とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
1
Prologue: The Tale of the Illusion Killer Boy.
The Imagine-Breaker.
"Eh?! Damn it! Damn it! Arghhh! Such misfortune!!!"
Though he realized his frantic shouts must have made him sound like a maniac, Kamijou Touma
has no intention of stopping his headlong flight. Fleeing down a back alleyway late at night, he
glanced back over his shoulder.
Eight people.
Even after he had run nearly two kilometers, there were still eight people in pursuit of him. Of
course, as he was neither a cook from an ex-foreign unit[1] nor a cyber ninja still surviving in the
modern era, Kamijou Touma would have stood no chance against their numbers even if he chose
to fight them. To begin with, any fight between high school students that exceeded 3-on-1 wasn't
worth mentioning. At those numbers, things like true strength and such are useless from the start.
Kamijou kept running, kicking a slightly dirty polyethylene bucket and scaring a black cat away.
July 19.
Yeah, it was because it's July 19.
Because he had been reveling in the fact that summer break started tomorrow, he picked up a
manga at the bookstore that was obviously a dud. This fact was also why he went into a family
restaurant thinking Maybe I'll splurge a little on something to eat, even though he hadn't been
very hungry. And so, when he saw a middle school girl surrounded by drunken thugs, he got this
wacky idea in his head telling him, Hey, maybe I should help.
However, he couldn't have dreamt that all their buddies would start popping out of the bathroom
together. He thought, Only girls were allowed to use the bathroom together, right?
"I had to run out of there before I could get the bitter melon and escargot hell-lasagna I had
finally decided on. Now I'm a dine-and-dasher without even getting to dine! Arghhh, what's with
this misfortune?!"
Kamijou grabs his head as he bursts out from the alleyway onto the main street, yelling.
"Gyuh!"
Moonlight descends upon Academy City, which is approximately one-third the size of Tokyo
and therefore crowded with couples. It's definitely July 19. This is all July 19's fault, the single
thought roared within Kamijou's mind. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
2
The three-bladed, wind-powered generators that stood here and there glittered like tears shed by
a bachelor, basking in both pale moonlight and the lights of the nighttime city.
Kamijou cuts through the couples in order to run swiftly through the night street. While he ran,
glanced down at his right hand. Concealed within it was a power that was rather useless in this
sort of situation. It couldn't take out a delinquent, raise his test scores, or even make him popular
with the girls.
"Uwaaa! The misfortune!"
If he managed to completely shake off the group of delinquents, the ones who had lost sight of
Kamijou could simply use their mobiles to call for reinforcements and possibly even
transportation. For the sake of making them collapse from exhaustion, Kamijou Touma had no
choice but to bait the struggling pursuers into following him, in order to slowly but surely wear
them out. It similar to boxing: Letting your opponent hit you recklessly in order to drain his
physical strength.
Kamijou's motive to the end was assuredly an "act of mercy".
It was certainly useless to fight, and he would consider it a "victory" if his pursuers were shaken
off and made to give up. At the very least, Kamijou was very confident in long-distance running.
Plus, the pursuers were in poor health due to a life-time of drinking and smoking and were
wearing boots: Footwear with zero functionality. Disregarding the pace and the need to fully
sprint to keep up, basic long-distance running was without doubt not possible for them.
He dashed from one alleyway to the next as his pursuers kept growing in number until he could
no longer recognize their individual shapes, simultaneously trying to think of a way to end this
without anyone getting hurt.
"Sh-shit... Why must I put my youth on the line for this?!"
It was regrettable. Everywhere he looked were couples full of happiness and dreams; somewhere
within Kamijou, being alone, was the feeling he was a terrible loser. Even if the date was
different, the summer holiday had already started, and with neither love nor comedy he was
considered beyond a loser.
From behind, one of the delinquent's jeers come flying past, "Orr!! Damn it, you damn brat; stop,
you runaway king!"
With such a violent love call, even Kamijou snaps, "Shut up! You weren't knocked out, right?
Just be grateful, you average monkeys (IQ 80)!"
Although aware he was wasting his stamina doing so, Kamijou shouts a reply, "... to be without
any injury, you guys really ought to thank me." とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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Roughly two kilometers later, with a continuous flow of sweat and tears, he finally passed out of
the urban area and a large river came into view. A large iron bridge spanned over the river, its
length is about 150 meters. There were no cars around. Directly ahead is the irreplaceable, rustic
iron bridge, painted out in the night sea's eerie darkness.
While crossing the iron bridge of the night, Kamijou looks over his shoulder and stops.
His pursuers had already disappeared.
"Damn... They've finally given up."
Desperately bearing the urge to sit, Kamijou makes a *petan* sound on the spot, looks up at the
night sky, and takes a deep breath. After managing to solve the problem without anyone getting
hurt, he just wants to take a moment to praise himself for the accomplishment.
"Good grief. Who do you think you are? Pretending to be a humanitarian, protecting the
delinquents... Are you a certain enthusiastic school teacher[2]?"
Startled, Kamijou's body froze.
Since there wasn't even a single light on the iron bridge, Kamijou didn't notice the other presence.
Roughly five meters ahead, in the direction Kamijou ran from, a girl was standing alone – a
rather ordinary middle school girl wearing a gray-pleated skirt, a short-sleeved blouse, and a
summer sweater.
Looking up at the night sky Kamijou, more than half serious, thinks of just falling flat on his
bottom in defeat.
How should he say it? The girl that was being messed with at the family restaurant was the girl
standing in front of him.
"... that‘s the issue, I guess. The company from behind came afterward."
"Uhh, because they were troublesome, I fried them."
*Bachin* The sound of a blueish-white spark reveberated.
He didn't mean the girl held onto a stun gun. Every time her shoulder-length light-brown hair
swayed, sparks flew from it like the crackling of an electrode.
The moment a convenience store bag, riding on the wind, flew close to her face, bluish-white
sparks blasted it away like an automatic defense system system.
"Whoa!" Kamijou says, worn out with a single word. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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It's July 19. That was why he picked up the manga – a "landmine" from just a glance at the front
cover – from the bookshop and entered a family restaurant despite not being hungry. There he
saw a drunk delinquent obviously pestering a middle school girl, and considered whether he or
not he should help.
However, Kamijou never pretending he was trying to "help the girl".
Kamijou only remembered trying to stop the young men from carelessly approaching her
and getting themselves hurt.
Kamijou sighed. That girl was always like this: Even though they have crossed each others' paths
sporadically for nearly a month, neither remembered the name of the other. In other words, they
definitely weren't friends.
Today, he was sure, he'd be recklessly beaten like hell until he became living trash. To the girl's
proud mindset, that was the appropriate way to deal with Kamijou. Without exception, all their
fights to date had been complete victories.
A proper loss would clear up that girl's feelings, Kamijou thinks. His acting skills were poor
however: Once before, when he had "collapsed" with a demon-like face, she chased him for an
entire night.
"Hey, what did I ever do to you?"
"I cannot allow someone stronger than myself to exist. That reason alone is more than enough."
That was it?
He thinks, Not even fighting games have characters with such mindless agendas.
"You're making fun of me, right? You know, despite the fact I'm a Level 5, I'm considering
going all-out on a powerless Level 0. I remember how to handle the weak."
The "delinquent guys of rear alleyways = the violent are the strongest" image does not apply
within the boundaries of this city. As dropouts from the ESP development curriculum, they were
far from good Level 0s.
The ones that were truly strong in this city were people like her, Level 5s.
"Well, about that. I understand well that you are a 1-in-328,571 owner of talent, but you had
better stop that 'looking down' on a person who wants a long life, in a matter of speaking."
"Shut up. To inject drugs directly into a blood vessel, to pierce the brain directly from behind the
ear, to do such things like an oddball and not even be able to bend a single spoon... there's no
other choice but to call the talentless you that." とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
5
"..."
Indeed, that's the kind of place Academy City is.
With such deceptive names like "recording skills" and "memorization skills", the place
incorporated "brain development" quietly into the curriculum - another face of Academy City.
To begin with, all 2,300,000 "students" living in Academy City did not stop like protagonists of
manga. In all, he had seen about 60 percent of the weak students, after fully exerting themselves
to the point of tearing their brains' blood vessels, finally bend a spoon to some degree; as a
matter of fact, it was only the Level 0s who were unusable. (?)
"If it's to bend a spoon, using pliers is good enough; if it's to make fire, buying a ¥100 lighter
works well enough. If it's something like telepathy, mobile phones already exist, don‘t they? Isn't
such ESP just unusual?"
These are the words of Kamijou: One who was classified as unusable by Academy City's body
examination centers.
"The main point is that everyone is strange, being pleased with a byproduct like ESP. Wasn't
that previous reason our objective?"
In response to that, the "Level 5" girl, one of only seven such people in all of Academy City,
slants one of the corners of her lips.
"Huh? So that's it, right? I certainly wondered, 'A human can't do God's calculations.' If that's the
case, when a body that exceeds humans can't be obtained, there wouldn't be a struggle to arrive at
God's answer."
The girl laughs scornfully.
"Ha, you make me laugh. What the heck is 'God's mind'? You know, right? Rumor has it that my
DNA map is being analyzed and used as the basis for the military sisters that are being
developed. It seems like there was an even more delicious byproduct than the purpose, doesn't
it?"
She says that much, and abruptly stops herself.
There's a sensation of the quality in the soundless atmosphere changing.
"Well... really the words of a strong person, right?"
"Huh?" とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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"A strong person, a strong person, a strong person. To just possess talent from birth, obtain
power, and not completely understand the pain of struggling... your words are like those of a
manga protagonist: Harsh and with boldness."
*Zazezezazezaza*, clear sounds of waves in the sea start coming from underneath the iron bridge.
There are only seven Level 5s in Academy City; in their struggle to reach that pinnacle, how
much of their "humanity" did they cast aside? A dark flame which hinted that flared from those
words.
Kamijou denies them.
In merely one word, in merely that matter, to never be looked down upon.
Of merely, for that matter, to never be defeated again.
"Hey! Hey! Have you seen the yearly body examination results? My level is 0 and yours is 5.
Try hearing it from any walking chap on this side; things like 'who is above' is known in one hit,
you know!"
Academy City's ability development freely uses pharmaceutics, cerebral medical science and
physiology, and the like - basically, all things "scientific". If the fixed curriculum handled it,
those without abilities could reach the point of at least bending a spoon.
Kamijou Touma couldn't do even that.
Academy City's measurement machines evaluated him as absolutely "zero" ability.
"Zero, eh?" The girl repeats just that word, rolling it off her tongue.
Her hand goes into her skirt pocket, and takes out a coin. One from an amusement parlor game.
"Hey, have you ever heard the term 'railgun' before?"
"Huh?"
"The theory of launching a metal shell via an ultra-powerful electromagnet is the same as that of
a linear motorcar - except for the fact that it's a warship weapon."
*Ping!*, the girl flips the coin into the air with her thumb.
*Hyun hyun*, the rotating coin lands on her thumb again.
"Right, something like this?" とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Simultaneously, those words go.
Almost instantly and without sound, an orange spear of light horizontally pierces through an area
near Kamijou's head; calling that spear a laser would be more accurate. Seeing a single trail of
that light's afterimage stretching from the girl's thumb, he deduced the origin of the beam to be
there.
Like a strike of lightning, a thunderous roar reverberates a moment later. A shockwave, tearing
through the atmosphere, occurs near Kamijou's ears and throws off his sense of balance. The
staggering Kamijou glances behind him. The instant the orange light crashed into the iron
bridge's road surface, it was as if an aeroplane above the sea made an emergency landing and
blew the asphalt off. The orange afterglow, spanning thirty meters straight to the opposite side
and wreaking all sorts of destruction, still scorched the atmosphere with its afterimage long after
it had stopped moving.
"Even a coin like this can fly at three times the speed of sound if a reasonable amount of
power is provided, right? Then again, it melts after about fifty meters due to friction with
the atmosphere."
The bridge of iron and concrete rocked back and forth like an unreliable suspension bridge.
*Gagi!* *Bishi!*. The sound of metal bolts popping out and flying here and there reverberates.
"..."
Kamijou felt chills, as if dry ice was being driven into every blood vessel of his body.
*Zogun*. Moisture from my whole body becoming sweat and evaporating is a strange sensation,
he thought.
"You. Don't tell me you used that on those pursuers. Did you?!"
"You idiot. I choose the opponent to use it on. I don't want to become some reckless murderer."
While saying those words, sparks flew from the girl's brown hair like the crackling of an
electrode.
"This was sufficient to drive away those Level 0s!"
At that moment, bluish-white sparks shot out from her forelock like horns and, like a spear, the
lightning raced head-on towards Kamijou.
A thing like "evasion" was impossible. His opponent was a bluish-white spear of lightning fired
from the hair of a Level 5. It was the same as seeing a thunderbolt falling at light-speed and
trying to avoid it, so to speak.
*Thud!*. The explosion erupts, a moment later. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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To protect his face he reflexively held out his right hand, which clashed with the lightning spear
and made his insides struggle. The attack scattered in every directions as mere sparks, which in
turn slam into the steel frames that formed the iron bridge.
...So it seems.
"So, I wonder: Why don't you have a single injury?"
Words were easy things. She's glaring at Kamijou, baring her canine-like teeth.
The high-voltage current, scattered throughout the surroundings, had the power to burn the steel
frames of the bridge; in spite of that, Kamijou right hand, which received a direct hit, wasn‘t
incinerated. It didn't bear even a single burn mark.
Kamijou's right hand had completely deflected a lightning strike which carried hundreds of
millions of volts.
"Really, what's with that? Such a power doesn't even appear in Academy City's databank. If I am
a 1-in-328,571 prodigy, then aren't you, the only one in Academy City, a 1-in-2,300,000
disaster?" The girl mutters bitterly.
Kamijou didn't bother to reply.
"With such an exceptional opponent to fight with, there's no choice but to raise my level this
way, right?"
"... even so, I‘ll still always lose."
The reply, which like the "lightning spear attack" originated from her forehead, comes attacking
at a speed slightly exceeding that of sound. That too scattered into different multiple directions
the moment it slammed into Kamijou's right hand. It was like knocking aside a water balloon.
[Imagine Breaker].
The public television program's laughingstock - despite the numerous ESP formulas established
within Academy City. If the attack was from the power of "strange talents", even if it met God's
system, this strange ability would negate it without fail.
If that girl's ESP "Railgun" was the result of a strange talent, then it was no exception.
However, Kamijou's [Imagine Breaker] only works on the power of strange talents. To put it
simply, it protects him from an ESP's fireball, but not the ash and smoke the fireball created. Its
effectiveness was also limited to "from the right wrist onward"; if any other place were to be hit
by that fireball, it would be consumed by flames. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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Going to die! Really going to die! Really going to die! Kyaaaa! he thinks.
Kamijou Touma's getting *bikibiki* stiff with a calm and composed face. Although he had held
out his right hand which completely negated the light-speed "lightning attack spear", it was
complete chance that the attack collided with his right hand.
His heart racing, Kamijou tries desperately to smooth everything over with the smile of an adult.
"What to say? Misfortunate, right?"
That's how Kamijou brings an end to this day. This specific day, July 19.
With that one word, it really was like he was grieving the whole world.
"For you, that's just about true, isn’t it?"
References
1. ↑ Under Siege?
2. ↑ Great Teacher Onizukaとある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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Chapter 1: The Magician Lands in the Town.
FAIR, Occasionally GIRL.
Part 1
Born between January 20 and February 18, you‘re unstoppable Aquarius, no matter what, be it in
love, business, or luck! No matter what you do, there will always be a good result, so go buy a
lottery ticket! However, don‘t go playing 3-D or 4-D games just because you‘re popular with
girls, and...
"Okay, okay... I knew this would be the result, I knew it."
July 20, the first day of summer vacation.
Within a certain one-room dormitory in Academy City the air conditioning is shot. Nothing but
hot air flowing through the enclosed space, rendering Kamijou Touma unable to do anything.
The reason seemed to be a lightning strike that rendered more than 80% of the city's electrical
appliances inert, including the freezer that stored all of his food.
He made himself a bowl of instant noodles, only to spill the contents into the basin. Afterwards
he decided to go out and eat, but stepped on his ATM card while looking for his wallet, breaking
it. He decided to go back to sleep, only to receive an affectionate call from his homeroom teacher
and hear, "Stupid Kamijou-chan, it‘s time for remedial lessons♥."
He knew that the horoscope that had flashed past the edge of the weather report on the television
screen wouldn‘t be accurate. But no one could laugh at such a huge difference.
"I knew it, I knew this would be the result... but can‘t I complain about it?"
The horoscope was never accurate. He could never get any of the "little magic".
This is the daily life of Kamijou Touma.
At first, he had thought this bad luck ran in the family, only to find out that his dad got the
fourth-place prize of a lottery before (to the tune of ~100,000 yen). His mom once had a winning
streak at the vending machines and ended up playing them nonstop. He entertained the idea that
he wasn't related to them by blood, but after thinking it through he remembered he didn‘t have a
sister, and there wasn‘t any "line of succession" to choose from.
How would they deal with it anyway?
The point was, Kamijou Touma is unlucky. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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So unlucky that his life was an utter joke. However, Kamijou Touma wouldn't be pessimistic
forever.
Kamijou never relied on "luck", which made him extremely adaptable.
"Alright. Right now, I need to deal with the ATM card and the fridge."
Kamijou scratched his head, looking around the room. He coul replace the ATM card as long as
he had an account. The most troublesome thing to replace would be the fridge. The most pressing
issue to him at the moment, though, was gettign his breakfast.
Those supplementary lessons were just power development programs anyway, so he‘d be forced
to eat some tablets or the like; they wouldn‘t go down well when he‘s hungry.
Kamijou removed the T-shirt he'd been wearing as pajamas, and begins changing into his
summer uniform, I might as well go to a convenience store and buy something.
Like every other brainless student in the country, Kamijou had spent all of last night, the night
before summer vacation officially started, partying as if he were on drugs. Right now, his head
was hurting from the lack of sleep.
Kamijou tried to think positively, Skipping four months of lessons in a single school term, and I
only need to go for one week of remedial lessons to make up for it? So worth it!
"The weather is good right now, so I might as well air out my futon..." Kamijou mutters to
himself as he musters up a positive mood, and opened the sliding door to the balcony. If he let it
bask in the sun now, the futon would be nice and soft when he come back from remedial.
Looking carefully, the wall of the neighboring block was only two meters away from this
seventh-floor balcony.
Kamijou can‘t help but sing to himself. "Why is the sky so blue~? Why is the future so dark~?"
So depressing. He originally intended to cheer himself up, so he decided to air out the futon. This
only made him even more depressed.
Besides, he was the only one making jokes: There was no straight man beside himself. Such
loneliness was truly incomprehensible. However, Kamijou still folded up his futon and carried it
out to the balcony. If he couldn‘t even carry out a futon, he would truly be a waste.
At that moment, Kamijou stepped on something soft and squishy. Upon closer examination, he
saw that it was a plastic-wrapped yakisoba bread. Since it was taken out of the fridge, it was
probably spoiled by now.
"I hope it doesn‘t start raining all of a sudden..." とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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This bad premonition comes from his heart, yet Kamijou still carries the futon to the balcony.
There was already a futon on the balcony.
"?"
Though he lived in a student dormitory, the structure of the building was similar to that of an
ordinary, high-rise apartment. Kamijou was living in a single room dorm, which meant there
couldn‘t possible be anyone else who would air out a futon on his balcony.
Looking carefully, he realized the thing on his balcony, the thing being aired out, wasn‘t a futon.
It was a girl dressed in white clothes.
"WHA?!"
The futon slipped out of his hands and fell onto the floor.
It was weird, and totally ridiculous. The girl appeared to be in a coma as her waist rests on the
edge of the balcony, her body bent in halves and her limbs hanging down.
She looked… maybe fourteen or fifteen? At the very least, she looked younger than Kamijou by
one or two years. She also seemed to be a foreigner: Her skin looked extremely white and her
hair did too… no, it was silver. The girl's hair was extremely long, and with the way her body
was bent it completely covered her head, so he couldn‘t see her face. If she stood up, her hair
might be long enough to reach the girl's waist.
"This is the first time I‘ve met a real Sister... no, not a sibling type of sister."
What was that type clothing called? Nun clothes? They were clothes that Church nuns would
wear.
It looks like a one-piece Western dress that would be long enough to reach the ankles, but the
headdress was different; it was wrapped in a cloth. An ordinary nun‘s robe should be black, yet
this girl's was pure-white. The material used to make it should have been silk, but these robes felt
different from an ordinary nun's. Golden embroidery was sewn onto every edge of it, like how
upstarts would love to draw golden lines on Western cups.
The girl‘s beautiful fingers twitched.
Her drooped head slowly moved up, her thread-like hair naturally moving aside and, like a
curtain being drawn up, the girl‘s face appears before Kamijou.
Uuu… WAAHH!!!とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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This girl looked rather cute: Green eyes matched her white skin, making Kamijou feel this was
all rather new to him. She looked like a doll.
What made Kamijou panic wasn‘t her cuteness.
He was panicking because she was a "foreigner". Kamijou‘s English ability was of such quality
that his English teacher told him, ―You should stay in this country forever!!‖ If the girl from
whichever country she was from was a saleslady selling feathers or some other contraption, it
was likely Kamijou would unwillingly spend some money.
"I..."
The girl's cute and somewhat dry lips slowly uttered a few words.
Kamijou inadvertently takes two steps back, and again steps on the yakisoba bread.
"I‘m hungry."
"..."
For a moment, Kamijou thought he was being stupid and hearing whatever foreign language the
girl spoke as Japanese. Like a silly student randomly singing to the syllables when they don‘t
know the actual lyrics.
"I‘m hungry."
"..."
"I‘m hungry."
"..."
"I said: 'I‘m hungry'..."
Seeing Kamijou maintain in his frozen state despite her words, the silver-haired girl seemed to be
expressing her own dissatisfaction.
It was hopeless, completely hopeless. Why was his mind telling that she was speaking in
Japanese?
"Ah... mmm..." Kamijou stares at the girl on the railing and says, "What now? Are you trying to
say that under these circumstances, you‘re a dying person lying on the streets?"
"It can be termed as the fallen dead." とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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"..."
The girl really was fluent in Japanese.
"Hey, I‘ll be grateful if you can fill my stomach."
Kamijou looks at the spoiled, stepped-on yakisoba bread at his feet.
He decides that, no matter where this girl is from, he should not get involved with her. Why don’t
I help her reach happiness in a far, far away place? He brings the squished yakisoba bread,
complete with the plastic wrapping, near the girl‘s mouth. Kamijou thinks, After smelling this,
even a madman would run far, far away. His strategy was similar to one used in Kyoto: If the
owner poured tea into the rice, he meant to "send the visitor away"...
"Thank you. I‘m tucking in."
The bread and its plastic wrapper, along with Kamijou‘s hand, disappeared into the girl's mouth.
With a cry of misfortune, Kamijou Touma started another day of his life.
Part 2
"First, allow me introduce myself."
"... why don‘t you explain why you were hanging on my balcony?"
"My name is Indekkusu[3]."
"As if anyone will believe that's a real name! 'Indekkusu'? I might as well call you Index."
"As you can see, I‘m a clergywoman. Ah, this part's important: I‘m not of the Vatican, but of the
British Puritans[4]."
"I have no idea what you‘re talking about. And you're avoiding my question!"
"Hm... regarding the [Index], it‘s a bit hard to explain. My sorcery name is [Dedicatus545]."
"Oi? Hello? Hello? May I know which planet I am receiving this signal from?"
Seeing Kamijou dig into his ear so nonchalantly, Index bites on her fingernails. It seemed biting
on her fingernails was a habit of hers.
Why must I sit around this glass table and look at her as if we’re on a blind date? Kamijou
wondered. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Right now, Kamijou should be preparing to head to school to attend the summer remedial, but he
didn‘t want to leave this unfamiliar and mysterious girl alone in his room.
The worst part to him was that the silver-haired girl in front of him, who called herself Index,
seems to like the room she was in. The look on her face made her look like she wanted to roll
around on the floor.
Was this another "misfortune" Kamijou seemed to attract so much? If so, it isn‘t good. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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Volume 1
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"So, if you can make my stomach feel full, I‘ll be extremely grateful."
"Why should I do that? What‘s the point of me improving your view of me? If I‘m to start some
weird event and get on the ‗Index route‘, I might as well restart!"
"Erm... is that a common form of speaking? I'm sorry, but I don‘t seem to be understanding what
you're saying."
As expected of a foreigner to not know the Japanese otaku culture.
"But if you‘re going to send me away, I might faint after taking only three steps, no?" the girl
asks.
"You‘ll faint...? Then it‘s none of my business."
"After that, I would use my last breath to write a suicide note, including a photo of you."
"Wha...?"
"If I‘m saved, I can say I was locked in this room and tortured badly... I can even say that you
forced me to wear this clothing."
"YOU DARE THREATEN ME?! YOU KNOW ABOUT THE OTAKU CULTURE AFTER
ALL!!"
"?"
Index tilts her head, a puzzled look on her face. To Kamijou, she looked like a kitten who's just
seen a mirror for the first time.
I have to hand it to her. Why do I feel like I’m the only one getting burned in the stomach?
Just wait! You want to eat, right?! Kamijou angrily stormed into the kitchen. The food inside the
fridge was definitely spoiled by now, so he might as well save himself the trouble of throwing it
away and stuff her mouth with it. It wouldn‘t hurt Kamijou one bit. He poured what food was in
his fridge into the wok, and fried them like vegetables. If he heated it up, at least no one would
die, right?
Now that he though about it, where did this girl come from?
There were foreigners in Academy City, but this girl doesn‘t have the "aura" that even a foreign
resident of Academy City would have. If she was from outside the city, then that would be even
weirder. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Though Academy City is, in name, "the city of a thousand schools", in reality it was closer to
"the school with a thousand student dormitories". It occupied one-third of Tokyo's geography,
and the city boundaries were surrounded by walls like the Great Wall of China. Though not as
closely guarded as a prison, it was not easy to enter.
Though there didn't seem to be anything controlling what entered or exited the city, the Industrial
University had launched three satellites to constantly monitor Academy City under the guise of
an experiment. Every person within the city could and would be monitored and investigated. If
the satellites found someone that did not exist in their records, Anti-Skill and Judgment would be
mobilized...
Maybe she hasn't been discovered because the thunderstorm brought about by that electricity
girl knocked out the satellites? Kamijou wonders.
"Oh, yeah, why were you hanging on my balcony railing?"
Kamijou asked the girl as he poured the soy sauce into that evil frying pan of food.
"I wasn‘t hanging there."
"Then what were you doing? Don‘t tell me you got carried around by the wind and landed there."
"... the situation was somewhat similar to that."
Kamijou, who was only joking when he made his comment, sharply turned his head to stare at
the girl.
"I wanted to jump from the roof of the other building to the roof of this one, but I fell."
Roof? Kamijou looked at the ceiling.
This was a small corner of the budget student dormitory, and the eight-story high-rise apartments
were neatly arranged together. Just by looking out at the balcony it was easy to tell that the
distance between the buildings was only about two meters. It wasn't impossible jump from one
roof to the other, but...
"Are you serious?! The roof‘s eight stories tall! You'll die if you're not careful!"
"Hm, a suicidal person can‘t even have a grave." Index gave a perplexing answer, and continued,
"but there was no choice; I had to do this in order to escape."
"Es-escape?"
Hearing the word "escape", which always had dangerous implications behind it, Kamijou
inadvertently frowns. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Index gave a childlike "Nn", and continued, "Someone‘s out to kill me."
"..."
The hand that was shaking the frying pan stopped on its own.
"I could've jumped over easily enough, but someone hit me in the back when I was halfway
there."
The girl who called herself "Index" seemed to be smiling. "Thus, I fell down and landed on your
balcony railing. I‘m sorry."
She wasn't mocking herself or making an ironic statement, giving Kamijou Touma a purely
innocent smile.
"'Hit'...?"
"Hm? Ah... don‘t worry about my injuries. This clothing has a [defensive boundary] effect."
"What‘s a [defensive boundary]? Is that some kind of bulletproof vest?"
The girl spun around as if she were bragging about buying new clothes. She didn‘t look hurt, but
was she really "hit"? If it was all her imagination, the reliability may be even greater.(?)
However...
The one thing he could believe was that she had been hanging on Kamijou‘s seventh-story
balcony railing.
Was the girl's story true?
If so, who attacked her?
Kamijou began to ponder the possibilities.
How much courage was needed to jump from the rooftop of one eight-story building to another?
How lucky was it for her to land onto a seventh-level balcony railing? What did it mean that she
was still unscathed?
"Because someone‘s trying to kill me," Index says this while smiling. How complicated was the
story behind her smile?
Kamijou was completely oblivious to what Index was going through, so he couldn't make sense
of her words at all. Even if Index were to explain everything to him from the beginning, he
wouldn't understand even half of it, and wouldn‘t even bother trying to understand the other half. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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But Kamijou understands one thing, at the very least: She had been hanging on a seventh-story
balcony railing. If she wasn‘t careful, she could have landed on the asphalt road. It made
Kamijou worry.
"Food."
Index‘s face poked out from behind Kamijou, holding her chopsticks in her fist. It seemed she
didn‘t know how to use chopsticks, despite being rather fluent.
She peered into the frying pan excitedly, her expression like that of a stray cat during a rainy day
after it had been carried out of an abandoned cardboard box.
"... ah..."
In the frying pan was food that was no different from trash, "fried vegetables" (with poison in it).
Looking at the hungry girl in front of him, Kamijou could feel his inner angelic self (who
appeared alongside his devilish self) struggling painfully to resist giving it to her.
"Ah... eh... I... since you‘re so hungry, please don‘t lower yourself to eating disgusting food guys
have left over. Why don‘t we go to a family restaurant? Or maybe we can order delivery?"
"I can‘t wait."
"Ah... um..."
"It doesn‘t look bad either. This is something you're making without thought of reward, so it
should be good."
At that moment, Index seemed like an actual nun, giving him a radiant smile.
Completely ignoring Kamijou, whose stomach churned about, Index clenched her fist and
scooped the food out of the frying pan with her chopsticks.
Putting it in her mouth, she began chewing.
"See? It‘s not so bad."
"... rea-really?"
Chewing.
"You‘re rather considerate, making it sour to relieve my fatigue, right?"
"Eh? Sou-sour?" とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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More chewing.
"Don‘t worry, I like to eat sour food. Thank you; you‘re like my older brother."
With a radiant smile Index continued to eat, bean sprouts around her lips.
"... Wo... UUU... WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"
Kamijou quickly lifts the frying pan up with supersonic speed. He looks at Index, who‘s
extremely unsatisfied, as he thinks, I’ll go to Hell myself.
"Are you hungry, too?"
"... huh?"
"If you‘re not hungry, can you give those vegetables to me? I can‘t wait..."
Index looked up at Kamijou, her mouth biting the tips of the chopsticks. Seeing Index like that,
Kamijou was determined.
This was God‘s will. He had to finish what he started.
This time, it was not another case of misfortune; it was his own stupid fault.
Part 3
Kamijou Touma poured the hot "trash" into his mouth, revealing a smile.
The girl who called herself Index showed an unhappy expression as she bit on the biscuits in
front of her. Holding the biscuits with both hands and nibbling on them like she was, Touma
thought she looked like a squirrel.
"Oh, yeah, you said someone was trying to kill you. Who is it?"
Kamijou, who had finally made his way back from hell with much difficulty, immediately asked
the most important question on his mind.
Of course, Kamijou wasn‘t going to sweat for a girl he'd only known for thirty minutes, but he
couldn't just act like a complete outsider now.
I’ll just pretend to be nice, Kamijou thinks. Though he couldn‘t help her solve anything, he
would at least be able to tell himself, "I tried my best". とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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"Mm..." The girl said in a somewhat thirsty voice, ―I don‘t know - maybe the Rose Cross or the
Golden Dawn. Though I can guess they‘re from one of these two organizations, I don‘t know
their names... and names are meaningless to them.‖
"'Them'?" Kamijou repeated in a confused manner. She's being targeted by an organization? A
group?
But Index, the one being pursued, was rather calm. After giving a "Mn" to confirm he heard
correctly, she said, "They‘re magic societies."
...
"Eh? Magic...? Erm... what‘s that gimmick? Did I hear it wrong?"
"Ah... eh...? Erm... is my Japanese weird? I mean MAGIC! As in MAGIC CABAL!"
"..."
Now that she was explaining in English, Kamijou became even more perplexed.
"What‘s that? Are you talking about some new organization that uses some new mysterious
religion to preach to others, saying 'Those who do not believe will suffer the wrath of God,' and
force them to eat some weird medicine before brainwashing them? That sounds dangerous."
"... somehow I get the feeling that you‘re making fun of me."
"Uh..."
"... you‘re making fun of me, right?"
"... sorry, but it's impossible. I don't believe in the existence of magic. I‘m familiar with 'weird
powers' like fire-starting or see-through vision, but magic... I just can‘t believe it."
"?"
Index tilted her head and ponders.
If it were an ordinary person who firmly believed science could solve everything, he‘d be
shouting, "THERE‘S NOTHING IN THIS WORLD THAT SCIENCE CAN‘T PROVE!"
Kamijou‘s right hand really did have a certain "special ability". So long as he had the abnormal
"special ability" called the [Imagine Breaker], even the miracles that sprung up in mythology
would be erased. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Supernatural powers within Academy City were quite normal. By injecting drugs into the veins,
letting electricity flow up the neck, and hearing some special rhythm from some headsets, any
brain could "develop".
Everything could be explained by science. Who could deny its existence?
"I don‘t really understand what you‘re talking about."
"You don‘t have to understand it! All in all, there‘s no doubt that super powers are real!"
"Then why not magic? There‘s no doubt that magic is real as well!"
Index looks extremely unhappy, her face showing the look of someone's pet cat being called a
"mongrel".
―Eh... let me say this. You know janken? Eh, wait, that‘s a global culture, right?"
"… it should be some form of the Japanese culture, but I know that."
"If I were to lose ten times out of ten in janken, do you feel that there‘s a reason?"
"... wu..."
"There‘s no reason, right? But humans would believe a force is at work!"
Kamijou says in an uninterested tone, "Any ordinary person would wonder, 'Why am I so
unlucky?" and question whether there is some unseen force nearby. Once someone thinks like
that and mixes in some 'astrology', what would happen?"
―... such as, 'You‘re a Cancer and you‘re very unlucky now, so it‘s better not to gamble,' or
something like that, right?‖
"All these 'magical, mysterious powers' that occur around us are developed like this. Humans
imagine there‘s some invisible force that dictates their luck, and will believe that any trivial
matter is entirely the work of fate. That is magic."
Index curled her lips together like an unhappy cat. After a while, she says, "... it sounds like you
have a reason for not believing in magic."
"Yup. But because I thought about it, I can‘t believe such ridiculous words. Who can believe the
existence of those magicians that appear in fairy tales? If you can spend some MP to revive a
dead person, who would even want to develop powers? How am I supposed to believe in this
'magic' that doesn‘t have any scientific evidence behind it?"
As for those who don‘t believe in the existence of "super powers", they‘re just fools. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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In Academy City, "super powers" are common knowledge to everyone, and they can be
explained by science.
Index curled her lips together, "... but magic really does exist!".
Maybe "magic" is like a spiritual pillar to her, like [Imagine Breaker] is to Kamijou?
"Alright, whatever you say. Then why were they chasing you—?"
"Magic really exists!"
"..."
"Magic really exists!"
It looked like she wanted Kamijou to admit it no matter what.
"Alright, then tell me: What is magic? Can you shoot a fireball from your hand? Even without
going through our superpowers lessons, can you shoot a fireball? Try doing that in front of me,
and I may believe it."
"I can't. I don‘t have any mana, so I can‘t use magic."
"..."
What was different between her saying that and being a fake power user that says, "The camera
will distract me, so I can‘t bend the spoon"?
Kamijou‘s thoughts were rather complicated as well.
Though he said that there was no such thing as magic, Kamijou didn't completely understand the
ability in his right hand, the [Imagine Breaker]. How does it work? What was the force at work
in the invisible space? Even Academy City, the highest authority on developing Esper powers,
was unable to analyze Kamijou‘s "ability" through a body check. So they labeled him a "Level
0" Esper.
He didn‘t even acquire [Imagine Breaker] as a result of the science development program either.
It was an ability inherent to his right hand.
Though he always said "There can‘t possibly be magic in this world", he himself possessed an
"unrealistic" power that defied all logic.
He couldn‘t just make a baseless conclusion of "Since there's such an inexplicable force in the
world, maybe magic really exists" jusk like that though. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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"... magic exists!"
Kamijou sighed, ―Alright, I‘ll just assume that magic exists.‖
"'Assume'?"
"Yes, let‘s assume magic exists."
Kamijou ignored Index‘s attempted interruption and continued, "Then why were you being
chased by those people? Is it related to your clothes?"
Kamijou was referring to the ultra-luxurious, pure-white, gold-embroidered silk nun robe. In
other words, he was asking, "Does this involve religion?"
"... It's because I‘m an [Index]."
"A what?"
"I believe they‘re after the 103,000 grimoires I possess."
"... why am I getting even more confused?"
"Why do you look like you want to help me less the more I explain it? You‘re rather impatient,
huh?"
"Alright, I‘ll summarize. I don‘t know what these 'grimoires' are, but they‘re books, right? Like a
dictionary?"
―Mm. The Book of Eibon, Lemegeton, The Nameless Book, The Cannabalism Ritual Book, The
Book of the Dead... these are the representative ones. The Necronomicon is too famous, and there
are a lot of imitations of it out there, so that one isn‘t as notable."
"Um... I don‘t really care about the books' contents..." Kamijou wanted to add, "they‘re just
nonsense anyway," but forced himself to swallow those words. "You said that you have a
hundred thousand of them; where are they?"
