Base of Operations

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Standing in front of the building that was now his, Kai was already planning how to reorganize the space and allocate each floor.

Walking inside with Ethan, they found that despite the building being vacant for a while, the interior was still in decent condition — just dusty. A thorough cleaning would be enough; no major renovations were necessary.

"Kai, now that we've got this huge building… what if we can't fill it?" Ethan asked, looking worried.

Kai shot him a look.

"We agreed to get a bigger place so we wouldn't have to keep moving. Now that we've got the whole building, you're worried about 'too much' space?"

Ethan scratched his head sheepishly.

"In that case," Kai continued, "let's divide it up. The first ten floors will be for the company. The upper floors… I'll set up a few labs there."

Ethan frowned. "Wait, that's half the building gone! What if the company expands again and we run out of room?"

Kai nearly laughed in frustration. "Then tell me your brilliant idea."

Ethan hesitated for a moment, clearly reluctant to give up more floors. Finally, he grinned.

"Okay… how about I just take the whole building?"

"You just said there's too much space!"

"I'll leave the extra space empty for now. Besides, the company's growing fast — we'll fill it soon enough."

"And what about my lab?" Kai countered. "Where do you expect me to put that?"

Ethan chuckled. "Easy — buy *another* building. Problem solved."

Surprisingly, Kai found himself considering it. "Alright, I'll see if I can find a separate place."

He asked Gear to scout for potential locations. Instead of a building, Gear found a secluded estate in the suburbs of New York.

Kai checked out the property details and was immediately drawn to it. The manor sat in a quiet area, bordered by a river, with plenty of open space — perfect for a private lab.

To his surprise, the property was linked to Kingpin's old holdings — one of the last places that hadn't been claimed yet.

"Alright," Kai told Ethan, "you can have the whole building. I'll take this place in the suburbs. I wanted everything in one spot, but honestly… I like this manor better."

Ethan, still buzzing with excitement over his new building, barely cared where Kai ended up.

"Sure thing!" Ethan grinned. "Go enjoy your fancy manor. I've got a company to expand!"

With that, Kai left to secure the manor. Over the next few days, he poured his energy into transforming it. Following Gear's designs, Kai upgraded the security systems, modernized the interiors, and relocated everything from the old warehouse.

---

During this time, Samuel and Banner had grown comfortable discussing their serum research together. One day, as they were deep in conversation, Kai suddenly appeared through a portal.

"You two," Kai said with a grin, "I've got good news!"

Both men turned to him, curious.

"Our new lab's ready," Kai announced. "Completely upgraded and customized to your standards."

Samuel perked up immediately. "Finally! Can we go now?"

"Yup. I'm here to bring you both over," Kai said. "Oh, by the way… the lab's inside a manor I converted. The place is beautiful — you're going to love it."

Once they arrived at the manor's entrance, Kai planned to give them a proper tour — but Samuel wasn't interested.

"Yeah, yeah, great view," Samuel muttered. "Where's the lab?"

Clearly impatient, Samuel had only one thing on his mind — the experiments he'd been itching to resume. Kai sighed and had Gear escort Samuel to the lab while he continued showing Banner around.

Banner was more impressed. The sprawling manor had a wide lawn in front, a peaceful river in the back, and an overall calm, relaxing vibe.

"This place is incredible," Banner said.

Kai smiled. "Glad you like it. From now on, this place is ours. Make yourself at home."

He led Banner to his room, located on the first floor. The window overlooked the open lawn and distant woods — a perfect view.

"This is your room," Kai said. "What do you think?"

"It's perfect," Banner said with a satisfied nod.

Next, Kai took him to the second and third floors, explaining the layout.

"Your room's right next to Samuel's," Kai said. "You two can collaborate whenever you want."

As they wrapped up the tour, Banner frowned.

"Wait… where's the lab? I didn't see Samuel anywhere."

Kai grinned. "Follow me."

He led Banner back to the first-floor lobby and gestured toward a corner wall.

"Take a look," Kai said.

Banner examined the wall, squinting. "There's… nothing there."

Kai smirked, walked forward — and vanished right through the wall.

Banner blinked in shock. He rubbed his eyes, convinced he was imagining things. Then Kai's head popped back out through the wall.

"Well?" Kai grinned. "Coming?"

Banner cautiously reached out to touch the wall… and felt nothing. It was an illusion — no wall at all. Realizing this, he stepped through after Kai, eager to see what awaited inside.

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