The Demon King, reborn in Japan as a monk

The location was still the AIM Analysis Research Institute where Kiyama Haruo now worked, the same laboratory where he had been before to help develop his abilities. Under the guidance of the researchers, a series of tests began.

"Try it and see if you can influence other people's actions!"

"Try it and see if you can hear the thoughts of the researcher in front of you."

"Try it and see if you can have a telepathic conversation with the researcher in front of you."

"Give it a try..."

After a series of tests, Ishihara Sho's ability evaluation process came to an end. He finally learned his ability codename and current level from the researcher.

"Your ability is mental interference, and its level is LV1," the researcher said, handing the freshly printed test report to Ishihara Akira.

"But don't be discouraged. After all, you've only just awakened your ability, and you'll have plenty of opportunities to improve it in the future, as long as you work hard enough. And to be honest, your potential is huge."

"You know the seven Level 5 espers at the top of Academy City, right?"

Ishihara Kaname nodded.

"know."

"Based on our research, your ability has great potential to evolve into the fifth level, the ability of a superpowered individual with the title of 'Mental Mastery'! Personally, I even believe your current ability is the initial stage of Mental Mastery. Look..."

"Mind reading, telepathy, illusions, telepathy, emotional interference—except for the memory manipulation ability, the other parts overlap with the abilities possessed by Mental Mastery! So as long as you can raise your ability level, you will be the next Mental Mastery user, the next LV5 esper," the researcher encouraged Ishihara Akira, patting him on the shoulder.

Do you really think he's like those students in Academy City who are kept in the dark and don't know about the existence of such a thing as a "moral judgment" system?

Of course, Ishihara Sho doesn't care about that stuff.

He's not a true student of Academy City. He'll be confined to Academy City, or even the world of A Certain Magical Index, for the rest of his life. He'll be leaving in a few days. At that time, let alone assessing his abilities, even the Demon God won't be able to find him. So how can we judge whether he still has the potential and possibility to improve his abilities?

He wasn't discouraged at all. He smiled at the researcher who was still making empty promises to him, feigning gratitude, and then left the lab with Kiyama Haruo, returning to his office.

Lance then didn't hold back and directly unleashed his ability on Kiyama Harumi—

Yes, it belongs to the emotional control ability of the Heavenly Demon.

The aura surrounding Kiyama Harumi began to change at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"As expected, my ability itself does not conflict with the ability to develop Academy City!"

This is only natural! After all, even his current high school student appearance is a disguise using the ever-changing abilities of the Heavenly Demon. If it were to conflict with the scientific development of abilities, the conflict would have already occurred during the development process, instead of allowing him to safely overcome the drug's effects and develop his abilities.

“I want to go to a university-affiliated hospital, could you give me a ride?” Ishihara Akira, who had no intention of letting Kiyama Harumi be really affected by her emotions, stopped interfering with and controlling her emotions and said to Kiyama Harumi.

"Are you going to seek out the Netherworld to chase away souls?" Kiyama Haruo asked in return.

"Yes." Ishihara Akira nodded.

"Alright, I'll go check on my students too."

Immediately afterwards, the two took their belongings and left the office, getting into one of Kiyama Haruo's vehicles and heading towards the hospital where Mingtu Zhuihun worked.

……

"You're looking for me? What's up?" Mingtu Zhuihun asked with some surprise, looking at Ishihara Sho, who had been left alone with him while he went to see the students.

"I'd like to ask you to make something for me," Ishihara Akira replied straightforwardly and frankly, without keeping anyone in suspense.

"What kind of equipment?" asked the Soul Chaser of the Underworld curiously.

“Brainwave anastomosis device,” Ishihara Akira said.

Chapter 28 Brainwaves

"A brainwave anastomosis device?" The Soul Chaser of the Underworld had no idea that such a thing existed among the existing medical equipment in Academy City.

"Yes, it's a device that, while ensuring my brainwaves function normally, can externally represent my brainwaves as the brainwave frequency of other people and communicate with this new brainwave frequency," Ishihara Akira confirmed.

