The Strongest Assassin of the Zoldyck Family!

After Mitani Doppo finished speaking, he turned and left.

Lake's expression shifted uncertainly.

"What does Master mean? Does he really think I'm that far behind Ron? I'm his disciple—why doesn't he want me to succeed? In what way am I inferior to Ron?"

"He even said he himself might not be Ron's match?"

"Hmph, I don't believe it."

Deep down, however, Lake actually did believe it. Mitani Doppo had no reason to fabricate such a thing at that moment, so it had to be true.

Lake realized he'd missed an opportunity. In the depths of his heart, he felt regret. Still, his pride flared too strongly right now. On top of that, Lake felt that since he'd already lost his chance to befriend Ron, lowering his head at this point would be meaningless. If that was the case, why concede?

"I won't lose. My talent isn't any worse than Ron's. My future strength won't be any weaker than his. If Master looks down on me now, one day, I'll make him regret it!"

Lake clenched his fists tight. At this point, he could only comfort himself by blaming everything on Mitani Doppo and Ron. After repeating it to himself several times, Lake gradually came to believe it.

But neither Mitani Doppo's thoughts nor Lake's mattered to Ron—Lake was simply too weak, so weak that Ron could ignore him entirely. It was like the Chimera Ant arc, where the Cheetu squadron leader harassed Silva, yet if Cheetu hadn't pressed so hard, Silva wouldn't have bothered with him at all.

To Ron, Lake was nothing more than a minor figure whose strength wasn't even on par with Nina or Shizuku. His potential for future growth was also extremely limited.

Three days later, Ron returned to the Fiora Kingdom. He arrived at night, so he spent one night at the Dragon Dojo. Wendy had kept his old room ready.

"Miste," Ron greeted when he saw him, "did you keep up with your training these past few days?"

"Yes," Miste said, nodding firmly.

"Good. Keep it up." Ron patted Miste's head. The white tuft of hair bounced.

"Mm-hmm."

Early next morning, Ron and Wendy stood at the entrance of the Dragon Dojo. A car was parked there; Wendy took the driver's seat, and Ron sat in front with her. Even though she was young, Wendy had a license here. In the Fiora Kingdom, she was a royal, a Nen user, and a Dragon Child—very different from an ordinary citizen.

As Wendy drove, she explained, "After returning to Fiora, Ralph and the others were placed in Gik City by Uncle Dominica. It's relatively small. They have a house there, Ralph has a stable job, so their basic needs are taken care of. I haven't visited myself, though."

Previously, Wendy had accompanied Ron to the Zoldyck estate. After returning to Fiora, she got caught up preparing for the Nirvana Tournament. Besides, she hadn't really been that close to Ralph, whereas Ron had more of a connection with Ralph and Lilith.

They sped along. Wendy's driving was steady, unlike Tade's more aggressive style. Even on bumpy sections, it wasn't uncomfortable at all.

Ron glanced at his crystal ball, which still showed seventy percent. It had gone up a bit, but not even by one percent.

"Wendy, how is Gik City?"

"It's an older place—used to be quite prosperous, but over time its charm has faded."

Ron also searched for info about Gik City on his phone. From what he could gather, it wouldn't help him much with advancing the ultimate essence of Observer.

"In that case, I won't stay long. Once I see Lilith and the others, I'll head back to Fiora's capital and push Observer's progress to ninety percent."

Before long, the city came into view—an old-fashioned locale brimming with antiquity. Ron noticed the crystal ball suddenly speed up its trait absorption rate.

"What...?" Ron's eyes flickered. "It's almost as fast as in the Dragon Dojo. Could it be that Gik City isn't as simple as Wendy's and Chii's research suggested? Well, that's a good thing, but I should stay cautious."

They entered the city. Wendy showed her credentials to the guards, then kept driving toward Ralph's place. Gazing out at the surroundings, Ron felt as if he were sightseeing. This city's style was different from anything he'd seen before—even in his previous life.

"This city is quite beautiful."

Wendy nodded. "That's right. I'd never been here, but people said it's a good place to live. Maybe that's why Uncle Dominica brought Ralph and the others here."

"Looks like we're here." Wendy parked the car. They had just stepped out when Lilith, in the courtyard, spotted them and ran over excitedly.

"Big Brother, Wendy!"

Haji and Hasan heard Lilith's voice and came out as well.

"Lilith, long time no see!"

Lilith ran to Ron, hugging him tightly and holding his hand. She held Wendy's hand with the other.

"How have things been for you here, Lilith?"

"Great!" Lilith beamed. "Much better than before. We have a big house, new clothes, and enough to eat. Thank you, Big Brother. Thank you, Big sis Wendy. If it weren't for you…"

Haji and Hasan looked slightly different from before, but they still showed respect toward Ron and Wendy. Soon, Ralph arrived.

"Ralph."

Seeing Ron and Wendy, Ralph's face lit up happily. But Ron noticed a faint trace of worry there.

"Ralph, what's the matter?" Ron asked. "You seem troubled."

Ralph shook his head. "Just something about work. It shouldn't be a big deal—they've already sent someone to handle it."