The Red Hand

Chapter 224 – Magical Girl is Approached.

"And we're back in Kyoto... again." Superbia sighed as she and Mixu walked along the sidewalk together. They'd come here after sightings of a mysterious 'Magical Girl' started popping up online, and Aoi was tasked with figuring out who they were and where they came from. "Why is it when things go wrong or something strange happens, it's always in the vicinity of Akagi?"

{Libra, Serval and Rivenshaft, her own country, Silfana, and now a fucking Magical Girl... Is Akagi just a trouble magnet, or the one creating the trouble?} (Superbia)

"Would you expect otherwise?" Mixu raised her eyebrow as she looked at the Oni. "Akagi always causes trouble, or at the very least it accumulates around her." She'd known the Demon long enough to understand that wherever she went, there was almost always chaos.

"The fact that Akagi contacted Aoi and told her not to publish the identity of this Magical Girl once we discover who it is already has me suspicious." Superbia groaned. Akagi had contacted them shortly after the first appearance and essentially threatened them into keeping their mouths shut. "I swear to god, if it's actually Akagi herself acting as a Magical Girl, I'm gonna scream."

{I could see it too...} (Superbia)

"While I wouldn't put it past that idiot to do something like this, like Hishya said, I don't think it's her." Mixu shook her head. "She wouldn't care if people found out her real identity, so it must be someone close to her." She figured it was a member of the Demon's family, since it wasn't as if they knew everyone that worked for Akagi.

"Who knows, maybe she finally went over the edge and transformed her sister into a Magical Girl?" Superbia laughed. "Poor Kana. Having to deal with the trauma of being turned into such a thing."

{For some reason, I could see it.} Mixu laughed internally at the thought of Kana being forced to act as a Magical Girl for her sister's amusement.

As the two of them continued their investigation throughout Kyoto, they obtained witness statements, listened to stories from city residents, and talked with the locals about their feelings on the Magical Girl. Many were not thrilled to speak with the two of them, but most cooperated once they were informed the two women were actually law enforcement.

"Argh!" Superbia ruffled her hair as she took a seat on a park bench. "We've been running in circles all day! I'm beginning to think the people here are sending us on a wild goose chase!" They'd hopped across Kyoto during their investigation, and heard conflicting stories about sightings and other patterns related to the Magical Girl, but never found said Girl.

"They're probably protecting whoever she is from us." Mixu said as she ate some ice cream from a dish. "From what I got, it seems her heroic antics have actually left people with a good impression. Meaning that they're probably less inclined to work with us on finding her, fearing that we might hurt her or something." She knew trust in returnees was very low in Japan, so it was understandable that people wouldn't want to out what they saw was a 'real' hero to the RRT.

"But we save people, and all we get is snark and stares!" Superbia glared at her. “Why is this girl different?!?”

{Why are you acting all nonchalant about this anyway? And where did you get that ice cream?!? We're on the job, Mixu!} (Superbia)

"Yeah, but unlike us this girl is a Magical Girl, or at least she looks and acts like one." Mixu said as she continued eating. "Most people know what a Magical Girl is, so one showing up and claiming to be a homegrown hero has a much different impact than us."

{Not to mention Magical Girls are pretty well understood and liked, so one popping up would only make people feel safe since its a 'known quantity.'} (Mixu)

"So you're telling me that in order to get people to stop hating us, that we should dress in frilly clothing and do cringe things like call out attack names and make statements about the power of friendship?" Superbia deadpanned.

{I mean, you call out attack names all the time, but I'll refrain from pointing that out.} (Mixu)

"It's more that people see her as something a bit different than us. We're basically monsters or monster adjacent to most people." Mixu said as she dropped the plastic spoon and cup in a nearby trash can. "But this girl is 'human' and is acting a bit more in line with what people associate with heroes. Not to mention she's cute, energetic, and childlike. It's going to be hard for most people, especially here in Japan, to hate her." Mixu could understand the acceptance of a Magical Girl since most people, even adults, watch or have watched such shows during their life. They were crazy popular, and their following was one of the largest in Japanese fiction.

"I know, it's just annoying to think that-" Superbia's face got sharp as she stopped mid-sentence. Something caught her attention, and she could feel a strange magical power appear in the distance. "You feel that?" She turned to Mixu.

