Last time on The Rumour:
A hellish rumour has spread through Academy City!
"It seems as though that boy, Kamijou Touma-kun is apparently looking for a girlfriend."
Shokuhou Misaki's own desire to confirm the rumour with Kamijou focused around the concept of 'association', a possible loophole in him always forgetting her that would allow him to remember her as long as he saw her not as 'Shokuhou Misaki' associated with nothing but rather as 'Shokuhou Misaki', his girlfriend as long as Kamijou was truly looking for one.
Whatever the case, there was a small fragment of salvation in front of Shokuhou right now. Whether or not she became his girlfriend was irrelevant, only a second step. What was important was that she was remembered and if she associated with being his 'girlfriend' then it was possible that she could be remembered by the boy.
This desire though put her in direct conflict with another Level 5 and the serious fight between the #3, Misaka Mikoto and the #5, Shokuhou Misaki ended undecided, without a proper victor for one certain reason.
Yet Kumokawa Seria stood among it all without a care.
Yet when they investigated Kamijou Touma's school, they found that he was not there.
"A-Are you kidding me!? He escaped his school from his window during lunch to escape the rumour?! That bloody idiot! He could be anywhere now!"
Not to mention that the number of rivals increased from just the two Level 5s and the entirety of Tokiwadai Middle School, with some exceptions.
She didn't think that it would also affect most of the female population of A Certain High School as well!
Leaving A Certain High School and whatever plans Kumokawa Seria had behind, Shokuhou managed to control Anti-Skill officers to find the boy, while noticing the large amount of girls on the streets. But who should she find, controlling a large amount of the unmanned vehicles known as the Ten Legs?
"Misaka…..Mikoto."
It seemed as though another serious fight with next-gen weapons was about to begin between the Shokuhou controlled Anti-Skill forces and the Ten Legs controlled Mikoto forces however before they could get properly started, they were interrupted.
"Hiya there Level 5s. I heard something interesting on the grapevine so if you could please direct me to that fool, it would be much appreciated. Oh, and I'm here to take you out of the running so please don't resist."
The mysterious new player made that announcement as their introduction into the hell of Academy City started a new wave of chaos to form!
"Leivinia…Birdway."
Shokuhou felt a chill up her spine as she looked at the small girl that had a sword placed on her shoulder as she grinned at the both of the Level 5s. However, she had done it, she had taken out the warhead in mid-air, doing so with a calm nature and skill.
And here she was, to take them out of the 'running'.
Meaning that she was looking for Kamijou Touma for the same reason that they were.
All because of that one rumour.
'Kamijou Touma is looking for a girlfriend'.
Somehow, as Shokuhou Misaki looked at Leivinia Birdway, she felt as though things were going to get worse before they got better.
And now, let the next part of the story begin!
Leivinia Birdway had a single problem.
She didn't think that such would be of much concern: being the leader of the Dawn-Coloured Sunlight, the solutions to her problems usually involved blasting a few people away or searching through different legends around the world to determine which system of magic suited her problems the best.
However, with this current problem, it was a separate issue entirely.
This was not something that could be beaten into submission or buried within her thoughts in order to divert the issue entirely.
No, this was something that deserved her full attention.
She had heard something from intercepting communications that had headed to Necessarius that there was someone here in Academy City that was doing the inconceivable.
Kamijou Touma was looking for a girlfriend.
The very fact that she thought such an action was inconceivable was pretty unfortunate for the spiky-haired boy however, for that small impressionable girl, there was something else entirely that had to be addressed.
And that was the fact that that spiky-haired fool was searching for someone when perfection incarnate was right in front of him, literally a phone call away.
The moment that Birdway had heard the rumour itself, she had immediately hijacked a personal transport plane to arrive in the Land of the Rising Sun. While she had indeed managed to do that, landing inside Tokyo's Haneda Airport instead of District 23's airport, the detour that she had to make through the streets of suburban Japan was of no consequence.
Sure, she broken through some houses, smashed into a bus that had been casually driving along and created some more chaos outside Academy City however, all the while she had her sights set on one goal.
And that was reaching Academy City and confirming the validity of this rumour herself from the person that was at its centre: that fool Kamijou Touma.
And fool was the right adjective for him, given how he had said nothing of the sort to her and he had managed to keep such a fact hidden for so long despite her information gathering prowess. While she had recalled him complaining about something like 'meeting someone nice', she had placed it on his usual stupidity and thought nothing of it.
But with this new rumour sprouting up (something that she knew the forces of Necessarius already had knowledge about), this was something that she could not ignore or simply pass off as stupid.
And there was one reason for this.
Part of her (perhaps the more arrogant part) would have given the reason as being that Kamijou himself had failed to even point out that Birdway herself was perfect girlfriend material. Sure, she was haughty, arrogant, underage as she was only 12, pretty bossy, flat as a board and sadistic both as a person and the boss of the Dawn-Coloured Sunlight but ignoring all of that, she felt herself that she was perfect.
Saying that out loud might have presented some indications of how Birdway thought too highly of herself but if asked directly that was what she would have said. She would have claimed that the main reason for entering Academy City was to get the information straight from the horse's mouth and proclaim herself as the boy's girlfriend.
While her intentions were probably more along the lines of 'enlisting Kamijou Touma as her slave', a boyfriend was basically the same thing right? A slave to the girlfriend? It seemed to fit the picture and he would surely have no complaints because Leivinia Birdway was practically perfect in every way.
However…underneath all of that, Birdway understood the true desire why she had to confirm the existence of this rumour from the horse's mouth and why she had been so bothered about the revelation of it.
And that was the fact that Kamijou Touma, no matter how much she tried to deny it, was someone that was special to her.
She didn't mean it in a romantic sense, or at the very least, she didn't think she did. Birdway herself was unclear on where she sat on the specifics of the line known as 'closeness to Kamijou Touma' but she was sure of one thing: that Kamijou Touma was a large part of her life and hers his.
They had met, they had interacted, they had fought and they had been in conflict together. In that sense, Birdway understood herself that nothing much separated her from other girls but she had felt something important between the two of them.
And that was connection. A strong connection that bound together Kamijou Touma and Leivinia Birdway.
If she had to place it into words, she would have to concede something that had been put forward by that dreadful Saint Silvia.
During the chaos that was GREMLIN, when Birdway had set her sights on the being known as Fräulein Kreutune, it had been Kamijou Touma that had stood in her way. It had been him, who she had betrayed back in Hawaii, that had placed a drill against her head and revealed his trust issues he had with her. It had been him that had been shot in the side, who she had assisted in healing. And it had been him that had taken her on and said that he could not accept her becoming the villain in everyone's eyes.
He had fought her in order to protect her from herself, wanting himself to be a sacrifice in order to make sure that she could be saved.
He had saved her.
And then he had saved her and her sister Patricia in the chaos surrounding him, Kamisato Kakeru and World Rejecter.
Time and time again, the boy had placed her interests as important and discarded his own issues, thinking entirely of her. Surely that meant that he saw her as an important figure, but then again, he did the same with anyone he set his eyes on to save. In that sense, Birdway was not special but even if that were his thoughts on the matter, Birdway had reached a particular conclusion.
