The name "Kurta" was synonymous with "rubies." They were the master of the ruby trade, and have been for the last 150 years. Their scarlet eyes glowed whenever they were in proximity of the stone—a skill which brought out the beauty of the gem, and allowed them to find the gems with ease.
For 150 years, they used their skill with honor and responsibility.
Kurta family mines took great care not to damage the earth. They only took what they needed and if they discovered something beautiful, yet unfitting to be taken away, they left it be. Not only were the Kurtas respectful of the earth, they respected their employees.
The right-hand men and women of the Kurta company came from families which have stood by the Kurta since its foundation. A century of loyalty, one generation after the next. The Kurta loathed to let go of their employees, and their employees loathed to leave an employer who treated them as valuable assets instead of disposable items.
Which was why the Phantom takeover was infuriating.
"They are firing our people!" Kurapika's mother cried. "Pairo's family, Lucia's family, they are gone! Laid off without a week's notice, they had to file for unemployment while they scramble to get a new job! Pairo's eyes need constant care, they have medical fees to pay—how the hell are they going to survive this?!"
Eavesdropping from his room, Kurapika's eyes flashed red.
"I don't know," Kurapika's father said mournfully. "The situation is no good with Lucia's family either…they just had a little girl. They are struggling to make ends meet. I'd like to assist them as much as I can, but the Phantom wants us to move to their headquarters…"
"They want us to move?" Kurapika's mother shouted. "They want us to move out of the Scarlet Groves?!"
Kurapika's hands clenched into fists. They lived in the Scarlet Groves, an oasis carefully nurtured by their family with countless red flowers. Roses, hibiscus, amaryllis…their garden was their sanctum, guarded by their family for a century, and they were expected to pack up and leave…
"Yes," Kurapika's father said miserably. "Phantom company policy. They respect us for maintaining the Kurta in such good condition over all these years. Out of respect, they want us to join their top brass, conditional that we move to the Phantom metropolis. It's their tradition to keep all top brass within arm's reach in case of emergencies."
"Ugh!" Kurapika's mother shouted in frustration. She held her head between her hands. "I don't understand. Why on earth would they attack us? The Phantom is known to be ruthless, but only against those who pick a fight against them. We didn't do anything! We mind our damn business and they just came at us out of the blue! Why in the world would they change so suddenly?"
"I don't know," Kurapika's father said mournfully. "I don't understand either…I heard their leader adopted a child of genius intellect with a criminal background. Perhaps they've been influenced by that child. I can only say…they are no longer the Phantom we used to know…"
As his parents' voices faded, Kurapika's fists shook.
Phantom.
A company of scoundrels who attack without provocation, who lay off loyal employees without reason, who have the arrogance to demand that they pack up and leave to accommodate their petty policies.
They were thieves.
Thieves and dictators, taking what belongs to others and acting without consideration for the people around them.
Since the Phantom takeover, 57 employees—families who have been loyal to the Kurta for over a century—have been laid off.
57 friends.
57 family members.
Gone.
Kurapika's nails dug into his hands. Drops of blood hit the floor. Within those droplets, his scarlet eyes reflected back at him.
He made a vow.
No matter what it took, he was going to bring the Phantom Troupe to its knees.
The flight to their new home was a brief one.
Along the way, Kurapika pulled out his laptop and investigated news of the Phantom company.
An article caught his eye.
CEO of Phantom adopts criminal son.
He clicked it.
A boy about his age stared back at him. Black haired, gray-eyed, and without a trace of a smile, Kurapika could easily believe that he was the rumored genius who corrupted the Phantom from the inside.
He examined this Chrollo Lucifer.
After plugging the name into his search engine, his eyes narrowed.
Seven counts of manslaughter, fourteen counts of thievery, and nineteen counts of minor felonies.
He'd been a criminal since the age of nine, and had escaped arrest until the age of sixteen when he bit off more than he could chew trying to steal from the Phantom mansion. The CEO was impressed by the boy's skill and, missing an heir, decided to pardon the boy and adopt him to train as his successor.
