"What am I, the great Shirai Kuroko, doing here cleaning up the mess of these people?"
She asked for the hundredth time, knowing that the only response to her woes was continued silence. Despite her intelligence – and her own self awareness – Shirai Kuroko still could not stop herself from asking such questions. It was the only means by which Kuroko could entertain herself in the sunset-lit classroom. The classroom which she had been assigned to clean.
With carefree and lackadaisical movement, she slid the eraser across the chalkboard, erasing the white remains of the day. It was already five in the afternoon and the sun still hadn't set – it wouldn't do so until the clock hit seven, much to Kuroko's vexation.
That's why her teachers – well, the teacher from her last period – had decided to punish her. Kuroko, alone, had been assigned to clean one of those abandoned classrooms for reasons that the teachers had described as 'insubordination', when Kuroko had only suggested to not use a mathematics formula that was decisively unhelpful, since it only made the process more complicated than it actually was.
(If asked about it, Kuroko certainly had a lot of things to say: like shoving her foot up that teacher''s ass. I mean, really? She didn't deserve getting that chalk thrown straight at her forehead!)
Tsuchimikado and Aogami were supposed to accompany her for the night – the three of them were meant to clean their homeroom, but the pair had ditched her at the first second. The moment she looked back, she saw the two guys climbing over the metal fence at the school's border.
"Thank you Kuro-nyan! Your good faith sacrifice will be sung by heaven and its cherubim choirs!" Tsukimikado yelled before bouncing off of the fence, followed by Aogami who was waving cheekily at her, as they disappeared from view.
Shirai Kuroko felt that they were dumb for skipping work, fully knowing that they would only get today's chore doubled up, with an extra amount on top for tomorrow's punishment. Kuroko didn't even need to snitch, she knew those two would be dealt with in time. She insisted and reminded them already but they were too pigheaded to listen to her.
She did feel annoyed that she had been left alone… but then again, they would have no doubt tested her patience, she wouldn't have known what to do with their cold bodies afterwards.
Regardless, it was July 18. Two days before summer vacation finally began.
Yes, that was to blame. It was the reason the people around her started becoming more carefree, more easygoing, more mellowed out, since their brain started being affected by the summer heat, turning it into mush as soon as the word 'summer vacation' entered their feeble minds.
Shirai Kuroko wouldn't deny that she was also one of those folks who was looking forward to summer, but not in a hopeful way like those youth stricken teens, since she needed to be cautious of mishaps that tended to happen around her.
Two days before she could get back to the miserable chasm which she called her apartment. It was her own misgiving that it was miserable – it had been three years since she had started living there, and she still hadn't found the time to decorate her home. There was plenty of time to consider it, but for Shirai Kuroko, it was never enough.
Kuroko had already planned how her two and a half months would go: from the start to the end, all of it neatly planned, written and pinned on the calendar that she had in her kitchen. She hoped for only minor inconveniences to happen in those weeks, the ones that wouldn't completely upend her plans.
For example: the Level 0 had two days to finish the work that her teachers had assigned her to make up for her lack of punctuality this school semester. She was close to finishing – she just needed to write one more paper, submit it,and then? Then she'll be as careless as she wanted, and not as stressed during summer vacation.
Just thinking about it made this whole ordeal less annoying to deal with.
Oh, sweet summer vacation. How Kuroko yearned for it.
Eagerly she tried to clean the room as fast as she could, tripping over the legs of some chairs. Getting her blouse caught on some upturned crooked metal certainly made her mood worse, but she still kept going. Singing to herself to occupy her impatient mind and holding tightly to the broom in her hands, as to not let it slip.
"The future seems so bright! But why is mine so dark!~" She hummed. Despite knowing how little it did to make her mood better, she at least tried, and that's all that matters
Kuroko was making good progress. She was quite speedy for one person, to clean an entire room so fast, considering that it only took her an hour. Her clothes were now dusty and dirty from where she'd tripped while carrying some boxes earlier. She noted to herself to not overestimate her box carrying ability, even when it was more efficient to do so. Kuroko didn't want to get toppled by a swarm of cardboard boxes again. It was hard getting out
At least she was finally done, and with an hour to spare too. She could go home, but Kuroko thought it wouldn't hurt to sweep through the room again and clean up any remnants that she may have missed. When it comes to housework, Kuroko was methodical with her actions.
Who would have thought living alone for years could be useful?
Certainly not her, and definitely not the guy sitting on the window sill with no sense of safety or caution.
Wait just a minute…?
In her deep musing something appeared in front of her. Something black, something spiky, and, well, something human.
The thing she noticed first was how familiar his white collared shirt was. It reminded her of her own highschool's uniform. It fitted him nicely, as if he was a part of the institution, although he wore it against the school's regulations. The buttons on his shirt uniform were left open and bare. Underneath the collared shirt was a regular orange T-shirt. His shoes were bright red sneakers. The only thing that he was wearing according to regulations was his black shaggy slacks.
Shirai Kuroko had been taught good manners by her parents. She remembered every lesson drilled into her for the sake of becoming the perfect representative of White Spring Holdings. One of those lessons is that "staring is impolite" which is a fairly obtuse lesson, but her parents still instilled within Kuroko, nevertheless.
"Hi?" A crooked smile spread across his face, his blue eyes seemed to brighten up when he noticed Kuroko blatantly staring in his direction. The creases on his brow smoothened before Kuroko could point it out.
(His smile reminded Kuroko of someone, and she wonders why.)
"Oh, sorry! Am I interrupting something?" His tone was…humorous. He didn't jump down off the sill, instead choosing to float towards her. That's right, He floated. "I was really willing to wait for you before appearing but, eh, Imagine Breaker's got a mind of its own, y'know." he said.
Kuroko, still holding the broom in her hand, pointed it in his direction. A warning that he understood, but didn't seem to consider. He just tilted his head to the side. like an innocent dog who had done nothing wrong in its life.
But
Shirai Kuroko's right hand held a supernatural power.
Like what the man said, It was named Imagine Breaker. It could negate even the systems of God seen in myths in a single strike, so long as it was a supernatural power that exceeded the ordinary.
So….
How did he know about this ability? Or, its name, even. Kuroko had never gone out of her way to blab anything about her right hand. No one would believe it anyways, saying you have an ability to negate anything unnatural, but that it was also useless among the ordinary. It reeked of lies… and coming from her, people would think that she might be delusional.
Being named the god of pestilence is more acceptable than getting called the harlot queen of delusions, she supposed.
The man, the guy, The—!
"Argh!" Kuroko scratched her head irritatingly. "What are you?" She demanded an answer, pointing her broom at this person's face.Not that it would work, when he can phase through it like a ghost.
