Today was a pretty good day—at least, that's what Misaka 10032 thought.
Even though it was pouring rain outside and her clothes were soaked through, nothing could dampen the feeling bubbling inside her.
What was this feeling called again?
Misaka 10032 thought hard for a moment—ah, right. It was called joy.
Standing in one of the ground-floor rooms of the Misaka Dormitory, Misaka 10032 slammed the door shut with a satisfying thud, cutting off the endless sea of blue goggles glinting from the hallway.
The dormitory only had two floors, twelve rooms total, and each room could hold exactly four people.
Once, someone had tried squeezing five in, and that little experiment had sparked the first flickers of rebellion among the Sisters—what they'd later come to call "resistance against tyranny." Ever since, the four-per-room rule had been set in stone.
With demand wildly outstripping supply, a little game called "Online Rock-Paper-Scissors Speed Challenge" had quietly swept through the Misaka Network.
The winner got dibs on the last open spot.
Inside her new room, Misaka 10032 curiously ran her fingers over the wool rug—supposedly imported straight from Green Green Prairie—and grinned that familiar Gekota-style smile. It felt just like the memories floating through the Network.
Ever since she'd set up her own access point in the Misaka Network, her arms didn't ache anymore, her legs didn't hurt, and she felt so energized she could sprint up five flights of stairs without breaking a sweat.
Everyone in the Network was brilliant, spoke kindly, and she absolutely loved hanging out there.
Misaka 10032, like most of her Sisters, enjoyed browsing through others' memories.
After all, everything was open—there were hardly any secrets between them.
Lately, though, with the new emotional program installed and researchers no longer forcing uploads, memory sharing had slowed to a crawl.
Still, they kept up daily chatter, like one big, cozy chatroom.
And all the memories uploaded before? Those had become shared treasure—new Sisters pored over every little detail like it was sacred scripture.
"You're not bad, rookie," Misaka 9986 said with the smug air of a seasoned upperclassman, though her inner pride was practically radiating.
Without a sound, Misaka 9986 had crept up behind Misaka 10032, striking a pose that screamed "veteran."
Outside the dorm, the street was packed with rows upon rows of expressionless Sisters.
"Hey! What's going on here? You're blocking the road—go find shelter instead of standing in the middle of the street!"
A car horn blared sharply. An irritable driver rolled down his window, squinting through the rain at the sea of identical faces.
The moment hundreds of Misakas turned their blank stares toward him, the man yelped and ducked back inside his car.
"Sorry, sir. We've got a bit of a situation, but we'll clear it up right away."
Misaka-senpai stepped forward from the crowd, calmly directing the Sisters to part and make way for the car.
"Honestly… even if you're all twins, this is ridiculous," the driver muttered, his tone softening now that his panic had passed. He started the engine and drove off, weaving carefully past the sea of clones.
"Everyone, go take shelter at the nearby supermarket. Don't just stand out here in the rain."
Misaka-senpai tugged gently at one Sister's arm, her voice laced with exasperation.
"Onee-sama, it's not time to leave yet. The battle for room assignment is still ongoing," Misaka 11098 declared solemnly.
Misaka-senpai's sigh deepened. She honestly didn't know what to do.
The Sisters weren't lacking in knowledge—but personality-wise, they were basically children.
Unless they were satisfied, they wouldn't budge. Compromise? Flexibility? Those were adult concepts that simply didn't compute for them.
"Don't worry, everyone. I'll handle the room situation. Just please, stop crowding here."
Misaka-senpai pulled out her trump card, promising with absolute confidence that every last Sister would get a room.
She was a scholarship student with a seven-figure stipend—a bona fide little rich kid—but even she couldn't afford to support nearly seven hundred Sisters on her own.
Still, sometimes you just had to bite the bullet.
"Onee-sama, this isn't about rooms anymore," Misaka 14530 spoke up. "10032 already uploaded her victory memory to the Network. What we want now… is the feeling of winning ourselves."
Misaka-senpai let out a quiet sigh in her mind.
Just then, a small patch of the storm clouds overhead parted, leaving a neat little hole directly above the Sisters.
Tiny as it was compared to the vast gray blanket of sky, to those below, it felt like the heavens themselves had changed color.
"The rain stopped," several Sisters murmured in unison.
High above, a tiny figure darted through the clouds, steadily widening that hole.
Worried that lightning might suddenly crackle out of the storm, Natsume Sonoko focused with laser precision, pushing back the clouds over the area.
But the clouds were thick—stubborn, even. It took her several minutes just to shove them aside, and the moment she relaxed, they oozed right back toward the center.
Clever as she was, Natsume had a trick up her sleeve: heat the clouds until the droplets evaporated back into vapor. Sure, the vapor would eventually condense again—but for now, a huge swath of sky was clear.
Translucent wings shimmered at her back, and the pale moonlight bathed her in an almost ethereal glow.
Down below, Misaka-senpai rubbed her eyes, bewildered.
Why did this feel so strangely familiar?
Her flight gear shattered into nothingness a split second before landing, and under gravity's gentle pull, Natsume touched down smoothly—like a veteran pilot who'd spent a lifetime in the skies.
(Though this particular pilot never bothered with an oxygen mask.)
"Natsume-san, that was amazing!"
Misaka-senpai blinked, snapping out of her daze.
She'd known about Natsume's abilities before, but seeing them up close like this? So this was Level 5 Temperature Control…
Unlike Railgun's raw destructive power, Misaka-senpai suddenly realized that Sonoko's ability shone in how it shaped the very environment around her.
If she could demonstrate that kind of influence consistently, she'd unquestionably earn her Level 5 title.
"It's… not that big a deal. Clearing that much sky was actually kinda exhausting," Natsume admitted, cheeks flushing slightly at the praise.
"Oh! Right—I should dry everyone's clothes before they catch a cold!"
She suddenly remembered, flustered, waving her arms dramatically.
Later, seated on a stone bench beside the Misaka Apartments, Natsume Sonoko watched as the Sisters finally crowned their victor in the online rock-paper-scissors tournament.
That game actually looked kind of fun.
"Misaka-senpai, what did the doctor say? Did he agree to let the Sisters rent apartments outside?"
The moment Misaka-senpai hung up the phone, Natsume leaned in anxiously.
"Doctor Heaven Canceller gave his approval," Misaka-senpai replied, relief washing over her. Far from being angry at their antics, the good doctor had been surprisingly understanding.
"He also said not to worry about their living expenses. Academy City decided to grant the Sisters monthly scholarships—same as any regular Level 2 student."
"And regarding dormitories," she added, her expression lightening, "the doctor's already negotiating with the Board. They'll approve housing for all seven hundred Sisters soon." Just moments ago, she'd been on the verge of calling her own family for help.
Living in Academy City for so long, most students had grown used to handling things on their own—they rarely asked their families for anything anymore.
"That's great!" Natsume beamed. That meant the Sisters could finally live like normal students.
But then, her thoughts drifted to Reiko.
Reiko's status was still… awkward. Technically, she remained undocumented in Academy City—but sooner or later, that problem needed solving.
Natsume had considered asking Doctor Heaven Canceller for help, but something held her back.
Just because someone was kind didn't mean you could keep leaning on them. The whole situation left her feeling uneasy.
"Oh, and the doctor did say one more thing," Misaka-senpai added, glancing at the distracted girl beside her, whose twin buns bobbed slightly as she spaced out. "They can't skip their scheduled cell adjustments. If they do, the dormitory gets revoked."
"No problem," Natsume said firmly, smiling. "I know the Sisters can handle it."
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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.