I'm back! Man, that took a bit longer than expected. I guess I burned myself out a little bit there. Regardless, I'm back with a new chapter, just for all of you. After a longer than usual grace period, it's time to start the Big Spider Arc! Now, be for we start, let's get some Q&A out of the way. Hey, that rhymed!

MrQuestionMark: And following a fast update came a slow update. Glad you liked that I inserted "shatter your illusions" into the dialogue. I recognize that it's suppose to be a pun in Japanese, but that's the thing with puns, they're language locked. Such a shame too, since I love puns. Still, the phrase is as synonymous to Touma anything referring to his misfortune, so I had to have it in there somewhere. Nice to know you don't think removing nun ships will remove anything from the story. As for why I had Touma just add on to the old journal as opposed to starting a new one, its suppose to show that while Touma may have lost his memories, he is still the same person at his core. Sure, there are differences between pre and post Dragon's Breath Touma, but the core fundamentals of his character are present in both. Personality is a strange thing; no one knows where it truly comes from, whether it be genetics, personal experiences, or just something inherent to any specific person. There's a reason that Touma's character establishing moment at the very beginning (getting chased by a gang while trying to protect them form Mikoto, establishing his heroism, misfortune, and power) still works after he loses his memory in the first arc. Yeah, I didn't really expect anyone to pick up on that reference either. I have a weird memory that way.

Awareness Bringer: While differences between our worlds exist, Kamachi has used plenty of actual religious beliefs when implementing them into his story, so I wouldn't be surprised if the general rules still apply and the nun ships were created to show that Kami disease is so strong it can overpower faith.

ALostBlueIdiot: Don't worry, I fully intend to keep those wardrobe malfunctions. They were among my favorite jokes in the franchise. It completely caught me off guard when they brought the joke back. As for non-nun magic side ships, I will still have those as well. Itsuwa is my favorite magic side girl. I intend of Index to be kept out of the loop about Touma's memory. I see the girls as respectful of Touma's wish to not get any more people involved in his memory issues than what is necessary. Also, Touma will still be unable to remember Misaki. Just like in canon, Dragon's Breath only destroyed his Episodic Memory; it didn't change how it functioned. Touma is still unable to create and sustain memories of Misaki. Sorry about that.

ahsoei: I thought the girls would be stronger than that. They also heard from Touma that Heaven Canceller is the best in the business, so they would trust his abilities. I decided to say that Mikoto as "heart-broken" because it would have hurt her to see the one she loved trying to hide something so impactful from her, something we all know is how she would really feel in such a situation since it has happened multiple times before.

RedSS: Yeah, the journal pretty much gave the ending away, for most people anyway. To shield Touma, Mikoto would have needed something with substantial iron. Floor mates are made of woven straw and wood, so not much to work with.

narufuuin: I imaged the girls being a bit stronger for their friend. Sure, Uiharu was a mess when Saten used the Level Upper, but remember, this is Touma we're talking about. They know that Touma can pull through, it's just up to them to help him through whatever he needs to deal with. I always thought Saten was the feet-first kind of person, thus to do something out of the blue like that would be in character.

RPGPersona: Well, yeah, Touma was the only one capable of destroying John's Pen. I don't even want to think how a miscalculation from Kuroko would have ended. Thanks for pointed out that typo. Glad you're not bothered by my choice to remove nun ships.

GhostofTime: I'm pretty sure Chuck Norris is still fighting Segate Sanshiro.

Bluejack222: I wanted to depict the girls as being strong for their friend, much like Touma always does. Sorry if their reactions were a bit lacking. Nice to know I created a strong sibling relationship between Touma and Index in your eyes.

ArmorCoreNineBall: You best keep your distance! My Kamikoto flagship will lead the charge of my other ships if you attack! Jokes aside, I'm glad you like the direction I took with Touma's memory. I actually built my interpretation of Touma's memory lose from reading your stories, so give yourself a pat on the back for that.

mohamadstar94: Sorry to keep you waiting!

