Standing at the entrance to the hall was a breathtakingly beautiful woman of peerless grace.
Unlike usual, the beauty was not wearing her ordinary Tokiwadai Middle School uniform, nor the suit, vest, shirt, and black trousers she wore while handling Schicksal Group affairs. Instead, she wore an opulent off-the-shoulder evening gown of black silk.
The neckline rested beneath her bare shoulders, baring the upper curves of her full breasts while preserving the gown's noble elegance. Her fair skin appeared especially luminous beneath the lights, while the pure-colored fabric shimmered brilliantly. Her dazzling silver-white hair cascaded like a waterfall down her naked back, accentuating her exquisitely sculpted figure.
An ultra-thin transparent silk choker clung snugly around her slender neck, accompanied by a strand of pearls. Purple diamond-shaped earrings hung from her ears, feather ornaments adorned one side of her hair, and a blue rose gemstone brooch rested above the fitted bodice of her gown.
Beneath her exquisitely styled hair was a perfectly refined face that looked almost unnaturally flawless even without makeup, as though it had been carved by a master artist. Its features were certainly three-dimensional, yet somehow made it difficult to distinguish her ethnicity.
Within her clear scarlet eyes lay golden diamond-cross rings resembling angelic halos, glimmering with an otherworldly radiance. Their depths seemed intoxicating and dreamlike, yet also like whirlpools capable of drawing away a person's very soul and rendering them hopelessly enthralled.
The custom-tailored high-end gauze dress created a marvelous hazy effect that added another layer of noble elegance to the graceful, firm curves of her body. Alluring without appearing excessive, it perfectly embodied a charm that was neither excessive nor lacking, dazzling like gold itself.
Click, clack, click, clack...
The long black skirt possessed a side slit that reached Selene's upper thigh. With every step she took, one fair-skinned leg emerged between the parted folds of silk. A pair of sheer nude pantyhose covered her legs, so fine and translucent that they blended naturally with her skin while lending it a faint, silky sheen.
On her feet was an elegant pair of black high heels with slender platform bases beneath the forefeet, tall stiletto heels, and single straps decorated with delicate lily patterns. Their graceful design complemented the shapely lines of her legs and the refined silhouette of the gown.
The dress had been fashioned specifically for Selene, its proportions following the golden ratio so that every line appeared harmonious and pleasing to the eye.
The crisp tapping of her stilettos against the floor sounded particularly distinct in the Western-style mansion's hall, which had suddenly fallen silent. The sound gradually approached the banquet's round table.
"Hm? What is everyone talking about? May I join you?"
Hearing the cool yet not remotely distant voice beside their ears, a voice that instead made people feel as though they had been touched by a spring breeze, everyone only belatedly recovered from that intense sense of palpitating awe.
"Wow! Selene-senpai!"
At the round table, Uiharu Kazari, the smallest and cutest person at the gathering and the one most likely to inspire affection from her elders, immediately stopped biting into her appetizer. Her eyes filled with delight instead, and as though responding to their owner's emotions, even the flowers adorning her head seemed more vibrant.
"Mm."
Smiling faintly, Selene gently wiped the cream from the corner of Uiharu Kazari's mouth with a handkerchief, then rubbed her head.
"I haven't properly thanked you yet. The timing may not be ideal, but welcome to the banquet we're holding to welcome my mother back. It's also something of a family gathering."
"N-No, no, no, Senpai. We're the ones who should be thanking you..."
Feeling the cool touch against her cheek, Uiharu Kazari felt as though all the blood in her body had instantly rushed backward. She was excited, restless, and filled with yearning all at once, and her eyes practically turned into little stars.
"Big Sister, me too!"
Seeing this, little Ferdinand immediately jumped out of Arisa's arms and demanded the same treatment. Unfortunately, there was cream on the napkin tucked against his chest, and before he had bounced more than a few steps away, Mother Katy appeared like a ghost and lifted him off the ground.
"Ferdinand, are you planning to use your sister's evening gown as a cleaning rag?"
Mother Katy's voice was gentle. Extremely gentle. Precisely because of that, Ferdinand's entire body went rigid on the spot.
A hot towel was then applied to his face before he was handed over to a maid nearby. Without even managing to touch Selene, he "perished halfway through his campaign" and was carried off to one side, where only muffled whimpers could be heard.
"...My younger brother is slightly too lively."
As she spoke, Selene personally poured fresh tea for the elders present.
"Oh, oh, thank you. He's a child. It's good for children to be lively. Better that way."
A middle-aged man with untidy stubble sat in his seat and looked up at the "young girl" before him, his son's friend whose development was far too impressive for someone her age.
Although Touya Kamijou's face was slightly flushed, there was no trace of lust in his eyes, only admiration.
