"Seventh Mist?!?" Shirai Kuroko immediately thought of Misaka Mikoto's invitation from last night and quickly called Uiharu Kazari.
Meanwhile, Uiharu Kazari was standing awkwardly watching Selene and Misaka Mikoto argue over their differing fashion tastes when the sudden call startled them all.
"Hello..." Uiharu Kazari had just answered the phone when she was shocked by the ear-piercing voice of Shirai Kuroko on the other end.
"Uiharu, where are you?! There's been a new development in the [Empty Space Bombings] case. Academy City's surveillance satellite has detected a rapid acceleration of gravitons..."
Realizing the urgency in Shirai Kuroko's voice, Uiharu Kazari became tense and quickly asked, "Where's the detected location?!"
"I've already requested nearby Anti-Skill officers to respond urgently." Due to the urgency, Shirai Kuroko's voice was a bit high-pitched, "You need to come back immediately..."
"So, where is it?!" Uiharu Kazari was getting anxious and shouted into the phone.
"It's at the Seventh Mist clothing mall in District 7!" Shirai Kuroko reluctantly explained, "Anyway, come back quickly. It's suspected that the target is..."
"Seventh Mist? Perfect, I'm here right now, and I'll start evacuating the customers immediately!" After confirming the location by looking at the mall's sign, the justice-driven Uiharu Kazari hung up the phone, missing out on the important information Shirai Kuroko was about to convey.
Seeing the call abruptly ended, Shirai Kuroko was stunned, "Uiharu! Uiharu! Hello! Hello! How could this happen..." Only then did she realize that Uiharu Kazari had hung up on her.
"What happened to Uiharu?" Noticing Shirai Kuroko's words, Kiyama Harumi turned around, puzzled.
"Kuroko, she..." Shirai Kuroko gritted her teeth, "She's at Seventh Mist right now!"
The two were now very anxious. If their suspicions were correct, the perpetrator was targeting Judgment members, and since Uiharu Kazari was the only Judgment member there, it meant the perpetrator intended to attack her.
Shirai Kuroko had no choice but to accelerate toward Seventh Mist, thinking to herself that she'd give Uiharu Kazari a good scolding for hanging up on her.
On the other side, at the Seventh Mist clothing mall.
"Kazari?" Even from a few meters away, Selene could clearly hear Shirai Kuroko's voice over the phone, "Is it Kuroko? Is it about the previous 'Empty Space Bombings' incidents?"
"Yes!" After explaining the situation to Selene and the others, Uiharu Kazari began contacting the mall to organize the evacuation, unaware of the danger directed at her.
Faced with this situation, the clothing mall quickly issued an evacuation notice.
Hearing the announcement, Selene, despite her confidence that she could protect Saten Ruiko, believed it was better to be cautious. She immediately instructed Sebas to protect Saten Ruiko and escort her to a safe area.
After watching the two disappear, Selene's eyes filled with a cold intent. She still had a vague impression of the perpetrator behind the [Empty Space Bombings] incidents.
In truth, Selene wasn't concerned about the so-called explosion maniac, knowing that he was just a pitiful individual who had enhanced his powers using [Level Upper].
The so-called "Empty Space Bombings" referred to the ability to accelerate omnipresent gravity particles in space, causing a violent spatial implosion and forming a massive explosion. While this ability seemed formidable to ordinary people, to Selene, it was merely a large firecracker.
However, Selene couldn't understand why this individual, upon gaining greater power, didn't seek revenge on his bullies but instead targeted Judgment. Was it because Judgment didn't arrive in time to save him?
In Selene's worldview, being bullied meant exacting tenfold or a hundredfold retribution against the perpetrators, possibly even torturing them, but to seek revenge on the Judgment members who had helped him seemed incredibly vile.
Honestly, she couldn't comprehend these people's values and thought processes.
Indeed, Selene always believed in repaying kindness with kindness and violence with violence. She wasn't exactly a good person, but she had principles; she was, at the very least, clear about her grudges and gratitude.
What a psychologically twisted individual, pitiful, pathetic, and hateful. Selene sighed inwardly.
Just as she was about to go inside, she saw a flustered Kamijou Touma approaching, "Selene, have you seen that kid? She's not outside."
"Hmm?! Wasn't she with you? Is she still inside?!" Upon hearing this, Misaka Mikoto panicked and rushed into the mall.
"Hey!" Kamijou Touma, seeing this, also rushed inside, knowing he hadn't protected the little girl properly.
Watching the two rush into the mall, Selene didn't hurry to follow because she had already located the true perpetrator of the [Empty Space Bombings] incidents.
