I, Kurumi Tokisaki, Am a Wanderer

How did things end up like this?

A pair of violet eyes glared intensely at Kurumi.

Kurumi sighed inwardly. Playing a staring game wasn't exactly her idea of fun.

...

After parting ways with that unlucky boy, Kurumi decided to head straight back to the dormitory.

She had barely stepped out of the crowded restaurant when a crisp chime sounded from her pocket.

Kurumi paused to check her email.

The sender was none other than Misaka Mikoto. The message invited her to visit the School Garden on Monday afternoon, as there would be no flower arrangement class at Tokiwadai Middle School that day.

Smiling, Kurumi tucked her phone away—only to hear a loud crash behind her.

Having failed to notice Kurumi's sudden halt, Kamijou Touma had nearly collided with her.

He vividly remembered the girl's earlier caution during dinner about his right hand. According to her, her clothing was woven using a power akin to Esper abilities, while his right hand had the unusual property of nullifying all such powers.

The thought of what might happen if his right hand touched her clothes made Kamijou shiver.

For a sixteen-year-old boy, the scenario might seem intriguing on the surface. But imagining her inevitable embarrassment afterward, Kamijou struggled to twist his body away, pulling his arm back awkwardly.

Unfortunately, he ended up stepping on a mop that had just been placed nearby.

As he fell, he toppled a large acrylic stand, knocking over a signpost. A falling tin bucket then landed squarely on his head.

"I-I'm fine," came the muffled voice of the eternally unlucky boy from inside the bucket.

...

The moment Kurumi pushed open the door to her dormitory, she noticed something unusual.

A faint lavender fragrance wafted through the air, signaling that her roommate had returned.

Nunotaba Shinobu sat on the living room sofa, her gaze fixed on the transfer student.

The black gothic dress Kurumi wore was exquisite—clearly a custom design Nunotaba had never seen before.

Someone with similar tastes to her own. Polished and well-mannered—not someone she could outright dislike.

But... wasn't this girl just a bit too alluring? Nunotaba scrutinized Kurumi.

"Someone was here looking for you," she said.

"For me?" Kurumi tilted her head. Who in Academy City would come looking for her?

Her gaze drifted to the three teacups on the table, and understanding dawned.

"Natural. Uiharu Kazari and Saten Ruiko," Nunotaba stated matter-of-factly, pushing a small package and a note across the table.

"This is what they asked me to pass on to you, along with her email."

So far, everything seemed perfectly normal.

Then... Nunotaba's purple-tinged eyes fixed sharply on Kurumi. "Did you go into my room?"

To be honest, the half-lidded dead-fish stare was slightly unnerving.

"Huh?!" Kurumi exclaimed, genuinely baffled.

"I placed a single strand of hair in the gap of each door," Nunotaba explained. "When I returned, I found all those markers were gone."

Her gaze bore into Kurumi. "So... did you or did you not go into my room?"

There was one thing Nunotaba didn't mention: she had set up additional markers that made it clear someone had merely opened the door but hadn't entered further.

Still, she needed an explanation.

What happened next left Nunotaba utterly speechless. The shadow beneath Kurumi's feet began to stretch, spreading a dark crimson hue across the floor.

What is she trying to do? Is she planning to silence me? Though her mind raced with guesses, Nunotaba maintained a calm, almost indifferent expression.

"Mmph! Mmph!" The muffled cries of a girl bound like a trussed-up fish suddenly filled the room.

The girl's appearance was identical to Kurumi's, except for the heavy dark circles under her eyes, which made her look sleep-deprived and utterly miserable.

It wasn't hard to deduce—this was likely Kurumi's ability.

Pulling at the long socks tying the doppelgänger, Kurumi pinched the other's face playfully. "Did you open her room, hmm?"

"Phew... I'm alive again," sighed the doppelgänger, nicknamed "Slacker," as she exhaled a long breath of relief. Her dazed eyes slowly refocused, locking onto her original body. "Umm... I think I just opened the door."

"So... that's the story." Kurumi turned to Nunotaba Shinobu, bowing slightly in apology. "Sorry about that."

"It's fine. I was just asking," Nunotaba replied, stirring her tea as she let her gaze drift elsewhere.

...

"Well then... may I ask you a few questions?" Kurumi inquired smoothly, pouring herself a cup of tea and taking a seat across from Nunotaba.

"If it doesn't involve classified matters, sure," Nunotaba responded, watching Kurumi expectantly.

