Kurapika and Shizuku knew that Ronin had been carrying two people with him, but Ging and Veronica had been completely unaware.
When the two appeared so suddenly, Ging's eyes lit up, while Veronica was utterly shocked.
After spending so long in treatment that was practically no different from being kept in darkness, Owl had lost quite a bit of weight. Kortopi, on the other hand, still looked exactly the same, with his hair completely covering his face.
Owl was afraid of Ronin, while Kortopi showed no emotional reaction whatsoever. After appearing, he merely surveyed his surroundings cautiously.
Ronin intended to use Kortopi's ability. And here on the Dark Continent, he was not worried in the slightest that Kortopi might escape.
After all, with absolutely no information, where could he possibly go?
If he left the group, Ronin was one hundred per cent certain Kortopi would die. In fact, aside from Ging, Ronin did not believe anyone else in the team could survive alone on the Dark Continent.
Even Ronin himself was not completely confident he could do so.
Meanwhile, the shadow clone wearing the bronze armour was already walking along the city's broad streets.
Since the purpose was to test how the Gold and Silver Ingots reacted to someone wearing the bronze armour, the shadow clone moved with unusual boldness. It walked openly down the street while carefully examining every detail of the city.
It travelled in the exact opposite direction from the fountain. But given the enormous number of Gold and Silver Ingots throughout the city, the shadow clone had only walked about a hundred metres before another one appeared within sight.
The shadow clone prepared to retreat.
If possible, it still wanted to bring the bronze armour back.
Equipment capable of automatically defending its wearer would be useful for preserving one's life, even if it held no other special significance.
Then something reassuring happened.
The distant Gold and Silver Ingot showed no reaction to the clone's approach. It continued standing guard obediently, as though it had not noticed Ronin's shadow clone at all.
So the bronze armour and token truly were passes that granted access through the ancient labyrinth city!
The shadow clone gathered its courage and approached the Gold and Silver Ingot. It even reached out and touched it, yet still failed to provoke an attack.
There was no need to continue testing after that.
When the shadow clone returned to the building, excitement appeared on everyone's faces.
Since the bronze armour provided protection, the focus of their next operation had become clear.
They would search the city for more armoured giants, kill them, and seize their armour so that every member of the team could move safely through the city.
That was the basic objective.
Once they possessed the confidence to ignore the Gold and Silver Ingots, they could plan how to obtain the panacea herb and even venture deeper into the city to search for a method of controlling every Gold and Silver Ingot within it.
Their goal had suddenly become clear.
"Who should go and search for a giant?" Kurapika asked, though his gaze had already fallen on Ronin and Ging.
Since they currently had only one suit of armour, only one person could go out to search.
Both Ronin and Ging were suitable choices.
"I'll go," Ging volunteered.
"It would be best if you could lure a giant here by itself. That should greatly reduce the chances of anything unexpected happening," Kurapika said, agreeing with Ging's decision.
Ronin had originally intended to go himself.
However, he understood what Kurapika meant. After all, they planned to kill the giant and immediately take its armour. It was impossible to know whether something unexpected might happen during that process.
If Ging went while Ronin remained behind, Ronin could protect the others and also coordinate with Ging more effectively when dealing with the giant.
Of course, all of this depended on whether the token and armour copied by Kortopi were ineffective.
When the shadow clone returned, Ronin had already instructed it to remove the armour.
Kortopi was reluctant to cooperate with Ronin, but he had no choice under the circumstances. Even if he genuinely refused, the puppet strings would teach him otherwise.
When a new suit of armour appeared before everyone, Ging and Veronica finally learned what Kortopi's ability was.
The test subject was still a shadow clone.
However, this time, they were not as fortunate.
Although the copied armour functioned identically to the original, it was not recognised by the Gold and Silver Ingots. The instant the shadow clone appeared before one while wearing the copy, the dormant Gold and Silver Ingot violently awakened.
Golden beams tore the copied armour apart, and the shadow clone inside could not withstand the attack either. It exploded and dispersed.
The shattered armour fell to the ground with a series of metallic clatters.
The activated Gold and Silver Ingot examined the area. Only after confirming that no threat remained did it slowly return to its guarded standby state.
Ronin stored Kortopi and Owl away again.
He could have used Fun Fun Cloth to store everyone else as well, then worn the armour and gone alone to search for another giant.
However, that would have been too risky.
Ronin had also realised that neither Kurapika nor Ging wanted him to carry every burden alone.
Ging put on the armour and departed.
He carried a walkie-talkie in his hand. As long as they remained within five kilometres of one another, both sides could communicate at any time.
However, in this environment, they did not intend to use it casually, lest they create unnecessary trouble for Ging while he was outside.
Therefore, most of the time, it would serve as a tool for Ging to contact them one-way.
Ronin knew that finding a second giant probably would not be easy. There might not even be another one within the walkie-talkie's range.
When he had read the giant's memories, he had observed that it always patrolled the city alone along a fixed route.
It had looked as though the giant was also one of the city's guardians.
If that was the case, Ronin could not help wondering whether there were even higher-level suits of armour above the bronze set.
But everything would have to wait.
They needed Ging to bring back new information.
The entire city was silent. Only the occasional Gold and Silver Ingot passing near the building produced any sound, and even that was minimal.
By climbing to a window high inside the building, they could see the fountain in the distance.
The herbs were still swaying in the breeze, while the colourful lotus at the centre continued radiating its enticing light.
Two hours passed in the blink of an eye.
Those who remained inside the building could not help beginning to worry about Ging.
Had he encountered a giant?
Had he forgotten the way back?
Or had something else happened?
All kinds of possibilities continuously appeared in their minds. Only when Ging's voice suddenly came through the walkie-talkie did everyone finally relax.
"I found one. See you in ten minutes."
Alongside Ging's voice, a thunderous noise also came through the walkie-talkie.
It sounded like a weapon striking the ground.
The people hiding near the window immediately sprang into action.