Dead Zone | 4 Days After Cronus' Gaze | 2501
Merkana and Hirofumi sat on a hill, watching Sirius train intensely. The boy was being pushed beyond his limits, forced to surpass them to survive.
"I thought you didn't like seeing him get hurt," Hirofumi remarked, giving the Mercurian a curious glance.
"Training is training, Blowfly. If he can't handle training, he can't handle being a hero," Merkana replied bluntly.
"Heh, you haven't changed, huh, lunatic?" Hirofumi retorted with a sneer.
"Lunatic?" Merkana laughed mockingly. "Says the guy who carries cargo ships on his back as 'light training' in the morning."
Hirofumi rolled his eyes, but the light tone of their conversation faded as Merkana suddenly turned serious.
"Hey, Fumi."
"Huh?"
"Did you feel it too?" The question made Hirofumi widen his eyes, immediately understanding what she meant.
"Are you implying...?" he asked.
"In the fight against the Zariani," she clarified, focused. "We were weaker, weren't we?"
Hirofumi sighed reluctantly. "Yeah, we were. I thought you didn't notice since the last time I saw you, you seemed shaken. I figured you'd stopped training because of what happened with… him."
Merkana averted her gaze, her hair partially covering her face. A "Tch" escaped her lips, but she quickly composed herself.
"Something's wrong. It's impossible for heroes our age to lose so much power so quickly," she said, more thoughtful than ever. "You've talked to Mattheuz about this, haven't you?"
Hirofumi's silence was accompanied by a bead of sweat rolling down his forehead.
"You've got to be kidding me!" Merkana exploded, punching him on top of his head.
"Ow!" Hirofumi rubbed the sore spot. "What was that for? After the crisis, I thought it was temporary!"
"Based on what?" Merkana crossed her arms.
"Uh… gut feeling?" he guessed, shrugging.
The result was a slap to the face.
"Hey!" he protested indignantly, but Merkana ignored him, refocusing.
"I'm almost certain this is related to some user of EIY or Projection," she said thoughtfully. "Alright, how weak are you now?"
"Yesterday I ran some tests," Hirofumi responded more seriously. "I'm at the Large Construction level. And during the fight, I tried to access my other forms automatically but couldn't."
"Large Construction level, no stages, and with a smaller Leviathan…" She paused, analyzing. "Does this match anything of ours? Could it be context manipulation?"
Hirofumi frowned, trying to recall something relevant. His mind, however, wandered.
(Why did I want to tear Zarim's skull off when we first met?) He shook his head, frustrated. (Focus, damn it! First month? Second? Or was it when I ate that pastel—FOCUS!)
Merkana observed him, mentally sighing as she let him process. Finally, Hirofumi clapped his fist into his palm.
"Got it! It was because of the bike!"
Merkana stared at him, expressionless.
"Or… unicycle?" he guessed, scratching his head.
"…"
"Right, it was a pigeon then, wasn't it?"
Out of patience, Merkana punched him again.
"Alright, alright! It was at the end of our first month at the Academy!" Hirofumi finally got serious. "Which means..."
"It means not only are we literally… 100% weaker," she said after doing some rough calculations, rounding the number, "but we also can't directly manipulate the abstract. And without my Eiji, I can't even sense it."
"..." Hirofumi remained silent.
"So…" he finally murmured, resigned, "we're limited to using our bodies as a focus to affect the abstract?"
"Exactly."
"…" He sighed deeply. "Yeah, we're screwed."
[N/A: For those curious, after certain calculations OBVIOUSLY not done by me, they are 99.9999999999999999999…% weaker compared to their previous destructive level. Now, enjoy the curiosity below.]
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Explanation #2 About Heroes!
There are various ways to affect abstract things like the laws of physics. The way Merkana used her body as a focus against the Mole and Zariani to slow the effects of inertia was by modifying the activation conditions of her standard package and special ability "See and Touch" to "Make Contact." This allowed her to slow the laws of physics since, abstractly, we are always in contact with them.
---
"Haaaaaaaah..." Merkana sighed deeply, resigned, before asking, "What's our course of action?"
"This can't go public under any circumstances," Hirofumi began, stating the obvious. Then he continued, "But I think there's a way to turn this investigation into a win-win."
"Hmm?" Merkana raised an eyebrow, curious.
Hirofumi closed his eyes, carefully pondering his response. After a few seconds, he pointed toward Sirius.
Merkana immediately tensed, her expression hardening.
"Think carefully about what you're going to say, Hirofumi Naobito," her voice came out low, almost threatening, reflecting her protectiveness.
"Vigilantism," he replied calmly. "While we train Renovas, we ask if he intends to get involved in it."
Merkana's confusion was evident. "He'll obviously accept, but how does that help?"
"We can use it as a cover," he explained, a calculated smile spreading. "We say we're training a new student to become a Local Hero. That justifies our possible absence and creates a distraction for the investigation. And at the same time..." He paused, leaning slightly forward. "We use the opportunity to recover our strength."
Merkana remained silent.
He was right. Much more right than she wanted to admit.
It was a solid plan—and it hit right at what she feared. Before, her goal was just to train Sirius to prepare him, leaving real combat experience to the Academy. But now…
It was clear that approach wouldn't suffice. Sirius wouldn't just gain practical experience through this plan; he'd also evolve faster. And that was crucial for a hero.
The realization hit her like a punch: she'd been naive.
(I'm really a terrible teacher…)
Merkana lowered her gaze for a moment, trying to hide the discomfort growing inside her. Of course Hirofumi would think of this before her—he always had a more practical and astute view of such matters despite his low intelligence, so much so that he's the leader of his team. But it hurt to realize she'd nearly squandered such a basic opportunity.
(Well, I've never been great with these details…)
Merkana sighed again, the weight of her worries settling on her shoulders.
(Haaaaah... I hope my Sirius will be okay.)
To be Continued...