The two-day voyage and two days of intensive testing came to an end with the landing of the airship.
This is not a regular test, so when it is over, Martin, the eyebrowless burly man, will not smile and say to them: Congratulations on passing the test.
What could be known was that no one had been thrown out of the airship. What remained unknown was just how many people Kuri and the others had killed during the process.
Throughout the test, Law did not notice the ordinary and inconspicuous pattern that looked like eyes, nor would he have guessed that the unassuming design was actually Martin's means of surveillance.
The airship touched down at Lingon Airport on the outskirts of Yorknew City. A convoy of vehicles was already waiting, and it would take about ninety minutes to drive from here to the hotel in Yorknew City.
There was no follow-up explanation, nor any evaluation of whether they were satisfied. They just asked Law and the others to get in the car and go along. There were six cars in total, and they headed towards Yorknew City.
Barney's confident behavior of abandoning his private airship and choosing a public private attracted many assassins to flock to him.
This choice not only tested the abilities of Law and the others but also served as an initial purge of incoming threats. And the strategy proved effective.
However, the assassins cleared out on the airship are merely small fries, and the subsequent journey to Yorknew City will be full of dangers.
As the number of enemies increased, it was inevitable that some would be more formidable than others.
There are people who are willing to go bankrupt and pay a huge price to hire renowned assassins.
This is what Kenda and Martin was worrying about.
Generally speaking, the most perilous moment occurred after the auction, during the return journey. Most powerful assassins will take action at this time, simultaneously completing their missions and seizing auctioned treasures as an added bonus.
While the airship journey was rife with danger, the drive to Yorknew City was uneventful.
In less than two hours, the group safely arrived at the pre-arranged hotel.
Every year, Barney visited Yorknew City, but the hotel he booked was never the same. The only thing in common is that he always books the top floor of the hotel a month in advance.
By the time they arrived, the hotel's top floor had been vacant for an entire month.
After entering the hotel lobby, the staff greeted them warmly, but instead of everyone heading straight to the top floor directly, Martin and three of his subordinates went up first to conduct a routine sweep, while Barney and the others waited in the lounge area.
At Kenda's instruction, Law and his companions stood guard around the lounge.
The standard inspection took about an hour, which is the time limit Martin requires. Barney has long been accustomed to this, and Kenda, as one of the people who knows the situation, was equally cooperative.
It was hard to spend an hour doing nothing. Barney was reading a newspaper, while Kuri and the others stood around like statues.
"Law, don't you have a last name?"
While Barney was engrossed on reading the newspaper, the little girl Ellie ran to Law and pestered him.
In this regard, Kenda turned a blind eye and would not stop Ellie's behavior, nor would he take the initiative to remind Barney.
Law pretended not to hear her and kept his gaze fixed on the hotel's main entrance.
Seeing that Law ignored her, Ellie puffed up her lips in anger. After turning her head to look at Barney, she lowered her voice and said to Law threateningly: "If you don't answer, I'll tell my dad to fire you!"
However, Law continued to remain silent. He really didn't know how to answer this question. His real name was Lawliet, but because it was difficult to pronounce, he simply used Law as his name. And he indeed didn't have a last name.
Thus, Law was both his last name and his first name.
Seeing that Law ignored her despite the threat, Ellie let out a huff and stomped hard on Law's foot.
'A little brat...'
The pain made Law's brow twitch slightly. He raised his head, looked down at Ellie, and a hint of helplessness flashed in his eyes.
Ellie glared at him and said softly, "Answer my question."
"Law is my last name and also my first name." Law replied with resignation.
"You're not lying to me?" Ellie scrutinized him, clearly skeptical of such a name.
Law said seriously: "I'm not lying."
In truth, Law was the name he had adopted in this world, while Lawliet was his name in his previous life.
"Hmph, you better not be lying. Or else, you'll regret it."
Ellie pulled a small pink notepad and pen from her bag, tore off a page, wrote 'Law' on it, and firmly stuck it to Law's thigh.