Wait just a minute…
"You know, that sort of thing can't do anything to me."
He didn't need to mention that, Kuroko had two working eyes.
"Not when I'm dead."
His words were grim but his smile only went wider.
"NnnnNNYAA!!"
Kuroko dropped her broom at the sudden epiphany. There were two choices in her head: run, or dispel this guy with her right hand.
See, Shirai Kuroko was raised to pick her own battles. Consider if she can win with little to no risk. This scenario was forcing Kuroko to relive the lessons her parents had taught her. She has her chips on the table, she can win this battle if she tries, and she knows with her superior set of skills that she'd win in a landslide.
But
Shirai Kuroko was also a coward, a spineless person that fears the unknown and the apparitions. With the power of her right hand, shouldn't she be the person that should be feared by these supernatural beings? She was a force to be reckoned with. If there was a god, they would tremble in fear from her right hand. And yet, she shrivels up like a withered plant when faced with things that cease to exist.
She herself has the power to destroy anything, and yet the very thing that her right hand can destroy is what she fears the most.
The irony strikes hot, like the torrid heat of a branding iron.
Running sounds like the best option she had, and so she ran… or, tried to at least. Instead, she tripped over air, over nothing.
It was embarrassing!
Before she could even collect herself, the man stared at her, a guffaw erupting from his throat, laughing at the mishaps she had so eloquently displayed.
Shirai Kuroko is a coward. But she also has her pride.
Rising up from the ground, Kuroko dashed to touch the ghost in front of her with blazing cheeks.
Her hand met his chest. Without a second of delay, the man disappeared into a spectral mist, his image scattering in the wind. The ghost in front of her was now gone.
He should be. Except that he wasn't– The mist that she saw earlier slowly came together, reforming in to the previous image of the teen that had been before he.
He stared at Kuroko with eyes that can only be described as sympathetic.
To hell with that! Kuroko just wanted him gone! And so she lunged forward again and again and again, until the man could only look at her with mild annoyance.
"This is pointless." He said, raising his right hand with so much ease that somehow it made Kuroko silently pray to god. "You know that, no matter how many times you try to use the Imagine Breaker on me, I'll still be here… right?"
"Yes."
"...So, why are you still doing it?"
Kuroko looked up, meeting his gaze, and solemnly said: "If I can't punch myself out of something, then surely nothing is real." Even if she knew it had no effect, at this point, she was just saving face.
The man, or the ghost (At this point, Kuroko was honestly too confused to appoint a noun that would better describe him), glanced at her. His brows curled and lips pursed, just a smidge of confusion painted along his sharp features.
"You're a bit different from what I remember you being like." He said, scratching the back of his neck. The way he shuddered felt like he had remembered something unpleasant. "I don't know how to feel about this… ."
"Then don't try to understand. That's what I would do in your situation." Kuroko suggested, taking a step or two back, away from this weird guy. She picked up the abandoned broom she had dropped earlier, beginning to take it back to its store room. Which was behind the gymnasium. That was a ten minute walk from here to there.
Maybe she can just leave it in the classroom…?
(Shirai Kuroko already knew that she, in fact, cannot do it. And If she did, well, that math teacher of hers would blow a gasket about it. Nagging and complaining how she was far too useless, that she didn't finish doing something so simple that even a toddler can do.)
"But I can't do that. I'm here for a reason, You know ghosts exist because they have unfulfilled desires from their lives, right?"
Kuroko didn't stop. She just ignored the person and never looked back.
"Stop! Where are you going!? I need to talk to you about what's gonna happen tomorrow!"
"..."
"Don't ignore me–! H-Hey! Stop walking away! JUST LISTEN!!"
There were two-point-three million people in Academy city. Eighty percent of them were students, leaving the last twenty percent to be scientists and teachers, or the rare few adults that are residing in Academy city. While Academy City is well known for its supernatural powers and espers, it was also known for its advanced technology. You could even say that Academy City was twenty years beyond that of the rest of the world, technologically.
So it only made sense that Kuroko didn't believe in things that are just meant to be a bedtime story, a good scare for kids that had been naughty.
Yet unexpected things can happen, now here she was, being accompanied by one of those supposed bedtime stories.
"I guess an introduction is needed in this situation."
"No, I'd rather you go away, rather than dump me with some unwanted information."
Kuroko was Ignored. The man placed a hand on his chest, seemingly puffing with pride; it was somehow similar to a bird trying to appear big, she noted. "My name is Kamijou Touma, the previous owner of Imagine Breaker! ...But as you can see, because of certain circumstances, I am now dead."
"If you're really dead, you wouldn't be here."
"Well, Imagine Breaker didn't want to let go of me, I guess. Listen, the very first thing I can Impart upon you about Imagine Breaker is that It has a mind of its own. I don't really get it myself, but you know, just trust your guts and you'll be alright!"
Kuroko, who just wanted some peace and quiet on her way home, stopped in her tracks to look at the man who goes by the name of Kamijou Touma. He had a stupid grin on his face, and was floating in the air. It was bizarre, but that was her reality now. Kuroko had hoped it was an illusion that she could break.
She had finally taken steps to ask what his deal was. If she did not, well, she didn't want to look like a lunatic again for shouting angrily at the air inside the convenience store.
Remembering it made her rub her forehead, soothing an incoming headache. Somehow, Kuroko felt like it wouldn't be the first time she would feel this ache with him in the vicinity.
"You… Just tell me what you are. Clearly you aren't a ghost. You're also not a human being, because that would mean having an actual living and breathing body which is an important aspect that you are greatly missing."
The man opened his mouth then closed it, a thoughtful look passed his face. He still replied despite looking confused.
"I'm not sure what I am exactly, but I am a ghost of some sort. Just not the traditional one that you're thinking of." He spoke with clarity before devolving into a pose that Kuroko would normally assign to a person who would do a lot of stupid things and would think stupid things. "It'd actually be really neat, if I could roam around as a stray spirit. Hunting for couples that I can ruin would be more entertaining than watching you."
"You can't?"
He nodded his head. "Because Imagine Breaker keeps me afloat in this reality. Without its help, I don't think I'll be able to continue existing."
Kuroko stared at her right hand. Another mystery that she needed to think of, as if her right hand's power were not mysterious enough.
"You know, I can teach you about its uses. I was once its holder." He said, raising his right hand, and clenching it. "You can say I know a thing or two about our powers."
That kind of deal was too good to be free, Kuroko recognized that. "What do you want? You're not gonna make me do something impossible are you?"
"Impossible? Oh, no, you're mistaken. I'm here to guide you." He sagely said, bobbing his head to support his own claims. "Things are about to get really eventful starting tomorrow. At least, I think It should be? Hoping that It will be."