She had thought of him as special.
She had wanted him to pull out of the fighting with GREMLIN in order to make sure he did not get hurt.
She did not tell him about the cannibalisation and the effects of the fruit or organ she had grown in her body because she knew what his reaction would be during the incident with Patricia.
She had wanted him to be safe and she thought of him as a 'safe zone' where she wasn't the leader of the Dawn-Coloured Sunlight, wasn't one of the most dangerous magicians in the world and wasn't someone that always had ulterior motives.
She was merely Leivinia Birdway, one person, one girl.
Birdway had thought of Kamijou as special simply because of that and everything he had been through and in truth, that connection the two of them shared meant that she had begun to place Kamijou in a position that she didn't know she had until she had it pointed out by that distasteful Saint.
At some point, she had felt as though Kamijou was someone that she could rely on when she was in trouble and would be someone who would listen to what she had to say and give an honest opinion to her, regardless of her position in life and what the world thought of her.
Birdway had seen Kamijou as someone who would push her forward when she fell behind, lift her up when she fell and carry her when she could not stand. Those terms and things could be applied to anyone however the uniqueness that Kamijou had and how special he was to her had made Birdway place Kamijou in a particular category, no matter how annoying she might find it to be when she realised that fact.
And that was the category of a 'big brother'.
Birdway had found someone that would rub her head when she was feeling down, someone that would surely be by her side when the world had crumbled around her. She had felt that Kamijou in that sense was a special person for being able to worm his way into her life like the annoyance he was and, without any effort of his own, manage to get her to think that way about him.
Such thinking was definitely not wrong or harmful. In fact, in probably made her better as a person as she found someone to rely on that had no or few connections with the Magic side and made no attempts to actually stay immersed in its dealings. He was only brought in by chance and that in turn made him a kind of 'safe zone'.
He would always be there in his dorm room with those other girls. He would always open his door for her (even though he would probably whine about it endlessly) and Birdway would surely enjoy herself when it came down to it in his company.
She had thought that the relationship that the two of them shared could go endlessly like that: that she would be able to say a few words and the boy would cross oceans to see her and help her with her problems.
Birdway had been satisfied with that. She had been content with that and the fact that Kamijou would never know the place that he held in her heart. She was content in knowing that when she held his hand, Kamijou would never notice the faint warmth that covered her cheeks as she gripped that strong hand that would always reach out to her in trouble.
He was someone that she could rely on, someone without motivations or plots, usually being completely honest and not wanting to sugar-coat things to make them seem better or worse.
Leivinia Birdway had been happy like that, happy with a 'big brother' like Kamijou Touma by her side.
Did she want it to escalate into something further? Into something beyond Birdway merely thinking of Kamijou as a 'big brother' figure? She could not say but the important thing was right now, that peace and connection the two of them had been destroyed.
All by a simple rumour.
That Kamijou Touma was looking for a girlfriend.
Birdway had literally stared at the intercepted communication that had been sent to Necessarius, reading and re-reading the communication before gritting her teeth as she realised what it meant.
For all intents and purposes, as someone that was supported by Kamijou, she should have been happy for the boy. But amidst that, her own selfishness came to her mind as she realised one very basic thing.
If Kamijou Touma had gotten himself a girlfriend, would he have time for her? Would Leivinia Birdway even be allowed into his life in the same casual fashion that she had waltzed into it before?
As a hypothetical, what if Kamijou had gotten a girlfriend? He would spend time with her, engage in passionate love making sessions and, judging by his misfortune, would die from the sexual stimulation in the lead up to having sex (Birdway hoped it would be this as it gave her an excuse to laugh at his funeral). While those ideas were on the extreme end of the scope, the reality was that Kamijou would be spending time with his girlfriend.
In other words, he would prioritise someone else over Birdway.
He would not take her calls immediately. There would be a lag between her calling him and him answering. When she had a problem and his girlfriend did as well, it was obvious who he would choose. He would abandon Birdway for someone else.
Leivinia Birdway would become abandoned.
By no means was she alone and she was sure she would be able to cope but the raw word, the simple word 'abandoned' hit her like a ton of bricks.
At some point, she had felt that that connection between them was so important that she did not want to lose it. It might have been selfish but she wanted the boy to be at her beck and call, for her to say "jump" and for him to say "how high?". Well, he would probably say something stupid along the lines of "Huh? Jump? Is this some kind of cardiovascular or weight loss technique? You don't seem that fat Birdway-chan" which would result in him jumping away from Birdway as she tried to strangle him.
But the point was, she did not want to lose the connection.
She did not want Kamijou Touma to get a girlfriend, if only for the fact that doing so would mean that her position would be lessened and she would no longer become the important person she felt she was in his life.
So she had to reach Kamijou Touma first and determine whether this rumour was true or not. She had to know whether he was looking for a girlfriend or not.
If he wasn't, well then everything was fine and everything would return to the way it was.
If it was true though…Birdway wasn't sure what she would do. How would she react? Would she tell Kamijou that she enjoyed their time together? Her pride wouldn't allow that so she would leave it but would she be satisfied with the conclusion when she knew she could have prevented it and played a part in it?
Leivinia Birdway simply did not want to be left alone by Kamijou Touma.
That was the only reason, the true reason she was here in this City now, ready to ask the boy whether he was looking for a girlfriend.
If she did reach him first though, then she already had her plan formulated. She would take him as hers, moving from the position of 'big brother' into 'boyfriend'. Doing so would mean that he was basically a slave to Birdway's will (something that he was already something of) but it would be made official and in that sense, there was one result in that that Birdway was happy with.
And that was that he would never abandon Birdway for anyone.
That fact alone brought a sense of companionship and supportto Birdway's heart as she felt her cheeks warm from the idea of such warmth being given to her from another person in the way that it was.
Sure, she was haughty, arrogant, underage as she was only 12, pretty bossy, flat as a board and sadistic both as a person and the boss of the Dawn-Coloured Sunlight, but she still had desires and wants.
Leivinia Birdway did not want to be left alone by Kamijou Touma. She did not want him to abandon her for some other girl, who was his girlfriend if she could help it.
And this desire was merely the one that seemed so important right now.
So she had to reach Kamijou Touma first and confirm the validity of this rumour.
While she had caused quite a bit of chaos outside the City, upon arriving at it and seeing numerous girls all running around the City, looking around frantically, it was not hard to put two and two together and discover that these girls were doing the exact same thing that she was.
Which in turn only made her extremely pissed that she had all of this competition in the way.
Yet it made her frown.
She had intercepted the communication to Necessarius yesterday. While yes, it would have taken a day for her to get here, it seemed off that people in this City were reacting to it now. Was it possible that the rumour itself had not been known until today, i.e. when Birdway would have reached Academy City if she had hurried?
She had learned of it yesterday and it would take her an entire day to get here. Looking at the time zones, given she hurried, then by the time she had arrived in Academy City an entire day would have passed.
But if the rumour had been released yesterday, then the people in the City where the boy lived had an advantage. Naturally, this type of thing was not something one asked on the phone and Birdway assumed that the girls here at least had some sense of pride in making sure that they stuck with the unofficial 'rules' that investigating this rumour held.
