So, what kind of person was Shokuhou Misaki?
In a word, she was a young lady.
This young lady came from an exceptionally wealthy family. Not only was her household first-rate, but even before enrolling at Tokiwadai, she had been exposed to things like "nobility" and "elegance." Thus, while she could sometimes be childish and even somewhat overly self-conscious, whether in status or personality, Shokuhou Misaki was a genuine young lady.
Yet this young lady possessed the power to freely manipulate other people's minds.
At first, Shokuhou Misaki had only one thought about possessing such a power.
"It's pretty convenient."
Yes.
Pretty convenient.
With such an ability, every aspect of human relationships became something Shokuhou Misaki could manipulate.
If interpersonal connections were one of the rarest advantages in this world, then Shokuhou Misaki possessed the greatest advantage in the entire world.
No matter what, Shokuhou Misaki's future should have been smooth sailing.
Because no one would oppose her.
Because no one would stand in her way.
And so, the young lady became the Queen, ruling over people's hearts.
Unfortunately, there was no such thing as a truly smooth future in this world.
Even Shokuhou Misaki, despite having the power to control anyone, paid a price for it.
That price was drawing the attention of people with ulterior motives.
In Academy City, there was no shortage of people who regarded Espers as nothing more than lab rats and test subjects, who wanted to dissect them like frogs and uncover the secrets of their powers.
Among them, the Level 5s, hailed as the strongest Espers, were naturally the finest research subjects.
Thus, in Academy City, every Level 5 inevitably carried the city's darkness on their back.
Misaka Mikoto, for instance, lived an extremely ordinary school life, yet her DNA map had been