He had to make this clear. 100,000 books were enough to fill an entire library; more than one.
―Do you mean you have the key to a large warehouse?‖
Index shakes her head, and says, "No, I have all 103,000 books."
... what? Kamijou frowns. "... you‘re not going to tell me that dumb people can‘t see those books,
are you?" とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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"Even if they aren‘t dumb, people can‘t see them! It‘ll be meaningless if people could see them."
Every word that came out of Index's mouth got more and more farfetched; it felt like he was
being played.
Kamijou looked left and right. What "Necronomicon"? He could only see gaming magazines,
manga scattered on the floor, and summer homework that had been tossed to one of the corners
of his room.
"Sigh..."
Kamijou, who has been entertaining Index's fantasies, finally couldn‘t take it anymore.
Perhaps this "someone is chasing after me" scenario was just her own wild imagination? If so,
and she really jumped from the eighth story, came up short, and landed on rail of his balcony...
well, it was better to not get involved with her.
"Don't you find it contradictory to believe in supernatural powers but not magic?" Index curls her
lips together as she says unhappily, "And what‘s so great about superpowers, anyway? You
shouldn‘t look down on others even if you have some special ability!"
Kamijou gently sighs, "That‘s right, you‘re correct. Just a few gimmicks alone and we‘re being
classified by a level system. That kind of thinking is terrible!"
Kamijou lowered his head, looking at his right hand.
His right hand couldn‘t shoot flames or electricity, couldn‘t release light, and couldn‘t emit
sound. And of course, there wouldn‘t be any weird lines appearing on his wrists. But Kamijou‘s
right hand can dispel any "supernatural power". Regardless of their nature or indended purpose,
even the miracles that appeared in myths were destroyed.
"To the people in this city, however, superpowers are like a spiritual pillar of support. Don‘t look
into it so much. And besides, I‘m also one of the people here."
"It‘s good that you know that, idiot! Humph, why make your brain so messed up? You can just
bend a spoon with your hand."
"..."
"Humph, what does a person who gave up his natural character for something skin-deep have to
brag about, anyway?"
"...Can I stuff that talkative mouth of yours?" とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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"Vi-violence won‘t scare me!" Index looked like an unhappy cat, and said, "You were talking so
much about superpowers, yet you don‘t seem to have any yourself!"
"... eh, about that... how should I say this?"
Kamijou felt troubled.
He hardly had any chance to explain his [Imagine Breaker] to others. Even when he did, since
his ability only reacted to "abnormal powers", if the other person couldn‘t accept that "super
powers exist", his explanations would be futile anyway.
"Un, it‘s my right hand... ah, let me clarify this. This is natural; there‘s no synthetic coloring on
it!"
"Oh."
"If my right hand comes into contact with... any special ability, be it a nuke-level fireball or a
tactical railgun, even a miracle of God can be dispelled."
"... eh...?"
"... what‘s with that expression? It‘s like you‘ve seen a shopping catalog for buying some
wonderful lucky crystal!"
"Oh, my... you, an atheist who has never heard of God‘s name, saying that a miracle of God can
be dispelled. I‘m rather troubled by this..."
To think Index would use her little finger to dig into her ear as she said it, too.
"... ugh, this pisses me off! To think that I‘d be taken for a fool by a 'magic really exists, it‘s just
that I can‘t prove it to you' phony magical girl. It infuriates me..."
Hearing Kamijou Touma mutter that, Index seems rather angry as well.
"I-I‘m not some phony magical girl! Magic really exists!"
"Then prove it to me, you Halloween costume! I‘ll just use my [Imagine Breaker] to destroy your
magic and then we‘ll see who's right! You imaginative kid!"
"Alright! I‘ll show it to you then!"
Index angrily raises her hands, "This! This clothing! It‘s an ultimate defensive barrier known as
the [Walking Church]!" とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Index raises both hands, letting Kamijou see the nun robe that made him think of a high-class
teacup.
"What [Walking Church]?! I don‘t understand anything you've been saying! All you were talking
about was some weird terminology like 'index' and 'defensive barriers'! Can you explain it in a
way I can understand? It‘s too confusing! Haven‘t you ever heard of explaining something
profound in a way that‘s easy to understand?"
"You... you never even bothered to try to understand it, and now you‘re complaining to me?"
Index waves her arms, "Right now, I‘ll prove it instead of just talking about it! You can use a
kitchen knife to stab me!"
"Alright! I‘ll do it... wait... what are you thinking?! Of course I‘ll stab you! Are you trying to set
me up?!"
"Ah! You don‘t believe me at all, right?"
Index excitedly moves her shoulders up and down, "This clothing involves all the essential
elements of a Church, so it can be called 'a Church in the shape of clothes'! The cloth-weaving,
the line-stitching, even the embroidery. Everything was carefully planned! A mere kitchen knife
can‘t hurt me at all!"
"I think you‘re just bluffing... if I were to really stab through it, I‘d be the most ridiculous
juvenile delinquent ever!"
"You don‘t believe me! This cloth can replicate exactly the effects of the Holy Shroud of Turin,
the cloth that the Saint was wearing when Longinus‘ spear stabbed through him. Thus, its
durability is Pope-class. In your terms, it would be at the level of a nuclear bomb shelter, right?
Regardless of whether the attack is physical or magical, this will take it, and absorb it... Didn‘t I
say I landed on your balcony because I had been hit from behind? If I didn't have this [Walking
Church] I'd have a hole in me already! Do you understand this?"
That girl really was noisy.
Giving a dark look at her clothes, Kamijou‘s opinion on Index had taken a drastic turn for the
worse.
"Right, real impressive... but if this is 'an abnormal power' and my right hand were to touch it,
your clothes would be gone, right?"
"That‘s if your power is really au-then-tic~ Hoho—" Index smiled in disdain.
Kamijou thinks, I’ll take that bet! and grabs Index‘s shoulder with his right hand. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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Eh?…
He felt a really strange feeling... like he was trying to catch clouds. It was like all the impact was
being absorbed by a soft sponge.
"... wait, hold on..."
Kamijou, who calmed down, starts to think of something.
If what Index said, silly as it sounds, is true; and this clothing called the [Walking Church] really
was woven together by some "abnormal power", what would happen?
If that "abnormal power" was destroyed, wouldn't that make the cloth fall apart?
"NOOOOO WAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?!" The sudden feeling of
reaching adulthood made Kamijou react with a scream.
...
...
...?
"—AAAAAHHHHHHHHHH... eh?"
Nothing happened.
Kamijou though, Damn it, that made me worried for a bit, though he also felt some pity for the
girl.
"Look! See?! What [Imagine Breaker]? Nothing happened!" Index placed her hands on her hips,
puffing up her little chest and smiling.
The next instant Index‘s clothes unraveled like a gift ribbon, scattering on the floor. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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The threads that had kept the nun robe together loosened, and the robe became just a single piece
of cloth. Only the headdress remained intact, but that probably had more to do with it not being
attached to the clothes he touched. As a whole, it just made it a bit more insulting.
Index just stood there, her hands on her hips, her little chest puffed up, and smiling.
There was nothing covering her body.
Part 4
Apparently the girl called "Index" has a habit of biting people whenever she's angry.
―OW! OW! OW! Stop biting on me! Do you think you're a mosquito from summer camp or
something?!"
"..."
She didn‘t answer.
Index, who only had a blanket wrapped around her, was sitting upright on the floor, using a large
pile of safety pins in a painstaking (and futile) attempt to mend the scattered patches of the
destroyed nun habit back together.
An ominous and terrifying atmosphere dominates the room.
Of course, it‘s not like a serial killer was about to walk into the room.
"... erm, excuse me, princess? Sorry for bothering you, but there‘s a small T-shirt and shorts
here..."
"..."
The nun stared back at him, glaring like a snake.
"... erm... princess?"
Kamijou Touma felt like the girl in front of him had a lot of facial expressions as he tried to
continue a conversation with her.
"... what?"
"It was my fault just now, okay?" とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou recieved the girl‘s reply in the form of a flying alarm clock thrown at his face. Just as
Kamijou shrieked in surprise, a huge pillow flies over as well. Following the pillow, terrifyingly
enough, a game console and a mini-tape recorder fly over as well.
―How can you nonchalantly say such words to me after such an embarrassing thing?!‖
―Erm... this... that... actually, your servant's more than a little nervous now. How should I
describe this... 'This is youth!'?‖
―You‘re still joking... uuuuuuuuuuu!‖
"Yes! Yes! I‘m sorry! I‘m sorry! I apologize! ... that‘s a tape recorder that I rented, not a
handkerchief! PLEASE DON‘T BITE ON IT!"
Kamijou Touma prostrated himself on the floor in an exaggerated manner as he apologized to the
girl.
To be honest, Kamijou, who for the first time in his life saw with his own eyes a stark-naked girl
in full glory, was so nervous his heart felt like it was being squeezed.
It's a good thing she can’t see it on my face, he thought. But his thoughts, unfortunately, were
merely thoughts. If he were to look in a mirror, he would find that it was plainly written all over
his face.
"It‘s done..."
With a sobbing, runny nose sound, Index finished the seemingly hellish housework handicraft
time to restore the nun habit to its original shape. After flipping it up for a look…
... Huh. A nun habit that glittered with numerous safety pins.
"... (Sweatdrop)"
"Erm, are you really going to wear this?"
"..."
"Are you really going to wear this iron maiden-like gimmick?‖[5]
"... (Tears)."
"It‘s called ‗hari no mushiroto‘ in Japanese."[6]
"... uu... uuuuuuu!" とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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"I WAS WRONG! I‘M SORRY!"
Kamijou immediately prostrated himself on the floor, smashing his head on the floor like garlic
being crushed. In contrast, Index looked like a child being bullied as she bit down hard on the
television cable. If she kept that up the cable would be bitten in half. Such an uncouth cat.
"I must wear it! I‘m still a nun after all!"
Index made a strange growl as she dressed herself underneath the blanket, mimicking the
movements of a caterpillar. The only part of her form not hidden by the blanket was her face,
which looked as red as a bomb.
"... Ah, the way you‘re changing clothes reminds me of swimming lessons in school-"
"Why are you still looking? You should be turning your head away, right?"
"It‘s not like you‘ll die if I see you naked. I just saw you like that. Changing clothes isn‘t really
much.‖
"..."
Index paused in her actions, but found Kamijou either hadn't realized or believed he said
something wrong again, so she simply continued putting her clothes back on. The cap on her
head had dropped to the floor, but she seemed to be focused on putting on her clothes inside the
blanket so she hadn't noticed yet.
He didn‘t know what to say, but he did know the situation would only get even more awkward if
no one said anything. It was like being in an elevator with a stranger.
While Kamijou continued to wish that he could escape reality, something cropped back into the
forefront of his mind: Summer remedial lessons!
"WA! DAMN IT! I‘VE GOT REMEDIAL LESSONS!"
Kamijou looked at the time on his watch, "Ah... erm... I have to go to school now. What do you
want to do? If you want to stay here, I‘ll give you the key."
The idea of "chasing the girl away" had completely vanished from Kamijou‘s mind.
Since Index‘s nun habit, [Walking Church], reacted to the [Imagine Breaker], Kamijou had proof
that her clothes really did possess a "supernatural power". Her earlier words didn't sound so
fantastical anymore.
She said she was chased by magicians and fell down from the roof onto his balcony railing. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
Volume 1
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She said she had to continue running for her life.
Was there really a group of magicians walking out from a fairy tale acting like hooligans? In the
capital of Science that can even turn supernatural powers into reality?
... even if he didn‘t consider these practicalities, Kamijou wanted Index to stay here and calm
down after seeing her so distressed.
"... no need. I‘m leaving."
Despite her words, Index carried as distressed look as she slowly rose from the floor. Like a
lifeless ghost, she floats beside Kamijou, seemingly forgetting her cap had dropped onto the floor
while she was putting the habit back on. Kamijou wanted pick it up and return it to her, but was
afraid the power in his right hand would destroy the cap too.
"Ah... erm... that..."
"Hm? Don‘t think so much!" Index turns her head around, and says, "I‘m not leaving because
I‘m angry; it‘s just that if I‘m to continue staying here, those people may come back. You don‘t
want your room to be destroyed, right?"
To hear Index say such terrifying words so easily, Kamijou doesn‘t know how to reply.
Index slowly walked towards the entrance and exited. Kamijou frantically chased her, thinking
that he should at least help her out, but after pulling out his wallet he should that he has only 320
yen. Even so, Kamijou wanted to keep Index here, where she was safe, so he hurriedly rushed
towards the door, only to hit his leg on the door frame.
"AH… OWWWWWWWWW! OOOOOOOOO!"
Index turned around at the sound of his scream, and saw Kamijou holding his leg and bellowing
in pain. The pain in his leg had him jumping about, causing the cellphone in his pocket to fall
onto the floor. By the time Kamijou realized this it was too late, and a crack could be heard from
the liquid crystal screen.
"Uuuu... uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu... I‘m really unfortunate..."
"If you‘re going to say unlucky, maybe you‘re just a klutz…?" Index smiles, "But since your
[Imagine Breaker] is real, I guess that can‘t be helped, right?"
"... what do you mean?"
"Hm, this is a Magic side issue, so you might not believe it even if I say it." Index laughs as she
says, "God‘s blessing, the red string of fate... if these things really exist, they‘re likely to be
destroyed by your right hand as well." とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Index shook the nun habit held together by safety pins, saying, "Like the [Walking Church] that
originally has God‘s power. It‘s from God‘s protection."
"Humph... what 'lucky' or 'unlucky'? Isn‘t it just probability and statistics? How can it be true-"
Before he could finish his statement Kamijou felt static electricity as he touched the door handle,
shocking Kamijou and causing his whole body to tremble in reflex. His muscles trembled in
ways they weren't used to, and his right calf cramps up.
"—Uuuuuuu..."
Kamijou moans for about six seconds.
"... erm... Sister-san..."
"Yes?"
"... please explain..."
"The logic is actually very simple..." Index said this in a matter-of-fact tone, "If that power of
your right hand is real it means that, if your right hand existed for even one day, the power of
'luck‘ will continue to be destroyed by your right hand."
"... so you mean..."
"As long as your right hand touches the air, you‘ll continue to be unlucky."
"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHH! I REALLY AM UNLUCKYYYYY!!!"
Though Kamijou doesn‘t believe in magic, he was extremely sensitive to the phenomenon called
"misfortune". In Kamijou‘s daily life, he‘s often so unlucky he couldn't help but feel the entire
universe was against him.
And standing in front of the misfortunate Kamijou Touma was a nun dressed in pure-white and
glowing with a goddess-like smile.
Everyone who saw it would tell you it was an expression telling you to have faith.
―If you‘re going to say that you‘re unfortunate, you‘re already unfortunate to just have this
power.‖
Seeing the smiling nun in front of him, Kamijou couldn't help but let tears out of his eyes... oi...
hold on, that wasn't the point he was trying to make... とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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"No, I‘m not talking about that! You... do you have any place to stay after you leave here? I
don‘t know what‘s going on, but those magicians may still be lurking nearby, yes? My house is
safer. Do do you want to stay here?‖
"I'd lure the 'enemies' here if I stayed.‖
"How can you be so certain? As long as you don‘t attract attention and stay inside this room, you
shouldn‘t be discovered, right?"
"It isn‘t that simple."
Index grabs the collar of her clothing and says, "This clothing is called the [Walking Church].
It‘s maintained by magic. Though the Church calls it [God‘s Power], it‘s similar to magic. In
other words, the 'enemy' can use the magical signature of the [Walking Church] to locate me."
"Then why are you wearing what's basically nothing more than a beacon?"
"Because its defensive capabilities are Pope-class... before it was destroyed by your right hand."
"..."
"If it hadn't been destroyed by your right hand..."
"I‘m sorry... please don‘t stare at me with those teary eyes... wait. Come to think of it, since your
[Walking Church] was destroyed by my right hand, they shouldn't be able to track it anymore,
right?"
"They‘ll still know that my [Walking Church] was destroyed. Like I just said: The [Walking
Church]'s defensive capabilities are Pope-class. In other words, it‘s just like a [Walking
Fortress]... if I were an 'enemy', even if I didn‘t know why the [Walking Fortress] was destroyed,
I definitely wouldn't let such an opportunity slip by. Would you?"
"Hold on! That's even more reason to not let you go off by yourself! Though I still don‘t believe
in what you call "magic", if there really is an 'enemy' chasing after you, how can I let you risk
your life outside?"
Index was stunned.
Looking at her expression, she really did looked like an ordinary girl.
"... you mean that even if I‘m to descend into Hell, you‘ll accompany me there?"
Index smiled.
She smiled a smile so helpless it rendered Kamijou speechless. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Behind those gentle words was a hidden request: Please don’t get yourself involved in this.
"Don‘t worry, it‘s not like I don‘t have companions. As long as I can escape into the Church, the
people there will protect me."
"... oh? Then... where‘s this Church?"
"London."
"Isn‘t that a little far? How long do you plan to be running?"
"Hm? Ah, don‘t worry! There should be a few sub-branches here in Japan."
Her nun habit full of safety pins swayed about.
This tiny girl who looked like a housewife called "Index" who had every appearance of being
bullied far to often said, "A church... yes, there seems to be one in this city."
Any ordinary person who hears the word "church" would immediately think of the large
buildings where weddings are held. In Japan, however, churches were very small. Though
having a presence in Japan, the Christian culture hadn't really taken root there, and with the
frequent earthquakes Japan experienced, it was hard to maintain "buildings with historical value".
The churches that Kamijou saw from the corner of his eye every so often outside the window
during a train ride were just blocks of flats with a cross erected on the roof... come to think of it,
thought, if it was just an upstart church it would seem a bit out of the way.
"Hm... but not just any church will do... I belong to the British Puritans..."
"?"
"Erm... in the broad sense, Christianity is actually divided into many different sects..." Index
awkwardly explains, "Christianity is largely divided into Catholicism and Protestantism. I belong
to the Catholic side, which is sub-divided into the Roman Catholic Church, based in Vatican
City; the Russian Orthodox Church, based in Russia[7]; and the British Puritan Church, based in
St. George's Cathedral."
"... so what‘ll happen if you go to the wrong one?"
"I‘ll be turned away." Index continued to explain with a bitter smile, "The Russian Orthodoxy
and British Puritans are largely based within their own countries, so neither have many Churches
here in Japan."
"..." とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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The more Kamijou listened, the more he felt something was amiss.
Maybe before Index succumbed to hunger, she had already visited several of "churches" only to
be turned away time and again, forcing her to keep running for her life? It wasn't a comforting
thought.
"Don‘t worry. As long as I reach a church belonging to the British Puritans, I win."
"..."
Immediately, Kamijou thought of the "power" of his right hand.
"Oi! If you get into any trouble... come find me."
In the end, it was all he could do for her.
Even though he had the power to kill God himself.
"Mn, I‘ll come back if I get hungry again."
Index revealed a smile like the morning glory. That perfect smile yet again rendered Kamijou
speechless.
A cleaning robot approached, moved around Index's form, and continued its journey forward.
"YAAAH!"
The perfect smile vanished in an instant as Index fell backwards. The way she was trembling, it
looked like her legs had cramped up. *DONG!* The back of her head slammed into the wall.
"—! SOME STRANGE THING JUST CASUALLY CAME OUT OF NOWHERE...?!"
Index's eyes filled with tears as she shrieked, even forgetting to nurse the back of her head.
"YOU'RE OVERREACTING! THAT'S JUST A CLEANING ROBOT!"
Kamijou sighed.
A cleaning robot looked like a large metal cylinder with wheels under it, using the circular mop
underneath to clean the floor. A camera installed near the top allowed it to avoid obstacles. Every
girl that wore a mini-skirt hated the things.
"... I see. Japan isn‘t a country of technology, but rather one where even magic isn‘t
mechanized." とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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"Oi!"
Seeing Index looking to be impressed by Japan for some weird reason made Kamijou‘s hair
stand on end.
"This is Academy City. You can see things like that everywhere!"
"Academy City?"
"That‘s right. The west side of Tokyo was relatively slow in development, so it was bought to
establish this 'city'. This 'city of schools' includes several universities and countless primary,
secondary, and tertiary schools."
Kamijou sighed as he continued, "80% of the people living here are students, and all the
apartments that look like condominiums are actually student dormitories."
Academy City not only educates students in academics, it also nurtures superpowers and body
development in secret.
"... so the scenes on the streets may be a bit different from what you're used to. Food-dispensing
vending machines, practical windmills to generate electricity, and that cleaning robot just now...
there‘s a lot of things like that developed by the universities here. The level of technology here is
roughly twenty years ahead of the outside world."
"Hm..." Index stares at the cleaning robot, and says, "So all the buildings in this area belong to
this 'Academy City'?"
"Yup... if you‘re looking for that English Church here, my advise is that you to try your luck
outside the city. The churches here are most likely theological or pseudo-psychological
education organization."
Index gives a "Mn" as she nods her head. It was only then that she thought of using her hand to
touch the back of her head.
"... eh? Ah... eh? My... my cap‘s gone!"
"You only just realized it? It dropped just now!"
"Eh?"
Kamijou had meant "you dropped it when you were changing under the blanket", but Index
seemed to have heard it as "you dropped it when you were scared by the cleaning robot and fell".
Index searched around the corridor for it. Failing to find it, several question marks appeared
above her head. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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"A-HA! That‘s right! It must be that electrical demon!"
Index seemed to have completely misunderstood him as she ran after the cleaning robot turning
around the corner.
"... erm... what the hell‘s up with this situation?"
Kamijou looked back inside his room, at Index‘s cap, and looked back at the corridor; Index had
already disappeared. Such an unemotional way of leaving.
It made him think of something completely baseless: If the world was somehow destroyed,
would she manage to survive by some ridiculous reason?
Part 5
―Hai~ Sensei made some materials, so I‘m going to pass them forward~ This will be today‘s
lessons contents~‖
It‘s been a semester since he was in this class, but even now, Kamijou still feels intrigued.
The homeroom teacher of Year 1 Class 7, Tsukuyomi Komoe is standing behind the table. The
students can only see the top of this teacher. She‘s 135 cm tall, and it‘s said that she wanted to
ride a roller coaster, but was rejected due to safety concerns. No matter who‘s looking at this,
anyone would feel that she‘s a twelve-year-old student who should wear a yellow safety helmet
and carry a red backpack and a recorder. This kid-like teacher really is one of the seven great
mysteries of the school.
―Though Sensei won‘t forbid everyone from talking, everyone must listen to what Sensei‘s
saying, okay~? Sensei has already worked hard to prepare all the questions for a quiz. If you fail,
you have to play a punishment game~‖
―Sensei, are you talking about playing poker blindfolded? That‘s an X-ray vision course! To win
ten consecutive times even when I can‘t see anything, or I can‘t go home. This Kamijou Touma
feels that I can‘t go home even by tomorrow morning!‖
―Yes~ but Kamijou, your marks for power development aren‘t enough. So you have to play this
X-ray vision game, right?‖
Kamijou feels that he really can‘t handle the professional smile of this "working teacher".
―Oo, looks like Komoe is really fond of Kami-yan…!‖
Sitting beside Kamijou is the male monitor with blue hair and piercings, who said something
ridiculous to Kamijou. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Don‘t you feel that that teacher who‘s happily tiptoeing and dabbling on the blackboard is being
somewhat antagonistic to me…?‖
―What…? That cute teacher? Does it matter even if she fails you in several subjects? You'll
definitely gain loads of experience if you're scolded by that kind of girl!‖
―You paedophile…! You‘re a lost cause!‖
―AHA—! Being a paedophile is ‗just‘ one of my preferences. I don‘t like ‗just‘ little girls, you
know~!‖
Just as Kamijou‘s about to respond with a "you trash-eating omnivore" remark,
―Those two over there! You‘re going to play ‗Columbus‘s Egg‘ if you continue talking!‖
This "Columbus's Egg" requires a person to balance a raw egg upside-down on a table without
any support. Even a student who studies telekinesis has to work so hard that the blood vessels in
their brain would explode in order to prevent the egg from falling; this is because if the force is
too great, the egg will break. Also, those who fail will have to stay until the next morning.
Kamijou and Aogami Pierce can only stare at Tsukuyomi Komoe, who‘s standing at the stage,
even nearly forgetting to breathe.
―Do you understand~?‖
Such a terrifying smile.
Komoe-sensei really hates people mentioning the word "small", yet likes people to call her
"cute".
However, Komoe-sensei doesn‘t mind not being viewed by the students as a teacher. Of course,
this is because this is Academy City. 80% of the population here are "students", so it can be
called a "children‘s country". Thus, the criticisms on those "teachers that aren‘t working hard
enough" are a lot harder than outside schools. Besides, the rank of the students here includes
"homework" and "powers".
Over here, the teachers‘ role here is just to "develop" the students‘ powers. The teachers
themselves don‘t really have any powers, though. The P.E. teachers and teaching staff that are
like instructors are all like monsters who've taken part in outside army organizations, being able
to use their metal palms to take down students with powers. Of course, Komoe-sensei, who
teaches chemistry, doesn‘t have these traits.
―I say, Kami-yan…‖
―What?‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―To be scolded by Komoe-sensei, doesn‘t it make you excited~?‖
―You‘re the only one who‘ll be excited, idiot! That‘s enough, shut up! Our summer will be
doomed if we‘re forced to play with raw eggs when we don‘t even have telekinesis powers! Stop
getting me into trouble with that fake Kansai accent!‖
―Fake… fake Kansai accent? Why would I fake a Kansai accent? I‘m really a native from
Osaka~!‖
―Shut up! You‘re born in a village full of rice fields! I‘m already irritated; stop making me try to
think of debating with you!‖
―I… I-I-I‘m not born in a village of rice fields! Ah… ah… the takoyaki‘s really delicious~‖
―Stop trying to be someone from Kansai. Can you eat rice with just takoyaki?‖
―What are you talking about? Even if you're a native from Kansai, you wouldn‘t match takoyaki
with just rice~‖
―…‖
―Probably not… probably not… Hold on… but… eh… would they?‖
―You revealed yourself, you fake Kansai native!‖
Kamijou sighs, and looks out the window.
If he had known that remedial lessons would be so boring, he would have accompanied Index.
Though the nun habit "Walking Church" that Index was wearing did react to Kamijou‘s right
hand- well, "react" is a rather mild word here- it doesn‘t mean that Kamijou would believe in the
existence of "magic". Maybe about 80-90% of what Index said was made up, and even if it‘s not
made up, maybe she just misunderstood some natural phenomenon as magic.
But…
The fish that escapes always look very big…
Kamijou sighs again. Instead of being stuck in this classroom that doesn‘t have any air
conditioning, he might as well follow Index into a fantasy world of magic and swords and find it
more interesting. And if he‘s to take part in the activity, there might also be a cute- it‘s a bit
forced to call her pretty- female lead.
―…‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou remembers the nun cap that Index left in his room.
In the end, he didn‘t return it to her. If he wanted to return it, he still has the chance. Even if
Index were to go missing, if he‘s to seriously look for her, he'd find her immediately. Even if he
really can‘t find her, it'd be logical for Kamijou to swing the cap around as he runs through the
streets.
Now that he thinks about it, Kamijou actually wanted to leave something of a shackle between
them. Kamijou secretly hopes that she would one day return to take the thing that she forgot.
This is because the smile of that white girl is so perfect.
If he doesn‘t leave some kind of shackle between them, it feels like she‘ll vanish between his
fingers like a phantom.
Kamijou‘s just afraid of this.
…What’s going on?
Kamijou, who‘s getting romantic, suddenly realizes something.
Kamijou was rather vicious in his words to this girl who'd been hanging on the balcony railing,
but he really doesn‘t hate that girl. He certainly feels a bit regretful that he might not see her
again in the future.
―…Ah… damn it!‖
Kamijou gives a "Cheh" inside his mouth. If he knew that he'd regret it now, he would have
insisted that she stay right from the beginning.
Come to think of it, what‘s the "103,000 grimoires" that she was talking about?
Those "magic societies" that were chasing Index (…‘Societies‘? Are they privatized companies?),
he heard that they were chasing her for those "103,000 grimoires"- at least, that‘s what she said.
As for Index, she‘s running for her life with those "103,000 grimoires".
Also, she didn‘t mean that she‘s holding onto some key or map that leads to a packed library.
Kamijou once asked her "where those books are", and her answer was a definite "it‘s all here".
However, Kamijou didn‘t even see a single book. Besides, his room can‘t store that many books.
―…What was she talking about?‖
Kamijou can‘t help but tilt his head. Index‘s nun robe "Walking Church" reacted to Kamijou‘s
"Imagine Breaker", but that means that what she said wasn‘t completely false. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Sensei, Kamijou‘s been staring at the skirts of the girls from the tennis club!‖
Hearing Aogami Pierce fake that hard Kansai accent, Kamijou lets out an "Ah" as his
consciousness is pulled back to the classroom.
―…‖
Komoe-sensei is silent.
Seems like Komoe-sensei is really shocked and sad that this student called Kamijou Touma isn‘t
paying attention to the lesson. Her expression is like a twelve-year-old girl who realized on a
winter day that Santa Claus was a lie.
Just as Kamijou‘s thinking about this, the entire class glares at him. Seems like they're members
of the Protection of Children‘s Rights Association.
It‘s supposed to be summer remedial, yet Kamijou was detained until normal dismissal time
before he‘s released.
―…Such misfortune.‖
Kamijou looks at the three-bladed windmill as he mutters to himself. Since the schools forbid
anyone from going out at night, the last buses and trains in Academy City would basically be
when school‘s dismissed.
Kamijou, who didn‘t manage to catch the bus, can only walk down the hot shopping street. A
security robot passes by Kamijou, and it‘s also designed such that it looks like a metal container
with wheels installed underneath. It functions like a mobile criminal surveillance device. At first,
it was designed as a puppy robot, but the puppy robots attract children‘s attention too easily,
making it hard for them to move about. Thus, every one of them was modified into metal
cylinders. Hm, this reason is really rather funny.
"AH! Finally found you, you! Oi… hold up! Stop! I‘m calling you! Hurry up and stop!"
Kamijou can‘t stand this summer heat as he looks at the security robot that‘s slowly moving
beside him, thinking,
―Where on Earth did Index go after chasing the robot?‖
He completely doesn‘t realize that the shout from behind was aimed at him.
Kamijou only feels that it‘s very noisy behind him, so he turns to look there. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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A middle-school-aged girl is standing behind him. The shoulder-length tea hair looks like it‘s
giving off a burning red light. The girl‘s face is all red as well. A gray pleated skirt, a shortsleeved blouse, and a thin summer jacket… after staring at her for quite a while, Kamijou finally
recognizes her.
―…Ah… you again, the biribiri middle school student.‖
―Stop calling me Biribiri! My name is Misaka Mikoto! Why haven‘t you remembered this? I
remembered you called me Biribiri the first time we met!‖
―The first time I met you…?‖
Kamijou starts to recall.
Hm, that‘s right. The first time he met her, she was being harassed by some delinquents. Wanting
to display the spirit of Urashima Tarou by advising them not to snatch a weak girl‘s purse, he
was only rewarded with the girl violently reacting, ―YOU‘RE TOO NOISY, STOP
INTERFERING!!‖ and attacking him with a lightning bolt. Of course, Kamijou neutralized her
attack with his right hand, but the girl was stunned… "Eh? What happened? Why isn‘t it
effective? Then how about this… eh? Ineffective…" In the end, it ended up how it is right now.
―…Eh? Why? I‘m not so sad, but why am I so sad, mommy?‖
―Why are you staring far away…‖
Kamijou‘s rather tired as he just finished his lessons, so he decides to look away from this
Biribiri in front of him.
―A girl is staring at Kamijou. This girl was the Railgun girl from yesterday. She‘s extremely
unhappy with losing to others, so she would come to Kamijou for revenge, but would always end
up frustrated.‖
―Who are you talking to now…?‖
―This girl has a tough attitude and doesn‘t admit her loss, but she‘s really scared of being alone,
as she‘s the leader of a group of animals.‖
―Stop designating people as weird!!‖
Misaka Mikoto‘s so frustrated that she‘s swinging her arms about, and the pedestrians on the
streets inadvertently turn to stare at her. This is to be expected, as the ordinary-looking summer
attire that Mikoto‘s wearing belongs to Tokiwadai Middle School, one of the five top ranked
schools in Academy City. The Tokiwadai Middle School‘s princesses who give such a refined
feeling are obvious even inside a crowded train, but this girl‘s mannerisms give that feeling that とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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she‘s the type of student that would play with her cellphone on the floor of a bus. Of course the
passersby would be surprised.
―Eh? Oh, ya, what‘s up, Biribiri? Isn‘t it the 20th of July? Why are you still wearing your
uniform? Did you go for supplementary lessons?‖
―Ugh… you… IGNORE THAT!‖
―I got it, you don‘t feel that the bunnies in the animal breeding area are safe enough?‖
―STOP PUTTING ANIMALS INTO MY PERSONALITY! YOU RASCAL, I'LL MAKE YOU
PAY! YOU‘LL BE TREMBLING ON YOUR LEGS LIKE AN ELECTROCUTED FROG!!
HURRY UP AND PREPARE YOUR WILL AND INHERITANCE NOW!‖
―No.‖
―WHY?‖
―Because I‘m not a leader of animals.‖
―YOU… RASCAL CONTINUE TO MAKE FUN OF ME?!?!?!‖
*THOMP!* The middle school girl stamps hard on the red bricks of the pedestrian walkway.
In that instant, the phones of the passersby let out a breaking sound. The cable televisions on the
shopping streets are immediately cut off, and even the security robots nearby let out a weird
cracking sound.
The hair of the middle school girl lets out a cracking sound that‘s like static electricity.
She‘s of flesh and blood, but this Level 5 power user that can fire a Railgun gives a scary smile
like a beast baring her fangs.
―HUMPH! HOW‘S THIS? DOES THIS CLEAR YOUR MIND- Mmm…!‖
Kamijou frantically uses his hand to cover Misaka Mikoto‘s whole mouth.
Shut… shut up! Please don’t say anything! Don’t you see those people with their cellphones
damaged emitting killing intent!? If they finds out that you did it, you have to pay them, not to
mention the cable TVs- who knows how much we have to pay!!
Kamijou prays to the God that he would only think of on Christmas, and at the same time thinks
of that silver-haired girl.
Maybe his prayer worked, as no one approached Kamijou and Mikoto. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Just as Kamijou heaves a sigh of relief (while Mikoto‘s suffocating from his hand),
―—Alert!! Alert! Error Number 100231-YF. Detected an offensive electromagnetic wave that
defies the laws of electromagnetism. Confirming system abnormality. May be an electrical
terrorist attack; please don‘t use any electronic equipment.‖
The Imagine Breaker and the Railgun tremble as they turn around.
The huge metal cylinder on the side of the streets is smoking as it lets out some signal that no
one seems to be able to understand.
The next moment, the security robot lets out a loud and shrill siren.
Of course, they have to run.
Running down an alley, kicking a plastic water can, scaring a black cat, continuing to run
forward. Kamijou thinks as he continues to run, Wait a second, I didn’t do anything wrong, why
am I running as well? But his legs can only continue to run even as he thinks this. He remembers
a television program mentioning that one security robot costs 1.2 million yen.
―Uuu… SUCH MISFORTUNE! ALL BECAUSE I GOT INVOLVED WITH THIS SORT OF
PERSON!!‖
―STOP CALLING ME ‗THIS SORT OF PERSON‘! MY NAME IS MISAKA MIKOTO!‖
After running to somewhere deep in the deepest part of an alley, both of them finally stop.
This place is a rectangular plaza that was most likely formed when one of the buildings here got
removed. It‘s really suitable for a 3-on-3 bullfight.
―YOU‘RE TOO NOISY, BIRIBIRI! THANKS TO THAT LIGHTNING STRIKE YOU
SUMMONED, MY HOUSE‘S ELECTRIC APPLIANCES ARE ALL DAMAGED! WHAT
ARE YOU GOING TO DO NOW!?‖
―WHO ASKED YOU TO BE SO IRRITATING!?‖
―WHAT ARE YOU BEING ANGRY ABOUT!? HAVE I EVEN LAID A FINGER ON YOU!?‖
Yesterday, Kamijou used his right hand to block every single one of Mikoto‘s attacks, including
the "Railgun", a "whip sword" formed by iron sand, a powerful electromagnetic pulse that targets
the organs, and the final move: real "lightning".
But every single move was unable to hurt Kamijou.
As long as it‘s a supernatural power, Kamijou Touma can negate every single one of them. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―YOU TIRED YOURSELF OUT BECAUSE YOU KEPT ATTACKING, RIGHT? YOUR
STAMINA‘S INADEQUATE; STOP BLAMING ME FOR IT!‖
―…Ugh…!‖
Mikoto grits her teeth with anger, and says,
―THAT… THAT‘S NOT CONSIDERED MY LOSS! I… I DIDN‘T EVEN GET HIT ONCE!
THAT SHOULD BE A DRAW!‖
―Sigh, no need for that. It‘s your win. Even if I‘m to take you out in frustration, the faulty air
conditioner can‘t be repaired.‖
―UGH…! YOU… STAY RIGHT THERE! HURRY UP AND FIGHT ME WITH ALL YOU'VE
GOT!!‖
Seeing Mikoto wave her arms wildly as she roars, Kamijou sighs,
―Are you sure I can go all-out?‖
Mikoto can‘t say anything.
Kamijou gently tightens his fist, and releases it again. This simple action is enough to make
Misaka Mikoto break out in cold sweat. She can‘t even take a step back; she can only remain
rooted to the spot.
Kamijou can block all of Mikoto‘s attacks casually, but Mikoto doesn‘t have a clue of what
Kamijou‘s "power" is. Actually, Mikoto‘s full of an "unknown fear" regarding Kamijou.
