Omocha squatted and hovered his hands above Mara's twisted ankles. A sort of faded green light emitted from his palm and caressed the injury.
Mara could feel the pain dissipate whereas Omocha's ankles twitched in response.
It was kind of like a trade between those two in which, it seems like Omocha was at a disadvantage since he only received pain.
But the reality is strange.
From an outsider's perspective, this is really an unfair exchange however, these felons and Yemon who knows Omocha a bit more than the media, see it differently.
Omocha takes pain as a reward. As a result, it is a win-win deal.
"Why are you.....like this...?"
"Hmm?"
Omocha's ecstasy got suddenly distracted by Mara. She was looking at him with genuine confusion and curiosity.
"Like what?"
".....Like...this deranged."
"...Deranged?...Pfft!"
Omocha held back his laugh as he covered his mouth with his other hand. Mara had a question mark above her head.
"What happened? Did I say something funny?"
"Yeah. Not only that, it was an absurd question."
"...Why?"
Omocha stopped the healing on the right ankle so he moved on to the left one and started treating it.
"Just think about it, sweetheart. Do you think there is a single sane person in this world?"
"....".
"And out of all the people, you are telling me that I am deranged? True I might be a bit more than others but that does not change the truth that everyone is insane. As a side note, the only people that I consider sane are innocent babies."
Mara listened attentively to his reasoning.
"The only difference between me and the 'normal' citizens is that I express my insanity better and revel in it. They are just hiding and suppressing it."
That was one way of describing the world they lived in right now.
With powers and Magic-Users starting to appear exponentially, people are not afraid to convey their true selves to the world.
"In a way, we are the freest person as we get to show our ugly sides more. It is not a bad thing in my eyes."
Omocha finished healing her legs so he moved upwards to her bent arms. He saw that Mara was not impressed with his way of words.
"No, you are just delusional. Stop lumping everyone with crazy people like you."
"You asked me a question and I answered. Don't insult me by saying I am wrong. It is rude you know."
"...I am sorry."
Mara turned away from Omocha's face and waited for him to completely heal her.
Lastly, after he finished on her one arm, he healed the other one. Simultaneously, he brought up another matter.
"I have not said this but, you are strong. You even had me excited."
".....Is that a compliment?"
"Of course. Lately, most of the martial artists stopped giving me the stimulation I need. They were so boring. But now, only 2 people made me feel alive again."
"..."
"You and Yemon."
Mara listened to his explanation and it got her a bit relieved hearing that Omocha called her strong.
Nonetheless, she still would not believe it.
"I am.....not strong. Just too weak."
"Omo~ Don't belittle yourself. You have the potential. I predict that with Yemon's guidance and training, I am sure of one thing."
The healing process was complete and Omocha looked directly into Mara's eyes.
"You will be stronger than me."
"....."
Mara truly was bewildered by Omocha's comment. Though she cannot just trust a man's word he does not know too well, it felt reassuring.
"Well, it will come true if you stop rambling about being weak like a depressed high school girl."
"..."
She even wondered if he was trying to lift Mara's mood. Mara doubted that this was his true intention but she will never know.....or will she?
Because moments after, Omocha had an anticipated look on his face as he smiled evilly.
"Become strong and make me feel more excited. I am expecting great things."
'Yeah. He is just selfish and cares only about his pleasures.'
Mara who thought differently of Omocha changed her opinion of him once again.
Her dead and belligerent stare pierced Omocha as an intent to scorn him. But Omocha got the opposite reaction as he was filled with sublime emotion and shivered whilst being aroused.
'He is hopeless.'
Yemon from afar called out to both of them.
"Ooooooii! If you have already finished, then let's resume."
"Yeah yeah!" Omocha replied to him.
He got up and glanced at Mara before joining the group. Mara stood on her feet and checked every inch of her body by stretching.
Everything was good. Not a single injury to be seen or felt.
She sighed before heading in the direction of the group.
She gazed at the back of Omocha as she reminisced and pondered on the talks they had.
'If what he said is even a fraction of truth, then...'
Her eyes turned deadly and her fists clenched with determination. Her nail dug into the palm as the pain only motivated her with her objective.
'...I will do anything.'
She approached the group and Jo was being wary of her. He was next to Virus so he thought he can weigh off his mind by telling Virus what he feels.
"I think I am going to stop having a conversation with her."
"Who? Mara?"
"Yea..."
"Why?"
"Because she is dangerous! She was almost on par with Omocha! That is an unbelievable feat, don't you think?"
Virus recalled the battle Omocha and Mara had. Omocha won however it was because he had an overpowered ability healing and great fighting skills.
The more probable reason which helped him in this battle was most definitely his healing power.
The amount of cuts he endured was amazing. It was unbelievable that his arm or leg was sliced but his face was unflinching.
Again, his power was the cause of that and so he got used to that.
But if Omocha hadn't had that then?
Mara would win by a large margin. With that said, Omocha would not be here if not for his powers. That applies to the rest of the members.
Returning to what Jo said, getting in a heated fight with Omocha and lasting for a while is an achievement in itself. That is why he says Mara is scary.
"You don't have to be so wary of her, you know."
"What do you mean!? She surely will snap at me one day because I have said some jokes on her that she did not take too well."
"When that time comes, then use your powers and kill her."
A sudden realization came to Jo's mind and thanked Virus for smartness.
"Ah, that is right. You are so smart!"
"It is the opposite, you are so dumb."
"Even though I complimented you, why are you hurting my feeling!?"
"I am stating the truth."
