Thirty minutes had passed, and the palace was a total mess of craters and debris everywhere. I saw Ikalgo standing on top of a collapsed tower and waved to him.

"Hey, Ikalgo!" I called to him, and he gave us a smile.

"You guys!" He cried, and Killua pointed at Palm, who had been transformed into a Chimera Ant soldier. He was a bit confused at first, but he soon recognized her.

We sat down on some stones and explained to Ikalgo what had happened to Palm.

"I see. I'm glad you returned to us. Do you remember the plan? I'll drive you to the capital." He told her.

"No. She wants to stay." Killua stated.

"Oh?"

"At least she'll be pretty useful in a fight."

"Yeah. She outdid me and Killua in terms of sheer power." I added, and Ikalgo gasped lightly.

"To be honest, I really wanted to see Gon as soon as possible. However, I'll wait. I'll respect his wishes." Palm told us.

"His wishes?" Ikalgo asked.

"The thing is, he's decided to fight Pitou all by himself. Once he's made up his mind, he won't budge. In return, he performs his best when circumstances are as expected. Which means all we can do is stay out of his way." Killua explained.

"B-but what if—"

"Yeah, I know. If Gon's in real trouble, we'll all rush in to help him out. Let's just be ready for whatever happens with him."

I wasn't sure if I wanted to help Gon out in his battle against Pitou. If I stayed by his side, I would die with him. I would die without apologizing to Lizzy for being too harsh on her.

"We're gonna look for Knuckle and the others. You coming?" Killua asked Ikalgo as we stood up.

"Absolutely." The octopus nodded in agreement.

"Okay. Let's go."

We started to walk away from the pile of rubble to find the others, the feeling of worry building up in me.

"Have any of you guys seen Lizzy anywhere?" I asked everyone who came, and they shook their heads.

"I haven't seen her since we started the mission." Knuckle replied.

"She wasn't anywhere in the basement. There would be no reason for her to go there." Ikalgo added.

"I never saw her before I was turned into this. It would be impossible for me to track her down." Palm stated firmly, and I sighed.

"Don't worry. We'll find her soon." Meleoron assured me.

Knuckle cleared his throat and began speaking. "We have separated the King from the Royal Guards to let the Chairman handle the King. As Mr. Knov said, we completed the mission we were assigned. We'll each have to decide where we go from here. Do we stop or keep going?"

No one spoke a word. I had already decided to stay and keep fighting. I needed to find Lizzy before it was too late.

"As for me, I'm gonna keep fighting them. I've already laid down my life here more than once. Even if we can't reach an understanding, I'll keep fighting until I'm satisfied."

All of us agreed and walked back to the palace together. We went back to the tower where Gon was waiting for Pitou to finish healing the girl. Me, Killua, and Knuckle arrived to see them ready to leave the palace. The girl seemed okay, which meant Pitou had healed her the best they could.

"Gon, want me to use Hakoware, Chapter 7 Bankruptcy on Pitou? If they try to escape, I can easily track them down. And if they try to fight back, A.P.R. will defend you." Knuckle offered.

The girl whimpered, filling in the silence of the room. I was glad she was still alive, thankfully Pitou did all that they could to heal her without Gon giving in to his rage. Who knew what would have happened if Gon lost himself and killed the poor girl out of his own rage?

"Thanks a lot, Knuckle. But it's okay. I trust Pitou." He replied, and I heard them take a soft gasp. "So do me a favor, Knuckle. Until we see Kite, keep an eye on her."

The Royal Guard gasped a bit louder, and I slightly widened my eyes.

"A-are you guys talking about me?" The girl asked, confused of what was going on around her.

Is he going to use her...as a hostage?

I kept my anger to myself and stood there in silence. The girl was getting more confused, which made me deduce that she was blind.

"Once Pitou heals Kite, we'll release her. I'm sure you're also willing to trust me, right Pitou?" He looked at them with such penetrating eyes, making them sweat nervously.

When everyone got to the gate, we all watched as Pitou and Gon rushed out of the palace grounds to go to Peijing. Their speed was incredible. I grew a frown and clenched my fist, hoping for Kite to be healed.

