Chapter 54: Spider
Kai and Shizuku found a quiet table by the window. Their food arrived quickly, steaming and aromatic, but before they could take more than a few bites, a shadow fell over their table.
Without asking, a man slid into the empty chair beside them.
Shizuku continued eating, unbothered, but her eyes flicked over to him. It was the same tall, thin figure who had been following them earlier. The hoodie was pulled low, obscuring most of his face, but now, up close, he reached up and pulled it back.
The face underneath was gaunt, almost skeletal. His skin was sallow and sickly yellow, like old parchment. His eyes were sunk deep into dark, bruised sockets, and they stared out with a dull, lifeless intensity—not at Kai or Shizuku, but at some point in the distance, past the restaurant walls.
"My name is Ruiwan," the man rasped.
Okay, buddy, slow down, Kai thought, putting down his chopsticks. Who asked? He had seen the guy through his crow's eyes earlier, but this was the first time he'd seen his face clearly.
"So... Mr. Bowl? (Wan)," Kai said, deliberately misinterpreting the name. "You look terrible. Like you're about to murder someone."
"Is that so...?" Ruiwan's eyes swiveled in their deep sockets, finally focusing on Kai. "Just as I thought. People like you... your intuition is sharp."
Kai activated Gyo. The man's Aura was visible—far stronger than a normal person's, and contained enough to show he had mastered Ten. He was a Nen user. But his Aura felt... wrong. Unstable.
Ruiwan leaned in, his bloodshot eyes locking onto them. "I recognized you instantly. People like us... we know our own. So tell me... why? Why do people with power like yours... why do you let those monsters live? Why do you let them keep breathing?"
Shizuku chewed her food, her expression unchanged. Kai just listened.
"The Phantom Troupe... they took everything from me," Ruiwan whispered, his voice trembling with suppressed rage. "They killed my family. My friends. My neighbors... everyone."
Veins bulged in his eyes as he spoke. "Those murderers... they've been free for years. Why? Why doesn't anyone stop them? With power like yours... why don't you kill them? As long as they live... there will be more people like me. People who lose everything in a single night..."
Kai looked at the man, who was now muttering to himself, lost in his own spiral of grief and vengeance.
"I can't speak for anyone else," Kai said calmly. "But right now? I definitely can't beat them."
He picked up a piece of chicken. "And I'm not interested in dying."
"Don't you want to kill them?!" Ruiwan hissed, his eyes wide and manic. It wasn't really a question; he was just projecting his own obsession. "I have to kill them... I have to kill them..."
Kai pointed to his own mouth, enunciating clearly. "Read. My. Lips. I. Can't. Beat. Them."
"Why... why..." The man slumped back, his energy draining away, leaving him looking like a hollow shell. He clearly wasn't listening anymore.
Kai sighed and shook his head. He signaled the waiter, ordered a meal to be delivered to the man's table, paid the bill, and stood up.
"Let's go, Shizuku."
...
As they walked back toward the hotel, the night air cool against their skin, Shizuku spoke up.
"The people I left Meteor City to find," she said, her voice flat. "It's the Phantom Troupe."
"Hmm?" Kai was busy checking his bird-scouts to make sure the crazy guy wasn't following them. Seeing the coast was clear, he released his control. "Oh. Yeah, I figured."
Shizuku looked at him, genuinely surprised. "Why would you know that?"
"Who else would a girl from Meteor City be looking for?" Kai shrugged. "They're the only 'superstars' to ever come out of that dump."
"Oh..." Shizuku nodded, accepting this logic. Then she paused. "Is it common knowledge? That the Troupe is from Meteor City?"
"I know it," Kai said. "As for everyone else... who knows?"
"Okay." She dropped the subject.
"So," Kai asked, "what did you think of that guy back there?"
Shizuku thought for a moment. "The Phantom Troupe kills a lot of people. It's only natural that people would want to kill them back."
And that was that. They walked back to the hotel, chatting about training schedules and dinner plans, the encounter already fading from their minds.
Back to the grind.
...
January 31st. 6:55 PM.
Short-Stay Hotel near Kosumo Airport, Room 4022.
The air in the room was heavy with exhaustion.
Shizuku's Aura flickered. Her Ken shroud, once robust, was now thin and wavering, shrinking closer and closer to her skin.
Tick. Tick. Tick.
The digital timer on the desk counted the seconds mercilessly.
Finally, Shizuku gasped. Her Aura winked out. She collapsed to her knees, drenched in sweat, her chest heaving.
She glanced at the timer.
2 hours, 27 minutes, 28 seconds.
She did the mental math. That means... my Total Aura (P.O.P.) is now 8,848.
She rolled over and sat cross-legged on the carpet, looking up at Kai.
He was still standing.
His face was slick with sweat, his muscles trembling with fatigue. His Ken was unstable, pulsing erratically, shrinking... but it held.
2 hours, 28 minutes...
2 hours, 29 minutes...
The timer ticked on. Kai's focus was absolute. He held on, forcing every last drop of energy out of his reserves, until his legs simply gave out.
He collapsed, gasping for air, his vision swimming.
He heard Shizuku pick up the timer.
"Two and a half hours exactly," she said. "150 minutes. Kai... your P.O.P. is exactly 9,000."
Kai let out a weak laugh and flopped onto his butt, massaging his aching limbs. He looked up. "Finally caught you."
"You completely passed me," Shizuku corrected, holding up the timer.
"Pass, schmass," Kai muttered. Then he blinked. "Where are your clothes?"
Shizuku was sitting cross-legged on the carpet, wearing nothing but her underwear. Her jeans and sweater were in a pile next to her.
"I was sweaty," she said, pulling at her bra strap. "It was sticking."
"...You weren't planning on taking that off too, were you?"
Shizuku just looked at him, her expression unreadable.
Kai groaned, pushed himself up, and walked over. He grabbed her arm and hauled her to her feet. "If you're sticky, go take a shower."
"Oh..."
February 1st.
It was moving day.
Kai and Shizuku stood at the door of their hotel room, surrounded by a mountain of bags and boxes. Over the last two weeks of training and city-hopping, they had accumulated a surprising amount of stuff.
"Blinky," Shizuku said, raising her hand. The vacuum popped into existence. "Inhale all the luggage."
Click. She flipped the switch.
WHIIIIIRRR!
The vacuum's mouth opened wide, and in seconds, the entire pile of bags, boxes, and supplies vanished into its dark gullet.
"Let's go," she said, dispelling the vacuum.
"And you still say you're not Dora-D-Mon," Kai teased.
"Hm?" A question mark appeared over her head.
Kai laughed. "Alright, split up. I'm going to pick up the rings. You head to the airport. I'll meet you there."
"Okay." Shizuku nodded.
They walked out of the hotel and went their separate ways.
(End of Chapter)