At a certain high school dormitory.
Fukiyose Seiri stared at the email on her screen, her eyes widening slightly. After a brief moment of excitement, she calmed herself down. As someone without abilities, she had once longed for esper powers back in elementary school.
However, time had gradually worn away her expectations. Now, she valued her orderly life much more.
Having esper powers would certainly make life more convenient—but it wasn't essential.
"Well then… let's go."
Even as an abilityless student, she still held a faint hope of gaining power one day.
It was said that the newly risen Level 5 with Vibration Diffusion had also started as a powerless student.
Everyone who received the invitation email couldn't help but feel thrilled.
After all, rumor had it that anyone who entered the Talent Workshop would, at the very least, become a high-level esper.
And that rumor was true.
Besides the Level 5 cultivation project, the Talent Workshop also ran many other development programs.
These regular programs were usually handled by ordinary researchers.
The esper development technology itself originated from Fontaine Divine Collective—granting powers to the powerless was child's play.
Because of this, the Talent Workshop's reputation had grown increasingly famous.
It was even called by Academy City and the outside world: the Esper Mass Production Factory.
Every esper who had undergone training in the Talent Workshop had at least reached Level 3.
Within just one or two months, the proportion of high-level espers in Academy City had increased by nearly ten percent.
...
Tokiwadai Middle School.
Curled up in bed with her phone, Misaka Mikoto read the email and felt uncertain.
"Should I go or not…?"
She was already a Level 5, and her mastery of electricity was nearly perfect—she had even developed hacking techniques by manipulating electromagnetic waves.
Her mind couldn't help recalling yesterday's humiliating encounter with that starry-eyed girl. Gritting her teeth, she seethed.
That starry-eyed girl and her little gang were all from the Talent Workshop!
If she also went for additional training, her abilities would surely improve—then she wouldn't have to be afraid of that annoying girl anymore!
She could already picture the scene in her head—where that starry-eyed girl would have to step aside upon seeing her.
"Hehehehe…"
Then, Misaka glanced toward her roommate and twitched slightly.
Mmph mmph… mmph mmph…
A girl with pink tea-colored twin-tails was tightly wrapped in her blanket like a squirming caterpillar. The blanket had been tied with ropes, and even her mouth was stuffed with a piece of clothing, so only muffled sounds came out.
Misaka looked at her roommate's phone—on the glowing screen was the same Talent Workshop invitation.
So Kuroko got one too…
Well, it made sense. Kuroko was a rare Level 4 spatial esper—her teleportation ability was one of the most refined in Academy City.
"Let's be clear, Kuroko—you were the one who hugged me from behind and rubbed against me. That's why I tied you up."
Shirai Kuroko made muffled noises, but her eyes held no sign of distress—rather, there was an inexplicable look of excitement, which made Misaka's hair stand on end.
"I'll untie you now. But if you pounce on me again, I'll shock you." Misaka warned seriously.
She sighed inwardly.
Sometimes, she really suspected that this underclassman had a few screws loose. She was always so composed when dealing with others—but the moment it involved her, she turned into a complete pervert!
No—she was a pervert!
When Kuroko had first moved into her dorm, she'd made creepy sounds while sniffing Misaka's used clothes and even dove onto her bed, clutching her blanket and inhaling deeply.
Kuroko quickly nodded, still muffled. Mmph mmph…
Misaka sighed again. "Honestly… you're giving me a nervous breakdown."
When she finally removed the gag, Kuroko immediately cooed, "Onee-sama~"
Goosebumps ran down Misaka's arms. She punched Kuroko square on the head. "I told you not to call me that embarrassing name!"
"Ugh… that hurts…" Kuroko muttered, rubbing the swelling bump on her head.
...
At another Tokiwadai dormitory.
The typically shy, gentle, and considerate young ladies—Wannai Kinuho and Awatsuki Maaya—looked at each other's phones, their smiles blooming with genuine happiness.
"That's wonderful, Wannai-san! We've both been nominated by the Talent Workshop! Maybe we can become Level 5s like Misaka-senpai and Shokuhou-senpai!"
"Mm-hmm. Congratulations to you too, Awatsuki-san. Let's go together."
Meanwhile, in a single dorm room elsewhere, Kongou Mitsuko blushed with excitement.
