It had been around half an hour of pleasant walking by the time the couple reached the street before the Judgement branch. The sun shone brightly in the afternoon weather, and the ordinary hustle and bustle of life added to the lively setting of the day.

"Wait…"

Misaki said suddenly, pausing where she walked, essentially forcing Kuroko to pause too. The teleporter looked to her girlfriend, hand in hand, curious and slightly concerned.

"What's wrong, Misa?" Kuroko asked, a curious eyebrow raising as the blonde put a finger to her own lips while her eyes looked away. She hummed a little, seemingly thinking about her answer.

"...perhaps I should activate my perception filter." She then said, looking back towards her girlfriend with closed eyes and a wide smile. "Just in case."

Kuroko sighed.

"We've gone over this. Kazari, Ruiko, they know you now." She argued, almost sounding a little disappointed at Misaki's seeming reluctance to get any closer to Kuroko's closest and longest of friends. Misaki's wide smile became a little less cheery as she opened her eyes again, her starry gaze re-emerging.

"Mm, but it can still be quite awkward, I tend to feel like a... replacement. I cannot bear such an atmosphere today." Misaki explained, which sounded reasonable to her girlfriend, who tilted her head and raised the side of her lips in acknowledgement. Misaki continued after shrugging her shoulders: "Besides, I am not part of Judgement, am I? I would rather your colleagues not hold back on any information with a civilian watching."

"True… okay, if you think it will help." Kuroko was convinced, finding that line of reasoning more, well, reasonable. Kuroko was very professional with her work, and so was Kazari now since becoming a key member of the larger tech community in Judgement.

"Don't worry, my sweet ✨. I will make sure you are filtered from it." Misaki leaned in to give her teleporter a kiss on the lips, something Kuroko eagerly accepted. She always loved the affection from her loving Misaki, as well as the odd tease or two.

"Ah, how lovely of you."

"Hehe."

As the two reached the front entrance of Judgement Branch 177, Misaki pointed a translucent remote at herself, enacting her perception filter. It was something that she had been developing for some years now and she felt she had perfected it at this point. Only those with devices specifically made to counter her Mental Out ability could see through it, and those items were still rarely used and even rarer to get ahold of. Given how naturally stealthy it was, Misaki could not remember a moment where she was compromised with its usage.

Entering the building, Kuroko bid a welcome to a receptionist, flashing her ID card from her pocket for security's sake. Sure, the rotating receptionists knew exactly who Kuroko was, but there was always an Esper or two out there who could use her image as a disguise. Security was paramount in a place like this.

The two took a lift on the insistence of a whispering Misaki, whose perception filter was not entirely perfect. Footsteps she could get away with, using specific neuron connections to filter them out within a certain, active radius. Voices however? That was a different matter. Distinct voices were easy to pick up, and the fluctuations in tones and pitches and the like could easily shatter the filter.

Fortunately the receptionist was none the wiser, seemingly busy updating databases while logging arrivals and departures.

In the elevator the two women held hands, with Misaki giving a little squeeze before unhooking her hand as it dinged.

Kuroko walked out briskly. She was ahead of Misaki who hung back just a little, observing the relatively spacious office that was littered with desks, bookcases for documents and drawers for the documents of maximum importance. She had not been into this place often, but was mildly impressed at the organisation of it. The Level 5 was almost staggered at the massive computer setup, with the wall covered in screens and metal extenders, hosting one of the key members of the 177 Branch.

Misaki maneuvered herself into a little corner of the room next to the elevator, leaning on one of the few places whose walls were barren of anything but paint.

"Good afternoon." Kuroko spoke out in a confident but welcoming voice, and the concentrated faces of Kazari and Ruiko looked away from their screens to greet the teleporter.

"Kuroko, heya!" Kazari said first.

"Hey boss!" Followed by Ruiko Saten, her long, raven coloured hair flowing around her as she stood up from her desk in excitement. It had been a few days since she had seen Kuroko owing to some exams and upper brass meetings.

"Ruiko, again, you are the boss." Kuroko responded in an exasperated tone, though her wry smile betrayed her true feelings on that little matter. Ruiko rolled her eyes with her own little grin on her lips.

