Chapter Summaries

Jiang Rui entered the A Certain Magical Index World and headed for Academy City, weighing whether to pursue the science or magic side and considering Great Sage’s interest in Index’s 103,000 Grimoires. He arrived in Japan on July 7 and decided to enter Academy City openly, despite the risk of Aleister noticing him.

• Jiang Rui arrived at an airport, spotted Aiwass before his disguise, and asked a traveler for the date to determine the timeline.
• Jiang Rui considered joining a faction and concluded that hunting the magic side might be easier, while killing the protagonist team could earn Twist Value.
• Great Sage speculated that analyzing Index’s 103,000 Grimoires could let it evolve, so Jiang Rui decided they should pursue them despite opposing the protagonist team.
• Jiang Rui noticed a participant gain 37 points before their name turned gray and vanished, leaving 136 participants.
• Jiang Rui landed in Japan on July 7, considered how to enter Academy City without drawing Aleister’s attention, and chose to walk in openly.

Jiang Rui entered Academy City and made his way toward the Seventh District while considering the invasion mission’s rankings and combat rules. He found someone attacking Aleister’s sealed building and watched as the assault began.

• Jiang Rui reasoned that mission points depended on the strength of the targets killed and that stronger participants could earn points through cooperative kills.
• Jiang Rui headed for the Seventh District, where Aleister’s residence and the protagonists were located, and noticed that the number of remaining participants had fallen to 134.
• An explosion shook the city, and Judgment members organized an orderly evacuation while Jiang Rui continued toward the blast.
• A black-haired girl offered Jiang Rui a drink, but he declined and continued on his way.
• Jiang Rui found a figure attacking the Windowless Building with a blazing fist of fire and realized that someone was trying to take out Aleister immediately.

Jiang Rui spotted Kihara Tsumiki while touring Academy City and weighed whether to kill her for a side mission. As other entrants debated the attack on Aleister’s tower in the World Channel, Jiang Rui joined Kihara to watch the intruder and the approaching response forces.

• Great Sage pointed out Kihara Tsumiki, and Jiang Rui found a mission offering contribution points for killing her.
• Jiang Rui decided not to attack Kihara immediately and wondered why the tower’s attacker had not asked her to guide him inside.
• Jiang Rui read the lively World Channel, where entrants argued over the bombing of Aleister’s tower and asked who was behind it.
• As alarms sounded and security forces mobilized, Jiang Rui transformed into lightning and appeared beside Kihara.
• Kihara aimed her flashlight at Jiang Rui, then let him sit nearby while they watched the attack together.

Jiang Rui tested how many contribution points he could gain by killing Academy City's armed forces while Aleister watched the invasion unfold from his sealed building. Aleister ordered Anbu to respond but decided to continue with his original plan and make use of the intruders.

• Jiang Rui discussed Aleister’s magical power and wondered what he looked like when angry.
• Armed personnel confronted Jiang Rui and Kihara Tsumiki, and Jiang Rui used rain infused with magic to kill them.
• Jiang Rui learned that eliminating thirty-three soldiers earned him only four contribution points.
• Aleister woke in his sealed building, ordered the alarm activated and Anbu deployed, and concluded that the invading mercenaries might help his plan.

Jiang Rui confronted Kihara Tsumiki in the rain, then used her Stance Control to contact Aleister and negotiate for legal privileges. Aleister questioned him about destroying an armed unit, while Jiang Rui argued it was not truly Aleister’s force.

• Jiang Rui sensed a foreign presence through the rain and recognized that Kihara Tsumiki’s chest-mounted Stance Control was connected to Aleister.
• Kihara Tsumiki prepared to attack Jiang Rui after he insulted her, but stopped when he addressed Aleister directly.
• Jiang Rui considered the risks of drawing Academy City’s attention and decided to seek an arrangement with Aleister.
• Kihara Tsumiki received a call from Aleister, handed her phone to Jiang Rui, and stood aside as they spoke.
• Jiang Rui asked Aleister for legal procedures and privileges, including permission to kill without breaking the law.
• Aleister accused Jiang Rui of eliminating one of his units, and Jiang Rui challenged the claim by questioning whether it was truly Aleister’s unit.

