The Apostle's Cross was said to be modeled after the great cross erected above the tomb of Saint Peter, one of the Twelve Apostles. Among holy relics, it ranked at the very top.
Once driven into the ground, its influence would spread outward, overwriting the surrounding territory. Within that domain, the area would effectively become land governed by the Roman Church. Every person inside would accept its authority without resistance. Doubt would vanish. Even the most unreasonable commands would feel natural, even welcome.
Those caught within its range would experience overwhelming contentment. Endless labor, suffering, even death would feel meaningful. Joyful.
To Rowan Mercer, it sounded less like a holy relic and more like a large-scale mind-control device.
"So their real target was Academy City," he said quietly.
The picture snapped into place. The Stiletto Lance had been nothing more than bait. A false objective meant to draw attention away from the real plan. While everyone focused on preventing a weapon meant to kill Saints from reaching the Roman Church, the true goal had been to smuggle the Apostle's Cross into the city and claim it outright.
"Yes," Edward Alexander replied. "And not just Academy City. They intended to seize it first, integrate its power, and then use that leverage to eliminate every other magical organization. Total domination."
Academy City held millions of ability users. It possessed weapons beyond modern military standards. And among its residents were individuals whose power rivaled or surpassed Saints. If all of that were brought under the Roman Church's control, the balance of the world would collapse overnight.
Edward would never allow that.
"Go," he said. "Take it."
"No problem," Rowan replied.
He was about to move when he noticed Oriana Thomson below him.
Her clothes, damaged in the earlier fight, were discarded without hesitation. Completely unconcerned with exposure, she retrieved a handbag hidden beneath the stairwell and calmly changed into a new outfit, tightening the straps of a short, revealing top.
"Let's wait a moment," Rowan muttered to himself.
"The decoy's been recovered," Oriana said into a card clenched between her teeth. "The Stiletto Lance cover is probably blown. That's fine. I'll handle things here. In the end, everything will turn out exactly as planned. This city will be happy. The whole world will be happy."
She finished the call, adjusted her clothes, and stepped toward the exit.
A voice spoke behind her.
"Mind telling me where you hid the Apostle's Cross?"
Oriana froze, then turned slowly.
"That was fast," she said coolly. "Seems the Church's people are more capable than expected."
Her eyes narrowed when she recognized the figure standing there.
"So it's you."
As a specialist in tracking and counter-tracking, being approached this closely without warning was unsettling. But when she saw who it was, her tension eased. One of Academy City's top-ranked ability users. That explained it. This had to be technological surveillance, not magic.
"Let's see what a Level Five can really do," she said.
She bit down on a card.
"Symbol of Earth."
The ground surged upward, a massive wave of stone and soil rising several meters high, crashing toward Rowan with enough force to bury him alive.
Lightning flashed.
The earthen wave exploded apart, torn open by a precise, violent discharge.
Rowan hadn't used magic. He avoided it whenever possible. If word spread that someone could wield both abilities and magic, the consequences would ripple through the entire world. The fragile balance between the two systems existed because they were mutually exclusive.
Break that rule, and everything changed.
The earth settled. Oriana was gone.
She reappeared behind him in the same instant.
The earlier attack had only been cover. She knew brute force wouldn't work. Her real objective was close range.
"Symbol of Earth. Bloodburst."
The spell targeted the blood itself, forcing it to expand violently within the veins. For most people, even powerful ones, it meant instant collapse. Ruptured vessels. Fatal internal damage. She had killed stronger opponents with this technique.
Unless they were something inhuman.
Rowan turned.
Color rose briefly to his face. Just a hint of red. Then it faded.
"Interesting spell," he said.
He had felt it. The pressure, the forced turbulence in his bloodstream. But his body was no longer built like a human's. The magic simply didn't have enough force to do real damage. It would have needed to be dozens of times stronger to even begin to matter.
Still, he was impressed.
Oriana stared at him, stunned.
"That's… impossible."
According to everything she knew, Misaka Mikoto's power was electrical. Not physical enhancement. There was no reason this should have failed.
Yet there he stood, untouched.
And watching her very carefully.