Part 4
Accelerator and Misaka Worst put items in the shopping cart according to the marked items on the advertisement flyer.
"Furikake, nori tsukudani, whitebait, mentaiko, and umeboshi…"
"Misaka may not be the best person to say this because she's only ever had synthetic foods, but isn't this too many things to put on rice?"
"She's just trying to cut corners. This is definitely better than nothing but frozen foods."
"Misaka would call even frozen foods a luxury."
After that, Misaka Worst's frivolous speech came to a stop.
Accelerator had stopped moving with an item not marked on the flyer in his hand. The cap on the top of a bottle of furikake had a bonus doll of what must have been the mascot.
If that had been Accelerator's tastes, bursting out laughing would have been the only appropriate response, but the god of laughter wasn't smiling on Misaka Worst that much.
However, that didn't stop her from getting a sneer on her face.
"A little chick mascot sure is clichéd… Sir, is that a present for Last Order?"
"That brat's tastes are really damn straight-forward," spat out Accelerator as he lightly shook the furikake bottle. "…As part of the Misaka Network, you're under the influence of its one large will, right? So your tastes must be pretty much the same, right?"
"Y'know, Misaka may receive some interference from the Network, but it's specialized so it's only the evil intentions and dark portions of the network. Misaka would rather you did not treat her like that naïve little girl."
"…"
"Misaka's settings are more to trample that underfoot in order to more effectively damage you. Misaka would think you had painfully figured that out on the snow plains of Russia. Misaka simply has no interest in such a worthless masco—"
Accelerator silently swung the furikake bottle to the side and Misaka Worst's gaze followed it.
He swung it back the other way and the ao dai-wearing girl's gaze moved back in that direction.
"You haven't taken your eyes off this chick mascot this entire time."
"Kh!!" Misaka Worst seemed oddly dismayed. "…M-Misaka can't believe you would want to look at her the same as Last Order in order to play with the imbalance between body and mind…"
"According to the numbering, you're actually the little sister."
Part 5
Accelerator and Misaka Worst finished shopping and left the supermarket.
They had one item that was not marked on the flyer: the furikake.
"Ahh, Misaka encountered something unknown that she did not imagine would happen. Peaceful days are much more tiring than Misaka predicted."
"…"
Accelerator couldn't just laugh off Misaka Worst's words.
Was this really okay?
A simple shopping trip had worn him out this much, so could he really get along with this world?
It was easy to write off this lukewarm peacefulness as something that just wasn't for him. He had once subconsciously glorified that method of dealing with it as making him really cool.
But what was he supposed to do after that?
If he turned his back on it, was there something that shined even brighter waiting for him elsewhere?
If he wanted to become a monster that had no value beyond killing, he should just continue on down that path. But that was not where Accelerator wanted to end up. The more he wrote off peace as not for him, the farther he became from what he wished for.
Could he really do it?
(…What is he doing?)
A certain Level 0 boy came to his mind.
That boy had most likely been fighting in an even deeper part of the world than Accelerator who held the title of Academy City's strongest. And of course, that boy had his own place. Had he returned to that place? Did he feel out of place?
If he was constantly switching between the farthest limits of the battlefield and calm, peaceful days, he would be much more amazing than Accelerator who continued to be stuck in the darkness.
For a bit, Accelerator surrendered his body to the fatigue, but then Misaka Worst began tugging on his sleeve.
He looked up with a puzzled expression.
"What?"
"Let's go buy some sweets and then eat them right away. Misaka has heard that that is the foundation of being bad."
"…You certainly get negative aspects from a lot of different places, don't you?"
Well, she gathered up the negative aspects of the entire Misaka Network, so Last Order's desires would be in there too.
And so, mostly at the insistence of Misaka Worst, the two of them bought ice cream at a stand made from a van.
"Should Misaka use her tongue seductively as she licks it?"
"Who are you trying to please by doing that? Yourself?"
"Well, there is that. If it would be devastating to your relationship with Last Order, Misaka will let you touch her tits and ass, but doing it now would seem rather pointless."
"Say what you like, I'm not fucking listening," responded Accelerator fed up with how she was acting.
Ice cream in hand, he casually looked over at the crowd of people and suddenly froze.
He saw a silver-haired nun wearing a white nun's habit.
