One-way traffic

Tsuchimikado Motoharu quickly waved his hand and said.

"By the way, where did your electrodes and cane go?"

Compared to these things, Mitsutaka Kaihara noticed something more important.

"I remember, your brain can't function properly without those things..."

"And when did you start driving a sports car? I don't think you have a driver's license!"

"Ah! Now that you mention it, I remember hearing a girl's voice on the phone when I called you... Hey kid! You wouldn't actually be the son of some big boss, sneaking off to inherit the family fortune behind our backs, would you?!"

The more you say it, the more outrageous it becomes.

"Shut up. If we're talking about truly surprising things, just one thing could make your jaws drop."

He didn't come here just to catch up with these three people.

For the members of the Dark Division, there is no such thing as sympathy or friendship. The relationship between the four of them is purely one of exploitation. They are simply compatible and have similar goals.

…Nevertheless, all four of them harbored a longing for light.

"so."

After sitting down and pulling out a can of coffee from somewhere, Accelerator pulled the tab and said as he drank.

"So the reason you summoned me so soon after I got back is still for the Anbu mission?"

He was a member of the Dark Side "Group" even before Accelerator left this world.

Doing all sorts of dirty things on the dark side of Academy City—that's what their Dark Side, or rather, all Dark Sides, do.

This is why he doesn't plan to have Hatsune Miku come with him.

"No, this time it's not quite what you expected."

Tsuchimikado Motoharu waved his hand.

He spoke directly, in a completely reversed tone.

"There is indeed something going on this time, but it wasn't assigned to us."

"what?"

"That was a mission specifically assigned to you by the higher-ups. Accelerator, after they learned your exact whereabouts, they reassigned this mission to you."

Those bastards at the top really never have a moment's rest.

Even though Accelerator is not the same as before, he still understands that the darkness of Academy City is not so easy to deal with. Simply thinking that he can win by becoming stronger is nothing more than a child's play.

Let's just go along with it for now.

Compared to the past when he would just make a lot of noise and cause trouble, Accelerator has changed a lot now.

If it were him, he would definitely be able to find a breakthrough to the highest level of Academy City.

"What? This wasn't a task assigned to everyone in the organization?"

"Wow, if I had known, I wouldn't have come. I was thinking of getting my nails done today!"

"I'm also thinking of going to check out the area around Tokiwadai..."

"You guys came here on your own after hearing the news, what does it have to do with me... Hey, Haiyuan, what did you say you were going to Tokiwadai to see?"

"Huh? No, nothing, just tell me!"

Although it was highly suspicious, Tsuchimikado Motoharu continued speaking.

"Ahem, just as I said, meow, the higher-ups want you to do something important."

Under the watchful eyes of several people, he gently pushed up his glasses.

"—I wonder if you are aware of the current public opinion about Academy City?"

In an instant, memories of the past flooded into Accelerator's mind.

He clearly remembered all the various rumors he had heard before leaving this world.

"war…"

The situation between Academy City and the outside world is already very serious.

It is very possible that this will lead to a large-scale war on a global scale.

"Yes, it is war. Now, Academy City is gradually becoming distorted in the eyes of those outsiders. However, the most obvious place is still here."

With the help of the map that he always kept under the table, Tsuchimikado Motoharu took it out.

The back of the map was a world map, and the front was an internal map of Academy City. He found a specific location directly—it was on the French side.

A French city located in the southeast.

“Avignon, a city with a long history in France, and... in such a place, large-scale reactionary events are now taking place.”

These words startled the group.

Does "reactionary..." mean a demonstration?

"Yes, those guys—the people of Avignon seem to be very opposed to everything in Academy City, and they've started a large-scale protest now."

Tsuchimikado Motoharu adjusted his glasses.

"Moreover, the people in the march were mostly members of the Roman Orthodox Church."

Roman Catholicism?

Accelerator and Kihara Ayaki couldn't help but blink, but Kaihara Mitsuki's expression changed immediately.

"Hey, you wouldn't be talking about—?"

"That's right, it's the Roman Catholic Church, the world's largest Christian organization with a huge number of followers."

The conclusion was already difficult for Tsurugi to digest.

However, Accelerator began to listen to this.

"Now, the total number of Roman Catholics in the world has reached two billion, and then, right here in Avignon, almost all of them have erupted in this kind of demonstration."

