Silence.
The moment Ruiko finished speaking, the whole square went quiet.
Accelerator, Kakine, and Misaka Mikoto all stared at her with shocked expressions, like they were seeing some strange creature.
Not far away, Mugino Shizuri's team also heard her bold words and widened their eyes.
"You're kidding, right? I must've imagined that," Kinuhata Saiai whispered.
"Nope, not your imagination. I heard it too," Frenda said, shaking her head. "That girl is really something."
"No matter how you look at it, she's unbelievable," Takitsubo Rikou nodded in agreement.
"Idiot. Is she trying to get herself killed?" Mugino Shizuri clenched her teeth, staring hard at Ruiko. "She's really mocking those two in a situation like this? Is she trying to act brave or something? It's so dumb. Unbelievably dumb!"
"Um, she's about to die anyway, so maybe we shouldn't talk about her like that?" Frenda said in a quiet voice.
"Shut up!" Mugino shot her a sharp glare, clearly getting more irritated.
After a moment of silence, Takitsubo spoke softly, "Mugino, don't tell me… you're worried about that girl?"
"W-Who's worried about her?!" Mugino's face instantly turned red. "Are you stupid? She's our enemy!"
Then why are you blushing?
Takitsubo didn't say it out loud, but she was starting to think something was definitely off with their leader. And the cause was probably that girl.
Still, she figured they wouldn't see that girl again after today.
Takitsubo just couldn't believe anyone could get away safely from both the first and second ranked espers.
"Hahahahaha!"
A wild laugh rang out. Accelerator stared at Saten Ruiko, his face twisted into something almost crazed. "Interesting! You're really interesting, woman! You're way more fun than that clone next to you! You say I'm only the strongest inside this city? So what, you think there's someone stronger out there?"
"Yeah, I do."
Saten Ruiko nodded calmly on the outside—but in the group chat, she was spamming messages like crazy: Anzen-san! Anzen-san! I'm counting on you! Come save me already!
Doujin Artist: Don't panic, Ruiko-sama.
Curly-haired Guy: Hang in there, Ruiko-sama! Aizen is on the way!
Shark-Faced Guy: "On the way"? He's time traveling—what's he waiting for, the right weather?
Curly-haired Guy: Idiot. I was just setting the mood, okay? Setting the mood! But seriously, does time travel take time? If it does, we're screwed!
Scarlet Lotus Fairy: If that's true, we might see Ruiko-chan turn into strawberry jam.
Doujin Artist: Wait, even Scarlet is cracking bad jokes now?
Skirt-Flipping Maniac: Guys, stop scaring me! Where is Anzen-san?!
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh.
Right after Ruiko sent that last message, several dark energy blasts shot toward her.
She froze.
Saten Ruiko stood there like she was completely stunned, not moving an inch. Only when the dark energy was just about to hit her did she slowly raise her right hand, gripping the blade.
Slash.
A flash of silver light.
Thud. Thud.
The dark energy split in half and scattered into pieces.
"He's here."
Ruiko smiled, her mouth curving up perfectly. "So then… who should we start with?" She glanced at Accelerator, then shifted her eyes to Kakine Teitoku.
"Ruiko…?" Misaka Mikoto looked at her, confused.
Something felt off. She looked like Ruiko, but she didn't feel like the same person at all.
And of course, that made sense.
Because the one controlling her body now… wasn't Ruiko.
It was Aizen.
Swoosh.
Her figure suddenly vanished. Controlling Ruiko's body, Aizen appeared out of nowhere on Accelerator's right side.
What the—?
Accelerator was shocked. He clearly didn't expect her to fly too. And her speed… it was beyond anything he thought possible. By the time he reacted, Aizen's blade was already swinging toward him.
*Crack.*
A sharp sound echoed.
In a rush, Accelerator formed a black shield in front of him. But against the girl's strike, the shield was as fragile as paper.
*Splurt.*
Bright red blood shot out from Accelerator's right arm and splashed everywhere.
"Not bad defense," Aizen said as she floated midair, casually shaking the blood from her blade like a teacher giving feedback. "But your judgment was way off. If you had put that shield on your left instead, I might not have broken it so easily."
"You… what are you—" Accelerator was still in shock, unable to understand why this girl suddenly became so strong.
"Spacing out in a fight? That's a bad habit," the girl's voice suddenly came from behind him.
What?!
Accelerator's eyes went wide. Before he could even turn around, blood sprayed from his back. His whole body dropped like dead weight to the ground.
*Whoosh.*
Out of nowhere, a thick, black metal pipe shot through the air, slicing toward Aizen with a sharp whistling sound.
"When dealing with someone you don't understand, a sneak attack from a distance is a smart move," Aizen said calmly as she swung her sword toward the pipe's direction.
*Slice.*
Her powerful strike split the metal pipe clean in two, and the force behind it didn't stop. The blade energy turned and shot back toward whoever launched the pipe.
*Boom.*
A loud thud rang out.
Accelerator, who had just stood up, was blown backward, flying through the air. His face still frozen in shock and disbelief.
"Too bad your sneak attack was way too easy to read." Before he even landed, Aizen had already appeared behind him, as if she knew exactly where he'd end up. The blade in her hand gleamed coldly in the moonlight.
*Splurt.*
Blood bloomed in midair like a red flower.