"You're sure about this, Killua? Lynn? You guys don't want to go with Gon?" Ikalgo asked.

"It's okay. That was always the plan, wasn't it? And I feel better after hearing what he's doing." Killua replied.

"You mean the hostage?" Knuckle asked.

"Yeah. If me or Lynn went along, it'd be pretty risky. Pitou might ambush and capture us, and we'd be used as hostages to get the girl back." He explained, and Knuckle and the others gasped.

"I didn't have to go if I didn't want to. But...I'm getting more worried about Lizzy. What Gon said to her, broke her. She couldn't do anything to help him. I...couldn't do anything to help her. The reason I want to stay is...so that I can talk things over with her and let her help Gon out as best as she can. But in order to do that, I need to find her before any of the Royal Guards come back. I won't let myself feel any more guilt." My tone was solemn, especially that last part. Killua took a glance at me before focusing his attention back to the view in front of him.

"It's all right." Palm spoke up, capturing all of our attention. "Now that I've laid my eyes on Gon, I'll know immediately if something happens. However, I can't say the same for Lizzy."

"Besides, Pitou won't abandon her. Which means that Gon is safe for now." Killua added.

Palm suddenly gasped. "I see Pouf coming back here. Everyone to the west tower. Now."

All of us nodded and hurried back inside the palace. We went to the west tower like Palm said, and Meleoron and Knuckle became invisible due to God's Accomplice being active. We saw Pouf who was looking for something in the room.

Knuckle landed a punch on him, but the A.P.R. creature didn't show up, which meant this Pouf was just a segment. The rest of us stopped at the doorway.

"I've seen you before. Before you turned me into a cocoon." Palm covered her right eye with her right hand. "That means I'll always see you, no matter where you go."

The segment was destroyed, and Knuckle and Meleoron remained invisible.

I heard the woman gasp. "It's the King!"

Everyone else gasped in shock, including me.

"Pouf's main body is with the King. They're heading towards the palace at an incredible speed." She stated.

"Damn it!" I growled and ran away from everyone to search for Lizzy.

How can this be? The King is still alive! Did the Chairman...lose? Was he not powerful enough to kill him? I...I can't do anything! No one can do anything to kill him! Now that the Chairman's gone, none of us are strong enough to eliminate the King. If he or any of his Royal Guards find Lizzy before I do, it's over for her.

I saw some of Pouf's tiny segments coming my way, making me tense up. They passed me though, and I began to panic as I moved down the hallway and turned right.

I passed the elevator where Ikalgo went down to find Palm and turned right again. I ran up the stairs to the top of the east tower and stood there. My eyes scanned the courtyard for any sign of Lizzy. I couldn't find her up there, and it was probably a bad idea to stay as the Royal Guards would find me easily, so I went back down and ran through another hallway.

Roughly five minutes had passed, and suddenly, I felt someone's aura, and oh God, this was the most horrifying and ominous aura I'd ever felt. It was even worse than Pitou's. My eyes were wide open as I stood in the middle of the hallway leading to the central stairway.

This horrendous aura...it must belong to the King! What do I do now? If Lizzy feels this, she'll lose it! It's going to be impossible for me to find her before the King and his Royal Guards do if I don't hurry up.

I panicked even more as I did my best to move around the palace, passing the central stairway and moving to the other side. But when I was about to reach the stairs to the west tower where Pitou was healing the girl, a light enveloped me, stopping me in my tracks. I gasped in utter bewilderment, not believing the aura I was feeling.

It stopped a couple of seconds later, and I ran back after realizing I could be close to the King due to the denseness of his aura. I was guessing he was using En to find the others, and he would capture one or two of the intruders. I hoped he didn't capture Lizzy, and I hoped he didn't capture Killua, too.

I returned to the central stairway and used Windy Roar to propel myself into the air and land on the second floor since Youpi destroyed it. Fortunately, there were no soldier ants around, and that made my search easier. But the problem was that the King might use En again to find the rest of us, and if we were all captured, we would all be dead and the mission would be a complete failure.

