Ch 229: The new Celestial Being, and Academy City’s attack.

"…And this is the place where our latest Gundams are being built." smiled Sumeragi Lee Noriega, Celestial Being's Tactical Forecaster, to her six new recruits as she opened the door of a relatively small, but very advanced factory. Huge mechanical arms were busy fixing pieces of purple armor to a huge frame. Three Gundams seemed already complete, while two more were only incomplete frames with missing limbs.

"Master-kun!" happily yelled Ernesta as she trotted to Noah as soon as he saw him. She hugged him with a soft laugh as he patted her head.

"Hey, Ernesta. I heard you've been working hard."

"Of course I have! I am designing your own personal mech after all!" grinned the genius girl.

"You're not the only one working on it! Don't take all the credit for it, Ernesta." smiled Camilla, using a towel to wipe her hands.

"Hi, Camilla." smiled Noah. "How are you feeling?"

"Perfectly healthy, thank you for asking. It had been a while since I had flesh and blood legs." smiled Camilla. After a terrorist attack, most of her body had been replaced by prosthetics. As he revived her, Noah had made sure Camilla would wake up with a fully restored body.

"I am glad."

"Tabane has left to take a nap. Should I fetch her?" asked Camilla.

"No need." shrugged Noah. "Today's visit is for us to introduce ourselves and take a look at your creations, and knowing Tabane, she won't really care."

"Yes, that girl's such a sea urchin." complained Ernesta. "Camilla and I had to take apart the design she made for the new beam rifles and improve on it before she even acknowledged our existence and asked for our names."

"That's a bad habit of hers I will have to fix later." sighed Noah. "We're in a rush right now, with the ongoing war and all, but when this is over, I won't tolerate rudeness from her part."

A door on the side opened suddenly, and Tabane entered the factory, making a series of thruster-assisted jumps to join them.

"Who's the one who's badmouthing me? No sound can escape my bunny ears!" exclaimed Tabane, her mechanical bunny ears pointing right at Ernesta, who only snorted.

"Hi, Tabane." smiled Noah. "I'm happy to see you seem to be doing well. We were talking about your habit of only acknowledging a handful of people. Later on, I'll expect you to work on that, or I will take it upon myself to give you a reason to do so."

"Huh, yes." sighed Tabane. She knew that with him, her status as a genius wouldn't protect her like it usually did. He really would punish her in some way.

"And on that note, let me introduce to you guys the new pilots." said Noah. "This is Seekvaira Agares, Shino Asaka, Saki Rukino, Akira Renbokoji, and Hina Yumihara. Seekvaira and Hina specialize in melee combat, Shino in sniping, and Saki and Akira have no clear preferences."

The girls bowed politely to Tabane, Ernesta and Camilla.

"Hum hum, I see I see!" grinned Ernesta, leaning forward as if wanting to offer them a top view of her chest. "They're all cute, but their skills are what truly matters. We won't accept bad pilots to control our machines. Are they good?"

"Saki, Akira and Hina have survived a few real battles already. Seekvaira and Shino lack actual combat experience, but they have enhanced agility and perception. They should do well." shrugged Noah.

Tabane stared at each of them for a few seconds, making a visible effort to memorize their names and appearances.

"So, how about you girls tell us what kind of magic you've worked in there?" asked Noah.

Ernesta looked at Tabane and Camilla. Camilla nodded with a tolerant smile, and Tabane shrugged.

"You can tell them. I do not care who does it."

"Okay! The first thing we did was improve the already existing Gundams. We made them more energy efficient, so their trans-am mode can last twenty percent longer, improved a bit their beam weapons, but the biggest upgrade is in their particle cannons. They used to project ionized Iridium particles. Great for doing a lot of damage and going through a battleship's hull. But against enemy mechas, it kind of sucks."

"Why?" asked Noah.

"There's a significant charging time, and the particle beam itself doesn't travel as fast as the energy blasts of beam cannons. It can be avoided rather easily if the enemy notices the business end of the particle cannon starting to glow."

"So what we did, is change the kind of particles projected. Ionized Chromium instead of iridium. About three times less atomic weight. The result is that the charging time is cut by more than half, the stream of particles itself is about 40% faster, and we got a higher rate of fire as well."

"The con is that the stream of particles does a lot less damage and might be stopped by battleship-grade armor at an angle. But considering the biggest threat is enemy Gundams, not battleships, that's a price well worth paying.

"According to our simulations, Aria and the other pilots only manages a 50% dodge rate against the new particles beams at five hundred meters, and the dodge rate decreases as they go closer."

That sounds damn impressive." whistled Noah.

"It is. Those guys won't stand a chance."

