Chapter 1766: Chapter 1764: Still Have to Rely on Me (A Cat That Does Nothing but Eat and Sleep)

Hainara Kuon...

Upon hearing this name, Fang Zheng carefully observed the young girl in front of him and then reminisced for a moment.

Don’t recall there being this character in the anime, not even as a background character.

Fang Zheng considers himself to remember a bit about the people in Academy City, including that one named Shihou Souki and the one called Konoha Mitsuko; he still remembers their names, but this name Hainara Kuon... Fang Zheng truly hasn’t heard of it.

She’s probably not part of the main cast.

Come to think of it, with this girl’s looks, if she showed up, how would Misaka Mikoto even stand a chance?

For this, Fang Zheng wasn’t surprised; after all, anime is anime, and reality is reality. It’s not like you can write delinquent boy ABC in an anime’s voice cast, and then in reality, these people are actually called delinquent boy ABC, right?

"Hello, I am Fang Zheng from the Quantum Neural Research Institute."

While speaking, Fang Zheng extended his hand to shake hands with Hainara Kuon. Hainara Kuon seemed a bit hesitant as she looked at Fang Zheng, and then she inquired.

"Are you... Mr. Fang Zheng? Are you also an Ability User?"

"Haha, you guess."

"Eh...?"

"He’s always like this, Classmate Hainara, just don’t mind him."

Upon seeing this, Kuroko Shirai sighed helplessly; both Kuroko Shirai and Misaka Mikoto had asked Fang Zheng this question, and Fang Zheng’s answer was always this, asked so often that they gave up.

Upon hearing this, Hainara Kuon didn’t say anything else, just obediently nodded and stepped aside, seemingly not intending to interfere in the upcoming actions of the Discipline Committee. However, Fang Zheng could sense that she seemed to be secretly observing him—this was also quite normal, given that Fang Zheng was devilishly handsome, and he often caught the gaze of girls while out, so he was already used to it.

After skillfully finishing the paperwork, Fang Zheng looked at Kuroko Shirai and cheerfully inquired.

"Judging by your expression, you’ve been quite tired recently, huh."

"Can’t help it, after all, the Fantasy Manipulator incident is quite extraordinary..."

"Still haven’t found the creator of the Fantasy Manipulator yet?"

"..."

Kuroko Shirai shook her head; unlike the year-round duty-bound Guard Officers, Kuroko Shirai was ultimately a student who not only had to attend classes but also had extracurricular learning and activities. Adding to that the patrols and various handling responsibilities of the Discipline Committee already took considerable time, and she still had to squeeze out time to search for the sellers of the Fantasy Manipulator.

What’s more troubling is that, as a Tokiwadai student, she also had to abide by the curfew... otherwise, the dorm supervisor wouldn’t listen to her explanations.

"If it really doesn’t work, I’ll think of a way."

Initially, Fang Zheng thought that as long as he enlightened them, they should soon find Mokuyama Haruo. But seeing Kuroko Shirai in a tired state, he realized he was mistaken.

Anime is, after all, anime; you can’t expect a thirty-minute piece to be dragged on for too long. Thinking about it now, Kuroko and the others hadn’t found Mokuyama Haruo, probably not just due to plot essentials. Besides, Fang Zheng knew the answer, but Kuroko and the others didn’t.

"Really?"

Upon hearing Fang Zheng say this, Kuroko Shirai couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"If possible, please leave it to Mr. Fang Zheng."

Considering Kuroko Shirai’s character, being able to say something like this indicated she indeed was tired beyond measure right now.

Come to think of it, the Guard Officers over there aren’t taking action... is that old man Arestar up to something?

Sooner or later, I’ll settle the score with you.

Of course, Fang Zheng couldn’t bear to trouble Kuroko Shirai; although the little girl was a bit perverted, it was only in front of Misaka Mikoto, not onto himself. If it were Arya, Fang Zheng wouldn’t leave her alone for three to five days, wearing down her sharpness before discussing what to do next.

So, upon returning to the institute, Fang Zheng promptly conducted an investigation—an investigation into Mokuyama Haruo’s residence.

He wasn’t a detective, didn’t need to search for evidence and motives; in short, since Fang Zheng knew who the culprit was, he could directly go and arrest them.

As for evidence?

We’ll talk about it later.

"Phew..."

Walking on the sunset-draped slope, Ruiko stretched lazily.

"Practice with my ability is getting more and more proficient, I wonder when I can reach the next level..."

While muttering to herself, Ruiko stared at her hands.

"Ah... ah, I wish I had a personal code name, like Classmate Misaka’s Railgun..."

Upon saying this, Ruiko couldn’t help but feel a bit envious. She hadn’t told anyone that she possessed an ability because Fang Zheng had warned Ruiko that currently, this ability didn’t entirely belong to her. It was more of a transitional phase for Ruiko to become familiar with using abilities, or rather like a DEMO before the release of the full game.

