"The shitty brat disappeared?"

Accelerator's voice echoes across the wide living room.

He was sure Last Order was privately having a siesta in her allocated room, but according to Yomikawa, somehow she's probably not inside the mansion.

The jersey-wearing Yomikawa lightly shakes her head,

"This building has the same auto-locks used in hotels, so keys aren't necessary when you're only going out. Perhaps by chance she's probably off playing on her own."

"The apartment is vast. Perhaps she's not outside; it's possible that she's playing in the elevator or passages or on the stairs."

Even Yoshikawa adds something, but for Accelerator, only a bad premonition keeps popping up in his head no matter what they say.

He cannot believe in the optimistic view that human nature is fundamentally good in this world. In a way, he's way overexposed to the evils.

...When did they last see the brat?

Accelerator checks the wall clock.

It's 4:30 PM. Eat lunch, sleep, and shower- they started at either 1 or 2 PM.

At the very least, more than two hours. Given that much time, a professional could kill his victims, bury them, and leave.

Both Accelerator and Last Order have something in common: being research materials that gave incalculable advantages. Up to now, the [Experiment] they were involved in was suspended for sure, but it wouldn't be strange for bounty hunters to be out to get them for use in other experiments.

Forget it: stuff like profits, losses, or costs are not important; because a person is [an acquaintance of that Accelerator], it wouldn't be strange for that person to already be designated as a target for some form of attack. Right now, as the former title-holder of Academy City's strongest, he's no more than another target.

Accelerator clicks his tongue as if to spit out before reapplying power to the modernistic walking stick supporting his own body.

"I'm going out."

"Well, I don't think she would be going there just to play in particular."

Accelerator gives an irritated look at Yomikawa's very relaxed expression, but then,

"The answering machine has something in it."

"..."

Accelerator only keeps silent as he pressed the Replay button of the large electronic answering machine that also functioned as a phone, fax, and copier.

*Beep*, after that high-pitched sound,

"'You see, right now, Misaka is being chased by Misaka's subordinate,' says Misaka as Misaka reports her current condition. 'Though Misaka cannot go home immediately, Misaka wants some dinner prepared in advance,' says Misaka as Misaka sends her request."

He's about to thrash the telephone with his cane, but then Accelerator is held down by Yomikawa and Yoshikawa. Without that ability, the current him only has the power to rage noisily on.

Accelerator, with both hair and clothes frazzled and while *ze-ha-ze-ha* breathing roughly,

"...from the bottom of my heart, she's one annoying brat."

"Ahaha. Human relations are just like that, you know."

Even as Yomikawa laughs, she firmly encircles Accelerator's body with both her hands, afraid of him destroying the telephone; this stance means her big bust is pressed against him, but she probably totally doesn't care.

"For me, there is no such thing as a convenient human relationship. 'To be truly free without interference from others'- in other words, it means to do anything without anyone noticing what you're doing --"

Yomikawa lets go of Accelerator's back. "Consider the spreading of roots: their movement is like each root intertwining with the others. By doing just that much, they get stronger against rain and wind."

"------- "

Hearing just an adult's opinion is annoying as hell.

A lesson that may hit or miss the mark but still be accepted is somehow needed.

In any case, it's better to look for Last Order and even keep her in sight, thinks Accelerator. His mobility being practical is due to the neck electrode receiving the weak electromagnetic signals, but in the middle of those Sisters' actions was Last Order. Having thought of them, Accelerator still doesn't understand what kind of "not logic-type but sensory-type" this so-called Misaka Network is, but whatever obstacles may appear to those individuals' activities may have an influence on him, too- that's right, this is all for his sake.

Meanwhile, Yomikawa, believing that she said something good by herself, says with a triumphant face, "Well, then, Kikyou and I would be willing to help out, too."

"Me, too?"

"If not, then you can forget about Kikyou from now on."

Yoshikawa, clearly reluctant to move, as she looks outside the window, "I could collapse if I walk outside for more than one hour in a day..." she complains.

Accelerator raises his eyebrows,

"What does this mean, you two?"

"What we mean is that we're looking for that child."

Since Yomikawa said something that hits the mark, Accelerator keeps silent for a bit.

As the jersey-wearing girl pulls out the USB memory card containing the recording,

"It looks like it was done outdoors, so by analyzing the background sounds from behind that girl, we can find out her location. Well, you can leave this to Yomikawa-oneesan of Anti-Skill."

"Aiho, isn't that abuse of authority?"

"'Search and rescue of a lost child' is one of our peacekeeping duties. There will be no problems."

Why the heck is she doing it with a jolly face, thinks Accelerator.

In response to Accelerator making such a thought, Yomikawa grins with the USB memory stick in one hand,

"You know what to call a interrelationship like this?"

"You're pulling my leg along."

"It's give-and-take."

Along with Yoshikawa's shocked voice, the search net for Last Order has been cast.

It's 5 PM.

Accelerator goes outside the well-air-conditioned mansion, his cane stabbing the asphalt. Already, one of his hands was holding a mobile phone for communication.

In the end, they would be looking for Last Order who won't be coming back home no matter how much time passes.

Today, all of Academy City probably had a half day for classes, but when it comes to this time period, it's no different from a weekday. This is for trying out new winter clothes; most people walking here and there are wearing sailor clothes and stand-up collars. If one dares to say the difference, it must be the smell peculiar to new clothes lightly drifting everywhere.

"Pesky weather..."

Accelerator halfheartedly looks up at the sky and grumbles. Until now, he's been inside the building, so he didn't notice it, but before he knew it, the blue sky turned to gray... rather, it's almost covered with low dark clouds. It wouldn't be strange for rainfall to begin anytime soon. Academy City's supercomputer [Tree Diagram], also used for organization of meteorological information, was already destroyed, so they couldn't predict sudden changes in weather like an evening shower as of late.

["Oh dear-. I'd like to find her and come back before it starts to rain!"]

So, she's also looking up high at the sky. Yomikawa's voice can be heard from the other end of the phone. Incidentally, Yoshikawa was watching the house. It's possible that during the search, Last Order would return to the mansion- in which case, Last Order, with neither a key nor a PIN, would end up standing still all alone in front of the front entrance.

He tuts.

It's fine if she would only stand still, but with the kid running swiftly anywhere as long as she has free time, the possibility of her staying in that spot is extremely low. With her running off somewhere whenever she's had enough, she making the search unnecessarily difficult is a concern.

Accelerator grips his mobile phone again,

"You must be in a car."

["I hate getting myself wet even though I can open the door and put up an umbrella."]

Weakling, Accelerator tries to curse but then stops himself. He himself got a pale-complexioned body from dodging those UV sunlight rays.

"So, you have a rough idea where that brat is, now?"

["The signals behind the girl sound like the indoor music used in the nearby underground shopping complex."]

"Eh? You even used analysis equipment for a non-case like a search for a lost child?"

["I told you: even the search for missing kids is one of our duties. You see, by analyzing the background signals of the sounds of the phone the girl was calling from, the location can be ascertained."]

"Hmph. That's the [Inaudible Sound] going across the entire town."

["Eh, there are people who can notice that? The secret is just low-frequency waves outside the audible range, you know."]

Idiot, Accelerator spits out. He's an ESPer who observes, calculates, and controls every vector in the world. If he lets as much as the invisible and the inaudible past, he would be unable to defend himself against the likes of radiation.

"That must be stealthily mixed into the music that came out of a speaker or a store BGM."

["Yup, those low-frequency waves by themselves are nothing significant, but when they run into special equipment we Anti-Skills are carrying, a precise sound is generated; we do this in order to detect sound variations in each speaker, and by investigating those sounds, we can generally find out [which telephone it came from]. Well, with anti-phone tracing equipment easy to obtain now, this effort is important."]

"Although you could say this is only one of the search methods, various normal methods were used, and the multi-faceted information sorted through, you know"- Yomikawa said words to that effect.

What a cumbersome plan, Accelerator exhales.

Easily executing a broad challenge of this sort must be Academy City's characteristic. In practice, there might have been various problems like system changes and equipment deployment, but they had all been let through due to a single phrase: "For the experiment."

"So from here, I'm off to the underground shopping complex."

["For now, yeah. I don't think that nimble-footed one will remain in one place for long, so start gathering information from there."]

"...Me? With this appearance (albino)?"

["Yuuup, practice smiling and smiling your smile-"]

You're crazy, Accelerator tuts.

At any rate, he's too famous for bad news. If a Level 5 like him makes a smile or something and approaches someone, that someone might die from shock. He's convinced it would be like "I think a murderer is out to get me so I must attack him at once"; plainly said, that probably is inevitable. Since it's inevitable, it could only mean killing a would-be killer.

But no matter what he does, it's important to gather information in order to search for Last Order.

Looks like I'm in an annoying situation, Accelerator grumbles impulsively.

And Yomikawa suddenly spoke.

["Hey, Accelerator,"]

"What?"

["Is showing goodwill towards other people that scary?"]

"...Ooh, another very pleasant subject. Perfect for an after-school stroll."

["Are you happy as a tyrant?"]

Yomikawa did not hear his words.

Or rather, she brushed aside what she had heard.

["Each person might have his own sufferings, but in spite of those, there must be some good parts in them. Then again, a tyrant cannot get betrayed; neither does it have to worry about relations going sour. It is not afraid to set aside its shown goodwill because it's only a target of fear and hatred."]

The words go out smoothly.

Accelerator is listening to those words.

["'Human relations can only be established by both good and ill will'- that simple fact is left unspoken. Up until now, the fact is, it's fine for you to reject everything and return with ill will. Quite easy, no? But it's different from here on. So, ask yourself which one to show- goodwill and ill will- and whether what you chose was that scary."]

"A good-for-nothing, I'm ---"

["It's true."]

