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Chapter 406
🕑 Added 2025-03-04 16:01:01 +0000 UTCChapter 406
Ron found that the sooner he could instruct new Hunters in Nen, the better. Because once he’d begun absorbing the special qualities of the Hunter Exam, there was no simple way to transfer or share them with another area with special qualities —other than giving everything up. But that clearly wasn’t practical.
This year’s Hunter Exam was one of the highest‐caliber exams in the association’s history. If Ron couldn’t pass on his next round of instruction to these new Hunters, and his absorption of those special qualities reached the one‐hundred‐percent mark, then he would have no choice but to wait until next year’s exam. That would cost too much time. It would also mean missing many potential opportunities—like Gourmet world, for example.
(Note: I have changed the special place for Gourme hunters to "Gourmet world"...if you know you know)
The gourmet world's “Nen beasts,” created through the island’s traits, might not be very strong. After all, not every Nen user on Gourmet World could be A‐rated. In Ron’s view, it was somewhat like Ging Freecss’s team creating a “game world.” But based on Ron’s predictions, absorbing the island’s special properties and using them to craft Nen beasts would largely serve as auxiliary tools. In other words, such conjurations wouldn’t need to be overly powerful.
Take Chii, for example. Among all the various Nen beasts Ron had conjured, Chii’s combat ability ranked at the bottom. Even compared to the second weakest, Lampent, Chii was much weaker. Yet for Ron, Chii was still highly useful. For missions involving the Phantom Troupe—gathering intelligence or scouting, for instance—someone with strong stealth and espionage skills was invaluable. If there were no capable replacements, he could always dispatch Sasuke, Baki, or even Natsue as support‐type Nen users, but that wasn’t ideal as they weren't made for that purpose. Someone like Chii had even greater value to the Troupe, purely on a practical level.
“Yes,” Gon said with a nod. “We’ve made our decision. We’re getting ready to head to the Zoldyck estate. We want to see Killua, to tell him in person—we’re already his friends.”
“Everyone has the right to make friends,” Kurapika added.
“Illumi won’t be able to stop us,” Leorio chimed in.
“I want to keep traveling with Killua and continue this journey—together as Hunters,” Gon concluded.
Ron looked at Leorio and Kurapika.
“I have mentioned it before: from what you’ve heard, going to the Zoldyck estate isn’t as dangerous as people imagine. An assassin just does contract work—nothing more. They won't go out of their way to hurt you..unless someone paid for it”
“But it’s not exactly easy to enter the Zoldyck estate at will,” Ron went on. “There’s a trial gate at the main entrance. You have to push it open properly before you can step inside. Don’t assume you can climb the walls like some intruders would.”
“Good luck to you all”
With that, Ron turned to walk in another direction.
“Ron, you’re not returning to the Zoldyck estate for now?” Gon asked.
“Not just yet—I have other matters to take care of,” Ron replied.
“Then…do you have time now? Could you tell me a bit about my dad? During the Hunter Exam on Zevil Island, you said you had met him—my father. Remember?”
Gon looked at Ron expectantly.
“All right, come with me.”
Ron pointed toward a spot, and Gon followed him. Leorio and Kurapika didn’t tag along. The two of them sat on a stone bench beneath a large, leafy tree. Sunlight filtered through its foliage, dappling the ground with a pattern of light and shadow.
“About Ging Freecss…I haven’t met him face‐to‐face in a while,” Ron began. “It happened in Meteor City once, where a group called the Kute Gang of Thieves stirred up a huge crisis where many lives were lost. Our Zoldyck family accepted a commission to eliminate some Kute Gang members.”
“Before that, Ging had already discovered traces of suspicious figures there as well,” Ron added. “At the time, I wasn’t that strong. The head of the Zoldyck family wouldn’t allow me to go on my own. I took another route instead and witnessed the battle from a different vantage. I won’t go into the specifics now—maybe later. But in that fight, Ging alone subdued two members of the Kute Gang.”
“…!”
Ron’s brief description was enough to make Gon’s eyes light up. He hadn’t gone into detail, but Gon’s mind began filling in the gaps on its own.
“Ron, thank you.”
“No need.”
Ron waved a hand dismissively.
“I have other things to do, so I’ll be off.”
“Understood,” Gon said quietly.
Once most of the examinees left the estate, they went their separate ways. Half of them planned to return home to their ancestral lands. Leorio, Kurapika, and Gon intended to head to the Zoldyck estate.
Meanwhile, Hisoka had his own situation, possibly returning to the Heavens Arena next. Those battles would likely be quite a spectacle, though that was just speculation. For an observer like Ron, there was no hurry.
Ron arrived in a small clearing. A lone figure had been waiting there for quite some time, clad in fighting attire, most of their body hidden. When Ron approached, the person lifted their hood, revealing a fox‐girl appearance.
“Master Ron,” she said.
Ron gave a slight nod.
“Elita, I still don’t know exactly what your abilities are. Can you explain?”
“Of course,” she answered. “If you want to know, that’s no problem.”
Elita showed no hesitation.
“I’m a Transmuter,” she began. “I have two main abilities. One lets me transform into other people’s appearance…”
“My second ability is an ‘aura scent.’ I can generate three kinds of aura scents. One has a lasting effect. Once I mark a target, I can track them; no matter where they go, I can find them, unless it’s across an ocean or to some faraway land.”
“The second is a hallucinatory scent that can influence someone’s mind. I used it during the previous Hunter Exam when I had that battle with Bodoro” she said, cheeks reddening a bit. “That old man truly wasn’t my match—but I didn’t want direct conflict.”
“And the third is a charm scent,” Elita continued, blushing a little deeper. “It can boost my appeal to the opposite gender. But I haven’t used it yet.”
Ron didn’t visibly react. However, having observed Elita’s transformations already, he could guess at her brand of infiltration tactics. Basically, it involved certain behaviors that couldn’t be put into words—experiences that strengthened her illusions.
“I see.”
Ron nodded.
“I don’t have any other requests for you right now. Head back to the Underworld for the time being and handle the tasks I gave you earlier. If there’s any news, send it to me via the email address I left with you. Stay in touch.”
Elita nodded firmly. Her fox ears perked up a little.
“Yes, Master Ron.”