Jiang Rui struck a deal with Aleister to work for Academy City, and Kihara Tsumiki was assigned to help establish his identity. Aleister then suspected Jiang Rui belonged to a group of players who cooperated despite their differences.

• Jiang Rui offered to work for Aleister, and Aleister agreed to provide him with an identity and a first job.
• Aleister told Jiang Rui that others had made similar proposals, and Jiang Rui accepted the cooperation.
• Kihara Tsumiki received instructions to supervise Jiang Rui and help complete his Academy City records over the next three days.
• Aleister called Jiang Rui to ask whether he wanted to attend school, and Jiang Rui refused after hearing it was a middle school.
• Aleister told Aiwass that Jiang Rui's unusual group resembled players in a game.

Jiang Rui killed Tora Peninsula’s son and forced Tora to withdraw a proposal, then continued hunting through Academy City as its invasion escalated. He noticed that other players were forming teams and targeting Misaka Mikoto.

• Jiang Rui killed Tora Peninsula’s son and told Tora that the murder was punishment for interfering with the power energy reserve system.
• Tora agreed to withdraw his proposal, and Jiang Rui ended the call after confirming that his son was dead.
• Kihara Tsumiki questioned Jiang Rui’s ability and learned that he had completed the mission for Aleister.
• Jiang Rui checked his contribution points, then left Kihara Tsumiki and vanished into the rain to continue hunting.
• Jiang Rui read the world chat and saw that Holy Flame had found Misaka Mikoto and was inviting others to make a big move.

Jiang Rui realized that Transcendents were using the group targeting Misaka Mikoto to test whether key characters had protection from the world's will or Aleister. He headed for their location, weighing whether to save Misaka Mikoto or kill her for power, and admitted that this world was changing his thoughts.

• Jiang Rui read the world chat and learned that Transcendents were watching the group hunting Misaka Mikoto to see what would happen to them.
• Ghost Blade called out the observers for letting the group proceed without warning them, and Jiang Rui understood that they were using the group as an experiment.
• Jiang Rui found the address Holy Flame had posted and headed toward the shopping district, realizing the story was near the start of the Railgun storyline.
• Jiang Rui messaged Aleister to make his position known and considered intervening if the group threatened Misaka Mikoto.
• Jiang Rui debated whether to protect Misaka Mikoto or kill her for points and source essence, then reflected that being forced to attack plot characters had stirred strange thoughts in him.

Jiang Rui saw Holy Flame’s name disappear from the rankings during a lightning strike and rushed to the scene, where he found an injured Misaka Mikoto alive beside a destroyed vending machine. He suspected Aleister had killed Holy Flame and watched as Misaka tried to repair the machine.

• Jiang Rui joked with Ghost Blade and other users in the world channel, then checked the rankings and found Holy Flame at rank fifty-six.
• Lightning struck across Academy City, causing a widespread power outage as Holy Flame’s name turned gray and vanished from the rankings.
• Jiang Rui hurried to the strike’s location but found no corpse or battle damage, only a smoking electrical device and lingering sparks.
• Jiang Rui spotted an injured Misaka Mikoto at a broken vending machine and wondered whether Aleister had killed Holy Flame.
• Misaka Mikoto used a spinning kick to try to fix the vending machine while Jiang Rui watched from the rain.

Jiang Rui encountered Misaka Mikoto in the rain and tried to explain that he was her fan, but she challenged him after discovering he was also an Electromaster. Their clash left the confrontation unresolved, with Jiang Rui trying to avoid a fight while concealing his true intentions.

• Misaka Mikoto turned on Jiang Rui after he teased her, and she attacked him with electricity.
• Jiang Rui introduced himself as Misaka Mikoto's fan and said they were both Electromasters, while a call from Kihara Tsumiki's phone warned him not to provoke her further.
• Misaka Mikoto ignored Jiang Rui's explanation and challenged him to prove he deserved the Electromaster title.
• Jiang Rui protested that fighting a fan during a meet-and-greet was inappropriate, but Misaka Mikoto insisted that he fulfill her request.

Jiang Rui taunted Misaka Mikoto as she attacked him with increasingly powerful lightning, only to reveal that he was unharmed by electricity. The security robots arrived to arrest Mikoto, and she fled after challenging Jiang Rui to meet her again at Tokiwadai.

