You! Go Sell Your Looks! Huh? Me?

Saten Ruiko and Frenda had successfully awakened their abilities using Level Upper, but they had no idea that elsewhere, Shirai Kuroko, Uiharu Kazari, and the others were struggling to uncover the truth behind Level Upper.

"Have you not seen much of Saten lately?" Misaka Mikoto asked in confusion as she drank coffee at Judgment's Branch 177.

"Cough, cough. Saten seems to be busy with something," Uiharu Kazari replied through her mask, coughing.

"Honestly, if you've caught a cold, you should just go home and rest. There's no need to force yourself," Shirai Kuroko complained, none too gently tugging at Uiharu Kazari's cheek.

"Hehe, I'm fine. Cough, cough. Shirai, it's just an ordinary cold. I'll be fine after getting some rest later. Besides, this isn't exactly a good time to rest." Uiharu Kazari smiled as if it were nothing, then turned serious as she looked at the screen.

Cases in which the levels recorded in the database did not match the damage caused.

"Weren't these the cases from not long ago? The fire-user from the bank robbery and that eyebrow girl who attacked Tokiwadai." Spotting familiar faces, Misaka Mikoto asked in confusion.

"Yes. Those two cases, along with several others, share the same issue." Shirai Kuroko tapped the screen with a grave expression. Seeing Misaka Mikoto's puzzled gaze, she continued.

"Their registered levels in the database do not match the ability levels they actually displayed. That fire-user's level at the time was enough to classify him as level 3, but records updated less than a month ago showed that his ability had originally only been at level 2. The same goes for that eyebrow girl."

"What's going on? Did they all level up together?" Misaka Mikoto tilted her head and asked curiously.

"It's not just that. Cough, cough. There are also missing-person cases involved..." Uiharu Kazari pulled up a photo of a pale, thin high school student.

Just as she was about to explain, Konori Mii's cough from beside her interrupted her.

"What is it?" Misaka Mikoto asked, confused.

Konori Mii adjusted her glasses, waved an arm toward Misaka Mikoto, and said with displeasure, "Don't explain too much to unrelated personnel. And just because I'm not talking doesn't mean I don't exist. I'm the senior member of this branch, you know."

Seeing a certain area begin to bounce up and down from her vigorous movements, Misaka Mikoto lowered her head in defeat without arguing back.

"Ah, that's true. Onee-sama, leave this matter to us in Judgment." Only then did Shirai Kuroko realize that she had unconsciously dragged her onee-sama into the matter. Without Konori-senpai's reminder, she had instinctively begun discussing the deeper details of the case.

"Huh? No way, I can help too. I was a Judgment member not long ago, after all." Misaka Mikoto immediately objected. With her overflowing sense of justice, she naturally could not simply ignore the case.

"You've got some nerve saying that, Misaka. You actually impersonated a Judgment member back then."

"I wasn't impersonating anyone. Konori-senpai was the one who dragged me into it, wasn't she?"

"What did you say!?"

Just as the two girls were about to resume arguing over old grievances, a sentence from Uiharu pulled things back on track.

"While tracking information on Level Upper, I found a forum where someone mentioned that a group gathers at a family restaurant called JONAGARDEN to sell Level Upper."

"Oh! Thanks, Uiharu." Misaka Mikoto's eyes lit up. She picked up the cup beside her and drained the coffee in one gulp.

The coffee's bitterness made Misaka Mikoto squint as she stuck out her tongue.

"So bitter!"

She then grabbed her handbag and ran out of Branch 177, shutting the door behind her and leaving the three girls staring at one another. Shirai Kuroko quickly came to her senses, activated her ability, and chased after her while shouting, "This is my job! Onee-sama! Onee-sama!"

Uiharu Kazari and Konori Mii were left standing there in a daze...

"Will she be okay?" Uiharu Kazari asked worriedly.

"She'll be fine. She is level 5, after all. She should know to hold back." Konori Mii replied helplessly.

"Hehe~ I thought Konori-senpai didn't like Misaka," Uiharu Kazari teased.

"I... I just see her as a junior, that's all. Of course I have to be strict with her." Konori Mii blushed and retorted.

That night, Outside the JONAGARDEN family restaurant, "This is the place, right? Well then, let's go!" Misaka Mikoto looked eager to get started.

"Onee-sama is doing this again~" Shirai Kuroko sighed helplessly and prepared to dissuade her again.

"You're a Judgment member, right? Compared to me, you're more likely to be recognized." Misaka Mikoto blinked playfully as she weighed the pros and cons.

"But..." Shirai Kuroko hesitated slightly.

"It's fine, leave it to me. Just stay on standby somewhere far from me." Misaka Mikoto handed her handbag to Shirai Kuroko.

Shirai Kuroko silently accepted the handbag and watched Misaka Mikoto enter the restaurant, voicing the unease in her heart.

"For some reason, Kuroko has a very bad feeling about this."

Inside the restaurant, Misaka Mikoto began searching for the group. There were few people in the restaurant at the moment.

Just as Misaka Mikoto successfully identified a group of delinquent thugs as her target, she caught sight of a figure she knew all too well out of the corner of her eye and cried out in shock.

"U-Uncle!?"

Misaka Mikoto's voice drew everyone's attention. Rod also looked toward the entrance. Upon seeing Misaka Mikoto, he raised a hand in greeting and gestured for her to come sit with him.

"Why is that bastard uncle here!?" Shirai Kuroko was equally unsettled the instant she saw Rod and asked in bewilderment.

Misaka Mikoto swallowed, turned around, placed both hands on Shirai Kuroko's shoulders, and said solemnly, "Kuroko, the plan has changed."

"What do you mean, Onee-sama?" Shirai Kuroko asked blankly.

"You'll use your feminine charms to lure out information!" Misaka Mikoto had originally intended to go herself, use her feminine charms to draw information from those thugs, and give them a lesson while she was at it. But the instant she saw Rod, that plan was completely ruined.

What kind of idiot would sell her looks in front of someone she cared about? It wasn't like she had something wrong with her brain!

"Huh? Me? Huhhhhh!?" Shirai Kuroko cried out in shock. Seeing the serious expression on Misaka Mikoto's face, she wore the look of someone who had lost all will to live.