Shutting the dormitory door, she waited several minutes until the terrifying, erratic knocking finally ceased.
Natsume Sonoko thought it over. Her school uniform would be too inconvenient for what she had in mind, so she decided to change into her own clothes. Most of her suitcase was filled with dresses, but after some digging, she finally managed to pull out a pair of jeans and a T-shirt.
Once fully dressed, she recalled her last nighttime excursion. Rummaging through her things again, Natsume Sonoko specifically dug out a children's watch with a light-up function.
This watch dated back to her elementary school days, a prize she'd won in a school singing competition.
Flipping the switch, she nodded with some satisfaction as the light source shone brightly, undimmed by time.
--+--
District 18, MAR Affiliated Research Institute.
It looked less like a research facility and more like a military outpost. Truth be told, it hadn't been like this a few months ago. Just in the last month, security checkpoints had suddenly multiplied.
Even deep into the night, the place was brightly lit, illumination lights turning the vicinity as bright as day.
Armed personnel wielding automatic weapons were everywhere. She could see Powered Suit
units moving in and out, and dozens of armed robots stood guard at the entrance.
Mechanical hounds equipped with sniffing devices patrolled back and forth. Even the main gate was fitted with an automatic identification and alarm system.
The heavy security felt quite imposing, a rare sight in a city primarily populated by students. Even the board of directors' headquarters wasn't this heavily guarded.
'And I broke through all their posts in just three minutes,' Natsume Sonoko thought with surprise.
It wasn't that the security was useless. It was just that, as she confirmed once again, most of the detection equipment seemed completely ineffective against her.
Feeling oddly guilty as an intentional intruder, she didn't waste time and began searching room by room.
"Finally off work. I was hoping to grab a drink at the izakaya." Two middle-aged researchers in white lab coats walked towards her.
Natsume Sonoko, standing in the corridor, moved aside to avoid bumping into them.
"Heh, the Director's behavior is getting more and more erratic. No chance of that these days," one researcher said, shaking his head.
"The higher-ups said they're shutting down the original research projects here. It's a big deal. No wonder the Director's in a bad mood," the other researcher nodded worriedly. If those projects were scrapped, they'd be affected too.
"But what can we do? Even Professor Kihara Hasuu agreed to it. It was his project to begin with."
Hiding in the shadows, Natsume Sonoko took a good look at the researchers. She seemed to have stumbled upon some unexpected information.
She'd been here for half an hour already but still hadn't found what she was looking for. She didn't touch any of the data, content for now to just observe.
'Where could it be?'
A sense of urgency began to gnaw at her. She didn't want to stay here too long; the atmosphere was making her uncomfortable.
'That's a huge piece of Powered Suit.'
After twisting and turning through corridors, Natsume Sonoko finally found her way into what seemed to be the institute's warehouse.
The sight made her eyes widen. Five rows of Powered Suits in various colors were neatly arranged. And in the very center stood a colossal unit over fifty meters tall.
But that giant armor wasn't the most eye-catching thing. Beside it stood a purple Powered Suit, its design distinctly different from the others, like a premium player who'd bought a fancy skin.
As impressive as it was, these weren't Natsume Sonoko's target.
Just like her previous night visit to the Advanced Education Bureau, she had to admit she wasn't cut out for this stealth thing. Twice now, she'd come up completely empty.
Just as she was convincing herself this trip was another waste of time, she heard the sound of numerous, dense footsteps.
From the sound of it, quite a few people were coming.
Natsume Sonoko's heart jumped. Her brain froze for a second—had she been discovered?
'They let me through on purpose earlier, just to trap me now like a turtle in a jar?'
Her mind racing, Natsume Sonoko felt a wave of tension, but she remained relatively calm. After all, she'd seen her share of big scenes.
"Blue Team, move out! Brown Team, move out! Achieve combat readiness in three minutes!" A woman with long brown hair stepped out from the crowd, her gaze gloomy, none of her usual approachability present.
At her command, dozens of people behind her assembled urgently, hurriedly donning their Powered Suit. The warehouse instantly became a hive of activity.
The brown-haired woman glanced up at the giant Powered Suit, thought for a moment, and then walked over to the ornately designed purple armor and began putting it on.
As numerous Powered Suit units powered up, the synchronized clanking of armor filled the entire warehouse, creating a distinctly sci-fi vibe.
'So they didn't find me after all.' Natsume Sonoko let out a sigh of relief. She was just about to step out to get a better look at what this force was up to when, completely caught off guard, a blue Powered Suit came flying backwards through the air towards her.
It didn't hit her, but the wind pressure from its passage shoved her aside, sending her tumbling into a corner of the warehouse.
Immediately, her ears were filled with the sound of bullets raining down and the dull thuds of explosions. The ground began to shake, but the cacophony stopped almost as quickly as it started.
Outside the warehouse, the ground was now a mess, littered with scattered armor fragments. Two groups stood facing each other in a standoff.
"You actually built a Powered Suit that mimics the Railgun's abilities?" Standing atop a downed piece of armor, Mugino Shizuri looked towards the purple Powered Suit wreathed in electric sparks not far away, a note of surprise in her voice.
Behind her stood two members of the dark side organization 'Item': Frenda and Takitsubo Rikou.
A fissure over ten meters long scarred the ground in front of the warehouse, as if pierced by a kinetic weapon—strikingly similar to the Railgun's signature attack.
"That ojō-sama is so careless, letting her secrets get out so easily," Mugino Shizuri's eyes still held a trace of contempt, her words a mockery aimed at a certain Railgun.
"Mugino Shizuri, I've already told you. What you're looking for isn't in my possession." Therestina's face showed her displeasure.
Ever since that major setback with the giant tentacle monster, troubles had just kept piling up.
The left arm of her Powered Suit lifted slightly, crackling with bright blue electric sparks, as if ready to fire at the slightest provocation.
"You think a cheap imitation like that can threaten me? Even the real Railgun is just a brat." Mugino Shizuri let out a derisive snort, her gaze dripping with disdain.
"What are you spacing out for, Takitsubo?" Crouching slightly behind Mugino Shizuri to avoid the gun barrels of the opposing armors, Frenda curiously patted the seemingly distracted Takitsubo Rikou.
"I'm not spacing out. There's someone hiding over there." Takitsubo Rikou pointed lazily towards an empty spot not far away, her naturally drowsy eyes half-lidded.
"But there's clearly nothing there?" Frenda tilted her head, voice full of skepticism.
--+--
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!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.