# Chapter 8: Slippery
"A space-type, not easy to deal with."
Energy shields of various sizes appeared around Su Xiao's body. These energy shields were arranged in a chaotic manner, creating a refractive visual effect. Although he had abilities that could counter space-type powers, the cooldown for that ability was too long, and he didn't plan to use it for now. In a place like Academy City, space-type ability users were the least scarce.
"This guy..."
Shirai Kuroko was stunned. After just one exchange, the opponent had already thought of a way to counter her ability. With her line of sight obstructed, she began to have difficulty calculating the enemy's position. Those semi-transparent energy panels refracting light was one thing, but the main issue was that they misled her judgment of distance. This was very troublesome, causing deviations in her spatial movement, or even accidental killing of the enemy—for example, teleporting a metal rod into the enemy's brain.
In truth, Shirai Kuroko was overthinking things. If it weren't for the fact that this was her first time encountering her ability, and the attack position wasn't fatal, resulting in a weak warning sensation, Su Xiao—whose instincts were sharper than a wild beast's—wouldn't have been injured by her at all, let alone accidentally killed.
"Such combat experience... he's a monster born for battle. No, I need to take this child away. She's badly injured."
Shirai Kuroko glanced at the Kinuhata Saiai in her arms. Kinuhata Saiai coughed up blood from time to time, looking like she was about to kick the bucket at any moment.
Boom!
An explosive sound rang out as Su Xiao charged straight toward Shirai Kuroko. He didn't know why she had appeared, but compared to Kinuhata Saiai, Shirai Kuroko was more suitable as a bargaining chip for negotiating with someone—she carried more "sincerity."
Hearing the explosion, Shirai Kuroko instinctively sensed trouble and immediately used her spatial ability to teleport. The maximum distance she could teleport each time was 80 meters, and considering the weight she could carry was 130.7 kilograms, given her and Kinuhata Saiai's body types, whether the two of them even weighed 130 jin was questionable, let alone 130.7 kilograms.
Shirai Kuroko's teleportation wasn't just limited to 80 meters; after each teleport, she had to pause for a moment. This meant she couldn't completely shake off Su Xiao's pursuit.
Shirai Kuroko carried Kinuhata Saiai as she performed spatial movement after spatial movement. Behind her, Su Xiao leaped between tall buildings at an extremely fast speed.
However, Shirai Kuroko's spatial movement ignored obstacles, and she had already maintained a certain distance from Su Xiao, no longer affected by his aura release. This meant she could teleport for a long time.
Academy City had many buildings, which suited Shirai Kuroko's teleportation well. Noticing this, Su Xiao spread his perception in a fan shape, constantly locking onto the spatial fluctuations appearing ahead. Having been frequently teleported through space by Reincarnation Paradise, Su Xiao was very familiar with spatial fluctuations. Compared to Reincarnation Paradise's teleportation method, Shirai Kuroko's spatial ability was far too immature.
A great escape began. Shirai Kuroko didn't know how many times she had teleported, yet she still couldn't shake off Su Xiao.
"What kind of superpower is this? He's like a human radar. And what was with that phone call earlier?"
Shirai Kuroko was now filled with confusion. She had been shopping at a 24-hour unmanned convenience store, buying some very adult lingerie, when her phone rang. The caller was a woman who told her that a murder was about to occur in Academy City's Seventh School District, and gave the specific location.
Shirai Kuroko was a Judgment officer. So-called Judgment officers were responsible for maintaining public order within the schools under their branch's jurisdiction. Shirai Kuroko often went outside the school to maintain order, which was an overreach of authority, though no one had reported this behavior.
Shirai Kuroko initially thought this was a malicious joke from some classmate, as Level 4 Great Ability users were often envied.
But after the other party sent some photos, Shirai Kuroko knew this wasn't a joke. The shattered buildings and the half arm covered in blood indicated that what the person on the phone said was most likely true.
After careful consideration, Shirai Kuroko first called the police—contacting the Anti-Skill—and then immediately rushed to the scene.
Upon arriving at the scene, Shirai Kuroko first saw a corpse, one with its throat slit. As a Judgment officer and middle school student, Shirai Kuroko felt nauseous. The blood everywhere constantly stimulated her nerves.
What happened next was simple. Shirai Kuroko used her spatial ability to rescue Kinuhata Saiai, then immediately began to flee without hesitation. The moment she sensed Su Xiao's aura, Shirai Kuroko knew she couldn't fight this man. Whether in combat power or attitude toward battle, the two sides weren't even on the same level.
When he fought, his eyes were filled with killing intent. His purpose in battle was to kill enemies and clear obstacles. This was different from her past life, where her goal in battle was only to subdue enemies, and she would do so while trying to avoid hurting them. Killing was something she couldn't do.
Shirai Kuroko's greatest strength was knowing which enemies she could fight and which she couldn't. Now, her enemy was clearly a warrior from the dark world or a Dark Side member. Fighting such an enemy without killing intent was a ridiculous notion.
Since she couldn't fight, she could only run.
Clang.
A blade aura came slashing toward her. Shirai Kuroko disappeared from her spot.
Su Xiao stopped on a rooftop. He stomped the ground beneath his feet, sending broken stones flying. Shirai Kuroko was more slippery than a loach.
"Little girl, let's talk. I promise... I won't hurt you."
A smile appeared on Su Xiao's face, revealing his white teeth. This was indeed true. He didn't plan to kill Shirai Kuroko. Killing Mugino Shizuri was one thing—she was a Dark Side member and had come to him first. But killing Shirai Kuroko, who was "in the sunlight," was a different concept entirely. It would almost be a direct provocation to someone.
"Hey hey, that smile makes you look even more like a villain."
Shirai Kuroko, sweating on her forehead, couldn't help but complain, while simultaneously teleporting away.
"The truth is often not believed, while lies are sometimes easily trusted."
Su Xiao sat on the edge of the rooftop, exhaling a puff of smoke. He didn't continue the pursuit. The person he was waiting for might have already arrived.
Whoosh~
Another girl appeared. Su Xiao's brow furrowed. Why were all the ability users he encountered women?
This was a girl with twin tails. She was dressed provocatively, wearing a denim jacket with several layers of bandages wrapped around her chest, revealing a large area of her abdomen.
"Hello, I'm Teitoku Kakine. I have no hostile intentions. I'm just here to deliver a message."
The girl, Teitoku Kakine, was sweating profusely. This wasn't due to being suppressed by Su Xiao's aura. Like Shirai Kuroko, she was a space-type ability user. She had once had an accident during a spatial movement, "embedding" one of her feet into a wall.
Having part of her body teleported into a wall wasn't just a matter of being "embedded." Due to spatial compression, one of her feet had almost merged into the concrete. In an instant, she had passed out. After a series of rescue efforts, her foot was saved, but after that, whenever she teleported herself, she experienced intense tension and fear. Every time she teleported, she would recall the feeling of bones, muscles, and nerves rubbing against concrete—a feeling worse than death.
Hearing Teitoku Kakine's words, Su Xiao breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, thinking, *Finally, someone has arrived.* If he didn't join a scientific side faction, moving around in Academy City would be extremely dangerous.