How Do You Know... That I’m Not a Clone?

"Kurumi-senpai..."

Shirai Kuroko's earpiece echoed with the murmured voice of Uiharu Kazari.

Kurumi smiled and waved at a nearby surveillance camera.

Meanwhile, Uiharu Kazari stared in astonishment at Kurumi, who appeared simultaneously in two different camera feeds, recalling an urban legend that Saten Ruiko had once shared with her.

"You'll see someone who looks identical in three different places in a single day."

"It's said that in the picturesque District 21, some people have reported seeing the same girl across four or five consecutive streets."

Could Kurumi-senpai actually be a clone user?

A bold idea suddenly took root in Uiharu's mind.

...

"Well, well, well~~ Let me see who we have here?" Kurumi's hands were clasped behind her back, and she leaned forward slightly, the gentle motion accentuating her soft, alluring curves as she closed the distance.

Shirai Kuroko froze, her face quickly turning red as her eyes darted away from the sight before her. Though she knew she was in the wrong and caught red-handed, it was Kurumi's teasing posture and undeniable charm that left her flustered.

She placed her hands in front of her and bowed deeply.

"I'm sorry! I was wrong!"

Kurumi, however, had no intention of making things difficult for her. She simply chuckled, spun gracefully, and left.

By the time Shirai Kuroko noticed the hand retreating into the shadows after gripping her ankle, she looked up to find no trace of the senpai she had just encountered.

Everything from moments ago felt like a fleeting dream, an illusion of moonlight on water or flowers in a mirror.

Kurumi, having teased her junior, was evidently in a great mood. With her hands still clasped behind her back, she hummed a light-hearted tune.

Shirai Kuroko was, in fact, a rather adorable girl. She was willing to relinquish everything for admiration.

Because she knew it was impossible, she... could indulge recklessly in her "perversion."

...

The research facility wasn't particularly far, just a bit secluded.

If she used the shadows to travel, it would take mere moments.

But Kurumi, whether in her original form or a clone, preferred the leisurely and carefree feeling of wandering around.

Unlike the strict rules governing the students of the Garden of Learning, public schools outside allowed more freedom, including a lenient attitude toward keeping pets.

Kurumi even spent some time chasing a cat before leisurely heading toward the research facility.

In the distance, a man in a brown suit with a white lab coat draped over it stood under the eaves of the research facility, smoking a cigarette.

"Yo~ You're here~" The man with short, light yellow hair greeted Kurumi with a puff of smoke.

Just standing there, he exuded the aura of a delinquent leader. His left cheek was adorned with a strange, pitch-black tattoo that squirmed like some alien lifeform when he smirked.

Though not particularly muscular, his physique gave his clothes a rugged, imposing look. He looked outright menacing.

This was Kihara Amata.

"Click, click... These high schoolers nowadays are developing quite well, huh?" Kihara clicked his tongue, looking little different from the sleazy delinquents on the street who whistled at Kurumi.

But his gaze was chilling and sickly cold.

He was the kind of man who would break down proportions piece by piece to calculate why something appeared alluring or seductive.

"Oh my, oh my, you must be joking, sir." Kurumi's soft smile carried a dangerous undertone that even Kihara could sense.

This girl... was far more dangerous than that Accelerator guy.

Kihara judged her silently. Leaning against the wall, he smirked and adjusted his gaze, now less overtly prying. "Good timing. That guy's here too."

Noticing Kurumi's frown at the cigarette smoke, Kihara casually extinguished the cigarette and tossed the butt toward a cleaning robot.

He gestured to Kurumi.

"Follow me."

From behind, his crooked shoulders made him look every bit the low-level thug.

...

The interior of the research facility, ranked number one in Academy City, was far from its majestic exterior. In fact, it was rather dilapidated.

The alloy paneling was pitted with dents, making it look almost like it had been half-destroyed.

"Hey, hey, don't give me that disdainful look." Kihara shrugged. "At least it's clean..."

Before he could finish, a crumpled wad of paper fell from above and hit him.

A researcher in a lab coat and round glasses waved down at him from above.

