Ron stood before one of the Zoldyck estate's guardians—Mike, the enormous dog that patrolled its perimeter.
Previously, Ron had thought of Mike as a magical beast.
Now, after seeing him again, he realized Mike was something far more extraordinary.
"Mike's aura is immense," Ron noted, "and it carries a very peculiar quality."
Mike scrutinized Ron as though comparing him to the humans in its memory. Once satisfied, the dog shifted its attention elsewhere and resumed its patrol.
Ron focused his aura on his feet.
With a flash, he vanished, swiftly making his way to the back mountain where Maha Zoldyck resided.
At the entrance to Maha's courtyard, a figure stood guard.
"Gene, long time no see."
"Ron-sama," Gene greeted, startled by Ron's progress after a year of absence. He quickly made a welcoming gesture.
"Zeno-sama and Maha-sama are both inside," Gene informed him.
Ron entered the courtyard.
Two figures sat across from each other at a stone table, each with a steaming cup of tea.
When Ron entered, both turned their gaze toward him.
They were elderly men, but their presence was anything but ordinary. Few outside the Zoldyck family would ever believe the two were grandfather and great-grandson.
"Grandfather Zeno, Great-grandfather Maha," Ron greeted. "I'm back."
He jogged to the table, setting his bag down.
Zeno studied Ron intently.
"Impressive," he remarked. "You've made significant progress since last time."
The last time they met, Ron hadn't yet developed his fourth Nen beast. Adding a new Nen beast had drastically elevated Ron's capabilities.
"How's the Underworld Mafia's commission going?" Zeno asked.
"No updates yet," Ron replied, shaking his head. "Cousin Milluki hasn't managed to find Dandins' location. Either Dandins is hiding very well, or the commission was based on false information."
"False information?" Zeno mulled it over. "Unlikely. The Underworld Mafia wouldn't risk offending the Zoldyck family with such a ploy. For an assassin, false commissions are a direct insult."
After a pause, Zeno gestured. "Tell us everything about your time away from the estate. Your great-grandfather would like to hear it."
Ron recounted his experiences in detail.
After leaving the Zoldyck estate, he had gone to Sky Arena. It wasn't long before he reached the 200th floor, where he encountered several rookie killers. They were weak and easily dealt with.
He then took an assassination commission, eliminating five notorious criminals and Jessirong.
Zeno already knew about the exorcism case Ron handled after that.
Then came his clash with Isaiah. After defeating Isaiah, the man had attempted to poison Ron as revenge, but the poison had no effect. Ron had killed Isaiah in retaliation.
Next was the Sky Arena fighting tournament. Once the tournament ended, Ron accompanied Zeno to Meteor City.
In Meteor City, Ron had been involved in the KUTE Thieve incident and the large-scale recruitment efforts.
While there, he obtained materials from the disaster-level cockroach Nen beast and brought back Shizuku.
Ron omitted some of the details about his confrontation with the Underworld Mafia.
Then he moved on to his time in Yorknew, where he killed Lizard and brought Sally along with him.
Reflecting on the past year, Ron realized how eventful it had been. He had accomplished a great deal, evident in the growth of his Nen beasts.
A year ago, he had only just begun learning Nen. Now, he was a C-rank Nen user—among the best in his tier.
His Nen beasts had also developed significantly:
- Chii, a master of intelligence and surveillance.
- Hanma Baki, a close-quarters combat expert.
- Killer Queen, specializing in assassination and destruction.
- Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, adept in mid-range and large-scale battles.
Ron's team had also grown, with new additions: Nina, Shizuku, and Sally. He had even acquired the Rotten Life Blade, a powerful Nen weapon.
Chii had established a strong network of intelligence contacts, enabling Ron to gather information from both the digital world and human sources.
Zeno nodded as he listened.
"The assassination attempts you faced when you first entered Sky Arena were my arrangements," Zeno revealed.
"As an assassin, the first lesson is survival—learning how not to get killed. Every Zoldyck family member goes through this."
"I was nearby at the time."
Ron nodded knowingly. "I had guessed as much."
"Afterward, when I saw my information appear on assassination commission sites, the bounty wasn't high enough to justify real threats."
"Besides, when I sought you out, you appeared quickly, so I figured you were monitoring me from nearby," Ron added.
"Our family is small," he continued. "And Grandfather, you've always emphasized that staying alive is an assassin's most important skill. So, you wouldn't let me roam freely unless I was capable of protecting myself."
Zeno's eyebrows lifted slightly.
"After Meteor City, you reached that level. There are few people in this world who can pose a threat to you now, and those who can, understand the consequences of targeting a Zoldyck family member."
He explained that the top-tier combatants and factions were aware of the Zoldyck family's power and avoided crossing them. However, weaker individuals or groups, lacking that knowledge might still pose a risk early on.
"That's why we provided early protection," Zeno concluded.
"Great-grandfather, I noticed during the Sky Arena tournament that the gap in strength between participants is enormous. Regular competitors, Floor Masters, and the Tiers above them seem to have vast differences in power."
"I even sensed an aura in one of the Floor Masters similar to yours. What's their general strength level?"
Maha pondered for a moment.
"The Floor Master you mention… I remember him. He's made decent progress on his path—fairly strong."
"As for the regular competitors and Floor Masters, Zeno can explain better."
"Sky Arena, for most Nen users, is considered a beginner's zone," he began.
"Those rookie killers? They're the bottom of the barrel. Any Nen user trained by a major faction would surpass them after minimal instruction."
"However, for ordinary people, Sky Arena remains the easiest path to becoming a Nen user. Reaching the 200th floor means undergoing the rookie baptism."
This "rookie baptism" was risky, particularly since it happened in the arena. But rookie killers needed weaker opponents to climb the ranks.
"They don't aim to kill outright," Zeno added. "Instead, they leave their opponents alive to accumulate more points."
The result was a vicious cycle: rookie killers focused more on exploiting the system than on honing their own skills, leading to their steadily declining quality.
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