Cyber dragonarmy: No, I really am Kamikoto trash. I won't deny that. I sail on my flagship proudly, leading my other ships into uncharted waters! Glad you liked the chapter.

ADude: Touma's memory situation will be kept on the down-low. However, if someone figures it out, he might decide to come clean if they confront him about it. You'll have to see what I have in store for the journal.

Guest (1): I wanted to make the girls appear strong for their friend. Sorry if their reactions were lacking.

Guest (2): A bit slow on the roll there, pal. I brought that up in like chapter 3. The name should have been enough to give it away. Still, I don't think you will be disappointed with what I have in store.

SpaceShooter: I won't deny that I'm gunning for Kamikoto, I still will add in other ships, even if I have to make them up. Just as long as they aren't nun ships. Speaking of which, I think Kanzaki would still be acceptable for me. Being a saint doesn't mean they can't be in love. I was trying to make them appear strong for their friend. Sorry if the reaction was lacking. I'll try to give these chapters a bit more polish in the future.

anand891996: I wanted them to do more, but I couldn't think of much.

MaiBilaro: Sorry to keep you waiting.

Now that that's done, time for the obligatory disclaimer!

Disclaimer: All characters and plotlines of the "A Certain" franchise are credited to Kazuma Kamachi.

Chapter 13: Living in the Past

After Touma was let out of the hospital, he quickly had to adjust to his 'new life'. As the church had placed Index under his protection, she needed to stay somewhere where he could keep an eye on her. At first, Index suggested that she stay at his place, but Touma quickly pointed out that he lived in a one-person student dorm, no to mention how much of an issue it would be to have a boy and a girl living together like that. Luckily, Saten volunteered to house Index since she still had room at her dorm and no roommate. Touma could just check up on Index there every so often.

Of course, there was still the issue of feeding Index. With how much she eats, she could easily bankrupt anyone. Anyone that wasn't a Level 5 that is. Thankfully, Mikoto had plenty of funds from Academy City, so she could easily pay for the food Index was bound to devour. Not only that, but they were able to afford a cell phone for Index, so she could contact anyone should she need help while out in the city by herself. Granted, teaching her to use the phone was another issue, but with her photographic memory, it shouldn't be too hard, or at least they hoped so.

Despite just leaving the hospital with permanent memory loss, Touma had a rather lucky time. He woke up with friends that were willing to help him with his condition and a journal by his previous self to guide him in returning to normalcy for both himself and his friends. He didn't want to burden anyone else with his memory loss, so he, Mikoto, Kuroko, Saten, and Uiharu agreed to keep it a secret from others. To keep up the act, Touma constantly studied the old journal so he could recognize people he had know before and act like nothing changed. For almost anything that wasn't written in the journal, he had his friends to help him, such as when they reminded him he still had to take remedial classes during the summer. That especially would have been problematic had he not been reminded.

Yup, Touma had a rather lucky time in the week since he checked out of the hospital. However, that was something that worried him greatly. Sure, he still had his usual bad luck, like slipping on cans or being in the room when Saten decided to flip Uiharu's skirt (something he had only just learned about after checking the misfortune survival note his previous self left), but the overall amount of bad luck he faced was less than what his journal implied was the norm. From what he could tell, that usually meant something really bad was going to happen.

Less than a week after being let out of the hospital, Kuroko and started taking Touma to a Judgement training facility to help him catch up on some protocol and special equipment. Protocol was an obvious must considering his memory loss, but special equipment was something Kuroko herself suggested. While Touma could very easily take down thugs and out-of-control Espers thanks to his street fighting and Judo skills he managed to keep through muscle and procedural memory, the latter of which he was lucky was not affected by his accident, Kuroko wanted to make sure he could help fight riots and larger opponents. As such, she was teaching him how to handle Judgement Issue riot shields and crowd control pikes. Who knows? It might come in handy if he ever had to fight an out of control Powered Suit or something.

To Kuroko's surprise, Touma was picking up the use of the pike rather quickly. In the time that they spent that morning training, Touma was already swinging the thing around like a bow staff. It was quite impressive.

