The basement.
It wasn't as cold and gloomy as he imagined.
It was even warmer than the main house.
The walls weren't stone, but white-painted cement.
They had passed through a heavy metal door like one you'd see in a bank vault, with layers of heavy-duty locks, before finally reaching this room.
Saiki Kusuo looked around.
Since it was meant to be a shelter, the layout was simple.
The space wasn't big—around thirty square meters or so.
Not much stuff, but not completely empty either.
As soon as Killua entered the room and landed, he ran straight to the mini fridge in the corner. Only after the door closed did the other kids feel safe enough to move around.
Silva originally planned to come in too, but he seemed to remember something and left. Right before he went out, Saiki Kusuo felt as if a round, invisible force had wrapped around the place. It was probably their grandpa arriving, using a high-level Nen ability—"En".
"Big brother, smile!"
As soon as they landed, Alluka made another request. Saiki Kusuo knew about Alluka's ability—not from the manga, but from the thoughts of the triplets. If he entered the room a third time, things would get bad.
But smile? What kind of request was that? It's pretty tough to ask someone who can't feel joy to smile, isn't it?
Alluka seemed to notice that her brother didn't want to smile. She tilted her head and said, "Big brother, lift me up!"
...
Why won't she leave me alone?
Saiki Kusuo looked away. Maybe it's because he had been staring at her too much? He decided to move a little farther away.
"What's wrong, Kusuo?" After two requests, Illumi noticed what was going on. "Why aren't you doing what Alluka asked?"
Illumi narrowed his eyes. Even at a young age, he had the quiet authority of an eldest son, and that made Saiki Kusuo uneasy.
"Don't tell me…"
Crap! Is he getting the wrong idea? Alluka, Killua, and Milluki are triplets, but only Killua has white hair. Their family really cares about treating all the kids fairly.
"Don't tell me you're worried that if you don't hold Alluka properly, she'll fall?"
Illumi: [No one can say no when it comes to loving his siblings.]
Saiki Kusuo froze for a while, then nodded.
"It's fine. I'm watching. Even if you drop Alluka by accident, I'll catch her," Illumi said gently, though his expression barely changed.
"…"
What is with all of you and this obsession with hugging?
Saiki Kusuo fell silent. What should he do in a situation like this? Should he instantly use a burn-type Hatsu to avoid holding the kid, or maybe just break a bone and be done with it? He could think of a thousand ways to get out of it instantly, but not many that would still make him look like a normal person.
So... should he just hold her?
Alluka saw a chance. Her eyes sparkled as she reached up, her baby-chubby limbs forming an "X" shape: "Hold! Hold!"
It suddenly hit Saiki Kusuo—he had an older brother, but no experience being around a younger sibling. He never even paid attention to how adults hold kids.
It was a real problem. Out of nowhere, he was being asked to pick up what looked like a three-year-old made of paper, and with his powers—just touching someone could be dangerous…
How was he supposed to know the right and safe way to hold a child?!
Saiki Kusuo reached out for a while. Alluka looked up at him with hope, Illumi watched silently, and Saiki Kusuo... stepped back.
Illumi: …
[No, this isn't going to work. It's way too dangerous,] Saiki Kusuo thought. Until his recovery power came back—no, even if it did—he couldn't fully suppress his psychic strength. If he restored seven years of health in an instant, Alluka would vanish.
Just as that thought crossed his mind, he suddenly felt something light in his arms.
Well, not exactly in his hands—on his arm. Little Alluka had been gently placed onto Saiki Kusuo's arm by Illumi.
"It's done. Come on, lift her up!" said Illumi.
Lift what?!
If you try to lift her without adjusting your hands, Alluka will fall over!
But adjusting… is actually harder than just picking her up, okay?! One wrong move and she could vanish into thin air — who even understands how risky this is?
Saiki Kusuo carefully opened his palms, like he was holding a blade of grass, or a dry, fragile leaf. Time felt like it slowed down ten thousand times. Everything became frozen, moving painfully slow.
Finally, his hands slid under Alluka's arms.
He did it!
Now just lift her little by little...
As Saiki Kusuo slowly raised Alluka, her face quietly changed.
No one noticed it right away — not until Nanika made a sound.
"Big bro… big bro."
It was the same voice, but this time it felt strange and creepy. Saiki Kusuo looked up and saw the child.
Oh, so this is Nanika. He had picked up her voice through telepathy before, but this was their first time meeting face-to-face.
"Saiki, put Alluka down, now!" Illumi immediately shifted into combat mode, shielding Killua and Milluki behind him.
[What the hell is going on? When did this ability get activated? With my Gyo, I didn't see any Nen at all. But there's definitely some power on Alluka's face. Is it a mask? Where did it come from? What's the activation condition...?]
Someone was clearly panicking. Oh, right — some of the people here don't know about Nanika.
Killua knew Alluka had Nanika. Milluki, who lived with them, also knew. And of course, Saiki Kusuo, who could read minds and know everything, knew as well.
Only Illumi was left in the dark.
"Brother Saiki, just make a wish! Any wish will come true!" Killua peeked out from behind Illumi and spoke to Saiki Kusuo.
Why's this kid calling me *Brother Saiki*? Shouldn't it be *Brother Kusuo* or something?
Nanika reached her hand out to Kusuo, but... this was tricky.
Saiki Kusuo was stuck with a problem he had never faced before.
What wish could he make?
Everyone knows that wishes come from desires. But Saiki Kusuo, who knew everything and had countless superpowers, basically had no desires at all. He could do anything, so nothing really interested him. The only thing he maybe needed right now was to go home — but he didn't think Nanika could help with that.
[If it were me, I'd ask Nanika to bring in my remote-control plane. There's nothing fun here. It's boring as hell! And maybe some chocolate too while we're at it.] — Killua's inner thoughts.
…
Can't come up with a wish? What, can't he just copy someone else? Following Killua's train of thought, Saiki Kusuo came up with a wish:
[Nanika, bring in the safe cake Illumi left by the door — and don't forget utensils for five.]
"Okay."
A strange power suddenly burst out from Nanika. Saiki Kusuo could see it. It was an energy totally different from Nen.
Soon, a cake appeared floating above them.
Oh no — how do we catch it?
Even in a moment of panic, Saiki Kusuo stayed calm and only took a small step to the side.
Because the second the cake showed up, he already knew Illumi would reach for it.
Graceful.
Illumi's black hair brushed past. One hand caught the bottom of the cake, the other scooped up the scattered utensils.
He stopped moving. Everyone stared at the cake in his hands.
To a child, the one holding the cake is, without question, the most important person in the room!
"It's good that Alluka's back to normal. Killua, you know what's going on with her, right?"
"Yeah. After the wish is granted, she turns back." Killua nodded sweetly.
With everyone's eyes still fixed on the cake, Illumi thought for a long time and then said,
"We can eat the cake first. After that, I'll go call the adults."
Illumi could already tell — this whole thing was far from simple.