A Stealthy Field Trip
Since my breathtaking information-gathering field trip was scheduled for a week later, there was nothing I could do immediately. As usual, I woke up early in the morning, ate meals with Amy, and repeated the routine of cafe, park, candy workshop, and library.
Shine had already reached the maximum level with her online game character. Her in-game spending was relentless; she swept up almost all the game currency on the server to enhance her equipment. Her character's nickname—which was, of course, [Jeff]—became incredibly famous, and watching it made me feel deeply embarrassed.
Since Shine beat to death anyone who stood in her way, it was only natural that she constantly got into fights with other players. She didn't stop even after turning every single guild on the server into her enemy. When I asked her why she didn't join a guild, she replied that she hated the idea of a character named [Jeff] belonging to anyone else. In the end, she created a solo guild to play in. All the guild funds were drawn from her personal card—or rather, the card we shared.
She no longer stayed up all night playing, but her transaction history from pouring all her free time into the game was beyond imagination. If Amy ever checked the credit card statement, I had a feeling a few noogies wouldn't be enough to save us.
After spending several anxious days like that, the promised day of the field trip finally arrived. I checked the snacks and my sketchbook notebook inside my bag.
"Today is a very important day."
Perhaps I could secure some major evidence. Shine and Rain nodded upon seeing my serious expression.
Shortly after 10:00 AM, we took the bus to the publishing company, just like last week. The fast-moving bus delivered us right in front of the building.
"Jeff. Are you nervous?"
"Mmh. A little."
Shine asked me in front of the publishing company, just before we opened the door to go inside. I nodded, rubbing my palms against my clothes. They felt sweaty.
Opening the door and stepping inside, we were greeted by the same sight as a few days ago. Security guards and a bored-looking receptionist. As we approached the information desk, the employee lifted his head.
"Hello."
He didn't recognize us. I raised my hand high and spoke to him.
"We're here for the field trip!"
The employee stared blankly for a moment, then seemed to recall something. He pulled an application form from his drawer and checked the information written on it.
"Sasha?"
"Yes. That's us."
"Please wait a moment."
He immediately began tapping away at his keyboard. Shortly after, another employee approached the desk.
"Are these the kids?"
"Yes. The ones I mentioned last week..."
"Got it."
The newly arrived employee greeted us with a light smile.
"Hi there. Nice to meet you. It's been quite a while since we last had a field trip request."
She was a tall woman with long, straight orange hair and glasses.
"My name is Glenn. You can just call me Glenn."
After introducing herself, Glenn took the application form from the receptionist and checked our names.
"Are you Sasha?"
"Yes. This is Sharl, and this is Jane."
"Alright. The tour will be a bit short. We're quite busy lately."
"That's fine. Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule."
We followed Glenn around as she explained things about the publishing company. I pulled out my notebook and pretended to take diligent notes on her words. I let most of the information slide, but occasionally, mentions of the company's president, Kazan, came up.
"What does President Kazan usually do in his free time?"
"Our president?"
"Yes, I was curious about his hobbies."
"Hmm. Well, I'm not really sure."
Glenn tilted her head at my question. I held my notebook up high and asked her.
"Are you interested in the president?"
Shine reacted instantly to Glenn's casual question. Suddenly springing up from her spot, she yanked my hand. I flinched, startled by her abrupt reaction.
"Is that true?" Shine whispered softly in my ear.
"No! Absolutely not..."
I hurriedly shook my head and pushed her back. Shine retreated without much resistance.
"It's not that. I was just curious. I've been researching what kind of hobbies company presidents usually have."
"Ah, so it's research for your future career?"
I gave an awkward laugh and nodded at Glenn's question.
"Well, I don't think there's anything particularly special about him just because he's the president... I believe he likes golf."
"Golf?"
"Yeah. For the president's birthday, the museum director gifted him a golf club."
This casually dropped piece of information was instantly seared into my mind.
"The museum director? They must be quite close, then?"
"It certainly seemed that way."
With those words, Glenn led us to another area. I wanted to ask more, but she didn't seem to know much else. At the very least, I had confirmed that there was some connection between the museum and the publishing company.
"What's shown here is the server room. Most of the information used by the company is uploaded here, so you can't go inside."
Glenn said, pointing to a large display board prepared for the tour. Just as she said, the board featured a photo of the server room and a brief description of what went on inside.
"Um, what happens if you have to revise the contents of a book that has already been published?"
"Usually, we publish a new edition and exchange it for those who want it."
"So it's not mandatory?"
"Well, it's our mistake, so we can't help it."