Yomikawa prevents Accelerator from speaking.

["Though you've received Last Order's goodwill, you're afraid to reciprocate to her. At first glance, your relationship with her is favorable, but in practice, it can't be secured should Last Order's good graces run out; it's quite dreadful."]

That voice is flat.

Not forcibly insisting on something; thus goes the reality called "flexibility".

["I wonder if it's scary, Accelerator. Since you didn't know how to close the distance, this alone may be the deed that might separate that. If your own act backfires and the separation goes further, returning yourself to before already becomes impossible- although you know it's no use for you to not do that."]

"Sermons!"

["I know that I'm out of line, but it's because I am at least a teacher, too. Well, to lower-ranked Anti-Skills like me, **they didn't think of an opportunity to know your darkness**."]

Ah, Accelerator understands.

She might have been poking around the Bank about his past.

So she had hit the wall there; thus, she asked the person himself.

"You tactful bastard."

["It's a place where you were in old times... The name that came out is the name for this reason."]

"[Special Ability Institute]."

The name Yomikawa hesitated to express, Accelerator easily reveals.

That's the name of an institution; more than just recorded in a specially secure area inside the Bank, its name's hidden.

"The formal name's 'Special Ability Holders Multiple Alteration Technologies Research Institute'. A [school (home)] I was thrown into until I was 9, a hell rumored to have a corpse disposal facility on its grounds."

"School" and "corpse disposal grounds"- these very incompatible words standing together was Academy City's characteristic. This is a town where schools also function as research centers and laboratories for ability development at the same time. From there, rumors were derived, and talk of "murder institutes performing inhuman research" was formed.

"Truth is, it's nothing more than a rumor- and there's no such thing as a corpse disposal grounds, I assure you. On the other hand, it's a garbage dump for the disposal of living humans. Even you haven't heard the story, right?"

["...Is that so?"]

[Special Ability Institute] was the main institute created for the experiment and research of Dual-skills. Until now, it was certain that the students can only use one ability, and the conclusion was out that the simultaneous manifestation of two or more abilities was impossible; those pieces of data were primarily gathered here.

In short, *failures* are endlessly repeated until the discovery of a law.

In ability development, even intimidation and drugs are used, causing direct influences on the brain structure. It's better not to imagine how far a horrible disaster would be for the word *failure*. It turns out that "Death was preferable" was the meaning for those tongue-in-cheek words.

Yomikawa informs,

["It's my unit who took over and dismantled that place."]

"Thanks for that."

["In closing down [Special Ability Institute], the law was surely upheld. Only one kind of power can dwell in an ability holder, you know. But even then, there are those who- for the sake of their own reputations- yearn for a perfected Dual-skill, sacrificing numerous children in the process- especially Child Errors."]

"Child Errors" are Academy City's unique social phenomenon.

Academy City is basically a boarding school system: even with exceptional cases of freeloading at the town bakeshop or something, it became a general principle to have dwellings inside Academy City. But rarely, there are people who, hoping to abandon children at the onset, pay only the entrance fees and disappear after confirming that the children have entered the dorms; though it's better than stuffing infants into coin lockers, it's as if they've done the same thing.

Academy City has a system for the protection of those children with such a fate.

But there are parasitic research teams that acquire these children through underhanded means. [Produce], [May Project of Darkness], [Induced Explosion Experiments for the Analysis of the Law of Berserk Abilities]... Even in the forward-thinking Academy City, such inadmissible research was thus being performed.

"...Even I have seen them- 'them' stretching out on the other side of massive doors."

Yomikawa's voice was heavy.

Hearing that, Accelerator laughs.

For this person's common sense, **she's thinking that such a degree of treatment is the same as that of the nethermost hell**.

That lack of imagination- no doubt it's proof that Yomikawa is one of the people living in the sound world.

Different from Accelerator, who sees and knows everything.

"And it's too bad I didn't get to see you in action. I've said it before, I was at [Special Ability Institute] until I was nine. From there, I was moved someplace else. Do you understand why?"

Accelerator twists the corner of his mouth.

"**Because I am uncontrollable**. Even in that hell called [Special Ability Institute], my power is beyond control; even those white-cloaked demons were terrified of me. In short, I'm that kind of monster!" The pale student is talking into the mobile phone. "It's still the same after that- a good-for-nothing. I was included in [Imaginary Numbers], [Intelligence], [Foggy Hill]... Well, also, that center where you even can't catch its tail called [Abyss]- the reactions were all the same. You know, tragedy is unexpectedly **soft**! So, my body totally slipped through. From there, without something to catch or stop me, I kept on sinking more and more- deeper and deeper."

Accelerator stabs his cane.

He *gatsu* rams the lower end of his cane into the asphalt, as if spitting on the road.

"I didn't last for two months in the same place. Every time, it was clear was that my own monstrosity was reconfirmed. I, feared even by them and just as demonic as they are- just what I am turning myself into?"

