"Then why was this guy treating us to lunch?!" Kuroko slapped the table and sprang to her feet indignantly.
The last time Misaka Mikoto came back late at night, Kuroko had nearly lost her mind when she learned that Mikoto had been dueling a man. From then on, Luo Yifang's name had been entered into her little notebook. Who would have thought that the person treating them to a meal today would still be Luo Yifang?!
"Kuroko," Misaka Mikoto glared at her, signaling her not to cause a scene. Couldn't she see that all the nearby customers were looking over?
Misaka Mikoto turned to Luo Yifang. "Sorry. Kuroko has always been like this."
Watching Kuroko look like she was about to leap into the air, Luo Yifang was completely baffled. What did I do to get her this worked up?
"You're still pretending to be innocent," Kuroko said tearfully. "You used your overwhelming strength to force Onee-sama to stay with you until so late at night!"
Misaka Mikoto, who had just taken a sip of water, immediately sprayed it out. Her pretty face turned bright red. "Cough, cough... Kuroko, what are you talking about?!"
Kuroko was one step away from climbing onto the table and delivering a heartfelt speech. Misaka Mikoto truly couldn't stand it anymore, so she gave Kuroko a loving electric shock to settle her down. Only after Kuroko's forehead crashed into the tabletop did she turn to Luo Yifang. "Sorry for the trouble."
"It's fine..." Luo Yifang waved it off unconcernedly. Wasn't Kuroko always like this? If she weren't, she wouldn't deserve the title of "written as Kuroko, read as pervert." As he spoke, Luo Yifang seemed to recall something. He somehow produced a huge Gekota plushie and handed it to Mikoto.
"Lucky me, it was the last one." Luo Yifang smiled as he handed the Gekota to Misaka Mikoto.
Misaka Mikoto accepted it with delight, but immediately realized something was wrong. "Wait, how did you know I liked Gekota?"
"Come on, miss, I'm not blind." Luo Yifang pointed at the Gekota charm on Misaka Mikoto's phone, which was sitting on the table.
Well, now that she knew her preference had been exposed again, Misaka Mikoto had nothing to be embarrassed about. "Um... when will Hatsuharu and the others get here?"
So she still wanted to change the subject. Amused, Luo Yifang pointed outside the window. Two girls were pressed against the glass, peering inside, nearly giving Misaka Mikoto a fright.
Before the energetic Hatsuharu could even sit down after rushing in, she bowed to Luo Yifang. "Good afternoon, Senior Yifang. Thank you so much for last time."
Watching this familiar scene, Kuroko felt as though a sharp sword had pierced her heart... She had been... abandoned again... Sadly, it wasn't snowing outside. It was still summer. Otherwise, Kuroko might have said, "But I was here first." But why? Why did even Hatsuharu greet this bastard before anyone else?!
"Oh, it was just part of my job." Luo Yifang invited Ruizi and Hatsuharu to sit down. "You should be more careful, though. Even as a member of the Disciplinary Committee, you need to watch out for your own safety."
"Huh, you have a job too?" Misaka Mikoto asked curiously. "What kind of research institution could afford to hire you? You stand above all 2.3 million people in Academy City."
Kuroko and the other two were curious as well. Misaka Mikoto had never told them Luo Yifang's true identity, so they only vaguely knew he was an esper. They had all automatically understood "standing at the pinnacle of Academy City" to mean Level 5, rather than Number One.
"Well, I just cooperate with some experiments," Luo Yifang said, not intending to elaborate. If he really told her, given Misaka Mikoto's personality, she would definitely get involved first. That would make it difficult to carry out the plan to rescue the Misaka Sisters.
Their pleasant lunchtime quickly came to an end. Since Kuroko and Hatsuharu still had Disciplinary Committee work, the two of them returned to their Disciplinary Committee branch first. Still, the resentment in Kuroko's eyes as she left was genuinely unsettling.
"Alright! Next, let's go play some arcade games!" Misaka Mikoto shouted energetically outside the restaurant.
Just as Luo Yifang was about to agree, a ringing phone interrupted him. He could only gesture for a moment, then answer the call. "What do you want?"
Busu Dixin's voice came from the other end. "An emergency development has occurred. The experiment will begin outdoors today!"
"What?" Luo Yifang asked in disbelief. "Didn't you say the outdoor experiments wouldn't begin for some time?!"
"I don't know why either, but the message says they want to change the experimental site because progress in the laboratory has been slow." Busu Dixin had been caught completely off guard by this sudden change. Even the backup measures she had prepared were temporarily unusable.
After hanging up, Luo Yifang furrowed his brows. The first phase of the Absolute Ability User Evolution Plan was carried out in a specialized laboratory, but apart from the core personnel involved, no one else likely knew where that laboratory was. After all, if just any trash could learn the location of a dark plan on this level, it would have long been exploited by people with ulterior motives. Aleister would never allow his objective to be interrupted.
It could be said that Luo Yifang could do nothing about the first phase. The information gap was simply too vast, and his current strength was still insufficient to overpower all of Academy City. Aleister alone was enough to make him wary, not to mention that bizarre artificial heaven. This wasn't an anime or a novel, after all. Who knew what contingencies Aleister had left behind? So even if he wanted to rescue the Misaka Sisters, he had to wait for the outdoor phase of the experiment.
He just had never expected the outdoor phase to begin so soon. A cold gleam flashed through Luo Yifang's eyes. It seemed there was only one option...
To be honest, Luo Yifang didn't care about someone like Kakine Teitoku at all. What he truly cared about was how to deal with Aleister and ensure the Misaka Sisters' survival. If he acted rashly, he had no idea what Aleister in the real world would actually do. The more than ten thousand Sisters had now become Aleister's greatest bargaining chips. Luo Yifang was like a police officer facing criminals holding hostages, unable to make a move.
Once he understood that the situation could not be delayed any longer, Luo Yifang informed Misaka Mikoto and went to prepare for his next move.
Inside a black building without windows or doors, Aleister remained suspended upside down in nutrient fluid, his eyes tightly shut. Other than all manner of machinery, the hall on this floor was empty. Aleister suddenly opened his eyes and murmured in an ethereal voice, "Has he begun to act? Good... The next step can begin."
Luo Yifang, speeding wildly through Academy City, smiled. Hanging Man... let's see who will outscheme whom!
Before you continue