Seven Heroes Redux

When Kiseki entered the door, her mouth was covered so she couldn't scream and her neck was pressed. She quickly lost consciousness.

Ria continued down the alley until she reached the abandoned building. She entered, and the ground floor was reeking of blood. She saw several corpses of bandits.

The police were there, investigating each corpse. Ria spotted a man who seemed to be in charge of the case. He was wearing a black military uniform and a hat, his expression was serious. She asked:

— Would you mind telling me the details?

He looked at her, as if judging her. One of his subordinates got scared and ran to the boss. He whispered in his ear:

— She's Ria, the strongest level 6!

— So what? She's just a child.

Even though they were speaking quietly, Ria knew what the conversation was about.

— A child, really? I'm the police chief, I could order you to lick my shoes if I wanted.

The boss didn't say anything.

— Now, can someone tell me why no one informed me about this case? Every investigation must be under my control. Or should I impose my authority?

She pointed the revolver at the captain's face. The man finally gave in, displeased:

— Someone called us and didn't say anything. They used one of the bandits' phones. We tracked the signal and ended up here.

— You knew about this place beforehand. Otherwise, why would you mobilize your entire unit to a random place?

— We were not allowed to trespass here.

— By whom? I would have come here before the incident if I had known about this place. Did you want to prove yourself? Because the police shouldn't be competing with the heroes.

Ria stared into his eyes, with her usual soulless expression. She walked up to a random subordinate and asked:

— Cause of death?

The man looked at the boss, who just nodded in approval.

— Decapitation, except for the leader. The severed area is much hotter than the rest of the body.

— When?

— Approximately 30 minutes ago, judging by body temperature.

— And the others?

— They all have the same temperature, so they probably died at the same time.

Ria narrowed her eyes in surprise. Someone capable of killing dozens of people in such a short amount of time was nothing short of impressive. They had to be at least level 4. The cause of death, however, was strange.

If the killer had used a huge explosion, it would have been easy to kill many people at once. But they chose decapitation, a very impractical and inconvenient way to kill groups of people.

Not only that, they used a very hot blade. The cut area was much hotter than the rest of the body. It was probably caused by an energy sword, a relatively common weapon in the association. They, however, were dangerous and difficult to use. Either the sword was big enough to hit everyone at once, or the wielder was too fast.

— How did the leader die?

— His fist went through his own face, somehow.

Ria was intrigued. It was a very unusual and difficult case to solve. Ria looked at the chief.

— I will lead this investigation now. You are dismissed.

— You heroes... The strong protect the weak, huh? Let's see how long you can keep up that facade.

The man left the building. Ria remembered about something important.

Kiseki… why did I think it would be a good idea to leave her alone for more than a second?

Ria ordered everyone to continue the investigation and collect as many clues as possible, and hand them over to a trusted subordinate of hers.

She left the building and headed out onto the street.

If I'm not mistaken, the signal came from that apartment.

She ran into the building, climbed the stairs and leaned against the door, holding one of the revolvers in both hands. She heard two voices: one of Kiseki, in despair, and the other of an unknown woman. She kicked the door open.

The woman was already in sight, sitting on a sofa facing the hallway that led to the door. She was a middle-aged blonde woman with dark circles under her eyes. She wore a spa towel as clothing. She was startled by the unexpected visitor.

Ria entered, resenting the aphrodisiac smell. She approached the woman slowly, who, desperate, took out a pistol and unloaded its magazine at the threat. All the bullets were deflected in different directions. One of them grazed the woman's left ear and fell into the back wall.

It was Ria's defensive power: a spherical barrier that reflected any object lighter than her coming at a speed greater than 1 m/s. The object returned in the opposite direction at half the original speed. If it was heavier than her body, she was pushed back, also at half the speed. The barrier did not cover her from the feet down.

— You're very lucky that bullet didn't go through your head.

Ria approached the woman and struck her head with the butt of her revolver, knocking her unconscious and causing minor brain damage.

She saw Kiseki, who was also sitting on the couch to the left. She was tied up with ropes and had a tape covering her mouth. Ria took off the tape first and asked, with a look of disappointment:

— What are you doing...

— I-I'm so sorry! I tried to convince her, but...

— I'm not talking about that. You have a 6-Up and could have ripped the ropes off. You're also thousands of times stronger than her.

Kiseki had a confused look on her face, as if she hadn't thought of it before.

— You didn't think of it?

— Sorry! I faint very easily when I get scared, and I wanted to gain her trust, so I couldn't fight back...

— That's something someone who's been violated their entire life would say.

— Sorry!

Ria untied Kiseki and slapped the woman hard enough to wake her up. She tried to attack Ria again, with the same pistol. It was out of ammo, so nothing happened. She tried to run away, but Ria fired a warning shot, which nearly hit her nose.

— She wants to talk.

Ria pointed at Kiseki.

— Fuck you! I know that when this is all over, you're going to kill me anyway!

Ria responded with a long, ominous silence. The woman calmed down and sat down in the same spot as before. Ria motioned for Kiseki to begin the conversation.

— M-Madam… if you don't mind, could you tell us why you called us for this urgent mission?

— Hmph! I have nothing to say!

Ria calmly pointed her revolver at her. She shivered.

— W-Well… I found the love of my life…

Trembling with fear, she looked at Ria, who was motionless, like a statue. Her death could happen at any second, so she was at the peak of instability.

— He k-killed two men in that alley, s-so I wanted to test him with this mission!

Ria replied:

— Are you fucking serious? Three level 6's for that? Did you know that could get you life in prison?

— I just wanted to see how strong my beloved was!

He's probably the one who murdered those thugs.

— How was he like?

— He wore a dark blue suit, light blue tie, had dark blue hair and wore glasses, I think...

Ria walked towards the door. Kiseki asked:

— R-Ria? Did something happen?

— I'll be outside.

— O-Okay!

Ria left the apartment and contacted her subordinate in charge of the investigation.

Kiseki and the mysterious woman began to talk more freely without Ria's overwhelming presence. They were much closer now, after a few minutes of talking.

— What's your name, ma'am?

— Himiko Tsuna, but you can just call me Tsuna.

— Okay, Tsuna! My name is Kiseki, Shinsetsuko Kiseki!

— Your name suits you.

She laughed and smiled at her new friend.

— You know, Kiseki, I wasn't expecting to meet someone as kind as you today. Who exactly are you? Is your power doing all this?

— N-No! I have a power, but I'm not using it right now…

— Are you a hero? What level?

— I'm level 6, b-but it's nothing extraordinary…

— L-Level 6? Isn't that the second best? I definitely did not expect that… It's an honor to meet you in person!

— B-But… I'm just a normal person…

— Ah, I see… Sorry, I didn't think you wanted to be recognized as such. Look…

Tsuna placed her hand on Kiseki's shoulder, looking into her eyes with a gentle smile.

— Not everyone is as kind as you. In fact, I don't think anyone comes close to you in that regard. You are by far the nicest person I know. Your parents must be proud.

— My parents…?

Kiseki stared into space, wandering for some reason.

— Kiseki? Is there something wrong?

Kiseki didn't answer.

— Kiseki...?

She shook her shoulders, trying to wake her from her reverie. Ria heard the conversation and came in. Tsuna was relieved to see her, for good reason.