And then Yoshikawa's research group [Level 6] took over that uncontrollable monster- something only few would receive. There, the treatment was exceptional; thanks to that, he lasted more than two months. But that probably was anger against Accelerator turned upside-down. They don't want to be angry; it manifested on their faces. Was it different for that [weakling] Yoshikawa?

Eventually, it was the same interaction even for the researchers who massacred more than 10,000 people.

The sense of distance without something to blend into. (!)

Fear.

The white that was rejected even by the darkness.

In the end, those were the words to indicate Accelerator.

"Showing goodwill is impossible- futile! What will turn out when I repaid ¥1 to a debt of ¥100,000,000. Said goodwill will be swallowed up by just the interest; my willingness to pay it won't come up. It's silly just to think about it. It gives me the shivers. To finish paying them all off would be like laughing in the sunshine!" (!)

It was in an uncouth voice.

What will I do with my pride of debt, Accelerator curses himself. (!)

Yomikawa was silent for a while.

And then she replies.

["These may be flowery words, but even then, you hate yourself for forgetting what had to be paid. You would immediately bite at it if there's a way to pay that ¥100,000,000- am I wrong?"]

"...Hmm."

Accelerator cannot readily answer.

In response, Yomikawa's tone is constant. She was serious from the start.

["For example, I don't point a weapon at children. My opponents may be ESPers or whatever, but I definitely never point a weapon at them; this is the rule I've decided for myself."]

"Eh?"

["**You're wondering why I'm doing such a thing?**"]

"..."

["**Do you understand why I hesitate to thrust a weapon at children?**"]

You... Accelerator's own mind mutters.

Sensing the aura of depressing feelings escaping from her voice, he reflexively visualizes a scene of a back alley.

["That's what I'm talking about. Surely, your [quantity] maybe cannot be compared with mine. But your [quality] didn't change very much. If that's the case, then even if the scale of what you have to do may be different, the type will be the same."] Yomikawa's voice stabs at Accelerator. ["...No matter how awkward, you have to continue paying even if it's ¥1 or ¥0.01; that accumulation will surely open your way. Well, you have a power different from mine. Ways to repay it at once are as many as you could imagine."]

"That's a laughable opinion. My face is totally distorted from excessive smiling."

["The easiest option is to join Judgment. With your name in their ranks, Academy City's public order would be three times more stable, right? I've prepared the necessary documents."]

"That is stupid."

Accelerator rejects the offer.

His ability is not that kind of power. His only power is such that he'd be basking in a bloodbath should he wave both his arms. His kind of power doesn't exceed that of nuclear weapons, a tremendous negative power whose beginnings of "peaceful uses" cannot be seen at all. Even if he tried, the outcome is decidedly never connected to it. His actions produce only mere destruction.

Even so.

Suppose what he thought of before exists.

Suppose he uses his power to stop the [Experiments].

Suppose he can hold back the Sisters who were on the way of death.

And so.

Suppose **it's never too late**.

What was scattered before him, and the death toll probably scattered before him afterward- just how far will he reduce them?

It's an empty theory- definitely impossible to realize.

There's no way he can do it.

That, he understands.

He, who kept using that power, need not be told that all the time from anyone. (!)

Nevertheless,

"Good-for-nothing."

["That good-for-nothing pile will pay back your debts, you know."]

Yomikawa Aiho tells him that.

With the voice of someone basking in the sunlight.

Why the heck does it turn out like this? Accelerator is drooping his shoulders.

He was in a certain location just after entering the underground shopping complex. Some tables were being arranged outside a fast-food store, serving as its open space. But despite being in a underground shopping complex, the distinctions between the inside and the outside of the store were dubious without end.

In one of those tables, a silver-haired emerald-eyed girl clad in a pure white nun's habit is *gubecha* prostrating before it, buried beside huge quantities of hamburgers, french fries, and salads. Just to say it once in advance, Accelerator bought them all as a gift. This girl didn't carry even 1/100 of ¥1.

The excuse for such a happening in the first place is that as soon as Accelerator, in search for Last Order, propped himself up at his modernistic custom-designed cane and entered the underground shopping complex, this mysterious girl suddenly came crashing into him from one side.

She then, in a really staggered gait and expression, faced Accelerator and,

"Ehh, it's not Touma, it's not Touma! I thought it was Touma; why is this person not Touma? Touma can go anywhere he wants to, but I'm getting hungry and cannot move about! That sizzling smell of salt, pepper, and meat is drifting away; I wanna eat that, I wanna eat that, what should we do, what should we do when eating that?"

"..."

Usually Accelerator is thinking at this point about pulverizing the girl's entire body and throwing away the pieces somewhere, but in a quite awkward circumstance, he got some several minutes ago from Yomikawa a "What if, once in a while, you do something good?"-like proposal. Honestly, such unfamiliar talk shouldn't be done, especially nowhere-like conversations with Yomikawa and the necessity of conscientiously containing it in a corner of his heart in advance, but should he knock down the white sister and move on, somehow he got a feeling that he'll be told some words along the lines of "You only kept your vow to quit smoking for 30 minutes, ha ha ha-"; it would be an annoyance if that were the case.