The next room I checked out was the throne room, where the King would originally be at the start of the selection. But Lizzy wasn't there either, and I was losing my hope.

I checked everywhere in the palace and I still couldn't find her. The only place I hadn't checked out was the underground area. Mentally praying she was still alive, I decided to rush my way there while avoiding the King and his Royal Guards. When I got outside, there was nobody there. Only the millions of people were there standing outside the gate. I searched the courtyard for the entrance to the underground area. I saw a gate closing, and I tried to reach it before it closed, but I was too late. I mentally cursed myself and looked around to find a way to open it. There was a keypad next to the gate, and I knew that some kind of passcode was required to get in. I grew upset and ran back to the palace to search again.

Damn it! Damn it all! I'm going to find you, Lizzy! I don't care what's going to happen to me. I need you to try to help Gon as soon as possible! And if I can, I will apologize, and you will apologize to me as well! Please, stop running away from me!

I couldn't stop panicking. The pounding of my heart went faster the more I worried about her. Just where the hell could she be?

- About five minutes later -

I saw the Royal Guard Pouf flying over the palace grounds, which meant the King was nearby. I had stayed in my position in the crowd of hypnotized people and had been holding my breath to avoid inhaling Pouf's hypnotic scales. I thought I saw the King take Meleoron and Knuckle with him earlier, and I knew he would find me next.

But when he used his En again, he didn't catch me. Wondering why he didn't, I slowly and quietly crept as close as I needed to and moved to the right to see him. There was a wolf-like Chimera Ant standing there before him, and he looked terrified. Moments later Pouf flew down next to the King, making the wolf ant upset and more terrified.

I listened to their suspenseful conversation until the King released such a murderous and hostile aura that I couldn't bear. I didn't know how much worse it was compared to Pitou's aura. To be honest, I felt like it would be better if he was with that white-haired girl Pitou was desperately trying to heal. He wouldn't have the intent to kill anyone if she was with him. But that would not help the Extermination Team get rid of him, as the King only cared about her and no one else. That was just my implication.

Pouf was seen kneeling down in fear and shame. I heard that he was keeping some kind of secret from the King. Perhaps that caused him to be angry and release all that murderous aura. But instead of killing him, he turned it off and turned his head to the wolf ant. I noticed him aging quickly, his hair falling off and his skin becoming wrinkly. I pondered over what I would do next, either to stay in hiding or attack the Royal Guard.

After a minute or two, the wolf ant muttered something I could barely hear, and the King gasped at that single word he just heard. He stood in his spot shocked and surprised, leaving me wondering if something important came to his mind. Did that ant give away any of the information the team was holding? Was the King really fond of the girl? Would he do anything for her in his own will?

The King stepped towards Pouf, who was knelt down in tears, and asked him if that was the secret he was keeping from him. The Royal Guard only nodded and told him he was ready for his punishment. A sudden realization hit me, and I stepped out from the crowd and placed my hands on my hips bitterly.

"Hey, you." I called him, and the blond ant slowly turned his head around to see my angry face. The King was a bit confused for a moment before I spoke up.

"I have a demand for you. Undo the hypnotic effect you have placed on all those innocent people." My tone sounded cold as I pointed at Pouf, the one who was behind the deliberate manipulation of millions of people in East Gorteau.

The Royal Guard still had tears flowing down his face, looking more depressed. I gave him a glare filled with malice, which wasn't doing anything to get him to obey my demand. The King stepped up to me, and I wasn't afraid to show my hostility towards him.

"You must be one of those intruders. Were you the one who killed Youpi?" He asked.

After a brief moment of silence, I answered in the same cold tone. "No."

The King studied me for a while, then he spoke up. "You are telling the truth, I suppose. Now tell me, do you happen to know where the other three intruders are?"

I still had my glare on, thinking he did capture Knuckle and Meleoron, the traitor. He still had to capture Lynn, Palm, and Ikalgo, the other traitor. I guessed Killua might have gone after Gon to help him, but I wasn't going to worry about them. What mattered to me now was freeing all the people from Pouf's control.

