"I'm sorry, something came up and I have to go out for a bit. Let's eat when I get back."
Reiko's face still wore that same dazed expression, but her eyes held a trace of anxiety as she handed the lunch box to Misaka 9982.
The sudden appearance of a watcher... does this mean the Level 6 Shift Project isn't over? That someone still has their eyes on the Sisters?
But according to Natsume-san's understanding, the Level 6 Shift Project was completely finished, all the necessary conditions for it had clearly vanished.
Holding onto her desire to investigate the reason, she hurriedly changed her shoes in the apartment. Controlling Reiko's body, Natsume Sonoko quickly gave chase.
Even though Reiko's body couldn't display her main body's full strength due to the ability's range limitations, it far surpassed that of a normal Level 4, equivalent to a comprehensively weakened version of Natsume Sonoko.
Watching Reiko's figure head downstairs, Misaka 9982's previously swinging arm stilled. She stood silently in place.
Misaka 9982's eyes remained vacant, her gaze following Reiko until she left. Then she looked down at the lunch box in her hands without a word.
The moment she stepped out of the apartment, Reiko's body gradually turned transparent.
Reiko's consciousness was still new and didn't know how to use the abilities, but Natsume-san did.
Natsume-san never sought direct confrontation with enemies. Preserving her own strength was always the primary goal.
Thanks to this nature, Natsume-san had never suffered any major setbacks.
After another few steps, Reiko's body weight began to lighten, her whole body becoming as light as a feather.
A single step could now cover a great distance. She continued chasing towards the alleyway where the man in the suit had disappeared.
--+--
The scene returned to Tokiwadai's dormitory.
Sitting at the rectangular table by the window, third row from the main dining hall entrance – this was Natsume-san's usual spot.
On the table sat a tiramisu and the cake she'd asked Tsuchimikado-san to hold onto yesterday. Today's main course was three servings of spaghetti.
Of course, one person wasn't eating all three. Sitting across from Natsume Sonoko was Misaka-senpai, while Juufuku-san sat by her side.
Shirai-san should have been here too, but she was probably eating a nutritional meal at the hospital right now.
This time, it seemed it was a certain bun-head's turn to be distracted, which Misaka-senpai found quite strange.
"Not hungry today?" Misaka-senpai asked quietly.
"Of course not," Natsume Sonoko snapped back to attention, putting on a reassuring smile and shaking her head. "I just suddenly thought of something."
Natsume-san felt hesitant. She was considering whether or not to tell Misaka-senpai about what Reiko had discovered.
She'd confidently declared before that they should solve problems together, even using Shirai-san as a negative example.
But now that it was her turn, the reality wasn't as straightforward as she'd thought. She'd just buried the matter in her heart.
Her eyes lingered briefly on Misaka-senpai's face. Thinking about how exhausted Misaka-senpai already was from the Level 6 Shift Project, Natsume Sonoko sighed inwardly.
The whole incident with the remnants just happened yesterday. At the very least, I won't bring it up today.
Until she figured things out, Natsume Sonoko decided to keep it a secret from Misaka-senpai for now.
"Speaking of which, what was the Dorm Supervisor's punishment for Misaka-senpai?"
Not dwelling on the previous topic, Natsume Sonoko asked about the situation where a certain Railgun had been kept alone in the office earlier.
Remembering the utterly miserable look on Misaka-senpai's face at the time, it seemed something momentous had occurred.
Successfully having her attention diverted, Misaka-senpai propped her chin on her hand, listlessly placing her fork on the spaghetti. Her whole person seemed to drain of color, turning monochrome.
It was fine if no one mentioned it, but now she looked completely faded.
"It's actually... calling your parents!?"
Natsume Sonoko gasped, her head recoiling in shock. Even Juufuku-san beside her simultaneously cast a sympathetic look.
It seemed the Tokiwadai Ace of Tokiwadai had encountered a major problem.
Normally, it was difficult for parents to enter Academy City, so even if contacted, it would only be via phone or video call.
But the timing now was rather bad. The Daihaseisai was less than a week away, and the usual restrictions on parents were all lifted. No matter how you looked at it, this felt very ominous.
"But being caught with cosmetics... shouldn't be that big of a deal, right?" Juufuku-san said hesitantly.
Although hiding cosmetics violated school and dorm rules, no matter how you thought about it, it didn't seem serious enough to warrant calling in parents.
"Plus the previous instances of repeatedly staying out overnight, intentionally damaging dorm property, and covering for Kuroko," Misaka-senpai sighed, sounding powerless.
Rome wasn't built in a day. Misaka-senpai felt she was gaining a new understanding of that phrase.
There were actually quite a few other things Misaka-senpai had done, but these were the ones related to the dorm. The mastermind behind the blackouts in District 7 and indeed the entire Academy City was sitting right here.
This made Natsume-san, sitting beside her, unconsciously shrink her neck in guilt. Aside from covering for a roommate, she seemed to qualify for the other two charges.
If anyone else was likely to get their parents called in, it was probably her.
Ah, right, she'd almost forgotten Shirai Kuroko.
Thankfully, her identities as the 'District 7 Water Disruption Pro,' 'Urban Legend Mastermind,' and 'Ruthless Exploiter of Cleaning Robots' hadn't been discovered by the Dorm Supervisor yet.
"So, for this Daihaseisai, will Misaka-san's family be coming too?" Juufuku Miho asked curiously.
"That's right. My mother is coming," Misaka-senpai replied after a moment's thought.
"What about Natsume-san?"
"They said they would come... but they've said that for many years now, and in the end, they never did."
Natsume Sonoko imitated Misaka-senpai, stirring her spaghetti with her fork.
Because of this, for every vacation, Natsume-san would try every possible way to submit an off-campus application. It had been so long since she'd last seen them with her own eyes.
But now, Natsume-san wasn't quite sure if she should submit one for the next vacation.
It seemed like whenever she left Academy City, she ended up causing trouble for a lot of people.
The ancient magic circle surrounding Conan... perhaps her cousin, Natsume Takashi, had something similar around him, protecting Natsume-san from harm during the times she left Academy City.
"Don't worry. I'm sure your parents will come this time."
Misaka-senpai seemed a little taken aback for a moment, then her expression turned serious.
"Mhm."
Natsume Sonoko nodded gently.
"What about Juufuku-san's situation?" Natsume Sonoko turned and asked.
"They both really like the Daihaseisai. They're both coming to visit this time," Juufuku-san said softly.
--+--
T/N: 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.