"Why do you want something to happen tomorrow?" Kuroko's brow furrowed. Was he some kind of ghost from the future?
Nah, that would just be impossible. While Kuroko might be a measly Level 0, she didn't need an extensive knowledge about quantum physics to guess how implausible it is to travel back in time, even with current technology backing that claim up. Even if it was possible, Kuroko wouldn't be able to speak to this man if the government ever did manage to figure out how to time travel.
But then again, he was a ghost. At least, that's what he thought he was.
Kuroko blamed this on the power residing in her right hand.
"It's the nineteenth of July tomorrow, right?"
Kuroko hummed with affirmation. "Yes, what about it?"
"It'll be the start of summer vacation after that."
"And?"
"And then you'll meet Index."
Kuroko frowned, and turned to look at the spikey specimen. His voice sounded more relaxed. Less bright, but with unbounded affection. Was this person his lover or something?
Kamijou didn't seem to notice Kuroko's stare as he dawdled on with his words.
"Index, she… She can be a pain in the neck, but she will be one of your most trustable allies." Kamijou said.
Kuroko finds herself wondering. An ally? What does she need that for? She's not fighting a war. She was just an ordinary highschool student that had a penchant for misfortunes happening in her life.
"I still don't get why I need to meet this Index person. I mean, Index? Really? What is she, a table of contents? An Alien. That name is ridiculous."
"Well…she is a foreigner, so…"
"That doesn't really explain anything." Kuroko sighed."And why do I need to listen to this? For all I know, this could be a hoax or something." She crossed her arms, a hint of impatience in her tone.
"Because on the twentieth of July, you'll first experience the existence of magic."
Kuroko stopped in her tracks. Magic? Huh?
"I know it sounds weird, but yeah, magic exists. Or magic, If saying it in english would make it easier for you to understand."
"..."
It did not, in fact, help when he spoke it in English. At least it wasn't gibberish, but it also made Shirai Kuroko stare at this man with confusion.
She looked up towards the sky, trying to see the faces of her ancestors, and her recently passed grandfather smiling and giving her a raised thumbs up.
Even though she was standing on her own two feet, breathing the sanitized air of Academy City, and feeling the breeze on her skin, Kuroko felt as if she was stuck in a dream. If all of this were real, then Kuroko had definitely lost it.
"A ghost is trying to tell me magic exists. I'm sorry father, it seems like your daughter, Shirai Kuroko, has gone crazy."
She curled up into a ball in the middle of the street, in shame.
A failure and lunatic.
How far had she fallen.
"I know it's hard to believe, but magic exists. I mean, have you ever wondered what's up with Imagine Breaker? It can't be detected by scanners, and before you came here, Imagine Breaker was already with you. Isn't that a bit suspicious?" He pointed to her right hand. "Everything it touches shatters, the illusion of power, or the fantasy that it incites. Imagine Breaker will break it no matter what, even God's will."
Kuroko opened her mouth but couldn't find a voice to refute his claims. Instead, his words had made the usually self-righteous teen ponder if what he said was real. She really never knew how Imagine Breaker worked, or how it functioned. She just knew that the power that resided in her right hand was significant. She had the power to negate the supernatural after all, even if the system scan had labeled her as a measly Level 0.
(Which Kuroko still finds unfair. At least make her a Level 1 or something!)
He was right about one thing: Imagine Breaker was a power that she had always had, even before coming to Academy city. It was a wonder that he knew that fact.
If what he said was true about being Imagine Breakers previous owner, then he had always been with her, from the moment that she was born into this world.
Kuroko saw how bizarre that idea was and, understandably, just stopped thinking about it.
No matter what he said, Kuroko still couldn't find it in her heart to believe his words about magic, even if the city she had lived in for half of her life was less than mundane itself. At least this is within scientific explanation, reason and logic. It was the complete opposite of magic, which is often described in her books as a force that cannot be trifled with.
They arrived shortly at her apartment. It was a rundown building, but it was the only place that was willing to accept a tenant like her, who always seemed to break anything with just her existence. Kuroko recalled a lot of incidents that she had caused. One of them was an accidental arson that landed her in this dingy hole. Despite that, she had learned to love it, despite its questionable state.
Kamijou didn't look appalled by her living conditions. However, he had a familiar glaze in his eyes which Kuroko always saw whenever Tsuchimikado started rambling about his sister.
"It's still the same as ever." He took initiative and finally placed his feet on the ground, walking towards the window. His left hand went through the glass, which spawned a slight twitch in his brow."Though I didn't expect you to be this kind of bland in your interior decorating. I thought girls your age liked decorating their rooms?"
"I don't really have time for it. I'm always getting kicked out by other dormitories, so I find decorating a hassle more than therapeutic. Which should be the whole point of decorating as a hobby, to release stress and not earn stress from it."
"Still, At least put some picture frames of your family or something on your walls. It looks like the dead are residing here instead of the living."
Kuroko put the plastic bag that was perched in one of her arms on top of the table.It was already Saturday, Usually the time where Kuroko would refill her food supplies. They would normally last her for a week. But today wasn't the same as usual, and Kuroko had long abandoned the idea of shopping in favor of eating something quick and digestible for once. Thinking about tomorrow, however, made her shiver.
Forget magic! The enemy that Kuroko would be facing were her fellow discount price hounds at the nearby mart. She'd be happy to tell you, they were a ruthless bunch.
"You know, I expected you to be gone by the time I got home." Kuroko confessed, moving to Kamijou's side and unlocking the sliding window door for him.
Kamijou cocked his head to the side. "I don't need your permission to be here." The words may have sounded rude to most, but his tone told Kuroko a different story.
She turned to meet him head on. His hair was unbelievably spikey, and his eyes shone like the northern sky. He looked young, yet his posture screamed experience.
Yet he still looked just like a normal teen. Someone of her age. An ordinary highschool student like her.
"I noticed." she replied. Kuroko tried her best to smile. although she could see how it appeared more akin to a grimace. She went to lean over the railing, to join him in his musings.
"You know, I was just like you before." Kamijou said. "Blissfully ignorant about the strangeness of the world. I didn't believe in magic either, until I was almost killed by it." His words filled the silence that they were sharing.
It was a comfortable moment, one which Kuroko thought could last many moments longer, yet Kamijou had to say some stupid words that caused her to elicit a tired groan.
While none could see it, most would be able to sense the increasing blood pressure of a person named Shirai Kuroko. It was only Kamijou Touma who couldn't sense any of the hostility pinned at him.
"You're still going on with that?"
When he shrugged, Kuroko felt a vein in her jaw twitch. "How many times do I have to tell you! It's just impossible for magic to exist!"
"But it does!"
