"Captain, this potion… you made it yourself. I shouldn't be the one to use it—it's better if you do."
Becoming an S-Class Nen user was certainly appealing to Ponzu. But compared to herself, she felt that something this valuable ought to be used by Ron instead.
"I can't use it," Ron replied. "It was formulated based on your innate talent and physical condition. No one else will benefit from it."
"Really?"
"Of course. I have no reason to lie to you. If it worked for everyone, I would've just made more instead of preparing only a single dose."
Hearing this, Ponzu didn't hesitate any longer. She accepted the potion from Ron, uncapped it, and drank it all in one gulp.
The next moment, her expression twisted in pain.
A massive surge of aura burst from her body—white, yellow, and red—forming a giant sphere that quickly enclosed her like a cocoon.
Ron glanced at it, judging that it would be some time before she could break out. With Sumas being secure enough, he left the space and returned to the airship.
He had booked private rooms. Since the mission would be long, Ron had purchased a Class 050 airship ticket that included lodging—eight tickets total, though there were only seven people. That bit of waste meant nothing to him.
Lying flat on his bed, Ron took stock of his team.
Misty: B-rank, Enhancement type, specialized in close combat. After receiving the Tiger Zodiac Card, she now fully fit the role of a tank.
Nina: B-rank, Manipulation type, skilled in intelligence gathering and combat support.
Shizuku: B-rank, Conjuration type, specialized in supporting combat and battlefield cleanup. After acquiring the Dragon Zodiac Card, she could also control the enemy's environment.
Machi: A-rank, Transmutation type. The fusion of her Nen threads and the Snake Zodiac Card had greatly boosted her offensive strength and control abilities. She could now serve as a main damage dealer and trap specialist.
Elita: B-rank, specialized in tracking. With the Ox Zodiac Card, she could now partially function as a tank as well.
As for Ponzu, based on Ron's estimate, once she digested the potion, her level should rise to B-rank. That would greatly enhance both her intelligence and combat capabilities. In terms of destructive power, she might even surpass Shizuku, Elita, and Nina.
Ron closed his eyes and rested, thinking:
"So the main source of aura in Greed Island is the magma beneath it."
Before leaving Greed Island, Ron had once been invited by its development team. Razor, List, Elena, Eeta, and Dwun had all been there.
List briefly explained the game's construction.
Aura came from three sources: players, the developers themselves, and most importantly—the magma beneath the island.
Buried below Greed Island was a massive Nen entity, an immobile one. That was why Ging Freecss had chosen to build the game here.
Apart from creating a growth trial for Gon, Ging also intended to train his team's Nen skills and use the island as a base.
Members of Ging's team could return to Greed Island at any time simply by holding a spell card.
That idea closely mirrored Ron's own.
This immobile Nen entity could convert magma energy into aura.
So far, Ron had encountered several Nen entities.
One was the Colosseum in the Kingdom of Fiora—a mobile gladiator-type Nen entity.
Another was the Shrine-Kanroji—a stationary entity that absorbed lust and converted it into aura.
The third was Sumas. Strictly speaking, Sumas wasn't exactly a mobile Nen entity but one that existed in a separate space—an interdimensional Nen entity.
In truth, Sumas was a stationary entity. Only Ron could open gates to Sumas from any location.
Then there was the ark.
To be honest, the fact that Sumas could absorb the ark had completely caught Ron off guard.
Sumas couldn't absorb Kanroji, nor the Nen entity beneath Greed Island, so this raised a question—did Sumas and the ark have a connection from long ago?
Perhaps, in the distant past, the two were originally one.
That thought lingered.
The ark was massive, but as a vessel to reach the Dark Continent, it was still smaller than the Black Whale.
But the ark combined with Sumas? That would bring it close in scale.
Moreover, the Kurta Clan had ties to a certain lifeform on the Dark Continent.
Ron believed their ancestors might have traveled there once—and brought back a disease.
That ancient ship had likely broken apart.
One part had ended up in the hands of the Kurta ancestors.
The other, after many generations, was acquired by the Underworld Mafia.
Of course, this was just Ron's speculation. He didn't know the actual truth. Too much time had passed.
..................
........
.
Back on Greed Island.
List turned to Razor.
"Razor, do you have any confidence?"
Within Ging's team, Razor was undoubtedly the strongest in direct combat.
List and the others weren't battle-type Nen users.
Razor shook his head.
"None."
"None at all?"
"Not even a little."
List's pupils contracted slightly.
"Not even a sliver of confidence? Then what about the captain?"
"The captain is definitely stronger than Ron," Razor said with full confidence. "But… I can feel it. Ron and the captain are the same kind of person. Different personalities, different abilities, but the same core traits. Given time, Ron will reach the captain's level—assuming nothing goes wrong."
List nodded slowly.
"Then doesn't that mean the Zoldyck family might have two S-Class Nen users in the future?"
"Maybe more than two," Eeta added.
List turned to look at her.
Eeta continued, "Killua's talent isn't any worse than Gon's. And Gon is very likely to reach that level someday. If he can, then so can Killua."
...........
.....
.
Inside Sumas's space—
Crack!
A fracture split open across the cocoon surrounding Ponzu.