Republic of Heroes
Table of Contents
Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 Chapter 40 Chapter 41 Chapter 42 Chapter 43 Chapter 44 Chapter 45 Chapter 46 Chapter 47 Chapter 48 Chapter 49 Chapter 50 Chapter 51 Chapter 52 Chapter 53 Chapter 54 Chapter 55 Chapter 56 Chapter 57 Chapter 58 Chapter 59 Chapter 60 Chapter 61 Chapter 62 Chapter 63 Chapter 64 Chapter 65 Chapter 66 Chapter 67 Chapter 68 Chapter 69 Chapter 70 Chapter 71 Chapter 72 Chapter 73 Chapter 74 Chapter 75 Chapter 76 Chapter 77 Chapter 78 Chapter 79 END ExtraChapter 33
Entering and closing the door behind him, the office had a lot of filing cabinets, a desk and a chair, and a bookshelf on one of the walls. There are also a couple of filing cabinets that are either locked or unlocked, with a laptop on the desk and a pen holder on one of the shelves. Windows are visible on the back of the office, which provide light in this very room.
However, his attention was caught by the expression of the woman standing in the said office: her long, brown hem cut and black beret hat, along with her long brown trench coat and long black skirt, reached to her shoes as she stared at him in crossed arms, appearing to have been waiting for him as if she knew he would be arriving soon.
In a brief second, he thought she was a woman but immediately realized that this was none other than a feminine man. Taking a good look at him, there were feminine features in his facial expressions while having a long brown hair cut. This unknown stranger looked rather pretty despite being biologically male.
"Are you a man?"
He said in a bewildered tone, staring at the crossdresser with confusion all over his face as if he were caught by surprise, "Sorry, its just..." Realizing he was being rude and awkward, the young billionaire quickly corrected himself.
His unexpected reaction amused the stranger, who was smiling slightly but still had his emotionless expression. "Yes, I am a man," he confirmed bluntly, without revealing much or any reason why he was crossdressing. "Please sit down; we have important matters to discuss," the long-haired brunette said calmly, gesturing for him to take a seat in the wooden chair.
The person didn't appear insulted or offended by the young man's actions, which made him sigh in relief as he walked towards his table to grab a hold of the spare wooden chair. Placing it in front of the one who invited him here, he sat down on the cushion seat in order to begin the discussion as requested by the long-haired individual.
"My name is Misa Namioka," he introduced himself, confirming his gender while still having a feminine appearance that could easily confuse anyone, "pleasure to make acquaintance, commissioner," giving a short introduction.
"Likewise," nodding his head, "my name is Randolph Carter, but please, just call me Carter, since everyone else does anyway." The commissioner smiled warmly, reciprocating the same courtesy back. "So, what is it that you want to tell me?" Asking what is so urgent that it needs to be discussed right away.
Sighing, Misa looked at him directly and said, "Well, as much as I wished to do pleasantries with you, there is a bigger issue that needs to be addressed, commissioner." His expression remained the same: "specifically, about the individual I have been tracking down since the past few weeks.
This intrigued his interest, raising an eyebrow at it. "Individual?" He repeated, wanting to know more details of what he meant by it, "Care to elaborate on that?" Carter suggested, eager to know more about the situation he is now in.
Nodding, "I will be honest with you, Carter; I will not beat around the bush or go into unnecessary explanations, especially in these situations," the transvestite simply said, taking out his cigarette and lighter, putting the tip between his lips while lighting it up, "I am familiar with your reputation as a respected commissioner and billionaire philanthropist," puffing the smoke after igniting the cigar, "because of that, I will state the situation as it is." He breathed the cigar one more time before blowing the air in the opposite direction of Carter.
Watching him closely, Carter patiently listened to his words with uttermost focus, wanting to know what exactly was going on and what kind of emergency they were dealing with here, as he wouldn't dream of having his beloved home endangered.
Taking another inhale of his cigar, he put it away and exhaled the air once more. "In the past few weeks, there have been repeating cases of left-over body parts scattered all around Japan," Misa began explaining in a rather calm tone, "body parts are in their homes, sometimes in restaurants and apartments, but all of the victims and the owners of such corpses had one thing in common." He stopped for a moment, expecting his interlocutor to be curious or shocked.