"Then show me some proof!"
"You want proof? I'm proof enough!"
"That doesn't count!"
"It counts plenty!" Kamijou shouted into her ears, causing Kuroko to attempt pushing him aside. It was a pity that her hand only went through him.
Right, she forgot about that.
"Okay, fine. For argument's sake, let's believe that magic is real. Existing and well known. But do you think that means I would just let you, something incomprehensible, dictate what I should do In my life? Fat chance."
Shirai Kuroko was no stranger to things that are supernatural. She attracted her fair share of the supernatural, including more misfortune than twenty other people combined. She had also seen more than her fair share of strange and eccentric phenomena.
Yet magic was her limit.
It was simply just too absurd to believe it.
Kamijou rested his right hand against the railing. Surprisingly, it didn't phase through the rusting metal bar. It stayed atop of the beam, resting atop it as any corporeal person's hand would. His harsh glare mellowed when he met Kuroko's eyes.
"Even if you say that, you're involved. No matter what you do, no matter how hard you hide, refusing your path, this destiny we share, this fate… isn't something we can just reject or destroy with our right hand." He sounded tired, beyond his years. Kuroko saw him as an ordinary teen before, but hearing his tired, weary laughter…
He appeared as old as time itself.
It made Kuroko bite the inside of her cheek, leaning against the railing and staring at the sea of lights above. The luminescent dots felt unfit for the atmosphere that she found herself in.
"But what If I ran?" Kuroko asked regardless, avoiding the swirling skies that held so much optimism. The weight of his stare felt too heavy to match.
He grinned.
"Then you'll end up like me."
"You know," He began, his eyes gravitating towards her lips making Kuroko feel deeply uncomfortable. "I've always thought that the Shirai's were loaded."
"..."
"So why are you eating like you've just gotten off of the street?" Kamijou Touma, ever with a carefree attitude, offered his unsolicited opinion to Kuroko, who just wanted to be left alone in the early morning of the nineteenth of July. The day before summer vacation began.
Kuroko turned a blind eye to his blatant judging gaze, turning to the side to take a bite out of the cold, hard, bread that she hadn't had the time to toast, because surprise surprise, her little toaster oven had been fried.
"If you're talking about our influence on the markets and stocks, then yes, we are." She responded, closing her eyes and leaning away from his skeptical eyes. "White Spring Holdings product lines have always tried to accommodate people's everyday needs. It's no surprise that our company would be wealthy."
"I don't mean that. I meant that crap you're shoving in your mouth. It's even worse what I was eating when I was still alive. Are your parents that tight with money around you?"
"What's wrong with eating natto and bread together?"
"The fact you think it is normal is the issue!"
"…Is it not?"
"Miss Shirai, ask anyone about your choice of breakfast and they would recoil in disgust." Kamijou Touma snorted. "You still haven't answered my question about your parents."
"Oh, would you look at the time? I think I'll be late if we keep dawdling like this."
"…But it's six in the morning…" Kamijou limply argued, pointing at the clock mounted on the apartment's wall. It was a stupid clock, given to her by Aogami. Like who does that? Giving her a clock that looked oddly phallic. Kuroko didn't have the time to react when Aogami just straight up dropped that trash in her arms. She had tried to throw it away, but it would always find its way back into her dorm with Aogami returning it to her after finding it mysteriously displaced.
In the end, after the fiftieth time of failed attempts of separating herself from that mistake of a creation, Shirai Kuroko ultimately just gave up and hung it on the wall. Despite this, she reflected on her actions, looking at her hand and wondering why she had done it.
Still, Kuroko didn't want Kamijou to know. Her family hadn't been strict with her finances. It was the complete opposite of what he thought her situation was: Her father had always spoiled her with the money he sent her, like 500,000 yen a month spoiled. It was far too much for a highschooler like her to need.
The reason for her current frugality actually went back to when her credit card information was stolen, specifically because Kuroko's Father kept loading it with an unreasonable amount of money. It wasn't a surprise that her credit card getting declined in stores had become a common occurrence after this. It was actually Kuroko that proposed the idea of being sent money physically, rather than continuing wiring the money to her account.
But the thing about paper money is that It can easily be torn apart, lost and otherwise destroyed, and Kuroko is unfortunate enough to have experienced all of those at once. At least with coins, she just needs to chase them down and feel humility as she tries to pick them up off of the ground.
The day began as eventful as ever. Nearly being hit in the face by falling pots, puddles splashing up against her and soaking her clothes, children asking for help, bubble gums sticking in her shoes. All kinds of misfortune kicking in that Kuroko was unfortunately accustomed to.
At this point in her life, her bag was filled with contingency plans specially prepared to counter every misfortunate event that Kuroko would find herself inevitably involved with.
At least now it was easier to maneuver through the streets, with her spectral companion weaving through the crowds with his call outs.
The sun was burning brightly, and what few clouds were above held a light white color, not likely to rain any time soon. Yet Kuroko held a black, foldable umbrella in her hands, drenched and looking like it had been through a hail storm. Had she not had an encounter with a gang of stray cats, Kuroko could probably still have used it in the future.
"How much is an Umbrella again?"
"1,000 yen."
Okay, it wasn't bad enough to burn through her funds. She could replace it tomorrow.
"I'm kind of impressed that you managed to avoid all of that." Kamijou said.
Kuroko threw the umbrella in her hand into a nearby trash can. "I've had this luck ever since I was a child. I'm a strict adherent to Murphy's Law. If I can't avoid bad things happening to me, then I can at least try to stave them off. Even If sometimes I find myself covered in dirty water, in the end, at least I can tell myself that I tried."
That's what she thought, at least, even if her ultimate anti-misfortune bag still failed her from time to time. That she needs to keep revising her equipment until she can make a flawless design, one that could counter any of the misfortune that someone such as herself was fated to encounter.
Kamijou hummed. The two of them strode – well, it was only Kuroko that was walking – towards Kuroko's highschool as it entered her view. As they arrived, Kuroko wasn't surprised when two of the boys she didn't want to see today hooked their arms on her neck, locking her down in a position she didn't want to be in.
"Kuro-nyan! Did you finish your homework? As an amigo, pal and your second right hand man, can you give this fellow the answer sheets?"
"Like Kuro-nyan would forget it! Our class honor student would rather commit seppuku than lose her work." said the blue-haired male with pierced ears. She still wasn't sure how Aogami had earned the votes to become their class representative.
"First of all, hands off!" Kuroko barked at them, though she did nothing to actually remove their arms from her. "Second of all…" With a blank look, she pulled two brown folders from her bag. "Pay me first, then I'll give you copies."
