The relentless roar of heavy impacts in the distance made it feel like they were near a demolition site.
The commotion caused by Misaka-senpai could easily rival several professional demolition teams combined.
Natsume Sonoko's gaze was fixed intently on the distant battlefield. From her vantage point, she watched as over a dozen shipping containers hovered mid-air, as if they'd suddenly been stripped of their weight.
Each container had to weigh several tons at least, and the combined mass of so many was a truly staggering figure. One could only imagine the destructive force they'd carry if used as projectiles.
But in the blink of an eye, those suspended containers were obliterated by searing white beams of Meltdowner, instantly riddled with countless holes.
The shattered containers broke apart into countless smaller fragments in the air, the shards sharp and jagged, scattering like some grand, chaotic firework display.
Then, Misaka-senpai took control of those fragments. The sharp debris turned into endless lethal weapons, filling nearly half the sky.
'So powerful.'
Natsume Sonoko's eyes widened slightly, watching the spectacle Misaka-senpai was creating with awe.
Her opponent, Meltdowner, wasn't skilled in defense. Faced with such an overwhelming, wide-area attack, she was inevitably being forced onto the back foot.
While Misaka-senpai's ability to generate electricity might not surpass Meltdowner's raw power, as an esper, her development and application of her ability were undoubtedly superior to Mugino Shizuri's.
It seemed the monster controlled by Kiyama-sensei was still over there. Originally, Natsume Sonoko had considered going to assist, but it looked like her help wasn't needed.
Pulling her gaze back, Natsume Sonoko rubbed her nose. Even from this far away, the acrid smell of burning carried on the wind, making it a little hard to breathe.
"It looks like Misaka-senpai has the upper hand," Natsume Sonoko murmured under her breath, her mood finally relaxing.
Although a lot had happened tonight, thankfully it hadn't led to disaster. Everything was moving in a positive direction.
The only real downsides were Shirai-san's injury and the damage to Doctor Heaven Canceller's research institute.
"That's right, Doctor Heaven Canceller, Uiharu and the others found the 'Original Sample'," she added, glancing at the devastated institute.
After a few seconds of hesitation, she told him about Shirai-san's discovery.
"Is that so? That's truly wonderful news," Heaven Canceller paused, then nodded slightly, a faint smile appearing on his face. "Banri and the others can finally live normal lives."
"Though I'm not sure if the equipment here is still functional. If not, the development of the complete suppression program might be delayed again." The doctor stroked his chin, his concern now shifting to the state of the devices.
"I need to check the situation on the first and second floors. I hope the damage isn't too severe. What about you, Natsume-san?" Heaven Canceller turned to Natsume Sonoko as he spoke.
"I'll come with you," Natsume Sonoko replied.
The first floor was lined with rows of supercomputer servers, a complex tangle of numerous circuits.
The institute's main entrance was now a pile of rubble, and even the computer servers on the first floor had suffered, some toppled over haphazardly.
Fortunately, the damage here wasn't too severe. Only a few server racks near the entrance were destroyed; those further back remained relatively intact, though some wiring likely needed replacement.
The second floor was in much worse shape. Nearly half the area was affected, and many precision instruments were damaged by the blast's shockwaves—a truly regrettable sight.
"The situation isn't catastrophic," Heaven Canceller assessed.
"The basement still has some spare equipment and instruments from previous upgrades. This supercomputer can be repaired and put back into service relatively quickly, though its performance will be somewhat reduced. However, after this ordeal, it will require frequent maintenance and debugging."
Supercomputers in Academy City were expensive, but not prone to frequent failure or damage.
Take the Tree Diagram, for example—it had operated alone in space for years. But even the sturdiest equipment couldn't withstand the combined assault of the Railgun and Meltdowner.
After walking through the institute, Heaven Canceller had a good grasp of the losses. The damage across the floors was significant, but he didn't seem particularly distressed by it, merely inconvenienced.
