"Rin, stand down." After twisting Mikoto Misaka's electronic wires, Lin Luo immediately ordered Tohsaka Rin.

"What?" Tohsaka Rin's eyebrows shot up in immediate displeasure. "Are you kidding me! As the head of the Tohsaka family, how can I flee from the enemy without a fight? I am not that cowardly!"

"That person is different; I mentioned it to you before..."

In his synchronized state, Lin Luo possessed the power of a peak Level 4, and coupled with the processing power of the Misaka Network, achieving Level 5 was without a doubt. However, without the processing power of the Zero in the Misaka Network, lacking true Level 5 support, his current strength was not as great as when he fought Accelerator. At best, he was on the same level as Mikoto, and a battle between two Level 5s would likely devolve into a war of attrition.

Under these circumstances, his own combat strength could not be sustained for long. Not to mention whether he could defeat Mugino Shizuri, with her map-clearing style of attack, he probably couldn't protect Tohsaka Rin, and given Rin's constitution, if she were hit by the electronic wires, the consequences would be unimaginable.

"That person is the fourth Level 5 esper in Academy City, her ability is Meltdowner. That means anything in this world will instantly decompose and collapse if hit by her electronic wires."

"Ugh!" Tohsaka Rin froze. If that were her ability, then she truly would be helpless; even the five classical elements are made of atoms. But... "If that's the case, then I can't let you stay alone even more. Abandoning a comrade..."

"My ability is electromagnetic control. Essentially, it's the same as hers on a fundamental level, so her ability won't affect me much... Also, you seem to have misunderstood, Rin."

"Huh?"

"I didn't tell you to run away. Since she's here, the other members of ITEM are likely nearby. Those few are up to you."

Tohsaka Rin glanced at him, finally grinding her teeth and saying, "Fine, but don't you die, or I won't let you off!"

With that, she swiftly dashed into the adjacent alleyway.

Before she had run far, several electronic wires shot toward her. Lin Luo raised his hand, casting a net of electricity, once again distorting Mikoto Misaka's Meltdowner.

"Heh, you're quite the chivalrous one, letting that woman go and staying behind to cover the retreat..." Mugino Shizuri's eyes held a sneer, her expression utterly disdainful. "Speaking of which, isn't your lover the Railgun, the third-ranked esper? Already switched partners this soon?"

As she spoke, her fingers tapped out continuous shots, and more than a dozen electronic wires simultaneously fired at Lin Luo.

Zzzzzzt...

The current erupting from his body seemed to go berserk. Lin Luo was completely enveloped in a surge of blue and white, brazenly charging forward while ignoring the Meltdowner... Those electronic wires were instantly twisted upon contact with his skin!

Mugino Shizuri's expression instantly changed. Although Lin Luo could twist her Meltdowner before, only a Level 5 could neutralize her attack in such a seemingly brute-force manner!

"You realize that now? I thought those higher-ups had already told you."

Lin Luo rapidly closed the distance, and with a bipa sound, the Spear of Thunder shot out!

The violent current instantly enveloped Mugino Shizuri...

Electromagnetic control and Meltdowner, at their core, are both forms of electron manipulation. Since both individuals were on the same tier, if they only engaged in long-range bombardment, they could mutually interfere with each other's abilities, making substantial damage difficult to inflict. Such a scenario would inevitably become a war of attrition.

However, Lin Luo's combat capability could not withstand a prolonged war of attrition. To secure a swift victory, he had to unleash close-range electrocution, which, theoretically, was much harder for her to interfere with.

Mugino Shizuri, after all, did not have an electricity-resistant constitution.

But theory is only theory.

When the electric light dispersed, aside from the change in her expression, Mugino Shizuri had not sustained a single injury. The massive current generated by the Spear of Thunder appeared to have been entirely shielded outside her body.

Lin Luo frowned. Though he didn't know how she managed it, one thing was certain: even if he didn't want to fight a battle of attrition before, he certainly had to now!

"I will kill you!"

Cold, merciless words spilled from Mugino Shizuri's mouth. An intensely dense killing intent radiated from her as she flicked her wrist, sending out a chip the size of her palm.

Lin Luo's face changed instantly. That was... the Auxiliary Diffusion Semiconductor!

While Meltdowner could only maintain low output, her offensive power was undeniable. Even in its low-output state, it could easily pulverize any material, and it could be scattered continuously. In some respects, her attack intensity surpassed even Mikoto's.

Mugino Shizuri's Meltdowner could be scattered multiple times, but she could only project a dozen or so electronic wires at once. However, with the Auxiliary Diffusion Semiconductor, her electronic wires could spread in geometric progression—at that point, it wouldn't be a dozen, but hundreds.

That was a genuine area-of-effect attack!

