"Suddenly, a 'swish' sound!?"
"Swish?"
"He took off his shirt."
...Misaka Mikoto, Shirai Kuroko, and Haruue Erii all fell silent, unsure how to respond.
"Hey! That's not scary at all!" Misaka Mikoto slammed her hand on the table, pulling back the black cloth that had been specially placed to set the mood, and loudly complained.
This scene drew the attention of everyone in the shop, and Shirai Kuroko quickly pulled Misaka Mikoto back down, looking around apologetically.
"Young Miss, please be quieter, don't disturb others."
"I'm…I'm sorry." Realizing her mistake, Misaka Mikoto's pretty face flushed, and she apologized softly.
"Eh? You don't find it scary? If you met someone who suddenly took off their clothes in real life?" Saten Ruiko countered.
"No, no, no, that's a pervert, we'd have to notify the Security Officers." Misaka Mikoto waved her hands repeatedly, responding speechlessly.
"This is the urban legend of the 'Stripping Woman'."
"What kind of interesting urban legend is that?" Misaka Mikoto looked bored.
"Then, then, how about this?" Haruue Erii, hearing this, took out her laptop and placed it on the table, gesturing for everyone to look at the screen.
"When the wind turbines of a wind power plant rotate in reverse, strange phenomena appear in the city."
"Don't wander around the School District at 4:04 PM, or you'll enter the illusory Imaginary School District."
"'Imagine Breaker level up' which can increase an Item Rank once used."
"Ay~ don't look at such boring websites." Shirai Kuroko sighed helplessly, advising them. In her opinion, the content of these websites was too nonsensical to be real.
"Shirai Kuroko is really not romantic~" Saten Ruiko puffed out her cheeks, dissatisfied.
"Yes, yes, yes~ I'm not very romantic~" Shirai Kuroko casually brushed her off, clearly not wanting to argue with Saten Ruiko on this topic.
"Actually, some urban legends even have video evidence, which can also confirm the authenticity of Academy City." Haruue Erii pulled up a video, gesturing for everyone to watch.
Four small heads huddled together, eyes unblinking, staring at the screen.
The video first showed darkness, then screams from the crowd, accompanied by the shaking of a phone. Once steady, a black shadow forming in mid-air was revealed.
Suddenly, a human-faced monstrous bird, as large as a small mountain, emerged from the black shadow and sped away into the distance. The entire video was only half a minute long, but it caused a frenzy of discussion among everyone.
"The monstrous bird that appeared in the city at night, rumored to have destroyed the Seventh District's landmark 'No Window Building'." Haruue Erii read the video's title.
"This…isn't this the mount that Uncle summoned?" Misaka Mikoto had the fortune of riding 'Nue', but thinking back to the scene of riding Nue at the time, although there was a sense of novelty at high altitude, the more obvious feeling at the time was that her bottom was wet, and with the wind blowing, that feeling was indescribable.
As soon as she thought of this, Misaka Mikoto's pretty face visibly began to flush, and steam even started to rise.
"What, what, Misaka-san means this monstrous bird is Mr. Rod's mount!?" Saten Ruiko leaned her cheek close to Misaka Mikoto, her eyes full of anticipation as she stared into Misaka Mikoto's eyes.
"Eh? Um…yes…yes, it is Uncle's mount. I even rode it at the time." Misaka Mikoto stammered in response.
Shirai Kuroko, hearing this from the side, turned black and white, looking utterly lifeless, which made Haruue Erii's forehead trickle with a cold sweat.
"What did it feel like!? Soaring freely in the sky, I want to do that too!" Saten Ruiko showed a look of yearning. She was very interested in being able to ride that monstrous bird and soar through the night sky.
"Wh-what did it feel like?! My butt was a bit cold…" Misaka Mikoto was stunned by the question, and inexplicably whispered her answer.
..."Eh?" The three girls were all stunned at her words. After a moment of silence, a white, Soul-like object floated out of Shirai Kuroko's mouth, causing everyone a fright.
"Quick…quick, stuff it back in!?" Saten Ruiko cried out in panic.
"Shirai Kuroko! No!" Haruue Erii wailed.
"Kuroko! What's wrong with you!?" Misaka Mikoto, forgetting her previous words, shook Shirai Kuroko.
"Guests, please be quiet!?" The Young Miss working at the shop could no longer stand it. If these girls continued to cause such a ruckus, she would have no choice but to ask them to leave.
"Sorry…" The quartet was scolded like quails, not daring to retort.
Seeing this, the four no longer lingered in the shop. They tidied up and left together.
"It's all Kuroko's fault, what happened to her all of a sudden?" Seeing Kuroko return to normal, Misaka Mikoto couldn't help but complain.
...Shirai Kuroko did not retort upon hearing this, but simply put Rod on her 'hit list'.
'This guy is definitely the biggest obstacle to my conquest of Young Miss, but Kuroko will not give up! This is the trial of love!?'
For some unknown reason, Kuroko suddenly ignited with passion, making the other three break out in a cold sweat.
"Oh, right, there's also a recently updated urban legend: the man who defeated Accelerator. It's said that the completely destroyed Seventeenth School District was their battleground."
"Eh!? Really? I thought someone was experimenting with a nuclear explosion over there. That night, I was woken up by the sound of the explosion, thought I saw two suns, and then, thinking I was still dreaming, went back to sleep." Saten Ruiko said, rubbing her chin in recollection.
"Haha~ that's really Saten Ruiko's style~" Haruue Erii said with a wry smile. She never thought that with such a loud commotion, Saten Ruiko could still sleep.
"Huh? How is that possible? Could it be that the Second and First Rank fought?" Shirai Kuroko still held a skeptical attitude, not believing that anyone could defeat Academy City's First Rank. After all, he was a person ranked above her Young Miss, how could he be easily defeated?
"No, it's true." Misaka Mikoto shook her head, refuting Shirai Kuroko's words.
"Young Miss?" Shirai Kuroko tilted her small head, looking at Misaka Mikoto in confusion.
"It's Uncle!" Misaka Mikoto said seriously.
"Eh?" The three girls were all stunned at her words, not understanding, and only realized after a while.
"It's Mr. Rod!?" Saten Ruiko exclaimed excitedly, her delicate body trembling in disbelief. The person who was just chatting and laughing with her a few days ago actually possessed such terrifying strength.
"How is that possible, that Uncle!? Uh…" Shirai Kuroko initially refuted, but then recalled the miraculous scene when Rod used Reversal Technique to heal himself during their first meeting. She couldn't help but believe it a little. It wasn't impossible for him to defeat Accelerator. What enemy wouldn't get a headache seeing such terrifying self-healing ability?
If Shirai Kuroko knew that Rod had suppressed Accelerator throughout the entire fight and hadn't even needed to use Reversal Technique, she would probably be scared to death.
"So Mr. Rod is that amazing? I thought he was quite approachable." Haruue Erii covered her small mouth, sighing with emotion. In her eyes, Rod was a respectable elder, very generous, often treating her to snacks, and a truly good person.
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