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"Boss, he actually lost."
Seeing the leader ranked fourth in Academy City's rankings being defeated by the target, a Level 4 clone designated as 9981, Frenda and the others, who were tending to each other's injuries, displayed expressions of disbelief.
They couldn't understand why a mere Level 4 clone could possess such overwhelming strength.
"So powerful!"
Not only were Frenda and her companions shocked, but even Misaka Mikoto, who had regained a bit of her stamina, was equally stunned.
After all, she admitted to herself that even in her peak condition, she might not be able to defeat the fourth-ranked "Meltdowner" in a direct confrontation.
"Leaders of the laboratory, I know you're watching. Accelerator has already been defeated, and the Level 5 esper you sent has also lost to me.
Therefore, I hope you will terminate the experiment and allow us clones to live normal lives, just like ordinary people."
George shouted toward the sky:
"I assume you wouldn't want two Level 5 espers causing havoc in Academy City, would you?
Moreover, I have plenty of information stored in my mind regarding your experiments.
If I were to release this information and let the entire city—and the world—see your horrific experiments involving the slaughter of clones, how many parents do you think would still want their children to study in such a dark place?
And how would the world perceive Academy City then?"
During the earlier battle between Misaka Mikoto and Accelerator, George had noticed the presence of advanced miniature surveillance devices. This time, however, he chose not to destroy them.
He wanted the laboratory's executives—or rather, the higher-ups of Academy City—to witness Accelerator's defeat and see his strength. He believed this would give them pause.
The definition of a Level 5 esper is a terrifying individual capable of taking on an entire army single-handedly.
Academy City officially has seven Level 5 espers—or at least, seven publicly acknowledged ones. Whether there are more in the shadows is unknown to George.
Among these seven, Accelerator is ranked first, Kakine Teitoku second, Misaka Mikoto third, and Mugino Shizuri fourth.
Now, George had defeated Mugino Shizuri in a one-on-one battle, proving that his combat ability was at least in the top three.
Moreover, he and Misaka Mikoto had joined forces to defeat Accelerator. The higher-ups of Academy City should now fully grasp the destructive power of their teamwork.
The key issue is that most Level 5 espers in Academy City, like Misaka Mikoto, are students with their own independent thoughts. They aren't easily controlled by the higher-ups.
Therefore, if the higher-ups don't want the entire city thrown into chaos, they should, under normal circumstances, agree to his demands.
Of course, if they refused and believed they still had some hidden cards to capture him, George was prepared to fight to the bitter end, even revealing his ultimate trump card—magic.
If it came to that, they shouldn't blame him for unleashing a fiery rampage and destroying the entire Academy City.
"Interesting. Let him be for now. He might prove useful in the future."
Inside the life-support apparatus in District 7, Aleister, after a brief moment of thought, conveyed his orders to his subordinates.
The clone's strength had exceeded his expectations. Forcibly capturing it would be too costly and would completely disrupt his future plans.
Although there had been some unexpected developments, the overall plan hadn't deviated significantly.
Thus, he decided to temporarily abandon the pursuit of this unique clone and focus on completing the next phase of his plan.
Having another Level 5 combatant in Academy City might not be a bad thing. If handled properly, this clone could even help advance other objectives.
"It's just a shame that the Imagine Breaker couldn't get any training this time. Never mind, I'll arrange more training opportunities for him later."
In Aleister's original plan, the clone Misaka was meant to draw in Touma Kamijou, the wielder of the Imagine Breaker, so that Kamijou could fight Accelerator and grow stronger through the experience.
However, with Accelerator defeated by the combined efforts of Misaka Mikoto and the clone, Kamijou's involvement was no longer necessary.
"Ring, ring, ring!"
Shortly after George's loud threats to the sky, the feeling of being monitored disappeared, and Rikou Takitsubo's phone began to ring.
A moment later, she turned to George and Misaka Mikoto and said, "Our employer has transferred the mission payment to our account and asked me to relay a message to you:
The Absolute Power Evolution Program will be completely terminated starting today.
All clones will be granted freedom and given identities as real humans."
"That's good to hear!" George replied with a satisfied nod.
Misaka Mikoto sighed in relief upon hearing the news.
George also smiled. This at least indicated that the higher-ups of Academy City had temporarily conceded.
Soon, he too would have a legal and official identity in Academy City.
As the dust settled, Academy City's ambulances arrived just in time to take the injured, including Accelerator, to the hospital.
At that moment, Misaka Clone No. 9982 suddenly froze, then turned to Misaka Mikoto and George, saying:
"Sister, the laboratory has transferred the remaining 10,018 of us to a hospital in District 7. They've also lifted their control over us and declared that they will no longer restrict our freedom."
"It seems they've truly abandoned the experiment."
Hearing this, George reconnected to the Misaka Network and confirmed the scenes being uploaded by the other Misaka clones.
Now that things had reached this point, there was no longer any need for him to block access to the network.
The Misaka Network, capable of memory sharing and computational support, could actually be quite beneficial to him.
Of course, George had no intention of sharing his own memories with the network, nor would he fully open his connection. He maintained the ability to sever and isolate the connection at any moment. This precaution ensured he could withdraw and remain unaffected if any issues arose within the network.
"Let's go. We should visit the hospital."
Misaka Mikoto grabbed George and Misaka 9982, leading them to another ambulance heading toward the District 7 hospital.
Although all the Misaka clones had been successfully rescued, their future accommodations posed a significant challenge.
Inside the ambulance, George noticed Misaka Mikoto's worried expression. Smiling, he reassured her:
"Don't worry about their accommodations. The higher-ups of Academy City aren't that foolish. Over 10,000 Level 2 espers who can form a network for communication and coordination won't just be left unattended."
In Academy City, while 80% of its population had esper abilities, 60% of those were Level 0, meaning their abilities were so negligible that they were practically useless.
Of the remaining 20%, the majority were Level 1, while Levels 2, 3, and 4 became increasingly rare. As for Level 5, there were only seven publicly recognized individuals.
The Misaka clones, being Level 2 espers with extensive combat experience and the ability to share memories through their network, were an incredibly valuable force. Even if they were no longer part of experiments, they could serve as a powerful protective unit.
The higher-ups of Academy City had invested immense resources into their creation. Even though the Absolute Power Evolution Program had been abandoned, it was highly unlikely they would completely discard such an asset.
"These are matters that don't need to trouble a student like you," George added with a warm smile.
In truth, their primary objective had been to stop the killing of the Misaka clones. As long as they could live normal lives and use their abilities to find jobs to support themselves, it was a reasonable outcome.
(End of Chapter)