Mugino Shizuri had always held Academy City's ranking system in contempt.
That much was clear from how she had treated Misaka Mikoto before.
The rankings were determined with practicality, utility, and versatility as their ultimate criteria.
To Mugino Shizuri, that was utterly meaningless.
Because if Mugino Shizuri truly unleashed Meltdown's real power, she could even kill Misaka Mikoto in an instant.
That was not her own confidence or arrogance, but the conclusion reached by scholars who had studied her ability.
Mugino Shizuri's ability was so powerful that it was extremely unstable, requiring extensive fine-tuning and careful settings. Were it not restrained by her survival instinct, limiting it to a level that would not harm her own body, even Railgun could be dealt with in an instant.
Of course, if she truly unleashed that level of power, Mugino Shizuri's own body would be shattered by the recoil of such high output.
Thus, Mugino Shizuri was deeply dissatisfied with Misaka Mikoto being ranked above her, and had no faith whatsoever in Academy City's ranking system.
"In actual combat, my ability is the strongest."
That thought had always been quietly lodged in Mugino Shizuri's heart.
For that reason, Mugino Shizuri felt not the slightest fear or hesitation just because Kakine Teitoku was ranked above her.
Forget The Second—even if she were facing Number One today, Mugino Shizuri would not back down.
However, Mugino Shizuri discovered that she had been wrong.
Terribly wrong.
If she could still use carelessness as an excuse for her previous defeat against Misaka Mikoto, then this time, Mugino Shizuri would be crushed by a truly overwhelming disparity.
The gap between her and Kakine Teitoku was simply too great.
"Bang—!"
A white beam swept forward like a flash of light, blasting the asphalt road away like scraps of paper.
The