"Parts of their flesh have been chewed on; some are bitten to pieces and even half eaten. However, the strangest part is how this wasn't a repeating trend in the beginning," the brunette started again after noticing Carter still attentively listening. "It was merely hidden, but later it turned into a pattern. And recently, bodies have been disappearing at a random rate, and in those that were reported, it was revealed that whoever has done this doesn't mind leaving their food behind."
Carter stared down at the table, his eyes sharply observing the wooden surface as if it had answers that could make him understand everything. Folding his fingers into a pyramid formation, the commissioner contemplated those words that had been spoken by the other person.
It took a minute or two for Carter to fully process his thoughts on what he had heard as he raised his head back up. "Have the autopsy results been delivered yet?" Asked softly, his gaze focused on the detective's brown eyes that were studying his facial reactions carefully: "The one who conducted them, did they have anything to add to the situation at hand?" He inquired with much interest in his own.
"Of course we had," the detective answered flatly, not impressed by such a foolish question. "We sent the corpse and parts for analysis in the hope of identifying whatever killer had done this to them." Making a slight frown from this notion, showing signs of disgust upon mentioning such details. "Regardless, our analysts did thorough research and discovered something else," he finished while leaning closer to the young man in front of him.
Curious to learn what he wanted to reveal to him, he raised a brow and gave him a demanding glance. "Oh, and what's that?" He inquired, eager to know more about the subject matter, "What else did your analysts have to offer, Misa?" Using his name intentionally to address his question properly.
Pulling out a folder from the cabinet, "these are photos of what they have discovered," stating the contents within the manila envelope, "take a look at them for yourself and see if you can identify anything peculiar in these photos."
He accepted the file with much caution and care, fearing that the contents inside may not be something to be handled in a carefree manner. Carter stared at the brunet with a stern expression, checking if it was a good idea to even do so with him present.
But when Misa gestured for him to go on, he was hesitant but followed what was told of him nonetheless, pulling out the documents from the folder. A photograph of a dead man was lying on the table in full view; he was wearing his favorite clothes, and his hair was neatly combed. His face, however, was bloody and disfigured, making it difficult to recognize.
Carter paid no heed to his blood-covered visage and continued to analyze the corpse, noticing something bizarre in its eye sockets. After picking up the photo and holding it in his palms, he could see that something had replaced his eyeballs: gaping holes covered in red pulp, like two hollowed-out sockets.
Upon returning the photograph back into the manila folder, he felt a wave of unease rush through his spine; it was like someone or something had clawed out the victim's eyeballs, leaving a huge gash in the process.
Fortunately for him, he was able to shake those negative feelings off by breathing slowly. As he shifted his gaze back on the brunet, whose gaze was still fixated on him if he were trying to figure him out, he then said, "Very well, so what is this supposed to be?" Raising his brow in suspicion.
Misa lowered his head, appearing to be thinking of an appropriate response: "That isn't all of them; I have more files containing others that were gathered for further study," assuring his concern, "but every victim we see has their body mutilated in some manner," the cross-dressed man explained to him.
Confused and shocked, he leaned closer to hear what he had to say: "What for?" Carter questioned with much curiosity and unease at the same time, "Does the person want to collect their eyeballs as souvenirs?" Wondering what their purpose would be in doing that other than being crazed psycho.
"At first, I believed this was nothing but an act of homicide committed by a mentally deranged psychopath." Stating his initial assessment, "and my hypothesis would be correct; but upon investigating further, the situation got more complicated," Misa stared at the commissioner with unwavering calmness.
"Complicated, how?" He asked, wanting to know behind the meaning of it.
Focusing on him, the investigator took the manila envelope from his hands before laying the documents on the table in order. "First thing, we already have our person," he announced, much to Carter's surprise. "This person's name is Sato Makotori, sixteen years old, suffered from a fall that resulted in permanent damage to his five senses," showing a photo of a messy, brown-short-haired boy.
His eyes widen from the picture. "I met him before," Carter muttered as he analyzed the young man. "When I was heading home, I met that kid at the bus stop," he recalled while remembering him sitting alone. "I assumed he was just waiting for a ride in going home or something."
