Joey's scouts weren't limited to swifts in the sky.
He had vipers slithering through the ground.
Unlike humans, snakes perceive through more than eyes—vibrations, thermal changes, flicks of their tongue catching airborne molecules.
So even though Dick was expertly hidden, the tremors from his movement and the scent molecules he emitted were enough to betray his location to the vipers.
Joey had already planned for this.
A simple setup: he placed a First Bomb on a scorpion, sent it tunneling toward the hidden target.
No need for flashy kills—just proximity.
Once within three meters, the scorpion lunged—at two meters, it exploded.
Not to kill.
Just to blow the bastard out of hiding.
And at the same time, Joey himself was closing in—completely invisible in Mirage Mode.
The moment Heart Attack was launched, he'd begun his stealth maneuver.
Even if it couldn't kill, it could buy time. Seconds were all he needed.
Because the man buried in sand—he was probably the main body.
And the moment he was blown clear of the ground, Joey extended his En, catching him in range.
At that instant, the weather beast perched on his shoulder unleashed hell.
Lightning above. Wind below.
Dick was suspended in mid-air, buffeted by wind, unable to return to the sand.
The bolt of lightning slammed into him.
Even with Nen guarding him, his limbs convulsed.
Joey didn't hesitate.
A coin. A button press.
BOOM.
Third meatstick acquired.
Dick's body writhed as his limbs vanished. His screams were cut short by a karate chop from the humanoid weather beast, rendering him unconscious.
Joey kept his distance.
He flipped another coin—turned it into a swift.
That's when the creature clinging to Dick's shoulder, the Ring, let out a screech more agonized than anything Dick had voiced.
The air rippled. Space twisted.
Joey recognized it immediately.
A spiraling gate to another dimension—just like Nobunaga's Apartment, or the Windowmaker.
Through it, a misty humanoid shape surged forth—right into the limp form of Dick.
Heart Attack's explosion had ceased. This was the main body.
And now it was being possessed.
Joey froze.
This wasn't a defensive measure. It was a kill switch.
The Ring wasn't trying to save Dick.
It was trying to erase him—prevent interrogation.
More terrifying?
Joey had never shown killing intent toward the Ring.
So how had it known?
Did it have sentience?
No time to ponder.
As the gate vanished and the soul slipped in, Joey lunged forward, scooping up the dying Ring.
Golden Experience poured life into it.
If you're dying from draining life force—then I'll just inject more.
In that instant, Joey noticed a series of divine glyphs carved into the creature's belly.
He memorized them.
Interpreted them.
Control seals. Self-destruct protocol.
Without hesitation, he tagged the Ring with a First Bomb, and detonated a chunk of flesh around the glyphs.
Once severed, the Ring stopped decaying.
Its body went limp in Joey's palm—but alive.
Behind him, Dick stirred.
Joey glanced into those eyes.
The person was gone.
This was now just a Weapon—a shell.
He tried speaking to it—got nothing.
So he obliterated it.
Done.
He tossed the comatose Ring to the ape he conjured, created specifically to babysit this time bomb.
The sniper? Joey slung him into the passenger seat, tied up in a seatbelt.
They hit the road.
Later, he conjured a chimpanzee to hold the Ring in the backseat.
A living Ring was too dangerous to keep close.
If it screeched again, at least the chimp would be the one to get possessed.
Win-win.
The sniper, though? Joey expected him to wake up soon.
His wounds were all Killer Queen brand—seared, not bled.
He'd survive.
And Joey had questions.
This skirmish had yielded solid results.
A Ring. A prisoner. Insights into Saherta.
It also meant his cover was blown.
But that was fine.
He hadn't used his real identity—he'd entered Saherta as "Fox", a persona registered by Kite in Yorknew City.
Even the temporary hunter ID? Easily bought with connections.
Besides, by the time Saherta connected the dots, Joey would be long gone. Probably deep inside Kakin.
And he wasn't worried about bounty squads.
He was more worried about unknown Nen techniques—especially those with ridiculous clauses and executioner types.
Which is why he needed a double.
Or a decoy body.
Preferably one with Nen storage capacity.
He glanced at the handkerchief in his breast pocket—marked with divine glyphs.
He still preferred using dead Rings.
They were safer.
The one he had now still needed studying—and maybe a visit to the Hunter Association HQ was in order.
Joey cracked the window.
Let the dust carry Orlando's ashes out.
Just as the sniper groaned awake.
"You're awake," Joey said, En still active, monitoring every shift in the car.
He never turned it off.
It kept him connected to the atmosphere—allowed him to feel the breath of the world.
If he ever mastered this, he could create vacuum pockets like he did during his fight with Yung.
A deadly En field.
Not "greet-and-kill"—more like "exist-and-annihilate."
"You'll regret crossing Saherta," the sniper rasped.
Joey rolled his eyes.
A coward.
No composure. No tactical use.
But even scraps of intel had value.
"And?" Joey asked, amused.
"L-let me go. I'll... I'll..." Orlando stammered.
"You don't even know what you'd do. You know your own government doesn't give a damn about you."
"You bastard—"
"Want to end up like your friends? Possessed and erased by a Ring's summoned spirit?"
At that, the ape in the back gently raised the limp Ring.
Orlando flinched. Even in meatstick form.
So, it works.
Joey studied his reaction.
Was it fear of the afterlife? Or did he know exactly what the Ring was capable of?
Joey pulled out the handkerchief. Waved it.
"I'm not a Weapon. I just picked up a pelt. And some knowledge."
He'd already stripped Orlando of his gear. No bugs. No GPS.
So a little baiting couldn't hurt.
"You got that from Kakin?" Orlando snapped. "Damn it... you're the fourth one. How many more Weapons have slipped into the lake?!"
Joey shrugged. "Ask Kakin. They're working with the Weapons. They'll take them straight to the Labyrinth once they reach the Dark Continent."
"They won't make it past the Gatekeeper," Orlando muttered. "Kakin's finished."
"Confident, aren't you? You think Kakin hasn't prepared? You think they haven't already been to the Continent?"
Orlando's eyes widened.
"You... you know?"
"Of course. I'm from Begrosae. Don't lump me in with clueless fools."
That shut him up. Confirmed a theory.
So Kakin had been there—but failed. Why didn't they ascend to V6 then?
Where did they land? What did they bring back?
"I'm telling you—if Gold-Ingot learns about the Lake, the spores will come through. This'll be a catastrophe."
His tone was pleading now.
Another secret revealed.
"This is Saherta's duty, not ours," Joey said coldly, playing the arrogant Begrosae citizen to perfection.
"You... you're baiting me."
"Hypoxia works fine. But your induction technique sucks."
"What?"
Orlando blinked. Slurred.
His saliva drooled. His lips sagged.
He was stroking out.
Joey frowned. Did he overdo it?
Oxygen deprivation? Permanent damage?
He reached to knock him out—then stopped.
Orlando spoke.
"I... I offer my life... so that—"
Joey's eyes snapped to the sniper's tongue.
A Divine Glyph had surfaced—誓, the character for Vow.
Killer Queen. Now.
Thumb pressed.
Orlando's body cracked, ballooned, then vanished in ash.
Joey stared at the seat—grave, thoughtful.
He'd acted fast, but... maybe too late.
Still, he couldn't take risks. Not with these suicide glyphs.
At least the Ring was safe.
For now.
He exhaled, cranked the wheel, and drove on toward the desert's edge.