One-way traffic

Hamazura Shige walks down the street.

The area was packed with people, young men and women dating and having fun, and so was he—although none of the girls had confirmed a relationship with him.

Behind him, three strikingly beautiful girls followed.

"That guy was actually followed by three girls?"

"Tsk, looks like another kid who's always running around causing trouble."

"I'm so envious... How can someone with such a thug-like face have such a good life? God is so unfair."

"It's so annoying! I get so angry whenever I see those self-proclaimed winners in life!"

A string of words swirled around him, causing a few beads of sweat to appear on Hamazura Shige's forehead.

Those unaware of the situation might think that way, but in reality, Hamazura Shiage knows very well that any one of the three adorable girls behind him possesses unparalleled strength.

"Hamamami".

At one point, one of the people behind him called out to him.

"It's Frenda," she called to herself as she helped Takitsubo Riko up.

Did we end all of this with our own hands?

"Yes."

Hamazura Shige turned around and laughed as heartily as he could.

"As you can see, we personally defeated someone of the level 5 (superpowered individual). This wasn't wishful thinking; we did it ourselves—"

"That's not it... That's not what I meant."

But Frenda interrupted him.

"What I'm trying to say is, did we... really end everything about 'Item' with our own hands...?"

He couldn't help but freeze in shock.

In an instant, a sudden sense of contrast washed over Hamazura Shige, and he began to think about something.

They did win, they did defeat Mugino Shizuri... and then what?

From this moment forward, the harmonious four-person ANBU "Item" will cease to exist.

From today onwards, they may never be able to live the same life as before.

Even though this might not seem like a serious matter to Hamazura Shiage, who had only recently joined the company, he understood that he couldn't simply view it as someone else's problem.

His expression became complicated.

"no problem."

Just then, a light, melodious voice responded to them all.

The other three were taken aback and looked over, seeing the girl with the blue twin ponytails looking at them with a unique smile.

That was a gentle smile that could brighten the world.

"For us, we may have encountered many unexpected and difficult situations, but that's okay. As long as we keep moving forward, there will definitely be no problem."

"As long as we keep moving forward with determination towards the future that is not far away, I believe that everyone will be able to live safely and soundly!"

All three knew that it was just empty talk, and anyone with a slightly more mature mind would understand that its meaning was unreliable in reality.

But they didn't give up at all.

That smile, like the dawn on the horizon, gave them the meaning to keep moving forward and filled the three of them with a special kind of motivation.

And just like that, all three of them couldn't help but laugh.

"...I think so too."

Frenda, who was helping Takitsubo Riko up, said with a light laugh.

"If you continue to dwell on the present and become depressed, that would be really strange, wouldn't it?"

"Hey, don't make me sound so fragile. I'm actually very strong inside!"

"Oh? So who was it that was exhausted by our various words back then? How pitiful~"

"Gulp—you brat, you better stop now!"

In this way, they can be considered to have fully recovered their energy.

Seeing Frenda and Hamazura Shiage bickering in front of her, Hatsune Miku's face revealed a look of pure joy.

"Oh, right, miss, what's your name again?!"

"Hatsune Miku, they've already said it once."

"If possible, would you be so kind as to treat me to a meal together? Wouldn't it be wonderful for everyone to get together and enjoy a meal, especially for a beautiful girl like you—"

"Enough already! You're just trying to create a facade of a harem!"

"Don't expose my flaws or slander me!"

What a vibrant group of people...

Hatsune Miku looked at the three people in front of her and couldn't help but laugh and cry.

"I'm sorry, although I really want to go and have fun with everyone, I have important things to do."

"What?"

"Well... actually, I'm going to pick someone up, someone very important to me."

"Then, what does that mean...?"

Hamazura Shige, standing before him, couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth as he spoke.

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

It was probably inside a private car.

Inside the spacious luxury sedan, where only two figures were present, the cabin was filled with a certain fragrance—the aroma of champagne.

