Death Notice Book 7: Chapter 18: Spar

“Melody!” Kurapika put his hand on Melody’s shoulder and looked at her worriedly.

“It’s fine, Kurapika.” Melody steadied her emotions, turned around, and looked at Qin Lun. “I am a Music Hunter. I specialize in collecting and preserving rare and precious sheet music from around the world. Several years ago, my companion and I heard a piece called ‘The Dark Sonata,’ said to be composed by the Demon King. My companion died instantly, and I… turned into the way I look now.”

Qin Lun felt a stir in his heart. He glanced at the newly appeared message on the Death Notice and asked with concern, “Can you return to normal?”

“I don’t know. What I heard was incomplete. For many years, I have been searching for related sheet music, hoping to make up for the regret. Sadly, I haven’t found anything.” Melody said softly, “I came to the auction this time also hoping to get some clues about it.”

“You can’t help me, Mr. Qin Lun!” Melody said seriously, “By the way, may I ask you a question?”

“Please!” Qin Lun replied with a smile.

“Yesterday afternoon, I heard two different heartbeats from you, as if from two completely different people. Could you tell me what that was about?” Melody glanced at Kurapika beside her and asked cautiously.

“Of course. We may encounter enemies during the auction, so honesty will lead to better cooperation.” Qin Lun stepped forward a few steps, leaned against the rooftop railing, closed his eyes, and felt the cool morning breeze.

“Perhaps you already know — Yin, Liza, and I are not organizers of the auction. We belong to the dark organization — the Shadow Beasts.”

“Heh, of course my information isn’t there. I only joined the Shadow Beasts about ten days ago.” Qin Lun raised his head and looked at the gradually brightening dawn on the horizon. “Actually, I come from Meteor Street. I am a bloodthirsty thug. The other heartbeat Melody heard should be the beast from Meteor Street that remains in my heart!”

“Meteor Street… The same Meteor Street where the Phantom Troupe comes from?” Kurapika’s tone carried an unmistakable chill.

“Yes!” Watching Kurapika’s reaction, Qin Lun’s eyes glinted, and a strange idea suddenly formed in his mind. He decided to probe further: “Kurapika, you and the Phantom Troupe…”

Kurapika took a deep breath and nodded calmly. “Yes, I have an irreconcilable grudge against the Phantom Troupe. The reason I became a bounty hunter is to wipe out the Phantom Troupe entirely, to make those thugs disappear from this world.”

“Kurapika, Meteor Street has eight million people. Not all of them are from the Phantom Troupe. Please don’t treat me as an enemy.” Qin Lun shook his head with a bitter smile. Watching the beautiful youth fall silent, he suddenly understood.

No wonder, when the Main Quest divided the factions, it didn’t place the Shadow Beasts and the Nostrade Family’s guards into the Hunter Side. So the deep-rooted cause of this Historical Plot lies in Kurapika’s hatred for the Phantom Troupe. The auction in Yorknew City just provided a suitable stage for both sides.

Perhaps in the original history, the Phantom Troupe only targeted the auction’s collection, and Kurapika was just doing a regular protection job.

Normally, because of Neon’s existence, the mafia bosses who received fortunes and the Nostrade Family’s guards should not have been involved. In the end, maybe only some wealthy auction attendees and ordinary mafia members died.

However, because of Kurapika’s deep hatred for the Troupe, it led to a major conflict between the Troupe and the Hunter Side. In that case, Kurapika isn’t just a member of the Hunter Side — he’s the key figure in the entire Historical Plot?!

But elephants don’t notice ants’ resistance. Since Kurapika could shift the entire historical line, he must have done something that caused serious harm to the Phantom Troupe. It’s even possible he set up a plan to kill several Troupe members.

Qin Lun’s eyes slowly brightened, but he immediately lowered his head to hide the shock and doubt in his eyes.

He suddenly realized that even the best plan needs the strength to execute it. If his reasoning wasn’t wrong, then the handsome youth standing before him, beautiful as a girl, must have at least the combat power of a High-Rank Apostle.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Qin Lun. I apologize for my earlier rudeness!” Kurapika bowed deeply. “You’re right. I shouldn’t extend my hatred for the Phantom Troupe to the whole of Meteor Street.”

Although he used polite terms, Kurapika’s tone remained somewhat cold, no longer as friendly as before. It seemed he still held some reservations about Qin Lun’s background from Meteor Street.

“It’s fine, Kurapika, I understand!” Qin Lun’s eyes flashed as he carefully chose his words. “Perhaps I can help in some way.”

“Do you have information about the Phantom Troupe?” Kurapika’s eyes lit up. Remembering Qin Lun’s origin, he immediately pressed further.

“No, I don’t know anyone from the Troupe.” Qin Lun chuckled lightly, flipping his right hand to reveal a pure white revolver. “However, I can let you get familiar with the fighting style of a Meteor Street thug. Although Nen Ability users mostly have unique fighting patterns, the habits formed by their survival environment are not easy to change.”

“Heh, alright.” Finally, a trace of a smile appeared on Kurapika’s face. “Melody, please step back a bit.”

