[PREVIEW] Assassin Among Heroes Ch 37

The first sign this idea wasn’t going to bite in the ass: no metal detectors.

Not to say that there wasn’t any security; there were plenty of guards and the odd cop or two on patrol, ushering people onward and the odd interrogation, but none of them paid attention to me. Even without Concealment, I knew how to blend in. If any officers did spot me, they wouldn’t think too much of a teenager in a school uniform with a completely unremarkable gym bag. A perfectly reasonable sight compared to the horns, technicolor skins and other assorted biological effects milling around the station. Totally justified!

Please, Mawla. I was not nervous.

Once I boarded the train, I sighed in relief and tried to enjoy the trip. It was…relaxing, for lack of a better word. Not my first time on a bullet train, so while the sight of the city blurring past me within minutes did send a pleased shiver, it wasn’t anything too special. Alas, I couldn’t enjoy the scenery too much, since I devoted the trip time to iron out my plan of attack.

Mawla, of course, interrogated me and questioned my every step. 

‘I have doubts as to thy course of action, contractor.’

‘Come on, Mawla, what is there to doubt? I get that it’s a little simple on paper but -’

‘It is less about the plan and more about the location,’ he interjected. ‘Thou art venturing into unknown territories with scant knowledge regarding its terrain, both physical and criminal. The simplicity of thy plan serves thee well in this case, for it provides greater flexibility in thy decisions henceforth. However, with no context regarding the nature of thy targets, I fear any plans would matter little.’

I knew he was going to say that. ‘This is why I’m treating this as a scouting mission, Mawla. I’ll get a better picture of where I’m at and how to move around. I’m not going to stab anyone today unless I know I can make a clean getaway.’

‘Considering thy fortunes, I pray to Allah thy confidence holds.’

Ouch. ‘Even if I do get into a tangle, the new poison should help shorten the fight,’ I patted my bag, where a full vial of narcissus poison was safely stored.

Mawla hummed and went silent. I sighed, doubting whether or not I convinced him. He did bring up good points though - like always - about Shizuoka. I was effectively going in blind. Even Dabi didn’t have much information on the crime scene down there, though he agreed to share whatever intel caught his ear. Another drain on the, er, account, but it was for a good cause. 

In the end, there was nothing else I could do. I was riding on the rails, literally, and I wouldn’t waste this day.

Now though? The gnawing doubt in my mind becomes very prominent.

Steeling myself, I take the final staircase out of the train station and take my first look at the city of Shizuoka.

…not that different from Tokyo, actually. Tall buildings, buses chugging along, people milling about their daily lives. I dunno what else I was expecting.

‘Thou cannot afford idleness, contractor. If there is no impediment to thy goal, then do not dally.’

Good point. I take a deep breath, grip my gym bag tight and type the address Dabi sent me into the maps app. Once the route finishes loading, I head down the street. Every now and then I look up to ensure I don’t take a wrong turn, but some good old-fashioned GPS magic takes care of any such worries. As my legs carry me deeper and deeper into the city, I notice a couple of things that stand out in contrast to Tokyo. The buildings for one are…older, or maybe that’s not the correct term. Not ‘Kyoto district old’, but the wear on steel and concrete is more prominent on the main streets, whereas Tokyo always had polished towers gleaming over the horizon. There are a few of those too, but they’re more like solitary pines in a grove compared to the clustered skyscrapers back home. It’s less a sign of neglect and more a sign of…reuse? Or maybe the local infrastructure isn’t up to speed.

Hmm, there are always new buildings built or demolished in Tokyo. Maybe that isn’t the case here.

Entering a tunnel underneath the main railway, I’m greeted by the sight of posters, lined up side-by-side on each wall. Nothing too eye-catching, just some local exhibits, shows, commercials of things I couldn’t care less about…ah, a hero-licensed product. Shampoo, of all things.

Huh. Come to think of it…

‘Usually, I’d be bombarded with hero posters and whatnot by now.’ You couldn’t look down one street back in Tokyo without a hero’s face beaming at you for some product or hollering from a TV ad. I turn around and notice that yep, that poster was the only one that mentioned a hero in any capacity. Wait, there’s a movie one, Champion Starburst…but nothing else.

‘I know for a fact there are heroes in this city, I did my research. Fewer than what I’m used to, but still! You’d think they’d announce their presence every chance they had, considering there isn’t much competition.’

‘Mayhap there is less of a need for their presence? Or they are so entrenched within the community, any further boasting is deemed moot.’

…this could mean a lot of things, like knowing who’s more likely to respond in the event of a crime.

I shrug and exit the tunnel, raising a hand over my eyes. And right then and there I’m struck by the third, and perhaps the greatest, contrast to back home. 

It’s not the quaint buildings, the homey vibe, or the lack of needless hero merchandising.

It’s the noise. Rather, the lack of it.