Stretching out comfortably on the sofa, her body sinking in as if into a bog, Natsume-san lay with her eyes open, lost in thought.
Though she'd already agreed to Shokuhou-senpai's request, she just couldn't shake the feeling of how troublesome it all was.
This unease had Natsume Sonoko tossing and turning, utterly at a loss. Her mind, so adept at handling ability formulas, felt clumsy and out of its depth when it came to these matters.
Shokuhou-senpai's reasons were all perfectly sound, leaving Natsume-san with little ground to refute them.
In truth, even she herself harbored the thought of not telling Misaka-senpai.
After the whole incident with the remnants just yesterday, which left Shirai-san seriously injured, dragging Misaka-senpai into another new mess today… Natsume-san felt that Misaka-senpai might not be able to take it.
But if she didn't tell her, Misaka-senpai could potentially be in danger.
When Natsume-san got stuck in a rut like this, it was even worse than with Shirai-san; she seemed to lose all her vitality.
Then, abruptly, she shot up from the sofa. The soul memories that had been gradually returning came to mind.
She hadn't tried to read them right away back then, but now they seemed like a perfect tool to distract herself.
Scattered fragments of memory seemed to connect into a straight line, and Natsume-san seemed to see a vision of her past self sitting in front of a computer.
But that image of herself was far too blurry, even her silhouette was indistinct, far more obscured than the silent films of the olden days.
Regarding that elusive past life, Natsume-san had a pretty relaxed attitude.
Since she couldn't remember anyway, she might as well peacefully live her new life.
Memory is the root of suffering. Being unable to remember could be considered a blessing.
Besides that silhouette, memories related to A Certain Scientific Railgun T also surfaced in her mind.
It seemed these memories were triggered and connected by Shokuhou-senpai's plan, hence their relevance.
They were fragmented, disjointed, yet interconnected.
"So the Railgun T storyline happens during the Daihaseisai," the certain bun-girl muttered with a heavy sigh. Those days were going to be busy enough as it was.
And she seemed to recall Misaka-senpai and Shokuhou-senpai butting heads, but later the two of them started working together.
These memories weren't as useless as she'd imagined. Instead, they made Natsume-san pause in sudden realization.
If things proceeded according to Shokuhou-senpai's current plan, that kind of confrontation shouldn't happen.
Something else must have occurred later, something Natsume-san wasn't aware of.
And the scene of them working together was probably when they faced the mastermind, as she seemed to vaguely recall seeing some enemies.
Natsume-san strained to remember, trying to extract more information from the soul memories, but the images abruptly cut off.
"What a shame. If only I could have seen what the mastermind looks like."
Though she was fairly confident Shokuhou-senpai would eventually uncover the mastermind, Natsume-san felt knowing earlier would give them more initiative.
Perhaps only by seeing that so-called mastermind with her own eyes would Natsume-san be able to remember.
Even if she heard the name or something about them, she probably wouldn't have any impression at all.
"Ah, that's right, in that case…"
At this point, Natsume-san tossed all the hesitation in her mind aside. Her thoughts instead became active, her mouth opening slightly in a sudden epiphany.
Shokuhou-senpai could have her plan, but the bun-girl, also a Level 5, could have one too. As long as it didn't interfere with Shokuhou-senpai's plan, it should be fine.
Natsume-san thought that she could act as Shokuhou-senpai's secret weapon, while also conducting her own covert investigation. After all, no one would be able to detect her.
Having seemingly figured some things out, Natsume-san realized she'd been too straightforward. A girl like that could easily get shortchanged in Academy City.
"The primary objective of my plan is to ensure the safety of Misaka-senpai and the Misaka Sisters. If that's secured, then it shouldn't matter if Misaka-senpai remains unaware."
Having found a compromise, a look of genuine wisdom spread across Natsume-san's face.
"The second objective is to find the mastermind. The third is to defeat the mastermind."
After a moment's consideration, Natsume-san divided her plan into three parts. It seemed logical and convincing.
However, the plan had only progressed to the objective-setting stage. When it came time to actually formulate the details, new problems emerged.
The first step was easy: she and Reiko would keep their respective watches, just as before.
The subsequent steps, however, were troublesome. Natsume-san's talent for planning seemed to have jammed.
After much thought, she only came up with one idea: to roam around Academy City more. But this somewhat conflicted with the first step.
It all came down to the limitations of her ability.
In terms of gathering intelligence, Natsume-san was far inferior to Shokuhou Misaki-senpai.
Under her Mental Out ability, any information could be obtained. She also wasn't like Misaka-senpai, who could easily pull information from the networks.
One could say the bun-girl's channels for obtaining information were extremely limited. And this time, she didn't have everyone around to help gather intel either.
She could hardly rely on making computers or people's heads overheat and explode.
"Maybe I can wait for the rabbit to come to the tree."
Natsume-san thought of something else, a contemplative look appearing on her face.
Since she couldn't find any trace of the enemy, she could just wait for them to come to her.
But… wasn't that basically the same as Shokuhou-senpai's suggestion to carry on as usual and do nothing for now?
--+--
"I did receive that email. It was delivered by the Daihaseisai operating committee."
Sitting ramrod straight, her hands neatly folded on the long table, a certain bun-girl looked rather nervous.
So it's finally here, she thought. She had received this cryptic email early in the morning, inviting her to be some kind of 'oath-taker' for the Daihaseisai.
In the Tokiwadai Middle School administrative office, the teacher the students affectionately called 'The School Superintendent,' Ms. Nagasawa, sat across the long table with a kindly smile, speaking in a gentle tone.
After Misaka-senpai had been summoned here before, Natsume-san had a strong premonition. Sure enough, it wasn't long before it was her turn.
It wasn't her first time in the office, but the atmosphere was still somewhat oppressive.
Compared to chatting with a teacher here, Natsume-san would much rather be out on the sports field, sweating with youthful exertion. Perhaps this was her love for sports showing itself.
Speaking of sports, Natsume-san found she didn't dislike the idea so much now.
"Would you be willing, Natsume-san? I personally highly recommend you for this. After all, you haven't publicly demonstrated your ability yet. I'm sure everyone is very curious."
This School Superintendent teacher had an even more imposing presence than her own Dorm Supervisor, but she wasn't as stern. A warm smile was constantly on her face.
--+--
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.