He was about to continue his mumbling when he remembered something about her being similar to that brat, but even if he dies, he's reluctant to admit he'd be worried about that.

Consequently, after kicking the hungry sister into the nearby fast food store, throwing out his wallet, and spitting out something absurd like "This and that, try eating them all!", they ended up in this current situation.

Previously, Accelerator was being lent to various projects. Money unspent was tossed as much as he liked into an account, so he has no money problems... but where could the maximum permissible tolerance for this nun greedily consuming a ridiculous number of hamburgers be?

By the way, this nun is carrying in her hands a small tortoise-shelled cat, but it itself didn't indicate whether it's getting hungry or has interest in hamburgers (in any case, he's sure it won't because of the finely chopped onions being used). It's with the stray cats who were lost in the underground shopping complex and meowing among themselves. Perhaps they are deep in talk with something like "For this year's autumn, there would probably be soft, sinewy meat coming!" and "You're kidding-!? I have been sharpening my nails all the while-!!" Are these cats not conscious about territory demarcation?

Accelerator gazes at the scene of food-eating orgy spread out before him,

"This is madness... I don't get worn-out to this point when I'm with that shitty brat."

"Moga?"

"Quit stopping all the time and finish your food at once! And don't you have something to say to me?"

"Gokyu. Yeah, thanks."

"Hey, is that it?"

This was an encounter with a very problematic person. Accelerator slackly loosened his neck. He prays for the eternal rest of the souls of this girl's acquaintances who were made to do this with her on a regular basis.

The nun tastes a large bottle of juice that was lined up and drinks it up (each sip slightly smaller than a small-sized PET bottle) in intervals of five seconds,

"Well, did I say 'Index' is my name?"

"Didn't you taste that?"

"I'm searching for Touma, but I got hungry on the way. Or rather, it's because I got hungry in the first place that I thought of searching for Touma."

Index tosses the small bits of ice from inside the juice bottle into her mouth, and her shoulders quiver for a bit. Whether it's simple-mindedness or her voracious appetite, it appears that she didn't notice the sauce sticking around her mouth. She's similar to Last Order when it comes only to demerits like this.

"...Tch."

Accelerator tuts, takes out a pocket tissue, and silently tosses it at Index's face. Upon seeing her fight an uphill battle even with taking a tissue from the vinyl packing, he sighs again. What's this, cluelessness on modern knowledge?

Even so, her intention's to look for someone, isn't it...?

Accelerator remembers the face of a suspicious character who until just recently had been aimlessly wandering somewhere with a single blanket. Switching on his mobile phone, a data of Last Order's portrait is being displayed on the small screen (If he tells that it has a camera function, it might be stolen and used for some other purposes. Without it even being focused, only the face fills the screen), and as he shows it to Index,

"Hey you, have you seen a brat like this?"

"Nope!"

A single immediate reply.

But it appears she is not disinterestedly and halfheartedly saying it; it's strangely overflowing with self-confidence.

"I don't forget the face of a person I've seen once- I think I'm certain of it."

"Ah?"

Accelerator frowns, but Index was thoroughly satisfied thanks to the large quantity of hamburgers she ate; it appears that she is not very willing to explain. With a happy face, she *becha-* falls prostrate onto the table.

"Nah-, but thank goodness. I've said it before, but I truly thank you. From here, I go search for Touma without worrying my stomach. I have a feeling that with my stomach full, the reason for looking for Touma is weak, but if I can't find him even when I'm here, I won't be satisfied for some reason."

"Ah, is that so, I'm no help to you!"

"I've come here and passed by for a bit, but until now, I've never understood this street's aspects. However, if it were my intellect, there's no such thing as getting lost. Perhaps just merely memorizing is no good. Either way, I thus met the people of Academy City."

"If that's so, then so be it."

"...You, you doing something? You busy?"

"Sorry, but I'm very busy."

Accelerator applies power into his cane and stands up from his chair.

Unfortunately, even in an unexpected meeting, he has a person to look for.


"So Touma would always, always, alllways leave me behind and go off someplace. That person might already be a vagrant of some sort. I've realized that he's one person out on a trip!"

"..."

As Accelerator props himself up with his modernistic design of a cane, he's walking through the underground shopping complex where noon and night are not easily apparent. As the last trips for buses and trains were synchronized to the final going-home time, he felt that the gait of the students passing through the walkway was somewhat hurried.

"That's what I wonder. Even though I particularly hate where I'm standing now, it doesn't mean I especially like the place I'm going to. Wherever I go, I completely end up soooooooooo dizzy."

"..."

From what he understood thus far, he knows little of what kind of person that "Touma" character is, but from the stories he hears as much as possible, that one's a terribly unpleasant chap; he's getting irritated every time that name comes up.

As Index catches the tortoise-shell cat who had loitered someplace,

"By the way, what are you doing here?"

