Chapter 16 - Change of Plans
School District 11 was located southwest of Academy City. As this district bordered the outside world, it was mainly used as a place for transferring and storing materials.
"It won't be that hard...I guess" Said a certain spiky haired boy, who was looking at his cell phone screen, using it as a mirror.
At this moment, our blue-eyed "Hero" was standing at the entrance of the anomaly that was that amusement park. He was trying to focus on the mission he needed to do today. One of them at least.
"You can do it Kamijou-san, just do it like yesterday" He used both hands to flatten both cheeks at the same time
It was already night, and the curfew would come soon, but there were still a lot of people in that park, and that was not good. The exact size of the mess that would be caused tonight could not be known, but the Level 0 was not nervous about it. Kamijou had to take a deep breath at that instant, perhaps trying to increase the rate of oxygen transfer to that confused head of his.
The reason Kamijou Touma is alone at this moment is his own fault, since he was the one who suggested that the girls come in separate groups and at different times. It was just paranoia and he knew it, but it was too late now to turn back.
'I still have a few minutes before she arrives, so I'll use that time to think a little about what I need to do. It shouldn't be too different from the manga. All I need to do is...'
"Looks like I'm right on time" Announced a soft female voice.
The boy was taken by surprise. That sweet voice came from very close by, but he hadn't even noticed until now the girl standing there beside him, with her arms crossed over her broad chest. Needless to say, the girl in question was one he really wanted to see, but not the one he expected to see at the moment.
"Aihana Etsu?" Spoke the boy, looking into the eyes of that girl with shocking pink hair and trying to relax his posture "This sure is a surprise, but it's really nice to see you"
"Really? Don't say such things to a girl like me, Touma-chan."
With a smile on her face, the girl tilted her head in a cute way and put the tip of her index finger to her lips. Kamijou was feeling strange at this moment, so much so that he didn't even react when the girl called him by his first name, not that he minded. Worst of all, he couldn't say why he felt that way, but that was something he would put away for the time being.
"What are you doing here Aihana-san? Have you come to meet someone?" He asked, with a hint of suspicion in his tone.
After his conversation with the Queen of Tokiwadai, whose name he could not remember, he knew that the girl in front of him was not 'Aihana Etsu'. The strange thing was that the conversation he had with the Queen was somewhat... hazy to say the least. When he had talked to Uiharu in that cafe, he had told her about their conversation, but it was as if he knew something was wrong, as if his brain was trying to fill in gaps that shouldn't exist. But he also decided to leave that aside for the time being.
"Don't be so formal with me Touma-chan, it makes me a little sad. Anyway, you are right, I came to meet with a certain someone who saved me. Maybe reward him for his efforts" She approached him and kept a smile just at the corner of her lips.
"You don't need to reward me for anything, I'm sure you'd be fine without me" He shrugged and used his right hand to point at her. The strange thing is that the girl stopped approaching when he raised that hand "By the way, how did you know I would be here?"
"Why wouldn't I know? It was only a matter of time before you decided to break into the facility that is hidden here" 'Aihana' began, earning a sharp look in response "Don't look at me like I'm stalking or spying on you. Didn't Gokusai tell who it was that helped her gather all the information she gave you?"
Thinking back, Gokusai said he had talked to one of the girls in the group that Kakine had secretly hired. Kamijou had seen two of the three girls, but he knew, thanks to the security cameras, that the third and leading one had pink hair with silver tips.
"Why are you doing this? Betraying a level 5 like that is not a very prudent thing to do."
"Screw that annoying guy" The girl waved her hand, as if trying to keep a bad smell away from her nose "If I have to choose a side, then let it be from a person I know I can trust, don't you think?"
"I really don't understand" Kamijou made a confused expression "We have only seen each other once, why would you put your life at risk by making that choice?"
"My life is not at risk. Not as long as I'm on your side."
"Look, Aihana Etsu, I don't know what kind of weird legends they tell about me in the streets, but I'm absolutely sure they don't even come close to being true. Sometimes I'm barely able to protect myself then -"
"You've always been like this" interrupted the girl, putting a serious expression on her face "It's a little sad, to tell you the truth. I wonder how many more people you'll let slip through your fingers until you understand that it's useless to try to pretend to be what you're not."
"What are you talking about? Who are you anyway and why are you acting like you know me?"
"I am talking about you, I am nobody and I really know you"
With those answers given almost instantly, Kamijou Touma twisted his face into a strange grimace. He raised an eyebrow and held his head with his right hand when he felt a sharp pain in the middle of his forehead. That pain didn't seem to be caused by anything physical, but Kamijou felt dizzy at that instant. His body almost collapsed, but he felt something soft on the left side of his body before he fell to the artificial grass.
"I did it again. I am so stupid. Why can't I follow such a simple plan?" Said the girl with pain in her voice, while holding Kamijou tightly "Are you okay?"
"Yeah...I just got a little dizzy"
Kamijou forced himself to stand alone, trying reluctantly to push the girl away. When he pulled himself together, the girl moved a little away from him and smoothed that artificially colored hair.
"This is all my fault. So I'll reward you with something that I know will be useful" She put a smile on her face again "I got this for you"
Still confused by the sudden and unnatural pain, he focused his vision on the girl's hands. She was holding a transparent bag with several other sachets inside. Kamijou recognized it immediately.
"Ability Body Crystal?" He raised his right hand to take the 'gift' from the girl's hands, who tilted her body slightly in the opposite direction by reflex. "It's the new version isn't it? Where did you get it?"
"I thought you were going to ask where I was hiding this all along. How disappointing" She flattened her own face "Anyway, this stuff is being distributed randomly...I guess. They are probably using the new delivery drones to do this. From what I understand, this is the latest version, which means it is superior to the others."
"Aihana Etsu" was serious and somewhat thoughtful as she said that, but she noticed the boy's gaze checking her body for some reason.
"Touma-chan, I'm trying to have an important conversation here, don't use the first opportunity to look at me like that. At least give me a warning so I can mentally prepare myself for it, after all I -"
"That doesn't make sense" He interrupted, with his hand on his chin "You are right, where the hell were you hiding it?"
"Ah, it's all thanks to my esper power" She replied, crossing her arms in a nonchalant manner.
"I get it, your esper power made you a video game character and now you have an inventory." He said with a playful tone. He shook his head positively and raised his thumb "I've also seen Frenda pull some weapons too big to fit into that skirt. Makes perfect sense now."
"Actually I was just hiding everything in my bra, which technically makes me an anime girl, don't you think?" She joked, letting a smile escape.
"It's all pretty much the same these days. The market got a little saturated after that famous anime of the boy fighting with two swords and... wait did you say bra?" He alternated his gaze between the bag in his hand and that hilly region of the girl, being accentuated by the arms under those mounds.
