Although Sheila didn't know Ronin's identity, the moment she saw him appear here together with Kurapika—
and especially when Kurapika seriously started asking about the Troupe—
she had a very bad feeling.
So after hearing Ronin's question, she thought carefully for a moment before answering, "Yes. Paku probably helped me up before."
"And did she ever ask where you'd been recently?" Ronin continued.
"Yes. Paku always liked asking about those things. She's a good person, and she worries about me a lot." Sheila gave a sincere smile. "Paku, Sarasa, and I all grew up here at the church together. Even though I drifted away from Kuroro and the others after Sarasa was killed, Paku was still my friend. Every time I came back from outside, we'd even stay up all night talking."
Ronin looked toward Kurapika.
And Kurapika asked the most crucial question: "Sheila, do you know Pakunoda's Nen ability?"
Sheila shook her head. "Paku never told me. Maybe because I'm not part of the Troupe Kuroro created, they rarely tell me anything about Troupe matters, and I rarely ask. I only know they followed their own beliefs and became A-rank criminals because they thought that would help them find the people who killed Sarasa.
"But I don't think their way of fighting violence with violence is the best answer. So all these years, I've been looking for a way to uncover the truth myself. Becoming a Hunter seemed like one of the most reliable ways."
Sheila was surprisingly open and straightforward. She answered nearly everything Kurapika asked.
And from the way she spoke, it was obvious that her ideals didn't match the Troupe's at all.
So the key problem really did seem to lie with Pakunoda.
She'd been using her ability on Sheila all this time to gather information—but why?
Ronin frowned, puzzled.
His gaze swept over Sheila, but he couldn't see anything particularly special about her. Could the key lie in Sheila's own ability?
Kurapika's expression relaxed slightly as Sheila answered.
He hadn't expected Sheila to be someone who had grown up alongside the Phantom Troupe. Still, he could tell that after Sarasa's death, they had chosen different paths because of their differences in belief.
But even if their ideals diverged, years of shared history didn't just disappear.
"So what happened, Kurapika?" Sheila asked, fully serious now.
And deep down, she already had a guess—but she desperately hoped it was wrong.
Because if she was right—
then how were Kuroro and the others any different from the monsters who killed Sarasa back then?
"Everyone in the Kurta Clan besides me and Big Brother Ronin—including Pairo—died at the hands of the Phantom Troupe."
In the end, Kurapika still said the one thing Sheila least wanted to hear.
At the same time, Shizuku—standing beside Neon—learned for the first time that Ronin and Kurapika were Kurta.
For her, though, it wasn't a huge deal. It just meant they had another enemy now.
Since Ronin could help her get revenge, then it was only natural for her to help Ronin in return.
Besides, she didn't really know the Troupe anyway. All she knew was that they were a group admired by many people in Meteor City.
If Ronin hadn't appeared, maybe things really would have gone the way he said—maybe she would've ended up cooperating with the Phantom Troupe just to deal with Spence.
At least she knew clearly that with her current strength, she might have had a chance against Spence alone. But if she had to face both Spence and his butler inside Spence's manor, her odds of winning would have been slim.
Spence's ability wasn't weak. The main reason he lost so fast was simply because Ronin was too strong.
When Sheila heard the news, her face went pale.
She had grown up with Kuroro and the others.
She knew their ideals no longer aligned with hers, but she had never imagined they had fallen this far.
At that point, how were they any different from the devils who killed Sarasa?
Sheila felt nothing but disappointment.
"I'm sorry." She didn't know what else to say, so she just kept apologizing again and again.
Kurapika let out a quiet sigh. "It's not your fault."
Just like Ronin had said before, even without him or Sheila, the moment the Phantom Troupe set their sights on the Scarlet Eyes, finding the Kurta village would only have been a matter of time.
If Big Brother Ronin had possessed his current strength back then, there might have been a chance to fight back.
But more likely, if the Troupe had never come, Big Brother Ronin never would have gained the ability to fuse Scarlet Eyes and grow stronger.
In other words, it was a dead loop.
Unless someone could rewind time and send Big Brother Ronin—already powerful—back to the day the Kurta were massacred.
But did that kind of ability really exist?
Kurapika shook his head, forcing the chaotic thoughts out of his mind.
"Then what are you planning to do here?" Sheila asked, her eyes now carrying a trace of caution.
She wanted to believe that the Kurapika she knew wouldn't drag innocent people into his anger. But after a clan massacre, who could say what kind of changes a person might go through?
Kuroro had only gone through Sarasa's death, and he'd already turned into something like a demon.
So what about Kurapika?
Could he still remain the bright, positive person he used to be?
"Don't worry." Ronin stepped forward. "We're not here to cause trouble for the church. We just came to look around. More precisely, this is a warning for Kuroro."
"He won't care." Sheila gave a bitter smile and shook her head. "He's not the old Kuroro anymore. I don't know exactly what changed in him, but the Kuroro who used to put on performances with his friends and bring laughter to Meteor City… he disappeared a long time ago."
She turned and looked at the children behind her, helplessness in her eyes. "They call it a church, but it's more like an orphanage now. Ever since the nun died, Kuroro hasn't come back here in a very long time."
The children stared warily at Ronin and the others. Some even had open hostility in their eyes.
It was obvious that from the conversation they'd already understood that Ronin's group was the Phantom Troupe's enemy.
And Ronin could tell from the way those kids looked at them that many of them actually admired the Troupe.
It seemed that in their minds, the Phantom Troupe weren't villains at all—but true heroes of Meteor City.
And honestly, from their point of view, that wasn't hard to understand.
Ronin looked away from them.
But from Ronin's perspective, he only hoped Sheila would teach them well.
Otherwise, once they grew up, they'd probably end up dead in some nameless corner for reasons they'd never even understand.