The structure was pure white, towering a full hundred meters high.
Its top tapered inward, forming a trapezoidal shape—entirely windowless.
Just as its name suggested, there wasn't a single door, window, or even a ventilation duct.
It was a building completely sealed off from the outside.
Inside, the space was vast.
At the center stood a cylindrical tube made of reinforced glass, four meters in diameter and ten meters long, filled with a red liquid.
The tube was connected to a life-support system.
Countless cables stretched from the walls and floor, linking directly to the cylinder in the middle.
There was no natural light, yet the dim glow from countless signal lights and screens maintained a faint level of illumination throughout the room.
Floating upside down in the center of the tube was a human figure, silently observing Accelerator's movements.
Dozens of screens were scattered chaotically around the cylinder.
Yet, in an eerie way, the information on them all seemed interconnected.
A voice rang out in the deathly stillness—its gender impossible to determine.
"No anomalies detected…"
"You made a move just now?" Aleister's response remained calm, detached.
"Yes. I could faintly sense something, but the perception only lasted a moment—even in this state."
The voice crackled with harsh static.
Then, it spoke again, emerging from who-knows-where.
"A being that surpasses the Magic Gods…"
For the first time, Aleister's tone grew heavy.
He stared at the screen showing the white-haired boy slaughtering enemies within the research facility.
His previously turbulent eyes slowly regained their calm.
"We'll need to revise the plan for the First."
The high-tech screens flickered with blue light and flowing data streams.
Suddenly, an enormous magical circle appeared in the air—its complexity beyond human comprehension—as though it were calculating something…
————————————————————————
Meanwhile, unaware of the events unfolding in the Toaru Majutsu no Index world, Nagami could still infer Aleister's reaction from the fact that Accelerator was currently safe and sound.
He let out a breath of relief.
Thankfully, the chat group hadn't let him down.
Otherwise, dealing with the Index universe would have been a nightmare.
To Nagami, who possessed the Alpha Stigma, the Toaru world was a veritable treasure trove!
He could learn anything with just a glance, what could be more enticing than that?
Still, beings like the Magic Gods were completely broken.
Just thinking about diving into that world unprepared made Nagami hesitate.
Although the multiverse travel function hadn't activated yet, it was just a matter of five more people joining the group.
Nagami suspected that the uniqueness of the Magic Gods had something to do with the world's strange layered structure—that is, a world composed of multiple phases stacked together.
But he'd only be able to confirm that once he visited the world himself and analyzed it using the Alpha Stigma.
Hopefully, by then, he'd grown strong enough to see the world's true form.
His racing thoughts were abruptly cut off by the victory icon flashing across his 4K monitor.
The rapid clicking of mouse and keyboard also came to a halt.
Nagami glanced at the time.
Just two more wins and he'd hit #1 on the King's Leaderboard—but for now, he and C.C. decided to take a break from ranking up.
It was nearly noon, and Nagami had to pick up Kiana so she could collect her luggage.
Humming a tune, Nagami grabbed his car keys and stepped out of his room, while C.C.
launched into her daily mission—taking down the Collector with a variety of weapons.
Down in the underground parking lot, Nagami found his blue sports car and hopped into the driver's seat.
With a roar of its engine and a burst of cyan-blue flames from the jet exhaust, the car tore down the road with perfect precision.
Before the engine had even fully warmed up, he was already at the café.
Walking inside, his eyes immediately landed on a girl in a dazzling white dress, gracefully carrying two steaming cups of coffee.
She delivered them to two young men who couldn't take their eyes off her, then turned with flair and walked away.
Surprisingly, the young men weren't offended by Kiana's aloof demeanor at all.
After all… that was part of her character setting.
They understood.
Focused on her work, Kiana didn't notice the figure silently approaching from behind.
"Oi!"
With a loud slap and a scary sound effect, Nagami smacked her exposed, delicate shoulder.
Before he could even appreciate the soft, smooth sensation, Kiana reacted.
In an instant, her body accelerated.
She seized Nagami's wrist with both hands, locking it in place.
Despite her slender, petite frame, she suddenly unleashed a terrifying strength Nagami couldn't resist.
She was about to slam him into the ground using sheer force.
Just then, Kiana turned and realized who her "attacker" was.
"Nagami?"
Seeing the boy's handsome face contorted in pain, Kiana immediately let go and smoothed out the wrinkles on his clothes caused by her move.
"Why are you scaring people like a little kid~?"
"Ow… ow…" Nagami muttered, rubbing his arm that had almost been dislocated.
He'd gotten a real taste of the Kaslana family's monstrous strength.
Even with immortality, his current body was just too weak.
He needed to find a way to power up.
What Nagami didn't expect was to one day be called childish—by a paramecium, no less!?
"You're seriously strong..." he muttered with a complicated expression.
Glancing at the petite white-haired girl standing before him, hands clasped behind her back, looking at him smugly.
He poked Kiana's slim, fair arm with his finger—right where the muscle should be.
Soft. Absolutely no sense of strength at all.
Noticing his gesture, Kiana beamed with pride. "Told you I'm tough! I wasn't lying back then."
"In that case, maybe you can work security on the side. Double the pay~" Nagami joked as he gently grasped her arm, watching her eyes light up with excitement.
"Go ahead, try flexing a little," he said with a smile.
Understanding his intention, Kiana posed with her right arm in a classic muscle-showing gesture, while her left hand balled into a fist and gave his chest a playful punch.
"A proper lady doesn't need bulky muscles, you know."
"But I can totally handle security work!"
Working part-time at Nagami's café already covered her daily expenses and left a bit extra.
But nobody ever complained about earning more.
And since she planned to stay in Nagazora City for a while, taking on a second role wasn't a bad idea.
Despite having only just arrived in this world, Kiana had already made two friends—something that felt like a rare comfort for someone who'd traveled alone for so long.
As for who the other friend was… come on, surely everyone knew.
Nagami gave her arm a gentle squeeze.
Besides being soft and smooth, there wasn't much muscle to speak of—though it was definitely more toned than your average girl's.
"Alright then, you're in charge of daytime security duty," he said.
Money wasn't something Nagami cared about anymore.
Whether you were rich or poor, once the Third Honkai Break, the fate of most men would be the same.
What truly mattered was strength—real, personal power.
Helping Kiana in this way was just his method of quietly supporting her in a way she could accept.
She was the kind of cheerful, kind-hearted girl that, as long as you approached her with sincerity and goodwill, would easily become your friend.
"It's almost your break, right? I'll drive you to grab your luggage. Go change—GOGOGO!"
Though Kiana looked stunning in her pristine wedding dress, it was Mei's bridal outfit, and something about it just felt off to Nagami.
"Okay! Just give me a sec~" Kiana chirped as she skipped off toward the changing room, her pure and radiant face glowing with happiness.
Watching her bounce away, white thigh-high stockings covering her long legs and crystal heels clicking on the floor, Nagami could only sigh at the absurd physical abilities of a Valkyrie.
He hadn't met a single normal person who could hop in heels that high without breaking an ankle.
Kiana returned quickly—much faster than an average girl would've taken.
She was now dressed in what looked like a high school uniform: a high-collared sailor outfit with a pleated skirt and black thigh-high socks.
Her gemstone-blue eyes sparkled with lively energy.
The only thing Nagami regretted was that her beautiful white hair had been braided back into pigtails.
"I seriously have no words for your fashion sense."
"My sense of style is far too refined for a superficial guy like you to understand~"
"As expected of a paramecium."
"What's a paramecium?"
They walked side by side out the door, chatting like old friends who had known each other for years.