"Excuse me! Kiyotaka-san!"

"Thump thump thump thump!!"

A familiar voice is heard from outside the door along with a loud knock. The sound woke me up.

It's been two days since the Graviton bombings incident ended. My summer vacation starts today.

"Kiyotaka-san! Ayanokōji Kiyotaka-san please wake up!!"

Commemorating the fact that I no longer need to go to school. Just when I thought I could enjoy a leisurely sleep to celebrate of not needing to go to school, but awakening by a male classmate's wake-up call is the worst thing I've ever woken up to.

With my consciousness still unclear,

I dragged my heavy body toward the entrance.

When I opened the front door, Kamijou was standing there looking flustered.

"Good. You finally woke up!"

"What happened? Didn't you have supplementary lessons today?"

"I don't care if there are supplementary lessons or not. Come over here quickly!"

Kamijo looks flustered. Kamijou attendance is dangerous, but he's not the type of person who skips school for no apparently reason. Maybe, probably, surely. At least he shouldn't be thinking of actively slacking off. For Kamijou to be here now, something must have happened.

"...Alright."

"Come here!"

As soon as you reach Kamijou, you will be guided to the next room.

"What's this..."

Kamijou's room was insanely hot. I wonder if the air conditioner and the fan are not working. It stinks even more. It smelled like something rotten.

"...Feel free to complain to Biri Biri about that."

"...Did you have a fight with her again?"

The reason why Kamijou's room is so hot must be that the electric system went crazy during a dispute with Misaka.

The smell is also due to the fact that the function of the refrigerator has been lost, and the food inside is... Even though there was nothing wrong with my room next door, Kamijou continues to attract misfortune as always. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Misaka indirectly defeated Kamijou.

That aside.

When I entered the room, there was a girl in a white nun sitting on Kamijou's bed.

I wonder if the age is 14 years old. She has a young face, long silver hair, and green eyes. She has an impressive appearance that, once seen, cannot be forgotten.

"Kamijou, did you bring her to your room?"

"That's not true! To tell you the truth... I found her stuck on the veranda this morning."

"What are you talking about?"

Are you stuck on the balcony? This is the 7th floor, right? There is no reason why people are caught. Sure he's not smart, but he never had a crazy head

"... Then, that's how it is"

For the time being, it looks like it's going to be troublesome, so I turn on my heels and try to go back to my room. Kamijo grabbed my clothes and refused to let me go.

"I-It's true, I swear! I mean, even If you can't believe it yet! But it's true!"

The girl was caught on the balcony. If she was going to make something up, she could have come up with a better lie, but it seems like it's actually true. she doesn't appear to be lying.

"That's why I thought I should approach someone who might have some kind of conclusions to this kind of situation."

"...I'll listen to the reasons why you wanted to approach me later, but unfortunately, I don't know anything."

"I see. Well, then I guess I'll just have to ask this person directly."

"You could have started with that from the beginning."

"Well, I was kind of panicking a bit. And I thought it would be better to involve you just in case."

"Let's talk more about that later."

Depending on what he has to say, it might be a good idea to reconsider being friends with this guy.

"...Anyway, let's ask. Hey, why are you hanging out on the veranda of our room?"

Kamijou and I turn our eyes to the Sister.

"That's..."

As Kamijou and I look at Sister, she starts to say something.

And then it happened. A loud rumbling sound came from her stomach. The source of the noise was definitely her abdomen.

"I was more hungry than that. I would be happy if you served me a meal."

"Sigh"

Haaaaaaaaaaaaa...

The food in Kamijou's room was completely destroyed, so he moved to my room.

"Thank you for the meal. Aya is a nice person."

"If I don't let you eat, you gonna tell people that I'll imprisonment you."

The Sister ate up the leftovers from yesterday.

"So, why were you hanging out on my balcony?"

For some reason, Kamijo, who also had breakfast in my room, asked the sister again.

"I fell. I was actually going to jump from rooftop to rooftop."

"Jump?"