"But those new weapons mean that when we make our move, we'll have to take the opposition down completely. We can't afford to give them time to create their own light particle cannons." mused Noah.

"I am aware of that." nodded Sumeragi. "Which is why we have done a lot of intelligence work recently. With ten Gundams, we should be able to destroy almost 80% of the enemy within a week."

"That sounds great." replied Noah.

"So Gundam Hecate…" grinned Ernesta, earning everyone's attention. "…that's the purple one who's almost done, will be piloted by Shino, since she's a sniper. It possesses the same camouflage system as Aria's Black Widow, AI-assisted shoulder beam cannons for close defense, and a Chromium-based particle beam cannon that packs more punch than most battleship's primary weapons, but with a lot more accuracy and fire rate."

She pointed to the red mecha next, shut down in a kneeling position. The hilts of two swords protruded from the sides of its waist, and Noah could see a cannon over each shoulder. In fact, Ai-controlled shoulder cannons seemed to be a common feature for all the new mechs. And it made sense, as they would allow for close to mid-range ranged fire without monopolizing the mecha's arms, who could be used to yield melee or heavier ranged weapons. And the shoulder cannons wouldn’t hog the pilot's attention.

"This is Gundam Athens." continued Ernesta. "The physical swords are able to pierce through GN fields, and a beam blade can extend from them. It is also made to be able to move faster than the Gundams used by A-Laws and has its own improved GN field."

Ernesta then pointed to the mostly white mecha with two additional arms folded behind its torso like a backpack. "Gundam Elysium has the same GN field, mobility and shoulder cannons as Athens, but also integrated directional EMP blasters in the third and fourth arms. You can use them to jam or outright fry the com circuits of enemy drones and funnels. Gundams who overly rely on using drones as secondary weapons are going to hate your guts."

Ernesta walked to a mostly back mecha. The most unusual feature of this one was that it had four arms. Two that were well proportioned with the rest of its body and ended with hands, and a pair or massive arms that would almost touch the ground even with the mecha standing. Those arms didn't end with hands, but with what seemed to be four empty slots each.

"This is Gundam Havoc, the one we prepared for Master." proudly announced Ernesta.

"Like Athens and Elysium, it has shoulder beam cannons with AI aiming and a GN field, although the field will be somewhat weakened when you use its weapons. Each of the two additional arms can split into four, controlled by the AI. All you need to do is designate the targets and decide if you want Havoc's AI to aim at vital points or go with incapacitating your enemies. With a standard beam rifle as primary weapon, Havoc will be able lay down accurate fire with no less than eleven weapons, and it will be able to fire most of them in all directions. Only something protected by a GN field will survive long enough to get close, and Havoc also has a pair of beam sabers, just in case."

"As for the last two, we haven't firmly decided on names or weapon configurations yet, but we're thinking about giving one six heavy funnels as main armament, each protected by a small GN field." finished Ernesta.

"Girls, I am thoroughly impressed." nodded Noah. "I expected you to still be on the design stage, and here you are, already done with three and completing the fourth one."

"What do you take us for?" snorted Tabane as she looked down her nose at him, but he knew she was pleased by his praise. "I am an unparalleled genius after all, and those two aren't too bad, either."

"Wow, a compliment from Tabane. What has the world come to?" said Camilla with a deadpan expression.

"The weapons for Havoc's arms will be ready within a week." said Sumeragi with a smile. "We hit a small delay due to a shortage of materials, but that will be fixed before tomorrow. But we already entered the mechas parameters into the simulators. How about you guys give it a try, Those mechas are nice and all, but they will only be as good as the pilot."

Noah and the girls nodded, their gazes lingering toward the towering mechas. Except for Saki, who walked closer to Noah.

"This Havoc, why does it remind me so much of one of the Valvraves?"

"Because I got the inspiration from it, and I suggested it to the girls." grinned Noah.

"In that case, is it too late for me to ask for mine to use the same equipment than my old one?"

"Go talk to Ernesta, and she'll tell you if that's feasible or not. If she thinks it's doable, I'm sure she will welcome the challenge. You still get the shoulder cannons and a GN field, though. That Gundam needs to surpass your previous machine."

"Yes. Thank you." smiled Saki before walking toward the bubbly scientist.

Noah spotted Akira, seemingly wanting to leave but not daring to. He slowly walked to her with a gentle smile, and she stiffened as she noticed him.

"Deep breaths, Akira." said Noah, using a bit of hypnosis magic.

Akira blinked and stared into his eyes.

"You are safe here. Safe with us. And you're a brave girl. You may be shy, but you can overcome it. Focus on your breathing, Akira. Breathe in, breathe out."

