——Boundary Line——
The pale blue light screen rippled slightly in the air. Leo stepped through, surrounded by a familiar scene.
The room was quiet. Ashir stood to the side, maintaining his teleportation ability.
Kalluto stepped out of the light door, his footsteps pausing for a moment.
He looked up at his surroundings, then down at the floor beneath his feet. His expression remained unchanged, but a flicker of novelty quickly flashed through those fiery red eyes.
"This is the 200th floor of Heavens Arena."
Leo said.
"I suppose you could say I live here."
Kalluto nodded without speaking.
Seeing that everyone had been teleported over, Ashir ended his ability. He was quite curious about the youth in the dark purple kimono behind Leo.
'A new partner?'
He wondered to himself.
"It's you!"
Kalluto had also spotted Ashir behind them.
"The one who was caught by Mr. Leo—"
Kalluto said in surprise.
The expression on Ashir's face shifted from curiosity to embarrassment.
Memories of that day immediately surfaced in his mind, and they were clearly unpleasant—
Being knocked unconscious, dragged away, and interrogated; every frame made him wish he could find a hole to crawl into.
Kalluto watched Ashir with great curiosity, not expecting that this guy would still be alive.
Ashir felt uneasy under Kalluto's gaze and could only scratch the back of his head awkwardly, not knowing what to say.
Leo smiled and patted Ashir on the shoulder.
"That's all in the past. His name is Ashir, and he's already joined my team."
He gestured toward Kalluto.
"His ability is Long-distance Teleportation; you've already witnessed it."
Kalluto glanced at Ashir and nodded.
No wonder he was kept alive; this ability was indeed powerful and very practical.
Ashir also nodded hurriedly. The embarrassment on his face faded slightly, though he was still a bit uncomfortable.
"This is Kalluto, our newest partner."
Leo continued.
Ashir reached out a hand toward Kalluto.
"Hello, I'm Ashir. Please take care of me from now on."
Kalluto looked down at the hand, hesitated for a second, then reached out and gave it a light squeeze before letting go.
Ashir didn't mind. He withdrew his hand and pulled a disk from his pocket, handing it to Leo.
"Goreinu, Kastro, and Nico aren't here."
Ashir said.
"They took on a commission and left some time ago. This is a new teleportation medium, in case you need to use it."
Regarding the teleportation medium left in Qiluo Ke City, after Leo and Kalluto had teleported over, he destroyed the teleportation mark left on that disk.
Leo took it and put it in his pocket without asking further.
"What about Sophia and Shizuku?"
"They're still here."
Ashir continued.
"They plan to leave tomorrow."
Leo nodded.
"I'll go see them. You carry on with your work."
He led Kalluto out of the room and headed outside.
The corridor turned several times before they stopped in front of a door.
Leo knocked, and Sophia's voice came from inside.
"Come in."
Pushing the door open, the room was somewhat cluttered.
Two travel bags sat open on the bed, with clothes half-folded.
Sophia was squatting on the floor stuffing things into a bag, while Shizuku sat on a chair by the window, holding a book in her hands.
Seeing Leo enter, Sophia stood up with a smile on her face.
"Master!"
Her gaze fell on Kalluto with curiosity.
Shizuku also put down her book, adjusted her glasses, and watched quietly.
"This is Kalluto, our newest partner."
Leo stepped aside to let Kalluto in.
"Kalluto, this is Sophia, my apprentice. And this is Shizuku."
Sophia stepped forward and reached out her hand openly.
"Hello! Welcome to the team!"
Kalluto looked at the extended hand, hesitated for a second, and then shook it.
He still wasn't quite used to this way of greeting.
"...Hello."
His voice was soft, but natural enough.
Shizuku also walked over. She didn't speak, but simply nodded to him.
Kalluto nodded back, his movements a bit more natural than before.
As the three of them stood there, Sophia said a few more welcoming words while Shizuku listened quietly, occasionally adjusting her glasses.
Kalluto didn't say much, but he wasn't as stiff as he had been earlier.
After chatting for a bit and exchanging contact information, Leo led Kalluto away.
The corridor fell quiet again, save for the sound of their two pairs of footsteps.
Kalluto's gaze fell on an electronic screen on the wall.
The screen was replaying a match. Two contestants were trading blows, fists hitting blocking arms with dull thuds.
His pace slowed. His eyes were fixed on the screen, his expression unchanged, but his gaze never wavered.
Leo noticed.
"Are you interested in this?"
He asked.
"Would you consider signing up to fight?"
Kalluto withdrew his gaze and shook his head, his tone laced with disdain.
"There's no need. Their strength is pathetic."
Leo shrugged and didn't push him.
The two continued walking. After a moment of silence, Leo spoke.
"What are your plans for the future?"
Kalluto didn't answer immediately.
He kept his head down, watching his toes as he walked step by step.
Before today, his life had been planned out—training, missions, home, then more training, more missions, and back home again.
Every step was clear; there was no need to think, no need to choose.
Now that he had suddenly veered off that track, he didn't know where he should go.
Leo didn't rush him, simply slowing his pace to walk alongside him.
"Then why don't you follow me for a while?"
Leo's voice was very calm.
"You can help me track down a few wanted criminals."
Kalluto looked up at Leo, and after a few seconds of silence, he nodded.
"Okay."
Leo smiled.
"Then it's settled. We leave tomorrow."
The two walked out of the main entrance of Heavens Arena.
The night was deep. Streetlights lit up both sides of the road, casting a dim yellow glow over the pavement.
Leo led Kalluto across two streets and stopped in front of a small detached house.
The house wasn't large, with gray exterior walls and a small lawn in front. The streetlight happened to shine right on the house number.
"I rented this for you."
Leo said.
"Stay here for now. I'll come pick you up tomorrow."
Kalluto looked at the door and stood there for a moment.
Then he turned and nodded to Leo.
"See you tomorrow."
Leo waved his hand and turned to walk into the night.
His silhouette was soon swallowed by the streetlight's glow, his footsteps growing distant.
Kalluto stood in place, watching that direction until he could see him no more.
Then he turned, pushed open the door, and walked inside.
The house wasn't big, but it was clean.
The living room had a sofa and a small coffee table, and the kitchen stove was polished to a shine.
He walked to the window, pulled back the curtains, and looked out at the street.
Occasionally, a car would pass under the streetlights, its headlights tracing an arc on the glass before quickly vanishing.
He stood there for a long time, then pulled the curtains shut and turned off the lights.
In the darkness, he lay on the bed with his eyes open.
'Is this the new future?'
'This kind of life seems quite nice.'
Kalluto rolled over and buried his face in the pillow.
He closed his eyes, the corners of his mouth turning up slightly.
Tomorrow! For the first time, he felt that tomorrow was something worth looking forward to.