Part 5
District 10, in front of the cemetery in Academy City.
Just as Hamazura, Takitsubo, and Kinuhata were having their rather hollow conversation, the door to the graveyard opened. Hamazura and company turned to see Mugino walking towards them.
Her expression didn't change.
There was no sign of her crying, and her eyes didn't look red.
Even so, something had definitely happened inside.
And as for what had happened, she didn't want Hamazura and the rest to notice it.
"Is it over?"
Facing Hamazura's question, Mugino just gave a simple answer.
"It's over."
In reality, nothing may be over.
But Mugino still said it.
It was like she was trying to isolate it.
On a side note.
Though it was not suitable to reveal that they were remaining quiet, the land in District 10 was the cheapest in Academy City, and it was because this place was famous for having the worst security. The only graveyard was located there because many companies refused to set up shop there, and finally, after a long turnaround, it settled in this backdrop.
Thus, since he looked like he was bringing three youthful girls there (actually, it was the other way around), Hamazura Shiage-kun naturally became the bull's-eye for the delinquents gathered around.
"Which one would be faster: bus or train?"
Just as Hamazura was talking to them, five guys appeared in front of them, blocking them.
If this were a team of troopers, this group of delinquents would look like some hero fighter. The only guy facing them, Hamazura gave them a threatening look, probably to dampen their enthusiasm or gain the right to talk or something.
"Hooooollllld it right there, money kid. We're working right now, so can you please help us? Our work is just to beat people up badly and settle the debt, that's all."
"Whether you say anything or not as you hand your money to us, we'll beat you up good; whether you run or beg for mercy, we'll still beat you up. You understand the situation now?"
(Damn it… This is a huge problem.)
Though they were teenagers who were only treating death as something trivial, Hamazura himself wasn't some superhero, so his body trembled inadvertently. The second one was especially dangerous; from the way he looked and how he was squatting down, it seemed like he was a professional at this. To fight on the road, where there was no referee or soft mat, he was even more dangerous right now to toss people, strangle the enemy's neck, or wring the joints than those stupid amateurs who would use blunt weapons or knives. Hamazura understood that from firsthand experience.
Even so.
On the other hand, Hamazura was rather relieved. Since they relied on fighting techniques, it was likely that this group of delinquents were like him in that they became delinquents because they had no ability. If they weren't dirty people who could manipulate gravity such that they would increase the effect to ten times that of a wrestler's throw, they couldn't be considered the scariest kind in Academy City, right?
Besides, forget about Takitsubo; Mugino and Kinuhata, who were also with him, were of the scariest kind in Academy City.
Mugino was the #4 Level 5, and Kinuhata was a Level 4 who could even handle a sniper war. The delinquents were basically fighting against a stationary tank or bomber jet. No matter whether the enemy was the number one foul freestyle wrestler, or a judo master who could toss man-eating bears aside, they wouldn't even be opponents for Mugino and Kinuhata.
Thus.
"…Hey, don't be like this."
Hamazura was honestly trying to advise the delinquents who were looking to cause trouble as he said that with agony.
Naturally, he ended up in End of the Century mode as he continued.
"Kids. I'm sincerely saying this for your own good, so remember everything that I say, or else I can't guarantee that you'll remain alive… In this world, there are certain realms that you can't interfere with. You're already one step away from that guy. One more step, and that distance will doom all of you. If you can identify that person, hurry up and scram!"
However.
For some reason, Mugino and Kinuhata exchanged weird looks with each other.
"My. How terrifying~ Save me, Hamazura."
The meaning behind these charming voices was unknown.
Then, Mugino and Kinuhata grabbed onto Hamazura's arms, seemingly about to clamp them for some unknown reason.
Knowing what they intended, Hamazura suddenly felt goose bumps.
However, the five delinquents and Takitsubo Rikou seemed to believe in the performance, not knowing whether it was true or not. The girl in the sports jacket also seemed to get competitive all of a sudden as she grabbed Hamazura's neck from behind, causing Hamazura to end up lifting her.
