One-way traffic

Tsuchimikado Motoharu's heavy voice came directly.

“The sand is dense… That guy seems to have been hired by someone, and I’ve already found out who hired him by searching the chips in the remaining banknotes.”

"Just tell me which bastard did it, and I'll just head over there and kill him."

"No, he wasn't hired by one person."

"……what?"

"To be precise, it's an organization... an organization like ours."

Accelerator listened to everything with a somewhat astonished expression.

“The secret organization, ‘School,’ is an organization or group just like ours.”

at this time.

"Ugh... It feels so hot," Misaka Misaka couldn't help but exclaim.

"It's only October, the temperature shouldn't be that hot, right...?"

“That’s true, but Misaka was constantly dodging Haru-neechan’s pursuit, which is why she felt so hot… Misaka couldn’t help but say this to Haru-neechan in a slightly complaining tone.”

"Haha... Well, I can't just let you run around everywhere by yourself. Sorry, little ahoge."

"Misaka's name is Last Order! Misaka Misaka angrily declares her right to decide her own name!"

"Okay, the final work, the little girl with the ahoge~"

"Whoa—!!"

A familiar yet unfamiliar voice came from not far away.

There was no mistake about the voice; although the other person's voice was not memorable, the distinctive suffix could not be mistaken in any way.

He looked at the road ahead and saw a petite girl and another girl wearing a flower wreath on her head—judging from the armband, she seemed to be a disciplinary committee member.

—You actually came to a place like this?!

"You brat, you're always causing me trouble!"

He couldn't help but click his tongue and quickly retreated.

He didn't want to be discovered by Last Order at this time, because if he did, she would definitely cling to him and drag him into this shitty dark incident together.

Accelerator retreated with incredible precision, moving at a speed imperceptible to the naked eye.

"Ok?"

"What's wrong? Oh, are you still thinking about the amusement park? No, you can't. The driver said he'd take you home safely—"

"No, Misaka just happened to sense that person's presence."

The last thing the ahoge (cowlick) did was stand up instantly and look around, but no one noticed.

She sighed, somewhat displeased.

"Hmm... I used to be able to sense that person anytime they were nearby, so why does it feel like their presence in the Misaka Network is almost nonexistent lately..."

And so, with a regretful expression, the final work was ultimately led out of there by a helpless Uiharu Kazari.

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

Accelerator has now returned to his car.

The Last Order is unaware of the details of his Nathos car; at most, they would only think it's a very cool supercar. By using one-way windows, it's possible to ensure that only one side can pass through while those outside cannot see inside.

Therefore, only after confirming that Last Order and the disciplinary committee girl had left did he set off.

"They actually call it the Anbu?"

"That's right. You don't actually think that the Dark Side of Academy City consists of just a few of us, do you?"

While driving, he used Nathos's system to connect to the phone contacts, and Tsuchimikado Motoharu's voice echoed throughout the almost completely quiet car.

"The same goes for the last 'Sign'. There are actually many hidden factions in Academy City, and our 'Group' is just one of them."

"So that means we're going to have to fight another secret unit next?"

No, there's actually more.

He paused for a moment, then recited the rest of the story in one breath.

"The only things we can directly find so far are the 'School,' 'Block,' 'Member,' 'Item,' and our 'Group.'"

Is that all?

Accelerator couldn't help but purse his lips. Four ANBU organizations had just popped up in one go; that was already too many.

"The guys who attacked the innermost part of the ship were from 'School,' right? Can you find any information about those guys?"

"It's impossible. Whether it's the library of Academy City or other search networks, they can only know the names of those guys. The only name they can know is 'School'."

"Tsk." Accelerator couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement.

"Speaking of which, when that kid Haiyuan was attacked, it wasn't also done by someone from 'School', was it?"

"I don't know, but at least one thing is certain: those guys are completely incompatible with our mission objectives."

Even if it weren't for organizational missions, they would choose to protect a kind-hearted type of ruling council member like Momonaka, while "School" chose to assassinate her. This alone was enough to cause a conflict between the two.

"…What?"

Suddenly, Tsuchimikado Motoharu on the other end of the phone looked surprised.

"What did you say?"

"Ah? What's wrong?"

"The virus storage center in District 5 has a problem. No... not only that, but the terminals in Districts 3, 12, 2, and 13 have all lost contact."

Accelerator remained silent.

This situation is enough to prove that the other party is probably trying to lure them to these places.

This is an explicit provocation.

"It's a really simple and straightforward composition."

"...Whoever those guys are, they all seem to want to be beaten into a pulp."

Tsuchimikado Motoharu uttered dangerous words that echoed Accelerator's opinion.

"Oh? New information. It seems the 23rd school district is in the same situation. That's probably the area where the satellite was launched."

