Capítulo 25: 24th Adversary: Meeting
"...."
Ace opened his eyes and stared at a familiar ceiling.
"I'm alive…."
He started laughing.
"It's good that you're in good spirits."
He turned his head and saw Hina reading a book on a chair.
"If it wasn't for your regenerative ability, I would've to bring you to a doctor. And after what you did, going to a doctor would be suicide."
"Remnants of the Bloody Mace and Adu Gang would come for my head."
Ace sat up.
"So how long was I out?"
"Around a day or so."
"That was longer than usual. I must've been really exhausted."
The faces of the Black Spades members flashed in his mind.
"…Both physically and mentally."
Hina closed her book.
"About everything that happened, I hope you realize you have to leave the crime world."
"You don't need to tell me. I'm going to need to lay low…Were you attacked by anyone?"
"No. I saw your calls and knew something was wrong. When I started looking for you, everyone was talking about you being caught in the middle of a war between Adu and Igor. It wasn't hard to find you after that."
"So you weren't the one who pitted them against each other?"
"No, but I guess you have an idea of who did it. "
Ace smiled.
"Yeah. There was one person who knew what was happening from the start. I don't know why he helped me but I'm grateful."
Hina started smiling.
"I guess we need to thank him."
Noir, Gael. NoFace was inside a room talking to a blank monitor.
"I've reassigned the remnants of the Adu and Bloody Mace Gang to other large gangs. Their leaders were instructed not to mistreat them and focus on teaching them how they do things."
"Great. We can't have wild thugs running about unsupervised."
"Sir, did you expect this to happen?"
"I expected Igor's death but Adu's was unexpected. How's the search for who caused this?"
"No leads yet."
"I see. Well, they'll reveal themselves eventually. Just focus on minimizing the damage."
"Yes….In the end, what did you think about Igor? Was he nothing but a fool?"
"Since he lost, yes. However, had he won history would tell a different story. Yesterday's battle would be one of many victorious tales."
"So the winner writes history?"
"They also decide what is justice. Despite what led to it, Ace attacked Igor's brother and Igor retaliated and attacked Ace in return. Ace won, so his actions will be seen as justified and Igor's will go down as evil. Even though, they both committed murder."
NoFace remained silent for a bit.
"…Then, are we justice?"
Nebulous didn't answer immediately and burst out laughing. Their laugh reverberated through the room for a long time.
"Are we justice, huh?"
They chuckled again.
"At least until we're killed, I guess we are."
In a rural area outside Dragna City. Miko was laying on the ground and looking at the sky.
"…I want to train."
"You need to let your body heal, so no."
Sitting under a tree nearby, Momo shut him down.
"I'm only this injured because I wasn't strong enough to solve everything without taking such a huge risk."
A shadow cast over him. Tia was looking down at him.
"So you acknowledge that your plan was risky?"
"Of course, it was. Countless things could've gone wrong."
Tia nodded.
"It was a bit rough around the edges but you have potential. I'm certain you'll grow up to become quite the schemer."
"….I don't know if I should take that as a compliment or not."
"Whether you do or not says a lot about your personality. So think hard about it."
She flashed a smile and walked over and sat next to Momo.
"I understand your desire to grow stronger, but I'm against you destroying yourself to do it. Heal first, and then we'll resume your training."
"….Fine."
"Cheer up. Look, you have guests."
"Guests?"
Miko sat up. He saw two people walking towards them.
"I expected them to find me, but…."
Miko frowned. Ace and Hina approached the frowning Miko with smiles on their faces.
"Hello again, Miko."
Hina was the first to greet him.
"I'm sure you're familiar with my older brother, Ace."
Ace and Miko's eyes locked. They scanned each other's appearance from head to toe as if to burn the other's image into their minds.
"You look like you went through hell."
Miko stared at the bondages underneath Ace's clothes.
"I can say the same about you."
Bandages were also peeking from under Miko's clothing.
"We're actually here about the injuries you both got."
Hina stood between them.
(Why does it look like you two were about to fight?)
She smiled at Miko.
"We would like to thank you for helping us out yesterday. There's no telling what would've happened if you didn't get involved."
"…If you want to thank me, then start by telling me how you're tracking me."
Miko took a step closer to Hina.
"When we met at the arcade, I thought that you were stalking me like before, but I didn't sense you at all. Unless you've stepped up your stealth skills, that shouldn't be possible. And then, there's today. How did you find me all the way outside the capital? You couldn't have been stalking me since you'd most likely be by Ace's side. And yet, you found me. How?"