"You're giving me that look again. Something tells me you like something... it's a shame our time is up" With a sigh, she waved at him and turned away "I have to go now. By the way, don't use that thing, you don't want your ability to get out of control, it would be a mess."
"I don't have an ability...come to think of it you saw me negate those flames, so it makes sense for you to think so"
"I wasn't talking about your Imagine Breaker" She replied casually.
An extremely confused expression now adorned the Level 0's face. Before Kamijou could ask any more questions, the girl walked without making a single sound and threw herself into the crowd leaving the amusement park, leaving the boy with several questions behind and examining the contents in her hands.
'What do I do with it? She said it would be useful, but I can only think of one person I know who would find it "useful". How strange'
But this was no time to be pensive. Kamijou had lost track of time while talking to this mysterious pink girl, so it was time to pull himself together and focus on what matters. Unfortunately his time to do this was short, since the person he could not get out of his head was walking excitedly in his direction.
This whole operation was Kamijou's idea, which means that the whole plan of action had been made by him. Actually Kaibi and Uiharu helped him, but no one needed to know that. ITEM would split into two groups today, one containing Shizuri, Takitsubo and Kinuhata, also known as the "Direct Attack" team and Kamijou and Frenda in the "Explosive Attack" team. The name of the second team was supposed to be "Stealth Attack" but the blonde insisted that Kamijou change the name. However, they would invade the place together and only split up once they were inside, so Kamijou made a last minute change and asked Shizuri to meet him at the entrance of the amusement park. And there she was, wearing a violet dress and thigh-high black stockings, and flashing a simple smile. The boy's reason for wanting to meet her there was quite simple: Kamijou, the Demon Lord of love, was on another mission today.
"Hi Shizuri. You look beautiful in that violet dress" Our little 'Hero' had chosen violence. He wasted no time and stood by her side, which left her a little surprised.
"Hey Kamijou. I'm glad you liked it, since that's the outfit I usually wear as a 'combat uniform'. In the summer at least."
"That makes sense. If I remember correctly this is the same outfit you were wearing when we first met. You have style even when you are fighting. I like that about you."
'Am I going too far? Yesterday I was just pretending so it was easier, but now I look like a complete idiot. She's not reacting very well, what do I do now?'
Unfortunately for Kamijou, no matter how good he was at understanding people, he could never read her thoughts, because if he could, these doubts would not exist.
'He's already complimented me twice in 30 seconds. I promised myself that I would hold back as much as possible but... how the hell do I do that?' Shizuri thought this over while trying not to put a silly smile on her face. Unfortunately for her, her resistance to infection was almost nil at this point. It was she herself who said she had to focus that entire 'disease' on her, but being exposed to such an acute version of something with such great power and no known cure or treatment, was not a prudent thing to do.
"We better get inside" Shizuri said, using the last strength she had not to grab that left arm. She started to follow the flow of people with Kamijou behind her "The girls should be here soon. By the way, did you turn into a drug dealer or something?" The girl turned around and pointed to the plastic bag Kamijou was carrying.
"Ah... a girl with pink hair came along and handed me this out of nowhere and... that's a story for another time. I'd better put it away," he affirmed, with a strange little smile.
As he found room in that jacket that was not designed to be worn by drug dealers, Kamijou wondered where he was 'going wrong'. After being given the best lap pillow of his life, which doesn't mean much since only two other girls had offered him one as well, our normal high school boy had an idea. He needed to know what Shizuri wanted to tell him yesterday before she was interrupted, and it was time to work on making that happen. It had been the boy who had gotten in the way of everything, so he would find a way to fix it.
'That's weird' he thought 'Did I treat her that badly and now she's not so happy when I compliment her? Damn... what do I do then? If that's the case, I have to be more aggressive... yes that should do it.'
"Kamijou, how about we go -"
Level 5 didn't get a chance to finish her sentence, as she went rigid when the boy next to her used his left arm to wrap around her waist. This was not the first time he had done this, but it was the first time in a crowd.
'Huh? What's gotten into him? Did my lap pillow have that much effect? Shizuri, remember, you have to be patient so you have to resist.'
'Even that isn't enough?' Kamijou thought as he tried to keep up with her. He looked around, but decided it wasn't time to back off just because people were looking at them 'If I don't get one of those smiles, then she'll never be comfortable continuing what she started yesterday. I'll give her a clear message.'
"Shizuri, you were right about what you said to me yesterday" Seizing the girl's attention, he pulled her closer, feeling her tremble slightly at that gesture "I like having you this close to me"
That had been a critical attack. That amusement park had become a battleground for those two, and it was Shizuri's turn once again to try being on the defensive.
'OK... I can't take it anymore' The girl bit her lip to try to contain what she was feeling 'He's too aggressive, my defenses are crumbling here. Don't... don't… Shizuri, put those dangerous thoughts away. We have a mission today, so all I have to do is hold on for a few more minutes, it's not that hard'
Watching the girl's silent reaction, Kamijou clenched his right fist. This was a symbolic gesture that used to mean many things, but at this moment, he was getting frustrated.
'I don't understand. Has the distance between us gotten that great? She's clearly not comfortable with me grabbing her like this' he thought, with an intense look being thrown her way.
'He's looking at me in that intense way now too. I'm so happy. Just a little longer and I'll be able to tell him how much I like him.'
'What can I do to make her happy? Maybe this is not the time for that. She should be focused on the mission, while I'm acting like a selfish jerk again. But I've gone too far to back out, so I'm going to do something I should have done a long time ago.'
"Shizuri, after all this is over, how about going together to one of those places we were talking about that day?" Kamijou asked, trying to put on an upbeat tone of voice.
'Oh my god... did he just ask me out?' The tea-colored haired girl was wearing a half smile now, which didn't even come close to representing what she was feeling 'Complimenting me, grabbing me like this, and now this... Is today my birthday? Or am I dreaming?'
"That's a good idea" She replied, trying to contain the excitement in her voice "What do you want to do?"
"I'll let you choose. Whatever for me, it's the company that matters." He looked somewhere far away as he said this.
'She doesn't seem too excited about it' He sighed at that instant 'I don't want to lose her, but maybe it's too late. The universe or my misfortune is not to blame this time... and that's what hurts so much. What's the point of being able to hold the girl I like so close like this, if she's still so far away from me?'
'He's on fire today. I think I'm noticing a pattern here' This time the girl smiled, but Kamijou was contemplating the night sky as he let himself be guided by her 'That day in the park I was the one trying to get past his defenses, so now he's doing the same to me. He even took the trouble to compliment me at the park entrance, something he didn't want to do the other time. Very clever Kamijou, but I am already beginning to understand how you work. We don't have much time before the girls arrive, so I will try to make the most of it.'