"So what? What do those guys from Academy City want me to do this time?"

In fact, Accelerator had already guessed the answer.

"We'll send you to France, and then suppress the Roman Catholic Church."

A cold smile immediately appeared on Tsuchimikado Motoharu's face.

"As one of Academy City's trump cards, they will use supersonic bombers to suppress riots and conduct demonstrations."

With just one sentence, Accelerator completely understood what was going on.

"HSb-02, that's a supersonic stealth bomber developed by Academy City. I don't know what kind of bombs are inside, but... those guys seem to be planning to put you on it too."

Does this mean that the Roman Catholic Church and Academy City should confront each other directly?

Although it wasn't exactly a declaration of war—it was still far from war—Accelerator understood that Academy City intended to fully intervene in the protests.

"I'm afraid their purpose is quite simple."

"Ah, I know."

Probably.

The higher-ups in Academy City want to use Accelerator to start a war with the Roman Catholic Church.

Using the power of the strongest Level 5 espers in Academy City to suppress the parade... of course, provided that their bombers remain unaffected.

If they really can't achieve an overwhelming victory, Accelerator will probably be defeated.

Then, the strongest espers in Academy City will directly clash with the Roman Catholic Church.

Kishiro Tatsuki had no idea what was going on.

However, Tsuchimikado Motoharu was different from Kaihara Mitsuki.

"...To wage war against the Roman Catholics? That idea is truly insane."

He couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth, looking at Accelerator with a somewhat worried expression.

"Don't look at me with that disgusting look."

"No, I was just wondering, if the enemy were the Roman Catholic Church, could they really win so easily...?"

"You've got it wrong, Haiyuan. Those guys can't possibly start a direct war with the Roman Catholic Church. If the camps of magic and science really expand like that, it will inevitably lead to a world war breaking out all at once. At that time, the Earth will likely be completely destroyed by the battle between the two sides. The leaders on both sides should be well aware of this."

Therefore, one-way is at most a backup plan.

Even so, he still understood one thing.

'Magic...?'

It's the same thing that happened in early September.

At that time, Accelerator had not yet left this world, but even so, he had already encountered a magical aggregate monster called a golem.

They also encountered a necromancer girl named Esther Rosenthal.

It belongs to this world, and is a magical power that does not exist in the realm of science.

If Accelerator had experienced countless worlds and faced countless enemies, he would understand this.

"What's your travel plan? Should I just book a flight to France?"

"No, before sending you there, they also plan to send you to France for a day to observe and confirm whether the intelligence is as reported."

"Ha, so you mean free airfare?"

Accelerator sneered as he looked at Tsuchimikado Motoharu.

When do you plan to take me away?

"Now."

Tsuchimikado Motoharu took a key out of his pocket.

"This is a key specifically for loading your plane. Don't worry, although that plane is supersonic, with your abilities... it should be fine, right?"

"The limitations of the electrode collar can no longer control me. Don't think I'm still as fragile as before."

The strongest without limits is the truly strongest.

Even so, this is not Accelerator's true purpose in doing things.

His real reason for doing this is quite simple.

I felt it; a deep-seated sense of unease.

That was a notification from the soul system.

In other words, going to Avignon to suppress the Roman Catholics was one of the tasks recognized by the system.

"That's good. Let's get going without delay."

"Ah...it seems there's nothing for us to do."

"That's not bad either, at least I can have a proper vacation."

"Hmm... that's it. Wait for me to finish eating and then I'll leave. Just give me a minute, meow!"

Kaihara Mitsuki and Kihara Ayaki continued eating their lunch, as did Tsuchimikado Motoharu.

"…interesting."

Another different system, isn't it?

As the number one in Academy City, he couldn't help but curl the corners of his mouth slightly.

"Then you'll be in Avignon, just you wait."

Chapter 173 This Time, It Won't Be Alone

Looking around, most people can't see any tall buildings at all.

Despite being in Academy City, the scene was quite different. The ground around them was vast, and the only things visible ahead of the asphalt road were tower-like structures.

Then there were some steel airplanes on the road.

“District 23, I knew I’d end up in a place like this.”

"Well, after all, this is an area that mainly develops aviation-related affairs. If you want to go abroad or something, you will inevitably have to come here, right?"