Still Doll

A Guilty Sinner

The sea breeze was both sharp and cold.

Right outside the dining lounge was a long pathway of the side of the ship. The glass walls proudly displayed a regal view of luxury and mystique as the dazzling chandeliers and draperies matched the silky, dotted dark night, with the shimmering calm waves of the ocean. The bright moon was gleaming on its wake; the deep, gloomy dark sea illuminated its light, with its crates peculiarly more visible that night.

Standing next to the railing with his hands deeply tucked in his pockets, the last Kuruta peacefully settled his eyes on the lovely view (that somewhat reminded him of his lost home), feeling peaceful and nostalgic.

A dinner party was held on the last day of the cruise. An announcement was released about the cancellation of the cruise's last destination and detouring back to the York Shin's coast after the all-out yet futile search and investigation of the auction robbery incident conducted the previous day. It was the Hunter Association who imposed the memo and forced the management to cancel the fifth day of the trip, with a reason that it wasn't safe anymore to continue.

Kurapika turned around to see the framed view of the dancing hall. Pairs of well-suited dancing couples circled round and round all over the dance floor, including his employer, Dmitri, dancing with a pretty lady clad in a glamorous dress. The blond was asked to guard outside the hall, not wanting him to tail around and 'to take a breather, I know you've been stresses out because of all of this.' He looked bemused and delighted with the woman's company, seeing the way how the man smiled. Dmitri looked cool unlike the previous night, after the investigation.

Watching the soundless waltzing of the guests, Kurapika recollected the imposed, compulsory search operation that was posted the night before.

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"I really wonder who that bastard is," Dmitri contemplated as all of the summoned hunters on board flocked around one of the crime scenes: the vault.

The room was thoroughly clean; it couldn't be seen as a nasty execution ground where more than a dozen Mafia bodyguards and three professional hunters died. No blood stains, no traces of the thief or the victims, no shadow of any merchandise that was supposed to be lying inside the safe. Nothing.

"The guards outside the vault were killed without spilling a single drop of blood, no corpse or any kind of lead— we are dealing with a hell of a veteran," the management representative coherently reported.

The management turned out to have conducted a separate search, which had the same fruitless results. Patches of theory of how the burglary was made and who the suspect would be left Kurapika nothing but confounded yet amused at the same time.

A group of powerful nen-users came, presumably sent by the Hunter Association, had a member named Fram that had a strong smelling ability that resembled Gon's.

"We're lucky that this is a closed space, familiar and strong scents remained lingering around even after the days that passed.

"Expectedly, the thief didn't bother retrieving his weapons namely typical, non-poisonous needles because he made sure not to leave any fingerprints on them. That came handy— I don't need any marks to trace him down. As long as he touched the weapon, surely a scent from his clothes or his sweat would remain on them.

"All of the needles shared the same scent; it perfectly matched the strong scent that lingered along blood and death inside the vault. So, yes guys: we are dealing with a single man here. Impressive, isn't it?" Fram gave an amused smile.

"So, this bastard has some bizarre random abilities and we can deduce that he's from Specialization. He can compress big items and bring them around, conduct terrifying tortures— yes, those three assassins died a torturous death— and clean his own mess with a help of a 'vacuum.' It's so clear that our opponent was no ordinary man, and we certainly need some help.