A Scientific Urban Detective

Mugino Shizuri wasn't particularly fixated on money; she was more concerned about someone else snatching away her prey.

What annoyed her even more was that the one who stole her "prey" wasn't a fellow dark side operative, but a "hero" active in the public world.

– Lin Wuming hadn't accepted the commission to destroy the "Dark May Project" because of some request or for personal gain. He was genuinely acting out of "selfless" reasons to save the test subjects trapped within.

At most… it included a bit of personal revenge.

Therefore, Mugino Shizuri couldn't find any reason to cause trouble for Lin Wuming. A double-cross was even more impossible because Lin Wuming hadn't accepted any reward at all!

The mission reward was completely out of the question, and she couldn't really go and beat up Lin Wuming to vent her anger. Helpless, Mugino Shizuri had no choice but to minimize her losses as much as possible.

– At least she had to get the pre-selected talent into her hands!

It just so happened that during this time, Kinuhata Saiai's ability level was promoted again, becoming a Level 4 esper.

– If they could add a Level 4 to "Item," this unsuccessful mission wouldn't be a complete loss.

"So, the result is what you see now," Mugino Shizuri concluded, looking at Kinuhata Saiai while pointing to the luxurious apartment they were in. "That's why you're here."

"Don't worry," Mugino Shizuri said with a smile. "You're a talent I personally selected. I would never let you get lost before fully utilizing your value."

Although her words had a somewhat cold and ruthless tone, after this brief interaction, Kinuhata Saiai could roughly tell that this was probably Mugino Shizuri's personal style.

Having already prepared for the worst, Kinuhata Saiai was naturally more than satisfied with the current outcome.

"Alright," Mugino Shizuri said, waving her hand. "Rookie's first task is over. Show her around the apartment and help her change clothes."

With that, Mugino Shizuri returned to the lounge chair on the balcony, preparing to continue her sunbathing.

"Oh, and this," Mugino Shizuri suddenly turned around and tossed a card to Kinuhata Saiai. "It's your reward for your first task."

An anonymous cash card – a convenient item that could be used for purchases at most stores in Academy City or directly exchanged for cash.

Due to its convenience and anonymity, it was very popular among certain groups – especially in dark side organizations and armed powerless groups.

Kinuhata Saiai frantically caught the card. Frenda helpfully took out a device and scanned it for her.

"100,000 yen," Frenda glanced at the number on the device. "It's probably Mugino's allowance for you. After all, you just came from the research facility, so you probably don't have any personal savings yet."

"O-One hundred thousand!" Kinuhata Saiai was taken aback. As expected of a dark side organization living in such a luxurious apartment! They're so rich!

"Kinuhata, come over here for a moment." Takitsubo Rikou waved to her from the doorway of a room not far away. "This room is yours to use."

Saying that, she handed two keys to Kinuhata Saiai: "The larger one is the key to the apartment's main door, and the smaller one is the key to your personal room. You have free rein over your personal room, but you can't do dangerous experiments inside, and you can't be too noisy or create strange smells."

As she said these words, Takitsubo Rikou's gaze was undisguisedly fixed on Frenda – the reason for these "house rules" was because Frenda had once concocted explosives in her room and caused quite a stir when experimenting with a new formula.

She had been severely reprimanded by Mugino Shizuri at the time.

"Okay, okay, don't bring up the past." Frenda laughed it off. "I've already set up a laboratory elsewhere and won't bother you guys anymore."

"One more thing," Takitsubo Rikou said seriously, looking at Kinuhata Saiai. "You've already joined 'Item,' so for your own good and the good of your companions, it's best to keep a bit of distance from them from now on."

The reason Kinuhata Saiai accepted the invitation and came here of her own accord was because she was drawn to the dark side organization's high rewards.

– As the "big sister," Kinuhata Saiai wanted to earn money to improve the living conditions of her companions.

Before coming here, she had somewhat naively thought that joining a dark side organization was just a rather special job, and that she could still return to the abandoned school and live with her companions at other times besides "work" hours.

But after experiencing the atmosphere here firsthand, Kinuhata Saiai immediately realized that this wasn't such a tolerant world, and that you couldn't just come and go as you pleased.

It wasn't just about restricting her personal freedom for the sake of secrecy. Even for the sake of her companions, who were ordinary people, she had to draw a line between them, otherwise, she might end up harming them.

"The world we dark side members live in is very cruel," Takitsubo Rikou continued. "Our purpose is to solve problems outside the rules and moral system – by any means necessary."

"Likewise, the enemies we face will not be bound by rules and morals," Takitsubo Rikou said. "Therefore, our battles can easily affect those around us."

"Of course," she said, glancing back at Frenda, who was walking past the living room, "Frenda is a special case. She is confident in protecting her family – and she only has one family member, the target is small, and the protection is not difficult."

At this moment, Frenda scurried over: "Of course, my little sister is so cute, no one would hurt her."

After saying that, she put her hands on her hips and looked at Kinuhata Saiai: "Ready? After seeing the room, let's quickly go buy clothes. The shopping street is downstairs!"

Frenda looked eager and impatient: "Takitsubo too, quickly change clothes and get ready to go out! According to Mugino's orders, we have to dress up the newbie properly."

"No, the leader only meant for me to change into something a little more decent," Kinuhata Saiai said quickly, intimidated by Frenda's momentum.

When she came earlier, Kinuhata Saiai had paid a little attention to the shopping street downstairs in the apartment building – it was a shopping area that matched this luxurious apartment, full of expensive atmosphere.

After only taking a few glances, Kinuhata Saiai was blinded by the dazzling gold and the long string of zeros on the price tags.

At that time, she knew that it was definitely not a place that people like her could set foot in!

Although she had just received a reward of 100,000 yen from Mugino Shizuri, Kinuhata Saiai doubted how much she could buy in such a place with that amount of money…