Temperature Control in Academy City

"Thank you, doctor." Natsume Sonoko thanked hurriedly.

As soon as I walked out of the clinic door, Uiharu-san and Saten-san, who were waiting at the door, immediately came to greet me.

"What did the doctor say?" asked Hatsuharu with some concern.

"It's okay now." Natsume Sonoko stomped her feet hard on the ground, indicating that she had fully recovered.

"Be careful. You should be careful after just recovering." Seeing Natsume Sonoko's actions, Hatsuharu hurriedly grabbed Natsume and said.

"Well, to celebrate Natsume-san's recovery, I'll treat us to sukiyaki." Saten-san suggested with a smile on her face.

"After all, it's Saten-san's treat, so I have no problem with it. What about Natsume-san?"

"But the nearby Sukiyaki restaurant is a bit far away." Natsume Sonoko said hesitantly. Although she has recovered, she still doesn't want to walk that far.

"It is important to maintain adequate exercise, otherwise fat will accumulate. It is best to take advantage of the situation now before it becomes serious. It will be too late to regret when you gain weight."

Hatsuharu-san said this in a serious tone, and Saten-san, who was standing beside her, stepped forward and pinched the flesh on Natsume-san's arm.

"But I have special techniques to lose weight." Natsume Sonoko retorted immediately with a look of reluctance on her face.

"But the extra flesh on my arms is irrefutable evidence." Ruiko Saten muttered to herself, holding her chin.

"Ok."

At the hospital gate, Natsume Sonoko saw several cleaning robots whirring and running around. Under someone's reluctant gaze, she could only follow behind Saten and the others obediently.

"Why didn't I see Shirai-san and Misaka-san today? Did something happen to them?" Saten was holding her schoolbag in one hand and looking up at the sky in a daze.

"Shirai and the others went to the 18th school district to investigate today." Utsuharu said after thinking for a moment.

"That's true. Shirai-san is busy investigating a case, the recently well-known tree man attack incident. As for Misaka-san, she was too curious and followed him." Natsume Sonoko said with her head tilted.

Although the affairs of the 177th School District have nothing to do with the Discipline Committee th Branch, Natsume Sonoko is already somewhat accustomed to it.

"Oh, I've heard about this too." Riri Saotome reacted instantly, as if she had suddenly realized something.

"Natsume and Hatsuharu, do you know what's going on? They're the two most famous things on the Internet right now."

"The first is the tree man attacks that have recently appeared in other school districts, and the other is the Tokiwadai school uniform ghost incident in our seventh school district." Student Ruiko Saten showed a cautious look and said in a low voice.

"Ah, the ghost of the seventh school district?" Hatsuharu was so frightened that his face turned pale and he couldn't help but take a few steps back.

"That's right. Whether in a shopping mall or underground street, after a faint mechanical whirring sound, a ghost wearing a Tokiwadai school uniform will appear on the ground or even in mid-air, but its face cannot be seen clearly. It appears when you are not paying attention, and disappears immediately the next moment."

Saten-san said this seriously, with a serious look on his face.

Chapter 68: Sukiyaki and Miko

"Natsume-san, have you heard about this? The legendary ghost wears the Tokiwadai school uniform. Since Natsume-san is also a student of Tokiwadai, he may know some inside information."

Saten Ruiko-san's tone was somewhat expectant, and nervousness was beginning to show on her face.

At this time, Hatsuharu, a classmate standing nearby, also showed a curious look and looked at Natsume Sonoko, a classmate who was thinking about something beside her.

"Saten-san, there is actually no basis for the concept of ghosts. It is most likely a special optical phenomenon caused by the high temperature of the air and the fact that most of the tall buildings in Academy City are made of glass."

"Like a mirage or something."

Although Natsume Sonoko felt a little nervous, she still answered seriously.

"But don't mirages usually appear in deserts? And even phenomena like mirages shouldn't appear so frequently." said Ruiko Saotome with some doubt.

"This is a bit difficult to explain. But according to the weather forecast provided by the designer of the tree diagram, the temperature in the next few days will not be that high. I bet that the ghost wearing the Tokiwadai school uniform will definitely not appear in the next few days." Natsume Sonoko said confidently, and she looked like she was sure of victory.

"Huh---, is that true?" Hatsuharu felt somewhat relieved. She avoided anything that looked supernatural.

