Ahem... so when he says he likes that type, does he mean—flat? Selene thought with malicious amusement.
"Really?!" Misaka Mikoto, still fully committed to her act, looked up at the delinquent with sparkling eyes, twisting her body slightly as she spoke. "Then can you tell me~?"
Oh, heavens above. The tone, the posture—Selene's whole body tensed with secondhand embarrassment. There was no way she could ever imitate that. She was the queenly type, feminine and proud, but not someone who could pretend to be cute without wanting to crawl out of her own skin.
Shirai Kuroko, on the other hand, looked utterly bewitched.
"I could tell you... but you know, there's no such thing as a free lunch," the delinquent said, his gaze drifting shamelessly toward Misaka's exposed legs.
"..." Misaka turned to the side, easily dodging his movement. The man's lecherous stare made her skin crawl. The disgust bubbling in her chest nearly erupted into the urge to smite him with lightning on the spot.
But she held it back—information came first. Forcing herself to stay in character, she said softly, "If it's money you want... I have some. I could pay for the info, would that be enough?"
"Money's nice, sure—but that's not what I had in mind." The delinquent stood up, a suggestive grin twisting his face as he slowly stepped closer, clearly enjoying the act of cornering her.
Misaka dodged smoothly again. "But... I-I'm a little scared..." she stammered, pretending to blush. "And I don't really know much about that kind of thing... can't I just pay instead?"
At this point, Shirai Kuroko was repeatedly banging her head on the table with alarming force, as if trying to break through it. Selene had no choice but to quietly deploy a soundproof barrier around them. Honestly, even for her, this was beyond shocking. Misaka Mikoto—Tokiwadai's Railgun—doing this? It was enough to keep Selene and Kuroko mentally scarred for the rest of the year.
When even that didn't seem to work, Misaka decided it was time to go for the nuclear option. If this didn't do it, she'd have to use force. She hadn't come here to actually humiliate herself.
Suddenly, she let out a sob, tears welling up in her eyes as she cried pitifully. "It's just... [Level Upper] is the only thing I can rely on now... so please, can't you tell me?"
The sight of the crying Tokiwadai girl nearly melted the delinquent's heart. "A-alright, alright, don't cry..."
Finally, under Misaka's rare display of cuteness, the group dropped their guard. Noticing her uniform, they realized she was from Tokiwadai and thought they'd hit the jackpot. They whispered to each other before one of them said, "Let's go somewhere quieter to talk."
"Kuroko, it's time," Selene said as soon as Misaka and the three delinquents stood up. She grabbed Kuroko, who was still in a daze, and dragged her along.
Before leaving, Selene casually placed some cash on the table and told the waiter, "Keep the food warm—we'll be back to eat later."
...
Outside, in a dimly lit alley behind the restaurant.
"This spot'll do nicely," the leader said, glancing around with a satisfied look. "No one's gonna bother us here."
"So then—" Misaka began, but the leader cut her off.
"First, why don't you hand over all your cash?"
"Eh?" Misaka blinked, momentarily stunned by the sudden change in tone.
"Don't forget your debit card and PIN number either," another added. "Oh, and your credit card too. A Tokiwadai lady like you's gotta have one of those, right?"
"I... I did bring some, but all of it...?" Their greed caught Misaka completely off guard.
"You wanted answers, didn't you?" The middle one smirked cruelly. "Then fork it all over."
"Yeah, yeah, better hand it all in. Or maybe we'll take that fancy uniform of yours too," another said, laughing crudely.
Take my uniform? Misaka's expression darkened instantly. The last of her patience evaporated as she looked up at them, eyes narrowing.
"You're a pain in the ass," she muttered, sighing. "And to think I lowered myself to act all cute for you idiots... What a waste of effort. Selene's gonna laugh at me for sure."
"Hah? I told you to hand it over already—" The leader of the delinquents snarled, utterly clueless about the danger he was walking into. Assuming Misaka Mikoto was still bluffing, he stepped forward to grab her.
Unfortunately for him, he was facing one of Academy City's top eight espers. The air filled with a sharp crackle of electricity, and in an instant, the delinquent was smoking on the ground, charred black and completely unconscious.
"Bastard!"
"Honestly, I should've just gone straight for violence from the start," Misaka sighed, resting one hand on her hip. Her expression was cold and commanding, no trace of her earlier timid act remaining. "Now, kindly tell me everything you know about [Level Upper]."