"You're picking this up rather quickly, Kamijou," Kuroko commented, impressed.

"According to my journal, there have been a few incidents where I had to use a broom to hold off a few thugs I managed to make made," Touma replied sheepishly, "Guess those skills transferred over through my procedural memory."

"Guess you were pretty lucky in that department," Kuroko mused.

"Please don't bring up my luck," Touma deadpanned, "It's been rather tame lately. That only means something really bad is going to happen soon."

All Kuroko could do was laugh at Touma's expense. It was times like these that Kuroko felt particularly close to Touma. In a lot of ways, these training sessions felt like dates. If only Mikoto were there with them, then it would be a real paradise for Kuroko. However, her enjoyment was cut short when she got a call from the 177th Judgement Branch Office.

"Looks like we're going to have to cut this session short," Kuroko lamented.

"What happened?" Touma asked in concern.

"Kongou got attacked by a couple of Skill-Out thugs in an alley," Kuroko explained, "She's fine now, but we should head over there to investigate."

"Kongou? You mean Airhead?" Touma asked, "The girl with the fan and the huge ego?"

"Yeah, that's her. So, you wrote a section on her too, huh?" Kuroko mused as she and Touma put away the training equipment, "Well, at least that saves time on explaining things. Shall we get going?"

"Lead the way."

Touma and Kuroko met up with Uiharu and Konori at the scene of the crime. When they got there, they were rather stunned to see the alley filled with teenage guys beaten to a pulp, passed out. Anti-Skill had arrived to take the assaulters turned victims into custody, carrying them out in stretchers so they could also get medical attention. Meanwhile, the Judgement Officers were left to investigate what exactly happened. Uiharu was interviewing Kongou while Konori, Kuroko, and Touma inspected the alley itself.

"Maybe this marks the end of the recent outbreaks of Esper Hunts conducted by Skill-Out," Kuroko suggested.

"I doubt it. If anything, I'd say this is only the beginning," Touma disagreed, kneeling down to get a closer look at one of the attacker, "After how many of them were taken down here, I'd say it's only going to motivate Skill-Out to fight back harder."

"Still, going after someone like Kongou was a gutsy move," Kuroko admitted, "No matter how many of them ganged up, Level 0s would never be a match for a Level 4 Esper."

Touma let out a rather loud and clearly fake cough, reminding Kuroko of his position.

"N-not that being a Level 0 is a bad thing," Kuroko quickly corrected, "Besides, you're the exception, Kamijou."

"Besides, that isn't what happened," Konori interrupted.

"What do you mean by that, chief?" Touma asked, standing up.

"It's all in Kongou's report," Konori explained, "Kongou wasn't able to use her Esper ability. Fortunately, some stranger appeared and helped her."

The two girls instantly turned their attention towards Touma. They both had a somewhat suspicious look in their eyes.

"Why are you two looking at me like that?" Touma defended, "Just because Airhead wasn't able to use her ability and some random person helped her doesn't mean it was me! Besides, I'm not a stranger to her and was with Pigtails the entire time! Plus, if I was the guy that helped, why would I negate Kongou's ability? That's completely counterintuitive!"

However, Touma soon realized Konori was not paying attention to his rather comedic attempt at defending himself from what was clearly a joking accusation. Following her line of sight, Touma realized she was staring at one of the Skill-Out gang members being carried away. The strangest part was that the look in her eyes. They suggested that she knew this random Skill-Out thug, something that bothered Touma a little bit.

"Hey chief, you okay?" Touma asked.

"Huh? Oh, sorry!" Konori replied, "It was nothing! Just spaced out a little there."

"Well, regardless, we should probably check with Uiharu," Kuroko suggested, "She might have been able to find something out from Kongou."

Based on Kongou's testimony, she suddenly found herself unable to use her ability due to some sort of painful noise. Before she knew it, she passed out on the ground. When she came to, all of the thugs were in the condition Judgement and Anti-Skill found them in when they arrived. In addition, Kongou managed to get a quick glimpse of the person who helped her. She described him as having a black, leather jacket and had a large spider tattoo on his back.

