Chapter 815
The nation could not go a single day without a ruler.
The Hunter Association was no different. Without a Chairman, there was no one to make final decisions, no one to shoulder the full weight of responsibility.
When news of Netero's death first spread, many people expressed regret. Some were indifferent. Others, those who had never liked him, even felt a sense of dark satisfaction in their hearts.
But Netero had held that position for so long that it wasn't until the election for the new Chairman truly began that people fully realized: Netero was gone. And with his death came a shift in the world.
Many began to feel a deep sense of unfamiliarity.
The first step in the Hunter Association's election was to confirm the list of candidates.
Pariston, Cheadle, Biscuit… all of them were nominated.
But Ron remembered clearly that, in the original story, the Chairman Election arc didn't carry that much true significance. It mostly served as a bridge leading into the Dark Continent Expedition.
And now, with Gon's fate already altered, Ging Freecss, Leorio, Kurapika, and the others might make completely different choices than before.
As a result, Ron found the election even more uninteresting.
He didn't even have the desire to vote.
No matter what twists the election process went through, the outcome was already set.
A mountain range entered Ron's view.
He stepped out of the car, stored the vehicle inside Sumas's space, and continued forward on foot.
Following the resonance of the Dark Sonata, he ascended the mountain.
Before long, Ron arrived at a canyon.
He stood at the edge and glanced downward.
A card appeared in his hand—one of the Zodiac Twelve: the Rat card.
"Divination."
After confirming no immediate danger, Ron leapt straight in.
His body plummeted rapidly—ten meters, a hundred, several hundred—until, nearly a thousand meters down, the ground finally came into view. A wave of aura burst from Ron's body, and his descent began to slow.
Thud.
He landed without making a sound.
Scanning his surroundings, Ron quickly determined this was a small village, rather underdeveloped by the look of it. And the resonance from the Dark Sonata was coming from within it.
He hesitated for a moment, then stepped inside.
Almost immediately, the villagers noticed him, their eyes filled with sharp vigilance.
"Who are you?"
Several young men rushed toward him and blocked his path.
"I came looking for something," Ron said calmly. "Once I find it, I'll leave. In return, I can pay you."
In the past, Ron would've chosen a subtler approach—blend in, win someone's trust, gain access through their network. But now, he no longer had the patience. He was eager to see what would happen once all four parts of the Dark Sonata were united.
Besides, if the missing piece was already in someone else's hands, its resonance with the other fragments in his hands would expose him regardless. Stealth would be meaningless. He decided to move openly—this time, he would trust in his strength.
So this time, he acted more directly.
If they agreed, fine. If not, he would enter by force.
At this point, there were very few people on the human continent who could actually threaten Ron. And before coming, he had already confirmed through divination that it would be safe.
"Who wants your money?"
"Get out of here!"
"You're not welcome in this village!"
The villagers didn't soften in the slightest. Their hostility only grew stronger. Some even drew weapons.
Ron shook his head.
The next moment, his aura surged outward.
An overwhelming pressure expanded from him, forcing the villagers back—step by step—until they were more than a hundred meters away.
But Ron made no further move. He didn't harm anyone. He simply turned and walked, step by step, toward the source of the Dark Sonata's resonance.
An old shrine soon came into view.
Ron stepped inside.
There, in the hands of a clay statue at the center, rested a scroll—identical in material and form to the three Dark Sonata fragments he already possessed.
His eyes lit up.
He reached out.
The scroll floated gently into his hand.
After confirming that it was indeed genuine, he placed it into Sumas's space.
Immediately, the other three pieces fell silent.
Ron's body followed into Sumas's space as well.
He placed all four fragments into a separate chamber, then began monitoring them via surveillance—muted, with no sound—just pure visual observation.
Very soon, the four Dark Sonata scrolls began to react.
Four strands of black aura drifted out like shadowy snakes. They slithered through the air, clashing and twisting as they fought. One snake gained the upper hand, devouring the black mist from another's body. Its form expanded rapidly.
Then, it struck again—fiercer this time—until it had completely consumed the injured snake.
The remaining two, seeing the situation unfold, stopped fighting each other and turned toward the now-larger one, launching a coordinated assault.
A new round of battle began.
Ron noticed that as these black snakes emerged, the scrolls themselves began to decay. Their power seemed to have drained away. The moment the snakes' battle spilled toward them, the scrolls crumbled into dust.
Back in the village, the commotion had drawn the townspeople toward the shrine—but none dared approach.
Ron's earlier release of aura had thoroughly cowed them.
"Chief, what should we do?"
"Are we just going to let him occupy our shrine?"
"That's our shrine!"
"He may be strong, but if we all rush him at once, he can't beat all of us, right?"
"Could he be trying to steal our qualification to participate in the Great Martial Trial?"
"Maybe he's a failure from another faction."
The village chief looked toward the shrine. The murmurs around him only deepened his irritation.
"Silence."
The crowd quieted.
After a pause, the chief said, "I'll go in alone. None of you follow me. If anything happens, leave immediately."
With that, he stepped forward and entered.
But what he saw inside left him stunned.
The shrine was empty.
Not even a shadow of Ron remained.
Yet no one had seen him leave. And aside from the main entrance, the shrine had no other exit.