It‘s expected that Mikoto would be afraid, since Kamijou Touma is the man who managed to
block Mikoto‘s barrage of attacks for over two hours and remain unharmed. The thought that
"who knows how strong he'd be if he gets serious" makes Mikoto fearful of it.
After a while, Kamijou sighs, and looks away.
Mikoto seems like she finally managed to break free of her bonds as she finally takes a few steps
back, one by one.
―…Why am I… so unfortunate…?‖
Seeing Mikoto so afraid, Kamijou, however, looks a bit depressed, and continues,
―The electrical appliances in my room got wrecked, I met a phony magician this morning, and I
end up meeting Biribiri at night…‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Ma… magician…? What‘s that…?‖
―…‖
Kamijou ponders for a while, and says,
―Hm, what's that…?‖
Normally, Mikoto would shout, ―YOU RASCAL, ARE YOU LOOKING DOWN ON ME!? OR
DID YOUR WEIRD POWER FRY YOUR BRAIN?‖ and let off a series of electromagnetic
wave attacks. But right now, she can only spy Kamijou‘s face carefully.
Of course, Kamijou‘s just scaring her, but seeing her unexpectedly being so scared, he does feel
a little sad.
…Magician…
Kamijou suddenly recalls. When he spoke with that white nun, this word came out so naturally,
but now that she‘s not here, Kamijou realizes how far out this word seems to be for his current
life.
Why could he say such a word so easily when he was with Index?
Was there a mysterious "atmosphere" that made Kamijou believe her unknowingly?
―…What am I thinking?‖
Kamijou completely ignores that Biribiri Misaka Mikoto who‘s trembling like a puppy as he
mutters to himself.
His fate with Index was cut off just like this. This world is so wide, and it‘s impossible to expect
a "coincidental reunion". There‘s no point in thinking what the meaning of the word "magician"
is.
Even so, Kamijou's unable to forget.
He remembers that white nun cap that she forgot to take.
The only thing that she left behind, this "shackle" between the two, continues to bind Kamijou‘s
heart, making him restless.
Even Kamijou doesn‘t know why he‘s so bothered.
He‘s supposed to be one that can kill even God. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Part 6
320 yen… Looks like he can‘t go get a big bowl of gyuudon.
―…Medium-sized, huh…?‖
For the girls who normally would eat food that‘s as much as a light novel in a civilized manner,
maybe they can‘t understand, but for boys who are undergoing puberty, a medium-sized
gyuudon can only be called a "snack".
After wasting time with Misaka Mikoto by entering the gyuudon house to finish off the "snack",
Kamijou takes his remaining fortune of 30 yen (including taxes), and returns to the front of his
dorm under the sunset.
Not a single person is around.
Maybe everyone‘s gone crazy playing around, as it‘s the start of summer vacation.
The exterior of the dormitory looks just like a typical apartment. Inside this rectangular building,
there‘s a row of doors on the wall along the corridor. There is no "no peeping toms" sign
attached to a metal pole besides the metal handle, since this is a boys' dormitory.
The student dormitories are arranged in a vertical manner, extending out to the front. From the
road, which is also the gap between the dormitories, the corridor and the balcony on the other
side looks like the side.
Though there‘s an auto-lock system on the door, the neighboring dormitories are only two meters
apart. Invading this place is easy. Like what Index did this morning, one only needs to jump over
from another place.
Entering the door, and passing through what‘s supposed to be the administrator‘s storeroom,
Kamijou takes the elevator up. The elevator here is a lot more narrow and dirtier than those used
to move goods about in a construction yard. The "R" alphabet that symbolizes the roof is sealed
off with a metal plate, and this is to prevent the Romeos and Juliets who'd go up to the rooftop.
Like a microwave oven, the elevator lets out a "ding" as it stops at the seventh level.
The doors of the elevator let out a creaking sound, and slowly divide in halves. Being impatient,
Kamijou pushes the elevator door aside. Even though it‘s the seventh level, there‘s no wind.
Maybe it‘s the suppressing feeling of the neighboring block being so close that makes Kaijou
feel a lot hotter than usual.
―Hm?‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou finally notices that at the far end of the corridor, at the door of his room, there are three
cleaning robots gathered there. It‘s rare for three of these to gather at one spot. There should be
only five of these cleaning robots assigned to this dormitory. These three robots are moving back
and forth in a definite frequency, and it seems like it‘s dirty down there.
…For some reason, Kamijou has a bad premonition.
These large cleaning robots are able to remove even chewing gum that‘s stuck on the floor. What
kind of dirt is stuck over there such that even three machines are having difficulty removing it?
Did his neighbor next door, Tsuchimikado Motoharu try to give up his virginity, get himself
drunk trying to act like a delinquent, and vomit all over his door as if it were a telephone pole?
Thinking about this, Kamijou feels a chill.
―What on earth is…?‖
Humans have a stupid function of being intrigued by something horrifying.
Kamijou‘s unable to control himself as he takes the first step forward, then another. Finally, he
sees that thing.
The magical girl Index has fainted over there due to hunger.
―…Umm…‖
Though some parts are blocked by the robots, anyone can tell that this white nun that has shining
safety pins all over her habit has fainted again on the floor.
The three robots continue to knock against Index, but she doesn‘t move at all. This really looks
eerily similar to crows pecking at food in a city- really pitiful. Actually, the cleaning robots
should be able to avoid pedestrians and obstacles. This means that the robots aren‘t even treating
Index as a human- how sad.
―…I‘m really… unfortunate…‖
Though he says this, if there‘s a mirror in front of him, Kamijou Touma would be shocked by his
expression. Anyone would say that he‘s smiling.
Besides, Kamijou‘s still a bit unsettled. Even if this thing about the "magicians" isn‘t real, at
least it can explain why a lonely girl is being pursued by some mysterious new cult members.
Seeing her casually appear in front of him in this most natural way, it really should make him
happy. And even if one ignores these excuses, just seeing her again is something worth being
happy about. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou suddenly remembers the one thing that she left behind accidentally. It‘s that pure-white
nun cap. Right now, to Kamijou, that nun cap is like a magical tool that managed to work.
―Oi! What are you doing here again?‖
He shouts as he begins to run forward. Just this scene alone makes Kamijou looks like an
elementary school student who didn‘t sleep for one day. He approaches her, step by step, and this
feeling is like running happily to buy an RPG on the day it‘s released. Even Kamijou himself
doesn‘t understand why he‘s so excited.
Index still hasn‘t realized that Kamijou‘s here.
On seeing Index like this, Kamijou Touma thinks, This really suits you, and really finds it funny.
After that, Kamijou finds that Index‘s lying in a pool of blood.
―…Ah…?‖
In an instant, Kamijou isn‘t shocked, but puzzled.
He was blocked by the cleaning robots, so he didn‘t see it. Index, who‘s lying on the floor, has a
streamlined cut near her waist. The wound‘s really straight; it‘s basically like using a ruler and a
blade to cut a corrugated board. Also, the front tip of the silver hair was also neatly cut. Even this
silver hair is dyed red by the blood that‘s oozing out of the wound.
At this moment, Kamijou didn‘t even think that it was human blood.
A minute ago and a minute later, the huge difference in reality makes Kamijou confused. This
red thing…is it tomato sauce? Did Index get too hungry that she used her last ounce of strength
to squeeze out some tomato sauce? This image is really funny, and Kamijou really wants to
laugh.
But he can‘t.
How can he?
The three robots let out some cracking sounds, moving back and forth. They‘re still cleaning the
mess on the floor; the red fluid that‘s continuing to ooze out of Index‘s body and spreading on
the floor. Seems like they‘re using a dirty cloth and flipping it on the wound, trying to suck the
contents out of Index.
―Stop…stop it! STOP IT! DAMN IT!!‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou finally recognises reality as he frantically carries one of the cleaning robots that are
gathered around a heavily injured Index. But the cleaning robots are already made heavy to
prevent them from being stolen. And with their strength, it‘s hard to pull them out.
Of course, the cleaning robots are only cleaning the ‗dirt that‘s spreading on the floor‘, and aren‘t
really touching Index‘s wound. But to Kamijou‘s vision, these cleaning robots are not much
different from flies gathering on a rotting wound.
Though Kamijou tries his best, but it‘s hard to pull even one cleaning robot that‘s heavy and
strong, let alone three. And the moment he removes one, the other two would move towards the
mess.
Even the boy who can kill God can‘t do anything.
He can‘t even handle these toys.
But Index‘s not mocking him.
The lips that have gone purple due to a heavy loss of blood aren‘t moving. And one might even
wonder whether she‘s breathing.
―Damn it! Damn it!‖
Kamijou‘s mind is all muddled up as he wonders,
―What‘s going on? Are you kidding! TELL ME WHO DID THIS!‖
―Oh? We ‗magicians‘ are the ones who did this, huh?‖
So—the voice that came from behind definitely did not come from Index‘s mouth.
Kamijou turns back hard, in a posture that‘s looks like he‘s about to move forward. Elevator…no
one. But there‘s a man standing at the emergency staircase. Seems like he took the stairs up.
This pale guy is about 2m tall. He sure looks younger than Kamijou.
He seems to be as old as Index, about 14, 15. Looking at his height, he seems to be a foreigner.
As for his attire…he looks like a priest of a church, as he‘s wearing black priest robes. But
looking around the entire world, it‘s very likely that no one would believe that this person is a
priest.
Maybe he‘s standing at a position where the upwind came from, he‘s at least 15m away from
Kamijou, yet Kamijou can already smell a sweet cologne smell. His shoulder length blond hair is
dyed red like the sunset, and there are silver rings on his five fingers on both hands. He has many
earrings on, and there‘s a handphone decoration hanging from his pocket. He‘s biting onto a lit とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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cigarette that‘s shaking about, and the most exaggerating thing is that he has a barcode tattoo
below his right eye.
It doesn‘t feel right to call him a priest, nor is it right to call him a delinquent.
The man‘s standing on the corridor. The atmosphere surrounding him is obviously somewhat
abnormal. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Over here, it seems like all the logic that Kamijou knows of is no longer suitable. Over here, it
seems the world follows a different rule. This strange atmosphere continues to spread about as if
it‘s touched by an icy hand.
The initial feeling that Kamijou felt wasn‘t ‗fear‘ nor ‗anger‘.
The feelings are ‗confused‘ and ‗disturbed‘. It‘s like his wallet got stolen in a country with a
foreign language that‘s he‘s unfamiliar with, full of despair and loneliness.
This icy-touch feeling slowly spreads throughout his body…his heart starts to freeze. At this
moment, Kamijou realises it.
This person is a magician.
This place has become another ‗different world‘. Over here, this special character called the
magician exists.
Kamijou can see it immediately.
Even though he doesn‘t believe in this term called ‗magician‘.
This person in front of him can‘t be explained through the common knowledge of his own world.
―UU? Mmmm…seems like this hit was really heavy.‖
The magician twitches the cigarette in his mouth as he looks around, and says,
―Even though I know that Kanzaki slashed her…I was actually relieved when I saw that there‘s
wasn‘t any trail of blood.‖
The magician sees the cleaning robot behind Kamijou Touma.
Index seems like she got ‗hacked‘ somewhere else and struggled to come here before fainting.
There should be blood traces all over the place, but they seem to have been cleaned by the
cleaning robots.
―But…why…‖
Kamijou inadvertently mutters to himself.
―Hm? You‘re asking why she came back here? Who knows, maybe she forgot something, Oh
yeah, when she got hit yesterday, she was still wearing a nun cap. Who knows where it landed?‖
The magician in front of him actually used the words ‗came back here‘. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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In other words, while Index was moving around the entire day, she was being monitored by them.
They even knew that her nun cap dropped.
Index said before that the magicians can sense the magical power of the ‗Walking Church‘.
She also said before that these magicians followed her through the ‗unique power‘ of the
‗Walking Church‘.
Once the ‗signal‘ got interrupted, the magicians would also know that the ‗Walking Church‘ that
represents this got destroyed.
Index herself knows about this.
However, she had no choice but to use the defensive capabilities of the ‗Walking Church‘.
But…why is she here again? The ‗Walking Church‘ was destroyed and can‘t be used, so why did
she come back for the cap? Since the ‗Walking Church‘ got destroyed by Kamijou‘s right hand,
is there any point in taking back that cap…?
―…You mean that even if I‘m to go down to Hell, you‘ll accompany me there?‖
In an instant, all the scenarios are pieced together.
Kamijou finally thinks of it. The cap of that ‗Walking Church‘ that was left inside Kamijou‘s
room that wasn‘t touched by Kamijou‘s right hand.
In other words, that cap is still radiating magic energy. She must be worried that the magicians
would track the magical energy and arrive at Kamijou‘s room.
Thus, she made such a huge risk to ‗come back here‘.
―…You idiot.‖
There‘s no need to risk this. The reason the ‗Walking Church‘ would be destroyed was
Kamijou‘s fault. Kamijou already knew about the nun cap that‘s left behind in the nun, it‘s just
that he left it there and didn‘t bother with it. And more importantly…Index has no need to
protect Kamijou‘s life, neither any right nor any privilege.
Even so, she still came back.
For a stranger, a person called Kamijou Touma who she only met for 30 minutes. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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She risked her life to prevent Kamijou Touma from getting involved in her war against the
magicians.
She just had to come back.
―—You idiot!‖
The background of Index lying motionless there infuriates Kamijou even more.
Before that, Index told Kamijou that Kamijou‘s ‗misfortune‘ is the result of his right hand.
Kamijou‘s right hand would passively erase any ‗supernatural powers‘ like ‗God‘s blessing‘, the
‗red string of fate‘.
If Kamijou didn‘t just so randomly use his right hand to touch her, the ‗Walking Church‘ of the
nun robes wouldn‘t be destroyed, and she would not risk her life to come back here.
No, these aren‘t the main problems.
No matter what ability does Kamijou‘s right hand has, no matter whether the ‗Walking Church‘
got destroyed, these aren‘t enough reasons for her to come back.
It‘s all because Kamijou wanted a ‗shackle‘.
If he had returned the nun cap back, it wouldn‘t have ended up like this.
―Hm? Oi oi? Don‘t look at me like this!‖
The magician twitches the cigarette in his mouth as he says,
―I didn‘t cut ‗that thing‘, it was Kanzaki. And Kanzaki didn‘t intend to critically injure ‗that
thing‘. The ‗Walking Church‘ has absolute defences, and that level of attack shouldn‘t leave any
scratch on her…I wonder how did the ‗Walking Church‘ get destroyed? Unless the St. George
Dragon descends again, a Pope‘s level barrier shouldn‘t be destroyed…‖
After seemingly muttering to himself at the end, the magician‘s smile vanishes.
However, that‘s only for instant. The next moment, he‘s shaking the cigarette in his mouth again.
―Why…‖
Kamijou inadvertently asks a question that he doesn‘t even want the other person to answer, とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Why…? I really didn‘t believe in magic, and I can‘t understand what kind of organisms are
these things called magicians…but…there should be some justice and evil in your world, right?
There should be some things you want to protect, and guardians…‖
Kamijou knows very clearly that as someone being a hypocrite, he has no right to ask this.
Besides, he did abandon Index and return to his normal life.
Even so, Kamijou has to ask.
―Such a large group of people, and you were chasing a lonely girl, and even hacked her
badly…how can you stand by your own justice even after doing such a thing?‖
―I said before. The one who hacked her wasn‘t me, but Kanzaki.‖
However, the magician actually reuses such simple words without any sense of remorse.
―However, whether there‘s an injury or not, we still have to reclaim this.‖
―Re…claim…?‖
Kamijou doesn‘t understand these words.
―Hm? Ah…I see. I just heard you say ‗magician‘, so I assumed you know everything! Seems like
‗that thing‘ got you involved in this as well?‖
The magician puffs some smoke, and continues,
―That‘s right, we‘re reclaiming it. However, we‘re not really reclaiming ‗that thing‘, but rather
the 103,000 grimoires that ‗that thing‘ holds.‖
……That ‗103,000 grimoires‘ again.
―Oh yes, the religious view of this country‘s rather weak, so you may not understand it.‖
The magician smiles as he uses a bored tone to explain,
―Index Librorum Prohibitorum—in terms of your language, it can be translated as ‗Index‘. The
Index is a catalogue of all the evil grimoires that the Church feels would ‗corrupt one‘s soul after
just one look‘. Think, even if the Church announces that there are many evil grimoires in the
world, they can unknowingly pick them up to read it if they don‘t know the name, right? Thus,
the Church purposely allowed ‗that thing‘ to carry those 103,000 ‗evil templates‘, or equal to a
gathering of all the evil grimoires. Oh yes, I advise you to be careful. For a country with a
weaker view on religion, the grimoires that ‗that thing‘ carries can cause anyone to be a cripple.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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But Index clearly doesn‘t have any grimoires on her. She‘s obviously only wearing a nun robe,
and even if she‘s to hide the grimoires underneath, one should be able to see it. Besides, how can
one person carry 100,000 grimoires around? 100,000 grimoires…can cover an entire library.
―ARE YOU KIDDING! WHERE ARE THE GRIMOIRES!?‖
―They‘re in her brain.‖
The magician casually says,
―Have you heard of ‗photographic memory‘? It‘s said to be a power, ‗just by looking at the item
only once, the person can remember it for the rest of his life, not missing a single word‘.
Basically, a human-shaped scanner.‖
The magician laughs and says in an uninterested tone,
―This isn‘t our magic, nor is it those powers that you have, it‘s just an attribute. In her brain,
there are ‗grimoires‘ all over the world. The Great British Museum, Louvre Museum, Vatican
Museum, the ruins of Pataliputra, the ancient city of Compiègne, the Mount-Saint-Michel
Abbey…these were originally sealed and can‘t be stolen, but she can use those eyes to ‗steal‘
those grimoire and keep them in her brain, like a ‗magical library‘.‖
How is it possible for such a thing to exist?
What grimoires, what photographic memory, these are all so ridiculous.
However, the most important thing is not whether these are ‗real‘. More importantly, there‘s a
girl right in front of him ‗who got hacked down by some people who really believe this‘.
―However, she can‘t create any magic power, so she‘s immune to it.‖
The magician happily shakes his cigarette in his mouth as he says,
―Seems like the people at the ‗Church‘ aren‘t idiots, making her unable to use magic. However,
these things are unrelated to me, since I‘m a magician. Anyway, what I want to emphasize is that
those 103,000 grimoires are dangerous. It‘ll be troublesome if she‘s to be taken by magicians, so
we‘re protecting her.‖
―Pro…tect…?‖
Kamijou is stunned. Right now, Index‘s lying in the pool of blood, and yet this person in front of
him can say such words. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Yes, protect. Even if ‗that thing‘ has some moral conscience, it can‘t stand up against
interrogation and drug torture, right? Won‘t you feel hurt if such a girl lands in the hands of
those bad guys?‖
―…‖
A part of Kamijou‘s body starts to tremble.
This isn‘t just simply anger, as goosebumps starts to appear on Kamijou‘s arm. The man in front
of him only believes that he‘s correct. He‘s living in a life full of mistakes that he can‘t see.
Seeing this kind of person, Kamijou feels like he‘s tossed into a pool full of tens of thousands of
slugs, the nausea sweeps through his body.
A phrase appears in Kamijou‘s mind: A fanatic religious group.
These people are hurting others just because of some baseless ‗delusions‘, making him so angry
it hit the limit.
―You bastard—!‖
As if in response to his anger, Kamijou feels that his right hand is heating up as well.
They weren‘t moving before, but now, their feet are moving faster than their brains. The heavy
body that‘s made of flesh and blood flies towards the magician like a cannon. His right fist is
clenched tight, as if he‘s about to break his fingers.
Kamijou‘s right hand is useless. It can‘t beat delinquents or increase test marks, and it can‘t help
him hit on girls.
But Kamijou Touma‘s right hand is really useful. At least it can be used to smash that bastard in
front of him to a pulp.
―My name is Stiyl Magnus. But at this moment, I should call myself Fortis931…‖
The magician seems unmoved as he just slightly smiles, shaking that cigarette.
After that, the magician seems to mutter some words softly, and starts to explain to Kamijou with
an expression as if he‘s introducing his beloved well-bred cat to someone.
―That‘s my sorcery name. I suppose you have never heard of sorcery names, right? For some
reason, when we magicians use magic, we‘re forbidden to use our real names. This is an ancient
tradition that was passed down, so I don‘t know the reason exactly…‖
Both of them are about 15m apart. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou Touma just took 3 steps to erase half the distance.
―‘Fortis‘—when this word is translated to Japanese, it means ‗strong‘. However, the original
language of this isn‘t important, what‘s important is that between magicians, shouting a sorcery
name doesn‘t just mean we‘re about to use magic, it even means…‖
Kamijou Touma quickly takes another 2 steps forward.
But the magician‘s smile doesn‘t disappear. Maybe to him, Kamijou isn‘t enough to make him
stop smiling.
―…A killing name.‖
The magician Stiyl Magnus pulls out the cigarette from his mouth as he flicks it aside with his
fingers.
With the ashes and flame glows, the cigarette flies straight, passing the metal handle and hitting
the wall on the neighbouring building.
An orange line follows the trail of smoke, hitting the wall and letting out sparks.
―Kenaz (oh flames)—‖
After Stiyl whispers this, the orange line suddenly explodes.
It‘s like lighting a fire on a firehose that‘s filled with gasoline, as a straight flame sword appears.
The paint on the walls gradually turns black, as if a lighter‘s used to burn it.
There‘s no need to touch it, one can just see and feel like the eyes are going to be burned. This
makes Kamijou stop and raise his hands to protect that face.
Kamijou‘s feet feel like they‘ve been nailed to the floor.
A doubt appears in his mind.
The ‗Imagine Breaker‘ is said to be able to dispel any ‗supernatural powers‘. Even the level 5
power user, Misaka Mikoto fires the railgun that can rip through an anti-nuke shelter can‘t avoid
the fate of being dispelled.
However, there‘s an important question…
Kamijou has never seen any ‗supernatural powers‘ besides ‗esper powers‘.
In other words, he has never tried this before. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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How about magic?
As for this mysterious power called magic, can Kamijou‘s right hand really work?
―—Purisaz Naupiz Gebo (Grant the gift of the giant‘s suffering)!‖
Kamijou, who‘s protecting his face with both hands, is facing a smiling magician.
Stiyl Magnus smiles as he swings the flame sword down at Kamijou Touma.
Before it touches Kamijou, the flame sword loses its form, and everything around explodes as if
it‘s a volcanic eruption.
The heat, flash, explosions, smoke, all of these arise.
―Did I overdo it a little?‖
The magician mutters to himself.
The scene in front of him looks like it just got bombed. Stiyl scratches his head. Before this, he
has just about confirmed it. As today‘s the first day of Summer vacation, almost everyone living
here has gone out to play. But if there are some people who‘s locked inside the dormitory and
can‘t get out, that may be troublesome.
The view in front of him is blocked by black smoke and flames.
However, there‘s no need to check whether Kamijou‘s alive or not. That hit was a flame hell of
3000 degrees Celsius, and once the human body meets temperature of 2000 degrees Celsius and
above, they‘ll ‗melt‘ before they‘re ‗burned‘. The fate of this person is definitely like the metal
handle that has melted into malt candy. It can never be removed from the wall, as if someone just
spat some chewed chewing gum.
Stiyl sighs, thinking,
―Good thing I purposely angered him and got him away from Index. If he had used that heavily
injured Index to shield himself, this would be a lot more complicated.‖
…Come to think of it, he can‘t go get Index now.
Stiyl sighs again. Even if it‘s Stiyl, he can‘t pass through the flame wall in front and get to Index.
If there‘re stairs on the other side, he could have gone around and used that. But Index would be
doomed if she‘s to get caught in the fire while he‘s making his way there.
Stiyl shakes his head reluctantly. After that, he tries to look through the thick smoke and says, とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Sorry for bothering you, but you failed. Looking at your standard, it seems like you can‘t beat
me even if we fought 1000 times.‖
―Who did you say…can‘t beat you?‖
The voice that came out of the flame hell causes the magician to freeze.
BOOM! A vortex appears, engulfing the surrounding flames and black smoke.
It‘s like a tornado suddenly appeared in the middle of the flames and black smoke.
Kamijou Touma is standing there,
The metal handle melts like malt candy, the paint on the floor and the walls are flipped about,
and the lights that are melting under the intense heat continues to drip down—and yet in this
fiery and hot hell, the boy is still standing there unharmed.
―…Really, that‘s right, what was I afraid of—‖
Kamijou irritatedly twist his lips as he mutters to himself.
―—Wasn‘t this right hand the one that destroyed Index‘s ‗Walking Church‘?‖
To be honest, Kamijou doesn‘t understand what is ‗magic‘.
He doesn‘t understand how it works, doesn‘t understand what kind of convection it is that‘s
working in that invisible air. Even if someone is to explain it all to him, he would only
understand about half of it.
However, this idiot Kamijou knows one thing.
In the end, it‘s just a ‗supernatural power‘.
The bright red flames that were blown away aren‘t completely extinguished.
The remaining flames surround Kamijou like a perfect circle, continuing to burn. But…
―Get out of my way!‖
Kamijou said this as he uses his right hand to touch those flames. The magic flames that are
above 3000 degrees Celsius in temperature vanish in that instant. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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It‘s like blowing out all the candles on a birthday cake.
Kamijou Touma looks at the magician in front of him.
The magician in front of him is starting to show fear like a normal human, probably due to ‗this
unexpected result‘.
That‘s right, magicians are ordinary humans as well.
They‘ll feel pain when they‘re hit, they‘ll bleed even if a cheap 100-yen knife was used to cut
them.
They‘re not much different from ordinary humans.
Kamijou‘s arms and feet start to move.
MOVE!
―—Ugh…‖
On the other hand, Stiyl feels fear with regards to this unexplainable phenomenon, and takes a
step back.
Based on the surroundings, it seems that hit was flawless. If so, is this boy really able to use his
body to endure 3000 degrees Celsius of high temperatures? No, no human can endure that.
Kamijou Touma doesn‘t care about what Stiyl‘s thinking.
With the right fist that‘s clenched hard like a rock, Kamijou slowly moves towards Stiyl, taking a
step forward.
―Cheh!‖
Stiyl swings his right hand horizontally, and creates a new flame sword, hitting it hard on
Kamijou.
It explodes again, and the flames and smoke scatter.
But after the flames and smoke disperse, Kamijou Touma‘s still standing there.
…Don‘t tell me…he can use magic?
Stiyl muttered to himself. However, he immediately denies this assumption. Forget about saying
that there isn‘t any magic in this world; there definitely won‘t be any magicians in this stupid
country that treats Christmas as a day to date and make out. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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And…and besides…if Index, who doesn‘t have any magical power, is to ally with ‗magicians‘,
there wouldn‘t be any need for her to ‗escape‘.
The things in Index‘s brain are that terrifying.
The 103,000 magical grimoires that she holds are even more dangerous than a nuke.
Every life will die, an apple will always drop, 1 plus 1 would always be equal to 2…there are
laws that would never change, and even then, they can be destroyed by the magic recorded, and
then reassembled and recreated. 1 plus 1 would become 3, the apples will fall up, and life that‘s
dead will be revived once again.
A magician who can do all these is called a Majin.
It‘s not referring to a ‗God of Magic‘, but the most advanced in magic techniques, a magician
that has achieved ‗God-like‘ skills.
A Majin.
However, he can‘t sense any ‗magical power‘ from this boy.
One should be able to see a magician just by looking, but the boy in front doesn‘t have ‗a smell
that belongs to the same world as him‘.
If so, how did he do it?
―!!‖
In order to hide his trembling, Stiyl swings his flame sword at Kamijou.
This time though, it does not explode.
Kamijou uses his right hand to smack the flame sword away as if he‘s shooing a fly away. At
that moment, the flame sword breaks apart like glass, and then dissolves into emptiness.
The 3000 degrees Celsius flame sword was destroyed by a right hand that wasn‘t powered up by
any magic.
―…Ah…‖
Suddenly, real suddenly, Stiyl Magnus thought of something.
The ‗Walking Church‘ on Index‘s nun habit is pope-class, and its power can match the level of
enchantment on the London Cathedral. This level of boundary was said to be unbreakable unless
the St. George dragon descends. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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However, Index, who was hacked down by Kanzaki, had her ‗Walking Church‘ completely
destroyed.
Who did it? And how?
―………‖
Kamijou has gotten right in front of Stiyl.
One more step, and it‘s within range for a punch.
―…MTWOFFTO (One of the five elements that build the Earth), IIGOIIF (o great creator of
flames)…‖
Stiyl‘s starting to break out cold sweat. To him, this organism that‘s wearing summer uniform
and has the shape of a human may not be human underneath the skin, but some thick and
mysterious material. Thinking about this, a chill moves through Stiyl‘s spine.
―IIBOL(The light of salvation that gives birth to life), AIIAOE ( the light of judgment that
punishes evildoers)… IIMH(While bringing peace and stability at the same time), AIIBOD(it
also destroys the cold and dark misfortune)… IIZF(Fire is the name), IIMS (sword is the
title)!...( Show yourself) , MMBOP(Swallow thyself‘, turn it into power)—!‖
Part of Stiyl‘s priest robes start to part, and an inner force causes the buttons to pop out.
BOOM! A huge explosion can be heard. It‘s the result of the flames absorbing oxygen. A giant
fireball flies out from inside his coat. Also, it‘s not an ordinary fireball.
At the centre of the bright red flame, there‘s a ‗core‘ that‘s as thick and pitch black as oil. The
core looks human, and this ever-burning core makes one think about the seabirds being stained
by oil after an accident on the sea.
The name is ‗Innocentius‘, the intention‘s ‗to kill‘.
The giant flame god with killing intent stretches its arms out, charging forward at Kamijou
Touma like a cannon—
―DON‘T GET IN MY WAY!‖
THOMP!
Kamijou irritatedly swings a backhand, and it feels like he‘s pulling off a spiderweb in front of
him. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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To think that Stiyl Magnus‘ trump card actually got negated by Kamijou. The giant flame godlike oil man scatters on the floor in puddles, as if a needle was used to pierce through a water ball.
―…?‖
However, Kamijou Touma doesn‘t take a step forward. Of course, there isn‘t any obvious reason.
Kamijou just sees Stiyl continuing to snigger even after his trump card. This expression makes
Kamijou fearful of taking the final step forward so easily.
The sound of thick liquid bobbling around can be heard all over the place.
―What—?‖
Kamijou panics as he takes a step back. At that moment, the black foam gathers around from all
over the place, and reforms back into a humanoid shape.
If he had taken a step forward, he would definitely be attacked all around by the flames.
Kamijou‘s puzzled by what‘s going on in front of him. If the ‗Imagine Breaker‘ effect of his
right hand that he declared was correct, then even the miracles depicted in those legends should
be destroyed as well. As long as ‗magic‘ is also called a supernatural power, it should be
‗completely negated‘ once it was touched…
The oil in the flames start to move and change shapes, and finally, takes the form of a giant
wielding a dual-handed sword.
No, that shouldn‘t be called a sword; that should be called a giant Cross that‘s over 2 metres long
and can easily crush anyone to death.
The giant raises the Cross with both hands and slams it down onto Kamijou‘s head like a pickaxe.
―…!‖
Kamijou immediately uses his right hand to block. Besides his own right hand ability, Kamijou
is basically just an ordinary high school student. Seeing this incoming attack, he can‘t see clearly
and dodge it.
CLANG! The Cross and the right hand collide.
This time, the giant doesn‘t vanish. Kamijou feels that his right hand‘s holding onto a rubber
sheet, but his hand can‘t hold it for long. Besides, the enemy‘s using two hands, and Kamijou
himself can only use one hand. The flame Cross starts to approach Kamijou from above. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou, who doesn‘t know what‘s going on, realises something. This flame-body thing called
‗Innocentius‘ did react to Kamijou‘s right hand. However, it can revive immediately after it‘s
destroyed. The time between destruction and revival is most likely not even a tenth of a second.
His right hand ability‘s sealed.
Once he lets go of his right hand, Kamijou would likely be burned to ashes by ‗Innocentius‘.‖
―—Rune…‖
Kamijou seems to hear something.
This tense situation makes him unable to turn back. However, Kamijou can hear whose voice
was it.
―—The 24 runes which symbolises ‗mysteries‘ and ‗secrets‘…the Germanic people started to use
magic language ever since the 2nd century AD. It‘s said that that was the origin of English.‖
Though Kamijou can hear Index‘s voice, he‘s still unable to believe it.
―What…?‖
Index‘s already dying, but why can she say such words so calmly?‖
―—It‘s ineffective to attack ‗Innocentius‘ head on. Without removing the ‗rune seals‘ on the
walls, floors, ceilings, and all sorts of places, it will continue to regenerate.‖
Kamijou Touma uses his left hand to grab onto his right wrist, barely managing to hold down the
Cross.
With a chill in his heart, he glances back.
The girl‘s still lying down there. However, Kamijou is unable to call ‗her‘ Index, as the girl‘s
eyes are emotionless like a robot.
For every word the girl said, the wound continues to bleed.
However, the girl doesn‘t mind the wound on her back; she‘s like a ‗function‘ that‘s basically
designed to explain magic.
―You…you…you‘re Index, right?‖
―Yes. I‘m the magical library that‘s affiliated to sector 0 of the English Anglicans, ‗Necessarius‘.
My proper name is Index Librorum Prohibitorum, but just calling me Index would be fine.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Seeing the magical library named Index have this meaning of existence, Kamijou feels a chill
through his entire body, even forgetting that he‘s about to be crushed by the giant flame god.
―I‘ve ended the self-introductions, so please allow me to go back to the explanations of the runes.
Basically, they‘re like a moon‘s reflection on a lake…no matter how one uses a sword to cut it,
it‘s pointless. If one wants to cut the moon on the water, the person has to destroy the real moon
in the sky.‖
After Index said this, Kamijou remembers the enemy that‘s in front of him.
Does she mean that this isn‘t the main body of this ‗supernatural power‘? Like the relationship
between film and pictures, would the giant flame god continue to revive if the ‗other supernatural
force‘ that continues to create the giant flame god isn‘t destroyed?‖
There‘s no magic in this world. This ‗common knowledge‘ is already etched into Kamijou‘s
heart.
Also, his right hand is sealed by ‗Innocentius‘. Kamijou, who‘s trapped and can‘t move an inch,
is unable to follow Index‘s instructions. Index‘s now lying in a pool of blood, so she can‘t come
over to help out.
―Ash to Ash…‖
Behind the giant flame god, Stiyl creates a flame sword with his right hand.
―Dust to Dust…‖
A whiteish-blue flame sword appears on Stiyl‘s left hand, not a single sound was made.
―……Squeamish Bloody Road!‖
With this strong and forceful shout, the two flame swords cut in horizontally from both sides, as
if it‘s trying to cut Kamijou together with the giant flame god like a pair of scissors. Kamijou,
whose right hand is sealed off by ‗Innocentius‘, is unable to defend.
(Damn…damn it…got to escape first—!)
Kamijou Touma doesn‘t even have time to let out a shout.
The two flame swords hit the giant flame god, and as if a giant bomb was just fused, a large
explosion occurs.
Part 7
After the flames and smoke scatter, the surrounding area‘s like hell. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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The metal railings change shape like malt candy, and even the floor tiles have melted into
something adhesive-like.
The paint on the wall peels off, revealing the concrete surface beneath it.
However, the boy can‘t be seen.
Stiyl can only hear footsteps that are moving away.
―…‘Innocentius‘!‖
Stiyl roars, and the surrounding flames again gather back into a humanoid shape, passing the
door handle and moving in the directions of the footsteps.
However, deep inside, Stiyl‘s really amazed. Just right before the explosion, Kamijou made use
both of Stiyl‘s swords and released his right hand, before easily escaping by jumping over the
railings.
Falling down, Kamijou grabbed the railing on the lower level, and pulled himself back up onto
the corridor. To think that he actually dared to do this without any ropes or protective measures.
Seems like this guy doesn‘t fear death at all.
―However…that‘s alright.‖
Stiyl smiles. Thanks to the knowledge of the 103,000 magical grimoires inside Index‘s head,
Kamijou knows the weaknesses of the runes. That‘s right, Stiyl‘s rune magic can only be
activated when the ‗runes are imprinted‘. On the other hand, once the ‗carved runes‘ are
destroyed, no matter how powerful the spell is, the magic will lose effect.
―But so what?‖
Stiyl looks really relaxed as he said this,
―You can‘t do it. You won‘t be able to destroy all the runes in this building.‖
―Damn it! I‘ll die! I‘ll really die this time!‖
Even after jumping off the railing on the 7th level without any ropes tied, Kamijou‘s heart is still
pounding like crazy.
Running on the corridor, Kamijou starts to look around. Actually, he didn‘t believe Index
completely, and is intending to run away from ‗Innocentius‘ before re-attacking.
―DAMN IT! WHAT‘S GOING ON HERE?‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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But after seeing what‘s in front of him, Kamijou can‘t help but shout out.
Actually, the problem isn‘t where the rune is hidden in this huge student dormitory, but rather,
they are too obvious. The floor, doors, fire extinguisher…these pieces of paper that are as large
as a phone card covers every single corner of the building.
According to Index‘s explanation (though Kamijou really doesn‘t want to remember that
emotionless face), this magic has something like a barrier that blocks electromagnetic pulses, and
those pieces of paper emit some electromagnetic waves to block the antenna…that should be it,
right…? But how is he going to tear these tens of thousands of pieces of paper down?
BOOM! That‘s the sound of flames absorbing oxygen. On the other side of the metal railing, the
humanoid-shaped flame descends from above.
―DAMN IT!‖
If he‘s to be caught again, he would not escape that easily! Kamijou immediately jumps over to
the emergency staircase beside him. Running down the stairs, Kamijou sees that every corner
and even the ceiling‘s covered with runes. Actually, instead of calling them runes, they‘re just
some pieces of paper with mysterious markings on them, stuck all over the place with tape.
One can tell that these are made by photocopying a large number of them.
