This Is Protection

"Ha!"

With a loud shout, the skirt of Chuharu was suddenly lifted up by a force.

Holding the shaved ice in her hand, her face instantly turned red. She turned around angrily and said, "Saten, what's wrong with you again?"

"Haha, don't call me that. But you're wearing pink bear-patterned panties today, which is really cute."

"Saten- kun, if you keep doing this, I'm not going to talk to you anymore."

"Relax, relax, but you say that every time, I'm used to it."

Yukino watched the two silently, remaining remarkably calm about the scene.

I can't help it, I've just seen too much of this lately.

"By the way, Kurotama... no, I should say Yukino, if your ability is LV5 and it's a clone ability, then can you make your body change a thousand times and split into many parts?"

Saten Ruiko's attention quickly shifted to Su Lin's own abilities.

Although she had wanted to know before, she had never deliberately asked because she was only LV0. Now she was just going with the flow.

"No, I don't have many clones. It's just that each body comes with different abilities." Kurotama didn't hide this harmless information.

"So, what really led to your LV5 rating is, like Misaka, your destructive power?"

LV5 is a legend for most members of Academy City. After all, there are only 7 out of 2.3 million people. Ordinary people would find it difficult to even meet one without any connection.

Not to mention, these LV5s are all in schools that focus on cultivating talent; how could ordinary ability users or those without ability possibly see them?

They can only try to understand the strength of LV5 through imagination.

"Level 5 are all monsters. Let alone them, even someone like Kuroko, who is only level 4, is terrifying, isn't she?"

"Yes." Chuharu's words resonated with Ruizi.

The two of them sat down next to each other and began to enjoy the shaved ice.

Suddenly, Ruizi's gaze fell on Railgun's hand.

"By the way, is this strawberry flavored? It looks delicious. How about we share a bite?"

"OK."

"Ah--"

With her mouth open, Railgun put the spoon in Ruizi's mouth, much to Kuroko's sudden shock.

"That's amazing, I'm so touched I could cry."

"You... you..."

Kuroko stretched out his hand, stammering, unable to speak.

"Try mine."

Under Kuroko's even more shocked gaze, Railgun also tasted Ruizi's portion.

"Mine is watermelon flavored."

Yukino glanced at Kuroko defiantly, then picked up her own spoon and said to Railgun.

"I'll try some too."

There was still saliva left on them, but the girls didn't seem to care at all.

"Wait... I didn't know there was such a trick. I never thought this would be the biggest mistake of Kuroko's life."

Shirai Kuroko angrily banged her head against the ground, then quickly rushed over with shaved ice. "Um, big sister..."

Before the adult could finish speaking, Yukino interrupted, "Sorry, your shaved ice tastes the same as hers, so I won't accept any exchanges."

"Puff--"

Kuroko coughed up a mouthful of blood.

"Oh, Kuroko, you must be planning something bad, right? Sorry, I refuse."

Railgun was also ruthless in rejecting Yukino because of her size, didn't give Kuroko any chance either.

"Puff--"

I have a feeling that if this trend continues, the competitiveness of Kuroko will decrease.

This was just a minor incident; afterwards, everyone went back to the dorm and had a party.

During the meal, Misaka Mikoto suddenly seemed to remember something and asked Kuroko, "By the way, is there any progress on the Void Explosion incident?"

"Well... I can't say there aren't any, but it doesn't seem like there are many." Kuroko took a sip of his coffee and sighed. "The suspect is only a LV2 Esper, but he's showing the strength of a LV4."

"So, the other party might have improved their abilities through the Imaginary Hand?" Yukino asked rhetorically.

"You can't say that, but... do those urban legends really exist?"

Everyone's eyes turned to Ruizi at the same time.

It seems that she was the one who provided the initial urban legend.

"Hey, why are you all looking at me like that?"

"Ruizi, do you know anything detailed about Imaginary Hand?" Railgun asked.

"How could I possibly know? It's just a rumor." Ruizi sighed, but her eyes were still full of longing.

"It's probably true, but I've always believed that if you get too much or too good, you'll inevitably have to pay a price." Yukino shook her head gently. "This world is too realistic. I never believe in free stuff."

"I guess so."

Ruizi welled up in her eyes, and she sounded somewhat disappointed.

However, neither Railgun nor Chuharu noticed the subtle change in her voice.

"Why don't we go and investigate?" Railgun suggested.

"Investigation?" His expression suddenly became somewhat ambiguous, probably because he was thinking about the famous scene that Railgun was going to do later.

"Yes, we can't take this kind of thing lightly, after all, there have been people with abilities that are 2 levels higher than ordinary people."

———Divider Line———

P. S.: I've always felt that writing such a long beginning is not worthwhile, so I'll start directly from the middle of the world, meaning the protagonist has already experienced a lot in the story and isn't far from leaving. 2333... I only thought of writing it this way today.