This area is a corner where student dormitories are lined up. Buildings similar to the eight-story dormitory we live in are lined up side by side, and as you can see from the veranda, the gap between the buildings is only about 2 meters. Certainly, it would be possible to jump from rooftop to rooftop in the manner of a long jump.

But still

"It's the eighth floor, right? If you make one wrong move, you're going to hell, aren't you?"

As Kamijou said, if you accidentally fell, it wouldn't end well.

"Yeah, you can't even build a grave for a suicide."

And Index said something Kamijou didn't quite understand,

"I had no choice. I was being chased."

"Were you being chased?"

"Rather than that, I have to introduce myself! My name is Index, you know?"

Eh?

"The index of forbidden books, its official name is 'Index-librorum-prohibitorum', but that's what people call it."

"Is that your real name? It's clearly a pseudonym."

Kamijou asked questioningly.

Some code name?

"... So, who chasing you?"

I don't think the name Index is his real name, but it's better to proceed with the story first.

"Yeah... what is it? Rosicrucians or Golden Dawn. I think it's a group like that, but I don't even know their names... They're not people who find meaning in their names."

"They?"

This time, Kamijou listened with awe. I mean that the other party is a group, an organization.

"Yeah," said Index, who was being chased, calmly.

"It's a magic society."

This is another surprising answer.

"Majutsu... Haa, what the hell is that!! Impossible!!"

"Huh? Did my Japanese sound strange? It's magic. Magic society."

Index in question seems confused by Kamijou's unexpected reaction.

"That mysterious new religion is a dangerous organization that says, ''Those who don't believe in the guru will be punished by heaven."

"...You're vaguely stupid, aren't you?"

"Huh"

Kamijou seem suspicious and Index senses it.

"We're researching things like supernatural powers in this city, so it wouldn't be surprising if there was something like magic don't you think?"

When I was in that place, one of the ''learning materials" was about those who can use that kind of power.

"Is that true?"

"Mu! There is magic!"

Kamijo dismisses my words as unbelievable. Index also insists against him who simply denied magic. Kamijo lazily responds to such Index.

"I'm sorry, I can't believe it. I can't believe in magic. I know various 'powers of supernatural powers' such as fire ability and clairvoyance, but I can't believe magic."

"...?"

Index tilted her head slightly.

"In academia city, psychic powers aren't uncommon. If you shoot Esperine into the veins of a human brain, attach electrodes to your neck, and record the rhythm with earphones, anyone can open a circuit and 'develop power' Everything is science. If you can explain it with that, it's only natural for anyone to believe in it, right?"

"...I don't understand."

"In short, he want to say that myths and occults are unscientific and unbelievable."

When I spoke for Kamijou, Index showed a frustrated look.

"It's strange that you believe in psychic powers but you don't believe in magic...Hey Aya, do you believe what I'm saying?"

"Don't point at me..."

This town is a school town. It's a city where supernatural powers are created through science. That's why people don't believe in the occult such as "magic" and "witchcraft".

Or is it imprinted not to believe?

"... Well, evidence is better than theory. Since you're saying that much, maybe you should demonstrate to convince us."

"That's right. What is magic in the first place? If you want me to believe, just show me."

Kamijo lazily demands that if you want him to believe you, show him. Index's face darkens a little.

"... I can't use it because I don't have magical powers."

"If you can't use it, you won't know if there's such a thing as magic!"

"There is! There is magic!"

You're following a parallel lines.

"...So, do you have any idea why the magic society is chasing you?"

"Kiyotaka, you..."

"Shut your mouth, Kamijou."

"Uh..."

"The reason why I was being chased, I think it was because the 103,000 magic books I had."

"Magic book? 103,000 books?"

"Yeah. The Book of Eibon, The Little Key of Solomon, The Book of the Dead...these are the representative ones."

"...Kiyotaka-san and Kamijou-san are already going to have a flat tire."

Kamijou opens his mouth, but I ignores it.

"It's a book that appears in mythology... so where is that book?"

100,000 volumes is the equivalent of an entire library. But it doesn't look like Index has that many books by any stretch of the imagination. I don't even see one.