"If I become a Level 5 and become even more outstanding, then I'll definitely make lots of friends—just like those Level 5s!"
Kongou Mitsuko believed she was already excellent in every way—her grades, manners, and appearance were all impeccable. Yet, despite all that, no one ever wanted to be her friend.
Even in a two-person dorm, no one volunteered to room with her.
It made her feel lonely and disappointed. She assumed it was because she still wasn't good enough.
If Shokuhou Misaki could read her mind, she would have laughed out loud.
Kongou thought of herself as elegant and perfect—but her overbearing, haughty attitude made anyone who tried to get close instinctively back away.
Even though she was kind and considerate deep down, no one could feel that warmth through her prideful demeanor.
...
At Kirigaoka Girls' Academy.
A red-haired girl with a ponytail, Musujime Awaki, lay sprawled across her bed, staring at the email for a long time before finally closing her phone and taking a deep breath.
"Level 5… I knew it. I was bound to be chosen. I'm the strongest spatial-type esper, after all."
Then, as if struck by a sudden memory, she covered her mouth, her eyes filled with fear.
"If it weren't for that accident… I would've already been a Level 5…"
After awakening her ability, during a physical examination, she had miscalculated her coordinates and teleported her legs halfway into a wall.
It had hurt—so badly that even her skin had been scraped off by the concrete.
If her calculations had been off just a little more, she could have teleported her entire body into the wall and died on the spot.
"If… if I become a Level 5, that flaw will definitely disappear… it has to…"
...
In a hotel located in District 13.
The dark side organization, ITEM, had just completed a mission—destroying all research facilities involved in the Dark May Project.
They had also recruited the girl with the most potential among the survivors, who had volunteered to join them—Kinuhata Saiai. The Board of Directors had tacitly approved the move.
Kinuhata Saiai became the fourth member of ITEM.
After taking several showers to completely wash away the smell of gunpowder, the girls finally relaxed, sitting on the couch and sipping their drinks.
"Huh? An email from the Talent Workshop? Wait, all of us got invitations?"
Mugino Shizuri sat cross-legged, wrapped only in a towel, frowning as she stared at her phone.
"A research institute sending an invitation letter to a dark side organization like us? What were they thinking?"
Of course, she knew about the Talent Workshop. The recent uproar throughout Academy City was entirely centered on it. Her ranking had dropped because of those new Level 5s, and she was still annoyed about it.
She harbored considerable hostility toward those newly risen Level 5s.
In her eyes, those Level 5s were nothing more than greenhouse flowers—if they ever faced real combat, they'd probably wet themselves before the first shot was fired.
As a dark side operative, she had naturally investigated the Talent Workshop's background.
Her organization, ITEM, was under the direct command of the Board of Directors—but not entirely bound by it. The Board could issue orders, but in certain circumstances, ITEM had the authority to act against the Board itself.
For instance, if a Board member betrayed Academy City or incited large-scale unrest, ITEM could take immediate action to suppress them.
Likewise, if ITEM ever showed signs of rebellion, they would be purged by other dark side teams.
This delicate balance existed only because of the Director, Aleister.
And the Talent Workshop was a research institute directly under his command.
Frenda lay sprawled on the sofa, legs swinging playfully. "Hehe… what's the big deal? I heard everyone who joins the Talent Workshop ends up becoming an esper."
"And they really did produce six new Level 5s. Sure, they're all pretty weak compared to you, Mugino, but still."
"I want to give it a try and see if I can get even stronger abilities. What about you, Mugino?"
Although she knew about many of Academy City's darker experiments—and that most of them were tied to the Board of Directors—this invitation seemed different. It was official, transparent, and open to public scrutiny.
After all, the Talent Workshop publicly released its trainee lists, drawing attention from all over the world.
"Besides," Frenda added, grinning, "maybe your ability will get even stronger, Mugino. Then you'll have the perfect excuse to challenge those so-called Level 5s and knock them all flat!"
Mugino, who had been hesitant about exposing herself as a dark side member, suddenly looked tempted.
"Alright, fine. We're joining that Level 5 Development Project."
Takitsubo Rikou, seeing Mugino's decision, couldn't refuse—but her expression was filled with concern.
She never had a good impression of research institutes. While most of Academy City's labs were legitimate, there were still some that conducted illegal human experiments.