"Looking for someone."

"That child in the mobile phone a while back?"

"So what!?"

Accelerator answers roughly.

It's not particularly important to hide it in advance, and what's more, this kind of brat seemingly asking back many, many, many times while she unskillfully does so is depressing. He knows because he knew a character a bit similar to her.

And when Index holds up the tortoise-shell cat in her arms, she inclines her own head in doubt,

"Hey, hey, that reminds me: I still haven't thanked you, you know."

"Shut it and get lost, shitty brat. Look, if a bothersome brat like you gets in the way, I feel I'll be unnecessarily wasting my time here!"

"I still haven't thanked you, you know."

He was ignored.

When Accelerator shoots a disgusted look at her, Index, being unmindful,

"That kid a while ago, right? Until I find Touma, it's alright if we look for her together!"

She says it with a smile.

Unmindful of what kind of person he himself might be talking to,

"...You shithead."

For those perfectly innocent words, he instinctively spat it out.

This is what he knew today for the first time: going along with the goodwill of someone else is more tiring than he thought.

"In other words, you're the host computer controlling all of the Misaka-imoutos?"

Kamijou asks with his eyes wide open.

Last Order (not another false name... Kamijou thought, but he kept silent), having finished briefly explaining, swings both her tiny hands about,

"''Console' rather than 'Host' would be closer,' says Misaka as Misaka corrects. 'Misaka's center is nowhere; there's not much significance in existing as a special individual 'core' inside the network,' says Misaka as Misaka proudly puffs her chest up as she lectures."

She's probably artificially created to hold back the numerous Sisters when they run amok for any reason. An outsider manually intervening in a certain kind of network created by the Sisters: this is the so-called "last order".

She is somewhat one amazing person based on those words alone- honestly, it didn't seem all that real to Kamijou- but why is she loitering around in this place again? Kamijou is harboring reservations.

"'You see-, I came here to give thanks for your help during the time of the [Experiment],' says Misaka as Misaka exhibits a 'The Grateful Crane'-like development."

"What's your real intention with your so-called polite face?"

"'You didn't believe me even for an instant!' says Misaka as Misaka stamps her feet!! 'But you might say that coming here to say thanks to you is technically because of chance,' says Misaka as Misaka divulges her true feelings!"

"So my suspicions were correct!"

"'That 'want of delicacy' is making me mad-!' says Misaka as Misaka waves both her hands about and tries to beat her head!!"

For some reason, she seems to be angry.

Annoyed, Kamijou surveys here and there,

"My bad, my bad, my bad, there's a popcorn stand over there; if you want, you can have some."

"'You think you can control a girl's sensitive mentality with the likes of food!?' says Misaka as Misaka tries to be terrified!!"

Ah? Kamijou thinks.

Somehow, the approach when it comes to Index must have been ingrained so much into his brain. This won't do, thinks Kamijou as he meekly reconsiders,

"My bad. So how 'bout we abstain?"

"'But Misaka's eating! Popcorn is very much welcome!' says Misaka as Misaka shows a new technique in not letting go of anger though popcorn is taken!!"

Dammit, which is which? Kamijou was little by little having enough of her, but when he sees Last Order about to continuously and forcefully pull his trousers, it looks like the argument, as he thought, finally settled with food.

Kamijou buys a cylindrical box of sweet caramel-seasoned popcorn and pushes it with a jerk to Last Order's tiny body.

"'Oooh, its size must be almost the same as Misaka's head,' says Misaka as Misaka is impressed at its economical size."

"...Oh, dammit. Anyway you put it, I have a bigger hunch than even your own stomach."

Well, my acquaintance the nun could easily consume as much as an orca would; I wonder if this is not problematic, Kamijou thinks.

Two minutes later...

With one hand encircling the gigantic container of popcorn and the other already holding her mouth back, a crouching and *purupuru* trembling little girl was found.

Kamijou, feeling like running away, places his hand on Last Order's slender shoulders,

"...Is it okay to leave you?"

"Myu, Misaka is no dummy like an acquired object being kicked around like a dog *choke*"

Her business-like tone a little while back has completely collapsed. In the first place, she did not feel that it's wrong to eat up the sweet popcorn without drinking.

Hmm. It would be a breeze if even that Misaka-san were this easy to mollify...

Should I run after her, after all? As he thinks this, Last Order demands for a drink.

Annoyed, Kamijou buys a small PET bottle of mineral water; after satisfying her own thirst, Last Order's natural tone finally returns.

She says,

"'Misaka is walking off with these,' says Misaka as Misaka boasts of war booty."

"A sudden hold-up!? Not bad, 'Misaka the Superior'. Eh, what is this? Goggles? Someone like Misaka-imouto would always be wearing this..."

Last Order was tugging hard at the tough goggles hanging from her neck. It's a bulky electronic piece of equipment in the shape of a set of NVG. A dispossessed Misaka-imouto might have been talking about something like this.

