A Scientific Urban Detective

Although Misaki Shokuhou put on a noble air, declaring that she wouldn't take advantage of others or abuse her abilities, that was actually just one of the reasons—and the least important one at that.

Misaki Shokuhou never considered herself so foolish as to be soft on her enemies—she had already bid farewell to the naive girl she once was, starting from her time at "Talent Factory."

The main reason she didn't directly use "Mental Out" to read Shata Mikoto's mind or control her was simply because Shata Mikoto wasn't their enemy.

In fact, Misaki Shokuhou and Lin Wuming knew from the start that Shata Mikoto "had a problem," after all, the original plot served as proof.

But Shata Mikoto's target for revenge was Tokiwadai Middle School and the entire Academy City, not Misaki Shokuhou or Mikoto Misaka.

So before this, Misaki Shokuhou had ignored Shata Mikoto's existence, letting her do whatever she wanted.

After all, Misaki Shokuhou and the others had more important things to worry about at the time—they simply didn't have the time to deal with other matters before resolving the "Sisters" incident.

Even now, Misaki Shokuhou still doesn't think there's any fundamental conflict between her and Shata Mikoto; if Shata Mikoto hadn't used their abilities for wrongdoing this time, Misaki Shokuhou probably would have continued to "ignore" her…

Besides that, there was an even more real reason—Misaki Shokuhou was actually worried about accidents.

She was wary of people in a "sleeping" state of mind.

You should know that Misaki Shokuhou had previously tried to use her ability on the unconscious Lin Wuming, but suffered a backlash and was almost trapped in his thought realm.

Therefore, when facing another high-level esper who was in a dream state, Misaki Shokuhou cautiously didn't directly enter her mind. After all, due to the slow update progress of the original manga, even Lin Wuming's memories didn't reveal the essence of Shata Mikoto's ability. For superpowers, the "unknown" is often the most terrifying.

Of course, Shata Mikoto didn't believe that Misaki Shokuhou was really that noble, and only thought that her various preparations had worked.

"If I'm not mistaken, all the evidence now points to Senior Wuming and your Shokuhou Faction," Shata Mikoto said confidently, "Even if we take a step back, no one would suspect me."

Unless Misaki Shokuhou took the initiative to reveal the truth and used her superpower to force her to expose her flaws, or even actively "confess"…

But obviously, Misaki Shokuhou didn't intend to do that now.

As the leader of her faction, Shata Mikoto could see that Misaki Shokuhou was here to negotiate with her as the "leader of the Shokuhou Faction."

Closing her eyes to think for a while, Shata Mikoto had a plan in mind.

"I see," she nodded, opened her eyes, and looked directly at Misaki Shokuhou's starry eyes without fear, "Can I ask, to what extent do you know about my information?"

Misaki Shokuhou said a name: "Takehaya Yoshibe."

"Tch!" Shata Mikoto looked away, clicking her tongue, "So that's how it is? Although I don't know where you found out… Forget it, that's not important. Facing the "Mental Out" herself, it's meaningless to continue probing like this, it's just a waste of time."

"Yes, it's great that you understand this," Misaki Shokuhou nodded with an expression of agreement.

Also due to the slow update of the original plot, even Lin Wuming didn't know the truth about the Takehaya Yoshibe incident, let alone Misaki Shokuhou.

So Misaki Shokuhou really didn't want to fall out with Shata Mikoto.

For her, being able to get through it as smoothly as possible according to the original plot was the best choice, because in the original main story, her Shokuhou Faction was already the largest faction.

Misaki Shokuhou didn't want to create any unnecessary trouble.

"Okay…" Shata Mikoto took off her glasses and looked at Misaki Shokuhou again.

Although she still had a smile on her face, it was no longer the innocent smile she usually showed, but a more confident expression with a bit of evil and even madness.

"I have only one goal—revenge."

—The truth.

Even without using her superpower, Misaki Shokuhou could make this judgment.

Choosing to be frank, Shata Mikoto no longer concealed her true thoughts.

"Initially, my target was Tokiwadai Middle School, which betrayed Yoshibe-nee and stood by and watched her die. I planned to completely destroy this school from the inside," Shata Mikoto said, while staring at Misaki Shokuhou's expression, "Damn, you know this too? Okay, whatever…"

She continued, "However, because of the appearance of the 'hero' Lin Wuming, and the active performance of your faction—recently, I saw another option. I can directly go to the place where my sister was imprisoned and died to conduct an on-site investigation."

"Did you gain anything?" Misaki Shokuhou asked.

This was a part that Lin Wuming's memory didn't mention.

"Not much, but it's enough as a clue," Shata Mikoto narrowed her eyes, concealing the killing intent in her eyes.

"Compared to Tokiwadai Middle School's 'inaction,' the one who 'did something' is indeed more hateful."

And the ultimate culprit pointed to the "big shot" accused by the chairman.

"If you want to destroy this school, people will have a headache," Misaki Shokuhou said.

"Yes, so I now plan to change my target and start with that 'big shot' to find out the truth about the incident back then," Shata Mikoto said, "Shokuhou-san, if you and your faction, as well as the 'hero' Wuming-sama, can lend me a hand, that would be great."

The dagger was revealed, and this was the purpose of Shata Mikoto's complete confession.

She wanted to borrow, or rather, use the power of the Shokuhou Faction.

"Are you still dreaming? What are you daydreaming about…" Misaki Shokuhou rolled her eyes and complained.

Shata Mikoto put on her usual smile again: "Don't say that, if my goal is finally achieved smoothly, then not only will I not destroy Tokiwadai, but I will also voluntarily drop out of school and disband my faction."

"So what?"

"Don't look at me like this, but I am also deeply respected by the members of my faction," Shata Mikoto said, "Before disbanding the faction, I can issue one last order—to have everyone transfer to your faction. Even if only half of the members obey my order, then your Shokuhou Faction can become the largest faction."

Shata Mikoto smiled confidently: "Shokuhou-san, you want to become the Eternal Maiden and obtain a director's position, right? After all, there are tens of thousands of people who need to be supported, your choices are actually not many."

In the process of collecting information, Shata Mikoto also obtained information about the "Sisters."

After all, the information of the Shokuhou Faction was also her key focus.

No matter what she thought in her heart, Misaki Shokuhou's expression remained unchanged, as if she had expected this.

She nodded generously and admitted: "You're right, I am indeed aiming for the position of Eternal Maiden."

"Then, that means…"

Misaki Shokuhou said: "We can cooperate—only on this matter."

"Happy cooperation, Shokuhou Misaki-san," Shata Mikoto boldly released the remote control and extended her right hand.

Misaki Shokuhou shook her hand, which was considered an agreement to "ally."

Then, without mentioning anything about the swapped remote controls, Misaki Shokuhou left the infirmary directly.