"Cough... cough..." Kanzaki Kaori lay in the circular crater formed by her own impact. Her spirit was weary, her limbs numb, and there wasn't a single part of her body that didn't ache.
"So... I lost..." Kanzaki murmured, a faint look of melancholy crossing her face. As a Saint of the magic side, even if she hadn't used her full strength, defeat was defeat.
This battle had been her own mistake—underestimating her opponent. Failing to activate her Stigma immediately was the root cause of her loss. Because of that, she had been physically suppressed the entire time by Selene, her sheer power and relentless close-quarters pressure leaving Kanzaki completely breathless.
Though Kanzaki's technique far surpassed Selene's, under absolute dominance of strength and speed, she had been given no room to counter. Her regular attacks couldn't even pierce Selene's defenses, while every one of Selene's blows—no matter how glancing—inflicted devastating damage.
Such a fight left Kanzaki both frustrated and helpless. At the same time, she could clearly sense that Selene hadn't been fighting at full power. A member of Academy City who didn't even use her esper ability... could Selene's power really just be physical enhancement?
"You win... Do as you—huh?" Sensing someone approaching, Kanzaki at first thought it was Selene, but quickly realized the presence belonged to Stiyl. Alarmed, she shouted hoarsely, "Stiyl! Get out of here! Don't worry about me—just go!"
At that moment, Kamijou Touma, carrying Index on his back, finally arrived with Stiyl Magnus close behind. The two had long since moved past shock into numb disbelief.
Even though Selene and Kanzaki hadn't used large-scale techniques—and had somewhat restrained their destructive output—a battle between an Academy City Level 5 and a Saint from the magic side was anything but small. Not even the [People-Clearing Field] spell could fully conceal the chaos.
Under the combined onslaught of the two, the entire district had been reduced to ruins. Not a single building remained intact; the streets were filled with massive craters and deep trenches, each one larger and deeper than the last.
The district's landmark skyscraper still billowed thick smoke, tilting dangerously as if moments from collapse.
Seeing Kanzaki sprawled spread-eagle at the bottom of a crater, Stiyl could hardly believe his eyes. A Saint from the magic side—defeated, and so quickly! "Kanzaki, you..."
Just then, a sudden explosion drew everyone's attention. Feeling a killing intent lock onto him, Stiyl froze as if plunged into ice. "W-wait, you remember me, right? I'm not here to fight—"
Before he could finish, a massive gust from a powerful punch rushed straight toward him. His mind went blank. Am I... going to die?
"Selene—stop!" Kamijou's shout cut through the chaos, halting Selene's fist just inches from Stiyl's nose. (From their perspective, it looked as if Kamijou had stopped her in the nick of time.)
In truth, Selene had sensed their approach long before. She was merely toying with the prideful redhead a little.
"Hoo..." Exhaling deeply, Stiyl collapsed to the ground, drenched in cold sweat. The feeling of brushing past death was not something he ever wanted to experience again.
Glancing at Kamijou, who still had Index on his back, Selene asked casually, though her tone was deliberately inquisitive, "So, Kamijou-kun, what brings you all here?"
"Well... you see, it's all a big misunderstanding. The thing is—" Kamijou explained the situation from start to finish, though his gaze kept drifting downward.
Selene stood barefoot, her black stockings remained spotless despite the chaos. The shape of her toes was clearly visible through the thin material, each one outlined with perfect clarity.
The sight was strangely captivating—an unexpected touch of elegance amid the destruction, making it almost impossible to look away.
When he was done, Selene tilted her head slightly, pretending not to fully grasp it. "So your relationships are that complicated, huh?" She then pointed at the battered Kanzaki lying in the crater. "Then this fight was for nothing?"
Indeed, Kanzaki's physical stats couldn't match Selene's. But after entering her Breaker of God state, the gap had narrowed considerably. Combined with her refined technique, she had made for an excellent sparring partner—a perfect training dummy, in Selene's view.
Selene had enjoyed the fight immensely, but she couldn't exactly admit that in front of them. Maintaining her composure, she turned and leapt into the crater, raising her hand as soft white light gathered around it. Under Kanzaki's astonished gaze, Selene began to heal her.
Bathed in the soothing glow of Selene's healing light, Kanzaki's furrowed brows relaxed. Though her body remained immobile, she could still hear every word exchanged between Stiyl and Kamijou.
"So... it was a misunderstanding after all," she muttered weakly, letting out a small sigh. "Then I really took that beating for nothing..."
