Toaru Majutsu no Index SS: Kanzaki/Chapter 3

Synopsis
Kanzaki's mission is to stop a magician from destroying a steel plant in Denmark and stopping its operation. That steel plant is one of Academy City's supporters. They don't want this to worsen the relationship between the science side and the magic side. The magician has already destroyed similar facilities in other places using the same method.

While investigating on how the magician is planning to destroy a steel plant that covers such a large area, they found a magic circle in the middle of an asphalt road, right under their feet. There is nothing important around where they are standing. Destruction to the asphalt road would not deal any damage to the steel plant's operation. It looks as if the culprit placed those runes in many places throughout the plant just to increase the effect. Then they see an explosion in the distance, destroying a part of the plant. Right after, the place where they were standing also exploded.

However, they were unharmed by the explosion, because Kanzaki found a way to limit the effects of the explosion after understanding the runes used in the magic circle.

They thought the only way to stop the destruction would be to destroy all the runes throughout the plant, but Kanzaki suggested that they could just stop the magician behind it. There was a suggestion that the magician is triggering all these explosions far away from the plant, but Kanzaki dismissed that possibility because there are no signs of magic that allow long range triggering, so the magician must be within the premises of this steel plant. She also realized that the magician placed the runes everywhere so the people pursuing him would think that there are no safe spots for him to hide. But in fact, since he is the one triggering these explosions, he can control where these safe spots are. Kanzaki already knew where the magician is hiding, and sent a flying road sign at his hiding spot. Leasic ran away, and Kanzaki chased after him. Just as he was about the reach the next safe spot for the next wave of explosion, Kanzaki caught up and wrapped her wires around his arms, threatening to cut them off if he doesn't surrender. However, the magician cut off his own arms using the wires by himself. After that, fire created from runes sprout out from where his arms were cut, acting like wings or thrusters.

He got away temporarily, and triggered another wave of explosion. However, nothing happened. It appears that the jeans shop owner found a link into the magic that the magician used and rigged the magic circles so that they don't explode. Then Kanzaki caught up to him again and attacked him with her wires. As a last struggle, the magician broke free using the fire coming out from his body, then tried to escape, but his condition didn't allow him to do so.

He said that he's doing this to protect the Earth. Kanzaki wondered why he needs to do this when this steel plant is run by regular people and is only producing regular household items and not weapons. He said that it's because the science side is "eroding away" the magic side with these plants. He said that the pollutants released from these plants lead to acid rain, which destroys the runes written on stones from a long time ago. Even though those runes might not have any magical meaning, they are valuable information to rune users such as himself. Kanzaki said to him that destroying the plants this way would only lead to innocent people dying, and will create pollution in another form. However, the magician explained that he couldn't care less about water pollution of other forms of pollution. All he want to do is to save those ancient rune writings.

After thinking for a moment that the magician actually wanted to stop the pollution to save the Earth and then being disappointed at the truth, Kanzaki knocked him out.

Characters

 * Kanzaki Kaori
 * Jeans Shop Owner
 * Tour Guide Girl

New Characters

 * Leasic

New Abilities

 * Explosives Runes - Leasic