Marvel's master of cosmic magic

Chapter 540

The headquarters of the covert group ITEM was already half-destroyed.

Shokuhou-level security had failed. Walls lay molten and fractured, alarms long dead. At the center of it all, the fourth-ranked esper, Mugino Shizuri, was being driven into a corner by a single opponent.

Kakine Teitoku.

The second-ranked esper hovered above the battlefield, six pairs of white wings spread behind him like blades carved from light. Wherever they passed, matter was sliced apart cleanly, reduced to drifting fragments.

Around them, ITEM’s other members were being overwhelmed by Kakine’s organization, SCHOOL. The situation had collapsed into chaos.

"So the fourth-ranked thinks she can challenge me?" Kakine sneered. "I’ll wipe you all out today."

Mugino dodged desperately, firing searing white beams that melted through concrete and steel. Her attacks should have been lethal.

They meant nothing.

Every beam twisted as it neared Kakine, warped by the white wings until it bent into impossible angles and vanished without a trace.

"No... that’s impossible."

Fear finally surfaced on Mugino’s face.

She had believed the gap between second and fourth wasn’t insurmountable. After all, her power rivaled that of the third-ranked Misaka Mikoto. But now she understood.

This wasn’t a contest.

Kakine’s attacks would kill her instantly if they connected. Hers couldn’t even scratch him.

"Run."

The thought cut through her panic. Survival came first. Revenge could wait.

She turned toward a shattered window—

"Looks lively in here."

The casual voice froze the room.

Kakine halted mid-attack. Mugino stopped short and looked toward the source.

At first glance, she thought it was Misaka Mikoto.

Then she realized her mistake.

The presence was wrong. The air felt heavier.

"That’s not her," Mugino whispered. "It’s the clone. The dangerous one."

Misaka 9981.

The one who had once pushed even the first-ranked esper to the brink.

Mugino’s instincts screamed caution, but hope followed close behind. If it was her, then maybe escape wasn’t necessary after all.

Kakine scoffed.

"Third-ranked Misaka, this doesn’t concern you. Leave now, or I’ll take you down too."

He dismissed the newcomer with a wave of his hand.

Whether it was Mugino or Misaka, it made no difference to him. Both relied on abilities his power completely neutralized.

His ability created matter that did not exist. Not undiscovered. Not theoretical. Truly nonexistent.

Conventional laws meant nothing to it.

Light waves. Electromagnetic forces. Anything that passed through the gaps of his wings had its very nature rewritten, bent into impossible vectors that obeyed only his rules.

Even Accelerator couldn’t intimidate him.

The only person Kakine feared in Academy City was its unseen ruler.

Which was why he had chosen this moment.

With the city’s armored units deployed overseas and external factions stirring unrest, Kakine had severed ties with the shadows that bound him. He had seized critical technology, crushed interference, and now stood on the brink of forcing direct negotiations.

ITEM had simply been inconvenient.

Especially one member who could track him.

That was when the newcomer finally spoke.

"I’m here on Aleister’s orders," Rowan Mercer said calmly. "You’re being detained."

Kakine burst out laughing.

"Aleister sent you?" he mocked. "Is he really that desperate?"

One of his wings lashed out instantly, cleaving toward Rowan with enough force to split him in half.

Rowan didn’t move.

A soft golden glow enveloped his body. He raised one hand and caught the wing barehanded.

The impact echoed like metal striking a bell.

"This is your nonexistent matter?" Rowan said, examining it with mild interest. "By that definition, half my abilities qualify."

His awareness swept over the structure of the wing. Understanding settled in.

So that’s all it is.

Kakine stiffened.

"You caught it?" His brows furrowed. "And without electricity?"

This wasn’t in any report he’d seen.

"Impressive," Kakine said coldly. "But you’re still just human. What I control is beyond you."

The remaining wings flared outward, releasing a devastating shockwave toward Rowan.

Rowan released the wing and stepped back.

A black magic circle unfolded beneath his feet.

"Then I’ll stop playing," he said lightly. "Children who refuse to behave get disciplined."

The circle ignited.

A column of black lightning erupted, dense and tangible, annihilating the shockwave on contact before continuing straight toward Kakine.

Kakine reacted instantly, merging all six wings into a solid barrier.

Lightning meant nothing to him.

Or so he thought.

"Misaka Mikoto, your attacks won’t even—"

The sentence ended in a scream.

The black lightning tore through the wings as if they weren’t there, slammed into Kakine’s body, and left him convulsing on the floor, unconscious and broken.

The room went silent.

Rowan turned to Mugino, who was staring in disbelief.

"Hand him over to the guards," Rowan said. "They’ll know what to do."

Then he vanished.

Technology-based lightning couldn’t touch Kakine.

But this wasn’t technology.

It wasn’t even native to this world.

And it had been designed to strike far greater things than him.

...

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