Despite how Touya Kamijou, much like his son, seemed to unconsciously attract women wherever he went, he was a model husband. He had no interest in other women and had loved only his wife Shiina throughout his life.
"Ah, thank you very much, Selene-san." Shiina Kamijou accepted the teacup with a bright smile.
She had recognized that this girl was different from the very first time she'd seen her during the televised opening ceremony of the Daihasei Festival.
She was completely different from the girls named Shokuhou and Misaka. There was no ambiguity or unnecessary emotion in her behavior, only interactions seemingly calculated with machine-like precision, neither overly intimate nor overly distant, always perfectly measured.
And for that kind of forceful pressure and commanding aura to appear in a middle school student was simply absurd. Habsburg... the first-ranked Level 5 esper.
"Ah, thank you. So Selene is the classmate little Mikoto keeps mentioning in her letters, the one known as the strongest?"
As a young mother whose personality and appearance were both entirely different from her daughter's, Misaka Misuzu naturally accepted the teacup Selene offered her and immediately began closing the distance between them.
"What a charming girl. Compared with you, my Mikoto loses in every possible way, whether in maturity or..."
As she spoke, Misaka Misuzu turned back toward her daughter, who was still baring her teeth at Shokuhou Misaki near the round table. Seeing Mikoto's stunned expression, she raised an eyebrow, lowered her gaze by roughly three centimeters, and curled her lips upward.
"Ah..."
Not only did she shake her head, she even provocatively thrust out her chest.
"Mom—!"
Taking in all those little gestures, Selene gave a timely soft laugh. She raised one slender hand clad in a sheer black lace glove to cover her mouth, while her cherry-red lips curved into an elegant smile.
If Misaka Mikoto appeared dignified, mature, and dependable in the eyes of her juniors, then her mother, Misaka Misuzu, seemed irresponsible, lazy, and occasionally childish enough to make one wonder whether their roles had somehow been reversed.
"Kamijou-san, welcome... Hm? Huh...?"
Turning her gaze toward the black-haired boy with spiky hair before her, Selene was about to speak when she suddenly felt that something was missing. She glanced around.
Huh? Where's that silly white-haired nun?
"Where's that little nun-shaped emergency food supply? Doesn't she always follow you around? Why isn't she here today? Don't tell me... you already ate her?"
"What emergency food? I have no idea what you're talking abou... Wait, hold on, ah—!"
Kamijou Touma's eyes suddenly widened. He froze for a moment, then seemed to recall some horrifying fate. His expression turned ugly as he swallowed hard, clutched his head, and cried out in horror.
"Index!!"
He had felt all day as though he had forgotten something. Selene's joking remark instantly reminded Kamijou Touma that Index was missing.
He was finished! He had lost Index!
At that very moment, somewhere in Academy City, on a public bench...
"Ah... I'm so hungry..."
A white lump wriggled slightly as a grrrr rose from within it. A certain white-haired little nun let out a weak, resentful cry.
"—Touma!"
"T-This... Selene, Dad, Mom, excuse me for a moment. I think I dropped something. I'm terribly sorry. I'll be back soon."
Kamijou Touma practically wanted to scream at the top of his lungs. Index had been left alone for so long, and she was the kind of hopeless scientific idiot who could never learn how to operate anything technological no matter how many times she was taught. She was definitely starving by now.
He was absolutely going to get bitten!
"No need to make things so troublesome. I've already notified nearby Anti-Skill officers and asked them to bring the little one here. Her current location is..."
Selene lightly tapped a finger against empty air. Sky-blue streams of data flashed across her scarlet eyes as a violet-red three-dimensional projection appeared from nowhere. Selene pointed toward the white-haired lump curled up on a public bench.
"Oh, oh! Thank you very much! Sorry for the trouble."
"No need for thanks. I was only wondering... the magic side, Academy City, which side do you belong to?"
Dispersing the projection, Selene spoke with a hint of deeper meaning.
"Huh? Academy City, obviously. I live here."
Selene's sudden question left Kamijou Touma completely baffled.
"Is that so?"
Selene smiled without answering and handed him a cup of fresh tea, saying nothing more for the moment.
At that time, the sisters Carissa and Villian happened to descend slowly from the balcony corridor. The moment they saw Selene below in formal dress, their eyes lit up. Carissa strode ahead while Villian followed closely behind her elder sister.
"Your Highness Selene." ×2
"Your Highness Carissa. Your Highness Villian."
With unmistakable aristocratic poise, Selene placed a hand over her chest and inclined her head toward the two princesses. Yet even before British royalty, she still carried the aura of someone standing above others.
"It seems you two can't wait any longer. Come with me. And don't start any conflicts."
