At that moment, a surge of intense lightning illuminated the entire ruined battlefield.
Countless arcs of electricity slithered across the shattered ground like silver serpents, their glow blindingly bright.
At the center of it all stood Misaka Mikoto, her entire body coursing with electricity so fierce that the crackling of "biri biri" echoed throughout the air.
Her tea-colored bangs fluttered from the static charge, and beneath them, her equally tea-colored eyes locked unflinchingly onto Mugino Shizuri.
What burned within those eyes was pure, unyielding resolve.
"This is…!"
Mugino Shizuri's expression froze in astonishment.
As someone who also manipulated electrons, an esper whose power technically belonged to the same classification, she could feel it clearly.
Misaka Mikoto was no longer the same as before.
It was a difference in output, in sheer, terrifying power.
If the Misaka from moments ago was like a shell fired from a cannon, then the one before her now was a nuclear strike.
Mugino immediately understood.
Until now, Misaka Mikoto had never been fighting with her full strength.
Unlike Mugino Shizuri, who could unleash her power ruthlessly in battle, Misaka was an ordinary middle-school girl who lived under the sunlight, someone who always feared hurting others with her ability, and thus habitually held back.
But now…
She had finally stopped holding back.
Realizing that, Mugino's expression twisted with fury.
"Damn brat!"
With a furious shout, dozens of Meltdowner light orbs flared into existence around Mugino's body, each one twice the size of the ones she'd produced earlier.
It was clear she, too, had chosen to go all out.
But then…
"Boooom…"
A deep, rolling sound rumbled from far above.
As it reached her ears, Mugino's body stiffened. She looked upward instinctively.
Above her stretched a sky that had, without her realizing, turned pitch black, thick with storm clouds.
"BOOM!"
A thunderclap exploded across the heavens, and lightning danced wildly through the cloud layers.
The sight made every hair on Mugino's body stand on end.
"No way…"
A dreadful thought crossed her mind, and without hesitation, she commanded the floating Meltdowner orbs to converge above her head.
"Buzz!"
The trembling hum filled the air as the orbs fused together, forming a single glowing shield made entirely from her Meltdowner energy.
At the same time, the rolling clouds above suddenly stilled.
Then…
A massive bolt of lightning tore down from the sky, bridging the heavens and the earth in an instant, and struck directly toward Mugino Shizuri.
"KRAAASH!"
The deafening crash split the night as the thunderbolt slammed into the glowing barrier over her head.
"BOOM… BOOM… BOOM…!"
The impact was like the clash of two blades meeting tip to tip, the violent collisions exploding in rapid succession as sparks and shockwaves erupted in all directions.
"Guh… Aaahhh… Aaaahhhhhh!"
Mugino screamed, arms raised, desperately holding up her Meltdowner barrier against the storm.
Invisible electrons clashed violently in the air, unseen yet overwhelming, as the heaven-sent lightning and the man-made energy shield battered against each other.
Blinding flashes and thunderous detonations filled the battlefield, their fury locked in a perfect stalemate, until a single, crisp sound cut through it all.
"Ting…"
Compared to the surrounding chaos, the sound was almost too soft to hear.
But Mugino Shizuri heard it, clear as day.
Her eyes widened as she slowly turned her head toward Misaka Mikoto.
"Biri…"
Electric currents continued to dance wildly around Misaka's body.
"Fwoosh…"
The air twisted with static winds around her.
She extended one hand toward Mugino.
Her thumb bent backward like she was about to flick a marble.
However, what Misaka Mikoto was flicking was not a marble but a game coin.
A single coin spun through the air, rising and falling under an invisible magnetic pull, slowly descending toward Mikoto's upturned thumb and index finger.
Mugino Shizuri knew exactly what that meant.
No, everyone in Academy City knew.
The Third Ranked Level 5 had a signature move.
It was a technique that used the principles of electromagnetic induction, manipulating electromagnetic forces to adjust a projectile's flight path and accelerate it, turning an ordinary object into a supersonic shell.
The projectile could be anything, but its type determined its range and power.
And because of convenience, Mikoto usually used game coins as ammunition.
When fired, the coin would launch at three times the speed of sound, continuously accelerating until impact.
Its effective range was only about 50 meters, but within that distance it possessed terrifying precision and destructive power.
That move was her trademark, and the origin of her title.
Its name was…
"Railgun!"
Amid Mugino Shizuri's hysterical scream, the coin fell perfectly into Misaka Mikoto's fingers.
"BOOM...!"
A deafening blast erupted like a cannon firing.
The coin, wrapped in blinding lightning currents, became an orange beam of light, a streak that cut through the air at Mach 3, faster than the eye could follow.
"Chiiiii...!"
The air itself shrieked in protest, the sound barrier breaking a heartbeat later.
That orange light tore through space, slicing across arcs of lightning, cutting through glare and thunder like a blade through water and shot violently toward Mugino Shizuri.
The beam passed so close that it grazed her face, her pupils contracting sharply before the projectile continued on, piercing through the air behind her.
The shockwave it left behind struck Mugino like a storm, blowing her off her feet.
"BOOM...!"
The massive thunderbolt that had been held at bay now crashed down to the ground, exploding with a roar that shook the battlefield. Lightning waves surged out like a violent tide, flooding everything in blinding white.
"Clack…"
When the chaos finally faded, the only sound left was the rolling of loose stones.
Misaka Mikoto kept her eyes fixed forward.
Her raised hand slowly lowered.
Before her, Mugino Shizuri was kneeling on one knee, panting heavily.
The scene mirrored their earlier standoff, only now, their positions were reversed.
But there was still a difference.
Even after such a fierce battle, Misaka's eyes held no hatred, only calm.
Mugino's eyes, however, were burning with rage.
"It's already decided, isn't it?"
Mikoto frowned slightly as she spoke.
"There's no need to keep fighting."
Hearing that, Mugino's glare only intensified, clearly, she wasn't the kind to accept defeat obediently.
Just as she began to rise…
"Bang!"
A gunshot rang out.
A bullet struck the ground right in front of Mugino with a sharp clang, sending sparks flying.
Mugino's body froze instantly.
"Had enough fun yet?"
The voice of Fang Li, laced with impatience, drifted into her ears.
"If you still haven't had your fill…"
"Then let me keep you company next."
(End Of This Chapter)
You can read ahead up to 70 chapters on my patreon https://www.patreon.com/GGS6395