Akira, still staring at him, took deep breaths, and her shoulders gradually relaxed. Noah stopped the hypnosis and nodded to her with a warm smile, and she smiled back. it was a small, hesitant smile, but it was a lot of progress. It had taken a lot of coaxing, and the promise to revive her brother and her friend Shoko, who just happened to be the MC's main love interest in the fiction, to convince her to sign her maid contract.

"Do you feel calmer now, Akira?" asked Noah with a gentle smile.

"Yes."

"Let's join the others, Akira. If you ever feel like this is too much, come to me, and I will help you."

"Yes… Thank you." said Akira, looking at the others waiting for her.

Noah was about to join them when he noticed Saki staring at him as she spoke to Ernesta. When she was done explaining she wanted some kind of burst-type movement capability and remotely controlled giant beam shuriken for her mech, she walked to him, frowning.

"Did you say something weird to Akira?"

"I only used some encouraging words, and a bit of hypnosis."

"Hypnosis!" exclaimed Saki, alarmed.

"Yes. Just a bit to induce calm and prop up her self-image a bit." smirked Noah. "From your reaction, you're worried I'll use hypnosis to make her my puppet. Or you."

"Well, yeah. Can you blame me? That's the normal reaction when you hear that someone can hypnotize you."

"No. I could do it, but I just won't. It would be distasteful. Puppets aren't nearly as interesting as women who would have given themselves to me willingly. I have plenty of more interesting ways to convince you girls to renew your contracts."

"…I don't find your words really reassuring. You said you wanted pilots, and that's why you resurrected Hina and I." said Saki, her eyes narrowing.

"Yes, it was the reason I chose to revive you both at this particular time, to fulfill an urgent need." said Noah with a slight roll of the eyes. "But you're a bright girl, Saki. Surely you have noticed by now that almost all my subordinates are women, and you have guessed why."

"I did. I'm not sure how to feel about it right now." said Saki with a small wince. She wasn't immune to Noah's charm, but she also didn't like his manipulative side, and wasn't sure she could tolerate having to share. At least he was honest right now, and she appreciated that.

"I do not plan to make a move on you, Hina and Akira for a while. I want you girls to grow used to being part of the family first... Let's shelf that conversation for later, they are waiting for us." said Noah, and Saki had no choice but to drop the subject.

The maid couldn't refuse a direct instruction of her Master, with the contract enforcing it.

…

Asuka fired explosive bullets at the woman-shaped abomination, hitting it at the left hip and left shoulder. The explosions tore the limbs apart and the abomination fell on the ground.

But Asuka would already see tendrils of flesh extending from the mangled torso to reach toward the limbs, ready to reconnect them and repair the damage.

As if she was going to just let it happen. Asuka fired bullet after bullet, aiming at the head, the torso, the limbs. Making sure that the damned thing would not recover enough mobility to be a threat. It was starting to adapt, growing a hardened exoskeleton, but that wasn't enough to stop her bullets just yet. After a while, the abomination ran out of vitality and died for good.

She turned to see how the others were doing.

The Warriors had focused their efforts on two of the Abyss Eaters, dogpiling on them and slashing away, adopting the same tactic of not giving them time to recover from their dismemberment or adapt to the Warriors' fighting style.

Mash and Gudako were using a mix of Light Swords, Gandr shots and other offensive Magecraft to deal with the fourth Abyss Eater.

Britomart and Medb were supporting each other as they pounded another one into paste. That one was getting somewhat dangerous as it started to lash out with arms transformed into blades, so Asuka moved in to help them.

Another abomination was vainly trying to catch Atalante as she kept turning it into a beehive. It would be an issue, as the thing was starting to transform its legs to reach greater speeds, but Aife suddenly appeared on its path, her Gae Bolg turned into a greatsword, and severed its legs. The Abyss Eater collapsed and immediately switched targets, pushing on its arms to crawl toward Aife, its jaws opening and closing. Her legs were regrowing, but Aife severed them again.

In total, it took less than two minutes of fighting to exterminate the six Abyss Eaters the Organization had sent after them. And they were now close to their objective, according to the Agent.

…

The sun was starting to rise when one of the security officers noticed someone walking toward the checkpoint. It was unusual, as the vast majority of people coming in or out of Academy city came by train or car. The nearest town was over ten kilometers away.

And this person was strangely dressed, with a sand-colored outfit reminding him of a nun, and a huge gray cross sewn on its front. She also held a metal staff whose head represented coiled vines with thorns. Thorns and vines also seemed to be her theme, as she had more around her waist.

As she came close enough for him and his colleagues to notice more details, he saw that she had many facial piercings, and he groaned inside, thinking that checking her with the metal detector would be a pain.

And he suddenly felt light-headed.

"I don't feel very well." remarked the man, turning to his colleagues, only to see one of them collapse.