The description to the person sparked an intense reaction from Konori, something that didn't go unnoticed by either Kuroko nor Touma.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Kuroko asked, "You seem a little distracted."

"Seriously, chief, if there's something wrong, you should rest," Touma suggested, "Just leave the rest of this to us."

"No, it's nothing, really!" Konori insisted, waving her hands.

"If you say so," Touma said wearily.

"So, we have a man with a leather jacket and a black spider tattoo," Kuroko mused, "Could he be the one who beat these guys up?"

Konori only remained silent, a sullen look in her eyes.

The next day, following the on-scene investigation, the Judgement Officers returned to the branch office to compile the evidence they had collected so far. While preparing some office for everyone, Konori brought up a specific branch of Skill-Out.

"Big Spider?" Kuroko asked.

"That's the name of the group that's been carrying out these Esper hunts?" Uiharu added.

"Who are they exactly?' Touma questioned, "I've been unlucky enough to have been chased through the city by pretty much every gang in the city, but I've never heard of them."

"I'm surprised you say that, Kamijou. Big Spider has always been rather well known, even among those in Skill-Out. They used to know where the line was, but have degenerated into a band of outlaws. They probably never attacked you since they didn't think it was worth it, even if you did something to anger them."

"Really? They sound more like a bitter mob sulking at the rest of the world to me," Kuroko admitted.

"Maybe," Konori agreed, handing everyone a cup, "Despite the indignation they felt, and the anger, they maintained a sort of admiration for Espers."

"It sounds like you really knew a lot about them," Touma pointed out.

"Yeah, I guess so," Konori replied with a stiff laugh.

"You've done your research," Uiharu complimented.

Despite the overall happy mood, Touma couldn't help but feel like something was wrong with Konori.

Mikoto, Kuroko, Uiharu, Saten, and Touma all met up at a diner for lunch. Index had come along as well, having heard the opportunity for food from Saten. Everyone had already finished their meals and were left with drinks. The only exceptions were Uiharu and Index who each had a parfait, with Index's being five times the size of Uiharu's. While eating, the Judgement Officers brought up the incident involving Kongou, something that Mikoto was not pleased to hear.

"Somebody attacked Kongou!" Mikoto yelled, pounding her fist on the table.

"Calm down now," Kuroko insisted, "You should just take it easy, Sissy."

"Guys like that are disgusting," Mikoto vented, "Ganging up and attacking a girl like that. Come on!"

"You, uh, seem pretty worked up about this, huh Misaka," Saten noted.

"Does this have anything to do with how me first met?" Touma asked, remembering that particular journal entry.

"What does that have anything to do with it?" Index asked, suddenly interested in something other than her food.

"Misaka and Kamijou apparently first met when Misaka was being hit on by a gang of guys one night," Uiharu explained, "Kamijou saw this and tried to help, but everything kind of spiraled out of control and she learned about Imagine Breaker in the process."

"Did Touma met all of you after trying to help you, too?" Index further questioned.

"Not all of us, but in a sense. It was that inherent heroism that caught Judgement's attention in the first place," Kuroko replied, "After a bit of strong-arming by his class, he ended up joining."

"Anyway, that's beside the point," Mikoto interrupted, "I just can't stand people who would rather hurt others instead of facing their own reality. If you want my opinion, it's both futile and cruel."

"It's beginning to sound like your talking about me now," Saten said with a stiff laugh.

"What? You're nothing like that, Saten," Mikoto insisted.

"Yeah, she's right," Kuroko added, "Skill-Out only act when they can do so as a gang. It takes a lot more guts to act on your own like you did when you we so desperate to level up."

"Okay, that's enough out of you," Touma interjected, standing up behind Kuroko and lightly chopping her in the back of the head as a warning, "And people tell me I constantly put my foot in my mouth."

"I thought that Skill-Out was made up of Level 0 runaways. Why would they be attacking Espers like this?" Mikoto asked.

