Kurapika sat in the private room for a long time before his emotions slowly settled.
"Brother Ronin, you…" Kurapika hesitated for quite a while before finally asking, "Were you in the village back then?"
"I was," Ronin nodded. "My father got me out, but he was killed by Uvogin on the way."
"So that means Uvogin really is a member of the Phantom Troupe! And the two people with him are murderers too!" Kurapika's eyes, which had just returned to normal, flared back into the Scarlet Eyes as his emotions surged.
"Yes," Ronin said, pouring him a glass of water. "What are you planning to do?"
"Revenge," Kurapika answered without hesitation.
"Can you win?" Ronin asked again.
Kurapika fell silent.
Ronin, however, smiled in relief. What he'd been most worried about was Kurapika charging in recklessly the moment he confirmed Uvogin's identity.
That was exactly why Ronin had rushed to the restaurant as soon as he learned about Kurapika's movements from Milia.
A large part of Ronin's own strength came from the Kurta clan's Scarlet Eyes. Even for that reason alone, protecting Kurapika—within reasonable limits—was something he felt obligated to do.
It was, in a way, his repayment to the Kurta clan.
Besides, Kurapika himself had enormous value as an investment.
And there was another, even more important point. Even though Ronin had only been in this world for a little over a month, he had already realized one thing:
He was better suited for fighting.
Scheming and political maneuvering weren't his strengths.
But Kurapika, with his meticulous mind, excelled at exactly that.
Because of their shared bloodline, Ronin was absolutely certain of one thing—Kurapika would never betray him.
Even if Kurapika knew Ronin was enhancing his power by fusing Scarlet Eyes from their own people, Ronin didn't believe Kurapika would turn against him.
In fact, Ronin suspected Kurapika might even become a key ally in gathering the remaining Scarlet Eyes.
Of course, if things truly fell apart, they would go their separate ways.
But Ronin sincerely hoped it wouldn't come to that.
After all, he genuinely liked Kurapika as a character in the manga, and the memories of his former self also held Kurapika in very high regard.
Kurapika shook his head. "I can feel it—the gap between me and them is like a bottomless chasm."
"You're right," Ronin said bluntly. "If you face them now, it would be like throwing an egg at a rock."
"Then… what about you, Brother Ronin?" Kurapika asked, looking at him with hopeful eyes.
Ronin shook his head. "I'm still far behind too."
Even with Milia's Nen-rental ability as a final safety net, Ronin didn't have much confidence when it came to the coming clash with the Troupe.
But he liked it.
He enjoyed challenging powerful opponents.
Maybe he really was born to be a warrior.
If that weren't the case, then after escaping pursuit, the smartest move would've been to disappear and live under an assumed identity—not to stand out so openly and draw attention to himself.
In fact, when Milia first approached him, he had to admit he felt excited.
Not just at the idea of becoming a star fighter admired by the masses, but also at the looming danger itself.
So he followed his instincts, chose to work with Milia, and quietly set things in motion, pushing everything toward the outcome he wanted.
The only regret was that he hadn't managed to find a third pair of Scarlet Eyes to fuse before facing Uvogin.
If he'd had a third pair, the gap between him and Uvogin would've been even smaller—and his chances of defeating or killing Uvogin would've been much higher.
Kurapika's gaze dimmed. "Then…"
"But even if there's a gap, I'm still going to tear a chunk of flesh off those bastards first," Ronin said, his face hardening with ferocity.
After being hunted again and again, even a saint would snap—let alone someone like him, who hated letting grudges carry over to the next day.
Kurapika stared at Ronin. After a brief moment of shock, admiration filled his eyes.
Brother Ronin really is reliable.
"Brother Ronin, we can wait," Kurapika urged more rationally.
No matter how badly he wanted to tear into the Phantom Troupe himself, he wanted even less to lose Ronin.
But when he thought about how Ronin was about to face Uvogin—the man who had killed his father—Kurapika felt how powerless his persuasion really was.
"No," Ronin said solemnly. "I've already made arrangements. I'll be fine. You, on the other hand—if you trust me, then follow my plan. Leave Heaven's Arena for now."
"When I'm done here, I'll come find you. Together, we'll reclaim every last one of our people's eyes."
"Okay."
Kurapika agreed without even stopping to think.
Ronin studied him in silence for a moment, then his gaze grew resolute. "When we meet again, I'll tell you a secret. I just hope you'll still trust and support me like you do now."
Kurapika caught the gravity in Ronin's tone.
It made him tense, his mind racing.
The worst possibility he could think of was that Ronin might never actually come to meet him.
Could it be that—
"Don't overthink it. I'm not going to gamble with my own life," Ronin said, seeing right through him. He patted Kurapika on the shoulder with a smile. "Head to Moldin City first. Once I'm done at Heaven's Arena, I'll catch up to you."
After seeing Kurapika off—clearly reluctant to leave—Ronin finally felt unburdened as he returned to Heaven's Arena.
Next, all that remained was to prepare with everything he had for the fight against Uvogin.
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
In the lounge, Ronin took the contract Milia handed him. On it was a digitized aura value: 15,000.
This time, Ronin didn't hesitate. He signed his name, and the crude, stick-figure-like rental devil shifted from Milia's body onto his shoulder.
"You should leave too," Ronin said regretfully. "What comes next might go beyond the plan. And after this fight, I probably won't be coming back to Heaven's Arena to compete for a while."
Working with Milia had been great.
She was professional, and her Nen ability provided exceptional support.
"So what are you going to do next?" Milia asked instead of parting right away. "You've been looking into the underworld lately, haven't you? That's good money. And honestly, with your abilities, management isn't really your strong suit. Want to keep working together?"
"Even agents need to expand their business?" Ronin glanced at her sideways.
"Yeah. Money matters," Milia said. A faint smile appeared on her cool, composed face. This time, she didn't bother hiding her hands. Instead, she casually lifted one to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.
Just as she expected, Ronin's gaze fell on those delicate, elegant hands.
"Alright," Ronin said.
Turning away, he added, "Next stop is Moldin City. I'm sure you already knew that."
"Of course," Milia said softly. "Don't die."
"Don't worry," Ronin replied, raising a hand in assurance as he stepped out of the shadows of the corridor.
Under the host's passionate introduction, he entered the crowd's view.
In that instant, the audience erupted into frenzied cheers.