"Yep. That's an interesting magical signature, and it's zipping around North Kyoto right now." Mixu motioned for Superbia to follow and the two of them took off at high speed, racing towards the unknown magic. There weren't many people who could use magic in this world, and they were already aware that Mika, Kana, and Naomi could use magic and what their signatures felt like. This one felt similar to Mika, but was much stronger and a bit different than the silly girl's power.

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<Mika POV>

Mika stood on top of one of the many highrises in Kyoto with a big smile on her face as she looked out across the city. "I wonder what's going to happen today?" Mika thought out loud. She was excited to get to work, and was looking forward to another day of being Kyoto's Magical Hero. "Yesterday, I helped the police catch that robber, so maybe today I'll get to save the day again!" She'd come here after her chores were finished at her home and transformed, ready to act as a Magical Girl and fight some crime, though she imagined that there wouldn't be that much in Kyoto, since it was relatively safe.

"I wonder if Akagi would let me fight in that upcoming tournament?" Mika moved to sit down on the ledge of the building. "I'd like a chance to kick Kana's butt!" She giggled. "That way, I can defeat Scary Kana once and for all!" She cackled as she imagined the defeat of the the evil Scary Kana, and saving of the world from her tyranny.

"I don't know about that. Akagi is pretty protective of her sister, so she probably wouldn't want you smacking her around too much." Superbia said from behind her.

"Nah, it'll be fine. Akagi likes it when-" Mika stopped, jumping up and spinning around comically to face Superbia and Mixu. "EEP!"

{What are they doing here?!?} (Mika)

"So there really is a Magical Girl running around Kyoto." Superbia sighed. "Well, we've finally found you, so I guess that's nice. But you sure gave us some trouble. Do you have any idea how hard it was to track you down?"

{We spent most of the day looking for this silly girl when I had much better things to waste my time on!} (Superbia)

"I mean, that was kinda the point." Mika gave a wry smile. "But why are you two here? There's nothing happening in Kyoto right now." She didn't know why there were here, since nothing big was going down at the moment.

{Are they here to see Akagi?} (Mika)

"We're just on an excursion to hunt down a Magical Girl, nothing special." Mixu shrugged.

"Oh..." Mika wasn't expecting people to come looking for her, and didn't realize the RRT might be sent to find her. "So, what do you want? Do you need something from me?"

"We want you to come with us." Superbia replied. "Your appearance has caused lots of headaches for the higher-ups and they want us to bring you in." She'd been told to bring the Magical Girl back to Tokyo for questioning, but the how was never really elaborated on.

"EEH?!? I'm getting arrested?!?" Mika cried out in protest.

{I can't get arrested! I'm too cute for prison!} (Mika)

"No, no, no." Superbia shook her head. "We're not going to arrest you and put you in jail or anything. All we want is to talk to you is all. At this point, we don't really have the desire to go hunting down and jailing vigilantes. We just want find out who you are and where those powers came from. That's all." She tried to calm her down and reassure her that she wasn't in trouble.

"And we want you to join the RRT." Mixu added in an important caveat. "Having a superpowered hero running around on her own is not desirable for the government. Lest we get more Libra-like problems."

{Having people like us run around unchecked will only lead to future problems, so I get why they're so nervous about this girl. Especially when she's definitely not one of the 100 returnees.} (Mixu)

"Ummm. Can I refuse?" Mika asked meekly.

"I mean, I really don't want to have to force you to do anything, but we were kinda told to bring you back..." Superbia sighed. "So if you'd just come with us nice and peacefully, then we won't have any issues. I promise you that nothing bad will happen to you if you come quietly, and if people give you trouble, I will personally kick Aoi's ass." She was basically told to bring the Magical Girl back by force if needed, though she'd rather not harm anyone if possible.

{I know why they chose me for this operation, but its really annoying being forced into this position...} (Superbia)

{I really don't want to get dragged into this. I just want to be a Magical Girl here in Kyoto, not become involved in the RRT and their stuff.} Mika looked over her shoulder towards the ledge of the building. She could jump away, but wasn't sure she could outrun the two of them.

"I wouldn't try that if I were you." Mixu warned her not to run. "Superbia will get you in a flash if you move, and I'm more than able to snipe you." Her threat to shoot caused Mika to gulp.

"You will not shoot her, Mixu." Superbia scolded her. They were told to bring her in, not kill or seriously injure her."

"I'm just saying is all." The vampire shrugged. “She should be warned that fleeing won't work.”