Upon hearing this, Accelerator immediately thought of District 23, which he had visited before going to Avignon.

"I heard that Academy City recently launched the Altair II satellite into outer space, and the platform responsible for managing this satellite is preserved in that school district."

"Is there anything special about that satellite?"

"Of course it does. This thing is equipped with a large-caliber laser gun for ground attack. If it were to fire directly at the ground, well, it could probably cause a devastating blow very easily."

In other words, the people who attacked there probably wanted to gain control of the satellite.

Other school districts may have dangerous things as well, but this satellite is probably the most dangerous.

If the large-caliber laser gun on the satellite were hacked by some unknown entity and then used to indiscriminately strafe the ground, even Academy City would likely descend into chaos in an instant.

That would inevitably lead to the loss of countless innocent lives.

"I'm going to the 23rd school district."

"Huh? But we haven't made a plan yet—"

"Stop talking nonsense. I've booked that place. I'll tear the eggs off any bastards who stay there. You and Jie Biao can handle the rest. Don't mess it up."

As before, OnePass unilaterally hung up the call.

Hmph, that's such a simple and obvious thing.

If the other party has such despicable intentions, then he has a target to act on. Moreover, if the satellite is stolen and used to attack the entire Academy City, then those he wants to protect will definitely be implicated.

He would show no mercy to anyone he considered an enemy.

When it's time to protect, choose to protect; when it's time to strike, show no mercy.

This is what you call an evil party.

"Then, let's get started."

They had no idea who their enemy was, or which secret organization it was.

But that's okay.

Accelerator's approach was to kill every single enemy in front of him, leaving no survivors.

Therefore, there is no need to care about the identity of your enemy.

"You seem intent on destroying yourselves, you bastards..."

He acted with the most tyrannical tone.

The number one esper in Academy City stepped on the gas, unleashing supersonic speeds and causing the monster sports car to break free of its speed limit in one go.

Of course, no one could catch up with him.

Chapter 188 Hamazura Shiage

Standing somewhere in the 18th school district, the man sighed.

He had blond hair that looked a bit like a hedgehog's, a color he dyed later. His brown sweatshirt made him look like a street thug... and that's actually true.

The man's name is Hamazura Shiage.

He looked to be about sixteen or seventeen years old, but he looked like a hoodlum who had come out of a back alley. At first glance, he didn't look like a good person at all.

Even so, Hamazura Shiage's identity is by no means simple.

In the past, sometime after around September 30th, he became the leader of the armed group SkillOut.

Although it was a temporary position, and it was disbanded shortly after the failure of the first mission, it has now been completely reduced to doing odd jobs.

But at least for Hamazura Shiage, he was a man who had led an organization of more than a hundred people, something he could be proud of for the rest of his life.

"...So, how did I end up in such a wretched state?"

I used to be the leader of a group of over a hundred armed, powerless individuals (SkillOut). Although my tenure was short, it was probably an elite position that you couldn't find even among a hundred people.

"Why is it that with such a splendid background, I've ended up only being able to work as a helper for girls, you bastard!"

He couldn't help but punch the wall, but all he got in return was a trembling hand.

"Ouch! Damn it... I don't even have a way to vent my anger anymore."

Hamazura Shige leaned against the wall with a sigh.

Beside him was a van that looked very discreet; it had been rented.

He didn't have a driver's license, but he was already used to driving without one, having done so countless times before.

After all, he's a petty thief who steals money from ATMs, so it's perfectly normal for him to do something like this.

"However, I never expected that I would end up in a place like the Dark Guard."

On the day the SkillOut armed group began its first mission, Hamazura Shiage lost his identity as leader.

That night, he was defeated by someone—a man with spiky hair who knocked him unconscious with a resolute and powerful right fist. After that, his status was completely reduced to that of a handyman, and he was assigned to this kind of place by his superiors.

The secret organization, 'Item'.

This is a secret organization consisting of four people, all of whom are beautiful young women under the age of twenty.

But Hamazura Shige, who had just arrived at this secret branch, was the only male among them, and his status had been reduced to that of a handyman. One can imagine how badly his self-esteem had been damaged.

But there is no way.

These four individuals all possessed abilities far superior to his, and the leader, in particular, had reached a level of terrifying strength that he could hardly imagine.

She is the fourth-ranked Level 5 esper in Academy City.

As a Level 0 powerless individual, a realm he could never have imagined appeared before him.

After fully learning about the matter, Hamazura Shiage immediately suppressed all his dissatisfaction.

He knew the terror of a Level 5 superpowered individual.

Because the former leader of the armed no-ability group (SkillOut), Komaba Toshitoku, was killed by a Level 5 esper, and he still remembers who that person was.