Sid: You took the back door, didn't you?

"Have you figured out what that kid can do?" Shalnark asked as he headed back to the Phantom Troupe's hideout. 💔♜  🍔🔥

The people he'd been controlling had already been released. Now, only he and Uvogin remained.

"Other than teleporting, I didn't find any other abilities. He's not that strong, either," Uvogin said in a low voice.

"I wonder if that so-called Vulture is just too weak, or if the Church's entry requirements really are that lenient now..." Shalnark clasped his hands behind his head and spoke in a languid tone.

At the same time, they stepped into the Phantom Troupe's hideout.

Their leader was sitting in his usual spot, reading. Wrapped in bandages from head to toe, Phinks stood like a shadow beside Pakunoda, guarding Chrollo. Machi sat alone off to one side, while Feitan and Franklin played video games. Nobunaga sat with Franklin.

"You're a little later than usual today. Did something happen on the way?"

Hearing them arrive, Nobunaga and Franklin looked up to greet the two. Franklin asked the question, his gaze on Uvogin.

"I spent a while playing with a kid from the Church," Uvogin replied casually, sitting cross-legged beside them.

As for the details of the fight? There wasn't much to say.

"A kid from the Church? That ability user from yesterday? How strong is he?" Chrollo looked up from his book and suddenly asked.

Yesterday, the Phantom Troupe hadn't been in Meteor City; they'd been elsewhere. Most of the time, their members were scattered across the world, only gathering when something major came up.

Even today, not all of their members were there.

They'd just come back for a brief visit, and to bring some things back for their fellow Meteor City residents who were also out of town.

They weren't the only ones supporting Meteor City.

"He's decent at running away. Nothing else about his abilities is worth mentioning," Shalnark replied thoughtfully as he sat down beside Franklin.

At least, that was what he'd seen.

"I see. Then there's no need to pay him much attention," Chrollo said lightly, then lowered his head and returned to his book.

The Phantom Troupe's hideout fell quiet again, its silence nevertheless imbued with a sense of harmony and understanding.

Elsewhere, at the Church, Sid looked at the white-haired boy sitting nearby, stuffing his face and doing nothing. His expression turned cold as he spoke.

"From now on, you'll train with those kids."

Su Wu paused mid-chew and looked at him.

Whenever someone met those blue eyes, so clear they seemed to hold drifting clouds, their heart skipped a beat.

Sid thought the boy was about to object, but instead he heard him say, "Their training isn't intense enough for me."

Su Wu's tone was calm and utterly serious.

His body was already in good shape, but he hadn't fully realized his potential yet. It was like owning a treasure chest without knowing it.

Training was certainly a good way to bring out his body's potential.

His previous sparring partner had been Uvogin. And since he'd only used his fists, with barely any Cursed Energy infused into them, he'd only been trying to see if he could land a Black Flash. So his opponent had probably thought he was average. After all, he hadn't even been trying. If he could knock Uvogin flat without even breaking a sweat, how boring would this world be?

He didn't mind training alongside the other kids, but their training wouldn't help him at all.

"You... Wait a moment. I'll get Pampas." Sid pulled out a phone and started calling Pampas.

So you could use phones in Meteor City, too...

That made sense. It was a garbage dump, but it wasn't cut off from the internet. Otherwise, how would people get information from the outside world?

It was just that ordinary residents usually couldn't get their hands on a phone.

The call connected quickly. Before Pampas could say anything, Sid spoke first. "Let me borrow Sapp for a bit."

"What kind of gadget are you making this time? Hold on, I'll send him over in a moment," Pampas asked casually, clearly not expecting an answer. His reply was just as direct.

"Oh, right. Is the new kid your son?" Sid suddenly remembered the question that had crossed his mind earlier and asked, full of curiosity.

"...Are you insane?" Pampas's voice was cold, tinged with disbelief.

Had Sid finally gone mad from looking after kids?

Did he think every kid he saw was Pampas's son?

The call ended without mercy. Sid gave the boy beside him an awkward grin.

The boy's smile seemed to carry a hint of mockery, or perhaps he just found Sid's far-fetched idea ridiculous.

Fortunately, the boy didn't leave him to stew in his embarrassment. He simply asked, with casual indifference, "Who's Sapp?"

"He's also a member of the Church. His ability's a little unusual," Sid said vaguely.

Half an hour later, Su Wu met Sapp.

Sapp was dressed like a priest, and... he was two meters tall, exceptionally muscular, and bald, with a gleaming scalp.

He'd make a fine martial monk.

"Hey, Sapp. I'll have to trouble you again, but this time it's not for me. It's for this kid." Sid greeted him familiarly and pointed at Su Wu.

"Same as you?" Sapp asked Su Wu, though the question was meant for Sid.

"Let's start with... twenty kilograms," Sid said, stroking his chin.

Sapp pulled several black iron bars from inside his clothes and bent them into rings with his bare hands. "Hold out your hands," he instructed Su Wu.

Su Wu obediently held out both hands. The next moment, two black rings were placed around his wrists, and the weight made his hands sink involuntarily.

"Lift your feet," Sapp continued.

Su Wu looked at his heavy hands and lifted both feet.

Immediately, he felt the weight press down on his feet, too.

So twenty kilograms meant twenty kilograms per ring. Four rings meant he was now carrying a total of eighty kilograms.

But his physical condition really was excellent. He could still move, though his movements were a little slower.

It wasn't much for his body to handle, but he still hadn't learned to control it properly.

It was like a poor man suddenly coming into a trillion dollars and having no idea how to spend it.

Of course, if he used Cursed Energy to strengthen his body, this wouldn't be so difficult.

But the whole point was to train his body, so there was no need to use Cursed Energy. If he did, the training would be meaningless.

"Training with these on should be fine, but am I supposed to fight those kids?" Su Wu stood there, slowly moving his limbs as if warming up.

The iron rings hadn't seemed heavy at first. Had Sapp done something to make them heavier?

He looked like an Enhancement-type, but apparently wasn't one after all.

"I'm off." Once he'd finished, Sapp left without another word.

"I'll have to trouble you again in a month!" Sid called after him, waving goodbye.

"Will I take them off in a month?" Su Wu asked casually, looking down at the plain black rings on his wrists.

Come to think of it, the black wristbands went pretty well with the tattoos on his hands.

"No. In a month, we'll add more weight. And your training partner is me." Sid's smile carried a strangely ominous air.

They were going to add even more weight on top of eighty kilograms...

His body could handle it now. With his old physique, he'd have been helplessly furious under this much weight.

But now, he was looking forward to what lay ahead.

He wanted to gain the unprecedented power he'd never had the chance to obtain before.

The world was so vast. Since he'd made it here, he might as well look around.

Power was the foundation of everything.

"Then bring it on." The white-haired, blue-eyed boy with black markings on his face spoke with unmistakable delight, his smile bold and unrestrained.