Walking alongside Mark, Kai breathed in Chicago's morning air. Exhaust fumes mixed with the smell of bread baking somewhere nearby. Four days ago, when he'd first transferred here, even this scent had felt alien. Now he was starting to get used to it. Though part of him was afraid of that adjustment, there was nothing he could do about it. "[serious]I've already made contact. You should get through reception smoothly," "[cold]It's a GDA facility. I don't have an ID," "I know that. That's why I took care of it," Mark kept his eyes forward, lowering his voice slightly. His blonde hair caught the morning sun, and the "I" mark on his chest gleamed dully. "[serious]Look, you can't stay like this. It's only a matter of time before an unregistered superhuman in Chicago becomes a problem. We need to get this sorted out properly today," Kai said nothing. It was the truth. He had no desire to argue. An unremarkable building in Chicago's north side. When the elevator descended underground, the atmosphere changed completely. Concrete walls, white fluorescent lights, the smell of metal. A few suited staff members walking the corridor glanced at Kai and immediately looked away. The look that said, "Who the hell is this guy?" They didn't even bother hiding it. At the reception desk, a staff member asked Kai to present his building pass. When Kai couldn't produce anything, the air froze for a moment. "[serious]He's with me. It's been arranged," Mark cut in. The staff member frowned slightly, checked his terminal, and reluctantly issued a temporary pass. As Kai took the thin card, he thought: I'm a foreign object here. Without Mark's guarantee, I would've been turned away at the door. --- The conference room they were shown to was completely bare. Just a table and chairs. No windows. Fluorescent light fell uniformly from above. A middle-aged man was waiting. Ordinary-looking face behind glasses. But his eyes were sharp. His business card read: GDA Analyst. "[serious]First, let me explain the current legal situation," The man spread out documents. English text. But Kai understood the gist. GDA—Global Defense Agency, an international government organization dealing with superhuman-related threats—required all superhuman activity within the United States to be registered with them. A government-issued ID, birth certificate, or verification from an identity confirmation agency of a GDA member nation. One of those was necessary. "[cold]...I don't have any of those," "Yes," The man spoke without emotion. "According to our system, no record of you as a person exists. We ran fingerprint analysis—nothing matches in our database. Facial recognition came up empty as well. You don't exist in this world. Not officially," Kai looked at the desk. It was the truth. He couldn't say anything. Couldn't argue. This world's Kirishima Kai didn't exist anywhere. Mark lightly touched Kai's arm beside him. A look asking, *You okay?* Kai nodded slightly. He wasn't okay, but he couldn't say he wasn't. The conference room door opened at that moment. --- The right half of his face bore burn scars. That's what caught Kai's eye first. The skin was pulled tight, discolored from below the ear to the jawline. An old wound. He made no attempt to hide it. A man in his sixties walked straight into the room, his gaze fixed on Kai. His spine was perfectly straight. The posture of a former soldier. Despite the suit, he carried the scent of battlefields. Cecil Stedman. GDA Director. The face Kai had seen in the comics was now standing two meters away. "[cold]The analysis is complete," He didn't sit. He stood with his hand on the edge of the table, looking down at Kai. "We analyzed your ability signature. It's not Viltrumite-derived. Not a known Earth mutation either. It doesn't match any of the twenty-three alien categories in the GDA database," He paused. "[serious]Who are you?" Kai didn't answer. Because he didn't know himself. Where his power came from, why he'd transferred here, what purpose he was meant to serve—he understood none of it. Even if he told the truth—a high school student from Japan who transferred to a parallel Earth and somehow manifested superhuman abilities—no one would believe him. The silence seemed to unsettle Cecil. His eyebrow twitched slightly. "[cold]I won't permit you to remain in this city in silence. If you continue superhuman activity in an unregistered state, you'll be subject to federal detention," Mark leaned forward. "[angry]Wait, Cecil. He's still processing the situation. I'll vouch for him," "Your guarantee isn't collateral, Grayson. You're still a rookie—only been registered a few