Shizuri was almost right in her theory. It was true that Kamijou was trying to break down her defenses, but she missed the point of why. On the Kamijou's side, he was so focused on making her smile so that he could hear what she wanted to say to him, that his mind was ignoring other obvious signs that he would be able to notice if he wasn't in 'Tunnel vision' mode. Sometimes complicated situations have simple solutions, but those two would not realize this as long as they continued with their little games.
"And here we are in London again" Shizuri announced to the distracted boy next to her, taking care not to let an energetic tone slip.
"Let's go around, we have to get to that place where we first got 'like this'" He let go of her waist and offered his left arm for her to take.
'That's weird, he's backing off' she thought, grabbing the boy's arm 'This is my favorite 'formation', since it's kind of romantic to hold his arm like a couple in a period movie, but I wanted him to hold my waist a little longer. That's fine with me, I'll use this time to reinforce my defenses and...'
"It's so strange to think that this place will probably be destroyed today" Kamijou spoke, this time he was the one guiding the girl "But no matter, at least the promise that was made here will last until the end of time. Right, bad girl?"
Kamijou smiled radiantly, looking at the girl next to him with all the intensity those blue orbs could produce. There was no game being played by him there, it was just a boy trying to tell the girl he likes that he will not abandon her. And this girl was one step away from going crazy.
'It's been a while since he's called me that...and for some reason I've learned to like that silly nickname.'
But the girl noticed something strange at that moment, and it had to do with the smile the boy flashed. She was sure that there was something odd about that smile that seemed so natural. Shizuri was really struggling to understand Kamijou, so she had started to notice things that other people would miss.
'Is he nervous about being in public? No, there is hardly anyone else here. So, that means... he apologized to me didn't he? He still feels guilty for avoiding me. If that's it, then that means he's a little insecure?'
A shot in the dark. But it was a perfect shot. Kamijou was feeling many things at this moment, but insecurity was the thing that plagued him the most. After being treated so badly for so long, it was common for someone to start thinking that no one would ever be able to like him. This perspective had changed slightly, but something like this was not solved in such a simple way.
'If I'm right, then we'd better settle this right now' The girl looked around at those dimly lit streets 'It wasn't exactly here, but it'll have to do. It didn't take him more than a few minutes to take down all my defenses... time for the reward for his hard work'
Holding back the smile that was forming on her face, the tea-colored girl began to guide the distracted boy to a more private place. Kamijou didn't have time to understand what was happening, as he was lost in his own self-loathing thoughts, but he came to his senses when the palm of a hand touched his chest. Shizuri, the Goddess Queen of Seduction, had changed her plans for that night. The game had been canceled, she was jumping right into the celebrations.
"Huh?" Kamijou blinked in confusion. Only now did he realize that the two of them were in an alley of that fake city. "Shizuri, what -"
"Are you doing?" She finished his question and then pushed the boy with the hand that was on his chest, causing Kamijou's back to crash against the alley wall "No big deal"
The distance that was made between them after that push was closed when the girl stepped forward and completely invaded his personal space. She was so close that Kamijou could feel her hot breath on his skin.
"I just want to make one thing clear" Shizuri didn't want to play anymore, so she put the biggest smile she could on that divine face. But that smile was different from the others "Remember what you told me when we were in my room? About feeling at ease next to me?"
That smile was as seductive as her voice in that instant. Her head was tilted toward the boy, but Shizuri turned her neck to the right before the distance between the two was zeroed. Kamijou's heart must have stopped at that moment. For just an instant, he thought the girl was going to kiss him, but she only positioned her lips as close as possible to his ear.
"I also feel completely at ease when I'm with you" She whispered, being sure that this had made the boy feel a goosebump.
'That should be enough' She thought, breathing heavily 'But I'm nowhere near finished'
"Since yesterday you've been a little too bold, haven't you?" She began, taking the opportunity to slide a hand up his body, starting on his chest until she reached his shoulder "And today you just grabbed me by the waist in front of a crowd and on top of that had the nerve to ask me out. How do you think I felt when you did all that?"
"I think -"
"I liked every second of it" She interrupted his hesitant voice with that teasing whisper.
That girl stepped on the gas and had no intention of braking. This was all caused because the spiky-haired boy had read her wrong. Kamijou Touma was in a state where he didn't know what to say or think. The closeness of the older girl whispering in his ear was driving him crazy.
'What's gotten into her? This is way beyond teasing me. I thought I'd pushed her away, but she's never been this close. What do I do... what do I do?'
He certainly hadn't expected this kind of reaction from her. He thought his attacks were having no effect, but now he knew the truth. Kamijou's hands trembled a little as he thought about raising them, and luckily for him, the girl who would be standing next to him noticed.
"Something tells me you're a little indecisive. But don't worry, I have the answer to that" Shizuri spoke up, pulling her face away from his ear and holding both of the boy's hands "How about we make things more... interesting"
With a smooth motion, she guided his hands to her slim waist. But not only that, she made him grab her in the region a little above the waist, and only then slid his hands slowly to the target, making him feel the curves of her body as if he were sculpting a clay doll.
'I'm not done yet' At the thought of that, she removed her hands from his and laced his neck with her arms 'If I have no way of knowing for sure how he feels about me, then all I have to do is break this mask of his until there's nothing left. Friend he said, didn't he? Look at me Kamijou, am I interested in being your friend?'
"There. Better now, don't you think?" Shizuri asked looking him in the eye, her face inches from his. Her smile turned mischievous, she had something interesting to say "Or would you rather lower your hands a little more?"
'This is going too far' Kamijou took a deep breath as she thought this 'When does she intend to stop? When I lose control completely?'
'Come on Kamijou, lose control. You started all this, so don't stop now. I need a sign, one that makes me sure you like me as much as I like you. No more games, no more holding back... give me what I want so I can cry for joy.'
'She's so close I don't even have to strain to smell her. It's that perfume again...damn, I'm getting caught up in the moment. Come to think of it, why am I still resisting?'
'Come on... come on... come on... do something, or I'll...'
'I think I'll enjoy it just a little bit' He moved his hands slowly and then looped her waist with both arms. The two of them were embracing like a couple dancing at a ball now.
'That's... that's it. That's what I'm talking about... pull me closer and I'll show you who's the friend' She moistened her lips in a not-at-all-discreet way at that instant 'I'm going to make him take that last step. All I need is to say something to encourage him now. Time for a confidence boost.'
With the temperature rising in that dimly lit alley, Shizuri had no intention of letting the mood cool down. With one more fluid movement, she tilted her head to the right again, to whisper again in the ear of the boy with the most self-control on the face of the earth, or at least he liked to think so.
" Hey Kamijou, I've been dreaming about you lately, you know? " she revealed, making the boy shudder and increase his grip on her waist "I wake up in a good mood whenever that happens"
'She didn't even hesitate to say something so embarrassing. I just wanted to make her smile and lighten the mood, but that's a bit much... you know what? She's right, it's past time to hesitate. The girl I like is in my arms now, and I am also loving every second of it.'