These fake things can work as well? Kamijou feels like snarking at it, but on second thought,
those tarot cards that often come with those shoujo manga can also be used for divination, and
isn‘t the Bible also mass-produced by printing?
(This thing called magic…is really too much!)
He really wants to cry. There should be tens of thousands of these ‗rune carvings‘. Can he really
find them all? And even if he‘s to try and find them himself, wouldn‘t Stiyl be taking new ones
to stick them all over the place…?
As if it‘s trying to interrupt his thought process, ‗Innocentius‘ again descends from above.
―DAMN IT!‖
Kamijou gives up on running down the stairs, and rolls to the corridor beside him. The giant
flame god hits the floor, and the flames on it scatter all over. Bouncing up, the giant flame god
also heads towards the corridor.
The corridor‘s a straight path. It‘s impossible for Kamijou to shake ‗Innocentius‘ off with
running speed alone.
―…!‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou glances at the entrance to the emergency staircase, and the number indicates that this is
the 2nd level.
BOOM! ‗Innocentius‘ continues to charge forward, intending to seal Kamijou‘s right hand off.
―WOOO…OOOOO!‖
Kamijou doesn‘t use his right hand, and doesn‘t jump backwards, but chooses to jump over the
railing of the 2nd level.
After jumping over, he realises that it‘s a concrete floor, and there are many bicycles parked
there.
―UWA…AAAAHHH!!‖
Though he luckily lands in the gap between the bicycles, it‘s still a hard floor. Even if he bends
his knees to absorb the impact, a rough sound can be heard from Kamijou‘s ankles. Though the
2nd level isn‘t high enough to cause any fractures, it seems like he twisted his ankle.
BOOM! The sound of flames absorbing oxygen can be heard again above him.
―!‖
Kamijou rolls on the floor and even knocks some bicycles away. However, nothing happens.
Kamijou inadvertently looks up.
‗Innocentius‘ is holding tight onto the railing of the 2nd level, letting out rumbling sounds and
glaring at Kamijou. However, it seemed to be blocked by an invisible wall, as it can‘t chase
Kamijou.
Seems like the runes are only pasted inside the dormitory. By leaving the building, he can escape
Stiyl‘s fiery demonic hand.
Seeing these rules, Kamijou feels that he understands even more of those ‗invisible‘ mechanisms
that magic uses. The enemy isn‘t like an RPG magician, he can do anything just by reading some
spells. Like the esper powers that Kamijou‘s so familiar with, magic has their own rules as well.
Kamijou exhales.
After escaping this danger, Kamijou feels that all his strength has sapped out from his body.
Kamijou can‘t help but sit on the floor, not because of fear, but a weakness that‘s similar to
fatigue. Kamijou even thinks that as long as he continues to run, he should be unable to end up
with this danger again. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Oh yes…call the cops…‖
Kamijou mutters to himself. Why didn‘t he think of calling the cops? The ‗police‘ in Academy
City are special forces that are specifically meant to tackle espers, so Kamijou didn‘t need to act
as some Kamikaze warrior, and hand it over to the cops.
Kamijou searches his pocket before recalling that he destroyed his handphone this morning.
Kamijou then turns to look at the road, looking for any sign of a public phone.
Not to run away from here…
Not to run away from here…
―…You mean that even if I‘m to go down to Hell, you‘ll accompany me there?‖
But Index‘s words are etched inside Kamijou‘s heart.
He clearly did not do anything wrong…he shouldn‘t have done anything wrong…
Even when Index was facing this similar scenario, she purposely chose to come back here to
look for Kamijou Touma. But Kamijou Touma doesn‘t really think that he should go down to
hell to with someone who he barely met for 30 minutes.
―Damn it…I really don‘t want to follow her to hell…‖
Kamijou smiles,
―…Looks like I‘ll just have to pull her out of it!‖
At this moment, it‘s fair to say that he should believe her.
What‘s the point of wondering how magic works? What‘s the point of wondering what‘s
happening in the invisible air? Like making an SMS, does he need to look at the blueprint?
―…Thinking about it, it‘s really nothing!‖
Since he knows what to do, why not he try it?
Even if he fails in the end, at least it‘s better than not doing anything at all.
BOOM! The metal handle that‘s burned a golden-yellow colour falls, and Kamijou frantically
rolls on the floor. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Even though he coolly decided on it, he has to settle that giant flame god first before he can save
Index.
The most practical question would be, how is he going to handle those tens of thousands of rune
pieces? Can he really tear them all down?
―…Come to think of it, why hasn‘t the fire alarm rang even after all this?‖
He was just grumbling, but for an instant, Kamijou Touma pauses.
Fire alarm?
All the fire alarms inside the building ring at that same time.
―?‖
A loud sound that sounds like an air raid causes Stiyl to inadvertently look up.
Within a second, all the sprinklers on the ceiling start to let artificial rain fall down like a
typhoon. Stiyl originally gave ‗Innocentius‘ orders to avoid the alarms in fear that the firefighters
would come over. If so, did Kamijou Touma manually activate the fire alarm?
Does he really think that this can douse ‗Innocentius‘ flames?‖
―…‖
Such a stupid tactic makes Stiyl unable to laugh, but rather, as he‘s drenched, this makes him
really unhappy. He glares angrily at the deep red colour of the fire alert equipment.
It‘s easy to let the alarm ring, but it‘s impossible to stop it from here. Though there‘s practically
no one living inside the student dormitory, this situation is a lot more sticky the moment the
firefighters arrive.
―…Humph…‖
Stiyl looks around, and decides to take Index away before anything else. Besides, he‘s just here
to reclaim Index, and he shouldn‘t be so hard-pressed in killing Kamijou. Also, before the
firefighters can arrive, that brat would most likely be given a hot hug by ‗Innocentius‘, which
automatically tracks the enemy down, and turned into either black or white ash.
(…Come to think of it, did the lift stop working?) とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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He heard before that in emergency situations, the lift would seem to stop operating. To Stiyl, this
makes him even more troubled. Since this is the 7th level, carrying a motionless girl down the
stairs is really tiring.
At this moment, ‗DING‘, a microwave oven like sound can be heard from behind. Stiyl heaves a
sigh of relief, thinking that at least the lift can still work.
However, he suddenly realises.
Who? Who‘s using the lift now?
In this summer vacation, the students should be out, and so the student dormitories are
practically empty, so he basically confirmed it before. If so, who, at this point of time, needs to
take a lift?
A rattling sound can be heard from behind, and that‘s the sound of the old elevator doors opening.
After that, ‗POW‘ a footstep can be heard. Just one sound, this footstep that‘s taken on the floor
that‘s soaked by the sprinklers, this sound echoes throughout the entire corridor.
Stiyl slowly turns his head around.
He doesn‘t even know why is his body trembling slightly.
Kamijou Touma is standing there.
(…What‘s going on? ‗Innocentius‘ tracks the enemy down, where did it go?)
Stiyl‘s mind continues to twist. ‗Innocentius‘ is like the latest model of missiles on a fighter jet;
once locked on, it will never let go of its target. No matter where it goes, the 3000 degrees
Celsius body of flame will continue to head towards the enemy, and all the walls, obstacles and
even metal on the path will be melted. Scampering around in the building isn‘t going to shake
‗Innocentius‘ off and preventing its persecution.
However, Kamijou Touma‘s standing there.
And to top it all, revealing a peerless expression.
―…This thing called a rune, it has to be ‗carve‘ onto the walls and floors, right?‖
Bathing in the icy cold artificial rain, Kamijou says,
―…I‘m really impressed! You‘re good. If your runes were carved into the walls by using a knife,
I wouldn‘t have a chance of winning. You can brag about that to your friends.‖
After saying this, Kamijou Touma raises his right wrist and points the index finger at the ceiling. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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The ceiling. The sprinklers.
―…How is it possible! A 3000 degrees Celsius flame body, how can it be extinguished by water
just like this?‖
―Idiot! It got nothing to do with the flames! Why don‘t you think of those weird things that you
stuck in other people‘s houses?‖
Stiyl recalls it. The tens of thousands of ‗runes‘ inside the dormitory are all made from printing
paper.
Once the paper touches water, it becomes limp. This is something that even kindergarten kids
would know.
By using the sprinklers to cause the entire building to be flooded with water, what‘s the point of
even more runes? There‘s no need to get a huge sweat in the building, all the pieces of paper
would be wasted when he presses a button.
―—‗INNOCENTIUS‘!‖
But once Stiyl shouted this, the giant flame god climbs over from the corridor and arrives behind
Kamijou. The doors of the elevator are melting like malt candy.
The rain hits the flame body, letting of the sound of steam emitting, like a beast growling.
―HA…HAHA…HAHAHAHAHA! You‘re good! You‘re really a battle genius! But you‘re
inexperienced! Printing paper isn‘t like toilet paper, it‘s not so weak such that it will be messed
up after getting wet!‖
The magician opens his arms, crazily laughing like an explosion.
After the magician gave the command ‗kill him‘, ‗Innocentius‘ swings that hammer-like arm of
it.
―Stop bothering me.‖
Kamijou just said 3 words, not even turning his head back.
He swings a backhand, and the right hand that touches the giant flame god lets out a funny sound
as the flame body explodes.
―WHAT?‖
At that moment, Stiyl Magnus‘ heart nearly stopped. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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‗Innocentius‘, which scattered all over, doesn‘t revive. The black oil-like pieces of meat are
scattered all over the floor, slowly moving about.
―HOW…HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE! WHY DID THIS HAPPEN! PRINTING PAPER
SHOULDN‘T END UP LIKE THIS SO EASILY…!‖
―But what about ink?‖
Kamijou said.
Stiyl feels that it took 5 years for Kamijou‘s words to reach his ears.
―Even if the printing paper doesn‘t get messed up, wouldn‘t the ink run off when the paper‘s
wet?‖
Kamijou slowly said,
―…Hm, but seeing that, it seems that there is a loophole!‖
The fragments of ‗Innocentius‘ moves about on the floor.
But with the sprinklers continuing to spray this artificial rain, the black flesh dissolves into thin
air. In this huge baptism in the rain, all the ink of the paper that was stuck all over the place in
the building is taken away. The power of the giant flame god is vanishing little by little as well.
―The pieces of flesh vanish one by one…and finally, even the last one ends up formless.‖
―INNOCENTIUS…!‖
The magician‘s voice is now like one that‘s speaking into a telephone call that‘s cut off.
―And right now, all‘s left is…‖
Kamijou‘s words make the magician tremble.
Kamijou Touma‘s feet take a step forward.
―Inno…centius…‖
The magician continues to call, but the world doesn‘t give him a response.
Kamijou Touma‘s feet continue to move towards Stiyl Magnus
―INNOCENTIUS … INNOCENTIUS …!‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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The magician continues to shout, but the world doesn‘t change.
Kamijou Touma‘s feet are now dashing towards Stiyl Magnus like a bullet.
―Ash to Ash…! Dust to Dust! Squeamish Bloody Road!‖
Now the magician starts to cry out, but forget about the giant flame god, even the flame swords
won‘t appear.
Kamijou Touma‘s feet finally reached in front of Stiyl Magnus. But Kamijou doesn‘t stop,
instead continuing to move forward.
He clenches his fist.
That orginary-looking right hand. A right hand that‘s completely useless if there‘s no
‗supernatural phenomenon‘. It can‘t beat delinquents or increase test marks, and it can‘t help him
hit on girls.
But Kamijou Touma‘s right hand is really useful. At least it can be used to smash that bastard in
front of him to a pulp.
Kamijou buries his fist into the magician‘s face.
The magician‘s body spins about in mid-air like a bamboo-copter, and the back of his head hits
the metal railing.
References
1. ↑ Under Siege?
2. ↑ Great Teacher Onizuka
3. ↑ TL: Yeah, I added the romaji version for this part to make sense.
4. ↑ This is the author's phrasing of the existing Church of England, possibly to maintain the
divide between the actual one and his version.
5. ↑ An iron maiden is an ancient European execution tool. It looks like a coffin on the
outside, but it‘s full of nails inside when opened.
6. ↑ Teh_Ping: A bed of needles
7. ↑ The Russian Orthodox Church is another alternate interpretation of a real-life
counterpart that the author's using.とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Chapter 2: The Conjurer Bestows Demise. The 7th-Egde.
Part 1
Night. The sirens of fire trucks and ambulances resound as they pass through the main street.
Even though the dormitory was almost empty, apparently there was someone who thought it was
a good idea to trip the fire alarm and activate the sprinklers. In less than no time, the empty
dormitory's surrounded by fire trucks and onlookers.
Kamijou touches the hood with his right hand to make it untraceable, and takes it with him. He
could have left it as it was and thrown it somewhere to fool the pursuers, but he thinks that that
stubborn girl would still want it.
In the back alley, Kamijou clicks his tongue. He is currently carrying Index because he can‘t
possibly let her wound touch the dirty ground.
He can't let Index on an ambulance.
Academy City basically dislikes "outsiders", to the point where large walls were made to
surround the city and three satellites constantly survey everything. If a truck delivering goods to
a convenience store doesn't have an exclusive ID, their entry would be immediately rejected.
If an ID-less Index were to be admitted into a hospital, her information would be leaked in no
time.
The enemy is an "organization". If they get attacked there, the casualties will increase. Anyway,
if Index gets targeted while getting treated- or worst-case scenario, while she's in surgery- she
might as well be dead.
―Even though it's like that, I can't leave things as they are, can I?‖
―I'm... fine. For now... if we can stop the blood...‖
He guesses that the weak mechanical-like tone that Index used when she was explaining how
runes work was nothing in the end.
Her wound is not at the level where some amateur could just bandage it up. Kamijou, who's used
to fighting, would usually perform first aid on his "unspeakable wounds". Even to him, just
looking at Index's wound would disturb him. The wound on her back is definitely severe.
Because of this, she can only depend on him now.
He still doesn't believe it, but at this point, he has to. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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"Hey, hey! Can you hear me?" Kamijou lightly pinches Index‘s cheek.
"Aren't there any spells in your 103,000 grimoires that can heal wounds?"
When one talks about magic, Kamijou can only think of stuff like offensive magic and recovery
magic from RPGs.
Certainly, Index's body composition doesn't allow her to process mana, so magic wouldn't be
possible. But if Index shares her knowledge with Kamijou, who possess a supernatural power...
or if...
Not to mention her severe pain, Index's loss of blood causes her to repeatedly take shallow
breaths while her trembling lips continue to turn pale.
"...There is, but..."
Until Kamijou heard "but", he seriously felt like rejoicing.
"It is impossible... for you." Index lets out a small breath.
"Even if I teach you... the procedure, and you carry it out perfectly... Ouch... Your power will
definitely interfere."
Kamijou looks at his right hand in astonishment.
Imagine Breaker. The power that lies there without a doubt completely erased Stiyl's fire. If so,
he'd also completely cancel Index's recovery magic.
"Dammit! Again... Because of this right hand again...!"
In that case, all he has to do is call someone- Aogami Pierce or that biribiri Misaka Mikoto.
There's no need to worry if he involves them, as they're tough people.
"...?" Index becomes quiet.
"Ah. Um... I didn't mean it in that sense."
"?"
"I didn't mean your right hand... You being an 'ESPer' is the problem." In this sweltering night,
Kamijou shivers as if he's on a snowy mountain.
"Magic isn't something that... ESPers, 'those with talent', can use... Because 'those without talent'
wanted to be able to do the same things as 'those with talent', they gave birth to a ceremony and
practice called... magic." とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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"What are you trying to explain at a time like this!?" Kamijou shouts.
"You don't understand? 'Those with talent' and 'those without talent'... run on different circuits...
'Those with talent' cannot use magic designed for 'those without talent'..."
"Hey..."
Kamijou becomes speechless. "ESPers" like Kamijou undoubtedly run on different circuits
compared to normal humans. They take drugs and use electrodes to forcibly try to develop the
brain. If one's talking about body composition, they're definitely different.
But he doesn't believe this- no, he doesn't want to believe this.
There are 2,300,000 students living in Academy City. Furthermore, all these people are taking
the Power Development "Curriculum". One can't tell by looking, but they've all strained
themselves so hard, to the point where their brains' blood vessels would tear, just to get a spoon
to bend- and they're only the weakest ESPers. Of course they're different from ordinary people.
In other words, there is not one person in this city that could use magic to save her.
Even though there's a way of saving her right in front of him, no one can do anything.
"D-Dammit...!" Kamijou grinds his teeth like a beast. "There must be something. There must be
something! Dammit. What the hell?! How did things turn out like this...!?!?!?"
Index's shivering is awful.
What Kamijou could not stand the most is his uselessness.
What is this "those with talent" crap? He can't even save one girl in pain.
He can't come up with any solutions. If the 2,300,000 students living in this city can't use magic,
what else can he do?
"...?"
Kamijou thinks to himself, and remembers something.
"Students"?
"Hey, if it's any ordinary 'talelentless' person, they should be able to use magic, right?"
"...Eh? Yeah..."
"It's not like 'It's no good unless they have talent in magic', right?" とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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"It's alright... As long as they prepare and do it correctly.... I think even a middle school student
would be able to do it." Index thinks for a bit. "If they mess up the procedure, their brain and
neural circuits will burn out... however, because my name is Index (103,000 grimoires), it's
alright. There's no problem."
Kamijou smiles.
He inadvertently looks up at the moon in the night sky.
Certainly, all the resident students in Academy City have gone under ESPer development at
some level.
If one looks at it another way, the teachers who develop esper powers are just ordinary humans.
"That teacher, please don't tell me she's sleeping at a time like this."
The face of a certain teacher surfaces in Kamijou's mind.
A teacher whose height is 135 cm. Even though she‘s a teacher, a red school backpack would
suit her perfectly- a one-of-a-kind teacher.
Tsukuyomi Komoe.
Kamijou uses a public pay phone, and gets Komoe-sensei‘s address from Aogami Pierce. (He
stepped on and broke his phone this morning. Just how Aogami Pierce got to know Sensei's
address is a mystery. He suspects he's a stalker.) An exhausted Kamijou continues to walk with
Index on his back.
―Is it here?‖
After walking fifteen minutes through back alleys, he arrives.
How can you put it? The twelve-year-old-like Komoe-sensei‘s house is a shabby two-story
wooden apartment that looks like it survived the Great Tokyo Air Raid of 1945. When one takes
a look at the washing machine placed outside, they'll get the idea that there are no bathrooms
here.
If he were his usual self, Kamijou could crack jokes about this for ten minutes, but right now, he
can‘t even smile.
He checks the door nameplates one by one, climbs the rusted iron stairs, and walks to the
innermost door where he finally finds the nameplate that reads "Tsukiyomi Komoe".
*Ding-dong*. *Ding-dong*. After Kamijou rings the bell twice, he tries to kick open the door. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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But the door doesn‘t budge. Even at a time like this, Kamijou‘s "misfortune" doesn‘t let up, and
he hears his big toe make an unpleasant sound.
―Gah!‖
―Yes, yes, yes~. Just for the newspaper salesman, I strengthened the door. I‘m opening the door
now, okay~?‖
If he had waited honestly, everything would have been fine, Kamijou thinks as the door opens,
and a Komoe-sensei wearing baggy green pajamas appears. When one looks at her carefree face,
it feels like Index‘s injury isn‘t even on their mind.
―Wah, Kamijou-chan. Did you start working part-time as a newspaper salesman?‖
―Where would you find a newspaper salesman that carries a nun on their back?‖ Kamijou
unhappily says. ―I‘m kind of in a pinch here, so I‘m coming in, Sensei, yep. Sorry~‖
―Wha! Wa-wa-wa-wait!‖
A panicking Komoe-sensei tries to stop Kamijou from entering, pushing him from the side with
all her might.
―Suddenly coming into Sensei‘s room is troubling. It's super messy, has beer cans scattered
everywhere, and has mountains of cigarettes in the ashtray!‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Sensei.‖
―Yes~?‖
―…Just try being funny like that to the person on my back.‖
―I-I wasn‘t trying to be funny… what? Wah?!‖
―Did you just realize that!?‖
―I didn‘t see that giant wound that‘s your back!‖
Komoe-sensei, who was fiercely preventing Kamijou from entering, steps aside as her face
suddenly turns pale.
What can one say? The room looks like it belongs to an old man who loves horse racing. On top
of the tattered straw mats, there are many knocked-over beer cans, and there are mountains of
cigarette butts in the ashtray. The room's in a state where a stubborn father would flip over a
table in frustration.
―…I guess you weren‘t joking after all.‖
―I know I shouldn‘t ask in this situation, but do you dislike girls who smoke?‖
That’s not the problem here, Kamijou thinks while looking at the twelve-year-old-like
homeroom teacher. He kicks away the beer cans to make some space. There‘s no time to take out
a bed.
Kamijou gently lays Index down so that her wound won‘t touch the floor.
Because her torn clothes are getting in the way, they can‘t see her wound directly, but they can
tell it's serious.
―C-Calling an ambulance would be the best, right? The phone is just over there.‖
A trembling Komoe-sensei points to a corner of the room. For some reason, a black dial phone's
there.
―The mana in my blood is fading.‖
Kamijou and Komoe both reflexively turn to look at Index.
Index is as usual, just on the floor without any of her limbs supporting her up. She looks like a
broken doll. Silently, she opens her eyes. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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It's quieter than the ticking of a clock and colder than the light of the moon.
Those eyes are perfectly "serene"- an impossible feat for a human.
―Warning. Chapter two, Verse six. The loss of mana due to blood loss has exceeded safely levels.
Forcibly awakening in ‗Johann‘s Pen‘ mode. Presently, according to the International Standard
Time shown on the clock tower in London, my body will lose the minimum amount of mana
needed to sustain life and will die in fifteen minutes. I would be appreciative if you were to
follow my instructions and apply treatment.‖
Komoe-sensei worryingly looks at Index‘s face.
This isn‘t impossible. Even though it‘s the second time, Kamijou thinks that he'll never get used
to this voice.
―Okay, then…‖
Kamijou looks at Komoe-sensei‘s face, and thinks.
If he suddenly asks her, "Please use magic!" or something like that, she'd certainly reply with,
"Are you asking me to play magical girl in this emergency!? Sensei is not a child!"
Now then, how should he persuade her?
―Hmm. Sensei, Sensei. I know this is an emergency and all, but let me tell you a little secret.
Come here.‖
―Yes?‖
Come, come, Kamijou motions his hand as if he's calling to a puppy. Komoe isn‘t suspicious at
all.
Sorry, Kamijou quickly apologizes to Index.
He flips over the torn clothes, and reveals the hidden severe wound in one action.
―Ahhh!?‖
Komoe-sensei‘s whole body shivers at the sight of it. It's a normal reaction.
Even Kamijou who flipped the clothes thinks it's a horrible wound. From her waist, the wound's
a long horizontal line, as if she was cut cleanly by a box cutter. Behind the deep-red blood, one
can see the pink of the muscles, the yellow of the fat, and at the end… they can see the white of
what seems to be the spine. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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If her wound was a deep-red mouth, the surrounding lips would be deep-blue.
While Kamijou tries to think properly again, he quietly puts down the bloodstained clothes.
Even though he moved the cloth that was touching the wound, Index‘s ice-cold eyes don‘t give
any response.
―Sensei.‖
―Eh, wha!?‖
―I‘m going to call an ambulance. You listen to her story, and do what she asks… Anyway, make
sure she doesn‘t lose consciousness. As you can see, this girl is religious, so I'll leave it up to
you.‖
If he wants to help with the situation, words like "magic" and "the impossible" are no good.
Anyway, the important thing for Komoe-sensei to do is "maintain conversation with her at all
costs" rather than "treat her wounds".
In fact, Komoe-sensei‘s face is so pale right now, all she can do is nod.
The only problem is that Kamijou can only go outside and kill time.
If an ambulance arrives before the magic's cast, it won‘t be any laughing matter. Of course he
won‘t call any ambulance.
If that‘s the case, he could just pretend that he used the phone to call an ambulance, and be able
to stay in the room.
That‘s not the problem here.
―Hey, Index,‖ Kamijou tries to speak with the fallen Index. ―Is there something I can do?‖
―No. The best action for you to take is to leave this room.‖
In response to those clear and direct words, Kamijou clenches his fist tightly until it hurts.
There is nothing Kamijou can do.
By just being in this room, his right hand would cancel the effects of the recovery magic.
―…Alright, then, Sensei. I‘m going to look for a public pay phone.‖
―Wa… eh? If it‘s a phone, there‘s one right th…‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou ignores her words and makes for the door.
The only thing he could do is leave. He grits his teeth.
Kamijou runs through the night.
Even though he can cancel God‘s miracles, he can't even protect one person, Kamijou thinks as
he clenches his right hand.
As soon as Kamijou Touma leaves the room, Index‘s pale lips start to move.
―What is the current time in Japan Standard Time? And the date, please.‖
―It's July 20, 8:30 PM.‖
―I noticed that you did not look at a clock. Is that time accurate?‖
―This room doesn‘t have a clock in the first place. Sensei‘s internal clock goes by the second, so
there should be no problem.‖
―…‖
―It‘s not such an unbelievable thing. Horse racing jockeys can be accurate to one-tenth of a
second. I can control my internal clock with a regular diet and good exercise.‖
In the end, Komoe-sensei who just answered with a puzzled look is still a resident of Academy
City even if she isn‘t an esper. When comparing an Academy City resident to an ordinary person,
the gap between their science knowledge is quite noticeable.
Index who's on the floor face-down moves only her eye to look out the window.
―From the position of the stars and the angle of the moon… it matches the direction of Sirius
with an error of .038. Just to confirm, the current time in Japan Standard Time is 8:30 PM,
correct?‖
―Yes, we are entering the fifty-third second to be exact… That‘s not good! You shouldn‘t get
up!!‖
With a body like that, standing up is akin to destroying oneself. A panicked Komoe-sensei
pushes her back, but Index‘s gaze stops her from moving any further.
The gaze is not scary, nor is it piercing.
It‘s like those eyes hit a switch, and made her lose all her feelings. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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There is no presence there.
That‘s why it felt like even her soul had been pulled out.
―Do not worry, regeneration is possible.‖ Index faces the table in the middle of the room. ―The
end of Cancer, the time is midnight between 8 and 12. The direction is West. The guardian of
Undine, the role of the angel is Helheim…‖
The sound of Komoe-sensei swallowing her breath can be heard.
Of all the things to do, Index uses her finger covered in blood to draw some shape. Even without
knowing what actual magic circles are like, if one is shown something religious, they'd know. It's
just that Komoe-sensei doesn't have courage to speak up under this pressure.
On the table is a circle drawn with blood, with a five-pointed star in it.
However, around it are characters of some country Komoe doesn‘t know- most likely the words
that Index is muttering. They must change according to constellations, time, and seasons.
The figure of Index constructing a magic spell is not that of a weak injured person.
Her concentration reaches the level where the feeling known as pain can be completely ignored.
The sound of Index‘s blood dripping from her back sends a chill up Komoe‘s spine.
―W-W-W-W-W-W-What's that?‖
―Magic,‖ Index concluded in one word. ―From this point on, I will need to borrow your hand and
body. If you follow my instructions, no one will have to befall misfortune, and there will be no
need to bear a grudge against anyone.‖
―What are you saying so calmly!? Just lie down and wait for an ambulance! Um… bandages,
bandages. For this kind of injury, it's best to stop the bleeding from the artery…‖
―That level of treatment will not be adequate enough to completely treat my injury. I do not
understand the meaning of 'ambulance', but will it be able to completely treat my wound in the
next fifteen minutes while replenishing a sufficient amount of mana?‖
―…‖
Even if she calls an ambulance now, it would probably take ten minutes for it to get here. If she
wants to go to the hospital, it would take twice as long. Also, it‘s not like treatment would
completely finish the moment they arrive there. Even now, she doesn‘t believe such nonsense
like mana. Assume the wound got closed up: Index‘s stamina would definitely not immediately
return. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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But even if she were able to close up the wound by sewing it up, wouldn‘t this pale girl die first
due to lack of vitality?
―Please.‖
Index‘s eye doesn‘t change at all as she says this.
Fresh blood mixed with saliva appears on the side of Index‘s mouth.
She doesn‘t even try to hide it. That "composure" and "calmness" are what‘s scary. It‘s like when
a broken machine goes haywire. Every time she moves, Komoe gets that feeling that her wound's
opening more and more.
…If you unskilfully resist, your body’s condition will worsen a lot more.
Komoe-sensei sighs. Of course she doesn‘t believe in magic. She remembers how Kamijou told
her to make sure she doesn‘t fall unconscious and to keep talking to her.
Right now, it‘s better to not encourage this girl. Every second, Komoe wishes that Kamijou
would hurry up and call an ambulance, and hopes that the ambulance personnel has some miracle
first aid.
―Then, what should I do? Sensei isn‘t a magical girl, you know?‖
―I appreciate your cooperation. First off… that thing over there… What is that black thing over
there?‖
―? Ah. It‘s a memory card for games.‖
―??? It is fine. Please put that black thing in the center of the table for now.‖
―It‘s a chabudai, by the way.‖
Just as she was told, Komoe places the memory card on the middle of the table. She also
positions a lead case, an empty chocolate box, two books, and two small figures on it.
What is this? Komoe thinks. Even now, Index is still serious.
Her gaze makes one think that she has a hidden Japanese sword. Komoe swallows her complaint.
―What‗s this? Rather than magic, isn‘t this just like playing with dolls?‖
After she says that, she realizes that it looks like a miniature model of this room: the memory
card is the table; the two books are the bookshelf and the closet; the two figures are Index and とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Komoe; and the positions of the glass beads that are scattered on the table are somehow able to
synchronize with the positions of the beer cans.
―The materials do not matter. Just like how a magnifying glass would work either way when the
lenses are glass or plastic. As long as the shapes and roles fit, the ritual can be performed,‖ Index
states while sweating. ―In any case, I would be grateful if you follow my instructions accurately.
If you make an error in the procedure, there is the possibility that your neural and brain circuits
will burn out.‖
―???‖
―Failure means the destruction of your body and death, is what I am telling you. Please be
cautious.‖
"!?" Komoe breathes out hard. Index continues without any concern.
―I will create a temple and call down an angel. Please repeat what I chant.‖
What Index is muttering is no longer words but "sound".
Even though she's only humming, it feels like a song. Without thinking, Komoe tries to imitate
Index‘s "tone".
Then,
―Whaa!?‖
Just like Komoe, the figure on the table suddenly "sings". Even her "Whaa!?" comes out at the
exact same time. It's as if they were connected through a tin can phone.
The reason that Komoe-sensei didn‘t just panic and jump out of the room is probably that she's a
resident of Academy City that houses 2,300,000 espers. A normal human would be extremely
confused right now.
―Synchronization complete‖ is heard from both Index and on top of the table. ―The temple
created on this table is now synchronized with the room; to put it simply, anything that happens
in this room will occur on the table, and anything that happens on the table will occur in this
room.‖
Index pushes the table a little.
*Bang!* An impact shakes the whole apartment.
Like early mornings in a forest, she knows that the trapped air's being cleared. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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The "angel" is nowhere to be seen. But there is certainly an invisible presence.
It feels like there were thousands of eyeballs observing everything, their glares piercing through
skin.
Index suddenly shouts.
―Imagine it! A golden angel, the physique of a child, possesses two wings, the image of a
beautiful angel!‖
To perform magic, it is essential to establish one's territory.
For example, if one throws a pebble into the ocean, the ripples will be small. However, if they
drop a pebble in a water bucket, the ripples will be large. Magic is also like that; in order to
distort the world with magic, one must first isolate the territory they want to distort.
Because of that, it is possible to momentarily become the god of the sectioned-off world.
If one can imagine it well, it will be easier for them to freely manipulate things in this territory in
order to do things that otherwise would be impossible.
…So she says, but Komoe-sensei can‘t even imagine what an angel looks like. If she's told about
a golden angel, all she can think about is the "gold" part.
As Komoe tries to imagine, her surroundings already lose its shape. It's like a vortex of the rotten
mud found in the depths of swamps. A feeling of disgust assaults Komoe.
―Imagine it! We are not actually summoning an angel; we are just gathering invisible mana. As
the spellcaster, you must use your will to create the form of an angel.‖
Even though Index is being driven into a corner right now, she can still remain this calm. Her
voice is as sharp as an icicle.
Komoe completely changes her attitude, closes both her eyes, and murmurs.
…A cute angel, a cute angel, a cute angel…
Komoe imagines an angel that she once read in a shoujo manga, as if her life depended on it.
It feels like there's some mud floating in the room. She gets the feeling that the mud is changing
into a human-like form.
Trembling in fear, Komoe opens both of her eyes.
…Huh, I didn’t really summon an angel?とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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In an instant, as soon as she starts to wonder,
*Bam!* The water-balloon-like human form bursts, and invisible mud scatters across the room.
―Whaa!!‖
―…Fixation of the form has failed.‖ Index‘s sharp eyes scan the room, ―At the very least, a bluecolored Undine will protect the temple. Continuing on.‖
Index‘s words are optimistic, but her eyes do not look happy at all.
Like a child hiding their test marks from their parents, Komoe unnecessarily thinks.
―Chant it; it will end after this.‖
In response to that command, Komoe can‘t afford to be distracted.
Index, Komoe, and the two figures on the table sing together.
A sizzling sound. On the table, the back of Index‘s figure starts to melt.
It's a mushy sound similar to rubber getting burned. As it melts, the rough surface becomes
smooth, and once again establishes its shape.
Komoe‘s heart freezes.
Komoe's currently sitting directly opposite Index.
She doesn't have the courage to go and check on Index‘s back.
Index‘s pale face is covered in greasy sweat.
Her glass-like eyes do not show any signs or pain or suffering.
―Along with the replenishment of mana, avoidance of life endangerment has been confirmed.
Johann‘s Pen mode will now enter sleep mode.‖
A weird sound.
As if she had hit a switch, Index‘s eyes return to a gentle state.
Like an abandoned fireplace finally getting used again, the room is enveloped in a warm
atmosphere. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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That‘s what it feels like. Index‘s eyes are kind, warm... just like a normal girl.
―What‘s left is to dismiss the descended guardian, and destroy the temple.‖ Index smiles with a
bitter face. ―Magic is just like this. Apples and oranges have the same significance, right? It‘s the
same as that. Even without a glass cane, a vinyl umbrella can attain the same transparency. Tarot
cards are the same.‖
Index‘s sweating doesn‘t stop.
Komoe becomes rather scared. It‘s as if she's done unnecessary things. It can‘t be that her
condition's getting worse, right?
―I‘m okay.‖ Even now, it feels like Index is falling apart. ―Just like a cold, I can only recover by
resting. The wound has already healed...‖
The moment she says this, her body collapses. The figure falls over. The table suddenly shakes,
and the synchronized room violently vibrates.
Without thinking, Komoe rushes up to the table, and sings Index‘s song.
Komoe copies the last song, and sings it. The odd trapped apartment air once again returns to the
room. When Komoe cautiously shakes the table, nothing happens.
"Thank god," Index murmurs with relief as she closes her eyes.
"When someone with a serious wound is on the verge of death and is healed, anyone would be
happy, right?" is what Komoe thinks, but the nun replies with this:
"Thank god he doesn‘t have to shoulder this."
Shocked, Komoe looks at Index.
"If I died here, that person would have shouldered it."
Like she was having a pleasant dream, Index closes her eyes and says nothing more. When this
girl was cut in the back, and while she was performing a ritual, she was always thinking about
others. She was always thinking about that one person who brought an injured Index here.
Komoe can‘t think like that. She can‘t think of other people who would think like that either.
That‘s why she asks just one thing.
Komoe thought that she was asleep, so that's why she asked- because she thought Index wouldn‘t
hear it. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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But for some reason, with both eyes closed, she answers.
No one really thinks like that, so she doesn‘t know what kind of feelings they are. But when that
guy recklessly attacked the magician, ran away, and came back again, she thought she was about
to cry.
She doesn‘t know why, but when they are together, nothing really goes their way.
Unexpectedly, she was very happy and joyful.
What kind of feelings they hold, Komoe doesn‘t know.
As if she were dreaming, Index closes her eyes while smiling, and starts to sleep.
Part 2
The next morning, cold-like symptoms really do appear.
Due to a high fever and headaches, Index immediately collapsed. Her runny rose and sore throat
was not because of a virus, but because she lacked stamina. In other words, taking medicine used
to treat colds would not have any effect.
Index is in the bed with a wet towel on her head. As if she can‘t stand the heat, one of her legs
flies out from under the blankets. Because the pale-green pajamas only reached her thighs,
Kamijou thought that his eyes would be crushed by dazzling skin that was now flushed pink due
to the fever.
Komoe takes the towel, and dips it into the water basin again while glaring at Kamijou.
―Kamijou-chan. Even after all this happened, Sensei still thinks that what you did with those
clothes was too much.‖
"Those clothes" probably referred to the white nun outfit covered in safety pins.
About that, Kamijou completely agrees. Index who was robbed of her nun clothes looks like a
sullen cat.
―…Anyway, why is it that the big bear drinker and heavy smoker adult Komoe-sensei‘s pajamas
perfectly fit you? Seriously, what‘s the age difference between you two?‖
"Wha...!"
Komoe-sensei (age unknown) becomes speechless, but Index follows up with, ―Please don‘t look
down on me like that. I do feel that these pajamas are tight around the chest.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Wha… impossible! Those are quite baggy. Your comment is really insulting!‖
―Why would either of you two feel tight around the chest area?‖
―…‖
―…‖
The two ladies glare at him. Kamijou automatically switches to prostrate mode.
―Desu desu. Anyway, Kamijou-chan, ultimately, who is this girl to you?‖
―My little sister.‖
―There are limits to lies as well! This girl is obviously a foreign girl with silver hair and blue
eyes.‖
―It‘s an honor.‖
―Being a weirdo?‖
―It‘s a joke! I know honor's not a violation of manners and is actually a rule violation. What the
hell!‖
―Kamijou-chan~‖
Komoe-sensei says in a teacher-like tone.