Hina kept a smile on her face.
"Do you think I placed a tracking spell on you?"
"I did at first, but I quickly discarded that idea. After all, there's no way you can place a spell on me without Momo knowing."
Hina nodded.
"You're right. I'm not nearly skilled enough to fool the Midnight Witch."
She pointed at her eye. Miko saw them turn to gold.
"I used these eyes to follow the mana residue left behind by your body."
"Mana Residue? What's that?"
"It's traces of mana that's left behind whenever you use it. Everyone's mana residue is unique. So if you're able to see it and identify someone's unique residue, you can track them."
Momo walked up to them with her book in her hand.
"The hell? That's a thing?"
"Yes. But not even I can do it."
Momo's face reflected in Hina's eyes.
"Those eyes are more impressive than I thought."
"I can tell you more about it if you want."
Hina lifted her hands in front of her.
"After all, I am not your enemy. I have nothing to hide."
"Says the girl who lied to a goddess' face."
Tia left the shade and walked toward them.
"I lied because people were targeting my family. Wouldn't you do the same? Besides, you knew I was lying from the beginning."
Tia grinned and turned to Miko.
"You already took the gamble. So you'll have to face the consequences no matter what they are."
"…I'll believe that you have no bad intentions. Also, I was the aggressor in Ace's case."
Miko's body relaxed.
"So let's start fresh."
Ace started smirking.
"Hey, you saved my ass. I have nothing but gratitude towards you. But I am curious though. Why did you take such a risk to save me when we barely know each other?"
He placed his hand on Hina's shoulder.
"Is it because you like her? If so, she's single."
Hina tried to elbow him but he avoided it.
"I acknowledge that the two of you had immense potential and it would be a waste for you to die."
"That's it?"
"That's it."
Ace and Hina looked at each other before looking back at Miko.
"Miko, are you perhaps the type of person that needs to justify acts of kindness with logic? Like you need to convince yourself that you're acting out for your own benefit and not someone else's?"
Miko frowned
"Are you comparing me to a character in a story?"
"I am. There's not much difference between fictional characters and real people when it comes to the way they think. Great characters are inspired by great people. Great people are inspired by great characters. The portrayal of the complexity of human nature can be found at the core of many works of fiction."
She pointed at him.
"The motive you gave is one a character with a wound heart would give. A character who believes that they can't afford to show any weakness or vulnerability."
(Spot on.)
Tia and Momo nodded their head in agreement.
"…You can believe what you want."
(Ah, did I hit a nerve?)
"More importantly, I watched your battle with Igor."
Tia approached Ace.
"You have an interesting ability. I would like to hear more about it."
(Someone changed the topic. Thank god.)
Hina sighed in relief. Ace looked at Tia from head to toe. The longer he looked the lower his jaw fell and the wider his eyes became.
"Holy shit…"
He mumbled absentmindedly. He couldn't take his eye off her. He kneeled in front of her.
"I'm not a religious person but I'm more than willing to devout my life to you, for I have seen the face of God."
Tears started flowing down his face. Hina nodded beside him.
"I know how you feel. Trust me, I do."
(These siblings are very much alike.)
Momo thought. Tia proudly puffed out her chest and glanced at Miko.
"You should be friends with them. They have good taste."
"You're forgetting the objective here; finding out what Ace's ability is."
"Oh. We have no problem telling you about it. Especially if it proves that we mean you no harm."
Hina patted Ace's shoulder.
"Ace is a real-life game character."
Meanwhile in Noir. Someone was examining the site where the Adu Gang's warehouses were before Miko destroyed them. They walked on the rubble ignoring the decomposing limbs sticking out.
"You wouldn't have done something this risky normally…You're changing faster than I expected."
"Do you want to change too, Nina Dragna?"
They turned their head. There stood a man dressed in all white.
"Your master has found a goal and turned a new leaf in life. Don't you wish to do the same?"
"…I can't walk the same path as my master nor do I have a reason to. His path is his alone."
"Then, what? Are you going to end your journey here? Is this the end of your path?"
The man approached Nina.
"Who are you and why do you care about where my path ends?"
"My apologies. I'm a member of the Dragna Clan not descended from Tiamat. Meaning that just like you, I'm from one of the servant families. I am someone whose goal is to return the Dragna Empire to this former glory by destroying the status quo."
He stretched his hands out to Nina.
"My name is Rogan Dragna and I am the man who will shake this empire to its core in the future."
He showed a playful smile.
"It's nice to meet you."
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