Apparently, intellect spoke louder than integrity.
The boy might have been clever, but his criminal records implied he had no morals whatsoever.
Prior to the boy's appearance, Phantom was known for minding their own business, not attacking other businesses out of, perhaps, the greed of a former thief.
Kurapika snapped his laptop shut.
It seems he'd found a face to pin his vengeance upon.
His new home was adequate.
They were the former CEOs of the Kurta company. Unlike their employees, who had the misfortune of being laid off entirely, they retained their high status and an adequate paycheck as newfound members of the Phantom's top brass.
The apartment was spacious, well-furnished, and well-kept. It was adequate, but no amount of paintings of red flowers made up for the fact that he technically lived in a cold steel container. The view was bleak and gray, dull concrete buildings as far as the eye could see, and simply did not compare to the beauty of the Scarlet Groves.
Kurapika scowled.
In fact, from his window, he could see that the street signs were lined with obsidian—the Phantom's trademark. Many buildings were adorned with obsidian, spider-themed decorations. It was a friendly reminder that this metropolis was the headquarters of his enemy and no one could make him call it home.
Kurapika unpacked.
School started in a few weeks. He had an entrance exam to study for. He could be bitter about his situation in the up and coming months. As of this moment, he needed to compartmentalize his feelings to hold down his pristine academic record. His new school arranged schedules by one's entrance exam score and Kurapika had no desire to be lumped together with incompetent fools.
Laptop, textbooks, and writing utensils in hand, Kurapika busied himself reviewing.
Kurapika stood before the board displaying everyone's entrance exam score.
He was first, which was expected.
What was unexpected was that he wasn't alone—and the name that stood beside his was one he recognized: Chrollo Lucifer.
Kurapika narrowed his eyes.
He didn't think the opportunity for revenge would come so quickly.
He said he was going to bring the Phantom Troupe to its knees, and he might as well start by defeating their future leader academically.
Kurapika's grades were always wonderful but as he walked away from the exam board, he privately resolved to take things to the next level in all departments. He was previously satisfied with the occasional 99, for he had no challengers at his old school, but now he had the drive to raise the bar to all 100s and possibly some bonus points if the opportunity presented itself.
Grades were not the end all of intellect but they certainly implied things about one's ability to learn and retain information. Not to mention, there was something very satisfying about validating, through numerical data, the fact that he had an intellectual edge over his so-called genius opponent.
Geniuses took pride in being called such.
Someone like Chrollo was probably similar to himself, holding onto first place since his elementary years.
Rankings in school were a small matter in the grand scheme of things, but Kurapika knew that those who maintained high scores throughout their lives were more than likely to take a bit of pride in it.
Losing something you took pride in, no matter how small, was painful.
It was a good start to the numerous lessons he intended to teach his opponent.
A figure with gray eyes and black hair blinked as he observed the ranking board.
"Interesting," he mused, noting that his name had been bumped from the top of the list.
He was technically still in first place, but K came before L in the alphabet, so this Kurapika Kurta's name hovered above his. It was such a small thing, and Chrollo wanted to say he didn't care for it, but it bothered him.
He was very used to seeing his name at the top of that list.
Beside him, his friends made noises of surprise as they took in the list.
"What a shocker," Phinks remarked. "Boss didn't come in first, for once in his life."
"That's not true," Shizuku said. "If you look closely, Boss is technically still in first place…his name is just placed after that other person's…"
"Forget about the Boss," Shalnark groaned. "I've been bumped into 3rd place!"
"Stop calling me boss," Chrollo sighed. "We're at school, and I'm nobody's boss yet…"
"But you will be boss one day," Phinks replied. "We might as well get into the habit now."
They bantered among themselves, and made their way to class.
As they did, Chrollo passed a boy with blond hair. For a moment, the boy's eyes flashed red. Chrollo gave a start of surprise. The blond boy narrowed his eyes. He lifted his head and turned away dismissively, stalking ahead. Chrollo blinked.
What an interesting person.