Tucking the stray hairs blocking her vision back into place, Natsume Sonoko mechanically turned her head, her gaze fixed intently on the two figures emerging from the dark alley.
Hmm, I see. So they found a gift card in that shady alley.
It wasn't exactly a big deal, certainly not a criminal incident, but she couldn't shake the feeling that this whole situation felt strangely familiar.
"Wait a minute, that gift card you found, is it...?"
Natsume Sonoko hurriedly called out, trying to catch up to the two high schoolers, only to bump squarely into someone right at the alley's entrance.
"My apologies."
Her own build put her at a distinct disadvantage in such a sudden collision, nearly sending her tumbling to the ground, but she still managed to apologize first.
"Huh? Saten-san?"
Taking a closer look, Sonoko saw a girl with long black hair bent over with her back turned. Recognizing that familiar silhouette, Sonoko immediately realized who it was.
"Sorry about that! I was so focused, I completely forgot to check behind me."
Saten Ruiko turned around, one hand rubbing the back of her head, speaking with a slightly awkward laugh.
"Don't worry about it. So, what are you up to, Saten-san? Don't tell me you're looking for gift cards too?" Sonoko couldn't help her curiosity, asking almost instinctively.
"So you've heard about it too, Natsume-san? It seems more and more people are finding out. I need to speed up if I want to find more treasure!"
A determined look flashed across Saten's face, as if she'd just resolved herself to something.
"I only just heard a little bit about it. So, there are quite a few of these gift cards around?"
"Yep, tons! Actually, the rumor's been going around for a while, spreading on that website. It's only in the last few days that the cards seem to have multiplied. No idea who's losing them, though."
Saten's face lit up with excitement; she always got like this when talking about urban legends.
She pulled out an envelope, opening it to reveal a gift card inside.
"Ta-da~~ This one has eight thousand yen on it!" Saten grinned proudly, a glimpse of her small canine tooth showing.
"Wow, that's amazing," Sonoko said, unable to hide her envy. For a girl constantly pinching pennies, eight thousand yen could solve a lot of problems.
"Hey, Natsume-san, wanna join the treasure hunt?" Saten asked curiously.
"Sounds pretty fun, but I'm on patrol right now."
After a few seconds of hesitation and careful thought, Sonoko replied. Even if she did find one, she'd probably have to turn it in to the Judgment branch anyway.
"Oh, that's right, Saten-san, are your extra lessons finished for today?" Sonoko asked, remembering Saten's recent cram sessions.
Saten had been incredibly busy lately, leaving early in the morning and often not returning until two or three in the afternoon. It seemed the same was true for Jufuku Mihata too.
"I just got back from them, actually. According to the schedule, they should be over in the next day or two."
"And," Saten continued, her voice full of resolve, "I'm planning to use the money I find to buy some gifts for Haruue and Banri. But the amount I have now is still too small. I need to keep at it!"
Even with her busy schedule, Saten had heard about what happened to Banri. The news about Uiharu and the others being kidnapped had given her quite a scare.
"Banri and the others would be really happy to know that," Sonoko nodded in agreement.
With a wave, she watched the intrepid treasure hunter depart.
It was only then that Sonoko remembered Shirai. She looked around blankly, but there was no sign of the teleporter anywhere on the bustling street.
A certain bun-haired girl stood deep in thought, lost in her musings.
'Well, if Shirai-san wandered off, she wandered off. It's not like I need to worry about her.'
But these gift cards in envelopes reminded Sonoko of something, filling in another piece of the puzzle in her memory.
'So, someone is deliberately littering Academy City's dark corners with these gift cards to draw attention and disrupt the Level 6 Shift Project.'
That kind of experiment couldn't be conducted in the public eye. Combined with the need for various specific locations, this method probably had some effect.
'So, there are others like me, trying to stop that horrible plan,' Sonoko thought, feeling a sense of camaraderie with this unknown ally.
'It's one approach. Instead of my aimless searching for the Sisters, maybe I should focus on doing things that can actively hinder the experiments.' She lowered her head in contemplation, a complex emotion flickering in her eyes.
'The simplest way would be to make the #1 lose his research value... but there's no way I can do that.'
'Or, destroy all the research institutes attempting the experiments... But unless I take out all the researchers simultaneously, they'd just relocate.'
A few students passing by gave the Judgment member standing motionless in the middle of the pathway odd looks, detouring around her.
The girl, unknowingly obstructing traffic, seemed utterly lost in her thoughts. 'Maybe I really can do more... but what else can I do?'
"Are you alright, miss?" A kind-hearted high school girl patted Sonoko on the shoulder, looking concernedly at the Temperature Controller who had been zoning out on the street.
"Ah!" Startled from her thoughts, Sonoko snapped back to reality, looking confusedly at the high school girl before her.
"Sorry, I was just thinking about something," Sonoko hurriedly explained.
Coming to her senses, she moved to the side of the path. Her face showed a hint of frustration. Extravagant acts like distributing gift cards were beyond her means, no matter how much she wished otherwise.
But what other actions could draw people's attention to the dark corners and indirectly disrupt the experiments?
Urban legends, perhaps?
"Hey! You vanished in the blink of an eye, Natsume-san. I didn't expect to find you slacking off here."
With a sudden swish of a skirt, a certain teleporter landed steadily, stirring up a small gust of wind.
Shirai Kuroko looked displeased, arms crossed, her gaze fixed directly on Sonoko's face.
"I am not slacking! I was thinking about something. Something important."
Natsume Sonoko stated with complete seriousness, slightly offended by the accusation of laziness. If she were just taking a break, she might have admitted it.
