Ronin had a few ideas about clearing the game, but he knew better than anyone that it wasn't something they could finish in a short time.
After weighing everything, just taking out the three Troupe members already made the trip worthwhile.
He still hadn't told Kurapika about Muir's situation yet.
His plan was simple: go check it out himself first. If he needed backup, he'd call Kurapika over. If not, Kurapika could stay in the game with Shizuku and the others to keep training. Ronin seriously doubted the Troupe would copy their move and jump into the game just to launch an ambush.
If the Troupe actually made that call, Kurapika's abilities would let him prepare for it easily.
In Ronin's eyes, if the Spiders really decided to enter the game, it would be pretty close to suicide.
All they had to do was station people at the starting point who knew what the Troupe members looked like. The second any of them showed up, Kurapika would know. Even if the Spiders spotted the watchers and took them out, it wouldn't matter. The moment those watchers' names faded from the card book, Kurapika—who checked his book on a set schedule—would immediately realize something was wrong.
That was probably the biggest difference between Kurapika and the Troupe right now.
If Hisoka had been among the ones entering the game, he would've set everything up in advance. He wouldn't have let Ronin get close while they stayed completely in the dark.
Or maybe…
Ronin thought about Feitan. It was possible Hisoka had already known what Feitan and the others were planning.
Out of the three who died, Phinks was probably the only one who might've actually considered running.
While Ronin was turning these thoughts over, Kurapika was busy dealing with the seven players who had just arrived.
Ronin had already filled Kurapika in on Genthru ahead of time, so he wasn't worried about Kurapika getting blindsided.
Kurapika had no intention of clearing the game with a big group.
After making that clear and stating they wouldn't be firing players on Battera's behalf, he sent the relieved ones on their way.
Three people stayed behind. Nikens and Genthru were two of them.
The third had the same goal as Nikens—he wanted to invite Kurapika's team into his own organization and offered to split the rewards.
Greed Island was too hard.
It wasn't the kind of game one or two people could clear easily, no matter how strong they were.
That was the core of his pitch.
He seemed confident because he knew Kurapika's group was also working for Battera.
Too bad it was never going to work.
When the guy left, Nikens tried one last time.
"Our team's already collected a lot of specified pocket cards. If we clear the game, we're planning to split the prize money evenly. You don't have to join us. We just don't want to be enemies. We could help each other out."
Nikens sounded almost naive.
That was Ronin and Kurapika's first thought after hearing him.
Splitting the prize money evenly was the kind of idealistic plan only dreamers came up with. Groups built on that kind of thinking always fell apart eventually—either someone ran off with the cards or the big team split into smaller factions.
Ronin wasn't sure if Nikens was genuinely that innocent or if he had his own hidden agenda.
But Genthru? Genthru had clearly joined with the intention of running off with the cards and wiping out the rest of the team.
His method wasn't even wrong. Once he took the cards and ran, everyone left behind would become his enemy. Killing them all would be the cleanest solution.
"Sorry," Kurapika said, decisive. "If we decide to clear the game, we'll do it on our own. We don't need outside help."
That was also his way of telling Nikens that if Kurapika's side ended up clearing the game, the two groups would be competitors. Don't expect any mercy.
Nikens didn't look happy, but mostly he just seemed resigned.
He glanced at Genthru, hoping the guy who'd been so eager to come along might have a better offer.
Genthru only smiled and stayed quiet.
Up close, Genthru had felt it immediately—that instinctive warning of danger. If he tried anything, he would die.
He trusted that feeling completely. Especially when he caught the faint, almost playful look in Ronin's eyes. He didn't dare move.
Ronin was strong.
Stronger than anyone Genthru had ever met.
Even just standing there with Ten active, Ronin put out enough pressure to make Genthru's skin crawl.
If he could help it, he didn't want to make an enemy out of this guy.
After Nikens and Genthru left, Kurapika turned to Ronin.
"He got scared, didn't he?"
"Yeah." Ronin shrugged. "I let a little unfriendly aura leak toward him on purpose. Probably spooked him. Besides, this isn't really the right situation for him to make a move anyway."
"True," Kurapika agreed.
"Still, be careful around him once I'm gone," Ronin reminded him.
Even though Ronin had already told Kurapika he was heading to the Etoria Kingdom alone, Kurapika still looked worried.
"I don't have to stay here and train if you need me," Kurapika said.
"Collecting the Scarlet Eyes isn't something we have to rush right now," Ronin shook his head. "We need to move on our own terms sometimes. We can't let the Troupe dictate every single thing we do."
He looked at Kurapika. "You stay here with the girls and keep training. If you can build a solid foundation for clearing the game, even better."
Ronin still hadn't decided which card he might want to bring out of the game, but if they actually managed to get the first clear, he wouldn't mind finishing it.
"Alright," Kurapika finally agreed.
This was also Ronin opening a new path.
Muir's information mentioned something connected to the Kurta Clan. If the remaining Scarlet Eyes became too hard to reach, Ronin wanted to know whether other Kurta villages existed outside their own branch. If they did, that would give him a fresh source without having to slaughter anyone.
Of course, he had no intention of doing what the Troupe did. But as long as new villages existed, there would be ways to obtain more Scarlet Eyes.
He also wanted to find out exactly how far he could push the fusion with his eyes.