Feeling more at ease now, he moved his right arm away from her waist, which disappointed her for half a second, until he used his right hand to grab her hair. Being as gentle as possible, he pushed her hair away using his hand, leaving the milky skin of her neck fully exposed, and then moved his hand down the side of her body to her waist again. Shizuri closed her eyes as she bit her lip when Kamijou made this bold move.
'That's More Like It! It looks like he is getting ready to go all out. Go ahead… You can smell my perfume all you want Kamijou, but there is a price to pay for being so bold. You need to lower your defenses when you are attacking, which means that...'
The girl's thoughts were interrupted by a simple but unexpected action. After smelling some of the fragrance on her neck, his right hand, which was on her waist, moved down slightly to her hip. As he was still enjoying that incredible perfume, his nose brushed lightly against her neck, which made her body shiver with that sensation of static electricity flowing through her.
'And now that feeling is back. I don't want to believe that what he's doing is mere teasing, but with Kamijou you never know... that's kind of exciting actually. Since I can't read him perfectly, it makes it all the more interesting. For now, I will enjoy it while he is in aggressive mode. I have something interesting in mind... actually I have several, and I'm not in the mood to put those dangerous thoughts away right now. But wait... he said he had interesting things on his mind too. I'll put him in the mood to tell me what he wants from me.'
"You seem to be quite at ease indeed, little hero. After calling me friend more than once, this is how you treat me? Don't tell me that's how you treat all your friends."
"No, you are the only one I treat like this" He said this in a low tone, but it sounded incredibly natural.
'Yes! Keep it up Kamijou' She couldn't resist the urge to lean her upper body towards him 'It's still not enough, I need more'
'I guess there's no turning back from here.' At the thought of that, he unconsciously slid his left hand up, taking the opportunity to pull her just a little closer as he felt that body that had no right to be so incredible. 'I have no way to resist something like this, so I'll stop trying'
'Yeah... he's totally in the mood. I have to look him in the eye now, but I have to back off a bit to do it and I don't want him to think he's going too far... we haven't even gotten to the best part yet.'
"So I'm getting special treatment is it?" Shizuri started to move away as slowly as she could, which was hard for her since she wanted to keep feeling his warm breath on her neck "If that's so, then I feel duty bound to give you a reward for that. How about one of those 'interesting' things you thought of?"
"Hmm... are you talking about 'that'?" He asked mysteriously, pulling his face away from her neck and looking at the Level 5's face, just in time to see her moistening her lips once again.
'I don't think I've ever felt like this in my entire life...she seems so happy when she's with me. 'That' was just a bluff, but seeing her like this...it's making me think really interesting things.'
'I don't know how much longer I can hold back with him looking at me like that'
'But I need to get something out of the way first...at this point this is just a formality'
'Is he hesitating? It's not going to happen. I'll make it even clearer.'
"Just tell me something" Shizuri said this with the sweet voice she could only emit in his presence "Anything" She began to play with his hair, which she was sure would put him at ease.
"You want to spoil me so badly, do you? None of my friends are as generous as you. That's why I think you're so amazing."
'Compliment me more...just a little bit more...I'll show you how different I am from your friends'
'That's enough. Her breathing is heavy but she doesn't seem nervous. There is no better moment than this. Time to finish what you started.'
"Before I tell you what I'm thinking, how about you telling me what you wanted to tell me yesterday? We'd better get that out of the way first don't you think?"
Kamijou was very bold today, so to make things interesting, he took the left hand that was near her hip and brought it up to Shizuri's face. And obviously he felt every inch of her body on the way, which made the girl feel goosebumps and take a deep breath, clearly trying to control her impulses.
"Yes, you are right" she replied smiling.
'Great. He realized I was reaching my limit and is giving me the last push I needed.' Level 5 looked around subtly as she thought this 'This is a good place for a confession... for someone like us. It's not exactly romantic, but it's perfect for two people with so much darkness inside.'
That girl tried to put on a 'serious' expression, to look as provocative as possible. She didn't need to muster courage, that she had plenty of. This was totally different from the time in the bedroom when she was so indecisive, or at the clothing store when she was so nervous that a caress was enough to put the brakes on. Nothing would stop her now from getting what she wanted so badly.
"Kamijou, what I was trying to say..."
Or so she thought. Shizuri stopped talking suddenly when she noticed a shadow invading that dark alley. Actually, more than one shadow. A very audible sigh full of frustration and displeasure, escaped the tea-colored girl's lips as soon as she turned her face toward the entrance of the alley.
"Really?" Meltdowner rolled her eyes at that instant "Such Misfortune"
Stealing that phrase without any shame, #4 made a neutral expression as she looked at the 3 girls responsible for disturbing such an important moment. And those girls had perplexed expressions on their faces, or two of them at least. Obviously, the 3 people frozen in place were Kinuhata, Frenda and Takitsubo.
'I can't believe it' Shizuri thought, bringing her hand to her forehead to try to control her feelings 'It seems that his bad luck is something real. There was no worse time for those three to arrive. I just needed a couple more minutes...come to think of it, I don't give a shit...yeah, why should I care? I never intended to hide anything, so I'll finish what I started today or I won't finish.'
That level 5 was so in the mood that she didn't even have the strength to pretend to care what the girls were thinking anymore. She didn't even bother to walk away from the boy out of shame or anything. All she wanted was for that 'inconvenience' to be removed so that she could finally tell the boy holding her waist how much she liked him.
"What a great time for you girls to show up...is this a damn joke?" Shizuri looked quite annoyed. Kamijou tried to remove his hand from her waist at that instant, but she noticed this and intercepted his hand. "Let me go now and I won't be responsible for stray shots from my Meltdowner"
"Basically, what are you two doing?" The first to come back from downtime was Frenda. She started tapping her foot nervously, looking at that scene before her eyes not wanting to believe it "Aren't we supposed to be on a mission? Why you two... why..." She began to stammer and then looked away blushing furiously with embarrassment.
"That's super bold Kami-chan, I like it" Kinuhata had a completely different reaction from the blonde. She smiled at a Kamijou who had no idea what to talk or do at the moment.
"Stop calling him that damn nickname you…" Level 5 forced herself to try to stay calm as she noticed something odd.'
'Wait a second, is she supporting this? Not the reaction I expected. Anyway, I need to tell him how I feel so I have no choice but to send them away'
"Ok girls, as you can see, we were having an important conversation here, so if you'll excuse us" She held out her arm and twirled two fingers in the air, an impatient gesture that made it clear that those 3 arrived at a very bad time.
"Shizuri, I think our time is up here" Kamijou affirmed, trying to pull away from the girl, but she looped his neck again. "We have a mission remember?"
"I'm sure we have another minute or two left" Argued Level 5, in a sly and seductive voice.
