Acqua of the Back, William Orwell. This man had perhaps already reached the pinnacle of what humanity could achieve in the conventional sense.
Those who could be said to defeat him with certainty were either the "Holy Right," known as the "Right of the Right," a quasi-Magic God who had nearly become a Magic God, one of the greatest magicians of the past several centuries, or some peerless prodigy born to a particular age...
Compared to those monsters, William Orwell was, in truth, far more "ordinary." Viewed across a broad span of time such as centuries, constitutions like that of a "Saint" or the "Divine Mother" did not seem particularly rare.
After all, in the current era alone, there were already around twenty known people in the world who possessed such traits.
What was truly remarkable was that William Orwell possessed both constitutions while also obtaining the power of God's Right Seat.
It was the combination of three "ordinary" powers that emerged in every age that had forged Acqua of the Back's fearsome reputation.
An ordinary "Saint" could not unleash one hundred percent of their innate power the way William Orwell could. Merely controlling a portion of that power was already extremely difficult. If they attempted to exercise it at full strength, a Saint's body could be crushed by the excessive pressure of their own power.
Kanzaki Kaori was one example. Although being a "Saint" allowed her to wield a portion of the Son of God's power, the human body simply could not bear such tremendous force for extended periods.
That was precisely why Kanzaki Kaori usually chose "Yuisen," a technique that required her to invoke the Son of God's power for only a single instant, as her finishing move.
It was not for the sake of looking impressive. She had no other choice. If possible, no one enjoyed possessing power they could not freely use.
If Saints such as Kanzaki Kaori could be described as ordinary Saints in a "stable state achieved by reducing speed," then William Orwell was a "special Saint" who simultaneously possessed the bodily characteristics of both a "Saint" and the "Divine Mother."
He existed in a "high-speed stable state." In other words, even if he unleashed the entirety of his innate power, it would not cause him to lose control.
More importantly, besides possessing the power and powerful physique granted by his characteristics as a "Saint" and the "Divine Mother," William Orwell could also exploit the angelic spells of God's Right Seat to comprehensively strengthen and multiply his power, allowing him to easily and completely wield more than two hundred percent of his innate strength.
And that strengthening and multiplication did not apply merely to his physical attributes or swelling muscles. The effect of the spell extended not only to the water magic he controlled, but even to the enormous steel weapon in William Orwell's hands, instantly increasing its mass and crushing force.
Crack-crack-crack!
Only after a full half minute did the residual destruction caused by the penetrating strike of Voidstar Anchor finally subside.
Looking down from high above, Selene saw an enormous fan-shaped trench stretching across the landscape.
At the end of the trench lay a massive circular crater gouged into the base of a skyscraper. The pit was extremely deep, still radiating intense heat as thick smoke and flames rolled upward. Most of the crystalline surface covered in fire had been melted by the heat into a flowing orange-red substance resembling lava.
Around the crater, skyscraper-like pillars had been severed halfway up. The remaining "stumps" were riddled with cracks, devastated beyond recognition. Crystalline particles had been churned out of the ground, and everything in every direction was charred black.
Looking at William Orwell, who had been pinned to the center of the crater by Voidstar Anchor in what resembled a remarkably accurate recreation of the Crucifixion, Selene offered sincere praise. He still hadn't lost consciousness...
As expected of a conceptual spell said to erase "Original Sin" and inherit the characteristics of the Four Great Archangels. He was a far more useful punching bag than Kanzaki Kaori.
At Selene's current output level, Kanzaki Kaori probably would have been beaten to death already.
His melted clothing and all manner of miscellaneous personal belongings, including his cross necklace, had fused into his mangled flesh. Yellowish fluid dripped from the cracked, scabbed wounds covering his body, and Selene could even smell cooked meat.
"William! William! Lady Selene, I've already agreed to your conditions and my sister's! I beg you, please save him! William!"
As the crystalline platform descended, Villian finally broke down the moment she saw William Orwell's miserable state up close. All her composure and the decorum expected of royalty were thrown completely aside as she dissolved into tears. She wanted to approach Selene and beg her directly, but the scorching heat and surging flames blocked her path.
"Villian! Are you trying to die?!"
Seeing Villian foolishly attempting to wade through the molten material on the ground to reach Selene, Carissa reacted immediately and hurriedly dragged her back from her suicidal course of action.
With Villian's utterly powerless physique, stepping into that would unquestionably result in severe burns. If things went badly, she could even lose a limb.
