A cold, bleak light, a desolate world.
Tonight, it seemed darkness would never fall.
The strange phenomenon blanketing the sky had finally spilled beyond Academy City's borders.
Spreading out from around Tokyo, it gradually extended across the entire Land of the Rising Sun.
Slowly, these bizarre luminous halos would soon illuminate the skies of the entire Northern Hemisphere, just like a real sun.
"If we calculate the spread speed based on the satellite imagery, this light will engulf the entire Northern Hemisphere within half an hour," Uiharu Kazari reported, her fingers pausing on the keyboard, her face etched with disbelief.
"We must inform Onee-sama and the others immediately. There's no time left," Shirai Kuroko bit her lip, a flicker of unease crossing her face as she felt a profound sense of powerlessness.
The entire Northern Hemisphere, huh?
So it really is that so-called magic.
She didn't know what would happen once this light covered the Northern Hemisphere, but she was certain it was nothing good.
The chilling sensation on her skin grew increasingly intense. Even after blocking all the windows, the feeling lingered stubbornly.
Faint cold light had already begun seeping into the room through the barricaded windows. After only a moment's hesitation, Shirai-san decided to lead everyone to the underground mall in District 7.
"First, we need to get out of here," Shirai-san stated firmly, making the decision for the group.
The more dire the situation became, the calmer Shirai-san grew. Though no one had asked it of her, she felt responsible for everyone's safety.
--+--
They were getting closer and closer to the space elevator.
Natsume Sonoko huddled within a thick protective layer of iron sand, shielding herself from the strange light coming from all directions. The sinister, cold feeling finally receded a little.
Inevitably, a wave of nervousness rose within Natsume-san, even stronger than what she'd felt during the encounter with Accelerator.
Faced with the current situation, Natsume Sonoko felt at a loss, but she had chosen to come and do what she could.
I suppose Misaka-senpai feels the same way.
But Misaka-senpai seemed a bit off after that phone call she just took, her expression becoming strained.
The roads were clogged with stalled cars and public transport, interspersed with Anti-Skill armored vehicles.
Students who had just finished club activities, adults from all walks of life—they all looked up in unison at the increasingly bizarre sky, still unaware of what was happening.
Academy City's peaceful life was finally shattered by the stark white light. This time, no one could escape it.
An Anti-Skill team, stuck in the gridlocked traffic, abandoned their plan to head for District 23. Instead, they chose to follow the instructions from the recent broadcast, evacuating the confused crowds around them.
Meanwhile, a gutsy young man wearing a white tracksuit and a bandana stood frowning in the middle of the road, having just punched out a bunch of delinquents trying to loot amidst the chaos.
Hands on his hips, he stared worriedly at the sky. Suddenly, a tremendous force slammed into his back, propelling him skyward like a human cannonball.
His speed instantly exceeded Mach 2, his target clearly the towering space elevator visible on the horizon.
The spiky-haired boy named Kamijou Touma and his freeloader Index hurriedly ran out of their apartment.
They hopped onto the electric scooter belonging to their neighbor Tsuchimikado, put on helmets, and sped off towards the space elevator at a blistering 25 kilometers per hour.
Various Dark Side organizations received similar missions at the same time. Some members hesitated but ultimately chose to mobilize.
The operation committee member for the Daihaseisai, named Fukiyose Seiri, firmly helped up a student who had fallen in the confusion. Looking up, she saw two strange, large black spheres flying across the sky.
"Look after her. I'll be back soon."
Having entrusted the weakened Last Order to her friend Yoshikawa Kikyou, Accelerator allowed a faint, twisted smile to play on his lips.
His skin, illuminated by the cold light, looked unnaturally pale, and a hint of madness flickered in his eyes.
That classic Accelerator-style villainous grin… it was almost nostalgic. This was the real Accelerator.
A true villain should make everyone afraid—a certain bun-girl who always tried to run from him could certainly attest to that.
Unlike Natsume-san's method, which used air refraction to achieve near-total nullification, after some analysis, Accelerator still couldn't reflect this light, but he had managed to refract a portion of it away.
Even though his physical condition was roughly on par with a certain bun-girl's, the effect on him was much smaller.
"I understand. I'll head to the nearest underground mall. You be careful too," Yoshikawa Kikyou, who had also heard the broadcast, nodded while holding Last Order.
"Annoying hag."
Accelerator rubbed his head and spoke with impatience.
--+--
District 23, Space Elevator Endymion.
Scattered metal wreckage littered the ground—the large mobile weapon belonging to the Orbit Portal Company had been destroyed before it could even play its part.
The joint forces attacking the space elevator had achieved significant results, but their assault rhythm was disrupted by the sudden appearance of the cold light.
Aside from the large mobile weapon and the cold light, the joint forces faced another new problem: the Orbit Portal Company still possessed a considerable number of troops equipped with optical camouflage.
The joint forces hid behind shields formed by various armored vehicles. Even with high-tech radar systems capable of monitoring the ground, they still struggled to track the movements of the Orbit Portal Company security teams.
Similarly, this radar system had limited effectiveness against Natsume-san.
Besides being affected by complex ground environments and her small size, radio waves and invisible light could also refract due to changes in air density.
The mobile weapons used by these camouflaged troops not only employed negative-index metamaterials that bent light but also utilized highly absorbent materials for their hulls, making them extremely difficult for most radar systems to detect.
In a flash, the rotating ground surveillance radar system was abruptly destroyed by a roaring hail of bullets.
But this couldn't change their fate. With the launch of dozens of freeze bombs, the camouflaged troops were encased in thick frost, instantly revealing their positions.
By the time Natsume-san and the others arrived on the scene, these Orbit Portal Company security personnel had already been subdued.
Shutaura Sequenzia, having been seen earlier at the shopping center. Now, guarded by several security robots, she was expressionlessly escorted into an Anti-Skill vehicle.
The closer they got to the space elevator, the more intense the chilling sensation became.
Goosebumps seemed to break out all over her skin, and the thick layer of iron sand armor felt significantly less effective.
Though a fierce battle had clearly taken place, the area now felt eerily empty.
Everyone was forced to take cover under heavy barricades, hiding from the omnipresent cold light from the sky.
"Move out!"
Anti-Skill vehicles started up, preparing to breach the high-strength alloy door.
However, accompanied by a sound like a thousand birds screeching, a brilliant orange flash tore across the sky. The pungent smell of burning grew thick in the air, leaving behind a red-hot, melting entry point on the alloy door.
Looking towards the door, two strange black spheres were wriggling with comical movements, beginning to squeeze their way through the expanding entrance.
"Misaka-senpai, it seems we aren't the first ones here."
Even wrapped in her thick layer of iron sand, Natsume-san could still observe the thermal changes around her.
The moment they entered through the door, they found the ground littered with numerous scattered mechanical constructs. It seemed someone had already triggered the defense systems here.
Thinking about it, that made sense. Misaka-senpai and the others had set out much earlier; they'd probably already infiltrated deep inside.
And with such a major event happening, they certainly weren't the only ones who had noticed this place.
According to the message from Shirai-san earlier, they had less than half an hour to resolve whatever was happening here. This made a certain bun-girl's nerves stretch taut.
"It feels… a bit better now?"
Natsume-san suddenly felt some relief.
Although the space elevator was the origin point of the halos, being inside the massive structure itself still blocked a significant amount of the cold light.
But if one were to enter the elevator shaft and ascend towards space, that would be where the most intense exposure to the cold light awaited.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.