To put it simply, it's the thing that Misaka Mikoto made for Accelerator after he lost his mind, allowing him to borrow the network power of the Misaka Sisters to compensate for the lack of computing power caused by his brain damage.

"What do you need this for?" asked the Soul Chaser of the Underworld, frowning.

He can definitely do it, but we need to find out exactly what Ishihara Sho wants to do.

If the reason is reasonable, he naturally won't say much, but if it's something else, then don't blame him for being ruthless.

"I just finished developing my capabilities, and that's exactly when I need the most computational resources to develop and optimize formulas. So I was thinking, since my strength alone isn't enough, could I borrow the strength of another person? That's what came to my mind," Ishihara Akira explained.

"So whose brainwaves are you planning to replicate?" Underworld Soul Chaser nodded and asked again.

If it's used to develop abilities, the brainwaves and computational power of an average person cannot meet his needs.

“I would like to replicate the brainwaves of Level 5 espers, but these are probably all secrets of Academy City, right? And it would probably be quite troublesome to use them. So after thinking about it, I think I should replicate Dr. Kiyama Harumi’s brainwaves first. We are familiar enough and close enough that I think she would not refuse my use of her computational power to develop my own abilities.” Ishihara Akira spread his hands and smiled.

“Dr. Kiyama Haruo’s…that works too. But I’ve never made something like this before, so I might need to find someone to help with the design and research. It might be impossible to make it in a short time,” said Mingtu Zhuihun after thinking for a moment.

"Okay. Then I'll go back and wait for your news, doctor," said Ishihara Sho.

If they really wanted to do it, Ishihara Akira believed that the Underworld Soul Chaser could produce the finished product in just a few days.

After all, even the life support system that Aleister is currently using was created by the Underworld Soul Chaser. If you were to say that he knows nothing about mechanical and circuit design, Ishihara Sho would never believe it.

Therefore, the key lies in the idea of ​​the Underworld Soul Chaser.

If he's determined, he can get the item within three days; if he's not, he'll still have a reason to mess with it even if he doesn't get it within a month.

"By the way, how's your investigation going with Theristina, Doctor?" Ishihara Akira asked again after finishing his own business.

"There's been no result," sighed the Underworld Soul Chaser.

"I see... then doctor, please prepare a bottle of ether for me," Ishihara Akira said after thinking for a moment.

"What are you trying to do?" The Soul Chaser of the Underworld frowned again.

Ether, a medical anesthetic, may not be very lethal, but its effects are far more dangerous than its lethality. Therefore, any doctor with a conscience would not casually hand it over to unprofessionals for misuse.

Moreover, this item is a medical controlled substance, and without a legitimate reason, the Underworld Soul Chaser also does not want to violate these regulations.

"I'm going to investigate the affiliated research institute of the Advanced Situation Rescue Team where Therista works. I might encounter some problems along the way, so I'm using this for self-defense."

"Haven't you already developed that ability?"

"At only LV1 level, in terms of influence, he's not much more powerful than an ordinary magician," Ishihara Akira said with a wry smile.

“Alright, I’ll have someone bring you a few milliliters of ether later,” Nether Soul Chaser agreed.

But this quantity...

It was completely different from the bottle he had initially requested.

"Only a few milliliters?" Ishihara Sho said, feeling wronged.

A few milliliters is hardly enough to do anything. Besides making a white cloth like the ones bad guys use to gag people in TV dramas, it can't do anything else.

"Do you want it or not?" Netherworld Soul Chaser asked directly without beating around the bush.

“Yes,” Ishihara Akira conceded.

Then, the Soul Chaser took out his phone and notified the nurse to bring over the agreed-upon ether.

It wasn't slow; in just a moment, a nurse came in carrying a transparent medicine bottle about the size of a wine cup and handed it to the Soul Chaser of the Underworld.

Without hesitation, Mingtu Zhuihun placed the medicine bottle on the table beside him and pushed it in front of Ishihara Akane.

"The ether you requested."

"Thanks." Ishihara Akira reluctantly grabbed the medicine bottle and expressed his gratitude.