"Frequent maintenance and debugging?" Natsume Sonoko repeated hesitantly, an idea suddenly forming in her mind.
Maybe she could offer her services. She knew a thing or two about debugging; she'd tuned up her own laptop, after all. If she helped, she might even get to use the supercomputer herself.
But such a plan probably wasn't feasible. It wasn't that middle schoolers never participated in research, but she honestly didn't think she had the particular talent for it.
As she was lost in these uncertain thoughts, Doctor Heaven Canceller headed towards a laboratory on the second floor, stopping near the remains of the glass container that once held the humanoid monster.
The container was destroyed, its green liquid contents spilled all over the floor.
The fluid covered the ground, its strong corrosive properties already eating holes through the floor, exposing the nearly dissolved rebar beneath. Beyond its corrosiveness, a distinctly pungent odor hung in the nearby air.
"This is bad. This solution is quite toxic and corrosive. We must collect it into designated containers," Heaven Canceller frowned slightly, quickly covering his mouth and nose and pulling Natsume Sonoko away from the area.
"Doctor, don't worry. Leave this to me," Natsume Sonoko said, holding her breath slightly, her expression turning serious.
The water vapor in the surrounding space began to gather, forming visible ripples in the air. It enveloped the green liquid, lifting it all into the air.
Once she had transported all the liquid into the designated waste tank, the environment on the second floor finally returned to normal.
--+--
Back at the container yard, the battle was reaching its conclusion.
The humanoid monster controlled by Kiyama Harumi forcefully grabbed Mugino Shizuri's body and hurled her from the ground into the air.
As Mugino Shizuri soared upwards, she extended her hand, coalescing several Meltdowner beams into one. The focused beam swelled visibly, expanding rapidly.
When the expansion ceased, a massive beam over a meter in diameter shot down from the sky, piercing straight through the monster's body.
This beam attack lasted for a considerable time, likely pushing Meltdowner to her limits.
Even while fighting Misaka Mikoto, Mugino Shizuri had kept her focus on this monster. She bore several wounds because of it, though they didn't significantly impair her combat ability yet.
After the beam's piercing assault ended, the monster reverted to a bare, stony form.
The intense heat generated by the high-powered Meltdowner was so extreme that it distorted the light around it, nearly annihilating all the cellular tissue throughout the meteorite-based creature.
But it was still not enough. The monster's tissues began regenerating, quickly restoring it to its original form.
Mugino Shizuri's face was streaked with blood, wounds marking various parts of her body. She was visibly drained, having expended a great deal of physical strength and computational power.
"Dammit! So close!" Mugino Shizuri gritted her teeth, frustration evident. Even pushed to her limit, she refused to give up.
"Mugino, let's get out of here! We need to retreat, for now!" Frenda, already covered in dust and grime, tugged at Mugino Shizuri's arm.
"Frenda, get away from me!" Mugino Shizuri shoved Frenda aside, glaring furiously at the monster ahead and the watchful Misaka Mikoto nearby.
"Hey, you high school hag, how long are you going to keep this up?" Misaka-senpai landed from above, a look of exasperation on her face.
"Number Three, don't get cocky. I haven't lost to you yet," Mugino Shizuri retorted scornfully.
"I see. In that case, I'll defeat you completely and thoroughly," Misaka-senpai's expression grew even more determined.
"Mugino, we have a call from upstairs," Frenda cautiously approached Mugino Shizuri and handed her a phone.
"Not now! Tell them to wait!"
"It's about Takitsubo and Nunotaba. They're in trouble," Frenda insisted.
At that, Mugino Shizuri finally calmed down a little. She took the phone and began speaking with the person on the other end.
"Let's go." Hanging up, Mugino Shizuri took a deep breath and spoke to Frenda.
Frenda tossed out several high-powered bombs. Suddenly, the container yard was filled with billowing smoke and dust. By the time it cleared, the two members of Item had vanished.
