"Killer Queen trial mission complete."
The system prompt chimed.
Linto closed his eyes and let out a soft breath.
It was finally over.
The constant cycle between 7:30 AM and 8:29 AM.
Never-ending planning and calculations.
Although his body would fully recover the moment he woke up at 7:30 AM, the mental tension would stack up with each loop.
Perhaps because he was trapped in a young body, Linto felt an exhaustion like never before and just wanted to go back and sleep soundly.
But he didn't choose to return immediately.
After confirming with the system, Linto found he could stay in Morioh for a little while longer.
Since he had come all this way, Linto had a few ideas he wanted to try out.
Linto walked up to the elderly Joseph.
After a brief moment of youthful spirit, the old man's eyes grew hazy again, the flyaway strands of hair settled back onto his head, and his body slowly stooped.
He forced a smile, his still-wise eyes studying Linto, and asked the question that weighed on his heart:
"Have we… met somewhere before?"
"I don't think so," Linto said truthfully.
Before coming to Morioh, Linto and Joseph had only met during the Star Platinum trial.
Joseph had been unconscious then, and perhaps he'd caught a glimpse of Linto in his daze.
"That's déjà vu, isn't it? It's like we fought side-by-side in another world. That's why I didn't hesitate much when you told me to get on the motorcycle."
Jotaro, standing nearby, asked suspiciously, "Didn't you follow him because he called himself 'Caesar'?"
Joseph lightly tapped his skull, looking displeased. "I'm not that senile."
Linto chuckled.
He remembered Joseph shouting about "Schutzstaffel's army" on the motorcycle back then, clearly believing his old comrades who fought Kars had returned.
However, he didn't expose Joseph.
Perhaps… it was just as Joseph said, that Linto's fight with Dio in Cairo happened in a parallel world.
The idle chat ended there, and Linto asked the crucial question for why he chose to stay.
"Joseph, Jotaro, I'd like to borrow something from you."
"What is it?" Jotaro asked.
"The Aja Diamond."
At these words, both Jotaro and Joseph's expressions turned a little more serious.
The Aja Diamond was the core material for Kars' evolution into the Ultimate Being.
After Kars disappeared from Earth, to prevent any remaining Pillar Men, the Aja Diamond was sealed in the SPW Foundation's vault and never taken out again.
They had previously thought Linto's talk of "Kars returning" was a joke to scare Yoshikage Kira.
They instinctively looked up at the sky.
Aerospace technology was becoming more and more advanced. Kars wouldn't…
He wouldn't really be coming back, would he?
Seeing their expressions change, Linto waved his hand. "It has nothing to do with Kars, I just want to see it."
Nothing from the trial space could be taken back, so even if Linto truly wanted the treasure, he couldn't.
But while the item couldn't be brought back, the experience and memories could.
The Aja Diamond was a Hamon amplifier, and also key to the evolution of life.
If he were to draw it from the system, it would be at least a five-star item, and he might not even get it.
Being able to experience it for free might offer him guidance for his future improvement.
Jotaro and Joseph exchanged glances, then slowly nodded.
Communication between men didn't require many words or much time. Fighting side-by-side, the brilliance of souls forged in the fires of life and death, that was the best indicator of a person's character.
Two hours later, a solid, half-person-high safe appeared before Linto.
After dual fingerprint authentication by Jotaro and Joseph, the safe slowly opened.
Josuke and the others hadn't left. As soon as they heard about a world-saving gem they could see, they all stayed to wait, and as the safe opened, heads crowded around.
A crimson gem lay exposed in the sunlight, radiating a dazzling brilliance.
"This is too beautiful," Josuke mumbled subconsciously.
"Yeah, yeah," Okuyasu said.
Kishibe Rohan had already taken out his fountain pen and notebook. Driven by his manga artist's instinct, he quickly sketched the Aja Diamond, softly saying, "In the sunlight, it's like a passionate, dignified lady."
"Yeah, yeah," Okuyasu said.
After everyone had admired it, Linto nodded to Jotaro and reached out to grasp the Aja Diamond.
It felt warm to the touch. For ordinary people, besides its decorative value, the Aja Diamond had no other use, but—
Fine currents of Hamon appeared in Linto's palm and flowed into the Aja Diamond. In an instant, the diamond shone with an intense red light in the sun, and Hamon power surged, dozens of times stronger than before.
Linto absorbed all the surging Hamon into his body, carefully sensing it with his three-stage Hamon manipulation technique.
After a long while, he slowly opened his eyes.
"So… that's how it is."
The Aja Diamond could amplify and concentrate Hamon or solar energy tenfold. Whether used with the Stone Mask or simply to unleash Hamon, it provided a great boost.
But all energy didn't appear out of nowhere.
The Aja Diamond's enhancement of Hamon and solar energy meant that, fundamentally, the energy still came from "the world."
It was like the Dragon-Snake Pearl absorbing natural energy, only with more significant effects.
"The Dragon-Snake Pearl absorbs natural energy, boosting Senjutsu."
"The Aja Diamond absorbs solar energy, boosting Hamon."
"And, by absorbing both in the proper way, they can both achieve 'evolution' of the body."
Linto gazed at the Aja Diamond in his hand.
He really wanted to take the gem back and try using the Dragon-Snake Pearl and the Aja Diamond together to see what would happen.
Would it truly break through human limits and reach Kars' level, or…
Would it be stronger?
Linto stopped thinking.
Daydreaming was pointless. This experience had given Linto different directions for improvement, and that was the biggest gain.
He returned the Aja Diamond to Jotaro.
"Thank you."
The seemingly rough Jotaro was a person very sensitive to others' emotions. He saw the longing in Linto's eyes. "I thought you were going to try and take it."
Linto smiled and said, "It doesn't belong to me right now."
Jotaro heard the hidden meaning in those words and frowned slightly, a guess forming in his mind. "You don't mean…"
Linto shook his head, signaling Jotaro not to say anything more.
He had considered whether he should remind them of some things, such as Father Pucci's schemes, or the fate of the Italian man named Boingo, but considering the "fate" in the JOJO series, Linto's warnings might actually become new catalysts.
Just as Joseph had said.
Everything was just a parallel world, a sense of déjà vu lingering in his heart.
Linto patted Jotaro's arm and said, "Practice your time stop more, think of it as exercise."
He looked at each of their faces.
"Goodbye, everyone. Take care."
"Killer Queen trial level ended."
"Unlocked: Killer Queen· Bites the Dust."
---
You can read 50 Chapters ahead on my
pat reon.com/GMadman