But, assuming that no one called him, why were there people looking for him today? Were they still looking for him after the release of the rumour yesterday, which was when Birdway had received it when one considered time zones? Or…had they only received it today and were acting on it?
If that was the case, then why had she received it yesterday? Why had the City received it today? If anything, doing so seemed like it would only ensure some magicians that had an interest in the rumour would invade the City to confirm it, just at the same time that the residents of the City that had an interest in the rumour would start investigating it.
Birdway narrowed her eyes.
It was like someone was trying to start a conflict between Magic and Science once more…using this rumour as a trigger for war.
Still…the fact that a rumour such as 'Kamijou Touma is looking for a girlfriend' could possibly start a war if the Magic and Science sides collided was pure misfortune for the boy.
Whatever the case though, Birdway shook off the thought and had proceeded to her goal (Kamijou Touma's student dorm) upon entering the City and lo and behold, the sight she should come across upon getting far enough.
If her information was correct, which it usually was, then the girl that was standing on top of the unmanned vehicle that looked like a tank with the turret on the roof was Misaka Mikoto even though the two of them had already met. The #3 Level 5, the Railgun.
And the girl that had her head out of an Anti-Skill van window with the megaphone in hand would have been the #5 Level 5 of Academy City, Mental Out.
Seeing that these two girls, actually it was more accurate to call them 'weapons' right now, were probably doing the same thing she was, then there was no way that Birdway was going to ignore this. Upon seeing them, she had taken out her Symbolic Weapon, changed it into a sword and launched an attack through the air the moment she felt it was needed as she had watched the two Level 5s.
And that moment was when one of the Anti-Skill officers that was likely being controlled by Shokuhou had pressed the trigger for the RPG he was holding in his hand. The wind blade that Birdway had created had sliced through the air, slicing the fired warhead as it flew in between the two Level 5s and exploded.
Wind had blown in all directions as Birdway had tossed her hair, feeling rather proud of herself that she had made such a flashy entrance as she spoke her intentions and Mikoto spoke her name.
Her intentions?
To make sure that she had the easiest time when it came to getting to Kamijou Touma by taking out the most troublesome and bothersome opponents that could cause the most trouble first.
And after that rough introduction, she wasted no time in cracking her neck and swinging her Symbolic Weapon in front of her, pointing it straight at the two Level 5s.
"Nice to see you again #3. #5, I'm sure that we've never met in the canon yet but as you so conveniently learned, I'm Leivinia Birdway. But that's not important. What's important…is that I'm the one that is going to put you both to sleep. I'll make it quick."
Shokuhou Misaki, with her head poked outside the side of the Anti-Skill van had her mouth open however closed it as she turned to face Mikoto and spoke through the megaphone once more.
"Misaka-san, who is this midget with a rather high amount of arrogance ability? I believe you said her name was Birdway? Judging by her…assets, would it not be more accurate to call her…" Shokuhou turned to face Birdway despite talking to Mikoto as she needlessly puffed out her rather impressive chest. Birdway twitched as Shokuhou spoke, a gleam in her eyes that suggested malice.
And the words only supported that hypothesis.
"Boardway? She is flat as one after all."
Birdway felt something in her mind snap as she twitched one eye before she felt her face break out into a grin. That one expression seemed to freeze the air and killing intent came over the entire intersection and the girls that had been caught up in that chaos immediately scattered about in order to avoid what was surely going to be hell.
"Can I assume that you wanting to see that idiot is for the same reasons as us?" asked Misaka Mikoto carefully while ignoring Shokuhou. Birdway cracked her neck.
"You already know the answer to that question. I'll be reaching him first to confirm this rumour. Is that enough for you? I'd apologise…but I think that that's not necessary."
"…I agree."
"As do I~!"
Tensions filled the air as the killing intent started radiating from the two Level 5s as well as the leader of the Dawn-Coloured Sunlight as they all stared at each other, Misaka Mikoto with her Ten Legs, Shokuhou Misaki with her Anti-Skill forces and Leivinia Birdway with her Symbolic Weapon.
No extra words were needed as those three monsters moved at once.
Birdway leaped forward just as Mikoto advanced with her Ten Legs, forming an Iron Sand Sword within her hand as Birdway brandished her own sword like an expert. The leader of the Dawn-Coloured Sunlight had jumped to face the person that she felt was the greatest threat to her right now; the #3. She swung her sword downwards as it collided with the Iron Sand Sword, sparks flying from the contact of the vibrating sand particles and the magical protective layer that surrounded the Symbolic Weapon.
At the same time though, Mikoto used what control she had of the Ten Legs through her hacking to fire the turret straight for where Shokuhou's Anti-Skill vehicle was. However, having already anticipated such the others inside had already bailed, and they threw themselves to the ground as the shell smashed into the van.
It exploded instantly as Shokuhou fell to the ground and placed both of her hands over her head, something that was hardly registered by the other two girls who were clearly out for blood. If the boy who had unwittingly caused all this trouble had been here, he probably would have asked them if this serious fighting was worth all they were doing but for those two monsters right now, that hardly mattered to them.
Birdway swung her Symbolic Weapon horizontally as Mikoto met it with her own Iron Sand Sword held vertically in front of her chest. However, even then it was Birdway that had the advantage.
While espers were thought to be the super powered humans of the world, there was one basic weakness in their ability. While they had numerous applications of it, there was only one such 'source' of it. For example, Misaka Mikoto had the ability to hack profusely and create those iron sand swords.
She could not however pass through walls and teleport. Her ability was constrained to its personal limits and there were things that she could not do using her ability to which she focused upon things that she could do in order to make up for it.
Magic though was a completely different ball game. While there were numerous applications, magicians hardly focused upon one discipline, especially magicians like Birdway. They expanded and grew, seeking new disciplines and legends to incorporate into their own magic which meant that while they had their applications and limits, they could always be surpassed.
Birdway herself could control electricity using magic, although not the extent that the #3 had it like using Railguns. However, unlike Misaka Mikoto, Leivinia Birdway had other disciplines that went far beyond what Mikoto could do with her ability. She could access possibilities that Mikoto could not by branching into different fields and searching disciplines from them.
It might have been her arrogance talking but it went without saying that it was the Magic side that held silent supremacy in this world. It was just that the Science side had yet to realise it due to its hidden nature.
Of course, it was only her opinion and if anyone asked that to a Science side member the opinion would naturally differ. But the point of fact here was that even though Birdway was using her Symbolic Weapon, by no means was it the only weapon that she had at her disposal.
Birdway knew of Mikoto's ignorance about Magic or rather her inability to understand that there were systems beyond the rules of Science. She had tried to explain Hawaii and the Ichihanaransai using the rules that she had grown accustomed to and that in turn meant that the rules of the Magic side were things that she could not comprehend.
Which meant that Birdway's next move was all the sweeter.
She held out a hand, holding it right next to her as she allowed a fireball to form there with a click of her fingers. Mikoto's eyes went wide at the sight as she was using both of her hands to support the Iron Sand Sword and maintain the control she had over the Ten Legs meaning she could not spare the calculation capacity to counterattack in a particular way.
