Chapter 7:
Chapter 7: Konrad and Sinon the heirs
The Legacy – The heirs of a lost world
Ryouma had followed the kidnapper's instructions and had rushed to go alone to the location indicated by the GPS and He arrived in front of an old abandoned building in a little-used neighborhood.
Footsteps echoed as he climbed the stairs. With the electricity down, the only source of light was the full moon that filtered through the broken windows.
Upon arriving there, a new message had been sent to Ryouma from Haruna's phone telling him to go up to the fourth floor.
Ryouma smelled a trap, but he had no choice but to follow orders if he wanted to keep his sister alive.
"Right on time, I see the Japanese are very punctual."
When Ryouma arrived at the exchange location, A man's voice pierced the silence and Ryouma became alert when he saw two men.
The young man who spoke was of medium height with a constant smile on his face. It wasn't the friendly or kind kind of smile you give but rather a fake facade smile that hid his true intentions and sent shivers down the spine.
And beside him stood a tall man with a serious expression and a piercing gaze that never left Ryouma for a second. They weren't Japanese, it was clear they were foreigners. The smiling young man had a thick German accent and the tough guy also seemed European.
"Where is my sister!? Where is Haruna!?" Ryouma shouted.
"Relax, the little brother. Your big sister is fine and nothing has been done to her. Simon."
The smiling young man gestured to the taller one named Simon.
Simon moved out of the way, allowing Ryouma to see Haruna unconscious, resting against the far wall.
"Haruna!!" Ryouma yelled, turning his gaze on the two men.
"It wasn't easy to find you from a simple photo on the internet...", declared the young man with a smile, showing the photo of the amulet.
He held Haruna's phone in his hands. The photo that appeared showed the amulet. It was different, but it was the one Haruna had taken on the day of the big spring cleaning. Ryouma remembered her talking about something like putting it on the internet to see if it had any value or not.
So all this happened because of the amulet. Was that thing that valuable for Haruna to be kidnapped, he thought.
"The IP address was traced back to Japan, but it was still necessary to find one person among thousands of others. Fortunately, humans are easily attracted by the lure of gain. All we had to do was contact the sender and pretend we were art collectors who wanted to negotiate the price of this antiquity by waving money at him and that was it."
"After that, we meet in a cafe to discuss it, which was not our intention. We were just watching from afar to see who would show up and it was your pretty big sister who came. The poor girl waited for hours before leaving, thinking that someone had played a trick on her. It was a shame, I would have liked to have had the conversation with her but I had to stick to the plan. Once she left the cafe, that's when she was intercepted. However, unfortunately, she didn't have the amulet on her. She must have left it at home out of suspicion."
The smiling young man continued his exposition by searching through Haruna's phone. Ryouma didn't pay much attention to his words and took advantage of the explanation to think of a way to get out of the situation without risking his big sister's life.
"These days you can learn a lot by going through someone's phone, more about their life in a few minutes than by talking to them for hours. It's not that I'm a pervert who intrudes on other people's private lives, far from it. But I admit that it has a certain mischievous pleasure. So we look into your sister's phone beyond her numbness about money. Her gallery revealed the original photo she edited and guess who's in it."
He showed the original photo on the screen which showed Ryouma holding the amulet. Haruna had retouched it so he wouldn't be seen in it.
"It didn't take us long to find out who you were through the phone and searching through contacts..."
"Shut up! I've heard enough. That's what you want, isn't it?"
Ryouma took out the amulet dangling from the thin chain.
"That's exactly it!" replied the smiling man.
"It looks pretty authentic," added the other man named Simon, who had remained silent until then.
"Then release Haruna, right now."
"Of course, as soon as you give us the amulet, we'll let you both go."
"No, let Haruna go first and then I'll give you the amulet."
Ryouma was extremely suspicious, he suspected that if he gave them what they wanted, there was a good chance they wouldn't let him leave. However, there was still a small chance that they would keep their word, but Ryouma wasn't willing to take the risk. As long as he had the amulet in his possession, he had the advantage.