Kamijou falls silent. Well, of course Komoe-sensei would want to know the situation; she had a
suspicious foreign girl with a blatant sword slash wound on her back brought into her room.
Furthermore, she had to participate in performing something as ridiculous as "magic".
Asking her to turn a blind eye to it would probably be an unreasonable demand.
―Sensei, is it alright for me to ask you something?‖
―Desu?‖
―Are you asking me to report this incident to the police or Academy City‘s board of directors?
"Desu." Komoe-sensei nods.
Without hesitation, as if she‘s selling people out, she says, とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―I don‘t know what kind of trouble you two are in,‖ Komoe-sensei says while smiling, ―But if it
takes place within Academy City, it is us teachers‘ responsibility to take care of it. It‘s an adult‘s
duty to take care of the children. If I know you two are treading into dangerous ground, Sensei
can‘t just stay quiet and do nothing.‖
This is what Komoe-sensei says.
Without any ability, without any physical strength, without any liability.
She says only what she needs to say, and straightforwardly does what she needs to do.
―Seriously…‖
Kamijou is no match for this person.
This kind of teacher that one would only find in dramas and movies, Kamijou would probably
never find another like this again in his life.
Therefore,
"If you were just a complete stranger, I wouldn‘t hesitate to involve you at all. But since I
already owe you a favor for the ‗magic‘, I don‘t want to involve you anymore."
Kamijou honestly states.
He doesn‘t want to see people become a shield for someone else and get hurt.
Komoe-sensei remains quiet for a bit.
―Muu~ Saying cool things like that won‘t fool me into forgiving you.‖
―…? Where are you going, Sensei?‖
―This is a suspension of negotiations. Sensei will go to the supermarket to get ingredients for
breakfast. In the meantime, Kamijou-chan should sort out what exactly he wants to tell me. Also-‖
―Also?‖
―Sensei might get into shopping too much and forget everything. When she returns, you
shouldn‘t try to trick her and must tell her the story, okay?‖
Komoe-sensei smiles as she thinks.
The sound of the door closing can be heard. Only Kamijou and Index are left in the room. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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…I wonder if the mood has lightened up.
Somehow, when Kamijou saw that child-like scheming smile, he feels that when Komoe-sensei
does return, she'll actually forget everything.
When he thinks about it, if he were to talk about it, Komoe-sensei would angrily say, "Why
didn‘t you tell me earlier! I have already completely forgotten about it!" Then afterwards, they'd
somehow move on and talk about something happy.
"Haa." Kamijou turns towards Index who's in the bed.
―I know this isn‘t a situation where one would worry about their looks, but…‖
―It‘s okay like this.‖ Index moves her head a little. ―It would be bad if we involve her anymore…
also, we can‘t let her cast any more magic.‖
Kamijou raises his eyebrow.
―Grimoires are dangerous things. Written in them are absurd kinds of common sense and laws
that contradict each other; it is that kind of ‗different world‘. Regardless of whether it's good or
evil, a ‗different world‘ like that is poisonous to ‗this world‘.‖ "Knowledge of the 'different
world' is enough to be able to destroy a human‘s brain" is what Index says. Is it like forcing an
unsupported program to run on a computer? Kamijou theorizes.
―…Both my brain and heart are protected by a religious barrier. Magicians also surpass humans.
But for a Japanese person without much of a religious outlook, if she does it one more time, it‘s
over.‖
―Haha,‖ Kamijou calmly brushes it off. ―Come on, what a waste. I thought Sensei could even
perform alchemy in that state. Alchemy can turn lead into gold, right?‖
There's no way Kamijou's going to let her know that he learned this from an RPG.
―…If it‘s Ars Magna, you would be able to perform it, but the materials would probably cost
around… 7,000,000,000 yen.‖
―…That‘s quite something, eh?‖
While Kamijou‘s soul floats away, Index weakly smiles.
―…That‘s right; if lead could be turned to gold, only nobles would be happy, right?‖
―Uh, what? If you think about it calmly, how does it work? What principles are behind it? To
change lead into gold, please don‘t tell me that it's by reorganizing the atoms of Pb and Au.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―I don‘t know, but it was a technique developed in the 14th century.‖
―But… what!? Is it really okay to change the arrangement of atoms!? Without an accelerator and
a nuclear reactor, can you really carry out a nuclear fusion? Just wait a minute here. I don‘t even
know if Academy City‘s seven Level 5s can do that!‖
―???‖
―Wait! Don‘t put up such a confused face! Let‘s see here. If you're able to say such ridiculous
nonsense, you should at least be able to make some kind of atomic robot or mobile suit.‖
―What‘s that?‖
With just that, man‘s romance got crushed.
Kamijou, who is dead-tired, for some reason feels like he's done something horrible to Index.
―Anyway, even if you substitute the holy swords and magic wands used in rituals, there are still
limits to that- especially the Spear of Longinus, Joseph‘s Holy Grail, and Golgotha‘s Cross. No
matter how many years pass, sacred items that have connections with God probably can‘t be
substituted- Ouch.‖[8]
An excited Index presses down on her temple like she's suffering from a hangover.
Kamijou looks at Index‘s face while she's in the bed.
103,000 grimoires. Just by reading one, a human would be driven into insanity- and that girl has
literally remembered every single one. Kamijou wonders just how much pain she had to endure.
However, Index has yet to let off a single complaint.
"Do you want to know?" Index says. It's like she's apologizing to Kamijou while ignoring her
pain.
Seeing the usually cheerful Index speak in a quiet voice, Kamijou gets even more determined.
Stupid Sensei, Kamijou thinks.
Index‘s burden doesn‘t matter. No matter the circumstances she's in, Kamijou's sure that he'd
never abandon her. For the meantime, all he has to do is defeat Index‘s enemies, and protect her
from opening old wounds- so he thinks.
―Do you really want to know the burden I am carrying?‖
The girl named Index repeats. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou braces himself, and answers.
―What should I say? It‘s like I‘m a priest now.‖
What should he say? He's really like a priest listening to a confession.
"What do you think?" Index asks.
―Christianity was originally united as one. Catholics, Protestants, Roman Catholics, Russian
Orthodox, British Puritans, Nestorians, Athanasians, and Gnostics: do you know why they split
up into so many different churches?‖
―Let‘s see…‖
Kamijou has read history books before, so he has a vague idea. However, he doesn't want to give
his answer to Index who's pretty much a book herself.
―It‘s okay,‖ Index smiles. ―It‘s because they brought politics into religion. They divided and
opposed each other; even though they believed in the same god, they became enemies. While
still believing in the same god, they walked different paths.‖
Of course there are many different ways of thinking- for example, those who thought they'd be
rewarded with money under God, and those who thought that that way of thinking was
unacceptable. There were those who thought that God loved them the most in the world, and
there are those who thought that that way of thinking was unacceptable.
―…We lost our connection with each other. We all evolved in our own way and attained our own
‗personalities‘. We changed according to our country‘s climate, situation, and other various
conditions.‖ Index takes a small breath. ―The Roman Catholic Church which ‗manages and
administrates the world‘; the Russian Orthodox Church which ‗investigates and exterminates the
occult‘; and us, the British Puritan Church…‖
Index slightly trips on her words.
―Because Britain is a magical country…‖ Index continues as if remembering unpleasant
memories, ―the British Purist Church did things such as witch hunts, heretic hunts, and
inquisitions; this is how the anti-magician culture abnormally developed.
―Even now in the capital of London, there are many magic societies claiming to be companies.
Not only that, but there are also ten times as many dummy companies. Originally, we used trial
and error to protect the citizens from the ‗magicians lurking in the city‘. Before anyone could
realize it, our operations were transformed into ‗massacres and executions‘.
―The British Purist Church has a special division.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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As if she is confessing her sins, Index says,
―In order to defeat magicians, these people researched magic and put up countermeasuresNecessarius.‖ She clearly states like a nun. ―Without knowing the enemy, you can‘t defend
against their attacks. If we understand an impure enemy, our hearts will become impure; if we
touch an impure enemy, our bodies will become impure. Necessarius was born from the ones
who take in these ‗impurities‘. The greatest example of that is…‖
―Those 103,000 grimoires.‖
―Yeah‖ Index slightly nods, ―Magic is like a formula. If one can skillfully reverse-engineer it,
they can neutralize the opponent‘s attack. That‘s why I have 103,000 grimoires hammered in my
brain… If one knows all the magic in the world, one should also be able to neutralize all the
magic in the world.‖
Kamijou looks at his right hand.
His useless right hand.
The useless power of his right hand can‘t even fell a single delinquent, raise his test marks, or
help him score with girls.
But just to reach that girl over there, he would step into hell.
―But if grimoires are that dangerous, why not just burn them if you know where they are? As
long as there are people reading grimoires, won‘t there be more and more magicians?‖
―What‘s important is not the ‗book‘ but rather the ‗content‘. Even if the original is destroyed,
there‘s no point if a magician passes along the content to their disciples.‖
These people are not magicians but sages, says Index.[9]
―In the end, grimoires are textbooks.‖ Index bitterly says, ―You can‘t be called a magician after
just reading it; you have to arrange the text yourself, and from there, a new magic will be born.
That‘s a magician.‖
Rather than data, it‘s more like a continually changing computer virus.
Even if the virus is deleted completely, it'll analyze what happened and put up a countermeasure
to continue what it's been doing.
―I said this before, but grimoires are dangerous things…‖ Index narrows her eyes. ―Even when a
copy is disposed of, the result is the same. Expert inquisitors who sow both eyes together while
blocking off the ‗contamination‘ in the person‘s brain can‘t remove the ‗poison‘ even after five
years of baptism. The human mind is unable to handle original grimoires. Because there was とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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nothing that could be done about the 103,000 grimoires scattered around the world, they were
sealed.‖
She's treated like a large amount of unsold nuclear weapons.
No, this is precisely how she's treated. The grimoires‘ authors probably didn‘t expect this either.
―Tsk. Considering that, isn‘t magic something that any human other than an esper can use? If
that‘s the case, then wouldn‘t it spread around the world in no time?‖
Kamijou remembers Stiyl‘s flames. If anyone could use that power, then the world that's held up
by science and common sense would crumble.
―It‘s… alright. People from magic societies won‘t recklessly leak grimoires for no reason.‖
―What the hell? So they won‘t just increase their numbers?‖
―Think of it like this: if all those who wield firearms were to gather and befriend each other,
there won‘t be any wars, right?‖
―…‖
One can‘t just say that because they don't know magicians. There's no way all the magicians in
the world are friends.
Though if one knows the power of their trump card, they wouldn‘t blindly become enemies with
said magicians.
Just like the blueprints of a newly developed weapon.
―Alright, I get most of it now.‖ Kamijou bites on his words, ―In other words, people are after the
bomb implanted in your head, right?‖
The 103,000 original grimoires scattered around the world are currently held as copies in a
library in Index‘s head. Possessing them would mean possessing the entire world‘s magic.
―…Yeah,‖ she says in a dying voice. ―If all 103,000 grimoires are used, everything in the world
without exception can be bent. To us magicians, those users are called Majin."[10]
It doesn't mean that they're gods of the magical world,
But it means that as humans, their magic's so transcending that it steps into God‘s realm.
That is a Majin. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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…Stop screwing around.
Kamijou inadvertently bites his molars. He knew as soon as he looked at Index; she didn't get
103,000 grimoires hammered into her head out of free will. He remembers Stiyl‘s flames. Index
lived just to reduce the number of victims.
If magicians don‘t like getting their spells‘ weaknesses revealed, the church who calls her
"impure" probably won‘t like her either. Every last one of them treats humans like objects, and
Index is surrounded by them. This girl who can only think of others probably dislikes this as well.
―…I‘m sorry.‖
Kamijou isn‘t really mad, and doesn‘t really understand.
But that apology makes Kamijou Touma snap.
*Pakan!* A light hitting sound attacks Index‘s forehead.
―…Don‘t screw with me. Why have you been keeping quiet about these important details all this
time!?‖
Index‘s movements freeze under Kamijou‘s glare. As if she failed to do something extremely
important, her eyes widen and she frantically mumbles.
―I didn‘t think you would believe me, and I didn‘t want to scare you, and, umm…‖
The words of Index who's almost about to cry gradually become quieter until they're unable to be
heard.
I didn‘t want to be hated, Kamijou hears.
―S-Stop screwing around. Don‘t screw with me!!‖ Index is sure she heard a terrifying sound.
―Such degrading words. Don‘t just selfishly go around judging people! The churches‘ secrets?
103,000 grimoires? Certainly they are outrageous, and even now it still feels like unbelievable
nonsense!‖
Kamijou claps his hands together.
―But that‘s all there is to it, right?‖
Index widens her eyes.
Those small lips seem to want to say something, but nothing comes out. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Don‘t look down on me. Just because you memorized 103,000 books, did you think I would
consider you disgusting!? Just because some magicians treated you like trash, did you think I
would, too!?‖
While Kamijou expresses his feelings, he finally realizes what's making him so angry.
Kamijou's placing himself in Index‘s shoes. Index just doesn‘t want to see anyone get hurt
anymore. To that extent, she covered for him and never thought of asking him to protect her. Not
even once did Kamijou hear the words "Please help me" from her.
It must have been frustrating.
Very, very frustrating.
―Have some faith in me! Don‘t just go around judging people, okay?‖
That‘s all there is to it. Even without the power of his right hand, he would probably still do it.
There's nothing that would make him do otherwise.
Index looks up at Kamijou with a dumbstruck face.
Tears suddenly start to form in her eyes.
It's like ice melting.
Index‘s lips tremble from trying to refrain from crying. She pulls the blanket up to her mouth,
and takes a small bite out of it. She almost looks like a kindergartener crying loudly, Kamijou
thinks as Index‘s tears grow larger.
It surely is impossible to say anything to that. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou stops saying anything further. He didn't think his words would have that great of an
effect. Kamijou‘s words surely flipped a switch, and something inside Index just started to
overflow.
Up until now, Index has probably never heard such caring words, Kamijou thinks painfully. At
the same time, he feels happy that he finally was able to see the weak side of Index.
But really, Kamijou is not the kind of pervert who'd stay happy from seeing the tears of a girl.
Actually, this is just awkward.
If Komoe-sensei enters the room right now, Kamijou would be convicted instantly.
―Ah... Ah... there‘s this, there‘s this. As long as I have my right hand, things like magicians are
no match for me!‖
―…But you said you had to go to supplementary lessons.‖
―…Did I?‖
―…You definitely did.‖
Kamijou can‘t fool this girl who has the ability to remember every single line from 103,000
books.
―Did you think you couldn‘t ask me to intrude upon my daily life? Whatever, supplementary
lessons. It‘s not like the schools would expel anyone. Even if I skip school, there will be
supplementary lessons of supplementary lessons of supplementary lessons waiting for me. No
matter how long I postpone them, it‘s all good.‖
Things would become chaotic if Komoe-sensei hears this, but whatever.
―…‖
Index stops her tears, and looks up at Kamijou.
―…Then why did you say you had to go to supplementary lessons immediately?‖
―…Uh…‖
Kamijou recalls. Now that she mentioned it, he did destroy the nun clothes with Imagine Breaker
and leave Index completely naked. After that, awkward elevator silence dominates the room, and
then…
―…Because you had plans, because you had your daily life, because I was in the way.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―…Uh, uh. Umm…‖
―My presence made you uncomfortable, right?‖
―…‖
―Uncomfortable, right?‖
It's absolutely impossible to fool her now.
I’m sorry! Kamijou vigorously gets down on his hands and knees.
Index sluggishly moves towards him like a sickly patient, and grabs both his ears. She opens her
mouth as if she's going to eat a gigantic rice ball, and bites the top of Kamijou‘s head with all her
might.
Six hundred meters away on top of an apartment building, Stiyl takes his eyes off his binoculars.
―I‘ve researched the boy accompanying Index… How is she?‖
Stiyl turns back to look at the woman walking towards him.
―She‘s alive. But the fact that she's alive means that someone helped her perform magic.‖
The woman is silent. Instead of being frustrated that another enemy has appeared, she seems
relieved that no one had to die.
The woman is eighteen, but compared to the fourteen-year-old Stiyl, she's a head shorter.
In the first place, Stiyl‘s height is already over two meters. Compared to an average Japanese
woman, she's already tall.
Her hair is tied in a ponytail and reaches her waist. On her hip is an "Ordinance Sword", used in
Japanese Shinto rain-calling ceremonies. The Japanese sword over two meters long resides
within its sheath.
But one couldn‘t really call her a Japanese beauty.
Her attire consisted of a pair of worn-out jeans and a white T-shirt. For some reason, the left side
of her jeans is slashed off from the thigh. Her shirt‘s extra cloth is tied off to the side, revealing
her belly button, and her boots almost reach her knees. Her Japanese sword hangs on what seems
to be a leather gun holster. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Looking at it another way, she looks like a Western sheriff, but instead of a gun, she wields a
Japanese sword.
But for the strong-perfume-smelling priest Stiyl, he doesn‘t see her like that.
―So, Kanzaki, what exactly was that?‖
―About that, I was not able to find out much about that boy. At the very least, he is neither a
magician nor a supernatural power user.‖
―Are you trying to tell me he‘s just a normal high school student?‖ Stiyl takes out a cigarette, and
lights it. ―Please stop joking. I am the magician that completely analyzed the current twenty-four
character runes and created a new power using six character runes. This world wasn‘t created
easily enough for a powerless amateur to be able to repel Innocentius.‖
Even if Index gives advice, one shouldn‘t be able to apply it to battle tactics that fast. In addition,
that strange right hand... if that boy is just a normal civilian, that is precisely why Japan is such a
mysterious country.
―That is true.‖ Kanzaki Kaori narrows her eyes. ―Rather, it is that his battle strength belongs in
the category of 'worthless students who like to pick fights'.‖
The other side of Academy City is that of an organization mass-producing espers.
The organization known as the Five Elements Institution. Even though they don‘t care about the
List of Prohibited Books, Stiyl and Kanzaki were able to get permission to enter Academy City.
Even for the greatest magical group in the world, if they step into enemy territory, it would be
impossible to continue hiding their identities.
―Maybe… they are intentionally hiding his information. Also, Index‘s wound was healed with
magic. Kanzaki, do magic societies actually exist out here in the Far East?‖
Those two people think that "that boy has an organization other than the Five Elements
Institution supporting him".
They came under the misconception that another organization was responsible for erasing that
boy‘s information.
―If they are moving inside this city, they should be detected by the people as well the Five
Elements Institution‖ Kanzaki closes her eyes and says, ―The number of enemy forces is
unknown. Not only that, but we have no reinforcements.‖
That was where they were wrong. Kamijou‘s Imagine Breaker has zero effect on anything other
than ‗supernatural powers‘. That is why Academy City‘s system scan machines couldn‘t measure とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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his power. Consequently, Kamijou who wields the most powerful misfortunate right hand is
treated as a Level 0.
―For a worse a case scenario, let us assume that the organization wants a magic fight. Stiyl, I
heard that the enemy pointed out your runes‘ weakness to water.‖
―I reinforced them. They are laminated now. I won‘t let the enemy use the same trick twice.‖ He
takes out the trading card-like runes. ―This time, not only with I place then around the building,
but I will place them everywhere in a two kilometer radius…I‘ll be using 164,000 runes. It will
take sixty hours to prepare.‖
Magic isn‘t some kind of game where you chant and suddenly there‘s a spell.
You can‘t tell by just looking but preparation is essential. Stiyl‘s flames were originally a ‗silver
wolf‘s fang that accumulated ten years worth of moonlight‘ and other stuff that only experts
would know.
When in a bind, just read ahead of the magic fight. If you think that you have already been
caught in a trap before the battle started, read into the trap and turn the tables over. Anticipating
the attacker‘s counterattack is also vital. It‘s different from a simple fist fight. It‘s when you have
to read a hundred or so moves ahead while the situation is constantly changing. That kind of
battle is like an absurd mental fight.
To these magicians, not knowing the enemy‘s battle strength is a serious blow.
―…She looks happy.‖
The rune magician suddenly says while looking through the binoculars six hundred meters ahead.
―She looks happy. She really does look happy. That girl is always living happily.‖ Stiyl shows a
disgusted face. ―…Just how long do we have to continue tearing ‗that‘ to shreds?‖
From behind Stiyl, Kanzaki looks six hundred meters ahead.
Without the use of binoculars or magic, Kanzaki who has a visual acuity of 8.0 can clearly see.
She can see that the girl is somewhat filled with rage and sinks her teeth into the boy‘s head
while the boy grasps his head in pain.
―Is it a complex feeling?‖ Kanzaki asks emotionlessly. ―For you who was once in that position‖
―…It‘s the same as always.‖
The flame magician answers. It‘s the same as usual.
Part 3とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Bath-house♪ Bath-house♪ Next to Kamijou, Index who is holding a wash basin, sings.
‗I‘m no longer sick‘ she said as she changed from pajamas into her nun clothing full of safety
pins.
Kamijou doesn‘t know what trick she used but she somehow got her blood-ridden nun clothes
sparkling clean. Rather, if those nun clothes full of safety pins were thrown into a washing
machine, it would be torn to pieces. Don‘t tell me she took it apart and washed it in sections?
―What are you so excited about? Is it the smell?‖
―There are people that like sweaty people?‖
―That‘s not what I meant!!‖
It has been three days since that incident. When she was finally able to move about, her first wish
was to go to a bathhouse.
Incidentally, a bathroom does not exist in Komoe-sensei‘s apartment. After borrowing Komoe‘s
stuff, they were given the choice of going to one of the two nearby shabby bathhouses.
There is now a couple walking through the night streets, carrying wash basins.
While explaining happily the history of bathhouses, Komoe-sensei didn‘t ask anything about the
situation and let them stay at the apartment. There was no way Kamijou could go back to the
student dormitory that was targeted by the enemies.
―Touma, Touma‖
Index says in a muffled voice while lightly biting the sleeve of Kamijou‘s shirt. The nun who
seems to have a habit of biting things, pulls his shirt as if trying to get his attention.
―…What?‖
Kamijou replies in a bored manner. Because Kamijou introduced himself this morning after
Index said ‗Now that I think about it, I don‘t know your name yet‘, he has been called by his
name about sixty thousand times now.
―Nothing. Calling someone‘s name for no reason is kind of fun.‖
Just by saying Kamijou‘s name, Index‘s face looked like a kid going to an amusement park for
the first time.
How he got to know Index was not normal. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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It was three days ago Kamijou happily recalls. A lot of stuff must have been going through her
head that time.
―Komoe said that in a Japanese bathhouse, there‘s a thing called coffee milk. What‘s coffee
milk? Is it like a cappuccino?‖
―There‘s nothing elegant like that in a Japanese bathhouse.‖ Don‘t get so excited. ―Though, you
might get a culture shock when you see the huge bath. It‘s not England‘s tiny hotel baths.‖
―Hmm? I don‘t really know about stuff like that.‖
Index tilts her head as if she actually really doesn‘t about it.
―Because before I realized it, I was already in Japan. I don‘t really know what happened before.‖
―Hmph. No wonder your Japanese is perfect. You came here when you were a kid right? You‘re
actually Japanese aren‘t you?‖
That means she was just exaggerating when she said she had to return to England to be safe. She
just wanted to see her home country.
―Ah. I didn‘t mean it like that.‖
Her silver hair flows left and right as she shakes her head.
―It seems that I was born and raised up the St. George‘s Cathedral in London. It think that I came
here one year ago.‖
―I think?‖
Kamijou raises his eyebrows at these ambiguous words.
―Yeah, because I don‘t have any memories prior to this year.‖
Index smiles.
It really was like the face of a child going to an amusement park going for the first time.
It was because of that perfect smile that made Kamijou feel uneasy. There was sure to be pain
and sorrow hidden behind that smile.
―When I first awakened in a back alley, I didn‘t even know who I was. ‗For the time being, I
have to escape‘ is what I thought. Even though I couldn‘t even remember what I ate the night とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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before, knowledge about magicians, the list of prohibited books, Necessarius, and others kept on
popping up. I was really scared.‖
―…So that means you don‘t even know why you‘re losing your memories?‖
Yeah, she replied. Because Kamijou skipped lessons in psychology he doesn‘t really know, but
from games and dramas, he knows there are usually only two reasons for memory loss.
One, they damaged the brain physically. Two, because of a trauma, the heart sealed away the
memories.
―Those bastards…‖
Kamijou mutters without thinking as he looks up at the night sky. Even though magicians chased
her to this extent, what he can‘t stand the most is his uselessness in this situation.
Kamijou now understands the reason why Index wanted to protect him. Without ever knowing
why the world abandoned her, after one year, she made her first ‗acquaintance.‘ It was just a
coincidence that it was Kamijou.
Kamijou didn‘t think their first meeting was a happy one.
He doesn‘t know why but Index‘s reasoning made him terribly irritated.
―Hmm. You look somewhat angry Touma.‖
―I‘m not angry.‖ A startled Kamijou answers and feigns innocence.
―I‘m sorry if I hit a soft spot. What are you angry about? Going through puberty?‖
―I don‘t want to hear puberty from someone with a body like that.‖
―Mu. What‘s with that? You really do look angry. Or maybe you are pretending to be angry just
to tease me. I don‘t like that part of you.‖
―Hey. You didn‘t originally like me anyway so don‘t go saying things like that. I‘m not desperate
enough to expect to share beautiful love comedy events with you.‖
―…‖
―Um, what? Why are you being quiet and staring at me like that, princess?‖
―…‖
Index gives no response as if she is waiting for a punchline. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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This is strange, something is off here. Tears are starting to appear in the corner of her eyes. Her
face looks kind of angry. Her lips look like they‘re hungry for something.
―Touma‖
―Yes?‖ Kamijou thought that because his name was called, he should just answer for the time
being.
He has a premonition that great misfortune is about to befall him.
―I hate you!‖
Kamijou gains the rare experience points for ‗being bitten in the head by a girl.‘
Part 4
Index headed to the public bathhouse by herself.
After showing Index the way, Kamijou thought he should go too but was greeted by the stare of
an angry white nun when he tried to. Because of that, he now has to stand around and do nothing,
Kamijou thinks as he looks at Index‘s back. ‗I‘ll have my revenge sooner or later‘. Right now, he
looks like an abandoned cat.
‗We‘ll make up later anyways‘ Kamijou thinks as he stops going after her.
At any rate, if someone happens to see him chasing a weak English nun down the night streets,
he would be arrested no questions asked.
―English nun, hey?‖
Kamijou says absentmindedly while walking the night streets.
He knows. If he takes Index to an English church in Japan, she would probably be able to return
to London. That would be the end of it. She would say ‗even though our time together was short,
I will never forget you, since I have perfect memorization.‘
Kamijou felt like something was stabbing his heart but it‘s not like he has a better idea. If he
doesn‘t get the church to protect Index, she would be constantly pursued by magicians. It is
highly unlikely that the magicians would fly to England to chase after her.
In this world, in this place, in this dimension, everyone human is different.
Kamijou lives in the science world while Index lives in the magic world.
Just like land and sea, these two worlds were never meant to cross. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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That is all there is to it.
That is all there is to it, but Kamijou just can‘t shake off this feeling of irritation.
―Huh?‖
Suddenly, he cuts off his thoughts.
Something is wrong here. Kamijou looks at the time on the department store‘s electric bulletin
board. 8:00pm. This is not the time where people would go to sleep, yet, this area is as quiet as
forests at night. An odd, uneasy feeling.
Now that he thinks about it, he didn‘t pass anyone when he was walking together with Index.
Kamijou subtly turns his head around as he continues walking.
When he reached the main road, he confirmed his uneasy feeling. This is undeniably abnormal.
There‘s no one here.
No one is coming in or out of neither convenience stores nor major department stores. The
narrow sidewalk felt ridiculously large and the road looked as big as a landing strip. The cars
parked on the road looked like they were abandoned.
It was like a road in the country side.
―It is just the Opila rune that Stiyl used.‖
From out of nowhere a woman‘s voice called out.
He didn‘t notice at all.
That woman did not sneak up behind him, nor did she hide her presence. On the three-lane road
as wide as a landing strip, there she stood ten meters right in front of him.
I wasn‘t like he couldn‘t see because it was too dark. There was certainly no one here before; but
in the blink of an eye, she was somehow able to stand before him.
―The people in this area just ‗do not think of coming here‘ and divert their attention elsewhere.
There are probably a lot of people in those buildings right? There is no need to worry about
them.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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All of his blood concentrated in his right hand. His wrists felt a pain similar to being tied by
ropes. His intuition told him that this person was dangerous.
The woman wore a white t-shirt and a pair of jeans where one side was boldly cut off. I guess her
clothes barely pass as normal.
However, dangling on her waist is a Japanese sword over two meters in length, full of malice. He
can‘t tell because it is sheathed but it was like one of those swords that you see displayed in a
Japanese-style house. The sheath is pitch-black and is obviously a real sword. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Kamijou Touma is it not? What a great name.‖[11]
She isn‘t tense at all. Her relaxed manner was rather scary.
―…You bastard‖
―Kanzaki Kaori is my name. If possible, I would rather not mention my other name.‖
―Other name?‖
―My magic name, that is‖
Even though Kamijou expected as much, he still instinctively took a step back.
Magic name, was the name that Stiyl used when he was attacking Kamijou. The ‗killing name‘.
―…So what? I guess you‘re the same as Stiyl. You guys are from the Magic Cabal, right?‖
―…?‖ Kanzaki raised her eyebrows in suspicion for a second. ―I see. Did you hear from Index?‖
Kamijou did not answer.
Magic Cabal. Those organizations that chase down Index because they want her 103,000
grimoires. Those groups of people who wish to transcend their magic to become a ‗Majin‘ and
be able to warp all things in the world.
―To be honest‖ Kanzaki closes one eye and continues. ―I wish to secure that girl before I mention
my magic name.‖
A chill runs down Kamijou‘s spine.
While looking at his right hand, he thinks about the cold feeling that the enemy in front of him
gives off.
―…What if I say no?‖
Nevertheless, Kamijou still answers, because there is no reason for him to back away.
―Then there is no other way.‖ Kanzaki closes her other eye. ―I will just have to state my name
and then secure her.‖
Don!! The attack shakes the ground like an earthquake. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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It was like a bomb. In the corner of his vision, he could see what was originally supposed to be a
dark-blue night sky burned orange. Somewhere far away, even one hundred meters ahead of him,
ridiculously large flames spread everywhere.
―In-Index!!‖
The enemy is an organization. Kamijou also knew the name of that flame magician.
Kamijou almost reflexively looks in the direction of the flame explosion.
In an instant, Kanzaki Kaori‘s slash came right at him.
The distance between Kamijou and Kanzaki is ten meters. In addition, the sword is over two
meters long. If you taken into account her slender arms and the amount of time it takes to
unsheathe the sword, it should‘ve been impossible.
---Should‘ve been…
In the next instant, like a giant laser, the air just above Kamijou‘s head gets ripped apart.
Kamijou, who almost freezes in horror, turns around to look behind. There he saw a wind power
generator‘s propeller cut cleanly and soundlessly, just like butter.
―Please stop‖ the voice ten meters ahead says. ―If you ignore my warning, what awaits you is
only death.‖
The sword that Kanzaki raised before is already in its sheath. Because it was so fast, Kamijou
didn‘t even get to see the blade.
Kamijou doesn‘t move.
The reason why he's am standing here is because Kanzaki missed of purpose. He tries to think of
a reason but nothing comes up. He can‘t keep up with this person‘s irrationality.
Zudon!! The sound of the propeller falling to the ground can be heard.
The debris from the propeller made it all the way to Kamijou but he still doesn‘t move.
―…Tsk!‖
Kamijou grinds his teeth as he thinks about the sharpness of that sword.
Kanzaki opens of her eyes again. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―I request once again.‖ She narrows both of her eyes. ―I wish to secure that girl before I mention
my magic name.‖
Kanzaki‘s voice shows no signs of hesitation.
Her voice is cold, like she is trying to scare the opponent off.
―…W-What are talking about?‖
It was as if the soles of his feet were glued to the ground. He doesn‘t have the courage to move
forward, but he can‘t move back either.
His legs were wobbly and drained of power like he had just run a marathon.
―I have no reason to surrender to you---―
―I will repeat myself as many times as necessary‖
Instantly. In just an instant, Kanzaki‘s right hand disappeared.
A thunderous noise. Along with howling of the wind, something came attacking.
―!?‖
Kamijou thought he was getting attacked by lasers in all directions.
It was like a giant tornado.
With Kamijou in the eye of the storm, the ground, the streets lights, and other constructions get
cut at set intervals. Kamijou‘s fists are powerless in this situation. A piece of concrete strikes him
in the right shoulder and sends him flying, almost knocking him out.
Kamijou suppress the pain in his right shoulder and looks at his surroundings.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven. There are seven linear slash marks on the flat ground
which ran for about ten meters. The slashes spread out at various random angles.
Kamijou hears her sheath the sword.
―I wish to secure that girl before I mention my magic name.‖
While touching the hilt of her sword, she says without any hatred or anger. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Seven times. Even though he couldn‘t even see one slash, in that instant, that woman attacked
him quickly by drawing her sword seven times. In those seven slashes, he could‘ve been cut into
pieces easily. A certain-kill seven times over.
No. The metallic sound of the sword falling into its sheath only happened once.
It was most likely magic. A spell where one slash could reach over ten meters. A spell that could
turn one slash into seven. A spell that lets her unleash seven sword strikes in one movement.
―The speed of my slash woven by my Shichiten Shichitou, Nanasen, can kill a person seven
times in the period known as ‗an instant‘. People call this an instant kill. Calling it a certain-kill
would not be incorrect either.‖[12]
Kamijou speechlessly squeezes his right hand and makes a fist.
That speed, that power and this distance. That slash is likely to have magic imbued in it. In that
case, if I‘m just able to touch those sword strikes…
His train of thought was interrupted. ―I received a report from Stiyl. For some reason, your right
hand can dispel magic. But would that not mean that unless it does not touch your right hand, it
would not work?‖
---That‘s right. Unless he is able to touch it, his right hand is useless.
That speed isn‘t the only problem. To be frank, those slashes are different from Misaka Mikoto‘s
lightning spears and railguns. He can‘t predict where Kanzaki Kaori‘s phantom-like Nanasen
attack is going to strike. Even if he uses his Imagine Breaker, her seven slashes would just cut his
arm off.
―I will repeat myself as many times as necessary‖
Kanzaki‘s right hand silently touches the hilt of Shichiten Shichitou on her waist.
Cold sweat runs down Kamijou‘s face.
When Kanzaki finally gets tired of fooling around, Kamijou will definitely be cut into eight
pieces in an instant. They are about ten meters apart. If he considers the destructive power of the
previous attacks, running away and using something as a shield would be suicidal.
Kamijou measures the distance between him and Kanzaki.
Approximately ten meters. He can cover that distance in four steps if he charges with all his
might.
…Move. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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It was like his legs got super glued to the ground. Kamijou desperately commands his body to
move.
―Can you please let me secure her before I mention my magic name?‖
…M-o-v-e!!
Kamijou forcibly rips out his legs stuck to the ground and takes a step forward. Before Kanzaki
can frown at this action, Kamijou charges like a bullet.
―OOOAAAAAAAAAA!!‖
Another step. If he can‘t run back, dodge left or right, or use something as a shield, then there‘s
only one thing that he can do. Keep advancing forward and cut open a path.
―I do not understand what is making you fight this hard‖
Behind Kanzaki‘s bored voice, Kamijou gets that there is pity mixed in there. She lets out a sigh.
Nanasen
Shattered asphalt and destroyed roadside trees scattered everywhere. The debris flew around like
dust.
A thundering sound. Along with the howling of the wind, the dust in front of Kamijou‘s eyes is
cut into eight pieces.
―Ah----------!!‖
If he just touches it, it will be dispelled. His brain understands this, but his heart chooses to
dodge at the last second. Kamijou uses all his strength to duck and feels seven slashes skim the
top of his head. His heart almost stops.
His dodge was just a stroke of good luck.
He takes another step, covering three of the four steps required to reach Kanzaki.
He doesn‘t know how Nanasen works but it is basically drawing the sword and slashing. A
traditional type of swordsmanship where one slash of the drawn sword is a one-hit-kill. It you
look at it another way, until the sword is drawn, the swordsman is completely defenseless.
I will lunge at Kanzaki in the next step, and end this. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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This is what Kamijou thought, but his last hope was smashed to pieces by a small metallic sound.
The sword is sheathed. With outrageous speed, a small metallic sound rings.
Nanasen
A thundering sound. Kamijou manages to turn the distance to zero.
Before his body‘s reflexes could dodge, seven slashes come attacking him.
―D-Dammiiiitttt!‖
In response to the attack, Kamijou makes a fist and takes it on.
If it‘s a ‗supernatural power‘, even the power of god and vampires can be erased.
As the distance closes, the seven slashes come together and attack Kamijou. Even if it touches
Kamijou‘s hand once, his Imagine Breaker turn all seven slashes into nothing.
Under the light of the moon, a slash lightly touches the skin of his fingers.
Without any change, the other slashes followed.
―Wha…!?‖
Nothing happened. Even though he used his Imagine Breaker, this stupid slash won‘t disappear.
Kamijou immediately pulls back his fist but doesn‘t make it in time. He willingly held out his
hands and touched the slash. There is no way to avoid it now.
Kanzaki slightly narrows her eyes at the sight of Kamijou‘s figure.
In the next instant, a water-like sound reverberates as the surrounding area gets torn to pieces.
Kamijou supports his right hand covered in blood with his left as his knees buckle.
The amazing thing was that his five fingers were still intact.
Of course, even if his fingers were firm, it didn‘t mean that Kanzaki‘s sword was blunt. It simply
meant that she once again held back enough to avoid cutting off his fingers. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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With his knees on the ground, Kamijou looks up.
