Arteum unconsciously clenched his jaw.
Because Conrad was absolutely right.
If this had been a real fight to the death, the moment his bullet failed, his mental state would have begun collapsing almost immediately.
Confidence, rhythm, and certainty would all disappear at once.
And once panic entered a NEN battle, death usually followed shortly afterward.
Conrad looked at him calmly before speaking one final time.
"That," he said quietly, "is why understanding your own ability matters far more than simply making it stronger."
To be honest, Arteum wasn't entirely sure what he should say.
Everything that had happened over the last few minutes had taught him something completely new. More importantly, becoming aware of that lesson had forced him into a different way of thinking.
For years, he had believed his ability was nearly flawless once its conditions were fulfilled.
Now he realized that wasn't true.
There was a weakness.
A blind spot.
And he had never even noticed it.
"Then..." he began slowly.
"Does this mean my Nen ability is meaningless?"
The expression on his face was strange.
It was difficult to tell whether he was asking Conrad or simply asking himself.
Conrad shook his head immediately.
"No."
"That would be the wrong conclusion."
"When it comes to Nen and Nen abilities, correct decisions, realistic ideas, and proper understanding can completely change the direction an ability develops."
He crossed his arms.
"You're treating this like a flaw that invalidates the entire ability."
"But that's not how Nen works."
"Every ability has strengths and weaknesses."
"The important part is recognizing them."
"Once you understand them, you can build around them."
Arteum remained silent.
Conrad continued.
"Now then."
"What do you plan to do?"
There was a clear intention behind the question.
Everything that needed to be shown had already been shown.
Everything that needed to be explained had already been explained.
At this point, the decision belonged to Arteum.
If he wanted to join, then he should join.
If he didn't, then he should return to his own life.
Conrad was gradually adopting that mentality more and more.
Arteum suddenly smiled.
"If I refuse after everything you've shown me today, I'd honestly feel stupid."
A small chuckle escaped him.
"And if I said joining this group would probably bring me nothing but benefits, I don't think I'd be wrong."
Conrad smiled.
"Good."
The two of them spent the next several minutes going through the necessary procedures.
Arteum completed every required condition.
Roughly ten minutes later, it was official.
Arteum had become a member of Seekers of the Unknown.
The current members were:
Conrad.
Adarte.
Anisa.
Reginald.
Lina.
Valiant.
Arteum.
Conrad looked over the growing roster and nodded to himself.
"Seven members now..."
"Maybe one more would make sense."
"But for now, I won't worry about that."
Seven capable Nen users.
Seven people are moving toward the same future.
The thought wasn't unpleasant.
Conrad turned toward Arteum.
"After joining the group, every new member receives a task."
Arteum clasped his hands together and nodded.
Now that he had joined, he understood that he would have responsibilities.
Although everything he had learned about Conrad suggested that the man wasn't malicious, Arteum wasn't naive enough to ignore reality.
The conditions required to join the group had been extensive.
Extremely extensive.
If someone with bad intentions created a Nen ability around similar principles, the results could be horrifying.
After all, once enough conditions were gathered, a single Nen ability could become terrifying.
Theoretically speaking, a person could create a system where every member died from a single command.
Of course, Conrad possessed no such ability.
But Conrad also had no intention of correcting that assumption, especially when it came to new members.
Fear had its uses.
"What kind of task?" Arteum asked.
Conrad raised a finger.
"Creational Condition."
"I want you to create two or three objectives."
"Projects."
"Tasks."
"Goals."
"They shouldn't be too easy."
"They shouldn't be impossible either."
"If possible, they should involve a degree of danger."
Arteum listened carefully.
Conrad continued.
"Then you'll place a nen vow on yourself."
"A condition."
"You'll declare that you will not use your Nen ability again until those objectives are completed."
Arteum's eyes widened slightly.
Conrad nodded.
"Once you complete them, Nen will respond more favorably to you."
"The parts of your ability that currently bother you can be changed."
"Improved."
"Expanded."
"In simple terms, you're temporarily adding several heavy restrictions to your ability."
"But once those restrictions are overcome, the reward will be substantial."
"The growth produced by the vow will remain."
Arteum placed a hand on his chin and began thinking.
"That is... actually fascinating."
"I never considered using Nen that way."
Conrad simply smiled.
Then he turned around.
"We'll meet again in two months."
"If you fail to complete the task, you'll need to leave the group."
Arteum blinked.
Before Conrad could leave, he quickly asked,
"Is that another Nen condition?"
Conrad shook his head.
"No."
"It's not."
"It's much simpler than that."
He stopped walking and glanced back over his shoulder.
"Right now, your ability, your combat skill, and your overall strength are significantly below the rest of the group."
"I don't want weak people in my organization."
"Weakness gets people killed."
"That's natural."
"But if the people in my group die because of your weakness..."
"The situation changes."
For a brief moment, Arteum felt a chill run through his entire body.
It was an indescribable sensation.
For a split second, it no longer felt like he was standing in front of a human being.
It felt like he was standing in front of something else.
The feeling disappeared almost instantly.
Yet it lingered in his mind.
"...Understood," Arteum replied quietly.
His voice sounded weaker than he intended.
Conrad simply nodded and left.
Several days later, Reginald and Lina sat together inside a café, casually drinking coffee.
The atmosphere was relaxed.
Comfortable.
After a while, a new face approached their table.
Valiant.
He greeted them before taking a seat.
"Conrad probably told you about me already," he said.
Reginald grinned.
"Of course."
"Welcome to the group, Valiant."
He gestured toward the woman beside him.
"This is Lina."
"She's one of our members."
"And she's also my girlfriend."
Valiant nodded politely.
"Nice to meet you."
Reginald chuckled.
"I hope Conrad didn't traumatize you too badly."
Valiant laughed.
"Physically? Not really."
"Mentally?"
He shook his head.
"I feel like I have to relearn everything I thought I knew."
Both Lina and Reginald burst into laughter.
"How?" Valiant asked.
"How does someone that young know so much?"
Reginald and Lina exchanged a glance.
After several seconds, Lina answered.
"Everyone has their own secrets."
"And their own problems."
"Especially when it comes to Nen."
She smiled slightly.
"Trying to measure what people know and don't know isn't very useful."
"Especially when you're talking about our leader."
Valiant nodded.
He understood.
That didn't stop him from being curious.
"Fair enough," he said.
"I was just wondering."
Reginald decided to change the topic.
"Another member joined recently."
"His name's Arteum."
Valiant immediately looked at him.
"Oh?"
Reginald nodded.
"That's right."
Valiant smiled.
"Arteum's a Floor Master too."
"He specializes in long-range combat."
"And he's pretty capable in close combat as well."
"Honestly, we're probably around the same level."
Reginald leaned back in his chair.
"Then if both of you manage to complete your Creational Conditions..."
"We'll have seven fully developed members."
Lina laughed and raised her coffee cup.
"In other words..."
"We're getting stronger."