"There is only one truth, and that is that the Tokiwadai school uniform ghost exists." Saten-san still insisted.

Time moves as slowly as a rusty clock.

As they walked, Natsume Sonoko's legs became weak, her eyelids drooped, and she was almost staggering. The group finally arrived at the Sukiyaki restaurant, although it only took about twenty minutes in total.

I've been lacking exercise recently, and the excessive sugar intake has led to an increase in body fat, but sometimes I can't blame myself for all this, because Tsuchimikado-san's bento is always so delicious and nutritious, and it's hard to refuse everyone's enthusiastic treat.

I’ve decided that I will start exercising seriously starting tomorrow.

Having made up her mind silently, Natsume Sonoko put down the burden in her heart and walked into the Sukiyaki restaurant happily.

What should I eat? Let’s just have some regular meat and vegetables.

The Sukiyaki in this restaurant looks similar to hot pot, and there is already a pre-mixed sauce at the bottom of the pot.

"This restaurant actually serves Kanto-style Sukiyaki," said Hatsuharu in surprise.

"This way of eating is rare in Japan, but it is more common abroad." Student Ruiko Saotome nodded in agreement.

"Is there any difference?"

Natsume Sonoko blinked her eyes, but felt that there was no difference. She had just found a table and someone sat down on the stool swiftly.

The scene was quite heated at this moment. Natsume Sonoko had sweat on her face and was staring at the bottom of the pot in front of her with full readiness.

The chopsticks in Natsume's hand are like sharp swords. Once the sword is out, there is no chance of survival.

Under the horrified gazes of Saten and Hatsuharu, the chopsticks brazenly picked up the last piece of beef that was gradually floating up, leaving only cabbage stalks and tofu slices floating in the sukiyaki.

"You're so cunning, Natsume-san." Hatsuharu looked at Natsume-san who was blowing the hot steam on the beef with a bit of reluctance.

"Are we out of meat so soon?" Zuo Tian said helplessly. He secretly looked at his wallet and scratched his head in embarrassment.

"How about I go buy some more?" Gritting his teeth secretly, Saten stood up and asked.

"No thanks." ×2

"Actually, I can't eat anymore." Hatsuharu hurriedly grabbed Saten. Saten's scholarship was actually lower than hers, and she still had half of it left for this month.

"I'm full too." Natsume said, touching his slightly bulging belly.

Just as Saten ran to pay the bill, Natsume heard a sound like a heavy object hitting the table, and there seemed to be some exclamations from the crowd.

When I turned around, I found that classmate Chuchun had hurried over to check the situation.

She is such a hard-working and responsible discipline committee member. She is much more diligent than someone else.

Although she didn't know what happened, Natsume Sonoko still followed to see the situation. Shirai was not around, and if Hatsuharu encountered danger, it would be troublesome for her to be alone.

"Please cheer up." Hatsuharu's somewhat anxious voice reached Natsume Sonoko's ears.

Natsume Sonoko came to a corner of the Sukiyaki restaurant and saw a person who was dressed a little strangely.

Her head hit the table. She had quite long hair, so she must be a girl.

Food poisoning? Natsume Sonoko suddenly became a little nervous. Is there something wrong with the food in this restaurant? This is not good. She must contact the ghost-chasing doctor immediately.

While someone was daydreaming, the girl in strange clothes made a sound with difficulty.

"It's alright, I just ate too much."

Hearing what the girl said, Hatsuharu was visibly relieved, but how much could he eat before he was so full that he collapsed on his seat?

After silently looking at the piles of plates around the girl, Natsume Sonoko suddenly realized what was going on. She was really amazing.

Hatsuharu patted the girl's back, trying to help her relieve the pain.

"Each plate looked like it had only a little bit of meat, so I bought a lot of them."

The girl's voice was very flat, just like boiled water. She raised her head slightly and glanced over here, then continued to lie down on the seat.

"Actually, you can return it if you can't finish it."

Classmate Hatsuharu said this cautiously. Upon hearing this, the girl's body stiffened for a moment.

At this time, Natsume Sonoko also saw clearly that the girl was wearing a rare shrine maiden costume and looked to be about sixteen or seventeen years old.

Her eyes reminded Natsume Sonoko of Teacher Kiyama. Her sleepy eyes showed that she had not slept well. Her expressionless face showed that she already had the potential to be a "three-no" girl.

"Since you're alright, we won't bother you anymore."