"Shinji!" exclaimed the security officer as he rushed to him and checked his pulse.

"I'm calling the emergency service!" said the third officer.

The first one nodded, checking his fallen comrade's pupils with a light, when he heard another body hitting the ground.

His shock lasted for only a second before he put two and two together, and looked at the stranger.

She was smirking at him, and opened her mouth. A metal crucifix fell out of it, attached to a tongue piercing by a meter long chain.

He realized that this person wasn't normal. She was somehow responsible for what was happening to them. And the instant the thought formed, he, too, fell unconscious.

…

Vento of the Front ignored the three men on the ground as she crossed into Academy City. Today was the day where they, as God's Holy Warriors, would rid the world of the filth that this place represented, like Sodom and Gomorrah had been destroyed for their sins before.

The other three were making their own entrances in different parts of the City to divide the defenders.

She lifted her head toward the checking post's cameras and made a one-finger salute, before raising her barded staff, and slamming it down on the head of one of the sinners. Blood splattered, none of it reaching her clothes.

With just this simple declaration of hostilities, she wondered how many would fall into oblivion from watching the footage, or simply hearing about it. The more, the better.

She then resumed her walk. She had a lot of work to do.

It was going to be glorious.

…

"Can you slow down a bit, Misaka-san?" complained Misaki Shokuhou, hanging on for dear life.

"I can't! The attack has started!" shouted back Mikoto, focusing on driving the massive motorcycle though the morning traffic. Thankfully, Aleister Crowley was already on the move, manipulating traffic lights to get other cars out of the way.

Mikoto and Misaki reached one of the highways, and the black motorcycle accelerated to a decidedly unwise speed, causing Misaki to tighten her hold around Mikoto's waist.

"When did you get your license anyway?" shouted Misaka, as speaking was becoming difficult with the air flow.

"…I don't have one."

"What!" exclaimed Misaki, fearing for her life. Well, not exactly. Noah would revive her if the worst happened. But that didn't mean she was looking forward to the pain!

"It's not even a bike anyway. That's no license for using that!" shot back Mikoto.

"…And I meant to ask before, but why do you feel so…lightly dressed?" asked Misaki.

Mikoto's legs, pressed against the body of the black motorcycle, were almost entirely bare, with only her feet wearing black shoes. She wore a black coat covering her torso and arms, but from holding her waist, Misaki had the distinct feeling that there weren't many layers under it.

"Shut up! Wearing that thing is necessary to interface with that! It's not like I want to be seen wearing that!" yelled Mikoto, blushing.

"…Okay?" dubiously said Misaki, wondering what was under the coat. Whatever it was, she would make sure to use it later to tease Mikoto. She would have to take a picture discreetly.

Her thoughts were interrupted when new information was displayed on the motorcycle's interface, and part of the GPS map and suggested itinerary was replaced by a distance indicator, the picture of their target, and her know abilities.

When she read this, Misaki felt relief for the bangle on her left wrist. Without it, she likely would already have fallen unconscious.

After another turn, they came into view of their target.

"Remember, Misaka-san." said Misaki. "This person is too dangerous. We have to kill her."

"I know."

"If that's too hard for you, I won't mind doing it."

"It's fine. I already killed Kihara, remember?"

Vento of the Front had seen them come barreling in and stopped walking. She took the chain linking the small silvery cross to her tongue, held it in front of them toward the newcomers, and struck it with her barbed staff. The crucifix emitted soundwaves that propagated toward the black motorcycle, amplifying themselves to form a hammer made of compressed air.

"Hang tight!" shouted Mikoto, leaning hard to the right and using directional thrusters a normal bike had no business possessing, narrowly evading the attack.

Misaki was almost thrown off, but managed to hold on, and when the bike screeched to a halt, jumped out toward a thick concrete pillar, thinking It should withstand whatever the enemy had attacked them with. She took her remote from her handbag, but froze as she saw her friend slash rival slash bullying target remove her black coat, revealing underneath a one-piece, dark blue swimsuit with while lining.

That was the kind of risqué outfit that would only be acceptable around a swimming pool or a beach.

And the motorcycle quickly changed shape.

Vento of the Front was smart enough not to simply wait for her opponents to be done with whatever they were doing, and threw another attack in Mikoto's direction. This time, however, the attack shattered as it contacted some kind of shimmering bubble around Mikoto and the machine.

When the transformation finished, Mikoto's arms, shoulders and legs were encased in black metal armor glowing with blue lines. But the shocking part was what was affixed on her back. There was now a positively cartoonish number of weapons arrayed behind Mikoto, connected to her back by articulated joints. And each of those weapons were bigger than Mikoto herself.

Misaki wasn't a military otaku, but even she could recognize a missile launcher, two miniguns, a flamethrower, and was that a giant chainsaw?