Fatigue and impatience could be seen in her face and it looked as if vitality had been scraped from her well-featured face.
(Her…?)
Accelerator recognized that face.
However, her atmosphere was quite different from when he had met her before.
A few seconds later, she had disappeared into the crowd.
(Lost sight of her. Well, I have no reason to frantically go searching for her. And getting her involved with me could even send her life in a much worse direction.)
The girl with an unfriendly look in her eyes sitting next to the #1 didn't seem to notice.
"Misaka just can't get used to it." Misaka Worst's candid feelings slipped out as she licked the surface of the vanilla ice cream. "Misaka can't get used to the two of us walking home in the sunlight licking ice cream. It just isn't right; it isn't normal. Don't you feel uneasy because nothing is happening? It just feels like the harbinger of some huge event."
"Do you want something to happen?"
"Who knows. Perhaps. Perhaps not. Misaka doesn't think anyone accurately knows their own mind. Even when a psychologist does his own test, he gives a softer estimate on himself. If there was someone who could fully and perfectly understand their own mind, that person would be crazy in their own way."
Misaka Worst smiled.
"How about you?"
"I don't care," responded Accelerator halfheartedly. "I took back everything I needed from that war. I now have everything I need. And if it's needed to keep those things, I'm willing to do things I'm not used to."
"Misaka thinks that finding out what exactly it is we can't seem to get used to is at the center of it all."
"Ahn?"
"Is it the peaceful atmosphere itself or is it being stuck inside boundaries laid out by someone else."
"…What are you? Some little brat?"
"Misaka feels this isn't something to laugh at. Misaka thinks that we should experience just how inadequate it is to be trapped in boundaries laid out by some else. Then we should tear away everything that isn't necessary. Aren't our personalities at odds with the mere idea of being trapped within boundaries laid out by someone else?"
"Just change the way you think." There was no turmoil in Accelerator's feelings. "Someone is thinking that we can't do that. Someone is thinking that beasts like us can only live within a sea of blood. In that case, isn't successfully living inside the boundaries laid out by them a way of showing our defiance to them?"
"Ah-ha. Misaka likes that." Misaka Worst continued licking away her vanilla ice cream and chomped at the unneeded portions of the cone. "But don't you smell something bad around here?"
"?"
"Misaka would even say it's a nostalgic smell."
"…"
Hearing her words, Accelerator narrowed his eyes.
Holding his cane, he looked around the area again.
A tranquil and casual cityscape stretched out around him.
For that reason, something seemed out of place. Its color and form perfectly blended in, but it was still clearly different. It was an unexplainable intuitive differentiation like seeing an alien wearing human skin.
At the other end of his gaze was…
"That tourist bus."
"Yes, it could be a disguised undercover vehicle," said Misaka Worst smiling. "Academy City is the same as ever. Oh? But this is odd. Misaka thought a certain someone had gotten rid of the city's dark organizations by having them do away with the dirty jobs they forced people to do by using people and objects as shields."
"…"
"We have two paths we can take here." Misaka Worst presented her fluttering index and middle fingers in front of Accelerator. "To eliminate them accepting the danger that brings in order to ensure our safety or to safely overlook them here in order to avoid danger."
"The answer is obvious," spat Accelerator in response. "We take them out here. They broke their end of the agreement. I need to give them a warning about that darkness that's still hanging around. I don't like sticking my nose in other people's business, but it's a completely different story when it involves the dark side of the city."
Misaka Worst whistled.
"Well, now that the darkness has begun moving, a certain someone would surely get hurt and her life would be in danger. It seems #1 is a good little boy who just wants to help out others."
"…Don't act like you know what you're talking about. So what are you going to do?"
"Misaka will of course choose the more dangerous route. It sounds more fun."
Part 6
Hamazura Shiage pressed his back up against the wall.
He slid down and sat on the ground.
Kuruwa was gone.
The conversation he had with her replayed in the back of his mind.
"Oh, you know. The thing about Hanzou-sama sheltering a small girl."
The truth was, Hamazura Shiage was not in a position where he could brazenly enjoy his life in Academy City.
When he had left the city and gotten caught up in World War III, he had been on the run because it had been determined that he was "an uncertain element that knew too much about the dark side of Academy City".
During the war, Hamazura had gotten ahold of a certain piece of data.
