"Ugh…"
In a groggy haze, Frenda slowly opened her eyes to a plain white ceiling—nothing unusual there.
But when she tried to move…
"Huh?! What?!"
Chains bound her arms and legs, stretched just tight enough to immobilize her. A metal collar encircled her neck.
Her skirt had been replaced with plain fabric.
"Don't bother struggling. This stuff is super sturdy."
Her teammate Kinuhata Saiai's voice came from one side. Frenda turned to see Kinuhata in a similar state.
Mugino Shizuri was there too, but oddly, Takitsubo Rikou was missing.
"Did Rikou escape?"
"Hey, what happened? Wait—I remember! It was that guy who beat me. He was a teleporter!"
"A teleporter, huh? Geez, as expected of the Board of Directors' crew. Their influence is super huge if they can casually deploy a super rare teleporter."
Kinuhata spoke with a resigned tone.
"Hey, Mugino, Kinuhata, what's the deal? Were you two taken down by that teleporter too? That doesn't add up! There's no Level 5 teleporter in Academy City. Did he get the drop on you, Mugino?"
Frenda's confusion was evident. As a Level 0, she couldn't gauge the strength of Samuel's abilities, but she could analyze based on intel.
Like how Academy City had only eight Level 5s, none with teleportation, or how the top-ranked Level 5 had a support-oriented ability with low combat power.
This knowledge helped her prepare but could lead to overconfidence if she relied too heavily on it.
"No…"
Mugino's voice was grim, her expression dark. The battle with Samuel the previous day still stung—a crushing gap in power and his nonchalant (to her, dismissive) demeanor grated on her.
"We were taken down by a Level 5 Electromaster. Not the fourth-ranked Railgun, but an unknown one. We were… completely overwhelmed."
Kinuhata's words clarified why Mugino looked so dour.
Frenda knew better than to poke at Mugino's pride now. Captured, their future uncertain, the room fell into silence.
"By the way, where's Rikou? Frenda, you were with her when we split, right?"
Frenda replied instantly, "No idea. I fought that teleporter and got knocked out. I don't know what happened to Rikou—maybe she escaped?"
"Frenda, you're super dense! Rikou's health is super bad. No way she could've escaped. She's probably been taken somewhere else."
Kinuhata's tone was scornful.
"Hey, I'm not letting that slide—!"
Frenda started to snap back, but her legs instinctively clamped together, her expression twisting with embarrassment and a strange flush.
"What's wrong, Frenda?"
"I…"
Frenda's voice was pained.
"Are you hurt?"
"No… it's… I…"
"Spit it out! You're super killing me here!"
"I need to use the bathroom."
"Huh?"
"I need to use the bathroom!"
"Idiot…"
Mugino glanced at Frenda, then flushed as well.
"Stupid Frenda, now you've got me feeling it too."
"Don't say it, Mugino, I'm… ugh…"
Some things stay dormant until you think about them. Once you do, the urge creeps in, growing stronger the more you focus.
"Hey! Anyone there? Get over here!"
Frenda desperate to avoid the humiliation of wet stockings and skirt.
"I'm not doing that. It's super embarrassing."
"…"
Zzt.
A burst of static filled the air, and a translucent holographic screen appeared, displaying a waveform pattern reminiscent of sound waves.
"Ladies, how may I assist you?"
"Let us go! We demand humane treatment!"
She thought the voice sounded negotiable.
Unbeknownst to her, it was an AI program, its politeness merely coded.
"Judgment: Request does not comply with accepted directives. Denied."
"What?! Wait, we need the bathroom! We demand to speak to whoever's in charge!"
Realizing it wasn't human, Frenda panicked, fearing they'd be ignored, and quickly demanded a dialogue.
They hadn't been killed and were kept here—maybe there was room to negotiate?
"Request requires approval. Application submitted. Please wait."
The screen shrank and vanished.
"Hey, wait! Don't go! Let us use the bathroom first… I… ugh…" Frenda pleaded, but it was too late.
She couldn't hold it. Women, due to biology, had less endurance in this regard than men.
Then…
"Approval granted. Releasing primary restraints. Bathroom access granted."
Click, click.
All chains except their neck collars unlocked. A door opened, revealing a bathroom.
"…"
Frenda froze, her face and neck crimson with mortification. She wanted to crawl into a hole.
"Just a few minutes earlier, huh? Couldn't you just let us go outright?"
Kinuhata and Mugino, ignoring Frenda's plight, rushed to the bathroom.
***
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