As Ren had suspected, Aleister Crowley looked at the video and spoke. "What do you think of Ren?"
"His strength is impressive. He might be aligned with the magic side, or perhaps he is a Gemstone."
"Exactly how far he can go… when dealing with the magic side, let him handle it. As for the experiment he hopes to complete, leave it at that."
He wasn't focused on the Level 6 Shift itself. His goal was to send the Misaka sisters across the world and later integrate them through the entire Misaka network.
No matter what, this was all to counter the magic side. And sending the Misaka sisters out without activating the Level 6 Shift could be done in many ways.
Meanwhile, at Ren's residence, a family meeting was underway. Shokuhou Misaki was confronting Ren, while Dolly and Misaka Number One watched as onlookers.
"Ren, why do you have the strength to defeat Kakine Teitoku?" Shokuhou Misaki asked bluntly.
"Kakine Teitoku is Number Two among the seven Level 5s. Misaka knows this," Misaka Number One introduced.
"Wow, that's amazing," Dolly exclaimed in awe.
"Ah, Dolly, Misaka, could you two leave for a moment?" Shokuhou Misaki rubbed her forehead, breaking the tense atmosphere.
"Can't Dolly join?"
Misaka looked downcast.
Seeing the two girls, Misaki sighed deeply. With these two around, this matter would probably go nowhere. She'd have to ask again on the way to school tomorrow or wait until Ren let his guard down to use her ability.
"I'm going to sleep now," Misaki said, rising to return to her room.
"Ah! We're not continuing?" Dolly looked disappointed.
Misaka also wore a regretful expression.
"There's nothing I can't say," Ren said, trying to find an excuse.
Misaki, who had just stood up, sat back down again.
"Mi-chan, weren't you going to sleep?"
"I guess she also wants to hear. Misaka is happy to have guessed the truth," Misaka said with a straight face, saying something that made Misaki feel embarrassed.
"Speak fast." Shokuhou Misaki glanced at Ren.
"Actually, I've recently come into contact with magic."
"Magic!?" Misaki first thought it impossible. In this scientific world, talking about magic? She must be mistaken.
Without hesitation, Ren slashed his own arm with a knife. The three girls didn't even react in time.
"Ren, what are you doing? I'm not asking anymore, just don't hurt yourself." Misaki hurriedly said.
"Watch closely." Ren used healing magic with his other hand. The wound he had just made rapidly sealed itself.
"Seeing this again, Misaka is somewhat shocked," Misaka remembered the time Ren had stopped her bleeding.
"So magic really exists…" Misaki's worldview was shaken. Now she understood why Ren could suddenly resist her ability—it must have been magic.
Magic was incredibly powerful. Even the academy's second strongest of the seven espers could be defeated in an instant.
"The magic I used to defeat the Number Two before was power amplification and exploiting weaknesses." Ren naturally patched his own flaws. There was no need to mention events from other worlds, after all, he wasn't leaving this one.
"Magic really is amazing…" Misaki slowly accepted it. After witnessing it firsthand, denial was impossible.
"By the way, if you have an esper ability, you cannot use magic. That's a strict rule. But since I'm Level 0, I can learn it." Ren immediately shut down any thoughts the girls had about learning it.
"I understand." Misaki stood up. So the secret behind Ren's sudden strength was that he had come into contact with magic. She was curious to investigate what magic really was.
Given Ren's sincerity, the girl forgave him. But tonight, someone was bound to have trouble sleeping. Misaki soaked in the large bath, recalling Ren's aura.
When Ren held her, she had felt calm, warm, and safe. His scent was pleasant. The more she thought about it, the redder her face became. She even buried her head in the water, trying to cool down.
After finishing her bath, she looked at her flat figure in the mirror and sighed quietly. She planned to sneak into Ren's room in the middle of the night to peek at his memories.
At midnight, a shadow sneaked into Ren's room. Looking at the man sleeping on the bed, she pulled out a remote. She had to see what secrets were hidden in his mind.
"Not working? Why? Are you even using magic to defend yourself while sleeping?" Shokuhou Misaki groaned in frustration.
Unexpectedly, in the next moment, the scene shifted. Her body felt warmth, and a strong masculine presence enveloped her. She closed her eyes, savoring the sensation.
Then she realized something was off. Her eyes widened as she looked at Ren's face. His breathing was steady, and he seemed asleep. Was he using her as a pillow?
She tried to pull away, but physical strength was not her specialty, and she couldn't escape. She began calling softly, "Ren… Ren, wake up. You're pretending to sleep, right?"
After a while, Misaki grew tired. She had stayed up late to come here, and the comfort of Ren's embrace quickly lulled her to sleep.
The next morning, Ren noticed Misaki clinging to him like an octopus. He smiled. Yesterday, he had done it on purpose, curious how far he could go without upsetting her. Judging by this, their relationship seemed to be growing closer.
"Let me… keep sleeping…" Misaki mumbled groggily, then realized someone was there. She usually slept alone. Opening her eyes, she saw Ren's face and immediately shut them again.
Her thoughts raced back to everything that happened last night. She snapped awake, her face turning bright red. She wanted to scream, but worried about drawing attention from Dolly and Misaka, so she quickly covered her mouth and gestured for Ren to leave.
Ren left the room. How should he describe it? It was pleasant, like hugging a soft, warm pillow.
Soon after, Misaki, dressed in her pajamas, snuck out of Ren's room.
Staring—
Misaki froze, turning to see Misaka Number One.
"Has Misaki finally taken the first step into adulthood? Misaka accidentally revealed she was peeking at TV." Misaka's emotionless face said something that made Misaki's complexion turn pale.
"That's not true! I only came this morning to wake him up," Misaki hurriedly replied and ran back to her room. Luckily, Dolly was still asleep, or it would have been obvious.
"Seriously… could it be that the Lolicon succeeded?" Misaki leaned against the door, her heart pounding fiercely. Her face burned as she dashed to the bathroom to splash cold water on herself.
Ren had a premonition. If he entered that space again, he might be labeled a Lolicon, but he didn't care. He just wanted to be himself.
After that night, both felt deeply moved. There was no dislike between them—just a growing closeness.
Walking toward school, Ren spoke up, "By the way, you'll be staying at the dorm soon, right?"
"Not yet. The school agreed it would be this summer," Misaki explained. She stayed off-campus for experimental purposes, cooperating with research that required leaving the school.
The school was very supportive in cultivating psychic abilities, though she hadn't expected the experimental lab to also be a dangerous research facility.
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