"This ends now."
Birdway thrust her hand forward as Mikoto responded with a drop of sweat rolling down her cheek.
"Damn it!"
Using magnetism, she was flung backwards as she headed towards a building that was behind her. Birdway's fireball launched itself through the air, following Mikoto like a homing missile as the girl redirected her trajectory upwards. She headed towards one of the higher floors of the building however Birdway had no such control of the fireball as it melted the glass of the window of one of the floors in its linear path before entering the building itself.
Birdway clicked her tongue in response as people screamed inside the building, the fire alarms blaring as Birdway followed her target in the air with narrowed eyes. Mikoto had relinquished control of the Ten Legs to escape so that meant her calculation focus would be around her Iron Sand Sword.
That in turn though was hardly good news for Birdway.
But not in the sense that it meant that Mikoto had the chance to fully focus on her abilities and use them as she saw fit as she had managed to perfect them to reach Level 5.
Instead, it meant that the unmanned vehicle that was the Ten Legs no longer had Mikoto controlling its movements.
Mikoto had not just managed to grab a Ten Legs out of some random warehouse. She had found one patrolling the streets due to the Code Red that had been issued in the City because of the mass of females that had been running around. Academy City's highest alert level had been raised, something that was primarily raised for terrorists invading into the City so that in itself only gave an indication to how dire the situation was with all of these girls running around in search of one boy.
That in turn meant that numerous unmanned vehicles had been sent out in order to control the situation at hand, something that Mikoto had managed to take control of. All she had needed to do was hack into the system, rewrite it and voila, she had control of her own fighting force to use against whoever stood in her way.
However, that in turn meant overwriting the original commands. As the Ten Legs had been utilised in order to control the crowds and deal with any rampaging espers in the chaos, that gave a hint as to its original commands. Anything that attacked it would be seen as a threat and possibly, anyone that got near it that did not meet specific 'criteria' would also be attacked as self-defence.
And it was obvious what category Leivinia Birdway was a part of as both an intruder and someone on top of the Ten Legs itself, as she had hopped there in order to meet Mikoto with her Symbolic Weapon.
The movement of the unmanned weapon was fast, robotic and swift.
In an instant, the turret on the top faced her way as she was looking at Mikoto, only for Birdway to look at it. However, by then it was far too late. The turret fired its rounds point blank as they struck Birdway in the chest. The girl was flung from the Ten Legs and onto the road from the force of the shells.
She bounced along the road a couple of times before righting herself and skidding along the ground. Yet, she did so completely unharmed. She coughed a few times and looked shocked but that was the extent of the damage. Mikoto had had an expression of brief worry on her face as she knew the girl before she had been struck however it turned into one of shock when she saw the girl had practically no marks on her despite the fact she had taken the shells head on, with where the shells had hit smoking lightly.
It was nothing special, the reason why Birdway was unharmed. By misinterpreting the Hanged Man card in the Major Arcana Tarot cards she could divert damage done to her via piercing means to the card which was hidden within her dress. The shells, while it was an insult to suggest it, definitely had that function, even though they likely obliterated a body in the process.
Thus, by using that Major Arcana Tarot card, she had managed to escape injury from the shells as the damage had transferred to the card.
Yet, the facial expression and the wound to her pride was something that suggested that Birdway had lost more than she could have cared to say.
"Oh, you're not getting away with that one."
"Unfortunately though Boardway-chan, I think I'll take my opportunity to take you down when I get it. It seems as though you have equal or greater monstrous ability to Misaka-san over there judging from what you just survived. Which means I have no qualms doing this~! Fire!"
A sweet voice that spoke horrible words came from the side as Birdway turned to look and saw that numerous Anti-Skill officers were pointing their guns at her. Although they had their visors down, Birdway was certain that she saw the sparkle of stars in their eyes despite the darkness there as she looked at the person that had spoken.
Shokuhou Misaki was protected by an Anti-Skill riot shield as she gave a cute wink despite the horrible words she had spoken, clearly feeling no aspect of regret in the slightest.
Birdway though only groaned when she saw the threat of the numerous rifles being pointed at her. Even though Anti-Skill usually only used rubber bullets, she hardly figured that Mental Out, the #5 Level 5 in this City would be so kind. Especially when it came to this issue and the person surrounding it.
She probably had swapped out the rubber bullets with actual ones, just like the Ten Legs which had shot her with actual shells instead of rubber ones. It was clear that Academy City was taking this threat to its usual peace extremely seriously but even in the face of that, Leivinia Birdway only groaned.
"Are you serious?! You seriously think that that can-"
Birdway never finished her sentence as the Anti-Skill members opened fire. The bullets slammed into Birdway's body as the girl grunted in response. She recoiled as she was hit with numerous bullets before falling to the floor, limp and unmoving. Silence deafened the area as all eyes looked at the girl that was lying on the ground but noticing one thing.
There was not a single drop of blood to be seen despite Birdway having been basically executed.
Then, as if she were watching a horror movie, Shokuhou watched as Leivinia Birdway rose from the ground. She coughed once and spat on the ground, wiping her mouth as she looked at those that had shot her.
She only maintained an expression of boredom as she held forward her Symbolic Weapon which had changed form into that of a cup.
"Like I was saying before I was rudely interrupted you cow. Do you seriously think that that can hurt me?"
With the effects of the Hanged Man card still in play, Birdway had managed to survive the onslaught of bullets even though, just like before, her body was indeed affected by the shock of the blasts. The turret blast from before had been enough to shake her core but she had prepared enough defences before coming here. The bullets that had been sent her way hardly gave her the same type of shock but it still pissed her off more than she could say as she had been interrupted.
Without any word, Birdway swung the form of the Symbolic Weapon that represented water as a torrent burst from the small form. Unlike a torrent though that had a specific direction, this one instantly spread out the moment it left the cup, acting like a gigantic wave that absorbed the bullets that were now heading for Birdway.
In a ridiculous motion, it pressed onwards, the wave rising like a tsunami as it advanced, the Anti-Skill members watching in complete shock at the scene in front of them. Shokuhou did the same as she instantly released control of the Anti-Skill members, running as fast as she could and getting behind the Ten Legs.
The destruction came a moment later.
The tsunami smashed into the ignorant Anti-Skill officers as they screamed and were tossed in all directions. The Ten Legs absorbed the impact of the wave, skidding along the ground but remaining in place due to its heavy weight. Water splashed everywhere as Shokuhou went white in the face as the tsunami continued. Misaka Mikoto watched overhead with that same expression as the wave pressed onwards, smashing into the largest object that lay in its path.
The office building that stood next to the main road didn't even stand a chance.
The wave smashed through the windows, engulfing each and every floor as people inside were swept along with the water. The wave entered through one window and exited throughout the other as everyone inside the building was caught up in the chaos, being trapped in the water as they were forcibly ejected from the building by the wave exiting through the other side.
Glass rained everywhere and people screamed as they hit the ground however the water from the wave exiting the building on the other side broke their fall, only for them to drift along the ground for a few metres with the running water.
Shokuhou and Mikoto found themselves unable to speak as they looked at the sight, immediately going on guard as they realised the monster that they were up against here.