{This isn't good. They're definitely stronger than me, and if they take me Akagi might get angry. And if Akagi gets angry...} (Mika)

"Um. I think you might be making a mistake here." Mika was going to try and talk her way out of this situation. “It wouldn't go well if you tried taking me away by force.”

"Why? You aren't stronger than us, and I know that for a fact. So don't try and bluff your way of of this one." Superbia stared at her, not backing down.

{I really don't want my identity out in public. That would ruin part of the fun. But I might not have a choice if they don't back down.} (Mika)

"B-Because Akagi might get angry if you mess with me." Mika gave a nervous laugh. She figured name dropping the big scary would be her best bet. "She's a good friend of mine and will probably not like you hurting me. Even if it is just a misunderstanding, she'll probably get angry."

"I knew Akagi was involved." Mixu sighed as she shook her head. "She told us not to out you once we got your identity, so don't worry about that part. I understand wanting to remain anonymous and everything, but please understand why the Government is a bit wary of a Magical Girl who we don't have any info on suddenly appearing in one of Japan's largest cities." Mixu didn't want to antagonize Akagi, but wasn't entirely sure the Demon would be angry with them over this. The Demon only said not to out her identity, not to leave the Magical Girl alone entirely.

"It's more than that. I'm only interested in protecting Kyoto as its Magical Girl. I don't want to be involved with you." Mika was getting increasingly nervous. She knew better than most how Akagi would react if her friends were harmed, and it had occurred to her that she meant quite a bit to the Demon, thus her being hurt even a little by Superbia and Mixu would probably cause Akagi to go ballistic.

{The last thing we need is for Akagi to blow a fuse. Hishya already told us that it was best for her to be the happy kitty who wants pets...} (Mika)

"And I'm sorry to tell you this, but that's not going to happen." Superbia said as she slowly drew her blade. "I really hate to do this, but since we've got no clue who you are or what your intentions are, we can't take any chances." She pointed it at Mika. "Please don't hold this against me. I just don't want to risk you causing trouble. We've already had enough chaos over this last year, so please come with me peacefully."

{I hate pointing my blade at a kid, or at least someone that looks like one, but with her so close to Osaka, I'm not risking her turning that power on innocent people. At least if she's under our thumb we can make sure she stays the good Magical Girl she wants to be.} {Superbia)

"I... um... Actually, my name is-" Just as Mika was about to reveal herself, a figure jumped in between her and Superbia, causing the Oni to jump back.

"Not so fast, nya!" Chloe appeared out of nowhere, a small tsuchinoko riding on her head, as she leapt onto the building and took a combat stance.

"Speak of the Devil and I guess one of its minions will come." Mixu chuckled.

"Chloe?" Superbia said as she kept her eyes on the cat. "What are you doing here? This doesn't involve Akagi."

{I can't tell of things just got better or worse...} (Mika)

"That's where you're wrong, nya." Chloe cracked her knuckles and flexed her body a bit. "You see, this girl is a friend of myaster, so I'm not going to sit by while you threaten her." Between the tips of her fingers, light glistened off of her strings. She didn't want to fight Mixu or Superbia, but was prepared to if needed.

"Why are you here?" Mika asked the cat, hoping to cut through the building tension.

"I was on patrol and saw you talking with these two. When Superbia drew her blade on you, I decided to hop in." Chloe answered without looking at her. "So what will it be, Oni? Will you walk away from this, or do I need to send you back to Tokyo in a box?" She smirked.

"Do you really think you can beat me, cat?" Superbia didn't like Chloe's smarm, and her threats only angered the Oni more. "Last I checked the power gap between us was in my favor, not yours!"

{I know Akagi said that you've gotten stronger, but I'm no weakling! Don't you dare look down on me, cat!} (Superbia)

{Fucking hell Superbia, don't escalate the situation...} Mixu sighed internally. She knew the Oni had a short fuse and could go off at the slightest provocation sometimes.

"Please." Chloe's smirk faded into a scowl. "Don't you dare insult myaster by assuming that you could ever defeat me! I was trained by the greatest assassin to ever live, and a fool like you couldn't even lay a single scratch on me." She didn't like when people looked down on her, since that was by extension looking down on Akagi.

"Akagi might be powerful, but your no match for me even with your buffs." Superbia grinned.

As the two stood apart from one another, their eyes locked on each other as sparks began to fly between them, and it seemed that a battle on the rooftops was inevitable.