He looks at Kanzaki and the full-moon behind her. In front of Kanzaki‘s eyes, he sees some kind
of red string.
They look like spider webs. Because Kamijou‘s blood got stuck onto them, he was finally able to
see them. Seven steel wires.
―What the… No way‖ Kamijou grinds his teeth. ―Aren‘t you a magician?‖
So that stupidly long sword was just a decoration.
It wasn‘t completely impossible that he didn‘t see her sword being drawn. But Kanzaki didn‘t
even draw in the first place. She merely moved the sheath of her sword. With just that action, she
is able to manipulate seven steel wires and hide them.
The reason why his right hand is fine and the reason why he still has five fingers is because
Kanzaki slackened her steel wires.
―I believe I have told you. I heard the from story from Stiyl.‖ Kanzaki says in a bored manner,
―Do you understand now? My power is not different, my style is different. It is the same as
paper-scissors-rock. Even if you use rock for a thousand years, it will never be able to beat paper.
―…‖
Kamijou clenches his bloody fist.
―It seems that you are misunderstanding something.‖ Kanzaki looks at Kamijou with rather
pitiful eyes, ―The true power of my Nanasen is not a trick and my Shichiten Shichitou is not a
decoration. What awaits you after going through Nanasen is the true Yuisen.‖[13]
―…‖
Kamijou tightens his fist.
―More importantly, I have yet to mention my magic name.‖
―…‖
He tightens his fist harder.
―Please don‘t make me mention it, boy.‖ Kanzaki bits her lips. ―I do not wish to mention that
name ever again.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou‘s tightened fist trembles. This woman is clearly different from Stiyl. She is not some
one-trick pony. From the basics of the basics, the foundations of foundations, the bases of bases,
this person is a completely different human from Kamijou.
―…As if I could ever surrender‖
Even so, Kamijou doesn‘t release his fist. He tightens his numb right hand.
This is the person who slashed Index in the back. In order to save her, he can‘t surrender here.
―What was that? I could not hear you.‖
―I told you to shut up you shitty robot.‖
Kamijou clenches his fists and looks at face of the woman he‘s about beat the crap out of.
But before that, Kanzaki‘s boot is silently thrust into the pit his of stomach. Kamijou gets all the
wind knocked out of him. At the same time, the sheath of Shichiten Shichitou gets used like a
baseball bat to send him flying. His body flies through the air as if trapped in a tornado. His
shoulder smashes hard into the ground.
Before Kamijou can moan in agony, a boot comes stomping down on his head.
He immediately rolls over to dodge.
―Nanasen‖
Seven slashes shatter everything in Kamijou‘s surroundings. As if there where bombs exploding
in every direction, large amounts of blown away debris hit Kamijou like torrential downpour.
―Gah……………!?‖
Kamijou‘s severe pain was comparable to six people being lynched. Kamijou looks around at the
destroyed surroundings, and sees Kanzaki drawing closer.
Even though Kamijou knew he had to stand up, his feet were so drained of energy that they
wouldn‘t move.
―Isn‘t this enough?‖ Her small voice says in a pitiful voice. ―I do not believe you have a reason
to be fighting this much for her. Being able last thirty seconds against one of the top ten
magicians in London, is already a spectacular feat. There is no reason why she would blame you.‖
―…‖
Kamijou vaguely recalls while being on the verge of getting knocked out. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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That‘s right. If it‘s Index, she would never blame Kamijou for any of this.
Even if that‘s the case…
Because she will never blame anyone and continue to endure all this… This is exactly why
Kamijou doesn‘t want to give up.
There is the face of someone suffering behind that perfect smile. This is why he wants to save
her.
Like an insect on the verge of death, Kamijou forcibly makes a fist with his damaged right hand.
His body still lets him move.
It lets him move.
―…Why?‖
Kamijou who is collapsed on the ground says in a small voice.
―You look extremely bored. You are different from Stiyl, right? Aren‘t you hesitating on killing
your enemy? If you wanted to, you could have given me your certain death any time but you
didn‘t. …You‘re still a human with common sense who would hesitate to kill someone, right?‖
Kamijou asks Kanzaki.
Why she wanted to let everything end before she mentions her magic name.
The magician named Stiyl Magnus. He didn‘t show any hesitation at all.
―…‖
Kanzaki Kaori became quiet. Kamijou who can‘t think straight due to the pain doesn‘t notice this.
―You should know. Chasing a tired, hungry girl and slashing her in the back isn‘t something that
can be forgiven. You should know this!‖
Kanzaki does nothing and continues to listen.
―Did you know? Because of you people, she lost all her memories prior to this year. Just how
badly did you chase her in order for her to lose even her memories?‖
There was no reply. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou doesn‘t understand. If it was to cure a child‘s incurable disease, then it is fine. If it is for
the sake of a loved one who has passed away, then it was fine. Because they wanted something,
they sought out Index‘s 103,000 grimoires, to be become a Majin and be able to do as they wish.
But this person is not like that.
This is a person from an organization. It is because she was ordered to do her work. With just
one word, they made her chase a girl and cut her in the back. They made her lose her way.
―Why?‖
Kamijou repeats and clenches his teeth.
―I‘m the kind of loser who has to risk my life and fight desperately, and still be unable to protect
one girl. The kind of weakling where I can only bite on my fingers groveling on the ground and
watch you guys take her away.‖
He says it like a child that is about to cry.
―But, you‘re not like that, right?‖
Without really understand the meaning of his words he continues.
―Even though with that power, you can protect whatever and whoever you want. Even though
you can save whatever or whoever you want.‖
Without knowing who he is talking to.
―…Why is this the only action you‘re taking?‖
He said it.
It was vexing.
With that kind of power, Kamijou thinks that he would protect everything he wants to protect.
It was vexing.
There is nothing a girl could do when a human possessing such overwhelming strength was
chasing her.
It was vexing.
It was as if Kamijou was the first person to say this. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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So vexing that he thought he might cry.
―…‖
Complete silence.
―Even I…‖
It is Kanzaki who is driven into a corner. With just one statement, one of the top ten magicians in
London was driven into a corner.
―Even I did not intend to slash her in the back. It was because of her nun clothes, the ‗Walking
Church‘… Only because I knew that she would definitely not be harmed, I slashed her. But…‖
Kamijou doesn‘t understand Kanzaki‘s words.
―I am not doing this because I want to.‖
But… Kanzaki says.
―But if I do not do so, she will not be able to live. …She will die.‖
Kanzaki Kaori‘s face now resembles that of a crying child.
―The name of the organization I belong to is the same as that girl‘s. A section in the British
Puritan Church... Necessarius.‖
She says as if spitting out blood.
―That girl is a colleague of mine… as well as my precious friend.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Chapter 3: The Grimoire Peacefully Smiles. Forget me not.
Part 1
Kamijou doesn't understand. He can't comprehend it.
On the road covered with blood, Kamijou who is looking up at Kanzaki, thinks he is
hallucinating due to the pain. Because, it was impossible. Index who is running away from
magicians, plans to seek shelter at the English Church. But just now, he heard that the same
magicians pursuing her are also from the English Church.
―Are you familiar with ‗perfect memorization‘?‖
Kanzaki asks. The voice is weak, and her figure is pitiful. That is not the figure of one of the top
ten magicians in London. He could only see the figure of a tired girl.
―Ah, it‘s the reason why she can remember all those 103,000 books, right?‖ Kamijou moves his
cut lips. ―..They are all in her head. Just telling me that she can completely remember something
with one look won‘t make me believe it. She is kind of an idiot isn‘t she? I know I shouldn‘t say
this but she doesn‘t look like that kind of genius.‖
―…What does she look like in your eyes?‖
―Just a girl‖
Rather than surprised, Kanzaki looks rather bored and says.
―Do you think that just any girl could continue running away from our pursuit for a year?‖
―…‖
―She ran away from Stiyl‘s flames along with my Nanasen and Yuisen, just by using her hands
and feet. She escaped from magicians without any supernatural power like yours or magic like
mine.‖ Kanzaki smiles while making fun of herself. ―By just making two enemies, things have
come to this. If I were to be enemies with Necessarius, I wouldn‘t even last a month.‖
That‘s right.
Kamijou finally realizes the true nature of the girl named Index. Even though he wields the
Imagine Breaker, which can even turn god‘s miracles into nothing, he couldn‘t run away from
these people for four days. She, on the other hand…
―She is unquestionably a genius.‖ Kanzaki declares, ―If she used her knowledge the wrong way,
she would be a disaster. It is obvious why the church didn‘t try to use her. They were scared.
Anyone would be.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―…Even so.‖ Kamijou bits on his bloody lips. ―…She is a human. She isn‘t a tool. That way of
speaking shouldn‘t be tolerated!‖
―You are right,‖ Kanzaki nods. ―Aside from her ability, she is almost no different than us.‖
―…?‖
―She uses 85% of her brain in order to remember 103,000 books. …The remaining 15% is no
different from us.‖
That is certainly an amazing story. Kamijou wants to know even more now.
―…So what? How does that explain what you guys are doing? Necessarius is the church Index
belongs to, right? Then why is Necessarius chasing her? Why is Index calling you people evil
magicians from the Magic Cabal?‖
Kamijou soundlessly bites his teeth.
―…Or is it something else? Are you trying to tell me that Index is lying to me?‖
Unbelievable. It she was simply using him, there was absolutely no need for her to protect him
and get herself slashed in the back.
Even without that theory, he doesn‘t want to believe stuff like that.
Kanzaki Kaori hesitates for a moment and answers.
As if holding her breath, as if her heart was being crushed, she answers.
―She does not remember anything.‖
―The fact that we belong to Necessarius, and the true reason why she is being chased… she
doesn‘t remember any of this. That is why she could only come up with her own conclusion
using her available knowledge… That the magicians chasing her were people from the Magic
Cabal after her 103,000 books.‖
Kamijou recalls.
The conversation about how she lost all her memories prior to this year.
―But wait. Wait. Something is wrong here. Index has her perfect memorization, right? Then how
could she forget? How did she lose her memories in the first place?‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―She did not lose them.‖ Kanzaki stops her breathing. ―To be accurate, we erased them.‖
There was no reason to ask how they did it.
---Do not make me mention it, boy.
---I do not wish to mention that name ever again.
―…Why?‖ Kamijou asks this instead. ―Why! Aren‘t you Index‘s friend! This isn‘t Index‘s fault.
If you guys just show your face to her, she would understand. Isn‘t she your precious friend!
Why!‖
Kamijou remembers Index‘s smiling face.
If that smile was used against any of her acquaintances, it surely turn any sadness right around.
―…We had no choice.‖
―What!?‖
Just when Kamijou was about to shout in rage…
―If we did not do so, Index would have died.‖
His breathing stopped. He couldn‘t even feel the sweltering night‘s hot air anymore. His whole
body just wanted to run away from reality.
It was like… it was like the first time you see a dead body.
―I believe I told you, that 85% of her brain is used to remember the 103,000 books.‖
Kanzaki‘s shoulders gradually began to tremble. ―To make things worse, she can‘t make use of
her remaining 15% like an ordinary person. If she uses it to allocate her memories, her brain
would die out in no time.‖
―N-No way.‖
Impossible. Before logic, before reasoning, Kamijou‘s brain determined it was ‗impossible‘ right
from the beginning. This is why his brain is going in circles.
―But, but, it‘s odd. Even if it‘s 15%, it‘s still the same as ours, right?‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―This is true. But she possesses something we don‘t. Perfect memorization.‖ Kanzaki‘s voice
slowly loses its emotions. ―What is perfect memorization in the first place?‖
―…When a person sees something even once, they will never forget it, right?‖
―Then, is the phenomenon of ‗forgetting‘ really a bad thing?‖
―…‖
―The capacity of a human brain is unexpectedly small. The reason why a human brain can work
over a hundred years is because by forgetting ‗unnecessary memories,‘ it organizes the brain.
Even you probably cannot remember what you ate for dinner a week ago. Everyone‘s brain is
organized while they are unaware of it. If it did not, they would not be able live.‖
Kanzaki says in an icy tone.
―She cannot do that.‖
―…‖
―From the number of leaves on road-side trees, to the faces of the flood of people at rush hour, to
the shapes of every single drop of rain… she cannot ‗forget‘ any of these. Her brain immediately
fills up with useless information in no time.‖ Kanzaki‘s voice gets icier. ―To her, who can only
use 15% of her brain, not being able to forget is fatal. Because she is unable to ‗forget‘ her
memories by herself, she needs to borrow someone else‘s power to do so.‖
Kamijou‘s brain can‘t handle it anymore.
…This. What kind of tale is this? A maiden in distress being chased by an evil mage is saved by
a boring man and they befriend each other. In the end, the man‘s heart hurts by just looking at
the back of her leaving. Isn‘t it this kind of tale?
---I said that we've come to secure her before she gets abducted by people who want to use her.
---I wish to secure that girl before I mention my magic name.
―…How long?‖
Kamijou asks.
Even though he said it was impossible, somewhere in his heart, he had already started to accept it.
―How long till her brain dies?‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Memory erasure takes place in exact one year periods.‖ Kanzaki tiredly says. ―Three days is the
limit. Being too late or too early is out of the question. If we don‘t do it at exactly the right time,
erasing her memories will not work. There are signs when she needs her memory erased. Those
symptoms are usually high fevers and headaches.‖
Kamijou is horrified. Well, Index did say she only had memories of this year but…
And those headaches… Kamijou was sure that they were the side-effects of the recovery magic.
Index said so herself.
But what if Index was mistaken?
What if her condition is actually really bad and her brain could break down at any time?
―Do you understand yet?‖
Kanzaki Kaori asks. Kamijou thinks that the uncaring expression she is showing is unforgivable.
―We have no intention of harming her. Rather, we are the only people that can save her. Can you
please hand her over? …Before I mention my magic name.‖
―..Tsk‖
The face of Index surfaces in his head. Kamijou grinds his teeth and closes his eyes.
―When her memories are erased, she will not be able to remember you at all. You know, right?
No matter how much you think about her, when she wakes up, she will only think of you as an
enemy targeting the 103,000 grimoires.‖
―…‖
Kamijou confirms his uncomfortable feeling.
―Saving her brings you no benefit at all.‖
―…What the hell‖
Kamijou‘s uncomfortable feeling explodes in an instant. It was like setting fire to gasoline.
―What the hell! Don‘t screw around! This has nothing to do with whether she can remember or
not! Listen here, if you don‘t understand, let me tell you something. I am Index‘s friend! I‘ve
always been her ally and always will be! Even if it wasn‘t written in your Bible, this is absolute!!‖
―…‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―I knew something was weird. If it was as simple as her ‗forgetting‘ things, all you had to do was
explain it and clear up the misunderstanding. Why do you it as a misunderstanding! Why do you
chase after her as the enemy! Why did you just abandon her! What about her feelings-―
―---SHUT UP YOU AMATEUR!!‖
Kamijou keeps his anger suppressed due to Kanzaki‘s roaring attack that came from above. Her
words reveal all the emotion pent up inside her up until now. Kamijou thought his heart was
being crushed.
―Don‘t talk as if you know!! Up until now, what did you think we were feeling as we took away
her memories!? Do you understand? Do you!? Apparently you see Stiyl as a homicidal maniac,
but do you know just what he was going through as he watched you two!? Do you know how
much he was suffering!? Do you know how much resolve he had when he presented himself as
the enemy!? For the sake of a precious friend, he continuously steps on his pride! Can someone
like you really understand his feelings!!‖
―Wha…‖
Before he can say anything to Kanzaki‘s sudden change, he is given a flying kick to his side. His
body leaves the ground and lands three meters away, and continues to roll.
Blood from his stomach comes out of his mouth. He can taste his blood.
But before he can realize his pain, Kanzaki come jumping down from above, with the moon
behind her.
What kind of joke is this? How strong are her muscles to be able to send a person flying three
meters with a kick?
―…!?‖
The flat tip of Shichiten Shichitou‘s sheath crushes Kamijou‘s arm.
But he doesn‘t let out a scream.
Right in front of him is Kanzaki‘s face.
He is scared.
It has nothing to do with Nanasen, Yuisen, or her being one of the top ten magicians in London.
He is scared because he accidentally hit this person‘s soft spot. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―We did our best! We did all we could! We spent all spring, all summer, all fall, all winter! We
made a promise so that she wouldn‘t forget the memories we created! We gave her a diary and
an album to keep inside her heart!‖
The tip of her scabbard continually came attacking down like the needle of an electric sewing
machine.
Her blunt weapon crushes every part of Kamijou‘s body one by one. The arm, the leg, the
abdomen…
―…But in the end, it was useless‖
He hears the sound of grinding teeth.
Her hand stops moving.
―When reading her diary, when looking at the album‘s photos… All she could say was ‗I‘m
sorry‘. Even so, we continued to make new memories, but in the end, it kept on repeating.
Memories of her family, friends, lovers, were all reset to zero.‖
Kamijou‘s whole body trembles. He can‘t even take a step.
―We… couldn‘t endure it anymore. We couldn‘t bear to see her smile anymore.‖
To Index, who has that kind of personality, the pain from saying ‗farewell‘ was probably the
same as dying.
It must have been hell for those people who had to see it happen over and over.
Experiencing a pain similar to death and forgetting it immediately afterwards; and having to
experience that pain once again.
That is why they chose the method that would reduce sadness for both parties. They chose not to
meet her. If Index doesn‘t possess important memories to lose, when she loses her memories, the
shock will be less. That is why they threw away their status and friends, and chose to be the
enemy.
They painted Index‘s memories in black.
They tried to reduce the pain Index would feel in her last moments.
―…‖
Somehow Kamijou understands. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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These guys are professional magicians. They make the impossible possible. No matter how many
times her memories get erased, they will probably search all their lives to find a method for her
to keep her memories.
But this wish of theirs hasn‘t even been granted.
The Index who has lost her memories should have no reason to blame Stiyl and Kanzaki.
It was always like this. It was always because of that smile.
They blamed themselves for being unable to do anything.
But.
―Stop screwing around…‖ Kamijou bites down hard on his teeth. ―Isn‘t that some logic you
made up yourself? You didn‘t care to think about Index for one moment! Don‘t make me laugh.
Don‘t blame your own cowardice on Index!!‖
Index didn‘t rely on anyone else, and continued to run away by herself for a whole year.
If that is the best answer they can come up with, he will absolutely not acknowledge it. He can‘t
acknowledge it. He doesn‘t want to acknowledge it.
―Then tell me! Tell me what else we could have done!‖
Kanzaki grips the sheath of her Shichiten Shichitou, and brings it down on Kamijou‘s face.
With his right hand in tatters, he manages to move it to stop her from smashing his face in.
This magician no longer fears anything and is not tense at all.
…Move.
Move!
―If you guys were a bit stronger…‖ Kamijou gnashes his teeth. ―…If you guys continued to lie
and be hypocritical; if you guys were scared of her losing a year‘s worth of memory; all you had
to do was give her happier memories the next year! If you gave her memories that were so happy
that she wouldn‘t be scared anymore, then no one would have to run away anymore! Isn‘t that all
there is to it!?‖
With a broken shoulder, he forces his left arm to move, and take hold of the sheath. Just standing
up made his body spurt out blood everywhere.
―Do you intend… to fight with your body like that?‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―…Shut up‖
―What do you hope to achieve by fighting?‖ It was Kanzaki who is confused now. ―Even if you
defeat me, Necessarius is still behind me. I told you that I was one of the top ten magicians in
London, meaning there are those who are above me. If you look at the church as a whole, usually
only underlings get sent to an island country out in the Far East.‖
If they were Index‘s friend, they would have fiercely opposed the church‘s idea of using her as a
tool. But even they couldn‘t do anything about it. This goes to show the church‘s power.
―I told you to shut up!!‖
But, those things didn‘t matter.
Kamijou moves dying body and stares at Kanzaki.
Without any use of strength, Kamijou‘s glare made one of the top ten magicians in London to
step back.
―Those things don‘t matter! Are you protecting people just because you have power!?‖
Kamijou moves his damaged leg forward.
―It‘s not like that, right? That isn‘t how it is, right? That‘s complete wrong, right? You acquired
power because there was something you wanted to protect right!?‖
Kamijou uses his injured left hand to grab hold of the nape of Kanzaki‘s neck.
―Why did you acquire power?‖
Kamijou uses his injured left hand to make a bloody fist‖
―Who did you want to protect with those hands!?‖
He punches Kanzaki's face with a fist carrying no power. Because there was no power in his
punch, Kamijou‘s fist spurts of blood upon contact.
Kanzaki falls down backwards as if she was actually hit hard.
She loses her grip on Shichiten Shichitou. It falls on the ground and continues to roll.
―Then what the hell are you doing here!‖ Kamijou looks down on Kanzaki who is on the ground.
―With that much power, with such a versatile power… why are you so incompetent…‖
The ground shakes violently. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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As soon as he thinks this, his body loses all its power and collapses.
(Wake…up. The counterattack…is coming…)
Everything in his vision turns dark.
Because of excessive blood loss, Kamijou‘s vision does not return. Because he pushed himself
over his limit, he can‘t defend against the counterattack anymore.
Even when it has come to this, Kamijou uses all his might to move the tip of his finger, like a
caterpillar.
But the counterattack never came.
It never came.
Part 2
Because he is thirsty, and because the heat is killing him, Kamijou wakes up.
―Touma?‖
When he realizes that he is in Komoe-sensei‘s apartment, and that he had been sleeping in a bed,
he sees Index looking at him.
What surprises him is the sunlight shining through the window. If he remembers correctly, he
lost consciousness in front of the enemy and was defeated. He doesn‘t know what happened
afterwards, but it's a fact that he is still living and in this apartment right now.
Kamijou is not satisfied with the situation at all. To be honest, he isn‘t very happy that he is alive
right now.
He doesn‘t see Komoe-sensei anywhere. It looks like she went to go somewhere.
On the table next to Index, there is a bowl of rice porridge. Index, who asks for food upon their
first meeting on the veranda, probably doesn‘t know how to cook. It was most likely Komoesensei who made it.
―Man, it‘s like I‘m a sick person,‖ Kamijou moves his body. ―Ouch… what‘s this? The sun‘s
already up. Has it already been one night? What time is it?‖
―Not one night,‖ Index answers seriously while looking him.
―?‖ Kamijou raises his eyebrows. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Three days‖
―Three days... what? Three days!? Why was I asleep for that long!?‖
―I don‘t know!!‖
Index suddenly yells.
Her sudden burst of anger made Kamijou hold his breath.
―I didn‘t know. I didn‘t know. I didn‘t know! I really didn‘t know anything! While I was
thinking about that flame magician in front of your house, I never thought that you would be
fighting against other magicians!‖
Those sharp words weren‘t directed at Kamijou.
That tone could only mean that she was blaming herself. Kamijou felt more pressured under
these words and couldn‘t say anything.
―Komoe said that you collapsed right in the middle of the road. It was also Komoe who carried
your beaten body back to the apartment. At that time, I was the only one who was happy. I didn‘t
even know you were on the verge of dying.‖
Index stops speaking.
In order to think of the best thing to say, she takes a few breathes.
―…I couldn‘t save you‖
Index‘s small eyebrows tremble. While biting on her lower lip, she stops her movements.
But Index doesn‘t show her tears.
She is determined to not cry. It was not Kamijou‘s place to try and comfort her.
He directs his attention elsewhere.
Three days.
If they wanted to charge in and attack, they would have already done so. Actually, they
should‘ve ‗recovered‘ Index back when he was unconscious.
Then why? Kamijou doesn‘t know what they are trying to do at all. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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…He gets the feeling that there is a deeper meaning in the words ‗three days.‘ He finally
remembers.
The time limit!
―What‘s wrong Touma?‖
Kamijou looks at Index. The fact that Index still remembers who he was, meant that her
memories haven‘t been erased yet. But even now, Index doesn‘t seem to know about the serious
situation she is in.
Kamijou takes a deep breath and looks at the time. He feels like killing himself after
meaninglessly wasting three days doing nothing. He keeps these thoughts to himself. He doesn‘t
want to let Index know.
―…Dammit, my body won‘t move. What‘s with all these bandages?‖
―Doesn‘t it hurt?‖
―What‘s making me hurt are these bandages. Why are they wrapped everywhere? Don‘t you
think you exaggerated my injuries a bit too much?‖
―…‖
Index doesn‘t say anything.
Because she couldn‘t handle her emotions anymore, she starts to cry.
The sight of her crying made him feel like his heart was being pierced. Then he remembers that
being unable to feel pain is actually more dangerous.
Komoe-sensei can‘t use recovery magic anymore. He feels that Index has already told him
before. Life isn‘t as easy as RPGs where one can instantly heal wounds with MP.
Kamijou looks at his right hand.
His bandaged, beyond broken right hand.
―Espers who have taken the curriculum can‘t use magic right? What a hassle.‖
―…Yeah. They can‘t use it because espers and normal people run on different circuits.‖ The girl
says uneasily. ―I wanted to try using bandages… Science is inconvenient. I guess Magic is the
best after all.‖
―Well, that could be true. ---But it will be fine without magic anyways.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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‗…What‖ Index‘s words were sharp. ―You still don‘t believe in magic after all this, do you?
You‘re as stubborn as someone with unrequited love!‖
―That‘s not what I meant.‖ Kamijou lies down his head on the pillow and turns sideways.
―If possible, I just don‘t want to see the look on your face when you talk about magic.‖
Kamijou remembers Index‘s face when she was explaining the rune magician‘s magic in front of
the dormitory.
She was as cold as the moon, and her eyes were as quiet as the ticking of a clock.
Her voiced was as polite as a tour guide‘s. Her words lacked human quality, just like an ATM
machine.
The existence of the grimoire library known as Index.
That is who the individual in front of him is. Even now he can‘t believe it.
Rather, he didn‘t want to believe it.
―What are you talking about?‖
―What…? So you don‘t remember? You were explaining Stiyl‘s rune look a doll…‖
―…Umm ---I see. I… awakened again‖
―Awakened?‖
It was like she was admitting that the doll-like state she was in was actually her.
He didn‘t want to hear this.
―Yeah. But would I like it if you didn‘t make any jokes about my awakening.‖
What? – was something he couldn‘t ask.
In fact, before he could ask, Index spoke.
―The voice I have when I‘m unconscious is similar to sleep-talking, so it‘s embarrassing. ―
―Besides,‖ Index moves her lips
―It feels like I‘m gradually turning into a cold machine. It‘s scares me.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Index smiles.
Even when she is this down, she will never let someone else worry about her.
It was an expression that a machine could never do.
A pure smile that only a human can make.
―…Sorry‖
Kamijou apologizes on reflex.
―It‘s okay, idiot‖ Kamijou can‘t tell if things are good or bad, but all Index does is smile. ―Want
something to eat? There‘s rice porridge, fruit and sweets. A patient's full course meal.‖
―How am I supposed to eat with this hand---―
As soon as he says this, he realizes Index is holding a pair of chopsticks in her right hand with a
fist.
―…Um, Index-san?‖
―Yes? You don‘t have to be nervous. You haven‘t eaten in three days. If I don‘t feed you, you‘ll
die from hunger.‖
―..Nah, it‘s alright. For now, please give me time to deeply think about this, God‖
―Why? Not hungry?‖ Index places the chopsticks down. ―Then let me wipe your body.‖
―……………………………Uh…‖
A creepy feeling crawls all over Kamijou‘s body.
Hmm. What‘s this? What‘s this bad premonition? It was like being shown an embarrassing video
of what was happening in the last three days while he was unconscious. What's with this weird
feeling?
―I believe there is no evil intent in your actions but… For now, just sit down over there Index.‖
―?‖ Index becomes quiet for a bit. ―I‘m already sitting down though.‖
―…‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Index is holding a towel with 100% good intentions. ‗Innocent‘ is a good word to use here. But a
weird feeling assaults Kamijou and he can only feel that this was not going to end well.
―What‘s wrong?‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Ah-…‖ Kamijou is lost for words. He quickly thinks of an excuse. ―Well, now I can look up
and see your face from inside this bed…‖
―Isn‘t this weird? Since I am a nun, I can at least take care of a sick person.‖
No, it‘s not weird. With those pure white nun clothes, and motherly gestures, she looks like a
real caring nun. (Too bad she isn‘t)
On top of that.
Her eyes are watery and her cheeks are flushed pink. It looks very…
Kamijou feels that if he tells her what he‘s thinking, it would make her extremely mad.
―Oh, it‘s nothing. I was just wondering if your nose hairs are silver as well.‖
―……………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………‖
Index‘s smile froze on the spot.
―Touma, Touma. What do you think is in my right hand?‖
―Your right hand? It‘s rice porridge… Oi! Wait! Because of gravitational force, it'll…‖
Due to misfortune, rice porridge turns Kamijou‘s field of vision completely white.
Part 3
Kamijou‘s pajamas and the bed are covered in rice porridge. With teary eyes, he continues his
fight against the mushy boiled rice until Index hears a knock on the door.
―Maybe it‘s Komoe‖
―…Man, you should at least say you‘re sorry.‖
Since the rice porridge had already cooled off, he doesn‘t receive any burns.
―Hmm? What are you doing in front of my home?‖ Kamijou hears from the other side of the
door. It seems like Komoe-sensei went to go somewhere, and when she came back, she found the
people who are knocking on the door.
If she didn‘t knock, who did?
―Kamijou-chan~, I don‘t know what‘s going on, but it looks like we have guests.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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The door opens with a click.
Kamijou‘s turns to take a look.
There they were, behind Komoe-sensei. They were the two magicians that he had gotten quite
familiar with recently.
They just look at Index who is sitting down. This makes Kamijou feel a little relieved.
Kamijou suspiciously raises his eyebrows. They should be here for Index‘s recovery but --- if
they wanted to do that, they could‘ve done so three days ago when he was unconscious. No
matter what date the memory erasure takes place on, there is no reason to let Index run loose.
Until the time comes, they could‘ve just confined her somewhere.
(…Why would they come at a time like this?)
Kamijou‘s muscles naturally become stiff when he recalls the power these two magicians‘
flames and sword.
But Kamijou had already lost any reason to continue fighting with Stiyl and Kanzaki. They are
not ‗fighters from an evil Magic Cabal‘ but are ‗friends from the same church coming to secure
her.‘ Though Kamijou is worried about Index, all he can do is cooperate with them and send her
back to the church.
But that's only Kamijou‘s biased reasoning.
If they are magicians, there is no need to ask for Kamijou‘s cooperation. To put it simple, there
would be no problem if they beheaded him and take Index back home by force.
With his stiff body, Kamijou looks at Stiyl‘s face. He looks like he‘s enjoying himself.
―Hmph. Looks like you can‘t even run away with that body of yours.‖
After hearing that, Kamijou learns what their real intention is.
If Index is alone, she can escape these magicians. She has been running away from these guys
for almost a year. Even if she was chased down hard, she could just hide somewhere and slip out
when she needs to… if she is alone.
She was able to conceal her whereabouts from the church with only a few days left till the time
limit. She might have been able to actually lose these people. If they tried to conceal her, she
could escape. She could also run away during the ritual.
But if she has to look after an injured Kamijou, that‘s a different story. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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That‘s why the magicians didn‘t kill him and let him return to Index. They knew that she would
never give up on Kamijou. That's how they plan to shackle her down.
In order to more efficiently and safely secure Index, they became evil.
―Go away, magicians‖
For Kamijou‘s sake, Index stands her ground and blocks the magicians‘ way.
Index stands there with her hands spread out wide; like a cross bearing people‘s sins.
This is exactly the situation these magicians have been hoping for.
To protect Kamijou, Index is no longer running away.
―…Tch‖
The bodies of Stiyl and Kanzaki slightly waver.
Even though it was just what they had predicted, they still felt bad about it.
Kamijou tries to think of what kind of expression Index is showing right now. Because her back
is fully turned towards him, he can‘t see her face.
But to be able to freeze those magicians on the spot there is quite something. Komoe-sensei, who
doesn‘t know what is going on, is unaffected by Index‘s emotions.
Kamijou tries to think of what kind of feelings are going through them right now.
They killed people in order to protect this girl; and now that very girl is glaring at them with such
eyes.
―…Ah. Stop Index. These guys aren‘t our enemies…‖
―Go away!!‖
Index isn‘t listening.
―Please. I beg you… I‘ll go anywhere with you, I‘ll do anything for you, anything is fine. I beg
you. I seriously beg you…‖
Her accumulating hatred is mixed with the teary voice of a girl. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―I beg you. Please don‘t hurt Touma anymore‖
Kamijou wonders.
Kamijou wonders just how much those words hurt these magicians, who were her only ‗friends.‘
For a moment, just a moment, the two magicians show extremely pained expressions. Like they
had given up all hope. Their eyes suddenly turn icy.
Their icy gazes were not directed at Index.
In order to lighten her pain in her last moments, they chose to never meet her.
It was because she was precious to them; they threw away their status as friends, and chose to be
the enemy.
That was their unbreakable belief.
Because they did not have the courage to tell her the truth, they had no choice but to endure this
worst case scenario.
―There‘s twelve hours and thirty-eight minutes till the time limit‖
Stiyl says in a tone befitting of a magician.
Index probably doesn‘t know the meaning behind time limit.
―Until then, I wanted to see how good our ‗shackles‘ worked and if she would escape or not. I
guess it worked better than I expected. If you don‘t want anything to happen to that toy, I suggest
you forget about escaping. Got it?‖
He is acting. It's because he really considers her as a precious friend and wants her to be safe.
Stiyl‘s words were harsh, but it shows how much resolution his heart has, to be able to put up a
perfect act. Even though he wants to spread his arms out wide and become Index‘s shield, he
continues to act. Kamijou can't think of how much mental strength it would take to do this.
Index doesn‘t answer.
Without saying another word, the two magicians leave the room.
(Why…) とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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…have things come to this. Kamijou bites down on his molars.
―Everything‘s alright?‖
Index finally lowers her arms and turns back to look at Kamijou.
He closes his eyes without thinking. He can‘t bear to look.
He can‘t bear to look at Index who is breaking down with tears of relief.
―If I make a deal with them‖ Kamijou hears her voice within the darkness, ―Your daily life won‘t
be damaged anymore. It definitely won‘t be trampled on anymore. It‘s ok.‖
―…‖
Kamijou couldn‘t give an answer. He could only keep his eyes closed, and gather his thoughts
within the darkness.
…There‘s no way I can just abandon this girl, right?
Part 4
Night came.
Index was asleep next to the futon. Because they had been asleep since before the sun had set,
the room‘s lights were not on.
It seemed Komoe-sensei had headed for the public bath leaving the two of them alone in the
room.
Kamijou wasn‘t entirely sure that was so because Kamijou had fallen asleep himself due to his
poor condition and it had been nighttime by the time he had awakened. Komoe-sensei‘s room
had no clock, so he didn‘t know what time it was. The air felt especially cold as the term ―time
limit‖ crept into his mind.
Index must have been incredibly nervous over the past 3 days because she had fallen asleep after
being assaulted by weariness. She was asleep with her mouth hanging open and she looked like a
child who had exhausted herself nursing her sick mother.
It seemed Index had completely abandoned her original goal of merely getting to an Anglican
church. If Kamijou forced himself to stand up in his beaten up state and tried to take her to a
church, she would probably resist him.
He felt a little embarrassed as she occasionally muttered his name in her sleep. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Index‘s defenseless kitten-like face gave Kamijou a complex feeling.
No matter how much determination she showed, it was all going to go the way the church
wanted in the end. Whether Index made it safely to a church or was captured by the magicians
partway there, she would still end up being taken by Necessarius and having her memories
erased.
Suddenly the phone rang.
The phone in Komoe-sensei‘s room was a black dial-type phone that could be called an antique.
Kamijou slowly looked over at the phone that was giving off an old-fashioned ring that sounded
like an alarm clock.
He felt he should really answer the phone, but he also didn‘t know if it was right to answer
Komoe-sensei‘s phone without her permission. Nevertheless, he grabbed the receiver. He didn‘t
really care so much about answering the phone, but he would feel bad if the noisy ringing woke
Index up.
―It‘s me…You can tell who I am, right?‖
The voice coming from the receiver was a polite female voice. Even over the phone, he could tell
she was trying to keep her voice low as if speaking in secret.
―Kanzaki…?‖
―No, it would be better if we do not learn each other‘s names. Is she….Is Index there?‖
―She‘s asleep, but…Wait, how do you know this number?‖
―We knew the address, so it was not hard to look up.‖ Kanzaki‘s voice was not calm. ―If she‘s
asleep, that‘s perfect. Listen to what I have to say.‖
―?‖ Kamijou frowned suspiciously.
―As I mentioned before, her limit is tonight at midnight. We have put together a schedule to end
everything by that time.‖
Kamijou‘s heart froze.
He knew that there was no other way to save Index. He knew that, but when the ―end‖ was thrust
before him like that, he felt cornered.
―But…‖ Kamijou‘s breathing grew shallow. ―Why are you telling me this? Just stop. If you tell
me this, I might end up wanting to resist you even if it gets me killed.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―…‖
The voice from the receiver fell silent.
It was not complete silence, though. He could hear suppressed breathing mixed in. It was a very
human silence.
―…Then do you need time for your farewells?‖
―Wha-…?‖
―I‘ll be honest with you. When we first had to erase her memories, we spent the 3 days prior
solely focused on creating memories. On the final night, we did nothing but cling to her sobbing.
