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Leo couldn't focus on his classes for the rest of the day. The moment school was out, he rushed home. But as he reached his front door, he stopped dead in his tracks.
Could a single old photograph really change something that had been constant for over a decade?
The thought flashed through his mind, unbidden, and his heart clenched. He stood frozen on the landing, his eyes fixed on the silent, closed door. The cold winter air from the stairwell swirled around him, but the palm holding his key was slick with sweat.
After a long ten seconds, he finally steeled himself to open the door. Just as he was about to insert the key, the door clicked and swung inward.
A woman who was flawless by any standard stood in the doorway.
She looked to be in her late twenties, her dark hair combed back into an elegant, intellectual style. Her lightly made-up face was exquisite, and her eyes, the color of the deep blue sea, held a hint of heroic spirit beneath her dark, perfectly shaped eyebrows. She wore a loose but fashionable white shirt and trousers that showed off a graceful, tall figure. Her entire bearing was that of a queen, yet it was mixed with a natural, casual aura.
Noble and relaxed.
The two completely different temperaments didn't clash. Instead, they blended together in a subtle and perfect harmony.
"Auntie," Leo said, his voice almost a whisper.
"Come in."
His aunt, Diana, didn't ask why he'd been standing outside the door. She simply squatted down, her posture creating a perfect arc from her neck to her waist, and retrieved his slippers from the shoe cabinet. She placed them neatly on the mat in front of him.
"Auntie, I…"
Leo opened his mouth, feeling that he shouldn't hide anything from her. That was one thing that hadn't changed in sixteen years. But for a moment, he didn't know how to begin.
"Let's eat first," Diana interrupted, as if she could see the turmoil in his mind. She turned and walked into the living room.
Leo felt a wave of relief. He hung his schoolbag on the hook by the door, slipped on his shoes, and followed her.
The living room was bathed in the warm glow of the lamps. On the table were two plates of pasta, the steam carrying the rich aroma of beef sauce and spices. Diana and Leo sat across from each other, eating their dinner in comfortable silence.
"Pasta again," Leo mumbled, looking at the familiar meal as if the heavy atmosphere from before had never existed.
To his surprise, his aunt's expression turned stern. "You should be grateful you have food at all," she replied coolly. "Don't be picky."
"Yes, ma'am."
With a defeated look, Leo quickly picked up his fork and dug in. His aunt was perfect in almost every way, but her cooking skills were… average. The taste was as ordinary as ever. Still, eating it now reminded him of his childhood. He remembered a time when his aunt couldn't cook at all.
"Ahem!"
Leo ate too quickly and started to choke. Diana, who had been watching him from across the table, immediately got up and gently patted his back. "Eat slowly," she said, handing him her water glass.
He took a large gulp of warm water, and the tightness in his chest eased. Feeling emboldened, he decided to just get it over with. "Auntie," he began, "this morning, someone slipped a photograph under our door."
He pulled the photo from his pocket, placed it on the table, and recounted the morning's events. Diana listened quietly, her expression unreadable. But when her eyes fell on the black-and-white picture, a faint ripple of emotion flashed across her face.
When Leo finished his story, Diana took the photo and put it away. "I know who sent this," she said, her voice calm and reassuring. "I'll handle it. You don't need to worry about this anymore."
"Okay."
Leo didn't doubt for a second that his aunt could handle it. But his curiosity got the better of him. "Auntie, the woman in that photo… the armor she's wearing is so strange."
"Since you want to know, I'll tell you," Diana said, her face growing solemn. She took a moment to compose her thoughts. "That woman was my grandmother. She passed away a long time ago. I was told she helped the World Government fight against a mysterious force during a great war."
"A mysterious force? You mean like… one of the Ancient Weapons?" Leo's eyes widened. The history of the Void Century was shrouded in mystery, filled with legends of unimaginable power.
Diana shook her head. "That was a long time ago. It's just a story my mother told me when I was young." She paused, then added firmly, "Besides, there are no such things as gods in this world."
"Right," Leo said, breathing a sigh of relief. The world was crazy enough with pirates and Devil Fruits. He didn't need ancient deities to be real, too.
Diana also seemed to relax.
"I'm meeting a friend later, so I might be back late," she said softly. She took a sip from her water glass and noticed Leo staring at it.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"Nothing, nothing," Leo said, shaking his head. He had just realized something. He had drunk from his aunt's cup moments ago, and now she was drinking from it again.
Didn't that count as an indirect kiss?
It wasn't a big deal. When he was a child, he and his aunt had often bathed together. That was probably one of the reasons he found it hard to be interested in other girls. It was like looking at masterfully crafted art every day; everything else just seemed a little dull in comparison.
But now, there was a problem.
Could an indirect kiss trigger my 'Parasite' ability?
He had never tested his power, but he knew the three conditions for its activation:
Physical contact with a female.
The contact had to be… intimate.
An exchange of fluids.
His aunt was definitely female—a perfect one at that. As for intimate contact, did her patting his back just now count? The most important part was the fluid exchange. Even if there had been some saliva swapped via the cup, it was diluted by the water.
So, it probably didn't trigger, right?
The question gnawed at him for the rest of the meal.
"Don't wait up for me. Go to bed early," Diana said in a tone one might use with a child.
Leo couldn't help but smile. "I know, I know. You be safe out there. This city doesn't have a resident hero to protect it, you know." Currently, the world's most powerful figures tended to congregate in the Grand Line or the New World, not the peaceful East Blue.
"Don't worry, I'm always lucky," Diana said with a reassuring wink. "You just take care of the house. Don't go running around." She pulled on her winter boots and walked out the door, leaving him with a smile.
The apartment fell silent again.
Leo stared at the closed door, an inexplicable emptiness settling in his heart. He replayed their conversation in his mind.
"Is that really all there is to the photo?" he murmured. If the picture was just of his aunt's grandmother, what was the motive of the person who delivered it?
"It doesn't feel that simple," he sighed. He started to clear the table, but as he picked up his glass, there was a sharp crack.
Leo froze. He looked down, and his pupils constricted.
The water glass in his hand had shattered, bursting as if it had been subjected to an impossible amount of force. Shards of glass rained onto the floor.
"The cup? No, it's… me."
His palm was completely unharmed, but he could feel an unprecedented strength coursing through it, a raw power that felt like it could crush anything.
Was it an illusion?
Stunned, Leo looked at the metal fork still clutched in his other hand. He flexed his fingers slightly, and to his amazement, the sturdy metal bent and twisted as if it were soft clay. A perfect indent of his fingerprints was now pressed into the handle.
This was real. This was extraordinary.
"Huh?" Leo was completely dazed.
"Throw PowerStones For my Support.
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