"Alright, alright."
"Coming through! Make way, make way!"
"Put that over here, and that goes over there. Oh, and bring that piece over while you're at it!"
It had been a week since the attack by the new evil organization, Syndicate Shadow.
The city, scarred by multiple battles, was finally undergoing reconstruction. However, the path of destruction was so vast that they were severely short-handed.
Perhaps because of that, Sora's organization had decided to dispatch personnel. Combined with that connection, Sora had introduced me to this place when I mentioned I was looking for a part-time job.
Thanks to her, I was now working here.
"Alright, that's enough for this section. You guys can take a break."
"Got it."
Following the instructions, I finished hauling the last of the rubble and was granted a break by the site supervisor.
I sat down on a convenient slab of concrete and was drinking my provided bottle of mineral water when a group dressed in rather flashy clothes approached.
The woman leading the group separated from the others and walked toward me.
"Excuse me. Would you happen to know where the person in charge is?"
Her golden wolf-cut hair shimmered in the sunlight. She wore a lab coat over a suit and carried herself with a weary, downer air. I answered her question truthfully.
"The person with the glasses over there is likely the one."
"Thank you. I'll go see."
The woman walked in the direction I pointed.
A short while later, as she spoke with the supervisor, I watched the man bow his head over and over again in a polite, deferential manner.
She looks like someone important, I thought.
Once they finished talking, the woman in the lab coat signaled to the group she had brought along.
At her sign, the group dispersed to their respective stations and began removing rubble, each utilizing their own unique abilities.
"Hello, boy."
As I was blankly watching the work progress, the woman in the lab coat spoke to me again.
"Um, do you need something else?" I asked.
Right now, I was just a part-time laborer. I didn't think I had any further business with a high-ranking official.
"I have a few things I wanted to ask. Oh, but before that, let me introduce myself. I am Alice Labilotte. Please, call me Alice."
"I'm Owari Tokoyo."
"I thought as much."
When she heard my name, something seemed to click for Alice, and her atmosphere felt like it softened.
"Have we met somewhere before?"
"No, this is the first time I've met you in person. However, I've heard a bit about you from Sora-chan."
Hearing Sora's name, I realized Alice's true identity. She had to be someone from the same organization as Sora.
That meant the ability-users she brought with her were likely heroes from somewhere.
"I heard Sora-chan had made a friend, so I wanted to see you for myself."
"Um...?"
"Ah, please don't misunderstand. I really did just want to see your face."
I had expected some kind of dramatic development where she told me I wasn't worthy of being Sora's friend, but it seemed Alice truly just wanted to see who I was.
"I don't know if you're aware, but Sora-chan is incredibly busy. She hasn't even been able to go to school much. Because of that, while she has work acquaintances, she has almost no friends her own age. So, when I heard she had made a new friend, I couldn't help but feel happy for her."
Magical Girl Rain had been active since the Dark Matter era. I had heard that the fighting was particularly fierce back then, so it made sense that she was even busier then than she was now, making regular school life impossible.
"Please, continue to look out for her."
"Of course. Kohinata is a precious friend to me," I answered immediately.
Regardless of Maria's words, it was my sincere wish to stay on good terms with Sora.
While I was having this small talk with Maria, my phone beeped. It seemed I only had ten minutes left of my break.
"Oh, did I happen to disturb your rest?"
"I was just sitting here anyway, so I actually enjoyed the conversation."
Even though it was a break, I was just killing time. If I could spend that time talking to someone instead, I considered myself lucky.
As I stood up to head back to work, a commotion echoed from the distance.
"What's going on?"
"Hmm, it's getting quite noisy."
Maria and I looked toward the source of the sound to see a group of thuggish-looking men in black suits and sunglasses approaching.
I wanted nothing to do with them at first glance, but the reason so many people were staring was because the person leading the group was incredibly conspicuous.
It was a girl, likely around my age, dressed in a bold, flashy red kimono. She was leading a pack of intimidating-looking men.
What caught the eye even more was the object at her waist. She carried a katana, its scabbard decorated with vibrant cherry blossoms.
"Sigh... What are they doing here?"
"You know them?" I asked.
"In a manner of speaking. I'll be right back."
Alice left me and walked straight toward the group, standing in their way.
"What are you people doing in a place like this? If you have no business here, I suggest you leave immediately."
"Hah? Look who it is—if it isn't one of the Association's high-and-mighty heroes. You're the one who shouldn't be here."
Faced with Alice, the girl in the kimono took a step forward and glared at her.
The two of them stared each other down at point-blank range.
"I'm here for work, obviously. We heroes have been tasked with helping here. I don't think there's any room for your kind."
"Don't screw with me. This is our territory—the Himatsuri-gumi's turf. We don't need a hero-sama telling us where we can or can't be."
