Friday, January 3, 807
4:00 PM.
An airplane is seen departing from what remains of the Bakuro Forest. It has just led Mei's team on a reconnaissance mission.
Hero Mei is leading two girls through the now desolate landscape.
"Is this supposed to be a forest? The trees are all dried up, there's no vegetation left... Not to mention the animals..." Nahoko says, walking cautiously beside Siska and glancing fearfully at the dead animals.
"Nahoko... I always wonder why you wanted to become a Hero... You're too afraid!" Siska remarks, looking at her with a perplexed and pitying expression.
"You know why... This is the only way I can survive."
Mei slows down so the two can catch up and then points out the deceased animals. "Did you see how many animals the Tomie Team took down? Obviously, they fought them while transformed into demonic beasts."
Siska looks up and sees the large number of carcasses.
"It's a shame those guys died... They were really skilled! " Mei says casually.
"Why are we still here? We'll be killed too..." Nahoko says, particularly terrified.
"We're here to investigate. If we die, it's only because we don't have the skills to survive in this world." Mei replies calmly.
Nahoko sighs at the response. She looks away from her squad leader and notices something strange in the distance.
"T-That thing... That thing... It's moving... Over there!" Nahoko yells, pointing to something about thirty meters away on her right.
Mei extends her arm, signaling the two not to move. She then brings her hand close to her ear, where there's an earpiece, and speaks:"Ryo, can you figure out what that is?"
After a few seconds, a male voice comes through the earpiece: "Yes, Team Leader Mei, it seems to be a person. Covered in dirt, I can't see clearly. I believe... I believe they have red hair."
Ryo responds calmly, observing the entire scene from a vantage point hundreds of meters away.
"A person?! Here?!" Mei exclaims, incredulous at the words.
"Is that a person? It's impossible for there to be one here! It's definitely a demon. A demon in human form! Team Leader Mei must kill it before it kills us all!" Nahoko screams, trembling and pulling Siska's arm.
Siska, annoyed by her companion's behavior, distances herself from her.
Mei signals to the two to remain silent, after which she approaches that person slowly.
Meanwhile, Nahoko has started crying. Upon which, Siska says to her: "Honestly, I don't understand why. If you have to live like this, you might as well commit suicide, right?"
Then she starts following her team leader, leaving Nahoko behind, who repeats to herself: "I hate this world. I hate it. I hate it!"
"Team Leader Mei, rest assured. If it's truly a demon, I'll surely kill it from here." Ryo's tone is very confident, but Mei, hearing those words, can't help but smirk.
"The day you save me will probably be the day I retire. Instead... think about your own safety."
"My little brother takes care of that!" He reveals, shifting his gaze to the necklace around his neck.
The group is just a few meters away from that individual, now able to clearly see that the body is that of a young girl.
"Is she dead?" Siska asks.
Mei approaches slowly, checks her pulse, and then says: "No, she's still alive. Nahoko, you carry her."
She turns to the girl, who has remained about ten meters away. Upon hearing the request, the girl looks surprised and exclaims: "Me? Why me? We don't know if she's a demon. She'll kill us all! She's probably just pretending!"
Mei ignores her complaints and looks at Siska, who speaks with annoyance: "Fine, fine, I'll do it!"
Siska lifts her in her arms and places her on her back. Concerned, she asks Hero Mei: "But she's a girl, probably twelve or thirteen at most. What is she doing here? Team Leader, maybe Nahoko is right, she could really be a demon..."
Mei doesn't seem worried at all, even though she continues to look at the girl thoughtfully.
Seeing her girls visibly concerned, Mei reassures them: "She might be, or she might not be. Either way, it won't be our concern, If she was the one who took care of the Tomie Team, I don't understand why she wouldn't attack us now. So we'll take her to Fort; this area is completely devastated, and there's no sign of the demon mentioned by Zeff, unless it's really her."
Nahoko sighs in relief knowing they would leave, but concern returns as the strange girl would now travel with them.
...
7:00 PM.
The group is on the plane, moments away from arriving on the association's rooftop.
Ryo and Siska are playing cards, sitting across from each other, while Mei keeps an eye on the red-haired girl.
Very pale, Nahoko looks out of the window. Trembling and anxious, she asks Hero Mei: "Team Leader, how much longer?"
"We should arrive in about ten minutes. Try to stay calm; the worst is over..." Mei replies without taking her eyes off the girl.
