Chapter 50: A New Door

In the end, Index was the one who stayed behind this time.

Of course, we’d decided to go retrieve the Remnant in order to save his little sister, but by the time the girl arrived at Kamijou’s place, she was already running a fever. Someone had to stay and look after her.

Naturally, no one wanted to send the others off to fight, so there was some dispute over who would stay behind—or rather, Kamijou insisted on going no matter what, and Index flat-out refused to stay behind, so it came down to either Index staying alone or both of us staying with her. In the end, I managed to calm her down with the mighty power of nikujaga.

In the original timeline, I think things got pretty dicey, so I’d really like to improve our odds even a little. Especially since the appearance of the Remnant is already an irregularity...

"...I’ll cook something else for you when we get back, okay?"

"Why are you assuming the nikujaga’s going to be gone!?"

Well, it’s Index we’re talking about...

Now then—how exactly are we going to proceed from here?

"Kamijou-san. As things are, we don’t have any leads. I propose we get a bird’s-eye view of the situation."

"...Bird’s-eye view? Shiren-san? I just got a really bad feeling—what exactly do you mean by that...?"

"I mean, 'We’re going to fly,' of course."

And then—

A pair of wings, black and white, eighty-eight in total, unfolded behind me.

It was the manifestation of Reicia-chan’s and my power—Black-and-White Jagged Edge.

Having surpassed Level 4, this Level 5 power can create "rifts" that cut through anything. Literally anything—even air isn’t exempt. By manipulating the vacuum created inside a "rift" and controlling the air flow that rushes in when it’s released, it can generate extremely powerful and precise air currents.

With support from my teammates’ calculations, it even outclasses the number one’s airflow manipulation in this city. Its power is well-proven.

Also—

Since these air currents are a byproduct of the ability, even Kamijou-san, who possesses Imagine Breaker, can ride them without canceling them out. Very convenient.

"UWAaaaAAAAAAaaaaaaaAAAHHH!?!?!?"

"Kamijou-san! Stop flailing! If you just stay still, this is as safe as a theme park ride!"

"Easier said than done!?"

Using those currents, Kamijou-san and I shot up about fifty meters into the air. The higher we go, the wider our view—and the easier it is to spot any unusual activity.

Ah, Kamijou-san’s posture is off. At this rate, he might land right hand first... Better adjust his angle a bit.

"Heave-ho."

"Whoa—...This is incredible. This is one of those 'rifts'? You can even use it like this?"

Kamijou-san was clearly impressed that the black-and-white "rifts" I had created were now serving as footholds for us.

Well, now that I’ve reached Level 5, generating landing-grade currents while riding a separate updraft is child’s play.

"For safety, I’ve set up the 'rifts' to be managed in segments, so touching one won’t collapse the whole thing, but if it does get erased, you’ll fall a bit. So please be very careful with your right hand."

"...Got it."

After giving Kamijou-san that warning, I passed control of our body and powers to Reicia-chan and shifted my focus to visual perception.

This is another strength of Square Face—our dual-personality setup. One of us can fully concentrate while the other handles the body.

You could call it perfect multitasking. It’d be a weakness if we weren’t in sync, but that’s never been a problem for us.

It’s hard to see clearly in this twilight, but if I remember right, the incident happened within walking distance of where Kamijou-san just happened to be in the original timeline. And if they’re already fighting out in the open, it should be easy to spot from up here—

Ah.

"...Back during the Daihaseisai, probably," "Found her!" "...Shiren, seriously? Kamijou, we’ll finish this conversation another time."

Huh? Were they in the middle of a conversation? Sorry to interrupt. But this is kind of an emergency.

"Shiren, did you find something?"

"I found Misaka-san. Over there. Judging by her purposeful movements... she probably already has an idea where the battlefield is. Shall we rendezvous with her?"

Following where I pointed—a middle school girl running in a straight line, crackling with electricity.