"Hmm... It's going to be complicated to reach an amicable settlement..."
The man's smile widened even further, still sending shivers down my spine.
"You're overthinking it, Konrad. This boy clearly doesn't understand who makes the rules," Simon said.
The man named Simon kicked the ground and closed the distance between him and Ryouma in the blink of an eye. He punched out, Ryouma prevented himself from blocking it by crossing his arms, but the power of the blow made him step back as he tried to resist.
His arms were shaking in shock, but Ryouma didn't have time to worry as Simon came charging back. Ryouma's senses warned him that this blow would be more powerful than the last one, so he dodged by leaping back.
This time Simon hit the floor with full force. The impact shattered the marble and the floor collapsed, creating a large hole between the floors. It wasn't because the building was old and ancient that the floor had given way, but rather because of Simon's force of striking it with his bare hands.
What kind of strength is this? Where the hell did this guy come from? He's not human.
"Easy Simon, I'd rather we settle this without killing anyone, otherwise I'd lose my bet with Abel."
"I wanted to clear things up with this guy, but it seems to be getting interesting."
"Just don't hit too hard. You know how fragile humans can be."
What the hell are they talking about!? Shit, calm down, Ryu. This isn't the time to get distracted. I need to focus on getting out of here.
Ryouma thinks about how to deal with the two men. The smiling young man named Konrad seemed to want to settle the matter peacefully, but his friendly demeanor hid something else and did not inspire confidence. The other man, Simon, wasn't as brave as his sidekick and was more of a forceful type, as evidenced by his altercation with Ryouma.
The only solution was to confront these two and incapacitate them to save Haruna.
That guy, Simon, is a monster, he smashed the ground with one punch. It's crazy, but not as crazy as what I saw in the other world.
Ryouma had faced real monsters in the other world, and compared to them, Simon was nothing more than a mere human. However, he was able to defeat those monsters thanks to the body he possessed. In this world, he didn't have that body or his exceptional physical abilities.
The fight wasn't in his favor. However, he still had something he had learned in the other world: the wrath !
The two men had attacked Haruna, they had attacked his family. It was a perfectly justified reason that made him furious.
Ryouma channeled his anger and surprised Simon by punching him in the face with all his weight.
Simon took the full force of the blow, which threw him backward. His feet slid on the ground and slowed the recoil. His nose was bruised and his lower lip split and bled as he wiped it with the back of his hand.
"Oh! Look what we have here!"
Konrad drew Simon's attention to Ryouma. Ryouma's face was contorted with anger, but what stood out most were his eyes. The whites of his eyes grew darker as his anger increased.
"I already sensed it when he blocked my blow, but there's no doubt about it anymore. This guy is definitely an 'heir'."
"I don't understand what you're saying or what you really want... But one thing is certain, you attacked my family. Which officially makes you my enemies!"
Ryouma roared and charged at full speed towards Simon who was waiting for him. Once he was within range, Simon landed a powerful punch that Ryouma saw coming and dodged, managing to enter his opponent's personal space.
With a horizontal elbow strike, Ryouma struck Simon's chin. This had the effect of disorienting him for a moment. Taking advantage of this time, he placed a sharp edge of his hand at the neck and followed up with a direct punch to the liver.
A quick sequence that left his opponent no time to react.
Ryouma stepped back after his assault, looking back at Simon.
"Hahaha! That little brother of yours is doing pretty well. Hey Simon, you're getting a good beating!" Konrad exclaimed, laughing.
"Shut up! His punches hurt like insect bites," Simon said, spitting out saliva mixed with blood.
Simon was right, Ryouma's punches clearly lacked power and he had noticed it. He had certainly gained power by giving free rein to his anger, nevertheless he felt that he was not as strong as in the other world.
