Becoming V6 × Kajou × Final Prediction

When Joey made his judgment, he had already mostly guessed which prince's private guards were conducting the investigation.

It always came back to the same issue—among the remaining princes aboard the ship, only two had the power, means, and intel to pull something like this off: First Prince and Second Prince.

Between the two, Joey leaned toward the First Prince.

On one hand, Prince Benjamin was deeply entrenched with the Royal Army; on the other, Camilla's followers lacked the means—most of her subordinates were outcasts.

Even if those outcasts were respected within Camilla's circle, in the eyes of Kakin society, they were nothing more than trash. Joey didn't believe such a group could carry out a precise investigation of the princes' whereabouts.

Sure, there might be a handful of regular private guards under Camilla not yet accounted for, but limiting the suspects to Benjamin and Camilla was already enough for Joey's purposes.

Besides, even ignoring those two, the three major Kakin mafia groups were also hovering around him, clearly trying to locate the whereabouts of the Tenth and Eleventh Princes.

So Morena's warning held some value—but not much.

Back in his room, Joey instructed Fugates to disguise herself and take position while he waited patiently.

He had plenty of patience—but Fugates and Kajou were clearly exhausted. They'd used their abilities repeatedly throughout the day, and now it was deep into the night.

But this sudden plan to eliminate the Third Prince couldn't wait for morning. The night was the best window—so they had no choice but to endure.

"How long is this war going to drag on..." Kajou yawned, already sick of a life full of hiding and tension.

"By tradition," Joey said, eyes flicking up from his phone, "the Succession War ends when only one prince remains alive."

Kajou sighed and hugged Fugates beside her.

"I heard Kakin princes are raised and educated to be heirs to the throne," Joey said, curious. "But you and Fugates don't seem to have any interest in ruling."

"You said it yourself. It's just education," Kajou answered. "Everyone has their own goals. Me and Fugates never felt like we were meant to be monarchs. If anything—we'd rather travel the world."

Her eyes shimmered with longing.

"Ever since we were young, we dreamed of adventure. But our royal status meant we could only visit a few tourist spots in Kakin. If it weren't for this stupid war, we'd actually be excited about the journey to the Dark Continent. It's an unexplored land—full of mystery and beauty."

Joey shook his head.

"Not just mystery and beauty. There are treasures to be unearthed—and dangers that devour lives without warning. With your strength, you'd be better off hiring pro Hunters and exploring Lake Mobius. That's as far as you should go."

Kajou's ideals were too pure, too naïve. Joey could tell.

She had never ventured into real danger—only visited scenic resorts. Given how Kakin had advertised the voyage, her expectations weren't unusual.

"Is it really that dangerous? The intel I've seen says the worst threats are like... prehistoric animals. Maybe elephant-sized, maybe a bit bigger, but modern firearms should still be effective, right?"

That was the problem—V5 had fully locked down real intel on the Dark Continent. Kakin's official story made it sound like a land of infinite opportunity.

The whole idea was to entice people onto the Black Whale, lured by dreams of wealth and power. Even King Nasubi and Beyond Netero described the place as a treasure-filled paradise.

No wonder Kajou believed that fantasy. So did most people aboard the ship.

"If it were really that amazing," Joey said sharply, "you think V5 would've sat around waiting for Kakin to explore it?"

That hit the heart of it.

But Kajou shook her head.

"V5 already had their chance. That's why they're V5. Now it's Kakin's turn. If V5 and the Gatekeepers approve, then Kakin will officially explore the Dark Continent.

And when we return with wealth and power—that's when Kakin will become V6."

Joey blinked.

"Who told you all this?" he asked, brow furrowing.

"Father. But it's a secret—ordinary citizens can't know.

Because the ones who'll actually reach the Dark Continent won't be the 200,000 passengers.

It'll be Kakin's elite royal troops—those blessed by the Ancestors."

Kajou's expression turned serious. Then her cheeks reddened slightly.

"Technically, I shouldn't be telling you this. But I don't think of you as an outsider."

As she spoke, Joey began mentally cross-referencing every shred of intel he had. Piece by piece, it all started forming a clearer picture.

But he needed more to confirm it.

"Blessed by the Ancestors? You know what that means?"

Kajou shrugged.

"Just a saying, right? It's not like our ancestors are gonna jump out of their coffins or something."

That was borderline blasphemous—but Joey let it slide. From the way Kajou and Fugates spoke about the Succession War, it was clear—they no longer held much love for Kakin.