I believe you have the right to that same opportunity.‖
―Don‘t fuck with me.‖ Kamijou thought he was going to crush the receiver in his grip. ―That‘s
the same thing as giving up! You‘re just telling me to give up the right to try!! You‘re just telling
me to give up the right to desperately challenge this!!‖
―…‖
―If you don‘t understand, let me tell you one thing: I haven‘t given up yet. In fact, I won‘t be
able to give up no matter what! If I fail 100 times, I‘ll get back up 100 times. If I fail 1000 times,
I‘ll crawl to my feet 1000 times! That‘s all there is to it! I‘ll do what you couldn‘t!!‖
―This is not a conversation or a negotiation. It is merely a message and an order. Whatever you
intend to do, we will recover her at the appointed time. If you try to stop us, we will destroy you.‖
The magician‘s voice was as smooth as the voice of a receptionist at a bank. ―You may be trying
to negotiate with me counting on the human kindness left within me, but that is exactly why I am
giving you this strict order.‖ Kanzaki‘s voice was as cold as a drawn Japanese sword in the night
air. ―You will say farewell to her and leave before we arrive. Your role is nothing more than
being shackles for her. The fate of chains that have lost their purpose is to be cut.‖
The magician‘s words were not merely words of hostility or scorn.
She sounded like she was trying to stop someone with a wound from struggling so they would
not tear the wound open further.
―F…Fuck that.‖ Her tone oddly irritated Kamijou and he snapped back at her. ―Everyone is
shoving their own incompetence onto me. You two are magicians, right? I thought magicians
made the impossible possible!? But look at you! Can you really not do anything about this with
magic!? Can you really stand before Index and proudly tell her you tried every last option!?‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―…Nothing can be done about this with magic. I wouldn‘t be proud of it, but I find it impossible
to lie to that girl,‖ said Kanzaki as she gritted her teeth. ―If we could do anything, we would have
done it long ago. No one would want to use this cruel ultimatum if they didn‘t have to.‖
―…What?‖
―It seems you can‘t even give up if you do not understand the situation. I don‘t think this is a
good use of your last moments with her, but I’ll give you a helping hand of despair.‖ The
magician spoke smoothly as if she were reading from the bible. ―Her perfect memory is not a
type of psychic power nor is it a type of magic. It is a natural part of her. It is the same as bad
eyesight or allergies. It is not a type of curse that can be broken.‖
―…‖
―We are magicians. With any circumstances created by magic, there is a danger of them being
dispelled by magic.‖
―I thought it was an anti-occult defense system created by a magic specialist? Can‘t you do
something with Index‘s 103,000 grimoires!? She said that controlling those would give you the
power of god, but if it can‘t even heal one girl‘s head, it doesn‘t sound so great to me!‖
―Oh, you‘re referring to a Magic God. The church is extremely afraid of Index rebelling. That is
why they put a ‗collar‘ on her so that maintenance only the church can perform must be carried
out once a year by erasing her memories. Do you really think they would leave any possibility of
her removing that collar herself?‖ Kanzaki was speaking quietly. ―There is probably a bias in her
103,000 grimoires. For instance, she was probably not allowed to memorize any grimoires that
dealt with manipulating memories. I would be willing to bet that the church has put up some
security like that.‖
―God damn it,‖ Kamijou cursed under his breath. ―…You said 80% of Index‘s brain is taken up
by the knowledge of the 103,000 grimoires, right?‖
―Yes. It is apparently actually 85%, but it is impossible for us magicians to destroy those
grimoires. An original grimoire cannot even be destroyed by an inquisitioner after all. This
means that we can only hollow out the remaining 15%, her memories, to increase the empty
space in her head.‖
―…Then what about us on the science side?‖
―…‖
She fell silent. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou wondered if it was possible. The magicians knew their field, magic, backward and
forwards, and they couldn‘t do it. If they were still not going to give up, it was only natural to
move to a different field.
For example, there was science.
And if they were going there, it made sense to have someone to act as a go-between. It was the
same as having a local person help you out when you had to walk through an unfamiliar country
and negotiate with various people.
―…There was a time when I thought the same thing.‖
Kamijou had not expected her to say that.
―To be honest, I simply did not know what to do. The world of magic that I had believed in
absolutely was unable to save a single girl. I understand the feeling of trying to grasp at straws.‖
―…‖
Kamijou had a feeling what was coming next.
―It just doesn‘t feel right to hand her over to science.‖
He had expected it, but actually hearing it still felt like being stabbed in the brain.
―I know that you people cannot do something that we cannot. Your crude methods of filling her
body with some unknown drug and chopping her up with a scalpel will do nothing but
unnecessarily shorten her life. I don’t want to see her be raped by machines.‖
―Okay, that‘s it. How the hell can you say that when you‘ve never even tried it? I have a question
for you. You keep talking about destroying memories, but do you really know what exactly
memory loss is?‖
No response came.
(She must really not know much about science.)
Kamijou pulled some Curriculum textbooks that were lying on the ground towards him with his
foot. It was a recipe for powers development including a mix of neuroscience, rare psychology,
and reactionary drugs.
―How can you talk on about a perfect memory and losing memories when you don‘t even know
what it is? There are a lot of different kinds of memory loss.‖ He started flipping through the
pages. ―There‘s aging…I guess like senility. And apparently you can lose your memories from
getting drunk with alcohol. There‘s a brain disease called Alzheimer‘s and there‘s TIA where とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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blood stops flowing to your brain and your memories disappear. Memory loss is also a side
effect of general anesthetics like halothane, isoflurane, and fentanyl, of derivatives of barbituric
acid, and of drugs like benzodiazepine.‖
―??? Benzo…what?‖
Kanzaki‘s voice was surprisingly weak for her, but Kamijou had no duty to explain it all to her,
so he ignored her.
―Simply put, there are tons of ways to medically eliminate someone‘s memories. It means that
there are methods you people can‘t use that can get rid of her 103,000 grimoires, you idiot.‖
Kanzaki‘s breathing froze.
However, these methods did not remove the memories. Instead, they damaged the brain cells. An
old man with dementia was not able to remember more just because he lost some memories.
But Kamijou left that part out. Even if it was just a bluff, he had to stop the magicians from
forcibly erasing her memories.
―And this is Academy City. There are plenty of espers that can manipulate people‘s minds with
powers like Psychometry or Marionette. Not to mention that there are research facilities all over
the place. It‘s way too soon to give up hope. Apparently, there‘s even a Level 5 at Tokiwadai
who can removed people‘s memories just by touching them.‖
That was where the last ray of hope truly lay.
No voice came from the receiver.
Kamijou continued on to truly defeat Kanzaki who was starting to show signs of hesitation.
―Well? What will you do, magician? Are you still going to get in my way? Are you going to give
up on challenging when someone‘s life hangs in the balance?‖
―…Those words are much too cheap to convince an enemy,‖ said Kanzaki with a slight tone of
self derision. ―We have a tried and true method of saving her life. I cannot trust in this untested
gamble of yours. Do you really think you can change that with some reckless statement?‖
Kamijou remained silent for a bit.
He tried to come up with a rebuttal, but he couldn‘t think of anything.
He had no choice but to accept it.
―…True enough. In the end, we just can‘t understand each other.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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He had no choice but to accept that she was his enemy despite the fact that there was a chance
she could have understood because she had been in the same situation once.
―Yes. If people who wished for the same thing would always become allies, the world would be
completely filled with peace,‖ she said.
Kamijou‘s grip on the receiver strengthened slightly.
That beaten up right hand was his sole weapon and it could negate even the systems created by
god.
―…Then you are my arch enemy and I will defeat you,‖ he said.
―Given the differences in our specs, the result of that is immensely clear. Do you still intend to
call this hand?‖
―Perfect. I raise. I just have to invite you into circumstances where I am guaranteed to win.‖
Kamijou bared his canines towards the receiver.
Stiyl had definitely not been weaker than Kamijou. Kamijou had only won because Stiyl had lost
to the sprinkler system. In short, differences in strength could be made up with strategy.
―Just so you know, when that girl collapses next, you should think of it as too late.‖ Kanzaki‘s
words were as sharp as the tip of a sword. ―We will be there are midnight. You do not have much
time left, but make your final useless struggles good ones.‖
―You‘re not gonna see me cry, magician. I‘m gonna save her and steal all your scenes.‖
―Stay there and wait for us,‖ she said and hung up.
Kamijou silently put down the receiver and looked up at the ceiling as if he were staring up at the
moon in the night sky.
―Dammit!‖
He swung his right fist down on the tatami as if he were punching an opponent he had pinned
down. His wounded right hand did not hurt even slightly. His head was in such chaos that his
pain had been blown away.
He had acted quite full of himself on the phone, but he was not a brain surgeon or a professor of
neuroscience. Something might be able to be done scientifically, but that normal high school
student had no idea what exactly that might be.
Even so, he couldn‘t just stop. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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He felt an intense impatience and unease as if he had been told to walk back to town after being
left in the middle of a desert where nothing but the horizon could be seen in every direction.
Once the time limit came, the magicians would mercilessly destroy Index‘s memories. They
were probably already lying in wait near the apartment planning to capture her if they tried to
escape.
He had no idea why the magicians didn‘t just attack then. It could just be out of sympathy for
Kamijou and it could be because they didn‘t want to move Index right before the time limit. He
had no idea which of those it was or even if it was something else.
He looked at Index‘s face as she lay curled up asleep on the tatami.
He then stood tall all fired up.
Academy City had more than 1000 research facilities both large and small, but a first year
student like Kamijou had no connections with any of them. He was going to have to contact
Komoe-sensei.
Whether anything could be done in less than a day was a valid question. Index‘s time limit was
drawing near, but Kamijou had a secret plan for that. If her brain would burst if she continued to
add more memories, couldn‘t he buy her some time by putting her to sleep so she couldn‘t gain
any more memories?
A Romeo and Juliet-like drug that put one in a state of apparent death sounded very unrealistic,
but he didn‘t have to go that far. Basically, he just had to put her to sleep with some laughing gas,
a general anesthetic used for surgeries.
He didn‘t have to worry about her dreaming while she was asleep and creating memories that
way. Kamijou had learned a bit about the system of sleeping in the powers development lessons.
He was pretty sure that people only dreamed in a state of light sleep. Once one entered a state of
deep sleep, your brain rested to the point that it even forgot that it had dreamed.
Therefore, Kamijou needed two things.
The first was to contact Komoe-sensei and get some help from a research facility that dealt in
either neuroscience or maybe esper powers related to the mind.
The second was to slip past the magicians and get Index out of there or to create circumstances in
which he could defeat the two magicians.
Kamijou decided to start with calling Komoe-sensei.
But when he thought about it, he didn‘t actually know her cell number. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Wow, I‘m an idiot…‖ he said almost wanting to kill himself as he looked around the room.
He saw nothing out of the ordinary, but the cramped 4.5 tatami room looked like an unknown
kind of labyrinth. With no lights on, the room was as dark as the sea at night and the books and
knocked over beer cans littering the floor looked like they could be hiding something behind
them. When he thought about all the drawers in the dresser and cabinet, he felt like his
consciousness was going to slip away.
Trying to find a cell phone number that might not even be there seemed like an insane task. It felt
like he had to search through a giant landfill to find a single battery he had accidently thrown out
the day before.
Even so, he could not stop. Kamijou started turning over everything in the area searching for a
memo or something that would have her cell phone number written on it. Every minute and
every second counted, so searching for something that might not even be there was hardly a sane
thing to be doing. Every time his heart beat, it got on his nerves and every time he breathed,
more impatience started burning within him. At first glance, it may have looked like he was just
throwing everything near him around in anger.
He checked deep in the cabinet and he pulled out all the books on the bookshelf. While Kamijou
was rampaging around, Index continued to sleep curled up on the ground which made it look like
time had stopped for her.
Seeing her in complete ―cat in the kotatsu‖ mode, he oddly felt like hitting her, but at that same
time, a scrap of paper stuck in a notebook that seemed to be for a household account book
fluttered to the ground at his feet.
It was Komoe-sensei‘s itemized cell phone bill.
Kamijou immediately grabbed the scrap of paper and found an 11 digit number written on it. It
seemed she had spent an entire 142,500 yen on the cell phone the previous month. She must have
gotten stuck with some terrible phone. Normally, he would have rolled around laughing for about
3 days at that discovery, but that was hardly the time. He had to make a call, so he headed for the
black phone.
He had a feeling it had taken quite a bit of time finding the phone number.
He had no idea if a few hours had passed or if it had only been a few minutes. Kamijou‘s heart
felt so cornered that his sense of time had been thrown off that much.
He called the number and Komoe-sensei answered after the third ring as if she had timed it.
About to foam at the mouth, Kamijou yelled an ―explanation‖ that was hard for even him to
understand because his mind just couldn‘t sort out what he wanted to say. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―….Hm? My major is in Pyrokinesis, so I don‘t have many connections in Mind Hound related
things. You could probably use the Takizawa Institution or the Todai University hospital, but
their equipment is second-rate. Calling in a guest esper who excels at that field would be a safe
bet. I know Yotsuba-san in Judgment is a Level 4 Telepath and she would likely be willing to
help.‖
He hadn‘t given her much of an explanation, but Komoe-sensei still rattled off an answer.
Kamijou seriously decided that he should have consulted with her from the beginning.
―But Kamijou-chan. Even if the researching teachers are terrible people who have flipped their
day with their night, they probably wouldn‘t like to be called on by a student at this hour. How
about we just prepare a bed in a facility for now?‖
―What? …No, sensei. I‘m sorry, but this is urgent. Can‘t we just wake them now?‖
―But,‖ said Komoe-sensei sounding a little annoyed, ―it‘s already 12.‖
Kamijou suddenly froze in place.
The room had no clock. But even if it had one, Kamijou would not have had the courage to
check it.
His gaze zeroed in on Index.
She was curled up fast asleep on the tatami, but her arms and legs that were sprawled about
weren‘t moving. They weren‘t moving at all.
―…In…dex?‖ Kamijou called out timidly.
Index did not move.
Just like someone with a fever, she had fallen deeply asleep and wasn‘t responding.
A voice came from the receiver.
But Kamijou dropped it before he could gather what was being said. A terrible sweat had started
coming from his palms. A very bad feeling weighed in his gut like a bowling ball had been
dropped there.
He heard footsteps in the passageway leading to the apartment.
--We will be there at midnight. You do not have much time left, but make your final useless
struggles good ones. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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The instant Kamijou recalled those words, the apartment door was kicked open from the outside.
Pale moonlight fell into the room like sunlight shining through the leaves into a thick section of a
forest.
With the perfect circle of the moon to their backs, the two magicians stood in the doorway.
At that time, the hands of clocks all across Japan indicated it was precisely midnight.
That meant that a certain girl‘s time limit was up.
That was what it meant. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Chapter 4: The Retiring Magician Chooses the End.
(N)Ever Say Good bye.
Two magicians, with the backs to the moon, came in through the door which was broken down,
without even taking off their shoes.
Stiyl and Kanzaki appeared from the doorway. Of course, Index is no longer blocking their way;
neither is she screaming for them to go away. This is because Index currently suffers a high
fever: sweat pours from all over her body and it looks as if she could stop breathing at any time.
―….‖
It seems the light sound of snow itself would fracture her skull, causing a severe headache.
Among Kamijoun and the magicians, there were no words to be spoken.
Stiyl, who came in without even taking off his shoes, reached out with a hand and shoved
Kamijou off to the side. Even though the force wasn‘t great, Kamijou was unable to maintain his
balance, as if his entire body was suddenly fatigued, and collapsed on the old tatami floor.
Stiyl barely gave him a glance.
He knelt down on the ground, next to the paralyzed Index. As he squat down, he mumbled
something to himself. His shoulders were trembling.
It was a type of ―Mortal Anger‖; a sign brought forth by the fact that the most important thing to
him is hurt.
―Aleister Crowley (note: Aleister Crowley was termed one of the greatest magician of the 20th
century, also known as the ‗Moon Child‘), by calling, capturing, then subsequently releasing an
angel…‖
Stiyl was determined; he stood up. When he turned around, his face was devoid of any humanity.
―Kanzaki, come help me erase all her memories.‖
So said Stiyl, his words piercing Kamijou in the tenderest part of his chest. ―Ahhhh…..‖
Even though he already understood in his heart, that taking away Index‘s memory is necessary
for saving her life.
Kamijou had also said to Kanzaki that, if it really were for the sake of Index, there should be no
regrets for erasing her memory. No matter how many times her memory is erased, as long as とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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they can make even happier memories next time and promise a better future, she wouldn‘t be
afraid of losing her memories and might even look forward to what ―next year‖ will bring.
However, shouldn‘t this method be left as a last resort?
Kamijou subconsciously made a fist with his right hand, almost crushing his fingernails.
Is this really good? To give up everything just like this? Academy City boasts innumerable
neuroscientists dealing with the mind and human memory, certainly it was possible that there
exists some way for Index to retain her memory yet live a happy life. Or is this the time to give
up? Using these obscure magic methods to take away a person‘s most precious recollections, is
this really the correct way? Using the most primitive, the most brutal method that ever existed in
this world…is this really right?
No, don‘t try to lie to yourself.
These useless theories…they‘re not what matters. What matters, is you, Kamijou.
―…Hold up.‖
Saying so, Kamijou lifts his head. He does so to confront the magician who is trying to save
Index in front of his eyes.
―Wait a minute…stop! Give me some time…give me just a bit more time and I would
understand! Academy City boasts 2 million and 300 thousand ESPers, with over a thousand
institutions. We have people who can read minds, people who can brainwash, people who can
detect emotions, and people with psychokinetic abilities! Neurological and psychological
institutions are everywhere; as long as we ask them for help, there‘s a chance we won‘t have to
rely on this last resort!‖ Stiyl Magnus said absolutely nothing.
However, Kamijou still continued on in front of the flame magician.
―You guys don‘t want to use this method either, right? You guys still pray in your heart, that
there is some other method, right? If so, then give me a little more time; I promise I will find a
way in which everyone can laugh and be happy! Thus…!‖
―……‖
Stiyl Magnus said absolutely nothing.
Kamijou didn‘t know himself why he cared this much. His life with Index hadn‘t even been for a
week. In the past sixteen years of his life, Kamijou had absolutely no idea who Index was and yet
still lived perfectly well. As such, even if she were to vanish, Kamijou should still, in theory, be
able to live a normal life. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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However, this was something that he simply cannot do.
Not knowing the reason…in fact, a reason was not even needed. He only knew that there will be
pain.
Her voice, her smile, her every action…will never appear again.
This week‘s memories will be erased not unlike pressing the ―Reset‖ button of a machine. It will
all become a mirage.
Once he thought of this possibility, the tenderest part of his heart silently began to throb.
―……‖
A silence reigned the room.
It was a silence similar to that in an elevator; no audible sound can be heard, and even though
people are obviously present, nobody dares break the silence. The only sound is the subtle sound
of breathing, creating a bizarre sort of ―silence‖.
Kamijou lifts his head. His trembling face gazes at the magician‘s face.
―Is that all you have to say? You useless little pretender of a benevolent man.‖
Just this phrase.
Flame magician Stiyl Magnus uttered just this phrase. He was completely unable to comprehend
anything Kamijou was saying. Every one of Kamijou‘s words which went in his ear was
analyzed and scrutinized. He understood everything lucidly. However, Stiyl Magnus was
completely unmoved his words.
―Quit talking such nonsense!‖
Stiyl declared this phrase, shocking Kamijou to the point where he didn‘t even know what his
face looked like.
―Look…‖ Stiyl said to Kamijou without even uttering a sigh. As he said this, he pointed his
finger; when Kamijou glanced at where he was pointing, he saw Index tightly gripping her head,
pulling down hard.
―LOOK!!‖
Kamijou uttered a stiff ―Ah!‖ sound from his throat. Directly in front of his eyes, lies the Index.
Index, who may stop breathing at any given moment. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Those words that you just said, can you say them while facing this child?‖ Stiyl said in a
shaking voice. ―Facing this person who may die at any second, facing this person who is in so
much pain that she in unable to open her eyes! You can tell her that you want to try a method
which MAY work, while she sits around and waits?‖
―……‖
Index‘s hands ceaselessly trembles. It‘s unknown whether this action was done consciously, or
was produced reflexively; Index however perseveres in moving her hands, heavy as lead,
reaching up towards to Kamijou. It‘s as if she were trying to protect the man who was captured
by magicians. She did not care about her obviously tortured body.
―If you can still say those words, you are obviously inhuman! Look at her! You still want to
inject some obscure, untested drugs into her body? Let some mysterious doctors play around
with her body? Shove drugs into her mouth? That‘s not something a human being should do!‖
Stiyl‘s roar penetrated Kamijou‘s inner ears, straight into his brain. ―Give me an answer! Esper!
Are you still human? Or the shell of a human, a monster taking the shape of one?‖
―…‖ Kamijou did not answer.
Stiyl continued, adding insult to injury like a sword piercing the heart of a dead carcass. From his
pocket, he produced a necklace adorned with a small cross.
―…this little thing is essential to magicians specializing in brainwashing.‖ Stiyl held up the
necklace, swinging the cross in front of Kamijou‘s eyes. ―You can probably tell that this is a
‗Magical‘ tool. As long as your right hand touches it, it will be negated just like my Innocentius.‖
Like using a 5 yen coin to hypnotize someone, the cross swayedback and forth in front of
Kamijou‘s eyes.
―That is, do you have the courage to do so, Esper?‖
Kamijou‘s entire body froze. He was only able to stare at Stiyl‘s face.
―Looking at her painful figure, do you have the courage to take this ‗Magic‘ away in front of her
very eyes? If you really believe in your own strength, then just reach out and touch it, you
wannabe of a hero!‖
Kamijou looked forward. Forward, towards the swaying cross. The cross which is powerful
enough to completely erase her memries. If what Stiyl said was true, as long as this thing was
destroyed, Index wouldn‘t need to have her memories get erased. This by itself was not hard: he
needs simply reach out his hand, and tap it lightly with his fingers.
It was that simple. Kamijou tightly clenched his right hand, which couldn‘t stop shaking. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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But, he couldn‘t do it.
Magic was the only way that can save Index…thus far. Looking at her suffering, a mere girl who
endures her pain, who can take this ―Magic‖ away from her?
―With the current preparations, the shortest time is…15 minutes after midnight. We‘ll use the
power of the constellation Leo to erase her memories.‖ Said Stiyl in a bored tone while looking
at Kamijou. Fifteen minutes after midnight…there‘s less than ten minutes remaining.
―……!‖ He very much wanted to shout ―Stop!‖. He very much wanted to shout ―Give me just a
bit more time!‖
However, if he did that, the one who will be hurt was not Kamijou. Whatever Kamijou did,
Index would shoulder the retribution.
He only remembered this. ―My name is Index!‖ To this very point in time, he only recognized
this. ―If you can fill up my stomach, I would be very grateful towards you!‖ He recognized that
he had absolutely no way whatsoever of saving Index.
Kamijou couldn‘t cry. He couldn‘t roar out. He could only look towards the ceiling, gritting his
teeth hard……tears he was unable to hold back trickled out.
―……Magician…I ask of you……‖ Kamijou leaned against the bookshelf, looking towards the
sky, and said with a blank expression on his face. ―At this final moment……What should I say
to her……How should I apologize to her?‖
―There‘s no time for you to do such pointless things.‖
Kamijou, still with a blank expression on his face, simply made a ―oh‖ sound. To the Kamijou
who seemed as if he were in despair for eternity, Stiyl simply contined adding insult to injury.
―YOU! Why haven‘t you disappeared from this place yet, you monster!‖ The magician said to
Kamijou. ―Your right hand can OBILERATE my Innocentius…although I still do not understand
how you could‘ve possibly done that……but I do not dare use this magical tool in the vicinity of
your right hand.
Kamijou once again had a blank look on his face, making an ―oh‖ sound. Just like that, his entire
body turned into a zombie, and he lightly began to laugh.
―…When her back was pierced, it was the exact same situation……why am I never able to do
anything……‖
Stiyl did not reply. He only looked at Kamijou with eyes which said ―And why would I care?‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―My right hand……evidently able to negate even the miracles of god……‖ Kamijou said with a
strained voice on the verge of collapsing. ―Why is it…cannot save…a mere girl who is
suffering……‖
Kamijou laughed. He did not curse his fate, nor did he push the blame to misfortune. He simply
recognized his own worthless incompetence. Kanzaki looked as if she lost her patience, and said
to Kamijou, ―The ritual must be performed precisely fifteen minutes after midnight, which leaves
you with ten minutes…‖
Stiyl glared at Kanzaki, his face the expression of someone who has just seen something he
could not believe. However, Kanzaki merely looked at Stiyl and gave a gentle chuckle.
―The first time we decided to erase her memories…didn‘t we spend the entire night sitting by her
side and crying, Stiyl?‖
―…!‖ For just a moment, Stiyl was rendered speechless. Then he said, ―But…but…who knows
what tricks this idiot here might try! If we were to leave him alone with this child, mightn‘t he do
something crazy?‖
―Well, if he had planned on doing that, he would‘ve had touched that cross you showed him. It
was specifically BECAUSE you believed that he had some ‗humanity‘ left in him, that you
actually tested him with the cross…and the real one at that. Not the replica…isn‘t that right?‖
―But…‖
―Besides, before the time comes, the ritual can‘t be held anyways. If we let him keep these
hidden regrets within his heart, there‘s a chance that he might disturb us while we are executing
the ritual. That‘s just even more dangerous, Stiyl.‖
Stiyl tightly gritted his teeth. The teeth made a grinding sound; with the attitude of a wild beast
biting down hard on Kamijou‘s throat, he said to him, ― You have exactly ten minutes. Ten
minutes, did you hear me…‖
With that, he turned away and walked towards the apartment entrance. Without a sound, Kanzaki
followed behind Stiyl. Her eyes showed a cynical and bitter smile.
With a resounding ―Bam!‖, the door was closed shut. Inside the room, all that remained were
Kamijou and Index. This was ten minutes which was exchanged with a life on the line.
Index‘s life.
However, Kamijou did not know what he should do. ―Ah, that‘s right…telephone…call…‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Index was paralyzed on the ground. Her mouth let out a sound, causing a shudder to run across
his shoulders. Her two eyes were just barely open. Her expression was one that conveyed she
was more worried about why she was wrapped on a blanket, when this was Kamijou‘s bed.
That is, completely not caring about herself.
―……‖ Kamijou bit his teeth hard. The lone act of facing this little girl was harder than facing
that magician. However, he must never run away.
―Tou…ma…?‖ Kamijou moved next to the blanket. Index, on seeing Kamijou‘s expression,
showed a sign of relief on her sweaty and puffy face. It was a sign of relief expressed from the
hard; therefore, she breathed a sigh of relief.
―….I‘m sorry…‖
Kamijou stood by the bed, next to the blanket and stared into Index‘s eyes while apologizing.
―……? Touma….the magical symbols…that are on the…walls of the room…‖
Index, who had just recovered, did not know that these magical symbols were drawn by those
two magicians. She looked at these symbols on the walled, and cocked her head to think about it.
―….‖
For just one moment, Kamijou bit down hard on his teeth. But the very next moment, he
exhibited absolutely no emotions, returning to his original expression.
―…..this magic is meant to help you recover! It‘s all your fault for getting such a bad headache!‖
―Magic….? Who made this…?‖ Saying this, Index finally felt a suspicious possibility.
―!?‖ Forcibly moving her obviously immobilized body, Index wanted to jump up. Seeing her
pained expression, Kamijou grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her back into the bed.
―Touma! The magicians came again right? TOUMA! RUN!!!‖ Index‘s facial expression showed
that she was shocked beyond belief. She was very certain of how dangerous these magicians
were, so she worried for him from the bottom of her heart.
‖…..that‘s enough, Index…‖ ―Kamijou!‖ ―It‘s over…everything…it‘s all over.‖ Index‘s lips
whispered Kamijou‘s name, then suddenly lost all body strength. Kamijou did not know himself
right now, he did not know what type of expression was on his face.
―…Sorry…‖ Kamijou said. ―I will change to become stronger. I will definitely not lose against
them. Wait until I become stronger, I will knock down every one of those people who oppose
you.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Crying today would be a despicable behavior. To want sympathy would be even more of a
treacherous deed.
―…Just you wait, next time I will definitely save you gracefully!‖
If Kamijou were to look in Index‘s eyes, what expressions would they hold? These words, when
they penetrate Index‘s ears, what type of reaction would they cause?
―Okay, I‘ll wait for you.‖ If one did not know the entire story, these words would sound as if
Kamijou were giving up to the enemy, as if he betrayed Index to save his own life. Yet, she
laughed.
It was a painless smile, a complete smile, a smile which could vanish at any given moment. Yet,
she laughed. Kamijou was completely unable to comprehend.
How could she possibly trust other people? Kamijou really could not understand. Yet, Kamijou
already felt as if this were inevitable.
Kamijou told her, ―Wait until your head stops hurting, then I will definitely knock down those
bastards and liberate you.‖ Kamijou told her, ―Wait until my summer classes are finished and
we‘ll go to the beach and play together.‖ Kamijou asked her, ―When summer ends, would you
like to transfer into our school?‖ Index replied, ―I want to create more memories between us.‖
Kamijou promised her, ―We definitely will create many more memories.‖
They kept carrying out their own lies. What was right and what was wrong did not matter today.
A calm and emotionless justice, although just yet unable to save a little girl, would be utterly
useless today.
Kamijou Touma, this name, did not need either the labels of ―justice‖ nor ―evil‖. Kamijou
KTouma, this name, only required the label ―hypocrisy‖. Thus, Kamijou Touma did not shed a
single tear.
―…..‖ Not a single tear.
With a thud, Index‘s hand lost the strength to hold itself up, instead collapsing down on the
blanket. Index, once again losing consciousness, looked like a corpse.
―However…‖ Looking at the feverish Index, Kamijou slowly bit his mouth. ―This sort of
conclusion…is way too depressing…‖ He bit down so hard, the taste of blood seeped out.
It stuck in his craw knowing that everything was wrong, but he could not do anything to stop it.
Kamijou is unable to reclaim the 85% of her brain which is used to store the 103,000 grimoires
of magical books. He is also unable to secure the remaining 15% of her actual ―memories‖.
―….wait a minute…‖ The originally depressed Kamijou suddenly felt that something was wrong. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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85%?
Very slowly. Kamijou thought slowly while looking at Index‘s flushed face. Indeed, Kanzaki had
said 85%. 85% of Index‘s brain capacity is completely used to store the 103,000 grimiories. Thus,
her brain‘s capacity is greatly lessened, so that only 15% of her brain is available to store a
year‘s worth of memories. If this limit of 1 year was breached, her head would literally explode.
But…wait! 15% of her brain‘s capacity was only able to store a year‘s worth of memories?
Although Kamijou did not clearly understand the concept of ―Absolute Memory‖, going by this
rate, Index shouldn‘t still be alive. Furthermore, other people like Index who have the ―Absolute
Memory‖ ability don‘t have Index‘s power to reset their memories with magic. If 15% of brain
capacity were only able to store a year‘s worth of memories…
―…then wouldn‘t those people live to be around six or seven…?‖ If that really were the case,
shouldn‘t this terrible ability be more infamous?
Wait… then again…how did Kanzaki even come up with numbers like 85% and 15%? Just who
told her this information? The ultimate question is…
This number, 85%...is it really accurate? ―…don‘t tell me…‖ What if Kanzaki has absolutely no
idea how the brain works? She was only told this information from the higher-ups those in the
church…then, she did not verify any of this information herself, and just swallowed whatever
they told her?
Regardless of what really happened, Kamijou had a very bad feeling about everything. He rushed
over to the little black telephone box in the corner of the room. He was unsure where Komoesensei would be at this hour, but her cellphone had been on when she was rummaging for the box
of chocolates in her room.
As Kamijou called the phone, a mechanical ringing sound persisted, causing Kamijou to feel
slightly worried. Kanzaki had said that the definition of ―Absolute Memory‖ had always been
misconstrued. What if these ―misconceptions‖ were deliberate indoctrination on part of the
church? Just what secrets were hidden in this mess?
A cracking sound later, someone picked up the phone.
―Sensei!‖ Kamijou practically screamed the name out. ―Ara ara, this voice…it‘s Kamijou-kun
right? Don‘t randomly call your teacher‘s phone in the middle of the night!‖
―…Sensei, your voice sounds…very…relaxed?‖ ―Ah, sensei is currently in a huge public bath!
Holding coffee milk in my hand, and testing out the new massage chair….ahhhhhh~!‖ Kamijou
wanted to crush the telephone, but what was important now is that he knows more about Index‘s
condition. ―Sensei! Calm down and listen to me! The situation is like this…‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Kamijou described everyting regarding the ―Absolute Memory‖ ability to Komoe-sensei. He
questioned her, what was that ability? Does it really use 15% of the brain‘s capacity per year?
And if that were so, and people died at the age of six or seven, is it an incurable disease?
―How can such an ability even exist!‖ With that one phrase, Komoe-sensei completely refuted
Kamijou‘s explanations. ―The ability to retain perfect memory would indeed retain all forms of
junk memory—like the words on a supermarket commercial—but the brain would definitely not
explode as a result. Those people would only take nearly an entire life‘s worth of memory with
them to the grave, since the human brain is capable of storing about 140 years of memory.‖
Kamijou‘s heart skipped a beat. ―B-but…what if a person remembered many things? For
example, let‘s say they used their ability to remember the contents of an entire library…would
their brain not explode?‖
―Oi…it looks like you need to study harder on your neurosciences, or else you‘ll start failing,‖
Komoe-sensei responded with a cheerful voice. ―Seisei will tell you. A person‘s ‗memory‘ is not
stored in precisely one location. Memory is subdivided into many locations, such as that for
language and knowledge for ‗declarative memory‘, sports and physical training for ‗procedural
memory‘, and that for recollecting the past as ‗memories of experiences‘…the list goes on, there
are lots of types~‖
―Um…sensei…I‘m not really understanding what you‘re saying…‖
―Simply said,‖ the student-loving Komoe-sensei quickly replied. ―Each type of memory is sorted
into a different ‗container‘, just like how trash is organized into combustible and noncombustible. Thus, when a person bumps his head and gets amnesia, he doesn‘t return to a
babbling infant who can‘t walk, right?‖
―…that means…‖
―That‘s right, no matter how many library books a person memorizes to increase his ‗declarative
memory‘, it won‘t impact his capacity for ‗procedural memory‘ or ‗memories of experiences‘.
From the perspective of neuroscience, it is something that will never happen~‖
The telephone slid from his hand. The falling telephone hit the ―End call‖ button on the
telephone stand, effectively ending the call. But for now, Kamijou did not even have time to
spare on such minor details.
The church lied to Kanzaki. Index‘s ability to retain all memory should not be a problem in her
life.
―If this were so, then why…?‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Flustered, Kamijou began mumbling to himself. Why would they want to do this? Why would
they force a perfectly healthy Index to reset her memory on a yearly basis to prevent her from
dying?
Furthermore, the tortured figure of Index in front of Kamijou‘s eyes did not look faked. If the
reason was not that her brain is exploding from having too much memory, then just what is
possibly causing Index to suffer such unbearable pain?
―—Haaaah.‖ Thinking up to here, Kamijou laughed out loud without restraint. That‘s right, the
church just wanted to put a collar around Index‘s neck. The church only wanted her to need a
memory reset every year to ensure that she is forever bound to the church. That way, Index,
carrying all 103,000 grimoires, may never betray the church.
If so, then shouldn‘t her body need to rely on the magic of the church? If so, then shouldn‘t her
body be able to survive without the magic of the church? Would the church really let her live as
she wants? Index, carrying the forbidden 103,000 grimoires with her, can disappear without a
trace at any given time; how can the church not think to put some sort of restraint on her?
The main point is, the church wanted to restrain Index in some way. Finally reaching this
conclusion, the answer was elucidated.
Index‘s brain, which had no problems to begin with, suffered some devious trickery on part of
the church.
―——Haha!‖ It‘s like taking a bucket of water which could hold ten liters of water, and adding
nine liters of cement. Of course, the bucket could only hold one liter now. The church controlled
Index‘s brain, such that it could ―only save a year‘s worth of memories before exploding‖ All
this was to prevent index from betraying them. At the same time, it allows them to easily control
Index‘s magician friends—an evil tactic based on the manipulation of people‘s kindness.
―But, all of these things are unimportant.‖ That‘s right, everything was unimportant. What was
important? Right now, what was important is one small thing: what exact was the ―collar‖
around Index installed by the Church to inflict pain on her? If we say that Academy City was the
flagship of the ―science‖ side…then those magicians, what sort of evil flagship do they side
with?
The answer was obvious: of course, it‘s ―magic‖. And it must be the strongest of all ―magic‖ has
to offer.
But even if were a miracle of god, it would be utterly negated by Kamijou‘s right hand.
Kamijou‘s room was unadorned with a clock, so he quickly estimated the remaining time. Then,
he turned to gaze at the bedroom door. Even if he were to tell the magicians about the ―real
truth‖, would they be willing to believe it? The answer, of course, is no. Kamijou is just an
average high school student, and has absolutely no expertise in neuroscience. Furthermore, the とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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relationship between Kamijou and the magicians can be summarized as ―enemies‖. There‘s no
way that they would ever believe anything Kamijou said.
Next, Kamijou swept his eyes downwards. He saw Index, lying with her arms and legs spread
out on the blanket. Her entire body was drenched with an unnatural sweat. Her silvery hair
looked as if someone had just dumped a bucket of water on her. Her face, feverishly red,
twitched from time to time.
‗Looking at her painful figure, do you have the courage to take this ‗Magic‘ away in front of her
very eyes? If you really believe in your own strength, then just reach out and touch it, you
wannabe of a hero!‘
Remembering the words Stiyl said, and letting himself feel completely useless due to those
words, Kamijou began to chuckle. The world today is no longer the same.
Kamijou laughed. ―I don‘t want to be the hero…‖ He smiled as he unwrapped the bandage
around his right hand and revealed the Imagine Breaker. ―I AM the hero.‖ Muttering and
chuckling to himself, he placed his hurt and tired right hand on Index‘s forehead. Although his
hand can negate miracles of god, he cannot use it to fight off the delinquent thugs. He cannot use
it to improve his test scores. He cannot use it to get a girlfriend. Thus, he assumed that his right
hand was worthless.
But now, it‘s different. If it‘s able to save the life of the tortured girl in front of him…what a
wonderful right hand it would be.