Even from this distance, I could tell. That was definitely Misaka-san.

"Misaka-san!"

"Shiren-san? Wait—why are you here too!?"

As I ran down the stair-like 'rifts' and called out to her, Misaka turned, eyes wide, cheeks flushed. She’s always such a busy girl...

"Misaka, you’re after the Remnant too?"

"So that means you guys are on the same mission... Geez, I can handle this on my own, you know."

Misaka-san gave a wry smile.

"Yeah. Like you, I’m chasing the idiot who’s trying to revive that 'experiment.' ...But I screwed up."

With that, Misaka-san averted her gaze. Her expression twisted like she’d swallowed something bitter. But after a moment, she shook it off and spoke again.

"My junior got caught up in this. Because I was taking my sweet time, the bastard who stole the Remnant ended up getting caught by Judgment."

"That’s... not your fault, Misaka-san." "Shiren, it’s her pride—we shouldn’t press her on this."

"...Thanks for the kind words, Shiren. But Reicia’s right. ...I have to take responsibility. I need to protect my junior."

And then, Misaka-san looked up and locked eyes with us.

Her gaze wasn’t that of a girl crying out for help. It was something stronger—the eyes of someone who has someone to protect.

"That's why, sorry for calling you all the way out here, but you probably won’t get a turn this time. I won’t stop you from following, though."

"That's more than enough."

And Kamijou-san smiled in return.

Maybe it was a reenactment of that day, with Reicia-chan.

"You’re the protagonist of this fantasy tale. So let us help you."


Prologue: Status Check Is Important — Lost_Remnant
Episode 42: A New Door — The_Road...?


It could no longer be described with something as ordinary as the word battlefield.

Furnishings burst outward from inside the building, like a storm of debris. It was all due to the person at the center continuously teleporting materials in and out of space.

…As expected of a hidden Level 5 esper. Even if Reicia-chan and I went all out, it’s doubtful we could take them down on our own.

"They’re supposed to be up ahead, but… tsk, this teleportation storm makes it really hard to act…"

Staring up at the problematic building, Misaka-san ground her teeth in frustration.

Judging by the teleportation storm, the esper—Musujime-san—seemed to be on one of the upper floors. Normally, Misaka-san could just fire her signature Railgun to punch through, but… the issue is likely that inside the building, the storm of spatial teleportation is even more intense.

Sure, the Railgun would obliterate obstacles in an instant and carve a path to rescue Shirai-san—but if teleportation happened to intersect with the Railgun’s path…

No matter the substance, anything caught in a teleportation shift takes priority.

In other words, if something teleporting intersects with the coin Misaka-san fired, it could throw the trajectory off. And if that happens, it could very well endanger Shirai-san, who’s on the same floor.

They needed an ability that could safely and accurately interfere from a distance.

"In that case, it’s our turn to shine!!"

ZUAHH!! From Reicia-chan’s extended fingertip, a black-and-white fracture shot out with force.

The fracture split into four, slicing through the outer wall and floor with precision. The debris instantly became part of the teleportation storm and vanished into the void.

And beyond that—Musujime Awaki, her face twisted with hatred, locked eyes with them. But Misaka-san, standing beside me, wasn’t looking at her. Her eyes were focused on one person only.

"Kurokoooo!!"

BZZZTT!!

A surge of purple electricity erupted around Misaka-san—and in the same instant, a massive black arm burst out at her side.

No—it wasn’t an arm. It was iron sand from the rubble and dust, clumped together and shaped into a single, giant arm.

A right hand—to save Shirai-san.

"Onee…sama…!"

Shirai-san, her body riddled with piercing wounds, was scooped up by the iron-sand hand and swiftly pulled from danger. Even so, her expression remained clouded.

It wasn’t frustration over her own powerlessness—but concern over a threat that had yet to pass.

"A-hahahaha!! You think you saved her!? What a joke! That saves nothing! Just like your oh-so-glorious efforts got ruined in this ruined Remnant, I’m going to ruin everything for you!!"