• Jiang Rui dodged Misaka Mikoto’s lightning attacks and teased her about her poor aim and lack of combat experience.
• Misaka Mikoto pushed herself past her limits and unleashed a massive lightning strike that engulfed Jiang Rui.
• Misaka Mikoto rushed into the electrical current to rescue Jiang Rui, then discovered he was unharmed and realized he was immune to electricity.
• Security robots surrounded Misaka Mikoto over the damage she had caused, while Jiang Rui was exempt from pursuit.
• Misaka Mikoto threatened to beat Jiang Rui after recovering and ran away from the robots.

Jiang Rui watched Misaka Mikoto leave, then confronted a red-haired curly-haired extraordinary being hiding nearby. The stranger claimed they were on the same side, and Jiang Rui asked what he knew about the deaths of Holy Flame's group.

• Jiang Rui considered whether he could win Misaka Mikoto's affection but decided the mission gave him little reason to pursue her.
• Jiang Rui used a map to locate an extraordinary being hiding behind a bench and called him out.
• The red-haired curly-haired man emerged and said he would have been confident of killing Misaka Mikoto in one blow.
• Jiang Rui asked whether the man knew how the people from Holy Flame died, while noting that 112 people remained and 25 had died.
• The man said Holy Flame's name had already turned gray and asked what Jiang Rui wanted to know, but Jiang Rui said he was not interested in why the man had appeared.

After the alarm ended, Jiang Rui learned that Accelerator had lost and Aiwass had intervened. Aleister assigned Fiery Sky to Jiang Rui’s team, and Jiang Rui discovered that their fourth member would be a famous double agent.

• Jiang Rui learned from Fiery Sky that Aiwass had acted and Accelerator had lost.
• Fiery Sky told Jiang Rui that Aleister had ordered him to make contact, and Jiang Rui kicked him after suspecting he had caused trouble for him.
• Jiang Rui recognized Fiery Sky as the Moe King and added him to the temporary party, then confirmed Aleister’s order by phone.
• Fiery Sky explained that Kihara Tsumiki would join the team and that Aleister had assigned a fourth member.
• Fiery Sky revealed that the fourth member was a famous double agent, and Jiang Rui glared toward the Windowless Building, suspecting Aleister had set him up.

Jiang Rui went to an esperless gathering area in the Seventh District to earn money, but after losing his arcade tokens, he robbed local delinquents for more. He left the scene just as Saten Ruiko and Kazari Uiharu arrived, with Uiharu preparing to handle the defeated thugs.

• Jiang Rui asked Ciel to locate an esperless gathering area and headed into the Seventh District.
• Jiang Rui spent all his arcade tokens, then used electricity to defeat a group of delinquents and take their tokens.
• Jiang Rui reflected on his appearance and considered giving Ye Xiaoqian a pair of headphones before returning to the arcade.
• Saten Ruiko and Kazari Uiharu entered the corridor and found the delinquents sprawled on the ground.
• Jiang Rui told Uiharu the delinquents had tried to rob him, then left as Uiharu took charge of them.

Jiang Rui decided to draw Ruiko Saten into Academy City’s supernatural conflicts and considered helping her gain power, while pretending he simply wanted to play games with her. He left with Ruiko as Kazari Uiharu returned to her Judgment shift, already planning to investigate him.

• After the troublemakers accepted their Judgment demerits, Kazari Uiharu took Ruiko Saten out of the corridor and found Jiang Rui waiting for them.
• Jiang Rui recognized Ruiko and wondered whether making her an active protagonist could earn him Twist Value without killing anyone.
• Jiang Rui invited Ruiko to play a game, and Kazari Uiharu left them together to continue her Judgment shift.
• Kazari Uiharu decided to investigate the boy, while Jiang Rui asked Ciel about ways to remove the side effects of magic for Ruiko.
• Jiang Rui resolved to build a relationship with Ruiko before helping her gain power, unaware that his gaze was making her blush.

Jiang Rui spent time with Saten Ruiko at an arcade before Kihara Tsumiki delivered his new phone and told him to attend school and prepare for a mission. He learned that the mission might bring his team into conflict with ITEM and left with a warning to Aleister that he could eliminate them.