"Do you keep a separate record of the book being revised?"
"Yes, we mark the newly revised books as 'revised edition'."
I nodded, scribbling with my pen. The book in the library didn't have any 'revised edition' mark on it.
"Is there any chance we could meet the president?"
Glenn gave an apologetic smile at my question.
"Sorry, he's not in his office today."
"I see."
I began to slowly slip away, keeping an eye on Glenn's reaction.
"Excuse me, but could I go to the restroom for a moment?"
"Oh? Sure. If you head back down the path we just walked, the restroom will be right there."
"I'll be right back!"
I signaled to Shine and Rain with my eyes. If we all rushed to the restroom together, it might arouse suspicion, so the two of them stayed behind with Glenn.
"You have to come back quickly."
"Okay."
Shine didn't seem to like being separated even for that brief moment. Giving Shine a reassuring nod, I immediately went into action.
I had already mapped out the entire internal layout on our way in. I also knew the exact locations of every security camera. Walking slowly, I channeled my ability. Blue lightning crackled and wrapped around my fingers.
Snap!
With a light flick of my fingers, a ripple of blue light began to spread outward. My targets were the nearby security cameras. Enveloped in the blue light, the cameras twitched slightly before slowly turning away. The cameras tilted just a fraction, ever so slightly askew. Checking the angles of the cameras, I moved cautiously.
Blind spots. Guided by the flow of subtle electromagnetic waves, I navigated through the cameras' blind spots. Even without looking, I knew exactly which way they were pointing. Avoiding their gaze entirely, I headed somewhere other than the restroom.
Faint electrical currents scattered in all directions before returning to me. I was getting closer and closer to the server computer. I immediately pulled out my phone. The subtle waves floating in the air began to connect to my phone, stretching forward. It was an incredibly delicate task. One wrong move, and my phone—along with every electronic device here—would surely be fried.
Cold sweat dripped down as I manipulated the waves. It was something I had never done before, but somehow, I felt like I could do it. The potential of an electrokinetic was still fathomless. My consciousness began to flow along the waves connected to my phone.
I had to make it quick. Staying in the restroom too long would easily arouse suspicion. No matter how young I looked, we lived in an era where no one would bat an eye even if a child destroyed an entire city.
The internal network began connecting to my phone. Riding along the network, I accessed various pieces of information. Tiny characters floated before my eyes, scrolling rapidly. A massive amount of data was stored in the server. Frowning, I began searching for information regarding the library. My head started to throb. My phone grew hot, and blue sparks of electricity crackled in front of my eyes.
Crackle!
"Who are you?"
Perhaps I had been concentrating too hard. I hadn't even realized someone was approaching. At the sudden voice, my focus shattered, and my connection to the server was forcibly severed. Sparks flashed before my eyes. Standing there with my mouth agape, I slowly turned around to identify the owner of the voice.
A man with a tired expression stood there, holding an unlit cigarette in his mouth. Loosening his tie slightly, he spoke to me.
"Are you lost, by any chance?"
My body stiffened as I nodded.
"U-Um, I was looking for the restroom."
"The restroom? The restroom is the other way, not here."
"Ah... Thank you."
With my head bowed low, I immediately ran in the direction he pointed. That was a close call. Clutching my pounding chest, I let out a sigh of relief.
The man watched me from a distance for a moment, then scratched his head and walked deeper inside. I had wasted quite a bit of time. I immediately ran back toward where Glenn was. I didn't forget to reset the cameras on my way back. Raising my hand slightly, I snapped my fingers. A faint wave rippled out, and the cameras returned to their original positions.
"I'm back!"
I immediately rejoined Shine and Rain. The tour concluded quickly after that. It was a shame I couldn't gather proper information, but it wasn't a total loss. Before running into that tired-looking employee, I had managed to transfer a tiny bit of data to my phone. It was only a few photos and a couple of lines of text at best, but I had to be satisfied with that for now.
After the tour, we said goodbye to Glenn and left the publishing company.
"Jeff. I'm hungry."
"Me too."
Come to think of it, it was about time for lunch. I patted my empty stomach.
Cheep! Cheep! Cheep!
Rain's phone alarm went off, announcing lunchtime.
"Today's lunch is pork cutlet!"
I shouted, licking my lips. Since this was a business district, there were naturally plenty of restaurants. Following my pre-planned research, I led Shine and Rain into a restaurant specializing in tonkatsu. The smell of pork cutlet, which I hadn't encountered in a very long time, stimulated my appetite. It smelled delicious.