One-way traffic

"You have about an hour left. In the meantime, feel free to use your inventory to take some of our things with you. I just checked, and your inventory is practically empty."

"Ah...thank you."

After the two denied this, they moved on to the next topic with Hatsune Miku.

But—is it really that simple?

Is that all?

Accelerator watched them quietly, keeping the question to himself.

Everyone realized something was going on.

However, similarly.

No one, including Accelerator, asked for the answer to this question at that moment.

Chapter 584 Living in the Age of Gods

In any case, the system is currently only giving them a short rest period of about an hour.

There simply wasn't enough time to return to their original world and check on things within that one hour, so the two decided to save their chance to go back until after the next mission.

Before arriving in the previous world, Accelerator had witnessed firsthand how that entire world was shaken and even destroyed by a colossal being known as the Demon God.

However, during the process of the previous world, he was able to summon Orelus, Right Flame, and others from their original world.

If this can be achieved, it would prove that the original world has already escaped the crisis of destruction.

Even if the specifics of the situation are still unclear, once the existence of Orelels and the Right Flame is confirmed, and relevant information is obtained from the two of them, there are probably not so many things to worry about.

Although I'm still worried about the existence of the final work, only having about an hour isn't enough time to go back and do anything.

Under these circumstances, the two could only choose to finish the mission in the next world as soon as possible, and then return to their original world to continue their investigation.

"Are the electrodes... not done yet?"

Accelerator sat in a chair, checking the collar-like electrodes around his neck with his hand.

After being modified by the chairman of Academy City, this electrode has become strong enough to withstand the effects of his battles. Its charging speed and durability have also been greatly improved. It can also be charged with light energy. Relying on the electrode to obtain a portion of the Misaka Network's computing power is no longer a difficult point.

But after the battle against that winged girl in the last world, the light from the electrode never shone again.

This is not a problem with the electrodes themselves, but rather with the other end of the electrode connection—the source of the Misaka Network.

That collective consciousness must have seen all that it had done and still couldn't forgive itself, which is why it turned out this way.

That was something that even Accelerator himself felt very bad about, but could also understand.

Originally, the overall consciousness should have had very high expectations of itself. The reason it turned out this way must be because it overused those destructive methods, mercilessly targeting a person with death-level attacks, and became like a real monster.

If she were to become a monster who only knew how to destroy, she would not hesitate to create a hell a hundred times larger than she could have imagined and stuff herself inside it.

These are the words that the girl said to herself back then.

In fact, it wouldn't matter at all even without Misaka Network's assistance. Accelerator is currently at the peak of his brainpower and doesn't need to care about assistance that is less than half of his full computing power.

How could I not care?

The first one cursed inwardly, clenching his fists tightly as a sense of self-loathing began to rise from within.

He once said that he would protect all the sisters who remain.

So... can I really accept living such carefree days like this so calmly?

He could never forget the blood debt he carried on his shoulders. Accelerator always knew what he had to do, but—

“This is the only exception… I will never back down on something like this.”

He knew that it was wrong of him to once again commit the kind of devastating act of harming other people's lives that he had done during the experiment, and he also knew that it was as absurd as overturning all the acts of atonement he had done before.

But he won't regret it.

Absolutely not. Even if the collective consciousness were to reappear before me now, cursing me and throwing me into the endless cycle of hell—I would not regret it.

This is the only thing that is absolutely non-negotiable.

Because if he had been even a step later, the girl who had been with him for so long would have died.

The girl who holds the same place in my heart as Last Order will completely disappear from this world.

He absolutely cannot let this happen, so he cannot control himself. He is the first person who can rationally solve any problem, but when his true personal bottom line is crossed, he completely transforms into a death monster that tears everything apart.

Whether it's The Last Order, Hatsune Miku, or the remaining Misaka Sisters... no one can touch these sore spots that belong to him anymore.

Therefore, even if the overall consciousness refuses to lend him the power of the calculation domain, he will not regret it.

"So what exactly is this so-called summoning? I don't think that girl's system has anything like that."

"Summoning...? Now that you mention it, I should ask you, why would something like this pop up in your system?"

"Get your facts straight, you idiot. I'm the one asking you a question. If I knew, would I be asking you this?!"

"Uh...that's true."

Okay, let's put aside the question of who created the system and why they gave it to them for the time being. It seems that these two guys really don't know the answer to this question.

Waiter slapped his forehead and admitted defeat, just like Advisari, who, after thinking it over for a long time, also said the same thing.

"—Who cares where it came from, it works pretty well anyway, doesn't it?"

"...You little brat, are you trying to fool me?"

