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Synopsis[]
Still held hostage by Feitan, the Mafia member asks if he can go back to his room after he opens another door. Phinks says no and tells him to go inside once he opens it. He then tells Nobunaga that an old man should be inside, but if he isn't, they're safe. Nobunaga remembers that the Mafia said the old man had a teleportation ability, and Phinks says that if they get within a certain radius of his double, they will be forced to teleport, guessing that it's a lookout and trap ability.
Nobunaga disagrees by saying that teleportation uses Emission, not Conjuration, unless the old man is there in person instead of his double. He adds that while Conjuration works for creating a room with complex rules in a special space, it's nearly impossible to use it with the ability to send a person somewhere else. He concludes that the old man is just the lookout and that the trap is a different ability, but Phinks says that it could involve Specialization and tells him that he's rambling.
The three Troupe members discussing the Heil-Ly's trap
As the two argue over the details, the Mafia member says that the door is locked on the current side, but Feitan tells him to unlock it, threatening to give him another butthole if he keeps asking stupid questions. The member unlocks it and slowly opens the door to find no one inside the small bathroom. He finds that the next door is also locked and quickly says that he will open it once Feitan begins to move his sword behind him. With the second door open, Phinks wonders who locked it since it's the only entrance to the hidden room. Nobunaga says that if the old man does have a double, he could have easily locked the doors to the bathroom and hidden room and then disappeared.
Feitan wonders what the point of it is, and Phinks guesses that they needed to stall for time, noting that they knew about the old man's ability and the hidden room beforehand. He says that if they had broken in through the front door, they would have been cautious and guessed that someone was hiding in the bathroom. However, Feitan points out that they couldn't have entered since the front door is the trap, and Phinks comments on Feitan also talking back.
The Troupe confirming the trap's activation
Nobunaga then realizes that the bathroom setup buys them time if someone figures out that the front door is a trap and decides to break through the wall of the next room like he did. Phinks says that it makes sense, and Feitan realizes that breaking through the wall won't trigger the trap, with Phinks adding that they can also enter from the bathroom. Nobunaga tells the Mafia member that he can go inside with no worries, and after saying to himself that he has no idea what the three are talking about, he walks inside the main room, with nothing happening. Phinks then tells him to walk out the front door, and the member again asks if he can go back to his room afterwards, but Feitan tells him to come back inside if nothing happens after he walks out.
The member walks out, but when Nobunaga tells him to come back inside, he makes a run for it down the hallway. Feitan instantly appears in front of him and blocks his path, brandishing his sword and telling him to pick right or left. With the member left terrified, Nobunaga tells him to come back before both his ears get cut off, with Phinks adding that no one loses just their ears once Feitan starts. The member quickly returns to the room and immediately disappears once he enters. Feitan says that it activated even without the old man's double, and Nobunaga notes that there are no support objects in the room, guessing that it's a land mine type instead of a barrier. The two types are then explained: the barrier type involves setting up multiple traps over a wider area by supporting the ability's activation with Nen-imbued objects such as ropes or paper talismans. The land mine type involves setting up an activation switch directly with Nen at a specific location, and its strength limits it to two or three locations.
The Troupe using another hostage to test the trap
Phinks adds that the stronger a land mine type is, the closer the user has to be to the entry or exit point, guessing that the user must be near the place where the victims are teleported and that it's most likely their hideout. Nobunaga says that while they could deliberately fall into the trap to reach the hideout, there are more enemies and most likely more traps waiting for them. Phinks suggests confirming whether the trap can be activated continuously or just once, pointing out that they can simply wait for the user to appear if they have to reactivate each time. Feitan then knocks on the door of a nearby room and takes another Mafia member hostage. The man threatens to kill Feitan and warns them that he will say something to the Cha-R, but Feitan eventually forces him into the room where he immediately disappears. Nobunaga confirms that it's continuous activation, and Feitan says that Nobunaga's suggestion is the fastest way, volunteering to enter the trap first.
However, Ken'i suddenly appears in the hallway and introduces Hinrigh as the Xi-Yu's underboss, revealing that he has a proposal for them. Hinrigh offers to help them locate the enemy's hideout and tells them to postpone their suicide mission until after listening to him. Ken'i explains that the Cha-R are following two suspected Heil-Ly members, revealing that they can trust Hinrigh since he found them and Room 3101. Hinrigh assures the three that the Xi-Yu have no issue with the Troupe and that the Kakin Mafia values balance most of all, gladly offering to help them if they can destroy the Heil-Ly.
Hinrigh revealing his ability to the Troupe
Thanking him for the offer, Nobunaga says that they are ready to leave, but Phinks doesn't agree with his decision, and Feitan asks how he knows where the enemy is. Hinrigh reveals a transmitter and explains that he can attach it to a decoy to find out where it goes, but Phinks points out that it's a massacre on the other side of the trap, adding that it would take less than five minutes for them to kill a civilian passenger, search their body, and find the transmitter.
Hinrigh replies that it's why he will use his own ability, revealing that he can turn tools and machinery into living things before changing the transmitter into a raw oyster. He explains that if the decoy swallowed it whole, it wouldn't be found even if they stripped and cavity searched the body. He adds that it will turn back once the aura is depleted and that it all depends on the size of the object, guessing that the oyster will last around two hours. Phinks praises Hinrigh's idea since he doesn't want to join Nobunaga and Feitan, but when he turns around to see which of them wants to swallow it, both appear to want no part in the plan. Nobunaga reveals that just the taste of shellfish makes him vomit after a bad case of food poisoning, and Feitan says that he won't eat food that someone has touched or breathed on.
Hinrigh volunteering to be the decoy
After telling them not to worry since he didn't expect them to trust him immediately, Hinrigh reveals that he already has a decoy and swallows the oyster himself, surprising all three Troupe members. He pulls out the beeping receiver and explains that it will give the distance to the transmitter and a rough direction. He adds that if they get closer to the transmitter, the sound intervals will become shorter and higher-pitched, and the bar's light will get redder, showing them the screen at zero distance. He emphasizes that while the maximum radius is one kilometer, it doesn't take altitude into account, explaining that if the direction is unclear, the transmitter is most likely above or below them. He hopes that he isn't killed and dissected but says that he will do his best to save the transmitter first. He then hands the receiver to Phinks and tells the group that he's counting on them, walking into the room and disappearing.
Nobunaga says that he likes how straightforward Hinrigh is, and Phinks notices that the receiver changed, guessing that the transmitter is between 500 and 1,000 meters away. One of them wonders how big the ship is, and another says that the length is 1,500 meters and both the height and width are 800 meters. Feitan suggests heading to the center of Tier 3 since the bar will get redder if their hideout is there. Phinks wonders if the color won't change if the hideout is on the opposite side of the ship, but Nobunaga quickly replies that it would be over one kilometer and it wouldn't even pick up the signal. As the two begin to argue again, Feitan becomes annoyed and says that one of them needs to disappear.
Hinrigh reaching the Heil-Ly's hideout
As soon as Hinrigh arrives at the Heil-Ly's hideout, he expertly crouches down, turns around, moves to his left, pulls out a small knife, and thrusts it forward. Shocked to find no one there, sounds from a nearby door and fresh blood on the floor cause him to stay vigilant, and he worries that they questioned the other victims and found out about them. He suddenly feels a presence behind him and leaps back. Nobunaga says that he didn't expect no one to be there, and before Hinrigh can finish addressing him as Nobunaga-san, he wonders why he came. Nobunaga jokingly says that he's playing co-op and that Hinrigh's chances of survival increase when he's not by himself. He adds that Phinks and Feitan were skeptical and against the idea, having told him to immediately kill Hinrigh if he had said, "I knew you would come," adding that the phrase has a double meaning. However, he assures Hinrigh that he never thought he was trying to trick him since a trap that required them to trust someone they had just met would be too good to be true.
Nobunaga asks Hinrigh if he wants to look or move, leaving the decision up to him and asking for his name again since he couldn't be bothered to remember it earlier. Hinrigh tells him his name and suggests that they move, even though he has no basis for it, and Nobunaga agrees with his choice, walking to the wall with just one door and placing his finger on the former. He is confident that it's the Heil-Ly's hideout, but Hinrigh wonders how he knows.
Nobunaga testing the strength of the hideout
Telling him to watch, Nobunaga draws his katana and strikes the wall several times. However, the damage quickly disappears, and Hinrigh realizes that it's protected by Nen. Nobunaga says that Conjuration, Transmutation, or even Specialization could be involved, explaining that a stage prepared by a Nen user can't be easily destroyed. He adds that the usual contract involves the stage being stronger if the user is closer, saying that even his katana couldn't cut it and guessing that the user is inside. Elsewhere, Morena is seen with a menacing smirk on her face. Hinrigh explains that from the footage he watched, the Heil-Ly seemed to use the place as a passageway, saying that it would make sense for their main hideout to also be there. Nobunaga guesses that it will be well defended and suggests searching for their leader.
Hinrigh suggests opening all the other doors before going inside the main one, and Nobunaga offers to open them from there. However, Hinrigh says that he will do it himself and tells Nobunaga to stay vigilant, explaining that he doesn't want one of them to disappear while the other doesn't see it and hoping that Nobunaga can figure out what the trigger is. After Nobunaga understands his reasoning, Hinrigh begins to push open the doors one at a time, finding a shower room, a bathroom, and three toilets as he comments on how large the group must be. Nobunaga wonders if they should wait there for the members to do their business, but Hinrigh wants to keep moving, confident that Nobunaga will protect the transmitter even if he dies. Nobunaga tells Hinrigh to call him just "Nobunaga" without the honorific, and Hinrigh understands, using his knife to push open the main door as the two look inside to find a room filled with laundry.
Characters in Order of Appearance[]
- Nobunaga Hazama
- Feitan Portor
- Phinks Magcub
- Gateaume (Image; Mentioned indirectly)
- Ken'i Wang
- Hinrigh Biganduffno
- Morena Prudo
Trivia[]
Intertextuality and References[]
- In the Heil-Ly's hideout, a poster for David Cronenberg's 1986 film The Fly can be seen.
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