Retaliation

What is... this soft sensation... Am I in... a bed? I was... on the... floor with Ria... losing... consciousness-

|...|

"Graaahh!"

I'm awake!

"Don't startle me, peasant!"

"Ria! Where is she?!"

"Relax! She's next to you!"

I made it out... Damn it, Francis! And Ria... She seems to be well...

Hahaha... Don't start crying now, bastard! You couldn't... protect her... you have no right to be this relieved. I can still hold her hands. I can still see her smile... Ah! Fuck it! Might as well let my tears fall.

In a shaky voice, Ms. Alice muttered, "D-Don't start crying now. I-It's making me feel guilty."

"I-It's not your fault, Ms. Alice. But tell me... who did this?"

That's all I have in my mind other than Ria... Who fucking did this to her?!

"That's why we brought you in, to find who did this. It's been one of Equipoise's most dubious problems. The Kuroi Katen gang.

"How long is she asleep?"

"Eh?"

"She's in a coma, right?"

"Y-Yeah, for a month... How'd you-"

"She told me she'd only take a nap, so give me one month, and I'll find him."

"Now is not the time for jokes!"

"I'll start hunting next week, so for now, hire me any tutor as long as he can answer my questions."

"Slow down! We need to think this through-"

"You want our aid? It's this or no help at all."

"Fine... I'll book a hotel for you to stay in."

"No need. I'm staying by Ria's side. I left her once, and I won't do it again!"

"You're a troublesome ally, Miles. You're being too selfish."

"Don't worry, Ms. Alice. I won't play God. I can't achieve world peace by myself, so I'd like you to recommend some capable people."

"Next week... meet us at the restaurant. I was planning on bringing you in slowly, but I suppose you won't need any convincing."

"That's a given. I now have a personal reason to fight your enemy. All I need is details."

"Do you have contact info?"

"Contact what?"

"You don't have a phone?!"

This world has phones?! Come to think of it, the crowds during the murder were just... recording it. It appears to be a hologram that can be physically touched. But now is not the time for that! I have to assess the situation now... never mind, I've been done that.

So this is the city of riots... how cruel. I almost lost Ria, so I won't let it happen again! But it seems like that won't be the case if we stay in this loathsome place.

Racism, police brutality, corporate slaves, extreme poverty, and an ever so visible class struggle between the pitiful and the blessed, hidden from the sight of the masses by a grandiose illusion conceived by the nature of man; these are the true colors of Midway.

Ria and I need to flee from here the moment we find the missing pages in the book. And fulfilled our side of the deal. Trying to "fix" the errors of this shithole is like trying to be Jesus, but for now, I'll make it a better place for when she wakes up.

Ms. Alice handed me a ring and exclaimed, "Here, take mine. That's a new model."

"T-Thank you?"

"I'll be off now."

I'm grateful for your gift, but may you please refrain from reminding me of the considerable distance between the status of my life to yours?

So, how do I use this? I want to write down everything before pulling a John Wick and take out a notorious criminal organization.

Saying that in my head is... terrifying, but it's strange. The daggers of fear that are usually enveloping my chest are not here. In fact, I'd say I'm itching from excitement and oozing with rage. These unexpected emotions feel like it's connected to Ria, but I don't know how. Anything related to Ria concerns me, I guess.

"How do hell do you use this?"

Do I put it on my finger? It appears to be a ring, but is that it? I look like a sixty-year-old Greg trying to work a computer.

Before I could figure out how to use phones in this world, I heard another familiar voice.

"How you doin' youngin'? Sorry, I couldn't protect your girl, but Ms. Alice told me you need a tutor?"

Uncle Jerry is here?! I supposed he feels responsible.

"I-It's okay, Uncle Jerry. It's my fault for letting my guard down... and yeah, I do need a tutor."

"Well, fuck yer' yammerin' about. The fucker you need's standin' in front of you."

Eh? Is this one of those bizarre occurrences this world throws at me? "Don't judge a book by its cover," they say, but can you blame me?

"Just come by the shack and join my lessons."

"T-Thank you?"

"Alright, I got to safeguard the slums. Don't fuckin' die youngin'."

That's fucking unbelievable... His shameless mouth excluded, Uncle Jerry is a superman, I'd say. He runs a shack, shields the slums, and now he's a teacher? He carries a mountain behind his back, a reincarnation of Hercules. You may be one impolite motherfucker, but you have my respect.

Now back to the phone...

"Put in in my middle finger and..."

"Facial recognition activated. Mile Reyes... Recognized."

Woah...! Where was this in my previous lonely life! And the phone recognized me?! But it's my first time... Ms. Alice is scary...

It's like my former world's version of phones but in a hologram. Time to get to business!

"So I press this notepad icon and..."

All the details are here! I just have to read!

'The Kuroi Katen gang is a notorious criminal organization known for starting the world's most violent riots, assassinations, and the destruction of government establishments.'

The first sentence in, and I'm already about to cry out of fear. This is similar to when I exposed a specific influential idiot in our school, but one hundredfold. But hey! At least I have experience! I'd be taking a trip to Idiot Town if I were to use the same methods, but I'll use the same system. Back to the details...

'They have over a million members worldwide and a hundred thousand in Midway, but most affiliates of the gang are ordinary people who are unlucky with the life they rolled. They're a rag-tag bunch tied together by a common ideal, which is to get "even" with the elites.'

So they're vigilantes, huh? They have a noble cause but an incorrect manner of practicing it. The most difficult enemy to face is one you sympathize with.

'Tips for peasants.'

If Ms. Alice didn't have a hidden kind side, I would've constantly called her a spoiled bitch.

'To identify a member, there is a tattoo of a bloody swing on the back of their bodies. The smaller the tattoo, the higher their position is within the gang. Their leader "Hitoshi" wears a black mask with a white cross on it.'

Ms. Alice got all this information by herself? I have a solid guess of what her enhancement is.

'I have three main suspects.'

'Alexander Wissen, the number one suspect. A congressman who is a strong advocate of equal rights. His ideals are rather extreme, and suspicions can be raised due to that.'

'Alexis Mikhail. A half-dwarf half-elf, who from the eyes of the masses, appears to be an ordinary rich man... but in reality, he spilled an amount of blood equal to his wealth.'

'Lastly, Sova Eisenhart. Leave this fucker to me.'

Who knew she could curse?! So... A government official, a mafia boss, and her brother? What did I get myself into?

But... anything for Ria.

As I analyze the given information, I heard yet another familiar voice.

"Good morning, Sir Miles!

"Francis? Y-Your eye..."

"It's only an eye. Anyways, Ms. big-breast kept worrying like a wife, so I won't be able to be of service, but to make amends, I'll use what remains of my enhancement."

"It's okay now, Francis. You've done enough."

"I'm a selfish person, Sir Miles. I heard you need lessons?

"Yeah, but I can get to the slums by my-"

"I have to get going now. Ms. Alice will get mad at me for getting out of bed."

"*Snap!"

That transition of events just minutes ago...They must've planned how to talk to me before I woke up. Anyways, I'm in the shack, and there are kids beside me...

"Woah... Uncle Jerry, who's this scary-eyed dude?"

"Ohh... It's the cool dude from earlier."

"Shut it! Ya' brats! Miles here will be joinin' us for a week, so listen here, you fucker! I won't just be teachin' history, Miles. I preach how to survive Midway, so don't show me shit."

Isn't Uncle Jerry a bit too inappropriate to be teaching kids? And isn't the lesson too extreme? But that's what I need...

"Now... Classes begin."