Kuroko was on the receiving end of a full bodied hug from the pair. They squeezed her tight whilst cheering her name in the middle of the hallway, almost suffocating her in their clutches. She was small, dammit! Getting squeezed by two larger men was making her feel faint!
"Kuro-nyan, you're an angel!"
"That's 10,000 yen, by the way!" She held her palm up towards them.
"Eh!? Isn't that too expensive!?" Aogami complained, though he was immediately silenced by Kuroko's glare.
"Look, do you want a perfect score or not?" She grumbled, crossing her arms and waving the files in her hand like it was a piece of meat. The boys began to salivate over it. "I could sell these to other people easily."
"Urk! Fine. Kuro-nyan can be as black hearted as her name…"
Kuroko, having sold 2 copies of her math homework, chose to ignore that.
"It was a pleasure doing business with you."
Just like that, Kuroko had earned 20,000 yen. She ran a finger through the bills, double checking if she had been given the right amount.
"Miss Shirai…" Kuroko felt her skin jump. Right. She needed to start remembering that she's not alone anymore. "Are your parents neglecting you? Is that why you've turned to this type of life?"
"I am not answering that."
Kamijou just looked at her with pitiful eyes as Kuroko pocketed the money. "Why are you acting like I've turned to a life of crime? I'm not doing anything illegal." She muttered to herself.
"It's not illegal, but it's not right, either!"
"…"
In stunned silence, Kuroko took a step backward from Kamijou.
"By the way, Kuro-nyan." Tsuchimikado once again put his arm around her neck, pulling her unnecessarily close to his chest. "What happened yesterday that put you in a good mood? I thought you would yell at us for–"
"Ditching me?"
"I prefer the term 'making a strategic retreat for the purpose of self-preservation'." He smiled, a sleazy grin that reminded her way too much of those douchebag cats that she regularly got chased by on the way to school. "You were cursing under your breath and the class representative here decided that it was only a smart idea to leave."
"And we definitely did not watch a concert without you because you were broke!" Aogamine added.
Kuroko felt neither angry nor happy. Kuroko remained expressionless towards the two idiots who had surrounded her. She was still boiling over what they had done to her yesterday. A crime that she could not forgive.
Yet, at the same time, those two idiots are also her friends that she can't get rid off.
Really, it was just another expression of her terrible luck.
They continued recounting their tale to Kuroko, who wasn't really that interested, nodding along with their story politely.
"Man, if you had been there, you could have taken a picture with Rin-chan!"
"Rin?" Kuroko tilted her head.
"Yeah, Rin-chan!" Aogami took out his phone and shoved the screen into her face, upon it, a picture of the aforementioned idol. She had black hair done up in a pair of twintails, eyes a deep shade of turquoise. She wore a frilly dress that reminded Kuroko of a magical girl show. Judging from her face, she didn't look like she enjoyed the physicality she shared between the two, considering how stiff her smile was.
"...Who did you guys try to harass again?"
"Kuro-nyan, why would you just assume we've done something so juvenile again! Aogami might not be, but I'm a gentleman!–"
"I can't refute that having a beautiful maiden stomp on me has always been on my checklist."
"–But that's not the point! Don't you trust us Kuro-nyan? Do our years of friendship mean nothing to you?" His words sounded sincere but, knowing Tsuchimikado, everything he said was shrouded in falsehoods and half-truths.
Their attempts to dodge her question being a rather apparent example of that.
"So…did you get your name's black listed?"
"Oh, we totally did!"
"It was worth it though!"
"Definitely."
The two meet each other's fistbump with matching grins. Kuroko could only sigh in distress, not wanting to know what they had done.
The trio reached their homeroom to find Fukiyose Seiri waiting for them. Her eyes glared, sharpened to perfection. it was the first thing that greeted them upon entering. Kuroko already knew it was another scolding ready for them. She pushed both of the boys' arms away from her. A cheeky smile replacing the flat look she had maintained.
"Well, would you look at that! Fukiyose-san is waiting for you." Kuroko acted surprised, although it came out monotonous since Kuroko wasn't putting in her all.
"Kuro-nyan, you traitor!"
"What happened to being amigos! Muchachos! COMPADRES?!"
"You guys ditched me." she stated plainly. However, when she tried to slip away, a hand fell upon her collar, stopping her from getting further away.
"Hey, What give–" When she turned back, she was met with Fukiyose Seiri, smiling radiantly like a saint. Oh, if only she was one.
Kuroko felt the color drain from her face..
"Not this time, Miss Shirai. You're also staying here. What you did yesterday was beyond disrespectful, and–"
And so the lecture began, with Kuroko and the two idiots both kneeling on the floor. The boys snickered at each other as they mockingly pointed fingers at her. Kuroko cut them off with a withering glare.
Fukiyose saw it, and it brought on another round of harsh scolding.
At least Kamijou was enjoying the show.
Luckily, Kuroko felt that the day had been otherwise relaxing.
Not.
Today had been anything but relaxing. For some reason, every teacher she'd ran into had decided that Kuroko would be their chew toy, calling her out to answer questions, making her write everything on the blackboard, making her recite material that isn't even covered by their highschool curriculum!
There were a lot of things happening, but what she really hated was the fact that she got held back by the shitty math teacher. She was also reprimanded by said teacher for letting Tsuchimikado and Aogami skip their punishment – Like she didn't try to stop them from committing it! – and made her do the punishment that was supposed to be for Tsuchimikado and Aogami.
Breathe in, breathe out.
By the time that she was finished, it was already 6 in the night.
Yay! What a fulfilling day!
NOT.
Because after that debacle, her companion ghost had suddenly suggested something out of the blue. It just so happened that it made her run across the city like a wandering maniac.
"Since you look stressed, why not use the money you have to eat out and unwind for once?" He suggested, pressing his index finger against his cheek deep in thought.
They were in the middle of the road. Kuroko's eyes were glued to the road ahead of them. Occasionally, she would find herself glancing at Kamijou. Out of curiosity rather than wonder.
"I usually find myself hanging out in the bookstore to find manga that I can occupy my time with, although I don't really buy anything except the really good stuff. After that, I ate at this one family diner. Their hellish goya and escargot lasagna is to die for you should try it!"
"I don't know, that sounds expensive. I already have my spending planned out for the week." She stopped at a red light, taking a chance to glance up at the floating figure. "I think it would be hard to squeeze in any extra meals with the money I have now."
"Live a little! Tomorrow is summer vacation! At least celebrate it like a normal highschool student, you're acting too serious! Decompress and enjoy your youth while it lasts!"
The light finally turned green. Kuroko finally gave up and acquiesced to his proposal. Gripping her back pack strap tightly, she inquired with a pensive gaze.
"Okay, lead the way then."