"Does that mean you have a key to some warehouse?"

Kamijo says. I can certainly agree with that. However, Index shook her head.

"I have properly brought 103,000 books, all of them?"

""Eh?""

Our voices overlapped, and Kamijou scowled

"You're not saying you have some kind of invisible book, that only idiot can see are you?"

"Even if you're not an idiot, you can't see it. It's meaningless if someone can see it without your permission."

Well, that makes sense. Once secret information is seen by someone, it's not a secret anymore.

So, are you saying that the term "book" refers to something that's not in physical paper form?

"...You still don't believe it, huh? Is having superpowers really that amazing? Just because you have a slightly special ability doesn't mean you can belittle others."

"Well, that's true." Kamijou sighed softly

"Indeed, Index has a point. It's a different mindset to think that having superpowers automatically makes you better than others. It's wrong to think that having a mere one-trick pony makes you superior. But for the people living in this city, having these abilities can be a source of strength for them. So, I think we should be a bit lenient about this. Besides, we're also one of those who possess abilities."

"That's right, those fools. Don't twist your brain around it too much. You can bend a spoon with your hand anyway even incapable people can do quite a few things, In fact, I'm one of those espers, too."

"A-anyway, you say you're an esper, but what can you do?"

Indeed, from Index's perspective, superpowers might be similar to the magic that Kamijou sees. Just as Kamijou can't believe in magic, Index can't believe in superpowers.

"Well, you see... It's a bit difficult to explain what I can do."

Kamijou appeared a bit puzzled. Describing the power of his right hand to someone wasn't something he often did.

"My right hand... It's called Imagine Breaker. With this right hand, I can negate any supernatural power I touch, whether it's Railgun or even a supposed miracle of God. Yep."

"Huh?"

"Why are you looking at me like you're watching a shady infomercial?"

"Well, you know, when someone who doesn't even know God's name tells you they can negate God's miracles, it's a bit hard to believe."

Surprisingly, Index picked her ear with her little finger and snorted.

"Gu... disgusting...! To be ridiculed by such a bogus magical girl...!!"

"It's not a ridiculed!"

"Then show me something!"

"Good! Then I'll show you! This! These clothes!"

Index stood up and showed Kamijou the monastic uniform she was wearing.

"This! These clothes! This is the ultimate defensive barrier called the 'Walking Church'!"

Index stretched out her hands and emphasized the white monastic clothes she was wearing.

"What's that? You've been throwing around incomprehensible technical terms this whole time. I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Arghhh!!"

Kamijou cannot be convinced just by insisting, and Index is treated lightly. She finally got pissed off and dashed to the kitchen in my room. As she did, she opened the shelf and took out her kitchen knife.

"If you stab me with this, you'll understand!"

With that declaration of self-assertion, she confidently spoke, all while handing him a knife. But just so we're clear, it was my knife.

"Yeah, then I'm gonna stab you! ...Like that would happen! Are you stupid?

'I 'll end up in a juvenile detention center!"

"No need to worry! This is a copy of the Shroud of Turin, so its strength is absolute! It can deflect and absorb any attack, be it physical or magical!"

"So, basically, if what you're saying is true and that really is magic or supernatural power, then just touching it with my right hand would turn it into dust?"

"If your power is for real, that is "

"All right, fine, I'll show you!!" Kamijou, finally losing his patience, extends his right hand toward Index's wearing habit.

If Index's claims are true, then when Kamijou's right hand touches her, things are going to get crazy. Feeling a bad premonition, I turn around just before Kamijou's right hand lands on Index's shoulder.

Along with the sound of palin and broken glass, there was a sound like clothes being torn,

"Kaaaaaa!"

"Gaaaaaa!"

The screams of a girl and a boy echoed through the room, but I never turned around.

I want these guys to leave my room.

After Kamijou became the precious victim of magic proof, I put Index in a different outfit (my pajamas), and kicked them both out of the room. I was walking outside.

While there's certainly the need for emergency evacuation if pursuers arrive, I just want to fully enjoy the seemingly short summer vacation so just leave it to Kamijou.

