Ranked second among Academy City's Level 5 espers, he was the legendary 'Dark Matter', an existence capable of transcending the known laws of physics.
His ability allowed him to generate matter that did not exist in reality.
This was material that humanity would absolutely never discover in the real world—substances that might only exist in theory.
And this being, possessing a superpower so fantastical, stood firmly in second place among Academy City's Level 5s. He was arguably even rarer than the top-ranked Accelerator, as vector manipulation abilities weren't exactly uncommon within the city.
"What a vicious-looking guy."
Natsume Sonoko steadied her heartbeat and stole a glance at the guy from a distance. The ferocious expression on his face was completely undisguised. Natsume Sonoko thought he looked like an out-and-out violent maniac.
Whether he was a bad person or not, her instincts told her to keep a certain distance from someone who looked so difficult to get along with.
Even among Level 5s, she still felt that Misaka-senpai and Shokuhou-senpai were much easier to be around.
As for these strange rays of light...
Natsume Sonoko gazed curiously at the beams covering her body.
To her surprise, her own ability to refract light couldn't deflect these rays at all. They simply ignored her power and shone directly on her.
Another odd thing was how these lights differed from ordinary light. The moment they touched her body, they simply vanished. No reflection occurred at all, completely defying Natsume Sonoko's understanding of physics. Ironically, this also meant her position wasn't exposed.
This was precisely the power of Dark Matter—the ability to create substances that didn't adhere to physical laws, each endowed with properties granted by their creator.
"So the function of this light is to detect people nearby."
Not far away, both Yumiya Rakko and Yobou Banka began glowing with a conspicuous red light after being exposed to these rays. Just by observing the glow from a distance, Natsume Sonoko suddenly understood.
But why hadn't she been discovered? She was clearly within the range of this strange luminous substance too.
Her head filled with questions, but the surroundings suddenly dimmed. The light from moments earlier had almost completely vanished.
Less than ten seconds after the light disappeared, another glowing sphere rose into the air, once again illuminating the nearby sky. But the instant it lit up, the heavens abruptly turned a deep, fiery red.
"Failed after all, huh."
The brown-haired boy's fierce expression froze, then shifted into one of resignation.
Even though he could create a luminous substance capable of detecting AIM diffusion fields, it wasn't very practical within Academy City.
AIM diffusion fields were a special type of energy, but because there were so many espers in Academy City, this energy permeated the very air.
To make it practical, he'd need to prevent these light particles from contacting the air altogether.
"Seems we can't catch that person."
"You two are a sorry sight," he said, withdrawing his ability and looking with dissatisfaction at his two somewhat disheveled subordinates.
"Pushed to this state by some random esper from who-knows-where."
"The opponent's ability directly heats the air. It's nearly impossible to avoid, since people have to breathe. An ordinary thermal ability user wouldn't be a problem—I could easily eliminate them. But this one can conceal their presence almost perfectly. The two abilities combined make them a natural-born assassin," Yobou Banka stepped forward, explaining thoughtfully.
"How interesting," the brown-haired boy murmured to himself.
--+--
The sky had taken on a strange hue. In an ordinary student dormitory room, a certain white-haired villain lay sleeping on a metal bed frame that had been partially crushed.
His body was propped awkwardly against the one remaining standing side, sleeping in a tilted position.
"Tch."
Through the window, whose glass was shattered with several large holes, the white-haired villain cracked open an eye to glance at the bizarre colors staining the sky. He instinctively spat in disgust, shifted his position, and went back to sleep.
--+--
District 13, Advanced Education Bureau.
After transferring buses once, Natsume Sonoko nimbly hopped off.
She'd run into a bit of trouble on the way, but with Natsume Sonoko on the case, all troubles were fleeting clouds.
She hadn't wasted much time there. Since the other party was the legendary Dark Matter, she was willing to give him some face.
Well, anyway, she'd arrived at her destination safe and sound.
The main gate of the Advanced Education Bureau was shut, a heavy lock hanging from it.
Foregoing the front door, Natsume Sonoko climbed in through a half-open window.
The interior of the building was pitch black, with only slivers of moonlight filtering through the windows. It was eerily silent and so dark she couldn't see her own hand in front of her face.
No people, no electricity, no security system.
Whether it was to make it easier for a potentially appearing Kiyama Harumi to spot her, or simply because she thought stealth was pointless in the dark, the clever Natsume Sonoko deactivated her optical camouflage mode.
Dust coated every corner, cobwebs draped the surroundings, and the hallway was littered haphazardly with debris and scrap paper—just like a scene from those horror movies Natsume Sonoko used to watch.
"Such a shame," she mused, a wave of melancholy hitting her. "To just abandon such a large building like this."
Her mind often wandered to trivial matters like this.
Her footsteps stirred up puffs of dust in the air as she unconsciously arrived at a room that resembled a laboratory.
The light here was extremely faint, making it nearly impossible to see anything clearly.
Natsume Sonoko was practically blind in the darkness. She could only sense the presence of many capsule-like devices, similar to escape pods. Her thermal vision was useless on inanimate objects, so she had to rely on her self-proclaimed night vision skills to get by.
Normally, anyone conducting an investigation would bring one or even several flashlights for illumination, or at least some glow sticks. But Natsume Sonoko was a nonconformist; she'd rushed out on a whim, completely unprepared.
The vast laboratory gave Natsume Sonoko a stifling, oppressive feeling. But it was too dark to discern the room's specific purpose, so after a cursory glance, she moved on to the next room.
After wandering around the Advanced Education Bureau for over ten minutes, even with her abilities active, she had found absolutely nothing. The empty bureau didn't even have a ghost in sight.
She suddenly felt she'd been a bit too naive. She clearly didn't have the same kind of luck as Misaka-senpai.
Guess I'll just have to head back the way I came.
Usually, saying something like that would trigger an event, but this time was an exception. The surroundings remained silent as a graveyard.
She climbed back out through the window, her clothes still clean and completely dust-free. It seemed Natsume Sonoko had mastered the trick of keeping dust from settling on her.
Now standing outside, Natsume Sonoko looked somewhat helplessly at the building behind her.
How annoying. Came all this way for nothing today.
She casually hailed a robotic taxi, set it to its maximum speed, and began her return trip to the student dormitory.
It was already 11 PM. A deep weariness was evident on Natsume Sonoko's face. She remembered the last time she stayed up this late was when she was celebrating the New Year with Conan and the others—though that particular New Year's celebration had only lasted about half an hour.
And not long after Natsume Sonoko left, a woman in a lab coat, looking somewhat unkempt, appeared near the Advanced Education Bureau.
Using a flashlight, she also began entering through a gap in a window.
The moment she stepped inside the building, her flashlight beam illuminated the scene.
She stared in surprise at the series of petite footprints left in the thick dust on the floor. They didn't look like they'd been made by someone simply stepping; it was as if the dust had been blown aside by an airflow.
"Someone's already been here?" She lifted her head slightly, a sleep-deprived face now deep in thought.
Judging by the small shoe size, the intruder couldn't have been very tall.
Combined with the ability to manipulate airflow… she felt like she'd seen someone who fit that description somewhere before.
--+--
Outside the Tokiwadai Dormitory.
Natsume Sonoko deftly avoided the patrolling security robots, took a shortcut to evade the surveillance cameras, and finally ran up an invisible staircase of air back to her own room.
The moment she returned to her dorm, Natsume Sonoko flopped face-first onto the sofa, as if instantly releasing all the fatigue from her body. Within minutes, she had sunk into a deep sleep.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
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If you guys wanna check it out.