"Milluki."
Ron entered the lounge and saw Milluki frantically pressing buttons on his gaming device.
"Hang on," Milluki said, not even looking up. He was still immersed in the game. Finally—
Boom!
A blast sounded from the device. Milluki let out a sigh of relief.
"That guy was tricky. Almost failed the mission."
"Good evening, Ron."
Milluki turned the screen toward Ron. Taking a glance, Ron noticed the display didn't look like a normal game; it seemed more like live footage. Combined with Milluki's words…
"Milluki, are you using that thing for assassination contracts?"
"That's right."
Milluki gave a self-satisfied grin. "It's one of the abilities I developed. I can use the internet to remotely control something near the target and kill them. Explosives, poison—I've got all sorts of options."
He was clearly proud of his ability.
"Sounds interesting."
Ron pulled his gaze away from the gaming screen. As he'd suspected, Milluki's ability let him carry out assassinations by remote, which could be quite efficient: no need to travel personally, so he could potentially handle multiple targets at once. In terms of sheer volume of contracts, he could outdo Illumi, Ron, Zeno, or Silva. The downside, though, was that Milluki's physical strength could be a weak point. If he stayed in the Zoldyck estate his entire life, it might not be an issue—hardly anyone could invade this place—but it was still something of a vulnerability.
However, to the common folk, he might become a legend just from the sheer volumes of successful assassinations he has done.
"It's not an approach I'd choose for myself, but for Milluki, it's a solid addition to the Zoldyck Family's repertoire. I've taken a route based on personal combat, just like Zeno, Silva, and Illumi—and presumably Killua someday as well. But not everyone in the Zoldyck Family has to do that."
Ron mused quietly to himself, then heard Milluki speak again:
"Ron, when did you become a Nen user?"
"Right before I left the estate for the first time."
"You were under ten then, yeah?"
Ron nodded.
"Father's too secretive," Milluki complained. "If I hadn't gone on that mission with you, who knows when he would've told me about Nen. Honestly, I'm annoyed."
"Learning Nen early has advantages, but learning it later has its own benefits, too. It's not a big difference in the long run."
"That may be true, but Nen is so fascinating. If I'd learned it earlier, I could've had fun with it a long time ago. Feels like I wasted years of potential!"
Milluki paused.
"Anyway, about that Hunter Exam you took with Killua and my older brother, Illumi—
"I heard you hired another applicant to give Killua a beating?"
"It wasn't a beating, exactly. More like a brief fight."
"Tch, that kid's clueless." Milluki snorted. "Killua's got tons of natural talent—way more than me—but the last time he came home, he tried to threaten me. He's not even a Nen user yet, while I've been using Nen for a while. If Father hadn't told me to leave it alone, I'd have taught him a real lesson. Regardless, stabbing Mother was wrong.
"Unfortunately, that chance slipped away. Once Killua learns Nen, I might never get another shot at him. That's a shame," Milluki said, regretting he'd missed the window. He could tell that once Killua grasped Nen, he'd likely surpass him in personal strength pretty quickly—and Ron and Illumi were already way beyond him.
"Oh, speaking of which—Ron, who's stronger, you or Illumi?"
Ron shook his head. "Not sure. We've never actually fought. At our level, too many factors come into play. It's hard to say."
He was telling the truth. In a real battle, though, Ron suspected he'd come out on top. Even without knowing everything Illumi could do, Ron felt his own abilities had the edge.
Just then, two people entered: one tall, one short—Kikyo in a pink courtly gown with a hat covering her hair and an eyepatch over her eyes, followed by a smaller figure.
Ron and Milluki stood up.
"Auntie Kikyo," Ron greeted.
"Mother," Milluki added.
Kikyo nodded, forcing a smile.
"Ron, you're back. Let's head to the dining room. Silva and the others will be here soon, and the kitchen is almost ready."
"Sure."
The four of them proceeded next door to the dining hall. Once seated, Kikyo turned to Ron.
"Ron, could you tell me about the last Hunter Exam?"
"Of course."
Ron kept his own role, and Illumi's, short and stuck primarily to Killua's story, knowing that interested Kikyo the most. As Ron described Killua's experiences, Kikyo's face shifted along with the details of the tale.
Soon, footsteps approached. Zeno and Silva entered. Killua wasn't with them.
"Father," Milluki said. "Where's Killua?"
"He's in the butler's quarters," Silva replied, glancing at Milluki.
Zeno took the main seat, and the dinner proceeded.
After the meal, Ron returned to his own courtyard, stepped inside his room, and traced a circle on the wall with one hand. A door appeared, and he walked through it.
Inside, Ponzu was sitting on the floor, practicing Ren. She looked up as soon as Ron stepped in.
"Captain, you're back!"
"Yep. I brought some food for you," Ron said.
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