Chapter 814
The terrain of Minpo was surprisingly intricate. Mountain ranges crisscrossed the land, interwoven with waterways that branched and spread in every direction. Yet regardless of whether it was mountains or rivers, they all gradually converged toward a single direction—like tributaries flowing into a great river.
All major factions in Minpo developed along these natural pathways, and as a result, the distribution of towns and settlements also followed this same structure.
What they called the Grand Martial Trial was essentially a nation-spanning conflict. Each faction moved along these converging paths, engaging in combat as they went. Anyone with ambition could join in, and the victor would claim everything, while the defeated lost it all.
The structure reminded Ron of the Grand Line from the world of One Piece—only the final victor could become the Pirate King, while the losers faded into the backdrop of history. The difference was, Minpo had no equivalent of a Navy. The entire process of the Grand Martial Trial revolved around one thing—fighting, or preparing for the next fight.
This was a nation that revered martial prowess. Modern weapons were almost never used. Conflicts were resolved either through hand-to-hand combat between martial artists or through battles between Nen users. Perhaps because of this, even though Minpo was relatively fragmented internally, it was still able to hold its place as one of the V5. The major powers within Minpo followed an unspoken rule: they would not strike weaker factions directly. They would wait until the smaller forces resolved their own rivalries first. This gave even minor groups a path to ascend, and kept the entire nation in a constant state of competitive energy.
It was precisely this vitality that made Minpo so formidable. If power ever became entrenched, the country would lose that drive.
Only a very small number of forces dared to break this structure.
The people of Minpo placed immense importance on belief—and the one they believed in was Rosgell. Minpo's hero. Decades ago, he had almost single-handedly led the people of Minpo to overthrow Fiora's colonial rule.
Ironically, Rosgell was not even from Minpo. He was originally from Fiora.
A young man smiled. "Same here. Mind if I ask which faction invited you? Who knows, maybe we'll end up on the same side."
"I'd rather not say."
The young man's expression froze.
Ron walked straight out of the airship terminal.
Behind him, the young man narrowed his eyes. He glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then, upon confirming Ron was alone, began to tail him.
But what he didn't realize was that what seemed like perfect stealth from his perspective was full of flaws in Ron's eyes.
Ron raised an eyebrow slightly. "Didn't expect something like this to happen right now… interesting, they really do take this competition seriously."
He didn't feel threatened in the slightest—only mildly amused.
Not long after, Ron entered a narrow alleyway.
The young man quickly followed.
But the moment he stepped into the alley, he saw Ron standing there calmly, watching him.
His heart skipped a beat.
"You noticed me?"
"It was obvious. Hard not to notice."
The young man's expression sank. "People like you… I've dealt with before. If there's even a chance you'll become a threat, I don't hesitate. That's why I wait at places like this."
As soon as he finished, he lunged at Ron, moving with impressive speed. A dagger appeared in his hand, its unnatural color betraying that it had been coated in poison.
But just as he thrust the blade forward, he suddenly realized—
Ron was gone.
"Congratulations," came a voice from behind. "You're the first."
A sharp pain pierced his chest.
The young man turned his head with all his remaining strength, only to see Ron already walking away, casually rejoining the street like nothing had happened. He didn't even glance back.
Thud!
The young man collapsed.
Ron pulled out a map of Minpo.
His eyes settled on a particular direction.
"There."
In the next instant, his figure vanished.
When he reappeared, he was already outside the city.
Ron's plan for assimilating Minpo's traits was to start by observing battles among the smaller factions. From there, he would work his way up. He might even intervene to help a minor power rise—so long as he did it without drawing the attention of Minpo's major figures. If they found out, they would definitely act against him.
A V5-class nation would never allow foreign interference in its internal affairs.
While it was technically allowed for Minpo to hire outsiders during the Grand Martial Trial, that didn't extend to people like Ron.
An S-rank Nen user could never be seen as just a hired hand. Someone like him would always end up becoming a leader, not a follower.
Ron hadn't decided where to begin.
But the moment he stepped into Minpo, he suddenly sensed something—resonance from the Dark Sonata.
The Dark Sonata could only resonate with another piece of itself.
Ron already possessed three of them.
Which meant the fourth piece was within a few hundred kilometers of his current location.
Using the resonance between the fragments he already had, he could triangulate the location of the fourth.
It was an unexpected bonus.
Without hesitation, Ron set off toward the general direction indicated by the resonance. His goal now was to locate the fourth segment of the Dark Sonata while simultaneously absorbing Minpo's traits.
He summoned a car from Sumas's space and set off.
.........
........
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Meanwhile, outside another airship terminal, Killua stood waiting.
When he saw the newly arrived airship descending and recognized the number on its hull, his eyes lit up. He hurried to the exit gate.
The airship touched down.
The hatch opened.
Passengers began to disembark one by one.
"Gon, over here!"
Killua jumped and waved his hand.
"Killua!"
Gon spotted him and ran over.
"Feeling any better?" Killua asked.
"I'm still sorting things out." Gon tried to force a smile but couldn't manage it—it twisted into a pained grimace instead.
Killua patted him on the shoulder. "Don't think too much. If Kite saw you like this, he wouldn't be happy either. You have to look forward."
"There's going to be more and more battles coming up. It's going to be dangerous. We have to focus everything on fighting and getting stronger."
"That way, something like what happened to Kite won't ever happen again."
Gon nodded. "I understand."
"Then let's go. The person I contacted in advance is already here to pick us up."
"Okay."
The two made their way to the parking area, found the person they had agreed to meet, and got into the car.
The Grand Martial Trial of Minpo continued in an orderly rhythm.
And for the Hunter Association, the process of choosing a new chairman could no longer be delayed.