"Dream on!" the other two shouted, still full of confidence. "You'll regret looking down on us! We'll show you the power of our upgraded abilities!"
As they spoke, the sound of multiple footsteps echoed from the shadows. Misaka looked around and realized she was surrounded.
"So that's your plan? Overwhelm me with numbers?" Misaka said calmly, though inside she couldn't help feeling a flicker of surprise. There are this many who've used [Level Upper]? How many of them actually managed to 'level up'?
"Get her! Let's show her what real Level 2s can do!" The leader charged forward—only to be cut off mid-sentence by the sound of roaring electricity.
A blinding blue-white flash erupted, illuminating the entire alley. Crackle crackle! The crackling filled the air, followed by a chorus of screams that faded just as quickly.
When the noise finally subsided, silence fell once more. Dozens of delinquents lay unconscious on the ground, faint wisps of smoke rising from their bodies.
Misaka rubbed the back of her head, sighing. "Man... even holding back was a pain with this many idiots."
"Quite the scene you've made here," came a voice from behind. A girl in a rose-patterned tracksuit walked up, her sharp eyes scanning the area. The remaining delinquents froze in terror.
"B-big sis..."
"Hey, you morons," she said, glaring down at them. "What the hell were you thinking, picking on a little girl like that? Trying to mug women now?"
The delinquents trembled. One tried to stammer an excuse, "S-sorry, but—"
SMACK!
A loud slap sent him sprawling. "Still talking back? You tired of living?!"
"We're sorry!!"
"You're not apologizing to me!"
"Sorry!! We're sorry, miss!!" ×N
Misaka blinked in confusion as all the delinquents bowed to her. When the girl turned back toward her, she spoke calmly. "There, satisfied? Forgive them."
Caught off guard, Misaka hesitated. The sudden apology from her former attackers was surreal.
Once they dispersed, the tracksuit girl approached. "So, you're the one who beat up my crew, huh? In that case, I'm guessing you know about [Level Upper]."
Misaka nodded cautiously. "If you're their boss, then you should know what's really going on. Care to explain?"
The girl smirked. "Before that, you gave my guys a real thrashing. I hope you're ready to face the consequences."
Misaka frowned. "Consequences? They just apologized. Doesn't that settle it?"
"That was them. This is me. Different story," the girl said sharply, pressing her palm against the ground. "Let's see if you can handle this!"
The asphalt beneath Misaka's feet rippled like a living current. "My ability's called Melting Field. I can control the viscosity of asphalt at will. You've got nowhere to run now."
If only she knew who she was picking a fight with, Misaka thought dryly. Still, she couldn't help but admire the girl's guts.
"I don't dislike people like you," Misaka said with a small grin. Blue-white sparks began to dance around her body as a storm of electricity filled the air. "So, I'll take you seriously."
Lightning surged forward, arcing across the alley. The delinquent girl quickly manipulated the asphalt and concrete, forming a thick wall in defense. "That won't work on me—huh? It's gone?"
"Not bad," Misaka's voice echoed from above.
The girl looked up to see Misaka standing sideways against the wall, held there by magnetism. The Railgun smirked. "Electricity creates magnetic fields. All I have to do is use the rebar inside the wall. Pretty handy, right?"
Then she fired again.
BOOM!
A deafening explosion shook the alley, and sparks erupted from a nearby power pole. Smoke filled the air.
When it cleared, the delinquent girl was on her knees, covered in dust, staring in disbelief at the three-meter-wide crater before her. "Y-you're kidding... That wasn't even your full power, was it? Even your first strike... you were holding back?"
"That's right. So..." Misaka descended gracefully, her tone soft but firm. "Care to tell me what you know about [Level Upper] now?"
"Don't kid yourself!" the girl shouted defiantly, eyes blazing. "I haven't lost yet! If you're really an esper, then come at me! Let's see if your lightning can shatter my iron will!"
Misaka paused for a moment, then smiled. "You know, I like your spirit. Alright then—"
A brilliant blue-white radiance filled the alley, and the sheer power of it made the girl tremble. If this hits me, I'm dead, she thought.
"Onee-sama! Stop! There's a power grid nearby—!" Kuroko's voice rang out as she appeared at the edge of the alley.
But it was already too late.
Misaka's grin widened. "Don't worry. I know what I'm doing—"
BOOM!
"Like hell you do!!!" Kuroko screamed as the explosion lit up the night sky.