"Haaah~"
With her eyes closed, Chinatsu slowly crouched down, extending one palm to press against the floor of the Research Institute's room. In an instant, akin to a short-range explosive force, the floor beneath her palm visibly dented inward, with four or five cracks radiating outward.
Seeing this, the Researcher immediately perked up. Raising a hand to adjust the frame of his glasses, he began to observe the marks left by Chinatsu's palm with great seriousness. Several possibilities instantly surfaced in his mind.
One: Physical Enhancement.
This was a relatively common ability. However, determining which specific subcategory within Physical Enhancement it belonged to would require testing with relevant instruments. After all, some abilities enhance the body by stimulating nerves with electric currents, while others increase physical strength through changes at the cellular level.
Two: Impact Wave.
A branch ability similar to telekinesis. In the vast majority of cases, the palm serves as the release point for the ability, emitting shockwaves of varying scale depending on the ability's level. Determining whether the energy's nature is compressed air or something else would also require subsequent testing with relevant instruments.
Neither of the above could be considered particularly rare abilities. Especially given that the subject was a Gemstone Esper, if her ability fell into either of these categories, it would seem rather ordinary.
Just as he was contemplating whether the Research Institute's instruments could accurately detect a Gemstone's ability, the Researcher saw, within his field of vision, the clothes on Chinatsu's body begin to ripple as if stirred by a breeze. Her feet, planted on the ground, also started to slowly rise.
Not only that, but the Researcher himself, and even the mechanical equipment in the room, began to float upward gradually. Experiencing the sensation of weightlessness firsthand, an expression of immediate excitement appeared on the Researcher's face.
"Gravity... or perhaps... Attraction?!"
The Researcher, now suspended in mid-air within the room, let out an exclamation. At the same moment, Chinatsu, also floating upward, bumped her head with a loud 'THUD!' against the room's ceiling. Immediately, everything in the room rapidly descended.
The machinery wasn't damaged, but both Chinatsu and the Researcher took a spectacularly clumsy tumble.
"Ow, ow, ow..."
Chinatsu hugged her head with both hands, gritting her teeth. She had just tried to grasp that peculiar something within her body, but in the end, it had slipped away.
While Gemstones could activate their abilities without the need for calculation power, the concept of 'feeling' was elusive and mysterious. To some extent, it was less reliable than the artificial superpowers that were activated stably through step-by-step calculation.
As Chinatsu moved her hands away from her head, the excited Researcher crouched down and took hold of her hands.
"Little girl, your ability holds significant research value. Could you come to our Research Institute regularly to help us with some experiments? It would definitely aid your future use of the ability. We guarantee it will absolutely not harm your body."
Faced with the Researcher's enthusiastic words, Chinatsu smiled in agreement on the surface. But in her heart, how could she not know what kind of people these Researchers in Academy City were?
In the neighboring room, after Misaka Mikoto was detected to have LV5 potential, they coaxed and tricked her into providing her DNA. In the future, that DNA would be replicated to create countless clones of her, involved in experiments reaching the highest levels.
Academy City appeared peaceful on the surface, but in reality, its darkness was like a quagmire. The vast city was, in essence, a massive experimental factory, with all sorts of dirty activities continuously unfolding in the unseen shadows.
She had no desire to get entangled with Academy City's dark side right now. Although discovering she was a Gemstone Esper meant her plans needed some adjustment, the fundamental principle remained: develop discreetly and avoid drawing attention.
"Hehe, if Mommy agrees!"
Chinatsu answered, pretending to be an innocent little girl. She believed her mother would surely be able to fend off these old men's desires... probably.
One hour later.
Chinatsu was led out of the room by the Researcher. After traversing a long corridor, she ran into Misaka Mikoto, who was also being escorted out of the Research Institute.
"Ah! Sis!"
As if she had awakened a sensory-type ability, Mikoto suddenly turned her head to look at Chinatsu behind her. Then, happily, she took quick little steps, running toward Chinatsu.
"Look! Look! This is my ability!"
Mikoto grinned, raising her palms to show her ability to her sister. Faint electric currents, emitting a 'biri biri' sound, crackled and coiled around her hands.
As the saying goes, courtesy demands reciprocity. Since Mikoto had shown her ability, Chinatsu felt she should demonstrate hers as well.
Chinatsu reached out a hand and placed it on Mikoto. In the blink of Mikoto's confused eyes, her feet involuntarily left the ground, startling her into frantically waving her legs. Her hands scrambled to grab onto something to stabilize herself, and in her panic, she ended up clutching fistfuls of Chinatsu's hair.
"..."
"..."
Mikoto, still weightless, hurriedly let go of her hands. Chinatsu, concentrating, slowly lowered Mikoto back down. If Mikoto got hurt from a fall, she would feel terrible too.
Even though having her hair pulled had stung a bit.
Chinatsu slowly raised a hand to rub her head. First, bumping her head on the ceiling, then having her hair pulled... today was proving to be rather disastrous.
"Sis, I'm sorry."
"It's okay. It was my fault."
In response to Mikoto's apology, Chinatsu reached up and patted her head. The two were twin sisters, with similar appearances and heights. To reach Mikoto's head, Chinatsu had to stand on her tiptoes to barely manage it.
The two Researchers watching this scene both wore faint smiles. No one knew what they were really thinking, but whatever it was, it certainly wouldn't make Chinatsu happy.
Research Institute, First Floor.
The sisters' mother, Misaka Misu, sat on a bench in the waiting area. Her entire appearance was like an older version of the sisters. She had an excellent figure and was dressed in top-brand clothing and pants, exuding an air of luxury.
Her hobby was studying number theory. However, when her two daughters were present, her true hobby shifted to teasing them.
When she saw her two daughters coming down from upstairs, she immediately stood up from the bench and walked quickly to stand before them. Before Misaka Misu could inquire about her daughters' conditions, the Researcher spoke first, presenting two examination reports that recorded the ability awakening records of Chinatsu and Mikoto.
Misaka Misu cast a suspicious glance at the reports. She discovered that their contents completely exceeded her initial expectations.
"Mikoto is an Electromaster, and Chinatsu can manipulate gravity?"
Although Misaka Misu wasn't a formal scientist, she could still judge that these two abilities were out of the ordinary.
When her gaze shifted from the reports to the two Researchers before her, she could already see the intense desire in their eyes.