Open Secret

Before he arrived, Nathan heard yelps of surprise and a quick shout. Then, he heard the footsteps of an average man tapping quickly in the other direction while one voice fearfully uttered their thanks.

'They're quick.'

Nathan hurried around the corner.

"Wait!"

Since Hopper tended to bounce as soon as they were finished saving someone, Nathan shouted to stop them from leaving. He had made it just in time.

Both the young boy and the person in a deep purple tracksuit with a matching beanie turned to look at him.

"Hopper, I need to talk to you."

Nathan slowed his stride as he walked toward Hopper.

"If you want to show gratitude, just donate to charity or something. If you're offended I touched your girlfriend or something while saving them, break up."

Hopper turned around and made to leave.

"That's not it! I have a lead that I need your help with."

Hopper glanced back with a glint of curiosity in their eyes. They took a more proper look at Nathan. He wasn't filled with gratitude, desperation, or hero worship. Neither was he looking for a fight or anything. He had a calm but demanding presence as he waited for Hopper's answer.

Hopper narrowed their eyes. They could tell that Nathan wasn't an ordinary human.

"...Are you a hero?"

Nathan did his best to keep the disgust from showing on his face. Peerless Perception let him know that he did not do a perfect job.

"Something like that…"

Hopper fully turned around and faced Nathan. 

"Okay. I'll hear you out."

Hopper and Nathan both glanced at the young boy sitting on his knees to the side.

"But first…"

"Hey, kid, do you know someone named Julian?"

The young boy tilted his head and looked at Nathan.

"My brother?"

"Makes sense. You should head home. I bet he's worried sick about you."

'What a coincidence.'

"Y-yes, of course!"

Julian's brother hurriedly got up. He bowed to Hopper.

"Thanks for saving me!"

Then, he ran off.

Hopper looked at Nathan with a raised eyebrow.

Nathan shrugged.

"He's out of the way. Ready to listen?"

Hopper nodded. Now that it had come to this, they couldn't help the feeling of anticipation. It was the first time they had someone look for them with secret information. Maybe it would be a great conspiracy or something otherwise worthy of being a great hero's background story.

Hopper wasn't very interested in becoming a great hero or anything. But it was interesting nonetheless.

"There's something in the Triangle."

Hopper's expression blanked at Nathan's statement. It was only when he was silent long enough to confirm it was all he had to say that Hopper snapped out of it and looked at Nathan like he was stupid.

"No shit. Are you new in town or something?"

"..."

Nathan looked at Hopper. This time, it was his turn to wear the blank expression for a few moments before frowning.

"So it's common knowledge?"

Hopper shrugged with one shoulder as they crossed their arms.

"I wouldn't say it's common knowledge since ordinary people aren't supposed to know it. But it's like an open secret, I guess."

"Okay. What is it?"

"What is what?"

"What's inside the Triangle?"

"No idea."

"Didn't you just say it was an open secret?"

"No. There's something inside the Triangle. That's the open secret. No one knows what it is."

"Have you tried looking into it?"

"Of course not. I'm not stupid. Looking into that kind of thing is what gets you killed."

"So you have tried. What did you find?"

"I didn't try!"

Hopper snapped.

"..."

"...I didn't find anything. It's impossible to get into the Triangle."

"Well, yeah. Most people can't even get up there. It's not like there would be a door."

"No, it's not just that. The Triangle isn't made from steel or whatever else they claimed it was. It's literally impossible to get through it."

Nathan frowned.

"Nothing's impossible. What did you try?"

Hopper sighed.

"Granted, I didn't try setting off a nuke. But diamond-tipped drills, sledgehammers, chisels, jackhammers, and even a vault-breaker. Didn't even leave a scratch."

"...That's interesting."

"Frustrating. But I'm past it. Something that impenetrable is best left alone."

"Even if it concerns the future of the city?"

Nathan was pretty sure that while Hopper was nonchalant and appeared standoffish, they cared about the city and its people. Since it seemed they were about ready to end the conversation and disappear, Nathan decided to plead to their conscience.

"...What's that supposed to mean?"

Hopper narrowed their blue eyes in suspicion as they looked at Nathan.

Nathan shrugged.

"Bring me up there and I'll tell you some more."

"I just told you there's nothing up there and that it's unbreakable."

"I want to see it for myself."

Nathan didn't doubt the effort Hopper had put in. But there was a clear difference between what a third-tier utility hero could do with some ordinary tools and what he could do with the Sky Piercer Force.

It wasn't by much, but it was even stronger than when he pierced Sillia's concentrated barrier, which should also have been mostly unaffected by the things Hopper mentioned. The one thing Nathan was a little unsure about was the vault-breaker. But he doubted Hopper could have gotten their hands on a real, full-powered one.

Hopper stayed silent for a few moments as they agonized over what Nathan had said and asked. They wanted to stay away from troublesome types like Nathan. But if what Nathan had said and hinted at was true, they couldn't just walk away.

Finally, they raised their hands in defeat with a sigh.

"Fine. But if you're just saying whatever you want to get me to do your bidding, I'm leaving you up there."

Nathan shrugged.

"I won't disappoint you. Unfortunately, that's not a good thing."

Hopper reached out and gestured for Nathan to hold up his arms. Nathan did as instructed.

Hopper stepped forward and appeared in the air above Nathan the next second. They grabbed Nathan's wrists. He grabbed hers. Hopper took off.