And so, about an hour passed gradually as the group engaged in various activities.

There are only about three minutes left.

Accelerator and Hatsune Miku, who have prepared everything, are now standing together in the living room.

And standing before them, ready to see the two off, were Witte and Advisari.

"We haven't prepared much here. We can only bring you some simple portable food, such as bottled water, canned food, and some simple unused daily necessities. Take as much as you can, and remember to resupply properly after this mission is over."

"Don't let your inventory become a mere decoration. Besides, this thing is very useful. No matter how strong you are now, you are still just human beings. If you ever fall into danger and get trapped in a place where you can't get out for a long time and are all alone, the equipment stored in your inventory can help you solve a lot of problems."

"Thank you both so much for your help! We are so grateful for your continued care!"

Hatsune Miku placed her hands in front of her and quickly bowed to them to express her gratitude.

Honestly, both Witte and Advisari have been incredibly helpful to them so far.

Regardless of the reasons, things like helping each other fight in team battles, explaining the system to them at such times, and providing them with small subsidies in their inventory... I doubt there are many people among all those who use the system who would do that.

Ah… speaking of which, the very first one… Mr. Takibayashi…

"I wonder how he's doing..."

The girl murmured to herself about these tedious matters.

pat.

Just as she was thinking this, her hand was gripped tightly.

"...Huh? Huh?!"

"What's going on...? Why is that sound coming out all of a sudden?"

It was Accelerator, holding his own hand with a calm expression.

And it was gripping very tightly; you could clearly feel the other person's slender, girlish fingers…

Pfft, wait, what am I thinking, you idiot!

"Because... because of the hand, the hand suddenly..."

"Huh? It's just a handshake, why is it like I've been shot?"

Seeing the girl blushing and stammering in front of him, Accelerator simply curled his lips in surprise.

"I don't want to encounter a situation where the two of us end up in different places again. That's too troublesome. Holding hands like this greatly increases the chances of us appearing in the same place when we teleport. It's that simple, understand?"

"Um... Ming, I understand..."

Accelerator held the girl's hand tightly, her face still flushed with embarrassment.

This girl must have lost her mind. Come to think of it, I've seen this kind of thing many times before...

"Then we're leaving... What's with that weird expression?"

"Um, umm... Ah no! I just meant to see you off, don't mind it."

"...It's nothing, just take your time."

Witte coughed hesitantly twice, while Advisari turned his head away somewhat awkwardly.

It's clear from either of them that in this situation... those two really shouldn't be standing here.

After all, anyone with a clear view of love could see how artistic that scene was.

And so, just like that, the final moments were consumed.

Three minutes passed completely.

The two figures disappeared down the corridor before their very eyes—

"…What?"

For an instant.

It really was just a fleeting moment.

That was a scene that only Advisari, who was proficient in all kinds of necromancy, could see.

The first one in Academy City, that guy's face.

—A strange black light appeared.

"Hey—wait a minute!"

Bang! But it was too late; their bodies had completely vanished from the house.

Advisari's sudden action surprised Witte, who was standing nearby.

"What... what are you doing all of a sudden?"

"..."

He recalled the scene he had just witnessed and couldn't help but shudder.

Could it be—that's impossible.

It's too early... How could it be possible, at a time like this...?

"That guy... things might get really bad after this world ends..."

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

In less than a second, a new world was born.

Because they were holding hands tightly, neither of them let go this time.

They arrived at the scene without any problems.

Boom! However, compared to the phenomena caused by previous teleportations, this time the impact on the ground seems to be greater.

A cloud of dust, about ten meters high, was kicked up, and the two men appeared directly in the center of the arena.

"Waaaaaah...!"

Hatsune Miku couldn't help but look up at the sky. As countless specks of dust fell, she immediately showed a somewhat worried expression.

Bang—then, a silent popping sound exploded.

Before that, Accelerator's reflexes worked immediately, scattering all the dust off the girl.

"Thank you...! I thought my new clothes would definitely get dirty from the dust..."

"It was just a coincidence that we shook hands, it's no big deal."

Both of them are now wearing brand new clothes.

Hatsune Miku, on the other hand, has changed into a black and white dress with a black and white bow on the chest and a pink flower-like decoration in the middle. Her headband has also been changed to one that looks like pink petals.

The lower body features knee-high socks that are close to black, but not quite black.

Accelerator's lower body... as always, the pants were in contrasting colors, but the shoes were changed to black and white. The inside of his coat was a gray and white striped shirt, which still looked like a mature and unchanging color scheme.

The overcoat was the same style as the white overcoat I wore in the Russian winter, except that there were fewer stripes and most of the stripes were replaced with black.