"Who is this gentleman?"
Kofuku Miwi looked at the suddenly appearing Zhong Chen, her face full of confusion as she turned to Shirai Kuroko.
"Kofuku-senpai, this is Teacher Zhong Chen from Sakugawa Middle School. He is also Saten-san's homeroom teacher."
Hearing Shirai Kuroko's words, Kofuku Miwi quickly stood up and spoke with respect, "Hello, Teacher Zhong Chen, I am Kofuku Miwi."
"Hm, hello!"
Zhong Chen smiled and nodded at Kofuku Miwi in response.
"You're chasing Kiyama Haruue, right? Where's Ruiko? I heard she became a Level 5."
After hearing Zhong Chen's words, a hint of worry flashed in Shirai Kuroko's eyes.
"I don't know where Ruiko went. I can't reach her."
"No way. Her good friend Haruue was captured by Kiyama Haruue, and she's not around?"
After Zhong Chen finished speaking, he unleashed his divine sense to scan the entire Academy City. The next second, he found Saten Ruiko.
However, after seeing where Saten Ruiko was, Zhong Chen's expression instantly darkened.
"Kuroko, I have something to do, so I won't bother you. As for Haruue's safety, you don't need to worry. Kiyama Haruue won't harm her."
As soon as Zhong Chen finished speaking, his figure disappeared from the spot.
"Eh? Is Teacher Zhong Chen a spatial ability user?"
Kofuku Miwi looked at the vanished Zhong Chen and asked Shirai Kuroko in surprise.
"No, Teacher Zhong Chen's situation is very special. I'll explain it to you later if there's a chance, senpai."
"You're right, now is not the time to talk about these things..."
At this moment, in a conference room, several men in white coats were looking kindly at Saten Ruiko, who was sitting opposite them.
Saten Ruiko, on the other hand, looked at them with a restrained expression.
The middle-aged man sitting in the main seat smiled, took out a bank card, pushed it in front of Saten Ruiko, and said, "Saten-san, there are ten million Japanese Yen in here. As long as you are willing to participate in our experiment, this will be yours."
"Ten million!!!"
Saten Ruiko, who came from an ordinary family, was shocked when she heard ten million.
"That's right, ten million. As long as you sign this contract, this money will be yours immediately."
The middle-aged man said as he pushed a paper contract next to the bank card.
Although Saten Ruiko was very tempted by ten million, she knew there was no free lunch and cautiously did not immediately agree.
Instead, she asked warily, "Can I know what kind of experiment it is?"
Noticing the wariness in Saten Ruiko's eyes, the middle-aged man explained lightly, "It's not a dangerous experiment. It's just using your ability to cooperate with us to record some data."
"At most, we'll draw a tube of blood for a physical examination."
Hearing the other party's words, Saten Ruiko continued to ask suspiciously, "Is that all?"
"That's right, that's all. After all, you are a new Level 5. The other Level 5s have all done these experiments, so don't worry."
Hearing the other party say this, Saten Ruiko's suspicion gradually disappeared, but she still wanted to confirm one last time.
"Um, can I have my phone back first? I want to call my friend."
When the middle-aged man heard that Saten Ruiko wanted to make a call, his expression changed slightly, but he still smiled and said, "Of course you can, but this is a confidential facility, so you can only make calls after you leave."
"How about this, you sign this contract first, and then we'll send someone to take you back. We can discuss the remaining matters later."
"What do you think?"
Saten Ruiko saw how eager the other party was for her to sign.
After thinking about it, she decided to go back and discuss it with Misaka Mikoto and the others first.
She immediately said, "Um... thank you for your kindness, but I still want to go back and think about it carefully. My friends must be worried since I've been gone for so long."
After speaking, Saten Ruiko stood up, wanting to leave.
Seeing that the other party wanted to leave, the middle-aged man immediately decided to stop pretending and revealed his true colors.
The men each took out a pair of earmuffs and put them on, looking at Saten Ruiko coldly and saying, "Saten-san, since you are unwilling to sign, then don't blame us for using some extraordinary measures."
Saten Ruiko looked at the suddenly changed expressions of the men in shock.
"You really aren't good people!"
"It's too late to realize that now!"
"I'm a Level 5 ability user, aren't you afraid of me?"
"Heh heh, little girl, do you think we would be so fearless if we didn't have countermeasures?"
After saying that, the middle-aged man took out a device, pressed it lightly, and the entire room was instantly engulfed by a piercing sound.
"What is this! It's so noisy!"
Saten Ruiko covered her ears, bothered by the sudden sound, but she was quite puzzled.
Do they really rely on noise to deal with a Level 5? This is too childish.
"How is it? You can't use your ability, can you? This is the director's granddaughter's latest invention, [Capacity Down]."
"It can temporarily prevent you ability users from using your abilities. If you don't want to suffer, then obediently sign the contract."
Looking at Saten Ruiko, who was covering her ears in pain, the middle-aged man said loudly with a triumphant expression using an amplification device.
After Saten Ruiko heard what the man said, she couldn't help but mumble to herself.
What nonsense is he talking about? A burst of noise can make someone unable to use their ability?
Saten Ruiko felt the magic power within her body and found no problems at all. What was going on?
"Hey!!! Little girl, sign it quickly, or I'll make you suffer!"
Biu... crackle... "Phew... it's finally quiet."
As the device was destroyed by a beam of light Saten Ruiko casually flicked out, everyone present looked at her in shock.
"Ho... how is that possible? How can you still use your ability!!!"
"This is impossible! Didn't they say this device could even resist Accelerator!!!"
"She's only the Second Rank, how is this possible!"
Just as the men were at a loss, a slightly teasing voice sounded from the side.
"Hahaha, this is too interesting. I just arrived and saw such an interesting scene."
Saten Ruiko also looked in the direction of the voice, and her eyes were filled with pleasant surprise. She quickly shouted, "Teacher Zhong Chen! You're back!"
"Yo, Ruiko! It's been a few days, and I've missed you very much!"
"Teacher Zhong Chen!"
Ruiko ran to Zhong Chen's side excitedly, hugging his arm tightly.
As an ordinary middle school student, she was already very strong not to cry in this situation.
Although she possessed powerful strength, she had only recently acquired it and her mindset hadn't changed, so she didn't dare to hurt anyone.
Now, seeing a completely trustworthy support suddenly appear, the panic in her heart instantly subsided.
"Who are you? Don't you know this is the Kihara family's research institute!"
The middle-aged man shouted at the suddenly appearing Zhong Chen, his voice betraying his inner fear.
"The Kihara family? A bunch of maggots from the sewers dare to speak to me like this? Who gave you the courage?"
"Even Aleister wouldn't dare to speak to me like that, what are you!!!"