"You know what they say, 'you're stronger when you act as one'," Touma replied, crossing his arms in thought, "Gather enough people, and even some of the strongest Espers can have a hard time. A single person can only fight so many opponents at once."

"Not only that, but we've recently learned that Big Spider has been getting access to illegal weapons through the Black Market."

"Huh." Mikoto mused, "I think these guys would think differently if they tangled with me."

"Now, now, Sissy," Kuroko flirted, snuggling up against the Level 5, "You know, if you want somebody to tangle with, you don't have to look father than right here."

"That's not what I meant!" Mikoto yelled, trying to pry Kuroko off.

"Would you two quit it? We're in public," Touma injected, attempting to help separate the two.

"Oh? Do want in on this too, Kamijou?" Kuroko replied, attempting to pull the unlucky Level 0 in.

"When and why did I become part of your perverted fantasies?!" Touma yelled in desperation.

"So, how'd it all go down?" Saten asked Uiharu, ignoring her other friend's argument, "Those Skill-Out were caught, right? But who was responsible?"

"Apparently, some mystery man showed up and took them all out," Uiharu explained.

"Wow, a mysterious Hero of Justice," Saten mused.

"Maybe he was secretly a magician that specializes in the projection magic, creating an endless supply of weapons out of thin air," Index offered.

"I think that might be taking it a bit far," Uiharu admitted.

"Hero of Justice! Please!" Kuroko yelled in outrage, ceasing her sexual assault on her friends, "Members of Judgement and Anti-Skill are the only people that should be involved in fighting crime! This person is nothing more than a vigilante!"

"Doesn't that describe Mikoto and Touma before he joined Judgement?" Index asked.

"Did I really describe them like that?" Kuroko asked awkwardly.

"You certainly did," Index replied flatly, knowing that denying her claims was futile with her photographic memory.

Kuroko's only response was to laugh stiffly while Touma and Mikoto's eyes drifted off in another direction, attempting to ignore the awkward situation, despite still being tangled up. Unfortunately, the situation only got even more awkward with the sudden announcement of two new and familiar voices.

"You're doing it again, Kami?!" Tsuchimokado yelled as he and Aogami approached the table.

"Seriously! Me and Tsuchimokado come in to grab lunch, and we find you tangling with two of your girls! Not to mention you're doing it in public!" Aogami added.

"Not only that, but you've also collected a nun!" Tsuchimokado pointed out, pointing at Index who as once again distracted by her parfait.

"Is nothing sacred to you!" both boys yelled in sorrow.

"Rotten luck! This is not what it looks like!" Touma denied, "Also, how do you keep showing up like this! You claim to just be going to lunch like the rest of us, but I'm starting to think you're actively following me around just to accuse me of stuff! Is some higher power just dropping you two off near me whenever something like this happens?!"

Clearly, the someone outside Academy City's plain of existence was amused by the situation.

Then next day, the Judgement crew and Mikoto gathered in the branch office to find any other leads on Big Spider. After a bit of research, they deduced that the illegal weapons were coming from some sort of benefactor. In addition, they found out that the group's leader, Wataru Kurozuma, was a rather ruthless fellow, not hesitating to shoot anyone who attempts to leave the gang. He also had a spider tattoo on his back, matching the description of the person that saved Kongou. Combined with the previous evidence, the group deduced that he was simply fighting another branch of Big Spider that tried to defect. Eventually, Uiharu was able to narrow down the possible locations of Big Spider's hideout in the area of District 10 known as Strange. Apparently, it was a popular area for gang activity, especially Skill-Out gang activity.

Excited to finally have a lead, Mikoto dragged Kuroko out of the office to investigate immediately. Despite her best efforts, Kuroko couldn't say know to her. They invited Konori and Touma to investigate with them, but they both claimed to have a lot of paperwork they needed to finish up.

However, Touma was only telling half the truth. Ever since the investigation turned towards Big Spider, he had noticed Konori had been a little off. Despite only really knowing her personally for a few days, he could tell something was bothering her. With this in mind, he elected to stay at the office and talk to her when she seemed ready to.