"William! Don't die!"
Turning again to see William Orwell pinned motionless against the wall, Villian's eyes overflowed with tears as she sobbed as though her heart were being torn apart. Her eyes were already swollen. She immediately rushed toward him again, wanting to take him down, but he was simply hanging too high for Villian to reach.
"Sister! Spare William! Please spare him! Villian begs you, let him go!" As though clutching at her final lifeline, Villian wrapped her arms tightly around Carissa and refused to let go.
Flames burned fiercely as collapsed buildings crashed down one after another in the distance. Amid Third Princess Villian's heart-rending cries, Misaka Mikoto, who had descended with them, lowered her gaze. She was starting to feel as though she were one of the villains.
Shokuhou Misaki also stepped forward, looking at everything before her with a complicated expression.
"Disperse."
Hiss!
In an instant, the raging flames vanished completely, including Voidstar Anchor. After leaving behind a large pool of blood in the center of the crater, William Orwell slid downward amid Villian's startled cry.
"Are you feeling guilty?"
Selene traced an arc through the air and revealed herself, descending gracefully opposite Misaka Mikoto with a brilliant fiery-red trail behind her. The wave of heat rolling toward Mikoto frightened a cute yelp out of her.
Snapping back to her senses, Misaka Mikoto stared blankly at the golden-armored Valkyrie descending like a blazing golden-red phoenix.
Although Selene had already ended her release of flames, her entire body remained surrounded by a brilliant golden-red aura.
Selene's figure was already striking enough on its own, but framed by that radiant golden battlesuit, she carried an even greater air of heroic dominance. Combined with her exquisitely alluring features, the visual impact was overwhelming not merely to the opposite sex, but even to women.
Selene glanced curiously at Misaka Mikoto's flushed face but paid it no mind. She had no interest in constantly reading people's thoughts and simply assumed the high-temperature environment was responsible.
"He is merely one insignificant member of the foreign invasion force that intends to destroy Academy City."
Selene pointed at William Orwell, who had slid down into the crater and was now being held in Villian's arms. "If the Roman Catholic Church's plan succeeds, Academy City will be destroyed, and the Science Side will completely submit to the Magic Side."
Selene knew exactly how far she could go. William Orwell might look like a mangled mass of bloody flesh with one arm torn off, but in reality, the injuries were not particularly serious... Well, an ordinary person would certainly be dead, but was William Orwell an ordinary person?
"The life you know at Tokiwadai would probably vanish forever. In its place might be a Vatican seminary. Those bishops are always shouting that heretics belong in hell and that every infidel should die."
Selene chuckled. "Do you still feel sorry for him now?"
"I..."
Snap!
Selene rubbed her thumb against her middle finger and turned away. Her words did not seem intended for Misaka Mikoto alone. Strange violet-red ripples instantly spread outward from around her body.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Among those who appeared was a small figure leaning on a cane, with white hair, scarlet eyes, and frighteningly pale skin. Even though they had already more or less reconciled, Misaka Mikoto's hair still stood on end the instant she saw him.
Accelerator?! Why is he here?!
"Tch. What a pain..."
Accelerator swept his gaze around. He had watched every moment of Selene turning the entire city into a sea of fire with her absurdly flashy combat power, and most of his irritation at being summoned by Selene immediately vanished.
"Milady, is he one of the Roman Catholic Church's top combatants?"
A brown-haired boy wearing a simple dark uniform spoke. Since his boss had already begun the discussion, Kakine Teitoku naturally followed her lead. At the same time, he glanced warily at William Orwell from the corner of his eye.
He had witnessed the combat power of this towering, muscular man who resembled an ancient Greek sculpture. Kakine still possessed enough self-awareness to recognize one thing. Whatever else might happen, in a purely physical confrontation, he would be beaten to pieces.
"Yes. One of their very highest-level combatants. One of the four seats of God's Right Seat, Acqua of the Back. But even losing him would at most count as a major blow to the Vatican. It would still be far from crippling them. Because..."
As she spoke, Selene pointed almost threateningly at the devastated city beneath them, the ruins left behind by her battle with William Orwell.
"The truly terrifying one stands above him. This is the level of destruction he can cause after exhausting everything he has. But this—"
Selene clenched her hand violently.
Rumble!
In an instant, the enormous and silent mirrored city was split apart by a colossal orange sword thirty to forty kilometers long. It cleaved through the earth's crust and sliced the city in two.
Amid scattering flames, a mass of light with five twisted fingers materialized. Its enormous translucent outline descended, and Academy City was crushed into rubble almost instantly.
The mirrored world disintegrated in an instant and vanished, dissolving into boundless emptiness. Only the platform beneath Selene's feet remained, roughly one kilometer across. Twisting, writhing violet-red motes and lines filled the surroundings, adding an even more ominous sense of oppression.
"This is what Fiamma of the Right can do. Splitting the earth apart in an instant, severing mountain ranges, and cutting cities in two are effortless for him," Selene said calmly. "He is our enemy."
"That's way too ridiculous..."
A gentle female voice came from behind Kakine Teitoku. A figure slowly stepped forward, finally revealing herself fully.
She was a tall, slender girl with softly flowing brown hair, wearing a purple dress and white knee-high boots. Her prominent chest gave her an imposing presence, while every movement carried an elegant grace that made her resemble the daughter of a wealthy family.
She was Mugino Shizuri, one of Academy City's current eight Level 5s, ranked fifth, the "Meltdowner," and leader of the Dark Side organization ITEM.
Even knowing that it had only been a projection, Mugino Shizuri had still felt uncontrollable fear when that enormous distorted hand blotted out the sky and descended.
I would definitely die.
Especially since this information came directly from Selene. There was no reason for Selene to deceive her.
Then Mugino remembered the rumors circulating throughout the Dark Side. During the Daihasei Festival, Academy City's weapons manufacturing facilities had never stopped operating. They had been working overtime around the clock while enormous quantities of military supplies were unloaded, transferred, and stockpiled. Everything carried the unmistakable air of a coming storm and preparations for a major war.
Mugino Shizuri reached her conclusion.
"Against an enemy at that level, even if you sent me and the fourth-ranked Level 5 together, we'd just be going there to die, wouldn't we?" Mugino Shizuri asked Selene with a grave expression.
Selene chuckled. "Don't worry. I am one of the Board Directors, after all. You're all valuable combat assets of the Science Side. Why would I send my own people to die? Kings fight kings, generals fight generals, soldiers fight soldiers."
"I've already eliminated Terra of the Left, and Acqua of the Back is the second. Naturally, Fiamma of the Right will be handled by Chairman Aleister and me. What I need from all of you is to put aside your previous grudges, cooperate, crush the claws the Roman Catholic Church has extended into our territory, and counterattack when necessary. While their headquarters is empty, we'll hit them hard."
"They're always coming into our territory to cause destruction. It's only proper that we return the courtesy."
There was no need to check. Selene's movements were undoubtedly under intensive surveillance. She could not leave. She needed to remain on the front line, drawing enemy fire and holding the line.
"..."
Misaka Mikoto opened her mouth but ultimately did not start shouting about everyone peacefully getting along. After everything she had experienced—the Level Upper incident, the Skill-Out conflicts, the Level 6 Shift Project, the space elevator incident, and many others—her convictions remained unchanged, but her thinking had matured considerably.
This time, the conflict was one of ideology, faith, and the path each side had chosen. Such conflicts were vastly more difficult to resolve than simple hatred.
Unless one side fell and accepted the other's leadership, both sides suffered devastating losses and withdrew to lick their wounds, or some peerless monster appeared who desired no change to the status quo, loved peace, and possessed enough overwhelming power to force both sides into maintaining it.
And that was obviously impossible.
In a world filled with monsters and absurdities, the third possibility was actually the most plausible. Unfortunately, Kamijou Touma, the "Person of the World," currently lacked that ability. Aleister had no interest in doing so. As for Magic Gods, quasi-Magic Gods, demons, and angels, they were either shut-ins who ignored worldly affairs or spectators who treated everything as entertainment.
As for Selene? If she had not been merely a clone and burdened by certain concerns, she would have sunk the Italian Peninsula into the sea long ago!
Crack-crack-crack!
Seeing everyone lost in thought, Selene did not interrupt them. She simply waved her hand.
Crack-crack-crack!
The mirrored world collapsed. Amid a dizzying sensation of heaven and earth turning upside down, everyone opened their eyes again and found themselves back on the bustling streets of School District 7. The neon lights still shone as though nothing had ever changed, with the sole exception of the battered man lying on the ground, whose wounds testified to the reality of the horrifying scene they had witnessed moments earlier.
As the golden gauntlet around Selene's hand gradually faded away, she turned toward the Windowless Building and made an "OK" gesture.