"Without strength, everything is just empty talk."
Selina lifted her head, and her gaze grew resolute.
"I need to become stronger, faster!"
"I'll defeat Ron in the ring."
"Ron said he's not obligated to give me information, but the other meaning behind those words is that such information can be traded, right?"
"Right now, I have nothing of value to offer."
"But if my strength surpasses Ron's, the situation will be different."
Selina entered the training ground and threw herself into training.
At this moment, Ron was watching the television screen in the living room.
The screen was broadcasting a live match, a paid pay-per-view event.
On the ring stood two figures.
One was a rotund middle-aged man, and the other was a young boy with white, spiky hair.
"Killua is seven years old, and compared to a year ago, he's become more mature."
Ron looked at Killua on the screen.
Nina and the other two also paid attention to Killua.
Previously, when Ron had asked Silva for training assistance, Nina and Sally were secretly looking after Killua.
Ron never explicitly stated his relationship with Killua, but Nina and the others could guess that it must be a relatively close one; otherwise, Ron wouldn't have offered secret protection like that.
As for Killua, Nina and the others had only one opinion: he had exceptional talent.
He was only seven, yet he'd already reached over a hundred floors in Heaven's Arena, and that was without having learned Nen. Once he learned Nen, what kind of transformation would he undergo?
Different schools of thought had varied opinions on when to open the aura nodes. Some believed it should be done as early as possible, thinking it was wasteful to wait. Others believed in opening them at a suitable time—for example, the Shingen-ryu. Both early and late openings had their pros and cons. (t/n: If you forgot Shingen-ryu is the Netero school/style of combat, Wing also followed this style)
From the arrangements made by Netero, Ging Freecss, and the Zoldyck family in the original story, it seemed that for those with strong talent, opening the aura nodes later had greater advantages.
Gon and Killua both started at twelve years old.
Even Ron, who received personal training from Maha Zoldyck, only opened his aura nodes after he turned nine.
With the referee's call, the match started.
The portly middle-aged fighter grinned ferociously, stepping toward Killua one step at a time.
Below the 100th floor, contestants might not seriously investigate their opponent's background.
They'd just charge in and fight. If they won, great; if not, oh well.
But above the 100th floor, it was different.
First, the prize money increased substantially. Winners earned far more than losers. Unlike the UFC, losers in Heaven's Arena got no appearance fee, not even medical expenses covered. Thus, nobody wanted to lose.
Also, above the 100th floor, fighters had some fame. This meant they had fans. Nobody wanted to lose in front of their own fans.
Ron noticed the audience holding signs with Killua's name on them.
Both contestant's advantages were obvious. Killua's lay in speed, his opponent's in strength. Both had a fair chance of winning, but in terms of talent, there was no comparison.
To Ron, this kind of battle was a bit too childish. After watching for a moment, he lost interest. He'd gone through a similar stage, but not in Heaven's Arena—rather, at the Zoldyck Estate. Sangis was one such example.
Ron took out his phone, logged onto the Heaven's Arena forum, and skimmed the posts.
Suddenly, Ron saw a somewhat special post:
"A Youthful Prodigy, the Next Ron of Heaven's Arena—Killua!"
Ron raised his eyebrows and clicked in. The post was clearly written by a Killua fan, stating that Killua had incredible talent. At such a young age, he'd achieved so many victories and remarkable results. By the time he reached Ron's current age, he would surely catch up to Ron and even surpass him.
"But eleven-year-old Killua won't be a match for the eleven-year-old me."
Nina glanced at what Ron was reading.
"There are many comparison posts like that. Some people even compare me and you, Big Brother."
"At the 200th floor and above, you're the youngest and very strong, so you've become the benchmark for young fighters."
"They argue a lot about it."
Ron smiled. This was clearly fan culture. In his previous life, he found it off-putting, but here he understood it better. Becoming famous inevitably led to such situations.
Even the Zoldyck family, unknown to many in terms of members, strength, or abilities, had people outside defending their reputation, arguing with others. It was unavoidable.
The voice from the arena's broadcast sounded:
Ron looked at the screen.
Killua didn't seem satisfied. He looked at Lister across from him, got up from the ground with a sullen face, and left through the competitor's passage.
Ron noticed one detail: at his limit, Killua instinctively wanted to use Zoldyck assassination techniques. But just before he did, he forcibly held back. This not only failed to help Killua but gave his opponent an opening, which was seized.
On the forum, some people were mocking Killua for losing this match, while others defended him.
Chii's vistage appeared. Under Ron's command, it hacked into Heaven's Arena's surveillance system. The next moment, footage of Killua from the surveillance appeared on Ron's computer screen.
But the figure beside Killua caught Ron's attention.
Ron narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Why is that guy with Killua?"
In the original story, during Killua's first trip to Heaven's Arena, he had no interaction with Sadaso. The second time he went, Sadaso had become a rookie crusher. For Gon's sake, Killua threatened Sadaso, who then fled overnight. That was their only intersection.
But now, judging by how Sadaso and Killua looked, they seemed quite familiar with each other?
Ron hesitated for a moment, then took out his phone and called Silva.
After a short while, the call connected.
"Silva, I'm back at Heaven's Arena. Want to meet up?"
"Sure, I'll give you a time and place."
Before long, Silva sent the time and place by text. Midnight, on a hotel rooftop.
When the appointed time came, Ron climbed the fire escape to the rooftop.
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