"Hey... Boss, that guy tore down another wall."

"As you can see, that's why this place looks like this." Kihara spread his hands helplessly. "But don't worry, we've got people to repair it regularly."

To be fair, aside from the steel panels that looked like they'd been run over by a tank, the facility was intimidating.

Filled with all sorts of strange instruments and bustling researchers, it gave off a high-tech vibe far more intricate than any equipment at Tokiwadai Middle School.

This facility specialized in researching a very select few extraordinary ability users and wasn't open to ordinary students.

As they walked deeper into the facility, descending underground, it began to reveal its true nature.

An enormous underground chamber unfolded before them, entirely white.

The ceiling was so high it made the room feel like a column. Three walls were made of special alloy, while the fourth was a single pane of specialized glass.

The room was spacious and clean, with only a few scattered instruments inside.

But now... one of the walls had been ripped apart.

Within the white chamber, a pair of deep crimson eyes—resembling fresh blood—fixed on Kihara and Kurumi as they approached from behind the glass. The figure grinned.

"So, you finally came."

The boy looked frail, his hair so stark white it seemed as though the color had been forcibly drained.

He was the number one-ranked esper in Academy City, the strongest Level 5—Accelerator.

...

"We recently got our hands on a charged particle cannon. Its power is roughly equivalent to a single shot from the Railgun, ranked No. 3," Kihara explained to Kurumi.

"But it takes a while to prepare, and because of flaws in the particle group, it's only useful for testing. The results weren't great, apparently."

Clearly, the half-destroyed wall was a result of Accelerator deflecting the charged particle beam.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Even in the face of Academy City's strongest esper, Kihara showed no trace of reverence, tapping on the glass to draw Accelerator's attention.

"Hey, hey, hey... Make way for the new recruit," he shouted into a nearby microphone aimed at the lab.

"Why'd you tear down another wall?"

"Tch, it's your equipment cutting corners again, isn't it?" Accelerator cracked his neck, sneering as he stepped through the ripped-open wall.

"My, my, it's been a while, Accelerator-san~~~" Kurumi greeted him with a smile.

Accelerator's expression froze for a moment, clearly recalling Kurumi vividly.

...

"There's still no trace of her AIM Diffusion Field," Kihara muttered, frowning as he flipped through a stack of spectral charts.

The alluring girl stood gracefully at the center of the laboratory, her faint smile as radiant as a midsummer bloom.

"Hey, did you buy another batch of discounted junk or what?" Accelerator sat lazily on a reclining chair in the back, his mocking grin cutting through the tension as he delivered his taunt without mercy.

"That new thing—what was it? A charged particle cannon? It's barely more effective than a tickle."

"Tch…" Kihara twisted his neck irritably. "What do you know? I've already accessed every record in the 'Library'."

"All ability users must emit an AIM Diffusion Field. That's the fundamental rule."

"Unless… she isn't an ability user."

"Oh? Then how do you explain that?" Accelerator jerked his chin toward the experiment subject and casually cracked open a can of coffee, downing it in one gulp.

...

For a moment, Kihara was left speechless.

"It must be due to the unique nature of her ability," he said at last, his eyes narrowing as his mind raced.

Or perhaps… it isn't even a supernatural ability at all.

As the leader of a dark side organization, Kihara had access to information far beyond what even Accelerator knew.

Closing the screen displaying a report on another Academy City individual without an AIM Diffusion Field, Kihara pulled a microphone closer.

"Proceed to the next test."

The closed report briefly flashed an image of a black-haired boy with a silly grin. Just a Level 0. No real research value.

Kihara grabbed the test report from Tokiwadai Middle School, carefully planning the next set of experiments for once.

Reports from schools often lacked precision. When a higher-ranking ability user emerged, they had to undergo reevaluation at specialized research facilities.

"Tch… No AIM Diffusion Field is a real pain," Kihara complained, pulling up a spreadsheet and signaling the automated robots to prepare the equipment for the next test.

"LV.5's [Nightmare] ability. Let's start with a capture test."