Seeing the hostility between them, Selene lowered her voice and raised one finger before her lips. Her moist lips parted as she spoke in a tone that brooked no argument.
"Don't rush. What you want, I believe, will be settled tonight. We can discuss everything in detail."
Carissa instinctively opened her mouth, wanting to ask immediately. Her personality had always been forceful and fiery, but after glancing at her younger sister, she ultimately restrained herself.
"Fine. But can you at least give us a hint?"
Selene half narrowed her eyes, her moist lips parting slightly.
"William Orwell."
That name made Third Princess Villian's eyes widen instantly.
"What?"
...
Watching Selene exchange courteous greetings with every elder present before taking the initiative even in conversation with two British princesses, Misaka Mikoto, already seated, spoke with a trace of surprise.
"They really are princesses?"
It wasn't only Misaka Mikoto. Even Shokuhou Misaki was extremely curious.
Because she couldn't hear a single word of the conversation on Selene's side. The moment she prepared to use her mental ability, she received a warning.
A prohibition barrier...?
"Of course!"
If there was one subject that could instantly energize Uiharu Kazari, this was it.
Even her nervousness about meeting the young ladies of Tokiwadai and the new Level 5 esper disappeared. She rummaged frantically through her bag, pulled out her laptop, pointed at a page introducing the British royal family, and began explaining without pause.
"That's the Second Princess, Carissa, and that's the Third Princess, Villian. They're both genuine royalty."
"Hey, Uiharu, then what do you think Senpai and those two princesses are discussing? Their expressions seem pretty serious." Saten Ruiko raised her hand to ask.
"It must be all kinds of intimate, secret matters involving aristocratic young ladies..."
Selene: Stop making things up. What aristocratic secrets? We're only talking about things like coups, warfare, seduction, threats, and negotiations.
"I can't believe actual princesses came to Academy City."
Misaka Mikoto was surprised at first, but then spoke as though she understood.
"Though I suppose for Selene, that kind of social circle is perfectly normal."
"At least they're more genuine than a certain conceited person who's a queen in name only and appointed herself 'Queen.'" Whenever the opportunity arose, Misaka Mikoto would never pass up the chance to take a jab at Shokuhou Misaki.
"I won't deny it." Shokuhou Misaki shrugged. "What? Feeling inferior?"
"I am."
Misaka Mikoto didn't argue. She gazed at Selene's dazzling figure, so brilliant it was almost suffocating, and said quietly, "Or rather, there probably aren't many people in all of Academy City who wouldn't feel inferior standing before Selene, right?"
How many times had it happened already? Whenever Selene appeared, everyone else instantly became dull, colorless background leaves, completely eclipsed by her presence.
The entire stage became hers alone.
But Mikoto had grown used to it.
"Actually, someone like Selene is the kind of person most worthy of admiration. She satisfies everyone, everyone chases after her, everyone looks up to her, yet she has never shown the slightest confusion or fear."
Misaka Mikoto lowered her voice.
"Working hard and then obtaining the result should be natural. I don't know what price Selene has paid for what she possesses. But if I were placed in her position, I probably couldn't last even a single day."
At that moment, Misaka Mikoto thought of her sisters.
It was precisely because she possessed power, precisely because she was a Level 5 esper, that when her ability was needed, it had been used for that cruel project, leading to her sisters being created and turned into sacrifices.
Yet why had she never heard of anyone daring to scheme against Selene?
In the end, it was because her own power was insufficient.
Now that she had come into contact with Academy City's darkness, she could imagine just how many challenges Selene must have dealt with behind the scenes.
Even holding the fourth-ranked position had caused Mikoto so much suffering. If she were placed in the eye of the storm that was the first-ranked position, how immense would the pressure be?
It might crush her outright.
She had already personally experienced the overwhelming strength of the second-ranked Accelerator.
Misaka Mikoto's confession caused Shokuhou Misaki to fall silent.
That's right. Anyone who dared make a move against her either died by Selene's hand or at the hands of her subordinates.
But Selene kept me here without showing the slightest reaction. What exactly is she planning?
At that moment, the clock struck six-thirty.
It marked the beginning of the fireworks festival.
Boom! Boom, boom!
With a thunderous blast, the first firework soared into the sky and blossomed into a magnificent golden flower. Then countless more erupted in succession, brilliant stars filling the heavens and illuminating the night sky like a vast, multicolored sea. Their radiance cast Selene's face in especially dazzling light.
"It's already begun."
Looking toward Third Princess Villian, who sat with all ten fingers tightly interlocked, head lowered as she continued struggling with her decision, Selene tapped the tabletop and spoke calmly.
"Either serve me, or die. Your Highness, wouldn't it be a pity for such a noble knight to die?"