"My, my, then, Nunotaba-senpai~~ Could you tell me..." Kurumi leaned in slightly, her tone shifting to one of sharp directness. "The Sisters created under the Mass Production Esper Project—those who survived the Level 6 Shift Experiment. Where are they now?"

Nunotaba's eyes narrowed slightly as she stared at Kurumi. "Nagatenjouki Academy has curious minds, huh? Knowing too much about these things won't do you any good."

Setting her teacup down, Nunotaba asked, "Why are you asking about this? And how did you even learn of these projects?"

"Well~~ the original subject of the experiment, the one called 'Railgun,' happens to be an adorable girl," Kurumi said with a mischievous smile.

"Adorable?" Nunotaba arched an eyebrow.

"Mm, not just adorable—very adorable."

Nunotaba's expression cooled. "Knowing the truth only brings pain. Besides... what could you possibly do about it?"

"Oh dear~~ What I can do..." Kurumi leaned forward slightly, her lips curving into a supremely confident smile, as if teasing Nunotaba. "Might be far more than you could imagine."

Nunotaba fired back a string of pointed questions, her tone sharp. "Can you defeat the 230,000-strong elite that makes up this city? Can you take down the seven Level 5 Espers, let alone the strongest of them—the white-haired demon? Can you fight against the dark forces that control this city from the shadows?"

Unlike the sheltered students of other schools, Nunotaba had spent her childhood as part of the "Learning Device" research team at Yamashita University Hospital. She had witnessed firsthand the depths of darkness hidden behind Academy City's façade.

Naïve children should stick to dreaming, she thought.

"I can," Kurumi answered, her tone brimming with unwavering certainty.

She wasn't bluffing. Looking at Kurumi's expression, Nunotaba couldn't help but feel that this girl truly believed she could.

Maybe... she really could save those girls.

"I used to work as a program overseer on the 'Learning Device' research team at Yamashita University Hospital," Nunotaba explained. "We specialized in directly inputting information into the brain."

"Later, I joined the Mass Production Esper Project under the direction of Heaven Canceller and the Higuchi Pharmaceutical Seventh Pharmaceutics Research Center. My role was overseeing the programming of the 'Learning Device.'"

"The project involved cloning a certain Level 5 Esper known as 'Railgun.' Using her DNA, we created clones in just fourteen days. However, forming a fully developed personality was difficult, so we directly implanted the necessary knowledge into their brains. That was my job."

"This is what's known as the Mass Production Esper Project."

Kurumi nodded, indicating she understood, and gestured for Nunotaba to continue.

"But due to the substantial power gap between the clones and the original, the project was eventually suspended. I returned to Nagatenjouki Academy after that," Nunotaba continued.

"Recently, however, the experiments resumed under the Level 6 Shift Experiment."

"And then... the project was suspended again." Kurumi already knew why—it was because those reckless researchers had set their sights on Accelerator.

"As for the Sisters, they've been dispersed across various research facilities. They're participating in other experiments while also undergoing maintenance and care," Nunotaba explained, spilling everything like beans from an overturned pot.

"I'm just a program overseer. There's a lot I don't know," she concluded.

Lying on her bed, Kurumi stared up at the ceiling. In the darkness, the soft glow of her phone's screen flickered faintly.

"What are you thinking about?" a lethargic voice asked as Slacker poked her head out from under the blankets, draping herself across Kurumi's chest.

She was the most unique of all the clones, embodying the earliest version of Kurumi herself.

"If I can save even one more... then that's one more saved," Kurumi murmured, shifting her head into a more comfortable position as she too gazed upward.

"Originally... wasn't this what I wanted to do? If those researchers have set their sights on me—on us—then let's play along with their little game."

Slacker's lips curled into a smirk, her grin growing wilder by the second.

"Do they really think they can use me—use us—to push Accelerator to Level 6? In what world do they think Accelerator can beat me? Are they delusional? What are they, Sun Wukong?"

"Hah..." Kurumi exhaled deeply, reaching out to push Slacker's head back under the blankets.

"You sound all bold and brave, but stop snooping on my chats already!"

"Eh, eh, eh! What's yours is mine, isn't it?" Slacker tried to prop herself up again, attempting a hasty explanation after being caught. "I'm just looking out for you! If some sketchy person tries to take you away, doesn't that mean I'll be dragged along as part of the dowry?"

"I saw it! You told them, 'Okay.'"

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