In Academy City, the Paradise Project begins.

Page 10

Kamijou looked completely bewildered, having no idea what had just happened. "I feel like I suddenly spaced out..."

Pretending to be clueless, Higashino asked with concern, "I don't know either. You suddenly clutched your head and cried out in pain. Should I take you to the hospital?"

"Thank you, no need, I'm fine."

Kamijou quickly waved his hand, feeling that his own situation was not strange at all. Given his unlucky constitution, such sudden headaches were quite common.

It seems the ability works on Touma Kamijou, but being touched on the head by Imagine Breaker will cancel the ability. But does it only work on him or on anyone? Higashino pondered.

Just then, the convenience store's electronic clock suddenly chimed. As if realizing something, Kamijou jumped to his feet: "Oh no! The first class is with Ms. Komoe!"

He grabbed his schoolbag and rushed out, but ended up tripping and falling flat on his face.

"need any help?"

Higashino was speechless; he never imagined that a person could be so unlucky.

"No need, kind sir!"

Kamijou quickly got up and continued running outside.

"Thank you so much for today... Wow!"

The final thank you was interrupted by an unexpected accident. The boy slipped on a puddle the moment he stepped off the roof and fell backward into the arms of a passing cleaning robot.

Higashino watched with great interest as the disheveled figure disappeared around the street corner. After the ability was dispelled, no memory remained, and Imagine Breaker only worked on anomalies that were directly touched.

Three minutes later, a familiar scream echoed from an alley in the Seventh School District. Higashino knew without looking that another unfortunate incident had befallen one of the spiky-haired boys, and he couldn't help but shake his head slightly.

Chapter 12 Tokiwadai Health Room and the Lady with the Folding Fan

Not long after parting ways with Touma, Higashino arrived at Tokiwadai.

Just then, with a "whoosh," a folding fan opened in front of him, blocking his way.

"Sir, please wait a moment."

A black-haired girl blocked the path that Higashino would inevitably take when he appeared.

"The school grounds are not a place where just anyone can wander around."

To be precise, the biggest problem at this point in time is the presence of a man in Tokiwadai.

After all, Tokiwadai is an all-girls school, and unless under special circumstances, it is generally not open to the public, and it is even more impossible for boys to appear there.

Higashino, of course, knew why he had been stopped, and calmly took out the identification Aleister had given him yesterday from his pocket: "I'm the new school nurse who arrived today..."

As he spoke, Higashino waved his ID in front of her.

"Suspicious! Very suspicious!"

Guangzi stood on tiptoe and carefully examined the documents.

"I've never heard of Tokiwadai hiring a male health care doctor!"

She leaned closer, her tone particularly certain.

"And the angle of this photo is completely wrong! It doesn't look like an ID photo at all!"

Higashino deliberately leaned closer to her, his voice low and mischievous: "Oh, you mean this? Want to know why ID photos are taken from below? The photographer said..."

He paused for a moment, then laughed even harder.

"This angle makes my legs look longer."

Of course, this is not actually the case. These photos are most likely taken from footage secretly captured by the hovering loop, and Higashino had no choice in the matter.

"You rude scoundrel! Don't come any closer!"

Mitsuko's ears turned bright red instantly, and she pointed at Higashino with her folding fan.

"Prove your identity now! Otherwise, I'll call myself the 'Sandwich Maid'..."

Before she could finish speaking, her carefully tended hair accidentally got caught on a drooping branch.

Gravity and inertia caused the girl to inexplicably fall flat on her face.

This was an unexpected incident that Higashino secretly created using his abilities.

"Do you need artificial respiration? Your face is as red as fire, it looks like you're lacking oxygen."

Higashino squatted down and reached out his hand.

Mitsuko clutched her sore nose and hurriedly backed away, opening her folding fan to cover most of her somewhat embarrassed face: "Don't be so smug! It was just a small mistake!"

The girl's cute appearance gave Higashino the idea to continue teasing her.

Under the influence of its abilities, the automatic cleaning robot passed by a puddle, splashing mud mixed with last night's rainwater, leaving a large dirty stain on Photon's skirt, like a messy painting.

Looking at his masterpiece, Higashino's shoulders trembled slightly as he tried hard to suppress his laughter. He reached out and pulled the stunned girl up, only to see that even the lace trim on her socks was stained with green grass clippings.

"puff……"

He couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"I'm sorry... but you're really quite cute."

He shook the handkerchief he had somehow "borrowed" from her uniform pocket.

"If you need bandaging or treatment for abrasions, the infirmary is always open for you."

"Who, who wants to go!"

Mitsuko snatched the handkerchief and turned away angrily, not wanting to stay with this person who had brought her bad luck so soon after they met.

"And another thing! If you dare utter a single word about what just happened, I'll make you disappear completely!"

Oh dear, Miss Photon, you shouldn't have such thoughts.

Taking advantage of the moment their eyes met, Higashino activated his ability.

Mitsuko looked into Higashino's eyes in a daze. Her reason told her to step back and keep a safe distance, but at this moment, Higashino's bright eyes deeply attracted her.

"Actually..."

He gently raised his hand and caught a leaf that twirled down. In the blink of an eye, the leaf transformed into a shimmering butterfly with blue-glowing wings under their gaze. It fluttered gently and landed on his outstretched palm.

