Ugh, probably gave it away by the shape of the bag.

Saiki Kusuo shoved the book back in and felt around inside again.

As long as Chrollo and Hisoka didn't know about his swap ability, he didn't want to reveal it. That meant the three books inside needed to stay the same—also ruling out the one lost in the Misty Wetlands earlier.

He had to pick one he didn't mind re-reading. Which one was best? Eh, with his perfect memory, it didn't really matter.

Anyway, a thicker book was probably a better deal. Saiki Kusuo pulled out one with dense text and tossed it to Chrollo, not really caring whether he liked it or not.

"Didn't expect you to be a book lover too, like the boss. Want to play cards instead to kill time?~"

Hisoka sent out an invite.

Saiki Kusuo: [Cards are boring. I'd rather build a card tower—that's at least a bit of a challenge.]

"Honestly, I'd prefer a computer. But since the battery's dead, books are more useful right now."

Chrollo completely ignored the card game invite, even though the book in his hands clearly wasn't that interesting.

But Illumi was all in—he threw down a little cash and started playing old maid with Hisoka.

One day passed. Then two. More and more people reached the bottom. And Killua's group had only just gotten out of the punishment room.

Illumi's surveillance had already stopped working. Now all he could do was wait. He believed Killua could take care of himself, so he wasn't too concerned. It was probably only a few people in that tunnel—once they came out, he'd watch from there.

Hisoka had been waiting for a long time too. With one hour left until the exam ended, he suddenly started shuffling his cards. "Wanna bet on something?~ Bet on whether Gon and the others will make it out before the exam ends."

Illumi munched on food. "Click click." [Hopefully they don't. That would make things easier.]

Saiki Kusuo kept his eyes on his book: Of course they'll make it. If they're running out of time, I'll give them a little push. After all, they've worked hard.

If they fail to make it, it'd probably be because of something I unintentionally caused. I'll have to fix that.

He'd even been using his clairvoyance to watch the upper floor this whole time—his eyes were sore.

Without Tonpa, the main cast had stopped bickering. The puzzle took a while to solve, but at their pace, they'd make it in time.

Then Saiki Kusuo suddenly realized—they were all sitting right in front of the door Gon's group would burst through.

Saiki Kusuo stood up.

[What is it?] Chrollo was sitting nearby and immediately noticed.

[They say humans need to drink three liters of water a day. Wanna come?] Saiki Kusuo said casually.

Chrollo got up and followed, not buying the excuse at all.

[Actually, I am a little thirsty.] Chrollo said.

There was a water dispenser in one of the corners.

After everyone had escaped to this floor, they'd each picked a spot like wild animals staking out their territory. They didn't bother each other.

The water dispenser was a shared spot—nobody tried to claim it.

Saiki Kusuo had mostly stayed near Illumi's group these last two days, but now he planned to stick near the water cooler for a bit.

Seeing that Saiki wasn't actually there to drink, Chrollo casually took a seat nearby. [Saiki's behavior is strange sometimes… but whatever, there's always a reason.]

Saiki looked around the room. There were clearly more people than in the original story. He focused his attention on the only unexpected variable.

Saiki Kusuo finally asked: [So why are you taking the Hunter Exam? And why are you dressed like Shalnark?]

Chrollo's first reaction was panic—he thought his identity had been exposed. [...Don't blow my cover, Saiki.]

[Relax, only you can hear this—just like last time.]

Back when they were negotiating with the mafia.

Chrollo looked around and realized it was true.

As long as they kept their conversation telepathic, no one else would know.

Chrollo: [Because Shalnark needed a Hunter License.]

In the original story, this guy didn't come. Shalnark should've gotten the license himself.

Chrollo added: [And I just happened to be interested in your powers. Once the plan was running smoothly, I had some free time. Hisoka said you were here, so I thought I'd join the fun.]

[You mean you're interested in stealing my powers.]

Chrollo didn't deny it: [Yeah. I'm always on the hunt for new powers. If someone loses their Nen, they usually lose their place in the world. That often leads to their death.

The powers in my book are always decreasing. I have to keep adding new ones.]

He said it so casually—even though it meant people had died for his collection.

[How many powers do you have now?]

Chrollo: [Somewhere between eighty and ninety. Haven't counted lately.]

…That's a lot. Even more than most espers.

Chrollo seemed to catch his thought and said, [Don't get too impressed by the number. Most of them are weird and not very useful.

If I don't double-check often, sometimes I forget what I have and can't find a specific ability during battle. That can be really awkward.]

You're the type who can find a clever way out of any problem using all kinds of powers… just like me.

There are countless abilities—and countless ways to solve a problem. You just have to choose the best one.

There were five minutes left on the clock. Gon and his group were already on a path that would get them to the room in three minutes.

Saiki Kusuo was finally at ease. He took the book Chrollo had been flipping through and closed his own, putting it back into his bag.

Chrollo sighed, [There goes my time-killer.]

[The Hunter Exam is just a kid's game. If you had the choice to do it again, would you skip it?]

Chrollo took a sip of water, leaned on the railing, and looked at the gate, which was starting to show some movement.

[I'd bring more books next time… or maybe steal a power that makes things more convenient.]

In the final minute, the main cast finally arrived in the room. Thanks to the momentum, they landed right in front of Hisoka.

Hisoka gave them his signature creepy smile and teased his little apples.

[What a shame… You didn't fall right into my arms, Gon~♧]

The exam was over, and the stone gate next to Saiki Kusuo finally started to open slowly. After three days, golden sunlight poured into the area. Chrollo was the first to walk out, and Saiki Kusuo followed right after.

He had just missed the sun. Unlike Illumi and the others, Saiki actually liked the feeling of sunlight.

"I came here for a simple reason—I just wanted to check out an interesting place."

As Saiki Kusuo walked out, he noticed Chrollo flipping through his Bandit's Secret book. Saiki could see the pages—each one had a photo of a Nen user on the left and a picture of their ability on the right, with text all around.

"Eighty-seven. Two abilities gone."

Chrollo had his fingers on one specific page. After reading them all, he flipped it and disguised his head again to look like a normal traveler.

[Kind of annoying.]

You have to hold the book with one hand and can only use one ability at a time. Though, Saiki's invisibility also had limits—it couldn't be used together with other powers.

"You think it's a hassle…?" Chrollo was a bit surprised. Everyone who had seen his ability either admired it or feared it.

[Now that you mention it, maybe it is kind of annoying. My ability's gotten more stable anyway. Instead of improving how I steal abilities, maybe I should work on using two at once.]

Wait, are you evolving? Before the main characters even face you?

Saiki Kusuo didn't like the sound of that. He quietly prayed the future wouldn't be too different because of it.

(It already is.)

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