For this reason, Ruiko hadn’t reported her ability; the registration of an Ability Level in the library requires a complete examination, meaning at that point, she wouldn’t be able to wear the bracelet anymore. Ruiko had tried it out, and without the bracelet, she couldn’t use the ability.

Therefore, even if Ruiko wanted to register her ability name, she couldn’t do it at the moment.

However, Fang Zheng had assured her that it would be resolved, and there has been some progress, so Ruiko wasn’t in a hurry.

Yet at this moment...

"Didn’t you say you’d give me the Fantasy Manipulator?"

Suddenly, a voice came from nearby. Hearing the term "Fantasy Manipulator," Ruiko was startled. She cautiously approached the source of the voice and peeked over, only to see a fat man surrounded by three delinquents.

"The price has gone up now!"

One of the delinquents at the fat man grinningly remarked.

"If you want it, bring another hundred thousand!"

"No... Then, give me my money back! Ugh!!"

As soon as the fat man finished speaking, the thug kicked him in the stomach, knocking him to the ground. Witnessing this, Saten Reiko quickly hid away in fear.

"Anyway, let’s contact the Guard Officers or Discipline Committee Member first..."

While muttering to herself, Saten Reiko took out her phone, but...

"No battery?"

Staring at the blank screen of her phone, Reiko was speechless.

"Ugh! Wow! Ah!!"

From nearby came the miserable cries of the fat man. Hearing the screams, Reiko hesitated for a moment, then clenched her fists.

I... I can do this!

After all, I’m an Ability User now!

With this thought in mind, Reiko rushed out.

"Stop now!"

Hearing Reiko’s voice, the three thugs turned around. Seeing them, Reiko instinctively stepped back but mustered the courage to continue speaking.

"I’ve already contacted the Guard Officers. They’ll be here soon!"

"Ha?"

However, faced with Reiko’s warning, the three thugs appeared completely indifferent.

"So what? I advise you, little girl, not to meddle!"

With that, one of the thugs strode towards Reiko. Witnessing this, Reiko gritted her teeth and suddenly swung her hand.

Soon, a gust of wind rushed forward, blowing at the thug’s face.

"I... I’m also an Ability User! If you come any closer, be careful or I won’t show mercy!"

"Hahaha! Interesting!"

Facing Saten Reiko’s words, the three thugs burst into laughter, and the leading thug gestured.

"Perfect, accompany this little girl and see how much your Ability Level has improved."

"Alright, boss."

The other two thugs chuckled, and one of them raised his hand, swinging it forcefully at Reiko. Immediately, discarded steel pipes and iron plates nearby rushed towards Reiko. Witnessing the impending weapons, Reiko’s face turned pale, yet she bit her lip fiercely and swung her hand. A fierce wind suddenly rose, forming a barrier in front of Reiko.

The flying steel pipes and iron plates heavily struck the wind wall and were blown away.

"Oh? Some skill, huh? Again!"

Seeing his attack blocked, the thug laughed heartily before manipulating the discarded construction materials to throw them at Reiko again. Facing the incoming attack, Reiko had no choice. As a mere middle schooler, her physical and reaction capabilities were no different from an ordinary person, and she had no combat experience.

Thus, Reiko barely parried the opponent’s attacks, exhausting herself. More worrying, while blocking another attack, a second thug sneaked up and seized Saten Reiko.

"Let... Let me go!"

"Little girl, is this all you’ve got?"

"Ah-----!!"

Feeling the intense pain from her wrist, Reiko couldn’t help but scream. Suddenly, another voice rang out.

"Stop right there!"

Another one seeking death?

The three thugs turned their heads, only to see a petite, twin-tailed girl standing not far away, coldly staring at them.

"I’m a Discipline Committee Member. Let go of that girl immediately!"

"Classmate Shirai..."

Seeing Kuroko Shirai appear, Reiko was shocked. Meanwhile, Kuroko Shirai angrily glared at the thugs.

"Damn it, made me run so far and found the Fantasy Manipulator’s deal scene, only to see my friend being attacked... I’m arresting you for intentional harm, surrender now!"

"Hahaha, let’s see what you’re capable of!"

The thug who had fought Reiko laughed heartily, again manipulating debris to hurl at Kuroko Shirai. For Kuroko Shirai, such attacks were meaningless. She teleported, dodging effortlessly before knocking the thug to the ground. Quickly, she teleported again, appearing beside another thug and executing a Space Transfer, sending him airborne for a free fall.

So powerful... Is this the capability of a Level 4 Ability User?

Watching in awe, Reiko’s eyes widened as she helplessly lowered her head.

Compared to her mere Level 2 ability... it’s still insufficient.

At that moment, Kuroko Shirai teleported again, appearing in front of the lead thug, swinging her bag at him.

Based on Shirai’s calculation, this should knock her opponent down. Unexpectedly, just as she swung her bag, the thug vanished from in front of her!

Vanished?

Seeing this, Shirai was astonished, wide-eyed. Before she could react, the thug appeared adjacent to Shirai, kicking her heavily in the waist and sending her flying!