"Ah, technically yes, but admin work is so boring while you kick ass on the streets, ugh."

"Maybe maybe." Kuroko said, admitting to the well known fact that paperwork was a damn chore. "Even so, I'm off duty today, just here for this bit of business."

"Oh god, I'm going to have to call Konori for advice again, aren't I?" Ruiko bemoaned her situation, collapsing back onto her chair, her neck arching over the headrest.

"Please don't fret so much Ruiko, you've been doing great." Kazari said reassuringly, Kuroko nodded and hummed in agreement.

"Indeed, and you're only two months into the role since Konori moved to Anti-Skill." Kuroko stated, referencing the recent departure of their old boss. With Ruiko always lurking around and doing the odd job for the Branch on Kazari's behalf, it was not too much of a surprise to have her jump into the role with the backing of her friends. Sometimes she regretted it, but it was something useful to do, and this portion of the workforce actually got paid.

"Use the days I'm off and cannot advise you to stretch your wings, you'll be all the better for it." Kuroko continued. She wanted to push her friend as much as possible, and had a feeling deep down that Ruiko could be a success in the role she was in. Still, Ruiko wasn't too confident with her skills and abilities in managing a law enforcement agency, even if the pressure was less than what Konori would now face at Anti-Skill.

"Ahaaaa oh jeez, alright, alright." Ruiko said in a slightly anxious and nervous tone, her laugh punctuating the pressure she was displaying. "Let's see if I get scolded from the stooges above today then. If not, progress!" But alas, she was still as enthusiastic as ever.

"That's the spirit!" Kazari cheered in encouragement while Kuroko rolled her eyes, though the smile on her lips betrayed the humour she found in Ruiko's antics and woes.

But someone was currently missing. Looking around, Kuroko failed to see the blonde girl with the red-framed glasses.

"Ah, where's Kohaku-san?" She proceeded to ask, prompting Kazari to reply.

"Yoshika? She's still napping-"

"Hello hello, sorry, did I-" Her yawn interrupted her. "-miss anything?" Yoshika suddenly rounded the corner hiding a small resting area, her glasses slightly lifted as she rubbed her eyes and removed any sand from the corners of them.

"No no, Kuroko just arrived and is off-duty, so you're safe from her meanie demeanour!"

"Oi, Kazari, it's called professionalism." Kuroko's deadpan scowl made it clear that Kazari's tease hit the wrong tone, though the dark-haired girl laughed it off with a giggle.

"Ahhhh sorry, you're right." Her hands clasped together in an almost serious attempt to display her apologetics. "But I'm sure Kohaku-san is learning well, right?" She then turned to the new recruit now standing beside her at the large and complex computer setup.

"Yes Ka- Uiharu-san! Saten-san!" Yoshika said, quickly correcting herself before Kuroko's serious and sinister gaze turned to her.

Misaki watched on with a humoured smile on her face, struggling to hold back a giggle. The mixture of a carefree vibe and Kuroko's ever-so-serious stance on Judgement work was an odd and funny sight to behold at times.

But she felt a foreboding atmosphere in the office gnawing away at her bones, and the hands of her folded arms gripped tightly to herself.

It took a few more minutes for the group to finish up their welcomes and reintroductions, with them quickly catching up on some friendly matters. It wasn't as professional as Kuroko would have liked, but she let it slide given she was off-duty and the day was going quietly. Kazari and Ruiko finished up some paperwork while Yoshika fetched some fresh glasses of water and cans of soda from the vending machine.

Misaki, still leaning on the wall beside the elevator door, could not help but watch this girl that she had not seen before. The Level 5 had not visited the branch for a while, nor did she see the younger schoolgirl hanging out with Kuroko's friends last month during their monthly day out. She was quite a curious little specimen to Mental Out, and she would have had a peek through her mind had she not been focused on her perception filter.

Ultimately, she was not sure what to think yet. Misaki resolved to satiate her curiosity later.

