Because the Seventh School District is composed mainly of middle schools and high schools, there are many rebellious students as well. They wear earrings, dye their hair in flashy colors, style it in exaggerated emo fashion, and wander through the alleys in groups of two or three.
These people are extremely hostile toward members of Judgment, largely because most of them are powerless Level 0s.
Students without abilities receive very little monthly financial assistance, only 20,000 yen, which is barely enough to survive in the high cost environment of Academy City. As a result, many of them have a history of extorting or robbing other students.
Judgment members despise them, and they in turn hate Judgment just as much.
However, perhaps because these alleys are relatively dangerous, there are also more cards scattered around here. There are over thirty one star cards and one two star card, making this place a resource rich area.
"Speaking of which, that two star card is still moving quickly. It looks like a Character Card. I should collect the stationary ones first."
As he stepped into the alley, the sunlight no longer reached him, and the air felt slightly chilly.
In the past, he would never have dared to walk alone into an alley as a portable wallet, only to be robbed by thugs who might jump out at any moment. Now, with advanced Observation Haki, he could even anticipate and evade gunfire. If his physical abilities were enhanced two or three times further, he might even be able to sense and dodge a barrage from a machine gun.
At his current level, he could easily handle ten street punks at once. They would not even be able to touch the hem of his clothes.
He walked through two or three alleys without encountering any thugs. Along the way, he successfully collected five one star cards.
However, the one star cards were truly disappointing. The first one he obtained turned out to be a stack of RMB. Seriously? Academy City has its own internal currency. Outside money is useless here.
The second one star card was even more ridiculous. It was actually a baby pacifier. Who would ever use this? Was it meant for Komoe-sensei?
The third one was slightly better, a Desert Eagle. Unfortunately, it had no ammunition. How was he supposed to use it without bullets? It was basically just a model.
When he reached the fourth card, Ye Fei raised an eyebrow and muttered to himself, "Could it be that all the luck I accumulated over the past ten years was spent in the beginner gift pack? Am I turning into an unlucky player now?"
"You have to be strong, fourth card." Ye Fei silently bowed toward Guan Yu in his heart and picked up the fourth one star card.
Instantly, the one star card transformed into sparkling stardust, which then condensed into a rhomboid crystal the size of a glass bead. The system's voice rang out.
"Congratulations, Host. You have activated a one star card and obtained an Ability Crystal with no side effects."
Ability Crystal: Originally derived from experiments conducted by Kihara Gensei, a notorious scientist in Academy City. It later developed into a crystal capable of temporarily raising an esper's level and altering the nature of their ability, often causing it to go berserk. After system modification, this version permanently increases the user's ability level to two stages below Level 4, with a maximum cap at Level 3.
"So that's what it is."
Ye Fei held the glasslike crystal between his fingers and scratched his cheek, delight evident on his face. He was just about to raise his Telekinesis to Level 3.
The higher an esper's level, the greater the subsidy provided by Academy City. Level 3 students receive as much as 50,000 yen per month, which would significantly improve his standard of living.
The Ability Crystal had been used by many people, including Takitsubo Rikou and Mugino Shizuri, both members of the underground organization ITEM. However, Mugino Shizuri's ability went berserk after consuming it, and she nearly lost her life, which demonstrated the severity of its side effects.
But with the system's improvements, things were completely different.
Once Telekinesis reached Level 3, it would possess substantial offensive power.
"Hey, that moving two star card is heading toward me." Ye Fei looked at the card's position on the virtual map and exclaimed before walking toward it.
...
"Oh no, oh no, I can't breathe."
A girl wearing a sailor style school uniform, with long flowing black hair and a five petaled white plum blossom hair ornament, ran frantically into the alley. Her heart pounded wildly. Behind her were six thugs with nose piercings and brightly dyed hair.
"Hold it right there, brat."
"Stop running!"
"Don't even think about escaping."
The punks, dressed in flamboyant outfits, taunted her like cats toying with a mouse.
"You brat, just give up. Last time you dared to call Judgment on us. This time we'll show you what happens."
The girl was so focused on escaping that she failed to notice the metal pipe beneath her feet. She stumbled and fell to the ground with a cry.
"Oh no."
A sharp pain shot through her chest.
It hurts. It hurts. It hurts.
The six thugs cracked their knuckles and surrounded her, their expressions malicious.
"Hey..." The girl looked up, her face smudged with dust, fear flickering in her eyes as she forced an awkward smile.
"Um..."
Uiharu, why haven't you arrived yet? Waaah, I'm going to get beaten up by these delinquents.
When Ye Fei reached the location of the two star card, the scene before him made him frown.
A gentle looking Yamato Nadeshiko style girl with shoulder length hair was being surrounded by six thugs who clearly intended to harm her.
In Academy City, it was common for delinquents to snatch wallets and even assault girls. Ye Fei despised scum who targeted girls and bullied the weak.
Moreover, in ninety nine percent of cases, bystanders chose to ignore such situations out of fear of retaliation. Their indifference only emboldened the delinquents.
Without a word, Ye Fei walked over and tapped one of the thugs on the shoulder.
"Hey, buddy. Turn around for a second."
"Huh?" The thug paused, then instinctively turned his head.
Bang.
The moment he turned around, Ye Fei threw a punch straight into his face, knocking him to the ground. The thug clutched his swollen cheek and howled in pain.
"Ah!" The black haired girl scrambled to her feet and pressed herself against the wall, her face filled with shock.
"You bastard! You brat, looking for trouble?" The other five thugs snapped out of their daze and roared angrily.
"I've been looking for scum like you. Six grown men bullying a little girl. What, trying to rob her wallet or just picking on the weak?" Ye Fei said coldly. "You deserve to be beaten."
"Get him! Beat this meddling bastard to death!" shouted the thug with the swollen face.
"Be careful!" the girl with the bangs cried out in alarm, afraid that the kind senior who stepped in to help her would be hurt.
But in the next moment, she was stunned.
The six thugs could not even brush against the hem of his clothes. In the blink of an eye, the kind senior sent them all crashing to the ground with a series of clean punches and kicks.
"Wow... that's amazing..."