Though he was a high official within the Republic of Mingbo, with a bright future and boundless authority, he'd now beco a prisoner.
A sharp regret flared in the middle-aged man's heart. He regretted coming back, regretted holding back against Ron, regretted his own complacency.
Bang!
He slamd his fist into the wall, coating it with frost.
Crack!
A split ford in the wall, but Sumas imdiately patched it up.
Another punch.
Another repair.
The man couldn't break it faster than Sumas could rebuild.
Seeing this through the monitoring image, Ron felt fully reassured.
"Sumas really is incredibly strong as a Nen Spirit. Even an A-level Nen user, trapped here, has no way out. Once their food and water run out, they'll die eventually. That's one of the advantages of the mobile form.
"If I'd kept Sumas fixed to a single location like the Kurta Clan did, it wouldn't be able to do that. But now I can use its other zones—the forest, grasslands, desert—each with their own ecosystems. If the outside world ever becos too dangerous, I could actually live for years inside Sumas. And then co out later.
"Getting Sumas has boosted my overall capabilities imnsely."
Ron ignored the captive man for now. He stepped back out into the human world and checked the progress indicator in the crystal ball floating before him—it had reached ninety-nine percent.
"It stopped?"
Ron frowned, watching the frozen progress bar.
"Where else can I get more Kurta data? Kurapika?"
"But right now, where would Kurapika be?"
He recalled that in the original story, by the ti Kurapika returned to the Kurta Clan's hideout, the massacre had already happened. That young man from earlier had been guarding the ruins. If Kurapika had already co back, those guards would've killed him. Since Kurapika clearly wasn't lying dead anywhere in the ruins, he must not have arrived yet.
"So, maybe I can hang around here for a while and wait for him," Ron thought. "But I need to stay well hidden."
He had two reasons for wanting to hide.
First, he didn't want Kurapika mistakenly believing he was responsible for the clan's annihilation. Even though the attacking parties might have left behind a note or clue (likely sothing involving teor City, Kakin, or the Republic of Mingbo's arrangents), Ron didn't want to risk being lumped in as a culprit.
Second, he wasn't sure if any stragglers from Kakin, Mingbo, or teor City might return. He had no desire for more pointless battles. The fights against the B-level youth and the A-level man had drained him enough.
So Ron slipped off to a secluded corner so distance away, from which he could still see the ruins. If anyone entered the area, he'd notice.
Ti passed, and Ron sat quietly, recovering his aura.
anwhile, mbers of the Heil-Ly Family had returned to the Kakin Empire. Most from the Republic of Mingbo had gone back, too. Aside from the dead B-level youth and the A-level man now trapped inside Sumas, they all assud neither one was in danger. After all, with the Kurta Clan's settlent a wasteland, who could threaten them?
Then:
"He's here."
Ron's eyes opened. He spotted a figure rushing toward the remains of the Kurta settlent. Almost imdiately, he heard an anguished cry echo from the ruins.
To Kurapika, the sight was heartbreakingly tragic. Everything had been intact when he left, but on returning, he found it reduced to a smoking ruin, his people slaughtered—friends, relatives, all gone.
It was a sorrow too imnse for most to ever know.
A pinpoint of light drifted from Kurapika, drawn into the crystal ball. The progress bar on Ron's Observer's Intention began to rise again.
After so ti, Kurapika stopped sobbing and began to bury the bodies. Then he knelt at the village entrance.
Thump!
He bowed his head heavily a few tis, then fled. Despite his grief, rage, and regret, he knew the ones responsible were far too strong for him at his current level. Staying behind would only get him killed. If he wanted revenge, he had to survive.
In his hand, he clutched a sheet of paper—one presumably left by people from teor City. For now, he had no idea what it really ant.
Ron followed Kurapika at a distance. With Kurapika's current abilities, there was no way he'd sense Ron. Though they were the sa age, their strength gap was enormous.
"This last one percent is crawling up so slowly," Ron muttered, glancing at the crystal ball. "But I guess that's normal—Kurapika's the only remaining Kurta."
Eventually, Kurapika left the destroyed settlent behind and reached a small town, but he had almost no money. Being a solitary teenager—and admittedly sowhat androgynous in appearance—he quickly attracted unwanted attention.
Two young thugs tailed him.
"Hey, girly, you by yourself? How about hanging out with us?"
They cornered Kurapika in an alley.
Kurapika's face went cold. "I'm a boy."
One of the thugs froze awkwardly, but the other looked even more excited.
"Hah, who cares? Co and have so fun. Otherwise, you're not leaving."
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