Finally, the members of Judgement Branch 177 gathered around the computer screens that displayed all manners of information that Kazari had compiled. Various pictures, graphs and stats dotted the LED screens, arranged in a manner that only Kazari could really read. Yoshika pulled up a seat for Kuroko and herself, and the teleporter uttered a few words of gratitude as the seat was offered to her. Ruiko simply dragged her wheeled chair from her desk to the area beside the trio.

Kazari began with a few clicks on her mouse, dragging up some windows while minimising a few others to display when relevant.

"So, as you all know, we've been tracking a set of mysterious and beyond coincidental cases of murders." Everyone looked at the blurred and censored images of several corpses, grimacing as their minds filled in the blanks. "The latest case confirms the trend that we hypothesised five days ago."

"Was it another criminal then?" Kuroko asked, with Kazari quickly nodding.

"Yes, a foreign citizen associated with one of the mid-level gangs on this side of the city." Kazari highlighted some of the details. "Robbery, intimidation, one case of sexual assault… likely more unreported crimes given their associations."

A part of Kuroko was glad that the man was off the street, but the way in which he had been dealt with was far from comforting or acceptable to the Level 4.

"This is in line with the very first case." Ruiko spoke up, her fingers rubbing her chin. "Sexual assault, standard assault charges, often against those unable to defend themselves…" Ruiko trailed off, allowing Kuroko to add to the chain of recollections.

"Case two and three also have assault cases to them. The third, a woman, had a murder charge that was being pursued." As Ruiko and Kuroko spoke, Kazari quickly clicked through the windows containing these incidents, seeking to remind herself of the details and ensure the accuracy of her friend's memory. They were indeed correct. One a woman, the other three men, with varying degrees of Esper levels but a strikingly similar criminal background.

"So a vigilante clearing up the streets of some really nasty people…" Yoshika decided it was her turn to say something, her light voice cutting through the thoughts of her colleagues. "I would recommend them to Anti-Skill if they weren't so… brutal."

"Mm, from what we have gathered from Kuroko's eyewitness statements, be it from herself or people close by to the incidents, this is more than just vigilante justice." Kazari reinforced Yoshika's comment, referring to how these acts were perpetrated.

"These are revenge killings, if anything." Ruiko commented, allowing Kuroko to finish up this line of conclusions when she nodded in agreement.

"Indeed. The screaming, the objects impaled into them, the violence of it… if this person wanted to enact proper justice, they would sign up for Judgement or Anti-Skill, not do this." Kuroko concluded, annoyed at this elusive person committing these acts of, frankly, terror against criminals. It was highly unethical, regardless of who these people once were in the criminal underworld.

But it had seemed to have worked to some degree. Kuroko remembered being told by Ruiko that there was around a ten to fifteen percent decline in reported crimes over the last week and a half since the incidents began a month ago. Kazari however had warned to take the data with a pinch of salt, but the correlation was clear as day to the teleporter.

"And they also want to remain hidden." Said the computer genius. "The cameras are always off at the perfect moment, and reports of data corruption have been flooding into the mailboxes."

"They do not want to be seen…" Ruiko said with a curious tone.

"Not with the way they go about this business, no." Kuroko added. "What they are doing is a crime already, but the added element of torture worsens the sentence. They want the aftermath to be seen, not themselves." Kuroko concluded, frowning as she remembered the mangled and burnt bodies she had seen, appearing akin to discarded gristle and bone.

A dozen or so seconds passed as Kazari minimised windows and prioritised new ones.

"Now that we are certain with the pattern of victims, we must deduce who could possibly be doing this." Kazari stated as a matter of fact. She began highlighting the data gathered from the scenes of the crime, including key sections of photographs and atmospheric reports. "Before last night we had narrowed it down to around three Esper types. In order of least confidence, we had Espers who could use cold temperatures, followed by Pyrokinetics and, finally, Energy Generators such as Electromasters or Electron Manipulators."

"And we're leaning on Pyrokinetics and Energy Generators, right?" Kuroko asked with a hint of nerves in her voice. One of her feet shuffled on the floor, though it was so slight that only the ever observant Misaki noticed it.

"Well…" Kazari began, her own anxiousness rousing in her mind. "It appears to just be Energy Generators."