months yourself," "[serious]Then what do you need?" Cecil turned back to Kai. "Two options," --- "First: we implant a transmitter in your body. The GDA monitors your location and biometric data in real-time," Kai's hands went rigid on his lap. "Second: you carry a GPS device at all times, keeping your activity area under GDA surveillance. Choose one, or I execute detention right now," Either choice was a loss. Kai understood the structure immediately. Either something goes inside his body, or he's tracked from outside. It looked like a choice, but no matter what he picked, the GDA would have his location. Resist and he gets locked up. Run and he gets hunted. He clenched his fist and stayed silent. Mark stood up. "[angry]Cecil. I'm watching him. If anything happens, I take responsibility. Isn't that enough?" The room went quiet. Cecil looked at Mark for exactly one second. Not long, not short—a measuring gaze. The son of Omni-Man. The heir to Earth's strongest hero. That fact couldn't be completely ignored. Cecil exhaled quietly. "[cold]If you agree to carry the GPS device, I'll let it slide for today," Kai looked up. Cecil placed a thin box on the table. Inside was a small device. About the size of a thumbnail. "Keep it on at all times. If you power it down or leave it behind, it's an immediate violation," Kai picked up the device. It was light. Impossibly light. This tiny machine would now track his every movement. "[cold]...Understood," --- When they left GDA headquarters, evening light was falling over the city. A teleportation gate brought them back to Chicago in an instant. There was that sensation of being trapped in a closed space for a moment, and then the familiar air of the city surrounded them. Mark spoke after they'd walked a bit. "[serious]Ever heard me talk about my father?" "[cold]...You mean Omni-Man?" "Yeah. My father's a Viltrumite—a warrior from an alien species. He came to Earth twenty-five years ago. His species has lifespans in the thousands of years, and their physical abilities are on a completely different level than ours," There was heat in Mark's voice. Pure admiration. "I inherited his blood. That's where my power comes from. But honestly, I still can't use half of what he can. I want to catch up to him someday—no, I *have* to catch up," Kai looked at Mark's profile. In the sunset, his blonde hair turned orange. The freckles that appeared when he smiled weren't visible now. His expression was serious. *Pure,* Kai thought. That's what scared him. Words were forming in Kai's mouth. *Your father is—* He swallowed them. He had the information from the comics in his head. Omni-Man's true purpose. The real reason Nolan Grayson came to Earth. Mark didn't know yet. He didn't know, and he still respected his father. If he said something, things would change. Kai couldn't calculate how or in what direction. History might shift. It might get worse. "[cold]...I see," That's all he said. Mark didn't seem bothered. He continued talking about his activities as Invincible. Kai gave short responses while listening to his voice. --- The temporary housing GDA arranged was a room in an old apartment building near Mark's house. When Kai opened the door, the smell of old wood greeted him. A room about four and a half tatami mats. Wallpaper peeling slightly in places. The bed was old but neatly made. Through the window, Chicago's night skyline was visible. Distant building lights scattered across the sky, and the black silhouette of a floating building's remains hung against the darkness. Kai placed the GPS device on the table. The small machine blinked with a faint LED. Right now, somewhere underground in Washington D.C., one of Cecil Stedman's subordinates was tracking this exact coordinate. He lay down on the bed. Stared at the ceiling. *(What am I supposed to do in this world?)* He thought about it. No answer came. Should he reveal what he knew? But if he did, history might change. If it changed, things might get worse. Should he tell Mark the truth? But if something broke because of it—if that pure admiration he held for his father shattered— He closed his eyes. One thing was certain. Today, in that conference room, Mark had stood up. He'd raised his voice at Cecil and said: *I'll vouch for him.* Without that, Kai would be inside a GDA facility right now. The device continued blinking. With his location constantly exposed to the GDA, Kai spent his first night in this world. *(This is a bad situation.)* He thought that honestly. But he wasn't completely alone. That alone was barely keeping Kai afloat tonight. Chicago's night deepened quietly around him.