"…Don't take him without permission. Hamazura is mine."
At that moment...
Hamazura Shiage definitely heard some important brain circuits snap. They belonged to the five delinquents.
"Uh-oh."
After a while, a certain delinquent whose mouth was half-open in shock said, "Ooohhhhhh!! What are you trying to pull here!? What are you trying to do by acting like a playboy, you bastard!?"
The shout he let out was somewhat like a seal or an otter, but it was obvious that the enemy's anger had reached its peak. He closed in and was getting read to personally beat Hamazura's face in.
At that moment, Mugino, who was deliberately holding Hamazura's wrist down through a delicate movement, twitched her body slightly. Because of the pain coming from his elbow, Hamazura had to follow Mugino's movements and turn around as if he was turning a door.
Thus, the delinquent's strike that was aimed at his head missed.
It ended up hitting his shoulder.
And the five fingers that he reached out just so happened to be in a grip state.
"Yaaaahhh, it hurts, damn it!!"
"Kyah~ Hamazura's super~ cool~"
Mugino let out an even sillier-sounding voice as she grabbed Hamazura's wrist, which stopped midway through, and kicked him in the waist. Hamazura was sent flying into the middle of the group of delinquents. On the other side, Kinuhata beautifully "pressed" Takitsubo down just as she was sticking to Hamazura's back.
"W-what…?"
Before he could understand what was going on, it seemed like the delinquents realized something.
"It's time to get serious, eeeeeeeehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!"
"You should say something to that demonic woman, eeehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!"
Hamazura had only one choice.
Escape. He decided to scatter some soil from the flowerbed to obstruct the fallen delinquents' view, and used that opportunity to get away.
Part 6
The smoking breast enhancement device was confiscated by Yomikawa, and Yoshikawa went back home to set the pre-recording time for the time being.
There was currently a live telecast on the TV inside the room, and Yomikawa noted that she wanted to record the drama that she wanted to watch.
"It would be great if there's a television receiver that could air multiple channels at the same time," muttered Yoshikawa.
The TV was airing such a show.
Most likely, the host and the production crew couldn't even smell the front lines.
"…Despite the fact that World War III ended in twelve days, after the war was over, there were a large number of eyewitness reports regarding supernatural phenomenon. Experts have called this a third war syndrome. This is a common group psychological problem that occurs due to the stress created by the warzone environment, similar to the phenomenon that occurred during the 'British Halloween incident' that took place during the political crisis in England. Some experts feel that they should be rewarded handsomely, and as soon as possible."
Accelerator was just lazing around.
He was lying on the sofa, feeling that there was a sense of something being out of place.
On closer look, Last Order had snuck into the small sofa.
"…What are you doing?"
"Misaka wants to sleep, says Misaka as Misaka explains clearly."
"Hey."
"…"
Before the #1 could complain, the ten-year-old-looking girl was already sleeping. Accelerator clicked his tongue, and another voice came from somewhere else.
"How do you feel about taking back your peace?"
"…What are you trying to say?"
"Nothing."
She used a tone that clearly implied something.
In the past, there was the existence of "darkness" in Academy City. It had tremendous power, but for certain reasons, the people involved in it would find it hard to reintegrate themselves into society. At times, in exchange for their own survival, they would use their friends as shields, offer things like books or information or even their status, or even be in charge of several "jobs"…It was that kind of world.
Accelerator had also been a part of it.
But that system had been destroyed—not by anyone else, but by Accelerator at the end of World War III.
Tsuchimikado Motoharu.
Musujime Awaki.
Unabara Mitsuki…Or whatever his name really was.
Accelerator's ears heard the voices of the commentators who enjoyed that boring peace.
