Though he was a high official within the Republic of Mingbo, with a bright future and boundless authority, he'd now become a prisoner.
A sharp regret flared in the middle-aged man's heart. He regretted coming back, regretted holding back against Ron, regretted his own complacency.
Bang!
He slammed his fist into the wall, coating it with frost.
Crack!
A split formed in the wall, but Sumas immediately patched it up.
Another punch.
Another repair.
The man couldn't break it faster than Sumas could rebuild.
Seeing this through the monitoring image, Ron felt fully reassured.
"Sumas really is incredibly strong as a Nen Spirit. Even an A-level Nen user, trapped here, has no way out. Once their food and water run out, they'll die eventually. That's one of the advantages of the mobile form.
"If I'd kept Sumas fixed to a single location like the Kurta Clan did, it wouldn't be able to do that. But now I can use its other zones—the forest, grasslands, desert—each with their own ecosystems. If the outside world ever becomes too dangerous, I could actually live for years inside Sumas. And then come out later.
"Getting Sumas has boosted my overall capabilities immensely."
Ron ignored the captive man for now. He stepped back out into the human world and checked the progress indicator in the crystal ball floating before him—it had reached ninety-nine percent.
"It stopped?"
Ron frowned, watching the frozen progress bar.
"Where else can I get more Kurta data? Kurapika?"
"But right now, where would Kurapika be?"
He recalled that in the original story, by the time Kurapika returned to the Kurta Clan's hideout, the massacre had already happened. That young man from earlier had been guarding the ruins. If Kurapika had already come back, those guards would've killed him. Since Kurapika clearly wasn't lying dead anywhere in the ruins, he must not have arrived yet.
"So, maybe I can hang around here for a while and wait for him," Ron thought. "But I need to stay well hidden."
He had two reasons for wanting to hide.
First, he didn't want Kurapika mistakenly believing he was responsible for the clan's annihilation. Even though the attacking parties might have left behind a note or clue (likely something involving Meteor City, Kakin, or the Republic of Mingbo's arrangements), Ron didn't want to risk being lumped in as a culprit.
Second, he wasn't sure if any stragglers from Kakin, Mingbo, or Meteor City might return. He had no desire for more pointless battles. The fights against the B-level youth and the A-level man had drained him enough.
So Ron slipped off to a secluded corner some distance away, from which he could still see the ruins. If anyone entered the area, he'd notice.
Time passed, and Ron sat quietly, recovering his aura.
Meanwhile, members of the Heil-Ly Family had returned to the Kakin Empire. Most from the Republic of Mingbo had gone back, too. Aside from the dead B-level youth and the A-level man now trapped inside Sumas, they all assumed neither one was in danger. After all, with the Kurta Clan's settlement a wasteland, who could threaten them?
Then:
"He's here."
Ron's eyes opened. He spotted a figure rushing toward the remains of the Kurta settlement. Almost immediately, he heard an anguished cry echo from the ruins.
To Kurapika, the sight was heartbreakingly tragic. Everything had been intact when he left, but on returning, he found it reduced to a smoking ruin, his people slaughtered—friends, relatives, all gone.
It was a sorrow too immense for most to ever know.
A pinpoint of light drifted from Kurapika, drawn into the crystal ball. The progress bar on Ron's Observer's Intention began to rise again.
After some time, Kurapika stopped sobbing and began to bury the bodies. Then he knelt at the village entrance.
Thump!
He bowed his head heavily a few times, then fled. Despite his grief, rage, and regret, he knew the ones responsible were far too strong for him at his current level. Staying behind would only get him killed. If he wanted revenge, he had to survive.
In his hand, he clutched a sheet of paper—one presumably left by people from Meteor City. For now, he had no idea what it really meant.
Ron followed Kurapika at a distance. With Kurapika's current abilities, there was no way he'd sense Ron. Though they were the same age, their strength gap was enormous.
"This last one percent is crawling up so slowly," Ron muttered, glancing at the crystal ball. "But I guess that's normal—Kurapika's the only remaining Kurta."
Eventually, Kurapika left the destroyed settlement behind and reached a small town, but he had almost no money. Being a solitary teenager—and admittedly somewhat androgynous in appearance—he quickly attracted unwanted attention.
Two young thugs tailed him.
"Hey, girly, you by yourself? How about hanging out with us?"
They cornered Kurapika in an alley.
Kurapika's face went cold. "I'm a boy."
One of the thugs froze awkwardly, but the other looked even more excited.
"Hah, who cares? Come and have some fun. Otherwise, you're not leaving."