Just as Misaka Mikoto was in shock and didn't know what to say, she suddenly noticed Luke holding a barbecue grill and noticed what Krul and Accelerator were holding. She asked curiously, "Are you three going on a picnic?"
Luke nodded with a smile.
"Yes, we're just about to go buy ingredients."
Misaka Mikoto quickly bowed slightly in apology.
"Oh, sorry! Then I'll let you get to it. Have a great time!"
Krul thought for a moment, her lips curling into a smile.
"Would you like to come along? It's no fun with just the three of us."
Misaka Mikoto thought for a brief moment and was about to refuse; after all, it was their first time meeting, and joining a picnic right away felt a bit inappropriate.
But before Misaka Mikoto could speak, Shirai Kuroko responded.
"Is it okay?"
Krul nodded and looked at the two behind her. Luke naturally wouldn't contradict Krul, and although Accelerator had a 'what a pain' expression on his face, he didn't refuse either.
Shirai Kuroko bowed slightly, showing a polite and bright smile, and replied softly.
"Oh my, that's a wonderful suggestion. Indeed. Big Sister, what do you think? If possible, I would be very happy to go along as well; after all, such opportunities are rare, aren't they?"
Her tone carried a hint of excitement and anticipation, but she also maintained politeness and humility, consistent with her usual lady-like demeanor, which was completely different from her posture toward Misaka Mikoto just now.
"Hey, Kuroko!"
Misaka Mikoto was still a bit embarrassed.
At this time, Krul said, "It's fine. Honestly, if it's just the three of us, I'm a bit doubtful if the things we make will even be edible. You guys can handle the cooking, and we'll help out on the side."
Seeing that Krul had extended such an invitation and that she was indeed free today, Misaka Mikoto agreed.
Then Shirai Kuroko asked again, "Can two more of my friends join? Don't worry, we'll bring food too!"
Luke readily agreed. Without even thinking, he knew that Shirai Kuroko's two friends must be Uiharu Kazari and Saten Ruiko.
Shirai Kuroko thanked him politely and then composed and sent a message on her phone.
As a young lady from a wealthy family, she knew how important networking was. Making connections with three Level 5s was certainly worth it, though she wouldn't resort to fawning over them for it.
Misaka Mikoto chimed in at this point, "In that case, let's go buy the ingredients with you."
Krul nodded.
The five of them headed toward the shop selling ingredients.
On the way, Misaka Mikoto observed Krul's group for a moment but quickly looked away, as staring would be impolite.
The group spent until nearly eleven o'clock picking out all the ingredients.
Luke looked at what everyone had bought. Krul still had an exploratory spirit toward human delicacies, so she bought a little bit of basically everything, keeping it quite balanced.
Misaka Mikoto mostly had vegetables, like cabbage and mushrooms.
As a young lady, Shirai Kuroko bought high-end seafood.
"Hey, why did you only buy seasonings?"
Accelerator noticed the jars and bottles in Luke's shopping bag.
Luke said very proudly.
"Hmph, seasonings are the soul of a barbecue! On the other hand, your whole bag is nothing but meat."
Accelerator's bag was filled entirely with meat products; he seemed to be a carnivore. He answered as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"Dying from eating meat is also a kind of happiness."
Misaka Mikoto smiled and said, "Without even discussing it, we've bought everything we need. We really are in sync!"
Shirai Kuroko nodded and agreed, also somewhat surprised, "Yes, even though we were two groups of strangers."
Luke shrugged.
"It seems we are indeed destined."
Meanwhile, he thought to himself, 'Now that the Boss knows Railgun, I wonder how he'll react when he sees Misaka Imouto during the Level 6 Shift Project.'
Luke picked up the barbecue grill and placed the other bags on top of it, preparing to carry it all to the picnic spot like that.
Seeing Luke's posture, Misaka Mikoto asked in confusion, "Eh? Are you going to carry it yourself? Don't you want to use a robot to help?"
Luke didn't understand and looked at Misaka Mikoto with equal confusion.
"What robot?"
Krul also looked over; she didn't know about any robots either.
Misaka Mikoto realized that these two had only recently arrived and might not fully understand the facilities of Academy City. She pointed to a small window next to the mall exit and explained, "After buying things, you can have the mall staff send a robot to deliver them to a specified location."