Anything involving "experiments" was bound to carry risk.
Still, despite her worries, the idea of becoming a Level 5 did excite her.
She wondered—what would she be like if her power evolved to that level?
"The Talent Workshop, huh… it's said to be directly supervised by Director Aleister himself…"
Kinuhata Saiai didn't seem bothered at all. Though she had just experienced the Dark May Project incident, she now possessed Accelerator's computation formula. Her desire for greater power burned even stronger.
After witnessing her team leader Mugino single-handedly destroy an entire research facility—crushing every defense with unstoppable force—she had grown eager to chase that kind of strength herself.
...
Meanwhile, at the School dark side organization's base, located on one floor of a luxury hotel—
"What the hell? Why didn't I get an invitation? I'm the strongest telekinetic esper—practically at Level 5 already!"
A boy with a fiery halo floating above his head—Yomikawa Wanika—grumbled in frustration.
"Why did you get one but not me? You're a psychic-type, but your ability isn't even memory control!"
His tone was thick with jealousy and resentment.
Gokusai Kaibi shrugged. "I don't know either. Maybe the Talent Workshop has its own standards for calculating potential—or maybe they're focusing on rare ability types."
As one of Academy City's first outward-facing dark side organizations, School had long known that the Talent Workshop was directly under Aleister's command.
Thus, rather than treating the invitation with suspicion, they embraced it enthusiastically.
After all, no esper could resist technology capable of increasing one's level with a 100% success rate—and even cultivating Level 5s directly.
Even the proud Level 5, Kakine Teitoku, who had absolute confidence in his own ability, was no exception.
As one of the men who had helped establish Academy City—the man who had developed superpowers themselves—Kakine Teitoku was, in many ways, a loyal devotee of Aleister.
If that man personally took action to create new Level 5s, Kakine wouldn't even be surprised if he somehow managed to produce a Level 6.
What Kakine truly desired wasn't to oppose Aleister—but to earn the right to speak with him on equal terms.
He clicked his tongue, his gaze cold. "Hmph. Even I didn't get an invitation."
"Since you got one, Gokusai Kaibi, go ahead and participate. Who knows—our organization might soon have two Level 5s."
He wasn't particularly worried about this woman surpassing him. Her ability wasn't combat-oriented anyway—though her power to manipulate emotional distance was admittedly troublesome.
Even if she did become a Level 5, if she ever dared to cross him, killing her wouldn't be difficult.
After all, Dark Matter was the perfect and invincible superpower.
...
While the Academy City forums were in an uproar over the invitations to the Level 5 Cultivation Program, the man behind the entire project was nowhere near the city.
London — inside one of Academy City's affiliated research institutes.
"Today, Misaka had nothing to do in the laboratory, so Misaka decided on her own to study British cuisine," said a certain Sister cheerfully. "Misaka is very proud to share this with her beloved brother!"
One of the Misaka Sisters proudly presented a plate of stargazy pie to Noah.
"Misaka looks at her beloved brother expectantly, hoping for praise for her effort."
Noah stared at the nearly charred pie expressionlessly.
Without a word, he shrank the entire pie into the size of a pill, popped it into his mouth, and gave her a thumbs-up.
"Tastes great. But I still recommend you find another way to pass the time."
After all, Misaka Mikoto's genes contained zero talent for cooking—how could her clones possibly fare better?
He hadn't come to London just to visit the Misaka Sisters.
His real destination was a certain blonde nuisance—Lola Stuart.
To be precise, she was the angel or demon representing the outside eleventh sephirotic point of the inverted Kabbalah Tree—the 333rd source essence, Coronzon.
Angels and demons were fundamentally the same kind of beings—one guarded the positive Kabbalah, the other the inverse.
In Teyvat's cosmology, the Kabbalah of Evil had not yet incorporated any extraneous sephirotic points, but such an opportunity—to expand the structure of the Tree itself—was far too rare to pass up.
"Hehehe… Little Coronzon, come to my side already…"
...
Meanwhile, inside St. George's Cathedral, beneath the towering statue of Christ, a golden-haired girl kneeling in prayer suddenly sneezed adorably.
"Achoo~!"
"Huh? A sneeze? Don't tell me that brat Stiyl is badmouthing me again, hm?"
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