The time was eight-oh-five in the evening, the setting, a pitch-black, deserted alleyway.

The Absolute Ability User—Experiment 10030 was beginning… No, it was nearing its conclusion! At this moment, a girl in a Tokiwadai uniform, with short, tea-colored hair, moved her battered body, desperately fleeing forward.

Though her body was wracked with pain as if drenched in boiling water, the girl would not stop running.

This girl, bearing the exact same appearance as Mikoto Misaka, was her military mass-produced clone—the Misaka Imouto, identification code 10030.

From the moment the sniping attempt failed, 10030 knew she didn't even have one in ten thousand odds of winning.

The only reason she fled wasn't to find a chance to regroup her offensive; it was purely to prolong her life, even by a single second.

This, this was just the struggle before death.

“Hahaha! Why the rush? Wiggling your behind like that, are you trying to tempt me?” A voice, mad like the Grim Reaper’s, drifted from behind her.

A white-haired youth, dazzling to the eyes, stepped out of the shadows, a smile spreading across his face as he looked at the Misaka Imouto—a smile utterly discordant with his pale appearance, one of extreme distortion and madness.

Academy City’s Strongest Esper—Accelerator! Her time to die had arrived! Her body trembled uncontrollably, not from fear, but as a mere instinctive reaction to death! No strength left to run; stop running! Her body was issuing a clear warning to 10030, and she herself felt it would be better to stop now.

The person behind her could kill her with a mere twitch of a finger; this was just a game of hide-and-seek.

Rather than enduring this continuous agony, perhaps dying sooner would be more comfortable… Yes, that was what she thought, yet her body refused to obey her thoughts, still running forward tirelessly… At this moment, an image flashed through 10030’s memory—no, more accurately, it wasn't her memory, but "data" left behind by another Imouto.

For some reason, this "data" felt incomparably precious, as if it had granted her strength.

10030 swiftly darted into an adjacent alleyway… the route another Imouto had taken according to the "data." “Hmph!” Accelerator paused slightly as the girl vanished before his eyes, then adopted an impatient expression.

“Tch, this game of hide-and-seek should probably end now.

Honestly.” Though saying that, he didn't immediately rush forward to finish the girl off, but followed her without haste.

In truth, if he merely increased his speed slightly, he could dispatch her instantly.

A few minutes later, 10030’s strength finally gave out.

She collapsed onto the ground, kneeling weakly.

The sound of footsteps echoed behind her, and she instinctively turned her head.

“Ah, it seems taking a two-day break has made me a bit lax; I actually let you survive for ten whole minutes.

You should be happy about that.” Accelerator emerged from the shadows, closing the distance to the girl step by step.

She gasped for breath, yet even in this moment, her expression remained unchangingly indifferent.

“Huh?” Suddenly, Accelerator’s expression froze.

It wasn't due to the girl's reaction, but because the location felt somewhat familiar to him.

After recalling carefully, he finally remembered… This was also a site where a certain experiment had been conducted previously.

Back then, he had killed a girl identical to the one before him without any contest, but an unexpected variable occurred when the experiment ended: the sudden intervention of the Level 5 Esper, Railgun, Mikoto Misaka! “Tch, seriously, choosing this place as her own burial ground.

I really can’t comprehend the thinking of you people.” Accelerator ran a hand through his hair, looking thoroughly irritated… Indeed, they were just emotionless puppets.

To run to the very spot where "he" had once died without a second thought—a person with feelings would never come here… Accelerator thought this subconsciously, but in the very next instant, another thought surfaced in his mind: If they truly are emotionless puppets, then it wouldn't matter where they died, right? Why endure such pain just to reach this specific spot? Wouldn't that precisely indicate the existence of emotion! “Tch, looks like not only have I gotten lazy, I’ve started overthinking things too,” Accelerator grimaced in disgust, instantly throwing those recent thoughts far out of his head.

