"Message? What exactly does it say?"
Although Su Xiao had a good idea of who was trying to contact him, he still pretended to be somewhat clueless. He had seen many overly confident contractors before, and most met tragic ends. Characters in these storylines weren't fools or NPCs; they were influential individuals with strong wills, and many were highly cunning.
"All it said was, 'Come see me.' So, follow me. Oh, and you can't hurt me. Stay at least three meters... no, ten meters away for safety."
Kihara Amata was naive. With Su Xiao's ability to close distances quickly, ten meters wasn't nearly far enough to be considered safe.
Su Xiao flicked away his cigarette butt, thought for a moment, and then nodded.
"Fine. I've heard that this person is influential. It wouldn't be wise to act recklessly here without permission. Besides, what I want to achieve will benefit both of us."
Su Xiao stood up, and Kihara Amata, holding a military-grade flashlight, led the way. The flashlight could double as a baton in combat and assisted her in using her spatial abilities.
"Remember the distance. For a fragile girl like me, you're quite dangerous."
Kihara Amata spun her flashlight. She had a unique role as a "guide," responsible for handling unwelcome visitors who entered Academy City through unconventional channels.
As she pushed open the rooftop door and descended the stairs, she chose not to use her spatial abilities unless necessary.
Shirai Kuroko's appearance was entirely Kihara Amata's doing. She was the one who tipped off Kuroko and gave her information, manipulating the situation from the shadows.
When Su Xiao had fought Mugino Shizuri and the others, Kihara Amata arrived shortly after the fight began. Just as she was about to intervene, she witnessed Su Xiao slit Mugino's throat, which made her hesitate. She wondered if Su Xiao would do the same to her if she stepped in.
She contacted Shirai Kuroko, another user with spatial ability and a sense of justice, to deal with Su Xiao instead. The two didn't know each other, but as fellow Level 4 spatial ability users, Kihara Amata had been watching Shirai for a while. After investigating her, jealousy began to stir within Kihara.
Yes, jealousy. Kihara Amata envied how Shirai Kuroko could live a carefree life, going to school and righting wrongs.
Both were high-level spatial ability users, but Kihara Amata had to live in the "darkness," constantly interacting with ruthless killers or obsessive scientists.
Jealousy can turn people ugly, but Kihara didn't let it consume her. Instead, she hatched a plan: she anonymously tipped off Kuroko, setting her up for failure (or worse). After Su Xiao killed all his enemies and calmed down, Kihara Amata appeared.
The plan went smoothly, but Kihara was disappointed that Su Xiao didn't pursue Kuroko with full force, ruining her scheme.
Kihara didn't know that Su Xiao's hesitation was because of her presence.
Su Xiao's [Stormwind Coat] was inscribed with a particular sigil, a bane to most spatial ability users.
Engraved Effect (Pale Gold): Basic Spatial Confinement: Can seal spatial fluctuations within a 50-meter radius. Any space-related skills below Tier 5 are rendered ineffective for 30 minutes—cooldown: 2 natural days.
...
Shirai Kuroko's spatial ability required skin contact to move objects or people. On the other hand, Kihara Amata could teleport anything within her line of sight, up to 800 meters away and with a weight limit of 4,520 kilograms.
Compared to Kuroko, Kihara's ability was much more powerful and dangerous.
Su Xiao hadn't activated his spatial confinement sigil during the chase, as he was more concerned with Kihara's potential threat.
Imagine if Kihara teleported Su Xiao into a vat of acid or buried him 800 meters underground. Even though Su Xiao was strong, he wasn't invincible like Superman.
Having such a dangerous spatial ability user nearby, Su Xiao would have been unwise to use his spatial confinement sigil against Kuroko prematurely. Additionally, Su Xiao had been puzzled by Kuroko's sudden appearance, suspecting it wasn't a coincidence.
Was she just passing by? Unlikely. A middle schooler wouldn't wander near an abandoned factory at 10 p.m. Looking for scrap metal. Impossible. Out for a date? Even more ridiculous. Kuroko was practically obsessed with the third-ranked Railgun. To her, all men were nothing more than "unevolved primates."
As Kihara led the way, she suddenly felt a chill and stopped.
"You..."
Before she could finish, Su Xiao's hand formed into a claw, and the sigil on his sleeve began to glow, ready to activate spatial confinement at any moment.
The atmosphere grew tense as Kihara stood frozen, her back to Su Xiao.
"You... were just about to kill me, weren't you?"
Kihara remained motionless, knowing that Su Xiao would demonstrate the vast difference in their physical capabilities if she made any suspicious movements.
"I wasn't. You're overthinking it," Su Xiao said, a warm smile on his face, as gentle as possible.
Catching a glimpse of that smile, Kihara felt a shiver run down her spine and quickly continued walking.
After descending the stairs, Su Xiao's companion, Bubot, ran up. With its soft, shiny fur and 53 points in charm, Bubot was irresistible to most women.
As expected, Kihara's attention shifted to Bubot. Bubot, however, gave her a disdainful look as if to say, "Don't get attached, woman. You'll never have me. I'm a high and mighty god."
Though Kihara couldn't understand Bubot's thoughts, she sensed the condescension.
"Even a dog dares to look down on me? I'll teach you a lesson."
Kihara pointed her flashlight at Bubot, preparing to teach the dog a lesson.
Suddenly, a cold chill swept through her body. The previously warm Academy City seemed to freeze over.
Stiffly turning her head, she saw Su Xiao standing in the dark hallway behind her, his eyes glowing red.
Bubot quickly ran back to Su Xiao, wagging its tail. Seeing this, Kihara realised what had happened.
"When I said 'teach a lesson,' I was joking," Kihara stammered, cold sweat running down her face. The aura emanating from Su Xiao was so intense that it felt tangible.
"Is that so? Let's go meet the big shot then."
"Alright."
Kihara resumed leading the way, noticeably more cautious this time, abandoning any further schemes.
Bubot barked at Su Xiao.
"Hmm? You caught someone?" Su Xiao asked, a little puzzled.
Bubot barked proudly as if showing off its achievement, lifting its head with pride.
"Ah, the blonde woman? Don't worry about her."
The group headed toward the centre of District 7, aiming for a peculiar building.
...
Inside an abandoned garage, dust filled the air, and a young girl lay bound and gagged. It was none other than Frenda Seivelun, who had fled earlier.
"Mmm! Mmm!"
Frenda squirmed, bite marks visible on her pale cheeks. After her successful escape, she had been ambushed by Bubot. Following a "fair and impartial" fight, Frenda had been captured.
Frenda now felt utterly humiliated. She was a proud Level 4 ability user, a key member of ITEM, yet a dog had captured her.
"Mmm! (So humiliating!)"
With a loud clatter, the garage door rolled open, and a man carrying a "coffin" walked inside.
"Young lady, it seems you're in need of help. The Lord teaches us to cherish all life," the man said.
Frenda's eyes widened in horror. She desperately wanted to scream, "Could you please put down that severed head before you talk about cherishing life? It's still dripping blood!"