However, now that I'm outside, I realize I don't really have anything to do. It's hot out here. Maybe I should go somewhere cooler or more refreshing.

"Hey, Ayanokōji-san."

I looked around at the sudden voice I heard. Then there is Saten waving on a bench under the shade, and Uiharu sitting next to her.

"Nice to see you again."

"Yeah, quite a coincidence."

"Where are you going, Ayanokōji-san?"

"Well, I stepped outside, but I don't really have anything to do."

"Oh, I know that feeling sometimes. Oh, if you're interested, would you like to come to a shop with us? I actually found something amazing yesterday."

"Something amazing?"

"Hehe, that's right~ Well, let me show you~ Ta-da!"

Saten gleefully takes out a small device from her pocket.

"Isn't that just a music player?"

"It's all about what's inside, you see~ That's right... I'll tell you about it later~"

She's really making a big deal out of it. I wonder if there's something really special inside?

"Well then, shall we go?"

"Wait a sec, Saten-san! I actually have disciplinary committee duties later... This is too sudden, please wait!"

Saten's already moving ahead, and Uiharu hurries to catch up.

Feeling a bit bad for declining their invitation last time, I decided to follow Saten and Uiharu.

After entering an air-conditioned café, Saten starts talking about the current urban legend while enjoying a pudding parfait.

"Level Upper? What's that?"

"Don't you know, Ayanokōji-san? It's one of the urban legends in Academy City. In simple terms, it's about how ability users can easily increase their level, and those without abilities can become ability users."

An urban legend in the city of science, huh?

"So, are you saying that the bomber from the day before yesterday was using that?"

"Probably... According to Shirai-san, even though the power was on par with a Level 4 High-Level Esper, the level of the suspect in the library records was only Level 2 Esper," Saten says.

"Saten-san! You shouldn't be telling outsiders about this!" Uiharu protests.

"It's okay, Uiharu. I'm technically an outsider too. Besides, Ayanokōji-san might come up with some brilliant reasoning to solve the case again," Saten adds.

In the conversation, they seem to be discussing an incident involving an urban legend called "Level Upper" where ability users can increase their levels and those without abilities can gain them. The recent bomber incident might have involved this urban legend, with the suspect having a lower ability level than expected.

Don't expect me to do that. Generally, solving cases is the job of disciplinary committee members and anti-skills.

Even so, what is level upper?

In Academy City, the process of manifesting superpowers, known as "Development," is also referred to as part of the curriculum schedule. Specifically, it involves various methods such as drug administration, hypnotic suggestion, direct electrical stimulation to the brain or neck, sensory deprivation, and more, to develop the brain's structure. This process leads to a change in the brain's structure, allowing individuals to acquire a unique understanding and perception called "Personal Reality."

However, it seems too convenient that even after undergoing such a curriculum, students who initially couldn't activate their abilities later become able to use them.

Is it interfering with their personal reality?

Or perhaps...

"Oh my, is that Uiharu and Saten-san... and you're Ayanokōji-san?"

"Why are you with Saten-san and others!?"

"...We just bumped into each other."

An unexpected guest entered the scene. It was Mikoto, Shirai, and a woman dressed in a white lab coat with long chestnut hair that seemed lifeless.

"Who's that person...?" Saten ask

"I'm a neuroscientist named Kimiyama Harumi. Nice to meet you. And you guys are...?"

"I'm Saten Ruiko."

"I'm Uiharu Kazari."

"...I'm Ayanokōji Kiyotaka."

"Ayanokōji? Hmm..."

As soon as she heard my name,

Dr.Kimiyama's expression turned puzzled.

"Is something the matter?"

"Well... I feel like I've heard that name somewhere before, but maybe I'm mistaken. I apologize."

"...No, it's fine."

Her reaction was quite cryptic. As far as I remembered, we've never met before. I have a bad feeling about this. I really hope it's just a misunderstanding.

"By the way, are you a brain researcher...? Wait! Could it be that there's something wrong with Shirai-san's brain!?"