Pulling Hatsuharu-san in her arms, Natsume Sonoko spoke.

There are all kinds of weirdos in Academy City, so eating too much is just a piece of cake.

"Natsume-san, is it okay to leave her there alone?" Hatsuharu-san said, still a little worried.

"What could possibly happen? You're too sensitive, Hatsuharu-san." Natsume Sonoko looked at Hatsuharu-san and said with a headache.

"Saten-san, we are here."

Uiharu-san found Saten Ruiko-san outside the store, who had already paid the bill, and waved at her.

"Where did you go? I was a little worried." Miss Ruiko Saotome put her hands on her hips, a little angrily.

"I helped take care of the shrine maiden who was overfed." Natsume Sonoko said honestly.

"Miko? It must be cosplay or something like that." Ruiko Saotome nodded and added something.

"By the way, what are you holding in your hand?" said Uiharu, pointing at some pieces of paper in Saten's hand.

"Oh, these are discount coupons. They can be used in many stores nearby. The boss gave them to me when I checked out."

Natsume Sonoko took the discount coupon and looked at it. It was a joint discount coupon for this Sukiyaki restaurant, several hamburger restaurants, fried chicken restaurants, and sushi restaurants. Each store had designated discounted items to offer.

"There are thirty in total, just ten for each person." Saten said with a smile.

.....

[Since the tree man attack in the sixth school district, multiple attacks have also occurred in the third and eighteenth school districts. After being destroyed, these tree men immediately lost water and quickly died, turning into dead branches and rotten leaves.]

[The tree man incident is suspected to be a case of a person with special abilities. Thirteen trees over twenty years old were destroyed]

[On the third day since the Tokiwadai school uniform ghost appeared, I miss her]

[A Certain Scientific Railgun and Atomic Disaster have teamed up together. Click here to learn more about this event.]

【...】

Natsume Sonoko felt that she had fallen out of touch with the times because she hadn't visited this urban legend website in the past few days.

In the internal forum of the website, many familiar posts have disappeared, and some new events have begun to surface and occupy people's attention.

Chapter 69: Compression Device

It was another ordinary morning in the Tokiwadai student dormitory. Natsume Sonoko woke up early and couldn't fall asleep, so she closed the web page and put her phone in her schoolbag.

After washing and dressing in the bathroom, she meticulously combed her hair into a bun. She did not look tired at all and it seemed that she had completely adapted to the daily routine of Tokiwadai. She was much better than when she first entered school and was always sleep-deprived.

Pulling open the curtains, Natsume Sonoko looked out the window. Only a small part of the sun was visible, emitting a faint glow.

Is this the sun at five o'clock in the Tokiwadai Student Dormitory?

A few days ago, I said that I would work hard to exercise and change my current weak physical condition.

As the saying goes, all things are difficult at the beginning. Although I didn’t remember my lofty ambitions yesterday and the day before yesterday, I must make a good start today.

Silently cheering herself up, Natsume Sonoko resolutely walked out of the door of 210. The corridor was still quiet at this time, and the doors of other dormitories were still tightly closed.

Natsume Sonoko closed the door quietly, trying not to make any noise, and soon came downstairs.

But unexpectedly, I met the dormitory supervisor at a corner.

However, the warden at this moment looked very different from his usual majestic appearance. His hair was a little messy, and he was only wearing casual clothes. He had not yet entered the working state.

He was holding a freshly washed women's suit in his hands, and he looked both familiar and unfamiliar.

"Natsume-san, what are you doing standing there stealthily?"

Even the dorm supervisor, who had just woken up, was keenly aware of the abnormality around him, and his sharp gaze cut into Natsume's dazed face like a knife.

"Good morning, Master."

Natsume Sonoko gave an awkward smile, and maintaining 100% awe for all dorm supervisors. Her whole body suddenly tensed up and she fell into an unpredictable state of stiffness.

"Actually, I was just passing by here and was planning to go out for morning exercise. Dormitory Supervisor, the weather outside is really nice today."

Natsume-san said this in as calm a tone as possible, and even tried to do a few exercise poses.

Being able to chat smoothly with the warden is a great thing in itself.

"Natsume-san, I have no objection to you exercising, but it's not time for the dormitories to open yet, so you should do some morning exercises in the hall first."

The dorm supervisor looked at Natsume in surprise, pushed his glasses upwards slightly, and narrowed his eyes as if examining him.