The main city of the southern district was in chaos.

A series of explosions had awakened the residents in the middle of the night.

The [White Corps] had responded in record time, along with emergency teams, to put out the fires caused by the ignited gasoline.

"Now, the second part begins." (Kohaku)

Using her laptop from her hotel room, which served as their pseudo-base, Kohaku started the second phase of her plan.

Her current laptop wasn’t up to par with her main computer used at the bunker. Still, it did its job well enough.

The girl easily accessed the system controlling the traffic lights on the main roads.

"And now, all green."

Of course, her actions had consequences. The few drivers on the road at that hour ended up in accidents because of her manipulations.

"(I'm so sorry for all of you... but it’s the only way to distract the [White Corps] while we operate... I hope no one dies.)" (Kohaku)

It was her first time ever. Never before had the [Esper] involved so many innocent people in her plans. Dozens, if not hundreds, used solely to keep her master safe.

The sense of guilt was already consuming her. Part of her wanted to vomit for what she had caused. Her parents would be ashamed of her, and even her friends.

"(Luckily, I didn’t tell the others... Cloe-chan, among all, would have dissuaded me from doing it.)" (Kohaku)

From security camera footage, she saw a truck crash into a vehicle carrying a family. Her heart clenched at the sight, but her logical mind told her she had no choice.

"Kohaku-chan! What’s happening?! I see accidents everywhere!" (Cloe)

"Yeah, it’s kind of beautiful to watch, if I didn’t know you caused it." (Kimiko)

Finally, the voices of her two companions woke her from her trance.

"Keep with the plan... I’ll take responsibility for everything else." (Kohaku)

"But—" (Cloe)

"Cloe! Now’s not the time to talk! Move to the new position! The [White Corps] are about to catch you!" 

The cold, emotionless voice of her friend made her shiver, and Kimiko looked at her with surprise.

- "Understood... We’ll talk later." (Cloe)

- "Who would have thought you were so ruthless?" (Kimiko)

- "I’ll do what I must, Kimiko. All for the sake of Hajime and Kuro, who are risking more than anyone else." (Kohaku)

That was the last informal conversation among the three. From then on, they focused solely on the mission.

They created chaos and destruction around the city while the [White Corps] ran around like headless chickens, unable to find a way to counter the situation.

Finally, after a couple of hours, the [Black Corps] led by Kugutsu arrived. The torturer of Fumio herself went straight to the chaotic base of the [White Corps] to take control of the situation.

"Who’s in charge here?! You have two seconds to answer before I fire everyone!" (Cris)

"I am, ma'am!?" 

The responsible officer responded quickly and decisively.

"Listen to me, [White Corps], my name is Cris, and from now on, I’m in charge of this operation! I want every available man in assault gear! A group of insurgents is laying waste to our city! We’ll go door-to-door if necessary! Wake up every agent and prepare coffee, this will be a long night!" (Cris)

"Received!"

From the cameras inside the main police station on the island, Kohaku watched the scene.

"Girls, they’re coming. Get ready. I have maps of the city and the sewers, but only a few drones. We need to work in perfect sync, or they’ll catch us." (Kohaku)

"Understood." (Kimiko / Cloe)

Kuro had worked hard to bring as much equipment as possible from their base in the central district, but it was suspicious for an adolescent to carry all that gear.

In the end, she had to leave behind much of Kohaku’s gear to prioritize weapons for her teammates.

After all, they couldn’t fight without their equipment.

Not to mention, she couldn’t use her shadow magic to teleport the gear because it was too heavy, and moving it over dozens of kilometers would have exhausted her.

**********

Meanwhile, Hajime and Kuro were doing their part.

They were on a building almost adjacent to the main Black Corps base, the place where their master’s phone signal was coming from.

What they were about to do was a gamble.

Infiltrate their enemies’ hideout? Just to find a prisoner who would be heavily guarded? Extract him without being defeated by the still-present Black Corps soldiers? Despite the late hour and their goal of capturing Kimiko and Cloe?

The word “Impossible” didn’t quite capture what they were attempting.

It was a suicide mission.

Maybe if they had been more mature, they would realize that there was no certainty Fumio was in that building, and everything could be an elaborate trap.

But ultimately, despite their extraordinary abilities—more impressive than many adults—they were still teenagers, acting impulsively without real experience.

"Are you done?" (Hajime)

"Hey! It’s not as easy as it looks, Kohaku!" (Kuro)

"Do you want me to try?" (Hajime)

"Yeah, because you’re secretly a tech-nerd now! If that’s the case, why didn’t you say so earlier?!" (Kuro)

"Lower your voice, idiot!" (Hajime)

"Then let me work in peace!" (Kuro)

"Hey, are you two in?" (Kohaku)

Her leader’s voice managed to stop their arguing.

"No, Kuro is still in the dark." (Hajime)

"Bullshit! I’m almost there! Nothing will stop me now!" (Kuro)

"Are you sure you followed all of Kohaku’s instructions?" (Hajime)

"More than sure!" (Kuro)

"You two... what the hell are you doing?! Cloe-chan and Kimiko-chan are already being chased!" (Kohaku)

Kohaku had equipped her friends with a small computer they could use to deactivate the security cameras and sensors on the enemy’s rooftop. Just enough for them to get inside.

Kuro had received a quick lesson on how to use it. The problem? Kohaku had underestimated the defenses of the [Black Corps].

"Listen, you need to give us a hand. This place is more secure than expected." (Kuro)

"Wait, I’ll see if I can disable the alarms." (Kuro)

It took ten minutes before the brilliant hacker managed to succeed, helping her two friends avoid capture.

"Okay, listen carefully! The roof is safe, but once inside, I won’t be able to help you much. The internal network seems completely isolated from the outside world." (Kohaku)

"And how are we supposed to avoid being discovered?! Even if Kuro becomes a shadow, magical detection cameras will spot him!" (Hajime)

"I agree, we can’t—" (Kuro)

"I’ve modified the computer you have: it will loop the footage from the cameras within a certain radius, but I can’t open doors or guide you inside. You’ll have to figure something out yourselves... guys, once inside, you'll be on your own. Be careful." (Kohaku)

"Understood." (Kuro / Hajime)

The two boys finally looked at each other, examining the gap they’d have to jump to reach the other roof.

"I have a bad feeling..." (Hajime)

"Me too... but Fumio-sensei would do it for us." (Kuro)

"I know, let’s go! I’ll throw you now!" 

Using his strength, granted by his [magic], Hajime managed to launch his teammate across the street.

Their brother-in-law could have escaped faster if the alarms had gone off.

Landing on the roof, the boy with the sickle looked around for traps before signaling Hajime to follow him. He made a leap that brought him onto the same roof where his partner had landed.

"Let’s go, now the hard part begins." (Hajime)

The two started searching for an entry point. Eventually, they decided to use an air intake to infiltrate.

Kuro took the form of a shadow, while her friend had to wriggle inside the duct.

Unbeknownst to them, they had just entered a snake’s nest.