Photon froze, her eyes completely captivated by the beautiful butterfly. The folding fan in her hand fell with a thud onto the soft grass at her feet.

"What……?"

She wanted to ask a question, but her voice was soft and muffled.

Higashino subtly used his abilities, and a cleaning machine passing by them suddenly "whooshed" and sucked up one of Mitsuko's delicate shoes!

With quick reflexes, Dongye caught her by the waist just as she lost her balance and was about to fall backward.

"for example……"

His warm breath touched her burning ears.

"Give me a cup of... a special Darjeeling black tea that can defuse any awkward situation."

It took Guangzi a while to react, and she began to struggle, her face burning hot.

But her eyes involuntarily drifted downwards, and from the movement of Dongye's Adam's apple as he spoke, she saw his collarbone, which was faintly visible... She suddenly snapped back to reality. Good heavens! This is not something a lady should be looking at!

"presumptuous!"

She pushed him away forcefully, looking nervously at Higashino.

"You're just a lowly health care doctor, how dare you..."

The last syllable of her words was drowned out by the sudden "whoosh" of a large landscape fountain.

Guangzi turned around angrily, wanting to leave as soon as possible, but "bang!" she bumped into a can of ice-cold peach soda that had just popped out of the vending machine! The cold can pressed against her burning face.

Higashino watched with great interest as the girl struggled with the soda pull tab, finally realizing that he might have gone a bit too far by using his abilities to tease her.

"Chila——"

The soda bubbled and sprayed out, splashing all over her nose and face.

The culprit could no longer hold back and burst into laughter. Teasing the cute girl made him feel much better despite his exhaustion.

"Can I trouble you for another favor?"

With a flick of his wrist, a silver key appeared in his hand.

"This is my first day here, and I'm lost. Could you please show me the way to the principal's office, Miss Guangzi?"

"Let me, this young lady, lead the way for you...you rascal..."

She suddenly turned around, slapped her folding fan against her palm, and raised her chin.

"Hmph, but seeing a new teacher like you unable to even find the principal's office, how pathetic..."

Higashino's lips curled up in a perfectly timed, slightly mischievous smile.

"Thank you so much! As a token of my appreciation, I'll treat you to some homemade cookies next time we meet, how about that?"

"Who, who wants to eat those ordinary cookies!"

Mitsuko's ears turned red again. She didn't even realize that she was no longer so resistant to the unfamiliar doctor in front of her.

After walking for a while, the two arrived in front of a building.

"If the young lady of Tokiwadai personally leads the way, what if other students see this... won't some strange things start to happen?"

Guangzi quickly opened her folding fan and covered her face with a "whoosh," revealing only her blinking eyes. Her neck was also red: "Hmph! Let them spread whatever they want! And that room too."

Following the direction she pointed, Dongye saw the words "Records Room" clearly displayed. He suddenly laughed, with a hint of teasing: "You know what? When people lie, they unconsciously point in the opposite direction."

As he spoke, he suddenly turned around.

A cool, minty, and sunny scent enveloped the photon.

The close proximity made her hold her breath, her heart pounding in her throat, a mixture of fear and anticipation.

"Outrageous! You've gone too far!"

Her protest was weak and powerless, like a butterfly hitting a net. Embarrassed and ashamed, she turned and ran.

"I...I'm not going to care about you anymore!"

But suddenly, a warm hand grabbed her wrist. Mitsuko looked up in surprise, meeting Higashino's serious gaze. His eyes, which had always held a mischievous smile when they met, now clearly reflected her panicked face. The air seemed to freeze. Mitsuko saw his Adam's apple move, and his other hand slowly rise.

Then, the world spun around.

When something soft and warm suddenly touched her lips, Mitsuko's mind went blank, and she instinctively clenched her fist.

Three seconds? Five seconds? When Guangzi could catch her breath, she realized that she was clutching Higashino's shirt tightly with both hands, making the clothes wrinkled.

"thanks."

Higashino released her, gently wiping her moist lips with his thumb, his voice becoming slightly low. This seemingly ordinary action completely shattered the girl's composure.

"Ah—!" Finally realizing what was happening, Mitsuko screamed and pushed Higashino away.

She hurriedly retreated. She didn't even care about the folding fan that had fallen to the ground. Her long black hair, like a startled bird, fluttered wildly in the morning light, and she disappeared from Dongye's sight in the blink of an eye.

Higashino bent down and picked up the folding fan from the lawn.

He gazed in the direction where the photon had disappeared, his smile widening, and shouted loudly at the empty flowerbed where only vines swayed in the wind:

"Looking forward to seeing you again, Mitsuko."

He pressed his temples, which were throbbing slightly. The continuous use of his abilities had left him a little tired, and coupled with working overtime all night yesterday because of the Dark Division, his mental state wasn't very good.

After glancing in the direction Mitsuko had left after the wedding, Higashino headed towards the principal's office.

"boom!"

The dormitory door was pushed open violently, startling the roommate who was arranging flowers. The red rose in her hand was snapped in two with a "snip".

Ignoring the torn hem of her school uniform skirt, Guangzi pounced on the soft sofa, grabbed a cushion, and pressed it against her burning face.

"Were you bullied by a pervert?"

The roommate put down the scissors and looked at Guangzi with a puzzled expression.

"Ugh...it's even worse than that! A million times worse!"

A muffled, rambling sound came from under the cushion.