"They actually left?" The iron sand enveloping Misaka-senpai dispersed. She looked puzzled at the sudden departure of the Item duo.
But she didn't let her guard down completely, as the monster was still nearby. Even though it had fought alongside her earlier, it still fell into the 'untrustworthy' category.
"Just what are you?" Misaka-senpai directed her gaze at the nearby creature.
"Hello, Misaka-san," the monster spoke in a grating, unpleasant tone.
Inside the institute, Kiyama Harumi's eyes finally returned to normal, the crimson hue receding to reveal their original dark pupils.
She gently closed her eyes, regaining her composure slightly, then slowly stood up. Staggering, she ran down the stairs, bumping into Natsume Sonoko right at the stairwell.
"Kiyama-sensei, are you alright?" Natsume Sonoko quickly steadied her, voice full of concern.
"Banri… they were taken," Kiyama Harumi said weakly, her hands gripping Natsume Sonoko's shoulders tightly.
"Kiyama-sensei, Banri and the others are safe now. They'll be back soon," Natsume Sonoko hurriedly explained, recounting the recent events.
Hearing that Banri and the others had been rescued, Kiyama Harumi finally let out a sigh of relief, the tension draining from her expression.
Roughly ten minutes later, an armored vehicle pulled up not far from the institute.
Anti-Skill Officer Yomikawa Aiho had personally brought the kidnapped children, including Banri, back.
The moment the vehicle doors opened, Shirai-san jumped out first, her head swiveling as she searched for any sign of Misaka-senpai.
Misaka-senpai had also returned to the institute and was profusely apologizing to Doctor Heaven Canceller for the mess she'd made of his facility.
"Misaka-san, there's no need to apologize. On the contrary, you've done a great deal for everyone," Heaven Canceller said with a kind smile, shaking his head to dismiss her apologies.
"Really? Gekota Doctor?" Misaka-senpai blurted out, a bit flustered.
The moment the words left her mouth, she realized what she'd said. Her face turned bright red as she tried to stammer an explanation.
Just as Misaka-senpai was floundering, Shirai-san suddenly appeared, throwing her arms around her beloved senpai and nuzzling her neck repeatedly.
"Onee-sama! Kuroko was so worried about you!"
"Kuroko! Get down this instant!" Misaka-senpai cried out in a panic.
--+--
With the kidnapping incident at the institute resolved, Banri and the others returned safely. The Tokiwadai trio also made it back to their dormitory without further incident, just before lights-out.
Early the next morning, however, Natsume Sonoko had to go to the Anti-Skill headquarters to give her statement. Shirai-san and Uiharu-san accompanied her; Misaka-senpai, fortunately, was exempt.
"So, Natsume-san, you're saying you learned about the kidnapping after receiving a call from your friend, Uiharu?" Yomikawa Aiho asked officiously, sitting across from Natsume Sonoko and the others. Her expression was serious as she typed their accounts into the computer.
"That's correct. I had just left the Judgment branch office when I got the call," Natsume Sonoko nodded, recalling the scene.
"Apologies, one moment. I seem to have entered the previous record in the wrong field," Yomikawa Aiho suddenly became flustered, realizing she'd made an error in the documentation.
It took over an hour, but their statements were finally completed.
Stepping out of the Anti-Skill building, Natsume Sonoko sighed inwardly. A whole morning wasted. Wasting time was like wasting money, and thinking of it that way, her losses were quite substantial.
Moreover, because of the statements, all the regular and temporary members of Judgment Branch 177 were effectively skipping half a day of work.
"Natsume-san, Banri and the others are scheduled to receive the suppression program tomorrow at noon, right?" Shirai-san suddenly asked.
"Yes, the program itself is ready, but the equipment still needs a bit more repair time," Natsume Sonoko replied after a moment's thought.
"Then let's all meet tomorrow at noon! I'll prepare a huge feast to celebrate Banri and the others' recovery!" Uiharu-san said with a bright, cheerful smile.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.