She should have known something awful was coming when he suddenly beamed at her full teeth.
And things had indeed gone south from there. Specifically, when she saw a familiar bob of brown hair mingling within a crowd of drunk delinquents. Already, Kuroko could feel her stomach aching, a pit forming within. She was prepared to pretend she was just another passerby, when suddenly she was pulled into the crowd, dragged inside the circle by her collar, all because she gave them a passing glance.
Confronted by these men and seeing the harsh glare that the other girl was giving her, Kuroko raised her hands up and stepped back. She really didn't want any trouble, but if things got worse then she would have no choice but to brute force her way out.
That would have been the case anyway, if it had just been the four of them. But she had not expected a swarm of their buddies to come spilling of the men's bathroom.
She had always thought that going to the bathroom in groups was something only girls did…
Either way, she was not insane enough to try and fight her way out of a group this large, so she did what her instincts had told her to do the moment she first saw that girl in the diner.
Run.
Which brought her to the current moment. Running through the street, weaving and slicing through the crowd that was buzzing with couples and strangers that she doubted she would ever see again. Her anti-misfortune backpack contents had started spilling across the ground in her haste. She had no time to retrieve, or even cry over the loss of her precious defenses when she was running for her dear life.
"Uuh! I knew I shouldn't have listened to you!" Kuroko shouted into the moonlit sky. At her side, a man with spiky hair started snickering.
"But you'll thank me for this later! When you know what's going to happen!"
"Thank you!?" She yelled, throwing her hands in the air, tears pouring from her eyes. Mostly because she was still grieving over the loss of her precious, hard to replace, expensive equipment." You dragged me out here to get myself hunted like a rat by some delinquents! If I ever gett my hands on you I–"
"Careful! To your left!" He warned. Kuroko easily dodged the metal bat thrown at her. She gaped, still keeping her pace even if the prospect of getting hit by that made her rethink her life decision.
Mainly of trusting this entity in front of her.
"Are they trying to kill me?! I didn't even do anything!"
"Less talking, more moving! We don't want them to catch up with you!"
If she escaped the group of delinquents, they would have possibly used their phones to call in reinforcement. In order to simply run down their stamina, Shirai Kuroko, on what Kamijou Touma had suggested, let them think that they can catch her. Hook them with occasional glimpses of her in the alleyway of District 7. Bait them, and let them think that they can finally catch her, so that they would continue to run and wear themselves out.
It was basically a boxer's rope-a-dope strategy, letting an opponent punch attack endlessly until his stamina was drained. That's what Kamijou advised her towards.
Although Kuroko's stamina was reaching the point of exhaustion, the only thing that's keeping her up was a sense of pettiness. Kamijou, on the other hand, was still lively as ever. Which was ironic, since he's dead, as he claims every minute.
They decided to share a word with one another.
She wished their position was reversed at this moment.
"Dammit, why do I need to waste my night here!"
Outpacing those delinquents had really made her feel like a lifeless loser. Had she not had any hobby to spend her time with?
(No, she doesn't have any. She had tried, but everytime attempt had ended in failure, like the world was going against her.)
She heard one of the delinquents shouting from behind her.
"Hey! You fucking brat! Stop running like a little bitch!!"
It only angered Kuroko more to receive such a violent insult.
"Shut up! You should be thanking me for not turning around and not kicking your grounds in, even though all of you deserve a kick in your left sack anyway!" Kuroko shouted back in anger, despite knowing it was just a waste of stamina.
Her reserve of energy was thinning out. She hadn't eaten a single bite of her lunch, and neither had she eaten any dinner, so it wasn't a surprise that Kuroko was getting worn out by the constant running.
At last, they arrived at the destination which Kamijou had pointed out and promised would make the delinquents leave her alone.
They exited the urban area (as far as one can exit an urban area in Academy City) and came upon a river. A large metal bridge spanned across its banks, about a hundred and fifty meters across. No cars could be seen on it. The sturdy iron bridge wasn't even lit up, just blanketed by an eerie darkness reminiscent of the sea at night.
Kuroko didn't need to turn around to know that she had lost them. Exhausted and beyond depleted of the vigor she once had, she fell to the ground, on her knees, consuming the air around her like she had never tasted it before.
"Please tell me they're really gone and not doing anything dramatic, like walking towards me slowly with smartass grins on their faces. That would be sooo annoying if they did."
"Good news! You lost them."
"Great." Kuroko deadpan, finally getting some control over her breathing.
"You also earned another pursuer."
Kuroko wrinkled her brows. "Who?"
"Who are you even talking to?"
That voice felt static. No, it was filling the air with electrical currents. Kuroko, who was still on the ground, immediately stood up, although the act of pushing herself up so fast caused her world to spin around, almost losing her balance.
Because the bridge had no lights – or maybe the steps of that girl had been light – Kuroko had not noticed the girl standing five meters behind her when she had been running.
She looked like a completely normal middle school girl, wearing a pleated skirt, a short-sleeved blouse, and a summer sweater vest. Kuroko starred up into the sky and seriously considered working on her stamina more, rather than staying inside her apartment. The girl before Kuroko was the same one from the family restaurant that she had wanted to avoid in the beginning.
The one that Kamijou insisted on meeting.
"If there is a God up there, please let this be a dream and tell me it's really not her." She sighed loudly enough to be heard by the girl with brown hair.
"A thank you would be sufficient, you know! I just roasted them for you."
"Ah, so that's why they stopped chasing me. This outcome makes much more sense." She aimed a glare at Kamijou who put a hand over his head and whistled like he'd done nothing wrong.
She'll get back to him later… But first, the girl in front of her.
The zapping sound of bluish-white sparks echoed throughout the night. As the girl's shoulder-length brown hair swayed, sparks flew from it like an electrode, sounding like a stun gun.
"What do you want me to do? Grovel and lick your feet because you just saved a helpless Level 0?"
"Wha–" The girl flushed.
Kuroko let out a weary sigh. What's up with teenage girls and this kind of reaction?
"I'm not making you do anything!" She screeched, electricity buzzing everywhere, as always when that girl felt like things had gotten out of her control.
Kuroko stood straight, her arms crossed. "So, what do you want?"
"To fight you!"
Emotions are volatile, and the emotions of a teenage girl that was supposed to be a Level 5 with the ability to control electricity is beyond volatile. It was risky to deal with.
Kuroko choked down another sigh that threatened to escape her lips. This girl was always like this, demanding a fight and asking for a rematch every time Kuroko complied. Kuroko constantly ran in to her, a sporadic meeting between each other here and there over the past few months. In other words, they were by no means friends. Truthfully, Kuroko saw her as a thorn in her side, with their every encounter becoming more violent than the last.