Several hours passed and nothing changed in Konori's condition, as far as Touma could tell. Uiharu had left a few hours ago for lunch with Saten and Index. The two remaining members of Judgement simply sat at their desks, continuing their paper work. Eventually, Konori shut off her computer and excused herself, leaving Touma alone in the office. Looking out the window, Touma could tell Konori was definitely not making her way to District 10.

Seeing as no one else was around, Touma pulled out his journal and looked up Konori's profile for reference. Among her personal information was her dorm's address. From what he could tell, the path she took led straight to it. Touma put the journal away before continuing with his paper work for a few more minutes, just to give her a head start. Once he was satisfied with how much time had passed, he gathered his things and left the branch office, intending to visit Konori. If she wasn't going to come to anyone about this, he was going to have to come to her.

After arriving home, Konori opened up her closet and eyed a single article of clothing she had not touched for a long time. For two years, that red, leather jacket just hung in the closet, gathering dust. After what happened two years ago, Konori wasn't sure she could ever even think about looking at that jacket, yet here she was, contemplating its origins.

Not too long after, Konori was greeted by her surprised roommate and fellow member of Judgement, Aomi Yanagisako. Considering Konori was usually busy with Judgement work, Yanagisako asked what happened to said work. Konori promised to take care of it, but countered with a similar question. Yanagisako was never on to show up at the branch office too often.

"Being on campus is enough for me," Yanagisako replied, "I have matters of love an youth to attend to."

"Honestly, you're always like this, aren't you?" Konori scoffed.

"Hey, is something wrong?" Yanagisako asked, noticing her friend's overly relaxed, almost depressed body language.

"Not really," Konori insisted unconvincingly.

Seeing as Konori wasn't going to say anything for the time being, Yanagisako decided to just role with it.

"Okay. Well, since you're home early for once, maybe you can take a turn cooking dinner?" Yanagisako suggested.

"Huh? That's not fair, Aomi!" Konori protested.

However, the argument never got to take off. They were interrupted by the sound of a knock on the door. Curious about who it was, Yanagisako ran over to the door and answered. Needless to say, she was surprised at who was on the other side.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"I'm looking for a Mii Konori. She's a friend," the guest replied, "This is her dorm, right?"

"Mii, there's someone here to see you!" Yanagisako called back into the dorm.

When Konori walked out, she was not expecting Touma to be standing in the doorway.

"Hey there, chief!" Touma greeted with a wave, "Just thought I'd come by to check on you."

"Who is this guy, Mii?" Yanagisako asked, "Is he your secret boyfriend or something?"

"Not at all. If you actually showed up at the branch office every once and a while, you would know," Konori sighed, "His name it Touma Kamijou. He's a new member that joined the branch a couple weeks ago."

"So, you're the infamous Judgement Officer that never shows up for work," Touma mussed.

"I guess I am," Yanagisako giggled, "I'm Aomi Yanagisako. It's a pleasure to meet you. Care to come in?"

Touma replied with a simple nod. He stepped inside and took of his shoes, leaving them at the door. He then joined to two girls in the main room, making himself comfortable on the floor.

"So, what was the visit about again?" Konori asked.

"You just seemed a little out of it at work," Touma explained, "I thought I'd come visit, just to check on you."

"I told you all before, I'm fine," Konori insisted.

"Come on, chief, you can't fool me," Touma countered, "You don't think I've noticed your sudden change in behavior ever since Big Spider was suspected? Something is definitely wrong and all you're doing is trying to cast the illusion that you're alright. Just come clean."

Touma gave Konori a long and determined stare. From the look in his eyes, Konori knew he was not going to give up on this. It was just like him to be so determined to solve a problem like this. During the many times the two of them had gone on patrol, Konori couldn't help but lose track of how many times Touma stopped to help with a small problem. Normally, people would come to them for help, but with Touma it was the other way around. He when on duty, if he saw any sigh that someone even remotely needed help, he was there to provide it. No one needed to ask him for help. It was just how Touma was.

"All right, you win," Konori conceded, "You're right, the case has been bothering me for a while now."