"I see…" Kuroko said with a more neutral but monotone voice, looking away slightly.

"Samples of the dust and rubble collected have had their electrons disturbed or simply ripped away." Kazari started, scrolling through some of the findings. "High concentrations of ozone in the air, as well as reports of static from Anti-Skill officers analysing the scene…" The girl with the pretty flowers around her head paused, turning her gaze away from the computer to face Kuroko.

"I could go on."

"No, I understand." Kuroko nodded, taking a breath. "I saw electrical discharges in last night's incident too. I chalked it up to it just being the power cables, but they extended far past them." She remembered distinctly.

"That reminds me." Ruiko spoke out. "One of the eyewitnesses said something similar in the second case, but the electrical cables were running underground, not above." She was touching the implication with a needle. Kuroko easily caught onto it however, immediately interjecting.

"But there are many users in the city which have these kinds of powers. We may have narrowed down the type, but the person?" It was a legitimate question, and Ruiko humming next to Kuroko gave the indication that the new boss of the branch was about to answer it.

"The power involved in these attacks would suggest it is a high level Esper. We're looking at a Level 4 at the bare minimum, and that narrows the possible persons down considerably."

"What, to a hundred or so?" Yoshika asked Ruiko from the side-lines, sounding slightly defeated. "That would still involve us going through them one by one." She made the point by counting on her fingers, nodding her head in time with every new movement of her fingers. It would be an agony to go through that many people.

"Ah, you say that…" Ruiko began, turning her attention to Kazari to prompt her to explain away the problem.

"Ruiko and I have access to a lot of information through Anti-Skill and the security wings they have, be it willingly or not." She started to pull up a list of names, with the vast majority having been crossed out in differently colour strikethroughs. "And that's ignoring the city and school databases we can go through." Yoshika's mouth went agape.

"Spying and hacking? Really?" The young girl frowned and grimaced, disapproving of the methods that Kazari had seemingly employed. The dark-haired woman turned on her chair to face the new recruit with an understanding gaze.

"It's the standard and best way to do things in Academy City, unfortunately." Kazari shrugged before turning back around to the computer. "School and university dormitory databases are the easiest to access for law enforcement, and the check-in times cut the suspects by three-fifths." She highlighted the key which designated who out of the potential suspects was in an educational facility, before showing off the second key.

"Then we have company check-ins, check-outs and worker schedules to filter through." Ruiko continued, explaining on Kazari's behalf. "That narrowed us down to six people after verifying some CCTV footage for unaccounted workers."

At that point Kazari began tapping at her keyboard, activating some macros on the digital document to hide the crossed out persons and to bring forward those six remaining individuals. She continued on, not noticing how Kuroko winced as a certain name appeared more obviously on the bright computer screen.

"And then it was a matter of questioning the three least dangerous suspects, or pulling up Anti-Skills' own interviews that began last week." As she spoke she clicked on the three individuals she alluded to, opening up an additional three program windows with statements, alibis and the like. It was highlighted for the convenience of the other three girls behind her, who skim read those most important details.

"The answers they gave to us or Anti-Skill, as well as the alibis they gave, backed up by friends and family…" Kazari trailed off, hesitating over continuing. Ruiko picked up on it and filled in the blanks.

"It leaves us with three very distinct persons of interest."

Another silence fell as the three girls awaited Kuroko's reply. Now they all began to notice how tense the teleporter had become, her body becoming more rigid. The slight creaking of the complaining armrests of her chair caught their ears.

Misaki watched on with her own heavy pit of worry settling in her stomach.

"Leaving us with three, huh..?" Kuroko, again, trailed off, her eyes closing and her fingers reaching her forehead to rub at it. She could feel a fresh thud of pain coming on. "And by distinct, I assume you don't mean fantastical hairstyles or the like?" Her attempts at humour were masked by the exasperation and nerves in her voice, the slight tremor in her throat betraying her true emotions.

"I'm afraid not, Kuroko." Kazari said with some sadness, knowing what was to come. Kuroko breathed out heavily before a certain someone interrupted her train of fretful thoughts.