He was faster and more agile than his opponent and his senses allowed him to avoid his attacks. But he wasn't able to cause much damage with his blows. Simon, on the other hand, was superior in strength and stamina.
If he wanted to defeat this colossus, Ryouma would have to wear him down. The only solution left was to chain hits together so that the damage would accumulate until he knocked him out.
Ryouma charged, Simon staring at him to determine where he would strike. Simon, seeing Ryouma's body leaning to the right, raised his right fist in anticipation. But it turned out to be a feint, Ryouma had moved his upper body to the right to make it look like he was going that way when in reality he went left, underneath, where he had noticed an opening, and drove his fist into Simon's stomach.
Ryouma didn't give him time to recover as he pivoted on one leg delivering a spinning back kick aimed at his opponent's left flank.
He took the blow but immediately counterattacked, Simon grabbed Ryouma's leg before she moved away. He threw him in an arc onto the concrete and his back hit the ground hard.
"Gyahh!"
Ryouma screamed in agony as Simon, above him, brought his foot down like an anvil.
Ryouma narrowly rolled to the side. The ground exploded where he had been a second earlier. Pieces of debris flew everywhere, and dust filled the air.
Ryouma stood up with a cough, wiping the blood that trickled from the corners of his lips.
Ryouma's head was spinning after the shock. Considering the state he was in after only one attack and that Simon had barely suffered any damage, the fight seemed doomed.
He's too strong... but I can't fall now.
He was preparing to launch a new offensive.
However, at that moment, someone appeared on the scene.
"This is where you're hiding during this time. It's not a very safe place if you ask me."
A familiar voice reached Ryouma's ears, followed by the sounds of heavy footsteps. Everyone present turned their gaze to the person who emerged from the shadows to be illuminated by the light of the moonlight.
"Joy!? What are you doing here?"
"That's more like a question for me to ask, Ryo. You weren't supposed to be home before curfew. So what are you doing in such a gloomy place?"
Joy walked up to Ryouma's side, looked at the two men, and saw behind them, in the darkness, an unconscious Haruna.
"I think I'm starting to understand. Ryo... Your eyes!?"
"Huh?"
Joy was shocked to see Ryouma's dark eyes, which he himself hadn't noticed.
"That's not true, Ryo! You're..."
"Watch out, Joy!!"
Ryouma shouted, alerting his friend to Simon, who was attacking from behind.
Simon punched Joy with all his might, the air producing a shock wave that kicked up dust.
"I don't like unexpected events that spoil my fight," Simon declared.
"Well, I don't like being interrupted."
To everyone's surprise, Joy effortlessly stopped Simon's fist.
Simon's eyes widened as he couldn't pry his fist out of Joy's hand, while Konrad's smile faded. As for Ryouma, he too was in shock. He knew Joy was strong, but this opponent was a monster... yet he had still caught her fist so easily. This was crazy.
"You'll be the first to go, so grit your teeth."
Joy cocked her fist and landed a heavy blow to Simon's face. The impact was so brutal that it sent Simon flying across the room, passing under Konrad's wide-open eyes before hitting the wall head-on and falling through.
Simon fell from the fourth floor and crashed onto the pavement.
"That wasn't planned..." Konrad said, looking at the gaping hole in the wall left by his sidekick's passage.
"...You're an heir too, aren't you?"
An heir!? But what exactly is that? Ryouma wondered.
"Joy..." Ryouma said weakly.
He was the most surprised of all.
He had known Joy for years, he had seen her fight with thugs many times, but this power he was showing at this moment surpassed anything he had seen before. He had always been strong, but this time he was just too strong.
Joy looked at Ryouma who seemed completely lost and redirected her gaze to the last remaining man.
"It's your turn. Come on, let's get this over with quickly."
"I'm going to lose face in front of Abel again. I can already hear him yelling at me for not following his orders. What a mess!"
Konrad stretched his arm out to the side and pulled out of his long sleeve a round object with inscriptions engraved on it and a green stone embedded in its center.