"'Too bad it's not built for Misaka, so Misaka cannot wear it properly,' says Misaka as Misaka is downhearted for a bit."

"Huh? How about adjusting the length of the band affixed to the goggles?"

"?"

"Let me borrow it."

As Kamijou says that, Last Order stood in front of him, slightly raising her chin and standing on tiptoe. This is only meant for easy removal of the goggles hanging by her neck; this action is in no way to experience a profound meaning of some sort.

Feeling with his finger, he notices that the band is made of rubber- easy to find out when the item reminds one of underwater goggles. Around the goggle's base, metal fittings were attached to control its length.

"Sorry for this bit-"

As he says this, he grasps the goggle's main part. There, pulling the metal fittings toward himself would be easy. Pulling the thick band of rubber, it extends towards Kamijou with a *sproing*.

Last Order is noisily struggling,

"'Ouch, owowowow,' says Misaka as Misa-"

"Wah!?"

The stretched rubber band returns to its original size, and,

A terrific *snap!!* sound is heard from Last Order's face.

"..."

For some reason, Kamijou found it hard to talk to Last Order, who is rolling over nearby. Even so, facing him as he flustered over what to do next, a somewhat teary-eyed little girl stands on tiptoe once again in order to show her head with the goggles hanging from it.

Weeell, I won't fail the next time.

Only at times when he's thinking about not failing does it become something that occurs continuously.

*Snap*!! The details were left out, but a sound just like it echoes.

Here, Kamijou is kicked down and stepped on relentlessly by Last Order; when the tentative mood clears up, she gives Kamijou the goggles in the end.

It's bravery.

Kamijou, paying close attention in order to respond to that disposition, finally succeeds in adjusting the rubber band length and hangs the goggles onto Last Order's forehead; he originally felt that the size of the goggles themselves doesn't match hers, but it somehow manages to stay on her forehead without slipping down.

Ooooohh--!! Last Order, with a delighted face, taps the goggles at her forehead with both her hands and moves them round and round where the goggles are affixed.

Which reminds me... Kamijou inclines his head to one side in doubt.

'...This girl, is she loitering all by herself around here? Even Misaka-imouto, who was with me a while ago, is missing; they might have become separated.

They're in the underground shopping complex so they can't feel it, but the time is already 6 PM, and the day is gradually getting darker. He's thinking that a dangerous child like her should be sent immediately to her guardian, but is that guardian close by?

Uh huh, I wonder what will happen? Suppose Guardian-san is close by: what kind of impression might be projected about me from his point of view? Oh, dear, looks like a "what are you doing with my child?"-like speech will come flying out.

And.

Kamijou senses someone's gaze.

He has a bad premonition.

"'What's wrong?' says Misaka as Misaka throws at you a naive question."

Without even answering Last Order's innocent voice, Kamijou looks over his own back.

Slowly, fearfully.

"No way..."

Looking at the people over there, Kamijou instinctively lets out a groan.


It's Aogami Pierce and Tsuchimikado Motoharu.

The pair looked at Kamijou's face once, then at Last Order's face, and then again at Kamijou's face.

And then they said,

"This kid--!!"

"What's with that incomprehensible reaction!?" Kamijou shouts back. Right beside him, Last Order, who had already started to be vigilant, is hiding behind Kamijou's back.

Tsuchimikado and Aogami Pierce were unmindful of that.

"Nya--! Well, I can understand if it were the likes of Komoe-sensei since you're still underage and stuff, but what's with this, nya-- Can you explain this, nya-- !!"

"Y, you bastard!! Even without honor, this is too much!! How far Kami-yan will go to set up a stance with no blind spots in all directions! You already sound like a sweet granny at the porch with a cat curled up on her knees!" (!)

"However!" says Aogami Pierce and Tsuchimikado while glaring at Kamijou's face.

They show their very best smile,

"As your friends, we wish you success!!"

In order to eliminate a pair of obviously obnoxious speakers, Kamijou clenches his fist.

"You guys..."

The name "Imagine Breaker" is appropriate. It is taught that it's exactly for times like this that it should be wielded.

*sounds of someone getting beaten* Last Order timidly talks to Kamijou and friends, who were having a big-time free-for-all.

"'T, those are your friends?' says Misaka as Misaka tries to get a confirmation."

"Kids must stay away from them! The influence from these guys' lifestyles and idiotic talk is still too strong!!"

Kamijou swings his fists, intending to stamp a "Restricted" rating on the idiots' foreheads. It looks like the peaceful days are still far off.

One way or the other, he successfully demanded a reconsideration from Aogami Pierce and Tsuchimikado Motoharu, so Kamijou checks the clock function of his mobile phone. It's already past 6 PM. Outside and above-grounds of the underground shopping complex, the sun may have already set and evening is setting in.

"'Uuhmm, perhaps they're your personal acquaintances,' says Misaka as Misaka folds her arms and thinks hard. 'Also, Misaka is wondering why Misaka still has a slight indigestion,' says Misaka as Misaka is re-checking one by one the language given out."

