A Certain Magical Index #12

Volume 12 of Chuya Kogino's manga adaptation — based on Kazuma Kamachi's original story with character designs by Kiyotaka Haimura — catches two familiar dark-haired students in a bright, breezy outdoor moment: a girl sipping nonchalantly from a juice box while a spiky-haired boy leans in close, the two of them framed against a sunny blue sky with swirling esper-energy patterns drifting in the background. It's a cover that balances the series' signature mix of everyday school life and something distinctly otherworldly humming just beneath the surface. If you've been following Academy City's blend of science and sorcery, 2018's twelfth volume keeps the momentum going in fine style.