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Chapter 93: The Legend of the Divine Artifacts
Muhuell was a career mercenary, but behind him stood Pariston Hill—the current Vice Chairman of the Hunter Association and one of the Twelve Zodiacs.
Ronin had entered Pariston's radar the moment Muhuell first made contact regarding the Yorknew operation. When a discovery was made in the ruins involving clothing that mirrored Kurta traditional attire, Pariston immediately reached out to Muhuell, outsourcing the mission to the Rock Mercenary Group.
This kind of large-scale extermination was exactly where a mercenary group excelled. However, what truly convinced Muhuell to contact Ronin was the strength the young man had previously displayed. Without that proof of power, even a request from Pariston wouldn't have persuaded him to invite an outsider into the group's core operations. Of course, if Ronin demonstrated the specific qualities Pariston was looking for during the exploration, the Vice Chairman might reach out personally to invite him into the specialized team they were currently assembling.
Whether or not Ronin would actually be interested in such an invitation remained to be seen.
After Muhuell laid out the details, he picked up his coffee cup and waited quietly for Ronin's decision.
After a long silence, Ronin finally set the documents down. He was genuinely curious about the Magic Beasts. In this world, "Magic Beast" was the classification for intelligent, communicative animals or monsters. While these creatures emerging from the underground looked formidable, Ronin hadn't seen any mention of them using Nen. Without aura, they posed no real threat to him.
Furthermore, if there was Kurta-style clothing in those ruins, Kurapika would undoubtedly want to explore them once he heard the news. Ronin closed the folder with a sharp click. "You've certainly given me a mission that's hard to refuse."
"It's mainly because you've proven your capabilities," Muhuell said, a small smile playing on his lips. "You'll likely play a pivotal role in this operation."
"Aren't you worried my abilities might cause a bit too much collateral damage in those ruins?" Ronin joked.
"If you aren't afraid of damaging whatever's inside, I certainly have no objection," Muhuell replied. "Our primary objective is to clear out every Magic Beast. As for whether the ruins themselves survive... the Ateli Kingdom doesn't actually care that much. For a small nation like that, discovering ancient ruins is as much a curse as it is a blessing."
"When do we leave?"
"I'll be heading out as soon as possible, but if you have things to handle, you can join us later," Muhuell offered, conceding to Ronin's busy schedule. "I'll keep you updated on the situation. Just don't turn me down when the call comes—be ready to move at a moment's notice."
"And the compensation?" Ronin asked. He was satisfied with the flexibility, but the business side still mattered.
"The base pay is only 500 million Jenny. However, the real draw is the access. You'll have the right to claim any treasures you find in the ruins for yourself. You'll just need to pay the Ateli Kingdom a fee—likely around twenty percent of the item's appraised value," Muhuell explained. "To put it bluntly, Ateli can't afford a high-end commission, so they're using the ruins' contents as collateral. They're just looking for a way to generate some revenue."
"When you put it that way, there's a big difference between arriving early and arriving late."
"Exactly. It's a fair trade—the more effort you put in, the more you stand to gain. So, will you be coming with me?"
"I'll pass for now," Ronin said, weighing his priorities. "Unless it's an absolute emergency, I won't be able to clear my schedule until mid-October or November."
No matter what was in those ruins, collecting the Scarlet Eyes remained his top priority. Since there was no rush, he didn't mind heading over after his duel with Hisoka was concluded. As for Chrollo, he pushed the man to the back of his mind; he couldn't just sit around doing nothing while waiting for the Spider to make a move.
"Fair enough," Muhuell said agreeably. "The ruins are massive. We won't be clearing them out in a week or two anyway. This is likely going to be a war of attrition."
With the business concluded, Muhuell left with his usual brisk efficiency.
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September 10th.
The grand spectacle of the Yorknew Auction began to fade, and the city finally lost the frenzied, carnivalesque atmosphere of the previous week.
Using his standing within the Mafia, Kurapika finally tracked down the identity of another Scarlet Eyes owner. Over the next ten days, the trio traveled between various cities, and the collection grew by three more pairs of eyes.
Everything was going smoothly. The status of being associated with one of the Ten Dons was incredibly effective; the speed of the collection was far faster than Ronin had anticipated. But just as that thought crossed his mind, the situation shifted.
By the time they reached the fourth lead, the owner of the Scarlet Eyes was already dead in his home. The collection had been looted, but the culprits had left behind a very clear identifier: a mark of the Phantom Troupe.
From that point on, information on Scarlet Eyes owners became impossible to find. Whether Kurapika used his Mafia influence or his borrowed Hunter credentials, every trail went cold. It was as if someone had systematically scrubbed every trace of the Scarlet Eyes from the public record.
"I have a feeling this isn't the Troupe's handiwork," Ronin said, his brow furrowed.
"No, it likely isn't," Kurapika agreed, appearing surprisingly unfazed. "When the perceived value of the Scarlet Eyes is driven high enough, the Spiders stop being the only predators in the jungle."
"What do you mean?"
"It goes back to what I did before. Your unique nature, combined with the rumors I intentionally leaked, has significantly inflated the value of the eyes. It was a double-edged sword," Kurapika explained. "The benefit was that the likelihood of the eyes being destroyed dropped to near zero; the drawback was that it turned them into a target for far more dangerous predators—and some of them are definitely Nen users."
"What exactly did you leak?"
"Do you know of the Divine Artifacts?" Kurapika asked.
Ronin's expression shifted to one of shock. His mind immediately went to the three Divine Artifacts of Kakin—the first time the concept was introduced in the lore.
The Seed Urn.
The Ceremonial Zen Buddha.
And the sacred sword, Kicho Maru.
How did Kurapika know about the concept of Divine Artifacts?
"It seems you do know," Kurapika said, reading Ronin's expression. "Legend says there are artifacts in this world that can grant immense power and fulfill any wish. The Kurta Clan—those the world calls the 'Demon's Apostle'—were said to be the guardians of a Divine Artifact known as 'Destiny.'
"The rumor I spread was that the Phantom Troupe slaughtered the Kurta specifically to use the Scarlet Eyes as a sacrifice to activate 'Destiny' and obtain a wish. However, the rumor also claims they failed to find it in the village, as the artifact had supposedly been lost long before."
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