"Care to elaborate?" Touma asked.

"If I must," Konori agreed, "Aomi, could you step out for a moment."

"Sure, I can do that. Just don't go playing 'hide the salami' while I'm gone," Yanagisako giggled.

"As if!" Konori yelled in defense.

"What kind of person do you take me for?! I just met you!" Touma added.

Ignoring their arguments, Yanagisako stepped out of the room, leaving the two to their devices.

"So, where were we?" Konori asked, trying to get over the embarrassment.

"You were going to elaborate why you were bothered by the case," Touma reminded her.

"Right," Konori replied, taking a deep breath, "Its just that I have a bit of a complicated history with Big Spider."

"So, you knew them personally," Touma deduced, "You were attacked?"

"No, I was only a Level 2 at the time," Konori clarified, "If fact, I kind of respected them, in a sense. I hit a bump in developing my ability, but they seemed to be so happy and satisfied despite being stuck as Level 0s. They were close to one another and looked out for each other."

"Which is why you held them in such high regard back then," Touma reasoned, "You knew they were a rather friendly group."

Konori nodded.

"Yes, but that all changed two years ago," Konori continued, but was interrupted by the sound of Touma's phone going off.

Taking out his phone, Touma found that he had received an email from Kuroko. Apparently, she and Mikoto had found a lead as to the location of one of Big Spider's hideouts. She was messaging him for some additional back up.

"Looks like Pigtails and Zapper found a lead on Big Spider," Touma noted, getting out of his seat, "They might have found the leader, Wataru Kurozuma, and called in for backup. Are you coming along?"

"I'm not sure," Konori stammered.

"You can't keep avoiding this forever," Touma said, offering his right hand, "It's about time you come to terms with your past. I may not know what happened two years ago, but I know you can move past it. I'll be right here to help you."

Konori stared at Touma's hand for a moment. It was the hand Touma favored when throwing a punch. It was the hand that held the power known as Imagine Breaker. It was the hand of someone who worked tirelessly for the sake of others. But most importantly, right now, it was the hand offering her help.

Deep down, Konori knew Touma was right. She couldn't keep running from this. She had to face this case and her past at some point. It seemed like now was the time, even if he turned out to be there. Besides, she had Touma here to help her. She knew Touma wouldn't fail at doing that.

Timidly and still a little unsure, Konori took his hand.

It took longer than expected, but Touma and Konori arrived at the address that Mikoto and Kuroko had sent Touma. It was almost sundown by the time they arrived. However, they were met with quite the surprise when they arrived. Appearing to be comforting Mikoto and Kuroko after being attacked was a man wearing a leather jacket. He had greasy red hair and was carrying a large carton of milk.

Touma didn't recognize the man, but Konori seemed to stop in her tracks when she got a good look at him. To Touma's confusion, Konori picked up her pace, pulling ahead of him before stopping just behind the man.

The man took a large swig of milk from the carton, sighing in satisfaction.

"When it comes to milk," he began to say.

"It's got to be Musasino," Konori finished, surprising everyone present.

"Chief?" Touma asked in confusion.

"It's been a long time, Mii," the red-haired man replied, turning to face the high school girl.

The three other students looked back and forth between Konori and the man, saying "huh?" in unison with each look. Needless to say, everyone was outright confused.

And the first chapter of the Big Spider Arc is done!

This one was pretty fun to write. A little bit of Index housing planning here, some Judgement training there, harem jokes, Delta Force, character exploration, and references. I'd say that filled in my usual checklist for writing a chapter for this story. Also, I have involuntarily created a new nickname for Konori. Pretty fitting, wouldn't you say? And not at all insulting! Probably.

Pretty convenient that the next arc I cover after Touma loses his memory involves a character dealing with her past. It's like the anime watching order was encouraging me to write this story!

That one reference might have been a bit on the nose and cheeky, but whatever. They both had red hair and the original English Dub dialogue pretty much set me up for it. Just had to make a few edits.

Anyway, see you all next time!

Why, oh why? Wh-Wh-Wh-Why? Yo, yo!