"But it's an amulet like mine...!" Ryouma wondered.
This amulet that Konrad had resembled Ryouma's except for one detail. His was round while Ryouma's was shaped like a hexagon.
"[Arsenal : Twin Fangs]" Konrad exclaimed.
A light burst from the amulet and revealed two daggers with curved blades, one side sharp and the other serrated.
It's like in my fight against the chimera.
Memories of his fight came flooding back, and Ryouma thought back to how the bident he used to defeat the creature had appeared. He looked at his amulet, wondering if he could do the same as last time.
"I'll handle this matter my way," Konrad announced, twirling his two daggers.
Konrad's presence became transparent before disappearing. Although Ryouma could still see him, he couldn't tell if he was actually there, believing his eyes were playing tricks on him. And now it was his body that was beginning to slowly fade into the darkness until it disappeared from radar.
Joy sighed as Ryouma looked around in a panic.
"No, but have you seen the time? It's getting late, I don't intend to play hide and seek."
Joy brought out, attached to a chain on her belt, an amulet like Konrad's, round with a shining stone in the center.
Ryouma's expression was surprised when he saw Joy also take out an amulet.
"[Arsenal: The Sword of Jaham]!"
A light came from the amulet and, the next second, a large red sword over a meter long planted itself on the ground near Joy. Its blade was slightly curved and had a single cutting edge with flame patterns decorated on it.
The sword was her size and seemed very heavy, yet Joy lifted it easily with one hand.
He parried an attack from above from Konrad who charged forward with his twin daggers.
The tips of the blades collided with the greatsword and sparks flew out.
Konrad jumped back and hid once again in the darkness.
"Seriously, I don't have time for this kind of bullshit! So come out and fight."
"I'm sorry, but direct attacks aren't my style. I'll leave that to the thick brute you just sent flying."
Konrad stepped out of the darkness to launch an attack, but once again Joy countered the blow as blades clashed, releasing sparks.
The sound of steel against steel echoed again and again in time with Konrad's successive attacks, giving his target no respite.
He erased his presence and attacked Joy's blind spots, blow after blow, then disappeared back into the darkness like an assassin. Konrad was quick and precise in his combinations. Each blow was delivered with the will to kill.
Ryouma followed the fight with his eyes. He could distinguish Konrad's attacks and deduce who could avoid them. The problem was that he was far too fast to be intercepted. He left no window of opportunity between his attacks to retaliate.
"It's okay. No more playing."
Joy's patience had reached its limit, as he wasn't one to wait long. He clenched the hilt of his sword, the patterns on the blade beginning to move, undulating like real flames. And suddenly his blade ignited, creating a glowing blaze.
Joy quickly turned on his heel, his entire body following the movement and he swung his greatsword horizontally into the air. The movement produced a wave of fire that engulfed half the room over a wide area.
"Gyrahh!!"
The firelight swept through the darkness, and Konrad was swept away by the flames and struck a pillar.
His body was giving off black smoke and the smell of roasted flesh. He ended up seriously injured, with third-degree burns, but he was still conscious. However, not for long as Joy stepped forward and kicked him in the face. A dull thud echoed as he mercilessly smashed Konrad's head against the pillar, staining it with blood. It should have finished him off, but it just knocked him out.
After confirming that his enemy was out of harm's way, Joy hurried downstairs.
"Watch this guy," he asked Ryouma before leaving him.
Several floors below outside the building, Simon dragged his enormous, wounded carcass, crawling along the ground like a worm. He struggled to move toward the light emanating from an amulet like his friend's, which had flown away with his fall.
When he was on the verge of reaching it after so much effort...
"Wooh, what are you trying to do? Trying to give us the slip? That's not cool."
Joy's arrival ruined all of Simon's efforts.
"Come on, I'll confiscate this. If you want to go to another world, I can help you reach the afterlife!"
Joy grabbed Simon's amulet and, with a kick to the head, sent him into dreamland.