At that instant, even Takitsubo's eyes widened and both eyebrows were raised at the sight of her boss acting this way, she looked like a totally different person for a moment. Kinuhata just cracked another smile and put a thumb up, and Frenda was blushing so much that she would soon arrive at the gates of Valhalla.
"I know, but wouldn't you rather do it a little more… calmly? Remember, I still need to tell you what I want as a reward" Kamijou had indeed chosen violence today.
'Damn. He's playing dirty... again' #4 thought, starting to gasp at the absurd amount of different emotions she was feeling in that instant 'The worst part is that he's right, the mood has been completely ruined now. Goddamnit universe, just let us be happy you fucking sadist'
"Fine" Meltdowner withdrew the arms that were around his neck and began to move away in a hesitant manner "But there is a limit to how much you can keep a girl waiting"
"Something tells me you won't have to wait much longer" He whispered this only to her, which made the girl stop her movement as she felt his breath close to her ear.
'Don't tempt me... not now' thought the tea-colored haired girl 'Are you trying to make me put on a show for this audience?'
It was the boy who decided to move away from her, since Shizuri was too stunned to move at that moment. Releasing her waist, he put both hands in his pockets and left the alley.
"Girls, I think we'd better get started"
xxxx-xxxx
Meanwhile, in a luxurious apartment in district 7, a blonde girl wearing a fancy dress was lying on a sofa. She had a bored expression on her face as she pressed the button on the remote control in her hand.
"So many channels and nothing decent? Then they wonder why young people prefer to use the Internet instead of watching TV" She sighed and pressed the off button.
Lying on her stomach now, she tried to relax a little on that comfortable sofa. Gokusai Kaibi was in a dangerous situation at the moment, to say the least. She had made a complicated choice, which led to her being stuck in this apartment until everything was solved. The problem was that she had no idea what 'everyting solved' meant in that situation. And now she was alone and unarmed in an apartment owned by an enemy faction.
"I made the best choice, I'm sure of it" Her voice came out weak and muffled "But the problem with choosing between two scary guys, is that no matter what I chose,I will still be in their crossfire...and one of them I don't even know if he's still human"
A shiver made the girl shudder when she said it aloud. Shaking her head, as a ritual to push away memories she didn't want to take shape in her mind, she gasped for a few seconds before calming herself and closing her eyes, only to have to open them again when a melody played.
"Huh?" The blonde spy lay on her back and picked up her cell phone immediately "There was no worse time for something like this"
The ideal thing to do when someone doesn't want to be detected is to turn off your phone, or better yet, use a disposable one, but this would draw attention from the group she belonged to since it was something she didn't usually do. She had expected that at some point she would receive this call, but this did not prepare her for this moment. The girl in the dress stared at the ceiling above her for a few seconds, taking a deep breath and finally answering the call that could change everything.
xxxx-xxxx
"Everyone with their communicators ready?" Kamijou asked, testing the connection with the three girls who had turned away from him.
"All super ready here" Kinuhata replied, with a serious tone of voice.
"Basically, this thing is annoying" Frenda said, a little annoyed. "Didn't you have a more comfortable earpiece?"
"Can you leave your complaints for later Frenda?" Shizuri was in a calm and focused voice "Are you two in position yet?"
"Not yet" Kamijou said this and removed his finger from his discreet earpiece.
The amusement park was almost closing by now, so this was the best time for them to start. Activating his L.I.B, Kamijou looked up to the top of one of the houses and gestured for Takitsubo next to him to approach. Using his new item, he had the two of them pulled up to the surprisingly sturdy roof of that 'fake' house.
"Hey, I have a gift for you" Kamijou took something from inside his jacket and offered it to the lethargic girl next to him.
"That's... Ability Crystal. It's the stable version too. I don't understand how you do things, so I won't ask anything. Thank you."
"You're welcome. I have to go now. I'm counting on you."
Throwing himself out of the house and slowing down with his grappling hook, Kamijou entered an alley and took a finger to his ear.
"Takitsubo is in position. Wait for her orders" He spoke, ducking down to reduce his visibility.
All the girls responded with an 'understood'. The ITEM had a simple purpose here, they needed to use the elevator that was in this part of the park, but to do so they needed three identification devices that were on the clothes of some guards roaming the perimeter. Earlier, Kamijou and Takitsubo confirmed that all the guards emit an AIM field, which would make things simpler. The theory is that these guards were former Skill-outs who left their gangs to make some easy money. That made sense since they all looked so young. Not only that, but hiring teachers or someone from the outside would draw much more attention.
"Most are walking in large groups" Takitsubo said over the communicator "There are two walking towards you Kamijou. Frenda move east, about 100 meters. Kinuhata and Mugino, there is no one to see the package, call the drone"
Looking down the street, Kamijou spotted one of his targets. Takitsubo said there were two, meaning they were using the strategy of pretending to be alone while one of them watched their backs, a common thing the boy usually saw in his infiltrations. This would be a problem, but he had backup this time.
"Frenda, do you see the other one?" The spiky-haired boy asked, knowing that the blonde was nearby.
"Positive. Basically, I'm ready when you are"
"Wait" Takitsubo warned "Gather around and wait for my signal. Kinuhata, you have one alone, northeast, 30 meters. Mugino, time for distraction."
The distraction came in the next instant. A Meltdowner beam was fired toward one of the drones that was carrying supplies. A guard's standard procedure was to warn when he saw something strange happening, instead of checking it out himself as was common in some games. This caused something equivalent to being on 'alert', which seemed like a bad thing, but with Takitsubo knowing exactly where each guard was, this would work in their favor.
"They are distracted, this is your chance"
With the order given, Kamijou and Frenda came out of their hiding place. They didn't even have to try to sneak up on the distracted guards. As soon as the two entered each other's field of vision, Kamijou made a subtle signal, as if he was choosing his target. Understanding this, the blonde ran to the guard farthest away from the alley Kamijou was in. The boy watched as she took something that looked like a thin rope and tied it around the neck of the poor guard who began to suffocate. The victim's partner noticed the movement a few meters away, but the spiky-haired boy was faster, applying a sleeper hold on his target, who also began to suffocate until he lost consciousness.
"All clear here" Kamijou warned, placing the guard on his shoulder.
"All super clear here too" Kinuhata replied.
The plan was going perfectly so far. The next steps would be a little more complicated. They needed to meet at the entrance of the facility before procceding with the next step of the plan, which was a place that looked like a factory from the time of the industrial revolution, at least from the outside. The teams would meet there after getting the three necessary devices and tying up the guards. The idea was to leave the guards knocked out on the rooftops, since it was almost impossible for any guard to find them there.
"Takitsubo, is it safe to come straight to you?" Kamijou asked, finishing tying his knocked out guard with duct tape, remembering to put some tape over his mouth to keep him from screaming when he woke up.
