Vast, open spaces have a way of stirring strange and wondrous thoughts about the boundless expanse of the world—a sensation rarely felt by those living in a big city.
Natsume's strongest impression of School District 10 was its abundance of desolate, vacant lots, looking like so many scars upon the city's surface.
Often enough, these scars contained abandoned research facilities or clusters of buildings—places where delinquents might very well be holed up.
This was one of the nasty side effects of District 10's cheap land prices. A great number of highly polluting, high-risk research institutes had simply relocated here, further driving down property values and turning the area into a dumping ground—the price Academy City paid for advancing science.
Following the female guard piloting a battered Powered Suit, Natsume Sonoko felt she was closing in on the trail Shokuhou-senpai had left behind.
Sure enough, it was just as she'd suspected—Shokuhou-senpai must have preset some kind of program in this guard.
Natsume Sonoko didn't know the purpose of it all, but finding a clue was what mattered. Discovering one person under control was no different from finding ten, as far as she was concerned.
Those under mental control still retained their physical instincts.
Not only could this one pilot a Powered Suit, she smoothly passed through the juvenile correctional facility's security measures. Behaviorally, she was no different from a normal person.
Still, Natsume couldn't help but take an extra glance at this Powered Suit.
Though an older model, it was a version specially designed to combat and suppress ability-users, equipped with mid-to-long range weaponry including stun guns and restraint guns.
Its combat capability was a far cry from those neutered versions with their 'hockey sticks' from the days of Aritomi Haruki and his crew.
The juvenile correctional facility certainly housed more than just this one suit, but it was the only one Natsume could see right now.
They crossed a weedy vacant lot piled with construction debris—seems the owner wasn't big on environmental consciousness.
Only after taking a careful look at her surroundings did Natsume realize there was an abandoned freight transfer station here.
Judging by the sign outside, it belonged to the Shirai conglomerate. No doubt another failed investment by that twin-tailed girl's family.
She had no interest in that classmate's unfortunate investment history. The bun-girl could be quite serious at times, and her focus never wavered.
A strange feeling suddenly rose in her heart—Natsume had already caught the scent of something.
As the damaged Powered Suit charged into the crowd, joining the fray between two warring groups, Natsume easily detected a large number of heat signatures around the perimeter of the transfer station.
Even from her distant position, Natsume finally let out a sigh of relief. She pretty much understood what had happened to Shokuhou-senpai.
It was probably an ambush of some sort—one tailored specifically to counter Shokuhou's capabilities. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been forced into her current predicament.
But then worry crept in again. If that were the case, then Shokuhou-senpai's plan to extract information on the mastermind from the juvenile correctional facility had actually been compromised.
But counting carefully, only she and Shokuhou-senpai herself had known about the noon operation.
So… does that mean the traitor is me?
Absolutely impossible. Shokuhou-senpai might have told that foreign blonde.
Sure enough, remnants of that Level 6 Shift project just couldn't be trusted. The certain bun-girl's prejudice remained deeply ingrained.
Turning these thoughts over in her mind, Natsume didn't slow her movements. After pausing briefly, she headed toward the heat signatures several dozen meters away.
But just as Natsume Sonoko prepared to advance, a wave of dizziness assaulted her, as if something was interfering with her brain.
This feeling… 'Capacity Down'?
Natsume immediately recalled a certain device she once treated like a personal stereo.
Back then, she'd listened to it obsessively—not just the chaotic noise, but also its effect on disrupting an esper's AIM diffusion field. Causing neurasthenia in espers was just the beginning.
The effect of a 'Capacity Down' device was closely related to the power of the equipment used.
It was only when the headphone version became less and less effective on a certain someone, and she couldn't exactly carry around huge speakers to disturb the public, that Natsume finally stopped doing it.
Even when espers weren't using their abilities, 'Capacity Down' could affect brainwaves through the unconsciously released AIM diffusion field, causing interference.
But the effect of what she was encountering now seemed even stronger, enough to put heavy pressure on someone already accustomed to low-power 'Capacity Down'.
Most importantly, this device didn't work through sound, but via a more subtle method, preventing Natsume from isolating it using her pseudo-vacuum technique.
After a moment's thought, Natsume concluded it was probably something like electromagnetic waves.
Misaka-senpai would probably have a way to deal with it, but she herself didn't have any good solutions, unless she could generate a similar electromagnetic barrier by using triboelectricity.
But Natsume's proficiency in electromagnetism was still under development—whether she could create an effective barrier was questionable.
Electromagnetic waves could travel indefinitely far, but were easily affected by environment and structures—staying inside a building worsened the signal, just like that. So, Shokuhou-senpai was most likely inside one of the buildings here.
The reason Shokuhou could still control some guards was probably due to commands implanted in advance.
Even if the enemy interfered with her mental control ability, they couldn't undo abilities already in effect.
Having reached these conclusions, Natsume didn't charge in immediately, but instead retreated beyond the interference device's range.
The moment she left its range, Natsume precisely pinpointed the attackers' side.
The attackers held a numerical advantage and were equipped with powerful Powered Suits. But since Shokuhou controlled a fair number of suits as well, the battle seemed to have reached a stalemate for now.
However, this fragile balance was soon shattered. As Natsume entered the fray, one Powered Suit was torn in half at the waist, a high-school-aged boy spilling out from inside.
Then a second, a third, and more followed.
Natsume swiftly disabled the suits by targeting their joints, her powerful tearing force instantly exceeding the fatigue limit of some metals.
It all happened in a very short time. By the time the attackers realized what was happening, Natsume had already pretty much destroyed all their Powered Suits.
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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!
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