Meanwhile, Ryouma ran to help his sister. Everything seemed fine at first glance.
"What the hell! What the hell happens in the end?"
Since his time in the other world, Ryouma thought nothing could surprise him. He could boast that he was no longer surprised by any event or other unforeseen event.
However, what he never imagined was seeing Joy do things beyond human understanding. He simply couldn't conceive of it.
A few moments later...
Joy came back dragging Simon's body along the ground behind him, his mouth bleeding and missing teeth.
"Joy!! What the hell is going on!? Damn it, can you explain this to me!?"
Ryouma yelled at Joy, demanding answers and explanations. This situation was familiar to him.
How ironic, this scene was the same one they were in a few hours ago, but the roles had been reversed.
Ryouma was now the one in the dark.
He stared at his friend, who didn't respond.
"You'd better go home with your sister. Don't worry, I'll take care of getting rid of these two idiots."
Ryouma had never seen Joy so serious. He seemed so different from other times. He spoke of getting rid of the other two with such coldness, as if he were going to make them disappear. Exactly the kind of sentence a criminal would have said.
"Don't change the subject, will you! Why don't you explain to me?"
It was hypocritical to demand justifications after refusing to provide convincing answers yourself, and Ryouma knew it.
However, he needed to understand, he had a deep conviction that this whole affair was linked in one way or another to what had happened to him and to this mysterious world. He didn't want to be left in the dark forever, and even if he had to force Joy to answer, he would.
Her friend's intense, determined gaze made Joy sigh.
"You don't understand what I'm saying? Your curfew is past, you have to come home quickly. Otherwise your parents will worry again. Think about them a little."
"But..."
"I'll answer all your questions tomorrow morning, so hurry home."
Ryouma hesitated for a moment but decided to trust his friend.
"Okay, but you'd better keep your promise to tell me everything."
"No worries! I always keep my promises, unlike a certain someone."
Ryouma carried Haruna on his back and left the area, occasionally turning to look at Joy.
***
"Hmm... Where am I?"
"You're awake! How are you feeling? We're almost there."
"Great! Like I've been sleeping for hours without interruption. But why am I on your back?"
Haruna had woken up feeling great on Ryouma's back near their house.
"You were feeling sick with a headache and contacted me to take you back."
"Really! I don't remember at all."
Haruna's memories were foggy and she didn't remember her kidnapping.
"It's just that you're too dizzy to..."
"Oh, that's not true, I've been sleeping too long! I couldn't check the sales. Quick, get my phone!"
"Are you serious? You should rest."
"No, I've slept enough for today. Lazy people never win anything. The future belongs to those who get up early. And then I got scammed online. I should have known he was up to something, and I got scammed."
Haruna was second to none, and for once, her obsession and carelessness had made it easier for Ryouma to evade his question.
She picked up her phone and began managing her assets as usual.
"If you can do your business, you can walk perfectly well on your own, right? So get down!"
"Oh my! I'm feeling dizzy, I don't think I can walk without falling. Please, Ryu, carry of home."
"You're really not possible!"
Ryouma agreed to leave her on his back for a while longer.
“Thank you, my beloved little brother!”
"Didn't you say something like not to make my life too hard for you? You already forgot."
"Oh, that's right! I'm saying that today, so starting tomorrow I'll be nicer.
Ryouma sighed in exasperation as he reached the door. Haruna jumped off his back and stormed inside.
He watched her quickly go up to her room as if it were an emergency, while he dragged his feet, his body aching. As he entered his room, he flopped down onto his soft bed.
He lay there without falling asleep, mainly because he had this whole story bothering him, but also his doubts about the other world. He was being cautious considering what had happened to him last time, falling asleep while thinking about all sorts of things. He had no desire to relive this experience a second time.
However, whether he wanted to or not, he simply couldn't fight the fatigue, physically and mentally.
His eyes fluttered and fluttered before closing completely, lulling Ryouma into a deep sleep.
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