"Yes. All the guards in this area are being attracted by the distraction"
Kamijou left Frenda behind and used his hook to help Takitsubo get down from the roof. With AIM Stalker's instructions, the entire ITEM team managed to gather in that 'Factory' without being noticed by any guards. The wooden double doors opened with a creak. The place obviously didn't look like a factory internally, since everything there was 'fake'. It was just a giant, dimly lit room with nothing inside.
"Time to super change our clothes" Kinuhata said, placing a huge black bag on the floor.
The drone that was 'called in' earlier was not one that this facility was using. For this infiltration they needed equipment, and these delivery drones served this purpose very well.
They couldn't just walk into the facility the way they were. The clothing worn by the guards was similar to what Anti-Skill wore, but without any kind of logo or anything that would identify them as an organization. With the right contacts, it was easy to get clothes that were similar enough not to attract attention from anyone once they were inside.
"I need to recalibrate these devices" Kamijou warned "A random sequence will not do for -"
"Kamijou, could you turn around?" interrupted Takitsubo, holding up her cover.
"What? You're not planning to take your clothes off to put these on are you?" The boy was slightly confused "Just put it on over your gym clothes."
"She's right, Kami-chan" Kinuhata put her hand on her chin "Those clothes are too tight for us to super wear over ours. That might draw attention."
"Wait a minute, what do you mean tight? Don't tell me you guys ordered clothes exactly your size?" When he asked this, all four girls looked away in embarrassment "Are you fucking kidding me?"
It seems that Shizuri was having a negative influence on Kamijou, considering his foul mouth. He let out a disappointed sigh as he rubbed his forehead trying to understand where he had gone wrong. The Level 0 looked like a demanding father trying to deal with a rebellious daughter and failing miserably.
"Just turn around, don't make a big deal out of something so simple" Shizuri said, for some reason she was smirking "Don't go peek at us and put the blame on your misfortune by saying it was an 'accident'."
"Yeah, yeah... very funny Shizuri-chan. Laugh at my misfortune all you want, one day you'll understand what I'm talking about."
Upon hearing that, Meltdowner suddenly became serious. She was actually beginning to believe that Kamijou's 'misfortune' was real.
Stepping away from the girls and turning around, Kamijou held his disguise and began to put it on over his clothes, since unlike the girls, he asked for a number that allowed him to do this. Since the 4 girls were still changing clothes, he took the opportunity to make the necessary adjustments to those 3 devices. Using his flash drive connected to his cell phone, he sent a message to Uiharu. Having 3 random devices was not enough, he needed to tamper with them to use the elevator, something simple for his hacker friend. But he had a big problem here: He had to be discreet, but how would he do that if he couldn't look back?
'Damn, this is both the best and worst time to do this. What are the chances that someone is watching what I'm doing? Never mind... sorry Uiharu, but I don't want to be attacked by four dark side assassins at the same time. If they find out about your involvement, it won't be so bad, will it?'
"Eh? Takitsubo, why the hell are you taking off your bra?" asked Shizuri, making the normal high school boy suddenly turn pale "Are you trying to demonstrate your superiority or something?"
"No, that was an accident" AIM Stalker protested.
"Wow, you hide some super weapons there, huh?" Commented Kinuhata "How do I cultivate something of your level?"
"Basically, that's unfair" Complained Frenda "But I don't need to worry, I'm a growing girl after all, humph!"
"Why did you guys stop changing to talk about this?" Kamijou almost shouted upon hearing those comments stimulating his imagination "There's a high school boy right here did you know?"
"You live with us, so you better get used to it" Shizuri replied "And just so you know, I'm a level 5 in that department too"
Kamijou heard a soft noise at that moment, something like a thin cloth falling to the ground. His senses seemed to be getting sharper for some reason, or maybe he was just hearing things?
"Oh... my god" It was Takitsubo who reacted like this "I think I lose"
"It's obvious little darling, I always win" Shizuri said with an arrogant tone.
"Now that's winning the genetic super lottery" Kinuhata added, sounding impressed "Now I understand what they mean by the most destructive power in Academy City"
"Basically, that was unnecessary. You two are clearly showing off."
"I just wanted to make clear the difference in power between us. A level 5 like me can defeat a hundred like you without needing to lift a finger "
"Geez, don't super cross your arms like that. Frenda is right, you're just showing off. I hope you have back pain."
"I can make that work in my favor too" Shizuri giggled after saying that "Maybe I should ask a certain someone for a back massage after we finish this"
"Shizuri, could you hurry up there?" asked Kamijou, covering his eyes with his hands to make sure a 'misfortune' didn't happen "We're in the middle of the mission. We don't have time for such a long fan service scene."
Surprisingly, nothing happened in the minutes the girls spent getting dressed appropriately. The misfortune of the spiky-haired boy had done its work today after all. Kamijou looked at his cell phone screen, which now displayed a black screen with a sequence of characters that made no sense to him. His friend had already tried to explain concepts like 'cryptography', 'matrices' and 'algorithms', but of course the boy was confused by half the explanation and misunderstood the other half. So all he could do was wait while holding those 3 card-shaped devices and hoping nothing would go wrong.
"How are you doing this?" Shizuri asked, looking at the boy's cell phone "These devices are like access keys right? The hardware used must have a very closed system. You don't seem to be using a brute force method."
"I am using the potential of cloud computing to speed up the process, so technically it still counts as a brute force method" He replied, almost breaking into a cold sweat as he spoke one of the vague phrases his friend taught him for these moments.
"Hmm... that's interesting. I'm not an expert on the subject but that seems plausible. Do you think we will have communication with the servers when we go in?"
"I can't say. But let's keep optimism."
"Let's hope we don't need to use this then, since if we're going to consider how bad your luck is..." She muttered something with a disappointed tone after that, but Kamijou didn't understand a single word.
The other girls also gathered around those two. The tampering process didn't take long, so they were ready for the second phase of the plan. Kamijou raised her right hand, showing the 3 access cards. The first girl to take the initiative was Takitsubo, raising her hand to take one of the cards.
"Basically, I liked the blue one. It matches my eyes so I'll take that one" Frenda took the white card with a blue stripe down the side and put it in the front pocket of the black outfit she was wearing.
The inexpressive girl's raised hand recoiled as Frenda picked up the card she had chosen. That blue card was an 'Alpha', used to symbolize an officer of slightly higher rank than the others.
"You know these things super stick to your clothes like a badge, right?" Kinuhata asked trying to take the green card from Kamijou's hand.
"Not so fast" But Shizuri intercepted her, taking the card and sticking it to her clothes "Frenda already took the most important one, so I, at least, should get the second best one"
"That's quite reasonable of you, by the way" The spiky haired boy commented on that as he stuck the last card, the red one, to his chest region "Frenda the Alpha, me and Shizuri the omegas 1 and 2. Not quite the formation I had planned but everyone here has studied the plan, right?"