The air was thick with tension. I didn't know the details, but it was clear that Alice and that girl had a very prickly relationship. Just as the atmosphere was turning oppressive, the site supervisor came running over in a panic.
The middle-aged supervisor stood between them with a strained smile, talking at a mile a minute to de-escalate.
A few minutes later, thanks to his persistent negotiations, the situation finally calmed down, and the heavy atmosphere became somewhat bearable.
"Tch. I'll respect the old man's wishes for now, but don't you get in our way, hero."
"That's my line. If you show even the slightest suspicious movement, I'll have you apprehended immediately. You'd better work diligently."
"Hah! Keep talking!"
The two turned their backs on each other.
The girl returned to her men and gave a command.
"Alright, boys! Let's get to work!"
"""YES, MA'AM!!!!"""
At the girl's shout, the men scattered and began assisting with the rubble removal.
Some used abilities, much like the heroes did. The worksite was now essentially split down the middle between the heroes and the suits.
"Who are they?"
"They are the Himatsuri-gumi," Alice said, having returned to my side.
"Himatsuri-gumi?"
"Yes. They're a vigilante group active in this area. Back when Dark Matter was at its peak, the first leader, Kagura Himatsuri, took in outcasts and people with nowhere else to go to keep them from drifting into the Syndicate's clutches. She turned them into a chivalrous organization."
During the era of Dark Matter’s rampage, the Syndicate would lure people who had fallen through the cracks of society with sweet temptations, turning them into pawns.
To save them, the late Kagura Himatsuri took in anyone and everyone, eventually building a vigilante force that fought back against Dark Matter to protect this region.
"However, Kagura Himatsuri died during the final battle against Dark Matter. She managed to defeat a high-tier Kaijin but went down with an executive in a double knockout. The organization was held together solely by Kagura's charisma, so after she died, it nearly dissolved. But Mika Himatsuri, Kagura's only daughter, took over as the second-generation leader and somehow managed to keep it together until today."
The girl in the kimono currently working among the men must be the Mika Himatsuri Alice was talking about.
"But as I said, the Himatsuri-gumi relied on Kagura's charisma. Even as her daughter, Mika Himatsuri hasn't been able to fully control the group. As a result, there have been constant dark rumors that would have been unthinkable under the first leader. It seems some members are trying to do whatever they want behind her back."
In the past, the Himatsuri-gumi had been a group of outcasts who fought on the front lines, led by a woman who showed them a better way. They were a noble group bound by honor.
But the current Himatsuri-gumi was different. Nowadays, they were teetering on the edge of becoming just another outlaw gang.
"Regardless of the past, you should be careful around them, Owari-kun. Don't get involved. If anything happens, you should talk to me or Sora-chan."
"Understood."
From what I was hearing, they weren't the kind of group I’d go out of my way to meet.
Still, one thing bothered me. I sensed a trace of sorrow in the look Alice gave Mika Himatsuri as the girl worked in the distance.
"Honestly... she could have just been a normal student if she hadn't inherited that organization..."
It sounded like Alice's organization and the previous leader, Kagura Himatsuri, had shared some kind of history. Based on Alice’s expression, it must have been a relationship built on trust.
But Alice and her colleagues were heroes. No matter who they were dealing with, if a group threatened the safety of the citizens, they would have to be dealt with.
"Oh, and I’ve moved your station away from them, Owari-kun. Check your new assignment later."
"Thank you."
My break was just ending, and I was about to get back to work when the sound of an explosion thundered from the distance.
"Alice-san!"
A hero came running toward her.
"What happened?"
"Kaijin! Two of them just appeared! They’ve brought Machine Soldiers and started rampaging!"
"Split the heroes here into two groups. One half will handle the Machine Soldiers, the other will handle evacuations. Prioritize the citizens' safety above all else."
"Understood. And you, Alice-san?"
"I will handle the Kaijin."
Alice barked out her orders and saw the hero off before looking back at me.
"Owari-kun, evacuate to a safe area immediately!"
With that command, she sprinted toward the chaos.
Her destination was clear: straight toward the Kaijin.
But she wasn't the only one standing in their path.
"What do you think you're doing, Mika Himatsuri?"
"Right back at you, hero. You're in my way, so go play crossing guard or something."
Mika Himatsuri stood right beside Alice.
They traded barbs, but neither took their eyes off the enemy for a second.
Normally, they would have stayed there arguing until one of them came out on top, but this was an emergency. Saving lives was the priority, more important than winning an argument. They couldn't afford to waste time here.
"You're free to run away whenever you want. I'll take care of both of them," Alice said.
"Just focus on buying time. I'm gonna be the one to clean this up," Mika countered.
Alice pulled a golden pocket watch from her lab coat and held it out in front of her.
Beside her, Mika Himatsuri gripped her scabbard and drew her katana with a sharp, fluid motion.
"Change."
"Let's go, Onikagura!"