…… …… ……? ―……What.?‖ Absolutely nothing happened. No flash of light, no sound. Did
the seal that the Church placed on Index‘s body really vanish? But, Index is still clutching her
head, revealing a painful expression…it feels as if nothing had changed.
Kamijou moved his hand around, touching her face, the top of her head, and other such places.
But nothing happened; there was absolutely no change whatsoever.
At this time, Kamijou thought of something. Prior to this, Kamijou had certainly touched Index‘s
body. For example, after being attacked by Stiyl in the student dormitory, he carried her; he had
certainly touched her body in lots of places. When Index whispered on her blanket, Kamijou had
also certainly tapped her on the forehead. Needless to say, nothing interesting happened then.
He tilted his head and thought hard. Did he overestimate himself? No, that‘s impossible. Or
perhaps, there was some sort of miracle that his Imagine Breaker was unable to nullify? That‘s
also impossible, so…
……unless there was some place on Index‘s body that he hadn‘t touched yet?
―…………..ehhhhhh‖ Completely puzzled, he refocused on the task at hand. This was the last
piece of the puzzle. Since whatever placed on Index‘s body was ―magic‖, and anything ―magical‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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would theoretically be nullified when touched by his hand, then the only conclusion is that he
hadn‘t touched the ―magic‖ yet. The question is, where is it?
Kamijou studied Index‘s flushed face. Since the spell in question is related to her memory, the
place where it‘s sealed should be around her head, or somewhere nearby? That logic makes sense,
right? But even if this deduction were correct, if the seal were placed INSIDE Index‘s
head…then Kamijou had no choice but to resign to defeat. It‘s impossible to take someone‘s
finger, contaminated with germs, and place it inside a persons……
―……Aha!‖ Kamijou once again shifted his gaze to Index‘s hands. Her hands clutching her head
in pain, her tightly closed eyes, her runny nose…he didn‘t stop to look at any of these things.
Instead, he continued downwards, to where her harsh breathing came from…her cute mouth.
He stuck the thumb and index finger from his right hand between her lips, and opened her mout.
He looked deep in, to about where her throat was. Although there‘s no protection from the skull,
this place is even closer to the brain. Furthermore, there‘s a very low chance of being seen by
people, and an even lower chance of it being felt. Amidst the dark red color of the inside of the
throat, Kamijou spotted a black symbol. It looked just like the symbols on those television shows
about astrology.
He shut his eyes, and decided to stick his hand inside her mouth. With his right hand inside her
mouth, he felt something slimy on his hand, something which did not feel human. The saliva
inside her mouth was hot, and stuck to Touma‘s fingers. Upon feeling these things, he hesitated
for but a moment, before steeling himself to reach deep into her throat nevertheless.
He felt like vomiting, perhaps due to the repulsive thought of what he was doing. However, he
heard a sound, and the index finger on his right hand felt a jolt like an electric current. At this
time…
Bang! Kamijou‘s right hand was flung backwards at a high velocity by some unknown force.
―Ugh……!?‖ Countless drops of fresh blood rained down on the blanket and tatami with a
ringing noise. It felt as if someone had shot his hand point blank, and Kamijou cannot help but
take a look at his right hand. The wound he received from his battle with Kanzaki was reopened,
and new blood now dripped down on the floor below, making a sound.
Behind his right hand, not far away… The Index that was originally lying down on the ground
quietly opened both of her eyes, shining a bright red. But red was not the color of her eyes. In
fact, it was a blood-red magical seal which appeared in place of her irides.
―Damn….!!‖ Kamijou was paralyzed on his back, and was unable to stretch out his injured right
hand…at that time, Index shot a terrifying ray of bright red light from her eyes, which exploded. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Following this impact, Kamijou‘s body slammed against the book shelf. The boards from the
shelf collapsed on him, and all the books crashed down on the floor, making a racket. He also
felt his entire body burning with pain, as if all his bones and joints were being crushed.
He stood up on his shaking legs, which were so unstable he felt that they could collapse at any
moment. In his mouth, his saliva mixed with traces of fresh blood, mingling to create a metallic
taste.
―—Warning! Chapter 3, Section 2 of the Index Librorum Prohibitorum. ―Collar‖, stages 1
through 3 has suffered confirmed damage. Attempting to repair……failure. ―Collar‖ in unable to
initiate auto-regeneration. Assessing the current situation, in order to protect the 103,000
grimoires, the elimination of the intruder will be given priority.‖
Kamijou looked at the sight before him. Index looked as if he had no bones nor joints, just like
jelly stuffed in a bag of plastic. She moved around slowly and awkwardly. Her two eyes,
emblazoned with the red seals, lifted up to glare at Kamijou.
They were definitely not human eyes. Her gaze showed absolutely no trace of humanity, and he
cannot see the affectionate gaze of the little girl that she used to be. Kamijou had seen this new
inhuman gaze: it was the same as when she was hurt by Kanzaki‘s attack, and laid on the floor in
the hallway outside the student dormitory. When she identified the runes used by Stiyl to
summon Innocentius.
(I don‘t have any magical energy, so I can‘t use magic) ―Right…I think I forgot to ask
something,‖ Kamijou tightly held his tired and hurt right hand and whispered to himself, ―you‘re
not an ESPer, so why don‘t you have any magical energy?‖
The reason is probably because the Church placed a multi-layered defense system. That is, if
anyone were to find out the secret of ―Absolute Memory‖, and wanted to unlock the ―Collar‖,
then Index would automatically use some sort of powerful magic pulled from one of the 103,000
grimoires to instantly annihilate the intruder. Thus, all of Index‘s magical energy would be
sealed, forcing it to be used only when the defense system requires it.
―—Attempting to reverse-engineer the magical attack used by the intruder with the aid of the
103,000 grimoires……failure. Unable to locate a match in the database. Initiating preparations to
construct an attack used specifically for removing the intruder.‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Index looked like a lifeless puppet, her head swaying a bit.
Index looked like a lifeless puppet, her head swaying a bit.
―—successfully prepared a counterattack against the intruder using the most efficient form of
magic. Next, deploying special magic attack ‗Sanctuary of St. George‘ for the purpose of
removing the target.‖
Following a loud thundering sound, the two magic seals in Index‘s eyes enlarged. In front of
Index, two circles of approximately 2 meters in diameter overlapped. As if they were anchored
by Index‘s eyes, when Index swayed her head, the floating magic seals also moved with her.
― ‖ She began singing a song—a song which humans are unable to comprehend. Suddenly, the
two magic seals which were projected from her eyes began to emit light, which resulted in an
explosion. In the space in front of the center of her eyebrows, it was as if a strong ball lightning
was created, with sparks flying out in all directions. However, it was not white sparks, but rather
a ball of black lightning.
Although this defies all laws of physics, it looked like space itself was being torn apart, creating
a ripping sound. Following a thundering clap sounding similar to a shattering glass wall, dark
cracks appeared on all the walls of the room. The cracks looked like a turtle shell, and appeared
to act as a defense against anyone who happened to be close to Index. The inside of the cracks
exhibited some sort of rippling effect, making a sound while growing outward.
From inside the dark crack flowed out something which smelled like a wild beast. At that
moment, Kamijou had a sudden feeling. It wasn‘t a theory, a logical conclusion, a sensible
reasoning, or even an educated guess. It was pure instinct, his mind crying out at him. Although
he did not know what was hidden behind the turtle-shell pattern, but he knew that if he even saw
it for a second, as long as he even sees it, Kamijou Touma would be instantaneously annihilated
without a trace.
―Ahhhh……‖ He trembled. The cracks grew wider and wider. Although he knew whatever laid
behind that crack was growing closer and closer to coming out, he was unable to move. He was
shaking and trembling. He was really trembling….but….why?
Because, as long as he can destroy that ―thing‖ beyond the crack…Kamijou would be able to use
his ability to save Index‘s life.
―Ahahahahahahahahahahaha!!‖ Thus, he was actually trembling from joy. Fear? No such thing.
He prepared himself for this, because his hand was capable of negating the miracles of god. His
hand, which cannot fight off delinquent thugs, which cannot be used to improve his test scores,
which cannot help him get a girlfriend, which he initially assumed was useless. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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When Index was stabbed in the back because she did not want to implicate Kamijou with the
magicians, when she would not be able to recover inside his apartment due his ability, and when
he was beaten to a pulp by the woman with the sword and steel strings, Kamijou had always
cursed his own inability to do anything. All the while, he hoped that one day he can use his
ability so save the little girl.
However, he did not think he‘d ever actually take such a heroic role. Today, the task of ending
this cruel story of his misfortunate ability was hidden in his own right hand!
Just 4 meters. If he can only touch the girl in front of him, everything would be over. Thus,
Kamijou sprinted towards the crack, and where Index was. He tightly clenched his right hand.
This cruel and boring story shall finally be put to an end. However, at this moment, the crack
opened.
It felt like a hymen being forcibly torn apart, with a type of indescribable pain. From all over the
room, something came out from the ―crack‖ to look at Kamijou.
With a thud, a ray of light emanated from within the deep reaches of the turtle-shell pattern. For
an analogy, imagine a beam of laser about a meter wide. Even the sun would be melted under the
intense heat from the blinding white light. Without even a second thought, Touma raised his
bruised and injured right hand to block the light from his eyes.
Suddenly, he heard a sound not unlike that of meat sizzling on a barbecue grill would make.
However, it didn‘t hurt. He didn‘t even feel burned. Just as water sprayed from a fire
extinguisher would be deflected everywhere upon hitting a solid wall, all the light beams coming
at Touma were deflected everywhere upon touching his right hand.
However, the lasers themselves did not completely vanish. Just as Stiyl‘s ―Innocentius‖ did not
shatter even as his right hand negated it, the lasers were endless and couldn‘t be fully eliminated.
Kamijou was steadily being pushed back under the intense pressure of the light, even as he
attempted to maintain a steady stance on his tatami. The pressure was so great, his right hand
was almost knocked away.
(No…..this trick…..it can‘t possibly be this simple………)
Kamijou used his left hand, useless up until now, to brace his right hand which was verging on
being knocked out of the way. The palm of his right hand had began to hurt; it seems as if the
magic was slowly tearing the skin on his palm. The Imagine Breaker was unable to keep up with
the intensity of the magic, and the magical lasers began to cut away at the skin of his palm
millimeter by millimeter.
(It‘s not just a matter of the ―quantity‖ of the lasers…..! The ―quality‖ of each of these lasers is
unique!) とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Perhaps Index is utilizing her knowledge stored in the 103,000 grimoires to cast 103,000
different types of spells, each with deadly potential. 103,000 different types.
At this time, a loud crash came from outside the bedroom. Kamijou thought to himself, ‗well,
aren‘t you just a bit too late in coming back?‘ Right then, the door was forcibly opened, and the
two magicians came rushing in.
―Dammit! What are you doing now? You‘re in such a situation and yet you‘re still alive…….!‖
Stiyl, who was just screaming something, cut himself off in half. As if he just had the wind
knocked out of him, even his breathing stopped. When he saw the laser in front of him, as well as
the Index who as shooting said lasers, his facial expression resembled that of someone whose
heart had just stopped.
Kanzaki…the usually so composed Kanzaki who remained calm, looked equally stunned as she
took in the surrounding view.
―….Dra…Dragon Breath! This is ‗Dragon Breath‘…how is this possible! That child…should be
completely incapable of using magic!‖
Kamijou did not turn his head. He had no time to do so, and neither did he wish to remove his
gaze from Index‘s body.
―Hey! Do you guys know what this laser is?‖ Kamijou shouted to the magicians behind him.
What is this thing? What is its composition? Its weak point? What should I do? Come on, tell me
everything you know about this!‖
―….But…this….this is….impossible…..‖
―You better slow down a bit! (TL NOTE: this makes no sense…) Seeing this situation, do you
not understand? Index‘s magic surfaced! This should be sufficient evidence to you guys that the
Church had been lying to you about the fact that ‗Index cannot use magic‘!‖ Kamijou shouted
while deflecting the still-incoming waves of light. ―That‘s right! ‗Index needs to have her
memories purged every year‘ is also a big stinking lie! The Church just tampered with her mind
a bit, installing some magic protection onto it! That is to say, as long as we remove these
protections, Index wouldn‘t need to have her memories erased!‖
Kamijou‘s feet were slowly beng pushed back. He jammed a toe inside the tatami, only to feel a
sharp pain as it seemed as if it would be ripped off. The power of the lasers only intensified
nightmarishly.
―Guys, calm down a bit! Calm down and think for a second! The cruel people who created an
‗Index Librorum Prohibitorum‘, would they ever possibly tell the truth to grunts like you guys?
What you‘re witnessing right now is the truth! If you don‘t believe me, why don‘t you just ask
Index herself? とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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The two magicians frantically darted their visions everywhere, looking first at the turtle-shell
pattern on the wall, then at Index, then back to the pattern again.
―—‗Sanctuary of St. George‘ is ineffective against the intruder. Preparing to switch to another
magical attack in order to complete the current task of ensuring safety to the ‗Collar‘.‖
Without a doubt, this Index is not the Index the two magicians are familiar with.
Without a doubt, this Index is not the Index that the Church told the two magicians about.
―………‖ At that instant, a very short instant, Stiyl bellowed with his teeth gritted tight: ―—
Fortis931!‖
From the deapth of his cloak, myriads of tiny pieces of paper flew out. These pieces of paper,
marked with fire runes, flew out as if driven by a typhoon, and soon covered every inch of the
ceiling, walls, floors, and even corners. Not one spot was left undisturbed.
In order to protect a girl named Index, Stiyl was prepared to incinerate Kamijou Touma.
―I don‘t need any ambiguous possibilities! As long as I erase her memories, I can at least ensure
the safety of her life! For this, I am willing to kill anyone! I am willing to destroy anything! I
have sworn so since a long time ago!‖
Kamijou‘s feet, which had steadily been receding nonstop, now came to a sudden standstill. An
unbelievably powerful force made Kamijou‘s toes on the tatami let out a pitiful squeak.
― ‗At least ensure the safety of ler life‘ ?‖ Kamijou did not turn his head and yet bellowed out.
―So what? That‘s not important right now! I don‘t want to hear any of your reasons or logic! I
only wnt you to answer me this one question, magician!‖
Kamijou took a deep breath, and screamed: ―—Do you truly wish to save Index?‖
The magicians held their breath.
―You‘ve been waiting for this the whole time, right? You‘ve been waiting for a solution where
Index doesn‘t have to lose her memories and you don‘t have to make an enemy of Index, right!?
This is that kind of wonderful, wonderful happy ending that anyone would want and where
everyone is happy!‖
An unpleasant noise came from his right wrist as he continued to force it against the pillar of
light.
Even so, Kamijou did not give up. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―You‘ve always longed for this turn of events, haven‘t you!? You aren‘t filling in until the hero
shows up! You aren‘t buying time until the main character can appear! There‘s no one else!
There‘s nothing else! Didn‘t you swear to save that girl with your own two hands!?‖
A crack ran down the fingernail of his right index finger and red blood flowed out.
Even so, Kamijou did not give up.
―You‘ve always, always wanted to become the main characters, right!? You wanted to become
the kind of magicians you find in picture books and movies that risk their lives to save the girl,
right!? Then this isn‘t anywhere near over!! It hasn‘t even begun!! Don‘t fall into despair just
because the prologue dragged on a bit too long!!‖
The magicians‘ voices were silenced.
Kamijou would not give up. What did he look like in the magicians‘ eyes?
―If you stretch out your hand, you can reach it! Just do it already, magicians!‖
An odd cracking noise came from Kamijou‘s right pinky.
When he realized the finger was bent – broken – at an unnatural angle, the pillar of light attacked
with tremendous force and finally knocked Kamijou‘s right hand away.
His hand was knocked a good ways back.
Kamijou‘s face was completely defenseless and the pillar of light rushed towards it at a dreadful
speed.
―…Salavare000!!‖
The instant before the pillar of light struck his face, he heard Kanzaki yell that.
It was not Japanese. He had never heard the word before. However, he had heard a similar
word…no, a similar name once before. It had been during his confrontation with Stiyl at the
dorm. He had said it was the name he must give when he used magic. His magic name.
Kanzaki‘s almost 2 meter long Japanese sword sliced through the air. Her Nanasen attack using 7
wires flew towards Index at a speed that seemed to slice through sound itself.
But she was not aiming for Index.
The wires tore through the fragile tatami at Index‘s feet. Having lost her footing, Index fell
backwards. The magic circles linked to her eyes moved and the pillar of light that was supposed
to be aiming for Kamijou missed its target by quite a bit. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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As if it were a giant sword being swung around, the pillar of light sliced through the wall and
ceiling of the apartment. It even sliced through the pitch black clouds floating in the night sky. In
fact, it could have even sliced through a satellite outside the atmosphere.
Not even a splinter remained where the walls and ceiling had been sliced.
Instead, the portions that had been destroyed had become feathers of light that were as pure
white as the pillar of light. They came floating down. Kamijou had no idea what effects they
might have, but a few dozen of those feathers of light came floating down like winter snow on
that summer night.
―Those are the same as Dragon Breath, the strike of the legendary dragon of St. George!
Whatever power they may have, I highly doubt the human body would react well to them!‖
Having heard Kanzaki‘s warning and having been freed from the bonds of the pillar of light,
Kamijou ran towards Index as she lay collapsed on the ground.
But before he could, Index turned her head.
Like a giant sword being swung, the pillar of light was swung back down slicing back through
the night sky.
Kamijou was going to be caught by it again!
―Innocentius!‖
As Kamijou prepared himself, a spiral of flame appeared in front of him.
The giant flame took on the form of a person and then spread out its arms to act as a shield
against the pillar of light.
It was truly like a cross protecting man from sin.
―Go, esper!‖ shouted Stiyl. ―Her time limit has already passed! If you want to do this, don‘t
waste even a second!!‖
Kamijou did not respond in words or even turn around.
Before he could, he ran around the colliding flame and light and then towards Index. He did it
because Stiyl wanted him to. He did it because he had heard Stiyl‘s words and understood the
meaning held in them and the feelings hidden behind them.
Kamijou ran.
He ran!! とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Warning: Chapter 6, Verse 13. New enemy confirmed. Changing combat considerations.
Beginning scan of the battlefield…done. Focusing on the destruction of the most difficult enemy,
Kamijou Touma.‖
Index swung her head around, pillar of light and all.
But Innocentius moved to protect Kamijou at the same time. The light and the flames continued
to eat into each other in an extended conflict of destruction and regeneration.
Kamijou ran straight for the now defenseless Index.
Four more meters.
Three more meters.
Two more meters!
One more meter!!
―Nooo!! Above you!!‖ Kanzaki yelled with a voice that seemed to tear through everything.
Kamijou had just reached the point where he could reach the magic circles in front of Index‘s
face if he stretched out his hand. Without stopping his feet, he looked up at the ceiling.
The feathers of light.
The few dozen shining feathers that had been created when Index‘s pillar of light had destroyed
the wall and ceiling were slowly floating down like snowflakes. They had just floated down far
enough to be about to reach Kamijou‘s head.
Despite not knowing anything about magic, Kamijou could still tell that having even one of those
feathers touch him would be very, very bad.
He also knew that he could easily negate them by using his right hand.
But…
―Warning: Chapter 22, Verse 1. Reverse calculation of the flame magic spell has succeeded. It is
confirmed to be a distorted Christian motif described with runes. Adding in an anti-Christian
spell…Spell 1, Spell 2, Spell 3. Twelve seconds until the complete activation of the spell named
Eli Eli Lama Sabachthani.‖
The pillar of light‘s color turned from pure white to crimson.
Innocentius‘s regeneration speed visibly slowed and the pillar of light pushed forward. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Using his right hand to take out each and every one of the dozens of feathers of light would most
likely take too much time. There was a danger of Index managing to stand back up and, most
importantly, Innocentius clearly wouldn‘t last that long.
The dozens of feathers of light floating above or the single girl at his feet who was being
controlled and whose every feeling was being used.
It was a simple question of who to save and who to let fall. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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The answer was obvious.
Kamijou Touma has not been swinging his right hand around for his own sake.
He had been fighting the magicians in order to save a certain girl.
(God, if this world, this story, is moving ahead according to the system you created…)
Kamijou spread open the 5 fingers of his clenched fist almost as if he were going to wash his
palm.
(…then I first need to destroy that illusion!!)
Kamijou swung his right hand down.
He swung it down on the black cracks and the magic circles that had produced those cracks.
Kamijou‘s right hand easily tore them apart.
It was so easy it made him want to laugh at how much suffering they had caused.
He broke through them as easily as the paper of a goldfish scoop once it was wet.
―…Warning: Final…Chapter, Verse Zero…. The ‗Collar‘ has received fatal…damage…
Regeneration…impossible…gone.‖
The voice coming from Index‘s mouth ended altogether.
The pillar of light disappeared, the magic circles were gone, and it was almost as if the cracks
that had been running all across the room had been erased with an eraser.
At that time, one of the feathers of light fell down on Kamijou Touma‘s head.
He thought he heard someone shout.
He did not know whether it had been Stiyl, Kanzaki, himself, or even Index who might have
woken up.
As if he had been hit in the head with a hammer, all strength left his entire body down to the very
last finger.
Kamijou fell down covering up Index who was still collapsed on the floor.
It was almost as if he were protecting her body from the falling feathers of light. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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The dozens of feathers of light floated down like snowflakes towards every part of Kamijou‘s
body.
Even so, Kamijou Touma smiled.
He smiled and he never moved those fingertips again.
On that night, Kamijou Touma ―died‖. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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Epilogue: The Conclusion of the Index of Prohibited Books
Girl. Index-Librorum-Prohibitorum.
―You‘re very healthy.‖
In a university hospital room, a slightly fat doctor started to speak.
Maybe the doctor sitting on the rotating swivel chair knows that he looks like a frog, as the ID
card on his chest has a frog sticker on it.
Index, who‘s a philanthropist, only hates scientists.
Though magicians are also weirdos, at least they‘re not as strange as scientists.
She really doesn‘t want to be alone with this kind of person, but since she doesn‘t have any other
companion, she has no choice.
―Since you‘re not a patient in the first place, I won‘t be saying any greetings to you. Right now, I
want to ask you this, and this would be my final question as a doctor: Why are you here in the
hospital?‖
Of course, Index herself doesn‘t know.
Because no one told the truth to her.
The magicians that she thought were enemies told her that her memories would be removed once
every year, and in order to break this vicious cycle, a boy risked his life. It‘s expected for her to
be puzzled after being told all these.
―Speaking of which, we suddenly had 3 people without Academy City ID cards, that really
shocked me. It‘s said that one of the surveillance satellites was taken down by some light; now
the Judgement members are panicking, huh?‖
Wasn‘t that the first and last question already? Index thought.
3 people without IDs…one of them is Index, so the remaining two should be those two
magicians. They were chasing her around since last night, and now they actually sent her to the
hospital before vanishing.
―Ah yes, the letter in your hand was sent by them, right?‖
The frog-faced doctor looks at what seems like a love letter in Index‘s hand.
Index twists her lips and forcefully rips the envelope, taking out the letter inside. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Oi oi, that letter isn‘t for you, it‘s for that boy.‖
―It‘s alright.‖
Index replied with an unhappy look on her face.
One would already feel that there‘s a problem when the sender is called ‗the flame magician‘ and
the receiver is called ‗my beloved Kamijou Touma‘. Also, there‘s even more of a killer intent
with that heart-shaped sticker on the envelope.
The content of the letter is as follows,
―I won‘t waste my time explaining it to you.
Though I really want to say ‗nice going, you bastard‘, if I really want to continue writing all my
thoughts, I suppose even if all the trees in the world were cut down, so I‘ll leave out on this part,
you bastard.‖
The letter with this tone itself already takes up 8 pages. Without a word, Index carefully
crumples every single piece of paper into a ball and tosses them behind. On seeing his workplace
littered, the frog-faced doctor looks a bit bothered. However, facing this pressure from Index,
who looks like she had enough of being bullied and is about to cry, the doctor doesn‘t say
anything.
The 9th page—on the last page of the letter, the contents is different.
―Anyway, out of basic courtesy, since you helped us, I‘ll explain the circumstances regarding
that child to you to prevent you from running back to find us. I‘ll say this first, but the next time,
we‘re enemies. We still don‘t believe in science, so while the doctor wasn‘t around, we checked
that child, but it looks like there‘s nothing wrong with her. The higher-ups of the English
Anglicans have ordered us to bring back that child now that the ‗ring‘ around her is removed, but
in truth, they just want to observe her from now on. Though to me, I don‘t really wish for that
child to be with you for even one second, that child still has the knowledge of those 103,000
grimoires. Of course strictly speaking, it‘s not that child casting it, but the ‗Johann‘s Pen Mode‘
that‘s installed in her. However, the problem is that her ‗Johann‘s Pen Mode‘ is destroyed, can
she still cast magic according to her will? If, because of the loss of the ‗Johann‘s Pen Mode‘, if
her original magical power is to ‗recover‘, we may have to pull out all the stops to prepare for
this.
However, it‘s not possible to recover all the magical strength. We‘re just carefully carrying
things out. Besides, a ‗majin‘ that possesses 103,000 grimoires is truly terrifying.
(Oh yeah. This doesn‘t mean that I‘m handing that child over to you just like that. Once we have
even more information and are prepared, we‘ll come back to take that child away. I don‘t like to
sneak up on others, so you better be prepared.) とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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PS: After reading through this letter, this letter will self-destruct. Though it‘s thanks to you that
we managed to discover the truth, you ‗gambled‘ on it without our agreement, so this would be
your punishment. I suppose it might at least blow up that right hand which you‘re so proud of.‖
Behind the letter is the rune , which is actually Stiyl‘s rune that he specialises in.
Index hastily tosses the letter out, and the letter immediately lets out a cannon-like sound as it
explodes to dust.
―Aren‘t those friends of yours a little too much? Ho, did they soak the paper in liquid explosives?‖
That doctor is somewhat lame to be able to keep such a calm and collected face, Index thought
half-seriously.
However, maybe Index‘s feelings are already half-numb, and her mind is unable to think of other
things.
Thus, she decides to go back to the reason she came to the hospital.
―Regarding that boy…perhaps I should let you two meet, for you to understand it. However…‖
The frog-faced doctor says with a profound meaning,
―But if you‘re going to get hit hard right in front of him, it would be disrespectful to him, so I
decided to give you a little mental preparation.‖
Dok dok. Index knocks on the patient‘s room door twice.
Just this action alone makes Index‘s heart pound till her heart‘s about to break. Before the other
person can respond, Index frantically rubs her sweaty palms onto her nun dress and draws a
Cross in front of her chest.
―Who‘s that?‖
A boy‘s voice can be heard from inside.
Index is about to reach her hand out to turn the door handle down, only to suddenly hear ―Who‘s
that?‖. Should I say ―Can I please enter?‖ and then open the door? But if I do, what would
happen if he feels that I‘m too long-winded? Index was really scared.
A nervous Index opens the door in a robotic-like manner. This isn‘t a 6 person room, but 1
person‘s.
As the walls, floor and ceiling are all white, there‘s a difference in sense of distance, so the room
looks wide. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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On the pure white bed, the boy is sitting up.
The windows beside the bed are open, the pure white curtains are swaying about.
He‘s still alive.
Just this alone makes Index want to cry. Index starts to be frustrated, should she rush into his
arms? Or should she punish him for doing just a dangerous thing by biting on his head?‖
―Excuse me…‖
The boy with a bandage on his head slightly tilts his head and starts to say,
―Did you enter the wrong room?‖
The boy‘s tone is extremely courteous, and puzzling; it‘s a probing voice.
It‘s just like a tone used when someone is calling an unfamiliar person.
—Instead of saying that it‘s a memory loss, it‘s more like memory destruction.
The words that the doctor in the clinic said appear in Index‘s mind; the sentence that makes
Index‘s chilly even though it‘s summer.
—He didn‘t ‗forget‘ his memories, but rather, all the brain cells were completely ‗destroyed‘. In
that situation, it‘s impossible to regain one person‘s memory. Did they open his skullcap and
stick an electric rod in?
―…!‖
Index slightly loses her breath, only daring to stare at the floor.
The side-effects of using too much esper power and the laser attack that Index released (even
though she doesn‘t know anything about this at all) caused the boy‘s brain to be severely
damaged.
If it‘s a mere physical—an ordinary ‗wound‘, it would be like when Index‘s back was hacked,
maybe magic can be used to heal the wound. However, the blank-looking boy in front of her has
the right hand called the ‗Imagine Breaker‘. No matter good or bad, any forms of magic will be
eradicated.
In other words, any healing magic that‘s used on the boy will be negated.
The conclusion is that: this boy‘s body is alright, but his soul is dead. It‘s just that simple. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Excuse me…‖
The voice that the boy lets out from his mouth brings quite a bit of discomfort…no, quite a bit of
worry.
For some reason, Index can‘t endure this voice that‘s from this blank-looking boy in front of her
any further.
He got hurt because of me, but now he‘s worried about me. How would I feel?
Index takes a breath as if she‘s trying to suppress a certain feeling that‘s rising up her chest.
Should I be smiling? Index wonders.
The boy‘s expression is as blank as ever, seemingly forgetting all about Index.
―Excuse me…but are you alright? You look…rather sad…‖
However, this supposedly perfect smile got seen through immediately by the boy. Thinking
about it carefully, this boy always seem to be able to see through the hidden meaning behind
those smiles.
―Mm, I‘m alright.‖
Index exhales as she says,
―Of course I‘m alright.‖
The blank-looking boy stares at Index‘s face, and after a while, says,
―…Excuse me…but do we…know each other in the first place?‖
This kind of question hurts Index‘s heart the most.
This completely means that this blank-looking boy doesn‘t recognise her at all.
Completely. Really completely.
―Mmm…‖
Index responded as she stands there alone in the middle of the room. She looks like a primary
school student in a manga that forgot to bring his homework and is told to stand outside on the
corridor as punishment.
―Touma! Don‘t you remember? We met on the balcony of the student dormitory!‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Did I live in a student dormitory before?‖
―…Touma! Don‘t you remember? Your right hand destroyed my ‗Walking Church‘!‖
―Walking Church…Walking Church… ‗Sporting Association‘ (Note: These two sound similar.
The ‗Walking Church is called ‗歩く教会‘ or ‗Aruku kyoukai‘ while ‗Sporting Association‘ is
called ‗歩く协会‘ or ‗Aruku Kyōkai‘)? Sounds like a fitness centre.‖
―…Touma! Don‘t you remember? You fought against those magicians for me!‖
―Who‘s Touma?‖
Index doesn‘t seem like she can continue to ask anymore.
―Touma! Don‘t you remember?‖
But even so, she still had to ask this.
―Index…loves Touma the most!‖
―I‘m sorry…‖
The blank-looking boy says,
―Index…doesn‘t sound like a human‘s name. Did I have a cat or dog before?‖
An urge to cry rises up inside Index‘s heart.
But Index controls herself, swallowing all her feelings.
She endures her feelings and reveals a smile. However, this smile is far from a perfect smile, it‘s
more of a heartbroken smile.
―FOOLED YA! GOT YOU DIDN‘T I!? WAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!‖
―Eh…?‖
Index freezes.
The insecure look on the blank-looking boy is completely gone, as if he has changed into a
laughing tiger‘s look.
―Why were you so tense when I asked whether you‘re a cat or a dog? Were you abused? Did you
like to wear any neck collars? Oi oi, I don‘t want to be caught kidnapping a young girl and being
imprisoned at this age!‖ とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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The blank-looking boy now has a devilish tinge on his face.
Index is completely dazed. She rubs her eyes, trying to confirm whether this is an illusion, even
poking her little finger into her ear to check whether she misheard it. The nun robe that should be
dimensionally-correct now feels like a part of the clothes had slipped down the shoulder.
―…EH? Eh? Touma…Eh? Didn‘t your…brain cells…didn‘t you forget everything…‖
―…Oi, are you hoping that I forget everything?‖
Kamijou sighs,
―Aren‘t you too stupid? I did chose to let the feather of light hit me at the last second. I‘m not a
magician, so I did not know what kind of effect that feather has, but from what the doctor said,
I‘m supposed to have my brain cells damaged and get a memory loss, right?‖
―Supposed…to?‖
―Yeah…but thinking about it, isn‘t that kind of ‗damage‘ another form of magic?‖
Index lets out an ‗ah!‘ sound.
―Just that simple, just like that, just that boring. After that, you can already guess the outcome, by
putting my right hand on my head, using my ‗Imagine Breaker‘s ability, won‘t everything be
solved?‖
―Ah...‖
With that sound, Index involuntarily slumps onto the ground.
―Simply saying, before the impact hits my head, can‘t I just negate this ‗magical impact‘ before
it touches my head? If it‘s something like Stiyl‘s flame ‗physical phenomenon‘, maybe I can‘t do
anything about it, but if it‘s ‗this ridiculous supernatural phenomenon‘ of those ‗feathers of light‘,
it‘s no problem.‖
Like a fuse that‘s lit by fire, as long as the fuse is cut off before the fire hits the bomb, the bomb
won‘t explode.
Kamijou was able to negate the impact before it hits his head, this is what happened.
A ridiculous way of doing things.
It seems ridiculous, but on thinking it through carefully, this boy‘s right hand does have the
ability to negate even God‘s miracle. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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A blank mind. Her mind‘s completely blank. Kneeling on the floor, Index looks up at Kamijou‘s
face.
Part of the nun habit on the shoulder has definitely fallen off, because Index‘s current expression
is full of black lines.
―Hohohoho. But your expression just now was really funny. You normally would show that
expression that you would sacrifice yourself for others, and so now you finally recognise that
foolishness of yours, huh?‖
…Index doesn‘t say anything.
―Erm…eh…?…Excuse me…‖
Immediately, Kamijou starts to feel uncomfortable, his voice becoming serious all of a sudden.
Index‘s face is becoming lower and lower, her long silver bangs hiding her expression.
She kneels on the floor, her shoulders trembling slightly, and seemingly gritting her teeth.
Regarding this extremely disastrous atmosphere, Kamijou tries to probe the water depth.
―Erm…can your subordinate ask you a question…your Highness…‖
―What question?‖
―Erm…are you…really…angry?‖
A howling and beeping sound can be heard.
Being bitten on the head forcefully by the girl, the boy‘s cry of agony echoes throughout the
hospital.
A thoroughly-angry looking Index storms out of the patient‘s room angrily.
A ‗WAH!‘ came from the door. Seems like the frog-faced doctor intended to walk in and nearly
knocked into Index who was walking out quickly.
―Did you people press the alarm? What‘s going…WOAH! That wound‘s serious!‖
The boy is lying on the bed, his upper body however has collapsed under the bed, his two hands
pressing onto his head as he cries. He continues to mutter to himself ―I‘ll die…I‘ll really die this
time…‖ This image is truly chilling. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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The doctor again looks at the corridor through the open door, and turns back to look at Kamijou
who‘s inside the room.
―But…is this really good?‖
―What do you mean?‖
―Actually, you don‘t remember anything, right?‖
The blank-looking boy remains silent.
The reality of the miracle created by God was truly cruel, and he didn‘t dare let the girl know.
In the aftermath of that magic battle, it was a man and a woman who brought this boy that
collapsed in his apartment and Index to the hospital. They told the doctor everything, and
although the doctor didn‘t believe it, he does feel that the boy has the right to know this, and so
he told the boy everything.
It‘s like reading someone else‘s diary, there‘s no meaning in that.
The girl mentioned in another person‘s memory, the girl that he can‘t even think of even if the
name‘s mentioned. No matter what happens, what has all these got to do with him?
Those words that he said to the girl were just lies that he made up by reading someone else‘s
memories.
This right hand that‘s all bandaged, it has the hidden ability to negate even a miracle?
How can anyone believe this?
―But then…this is the best outcome.‖
The blank-looking boy said this.
He was definitely reading someone else‘s diary, yet he read it happily, and heart-breakingly.
The lost memories will definitely never return.
But the boy has a feeling that it was really a painful thing.
―For some reason, I don‘t want to see the girl cry. It‘s just that feeling. I don‘t know what kind of
feeling that is, and maybe I won‘t be able to think of it ever again. But then, I had this feeling.‖
The blank-looking boy reveals a completely colourless smile. とある魔術の禁書目録 – To Aru Majutsu no Index
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―Anyway, doctor, how did you believe those words? What magician, what magic, aren‘t they far
away from a doctor‘s world?‖
―Not really,‖ The frog-faced doctor says proudly,
―Actually, there‘s a close relationship between medicine and the supernatural… I don‘t mean
that there are ghosts inside this hospital, you know? It‘s just that sometimes, due to religious
reasons, a blood transplant won‘t do, an operation won‘t do, and saving one person‘s life would
end up with that person suing us back. Thus as a doctor, the way to treat these spiritual groups is
to ‗follow what the patient says‘.‖
The doctor smiles.
But the doctor doesn‘t know why he is smiling. Like seeing a mirror, upon seeing the boy‘s
smile, he smiled unconsciously.
The problem is, which side‘s the mirror?
The boy‘s smile doesn‘t have any tinge of emotions, not even any sadness.
The boy‘s expression is ever so hollow.
―Maybe I still remember it.‖
The frog-faced doctor seems to look shocked as he stares at the blank-looking boy.
―But your ‗memories‘ have ‗died‘ together with your brain cells, hasn‘t it?‖
As the doctor said this, he wonders to himself: Why, as a doctor, am I using such a sensitive
term?
But the doctor can‘t help but carry on,
―Right now in terms of a computer, you are like a burned hard disk. Since your brain doesn‘t
have any signals of memories left, can the human memories be stored somewhere else?‖
Maybe the doctor is hoping for an inexplicable reply from the boy.
Hoping that the answer can overturn his own boring logical conclusion.
―Is there really a need to say it?‖
The blank-looking boy responds,
―—It‘s in the heart, no?‖