"Not interested."
Mikoto's reply was crisp and decisive, delivered almost without thought.
Peter's expression deflated like a punctured balloon.
"But—but Gwen said all girls would like this. She's the hottest singer right now—"
"But not everyone likes it," Mikoto interrupted him, stating the fact in a flat tone.
"I'm not really interested in listening to people sing."
"Don't say that, Mikoto," Aunt May, sitting nearby, spoke up. Her voice was always so gentle.
"Peter means well. You've been in New York for so long, and besides school, you just stay at home. You should go out and have some fun. Young people should act like young people."
Uncle Ben also turned off the TV and looked at Mikoto, his gaze kind. "May's right. We're happy you treat this place like home, but that doesn't mean you have to spend all your time here."
"Go with Peter and the others. See what kids your age are into, experience it. Consider it... a kind of social practice?"
He even winked at Peter at the end, a hint of encouraging smile in his eyes.
The atmosphere at the dining table shifted because of this conversation. Peter's face was full of hope, while Aunt May and Uncle Ben's eyes were filled with concern. They weren't forcing her; they were sincerely thinking of her.
Mikoto fell silent. Looking at the three people before her, something hard within her heart seemed to be quietly softened a corner by this warm atmosphere.
When she first came to this World, her only goals were survival and going home. For that, she could disguise herself as anything, play the role of "family" perfectly.
But the time spent together had already mixed more and more genuine feelings into this "performance."
She knew they truly cared about her, treating her as a sixteen-year-old girl who needed care and a normal adolescence, not as a super-powered being who could discharge millions of volts in an instant.
She couldn't bring herself to refuse. It felt like personally pushing away a pure, unadulterated kindness offered right before her.
She glanced at Peter. That idiot brother was still looking at her with puppy-dog eyes full of pitiful hope, as if he would burst into tears on the spot if she refused again.
Really—troublesome.
"Fine," she said, picking up the ticket. Her fingertip traced the smooth paper surface. "I'll go."
"Really? That's great!" Peter's face instantly lit up with a brilliant smile.
"Wonderful, dear," Aunt May also smiled. "I'll make you some sandwiches to take that day. You'll definitely be hungry after the concert."
Uncle Ben nodded with satisfaction. "Peter, you have to take good care of your sister."
"Don't worry, Uncle Ben!" Peter thumped his chest in assurance.
Watching their happy expressions, Mikoto lowered her head, pretending to focus on the spaghetti on her plate. Unconsciously, the corner of her mouth curved up into a tiny, almost imperceptible arc.
Maybe, occasionally playing the part of an "ordinary high school girl" wasn't such a bad thing.
---
After dinner, Mikoto returned to her room.
She closed the door, shutting out the warmth belonging to the Parker family. Only the orange halo cast by the desk lamp remained in the room. She placed the concert ticket on the desk and tapped her fingertip lightly on the portrait of the singer named "Uta."
She knew nothing about this World's pop culture and wasn't interested. But since she had agreed, she should at least understand what kind of event she was going to attend.
She took out the second-hand laptop Peter had given her, booted it up, connected to the internet, and typed "Uta" into the search bar.
The moment she hit enter, a flood of information poured out.
News reports, fan forums, MV videos, screenshots dominating music charts—they almost filled the entire screen. She clicked on the video with the highest view count, titled "New Genesis - Official MV."
An intense and infectious intro played. On the screen, the girl with red and white hair sang passionately on a magnificent virtual stage.
Her singing voice had a strange magic, piercing through the headphones, striking directly at the heart, making one involuntarily want to sway with the melody. The screen showed countless fans cheering and going wild for her.
Mikoto frowned.
The singing was indeed good, full of power. But—that was all. She couldn't understand the fanatical obsession of the people in the video. To her, this was just a meticulously packaged commercial entertainment.
She closed the video and let her gaze wander over the search results. Suddenly, a rather inconspicuous news headline caught her attention.
[In-depth Analysis: The Rise of Diva Uta—A Miracle of Music or an Unknown Power?]
She clicked on it.
It was an analytical article from an independent media outlet. The author detailed Uta's miraculous rise to fame from her debut.
The article pointed out that Uta's singing seemed to possess an infectious power beyond ordinary music. Many fans who had heard her live described it as a wonderful experience of "having their souls cleansed" and "all worries vanishing."
In the latter part of the article, the author ventured a bolder conjecture: Uta's singing might not be mere music, but a "superpower" capable of influencing human minds and emotions.
Superpower?
Mikoto sat up a little straighter. This term was not unfamiliar in this World; the existence of the Avengers had long made the public accept the reality of extraordinary powers.
But using singing to influence minds? That sounded—a bit like a certain mind-manipulating person she knew.
She remembered Misaki Shokuhou, that blonde queen who was also a Level 5, with the ability "Mental Out." However, Misaki Shokuhou needed a remote control as a medium, while this Uta seemed to need only her voice.
A coincidence, or—
Mikoto suddenly felt that this concert might not be as simple as it appeared on the surface.
She looked at the ticket on the desk again. The girl wearing headphones smiled with innocent charm, her heterochromatic red and blue eyes seeming to glint with a strange light under the lamp.
"Interesting,"
Mikoto closed the laptop and leaned back in her chair.
What was originally just a boring activity she felt obliged to attend due to social pressure now seemed to have gained some value worth investigating.
She reached out and lightly swiped through the air. A blue panel, visible only to her, materialized.
[Guardian Faction Player: Misaka Mikoto]
[Current Total Reputation Points: 17,000]
This number had only increased by 3,000 points in half a month.
The 3,000 points of reputation gained during the routine of going to and from school daily came from slightly revealing her athletic talent during physical education class, earning praise from her classmates.
She had been worrying about lacking opportunities. It seemed now, an opportunity might have delivered itself.
If that singer named Uta was truly an ability user, and if her ability held some uncertainty—it was unknown whether she was a native of this World or another "player."
The corner of Mikoto's mouth lifted into a confident smile, the kind of pre-hunt smile belonging to Tokiwadai's Railgun.
"Then let me see for myself,"
She put the ticket into a drawer, as if it weren't an admission ticket to a musical extravaganza, but an invitation to battle handed to her.
And, she was indeed a little curious about what kind of singing could captivate a smart girl like Gwen.