It was known as the Parameter List and was enough to shake Academy City at its core.
But it wasn't perfect.
He had managed to balance the scales, but if the scales tipped past a certain point, the very depths of Academy City would be sure to put together a means of eliminating him.
"I don't know the details, but it seems that girl is being targeted by the upper levels of Academy City. It's as if she would be killed if she walked around the area for half an hour."
At best, the scales were exceedingly unstable.
If they received another large shock, they could be moved in one direction or the other
To prevent that, it was best to lie low.
He needed to take time to see whether the scales were tipped far enough in his favor to risk his life on it.
Basically, he had to not cause any problems.
He should abandon Hanzou and abandon the girl who was being targeted.
"Ah, I can't quite remember her name."
Most likely, that reasoning wasn't wrong.
If he was to ensure his safety, that was the only option left.
He had sworn to protect Takitsubo Rikou.
He wanted to keep danger from her as much as possible. He wanted to avoid having her swallowed up by the city's darkness at all costs.
So the decision to abandon them wasn't wrong.
It wasn't wrong.
But…
"I think it was…Fre…Fre…mea? …Yes, it was Fremea Seivelun. She's about ten years old and has fluffy blonde hair. She was emotionally attached to Komaba-shi, wasn't she?"
Crouching in the alley, Hamazura gritted his teeth.
Komaba Ritoku was the Skill-Out leader who had once fought the city's darkness for the sake of a great number of Level 0s and died for it.
Fremea had been the girl Komaba had fought until the very, very end to protect. Hanzou was most likely sheltering her to carry out Komaba's dying wish.
Fremea was a harmless Level 0 with no connection to Skill-Out.
That harmlessness may have been one of the reasons Komaba had tried to protect her.
Also, Hamazura Shiage knew the family name Seivelun.
Up until then, he hadn't known the family name of the girl emotionally attached to Komaba. Even Komaba, the person closest to her, had merely called her "imported" because that had been his first impression upon hearing the name.
However, Hamazura couldn't fool himself any longer.
Now that he knew this, he had to face this.
"…Frenda Seivelun," muttered Hamazura.
There was a short pause before he continued speaking.
"So she was her little sister…!!"
Frenda had been one of the main members of Item who had fought alongside Mugino Shizuri, Kinuhata Saiai, and Takitsubo Rikou.
He did not know the details of how she had come into contact with the city's dark side and become part of Item.
It was possible Frenda herself had enjoyed fighting.
But…
It was possible it had all started with Fremea.
Was there really nothing wrong with abandoning her?
His friend Hanzou was currently fighting with the city's dark side.
Allowing Fremea to die would be the same as trampling on the feelings of Komaba Ritoku and Frenda.
With all that, was there really nothing wrong with abandoning them?
(…That's right.)
"There isn't anything wrong with it," Hamazura muttered.
He had given voice to his thoughts in order to solidify his view.
His voice gradually grew louder.
"There's nothing wrong with it. There's no way there's anything wrong with keeping danger away from Takitsubo and the rest of Item!! I overcame all that war. I may have been covered in filth, but I finally grabbed this new life with my own two hands!! Like hell I could let that slip away. I will protect what I've obtained on my own no matter what!!"
Still crouched in the alley, Hamazura grabbed his head with his hands.
That's right.
When he thought about it rationally, the most effective way of protecting himself, Takitsubo, and the others was to abandon Hanzou and Fremea here.
That option held the least risk and allowed him to protect those he cared about the easiest.
That was what he should choose if he truly wanted to protect those he cared about.
When he let the callousness sink in, he knew he should just let the problem approaching before his eyes go on by him.
He would choose.
He had to choose.
Now.
Hamazura clicked his tongue and clawed at his head.
"Fuck!! Like hell I can abandon them!!"
He put his hand to the wall and stood up once more.
He ran towards the shadows in the depths of the narrow alleyway that symbolized the city's dark side.
He ran to save his friend who was facing a deadly crisis.
He ran to protect the feelings of the dead.
He didn't contact Takitsubo and the others.
This was Hamazura's problem.
As long as the balance of the scales was unstable, he couldn't get those girls wrapped up in this.
He ran in order to ensure that he would return.
Hamazura Shiage dared to run into the depths of the darkness.