For the most part, she had clashed with Misaka Mikoto, taken a tank shell head on, survived a firing squad of Anti-Skill before releasing a single attack that had taken out an entire building's occupants and evacuated them to the other side. If she had wanted, it was likely that she could have sent the wave crashing with enough force into the building that it would have ripped it from its foundations despite the earthquake-resistance construction of Academy City in mind.
The two Level 5s gulped as thoughts raced through their mind.
Mikoto had seen Birdway's power first hand in Hawaii and Academy City during the Ichihanaransai so even now she was positive of something. She was positive that this was only a fraction of that girl's immense power. As for Shokuhou, even she understood that there was no way that Birdway herself was out of tricks when she could block an Iron Sand Sword and create a wave as large as the one she had within seconds.
Something was coming and whatever it was, it was not going to lead to a pleasant battle. Birdway may have evacuated the occupants of one building but that only demonstrated her monstrous power.
Both Misaka Mikoto and Shokuhou Misaki had felt as though their greatest opponent was their fellow Level 5.
They only paled as they realised that it was hardly the case.
Come to think of it, why was she even here?! What did Kamijou Touma mean to her?!
None of that mattered now though as those two Level 5s only realised that they had a powerful rival in front of them. They looked at each other from where they were; Shokuhou from behind the Ten Legs and Mikoto on the wall of the building that was opposite the one that Birdway had sent the wave into.
They might not have liked it but they understood the moment that they looked at each other what was going through the other's mind.
We need to defeat her.
They were confident in their ability to take each other on however right now, when it came to Birdway, she was a black box. Those two espers of the Science side did not understand her power in the slightest meaning that they had to take out the irregular factor if they wanted to proceed.
When it came to this rumour, the thinking of 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend' did not apply. Everyone was suspect and everyone had their own motivations, which in truth was only the one and the same.
But right now, they had to abandon those ideas and make sure that they took out this person that they were not sure they could defeat alone. Both Level 5s were sure that in an even match, they would stand on even levels even though Mikoto had the advantage but it was slight.
Yet that didn't apply here.
Something had to be done about Leivinia Birdway to take her out of the running for this rumour and if anyone, the tag-team that was the #3 and the #5 were the perfect ones to do it.
Even though they both felt like throwing up at the idea of working together when they were enemies all the same.
Still, this was no time for dawdling as instantly, Shokuhou leaped out with remote in hand and Mikoto descended from the building wall with an Iron Sand Sword in her grip. They stood next to each other, in a rare sight that would have indicated to anyone that knew them well that they both were facing a deep crisis that only they understood.
And they faced their opponent….
"Huh?"
"Huh?"
Or at least they should have.
Leivinia Birdway…
Was gone.
"Bfhfhf?!"
The girls flew through the air as Leivinia Birdway swung her Symbolic Weapon to the side. The sword form it had taken meant that it had the power of the wind attribute and it was that which Birdway used to her utmost ability.
That in turn meant that the numerous girls that were standing in her way were flung into the air as Birdway leaped underneath them before they crashed to the ground. By that time though, Birdway had already managed to proceed further into the City without even looking back at the destruction she had caused.
Although she had no idea if it applied to the others inside this City, she was aware of one thing.
If she approached Kamijou Touma and asked him about the validity of the rumour, only for him to learn that she had been someone that had incited the death of someone else then there was only one response that he was going to give; rejection. It didn't matter whether or not it was with someone he knew or not, the fact of the matter was that if he learned that someone's life had been taken because of them, then he was sure to reject their request outright to be his girlfriend.
As a result, despite hating it to her entire core, Birdway had been holding back this entire time. It might have seemed monstrous given what she had done previously but even then, when she had sent the wave to the building before retreating, she had made sure that the water was strong enough to capture everyone inside the building inside its grasp.
That way, when the water was sent flowing out from the other side, it would act as enough of a cushion to make sure that there were injuries but no deaths. She had basically created the world's most adlib waterslide but the monstrosity and fear of what she had done had had enough of an effect of portraying Birdway as a monster that no one wanted to deal with.
She would though exert the proper amount of force for the right opponent though, as Shokuhou Misaki had done against Misaka Mikoto with the RPG. Against anyone else, she was sure that the #5 would not have used such a method and the same went for Mikoto; Birdway was sure she would not use the Ten Legs against an average esper. She had only used it against Shokuhou because her opponent was another Level 5.
In that sense, it was possible that everyone that was chasing this rumour knew one thing: if they caused one death, it didn't matter who it was or whether or not it was connected to them, then everything would be over.
Kamijou Touma would reject them all in order to find the one that had caused that death and punch their lights out because of what they had done because of him. He would surely never live it down and enter a deep pit of despair that, while he would manage to pick himself up from, it was likely he would seal off his mind and any chance of ever having a girlfriend.
Thus everyone who was chasing after this rumour had placed the silent limiter on themselves to avoid killing.
However, even if someone like Birdway had recognised that very fact too and was holding back because of it, it didn't mean that she didn't attack those that needed attacking.
Her destination was in the distance. The boy's high school dormitory was clear in the horizon and Birdway applied more leg strength into her next jump as she sailed through the air and landed on one of the building's opposite the dorm itself.
Having spent enough time with Kamijou himself, Birdway knew one thing about him.
If anyone was stupid enough to hole up in his dorm when he was being chased around for an unknown reason in order to wait out the chaos, then it was him. While the idea of choosing a 'location where no one would think to look', one only had to think of things from Kamijou's perspective to choose a place where 'Kamijou would think no one would think to look'.
As such, one of the places that met that criteria was the dorm that was in front of her.
Birdway scanned the doors as she looked on from the opposite building, finding the right door in the distance and was about to leap off the building in order to reach it before it happened.
Without warning, a lightning spear flew from the air from her right as Birdway turned to face it at the last second, having heard the ominous crackling of the spear itself. She raised her Symbolic Weapon and swung it, a blade made of air slicing through the air and cutting the lightning spear.
The spear and the blade collided, sending sparks in all directions as they gave off crackling sounds and created flashes of light that were dangerous to look at. But even then, Birdway never let her eyes drift off her opponent in front of her.
Misaka Mikoto panted heavily as she looked at the girl standing on the building next to her, as she too had managed to get on the roof of a building that was opposite the Imagine Breaker's high school dormitory room. Sweat ran down her face and she glared at Birdway who merely turned to face her completely now.
"Found you."
"Congratulations. But it doesn't mean anything. I'll be taking him for myself if you don't mind."
"Why? …What could you possibly see in that idiot to chase after him like this?! I demand an answer!"
Mikoto's yells were desperate as if she were trying to console an issue within her own heart however Birdway merely responded by pointing the sword in her grasp straight at the Level 5. And she bit back with a response that only seemed to dig into the girl's heart all the more.
"I could ask you the same thing."
Mikoto flinched, as if realising that that response was the only one that could be given in this time, in this place and in response to that question. She gritted her teeth as she thought from Birdway's perspective, how Misaka Mikoto's own reasoning must feel like a mystery to her as well.
They could have talked it out of course however even then, it would only result in one conclusion being reached.
That they could not let the other girl reach that boy first.