What kind of thought process led Uiharu to that conclusion?

"We were discussing the matter regarding the Level Upper."

In response to Uiharu's impolite question, Shirai answered while veins popped on her forehead. Upon hearing the term "Level Upper," Saten paused mid-bite on her parfait.

"Level Upper? Well, if that's the case, then I..."

"It seems like we'll be searching for the possessor of the Level Upper and investigate them."

Saten took out her music player from her pocket, but upon hearing Shirai's words, she stopped in her tracks.

"Huh? Why?"

"We do want to gather detailed information about Level Upper, but... considering how far it's gone, there's almost no doubt that there are significant side effects to having Level Upper. So, we want to retrieve it before it's used, if possible."

"Besides, users tend to easily turn to crime."

Saten's smile from earlier hardened, and she slowly put the music player back into her pocket.

As if to hide it from Shirai and the others.

"What's wrong, Saten-san?"

"Oh no"

She hurriedly pulled my hand back and slid it under the table, but it suddenly hit the iced coffee glass and the contents spilled onto Kiyama-sensei's feet.

"Yeah?"

"I-I'm sorry!!"

"No, you don't have to worry about it. It's just the stockings that are hanging on you, so if you take them off..."

Eh? What is she doing?

Mr. Kiyama calmly took off the skirt and stockings She was wearing as if she were in her own room.

Wait a minute, this is a public coffee shop.

"Why did you strip in public! Seriously!?"

"But... to think that there are men who would feel lustful upon seeing my body, which lacks any distinctive features..."

"Everyone has their own preferences!"

"And hey, how long are you going to keep staring you pervert!!"

Misaka blushed bright red and delivered a powerful right hook to me.

Ouch.

Thinking that it would be useless for him to stay, Ayanokōji left the coffee shop while cooling his left cheek with the ice bag that the waitress had given him.

After leaving the coffee shop, Shirai thanks Kiyama.

"Thank you for your time today."

"No, I'm sorry for causing you all sorts of trouble... More importantly, is she okay?"

"Aitata... just how strong is he?"

"Are you okay Misaka-san?"

Misaka, who punched Ayanokōji, was cooling her swollen right fist with an ice bag.

"Are you alright, Onee-sama!? You bastard, I won't forgive you for harming Onee-sama!"

"Well, I think it's mostly Misaka's own doing. A slap would be one thing, but using a fist? No way. Fists, you know..."

"Ugh..."

Misaka seemed affected by the retort from Haruue, who loved Onee-sama.

Seeing Misaka and the others interact, Kiyama narrowed his eyes with a sense of nostalgia.

"It was fun to remember when I was teaching."

"Have you been a teacher?"

"Once upon a time..."

Kiyama said, staring somewhere in the distance, and changed the topic of conversation to "Come to think of it."

"...Are you friends with the guy from earlier?"

"No, I don't know him very well, but I just bump into him once in a while... What is that person?"

"No... I've heard his name somewhere before... Well, it wouldn't be strange if there were people with the same last name, so I hope I'm misunderstanding."

With those words, Dr. Kiyama turned on her heel and began to make her way back.

"She's quite an eccentric person, isn't she?"

"More so than you, Shirai-san?"

"Huh?"

"Ahaha..."

At that moment, Uiharu suddenly noticed something.

"Hey? Where's Saten-san?"

After leaving the coffee shop, I read in the air-conditioned library and before I knew it, it was already evening.

After finishing the meal at the family restaurant, I returned to the dormitory, but――――

"...What?"

The student dormitory was surrounded by a large number of onlookers, and fire trucks and ambulances were gathered, but it seemed that the fire had already been extinguished, and there was no tense atmosphere.

I had a bad feeling about this morning's sister, so I asked a nearby firefighter.

"Excuse me. I'm a student who lives here. Was there a fire or something?"

"Yeah. It looks like the sprinklers activated and the fire was put out quickly. Fortunately, it's summer vacation, so no one was here. There were no casualties. However..."

"However?"