Last Order saying such things isn't likely to be a major problem, Kamijou surmised. And it's a good thing if he can't get the drift of it.

"I, it's time, says Misaka as Misaka slightly hurries."

She suddenly says it.

Looking outwards, there are no wall-mounted timepieces, and the underground shopping complex can't be seen as having an empty appearance. If that's the case, did she probably acquire some kind of information via the rumored Misaka Network?

Last Order looks behind her,

"'You see-, Misaka will soon have to return home,' says Misaka as Misaka regretfully notifies."

"Well, it's time when it's time."

For Kamijou, such kids thinking they might have to go home already is a bit of a relief.

Yup, she slightly nods,

"'Truth is, Misaka wants to be with you longer,' says Misaka as Misaka was being downhearted. 'Meeting you here was by chance, but Misaka's feelings of expressing gratitude are genuine,' says Misaka as Misaka speaks her mind."

Last Order taps the goggles on her forehead with both of her hands.

You did this, too, she says.

"'But I think that *that person* is worried,' says Misaka as Misaka continues on ahead while remembering. 'If it were too late, *that person* may come out to town this time to look for Misaka. Even Misaka does not want to risk trouble,' says Misaka while Misaka is laughing."

"Uh huh," Kamijou appropriately sounds back.

I don't know who the person is, but it seems that that person's a good one, he harbors this vague thought.

"That person's weak."

Last Order continued on.

"'That person is wounded so much that not only can't he defend the things in his hands, but both of his hands that saved them have also become totally worn-out,' says Misaka as Misaka reports on the fragmentary information. 'So any further strain mustn't be placed on him, as Misaka will protect him this time,' says Misaka as Misaka is frankly speaking."

"I see."

Kamijou nods, though he can't understand half of what was said.

There were no lies in Last Order's tone.

That person is no good person. Most likely, that person is, without a doubt, a good person.

"'There's something good about that person,' says Misaka as Misaka adds. 'Even though that person becomes blood-stained or worn-out, that person would fight for Misaka's sake,' says Misaka as Misaka boasts with pride."

What could that be? He can feel an awful affinity with that person's action patterns, but he didn't mouth out that baseless fact.

Bye-bye, Kamijou sees off for a while a hand-waving and running Last Order. With the final going-home time- i.e., the last trip for the train- drawing near, the tiny body slips into the middle of the crowd of people of the underground shopping complex that had suddenly become confused; just like that, she's out of sight.

Well, then, time to go home. As Kamijou tries to turn on his heels, he suddenly catches sight of a recognizable person.

"Hm?"

[She] is approaching him.


"Ah, it's Touma..."

Index, who was nearby, suddenly stops her movements.

She looks down the passageway.

"Is he the one you're looking for?"

"Yeah."

Accelerator turns his looming eyes towards where she's looking, but thanks to the crowd, he wasn't able to see a shadow like it. To begin with, in this situation, he can't even find out who she is indicating and saying as the "person she's looking for".

Index looks up at Accelerator's face.

He says,

"Go!"

"But what about your acquaintance?"

"Don't mind it," Accelerator spits out those words. "I've found her now."

The direction where he throws those words towards was even the same as that of Index's previously. He sees a small girl running towards them, pushing her way through a crowd of mainly middle- and high-school students.

Accelerator knows her name.

He doesn't know whether it's a real name, and he doesn't know how much the worth of the name fabricated for convenience just for researchers to draft up the documents is, but that is the same even for Accelerator. Nobody anywhere might know his true name.

No matter what kind of person she is, if she has only one given name, of course that would be the name to denote her.

And so Accelerator voices out.

"Last Order!"

On noticing she's been called, the tiny girl gains the strength to move her legs further. A pleasant-looking expression was foolishly affixed to her face.

Tiny *clak* footsteps are heard by Accelerator's side.

"Then I'm off. Thank you."

Index only says that and then,

"Touma!!"

Power filled those light footsteps. The girl, who had just gone with Accelerator and only has dozens of questions, parts from him and runs towards the crowd.

She didn't turn around.

Just like Last Order who didn't turn around.

The two girls cross at a single point in the underground shopping complex, pass by each other without mutually noticing each other as is, and they separate the distance.

They run to their respective place where they should go.

It didn't take 10 seconds before Last Order jumps into Accelerator's front.

"'I'm back-,' says Misaka as Misaka gives a standard greeting... OUCH! 'Why are you chopping silently and continuously!?' says Misaka as Misaka guards the head and is shedding crocodile tears!!"

Accelerator, as he relentlessly continues beating the girl's head, lets out all of his displeasure.

"Yeah, what were you doing up to now?"

"'Had a good time,' says Misaka as Misaka honestly answers."

*Sigh* Accelerator exhales.

What happened to that hell-raiser of a Sister? Accelerator just one more time scans the crowd on the other side.

However, there was no one there to be picked up.

Only the intangible [crowd] was there.

As always.

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