And there was another half-dozen weapons she couldn't identify.

"W-What the hell is that?" yelled Vento.

"My question exactly." muttered Misaki, pointing her remote toward Vento when she saw the barrels of the miniguns starting to rotate.

Misaki's mental attack only managed to daze Vento for an instant. She was a powerful magician, after all, not an untrained civilian that Misaki could easily control.

But an instant was enough to disrupt the air wall she was about to use to defend herself, and the bullets from Mikoto's… whatever its name was, shredded her upper body in an instant.

Mikoto immediately turned away, feeling nauseous.

Misaki didn't feel very well herself, but the attack on Academy City was far from over. She would dwell on what she saw later. And she knew exactly what to do to get Mikoto's head back on the game.

She took her smartphone, and started snapping pictures of Mikoto.

The unwilling model blinked after hearing the third snapshot and saw Misaki grinning as she took more pictures. It would be great blackmail material.

"You! Delete those pictures now!" demanded Mikoto, blushing.

"Absolutely not." smiled Misaki, putting her smartphone back in her handbag. "What is the text target?"

Mikoto shook her head as if to clear it, and sighed, reading the information Aleister was sending her.

"…Takina and Shutaura already finished with Terra of the Left, and Chisato and Kaori and Itsuwa are dealing with Aqua of the Back…  We're going north-east, Hitomi and Tamamo and the Magicians have a bit of trouble against Fiamma or the Right. There's no easy route toward it, so, we're going to fly."

"Fly!" exclaimed Misaki, suddenly a little apprehensive. If Mikoto flew like she drove, she wasn't certain her heart could take it.

"You don't have a choice!" said Mikoto with a sinister smile, having noticed Misaki's unease and wanting some revenge for the pictures. Without waiting for Misaki to make up her mind, she grabbed her tight, used one of the weapons to support part of Misaki's weight, and activated the Anti-Art Attachment's thrusters, shooting upward.

Misaki's scream of fright felt quite satisfying to hear.

It was only when she was halfway to their new target that she grunted in dismay.

She had forgotten her coat.

…

Takina used Shunpo to quickly travel from rooftop to rooftop, trying to reach Fiamma of the Right before he killed someone she cared about. He was the most dangerous of the four, and she had hoped to face him first.

Shutaura was also on her way, her mecha using the highway to reach speeds close to 150 km/h.

Unfortunately, their first opponent had been Terra of the Left. A complete weirdo who had filed his front teeth into fangs, and could make weapons or shields out of, of all things, flour. And he had this classic villain's tendency to monologue.

He had been in the process of explaining how his magic allowed him to attribute a "hierarchy" to anything, how anything with a lower hierarchical value couldn't harm anything with a higher one, and why Takina and Shutaura wouldn't be able to wound him no matter what they tried, when Takina lost patience and drove a Light Sword through his throat, before beheading him completely. This Hierarchy shtick was a kind of curse, after all, and Takina was immune to it.

She noticed something from the corner of her eye. A small black shape in the sky, seemingly heading for Academy City's eastern gate. Mikoto and Misaki. It looked like they would reach their objective at about the same time.

…

Acqua of the Black was starting to think that, maybe, they had come unprepared.

The attack had started well. He had effortlessly killed the guards at the gate. His blessing of the Divine Mother, coupled with his Saint body, granted him inhuman strength and speed, and a immunity to anything that could be considered as "punishment", making him almost invulnerable. Bullets bounced off him without causing him even the slightest amount of pain, and he used his huge spear to smash anything in his path.

Like that brave but ultimately foolish student who had charged him and tried to punch him. Out of respect for her courage, as she didn't seem to be an Esper and had no duty to stop him, he had only broken one of her legs and knocked her out before continuing on his way.

Since then, he had been busy with a bunch of automated combat drones.

But it was almost immediately after this encounter that his plan went wrong. Two young women jumped down from the rooftop of a nearby building.

He immediately recognized the Saint from the Anglican Church, and his face distorted in disbelief and anger. And the other girl, a blonde holding a gun and a dagger, was clearly not ordinary for landing from a significant height without injuring herself.

"Kaori Kanzaki. Are you really taking the side of these heathens."

"I am." calmly nodded Kaori.

"Then you can die." said Acqua, jumping toward her, his spear held above his head, ready to slam it down on the Saintess.

Not all Saints were equal. From what he knew, Kaori wasn't that much stronger or more resilient than a civilian, and landing without damage from a four stories building was probably about the most she could do.

Her gift mostly consisted of infusing magic into her sword. Magic that she used to deliver invisible attacks, although the Church's informants had never been able to ferret out exactly how she did it. It wasn't something that Kaori used often after all, and the Anglican Church was careful about their security.

