Raphael follows Lera intently through the market district and what he guesses will be back to her mansion by the docks. As he follows her, he stays thirty feet behind her to not draw any of her suspicion.
She arcs by a corner and moves out of sight. Raphael speeds up slightly and then takes cover on his side of the wall. He tilts his head over to examine the next area and sees Lera moving into the store Raphael is taking cover behind.
Seeing as he now has a few moments of respite, Raphael moves his head back and rests his back against the building's wall. He takes out a small, handheld GPS unit and uses it to examine the area he is in. “Alright, just a few more blocks and we're at Lera's house. Not much longer and I can call in for the night....” Raphael thinks.
Suddenly, Raphael feels the cold metal of a blade pressing against his neck. He flinches not, simply standing in his current position and saying “Since you haven't cut out my throat yet, I presume that you want something....”
“Yeah, I do want something, dipshit!” says a scraggly voice just out of view “Give me all your money and valuables before I slice your damn throat out!”
Raphael chuckles for a second before speaking. “Ah, you weren't my target a moment ago, but now that you have presented yourself to me, I don't think I can let someone as dastardly as you escape without a parting gift....”
Raphael's left hand flies upward and slaps the blade away from his neck, but it still draws a small cut in his flesh. He winces from the slash, but it is gone less than a second later.
Raphael spins around and punches the man in his face as hard as he can, sending him soaring down the sidewalk. The man lands with a thud and rolls two times before coming to a full halt, completely unconscious.
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With the mugger now taken care of, Raphael turns and sees Lera rounding the other corner of the store. He rubs his hand momentarily and then continues after Lera.
As the sun begins to set on Ignama, Lera and Raphael travel through a deserted street. Raphael isn't paying full attention to his surroundings, stuck deep in thought. Lera stops, but Raphael doesn't notice. She spins around when he is only a few feet in front of her and she begins walking towards him, and then she collides into him.
They both land with a thud, with Lera laying on top of Raphael. She quickly regains herself and gets off of him. “I'm so sorry, I really didn't see you, I promise!” she says as she lifts herself to her feet.
Raphael chuckles to himself as he also gets up. “Don't worry about it, it was just a simple accident.”
“Yeah, sorry about that, I really am. It's just that I was thinking about this one boy from my school. We've been good friends for a long while, since childhood, really, and he just asked me out a few days ago.” Lera says to Raphael with a large smile on her face.
“Oh, well you seem very happy about that. Do you also like this boy?” Raphael asks while toying with his GPS device underneath of his cloak.
“Yes, I like him very, very much. Wait, you don't look that old, maybe you go to my school? What's your name?” Lera asks Raphael.
Raphael remains silent for a moment while thinking on whether he should tell her his real name. There is a possibility that word of Raphael Danteo might have already gotten to her planet. That and his name doesn't exactly sound Japanese. Finally, he decides to use a combination of his real name and his heroic identity. “My name is Raphael. I'm a Guardian spirit of sorts. When you need me most, I will be there.”
“A Guardian spirit...?” Lera says in confusion. “Does this have something to do with me and Boz? Or are you some kind of omen or something?”
Seeing as Lera's belief in the supernatural is obviously high, Raphael decides that his presence is only going to further complicate this entire operation. “I'm sorry, but I must leave....”
“Wait, but who...” Lera is cut off as Raphael spins around and sprints away from her down the street. She stands on the sidewalk with her eyebrow quirked. “The only thing that I can think he is here for is to protect me from Boz....” Lera thinks before turning around and heading back to her house.