"Alright, your external wounds are mostly healed. As for the mental fatigue, there's nothing I can do about that—you'll just need to rest for a while," Selene said calmly. With her injuries mended, Kanzaki Kaori could move again, though her gaze toward Selene carried a mix of emotions.
Just moments ago, Selene had been a wild beast in human form—her ferocious, untamed fighting style had made Kanzaki think she was going to be killed. Yet now, Selene was treating her wounds with a gentle touch. The sudden shift in demeanor left even Kanzaki struggling to react.
Then, recalling Stiyl's earlier explanation that this was all a misunderstanding, Kanzaki came to her own conclusion: Selene must have seen the wound on Index's back and mistaken her for the attacker. That's why she had launched such a fierce assault.
Realizing this, Kanzaki couldn't help but feel a bit guilty. Though something still felt off, her proper upbringing wouldn't allow her to remain silent. So she quietly thanked Selene—though her expression was a mixture of gratitude and reluctant frustration. (Kanzaki's inner thoughts: "Ugh, I'm the one who got beaten up... why am I the one apologizing?")
Seeing this, Kamijou Touma suddenly brightened. Setting Index down, he hurriedly turned to Selene. "Selene! Please—can you heal her too?"
"Oh, sure," Selene replied casually, pretending to have just remembered. She walked over and began treating Index as well.
Meanwhile, Kanzaki climbed out of the crater, noticing Stiyl's stunned expression. Feeling slightly embarrassed, she muttered, "Sorry you had to see me like this... Stiyl, do you think I'm useless? I lost so quickly..."
"Not at all. I just didn't expect Academy City's ace to be this powerful..." Stiyl immediately hid his surprise and tried to divert the conversation before Kanzaki could spiral further into self-doubt.
Hearing that he knew something about Selene, Kanzaki's curiosity was piqued. After all, being beaten that badly without knowing her opponent's background felt... unsatisfying. "Oh? You know who she is?"
"A bit," Stiyl replied, taking a drag of his cigarette. "Her name's Selene. She's the first-ranked Level 5 in Academy City—codename Will of Honkai. Her ability is Space Manipulation... uh, wait, why do you look like that?"
At first, hearing that Selene was Academy City's top-ranked esper made Kanzaki feel better. Losing to the scientific side's strongest wasn't exactly shameful.
But when Stiyl mentioned that her power was Space Manipulation, her expression fell again. That meant Selene had been holding back an entire ocean of power while fighting her. Kanzaki couldn't help but question herself. "Could it be... I'm actually that weak?"
Cough! Stiyl nearly choked on his smoke. He couldn't help but think, If you're weak, then what does that make me—background decoration?
By now, Index had fallen unconscious again. Thankfully, her "Walking Church" had already been destroyed and crudely repaired with pins—otherwise, with her wound being on her back, Selene might've had to undress her completely just to heal her.
In less than thirty seconds, Index's wounds had mostly closed, and Selene had taken the liberty of fixing her minor injuries as well. "There. She's fine now. Just a bit weak from blood loss—she'll recover with rest."
Hearing that, Kamijou clasped his hands together and bowed deeply, nearly a full ninety degrees. "Thank you so much!"
Stiyl stepped forward too, though words failed him. Ever since becoming Index's guardian two years ago, he had been erasing her memories periodically for her own safety. But seeing Kamijou's selfless determination to protect a girl he'd only just met... Stiyl couldn't help but doubt himself. Was this really the right thing to do? Is there truly no other way? Or... has the Church been hiding something from me?
"Alright, that's enough gratitude for now," Selene interrupted, her tone suddenly more serious. "Someone's coming. Don't you three plan on hiding?"
"Eh?"
Her words snapped them back to reality. Right—three of them were technically "off the record." No Academy City ID cards, no authorization. If Anti-Skill caught them, things would get complicated fast.
Besides, Selene didn't want to be bombarded with questions. Aleister had probably been monitoring the fight the whole time anyway—she could just report directly to him later.
"Perfect timing," she muttered. "The enforcers aren't here yet. Let's slip out before they show up."
Opening a shimmering portal beside her, Selene gestured for the others to follow. "Come on. Judgment and Anti-Skill will be here any second."
...
A few minutes later.
"What... happened here?" Misaka Mikoto and Shirai Kuroko arrived, panting heavily. But all that greeted them was devastation—a district reduced to rubble, as if visited by a demolition team—and not a single soul in sight.