"…Between this, it's unknown whether there really is a supernatural phenomenon, but basically, there's evidence of a huge golden ring and a bone-like thing left behind in cities all over the world- no, it's not so accurate to describe it as golden. The United Nations threw the piece into some parts of the Pacific Ocean that lack oxygen, and even though they did process it, used it to change the oxygen supply in the ocean, and also revived the supply of fish and other kinds of seafood, I do think that there are other motivations for them to throw them without investigating them…"
As for the other members of Group, who once worked as a group of four in the darkness, how were they right now? Accelerator wasn't really clear about it, but it was likely that in this bastardly city, they would work hard for their "stability".
However, there was something lacking.
He felt that something was lacking.
After the war, Accelerator had cut off all links to the darkness; thus, he wouldn't be able to access the necessary information regarding the dark side of Academy City. Of course, there were means to eavesdrop; it was just that he didn't want to get involved with the darkness ever again.
Thus, no matter whether it was a blessing or a curse, he wouldn't be able to ensure the others' safety.
Among the people who had taken part in that war, who could be excluded?
Did "that guy" who had been in the deepest part came back safely?
"…Also, it's worth being happy that Academy City's side incurred zero casualties, but Academy City also exposed all technical expertise and military risks. Regarding this, Academy City has expressed…"
There was no need to look forward to that TV program that was uttering gibberish.
But if so, who could be trusted?
Part 7
There was once a cloning program that used the cells of the #3 Level 5, Misaka Mikoto.
In terms of results, it was a failure. Unable to create the necessary specifications, it was ended. However, this cloning technique was used for another experiment, creating a mass number of clones.
The Sisters.
Last Order was the commander of the approximately ten thousand remaining Sisters, and Misaka Worst was created after that through the unorthodox Third Season project.
The massive brain that was formed by the electronic network of almost ten thousand brains formed the Misaka Network. The network linked all the information that the Sisters had, and the network also worked for a "certain purpose".
There was Last Order, who was created as a "human interference commander", and Misaka Worst, who had "evil thoughts and feelings" embedded in her for some "certain purpose".
Thus…
"Go buy something?"
Accelerator, who was lying on the sofa, asked in shock, and the female teacher in the sports jacket, Yomikawa Aiho, nodded her head.
"I don't care whether you came back from the battlefield or some other place; since you came back, you better start acting like a member of society and live on."
"So you're talking about doing such a boring thing?"
"Huh?" Yomikawa acted like she was confused and pondered for a while, before continuing. "In human society, the most painful thing is being unable to help others and not being needed by others, right?"
"Cheh!" Unable to say anything, Accelerator got up. "You don't have to come up with some twisted introduction to psychology, you damned teacher!"
"No way, I have no intention of going into life counseling. Basically, I'll settle any problems that appear with this iron fist of mine."
"So, what do I have to buy?"
"Food. Those that I circled in red on the list."
"…That kind of thing again. Doing this really doesn't match who I am."
"In that case, work hard and get used to it."
Spurred by Yomikawa, Accelerator reluctantly grabbed his crutch and stood up.
Thus, Last Order, who had gotten sick of the spaceship game (she had woken up after the nap to challenge Misaka Worst again), looked up at Accelerator.
"Misaka wants to go!! Misaka wants to go!! exclaims Misaka as Misaka wants to be your assistant since you'll feel uncomfortable being alone!!"
"You're so noisy!! Stop trying to predict the future!"
Aside from Last Order, who was shouting "Misaka wants to go, Misaka wants to go", Misaka Worst seemed to be a little edgy for some reason.
Actually, to her, there was another battle other than the computer battle.
It was a real battle.
It was mentioned before that Misaka Worst had a strong sense of ill-intent thoughts and feelings added from a "certain aspect" of the Misaka Network.
This could be expressed not only through anger and hatred.
But also jealousy.
She was envious of Yomikawa, who was always talking to Accelerator. She also wanted to go along.
Last Order's thoughts spread to all the Sisters. As there was an interference with the "certain aspect", it affected Misaka Worst as well.
