A Scientific Urban Detective.

Chapter 831 The Ugly Duckling

While Saten Ruiko was only making up her mind to change herself, Ellie discovered that her situation had already undergone a complete transformation!

First of all, it should be noted that the identity of "killer Ellie" does not seem to have been revealed.

For some reason, Lin Wuming, the target of the assassination attempt, did not retaliate, nor did he expose Ellie's part-time job. Therefore, on the first day of school, she was able to quietly arrive at school alone, just like always.

Ellie had already mentally prepared herself for punishment—although she had given up on suicide after actually experiencing “death”; but if it was a deserved punishment, she wouldn’t run away from it.

However, until she was discharged from the hospital yesterday, everything around Ellie was calm and peaceful. Nothing strange happened, and no one came to see her.

After questioning the hospital nurses, Ellie discovered that she seemed to be treated as a victim of "that incident" last week, rather than one of the culprits who caused it.

Despite her many questions, Ellie didn't dare ask too many. She simply followed the doctor's instructions, obediently went home, and today was the first day of school...

Ellie had no interest in going to school; she only attended to maintain her attendance rate so that she could get into a good high school and escape her current miserable situation.

No matter how famous Ellie was in the "industry," at school, she was just a pitiful girl who was bullied.

The thought of her "good friends" made Ellie feel even heavier.

Her pace slowed down, and she almost shuffled towards the classroom. She decided to arrive just in time—better to be called out and criticized by the teacher than to be bothered by her "friends".

However, Ellie's scouting plan went awry; the bell rang for class when she was still a few steps away from the classroom.

"Oh no!" Ellie woke up instantly and quickened her pace, rushing to the classroom door in one breath.

I pushed open the door and entered, ready to apologize, as soon as the teacher spoke...

"Oh my, it's Ellie, you're here!" The homeroom teacher, who was usually known for her strictness, had a warm smile on her face. "Go to your seat, the class meeting is about to start, we're waiting for you."

“No… huh?” Ellie was a little confused, but her personality prevented her from asking any more questions. She just said “Oh” and quickly walked to her seat with her head down.

It's always good to avoid being scolded.

The atmosphere in the class was a little strange; Ellie felt like everyone was watching her. But that wasn't surprising; she was always getting a lot of attention—just negative attention.

Arriving at her seat, Ellie carefully checked it over.

Because their homeroom teacher was indeed very strict, they didn't dare to play any obvious pranks, and their desks wouldn't be covered in graffiti or litter.

Just be careful to check if there are any strange things inside the table, and whether there are any thumbtacks or glue on the chair...

"Nothing...?" Ellie was surprised, almost unable to believe her eyes.

She subconsciously turned to look at her "good friends," only to see that the girl in the lead was pale-faced, propping up her arm to block her view, and not looking in their direction.

"What's wrong, Ellie? Sit down quickly," the teacher urged. "Today's class meeting schedule is very tight, let's get started quickly."

“Eh? Yes.” Ellie quickly sat down.

—Could it be that my homeroom teacher finally found out about the prank I was played on?
However, based on Ellie's understanding of her homeroom teacher, while she was strict, she was also notoriously biased, only focusing on the good students and never showing any mercy to the poor ones. For example, Ryoko Misaki, because she was a genius girl, even if she missed most of the semester's classes, her homeroom teacher wouldn't say a word of reproach.

But for an ordinary student like Ellie, if she dared to skip class, her participation grade would be in danger.

Therefore, even if they know they've been pranked, the homeroom teacher will most likely choose to ignore it.

After all, the "good friends" all had pretty good grades, and they knew how to behave appropriately, so they wouldn't go too far at school and the teachers couldn't find any fault with them...

Just as Ellie was letting her thoughts wander, the class teacher on the podium said some routine opening remarks before finally getting to the point.

"Ellie."

Upon hearing her name called, Ellie stood up reflexively.

“You don’t need to stand up,” the teacher said with a smile. “Have you recovered? Are you still feeling unwell? You were just discharged from the hospital yesterday, so don’t push yourself too hard.”

"Huh? I...I'm fine?" Ellie was even more confused.

"That's good." The teacher nodded in relief. "If you feel unwell, be sure to go to the infirmary."

"Yes, I understand."

The class teacher nodded again, then said to everyone in the class, "You may have all heard about this, but I'll still make an official announcement—according to the latest ability level test report, our classmate Ellie has been confirmed as a level 4 ability user, with the ability 'Thought Mapping'."

"Ellie has become the sixth Level 4 Ability User since the founding of our school!" the class teacher said excitedly. "She is also the second Level 4 I have ever taught. Let's all congratulate Ellie."

So, to Ellie's utter bewilderment, the homeroom teacher led the applause, and the whole class joined in, their gazes toward her growing increasingly intense.

Only then did Ellie finally understand why her classmates were looking at her like that.

The ugly duckling has turned into a swan. The girl who was once considered to be at the bottom of society has suddenly become the top student in the whole school.

In terms of Ellie's personal circumstances, it can be described as a meteoric rise.

Let alone an ordinary school like Shin-Shikimi Middle School, even an elite school like Tokiwadai Middle School would value a Level 4 Ability User.

Therefore, when Ellie's true ability level was revealed, her status at school changed dramatically in an instant.

Not to mention being pranked and bullied, teachers and school leaders wished they could worship her and make her the best advertisement to enhance the school's influence.

Ellie looked around and saw that her "good friends" were even more pale and were visibly trembling.

It's safe to assume they won't play pranks anymore.

Putting aside the special attention from the school and teachers, the mere fact that they were "targeted at Level 4" was enough to make them feel extremely frightened.

They didn't know what Ellie's level 4 status was, or why she had obediently been bullied without any resistance before; but just because she didn't resist before didn't mean she wouldn't resist in the future, and she might even seek revenge later!
In Academy City, ability level determines everything—and these bullies are precisely the ones who understand this rule best.

(End of this chapter)