"Huh?" The suddenness of the event left Saten Ruiko no time for her confusion to turn into a gasp.
—She had been fine just a moment ago, so why the sudden change of face? Was she angry because Saten Ruiko had patted her head?
Saten Ruiko was still confused when she saw Frenda also fall.
At the same time, a fierce gust of wind swept over their heads.
A massive club-like object swung horizontally, tearing through the air and emitting a piercing whine.
"Huh? This is..." Only then did Saten Ruiko realize she had just brushed with death.
"Get up, run!" Frenda seemed like a different person, her face ashen, her eyes as cold as knives.
Though still a beautiful girl, she had none of her previous "cute" or "innocent" demeanor.
Frenda slapped Saten Ruiko hard on the back, and Saten Ruiko finally came to her senses, quickly scrambling to her feet and running unsteadily.
After running a few steps, Saten Ruiko looked back and saw the culprit who had just attacked her—a massive navy-blue powered suit!
Powered suits are not uncommon in Academy City, especially near construction sites, where they function like specialized engineering vehicles.
People new to Academy City might be interested in these huge "robots" that are two or three stories tall, but for the citizens of Academy City, they have long become part of the background, to the point of being "invisible."
Unexpectedly, such a "background" object suddenly went berserk and attacked people today!
"An accident? Or intentional harm?" Saten Ruiko couldn't tell; having narrowly escaped death, she felt waves of lingering fear.
Only after gaining some distance could she see the full picture—the navy-blue powered suit was gripping something resembling a hockey stick.
For the slender and fragile body of a normal human, that was a deadly weapon.
Thinking that the steel club, almost as thick as her waist, had nearly swept her, Saten Ruiko felt another chill, and goosebumps rose all over her body.
However, Frenda, who was even more slender and petite than her, was now glaring fearlessly at the powered suit.
Although she had already guessed that her new friend was not an ordinary girl, seeing the impactful scene before her, Saten Ruiko couldn't help but worry.
"To come spoil the fun when I'm having a good time..." Frenda's tone was cold. "No matter who you are, you're dead today!"
With that, the blonde girl swept her hand across her skirt, and suddenly several rockets appeared in her hand.
Because she often saw Shirai Kuroko make similar moves, Saten Ruiko wasn't surprised.
The rockets in Frenda's hand, at first glance, looked like toys sold at festival stalls, with a rather traditional classic design—a red cylinder with a conical tip, a "bamboo stick" inserted at the back, and even a "fuse"...
Although they didn't look powerful, in reality...
With several loud booms, Saten Ruiko quickly covered her ears in fright.
And the massive five-meter-tall powered suit was blasted, staggering backward!
Frenda, who caused all this, stood with her hands on her hips, smiling triumphantly.
"Frenda! The enemy hasn't been defeated yet!" Saten Ruiko couldn't help but shout a reminder.
"Eh?" Frenda quickly snapped back to attention. "Seriously, why is its armor so tough! Ruiko, run farther away, be careful not to get caught in the blast!"
As she spoke, Frenda pulled out more bombs.
"Weak point! Aim for the weak point!" Saten Ruiko shouted as she retreated, "They say the joints of powered suits are the most vulnerable!"
"Is that also knowledge from an Academy City legend?" Frenda mumbled, but as a seasoned Dark Side Organization member, she was already well-versed in how to deal with powered suits.
"Speaking of which, as an ordinary girl, Ruiko must have pretty thick nerves, right? To still be concerned about these things," Frenda muttered, while searching for weak spots on the powered suit. "Well, if she wasn't like this, she wouldn't have become my friend... Ah, found it..."
As if dancing, Frenda spun gracefully, narrowly dodging the powered suit's renewed hockey stick swing, and simultaneously seized the fleeting gap to launch a rocket.
The rocket exploded at the powered suit's right arm spherical joint, and the blast wave lifted Frenda's skirt.
The blonde girl was already accustomed to such scenes, holding down her beret with one hand and pulling out two more rockets with the other.
"That... that's dangerous, isn't it?" Saten Ruiko couldn't help but murmur; it was her first time seeing someone use "bombs" as a melee weapon.
The explosions over there were deafening; even shouting loudly wouldn't be heard.
Therefore, Frenda didn't hear Saten Ruiko's warning and was hit in the waist by the club from behind...
"!" Saten Ruiko's face turned pale with shock, and disregarding the danger, she quickly ran forward.
Her remaining rationality made her, while running towards danger, not forget to operate her phone and dial the number she had just called...
"Ouch, ouch, ouch..." Amidst an unnatural cloud of smoke, Frenda stood up, clutching her lower back.
The enemy had just used the special structure of the "hockey stick" to ambush Frenda.
—If it had been a straight club, it shouldn't have hit me.
Frenda regretted it, but fortunately, she had never ignored the enemy's attacks, which allowed her to jump aside at the last moment, maximally dispersing the force of the powerful blow.
"Damn it..." As soon as she turned her head, she saw Saten Ruiko running towards the battlefield, and Frenda quickly shrieked, "Ruiko, don't come closer!"
The powered suit clearly noticed Saten Ruiko's movement and swung its club down.
Boom!
With another violent explosion, amidst the smoke, Frenda flew out on the blast wave, diving into Saten Ruiko's embrace.
"Frenda! Are you okay?"
Seeing her lively, Saten Ruiko was overjoyed.
"No!" Frenda said grumpily, "And you too, quickly... quickly run, this isn't the time for talking!"
Saten Ruiko acted decisively, grabbing Frenda's hand and taking off running.
Frenda felt a strong pull on her hand, dragging her forward.
She naturally dodged the club strike that fell from behind.
"Ruiko... you run... so fast!"
"Haha, after all, I'm... a Level 0," Saten Ruiko shouted with a laugh.
As a Level 0, if she wanted to act with Shirai Kuroko and Misaka Mikoto, the only thing she could probably do was not be a hindrance and escape as fast as possible when danger arose.
After realizing this, Saten Ruiko began training in long-distance running, and she was even invited to the school's track and field team last semester.
"Nonsensical..." Frenda couldn't understand the logic of her answer. "And... even running fast won't help!"
With that, she suddenly pushed Saten Ruiko aside, while she herself dove to the other side.
Boom!
The club crashed down with a roar, cracking the ground and sending shattered concrete flying everywhere.