A scarlet gleam flashed in Selene's eyes, and a smile curved her lips, "Found you, worm!"
Meanwhile, inside the mall, Uiharu Kazari, having evacuated the crowd, called Shirai Kuroko, "All the customers have been successfully evacuated."
But Shirai Kuroko's primary concern wasn't the evacuation but Uiharu Kazari's safety.
"Kazari, get out of there immediately! The victims in previous incidents were mostly Judgment members! The true target is the Judgment member near the detected location, and this time, it's you, Kazari! Leave now!"
"Huh?" Uiharu Kazari was stunned to hear she was the target.
At that moment, a little girl ran over from the other side, holding a frog plushie. "Big sister, a glasses-wearing man asked me to give this to you."
The instant Uiharu Kazari took the plushie, she sensed something was wrong. The frog plushie was rapidly collapsing on itself, and a small black hole-like object was slowly expanding in the middle of the frog's head.
Recalling Shirai Kuroko's words, she immediately realized this was an attack aimed at her. She quickly tossed the frog plushie aside, intending to shield the child from the explosion. "Run! It's a bomb!"
Just as Misaka Mikoto arrived, she saw what was happening and rushed over, planning to use her Railgun to shoot the plushie away, but the coin slipped from her fingers, "Damn..."
Just as Kamijou Touma rushed forward, intending to use Imagine Breaker to negate the explosion, a slender finger clad in a white, exquisite gauntlet suddenly emerged from the space. In Kamijou Touma's shocked gaze, it pinched the "small black hole."
Boom!
A violent explosion reverberated throughout the Seventh Mist! Accompanied by intense flames and shockwaves, nearly the entire floor was engulfed by the powerful blast.
Outside the Seventh Mist building, as the fourth floor erupted with an explosion and thick black smoke, the crowd erupted into screams and chaos.
Standing among the crowd, Saten Ruiko's eyes were filled with worry. She hesitantly looked at Sebas, who remained calm, "Um... aren't you worried, sir?"
"No need to worry, this is just a small firecracker for the lady, and your friends will be fine too." Sebas replied confidently.
"This... is a small firecracker?"
...
"There was an explosion!"
"Is it related to the recent series of bombings?"
"There are still people inside who haven't evacuated, like that Judgment member..."
"What!" Having just arrived at the building's entrance, Shirai Kuroko froze upon hearing this from the crowd, her eyes suddenly filling with despair.
"Kazari!" Shirai Kuroko, ignoring the smoke emanating from the building, immediately teleported inside.
Inside the mall.
As the smoke cleared, Selene emerged from the glowing purple "black hole," blowing on the gas generated by the explosion on her hand.
The power was indeed considerable. If Selene hadn't contained it to limit the explosion's range, even with Kamijou Touma neutralizing part of the blast, the damage to Seventh Mist wouldn't have been minor.
"Are you alright, Kazari?!" Misaka Mikoto crouched down, concerned, looking at Uiharu Kazari, who was still tightly holding the child.
"...Huh? Is the explosion over? I... am I still alive?" Uiharu Kazari opened her eyes, a sense of post-disaster relief washing over her, and she slumped to the ground, "Thank you, Misaka-senpai!"
"No, it wasn't me who saved you; it was Selene who saved us." Misaka Mikoto sighed, feeling grateful yet frustrated that her actions had almost gotten herself and others in trouble.
"Kazari!" At that moment, a frantic shout echoed through the air, followed by Shirai Kuroko's appearance in mid-air. Upon seeing the charred remains contained in front of Selene, she froze.
"Kuroko!" Nearby, Uiharu Kazari, seeing Shirai Kuroko, shouted excitedly, "I'm here!"
"Kazari! You had me worried sick." Shirai Kuroko, seeing Uiharu Kazari unharmed, rushed over and hugged her, her anxious expression gradually fading, creating a scene of a heartwarming reunion.
Suddenly, Shirai Kuroko remembered something, her expression changing. She grabbed Uiharu Kazari's cheeks and began pulling them, "Kazari! You dared to hang up on me?!"
"Sorry, sorry." Despite her cheeks being pulled, Uiharu Kazari wasn't angry, understanding that it was Shirai Kuroko's way of expressing care.
"Hmph! I'll deal with you later..."
At that moment, with a loud thud, everyone's attention was drawn to Selene, who had just slammed a skinny man with gray-brown hair, glasses, and earphones into the wall. "Weak! Foolish!" Selene exclaimed, stepping forward to grab the man's throat and lift him.
The man rolled his eyes, almost being strangled to death by Selene.