One-way traffic

There's no need to worry about the battles to come.

At least, that person was on my team and would never poison my side.

Fuyukawa Ryo, having grasped this point, felt genuine joy.

"I'm sorry, Ruri."

The young man lowered his head, his face showing obvious resentment.

"I... I can't do anything, I'm just a useless piece of trash. If I had power, I could protect you, I could stop all of this from happening, and there would be no need for me to be reduced to this state..."

"That's not the case."

Compared to his unwilling expression, the girl smiled gently.

"Because, hasn't it always been Ryo who has stayed by my side, never leaving me? That's enough."

"You're not a piece of trash, so never say things like that to yourself...!"

“Liuli…”

What exactly has this girl been through?

Forced to leave their homes, they had to face unknown dangers with the people in front of them, and might even lose their lives.

Even so, this girl still managed to pull through on her own.

That smile looked so powerless.

'...If I...'

Fuyukawa Ryo couldn't help but clench his fist.

'If only I could become stronger…!'

"I will definitely protect you... We will definitely be able to return to the harmonious and peaceful life we ​​had before, we definitely will!"

He held the girl in front of him tightly, not letting go for a long time.

Until about a few seconds later.

Bang! A sound like banging on the door came from outside, instantly giving Fuyukawa Ryo goosebumps all over.

"What are you dawdling about? Are you about to accidentally go off?"

Hearing the sounds coming from outside, Fuyukawa Ryo couldn't help but smile bitterly.

"Come on, Ruri, let's go and do what's more important right now..."

——————————————————————————————————————————

After leaving the small village, the group embarked on a journey directly to their destination.

The five people sat comfortably in the car and drove directly towards the city of Camelot.

"Excuse me, could you tell me the direction? I'm sure I'm not going wrong."

"You don't need to worry about that."

While maneuvering the steering wheel, Yiche Tongxing glanced at the system interface next to the instrument panel out of the corner of his eye.

The map displayed above was in 3D, and the location of the city of Camelot had already been scanned.

The base speed is 1,225 kilometers per hour.

At the speed of sound, this vehicle will quickly reach the castle.

Although the excessive speed would likely subject other passengers in the vehicle to unimaginable pressure, Nathos's protective system is very effective. Even if it's not a one-way street, everyone else can withstand the pressure of several times the speed of sound without being affected.

The goals for the future are now very clear.

"If you walk straight to the end from here, you'll reach the castle."

Melina, sitting on the right side of the back seat, looked up, glanced around, and said this.

"The forests near Camelot are quite dense; once you enter this area, you've reached the royal city."

"...In that case..."

If nothing unexpected happens, then we'll probably encounter that situation soon.

Just as the idea of ​​Accelerator came to mind.

Suddenly, a figure appeared on the road ahead.

Click——! !

Without hesitation, he slammed on the brakes, and the system powered by the karmic fire instantly shut down. After a slight drift, the car came to a stop in place.

"Whoa... Waaah, what happened?"

The three people in the back seats couldn't help but exclaim in amazement, and they all looked out the front window.

Someone stood in front of the car.

Not far away, a person dressed in black robes, whose appearance was obscured, stood there.

"Does it mean... you want to hitch a ride?"

"Even so, that outfit is still too bizarre, isn't it?"

Accelerator couldn't help but narrow his eyes.

He used his right hand to manipulate the system interface and switched Nathos's vehicle mode to protection mode.

"Hatsune, you stay in the car and keep an eye on everything. I'll get out and check."

"Is everything alright...?"

"There's no need to worry about me. Besides, we can't continue without confirming the actual situation, can we?"

The car door opened, and the first person stepped out.

The two looked at each other.

"...Want a ride?"

"It's not just a simple plan."

It was a male, and judging from his voice, he was probably around seventeen years old.

The other person stood not far from Accelerator, with a half-smile on their face.

"Everyone here, except for that purple-haired girl, should be a system holder, right?"

That one sentence alone is enough to confirm the other person's identity.

The first one, with white hair and red eyes, glared at them without hesitation, his gaze carrying a hint of danger.

"Don't look at me with such a dangerous gaze. Just because we're both system owners doesn't mean we have to be enemies, right?"

He waved his hand and continued speaking with a smile.

"Here's the thing, I'd like to make a deal with you."

"what?"

Accelerator was slightly puzzled, and then the man raised his hands again.

Then Accelerator saw that the man's shadow began to sway.

The shadow, which should have been an optical phenomenon, instantly adhered to his hands and then began to distort.

“I know what the situation is like now. It’s a team battle, a fight between two teams, Black and White, so I plan to join your side.”

"What's the reason?"

“I witnessed it. Yesterday’s battle between you and that giant robot was truly an epic fight.”

The other person chuckled and continued.

"If I joined those guys, they would definitely abandon me without hesitation. I'm not that capable, so you're the only ones I can rely on."

"Besides, there should only be two types of teams, right? If I could join the Black Team, I would have already done so. But that's not the case. Right now, I'm not in any team; I can only join your White Team. So..."

"So you're planning to come here to see me?"

If that's the case, the other party is probably in the same situation as Fuyukawa Ryo and Hiyori Ruri.

Since we've already taken in two small fry, taking in one more won't hurt.

"Trust me, Mr. Accelerator."

The man in the robes spoke again, and at the same time, he extended his hand to Accelerator.

"I will be of great use, so please take me with you."

"...That's it."

Almost without the slightest hesitation.

"I understand, is this the right way to do it?"

He nodded and took the other person's hand directly.

well.

The man in the robe couldn't help but smile inwardly.

"That's true, but isn't there something you've got wrong?"

"Huh? What's up?"

The man blinked in confusion.

Then, he saw it.

The monster standing in front of him was staring at him with a strange smile.

"When exactly did I use the name Accelerator?"

--what?

In that instant, the young man recalled.

"Trust me, Mr. Accelerator."

That's what he just said, said without thinking.

That moment.

A storm suddenly arose.

"—!!"

The man's eyes widened, and he backed away without hesitation, feeling the terrifying sensation coming from his hand.

It felt as if the bioelectricity of the entire body was being controlled.

Boom! He detonated something in his hand, causing himself to be blasted away by the recoil, thus increasing the distance between himself and Accelerator.

"As expected, you weren't a down-on-your-luck guy at all, were you?"

The monster couldn't help but laugh as it looked at its hands.

If it were someone he caught, they should have died instantly from blood rushing to their head.

But the other party did not; they saved their life through some unique means.

"And you even know the division between the Black and White teams in such detail, and you know the name Accelerator so easily, which means—you must be the other side's lackey, right?"

"From the Black Team, right?"

Chapter 145 The Shadow of Copying Power

Accelerator showed no mercy.

Since the initial attempt to manipulate the blood to flow backwards failed, let's try a more direct attack.

He swung his arm, controlling a tornado traveling at over 120 kilometers per hour to strike, instantly bombarding the direction of the shadow in front of him.

However, it's unclear what kind of power the opponent used to be able to block a storm of that size.

Even so, there was no way to protect the tattered cloth covering her body anymore.

Under Accelerator's gaze, the robes on the person in front of him were instantly blasted apart, and countless fragments fell, directly revealing the appearance of the person underneath.

It was a face that would take him quite a surprise.