Selene; Elegant And Intellectual ×, Violent Maniac √

Time passes.

"Ouch, ouch, ouch... Why are there so many people using [Level Upper]? Ugh." As soon as she returned to the 177th branch, Shirai Kuroko couldn't help but complain while dragging her injured body.

Speaking viciously, Shirai Kuroko accidentally pulled at a wound and immediately cried out in pain, "When I find the developer of [Level Upper], I'll beat him to a pulp! Ugh~"

"Hmph... If you'd let me come with you, there wouldn't have been so much trouble, would there?" Selene said, not without annoyance, as she gently brushed her fingers over Shirai Kuroko's wounds.

"Ah~ Luckily, Senior Selene is here. It feels so much better... Hmm?" Under Selene's treatment, Shirai Kuroko felt much better and couldn't help but moan comfortably.

Relaxing, she heard Selene's teasing and shook her head quickly, sharply pointing out the consequences if Selene had gone along, "Let's not, I'm afraid someone might die if you come, senior..."

"You know, I don't like what you're saying..." Selene couldn't help feeling a bit embarrassed as she karate-chopped Shirai Kuroko on the head, realizing she really had a violent streak. She quickly changed the subject: "...So, from your battered appearance, [Level Upper] must have spread quite extensively, right?"

"Ugh... There's nothing I can do about it. [Level Upper] has already spread, and the number of users is increasing. It's really causing me a lot of trouble!" Shirai Kuroko said helplessly, rubbing her forehead. Her workload had increased significantly lately.

"In short, there are only three things we can do: 1. Stop the spread of [Level Upper], 2. Wake up the unconscious users, and 3. Find and arrest the developer of [Level Upper]!"

Clap, clap.

Hearing Shirai Kuroko's determination, Uiharu Kazari couldn't help but clap her hands in encouragement, "Wow, keep it up."

"Uiharu, why are you just sitting there? Hurry up and find some clues!" Seeing Uiharu Kazari leisurely sipping tea and watching the show, Shirai Kuroko immediately felt her anger rise.

"Okay, okay, Kuroko, your injuries are all treated now. You can go out and play... By the way, are you sure you don't need my help~?" Finished with the treatment, Selene asked with a tone full of temptation.

"Absolutely not! Senior, you should just give up..." Shirai Kuroko refused again without hesitation. She's part of Judgment, not a demolition team! She gestured for Uiharu to bring her clothes.

"Oh, actually, Shirai would really like Misaka to bandage you up, but unfortunately, Selene didn't give you the chance..." As she picked up Shirai Kuroko's change of clothes, Uiharu Kazari inexplicably began to tease.

"Hohoho, you guessed wrong. I can only appear in front of my dear sister in a perfectly flawless manner! I won't let her see me like this."

"Huh? It doesn't really matter, though. After all, no one is..." Uiharu Kazari's words were surprising as always.

"Huh?" Before Uiharu Kazari could finish, Selene was stunned, staring at her. Who knew this "innocent-looking" girl could be so sharp-tongued?

"...would care, right?" Uiharu Kazari continued, still oblivious, looking at Selene with a naive expression, "Huh? Selene? Why are you looking at me like that? Uh! Ah, ah, ah..."

"You!" Glaring fiercely at Uiharu Kazari, Shirai Kuroko abandoned her clothes and grabbed Uiharu Kazari by the collar, shaking her back and forth in a rage.

At this moment, just as Uiharu Kazari's eyes were rolling back and she was about to faint from the shaking,

"Morning, anything I can help with..." Misaka Mikoto's voice suddenly came.

"Oops!" Shirai Kuroko panicked, not wanting her dear sister to see her in such an "undignified" state. In a hurry, just as Misaka Mikoto was about to push the door open, Shirai Kuroko used a teleport to instantly move Uiharu Kazari out.

With a thud, Uiharu Kazari collided head-on with the entering Misaka Mikoto. Hearing this crisp sound, Selene couldn't help but marvel. As for why she didn't teleport her, don't forget, Selene's spatial abilities are very "double standard."

"G-Good morning, my dear sister, uh..." Instantly dressed and restored to an elegant demeanor, Shirai Kuroko re-entered.

...

"Really, Kuroko, what are you doing... ouch." Holding her forehead, Misaka Mikoto looked at Shirai Kuroko helplessly, "Forget it... Any progress on [Level Upper]?"

"According to what Kiayama said," on the main topic, Shirai Kuroko's expression immediately became serious, "it seems to be a device that transmits a large number of electrical signals to the brain in a short time, called a..."

"Learning Device." Selene couldn't help but interject.

"Yes, how do you know that, senior?" Shirai Kuroko asked with a touch of surprise, but then realized, "I see. Since you have a dedicated research institute, it makes sense you'd know."

"Yes, the 'Learning Device' requires all five senses—vision, hearing, taste, smell, and touch—to work together." Nodding, Selene continued.

"But is [Level Upper] really just an audio file? Is there anything else we're missing?" Uiharu Kazari found it hard to believe [Level Upper] was just a piece of music, but that was the reality.

"Unfortunately, [Level Upper] is just an ordinary audio file..." Misaka Mikoto frowned deeply, "But how does it raise ability levels using just the sense of hearing?"

"So, we're at a standstill again?"

"Sigh." Selene couldn't help but sigh, "Did you pay attention in class? It's synesthesia."

"Under the influence of synesthesia, it's possible for simple music to simultaneously affect all five senses." Selene tilted her head, thinking, and said, "When you ate shaved ice last time, you probably had that experience, right? Even though you were just eating with your mouth, didn't you feel it all over your body?"

With Selene's reminder, Misaka Mikoto and Shirai Kuroko immediately caught on and shouted in unison, "Synesthesia!"

"What's that?" Although a genius with computers, Uiharu Kazari was lacking in other areas of knowledge.

"It means that a stimulus to one sense can trigger multiple senses simultaneously. It can stimulate the senses through certain methods to achieve the purpose of stimulating other senses at the same time."

"I see... So using sound to stimulate the five senses can produce the same effect as a learning device." After Misaka Mikoto and Shirai Kuroko explained it to her, Uiharu Kazari understood and became excited, thinking it was a major discovery, "Wait a moment, I'll contact Kiayama immediately ('insider' tip-off)."

After contacting by phone, Uiharu Kazari became even more excited, hearing that Kiayama wanted to apply for access to the "Tree Diagram" and immediately expressed her desire to visit and observe the process.

"Wow, I didn't expect that sometimes your brain is quite flexible for a brute." Misaka Mikoto laughed, patting Selene on the shoulder.

"Uh... I'll just take that as a compliment." Selene rolled her eyes, disdainfully brushing off Misaka Mikoto's hand on her shoulder, "Honestly, when did it start that you all look down on my intelligence..."

"Ha-ha... Isn't it because you always... hmm? How does it go, reasoning (physically) with others? That's what you said, word for word, at the time." Misaka Mikoto quipped, winking at Selene.

Being teased with her own words, Selene covered her face helplessly, realizing she really needed to work on her image. She had to find a way to shed the label of being a brute, as it greatly affected her gentle and elegant persona (sarcasm).

Suddenly, ding, ding, ding~