"You have?" the detective asked, raising a brow or two. Well, then this makes it easier for us to catch him," his comment made the young man glance at him. "However, just because this person's case is solved doesn't mean the mystery itself is," revealing something puzzling in this.
Gazing back at the teenager's photo, Carter was suspicious and curious about what he meant by that: "How are you sure this is the culprit? Asking for assurance in case the other individual could be someone else, "could it be a mistake on your part? Maybe they misidentified the suspect and had to take down the wrong person?" Pointing out possible errors in their actions.
Misa shook his head, denying this falsehood: "Definitively not, ever since the killings began; plenty of evidence left at the scene of the crime points to this individual," tapping his index finger on the table to emphasize his point, "but there is more than just a simple investigation needed to solve this problem."
Once more, Carter's interest was piqued: "There is? What else do you know, detective?" Asking for a more detailed explanation, "Because, judging by what you said earlier, I assume this isn't the only piece of evidence for this whole mess."
"Quite observant of you, Carter," Misa complimented him for being astute, "yes, there is something else. "There were also other clues that hints to someone else accompanying this culprit still in the loose," holding up two fingers for emphasis, "one, Sato Makotori didn't care about getting caught in the first place," the first finger was then pulled down, "secondly, every crime scene indicates he doesn't mind leaving any traces behind. With or without eyewitnesses, the evidence presented in these murders can't be anything but something beyond human capabilities," displaying more pictures from the folder.
Body after body, all of them were sliced or torn apart. Each of their faces bore the same terrified expression. The most prominent aspect of each and every one of them was the fact that they were missing their eyes; some even had them dangling from their eye sockets. Their hands and legs had been cut off, and in some cases, their throats were slit. In the end, they were all soaked in a river of crimson liquid.
But one picture caught the young billionaire's attention. It depicted a freshly minted corpse that didn't show any injuries or wounds in the slightest. "What the hell?" Carter said, bewildered and surprised by this turn of events, "There is no sign of injury." His tone indicated he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
"On the outside, yes." Misa nodded in confirmation. "However, when we got to the autopsy, the insides of the victim were all gone," the latter stated, turning the picture over to reveal its back side. On it were medical reports written by their pathologist. "Not only that, but internal organs were also missing; when they were opened up, instead of the expected cavities, they just saw bloodied flesh and bone structures."
"This...this isn't normal," unless they are posthuman; removing every organ without cutting upon the body is inhumanely impossible at this day of age; "only a posthuman can do that; maybe its supervillain working with him?" Proposing theories based on the current available information given.
Narrowing his eyes, "If that was the case, this individual would've acted earlier on; no, this individual has some sort of connection with this boy in some way." Believing that this culprit must be working with Sato Makotori, "it might be a sibling or lover that made him do this, ruining his life for something like this," the transvestite's hand movements were unpredictable, as if he were nervous about this matter. "We're unable to determine whether this perpetrator is an accomplice, guardian, or significant other as we tried to look into Sato's life only to find the closest people were his friends and parents."
"And you talked to them?
"No," Misa replied flatly, shaking his head, "they were the first victims of this series of crimes." The news came to shock the commissioner, "so whatever clue and lead that would be provided by the suspects and acquaintances of this individual was nothing more than a dead end," concluding the search, "the only possible thing that can connect this boy with someone else is likely an unknown sibling we have yet to know or someone he has fallen in love with to the point that he is willing to commit murder for them or lastly, friend."
Processing his words with much consideration, "then this is where you called me," placing his hand over his mouth, resting his chin with thumb and index finger, "you want me to find him and his cannibalistic buddy," looking directly at the detective's brown orbs that gazed back at him, "your people won't be able to track them down fast enough, so you decided to involve me so that way I can find the person immediately, am I right?" He asked boldly, as if he were certain of his answer.
"Correct," he confirmed his thoughts, "not only will you save us time, but you have many connections and influence over Japan itself," complementing his position as commissioner, "will you help me on this, Randolph Carter? Requesting his assistance, which the young billionaire smirked in amusement at.
"I guess, there is not much of choice, do I?"
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