The Strongest Assassin of the Zoldyck Family!

"The Ten Dons chose the identity of 'ordinary human'?" Ron remarked.

But this Don didn't attack the needleman or say anything. He simply sat in his seat, glancing a few times toward the needleman's position.

Soon, a phantom appeared. It first approached the Don, set down a meal box in front of him, then moved to the needleman's position.

Illumi controlled the needleman, adjusting the camera so it faced the Don directly. As soon as the meal box was placed, the Don immediately began eating—quickly and without pause—and soon finished everything, leaving nothing behind.

Even just looking at the food's appearance, Ron could tell that it probably didn't taste good. Yet this man, a ruler of the underworld and used to living in luxury, ate without hesitation.

"This suggests that dining here is governed by rules. No waste allowed? Eating so quickly… does that imply that even the time allotted for meals is restricted?"

Once the Don finished eating, he stood up and walked toward the dining hall exit, the needleman following behind.

Ron's expression grew somewhat strange. The behavior of ordinary humans on the ark appeared excessively rigid—meals happened on schedule, with accompanying strict rules. After lunch, the Don went to the gym for a slow walk—speed and duration both strictly controlled. Judging by the Don's behavior, it seemed that stopping halfway was prohibited.

Once the walk ended, he entered the lounge, where the rule was to sit quietly without speaking. When resting time concluded, exercise began—and even that had strict requirements.

"It's like an assembly line. The lives of ordinary humans aboard the ark are completely prearranged, with corresponding rules for every action. If anyone violates them, they're killed."

Indeed, one needleman, while exercising, apparently failed to burn enough calories and was immediately executed.

Ron took out a notebook and began recording what he observed:

Morning wake-up, wash up, head to the dining hall for breakfast, walk to digest, return to the room.

Head back to the dining hall for lunch, walk to digest, and rest in the lounge.

Exercise in the training room, return to the room, head to the dining hall for dinner, walk to digest, return to the room—then repeat the next day.

The cycle was highly routined, like a robot's schedule.

Ron thought that while the ark was likely constructed with such a structure in mind, it couldn't have been intended to be this extreme. This was no longer a routine life; it was a set of deadly rules. If anyone failed to comply, they were killed.

Ron turned to the other two camera feeds. Whether it was guards or administrators, once their identities were chosen, Illumi immediately lost control over those needlemen. The guards patrolled the ark's perimeter but looked like they had lost all awareness, like the walking dead. The administrators were the same.

"So far, it seems that 'ordinary human' is the only correct choice for survival. The other four identities are all death traps. But even for ordinary humans, survival requires strict compliance with harsh conditions," Ron concluded.

Illumi nodded. "I'll continue sending needlemen to test."

But before Illumi could send more, new people entered the ark—nine members of the Underworld Mafia. With the Don already present and Illumi's needlemen, that made eleven people aboard.

The needlemen continued their regimented lives aboard the ark, following every rule to the letter and doing nothing extraneous.

Suddenly, someone died. Abruptly, without warning—they simply died in the dining hall.

Then another died in the lounge. Another in the training room. Four… five… six…

Ron was certain none of them had violated any ark rules.

Soon, almost all were dead—leaving just two survivors: the Don and one needleman.

That night, with a click, the lights suddenly dimmed.

A figure swiftly approached the remaining needleman.

With a wet slicing sound, a blade plunged into the needleman's chest, withdrew, and blood spurted as the needleman convulsed briefly before collapsing motionless to the ground.

The next day, a phantom appeared and cleaned up the needleman's corpse. The Don was gone.

When Illumi dispatched a new batch of needlemen, there was no trace of the Don. But because of the appearance of a mysterious needleman during the previous cycle, this time Illumi sent ten needlemen simultaneously—all choosing the identity of 'ordinary human.'

All of them strictly followed the rules and acted with utmost caution.

Yet, once again, the same phenomenon occurred: one by one, the needlemen began to die—until only one remained.

Then suddenly, the lights dimmed again. It was as though the entire area had lost its overseer.

A new passage appeared.

Illumi directed the last needleman forward.

A staircase emerged. The needleman climbed it.

A door appeared at the top.

The needleman pushed it open—but at that instant, an attack suddenly struck.

The entire force of the assault landed on the needleman's body.

With a loud bang, the needleman was flung backward, tumbling down the stairs, life extinguished.

"Now we have results from the first phase of testing," Ron summarized. "There are several identity options, but only 'ordinary human' is the correct one—the rest are all traps. But even then, choosing 'ordinary human' only ensures a chance to survive the initial stage. Then comes elimination: with more than ten entrants, nine must be eliminated.

"And it's done by order of arrival—the later they arrive, the sooner they are eliminated. Once elimination is complete, a passage to the second floor opens. But after reaching the second floor, everything changes."

"You can't take action or do anything extra—unless elimination is complete and that moment has arrived when the passage appears."

"To be honest, this screening and elimination process is absurd. It doesn't test any skill. If you choose the identity of ordinary human, enter early, and don't make mistakes, you'll win. Once you understand the rules, you're guaranteed to succeed."

"As for strength, intelligence… they're irrelevant."

"But after reaching the second floor, there's great freedom—you can attack. And after reaching the second floor, they seem to gain some additional power."