"Four thousand five hundred… twenty… kilograms…"

Forcing her trembling lips to move, Shirai-san spoke.

"There’s… a traffic jam in Academy City right now. That woman… is using it… she plans to teleport… a massive truck… right here…!!"

"No… no way……!!"

……Damn it! Now that I think about it, I do remember something like this happening in the official timeline!

I could just run away, sure—but if a giant truck gets dropped right into the middle of the city, who knows how far the damage will spread!? And on top of that, District 7 has a huge underground mall. The ground isn’t exactly built for durability!

《Shiren, let’s do this!》

《…Reicia-chan?》

《The Fracture! Now that it can cut even light, it might be able to jam the one-dimensional special coordinate vector too! At the very least, it should serve as a shield against the teleported material!》

Ah, right. A material weighing just under five tons? We can easily handle that with the Fracture. So I guess there’s no need to panic too much after all.

Calm down, sync my thoughts with Reicia-chan—

ZUBASH!! A black-and-white Fracture lashes out, piercing through the space that was beginning to distort.

But—

…Wait, what!?

What is this vector…!? I’m getting pressure from a direction I’ve never even felt before…!? Crap, this won’t work! It’s got nothing to do with three-dimensional strength! The Fracture is being forcibly shattered by a direction we didn’t even account for!?

《HAA!? For our Level 5 esper ability to be broken by some mere Level 4? That is absolutely unacceptable!!!!》

The moment I was struck with dread, Reicia-chan suddenly snapped in indignation.

《Uh, Reicia-chan?》

《To think that the crystallization of our bond could be beaten by such a vile, self-centered woman reeking of desperate self-preservation—it’s absolutely unthinkable!! Shiren!! Buck up!! Give it everything you’ve got!!》

《Ugh…》

That’s some classic guts-and-glory logic… …Well, thinking back, Reicia-chan was kind of a hardass on those faction members in her diary, wasn’t she? Like yelling at them for deviating from auxiliary research.

She’s a theorist for sure, but I guess deep down, she’s all hot-blooded after all…

Still, when our Queen and main personality gives an order, we follow it. Let’s do what we can.

Besides, Musujime-san’s situation does have room for sympathy. We could afford to treat her a little more kindly, honestly…

Alright. With Reicia-chan handling full control over the ability itself, I need to take care of the computation side.

Okay, first, identify the vector exerting pressure… With a one-dimensional format, the current Fracture setup is going to collapse.

I’ll need to reformat it to account for the one-dimensional vector… Oh—huh, that was easier than expected. Thank god I didn’t have to redo every formula from scratch.

Now to recalculate the Fracture with the one-dimensional vector integrated—wait, what’s this? It’s like the Fracture is twisting in a direction I didn’t expect…

"Nice one, Shireicia!!"

Just as things were starting to feel a bit shaky—

Kamijou-san dashed out across the Fracture we’d deployed.

Ah!! Right—by using the Fracture as footing, even Kamijou-san, who had no way of climbing the building before, can run straight up it now!

"Wait, Kamijou!? I was just about to start my big comeback moment, you know!? Who said you could charge in like that!? Didn’t you say you were a side character this time!?" "Reicia-chan, we’re side characters too, so it’s mutual…"

Well, ever since Misaka-san saved Shirai-san, the happy ending of this story was kind of locked in. Everything after that’s basically just bonus stage content anyway.

No, no, no—there were plenty of twists and turns, but in the end, this is how it was always going to play out.

The parting gift left behind by the fleeing Musujime Awaki was safely neutralized—by a certain boy’s right hand.

"Hey, it’s over."

The scattered futures, spread out in all directions, now converge into one.

As if stretched rubber were simply snapping back to its original shape.

"…No, it’s not over. Not. Even. Halfway."

And still—

I can only hope the future has tilted, even just a little, toward something better.

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