"Don't underestimate ITEM Kamijou" replied Shizuri, proud of her team "We are always prepared for anything"
"That's good to hear, but Frenda still needs to stick her 'badge' on" Pointed the boy, making the blonde correct her mistake as she blushed with embarrassment "If no one has anything to say... follow me"
The group walked to the back of the empty room. The three in possession of the cards already knew what to do. To access the elevator, one Alpha and two Omegas needed to face the elevator entrance, which was hidden in the wall. Like a secret entrance to a dungeon, the wall opened up, revealing a giant freight elevator.
"Kami-chan, you forgot this" Kinuhata handed him an assault rifle and a riot shield similar to the ones Anti-Skill uses but this one was foldable and portable. He grimaced as he looked at that gun, "Don't worry, it's super out of ammo. It's just to complete the disguise."
He accepted the weapon and the shield with a certain reluctance. Kamijou really didn't feel comfortable holding something like this, even if it was technically harmless, but it was necessary at the moment.
"Basically, this bag is too heavy" Frenda complained, as the group entered the elevator "I'm not the Alpha? Why am I doing all the heavy lifting?"
"You're the super explosives expert. And how come you're doing all the work?" Kinuhata also complained, displaying the other bag with her "Don't tell me you chose the blue badge for that super silly reason?"
"Oh my God, shut the hell up! Are you two going to stop fighting over every little thing someday?" Shizuri said that and punched the elevator button.
'These two are making it seem like my group is a bunch of misfits. Stop embarrassing me in front of the guy I like."
Even with the infighting, everything was going as planned, or almost everything. Takitsubo was quieter than usual. Kamijou could not relax. He hoped she would give more information about the people in the facility, but they wouldn't have to worry about something like that at the moment, so he would let her rest in her world.
"Kamijou," Shizuri called softly, "It's going to be okay, I promise. Our group may seem a little clumsy at times, but that's only because we do it often enough so we feel quite comfortable in the field. You've made a perfect plan, no need to look so worried.'
The spiky-haired boy looked at her and curved his lip slightly. A right hand was raised and stopped at that soft tea-colored hair.
"There is no perfect plan...not with me here, but thanks for calming me down"
"You're welcome. I am always here for you."
'She is really amazing. I wonder if she knows I like her. I was too bold today, I got carried away in the moment...it's like I'm someone else when around her. Is it safe to say that she has figured it out?'
The question to that answer would not be answered, at least not now. At the moment, that boy had more things to worry about. The elevator had stopped on the only floor available to them, the smaller supply depot. Kamijou knew from all the information he had gathered that there were other entrances to the facility, one of which they would use to escape from here, but this entrance only allowed them to come this far. If they wanted to continue to their next objective, they would have to take a second elevator to the heavy cargo floor, where were several containers with spare equipment and materials. But for now, they would have to go through the second layer of security in the place.
"Everyone stay calm and stick to the plan" Shizuri spoke, taking a step out of the elevator.
That supply warehouse was not as full of people as they thought it would be. Those evenly dressed employees didn't look like scientists, which meant that they were just employees hired to do the tedious work. Some robots resembling the cleaning and security ones that Academy City used also wandered amidst the wooden boxes. The five teenagers began to walk leisurely to the next elevator, taking care not to look directly in the direction of a guard who worked on the surface. The reason the first elevator did not take them directly to their objective was very simple: the place worked with multiple layers of security against intrusions, and that was why this first elevator would only take them here. Their access keys alone would not work to activate the second elevator, since it required a voice command and retina test from an employee responsible for preventing intruders like them from advancing to the most important floors .
"Hold it right there" A young man with straight black hair who looked to be about 18 years old raised his hand to the group. "There are no requests for supplies for that time. Where is the 11-C group?"
This was the employee responsible for operating the elevator using voice commands. His clothes were the same as the ones Kamijou's group was wearing but he had a golden device attached to his clothes.
"Basically, they must be busy with the faulty drones" Frenda replied, with the most neutral expression she could make. "We are with the emergency spare parts, so we have priority"
"Hmm... hold on a moment" The man put a finger to his ear as he looked at that group he was sure he had never seen before "This is GOLDEN D4D. I need confirmation if we are having problems with drones on the surface"
The reason for the distraction caused by Shizuri was not only to allow them to operate better on the surface, it was also crucial for this time. If one group was expected at this time but another showed up instead it would be very suspicious, but if an investigation was being done on the surface it was common for another group that was free to take over, or even the shipments could change times. Of course for this to work it would depend on many factors, but as Kamijou had said, there was no perfect plan.
"Understood" Said the employee, with a somewhat suspicious expression.
The ITEM group needed to keep the best poker face they could at that instant. If one of them acted suspiciously, the plan would fail immediately. The official looked at each face individually, stopping at Frenda's.
"You look very young for your position" He stated to the explosive blonde, who kept her posture relaxed and her face perfectly expressionless "Anyway, I'm no one to judge. Come on in, we haven't got all night."
The man made room for the five of them to enter that very modern looking elevator with its mirrored metal surfaces. Sighs of relief had to be held in that instant. Kamijou was quite worried for a moment, but Shizuri was right, they were all professionals, Frenda had proven this with her impressive performance.
"Heavy cargo, I presume" The young man said, receiving only a nod in response. He positioned his eye on the retinal scanner "Voice confirmation. Heavy cargo storage."
When the employee said this, the elevator began to slowly descend. An uneasy silence settled over that group, until it was broken by the young man in charge of that elevator.
"I don't remember seeing you guys before" Commented the young man, still alternating his gaze on those suspicious faces.
"This place has many guards, it is common that you forget some of them." Kinuhata replied, holding that bag of supplies tighter than necessary.
"You're right. I am a level 0 after all, not a genius or a disaster. But I'm sure I wouldn't forget a group with 4 girls so... attractive" He also started to examine the girls' bodies in those tight outfits.
"That was disgusting" Shizuri didn't like the comment and that look one bit, if you were to judge by the annoyed look on her face "You think you can just harass me like that? Listen here you pi-"
"Shizuri, that's enough" Kamijou said softly to the girl on his left side, making her realize she was going too far.
"We are new here, and we don't usually use this elevator, that's all" Shizuri spoke, trying to pull herself together.
'I have to try to keep calm, if this plan fails he will be disappointed. But... the audacity of this Bastard, giving me such a disgusting look in front of Kamijou. I don't need praise from a low-life asshole.'
"I understand. We are having a lot of hiring lately. Increased security because of information leaks or something, that's what I've heard" The young man cleared his throat and alternated his gaze again "Voice confirmation, stop elevator"
That was the moment when everyone in the elevator, except Takitsubo, took a deep breath. They had not yet reached their destination, and now the elevator had been stopped halfway with that command.