"There are many strange things about this. Looking at the burn marks, it's clear that it burned at extremely high temperatures, but strangely, there isn't much damage."

"By the way, where was the fire located?"

"On the 7th floor."

With the firefighter's permission, I entered the building. The scene was grim.

Twisted doorknobs, melted window glass, a half-disintegrated door, and a charred entrance peeked through.

Inside the room, miraculously, remained relatively untouched-although not entirely unscathed-as the sprinklers had drenched everything.

The resident of the neighboring room, where the fire damage was most severe, was nowhere to be found, indicating the source of the problem.

It was likely that the pursuers mentioned by Index had reached this far.

A confrontation had probably taken place, resulting in the current state of affairs.

I take out my smartphone from my pocket and try to contact Kamijou, but it doesn't come out easily.

It's about that unlucky guy, so he just broke his phone and can't get in touch, or...well, if he's as stubborn as a cockroach, he'll be fine.

"Hey, you there. The scene is off-limits to anyone except those involved."

"Well... technically, this is my room, so I guess that makes me involved."

A familiar voice reached me from behind, and I turned around to respond.

"Oh, hey there, Kiyohara."

Yomikawa Aiho, a physical education teacher at the high school that I and Kamijou attend, and also a security officer.

Despite her grown-up stature, she's a bit of a wild character, always wearing a tracksuit and ready to use her shield or helmet to deal with unruly students. In many ways, she's an attractive woman who's "disappointing" in the best sense.

"Uh, Yomikawa-sensei... who's he?"

The bespectacled female officer standing next to Yomikawa-sensei asked. She seemed a bit timid.

"Yeah. This guy's Komoe-sensei's troublemaker student, Ayanokōji."

"Huh? Troublemaker?"

"Excuse me. I'm a model student who has never broken a school rule."

"But you're always hanging out with those three idiots."

It's quite disheartening to be grouped with those weirdos, though.

"Um, uh. We haven't introduced ourselves yet. I'm Tessou Tsuzuri,Yomikawa-sensei's partner."

"...I'm Ayanokōji Kiyotaka, a student at the school where Yomikawa-sensei teaches."

Tesso, the bespectacled woman, introduced herself politely, so I responded in kind.

Good, she doesn't seem like the rough type like Yomikawa-sensei.

"Hey, Ayanokōji. You think that Tesso isn't the rough type like Yomikawa-sensei, right?"

"...What are you talking about?"

How did she figure that out?

"...Well, whatever. There seems to have been a commotion here, but you don't know anything about it, right?"

"No, I just got back, so I don't know the details..."

Talking about Index and the magical organizations wouldn't make sense to someone from the scientific side.

"W-Wait a minute, it's already past curfew! Just because it's summer break doesn't mean you can break the school rules!"

"Hey there, Tesso-sensei, I think the more important issue isn't about that..."

"Thanks to that, I didn't get caught in the fire, so it's fine."

"W-Well... you're right, but..."

It seems Tesso-sensei has a serious personality.

"By the way, it looks like your room got wrecked. What are you going to do for a place to sleep tonight?"

"...I haven't figured that out yet."

Of course, I don't intend to sleep here. However, hotels are far away and not cheap enough to afford casually. The karaoke places are probably full on the first day of summer break.

"Do you have any friends who could let you stay over?"

"Friends who could let me stay over...?"

Close enough friends who I could ask for lodging...

...

I couldn't think of anyone except those perverts.

...

"I don't have anyone."

"It took you quite a while to answer."

"N-No, it's okay. Just keep your spirits up..."

I felt quite flustered by Tessou-sensei's consideration.

"Well, it can't be helped...Ayanokōjia."

"What is it?"

While I was contemplating whether to resort to sleeping outside or begging Tsuchimikado or Aogami.

Yomikawa-sensei suggested something.

"Hey, you... why don't you stay at my place for a while?"

...Huh? What did she just say?

I was quite puzzled by the sudden proposal, and even Tesso-sensei seemed frozen.

"Um... Who are you talking about?"

"You"

"Stay at whose place?"

"At my place."

"..."

Seriously?