Chapter 205 This is to protect

That night.

"So, how about I entrust this task to you?"

Kuroko stared at the silent Kurotama, seemingly unwilling to let Railgun continue.

She originally wanted to ask herself, but since she was Judgement, it would be easy for her identity to be exposed.

"Don't leave me alone, let's go in together."

Kurotama flashed a bright white smile, completely unconcerned about doing this kind of thing with Railgun. As for Kuroko, she'd probably just have to wait nearby.

"Stay away, don't get close to the scene. If you're discovered, it will easily arouse suspicion."

This place is a gathering place for users of Imaginary Hand who discuss online forums and meet offline. The guests inside all look like ordinary people, but most of them actually use Imaginary Hand.

To be honest, this kind of thing that can enhance LV abilities should have already attracted the attention of the higher-ups. However, considering that the students of Academy City are all guinea pigs, this situation is actually no different from that of ordinary people.

"I always feel like something really bad is going to happen."

Kuroko covered his head in distress, feeling extremely worried.

Kurotama realized that her charm was not enough to make Kuroko, that pervert, shift his attention to her. But that was fine, so she wouldn't have to deal with the headache that Railgun had every day.

Upon entering the restaurant, I indeed found different customers, and it seemed that most of them were men.

Having locked onto her target, Railgun immediately ran towards it.

"Um... I saw the comments from the older brothers online about the Imaginary Hand. Could you tell me about it?"

"Huh?" The two calm men in front of them were slightly surprised to see Railgun like this.

"Imaginary Hand? I've never heard of him. Don't bother us, kid, go away."

The man in front of me, wearing a hat, waved his hand impatiently, as if shooing away a fly.

But he was stunned again soon because Kurotama walked to the side.

This results in two very attractive girls with very different personalities.

"Tch, I'm not that childish. Could you please tell me the information about the Imaginary Hand?" Railgun's voice suddenly became hesitant, which was a little embarrassing.

"Don't think about it."

The man continued waving, but another man next to him seemed quite interested. "Do you want them both? I'm more interested in you."

Her face was flushed with excitement, clearly indicating that the man had taken a liking to Railgun... as well as the silent Kurotama beside her.

"Hehe, if you want, I can provide some money. I do have some of this stuff."

"Money? Of course, that would be great, but compared to that, I still..."

As he spoke, he reached out to hug him.

Railgun dodged the opportunity, while Kurotama, suppressing the urge to hit her, coughed and said, "We just hope to improve our abilities. She's from Tokiwadai, you know."

"This uniform, I knew it!"

Kurotama doesn't usually wear school uniforms outside of school, mainly because there aren't enough clones, so she usually just wears her own clothes.

People like Railgun and Kuroko are used to wearing school uniforms outside. This must have seemed very strange in the world before they were transported there.

"Waaah." Railgun suddenly rubbed her eyes and cried pitifully, "The only person I can really trust is the Imaginary Hand."

"..."

"Why are you crying? You're not a child." The man wearing the hat shook his head and prepared to get up.

At this point, his companion told him, "Since it's Tokiwadai, maybe we can make a fortune there?"

After all, it's a prestigious school, and the young ladies there must be from far better families than them.

"Alright, alright, stop crying." The young man in the hat stood up and said, "You two come out with me."

Kurotama knew that no matter the outcome, these two were going to get beaten up by Railgun, and she could imagine the miserable sight of them being electrocuted.

"You too, come along, little sister."

The young man with the smirk smiled and said something to the Kurotama, then made a move, but the Kurotama easily dodged it.

"That won't do, big brother. Let's talk about what we think of after the deal is finalized."

"Alright."

I can't wait.

Moreover, that flash just now was a bit strange. After all, Railgun also dodged it at the beginning. If you weren't serious when facing Railgun, then it's not normal for Kurotama to dodge it.

"Stop making a move, let's go."

Urged on by his companion, he could only follow along with a mixture of belief and doubt. Another man sitting not far away also got up and left.

When I passed by Kuroko, I could see her lying painfully on the table, seemingly in a state of self-isolation.

"Tsk tsk." He tapped her on the head and Kurotama walked out.

Not long after...

"Let's go here. I think no one will bother us here."

In the quiet alley late at night, in a deserted place, two girls and three men...

"Hand over your bank cards, and don't forget your ATM codes, and credit cards too. I imagine there are quite a few young ladies from Tokiwadai, so hand them all over?"

"Here she is." Kurotama glanced at Railgun calmly, and seeing her stunned expression, she really wanted to laugh.

Although I had expected it, I was still surprised when it actually happened.

"Although there are some, but all of them..."

"Huh?" Railgun was interrupted before she could finish speaking. "What are you talking about? You're the one who's begging us."

"Tch." With things having come to this, Railgun could only sigh, "What a hassle."

"What did you say?"