Leo's eyes were like a precision scanner, recording every corridor, guard position, and surveillance blind spot along the way.
"Hey, kid, can't you move faster? You really think Loki's gonna come back and save you if you keep dragging your feet?"
"Keep dreaming, hahaha!"
The Timekeeper guard sneered. He had overheard the earlier conversation between Loki and Leo in the detention room and assumed they had made some kind of deal.
Now that Loki had escaped, he believed the trickster might try to rescue Leo.
But the guard didn't care. With a Time Reset Baton in his hand, he thought he was untouchable — even Loki wasn't a threat in his eyes.
Leo ignored the brainwashed clone. These guys were puppets — soulless, mindless, not even as good as NPCs in a game.
"We've passed through twelve rooms and four corridors. Two Timekeepers per passage…"
"Getting through their surveillance and into the archives will be tough."
"But this arrogant bastard thinks I'm helpless. That's my opening."
Leo's mind raced. He was forming a plan. If Loki could slip away, so could he — and he sure as hell wasn't leaving empty-handed.
Loki had taken the Tesseract. That meant Leo also needed something of equal value.
His eyes were already on the archives — the place where the Infinity Stones were stored by the drawerful.
The TVA had pacified countless timelines, gathering multiple copies of the Stones. They were useless here, in this reality, but in other universes? They were divine artifacts.
Time ticked by. What should've been a two-minute walk took Leo nearly five minutes.
Finally, they arrived near the restroom — one of the few spots without surveillance. The opportunity had come.
The gray-uniformed Timekeeper followed him inside. "Hurry up, kid. Don't even think about trying anything. I'll be waiting right outside the stall!"
Leo smiled nervously. "Yes, yes, Officer. Whatever you say."
Then, suddenly, he gasped, eyes wide. "Officer, wait! Isn't that Loki?!"
"What?! Loki?!"
The guard turned instantly, adrenaline spiking. Catching Loki would make him a hero!
That was all Leo needed.
In one explosive motion, Leo spun and delivered a brutal roundhouse kick — slamming directly into the guard's ribs.
Bang!
The gray-clad man crashed into the wall, grunting in pain. He never expected a "helpless prisoner" to hit that hard.
Leo didn't hesitate. He dove forward, wrapping his handcuffed wrists around the man's throat, using the cuffs as leverage to choke him.
It all happened in seconds.
The guard struggled violently, kicking and clawing at the air. His face flushed deep red as his throat was crushed tighter and tighter. His bulging eyes were filled with disbelief and terror.
He tried to scream — but no sound came out. His crushed windpipe only produced a wet, gurgling rasp.
He reached for his Time Baton, but Leo's knee came crashing down on his arm.
Crack!
Bone shattered instantly. The Timekeeper's arm bent at an unnatural angle, blood spilling freely across the floor.
Moments later, there was a faint snap — his hyoid bone breaking.
Then silence.
The Timekeeper slumped lifelessly to the ground, eyes frozen wide in horror.
Leo stumbled back, chest heaving. Then he turned and vomited into the sink.
He had never killed before. The reality of taking a life hit him like a sledgehammer — fear, shock, disgust, and somewhere deep down… a thrill of survival.
But this was the Marvel Universe. Here, humans were dust. If he didn't kill, he'd be killed.
To live, he had to fight. To survive, he had to grow stronger — no matter the cost.
He looked at his reflection — disheveled, trembling, eyes wild — and spoke to himself through clenched teeth.
"Leo… you can't stop now. You have to keep going."
He smiled faintly, blood still spattered on his face. There was no turning back.
Life may be small as an ant, he thought, but the heart must soar like a swan. Fate may be fragile as paper, yet I will never yield.
Just then, a metallic chime echoed in his head.
Ding!
Host has killed a Time Guardian. Bio-Energy +10.
"Huh? Only ten?" Leo muttered, frowning. "What a joke. That's it?"
He shook his head, grabbed the guard's baton, and wiped his mouth.