Over half a century ago, or perhaps even longer, the science faction, led by Aleister, brazenly set foot on this island nation.
Through harsh and coercive terms, they forcibly carved out a massive portion of land in western Tokyo, equivalent to one-third of the entire Tokyo area.
This seized territory would later become Academy City.
Yet, in the common perception of the general public, the mysterious Chairman simply acquired the land through commercial means.
Surprisingly, both parties involved in this transaction have maintained a relatively amicable relationship to this very day.
Though nominally still entangled with the island nation, this city, encircled by its towering circular walls, has in fact developed its own independent power structure. It has become a place possessing crucial rights such as the power to declare war and conduct diplomacy.
Even if a third party were to declare war, they would bypass the island nation entirely, confronting this unique city directly.
And the students living within Academy City, unable to leave completely, have long since become residents of another country, forcibly embedded into the massive war machine of the science faction.
As for the various existential crises faced by Academy City, their origins can likely be traced back to the moment of its founding.
Even so, the city still stands intact, making the word 'destruction' seem rather ill-fitting.
Just as Natsume-san was still busy with the petty scheming within her own school, and a few seniors she knew or didn't know were opposing each other for their own goals, a certain unlucky high school boy thwarted yet another plot aimed at destroying Academy City.
It was hard to understand how that misfortune-ridden upperclassman managed to win a trip to Venice in a lottery, but the fact that he could leave Academy City so easily was the truly shocking part.
One had to admit, everything seemed preordained.
The flagship of the Queen's Fleet, the 'La Regina del Mare Adriatico,' had its core destroyed by Kamijou Touma, grinding to a halt in the waters near Venice. The magical ritual capable of erasing Academy City itself and all information of its existence was forcibly halted.
--+--
The sky was dark, with just a few minutes left until midnight.
Natsume-san, her mind full of thoughts, had already fallen asleep on the sofa. No matter what happened during the day, it had nothing to do with her now.
Maintaining sufficient sleep was a crucial strategy for Natsume-san to handle crises.
Invisible nanomachines drifted around the dormitory, silently observing this esper who had finally settled down.
Meanwhile, on the outskirts of Academy City, a strangely punkish girl—who actually belonged to certain old-fashioned factions—was tilting her head back, gazing up at the immense, cloud-piercing walls not far away.
From her eyelids to her nose, from her lips to her earlobes, she was adorned with meaningless small iron rings.
Her eyes were decorated with exaggerated makeup, and she wore a medieval-style gown, yet its color was a garish bright yellow, embroidered with a large, pale yellow cross.
Beneath this overly rebellious and nonconformist attire, even if she originally possessed bright, beautiful features and a fine figure, it was still rather hard to appreciate.
In other words, her aesthetic was just… ahead of its time.
Around her lay a dense scattering of fallen armed personnel clad in modern equipment.
Most were stationed personnel from Academy City's outer perimeter, perhaps even emergency response troops belonging to the Board of Directors.
Whether it was the fully-equipped Powered Suits, built for pure firepower capable of wiping out high-level espers with a single shot, or various unmanned weapons, all had been reduced to scattered components.
Kicking a still-struggling armed man to the side, the punk girl unhesitatingly crushed the earpiece he was using to contact the inside of Academy City.
A smile played on her lips, and combined with the iron ring on her tongue, it gave her a deranged and eerie look.
'Following this world's nearly cold, unchanging rules, science is such a cold, cold thing.'
'So, you see, I'm going to destroy it completely. I'll let a warmer power envelop this world.'
A strange blush flushed her cheeks, and her hands trembled uncontrollably.
She had waited for this day for far too long.
This time, no one could stop her from declaring war on Academy City.
This also meant the conflict between the Roman Catholic Church and Academy City was now out in the open for all to see.
The Roman Catholic Church—a religious organization existing only in the world of A Certain Magical Index, a powerful entity completely unconnected to anything in Natsume-san's memories.
Among the friction between Academy City and various other forces, the conflict between magic and science had grown increasingly sharp. Seemingly manipulated by someone's deliberate hand, they had become two utterly unrelated, even opposing, powers.
Unlike the science side, where Academy City was the dominant force, the magic side housed entities like the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Church of England.
Among them, the Roman Catholic Church was likely the most hostile faction towards the science side.
After the core of her Church's 'La Regina del Mare Adriatico' was erased by Kamijou Touma, the girl before you had forced the old Pope to sign a secret order to investigate and eliminate Kamijou Touma. Then, she brought her own forces here.
Her goal was to inflict the maximum possible casualties on the science faction.
Besides Kamijou Touma, any additional results were welcome—the more, the better. Ideally, she could destroy Academy City in one fell swoop.
Yet, despite her nearly cruel objectives, this girl held onto a surprising shred of compassion.
None of the armed personnel lying before her had lost their lives. Unless they were targets designated for elimination or cleanup, this old-fashioned girl did not kill indiscriminately.
'Kamijou Touma, the Index Librorum Prohibitorum, the Board of Directors, the Level 5s...'
Muttering her targets, the strange girl didn't find her mission particularly burdensome.
As the ultimate weapon among two billion believers, she was far beyond anything Academy City's technology or mass-produced espers could match.
The scene shifted back to Dormitory 210. The sleeping Natsume-san turned over in her slumber.
Gatherings of AIM diffusion fields, of unknown origin, quietly materialized around her, forming illusory, phantom-like tentacles.
They made contact with her own emanating AIM field, transmitting unknown information through the unique properties of the interacting fields.
These special field aggregates suddenly paused for a moment, then vanished into thin air, as if sensing their host was rapidly awakening.
Before long, Natsume-san abruptly sat up on the sofa, staring blankly at the familiar surroundings, her head tilted in contemplation.
Had she really had such a bizarre dream?
And also… she seemed to know where the Phase related to the dream was located.
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL