Ron could not help but think this way. Comparing with the events of the original story, before the birth of the Ant King, Netero's group of three had already arrived. Yet now, they had come even earlier, before Pouf and Youpi were even born.
Nen battles required gathering intelligence; one could not act blindly. But with the abilities of Netero's team, the time needed to gather information should not have been long. Morel's ability and Knov's ability were both suited for reconnaissance. However, in the original story, it was as if the three of them had hardly gathered any intelligence at all. Eliminating every other possibility, what remained—no matter how unlikely—had to be the truth.
Ron had made a deal with the middle-aged antman. He taught him Nen techniques and provided information about Nen, while the man shared all the intelligence he knew about the Chimera Ants.
Three days later, their transaction ended. The man had not mastered all the Nen techniques, but he had learned the basics, and the rest he recorded carefully to try slowly afterward.
"Thank you," the man said, rising and bowing deeply to Ron.
Ron inclined his head slightly. "Would you mind telling me your name? Let me introduce myself first—I am Ron."
The man was silent for a moment. "Gyro."
A flicker stirred in Ron's heart, but he was not surprised; he had already suspected as much.
"Gyro, what do you plan to do next?"
"I have not decided yet. For now, I just want to leave this place."
"Then I wish you luck."
But Gyro was not telling the truth. Ron knew clearly that from the moment Gyro regained his human consciousness, he had already decided—he would head to Meteor City. For someone like him, only a place such as Meteor City could accept him, and only there could he find what he truly sought.
Gyro, the underground king of NGL, who had grown up in the torment of abuse. Within his heart, there burned enormous ambition. Precisely because of that powerful spiritual strength, Gyro had been able to break free of the Queen's control and awaken his human consciousness immediately. That was his true power.
Ron watched his departing back. "Those with powerful spiritual strength are often suited to becoming Nen users. And their talent in Nen will never be weak. From what I have seen of Gyro, reaching A-rank is only his beginning. He has the potential to step into S-rank."
Ron remembered that even Kite had not immediately recalled his memories as a human. It had taken time before fragments returned, and only later did he gradually recover them. Gyro, however, regained his memories much faster. Kite had been an A-rank Nen user during his life as a human. This proved that even though Gyro had not been a Nen user before, the strength of his spirit had been greater than Kite's.
"What kind of change will a man like that bring to Meteor City? Will he turn it into another NGL? Or perhaps an even stronger NGL? And what effect will this have on the Phantom Troupe?"
Beside Ron stood Benas. "Uncle."
"What is it, Benas?"
"Do you think my brother might also recover his memories from when he was human?"
"I'm afraid not." Ron shook his head. "According to what Gyro said, he was consumed directly by the Queen. Your brother, however, was eaten by one of the monsters I killed earlier. Only the Queen can produce Chimera Ants."
Benas's expression darkened.
"However, if your parents or other relatives and friends were taken back to the nest and consumed by the Queen, then they might have the chance to regain their memories as humans."
"Really?" Benas's eyes lit with hope.
"Of course."
But Ron left one thing unsaid. It was only a possibility. The Queen had consumed many humans. Among the squadron leaders, division leaders, and even some soldiers, there were Chimera Ants who had managed to recover their human memories. But the number of humans the Queen had eaten far exceeded the number of Chimera Ants she had birthed. A single Chimera Ant could not awaken the memories of multiple humans at once. Some memories would inevitably vanish.
Furthermore, many Chimera Ants could not awaken their human memories at all, which meant even more memories were lost. Only a small number could be restored, usually the kinds of people with exceptionally strong mental and spiritual energy.
.............
....
.
After Ron ended the call, Killua turned toward Gon. Gon remained silent for a long time before finally raising his head.
"Killua, I'm sorry."
Killua blinked in surprise. "Why are you apologizing all of a sudden?"
"When we faced that monster, if I hadn't been so stubborn, Kite wouldn't have been hurt. If he hadn't been hurt, his situation now wouldn't be so bad. He wouldn't have disappeared without news." Gon clenched his fists tightly. "It was you who saved me, Killua. If you hadn't acted, I would have dragged Kite down even further. But when I woke up, instead of thanking you, I even blamed you a little. That was my mistake. That's why I want to apologize."
Killua waved a hand and smiled. "No need, Gon. We're best friends. You don't need to apologize to me. I only did what I should have done."
"But, Gon," Killua went on, "what do you plan to do now? Ron-nii can't take both of us along. And we can't reach Chairman Netero either."
Gon thought for a moment. "Couldn't we call him?"
"NGL is a country that rejects modern technology. There are no signal towers inside; our calls can't get through."
"Sorry, I forgot." Gon hesitated, then said, "Maybe we could contact Biscuit. She's the teacher the Association assigned to us. She should have a way to reach Chairman Netero."
Killua's eyes lit up. "That's worth a try."
He quickly pulled out a phone. His old one had been discarded before entering NGL; this was a new purchase. He dialed Biscuit's number from memory. After a few moments, the line connected.
"Who is this?"
"Biscuit, it's me—Killua."