This inexplicable behavior left Law confused.
"Once my magical sticky note with your name on it touches you, you'll become my obedient guardian spirit!" Ellie declared seriously with a bright smile.
A few black lines quietly appeared on Law's forehead, and then he turned his gaze to Kenda, but Kenda, catching the glance, chose to ignore it entirely.
Seeing Kenda's reaction, Law was speechless for a moment, and reached to peel off the sloppily scrawled pink sticky note.
'So, all that insistence about my name was just for a childish game.'
Not to mention playing house, even if there was an actual Nen Ability that could control someone using their name, 'Law' is not his real name, making it completely useless.
'Still, for someone this young to come up with such a concept, she might very well develop Nen Ability to control others if she ever learned Nen in the future.'
"Don't tear it!" When Ellie saw Law's actions, her light blue eyes suddenly widened.
However, Law had no intention of indulging this little brat's games, even if he himself was only around 12 or 13 years old.
Without paying any attention to Ellie, he decisively removed the sticky note.
Then, Ellie's eyes immediately became watery, as if massive droplets would spill any second.
"…"
'Fine, you win.'
Law's face froze, then he let out a soft sigh, and stuck the note back where it was.
Like a Sichuan opera face change, Ellie transformed from near tears to a radiant smile in under a second.
"Law, I order you to meow like a kitten!" Ellie pointed at Law and smiled like a little fox who had succeed in her mischief.
Law rolled his eyes and thought, 'As expected, I should just tear it off.'
"Ellie, come back."
At this time, Barney's steady voice rang.
Hearing this, Ellie pouted and obediently returned to Barney's side.
"Sit down." Barney frowned slightly and pointed to the sofa next to him.
"Okay." Ellie sat down obediently, not daring to cause trouble anymore.
The spiky-haired man and the horse-faced man nearby curled their lips when they saw how much Law was liked by their employer's daughter.
Meanwhile, Kuri and Vogt remained inconspicuous, dutifully sticking to their assigned roles.
Without Ellie's pestering, Law felt a lot more relaxed. His eyes wandered around the hotel lobby and he suddenly saw a black-haired boy walking out of the hotel's main entrance alone. His attention was immediately attracted.
To be precise, it was the boy's completely black eyes that caught his attention. At this late hour, seeing a child who seemed around ten years old wandering out alone was unusual.
Although the boy was walking at a normal pace, his walking speed was several times faster than that of an adult. When Law noticed him, the boy had already disappeared through the hotel entrance.
"Yo, isn't this the infamous drug lord, Barney?"
The sudden voice pulled Law's attention back.
The person who spoke was a skinny middle-aged man in a black suit. Behind him, there are two burly bodyguards, also in black suits, dressed like typical Mafia.
The three men crossed the security perimeter and stopped a short distance from Barney.
Kenda is in charge of that area, and anyone who is allowed to approach it should have been approved by Barney.
Barney calmly put down the newspaper, raised his head slightly and looked at the three people in front of him calmly, and said, "Are you here to join in the fun again this year, Sharphead?"
Every September, Mafia's members from all over the world basically gathered in Yorknew City, so it is normal to run into each other in the hotel.
Sharphead is not a real name, but a nickname.
This skinny middle-aged man has a long face and a pointy head, that's why Barney calls him Sharphead, which also carried a hint of mockery. Saying that he came here to join in the fun this year is a subtle criticism that Sharphead does not have the ability to bid for the auction's items.
Sharphead understood the insult, so he snorted coldly, and left with his bodyguards in tow.
Barney stared at Sharphead's departing back with cold eyes. Even without standing in front of Sharphead, he could already imagine that Sharphead's smile at this moment must be gloomy.
"How much longer on the inspection?"
Barney withdrew his gaze and looked at Kenda beside him.
At this time of year, it was too easy to run into colleagues in the hotel lobby, and Barney didn't like it.
"Thirty-five minutes." Kenda whispered back.
Barney nodded, then picked up his newspaper again and resumed his reading.