"I don't usually need to do that, but it's always good to follow protocol once in a while, don't you think?" Asked the young man suspiciously, to no one in particular "I need the confirmation code A-Blue22r "
The invaders remained calm at that moment, and the reason for this was very simple. Kamijou's plan had countermeasures for something like this. This kind of confirmation code was expected, and luckily he had a list of all of them. Not only that, but he had all the girls there memorize this list to ensure that if they had to change the plan because of something unforeseen, they would not be discovered, making everything more flexible.
"What are you waiting for?" the young man was getting impatient.
At that instant, 3 of the 4 others members of the ITEM group looked at Frenda, as Takitsubo was still trapped in her world, perhaps a side effect of using her powers like that.
"Oh... the confirmation code" Frenda looked in the man's direction "Basically, could you repeat it?"
In response to this, the same three members slapped their foreheads to contain their nervousness. But something else happened at that instant. Just as Kamijou moved his right hand to bring it to his head, the tip of one of his fingers lightly touched the lethargic girl beside him, which was enough for her to react, briefly returning her attention to the universe around her.
"A-Blue22r" the man repeated, crossing his arms inquisitively.
"J-S06" The response came instantly, but it wasn't the blonde who had said that, but rather the inexpressive girl who was 'awakened' with that slight accidental touch.
"Correct" Answered the man.
Yes, that had been a perfect answer. Takitsubo always tried her best to be as helpful as possible, which meant that she had memorized the entire list of codes to such an extent that an instant response like that was as easy for her as breathing. Then the next move made by Kinuhata, who was standing right next to the man, seemed strange in her vision.
It happened instantly too, Offense Armor activated its ability and hit the side of the man, who crashed violently into the mirrored metal surface, losing consciousness immediately. The reaction of everyone there ranged from confusion to neutrality to disbelief.
"What? Basically, have you gone crazy Kinuhata?" Frenda was the person displaying the confused expression "Why did you do that, Takitsubo gave the right answer...she gave the right answer didn't she?" She wasn't so sure anymore.
"Yes, she did" Shizuri said that and pointed to the blue card on Frenda's clothes "And that was the problem"
Yes. The problem here is that a perfect answer is not always ideal in every situation. If Takitsubo had remained quiet in her world, everything would be fine, that was the real right answer. As said before, Kamijou's plan was made to have some Flexibility. For example, it took into account if the distraction was not as effective and the members needed to split up for longer. There were even scenarios where only 3 people would enter and then wait for the others inside the facility to be discreet, but the plan was going so perfectly that none of these scenarios happened.
"I... am not with the Alpha card" Takitsubo brought her hand to where that blue card should be, realizing her mistake.
What had happened can only be described as a 'chain of small misfortunes'. Takitsubo had told Kamijou earlier that she wanted to feel as useful as possible, that was the reason for her request to him. She was striving to do everything perfectly, which was why she tried to get the Alpha card when they were on the surface. The inexpressive girl had full confidence that she could say any code requested without problem, however, Frenda grabbed the card before she could. At that moment, she realized that she would not be useful for the time being, so she decided to return to her default state, paying attention only to what was necessary while trying to notice any strange movements using her ability. Again, she wanted to be useful. But in Frenda's moment of hesitation, that right hand had lightly touched her AIM field, which was enough for her to lose concentration for a tiny fraction of a second. Right then, the confirmation code was asked, and like the perfect student that she was, the answer was given automatically, an answer she should not have been able to answer.
"Such Misfortune" Kamijou held his head with both hands as he saw his plan begin to crumble before his eyes.
The situation had gotten complicated now. The ITEM group was stuck in that elevator in the middle of the enemy base. It was only a matter of time before the enemies realized that something was wrong, and when that happened, the whole place would go on full alert.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Well... well. Welcome to the bottom again. In this chapter we had a reappearance of a character that must be making people confused, Shizuri and Kamijou deepening their feelings for each other, and a 'perfect' plan ruined by a 'perfect' answer.
A recurring theme in the novels, is that people usually act differently when they are around the ones they like. A good example is Shirai and Shokuhou, the latter even calls herself stupid for acting this way around our "Hero". This is somewhat 'realistic', so it would be no different with Kamijou and Shizuri. Another thing is how these two are mimicking each other, which is also something that people who like each other do.
Also, we cannot forget Kamijou's misfortune. It was obvious that the plan would not go perfectly, the universe hates this guy in the end.
Let's take a look at these reviews:
aiman031122: It's great that you are enjoying it. This story focuses on the relationship between these two, but girls will continue to fall in love with Kamijou just like in the novels.
Toumafukoda: Thank you my guy.
5queso: I will try my best to write their relationship in a way that is 'realistic' and at the same time that I think fits with a 'fantasy' world. I hope you are doing well in school. Thank you very much and see you next time.
Xellos540: You are partly right about how Kamijou feels about engaging with girls. He is afraid that a girl will trust him too much and Tokiwadai's Ant story will repeat itself. You will have details at a future time. I think you get where I'm going with Shizuri and Mikoto randomly meeting like this xD. This scene of Mikoto admitting something like this on a park bench is a reference to a scene from the Railgun manga. This is a minor spoiler, but the place Kamijou meets Junko here is the same place he first sees her in canon(IIRC). If you are in doubt if something is a reference in my story, then it is for sure a reference(LOL), seriously, I don't think there is a single chapter that I didn't reference something, some are just more subtle than others. Are you talking about the mess that Shizuri made? That was in the dining room and he didn't have time to check it out. I was trying to say that the two pieces of clothing are pink, but the shorts are made of velvet. The Imagine Breaker is the reference point of the universe, or so Ollerus said, and Othinus used it to restore the world so it served her well. This about precognition being able to be used in this way has not been confirmed, but Kihara Gensei has a kind of 'precognition' that allows him to do this kind of thing because he has spent a lot of time working with people on the dark side, so I am applying the same logic as him here, since Kamijou occasionally makes a leap of logic that barely makes sense and he admits that he always says random things and then see how the peaple reacts and then continues from there. Now that I've stopped to think about it, there must be some people reading this fic who haven't finished GT yet. Maybe I should edit the spoilers I gave in my comments and notes or at least give a warning. Thanks as usual.
Guest: I'm glad you're enjoying how I'm dealing with the psychological side of the characters. Takitsubo has the potential to be number 1, but the resources needed to make her a level 5 are gigantic, but you can never predict what Kamachi is planning.
Guest(Anonymous): Hamazura will appear in this Fic but it will take a long time
Kai: To tell you the truth, I have watched some 'novelas' when I was younger, maybe that's where the influence comes from.
DJAA: I really appreciate that. I probably won't make it in every chapter but I always try to write at least one Kamijou x Shizuri moment per chapter.
We had a pretty spicy scene in this chapter. I guess I have to start improving my descriptions for future moments like this, don't I? That is all I have for you today. Nio leaving.
