The Strongest Assassin of the Zoldyck Family!

"Do your best and kill him!"

Shusuke Ito's expression froze momentarily. 

His words had a dual purpose. On the one hand, they were meant to rile up Crawford. On the other, Shusuke Ito hoped to persuade Crawford to take the third fight himself. 

If that happened, Ito wouldn't have to face Dominica, greatly increasing his chances of survival. 

However, Crawford didn't make that choice. 

Instead, he assigned Shusuke Ito to fight the third match. 

This decision left Ito feeling dissatisfied, muttering curses under his breath. 

"Coward." 

The countdown ended quickly. 

Dominica opened her eyes and stood up. 

There hadn't been nearly enough time for her to recover. 

But Dominica couldn't change the rules of the Colosseum. 

At that moment, a figure stood up. 

"I'll take this fight." 

All eyes turned to look. 

The disheveled middle-aged man had risen to his feet. 

"I'm not entirely sure what's going on here or who you people are. But if it weren't for you, I'd probably already be dead, just like those people." 

"So let me take this fight." 

"I can't win." 

"But at least I can buy you some time to rest." 

"And that's what you need right now, isn't it?" 

"I have only one request." 

The disheveled man looked at Ron and Wendy. 

"I used to have two children. If it weren't for that accident, they'd be about your age now. Because of me, they're gone from this world forever." 

"It was all my fault." 

"They must hate me." 

"I was an irresponsible father." 

"I ruined their lives." 

"I failed them." 

As the man spoke, he seemed to relive those memories, his eyes reddening and tears welling up before sliding down his face. 

"If they were still alive, they'd be as handsome and beautiful as you are now." 

"I have a request for you." 

"When I die, please burn my body and take my ashes to their graves. Plant a cherry blossom tree at their resting place and bury me beneath it." 

"Then place a statue there to symbolize my apology." 

"I want to apologize to them, for all eternity." 

When he finished, the man took out a piece of paper with an address written on it. 

Dominica took it and nodded. 

"Alright." 

The disheveled man forced a smile and stepped forward. 

Across from him, Shusuke Ito narrowed his eyes. 

"This guy volunteered to fight me?" 

"Does he not know his own strength?" 

"With such meager skills, he dares to stand in front of me?" 

"He had a chance to survive, but he's asking for death!" 

Shusuke Ito felt relieved when he saw that Dominica wouldn't be his opponent. 

But as he looked at the disheveled man, a sense of disdain rose within him. 

Ron, however, saw more than that. 

It was clear that the disheveled man had long lost the will to live, moving through life like a soulless shell. 

Now, he'd decided to make his death meaningful. 

Perhaps it was the sight of the audience's tragic fate or the gratitude he felt toward Ron and the others. 

Or maybe he believed that if Dominica were defeated, his own death would only be a matter of time. By stepping forward now, he could buy Dominica some time and give Ron and the others a better chance of survival. 

Ron suspected that the man's motivation came largely from the mention of his two children. 

In Ron and Wendy, the man saw reflections of the children he'd lost. 

It was a natural response. 

A parent who had lost their children might feel a deep sympathy for others in peril. 

Two beams of light fell upon Shusuke Ito and the disheveled man. 

The next moment, both figures appeared on the arena platform. 

"Invisible Hand!" 

In an instant, the disheveled man was sent flying backward. 

*Boom!* 

The impact of the fall sent the disheveled man crashing to the ground, a mouthful of blood spewing from his lips. 

The crowd was silent. 

No one had high expectations for the disheveled man's strength. Based on his aura level, he was only at a D-rank. However, no one had anticipated him losing this quickly. 

Not only was his rank low, but his combat experience and techniques were also utterly lacking. 

No—he had no combat experience or techniques at all. 

Shusuke Ito sneered. 

"That's it?" 

The disheveled man lay twitching on the ground. 

Shusuke Ito approached, ready to deliver the finishing blow. 

Dominica sighed. 

"At least he bought us thirty more minutes." 

She closed her eyes again, seizing the time to recover. 

Standing before the disheveled man, Shusuke Ito summoned his *Invisible Hand*, aiming it downward with precision. The attack struck with brutal force, piercing through the man. 

*Thud!* 

Blood gushed out in torrents. 

The man's life force visibly ebbed away. 

Shusuke Ito turned and waited for the Colosseum to teleport him back to the contestant area. 

But moments passed, and something felt off. The expected force to remove him from the arena never came. 

He was still on the platform. 

"What's going on?" 

"That guy's already dead, isn't he?" 

"The match is over, isn't it?" 

Frowning, Shusuke Ito turned back. 

He was met with an unexpected sight. 

A dense, dark aura was coalescing around the disheveled man's body. 

The energy lifted the man to his feet. 

On his left side, a figure appeared, taking hold of his left hand. 

On his right side, another figure emerged, clasping his right hand. 

Energy flowed into the man's body. 

The disheveled man opened his eyes. 

"Eugene… Tracy… is it really you?" 

He looked to his left, then to his right. His eyes lit up. 

The boy on his left smiled up at him, while the girl on his right playfully shook his hand. 

In the next moment, both children turned their gazes toward Shusuke Ito. 

Their eyes gleamed with ferocity. 

"Don't bully our father!" 

A crushing pressure descended on Shusuke Ito, forcing him to take an involuntary step back. 

His expression shifted. 

"I stepped back?!" 

Shusuke Ito felt humiliated. 

An A-rank Nen user like himself retreating against a mere D-rank? 

Even if the situation was strange, it was unacceptable. 

"Damn it!" 

Shusuke Ito glared coldly at the disheveled man. 

"It's just two strands of deathly Nen. In Taris, we specialize in manipulating deathly Nen." 

Dominica opened her eyes, her expression serious. 

"It's not ordinary deathly Nen," she said. 

"This one is imbued with the power of protection." 

She turned toward Ron and Wendy. 

"Deathly Nen typically manifests due to lingering attachments. And protection… is one such attachment. In this form, deathly Nen is often significantly stronger." 

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