October 9.
Today, Academy City's independence day, was a holiday within the city limits.
A carefree atmosphere had enveloped it since morning, even at the hospital in District 7. The frog-faced doctor had stepped out of the front entrance, and was basking in the gentle morning sunlight.
A tiny 10-year-old girl stood beside the doctor.
A girl named Last Order.
She had been taken away on September 30 by Hound Dogs led by Kihara Amata, and Testament had been used to inject special data into her brain. The removal of that data was being performed up until now; with the work over, she had been discharged from the hospital.
"Nobody's coming even with you finally discharged from the hospital?"
The doctor asked in a shocked tone, but Last Order did not seem to mind it very much and said,
"Misaka will board the taxi alone, says Misaka as Misaka tries to puff her chest out while announcing it."
"Well, the virus inside your head has been completely destroyed, so there's nothing to worry about. Yomikawa-san has paid the taxi fare in advance, so you're heading straight for her mansion, okay?"
Just at that moment, the taxi turned up onto the hospital circle.
The frog-faced doctor flagged the taxi down, and lifted a luggage-burdened Last Order into the back seat.
As the driver watched over them, he said,
"Passenger, where to?"
"The amusement part in District 6! Says Misaka as Misa—"
"Number two building of the Family Side apartment in District 7. Don't forget it, okay?"
With him blocking the nonsense Last Order was spouting, the frog-faced doctor was stuck with caring for them after all.
As the driver smiled wryly,
"Acknowledged."
"Do I have to tell you the location in detail?"
"No sir. This town is full of student dormitories so apartments are far and few between. I can search for them with my car navigator if I get the apartment name."
As the frog-faced doctor pulled back from within the taxi, the rear door closed itself automatically. With Last Order—both hands on the window and looking outside—on board, the taxi carefully maneuvered itself out of the hospital grounds.
With the taxi gone, he went back to his hospital work. Walking through the clean walkway, he entered the visiting area where only simple sofas and tables were arranged, and bought coffee at a nearby vending machine.
The vending machine was the kind that used paper cups. Liquid coffee was not poured into the metallic box, but instead it automatically ground pre-roasted beans. It took some time, but the flavor and strength was reasonably good.
Phew, the doctor exhaled and,
(Well then, I'm finishing the Sisters' adjustments, so I have to be out of here as soon as possible—)
At that moment, the frog-faced doctor's thinking was suddenly interrupted.
*Poke*
Someone's handgun was pressing against his back.
The frog-faced doctor's movement stopped.
Audible shallow breathing from right behind him reached his ears; he paused for a bit, then said,
"You've already come back from Avignon?"
"Tch. So you've heard the news."
It was a familiar voice. Accelerator's.
Accelerator was leaning on a modernistic cane with his right hand, but they were in a hospital complex so he didn't particularly stand out. And he was using his own body to prevent others from seeing the gun in his left hand.
The doctor did not raise his hands.
For the sake of his patient behind him, he did not take such a visible action, and whispered,
"...What a fine greeting we have here, eh?"
"I want info. The electrode designs."
Accelerator was talking about the choker on his neck. It looked like an accessory, but in fact an electrode was inserted behind it, capable of transforming Accelerator's brain waves into a different signal and allowing limited connectivity to the special electronic communications network known as the Misaka Network.
The frog-faced doctor, the one who had prepared that electrode, answered without any change in emotions,
"Why do you need the schemes? Aren't you letting me fix the choker if it's not working?"
"Just give me the schemes."
"Last Order wanted to see you. It would have been better if you had come out a little earlier."
"Zip it. This has nothing to do with you."
"Wrong. And it's because the patient wanted to meet you. Arranging that is my job."
"Tch... Had I known that, I wouldn't have waited for this timing. Shitheads."
Accelerator said, sounding genuinely annoyed.
The frog-faced doctor put his hand into one of his lab coat's pockets and brought out something like a pencil-lead case. A USB stick. Holding it tight, he moved his hand backwards.
"You're prepared, eh."
"That's what I told you, right? Preparing for my patients' needs is my job."
The doctor said this while looking at the vending machine that was continuing its operations.
"Nonetheless, won't it be difficult to apply its contents? I did all of the creation of the important parts myself, you see? If you are to work on an identical electrode, you have to start from manufacturing using machine tools."
"..."
Accelerator took the USB stick and silently departed from the back of the frog-faced doctor.
The frog-faced doctor turned around.
No one was standing there. Accelerator had already used vector control to jump into the nearest stairway, leaving nothing, not even a shadow.
"..."
The doctor gazed for a while at the empty space.
A *beep* electronic sound was heard. The frog-faced doctor retrieved the coffee from the vending machine's pickup slot, and sipped on the bitter liquid.