Ironically though, such a conclusion was something that was already evident in the mind of the girls right now as they stared each other down.
Sparks flew from Mikoto's bangs as she prepared for the upcoming battle as the two girls fought for supremacy with the ultimate victor being the one that got what she wanted. Birdway cracked her neck as she twisted the arm with the Symbolic Weapon however it was Mikoto that spoke once more despite the fact that the both of them were ready to fight.
"Hey. Haven't you noticed? We're hardly the only ones that realise that one of the spots that idiot could be hiding in is his dorm. Which begs the question…where is everyone?"
Birdway paused as soon as those words came from her mouth as she turned her head and looked at the area around the dorm itself with a panic rising in her mind. It was empty, no one standing there and the entire area was quiet save for the chaos that was happening in the City with shouts, gunshots and the sound of esper powers being released all over the place.
Birdway hardly felt as though she was the only one that had seen that boy's idiocy and guessed that he was hiding in his dorm so that in turn begged the question. The one simple, important and vital question.
Where was everyone?
A thought appeared in the back of her mind as Birdway turned to face the #3 and shouted a single question with a roar erupting from her throat.
"Where is that #5!?"
"Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii~!"
A voice came from below them as Birdway took a step forward and saw the huffed out and clearly exhausted Shokuhou Misaki sitting on a bench, waving herself with her hand as she waved the other to Birdway. She had shouted despite her exhausted state and gave a malicious grin. She held in one hand a remote that she held forward and gave a cheeky wink.
"It's time to bring this to an end!"
"That's right. Shokuhou, now!" Mikoto yelled while looking down at the girl while sparks flew from her bangs as Birdway looked directly at her with clenched teeth as she readied her Symbolic Weapon. Whatever those two Level 5s had in store, it was clearly her against them. But she had resolve, a goal and the desire to make sure that Kamijou Touma never left her.
And despite everything, Leivinia Birdway found herself wanting that more than anything right now.
"Regnum771!"
Birdway shouted her magic name as Mikoto bent her entire body as the doors leading to the roof of both buildings suddenly burst open as Anti-Skill officers holding rifles and espers from the City pouring onto the roofs with weapons such as fire extinguishers and rakes in their hands. They all pointed them at Birdway as the girl felt a drop of sweat running down her cheek.
She was holding back to make sure that Kamijou did not reject those that had taken action because of this rumour and to make sure that he did not bear the guilt of a death due to a rumour because of him.
But the easiest way to deal with these opponents would be to throw them off the roof. And even Birdway knew that such a fall would definitely kill them and she had a lack of confidence when it came to the idea of fighting two Level 5s and protecting all those she harmed at the same time.
This…was definitely going to be tricky.
But it seemed as though some twisted fate was on her side as Shokuhou shouted from below. She shouted words that overturned any assumption that Birdway had and immediately made her grin maliciously in response.
"Attack both of those on the roof! Make sure that they have a massive amount of busyness ability!"
Immediately after those words ripped through the air, the Anti-Skill officers and students that had stars in their eyes diverted their attention to the two people on the roof; both Misaka Mikoto and Leivinia Birdway. Mikoto went agape at the fact that she had been betrayed at the last minute however she twitched and closed her mouth upon realising one very basic thing.
What had she expected!?
That twisted breast monster had taken advantage of her position and Mikoto's trust (even though she had been planning on betraying Shokuhou as well when the time was right) but even so, she felt a massive surge of anger leaping through her chest.
And she let it loose as she let loose a roar and a massive burst of electricity through the air.
"SHOKUHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!"
Birdway though only grinned at having been placed in the same boat as Mikoto at the last minute, shaking her head. She had known after all and she was sure that that Level 5 had too, even though she had placed it to the side for an instant.
That the thinking of 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend' did not apply here in the slightest.
"Ha ha hah ha hah! Let's go then amateur! I'll show you the difference between you and me before taking on that Level 5 that you got left behind by!" Birdway let out that shout as she leaped at Mikoto with her sword in hand.
The electricity that had been dispersed by Mikoto faded as the girl turned to face Birdway with an iron sand sword within her own grip as she let it collide with Birdway's. Sparks flew everywhere from the contact but even then, they weren't only fighting each other.
There was the clicking of rifles as the Anti-Skill officers that were being controlled raised them to the opponents that were facing each other as both of the girls turned to look at the rifles pointed their way. They recognised the threat and instantly their minds turned in order to find a way out of the predicament that they found themselves in.
It was Mikoto though that saved the both of them as she jumped back, changing the form of her iron sand sword so that it turned into more of a whip that followed her movements at will. It extended and sliced all of the rifles in half as the Anti-Skill officers pulled the triggers.
Clicking filled the air as the Anti-Skill officers pulled useless triggers as they all looked down at the halves of the rifles that were at their feet, unsure of how to react. Birdway though took the opportunity that presented itself to her, leaping forward to the Anti-Skill members that were standing stunned.
One of the controlled students though swung a fire extinguisher at her but Birdway merely dodged by angling her body to the side as she slammed her feet into one of the Anti-Skill members. He was launched backwards and collided with the members behind him, bodies sprawling everywhere in the struggle as Birdway picked up her target.
The now useless magazine of the rifle she ejected from the rifle as Birdway instantly changed the form of the Symbolic Weapon in her hand. She turned it into a wand, something that represented the element of fire as she faced Mikoto fully. She chucked the magazine with all of her might at the girl before holding forward her Symbolic Weapon.
Flames gathered at the very tip of the wand before she fired them instantly, the form of the flames turning into that of a fireball that launched itself and flew towards the magazine, hitting it completely.
The entire thing burst into flames even though there was no flammable liquid covering the magazine itself as the thing fell to the ground in front of Mikoto as she looked at it with a frown.
That proved to be her mistake though as she looked up and saw the body of a student that Shokuhou was controlling being thrown straight at her. She cried out as the body hit her, throwing her backwards as she started to skid along the roof, only to come to a stop near the edge of the roof.
She let the body drop onto the ground in front of her though as she looked up at Birdway, only to see that the girl had already approached, but not appearing in front of Mikoto. Instead, she had run up to the magazine that she had set on fire and kicked it with all of might at the girl.
The flaming object flew through the air as Mikoto's eyes went wide as she realised what Birdway was trying to do. Instead of attacking her head on, she was going to use the unfired bullets as her attack.
Mikoto herself did not know much about guns but she knew that the threat of one was how a gun ignited the gunpowder inside a bullet, giving it direction and letting it fly in a particular direction. However even then, bullets themselves could be dangerous even without a gun igniting the gunpowder.
By setting the magazine on fire, it was probably Birdway's intention to heat it up to the extent that it produced enough heat that it ignited the gunpowder. Doing so would fire the bullets in their unfired states and with no direction to launch the bullets they would merely explode and shoot out to the only thing that contained them.
The magazine would absorb the impact but even then, it was obvious that it would not hold; the bullets would break through it when they ignited and in a way, the shells that flew out from the magazine, if they pierced the skin would be just as effective as a proper fired bullet itself though it would have less effect due to the lack of speed at which they were fired.