"Oh right—Dio, before you came back, Fugates and I visited the observation deck on Tier 3 with Pyorn. We saw shadows out there.

It was like... the moment we even thought of using the deck to leave the Black Whale, those shadows would pounce."

Her tone grew dark. Her eyes were filled with lingering fear.

"Looks like you were right. This ship really is just a giant Womb of Curses. No one who boards gets off."

"No one?" Joey didn't expect Pyorn had run experiments behind his back.

Joey had been too busy to test what happened if someone left the BW, despite remembering the manga's implications. But Pyorn did it for him—and that was a pleasant surprise.

Though Pyorn never told him.

"Did you tell Pyorn what you just told me—about how Kakin plans to become V6?" Joey asked quickly.

Kajou shook her head.

"No. But the part about no one leaving—that's what Pyorn tested.

Everyone who tries to get off dies instantly.

That's why the Tier 3 observation deck is now locked down.

The Royal Army, Hunter Association, and Visible Security Guards all have people posted there."

"Well, damn... you really did stumble into some major intel." Joey rubbed his temples.

Kajou keeping the V6 secret from Pyorn also explained why Pyorn hadn't relayed it to Joey—because he didn't know.

And the blockade outside the ship was already known to Joey. Pyorn must've thought it wasn't worth mentioning.

As for taking the girls on that trip—Joey had basically delegated their safety to Pyorn, so he'd assumed it was fine.

And from what Kajou just said... maybe she had feelings for him?

Joey smirked. Damn charisma.

But then, his En picked up movement—someone had entered the zone.

"We'll talk later. Time to greet our guests."

Kajou and Fugates put on their cloaks and masks.

"Joey, do you think this disguise will work?" Kajou asked. "I mean... it's kind of obvious."

"Don't worry. I've got other methods to mask your presence. They won't recognize you."

In truth, the disguises didn't matter much.

Anyone worth their salt had already figured it out—the person who could send others to the upper tiers was one of the missing princes.

All Joey really had to worry about was whether these guests would attack Fugates.

But fortunately, sending someone up didn't require Kajou's ability—just Fugates opening a door at the right address.

That's why Joey approved the trade.

Kajou and Fugates trusted him completely. From the moment they followed him out of Tier 1, their lives were in his hands.

So after Joey reassured them, they waited silently.

Three short knocks, two long—the signal.

Joey opened the door and welcomed two enforcers from the Ai Ai Family.

One had a constant smirk, eyes half-closed. The other was a woman with beady eyes and a permanent scowl.

They looked like a couple, but their body language said otherwise.

Joey didn't care.

He confirmed their identity as Morena's people, then gave Fugates a nod.

—

Meanwhile, the Third Prince sat inside Room 1033 of the VVIP area, full of unease.

He knew—his actions against Tier 12 had been a gamble.

Dio and Kurapika knew too much.

And with Hisoka involved, the Third Prince got greedy—he'd planned a trap to eliminate them both.

But Dio never came. He sent Hisoka instead.

That alone shattered the entire prediction.

The plan had been airtight—take out both Dio and Kurapika in one move. But Dio staying behind meant everything fell apart from step one.

Even though other princes joined the pressure campaign against Tier 12, it didn't matter.

If Dio and Kurapika weren't dead, it was all meaningless.

Now, the Third Prince's hand was revealed. And the Royal Army still hadn't caught Hisoka.

All he could do was defend.

But with only one Nen user left—a mobster from the underworld—he didn't feel safe.

"So this is the result you promised me?" he asked coldly, slamming a report on the table.

"Then why is he still alive?"

The one he referred to was the Nen user who had made the predictions—who had assured him Dio would be eliminated.

Even though the plan had been the prince's own idea, he wasn't above blaming someone else.

"He made one final prediction. If it fails, he'll die," said the last remaining Nen user from the Shu Wu Wu family.

"What was the prediction?" the prince asked.

"Tonight, Dio will infiltrate the VVIP area and attempt to assassinate you."

The Third Prince looked at his watch.

"It's already 2 AM. Still counts as 'tonight'?"

"Yes. The prediction is valid until 4 AM."

The prince nodded.

If that was true, then even in failure, the seer was offering his life as a shield.

But would the prediction come true?

He had no way of knowing.

If he were Dio, would he really pass up a golden opportunity?

Probably not.

Especially now that all ties were broken—striking the death blow made the most sense.

Just as the thought crossed his mind—

A door appeared suddenly in the wall across from him.

The prince's eyes widened.

Could it be—!

(End of Chapter)