Shirai Kuroko held up five fingers and added, "It only costs five hundred yen."
Luke looked back at Accelerator. Judging from Accelerator's reaction, he didn't know either. Luke immediately felt a bit better. If even a native of Academy City didn't know, it was perfectly normal for newcomers like them not to know!
Accelerator gave a small "tch." He could tell what Luke was thinking when he looked at him, but he didn't explain. He usually just bought bento from the nearest convenience store and didn't buy daily necessities in bulk, so he really didn't know about this delivery service.
The five of them left the mall together. Setting aside Accelerator's somewhat malnourished appearance, all five had outstanding looks and temperaments, causing many people to turn their heads along the way.
Some passersby even whispered.
"Wow, all five of them are so good-looking! I'm going to take a picture to share with Yuichi."
The companion next to them couldn't help but frown.
"That's a bit impolite. Look at that boy in the grey and white striped shirt; he looks like someone you shouldn't mess with. It'll be trouble if you're caught."
"You have a point, but they really are attractive, especially that pink-haired exchange student girl. She's so cute! Eh? Did she just glare at me? She's so beautiful too! A-Shan, what do you think?"
The boy called A-Shan sighed.
"Sigh, I'm still not impressed."
The person who asked was surprised and a bit skeptical.
"Even someone that good-looking doesn't impress you?"
A-Shan put on a sophisticated look and used a lecturing tone.
"Young man, your training is still insufficient. When you reach my level, you'll know that only breasts are the truth! Although these three girls are pretty, combined they don't even reach a C-cup! I'm telling you, if I had the looks of those two guys, I'd go... Huh? Why are you backing away? Is there something behind me?"
Seeing his companions backing away in terror, A-Shan was suddenly confused. As soon as he turned around, he met three pairs of eyes filled with killing intent.
'Run, or I'll die!'
This was the first thought that popped into the old pervert A-Shan's head, but his body felt like it was filled with lead. Feeling the pressure from those three gazes, his back was already drenched in cold sweat.
A-Shan's companions swallowed hard, also feeling the immense pressure.
All three girls were looking at them as if they were trash.
"We're sorry!"
Unable to withstand the pressure, the three of them bowed ninety degrees and then fled as if running for their lives.
Electric sparks were flickering around Misaka Mikoto; she clearly couldn't stand being discussed regarding her chest size, but as a Level 5, she couldn't strike out just because of verbal provocation.
"Kuroko!"
Just then, a shout came from a distance. The group turned to look and saw two girls waving and running toward them.
Both girls were in casual clothes. One had short hair and wore a headpiece adorned with various flowers like roses, hibiscus, peacock grass, and mallow. The other girl with long black hair also had a headpiece—a hair ornament in the shape of a five-petaled white plum blossom.
The newcomers were naturally Shirai Kuroko's friends, Uiharu Kazari and Saten Ruiko, who attended Gakuen Middle School.
When they received Shirai Kuroko's message, they thought she was joking. It wasn't until Kuroko swore on her life that Big Sister wouldn't talk to her for a week that they believed her and excitedly headed out.
Of course, they couldn't come empty-handed. Each brought some sweets and drinks that could serve as afternoon tea snacks.
Going for a picnic at this hour meant both lunch and dinner would be handled outside, so they naturally had to be well-prepared!
Shirai Kuroko was about to introduce Uiharu Kazari and Saten Ruiko to the four of them, but the two spoke first.
Uiharu Kazari was a bit nervous; she bowed first, her slightly chubby face flushing red.
"H... Hello everyone, I'm Uiharu Kazari. I attend Gakuen Middle School and am a Level 1. My ability is..."
Misaka Mikoto saw that Uiharu Kazari was nervous and smilingly interrupted her interview-like self-introduction.
"No need to be nervous. I've heard about you from Kuroko. Thank you for looking after her."
Hearing Misaka Mikoto's kind reassurance, Uiharu Kazari indeed felt much better and nodded.
"Mm!"
Saten Ruiko, on the other hand, was more relaxed and didn't feel stage fright.
"I'm Saten Ruiko, a Level 0, and I also attend Gakuen Middle School."
Knowing that Krul and Accelerator weren't very good at socializing, Luke smilingly helped introduce them.
