I Knew at a Glance You Were Sister Lightning

Lungmen was indeed incredibly welcoming. Hoshino felt like she had returned home.

She lowered her arm and looked ahead.

Penguin Logistics's bar was surrounded so tightly that not even water could pass through. Hoshino was not impressed by their numbers—no matter how many rabble there were, they were nothing to fear. What surprised her was what she saw in their eyes. Unlike before, there was not the slightest trace of panic.

Something was wrong.

Her right hand rested on the hilt of her sword as she stepped forward.

Exusiai lay atop the vehicle, skillfully loading rubber bullets into the magazine one by one.

On the drive here, Hoshino and Exusiai had been physically close, yet the Sky Ranger unlock progress bar had still advanced absurdly slowly. The moment she moved even slightly farther away, the connection broke completely.

More ridiculous than a 5G network.

Hoshino felt that unless she held Exusiai's submachine gun in her arms, there was no way to unlock Sky Ranger.

She had to find an opportunity to trick her into coming to the shrine.

"Any commissions?"

After testing her sights, Exusiai turned back and asked curiously. Hoshino instinctively shook her head.

That was close.

Hoshino walked forward. The connection snapped taut like a strand of hair, and Sky Ranger's unlock progress stopped at fifty-three percent before falling silent for the moment.

One step.

The breathing from the rooftop stopped. Hoshino heard accelerated heartbeats.

Like water hitting hot oil, the crowd erupted.

A tide of agitation surged from ahead. Hundreds of footsteps struck the ground in unison, stretching as far as the eye could see, like ants marching to their deaths. Hoshino moved forward, her breath circulating, and a crushing sense of suffocation pressed down upon everyone's heads.

"It's started."

Sergeant Ch'en's face was utterly serious as she gave an order to the person beside her. "Prepare the drone. Observe her from every angle without blind spots and see whether she uses any lethal weapons that violate regulations."

"Uh..."

Hoshiguma wanted to laugh a little, but she still followed Chief Ch'en's orders and deployed a drone to observe.

The battle began.

As the enemies surged in like a tide and instantly filled every gap in the street, the world in Ch'en's eyes split into two sharply contrasting battlefields. One was Penguin Logistics's group of three, while the Miko of the Defiled God from Yae Shrine fought in a league of her own.

Their coordination was far from seamless.

Texas swung her wooden sword with broad, rough movements. It looked less like traditional swordsmanship and more like she was using a baseball bat to strike her enemies.

Like a vanguard, she charged at the very front.

Texas's movements were incredibly sharp, but some fish always slipped through the net. Crawling forward like ants, they squeezed past their unconscious companions and finally broke through the airtight defense, raising their weapons in delight.

"For the glory of thunder!"

Exusiai calmly fired rubber bullets, striking their foreheads with pinpoint precision. Her fingers lightly squeezed the trigger, and every shot knocked out an enemy who came within one meter of Texas.

This was long-range protection.

Croissant stood guard beside the relatively vulnerable Exusiai, using her shield to block incoming attacks, including thrown weapons such as Molotov cocktails.

Under normal circumstances, there should have been a bard on the roof of the vehicle—not exactly superfluous—granting buffs to her teammates. But Sora had gone to an idol event, leaving the position vacant. The one temporarily filling that role was doing a job completely different from Sora's.

Croissant swallowed and looked over.

Only a guard could describe the Miko of the Defiled God in this state.

She was too fierce.

The mob howled as they charged at Hoshino, only to form a strange vacuum around her. It was a circle half a meter in diameter, as though an invisible barrier stood in the air. The tranquility within starkly contrasted with the uproar outside.

It was not a barrier.

Anyone who approached that range was sent flying by a blurred arc of light.

Ch'en was the first to confirm that every member of the Penguin Logistics group was using nonlethal weapons. She was not surprised by the result. After all, Penguin Logistics got involved in a group brawl every three days on average. They understood what they should and should not do even better than the Lungmen Guard Department.

The only one she could not make up her mind about was that miko.

Despite sending out a specialized drone, they still could not clearly see her movements. All they could see were fleeting arcs flashing through the air.

Draw.

Enemy sent flying.

Sheathe.

The entire process was too fast for anyone to see clearly, making the situation extremely bizarre.

"It kind of feels like a Stand user."

Hoshiguma, who had read plenty of shounen manga, folded her arms and quipped. Ch'en, unusually, nodded to show her agreement. The scene really did look like a Stand user bullying ordinary people.

Hoshino moved back and forth through the crowd, charging in and out seven times as the silent circular barrier moved with her.

She stared at the enemies who still had not fled.

Not normal.

One enemy rushed at her.

"Thunder!"

She frowned. She did not feel any numbness at all, and casually sent the man flying as though swinging a golf club. He had shouted "thunder," and it was definitely not just because it sounded good. He firmly believed that shouting it could grant him strength.

This was not an isolated case.

Hoshino had knocked away many people, and many never got the chance to say anything. On average, one out of every hundred would shout it.

Penguin Logistics had clearly noticed it as well.

The last organized wave of enemies was scattered, leaving only a few unorganized small fry.

After dealing with the last person, Hoshino retreated to the side of the Penguin Logistics group.

"What is thunder?"

"Maybe something's wrong with the way their brains work? Hurry up and wrap this up. I've fired so many rubber bullets—I need to get back and maintain my gun."

Laterano citizens cherished their guns as dearly as they cherished family.

Texas was clearly tired as well. Beads of sweat covered her forehead, and her pink tongue peeked out slightly as she panted at a rapid pace.

She looked completely different from her usual self.

Croissant wiped away her sweat too.

The few remaining enemies seemed to have lost their will to fight. The hands gripping their weapons trembled slightly, and they did not dare attack for a long time.

They threw down their weapons and cried out toward the sky.

They said nothing but things about being abandoned, making Hoshino curious.

Abandoned by what?

Her question was quickly answered.

In an instant, dark clouds filled the sky, blotting out the sun and stars. Dull thunder rumbled across the horizon, rolling in from afar.

Jingzhe wore a hood.

Her heart was heavy, and she was even somewhat uneasy. She silently prayed that no one would recognize her, or she would lose all face.

It was a good thought, but things did not go as she wished.

The miko across from her suddenly looked enlightened and recited leisurely:

"As yang energy rises, temperatures warm, spring thunder stirs, rainfall increases, and all things burst with life..."

"?"

"This is Jingzhe."

"???????"