As Birdway's intention was clear then; she planned to use the magazine as a makeshift grenade and when the bullets' gunpowder ignited, she wanted Mikoto to be the one to receive it head on and receive the bullets that would fly out of the magazine when they exploded.
Those quick thoughts filled Mikoto's mind as she gritted her teeth while looking at the oncoming threat.
"Damn!"
The dodge was simple, all she had to do was duck down as the flaming magazine flew over her head and landed on the staircase of the building opposite; Kamijou Touma's student dorm. Mikoto though wasted no time in looking back at her opponent but by then it was already too late.
Birdway had grabbed her by the front of her shirt and instantly threw her to the ground. Mikoto coughed as she felt pain run up her back from the impact. She tried to raise her head however a punch to the face meant that she recoiled as Birdway stood back up and faced her destination.
She had been provided a few seconds with the distraction the flaming magazine had provided to bridge the gap between them. She had managed to give herself a few seconds to reach that dorm over there and that room on the seventh floor where she saw that horrendous Level 5.
Those few seconds though were all that she needed as she bent her body down, angling her body so that it met its target and leaped from the roof.
The force that she did so with, something that was heightened with magic instantly blew away the edge of the roof that she had been on. Concrete and dust sprayed up into Mikoto's eyes as she looked on in shock however Birdway managed to bridge the gap between her building and the one opposite in less than a second.
What she was going for though was not just that bridging of the gap.
She changed her Symbolic Weapon in that of a disc to represent earth as she swung it in the air as she started to approach the wall in front of her, passing by the shocked Shokuhou Misaki. She didn't care though as she manipulated the earth of the wall, crumbling its form and weakening its structure as she prepared for impact.
Using her shoulder to receive most of the force, Birdway broke through the wall of the room that she had focused on as dust and dirt kicked up into the air. The occupants of the room itself shouted out in surprise at the sudden intrusion as Birdway touched her feet down on something within the room after having knocked over something.
Given what she remembered of the room itself, what she had knocked over was probably the refrigerator. Also, given the layout of the room, what she was standing on was probably the kitchen countertop.
She had made it into Kamijou Touma's room.
And she immediately spoke the reason why she was here.
"Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!"
"Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!"
The desperate shouts of the girls that were outside sounded pained, lost and broken. One could basically hear the tears within them as Birdway felt a fraction of guilt. She knew that if she had been in the reverse position that she might make the exact same plea of rejection but in the end, she had won.
Leivinia Birdway was once more victorious.
And as the winner, she was entitled to her spoils, regardless of what the others felt about it.
And so through the dust, smoke, painful cries from the girls outside and the coughs inside, Birdway made her announcement.
"Kamijou Touma! Is it true you're looking for a girlfriend?!"
Birdway asked the question that would validate the rumour or not. She had the first strike and depending on the answer, she was the first person that had the chance to respond to it in front of the boy.
No one was taking this away from her and she could feel the tension within her chest as the milliseconds ticked by. The response that came was almost immediate but even so, for Birdway it seemed as though the world had extended the time to torture her soul and place pressure on the hearts of those that heard it.
But the response that came was something that no one expected.
"What?"
The dust slowly cleared as the coughing died down as all of the girls outside got a good look inside the room because Birdway had smashed through one wall by weakening the earth of it. Mikoto could not see the people inside but even so, the relative close distance between the buildings meant that she could hear what they were saying, especially since she was listening intently.
Shokuhou and Birdway though looked inside and saw two human figures within the dust that were looking at the girl that had just spoken. Their figures and outlines became clearer as Birdway could now place descriptions on those that had spoken.
One of the figures, one who had not spoken was looking stunned at the scene in front of her. Her hair was brown however one would notice the small shades of purple within it. She looked rather taken aback by the scene in front of her however the one thing that one had to notice when they looked at her, besides her casual clothes, was the Dragon Tooth hanging around her neck.
The other figure though, the one that had spoken had silver hair, wearing a nun's habit that had been dirtied by the dust that had come from Birdway breaking and entering. Her green eyes were wide with shock at what Birdway had said as her mind was clearly having its gears turn rapidly in response to what Birdway had said.
A calico cat was sitting on the bed, looking rather faint and in its mouth was the small doll-like figure of an exhibitionist with an eyepatch. The one good eye though looked at Birdway in the same expression of shock as the nun as it had its mouth open. The mind of that doll-like figure also turned rapidly as it was trying to process what Birdway had said.
Birdway knew all of the figures on sight.
Tatsugami Otohime.
Index, or the Index Librorum Prohibitorum, keeper of 103,001 grimoires with the new Message of Thelema.
And the former Magic God Othinus, who was being held in the mouth of the calico cat Sphynx.
But the most important party, Kamijou Touma, was not there.
"What did you say? What did you say about Touma?" Index asked that question in a careful tone as Birdway immediately shouted desperately back.
"No! Forget that! Where is he?! Where is Kamijou Touma?!" Birdway found her voice rising despite her usual calm composure as Index did not answer her question, ignoring her completely as she stared at the girl in front of her.
Her green eyes looked at the girl in an interrogative fashion, as if peering right into her very soul as those eyes sent a chill up Birdway's spine as she felt them looking at her. In truth, Birdway felt as though she should have been more careful. If she hadn't blabbed and instead confirmed an assumption she had had about the boy she was looking for, then maybe it wouldn't have turned out like this.
But it had and there was nothing she could do about it.
"What did you say about Touma? What's this about him looking for a girlfriend?"
Index asked that question as she slowly stood up, her entire stance suggesting that she was ready to take on the world the instant she received her answer. But in truth, even then it seemed as though she already had the desire to move forward despite anything Birdway might say.
The leader of the Dawn-Coloured Sunlight paled at that nun standing on her own two feet, radiating a strength and desire to move that pushed even the weakest people to do the extraordinary.
If anything, the box had been opened and whatever inside unleashed.
Leivinia Birdway had asked a question and involved three people (well more two and a half) that had not known about the rumour in the first place.
The rivals in those looking for Kamijou Touma had surely increased.
And thus, naturally, as did the challenge.
We'll get into the Q & A before my brief thoughts on this:
whwsms: Doing a sequel for last chapter MIGHT be a bit hard given how the end is sort of closed but I usually leave it open just the slightest in case others want a sequel on the matter though. So I've saved it just in case it needed to happen so you'll have to see and wait on that front unfortunately. I don't know about it though… I'm not too sure on doing 'side stories' of the BTL because of how fragmented they are so it would sort of feel odd doing it that way. Do you sort of get what I mean? They're one-shots so developing things in particular directions based on one of them would be kind of odd given how the fragments would be all over the place. Although it might be interesting to have both Seria and Misaki having a 'stalk-off' where they follow Touma around much to his misfortune.
KurobaraIto: It's been a while! And thank you for your kind words. I always end up developing emotions when it comes to these one-shots and in ACUL0 for some strange reason. I think then idea can be done in 7K words and it jumps to 11K just on emotions alone. I'm glad that you were touched though, at the very least it's what I was going for.