But since he was invulnerable to all attacks that would injure him, he didn't need to worry about protecting his body. he only needed to focus on the offense.

Kaori wisely chose to evade on the side rather than try to block his blow, and the blonde girl aimed her gun at him, firing a pair of bullets that bounced off his forehead.

She was a good shot, but it wasn't going to help her, and Acqua barely glanced at her.

He was about to attack Kaori again, but the blonde girl charged him with surprising speed and engaged him in close combat. She couldn't hurt him, but she could still push him away, keep him off balance, and to his immense surprise, she could actually keep up with him! She wasn't quite as strong, but she had a lot more combat experience. She was slippery, and he couldn't pin her down as she kept him off balance, with the occasional help from Kaori.

Still, he was confident that he would win in the end. The blonde girl's fighting style had to be exhausting, and she would soon run out of steam. And his three companions were likely making good progress toward the heart of the city.

"Did you know?" suddenly smiled the blonde girl. "I have a communicator in my left ear."

She turned her head for a moment, and Acqua could indeed see a bit of something black in her ear.

"So? Are you perhaps calling for reinforcements? More of those automatons, I guess?"

"Nope." grinned the girl. "I just received an update. Terra of the Left has been killed by someone who was immune to his priority nonsense."

"It's 'hierarchy', Chisato." retorted Kaori.

Acqua stiffened in shock. There was indeed one youth in Academy City who could ignore Terra's Hierarchy. Kamijou Touma and his Imagine Breaker. They hadn't considered him a serious threat. He was still an untrained civilian. Apparently, they should have accounted for him taking a part.

"Vento of the Front is dead as well. It's just you and Fiamma now." added Chisato. "And… How much longer, Kaori?"

"Any instant now."

Acqua refused to believe them about Vento, but he raised his vigilance, assuming they might be trying to stall him for something. Noticing an anomaly In the shadow of a nearby building, He risked a quick glance upward, and saw a third young woman standing on a rooftop, her body surrounded by a white aura, and pointing a trident or spear toward him.

He suddenly had a bad feeling. He had just found out during the fight that Kaori used nearly invisible wires to attack form a distance, but his own abilities were well known from the Anglican Church, as God's Right Seat flaunted them as deterrents. They knew about his Saint body and his Blessing. If they still decided to go after him, then maybe, just maybe, they had something that might penetrate his protection.

As if to confirm his suspicions, the aura around the girl focused on her weapon, and she yelled "Saint Destroyer!" as a beam of white energy shot from the trident, hitting hit before he had a chance to evade.

And his world became pain, as the very magic the Anglican Church had created as a precaution against an eventual betrayal from a Saint turned the very Saint attribute in his body against itself.

White flames burst from his body, and a beam of white light centered around him shot to the skies. It lasted only seconds before the flames extinguished, leaving behind Acqua, no longer a Saint. He had been deprived of his speed and strength, and while his blessing still protected his flesh, he didn't stand a chance.

He glared malevolently at the girl on the rooftop, and didn't bother trying to evade the black sword the girl suddenly wielded.

To his shock, the blade entered his chest and pierced his heart, bypassing his remaining Blessing. For the second time in over two decades, he felt pain. Mercifully, it didn't last long before darkness claimed him.

"Is he really dead?" asked Itsuwa as soon as she left the building and joined them.

"Yes. Great job, Itsuwa." sighed Chisato.

Chisato noticed the unconscious girl with a broken leg and jogged to her. She didn't have Noah's Greater Healing, but she did have a Healing ability of her own, and she fixed the girl's leg. Almost as soon as she was done, the girl shuddered and opened her eyes.

"W-Where is that villain?"

"Dead." said Chisato, pointing at Acqua's corpse.

"Good. I wanted to sock him good!" the girl realized something and stared down at her body. "Wait, wasn't my leg broken? Or did I just dream it?"

"No, but I fixed your leg just now. Can you stand?" asked Chisato, examining closely the girl she had just healed. She could tell that she was the sporty and outgoing type, and she seemed to be brave. She had straight black hair with long bangs tucked behind her hair framing her face, a pretty face, and black eyes. And her chest was quite developed. She was wearing a gym uniform with blue pants, a white shirt, and a white jersey with red linings was on the ground near her

"I... think so." said the girl, cautiously getting on her feet.

"Thank you very much for healing me. I am in your debt. I am Seiri Fukiyose." said Seiri with a careful bow."

"It's fine. Helping others is our calling. I am Chisato Nishikigi, nice to meet you! But if I may ask, just why did you fight that guy? Are you a strong Esper? asked Chisato with an interested gleam in her eyes.