On the left is a high-end freezer filled with iced drinks, and on the right is a portable computer, but no one uses it.

The driver was in the front, and on the left side of the back seat was a cute girl in a dress, and on the right—

He was a young man wearing a fancy top, with brown hair, and a sharp metal glove on his right hand.

"So, how are your preparations going?"

"Not bad, but that's not enough."

Those are tweezers.

It is a nanoscale experimental machine that can adsorb particles in the air and then analyze their internal information.

"Although the airborne loop can help us obtain a lot of useful information, its usefulness is only relative to us."

"Hmm, so that means—"

"This is simply not enough to warrant direct negotiations with Aleister."

The young man, Kakine Teitoku, wearing a glove-like particle adsorption machine called tweezers, spoke with absolute certainty.

"No, it's far from enough."

"Based on this little bit of information alone, it is indeed insufficient to confront the chairman of the board with an advantage."

The blonde girl in the dress waved her hand and said.

"Speaking of which, I just received some news."

"Is it your favorite singer or band that released a new album?"

"...Idiot, that's not true."

The girl couldn't help but pout as she continued.

"The 'Item' that we chased seems to have disintegrated."

"Oh?"

"Among them, Level 5 esper Mugino Shizuri has also been defeated, and the data shows that it was not something that anyone could do."

"What's going on? If the data all indicate otherwise, then it could only have been done by someone from another secret unit."

"It's probably not that. The more likely scenario is that it was something done by lower-level personnel."

Kakine Teitoku couldn't help but be taken aback.

That means that some Level 0 powerless individual challenged Mugino Shizuri, who was ranked fourth, and then—directly defeated her.

He couldn't help but recall the blond-haired youth he had met before.

"Shh~ Not bad! That kid has a lot of guts. He actually did something I wouldn't even dare to dream of. He's pretty impressive."

Kakine Teitoku whistled in praise of Hamazura Shige.

"That's true, but it doesn't really concern us."

The girl in the Western-style dress turned her gaze back to Kakine Teitoku.

"So...should we do it?"

"of course."

His expression showed no hesitation whatsoever.

“I’ve been waiting for this path for a long time. Since it doesn’t work, I have to choose another one.”

"Hmm, it really is...?"

He explained his plans.

"Accelerator, the number one Level 5 ...

"Only by completely killing Accelerator can all this be accomplished. I must become the irreplaceable first candidate in the Aleister Plan, that is, the core of the plan."

"...Do you really think you have a chance?"

When asked a question by the girl in Western-style dress, Kakine Teitoku shook his head.

He had a smile on his face.

"do not think so."

"So you're... courting death?"

"Perhaps it is, perhaps it isn't."

He closed his eyes and then opened them again; at that moment, Kakine Teitoku's eyes held a complex expression.

It's as if it's responding to someone.

Someone who doesn't exist here.

“I have reasons for having to do these things.”

“I must negotiate with Aleister, I must, so I will definitely kill the first one, I will definitely kill Accelerator, and then confront that bastard chairman head-on.”

"I will prove all of this to this shitty Academy City. Their common sense simply does not apply to me, Kakine Teitoku."

The girl in the dress looked at him, wanting to say something, but couldn't find the words.

She understood what Kakine Teitoku was thinking.

At this moment, the man's figure appeared even darker.

The girl's expression became emotional.

"Good luck."

Chapter 198 The People Who Came to Greet Us

Before leaving, Hamazura Shiage made sure to get Hatsune Miku's phone number. Fortunately, she had obtained the necessary documents and information immediately after arriving in Academy City, so the phone number was not a problem.

She was walking alone on the street at that moment.

"Hmm... District 7?"

It seems like they've already gone quite far, even though they should be very close.

Hatsune Miku thought about what she had done that day. She had basically been going around in various other places or getting involved in other things, but she hadn't gone to the 7th District to find Last Order.