Chapter 59: I Will Win!
Uvogin hesitated.
Reason told him not to go alone. Death was a likely outcome.
The memory of nearly being burned alive in the arena was still fresh. It had taken him nearly a month to recover from the pain.
But if he backed down now, this failure would become a thorn in his heart, a demon that would haunt him forever.
Damn it!
He didn't realize that Shalnark and Machi were watching him closely.
They knew him too well. Even with his face disfigured by scars, they could read his micro-expressions.
They exchanged a glance, both realizing the same thing: Uvogin was hiding something that happened during his fight with Ronin's clone.
"Follow him," Shalnark mouthed to Machi.
Machi nodded slightly. A practically invisible Nen thread attached itself to Uvogin's shoe without him noticing.
Meanwhile, Feitan and the others returned to their hideout in an abandoned building on the outskirts.
Earlier, after Ronin's clone exploded, Uvogin and his group vented their frustration on the Mafia.
Being framed as thieves was irrelevant to them.
They slaughtered over a hundred Mafia members gathered at the Cemetery Building. Then, Chrollo called, directing them to the new rendezvous point.
When reinforcements arrived later, they found a scene from a nightmare: twisted corpses hung from the ceiling, and the floor was littered with severed limbs. Even battle-hardened veterans felt the urge to vomit.
The Mafia initiated a city-wide manhunt. The bounties on the Phantom Troupe skyrocketed to astronomical levels.
"I have to admit, that Kurta kid has become a massive threat. And eliminating him is proving difficult," Chrollo Lucilfer said, closing his book as the group assembled.
"The Underground Auction still has two pairs of Scarlet Eyes scheduled. That remains our best chance to track him," Shalnark's previous plan was now obsolete, but he pivoted quickly.
He looked at Kortopi. "If Kortopi swaps the real eyes with fakes ahead of time, can we track Ronin?"
"He knows my ability. He'll likely have countermeasures," Kortopi doubted the plan.
Ronin had ripped off the tracker sticker back in the forest. They hadn't used this tactic earlier for exactly this reason.
"So what? Even if he realizes something is wrong, we just need him to know we have the eyes," Shalnark argued. "Unless he gives up on collecting them entirely. But based on my investigation, he's been actively hunting them. He even killed Omokage for his collection."
The investigation in Mordin City wasn't fruitless.
Based on the ruins of the church, anyone who had seen Ronin fight could deduce what happened: A mud-based trap combined with intense fire.
Clearly, Ronin had developed new applications for his ability.
"Fine," Kortopi agreed.
Chrollo didn't object. Instead, he added, "Ronin already attacked the auction once. The Mafia will be on high alert for our 'second' attack. So, Kortopi, create some corpses after the next operation."
"Our corpses?" Kortopi asked.
"Yes." Being hunted constantly was annoying. Faking their deaths would get the Mafia off their backs, freeing up resources to hunt Ronin.
"Won't they see through it? My ability's details were leaked," Kortopi worried.
"24 hours is enough," Chrollo's eyes flickered. Then, his gaze landed on Uvogin. "Uvogin, what do you think?"
The sudden question startled Uvogin. Shalnark and Machi realized Chrollo had noticed Uvogin's strange behavior too.
Uvogin was silent for a moment. "Gordeau Desert, ten kilometers west of the city."
"You want a duel?" Chrollo asked expressionlessly.
Uvogin nodded solemnly. "I'm not satisfied."
"Are you confident?" Chrollo asked again.
Uvogin thought seriously. After a long pause, he shook his head.
His brief clash with the clone gave him a rough estimate of Ronin's current strength.
Physically, Ronin was still slightly weaker, but his aura capacity wasn't far behind.
If it were a pure contest of basic Nen combat, Uvogin was confident.
But Ronin's abilities were bizarre and unpredictable. Plus, he could create clones. If the main body and clone attacked together, it became a 2v1 kite-strategy nightmare.
Ronin specialized in mid-to-long-range AoE attacks. And those attacks were strong enough to hurt, or even kill, Uvogin.
"So you are prepared to die?" Chrollo raised an eyebrow slightly.
Uvogin lowered his head, but a grin spread across his face. "I will win. Because I have the resolve!"
Chrollo was silent for a while. "Go then."
"Boss!" Nobunaga shouted.
He was Uvogin's oldest partner. They understood each other best. He didn't want to lose him here.
Uvogin grinned. "Don't worry. I'll win!"
Franklin watched silently, his gaze drifting to the arm Machi had sewn onto Uvogin—an arm he had insisted on providing.
"Don't be reckless. I don't want to collect your corpse," Shalnark said. "Go do your thing. Leave the rest to us."
Phinks rolled his shoulders next to Feitan. "This time, if he tries to borrow power from someone else again, I'll make him regret it."
"You guys have such high morals," Feitan squinted his eyes. "You'd better be fast. If you're not done by the time I chop up his friends, don't blame me if I chop you too."
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