Two middle schoolers, both with chestnut-brown hair, stood staring at each other, an unspoken awkwardness suddenly hanging in the air.
"Um, excuse me, are you from Tokiwadai Middle School too?" Shirai asked, eyeing the girl in front of her who was wearing the distinctive Tokiwadai uniform and lugging a bunch of rare-looking photography equipment on her back.
"Pleased to meet you. I am Hata Ranko, a journalist and a second-year student at Tokiwadai Middle School."
The girl named Hata Ranko gave a slight bow, but as she did, her chestnut-brown hair suddenly seemed… loose, threatening to slip down.
"Don't be alarmed, as I just mentioned, I am a journalist by trade. This wig is simply for maintaining my cover. Perfectly reasonable, don't you think?"
With that, the girl named Hata Ranko removed the chestnut-brown wig, revealing short, light-green hair underneath.
Both Shirai and Sonoko Natsume, watching from the surveillance feed, looked stunned, their expressions turning a bit strange.
"Perfectly reasonable," Shirai managed to nod with some difficulty, regarding her senior with unexpected surprise.
"So, those delinquents earlier were…?" Shirai inquired.
"I'd just filmed some things at their hideout. The moment I stepped out, they cornered me right here," Hata Ranko shrugged, putting on an innocent face.
"I see. Quite dedicated to your work."
"Of course. As a journalist, it's my duty to show the public the truth about Academy City," Hata Ranko declared, her face bathed in sunlight, radiating an almost heroic glow.
After helping the delinquent down from the high warning sign and handing the only one they'd caught over to the nearby Anti-Skill officers, Shirai finally took her leave.
Once Shirai was gone, the green-haired Tokiwadai girl suddenly let out a soft, sly chuckle, carefully examining the contents of her camera.
Sonoko Natsume felt a flicker of recognition. 'Where have I seen this green-haired girl before?'
She suddenly had a thought and opened a small chat group for a certain urban legend investigation club.
Clicking on the profile of 'Balance Beam Miss,' she found a clear head-on photo. Looking closely, it did bear a resemblance to this green-haired girl, though some features seemed different.
According to seniors like Amakusa Yu, this particular senior was a master of makeup, disguise, photography, and sketching.
She could hang upside down from the ledge of a hundred-meter-tall building without any safety gear, calmly filming what she deemed worthwhile content.
She was also a Level 4 "Vector Manipulation" esper, though her ability was limited to altering the direction of gravity.
While not the most versatile, it allowed her to walk effortlessly on the glass exteriors of various skyscrapers as if they were level ground.
She could even stroll upside-down on ceilings or achieve flight with ease, though it was unclear if she could manipulate other people's gravity.
'It must be her. What an unexpected way to meet. But with an ability like hers, those delinquents wouldn't have stood a chance.'
Sonoko Natsume murmured to herself, watching the senior on the monitor with a pensive look.
'She's a born journalist, though her interests don't seem to lie in serious news. She's got a particular soft spot for urban legends, often embellishing and even concocting them herself. In a way, she's just like that other person who keeps generating urban legends, whether intentionally or not.'
Just as Sonoko was lost in thought, the door to Judgment Branch 177 swung open.
Turning around, Sonoko saw it was Senior Konori Mii.
Konori Mii was in charge of Branch 177 and the direct superior of Shirai and the others, though the hierarchy wasn't overly strict.
"Natsume-san, when you mentioned wanting to experience being a Judgment member and covering shifts last night, I thought you were joking," Konori said, sounding surprised to see Sonoko there.
"Konori-senpai, I'm completely serious," Sonoko stated with a firm expression.
"Alright then. As a trial Judgment member, start by filling out these forms," Konori said, pulling some documents from a corner and placing them in front of Sonoko.
"What are these?" Sonoko asked suspiciously.
"They're agreements. There are only four for now. The remaining five are signed after you officially become a Judgment member."
"After signing these, you'll be scheduled for a unified four-month training period and an aptitude test. You only sign the remaining five if you pass. If you fail, no need to sign them," Konori explained further.
"What?" Sonoko felt she must have misheard.
"Basically, the trial Judgment program is an activity for students who express interest in joining. It's effectively a default preparatory phase, usually aimed at elementary school students, but middle schoolers aren't excluded."
"…"
Sonoko signed without hesitation. The training wasn't mandatory, and she had absolutely no intention of attending any sessions, so signing now wouldn't affect her.
She stayed at the Judgment branch until around three or four in the afternoon before finally stepping out, feeling weary.
The whole day had passed without a single glimpse of anything resembling a clone of Misaka-senpai. It was as if they didn't exist at all.
Instead, she'd helped resolve numerous incidents of violence around Academy City and had even become familiar with the locations of most security cameras in District 7.
"Uh, Uiharu-san? Is something wrong?"
Sonoko's phone rang. Checking the number, she saw it was from Uiharu.
"What is it, Uiharu-san?" Sonoko asked.
"A group of people suddenly burst into the research institute! They're trying to take Harumi-san and Edasaki-chan away!" Uiharu's voice trembled.
"Uiharu-san, who are they?" Sonoko pressed urgently.
"Four girls I don't recognize. But I know the one leading them. It's the #4 Level 5, 'Meltdowner'," Uiharu's voice dropped to a whisper, as if she was hiding from someone.
"Does Misaka-senpai know? What about Shirai-san?"
"I've already notified Misaka-senpai. She's on her way."
"Understood. I'll contact Shirai-san. Uiharu, whatever you do, don't confront them. Hide for now," Sonoko urged quickly.
Back at the independent research institute, Mugino Shizuri had arrived with several members of Item, standing in front of the temporary hospital room.
Kiyama Harumi lay knocked to the floor, guarded by Kinuhata Saiai. Dr. Heaven Canceller was not present at the institute.
"Mugino, after what that crazy woman put us through, why are we taking her job?" Frenda asked, baffled.
"Shut it. Seems other parties are interested in that lunatic's experiments too. They made an offer we couldn't refuse," Mugino Shizuri replied, her face a mask of displeasure.
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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.