"I'm not an Esper. I knew he was stronger than me. When he was trashing the security drones, I was hoping he would overlook me until I could punch his teeth in. But that terrorist was making a mess of things, and if we who live in this city won't stop him, then who will?"

"The local government? The agencies that are equipped to deal with terrorists? The Espers?" retorted Chisato.

"Yes, but I was there, and they weren't." shrugged Seiri.

"…Seiri, I am thoroughly impressed. Say, if you could join a certain organization that specializes in fighting evildoers and saving people, would you be interested? You would gain superpowers, and could become like a super heroine!" asked Chisato with a huge grin, holding both of Seiri's hands.

"You mean, like those heroes of justice in the television?"

"Yes, but without the fancy costumes. Although if you want one, that could be arranged."

"Maybe? Tell me more, and I'll consider it." frowned Seiri.

"Yes! Unfortunately, we're in a hurry right now. We dealt with three of the four terrorists, but the last one is the most dangerous, and he's still active." said Chisato, remembering what the Magicians from the Anglican Church has told them about the God's Right Seat.

Fiamma of the Right could manifest what he called God's Right Hand, although it looked more like a huge demonic hand, looking desiccated with gnarly fingers tipped with long claws.

His power was exceedingly dangerous. He called it 'The strike that ends everything it touches' and well as 'The strike that reaches everything when swung', and for good reason.

Any contact with that hand meant death, and when he swung the arm, he could ignore the distance to his target to hit anyway. His power even allowed him to teleport near his target.

He could also create a sword of light, but that was trivial compared to his last ability. He could fire off a thick beam of light like a particle cannon.

Where Vento and Terra mostly relied on one absurd magic each that left them vulnerable to anyone immune to curses, Fiamma had multiple overpowered means of offense.

"Kaori, Itsuwa, I'm going first. Seiri, please give your number to Kaori here, we'll meet you again once the emergency is over." said Chisato, leaving at a run that would put most racing horses to shame.

Kaori and Itsuwa looked at each other, then at Seiri who was watching slack-jawed as Chisato ran off.

"H-How can she move that fast." gasped Seiri.

"It's that Hero of Justice thing." shrugged Itsuwa. "I am Itsuwa, and this is Kaori Kanzaki. It is nice to meet a potential future colleague. Now, we need to hurry after her, so can you give us your number, please?"

"Yes, but, she said there's another terrorist on the loose?" hesitated Seiri.

"This is correct." answered Kaori without looking at her, already searching for a better transportation method than running.

She wondered if she should try to seize control of a car using magic, when a vehicle using eight wheels on eight mechanical legs burst out of a side street. Shutaura's mech.

"Already done with yours, it seems" said Shutaura through the mech's speakers as she stopped in front of them.

"Yes. Only Fiamma remains. Can you help us get there?"

"Sure. Takina should have reached them by now. But three people will be a tight fit." replied Shutaura, opening her cockpit.

"I'm coming with you!" declared Seiri.

"A civie?" asked Shutaura with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, but instead of running from Acqua, she tried get close enough to punch him." said Itsuwa.

"Wow. that takes guts." nodded Shutaura. "Fine, it will be really cramped, and you guys will have to disembark before we enter the battlefield.

"Yes, thank you." smiled Seiri, already starting to climb in. She didn't want to give them time to change their minds.

Itsuwa and Kaori glanced at each other and shrugged before climbing over the mech as well.

It was… difficult, to say the least, for the four girls, one of them carrying an odachi, to be in a cockpit meant for only one. It was already a feat to avoid touching any of the buttons and disturb Shutaura's driving. Fortunately, it would only take a few minutes for them to reach the eastern gate.

"Seiri, while Shutaura drives us there, I will tell you exactly what Fiamma of the Right is capable of. You can watch from a distance, but you getting involved in this fight is out of the question." warned Kaori with a serious expression.

Seiri frowned. She wasn't a weak girl to be coddled, and she didn't want to come just to watch. But when Kaori told her in details about Fiamma's powers, she… decided that they were right. How could someone as monstruous exist? And why were they attacking Academy City?

On the way, they found Chisato and slowed down to match her speed. Chisato jumped on the mecha, holding on to one of the legs, and they sped up again.

…

Stiyl cursed as his flame giant was destroyed, for the third time.

"How long are you going to persist?" taunted Fiamma. "Get out of my way. I don't want to waste my precious energy on you."

The member of God's Right Seat may have immense destructive power, but each use was a drain on his connection to the archangel Michael, and it was an ultimately limited resource. He wanted, if possible, to get by using only the destructive ability of God's Right Hand, as it didn't use up too much power, and let the other three do most of the work of destroying Academy City.

