"You think I'd willingly take this trash with me?"
Leorio looked aggrieved as he brushed off the filth clinging to him. Annoyed, he complained,
"I finally climbed out of the sewer, and the first thing I hear is a commotion. Then I see you guys in trouble, so of course, I had no choice but to step in and help!"
He shot a glare at the unconscious thug on the ground, his expression full of disdain.
"This bastard's the one who threw me into the sewer! He's definitely not a good person!"
Leorio's voice trailed off as he noticed Kurapika had gone quiet.
"What's wrong?"
"No... Leorio—"
"Huh?"
"Thanks for saving me this time."
"Hah?!" Leorio looked bewildered. "What's with you, Kurapika? Why're you saying that all of a sudden? Aren't we comrades?"
"Comrades..." Kurapika murmured, repeating the word before a small smile crept onto his face.
"That's right!" Leorio nodded, satisfied. "By the way, what have you been up to all this time? Gon and Killua—"
"Kurapika! Huh? Leorio's here too?!"
Speak of the devil—just as Leorio started talking about them, Gon and Killua burst through the wall, drawn by the noise. When they saw their old friends, their faces lit up with surprise.
"What do you mean 'I'm here'? You guys were the ones who called me over!"
Reunited, the four of them erupted into lively conversation.
On the 251st floor of Heavens Arena, inside Ion's champion suite, Ronnel entered his room without much surprise at the figures waiting inside.
"How's your injury?"
Ronnel glanced at Zushi, who was lying on the bed, and turned to Wing, standing nearby.
"It's nothing serious, just a few scrapes."
Wing nodded slightly.
"What about you?"
"We're fine, but when we left, a few idiots thought they could take advantage of us. We taught them a good lesson."
Bisky folded her arms, a wicked smirk playing on her lips.
Shizuku, sitting nearby, nodded silently.
A moment of silence for those guys—not that they deserved any sympathy. Seriously, preying on an old woman in her fifties? That's just nasty.
"Hey, I feel like you're thinking something inappropriate."
Bisky squinted at Ronnel suspiciously.
"It's nothing," Ronnel replied, his expression perfectly calm and composed.
The arena for the Battle Olympia was set up just a short distance from this floor. Instead of running around, they figured it was best to wait for Ronnel's return right here.
If he won, they could greet him immediately.
And if he lost—well, that wasn't an option. They had complete faith in him.
Now, seeing him standing there, fully intact save for a torn sleeve, the outcome was obvious.
"By the way, who else lives on this floor?" Bisky asked, shifting the topic as she eyed Ronnel curiously.
When she stepped onto the 251st floor, she had sensed an unusual atmosphere in some of the rooms. The tension had disappeared quickly, but she was sharp enough to notice the momentary wariness.
"Them? The Phantom Troupe. I mentioned before that they're staying with me temporarily due to some... circumstances."
"Oh, well, that explains it."
Bisky nodded in understanding.
No wonder the aura of those rooms felt dangerous. If they were A-rank wanted criminals, then it made sense.
Having cleared that up, Bisky's eyes gleamed mischievously as she turned back to Ronnel.
"Ohhh, I see~"
She covered her mouth with one hand, elbowing him lightly in the ribs. "That female member—Machi—she also stays on this floor, right?"
"Yeah, she does," Ronnel replied, instantly catching onto what Bisky was implying.
This old woman, his so-called master, was up to her usual antics.
Sensing Shizuku's attention shift toward him, Ronnel added in a calm, deliberate tone, "She shares a space with two other male members."
Hearing that, Shizuku's interest visibly faded, making Bisky click her tongue in disappointment.
"Boring," she muttered under her breath.
After exchanging a few more words, Ronnel was finally granted some rest.
Catching Shizuku's gaze, he gave her a brief "I'll be back" look before stepping out of the room.
After walking through the hallways for a while, he stopped at another door. He knocked in a distinct pattern before letting himself in.
"Hey, Ronnel, you're back! How'd the fight go?"
As soon as he entered, Shalnark greeted him with a wave.
His gaze flickered over Ronnel's torn sleeve, then back to his generally unscathed appearance. He nodded approvingly.
"Looks like you won without much trouble."
"Yeah, found the right opportunity to break the restraints on Netero, and after that, there wasn't much left to do."
Ronnel smiled, downplaying his involvement as usual.
"That so? Well, either way, it's good that it's over. Now you can finally take a break."
Shalnark put away the small remote-controlled phone in his hand and stretched lazily.
Machi, sitting nearby, cast Ronnel a thoughtful glance.
"So?" she suddenly spoke up, drawing the attention of Ronnel, Shalnark, and the silent Kubi.
"Can you still compete in Battle Olympia?"
"Battle Olympia?" Ronnel blinked, then let out a short laugh. "Not likely. Those guys completely wrecked the other competitors. No way the tournament's restarting anytime soon."
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