'Stay calm my dear, let's hear what they say.' Misaki's voice suddenly rang out within the teleporter's mind. Had the woman not done this before she would have been shocked, but she had become used to it after her secretive pleas for help whenever conversations became awkward with Kazari and Ruiko.

'Okay… okay.' Kuroko replied in her mind, knowing that Misaki would pick up on it despite her lack of telepathy skills.

She missed Yoshika's sudden urge to look over her shoulder, the young blonde turning her neck just a tad as the hairs on the back of her neck stood up.

"Alright… go on." Kuroko said, the reluctant insistence in her voice plain to hear. Ruiko started it off, feeling that this part of the conversation was her primary duty as the head of the branch.

"Starting with the lowest level of the three would be Misaka Worst, a specialised clone originating from the Misaka Network." Already some shivers went down the spine of Kuroko, and even Kazari felt uncomfortable talking about it. "We now know clearly the story of that so I'll get to the point. She's a Level 4 with some considerable power to her name, being the strongest of the Sisters."

Kazari went through some archive pictures of the subject, and three girls that knew the original found the similarities uncanny. Worst was an older and grumpier version of the original Misaka they knew, with every single picture showcasing her permanent scowl. From what Kazari could remember, Misaka Worst was the conduit of every single negative emotion that the Misaka clones (dead or alive) felt, and all that focus seemed to amplify her Esper powers.

"While unable to use the Railgun technique to its fullest potential, she is still able to fire projectiles at a fast enough force to create an explosive reaction in certain circumstances." Ruiko continued while Kazari browsed through the images and the one blurry video of her walking down a busy street, her presence on it highlighted by blurring out everyone around her.

"However?" Kuroko asked, feeling that there was a but at the end of Ruiko's explanation. It was Kazari who answered it, tapping the screen where the repeating MP3 played.

"She was tracked accompanying the Level 5 'Accelerator' to the shops in one instance. Meanwhile Last Order, the administrator of their telepathic network, confirmed her location for the other three instances." Kazari highlighted a file provided by Last Order. It was a digital version of the logs the young girl shifted through in her mind, with a Gekota frog acting as a stamp of authenticity.

"How did you get that information?" Kuroko asked once more. It felt a little weird asking questions all the time, but it was her being informed after all. She had allowed Kazari to take control of the data collection side of the things while she was busy with the physical stuff, patrolling day and night and exacerbating her headaches while doing so.

"Anti-Skill." Yoshika said suddenly, shrugging her shoulders. "We actually asked this time around, and they were happy to provide the details for whatever reason." Her tone sounded almost dismissive, but there was surprise etched into her voice more than anything else.

"They do know we are investigating the same cases to be honest; they were probably happy to help given the information was not confidential or anything." Ruiko replied, adding the details that Yoshika neglected. It was more of a hunch, but likely an accurate one in Kuroko's eyes. "Plus, from their viewpoint, it helps shut us up for a bit. We haggle and hassle them a lot nowadays." The Level 0 smiled a little. There was humour in the perceived infants of Academy City's law enforcement begging and demanding information from the adults, like a child having a tantrum to their parents. Kuroko's eyebrows raised briefly in humour and agreement, before turning straight back to the topic at hand.

"Okay, next?"

"Shizuri Mugino." Kazari started, turning again to face Kuroko. "Her power is also based on electrons, specifically the manipulation of them. She was who crossed my mind first when the second event occurred."

"I assume this is because of her links to dark side organisations in Academy City?" Kuroko pondered, also remembering Shizuri from a certain encounter with her former best friend. Other than that she had heard the stories of her rampages, liquidating her own team at one point.

Ruiko remained quiet.

"Yeah, she's been connected to the shadier elements for a while, so I guessed it might have been some grudges she was dealing with." Kazari continued, shrugging her shoulders, the information being obvious to her. "But she's already been interviewed by Anti-Skill over this."

"Really?" Kuroko raised an eyebrow, not quite believing it.

"She's on the grid, relatively easy to find." Yoshika said while taking a sip of some cherry soda. "She has her hideouts, sure, but she actually does regular citizen stuff compared to the other Level 5s." While Yoshika finished up her point, Kazari once more opened a fresh window, detailing the interview with some notes attached for good measure.