Besides, the handful of people confronting him from the shadows weren't the only things he had to deal with. He was constantly harassed by waves of military drones, some of them more dangerous than the Magicians of the Anglican Church.

And that was also that strange female magician with fox ears and tail that kept appearing and disappearing, pelting him with elemental spells. He had tried to teleport to her a few times, but she always seemed to dissolve in the air before he could touch her.

Like another one of those tank-sized drones walking on four legs, and armed with two tri-barrels and two beam cannons. Before the drone could aim at him, he swung the Hand at it.

The mecha immediately collapsed under its own weight, its energy source suddenly inert.

Fiamma hoped there wouldn't be too many of those sent his way. Teleportation and Reach were the ability that strained his connection the most.

And he suddenly jumped back when a wave of ice stakes crashed where he had been, then had to use the Hand as a shield to stop a wave of cross-shaped energy projectiles, but when he turned, the senders were nowhere to be seen. His opponents knew his abilities well, and they were careful not to show themselves.

Worse, they were starting to coordinate better, aiming for the times where he swung the Hand to deal with a drone. He could attack or defend, but not both at the same time, and they were banking on it.

It was getting boring, and he wondered if, maybe, he should just summon the sword of the Archangel and cause the collapse of all surrounding buildings. It would flush the rats out.

He was about to do so, when he spotted several missiles headed his way. A pair of girls using a strange flying contraption had opened fire on him.

At last a visible target.

Fiamma swung the Hand to deal with the missiles, but before he could kill the two girls, he…

Fiamma blinked as he seemed to have zoned out for an instant, and his opponents weren't visible anymore.

He noticed the flash of firearms coming from the shadow of a nearby building too late to perfectly defend, and a bullet hit him in the right leg.

"Damn you!" yelled Fiamma, wanting to swat the perpetrator to death the instant she stopped firing. He caught the glimpse of a girl with long black hair dashing through a side street, but she was gone before he could, and more fire came from other directions.

More drones came to support the human defenders, bringing him under constant harassment.

And suddenly, the incoming barrage of projectiles stopped.

Sensing a presence behind him, he turned.

Another person was standing fifteen meters from him, a black sword with the blade covered in faintly glowing symbols in hand. Another girl with long black hair.

The girl lowered her posture.

Understanding that she was about to dash toward him, Fiamma smiled. Finally, an opponent who didn't skulk around like a rat. He started swinging, but the Hand was stopped with a jerk. Fiamma looked at it in shock only to see golden chains restraining the Hand.

He looked back toward the black-haired girl, summoning the archangel's sword, but before he could complete the summoning, she was already right in front of him, and the black sword was thrust forward and up, piercing his throat, mouth, palate, and brain. Its tip emerged from the back of his skull, and Fiamma was dead before his body reached the ground.

Takina exhaled slowly as she confirmed the kill, then pulled the sword from Fiamma's body.

Thanks to its self-cleaning feature, the blood and other fluids dropped immediately from the blade.

"It is done, right?" asked Tamamo, rematerializing beside her.

"Yes." nodded Takina, putting the sword back in its inventory.

She still kept a vigilant eye on the drones, as she didn't trust Aleister Crowley any farther that she could throw him. 'Actually, I could throw him a fair distance'. Thought Takina with a small chuckle.

Hitomi, Angelene, Stiyl, and Kuroko left their ambush spots and gathered. Misaki emerged from the corner of a building, followed by a red-faced Mikoto, wearing only the swims… the interface equipment. The rest of the AAA gear was back in its motorcycle mode and was following her.

"Great job, everyone. We managed not to lose anyone." smiled Takina, taking from her inventory a pair of leather pants and a shirt, that Mikoto accepted with a grateful nod.

"Yeah. But it was damn tense. One mistake and I would be gone." sighed Hitomi.

"Noah would have resurrected you, but yes, we don't often have fights like this. A good thing the Director assisted us with the drone support." nodded Takina. It looked like Aleister wasn't going to try to backstab them, as the drones were leaving the area.

Shutaura's mecha appeared in the distance, with Chisato glued to one of its legs.

"I have sent teams to retrieve the bodies and assist the injured civilians. Thank you for your assistance. But I suggest you leave the area soon, or the non-Esper among you will be asked questions." said Aleister Crowley through the coms.

"He's not wrong." said Hitomi. Tamamo had already hidden her tail and ears, and changed her outfit back to civilian attire.

Shutaura's mecha reached them, and Chisato hoped down. Takina sighed in relief when the cockpit opened, revealing the missing members of their group, as well as a pretty girl she had never seen.

Chisato ran to her and gave her a tight hug and a kiss.

"I was worried."

"I was too, Chisato."

After a few seconds, Chisato released her and looked at everyone.

"We have been given the location of the Demonic Pillar. It is in Russia."