Kuroko had learned her name. Hard not to when she kept throwing that signature attack named 'Railgun' at her. She might be late on trends, but even she was not so ignorant as to brush aside the title of Railgun. The third ranked Level 5 of Academy City.
As always, the girl would keep demanding to fight her in that self important haughty tone, and claiming that she'd reduce her to a heaping pile of ash when it was all over. Of course, the sensible thing to do in this situation was to nod along and agree to what the Railgun was saying.
But Kuroko wasn't exactly the type of person to back down. Nor was she the type of person to take insults readily, especially from someone from a rich girl school. Her already sullied pride would get even more defiled if she accepted this all readily.
It was without exception that Kuroko would always win this fight, even though it cost a bunch of money from the amount of uniforms she ended up having to replace after every fight..
Still, a win is a win.
Under normal circumstances, Kuroko would have made a taunt for her to engage, but today she really has no patience to deal with this.
"We already know the outcome of this. You'll always lose to me." It was a fact. They had done this for so long that Kuroko had forgotten the tally of how many wins she had in their fights.
After all, Misaka MIkoto had never beaten her in a single fight.
"I just can't allow someone like you to be more powerful than me. That is enough of a reason."
That was it. The reason why she wanted to take revenge against Kuroko was because of an injured ego. She was somehow so similar to Kuroko, yet so dissimilar for the same reasons.
It did a lot of things to Kuroko, mostly making her blood pressure spike, and causing her ire to reach a boiling point.
"You keep playing with me, treating me like an idiot too," A flicker of electricity passed. "I'm a Level 5 and you just keep swatting it away like I'm not. But do you really think I would go all out for a powerless Level 0? I do know how to handle the lesser one.."
Kuroko huffed. Letting this girl run her mouth off was making Kuroko irritable. What is she on about?
"Yeah, about that. I understand that you possess a level of ability that only seven people have achieved in Academy City. I really do. But if you want to live a long life, you should stop speaking to people so condescendingly."
"Shut up. If you couldn't bend a single spoon after going through the Power Curriculum Program, that just proves you've never put any effort in!"
"…"
Kuroko's jaw clenched tightly. She had never had any reason to believe that Level 5's would be anything other than decent people, but facing one right now? She knew every one of them would have a misplaced sense of superiority.
Lack of effort? That's just bullshit. What if they really can't cause any crazy phenomena, even with all of their hard work put into it? What about the people that are lucked out and got a high Level from the very beginning? What if they're not compatible with Academy City's methods? Does she ever think about the people that are destroyed by knowing that they are no special at all?
She was selfish in that regard. obnoxious too.
Damn Level 5's.
But that was what Academy City was built for. The reason parents sent their children off to this place
Academy City's was a place where brain development – using more palatable names like Mnemonics, or Memorization Techniques – were included in the Curriculum.
However, not all of the 2.3 million people living in Academy City had ceased to be human and became something like a manga protagonist, or special in any regard.
Just under sixty percent of the student population were utterly useless Level 0s who could only bend a spoon after focusing their brain to the point their blood vessels burst.
Kuroko stood her ground.
"If I need to bend a spoon, I can just use pliers. If I need fire, I can just buy a cheap lighter." She listed, using her hands to count, pretending to be unaffected by Railgun's words when earlier she had been gritting her teeth in annoyance. "I don't need talent when I can do almost anything with the technology that we have. What do I need telepathy for when I have a cell phone? Are esper powers really that great?"
Those were the words that Shirai Kuroko, who had been branded useless by Academy City's System Scan, stood for.
"And that's just about it, right? Everyone's priorities are all messed up. They're all rejoicing over the byproduct we call esper powers, but isn't our real objective something beyond that?"
In response, the girl who was one of Academy City's seven Level 5s twisted the edges of her lips.
"Hahh? …Oh, that. What was it again? Something like, 'Humans cannot calculate God, so we need to acquire a body that exceeds humanity before we can arrive at God's answer', right?" She snickered, putting a hand atop her stomach to stop herself from letting out a deep chuckle. "Hah. Don't make me laugh. What is all this about the brain of God ? Have you heard about the supposed military clones created based on an analysis of my DNA map? It seems to me these byproducts are more important than that objective."
Kamijou blinked.
"Wait, She doesn't know it yet?"
Kuroko momentarily felt her anger left when she heard Kamijou speak in utter confusion.
"What?"
"Project Radio Noise. It's what she just mentioned. They copied Misaka-san's DNA map to make clones of her, but before mass production of the clones could begin, the simulation that Tree Diagram produced showed that it was impossible to create a Level 5 clone of Mikoto since it was impossible to create a perfect replication of the Railgun. The project was going to get scrapped, but the Level 6 Shift Project decided it could reuse the clones. For the experiment to be successful, twenty thousand clones were created."
"What." Kuroko gaped, staring at Kamijou openly. He said it so casually, like the clones, the experiments, the DNA Maps were not of importance. The fact that the person in front of her didn't even know what was happening caused Kuroko to be taken aback.
"You're doing it again! Ignoring me!" A quick strike of electricity passed by Kuroko, a breadth away from her cheeks.
"Woman! Are you insane!? Are you trying to kill me!?"
Misaka scoffed. ' Kill you? Don't be ridiculous, you can stop anything I do with your stupid right hand."
"If you think that, then why do you keep insisting on picking a fight with me?" Kuroko asked, exasperated.
The girl ignored her, taking a single arcade coin out of her pocket. "Say, have you ever heard about the term railgun?"
"It's some sort of battleship weapon that fires metal projectiles using super powered electromagnets. The principles are the same as a linear motor train." Kuroko replied instantly, before realization struck her. Oh, she's not really doing that, right?
Right?
"You better get your right hand ready. This one is aimed at your head!" Kamijou confirmed Kuroko's fear. She can only return a wince.
The girl flicked the coin high up in the air with her thumb. Kuroko watched the coin rotate a few times, before landing back in the girl's hand.
"It looks something like this."Just as she finished speaking, an orange spear of light suddenly and loudly shot past her. It was more like a laser than a spear. She could only tell it had originated from the girl's thumb because the afterimage of light stretched back to it.
It was almost instant, No ordinary human could escape it by just moving sideways, nor could they outrun it by sheer will. You either use an equally powerful force to stop it, or you face it head on, like a moron that was willing to die.
For Kuroko, she did the latter, having no choice but to trust the power that resided in her right hand. She could only just hold up her right hand in time to protect herself.
The coin rampaged, pushed against her hand, the force pushing her back. But Kuroko couldn't let it win, not when she had Imagine Breaker on her side.
With all things said, A simple mistake and everything could go off the rails.