Kurapika took off his outer coat, revealing a white inner martial attire. He held a short blade in each hand. His short blades were straight and short, somewhat resembling Japanese wakizashi, but the blades were flatter and straighter.

“Be careful.” Qin Lun called out and fired a shot immediately.

Kurapika’s eyes faintly glowed with white light; it seemed he had already used “Gyo.” The youth tilted his head slightly, avoiding the bullet’s trajectory, and stared tightly at Qin Lun opposite him. For a Nen Ability user like him, a pistol bullet was hard-pressed to cause harm. It was better to pay close attention to his opponent’s next move.

A mysterious smile appeared at the corner of Qin Lun’s mouth. If the bullets shot by Burial of Light and Darkness were that easy to handle, they wouldn’t be Legendary firearms. When Burial of Light and Darkness advanced from Purple Gold quality to Legendary Rank, apart from the increase in power, the most important change was gaining two Artifact Spirits: Unicorn Soul and Meisha’s Life Core.

Actually, before Qin Lun came into contact with Nen Ability, he hadn’t been able to unleash the true power of these Legendary firearms. For Legendary Equipment like Burial of Light and Darkness to show their real value, the conditions were very demanding. Not only did the Apostle’s class have to meet the standard, but they also needed a deep understanding of their career path.

In other words, the user had to be a top-tier shooter and possess the Heart of the Strong. Qin Lun actually didn’t fully meet these conditions. His high-level skill — Firearm Mastery — still had a distance from the master level, and Joey’s Heart of Slaughter also had little direct relation to the shooter class.

However, the Artifact Spirit of Angel’s Praise, one of the Burial of Light and Darkness pair, was Qin Lun’s class proof. Combined with his incomplete Nen Ability transformed from killing intent, it could already display part of the Legendary firearm’s power.

“Neigh—!” Under Qin Lun’s gaze, the white bullet suddenly emitted a dazzling light. A Unicorn radiating Divine Light raised its hooves and whinnied loudly, charging toward Kurapika trailing long streams of light.

Artifact Spirit Burst Attack — Unicorn!

“So this is his Nen Ability? Attaching animal-shaped magical attacks to bullets!” Kurapika was slightly startled, but he reacted quickly, dropping and rolling to barely avoid the Unicorn’s direct charge.

“Rip!” The supersonic bullet couldn’t be completely dodged. The youth’s left arm still grazed the edge of the Unicorn. His white training suit was torn off a large piece, and the exposed skin immediately became blackened and charred. And this was with Kurapika already using Nen for Protection. Otherwise, just this one hit would have been enough to cripple his arm.

“Careful, it’s not over yet!” Qin Lun extended his empty left hand. A sparkling, translucent Pentagram Crystal Mirror appeared to the side of the Unicorn. He raised his right hand and fired another shot — “Bang!”

However, this subsequent bullet didn’t trigger another Unicorn; the Artifact Spirit’s ethereal burst attack hadn’t cooled down yet. This bullet, moving faster, caught up with the Unicorn and merged into it seamlessly, impacting the side of the first bullet from within.

“Clink…” The Unicorn, like a horse-drawn carriage turning with difficulty, spun around from the impact. It brushed closely past the Pentagram Crystal Mirror. As the mirror shattered amidst the elemental impact, the Unicorn charged toward Kurapika once again.

Kurapika’s delicate eyebrows raised. He plunged his right-hand blade into the ground, pushed off with his calf, and rushed fiercely toward Qin Lun. In that short moment, he realized he had to close the distance with Qin Lun immediately, or he might be played to death by the shooter.

“Heh.” Qin Lun chuckled lightly, relinquished control over the Unicorn, and drew Angel’s Praise’s sister gun — Demon’s Song — from his waist. Holding a gun in each hand, he stood in place, calmly waiting for the charging Kurapika.

“Hah!” Kurapika guarded his chest with his left-hand blade and thrust his right-hand blade fiercely at Qin Lun. The tip of the blade shone with a point of white light — clearly, he had layered it with Nen.

“Ordinary Nen enhancement won’t break my defense.” Qin Lun smiled and bent his waist. He blocked the short blade with Angel’s Praise in his right hand, while Demon’s Song in his left extended from under his armpit, firing a shot almost point-blank at Kurapika’s abdomen.

“Clang!” Kurapika’s left-hand blade, guarding his chest, slashed out like lightning, just managing to block the muzzle of Demon’s Song, but the impact of the bullet still forced him to stagger back.

“A pure shooter cannot survive in a place like Meteor Street. We are more accustomed to close combat.” Qin Lun’s eyes flashed. Pivoting on his foot, he spun like a whirlwind. His right gun swung like a heavy hammer toward the youth’s temple, while his left hand went behind his back — “Bang!” — he fired another shot aimed at Kurapika’s knee.

The youth tumbled aside in a flurry, avoiding the bullet but losing control of his body in the process. By the time he knelt on one knee to steady himself, the barrel of a pure white pistol was already pressed against his forehead.