A sinister smile spread across his face as he gestured toward Kurumi. "According to your report, your spatial capture capacity is currently unquantifiable."

"So, let's see exactly how much it is."

"Oh my… Are you sure you're not just trying to have me clean up your trash?" Kurumi's eyes narrowed dangerously as she gazed at the heap of experimental scraps before her.

"I don't want to clutter my world with garbage."

"Hmm… is that so?" Kihara nodded thoughtfully, making a note on the report:

—Subject refuses to place trash in spatial storage.

Next to the question of whether it could be utilized, he marked a triangle.

Even Accelerator's Reflection had weaknesses that Kihara could identify. His current objective was to pinpoint Kurumi's own.

"In that case, we'll skip this project for now," Kihara said, flipping to the next page. "Let's proceed directly to the defense test."

...

Unlike the Tokiwadai Middle School test chamber, which maxed out at Level 4-level attacks, Kihara's lab boasted a charged particle cannon comparable to a direct hit from Misaka Mikoto's Railgun.

However, despite its intimidating specifications, the cannon had numerous flaws, such as lengthy deployment times, rendering it impractical for actual combat.

Against Number 1 Accelerator or Number 2 Dark Matter, it was utterly ineffective. Against Number 3 Railgun or Number 4 Meltdowner, magnetic interference rendered it unable to cause significant damage.

Even for lower-ranking ability users, various factors made its utility negligible.

In short, it was little more than a glorified prop for testing defensive capabilities.

A black-and-red shadow, like a surreal vision from the other side of the abyss, unfurled around Kurumi.

The iridescent particle beam slammed into the shadow, only to be completely absorbed.

Seeing the cannon fail to make the slightest dent in Kurumi's defenses, Kihara had no choice but to shut it down.

Watching all this, Accelerator's expression grew intrigued.

This woman… she's strong.

After a series of exhaustive tests, even Kurumi began to grow impatient.

"Let's conduct one last test of destructive power," Kihara said with a sigh. She was proving to be even more troublesome than Accelerator.

"Destructive power?" Kurumi murmured, recalling the sight of Misaka Mikoto wielding an iron sand sword.

Raising her right arm, she made a loose fist.

The black-and-red shadows coalesced in her hand, elongating into a slender military saber.

"Hey, hey, hey! What do you think you're doing?!"

Before Kihara's astonished eyes, Kurumi lightly stepped forward, her figure vanishing in an instant. She reappeared before another alloy wall, plunging her shadow blade into the thick metal without resistance.

With a sharp upward swing, the blade ripped through the alloy, peeling it apart like paper.

Stepping through the gap she had created, Kurumi dismissed her blade and clapped her hands lightly.

"There, now it's symmetrical."

...

In the end, Accelerator didn't get to face off against Kurumi.

Fights between Level 5 ability users were strictly prohibited, although Kihara had secretly arranged such battles in the past.

This time, however, was different. The girl's presence came with direct orders from his superiors, and he didn't dare act recklessly.

More importantly, Kihara despised meaningless losses.

He compiled all the data, submitted it for review, and even applied for access to the Tree Diagram Designer to calculate the potential outcome of a battle between the two. He also sought to determine if Kurumi could replace Misaka clones in Accelerator's Level 6 Shift experiment.

But a question lingered in Kihara's mind:

Could Accelerator truly defeat her?

His understanding of Accelerator's abilities surpassed even Accelerator's own. Against such ghostly powers, could he hold out long enough to crack her abilities and take control?

Since a fight wasn't possible, Accelerator prepared to leave.

He had already encountered this woman once before, and she was nothing but trouble.

But Kurumi stepped into his path. "Accelerator-san~"

"There's a question I've been wanting to ask you since last time."

"Are you GG (Male Player) or MM (Female Player)~?"

...

"Kurumi," Kihara interrupted, cutting off their "intimate" interaction.

"We'll test your clone next time," he said, studying the printed report in his hand.

"But one thing is certain: you're definitely a Level 5 ability user."

"Oh?" Kurumi's gaze locked onto Kihara, her lips curving into a playful smile.

"How do you know… that I'm not a clone?"

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