The high-voltage current that had scattered into the surroundings had been powerful enough to warp the steel framework of the bridge. Yet, Kuroko's right hand had not been blown off by the direct hit… In fact, it lacked even a single scratch or burn. It looked just the same as before. It was as if it had not just blocked the electrical spear at all. Kuroko was glad it was fine.
When all of the smoke disappeared, she was met with a snarl of a young girl that was destined to keep losing to her forever.
"I hate it." She stated, baring her teeth at her like a snarling animal, completely changing Kuroko's opinion to everyone that was residing in the prestigious school called Tokiwadai. "Honestly, what's up with you? How are you still standing? That power of yours isn't listed in Academy City's Bank. If I'm a one in three hundred and thirty thousand genius, then you're a one in two million three hundred disaster." The girl muttered in annoyance, but Kuroko neglected to give even a single word in response. "If I pick a fight with an exception like that, I might be able to raise my Level, don't you think?"
"Famous last word." Kamijou commented." You know when that happened he–"
Kuroko cut him off with a hiss.
"Just shut up will you! You are going to get me killed! We can later talk about this, and not in front of that gorilla girl!"
"Gorilla!? Who are you calling Gorilla!?"
Electricity shot at Kuroko. Instead of the melting orange light that she saw from the railgun, it came at her in the form of a sharp lightning strike, shooting at her forehead.
It was as fast and deadly as the railgun, but the instant that Kuroko held out her right hand and met it, the lightning disappeared as quickly as it was shot from.
Just like a bubble bursting.
"Is that all you can do!?" Kuroko barked, taunting the girl even further. With a cool collected smirk that found its way onto Kuroko's lips.
In reality, Kuroko was trying her best to not collapse and stumble. She felt the intent behind that shot. If Kuroko wasn't fast enough to block it with her right hand, she would be toast!
(Why is she so hell bent on killing me!?)
The girl stomped her feet to the ground. "You're lucky you have that annoying power that keeps you out of my reach! It is so damn annoying, why can't you just drop like everyone else!"
"Maybe it's because you don't try hard enough." Kuroko heckled, and as expected, a lightning spear was shot straight at her. Kuroko deflected, as their battles usually went.
As Kamijou Touma, the previous owner of Imagine Breaker watched, a small smile slipped across his lips.
"Man, now I feel bad telling her about her future." Kamijou Touma chuckled to himself, finding it entertaining to watch the two teens bicker with each other. "Although, I'm sure Shirai-san will know what to do when we get to that point." He mused, eyeing the owner of the power that can reject even the god's miracles.
And that was how Shirai Kuroko brought the nineteenth of July to an end.
"Are you still mad?"
"..."
"Come on. I said I was sorry. It'll be important for the future!"
"...'
"It's really awkward talking to you when you don't respond."
A flat look.
"Okay, so I kinda get how you feel these past two days, but I wasn't the one that angered the Level 5 electromaster. It was your fault to begin with. All of this electrical disturbance is the consequences of your action."
"..." A glare.
"Hey, why are you approaching me with your right hand? He– Stop it! Stop doing that!"
Today was the twentieth of July. The first day of summer vacation, and the day that Kamijou claimed that Kuroko would meet the nun, Index. Whoever that was supposed to be.
Kuroko didn't care at this point. She was sore from yesterday's fight, because this spirit, that claimed he would support her, had dragged her through one of the most shitty nights she had yet experienced.
She wasn't the type to run away from delinquents; she faced them head on! But this person just decided that it was not the right way, and that had led her to duking it out with the Railgun.
Ah, her summer uniform was ruined because of that!
Not to mention, her dorm in District 7 had been turned into an oven by the boiling summer heat due to her now recently broken air conditioner! Apparently, lightning had struck during the night, and taken out eighty percent of the electrical appliances. That also meant the contents of her fridge had been wiped out. She really didn't have anything in it, so for once, she was glad there was nothing to spoil.
She wanted to eat out, having no choice but to do that even if her wallet was unwilling. Her stomach was about to give out. She skipped yesterday's dinner and lunch. Kuroko didn't think that she could skip another meal time, fearing that she'd turn into a gooey mess if she didn't take at least one bite of good food. Or really anything edible.
That was supposed to be the plan, but Kamijou, her annoying companion of a ghost, insisted that they stay in for a couple of more hours. Which had led to her giving the ghost the silent treatment.
However, it didn't work when all Kamijou did was ask for her to keep checking outside her balcony, and to keep an eye out for Index.
Index, index, Index. It was the only thing he kept yammering on about. He didn't even shut up even when Kuroko tried to shatter him again.
It was driving Kuroko insane. She had had enough, and started slamming her hand against the apartment's coffee table. "You keep saying index! Index! Index! I've had enough!" Kuroko yelled, standing up from her floor and slamming the screen door open, as to showcase the empty and vacant railing with no nun or sister or anything white!
"See! There's nothing here! So can I please go out an–!?" Kuroko felt a hand touch her own. When she turned around to see who it was, it looked like the same girl that Kamijou had described Index to be.
Her age was…about fourteen or fifteen. She looked a year younger than Kuroko. She must have been a foreigner, with how her skin seemed so pale in comparison to Kuroko's own, having gained a bit of tan from going out and suffering in the summer heat just because their shitty math teacher decided to make her do something again. Her hair looked pure white, or maybe it was silver.
And now Kuroko was watching her pull Kuroko down alongside the nun, plummeting towards the seventh floor balcony.
Absolutely terrific!
"Please don't let go! Please don't let go! Please don't let go! Please don't let go!" She prayed desperately, clinging to Kuroko's left arm.
Kuroko held onto the metal railing and gritted her teeth. She felt her arm straining from hauling the girl up. Kuroko was about to use her right hand to pull her up, when suddenly Kamijou yelled out a warning to her.
"Don't touch her clothes with your right hand! Switch between hands and use your left hand instead!"
Kuroko did as she was told. Switching from her right arm and adjusting her grip on her dress, Kuroko used the railings to kick herself off and pulled the nun inside, hauling her in like a big fish that she had difficulty catching.
Kuroko felt her eyes swirl in confusion, before settling to check over the girl, searching her body for any real injuries. Fortunately, she found none, and now that she had a clear look at the smaller girl, she really was a nun.
Ragged and confused, she asked Kamijou "Just what the hell is going on?" She didn't care if Index was present now, she wanted an answer and the only one that could give her that is Kamijou.
"That, Shirai-san is Index Librorum Prohibitorum, the walking library of the 103,000 magical grimoires, and the one person that can truly introduce you to the world of magic."
Kuroko once again wondered what she had done to the world to deserve this kind of punishment.
"Such misfortune!" She cried upwards, towards the sky.
This summer vacation sucks!