• Jiang Rui praised Saten Ruiko's gaming skills and learned of her admiration for Misaka Mikoto.
• Kihara Tsumiki appeared, returned Jiang Rui's identity documents through a new smartphone, and told him to report to a high school the next day.
• Kihara Tsumiki said the phone included features to make Jiang Rui notice calls and messages, and that his home address was stored in it.
• Kihara Tsumiki warned Jiang Rui that the next night's mission might bring his team into conflict with ITEM, based on intelligence from Tsuchimikado Motoharu.
• Jiang Rui accepted the mission and said that eliminating ITEM would not be a problem, directing the remark as a notice to Aleister.

Aleister and Aiwass discussed Jiang Rui’s nature and why Aleister had placed him at Kamijou Touma’s school, while Jiang Rui treated Saten Ruiko to afternoon tea and headed to claim the grimoires. The chapter left him confident that he could ask Aleister for Index as a weapon.

• Aiwass told Aleister that Jiang Rui seemed to share her indifference toward the world, prompting Aleister to reconsider his decision to place him near Kamijou Touma.
• Jiang Rui apologized to Saten Ruiko for keeping her waiting and took her to a popular pastry shop, where they narrowly missed Kamijou Touma.
• Jiang Rui noticed other Transcendents nearby but focused on enjoying the food before going after the grimoires.
• Jiang Rui reasoned that Aleister had little use for the 103,000 Grimoires and that Index could serve as a weapon, then kicked open the door of an apartment.

Jiang Rui returned to Kihara Tsumiki’s apartment, then enrolled at a high school and encountered Tsuchimikado Motoharu. Tsuchimikado told him their mission that night could bring them into conflict with ITEM, and they prepared to carry it out.

• Jiang Rui found Kihara Tsumiki absent, left desserts for her, and fell asleep on the sofa.
• Kihara Tsumiki returned late, thanked Jiang Rui for the desserts, and left him to sleep in the living room.
• The next day, Jiang Rui found breakfast waiting, completed his enrollment at a high school, and searched for Tsukuyomi Komoe’s classroom.
• Jiang Rui met Tsuchimikado Motoharu and Blue-Haired Piercing, joked with them, and asked where Kamijou Touma was.
• Tsuchimikado caught up with Jiang Rui and warned that their mission that night might bring them into contact with ITEM, though the Chairman had not canceled it.

Jiang Rui revealed to Kihara Tsumiki that his ability was a form of magic and announced that he would eliminate ITEM to demonstrate his strength to Aleister. He transformed into lightning and charged toward the research facility, while Kihara Tsumiki considered intervening if he could not defeat Mugino Shizuri.

• Fiery Sky questioned the plan to attack the research facility, while Jiang Rui insisted they proceed despite ITEM's protection of it.
• Jiang Rui showed Kihara Tsumiki a projected blade and explained that his ability was an incomplete form of magic called Dream Manifestation.
• Jiang Rui warned Kihara Tsumiki that the magic and science sides were enemies and that their alliance with Aleister concealed ulterior motives.
• Jiang Rui declared that he would eliminate ITEM and become the new Number Four by killing Mugino Shizuri.
• Jiang Rui transformed into lightning and rushed toward the research facility as Kihara Tsumiki watched and considered rescuing him if necessary.

Jiang Rui used an Avatar as a hidden safeguard and broke into a research facility, where ITEM learned about the intruders and assigned Kinuhata Saiai to fight Teln. ITEM also discovered that Kihara Tsumiki and a Level 0 esper with Flesh Regeneration were involved.

• Jiang Rui explained that he had hidden his main body in sleep mode while using a powerful Avatar to hunt and survive the dangers of the world.
• Jiang Rui cut through the facility’s alloy door with Dan, triggered the alarm, and greeted the camera with a grin.
• Takitsubo Rihou identified the intruders as Rimuru Tempest and Teln, both Level 4 espers, and described their abilities to ITEM.
• Kinuhata Saiai volunteered to fight Teln, and Mugino Shizuri approved the matchup.
• Takitsubo found Kihara Tsumiki’s name and a Level 0 esper with Flesh Regeneration in the Library, prompting Frenda to demand that she fight the latter.