"To answer that honestly, I don't. Now, Pouf. End your control over these people." I demanded, my voice getting angrier with him.

I heard him whimper and sniffle, having lost all hope for a world domination. Infuriated by his sad refusal, I stomped my right foot on the ground, causing it to shake a bit.

"Stop being a crybaby and obey me, dammit! It's too late to back out of my demand!" I yelled at him, feeling nothing but pure anger. "You're the one putting all of the citizens of East Gorteau in danger and you're gonna kill them all right here! And you're gonna let your so-called species rule over the world, killing off every human living here! Why can't you give up and end this hell of a mess already?!"

Thoughts of Kite's fight against Pitou, my argument with Lynn, and Gon's cold words filled my head. Pouf still didn't move from his position, and those thoughts filled my eyes with tears. The King stared at me in confusion as the tears escaped my eyes and flowed down my enraged face. I couldn't help but fall on my knees and continue crying. Ever since Kite and Pitou's fight, I'd been going through the pain of being dumped by Gon and being the weakest out of everyone on the Extermination Team, even though I creeped out Morel with my first ability. I might be useful, but I was not powerful enough to defeat one of the Royal Guards, not even the King.

I slammed my fists to the ground and broke down in a loud sob, thinking about what would happen to all the people if Pouf kept them in his control longer. I didn't want to suffer even more. I wished this mission would be over by now. Yet more pain took over me as I remembered all the things that caused all that pain since me and my friends got involved in the Chimera Ant crisis. I couldn't let despair get the best of me. After a couple of minutes, I pulled myself together and stood up assertively, trying to forget everything that broke me many times.

Aura began to whoosh around me, and I kept my head down to hide my resentment from the King and Pouf. When I spoke, my voice was spiteful, showing no regard for the Royal Guard's disappointment over his failure to keep his secret.

"If you refuse to obey my order, then I will have no choice but to kill you along with the King." I declared, and Pouf was prepared to die as shown by the look on his face. The King however, was lost in thought.

"My power. Lend me all the strength I need to eradicate these monstrous, loathsome brutes from the world I love. The consequences don't matter to me." I uttered my solemn demand, causing my aura to spike up and become more dense. Both Pouf and the King were taken aback, and the wolf ant began to run away.

My aura lit up the surrounding area by a couple meters as if I were the light. Then, I started floating upwards toward the dark sky, completely shocking the two below. When I stopped at about 50 meters high, I slowly raised my arms high, and the light disappeared. A ball of hot pink aura started forming above my hands. I could see Pouf and the King standing on the ground, not daring to move a muscle. My intimidating face proved that I could be strong enough to kill both of them.

The ball of aura grew larger as the moonlight shone down on me. I felt the immense power rushing through me, making me extremely confident that I would kill both the Royal Guard and the King.

As soon as the ball grew about fifty times my size, it was time to end this battle once and for all.

This is it. My most powerful ability I've ever developed. Lunar Blast!

I saw a gigantic ball of aura up in the air along with someone below it. My heart began pounding hard as I ran to where it was coming from. When I came, I saw the King and Pouf standing there watching, and when I looked up, much to my horror, there was Lizzy. She looked very determined, and I was baffled by the amount of aura she was releasing.

"Using the power of love, virtue, and justice, I will terminate your control over this nation and this world, and I will make sure something like this never ever happens again!" I heard her shout from above, and my breathing became ragged when I thought of something.

Her aura...is overpowering to the point where I can't even reach that level in decades! What did she do to obtain so much power? If she uses up all that aura...then she...she will...

"Lizzy!" I shouted her name like it was the last time seeing her before leaving me to live a better life elsewhere. My upsetting voice fortunately reached her, and she looked down to find me standing there, looking all distressed.

"Lizzy! Don't do this, please!" I cried out to her. "Who knows what will happen to you if you waste all that aura trying to kill them?"

She didn't shout back, and sadness was making its way to my heart as I stared at her with anguished eyes. She focused her attention to the two powerful Chimera Ants below her. I was afraid that she would be unable to take out the King and she would end up in where Chairman Netero was when he was defeated. There was no stopping her now.