"....."
Yet again, a sudden realization by Jo made him feel dispirited. He sighed exasperatingly and was less energetic.
"What's wrong?" Virus investigated.
Jo scratched his head and said,
"Even if I have the power to kill her, it would be impossible to do it considering the conditions of using my power."
"What do you mean? Do you have restrictions on your power?"
Jo glanced away and hesitated. He wondered if it was alright to share such valuable information with him.
For a few seconds, he pondered and finally, he decided to tell him. He would not tell anyone that but it was Virus who he was talking to.
Jo admired him for his hacking skills so he was a cool person in his eyes.
Jo beckoned Virus to get his ear closer to his lips.
"Don't say it to anyone else. Promise?"
".....Promise." Virus casually said.
"At least just look like this is a serious matter!"
"Just tell me already!"
Jo paused for a moment.
"I have to touch their head for me to use my power."
"...Hmm"
Virus and Jo stopped leaning near each other. Virus contemplated the conditions of Jo's powers.
"This is indeed a problematic limitation."
"You understand? Now tell me if I have a chance against Mara."
"Not even a bit in hell."
"F-Figures...."
Jo knew it himself but hearing it so bluntly from the cool person he admires stings like a bitch.
Virus put a thumb on his chin, which made him into thinking mode.
"Mara would not let you be close to her, let alone touch. Heck, no one wants to be close to you."
"Am I a plague!?"
"You could say that."
"Grrr!!!!"
Jo gritted his teeth and made some angry lion noise. Well, in Virus' ear, it was more a cub's cute groan.
If Jo had to touch someone, then he would need to train more in stealth-like training. Some sort of espionage shenanigans.
He doesn't see Jo having an excellent combat sense so he does not expect much from that field. So, he needs to specialize in being in the dark.
'I'm sure that Yemon has noticed this but everyone has their own strength.'
Yemon has a good eye so Virus does not doubt he would ruin everyone's potential. Just that the only thing he needs is time.
Just how much time would he need to nurture these despicable criminals into full-fledged monsters?
The answer: A lot of time.
.....
It was around noon. The sun's heat was its highest for the day. The sunlight went through the window of one of the tallest buildings and illuminated a spacious room.
There was a whiteboard attached to the wall and next to it was a middle-aged man holding a marker.
He already scribbled some information on the whiteboard. He faced the many Heroes that had gathered and were sitting in front of him.
It numbered around 60 in this single special room. Most Heroes were around the gold level, some were ranked platinum and very few were ranked mithril.
Trista, the stoic silver masked Hero that was clad in white clothing, was one of them.
She sat in the middle of the group of heroes and attentively listened to what the middle-aged man was discussing.
"There have been some strange occurrences going on and it does not seem like a coincidence."
He pointed with the marker at the whiteboard.
"These criminals all stopped committing crimes around the same time. I don't think this is just a coincidence. Because we are not talking 2 or 3 criminals but 6!"
On the whiteboard, 6 pictures got pinned.
He went through with them one by one. First, he pointed at a man with a good appearance.
"Oda Saburo! Codenamed Gui! Threat Level: A-class. This cannibal always left cases like melted corpses, sometimes human bones and chewed on the carcass of his victim. Now it has stopped."
Next, he pointed to a female with black hair and a face mask. It was blurry and incomprehensible to some as it was shot by surveillance that caught her involvement in a crime.
"Real name:Unknown! Codenamed Mara! The rumoured 'Crazy Succubus'. Threat Level: A-Class. Dead members of the infamous syndicate the 'Purging Swords' kept piling up in Shinjuku. That also stopped."
The next one. A blacked out figure with a big white question mark labelled on it.
"Real name:Unknown! Codenamed Shi. Threat level: B-class! By the trace of semen around the rotten bodies of his victim, we deduced that this necrophilic bastard also refrained his vile actions."
The 4th one he aimed his marker at is a well-built man with a tough face.
"Real name:Jin Yuudai! Codenamed Omocha! Threat Level: AA-class. A former SMF soldier. A traitor to our country. He started hunting martial artists and trained professionals. The reason is unknown. He stopped hunting too."
Another black figure with a white question marked labelled is next.
"Real name:Unknown! Codenamed Jo! Threat level:B-class. Multiple cases surrounding women that have a missing piece of their memories sprung in numbers around Oita, Kumamoto and Fukuoka region. There hasn't been a single case recently."
And finally, in the last picture he pointed at a young girl with a school uniform on.
"Real name: Uchiyama Emi! Codenamed Lumen. Threat level: A-class. A stalker that claimed the lives of two people. She was saved by an unidentified person when she was closed to being captured. That person could be linked with the other 5 criminals."
That concluded the 6 criminals that were confirmed to be involved strange turn of events.
The man also stated that there might be other criminals that could be linked but there is no confirmation. additionally, out of these. are believed to be Magic-Users
"There is definitely something brewing. Something dangerous! If you all have any information regarding those criminals then please do share."
As he rambled on, Trista was in deep thought. A female Hero beside her tapped her shoulder and whispered.
"Don't you think this old man is exaggerating? It could be well a coincidence."
".....Don't know."
"What is wrong? You are not interested in this?"
Trista was not uninterested in this case but was more focused on another matter.
"I just want to know about another criminal than those faces on the whiteboard."
"Heeeh~ Who might be the unlucky one that the 'Untouchable Dame' has eyes on?" With curiosity, the female Hero inquired.
Trista paused but she glanced backwards and uttered the name of her target.
"Gello."