Meanwhile, Siska forcefully slams the cards on the table. Her hand consists of an ace and a seven, forming a fantastic full house with the cards on the table.
"Take this! The loot is mine, hehe."
Ryo looks unimpressed, then smirks and reveals: "Hehe... Not so fast, little bird."
He lays down his cards: two aces. He has a poker, winning the hand and pocketing the money, which is immediately internalized into his bracelet.
"Thanks, Siska. This weekend, I'll do some shopping with your money, hehe."
Siska doesn't respond to his taunt, but gets up from her seat and sits next to Nahoko.
After boarding the plane, Mei quickly checked the girl and found nothing serious: no external injuries, she seems perfectly healthy. Considering this, Mei can't understand the dynamics surrounding her: 'maybe she really is a demon', she thinks to herself.
While her mind is filled with these thoughts, the girl's eyes open, revealing completely red irises.
They stare at each other without saying anything, and then the girl sits up, facing Mei.
The others notice her awakening, and they start watching her anxiously. Although Ryo and Siska don't show it, they fear discovering if she's truly a demon, while Nahoko clearly shows it, being on the verge of fainting.
Mei decides to make the first move, not sensing any hostility, and asks: "We found you in Bakuro Forest. Who are you?"
"I am Dea-." Death stops without finishing the sentence.
"Dea?" Mei looks confused.
So Death continues: "Deborah. I'm Deborah. I went to the forest with my parents, then something happened, and I passed out. Are they okay?" She says this very quickly, as if she had already prepared her speech.
Mei, on her part, is reassuring and tells her:"You were alone when we found you... Now you'll come with us; we'll take you to a safe place."
Death looks away and starts making disgusted expressions, as if she couldn't bear the situation anymore.
At a critical point, she gets up from her seat and slowly approaches the exit hatch.
Mei looks at her perplexed, not understanding what she intends to do. Instinct makes her manifest the sword in her left hand, promptly hiding it from Death's eyes.
...
Once at the hatch, Death looks at Mei and reveals her disdain: "I don't have time for this crap."
With that said, without any warning, she places her hand on the hatch, instantly destroying it, and then throws herself out of the plane.
At that moment, everyone is pushed towards the exit due to the sudden change in air pressure, but somehow they manage to resist, holding onto the seats.
After a few seconds, an emergency system activates, materializing a thick metal plate to seal the exit.
Once closed, everyone finds themselves thrown around.
"Ah ah ah ah ah ah... I knew it. I said it." Nahoko babbles something with a frightened look.
Ryo approaches Mei, helping her to get up. Then he tells her: "Team Leader Mei, that girl just committed suicide."
Mei looks at him with a smile and says ironically: "In a world like this, you can expect anything."
....
7:30 PM
The plane landed on the association's building. Nahoko was the first to exit, running and visibly agitated, followed by the others. Mei is the calmest, while both Ryo and Siska are disturbed. Noticing their concern, Mei turns to them and says: "Don't worry, in any case, the responsibility is mine. You go and rest; I'll talk to the president."
Siska nods, while Ryo seems reluctant. "No, I'll come too. We're a team, responsibilities are shared."
"No, the responsibility will always be the Team Leader's. I knew there was a possibility she could be a demon, but I underestimated it. We were lucky she didn't decide to attack us, although I don't understand why she didn't want to fight us."
The others look at her very skeptically. Siska seems to have an idea and says: "What if Deborah used up all her energy fighting against the Team Leader Zeff and the others? This would explain why she didn't attack us. She must have fainted, and when she woke up, she noticed our strength and preferred to escape." Her speech oozes with pride and determination.
Meanwhile, they have reached the elevator, which has started and is heading to the ground floor.
Mei makes a displeased face and rolls her eyes, recalling the discussion she had with the demon, the says: "Why didn't she stay silent then? Since waking up, she had a very strange behavior. I'm even doubting if she really fainted."
Siska doesn't know what to say and remains silent.
"If she were a demon, which one would she be? We know they can have a human form, but we have no other clues. Considering the strength to break the hatch, could it be the Strength demon?" Ryo says, not hiding his curiosity about Death.
"Who knows..." Mei doesn't seem particularly interested.
At that moment, the elevator stops on the 30th floor, and the door opens. Mei is the only one to exit.
"See you next week. Relax in these days."
The three nod, and then the door closes, and the elevator resumes its descent.
Waiting for her in an office are President Yu Yato and his associates...