The entrance of Tokiwadai Middle School was unusually lively, with girls wearing armbands marked 'Preparation' gathered around.
Nearby, unused banners were piled up, and oversized wooden signboards leaned against the school building's walls.
On the bulletin board at the school gate, several posters had already been put up, announcing that the event known as the Daihaseisai had officially entered its preparation phase.
Every academic year, during the second semester, Academy City held a massive sports festival.
All students participated on a school-by-school basis, competing in an environment where low-level ability usage was permitted.
During this festival, Academy City opened its doors to the public—a rare occurrence—with television stations broadcasting the events.
Parents, media, and other outsiders could enter the city without restrictions.
A certain girl with her hair done up in buns walked through the bustling school gate, her initially pleasant mood gradually turning complicated.
Natsume Sonoko sighed inwardly. 'It's that time again, is it? Nothing to be happy about here.'
Like typical sports festivals, classes were canceled during the Daihaseisai, and even dormitory curfews were pushed back because of nightly parades.
But as a trade-off for all the excitement, students had to take part in various events. Every year, the actual number of participants across Academy City exceeded 1.8 million.
That figure wasn't an exaggeration—if anything, it was a conservative estimate. Even a certain bun-wearing girl who disliked sports found herself reluctantly dragged into the hassle each year.
That's because the Daihaseisai wasn't just about individual events; there were also inter-class and inter-grade competitions. It was a hurdle she simply couldn't avoid.
As these thoughts swirled in her mind, Natsume Sonoko kept walking. Stopping now would only invite trouble.
Natsume Sonoko, a first-year, was Tokiwadai's newly-ranked Level 5 esper, the third-strongest in the school.
Without even realizing it, her reputation among the first-years had surpassed even Misaka-san's and Shokuhou-san's.
Rumor had it she already had something of a fanbase.
She completed her assignments diligently in class and studied extracurricular materials after school.
Lately, she'd been called on more often by teachers during lessons, frequently demonstrated proper etiquette as a model student in manners class, and hadn't been able to slack off even in her worst subject: P.E.
'Ugh, why do I have to work so hard?'
During P.E., under everyone's watchful eyes, the bun-haired girl came in dead last, her face flushed bright red. 'This is exactly why I hate sports.'
Even though many things had become more troublesome lately, Natsume Sonoko had been pushing herself even harder.
Hoping to improve her ability development efficiency, she sometimes spent her lunch breaks or after-school hours sitting in Tokiwadai's library, browsing books and academic papers on various subjects.
In the quiet of Tokiwadai's library, having finished another day of structured life, Natsume Sonoko gently closed her book and stretched comfortably.
[Daily Task: Reading – 60 minutes (Completed)]
"Calling it a day already, Natsume-san?"
Golden hair spilled over the table as Shokuhou Misaki—her starry pupils fixed on Sonoko—rested her chin in her hand, seated across from her.
A small stack of books sat in front of Shokuhou-senpai.
More often than not, Sonoko ran into Shokuhou-senpai here in the library.
Compared to Tokiwadai's other two Level 5s, Shokuhou-senpai was clearly the more studious and clever type.
She also knew the library inside and out; many of the books Sonoko read had been located with her help.
"Shokuhou-senpai, I've got some things to take care of this afternoon, so I'll be heading out now. I've finished taking notes on these," Sonoko replied earnestly as she tidied her seat, placing her notebook back into her bag.
"Is that so? These books are quite challenging for a first-year, but if it's you, Natsume-san, I'd say they're not nearly demanding enough."
"But you really are busy, Natsume-san. It's not easy catching you here in the library, you know? Judging by your look, you're not off to a date, are you?" Shokuhou-senpai's tone held a hint of regret as she leaned back in her chair with a sigh.
"Huh?"
--+--
With some time to spare—about an hour before she was supposed to meet with Yumiya Rakko-senpai—she headed to the nearby Judgment Branch 177 office.
Sitting in the Judgment office, now wearing a Judgment armband, Natsume Sonoko cautiously nibbled on Uiharu-san's snacks, her eyes occasionally darting toward the others in the room, who all looked rather miserable.
"Come on, Natsume-san, just give it a try. It's really good," Saten-san said, holding one of Febrie's lollipops in front of her.
"No way! You're being sneaky, Saten-san!"
Scrambling to her feet, Sonoko hurried behind Uiharu-san and crossed her arms in a firm 'X'.
After seeing Misaka-senpai and Shirai-san's utterly devastated expressions after tasting it, she'd made up her mind early on.
No matter how curious she was about the flavor, Natsume Sonoko would absolutely not try it.
"Aww, couldn't trick Natsume-san. What a shame."
Saten Ruiko shook her head regretfully, thinking she should've had Sonoko try it first.
With a small sigh, she returned the lollipop to Febrie.
What surprised everyone was how Febrie could lick that awful-tasting candy without even blinking.
"Last night, Saten-san told me it was delicious and tricked me into trying it," Uiharu Kazari said, clicking her mouse as data flashed rapidly across the screen. She shot a somewhat accusing look at a sheepish Saten Ruiko.
"Natsume-san, those biscuits can make you thirsty. Here, have some milk."
After finishing her search, Uiharu brought out two cups and poured each full of Musashino Milk.
She handed one to the bun-haired girl and the other to Febrie, who was quietly sucking on her lollipop.
"I've already checked all student records across Academy City, but there's no information on Febrie. I even entered her details into the missing and lost children database, but so far, no responses."
"How can Febrie like something so bitter?" Uiharu murmured, placing the milk in front of Febrie and gently stroking her hair.
"In that case, Febrie might be a 'Child Error'," Shirai Kuroko mused, resting her chin on her hand.
"Most likely. There's nothing about her online. But as Natsume-san mentioned earlier, she's supposed to be the child of one of her senpai's acquaintances," Uiharu added.
"I tried contacting Nunotaba-senpai again today, but still no response."
Worry clouded Natsume Sonoko's face. There'd been no word from Nunotaba-senpai.
The group looked on helplessly at Febrie, who swung her legs innocently.
"Uiharu-san, could you help me track that senpai's number? I'm worried something might have happened to her," Natsume Sonoko suddenly asked.
"No problem."
Uiharu nodded slightly and returned to her computer.
"...I'm sorry, but there's no useful information. The last time her device connected to the network was five days ago," Uiharu reported, shaking her head.
"Five days ago… What could have happened to her?"
Misaka Mikoto's expression turned serious, her brow furrowing.
Nunotaba Shinobu was missing, and Febrie had called out her name—and Natsume-san's.
When Misaka-senpai moved closer to ask Febrie a few questions, the little girl hurriedly slid off the sofa and hid behind Saten-san.
"For now, we'll have to wait for the childcare center to pick her up," Uiharu said helplessly, glancing at the visibly discouraged Misaka-senpai.
It seemed Misaka-senpai really wasn't very popular with children.
After a call to the Dorm Supervisor, Febrie was scheduled to be placed in 'Asunaro Park', a well-equipped facility. However, the soonest she could be admitted was five days from now, following standard procedures.
"Then, during this time, I'll take care of her," Saten Ruiko declared enthusiastically, clearly fond of Febrie.
"Febrie, would you like to stay with us for a while?" Saten asked, smiling warmly.
--+--
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.