Chapter 68 Three Days

The Ogu's puppet is a rare work of art that has existed in the long river of history. After being baptized by the long period of time, it has now become a precious antique.

If there were no Nen attached, this exquisite puppet would have been classified as nothing more than an artistic relic.

Any object infused with Nen, regardless of its form, be it a broken, stained plate, becomes extraordinary. As long as it retains the Nen of its creator, it transcends the mundane.

So, the Ogu's puppet was special a few minutes ago, but now, it has become an ordinary item after Law touched it.

Law's faint regret stemmed from the unique significance the puppet held for Ellie. It was similar to Shin, the sword imbued with Limitations and Vows.

But what was done was done, and there was no point in dwelling on it.

At this time, Law no longer resisted the task of protecting Ellie. Originally, he wanted to enter the auction venue as Barney's bodyguard so that he could detect other extraordinary antiques at close range.

However, Barney would definitely not bring Ellie with him when he goes to the auction, and since Law's mission is to protect Ellie, he will not have the opportunity to go to the auction.

However, since Ellie is very interested in antiques, Law felt that once Barney buys the items he wanted, he might let Ellie see it.

'If I can build a good relationship with Ellie, I might be able to get access to the collections Barney bought, as well as the 128 pieces of collection...'

In short, during this period until the end of the Yorknew Auction, Law must do his best to protect Ellie.

"It's lucky to have met you."

Law said as he watched Ellie gently stroke the Ogu's puppet.

"It's not lucky." Ellie shook her head, with a hint of sadness and pity in her light blue eyes.

Law didn't know what to say. From the puppet's origins, it truly wasn't lucky.

In life, it had been manipulated by Ogu. In death, its resentment had also been suppressed by Ogu. From any perspective, it was a tale not of fortune, but of misfortune.

The resentment that Law absorbed from the human puppet was remarkably pure. Seen from the perspective of an infant, it was a raw, unrefined grudge, as natural as an uncut gemstone.

This kind of resentment is born untamed and unshaped, followed a direct, unyielding path like a straight line. Its simplicity was what made it terrifying.

Seeing that Ellie was in a low mood because of what he said, Law was a little embarrassed and didn't know what to say.

"Law." Ellie suddenly looked at Law.

"Hmm?" Law responded and met Ellie's gaze.

Ellie spoke earnestly: "I want to collect the other six Ogu's puppets."

Clap, clap!

Law immediately applauded, then gave a thumbs up and praised, "You have great ambition."

Such lightning-fast support made Ellie looked at him with deadpan expression, her expression practically spelling out: Could you be any more perfunctory?

Seeing her reaction, Law awkwardly withdrew his thumbs-up and changed the subject, "Alright, how about this: I'll tell you a fairy tale about puppets."

"Okay." Ellie's demeanor flipped instantly, her eyes sparkling with excitement, and the only thing missing was stars in her eyes.

"…"

'What happened to the sadness from earlier?'

Law sighed softly, and then began to tell a story: "Once upon a time..."

"Why do fairy tales always start with 'once upon a time'?" Ellie tilted her head curiously.

Law nearly choked on his own words. He rolled his eyes, and said, "Do you want to hear it or not?"

Ellie shrank back and said aggrievedly, "I do…"

"Cough."

Regaining control of the situation, Law cleared his throat and resumed: "Once upon a time... there was a place called Paradise..."

"What a cliché name! Since it's a story about puppets, wouldn't 'Puppet Paradise' be better?" Ellie muttered.

Law nearly choked again, 'Is it so difficult to use a fairy tale to placate a child?'

"Just be honest, do you still want to listen or not?"

"I want to."

"If you want to listen, then be quiet and just listen."

"Okay." Ellie answered aggrievedly.

Law finally managed to finish the puppet story he had been making up on the spot.

However, the story seemed to be a lullaby, as within a few minutes, Ellie, who had been listening attentively, began to doze off.

Kenda, who was guarding the door, quietly looked at the two people sitting on the sofa. He felt that assigning Law to protect Ellie might turn out to be a wise decision.

Before Law had even finished half the story, Ellie had already fallen asleep, leaving him free to slip away.

As he was preparing to leave Ellie's room, Kenda's unexpected 'thank you' left Law somewhat perplexed.

It was only as Law exited the room that he noticed something different about the glass screen.

'The decoration of Ellie's room is basically the same as mine, but there is no circular pattern on the glass screen.'

Law was confused, but didn't think much about it. By the time he returned to his room, it was close to midnight.

He originally wanted to practice his Aura Control again, but his fatigued body and mind did not allow him to do so. Because of that, he immediately went to bed and quickly fell into a deep sleep.

During the two-day escort mission on the airship, his sleep time was basically zero. After getting off the airship, his nerves relaxed and the suppressed fatigue rebounded, but only then did he have a chance to rest.

There were still three days left until the Yorknew Auction began.

However, since Law was assigned to Ellie's side, the Yorknew Auction had basically nothing to do with him.

The auction will last for ten days. The admission ticket plus the catalog of the auctioned items will cost 12 million Jenny. And each ticket only allowed the buyer to bring two other people inside the auction.

Barney will go to the venue in person, and the two companions he chose would likely include Kenda and Martin, and it certainly wouldn't be Law.

Meanwhile, Kuri and the other three from Meteor City, as well as the other bodyguards, would be stationed outside the auction's venue, monitoring all the entrances and exits. Their role was to provide immediate protection the moment Barney left the premises.

Although he didn't have the chance to attend the auction, Law didn't mind, as his goal had already changed.

Barney's 128-piece collections...

…

The bustling decadence of Yorknew made it a city that never sleeps in a sense, though it was quite different from the world's largest gambling city.

Sleepless revelry was common, even if only among a small fraction of the population.

There are many hotels built around the auction's venues, and there are all kinds of entertainment facilities around them.

September of every year is the time when Yorknew has the most visitors. In addition to regular tourists, the influx of people coming specifically for the auction swelled the city's population to over ten times its normal size.

As a result, hotel rooms were fully booked, and businesses from entertainment venues to tiny eateries shifted to 24-hour operations. This transformation only occurs this month every year.

Most of the people who came to participate in the auction were Mafia from the Six Continents and Ten Regions. The reason why they flocked here was more or less related to the Ten Dons, the top leaders of the world's Mafia.

In fact, there is often fierce competition among the Mafia.

Whenever someone falls, someone else immediately rose to take their place. Territory and interests are the eternal themes of contention.

In such an environment of ruthless competition, assassinating enemies became the norm.

Whether assassins or mercenaries, they too flocked to Yorknew every September to carry out missions for money.

…

At a hotel at night.

In a luxurious suite on the top floor, a black-haired boy stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, typing quickly on his cell phone.

[The commission is completed, please transfer the payment to the designated account.]

Within seconds, the message was composed and sent with a press of his thumb.

This boy is the boy that Law saw in the main lobby of the hotel. He is none other than Illumi from the Zoldyck Family. In a dozen years, he will become a fearsome and powerful individual.

"Since I start the assignments three days early, I should have enough time to complete them all by the final day."

Illumi put the phone back into his pocket, then turned around and glanced indifferently at the lifeless body lying on the ground.