"Hello both. I'm Luke, and these two are Krul and Accelerator Turtle."
"Hey, you bastard, do you want to start a fight?"
Luke teased with a smile and reintroduced him.
"Just a joke, don't you have a sense of humor? He is Accelerator."
Misaka Mikoto also introduced herself with a smile.
"I'm Misaka Mikoto. You can just call me Mikoto."
Uiharu Kazari and Saten Ruiko nodded. They had known about Misaka Mikoto for a long time, not just because she was famous, but mainly because they had learned a lot through osmosis from being around Kuroko.
Among the other three Level 5s, Luke seemed easy to get along with, while the other two didn't seem to like talking much.
After the introductions were over, the seven of them headed toward the designated picnic spot.
Academy City is a highly modernized metropolis, so most people choose Tama Central Park for picnics because it has a good environment and not too much noise... Inside the Windowless Building, a landmark in Academy City District 7.
"What? Four Level 5s are gathered together?! Which four?"
The Board of Directors lost their composure for a moment upon receiving the intelligence from their subordinates.
The person below quickly provided an answer.
"All of the top five except for Dark Matter are there."
The members of the Board of Directors held their breath upon hearing this, and then a discussion broke out.
"Are they plotting something?"
"Will there be other Level 5s joining them?"
"The abilities of those two newcomers aren't clear yet. If they were to riot, we wouldn't be able to counter them in a short time, and the losses would be huge! Should we use Tree Diagram to run a simulation and see their next move?"
In their high positions, they were always worried about whether those below them would rebel. Therefore, they had even established laboratories for every Level 5 specifically to research countermeasures. The Board of Directors didn't know the abilities of Luke and Krul yet, but the laboratories below had already initiated projects.
At this moment, a quiet voice sounded in the conference room.
"Could it be that they're just having a normal gathering?"
One member of the Board of Directors spoke up with little confidence, but was quickly dismissed by the other members' chatter.
"Out of 1.8 million students in Academy City, it just so happens that four Level 5s are gathered for a party, and they haven't had much contact before this. How could it be such a coincidence?"
Just as the members of the Board of Directors were beginning to guess that Accelerator and the others were preparing to destroy the world, the electronic screen in the conference room lit up. A face hanging upside down in an unknown liquid appeared on the screen, and the members of the Board of Directors hurriedly greeted him.
"General Superintendent!"
This person's name was Aleister Crowley; he was the founder of Academy City and the General Superintendent of the Board of Directors.
"No need to panic. According to the information from Underline, they just happened to meet by chance and are planning to go on a picnic."
Aleister's voice entered the conference room, but strangely, the Aleister on the screen didn't make any movement to speak.
Hearing Aleister say this, the members of the Board of Directors finally let go of their worries.
Aleister looked at their relieved expressions with some helplessness. These guys were indeed capable and helped him manage Academy City in an orderly fashion, but they were too obsessed with power, making them overly sensitive now.
Aleister continued to instruct.
"They are going to Tama Central Park next. You just need to send a few more people, but don't make too much of a scene."
"Understood!"
After giving these instructions, the electronic screen went dark.
The conference room fell into a strange silence. How heated their discussion had been just now was how embarrassed they felt now that they knew the truth.
After assigning more personnel to Tama Central Park, the members of the Board of Directors went back to their own business.
However, just because the Level 5s weren't causing trouble didn't mean others weren't planning to.
"On June 3rd, three employees and a barrel of dangerous chemicals went missing from a chemical plant in District 2. Currently, Security Forces is conducting a full investigation. The three missing persons..."
Above Academy City, a giant airship was broadcasting the latest news. It had a large screen, which was now displaying the photos and information of the three missing persons.
Saten Ruiko noticed this news.
"June 3rd, wasn't that just a few days ago? They still haven't been found?"
Uiharu thought for a moment and shared her view.
"Perhaps there are espers involved."
As Luke walked, a vermilion bird-shaped pattern flashed across his eyes for a fleeting moment. This was the characteristic of Future Eye being activated.
Stunned for a moment, he looked at the airship in the sky, his lips curling into a smile. It seemed this picnic wouldn't be boring.
You will get 30 chapter ahead for this fanfiction.
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