Then, after visiting the students, Kiyama Harumi returned and spoke with Meito Tsurugi for a while—mainly because Meito Tsurugi told her about Ishihara Sho's desire to create a brainwave anastomosis device based on her brainwaves—before taking Ishihara Sho away from the hospital where Meito Tsurugi worked and heading back to the AIM Analysis Research Institute.

……

"You want to access my brainwaves?" On the way back, Kiyama Haruo, who was driving, suddenly asked.

"Yes." Ishihara Sho readily admitted, having overheard the entire conversation between the other party and the Netherworld Soul Chaser.

"For developing capabilities?" Kiyama Haruo asked again.

“Yes,” Ishihara Akira affirmed.

"..." Kiyama Haruo fell silent. It wasn't until the car had driven quite a distance that Kiyama Haruo asked again, "How did you come up with the idea of ​​a brainwave anastomosis device?"

"What you should be asking is why I insisted on accessing your brainwaves, right?" Ishihara Akira asked, gripping the door handle with one hand and turning to look at Kishiro Haruo, who was driving the car with a blank expression.

Kiyama Harumi remained silent. Although she did not give a clear answer, it indirectly proved that this was exactly what she wanted to ask.

"So, as a collaborator, I'll be frank with you. The reason I want Netherworld Soul Chaser to create a brainwave connector that can intervene in your brainwave domain is because I know that the core of the so-called Fantasy Master is you, or rather, your brainwaves. So, as long as the brainwave connector can be successfully manufactured, I can use it to join the Fantasy Master's network, and while utilizing its massive computing power, I can sense the existence of other abilities, which will facilitate the development and optimization of my own abilities."

Any further questions?

"So you really were after the computing power of the Illusionist." Kiyama Harumi let out a long sigh and said softly.

“That’s right. Anyway, the children are already protected. Once we get the ability crystal from Therese, awakening the children is practically a done deal. In other words, the Imagine Breaker isn’t as important to you as it used to be. Unless you change your mind and decide to continue maintaining this network and make it your own property.” Ishihara Akira replied without any hesitation.

"However, I must remind you here that the drawback of the Imagine Breaker, namely the fact that it forcibly alters the recipient's brainwaves, cannot be concealed at all. Especially as its use deepens, the coma caused by the forced alteration of the recipient's brainwaves will eventually attract the attention of the security forces, the disciplinary committee, and even relevant research institutions in various schools, thus uncovering you as the mastermind behind it all..."

"Therefore, its existence is destined to be unsustainable. It's better to stop now before things escalate, so that there won't be any room for maneuver once things really break out."

Chapter 29 Update

"My affairs are none of your business." Kiyama Harumi was probably annoyed by Ishihara Sho's description of the future. He frowned and retorted impatiently.

"Alright, I can ignore that. But regarding the brainwave anastomosis device, could you please help me and Netherworld Soul Chaser expedite it? The sooner I get it, the sooner I can infiltrate the Advanced Situation Rescue Team's affiliated research institute to find the ability crystal that Theristina hid for you?" Seeing this, Ishihara Akira didn't say anything more, simply presenting the facts and reasoning with him.

"You want to infiltrate the Advanced Situation Rescue Team's affiliated research institute? Didn't you say that it would be dangerous to break in without authorization if there weren't any Level 5s there?" Kiyama Harumi asked, somewhat surprised and puzzled.

“It is very dangerous, but if we can make good use of our abilities, it is not impossible to successfully infiltrate if the other party is not fully prepared,” Ishihara Akira nodded in acknowledgment.

“Then I can hack it myself,” Kiyama Haruo said.

"You? A researcher? It's not that I look down on you, Kiyama, but even if you now possess numerous abilities and have a wealth of theoretical and experimental knowledge, are you sure you know which ability is more appropriate to use in which situation, how to use it to unleash greater power, or even how to use it to achieve extraordinary results?"

"You don't seem to know either, do you?"

“Yes, I don’t know, but don’t forget, I’m an unregistered resident,” Ishihara Akira reminded him.

It was at this moment that Kiyama Harumi realized that the person sitting next to him was a powerful figure who could even infiltrate a heavily guarded place like Academy City! How could a mere research institute possibly stop him?

Unconsciously, Kiyama Harumi's heart became excited.