It wasn't difficult for Lin Luo's current power to distort a dozen electronic wires, but if that number multiplied by ten, it would be exceedingly dangerous!

Without any hesitation, Lin Luo retreated rapidly while summoning something towards the sky with his hand... Boom!

Heavenly Thunder Summoned!

At almost the same moment, hundreds of electronic wires shot out via the chip.

Pseudo-Railgun versus Meltdowner—the tug-of-war between two Level 5s officially commenced.

...

Tohsaka Rin stopped running not long after entering the alleyway. Although Lin Luo had made it sound easy, she was still uneasy. Just as she was hesitating about whether to go back and help, a doll suddenly dropped from the sky.

"Huh?" Tohsaka Rin was momentarily startled and instinctively reached out to catch it, but the moment her hand extended, she suddenly remembered something, her expression changing as she rapidly retreated like lightning.

Boom!

Just meters after she retreated, a violent explosion erupted behind her.

"So, this woman is our opponent in the end?" A voice sounded from behind her. Tohsaka Rin turned around. Standing at the entrance of the opposite alley was a blonde, blue-eyed girl.

"Su... per easy." Immediately following was another voice. Looking toward the sound, she saw a girl, or perhaps a loli, standing at the corner where she had just entered.

Surrounded!

Caught between an attack from the front and back, Tohsaka Rin felt a measure of nervousness, but as an excellent magus, her long-honed combat instincts allowed her to quickly calm down: Are these two from ITEM? According to the intelligence Lin Luo gave me, the blonde one is the person who used the bombs earlier, something like Frenda? And that little girl should be Kinuhatou Motoharu, the Level 4 esper with the Nitrogen Suit... While it might be troublesome, there is no one here who can perfectly counter me.

"Four Forms: Murderous Shot!"

In an instant, Tohsaka Rin formulated a tactic, firing successive black energy spheres from her fingertips... aiming for Kinuhatou Motoharu!

Bang, bang, bang!

Kinuhatou Motoharu remained motionless, allowing these spheres to strike her body. Although Rin's Four Forms: Murderous Shot was powerful enough to pierce walls and sever iron chains, far exceeding the power of ordinary bullets, it proved insufficient against the defense of Kinuhatou Motoharu's Nitrogen Suit. It couldn't breach her defense.

"Is that your attack? Utterly useless." Kinuhatou Motoharu spoke blandly, reaching out a hand. An iron pillar embedded in the ground nearby was easily pulled out by her, which she then hurled towards Tohsaka Rin.

The speed of the incoming projectile caused Tohsaka Rin's pupils to contract. Before she could fully react, her body instinctively dodged sideways, barely avoiding it. But immediately following...

"We have this side too, don't forget there are two of us."

Frenda pulled out several cloth dolls from behind her and tossed them towards Tohsaka Rin's head.

Bad... they're bombs!

Tohsaka Rin's heart lurched. She fired her Four Forms: Murderous Shot again... Boom! Boom! Boom!

Several cloth dolls exploded in mid-air, and a violent shockwave sent her flying backward, crashing heavily against the wall, leaving her momentarily dizzy and disoriented.

"More, more..." Frenda laughed excitedly, already holding four more dolls in her fingers, tossing them over.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Kinuhatou Motoharu closed the distance, raising her fist to strike.

These two are indeed troublesome, but... the preparation is complete. Facing the combined assault of the two, a subtle smile touched the corner of Tohsaka Rin's lips.

Kacha!

Like the sound of something shattering, Tohsaka Rin quickly got to her feet, ignoring the bomb dolls behind her, and charged towards Kinuhatou Motoharu.

"This is totally impassible here... Huh?" Kinuhatou Motoharu began to say before her punch landed on Tohsaka Rin's body, but she immediately noticed something was wrong, because her fist didn't feel like it had struck a solid object. Looking again, where was the enemy?

"Ah! Why are you here?" Frenda cried out in surprise, looking at the figure charging toward her with utter disbelief.

"My initial target was you!" A violent explosion sounded as Tohsaka Rin burst out of the smoke, completely uninjured. In just a few steps, she was right in front of Frenda...

"Prepare... Enhance... Complete!"

Physical Reinforcement!

A dazzling white light flickered around her hand. Tohsaka Rin planted her feet and drove her right fist fiercely into Frenda's abdomen. Frenda, in her panic, had no time to react.

Peng!

"Wha... Ah!"

As if struck by a sledgehammer, Frenda felt her internal organs churning. The intense pain twisted her expression instantly, and with a cry of agony, she couldn't help but spew bile.

Pulling back her fist, Frenda's body seemed to lose all strength and collapsed onto the ground, clearly having lost consciousness.

"Phew, finally took care of one."

Seeing this, Tohsaka Rin let out a soft breath, a smile appearing in her eyes.

P: This chapter is a bit late, please vote!