"Selene-senpai, stop!"
"Senpai, please stop!"
"Hm?" Hearing the calls, Selene paused, lowering her glowing fingertip as she turned toward the voices.
Not far away, standing near the broken edge of the overpass, were Shirai Kuroko, Uiharu Kazari, and Kiyama Harumi. The three of them waved their arms frantically, shouting for Selene to halt.
"Give me one good reason," Selene said calmly.
"[Level Upper] operates through a shared network," Kiyama Harumi explained, stepping forward despite her exhaustion. Her expression was a complex mix of guilt and resolve. "Its structure includes portions of the AIM fields and subconscious data from the connected users."
"In other words," she continued, "the [Level Upper] users are directly linked to that thing. I've studied your ability—Spatial Incineration. It can disintegrate matter on a microscopic level. If you destroy the creature that way, the users' linked consciousness and mental activity will also be erased. Some might even end up in a vegetative state."
"This isn't an exaggeration."
"..."
Hearing Kiyama's words, Selene blinked, her battle-driven focus flickering. Right... that's true. She tilted her head slightly, almost sheepishly. "Tch. That was close. Guess I nearly overdid it again."
With that, she dispelled the glowing sphere of compressed imaginary energy at her fingertip and gracefully descended to the ground in front of Kiyama.
"Alright then," Selene said, arms crossed. "You started this whole mess. So tell me—how do we fix it without killing anyone?"
Kiyama met her gaze, staring into those strange crimson eyes for several seconds before speaking. "If we sever the network connection, we might be able to free the linked minds. It won't necessarily stop the beast immediately, but it would release their mental load."
She turned toward Uiharu Kazari. "And... the key to doing that is in your hands."
"Eh? You mean... the USB drive—the one with the [Level Upper] treatment program?" Uiharu asked, pulling it from her pocket uncertainly.
"Yes," Kiyama confirmed, nodding. "It's worth a try." She glanced at Selene meaningfully. "But how you broadcast it... that's up to you."
"Okay, then let's get to it." Selene snapped her fingers—and in an instant, everyone, including Shirai Kuroko, was teleported to the Anti-Skill command line.
The sudden appearance of the group, especially Kiyama Harumi, immediately put the surrounding officers on high alert.
"Wait! She's already in custody. The creature below is something she lost control of—it's not under her command!" Selene quickly clarified, realizing the officers were still terrified of Kiyama after their earlier confrontation.
"This... this audio file is the treatment program for [Level Upper]?" Yomikawa Aiho asked from inside an armored van as medics treated her arm. Her voice was skeptical, tinged with disbelief.
"Yes." Selene's tone was cool and firm. "According to Kiyama Harumi, it's the only remaining copy of the cure."
"But..." Yomikawa frowned, glancing from Selene to Kiyama. "She's still a criminal—the mastermind behind this whole [Level Upper] case. Can we really trust her?"
"I trust Kiyama-sensei," Uiharu said firmly, holding the USB drive close. "She gave this to me long before all of this started. I'll vouch for her."
"You're the girl she kidnapped, right?" Yomikawa asked, confused but intrigued. "And you still trust her?"
"I trust Uiharu," Shirai Kuroko interjected sharply, stepping forward. "As a Judgment officer, I'll vouch for her statement."
"..."
"Enough chatter," Selene said impatiently, cutting in. "Time's running out. Broadcast the file—citywide, now." Her tone hardened. "I, Selene von Habsburg, order you to do it."
"If anything goes wrong, I'll take full responsibility. And if Kiyama's lying—" her crimson eyes gleamed coldly, "—I'll personally sink her corpse in Tokyo Bay."
"Yes!" Yomikawa Aiho, though still uncertain, immediately nodded when Selene gave her assurance. After all, from Selene's formal introduction, she had learned of her Board of Directors status—something that carried undeniable authority.
Without hesitation, Yomikawa grabbed the communication device from inside the Anti-Skill vehicle. "Time is critical! By order of Director von Habsburg, broadcast this audio transmission across the entire Academy City!"
Then she turned toward Uiharu Kazari. "How's it going? Is it ready?"
"Transmission complete!" Uiharu said, snapping her head up as the confirmation appeared on her monitor.
"Start playback immediately!" Yomikawa barked, her tone sharp and commanding.
Moments later, a strange piece of music began echoing through the skies above Academy City. Though most found it odd that the cure program would be transmitted as audio, it wasn't so surprising once they remembered that [Level Upper] itself had also been an audio-based system. Perhaps, in her own way, Kiyama Harumi truly was a kind of genius.
At that same moment, in hospitals across the city—where victims of the [Level Upper] incident still lay unconscious—something miraculous began to occur. Patients who had been writhing and crying out in nightmarish agony suddenly calmed down upon hearing the unfamiliar melody.
"What's... happening?" one attending physician muttered in awe as he watched the monitors stabilize. "They're... all relaxing at once?"
On another floor, inside the faculty office of a university hospital, a frog-faced doctor quietly watched the same result appear across the surveillance feeds. He exhaled deeply, his lips curving into a small, relieved smile. "You've done it... all of you."
"...It's over," Selene murmured. The faintly eerie melody drifted through the air as she opened her eyes once more. Turning to Shirai Kuroko and Uiharu Kazari, she said softly, "I'll be right back."
With that, Selene vanished.
...
Reappearing high above the battlefield, Selene looked down upon the remains of the "Honkai Beast." It was still alive—barely. Its armor had melted away, exposing the grotesque embryo-like core pulsing weakly within.
Clearly, her earlier strike had hit it hard.
Fine then... she thought. If I can't use Imaginary Energy, lightning will suffice.
Raising her arm, she summoned a storm of blue-white lightning. The electric arcs spiraled madly, converging upon the creature's body. The Honkai Beast's final roar turned into a shriek of despair as the searing voltage tore through its flesh.
Zzzzt...!
Under the intense, burning energy, its massive frame began to collapse—melting away piece by piece. Soon, all that remained was a single dark crimson prism, faintly translucent and triangular in shape.
"So that's the [Level Upper] network's 'core,' huh..." Selene muttered, her voice filled with faint irritation. The noise in her ears from the residual psychic energy was bothersome. With a flick of her hand, she drew the prism toward her, suspending it in her palm.
She examined it for a moment, then sighed, unimpressed. "Is that all?"
Her fingers tightened. With a soft crack, the prism shattered—breaking apart into countless glittering motes of light. They drifted upward, dissolving quietly into the air.
"And with that," she said, brushing her hands off casually, "the game comes to an end."
A sharp voice rang out behind her. "So in your eyes, all of this... was just a game?!"