Human joys and sorrows don't truly connect, Misaka-senpai simply found them noisy.
Watching the two grown-ups—who were chatting like long-lost friends, growing more engrossed by the minute—Railgun's face wore an uncharacteristically pensive silence.
'Really, I should've insisted on taking my mom to find a hotel first.'
"Are you alright, Misaka-senpai?"
Natsume Sonoko poked the dazed upperclassman standing frozen in place, unable to hold back any longer.
But Natsume-san seemed quite cheerful at the moment; the curve of her lips betrayed her inner delight as she held her phone, ready to answer at a moment's notice.
She still refused to make the first call—Natsume-san's stubbornness wasn't easily swayed.
Usually, she maintained an expressionless, aloof demeanor, and her spaced-out look left a strong impression.
But whenever she got happy, her true nature showed through. What deep, hidden thoughts could a young girl like her really have?
"By the way, isn't Shirai-san here?"
Glancing around, Natsume-san finally noticed someone seemed to be missing—no wonder the atmosphere felt a bit dull.
"Kuroko's at the hospital for a follow-up."
"And one more thing—I met the Sisters today."
Misaka-senpai lowered her head, speaking thoughtfully.
"I see… Are the Sisters having any issues?"
Caught off guard, the girl with ulterior motives probed cautiously.
As one of the few in the know, Misaka-senpai almost exclusively discussed the Sisters with Natsume-san.
Though Shirai-san knew a little, she kept it to herself—both of them overthought things and chose to bottle it up.
It was similar during the Tree Diagram Remnant incident; communication really is key.
Even Natsume-san, who thought she saw through everything, seemed trapped in this same strange cycle.
Because she cared deeply, she overanalyzed everything—and so the cycle continued.
"No, the doctors said they're recovering well. They should finish treatment in another week or two. After that, regular check-ups will be enough."
Diverting her attention, Misaka-senpai seemed to forget her mother was currently in a meeting, a faint smile appearing.
Among the Misaka Sisters, Natsume-san seemed more popular than she was—thinking about it, Misaka-senpai found that pretty disheartening.
Come to think of it, she'd even chatted with a Misaka Sister about Natsume-san. Their most vivid memory was of a certain bun-headed girl unceremoniously knocking out an entire Sister squad.
One moment, she was all polite; the next, she'd taken everyone out and hauled them off—truly a demon-like figure.
And it seemed the Sisters had been influenced by that same bun-head's twisted logic—things like "the meaning of life is that there is no meaning." Some of the Sisters were already sliding into lazy, laid-back habits.
"That's good."
Natsume-san tilted her head, thinking Misaka-senpai had discovered something.
Though she'd promised Shokuhou-senpai not to tell, if Misaka-senpai figured it out herself, there was nothing to be done.
Besides, keeping things from Misaka-senpai weighed on Natsume-san; she felt her senpai deserved to know the situation the Sisters were facing.
Several days had passed since the Tree Diagram Remnant incident. Shirai-san's injuries were slowly healing.
Misaka-senpai had shaken off her gloom from that period and moved past her self-doubt.
Telling her now probably wouldn't be too hard to accept—but then there was Shokuhou-senpai's side to consider. What a headache.
What troubled Natsume-san most, though, was the awful relationship between Misaka-senpai and Shokuhou-senpai.
For some reason, Shokuhou-senpai alone showed Misaka-senpai a cold shoulder, even though both had good personalities and plenty of friends.
So, chasing down Ladylee and also investigating that shady website could wait—it'd be better to find time to talk with Shokuhou-senpai first.
After all that, Natsume-san's mind wasn't really on any of this anymore. She was just waiting for her phone to ring.
Right now, her top priority was simply to meet a certain lady she'd often seen on video calls but hadn't met in person for years.
Other important matters had faded in comparison.
Given that, entrusting critical tasks to a certain bun-head was risky—at the very least, her priorities might get shuffled. Fortunately, so far, everything had gone smoothly.
"My phone's ringing!"
With a sudden gasp, Natsume-san hurriedly snatched up her phone.
Eyes wide, she scrutinized the caller ID intently, and her whole demeanor lit up with excitement.
"Misaka-senpai, I've got to go! See you tonight!"
Her mind already miles away, she didn't fully register her senpai's surprised expression.
The unrestrained Natsume-san shot skyward, launching straight up in a standing position.
Yet her skirt stayed firmly pressed against her thighs, and her figure vanished from sight within a second of takeoff.
Well then, the ace pilot has entered the stage.
As one of Academy City's ultimate weapons, Natsume-san quickly reached high subsonic speed and held it steady.
Due to certain limitations, she couldn't sustainably use supersonic speeds—that is, speeds above Mach 1.
Her current equations couldn't continuously provide the thrust needed to maintain supersonic velocity.
If she pushed for a short burst of acceleration to break the sound barrier, going all-out might do it—but the problems she'd face were significant.
The human body can theoretically endure any speed, because no matter how fast you go, the relative velocity between your organs remains zero.
It's the same principle as flying in a plane, riding a train, or traveling in a shuttle.
What the human body truly can't withstand is acceleration—especially under gravity's influence.
If Natsume-san accelerated too quickly, her body would be the first to give out.
Even with controlled acceleration, the strain on her was considerable.
Venturing into these underdeveloped areas of ability, Natsume-san couldn't precisely manage her own acceleration shifts, easily risking irreversible physical harm.
"Is that the most adorable Sonoko-chan in the whole wide world?"
A light, melodious woman's voice came through the phone—tinged with laughter.
It sounded somewhat like Natsume-san's own soft, gentle tone, though that bun-headed girl had recently learned to deliver merciless verbal blows to her enemies.
"Well, maybe not the most adorable in the whole world… but close enough."
Normally, Natsume-san would deflect such blatant praise with a modest "Oh, it's not like that…" or similar. But there are always exceptions.
--+--
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.