“Therefore, now you can go ahead and die!” Accelerator extended his hand, his face once again twisting into that maniacal, grotesque smile… Better get this annoying job over with quickly.

Going to die! Going to die! Going to die… These three words echoed repeatedly in her mind.

10030 lay on the ground, her body riddled with wounds; there were several bloody holes in her right shoulder and thigh.

Although she struggled to push herself up, there wasn't a trace of strength left in her body.

Watching the approaching Death God, countless images of death suddenly flashed through 10030’s mind.

A feeling she had never experienced before began to sprout deep within her heart.

As this feeling grew, her body trembled uncontrollably, and her unfocused eyes seemed, for a moment, to gain a sliver of clarity.

The emotion radiating from them was something anyone could understand—Fear! “Don’t… don’t die,” the Misaka said, trembling with a strange feeling.

Accelerator’s expression jolted, and his movement involuntarily stopped.

He stared at the girl before him in disbelief, almost thinking he had misheard.

“Misaka is very scared, Misaka doesn’t want to die, Misaka doesn’t want to participate in experiments, Misaka wants to live… Misaka doesn’t even know what she’s saying anymore, Misaka…” As she uttered these words, the expression of the Misaka Imouto remained completely unchanged; even with a flicker of emotion, expressing it was still difficult.

However, even this small degree was enough to move Accelerator.

Accelerator didn't hear the rest of what she said, because he was completely stunned.

An expression of incredulity flashed in his eyes, akin to a child finally having a long-awaited dream realized—a trace of elation appeared in his gaze.

But! That sliver of elation vanished from his eyes in less than a second.

In the next moment, it twisted into ferocity.

His face contorted completely as he grabbed the girl by the collar, hoisting 10030 up, and roared with fury.

“Damn it! Experimental animals should know their place as experimental animals! What do you mean you don’t want to die! What do you mean you want to live! Who do you think you are!” “Misaka is not an experimental animal, Misaka is human! Misaka firmly denies Accelerator’s words and emphasizes her identity.” Under Accelerator’s pressure, 10030’s voice was nearly inaudible, yet she managed to utter those words with surprising firmness, challenging Accelerator… Of course, as for what 'firmness' was, 10030 probably didn't know.

“Human? Human? Hahahaha! Hahahaha…” Accelerator suddenly threw his head back and laughed maniacally, not out of joy, but out of rage and madness.

He violently flung the Misaka Imouto away.

“What kind of joke is this! You’ve died over ten thousand times, you’re just a puppet, yet you claim to be human, claim you don’t want to participate in experiments! Damn it! Do you have any idea who you’re talking to? I am Accelerator, you bastard!” Accelerator raged like a madman, roaring his condemnation.

“Wuwuwu… Misaka starts crying, trying to solicit pity from Accelerator.” “Stop messing with me, bastard!” Accelerator seemed unable to tolerate it any longer.

He raised both hands, manipulating the direction of the airflow, sending a blast wave sweeping toward the 10030 on the ground.

“Die!” BEEP! A strange, high-pitched tone suddenly cut through the air.

As this tone sounded, the blast wave rushing toward the Misaka Imouto miraculously dissipated.

Before Accelerator could process his shock, an unfamiliar voice drifted from the mouth of the alleyway.

“It seems to have succeeded.

Although cultivating true emotion is probably still a long way off, even this level has completely exceeded my expectations.

At least my meticulous plan wasn’t wasted.” Hearing this voice, Accelerator instinctively turned his head, looking over his shoulder.

He saw a casually dressed youth walking in from the alley entrance.

“Hey, hey, this is my experiment.

Can just anyone walk into an experimental site these days?” Accelerator wasn't truly asking anyone; his expression suggested he was talking to himself.

“This is indeed an experiment, but it isn’t yours.

It’s mine.” The youth took measured steps toward Accelerator, stopping a few meters in front of him, and spoke.

P: Asking for recommendation tickets! So much rewarding made me excited, and so many who urge for updates put a lot of pressure on me…

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