"Fine," Shirai said, skepticism still evident on her face as she sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "But we need to move on to the next area now."
"Shirai-san, how do you think we could make those dark, unmonitored corners, the ones without even streetlights, become more... lively?"
Sonoko looked up at Shirai, hoping the Judgment ace might have some good ideas.
"Natsume-san, why are you suddenly asking these kinds of questions?"
Shirai found it strange, but she still gave the question serious thought.
"If we're talking about places like that... they're probably only frequented by Skill-Out gangs. Most other people would avoid them," Shirai replied after a moment's consideration, though she sounded a bit uncertain.
"That's true, but there are exceptions. I just found out that a lot of people are searching those dark corners for gift cards right now."
Sonoko continued, explaining what she had just witnessed.
"Gift cards? What gift cards?" Shirai asked, surprised, pressing for details.
'Looks like Shirai-san isn't as well-informed,' Sonoko thought silently. 'I found out more just by taking a short break.'
"So, here's what happened earlier..." Sonoko proceeded to explain the situation in detail.
"Whether it's true or not, it's probably worth looking into," Shirai said, making a mental note of the matter after hearing the explanation.
"Skill-Out gangs? I think there are something like seventy or eighty thousand of them across Academy City, right?"
Even as she spoke, Sonoko's mind was racing.
Shirai's words had given her an idea, and she vaguely recalled some statistics she'd seen somewhere.
For example, that 'Big Spider' Skill-Out group had numbered over a few hundred members. Even though Sonoko's mass-reporting had led to their arrest, it seemed they'd been released already, though the group itself was effectively finished.
She didn't want to dwell on why Academy City had so many delinquents—it was just one of its 'special characteristics.' The city's dark side wasn't just about a lack of streetlights.
"As expected of Shirai-san! Even late at night, those Skill-Out gangs operate without restraint. They'd make perfect 'atmosphere enhancers.'"
Natsume Sonoko entered full contemplation mode, shooting an admiring glance at Shirai, which only made the teleporter more suspicious.
'But how to get the Skill-Out gangs to roam around everywhere is another problem. I need to think about this carefully.'
In short, it was a major undertaking. If she could eliminate Academy City's dark corners, even just somewhat, it would likely slow down the Level 6 Shift Project.
The Judgment patrol had to continue. Following Shirai, the two set off for the next area.
Peaceful and uneventful, with no violence or conflicts—Academy City's daytime was serene. Most of Judgment's work involved helping children cross the street or giving directions to lost students.
The patrol would last until evening, at which point Sonoko could clock out. As for Shirai, she often stayed out until lights-out.
The first patrol went surprisingly smoothly. By evening, Natsume Sonoko was back at her dorm. It happened to be Tokiwadai's dinner time. After a satisfying meal in the dormitory cafeteria, she finally returned to her room.
Closing the door to room 210, her eyes glanced towards the firmly shut door of room 208 nearby. Neither Shirai nor Misaka-senpai were in their dorm.
Opening a certain urban legend website, Sonoko quickly spotted the latest trending topics.
--+--
[The #3 Railgun Battles the #4 Meltdowner!]
[Envelopes Containing Gift Cards Found in Secluded Corners!]
[The Mystery of the #1's Gender!]
--+--
The recent urban legends were quite intriguing, enough to pique even Sonoko's interest. However, her focus remained fixed on the second one.
Sonoko carefully read the post about the gift card legend. In recent days, more and more people had found envelopes containing gift cards throughout District 7.
It had practically sparked a treasure hunt craze in the area. The strange thing was, there hadn't been a single reported discovery in any of the neighboring districts.
"I see. So it's only District 7?"
Reading the post's content, Sonoko felt she had found another important clue, a faint smile appearing on her face.
Cross-referencing the urban legend with her own memories, she roughly identified the current stage of the Level 6 Shift Project's experimental locations.
'In that case, reviewing the footage at the Judgment office was somewhat useful after all.'
As the experiments progressed, more and more clones of Misaka-senpai would likely appear here, making them easier to find later.
Sonoko's plan for when she found the Sisters was simple: knock out every one she found, find a place to keep them, and deal with the consequences later.
Her ability was particularly well-suited for this kind of thing. Thinking about it, she seemed to have a surprising talent for this sort of operation.
"But what's the best approach right now?" Sonoko scratched her head, feeling frustrated again.
Although she had a general direction for hindering the experiments, she was unexpectedly short on specific ideas. She wasn't like Shirai, who could come up with plan after plan, each one different.
"Got it!"
After about ten minutes of intense brainstorming, she suddenly exclaimed and stood up, evaluating the bizarre plan that had just been born in her mind less than five minutes ago.
"I'm a genius."
Natsume Sonoko hurriedly sat down at her desk, opened her notebook, and began writing down her inspiration in a script that looked like Martian hieroglyphics—a writing system as peculiar as its owner, seeming perfectly matched.
"Add a little something here... Right, I also need to get ahold of a Judgment-specific map. I need to pinpoint the locations of the various Skill-Out groups."
Sonoko checked the time. There were still one or two hours before lights-out—plenty of time for a trip to the Judgment branch.
After reviewing her plan from top to bottom and finding no major flaws, it seemed Natsume Sonoko had set her sights on the innocent, collateral-damage-bound Skill-Out gangs.
Regarding these guys who had caused her trouble multiple times, Sonoko insisted she held no personal grudge.
[Want to reclaim your lost treasure? Then come to District 7 and follow the clues!]
A certain Natsume Sonoko had even thoughtfully designed a bold slogan for this 'District 7 Dark Corner Remediation Plan.'
--+--
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.