hid behind Kacho. She clearly didn't like Hisoka much.

"No time for catching up—you're barely acquaintances. Let's go," Joey cut them off, gesturing for Kacho to open the return portal.

Before leaving, he gave one last reminder: "Don't forget."

"Yeah, yeah…" Hisoka muttered, cleaning his ear in mock boredom.

But once Joey left with the middle-aged man and the two princesses, Hisoka's eyes narrowed.

Only then, confirming no one was watching, did he leave the room too.

Back in the warehouse, things were far from peaceful.

Phinks and the others had found Nobunaga—hanged inside a container.

He still gripped his katana.

The three of them looked grim.

"It was Hisoka," Phinks growled, staring at the playing card stabbed into Nobunaga's chest.

"A trap," Franklin muttered, lowering the body.

"Based on what we know, Hisoka had at least three people helping him.

We need to report to the boss and revise our whole strategy.

If we keep working solo, more of us will die."

"One uses clones.

One uses animals and insects as surveillance.

And then there's Joey." Feitan's voice was cold and sharp.

"Tell the boss," he added.

He agreed with Franklin.

They now realized—this whole lure to the warehouse was just a distraction.

A way to give Hisoka time to isolate and kill Nobunaga.

They'd been overconfident.

All of them.

They'd each been acting alone, thinking they could avenge Shalnark and Kortopi.

None of them expected Hisoka to be this bold.

But in hindsight—

Their supposed "prey" had been acting more like a hunter all along.

A hunter… backed by a professional team.

"We really underestimated him," Feitan muttered, staring at Nobunaga's wounds.

Even simulating countless scenarios in his mind, the fact remained:

Nobunaga's sword never left his hand.

Hisoka had beaten him… in close combat.

"The Xi-yah family is here," Phinks said suddenly.

His En had been active the whole time—and someone had entered its range.

He instantly recognized the group.

It was the mafia that controlled Tier 5—the Xi-yah family.

Leading them was Kent, their young heir, whom they had dealt with before.

"Ask them if they know Joey. If there's any problem—kill them all," Feitan said hoarsely, his voice drenched in murderous rage.

He clearly intended to take his grief out on the mafia.

The moment Kent arrived, he spotted Franklin cradling Nobunaga's corpse.

His gut twisted with dread.

"Do you know Joey… Joestar?" Phinks asked bluntly.

No pleasantries. Just cold interrogation.

Kent shook his head. "Can you describe him? I don't know the name, but I'm looking for someone too.

A man who killed members of our family and escaped. His name is Dio—Dio Brando."

Phinks raised an eyebrow. "Black hair. Handsome. Over 6 feet tall. Black suit. Skull on the tie."

Kent's eyes lit up. "Sounds like the same person."

"So you do know him," Phinks said sharply. "Then spill what you know."

His tone was civil—his attitude was anything but.

Kent caught the hint.

Especially with Feitan radiating bloodlust behind him.

He adjusted his glasses.

"Of course."

(End of Chapter)