Anon Guest: Wannai and Awatsuki-chan were probably too chocked to make a record of it! …There could have been a 'disturbance in the Force' though. I mean, even Itsuwa made note of it in the canon you know~! I'm not too sure about a sequel though but I'm open to the idea!
seiker: Ah, I hope you cringed at the lines Touma gave when he was trying to do smooth. I dunno though about what would happen if Touma went smooth against someone he knew. I guess we could claim that it would end up as 'war' but at the same time I'd like to think that whoever he was smooth to would not find it that attractive when they analysed how he was acting (even though they would get embarrassed) because it's just acting and not the 'real' Touma. Again that goes back to the idea of the lie that Touma would be giving when he was acting but that's just me. I have a thing for people being true to themselves and getting what they want out of it. If the Kami-yan Disease came to grip the entire globe though, then there would be nothing but blood-related sisters and brothers all over the place. It might be interesting to fully analyse the effects of such though….. And NT 17 was good I felt.
Not necessary: Gbyack!? I hope that the typos were not something that put you off too much though. I thank you for your words though and I'm glad that you felt it was relatable. Whatever the case and how we view the series, Academy City is filled with normal people with normal problems like the ones provided last chapter so I wanted to show that here. The only thing then is to really just look at them for what they are and look at the possible solution Touma came up with to see if it works for the characters and if you want, you as well. But that's just me!
wildarms13: Ahahahaha! Well at the very least I'm glad that you enjoyed it but I'm not too sure how it would work on Uiharu. Mind you though, she IS a romantic so…..
Ihavezerogame: P-Please be patient. I literally have drafts up until chapter 87 so there's a lot of people in the line…
naruhinasakufan1: I think it comes down to perspective on whether Touma being smooth gives him a harem. For the most part, he would be a terrible harem protagonist because Index is more of an action series with the harem incidental so I felt that Touma trying to build a harem purposefully would just fall flat on its face. It's the fact that he was an Unwanted Harem that makes it appealing and has created this impression in our minds of him having a harem but I think him actively seeking one out would end up failing pretty badly. Just my opinion though.
salishious: It's better that way when Kongou doesn't have Touma's name. And I suppose your idea would work….as long as Ekaterina didn't eat both Sphynx and Dog the cat.
toumakamijou298: Ooooooooooh! Kumokawa is a MAYBE idea but Orsola sounds like a good idea for a sequel! I can just imagine that airheaded nun just messing around and throwing unknown innuendos here and there while Touma cries internally!
Guest: Not too sure about how this idea would work as I have never read Ranma 1/2 . HOWEVER, I do have an idea for a Suzushina Yuriko story in the future so hopefully this is something that sort of addresses this idea?
Guest00: Filed away although I'm not entirely sure what to do with it….
AleisterCrowley: Nice suggestion! I'm not too sure about the two of them getting together romantically but I do have a chapter planned where we get to see Touma from Fukiyose's perspective although whether there is any romance involved in that has yet to be seen…
Red Glasses: I'm not too sure about this but I do sort of have a Cendrillon chapter planned but there is to be no Touma within it.
Horizon Dreamer: Who knows where Frenda hides her weapons in the first place? Anime physics I guess.
pop2ww: Adding in Fukiyose into the Delta Force shenanigans is a whole 'nother ball game. I get the feeling that if she were to be added then it would become nothing more than perhaps one of the greatest troll groups of all times all the while one of the members is actively trying to not be a troll and Touma just wants no part of it. And of course it's an extensive list! Never underestimate the Fetish King! I hope though that you both sweatdropped and laughed at the same time before face palming at how cringy it really was. The separation between the 'fake' and the 'real' Kongou and Touma was at the heart of the chapter so analysing it and determining when which one shone through gives a better look at the interaction of the chapter itself. If Touma had managed to win Kongou over using his act, I think it would have been perhaps the worst thing for him because he was not being true to himself and he would have to face that lie again but you're right in that he just needs to be normal to help others, he doesn't need some sort of act. Ah, Touma accepting his worth in the eyes of others isn't something that can be covered in one chapter: it would takes heaps of development I would think which is more ACUL0 territory. Touma stepping down though was important because of how normal the problem Kongou was facing was. If she had relied on him all the way, then it would have been more something Kamisato would have done so stepping back and letting Kongou do all the hard work herself was the important thing. Touma just gave her the final pushing, saving her but the way that he backs off, I think he feels that it's more that Kongou 'saved herself' at the end of the day than anything he did. ….I'm not too sure what to say about how good-looking the characters look though. Touma can be dense as a rock though when he doesn't need to be which is what makes it funny.
Abraham: I felt that Abraham had an appearance close to Badou Nails from DOGS: Stray Dogs Howling in the Dark save for with shorter hair, a shorter figure and less attractive features; more like someone that has been beaten by time but still has a face that looks like it can go on. Abraham was the failed leader of Ninth Sephirah but the sort of tired look that he had on his face was what made him easy to manipulate at the hands of Harmonia's Cradle. Basically someone that looks tired after he lost so much with the faint light in his eyes like he can regain it all back through nothing but effort. Although he went down a broken path, he was just a leader that cared maybe a bit too much that he lost sight of his comrades.
Hoshea Sheinfled: I felt that Hoshea had a similar appearance to Bora from Fairy Tail (this is really a good series to work character appearances from). What I wanted from Hoshea was someone that looked as though he would cross the line for his leader. It's not necessarily meant to make him look devout but he believes strongly in someone to the extent of following them and not doubting their actions based on it despite his injuries which was the bandage to his face. He looks unassuming but that is mainly because of the fact that he was more a follower than a leader himself but he had the capabilities to become such but felt that he was more suited to just moving along with everyone else at the end of the day because of his assuming appearance.
I'll avoid describing the bland man though from Harmonia's Cradle until I cover that arc there.
Again, I regret choosing not to write extensive notes about the above chapter down here. Otherwise, you would hear about how I believe that Birdway's desire here to at least have Touma by her side and comfort her when she needs it to be incredibly important for her. She herself is divided about whether she has romantic feelings for the boy but for her right now, she finds nothing wrong with thinking about him as an 'Onii-chan' figure and the strength he provides her, although small.
This chapter was a bit long because of the fight scenes (I hope you enjoyed them even though they were brief) but I think if you look at this for the fight scenes, you might be in the wrong place. Personally, given the idea Master Knight gave me for this, the fight scenes have to be short and quick as the girls can't spend a massive amount of time 'defeating' their opponents but instead want to focus on distracting them long enough to escape and find Touma (wherever he is!). So looking at that I hope that those short fight scenes were enough for you to be satisfied.
There was also a little bit here about the fact that people in this City right now are refusing to kill their opponents because of this rumour. I added that in but I think it goes to show just how eager the girls are to make sure that Touma does not drag himself down in guilt. There is a certain line that can't be crossed here and I've established it thusly.
Still, Index joins the stage! Of course I was going to add her! I hope you look forward to the next part!
That timing issue might be important...
Not much else to say as these end notes are supposed to be short… Not to mention that the thanks to this happened in Part 1 so I hope that you don't feel as though I'm being rude not thanking you again here. Since this is a part of one 'big project', the main 'thanks' was in the First Part.
And as always,
Review if you please.
And I'll see you when I see you and I won't if I don't.
To Be Continued….