Misaka Worst, who normally wouldn't take orders from the commander, Last Order, would inevitably be affected.
For that reason...
(…Uwaah!? I want to go. I want to go shopping!! Damn it, Accelerator's none of my business, but the network, the network's giving an unbearable emotional wavelength, Uuwwwwaaahhhhhhhhhhh!! Nononononononononononononononono—!!)
Misaka Worst tried her best to resist the surging force, but she was still unable to withstand it in the end.
The reason was that though she tried to draw that evil intention out, Misaka Worst still couldn't handle it.
A short-circuited Misaka Worst stood up, and rushed at Last Order who was tugging at Accelerator's pants, knocking her away.
"Misaka, Misaka, too! Misaka wants to go shopping together!!"
A few minutes later.
After getting a wallet from Yomikawa, Accelerator asked a very simple question to Misaka Worst, who was lost in her own thoughts:
"What the hell were you doing just earlier?"
"…Misaka doesn't understand it herself…"
Part 8
In order to get away from the delinquents, Hamazura was running randomly.
The method may vary depending on the target and the situation, but for running away on foot, the most important thing was to keep changing between roads and alleys. One had to make a decision when it was impossible to use a car or a bicycle.
More importantly, if it was someone like Anti-Skill, one had to look for a place where there were few people. As for delinquents who ignored the law, it was a more practical to choose somewhere crowded.
The setting was also one of the reasons to use the surrounding people, view, and common knowledge to block the pursuers.
After considering that, it was important to avoid running away in a straight line. Even if it was the tiniest angle, by running around multiple times, it was easy to cause the pursuers to lose sight.
Those methods were effective in shaking off pursuers, but there was one thing to note.
(…Damn it! I'm unfamiliar with District 10!! Am I running north!?)
There was a risk of getting lost if one ran and made turns on unfamiliar grounds.
Even if he wanted to run away, there was a chance that he would make a U-turn, and he could end up running back to his pursuers.
In order to prevent that, as a tactic, he would decide where to run, and then turn with minimal angle. It should be effective for him to continue running in the same direction.
Even still, though he had a clear mind, he was currently being chased by delinquents, If he could let his body obey his mind while he was sprinting at full speed, it wouldn't be so hard on him.
"Ha!! Ha!! ...Damn, damn it. Mugino and Kinuhata…I'll make them remember it. Those girls, I'll spank their butts a hundred times after this. And if Takitsubo takes off her clothes, that would be a great feeling."
As he was running at full speed, his thighs started to hurt, and his breathing was rough. Hamazura stopped and looked around.
He couldn't find his pursuers now.
He saw the sign nearby; it was District 7.
It seemed like he had crossed districts.
For a moment, just for a moment, Hamazura thought of Mugino and the rest, but the worry quickly dissipated. The delinquents had all been chasing him, and even if they headed for Mugino and the rest, it was impossible for a Level 5 and Level 4 combination to fail.
(Should I message them that I'm all right?)
Hamazura pondered about the situation that was worth praising.
(No, no, if they know that I'm all right, I'll end up in some ridiculous thing again. Better act like I nearly died…)
Hamazura's shoulder knocked into someone.
It was a middle-school-looking girl with short brown hair.
"S-sorry."
Hamazura consciously bent down and apologized, but the girl didn't reply.
With an uneven pace, the girl vanished into the crowd.
(…What was that? That's a Tokiwadai Middle School uniform, right…?)
Hamazura looked in the direction where the girl had vanished.
(Seems like something major happened to her…Well, it's none of my business anyway.)
Even if he were to continue to worry about her, he couldn't help her anyway.
Originally intending to send a message, Hamazura slipped his cell phone back into his pocket. He was looking around to get a cold drink to quench his thirst.
"Hey, Hamazura. What's with you?"
A voice came from beside him.
Adjusting his breathing, Hamazura looked over. It was a face he was very familiar with.
"…Hanzou?"