Academy City's Weather Report! (Toaru)

Chapter 445: Academy City Weather Report! - 445

Science and technology are the bedrock of societal progress, a truth especially evident in the science-oriented world represented by Academy City.

Even if there were some conspiracy or hidden danger behind the Indian Poker, or even if it was specifically targeted at espers, it still represented a foreseeable bright future.

Students could effortlessly acquire knowledge and skills through various instruments and tools, without relying on traditional teaching methods.

In fact, aside from keeping esper development classes, practical lessons, and physical education, most rote-learning academic courses and even life skills classes could be entirely replaced by this kind of technology.

No need to sit stiffly in seats day after day—just stick it on your head, doze off, and class is done.

Just thinking about that wonderful future sent a thrill through Natsume-san's body. That was the world of her dreams.

Sleeping during class, then shopping, eating, and playing games after school—that's how the scientific era should be. Plus, more sleep boosts metabolism, which is great for development in a teenage girl like her.

However, considering the negative factors and capacity limitations currently shown by Indian Poker, along with the lack of strong oversight, it probably wouldn't happen during Natsume-san's school years, at least.

"That future must exist somewhere," she murmured.

Spreading her five fingers, she raised her hand against the blazing sun high in the sky, a young girl with complicated thoughts.

The technology derived from their bodies would one day make this world a better place, not just bring sorrow and terror.

They passed through the shopping district, strolled by the civic garden, and looked up to see that iconic windowless building.

Natsume-san had initially only intended to see Saten-san back to the dormitory of Sakugawa Middle School, but for some reason, that foreign girl had followed them the whole way.

But Natsume Sonoko was someone who enjoyed making friends, so she didn't mind the other's presence, assuming she was a friend of Saten-san's.

Yet Saten-san seemed to hesitate, her gaze shifting between the two of them, ultimately saying nothing.

If Natsume-san had known that this beret-wearing girl was just an irrelevant person who'd inexplicably tagged along, she might have understood what Saten Ruiko was feeling.

It was like knowing something was off but having to act like everything was normal—really quite exhausting.

Dappled light filtered through the hanging tree shadows, and the brand-new benches by the roadside showed that Academy City's public maintenance was well-managed.

They were still some distance from Sakugawa Middle School's dormitory when the group suddenly stopped.

The beret-wearing girl treated them, and the three girls stood under the thick shade, each with their own thoughts, licking their ice creams.

The pseudo-poor girl and the genuinely poor girl were both happy; as long as someone was treating, they could smile—life's joys were just that simple.

"Ah, then it should be Seivelun-senpai, right?"

As if suddenly realizing, a certain bun-girl said with some concern, the tri-color dango-shaped ice cream in her hand wobbling a few times.

That's right, foreigners put their family name last and given name first, which was quite different from here. But since she was used to calling her 'senpai,' she hadn't noticed at first.

"Exactly. If you don't pay attention to little details like that, you might end up embarrassing yourself."

"When I first came to Academy City, it took me a few days to get used to and learn that difference, but in the end, a small challenge like that was no match for me."

Frenda Seivelun rested her chin on her hand, reminiscing, a faintly dazed look on her face.

In her other hand, she held the same model of tri-color ice cream, seamlessly blending into this odd little group.

Her gaze occasionally drifted toward the #8. But seeing how full of holes and defenseless the other seemed, Frenda's wariness had lessened considerably. She was fairly certain the other hadn't figured out her identity.

As long as her Dark Side identity remained hidden, she was just an ordinary transfer student in Academy City, able to interact normally with everyone without worrying about sudden attacks.

She hadn't even deliberately hidden her name when asked.

There was no need. At most, the other could only dig up her surface-level identity, and even her thousands of friends knew that much.

As for Dark Side records—if the other could investigate that deep, then whether she said anything or not was meaningless anyway.

"But it must have been tough, right?"

"Coming to a completely unfamiliar place, and having to look after your little sister too."

Natsume-san easily put herself in Frenda's shoes; she'd always been a good straight man. She remembered her own first days in Academy City.

It was something every student in Academy City went through—leaving home, coming to a strange place to learn about so-called superpowers.

But after the initial excitement faded, only loneliness and panic remained, until they fully adapted to life in the city and became independent.

To cope with that loneliness, the word 'friend' became the most important comfort for many students. The less someone could bear loneliness, the more they cared about everything around them, and the more likely they were to act out of character.

But even after paying the price of loneliness and enduring the pains of ability development, few ever reaped the rewards. Over sixty percent of students ended up as Level 0s, gaining nothing.

And as the pinnacle among Academy City's two million-plus residents, the title of Level 5 carried too much weight.

Natsume-san didn't like seeing envy in others' eyes, nor did she want too much attention.

Those looks just made her uncomfortable—probably a sign of some inner unease.

That certain bun-girl was never meant to be some so-called powerhouse; she was just an ordinary middle schooler trying to live her life, with the recent goal of tricking Tsuchimikado-san into becoming her personal maid.

At first, it hadn't seemed like a big deal, but Seivelun-senpai's words seemed to open the floodgates of memory, casting a somewhat somber mood over the group.

Those earliest days were the hardest and most painful to endure.

"Let's not talk about those things. Hey, Seivelun-senpai, your hometown must be famous for mackerel, right? So it must be Norway?"

Saten Ruiko swiftly changed the subject, a thoughtful expression appearing on her face.

"Is there some necessary connection between mackerel and Norway?"

Blinking, the now alert Natsume-san keenly spotted a problem.

The main production areas for mackerel should be near Northern Europe, but there were a full five countries there.

"Because the most popular type in Academy City, or all of Japan, is Atlantic mackerel, and Atlantic mackerel is also called Norwegian mackerel."

Saten-san added.

What she'd given this foreign beret-wearing senpai earlier was just a common can of Atlantic mackerel.

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T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL