TOARU MAJUTSU NO INDEX - Volume 21, 4 War Report

Volume 21, War Report

World War III had finally begun.

On a thin LCD TV, a female reporter holding a microphone and with a solemn expression on her face could be seen in the landscape of blowing snow and black smoke.

“It has been 11 days since the war began. Even now on October 30th, there is no sign of the war weakening here near the border with the Elizalina Alliance of Independent Nations!! Wah! Was that an Academy City bomber!? As the Japanese government has repeatedly denied any intention to join in the war, Academy City must be carrying out this incident alone.”

Not only the civilians were panicked.

A female Russian air force pilot gritted her teeth in the battle above the Sea of Japan. n/(O𝒱𝐄𝓵𝒷1n

“What do they mean they’re only putting in the minimum effort needed for a defensive line? This is enough firepower to turn all of Russia into a sea of flames 10 times over!!”

“This is Kameyama Ryuuta from Academy City. I’ll shoot you down gently, so don’t worry, young lady. You can’t escape lasers that fly at the speed of light.”

The spiky haired boy named Kamijou Touma and the magician girl named Lessar walked through the white land of Russia that was at the center of that war.

“It’s Fiamma again. He’s started a war against Academy City from behind the Roman Catholic – Russian Orthodox alliance.”

“Fiamma is a man of the magic side through and through, so I doubt his only goal is to gain control of the army. The timing of him obtaining the remote control spiritual item that gives him access to Index Librorum Prohibitorum’s 103,000 grimoires is also troubling.”

“Either way, there’s only one thing I need to do: punch Fiamma and save Index.”

At the same time, Hamazura Shiage and Takitsubo Rikou drove through an area near the border of Russia and the Elizalina Alliance in a stolen car.

“Either way, we can’t do this without that city’s tech. Defeating that city will not work as our goal.”

“Hamazura, we need to find something to negotiate with in this war. Find a bottleneck in this fight between Academy City and Russia where you can affect the outcome with what you do. If you search there…”

Inside a freight train rushing along a track running horizontally across Eurasia, Accelerator crouched down holding Last Order who had mostly lost consciousness. The appearance of the supernatural being known as Aiwass had put a great strain on the Misaka Network which had damaged the small girl.

After defeating a group of powered suits that had attacked the train, Accelerator recalled Aiwass’s words upon checking the contents of a trunk the attackers had tried to steal.

“Pieces of parchment, hm? Will they actually lead to a way to save this brat?”

To crush Fiamma’s plan, Kamijou and Lessar came to the Elizalina Alliance in order to guard Sasha Kreutzev, the nun needed for that plan. However, Fiamma showed up and easily defeated the magicians known as Elizalina and Vento of the Front who happened to be there. He then stole Sasha and spoke to Kamijou as he left.

“I look forward to seeing how the girl of the 103,000 grimoires chooses to punish you now that she knows everything.”

When Takitsubo’s condition worsened, Hamazura was led to a town near the border of the Elizalina Alliance by a man named Digurv so that he could use the clinic. But that village was suddenly attacked by foreign privateers hired by the Russian army.

“What do we do? No matter how far we run, it’s all over once they fire on us from the sky. We’ll all be killed!!”

“We use the anti-aircraft gun. If we use the vehicle they left behind, we can fight back against the attack helicopters!!”

Accelerator and Last Order headed to a snowy plain near the remains of the Russian air force base where the parchment was supposed to be delivered. There, they were attacked by Academy City. The attacker was called Misaka Worst. She was a clone created in the Third Season project.

“They must be disposed of. The unusable old series must all be killed. The Misakas of the new series will create a new network.”

In a forest near the village, Hamazura sat dumbfounded within the half-destroyed anti-aircraft gun.

The attack helicopter that had been flying through the air had been pierced through the side by a giant sword.

A strong mercenary pulled the sword out of the exploding remains of the helicopter.

“I, Acqua of the Back, will be presumptuous enough to lend you my help.”

On a road from the Russian border to a town, Lessar gulped as she watched the battle between Kamijou Touma and Accelerator.

Accelerator’s black wings divided countless times and attacked simultaneously from various angles. Kamijou used the fact that he could not use his right hand to negate all of them to instead “grab” the black wing and forcibly twist it.

But…

(Is that really enough to explain it?)

The defeated Accelerator woke up within the Elizalina Alliance to find himself in the back of a truck. A small memo had been left next to Last Order who lay next to him. Written there in messy handwriting was…

“Index Librorum Prohibitorum…”

And the war continued to involve more and more people as it spontaneously continued on.

Bewilderment colored the transmissions between the two fighter pilots battling above the Sea of Japan.

“The Kremlin Report…?”

“It’s a manual for defending the nuclear launch facilities using a bacterial wall. A killer virus kills only the people and leaves the facility undamaged. It seems the Russian military is already discussing using it since they feel as if they are losing. And no evacuation warning will be sent to the people living nearby.”

The Roman pope who was sleeping within a hospital in Italy’s capital slowly awoke. As he opened the window in the hospital room and prepared to leave through it, he magically communicated with the Russian Orthodox magician known as Vasilisa.

“I’m sure I have already lost my authority. My words are not enough to stop this war.”

“And yet you still stood back up. That means you are still worth using.”

Two supersonic bombers were preparing to leave from runways in Academy City’s 23rd district.

One of them held Academy City’s #4 Level 5, Mugino Shizuri.

She had lost an arm and an eye and she was not hunting Russian soldiers.

“…Let’s have some fuuun, Haaamazuraaa.”

The other bomber held the #3 Level 5, Misaka Mikoto.

She had defeated the team meant to board the bomber and retrieve Kamijou Touma.

“I’m pretty pissed off, so take me to Russia if you don’t want to get hurt.”

In a base near the Russian border, Fiamma of the Right was magically communicating with the Russian Orthodox bishop named Nikolai Tolstoy.

“Academy City’s military power including their unmanned weapons is overwhelming. We started this war on your suggestion, so surely you know how this will end for you if things continue this way!!”

“You needn’t be in such a rush. If I told you I had Archangel Gabriel, would you keep spewing that nonsense?”

(…Of course, I’m not using that for such a boring reason.)

An angel created by another system of laws, an aggregation of Academy City’s AIM diffusion fields named Kazakiri Hyouka, grew wings from her back and flew across the Sea of Japan.

She had only one reason: to rescue her friends.

“Please do not touch my friends. …If you do, I will become your enemy even if it means mutual destruction.”

Inside St. George’s Cathedral in England’s capital, the magician named Stiyl Magnus trembled in anger. Before his eyes, a small figure got up using unnatural movements.

She was Index, the girl who held 103,000 grimoires memorized within her brain.

“…Enemy confirmed. Now analyzing…the enemy’s spells and…construction a corresponding local weapon…”

Fiamma of the Right was using the war to gain everything he needed.

Kamijou Touma muttered a few words as he headed for Fiamma’s base.

“It’s true that I’m a terrible person who continued to deceive Index. But the one I should be bowing my head down to for that isn’t Fiamma of the Right.”