Editing Toaru Majutsu no Index:Railgun PSP SS (section)

===Part 5===

Mikoto and Aizono hid within a manhole.

“For a sewer, it doesn’t smell too bad in here. And the water looks nice and clear.”

“In the third generation sewer system, microbe purification plants are being tested out. They’re fairly large so the microbes have air to breathe. I’d say the water quality is better than the public pools full of chlorine.”

“With such a clean environment, this looks like it would be heaven for bugs.”

“It’s actually ''too'' clean for them. With no foundation for the food chain, bugs can get in but they can’t live here. The difference between the general idea of a sewer and what this actually is made it an excellent place for us to hide or move around in.”

“Us?”

“The gators of White Alligator. I doubt I have to tell you what story the name comes from.”

With the talk of microbes and purification, Mikoto was a bit worried their feet would be eaten into, but Aizono started walking through the water, so there must not have been any issues of that sort. In fact, the mere idea of some kind of killer amoeba was a bit farfetched.

“So does anyone else use White Alligator’s sewer routes?”

“Yes, according to the driver’s smartphone,” said Aizono as she waved around the small device that was doubling as an information source and a light source.

Mikoto frowned and said, “If that facility was a decoy, then the real thing must be elsewhere.”

“Assuming this smartphone isn’t a part of some further trap in case the driver was defeated, Saitou-sensei being transported is true. The refrigerated storage facility was just a diversion to buy them enough time to cut off any pursuit.”

“So they’re moving him at this very moment?”

“In this clean sewer, yes. But,” added Aizono cautiously, “I still can’t see what they’re after.”

“?”

“Saitou-sensei only has value as something to keep me in line. Saitou-sensei himself is a completely normal person with no connection to the dark side of the city. I don’t see why they would merely change his location rather than use him as a hostage or eliminate him now that he is no more use.”

“Come to think of it, when you were targeting Academy City with the Magnetic Debris Cannon, I didn’t see anyone come forward trying to use him as a shield.”

“I had complete control of the cannon, so they may have been unwilling to show themselves for fear that I would alter its aim and specifically target them. But now it seems we need to consider a different possibility.”

“You mean that there is some value in having Saitou-sensei apart from using him against you?”

“Yes, but I have no idea what that could be. As I said, he has nothing to do with the darkness. In fact, him being a completely normal person is what made him such an effective hostage.”

“It doesn’t really matter. Let’s just stop them and rescue him.”

“…It doesn’t matter?”

“I mean that it doesn’t matter what their reason is. We just have to save him, right? I wasn’t saying anything about Saitou-sensei himself.”

“I see. Yes, yes. You’re right. Ha ha. Sorry about that.”

Aizono quickly put on a forced smile, but something like a black blade was wrapped around her right hand. She had tried to play it off as a pure maiden, but something more than that could be seen.

The blade wrapped around her right hand then returned to being a portion of her uniform.

“I suppose now we just need to provoke those behind this to get them worked up. We can send out an email to them all. Let’s see, something like ‘an informer told us where you are, so we’ll be right there’. What wording would be best to get the boss mad and suspecting his subordinates? This would be best if it spreads. What phrase would seem to fit anyone on a cold reading?”

“…You’re terrible,” muttered Mikoto.