"What did Anti-Skill get out of her?"

"Nothing, really." Ruiko answered Kuroko with an oddly distant voice. "She was not involved in these cases. Bemused by them, but it was not her doing." She was snappy and straight to the point, not wanting to think about her own taste of trauma from the past.

"She had her alibis too." Kazari continued for Ruiko, understanding the pain the Meltdowner topic had on her best friend. "She was apparently in a cinema for the first case, with the ticket stubs to prove it." Kazari showed Kuroko the photos of the aforementioned tickets to back up Ruiko's statement. "And while she had none for the second other than her word, during the third attack she was on an undercover assignment."

"Before you ask, no details on that. Not even Anti-Skill is privy to that information." Yoshika quickly added, not wanting to waste Kuroko's time in asking another question. Still, as Kuroko quickly looked to and away from the young schoolgirl, she clung onto something that persisted in her heart.

Denial.

"So it's not certain?"

"The fact she was not involved in the first instance makes it likely that she was telling the truth, given the consistent nature of the attacks." Kazari concluded fairly, turning back to her main computer monitor and sorting through the final windows.

"Hm…" In the meantime Kuroko sat in reflection, ignoring the glancing stares of Ruiko and Yoshika. Both had their own interest and intrigues in Kuroko's emotional reactions, as did the Level 5 telepath residing in the middle of the room. Having moved away from near the elevator, she was now in the space between the girls and the cabinets, still disguised in her powerful perception field.

'It's a reasonable conclusion.' Misaki spoke into the mind of her girlfriend. 'My encounters with Shizuri suggest that she is not the kind of person to bother with this sort of show.' And as distasteful her encounters with the 4th ranked Level 5 was, the 5th ranked had a strong enough understanding of Meltdowner to be confident of Kazari Uiharu's assessment.

'...If you're sure, Misa.' Kuroko spoke in her mind with hesitation, nearly losing herself to the comfort of the sweet voice of her partner.

'If anything Kuroko, she's the kind of person to hire them for cannon fodder, not target practice or venting frustrations.'

"Kuroko?"

The teleporter suddenly snapped to attention, almost bolting from the chair but unable to stop the gasp that struck her. Kazari had turned back around with a confused look on her face.

"Ah, sorry, go on." Kuroko said quickly, apologising to cover for Misaki and herself. Kazari repeated herself.

"I was just saying that it cannot be Meltdowner. It doesn't quite add up." She turned back around to the computer, a feeling of awkwardness and foreboding creeping up her spine. She began to feel very uncomfortable in her comfortable, padded chair. That left it to Ruiko to move on to the very large and emerging elephant in the room.

"Unfortunately, it leaves us with the final one of the three..." Ruiko trailed off, her voice thick with resignation and disappointment. Kuroko looked down onto the floor, her head hung low.

"...fuck…"

"Um, Kuroko?" Yoshika said nervously, having never heard the teenager swear before, not knowing the connection between Kuroko and the final suspect that made an appearance on the screen.

"Go on, say it." She finally said, refusing to look at the LED screen which displayed the last known image of her long lost love interest from Tokiwadai. "Who's our prime suspect?"

Kazari and Ruiko looked past Kuroko and to each other, sympathy and worry in their eyes and a grimace forming on their lips. Yoshika observed them, seemingly unsure of what exactly was wrong, but said nothing. Her attention focused on Kuroko, whose breathing seemed to have picked up pace judging from the quickening rise and fall of her chest. She gripped the armrests of the chair tightly, her knuckles turning as white as a ghost.

It almost matched her now pale face.

"I almost can't believe I'm saying this but…" Ruiko began reluctantly, almost incredulous at what she was about to say, while worrying deeply at the intensity of the conversation to come. Misaki watched on with her own fretting fear, her hands now clasped together over her chest, sorrowful over the pain that was about to reignite for her partner.

For Kuroko could no longer deny the rapidly approaching reality of the situation. Even apart and no longer in contact, never knowing where and hardly knowing why, shealways had a way to worm herself into her Judgement affairs.

"It's Mikoto Misaka."