[MHCISQD] Chapter 342: Missing Camera

The commotion over there wasn't just Renault's; another person had heard it too. It was Jiro, also known as Earphone Jack.

Her hearing was much better than the average person's, so while she was drawing ema, she caught some unusual sounds amid the bustling crowd.

Pausing her drawing, Jiro looked in the direction of the sound but only saw the trees. Trying to adjust her perspective, she found people all around her, but nothing else.

Ashido noticed and couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I heard some voices, like someone giving a speech about freedom and Quirks or something. The sound was faint like it was moving farther away, so I got curious," Jiro explained.

Shaking her head, Jiro resumed drawing ema. She had already written her wish down, hoping to make steady progress in the coming year.

The wishes of many Class A students were similar; they were all students at U.A. Hero Department, and their ultimate goal was to become Pro Heroes.

As everyone wrote down their wishes and hung up their ema, they gathered at the designated spot.

Seeing Renault, who had finished writing, looking interested while browsing his phone, Yaoyorozu approached him and asked, "What are you looking at? Oh, the Hearts and Mind Party?"

Renault nodded, "Yeah, just now, the Hearts and Mind Party's campaign vehicle passed by. Seems like the plan is to take advantage of the crowds on the streets on the first day of the new year and do some campaigning."

"The Hearts and Mind Party?" Togata joined the conversation, glancing at the news on Renault's phone. "I know about that organization. They seem to advocate for Quirk liberation and freedom, which sounds good, but I always feel like there's something else behind it. I considered investigating, but the information I found shows that they've also sponsored many schools and small businesses, making them quite popular. However, they don't seem to have much real power, so I didn't pay too much attention to them."

After Togata's explanation, the others became curious and started searching on their phones as well.

Only positive news about the Hearts and Mind Party could be found online. Besides that, there was news about the former leader of the Hearts and Mind Party passing away during the Deika City earthquake.

"It does seem like a pretty good organization."

Indeed, if Renault hadn't mentioned it, they wouldn't have believed that a charity-driven organization like the Hearts and Mind Party could be connected to the Meta Liberation Army, an extremist cult.

Or maybe even the Meta Liberation Army itself was unaware of it.

While others were amazed, the 'Big 3' trio noticed that Renault, as well as Yaoyorozu, Mikoto, Mikumo, Yuriko, and others, didn't show any particular emotion about it.

Togata was originally by Renault's side. He leaned in close to Renault's ear and asked in a hushed voice, "Is there something wrong?"

Renault had always trusted Togata and his companions, but when it came to matters involving the Hearts and Mind Party or the Meta Liberation Army, he couldn't divulge everything just yet.

However, he was willing to share the basic information about the Hearts and Mind Party.

Shrugging his shoulders, Renault replied, "This is my prey, Senpai. Don't steal it from me, okay?"

"..."

Togata's expression briefly turned serious, but he quickly recovered.

Patting Renault's shoulder, he said, "Let's not talk about that now. It's the first day of the new year, so does anyone have any plans? I know we're going to the shrine, but I'm not sure about anything else."

"Well, I thought we could enjoy the new year's atmosphere and explore different places. Also, I've booked a nearby hot springs inn a few months ago, for the whole place, you guys want to join?"

"A hot springs inn?"

"An entire place?"

"Can we all go?"

Upon hearing this, the girls became excited.

"Of course," Renault smiled, "It's a pretty large hot springs inn. If it's just a few of us from home, it would be too few. But if we all go together, it'll be just the right number, and we can have a lively few days before we continue with our studies."

The hot springs inn plan had been arranged between Renault and Mikoto well in advance, and he had made reservations long ago, nearly forgetting about it.

Naturally, no one would reject Renault's proposal. Going out together during the new year and having the entire hot springs inn to themselves was an opportunity they couldn't miss!

Yaoyorozu was also aware of the plan and had cleared her schedule for the upcoming days to avoid any new year's parties.

Who would want to attend new year's parties when they could go out and have fun with everyone?

However, the trip to the hot springs inn would take place the day after tomorrow, so they had a day to prepare and didn't need to rush.

As for today, they would enjoy exploring the city and savor the new year's atmosphere.

The streets were filled with interesting attractions for the new year, and all the shops were holding festive events. Moreover, there were many young ladies in various kimonos, which appealed to the boys even more.

As several boys quietly took out their phones to take photos, the playful Kaminari had already approached one of the young ladies to strike up a conversation.

As for Renault, although he acknowledged that the young ladies outside were pretty, he simply didn't have the time nor courage to engage with them.

"Renault, come take a photo for us, hurry!"

Mikoto and the others had gathered together and called Renault over to take pictures for them.

Looking over at Kaminari and the others, who had already managed to strike up conversations with the young ladies and invited Kirishima and the rest to join them, Renault shrugged and walked towards Mikoto and her group, taking out his camera to snap some photos.

'Huh? Wait, where's my camera?'

Reaching into his bag, Renault realized that apart from the spare point-and-shoot camera, his cool red vintage camera, which he usually used as his main equipment, was missing!

Recalling that he had put it in his bag when he left, he even saw it when he paid at the convenience store just now.

"Renault, what's wrong?"

Facing Mikoto's question, Renault shook his head and took out the spare camera to take pictures of the girls.

But where did the camera go?

While taking photos, Renault couldn't help but feel that the spare camera didn't feel right in his hands.

'Well, I'll look for it later, or maybe I'll buy another DSLR...'