On another level of the facility— the gym.
"Oooh~ girl, how are you this ripped? Damn~"
"I work out, duh..." (sarcastic)
"So tight! 10 outta 10, no notes!"
"Se-Sera... stop... it tickles..."
Roxxy regretted her decision to wear a midriff-revealing top to the gym. She should've just borrowed one of her brother's oversized Chang Beer shirts instead…
Because right now, Sera was rubbing her stomach non-stop—her long nails lightly grazing her skin and making the poor girl squirm.
Goosebumps. Everywhere. Ugh.
"Hey! Cut it out!"
Grab!
Roxxy caught both of Sera's hands and pulled them away.
"...You seriously just came to watch?"
"Do I look like I came dressed to work out?"
"Ah... shouldn't have even asked..."
Roxxy returned to her routine, starting with warmups and moving up gradually. She was currently stretching her arms and legs.
Sera stood nearby, watching and chatting.
"So... do you usually hit the gym often?"
"...Whenever I've got time, yeah..."
"And how long each time?"
"...Depends on my mood... but at least two hours."
"Two hours!? Without breaks?"
"Yep."
Yikes... that's intense...
"What kind of stuff do you do?"
"Um... I run there, then weights over there... and then—"
A whole list of things that was exhausting just to hear.
"Okay okay, that's enough... I'll cheer from over here. You go do your thing."
"You're really not gonna work out with me?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"...You're the only one out of all of us who doesn't exercise at all..."
"!!!!"
Sera froze, realizing the brutal truth.
...Oh crap. She's right...
"...Maybe later..."
"Ah... okay..."
Roxxy continued stretching, not realizing she'd just dropped a mental bomb on Sera.
"...."
Sera began contemplating—maybe it really was time she started taking workouts seriously. The weight measurement from earlier echoed in her mind like a haunting bell.
"...."
"By the way, where's Sally?"
"...I handed her off to the medical team. If the hypnosis session works, we'll get more details on what she's been through."
"And what will happen to her after that?"
"She probably won't be far from becoming part of the organization... I think they'll provide her education first. Sally's power is... fascinating. No way they'll let that go."
Roxxy dropped to the ground and began doing push-ups.
Sera found a nearby weight bench and sat on it, continuing their chat.
"Hey, I've been wondering something."
"Hm?"
"Your family's pretty well-off, right?"
"...According to what Google says, yeah..."
"I saw your brother wears tailored clothes. He always rags on me for using expensive stuff when he's no better."
"...Tailored clothes?..."
Roxxy froze in position, thinking for a moment.
"My brother, you say?"
"Yeah, his jacket has his name sewn inside. One of a kind."
"Oh, that one... the one from the airport?"
"Yep."
"Mom bought that for him... I've got one too. Probably one of the few pricey things we actually use."
"...Then what kind of brands do you guys usually wear?"
"...I don't really know... Most of my clothes are freebies from my mom's company events."
"...You mean those Chang Beer shirts?"
"...Just those alone fill up the closet. Same with my brother... he can't even remember which shirt belongs to who. His stuff ends up in my closet all the time..."
"You mean to tell me you guys don't own anything like Hermès, Gucci, Louis Vuitton...?"
"...Not really... maybe Mom does... but only for formal events..."
"...Weird... your family's so down-to-earth."
"...You think so?"
Sera started feeling like something really didn't add up...
"Okay, so how big is your house?"
"Are you looking to buy it?"
"Just tell me!"
"...Uh... not sure... but it's pretty big, I guess..."
"So like... typical rich people house?"
"...Yeah..."
"You have housekeepers?"
"...Housekeepers? Yeah... we do..."
"So people do your chores?"
"...Kind of... but our personal stuff, like our rooms... Mom makes us clean that ourselves."
"...What? Really?"
"Yup... She said it teaches us discipline. Didn't want us growing up lazy."
"....."
Sera thought about the state of her own bedroom. Not a total mess, but... yeah. She's never once cleaned it herself. Always relied on the maid.
"..."
"...Your mom—does she have powers?"
"...Eh? Oh... yeah, she does..."
"....."
"...That's odd..."
"What is?"
"...Your mom's a power-user... you're a power-user... but your brother isn't?"
"...."
"...Why? I mean, no study's proven powers are linked to DNA..."
Which was true.
Even in Sera's family, some siblings didn't have powers.
"So your ice powers... do they come in handy at all in daily life?"
"...Not really... but when I'm back in Thailand... my brother and those three always cling to me... I'm like walking AC to them."
"...Ah~ So you're like a portable air conditioner? Haha!"
"...And you're like walking 3D Printer..."
"Speaking of those three... I've been meaning to ask... Why do you seem to dislike Toshi so much? Did something happen?"
Roxxy, who was about to switch to pull-ups, froze.
Since the pull-up bar was above her reach (or maybe she was just too short), she leaned on a pillar and turned toward Sera.
Her entire expression changed.
"Speak of the devil... there he is now."
"...?"
"Hey~ Sera! There you are. Thought you disappeared."
It was the voice of the Japanese boy—Toshi Ishii.
He showed up in a gray FBT workout outfit that Sid had bought for him.
And Sera could only think of one thing: damn, that's good work—in every sense of the word.
"You two here to work out?"
"Nah... just her."
"Ah..."
Toshi took a sip from his water bottle and stood next to the British girl.
"..."
"What is it, Sera? You've been staring."
"...Not gonna lie... even though you're just as crude as those two... you're easily one of the best-looking people I've ever met."
"Oof... coming right out with it, huh? You're making me blush..."
"You don't believe me?"
Sera knew the fashion world well—she was familiar with male and female models alike.
"...I've heard it plenty. I'm used to it."
He said,
"There's no such thing as good-looking or ugly... there's only 'popular' and 'unpopular' looks."
"...Ooh~ Humble, too?"
"Yeah, yeah, keep talking."
Roxxy gave him a sharp side-eye. His gaze, in contrast, dropped low.
"You're no different from all those self-help gurus."
Even her tone had shifted...
"What is going on with you two?"
Sera looked between them, puzzled and intrigued.
"...Sigh... we've come this far. Guess I have to tell you..."
Toshi didn't want to talk about it, while Sera was now all ears.
He looked over at Roxxy Barrett... let out a long sigh... then turned to Sera and said:
"So, the thing is..."