Against Level 0 Espers—people no different from ordinary civilians—or even Level 1 low-level Espers, a Level 3 high-level Esper held an overwhelming advantage.
If their ability could be used directly in combat, that advantage became even more pronounced.
And if that high-level esper had even a little combat experience, then sheer numerical superiority on the enemy's side would be greatly diminished.
That was precisely the situation Kobayashi now found himself in.
Telekinesis was an extremely versatile ability, and naturally, it could be used in combat. Kobayashi might not have any so-called "real combat experience," but after days of practice, he had already refined his telekinesis to the point where it moved as naturally as his own limbs. He could drive it directly with thought—what he envisioned, he achieved. Against ordinary opponents, it was more than sufficient.
The park's delinquents were nothing more than a ragtag mob. Seeing Kobayashi as a "disabled guy" who could barely move on his own, they didn't even bother to hide their intentions, closing in on him openly.
Their movements were noticed by Kobayashi immediately.
The malice radiating from them was so obvious that he didn't bother asking the pointless question, "What do you want?"
Striking first, Kobayashi condensed his telekinetic force into a solid mass and slammed it toward the nearest delinquent—a boy with a garish afro.
The afro-haired boy was sent flying in an instant.
"Oh—!"
The surrounding delinquents hadn't even had time to react, but Kobayashi himself let out a startled exclamation, reassessing the power of his attack.
The last time he'd clashed with Torahachi Toumi in the hospital room, the same kind of telekinetic block hadn't caused her any real harm.
Kobayashi had assumed the technique simply wasn't that powerful, so this time he'd put his full strength into it.
Now it seemed the problem hadn't been his telekinesis at all—
—It was that girl.
"…He's an Esper! Be careful!"
After a moment of shock, the delinquents finally reacted.
But with the arrow already loosed, there was no turning back. Since the fight had begun, even after realizing the target was a powerful Esper, they could only grit their teeth and press on.
If they panicked and exposed the mission, causing the Hunters' operation to fail, everyone present would pay dearly.
"Don't panic! He's just one person! Even if he burns through all his mental power, there's no way he can take all of us down!"
Shouting encouragement to one another, the delinquents rushed forward en masse.
As members of an armed, powerless group—and subordinates of a Dark Side organization—they were hardly lacking in fighting experience. At the very least, they'd been in plenty of brawls.
They'd even fought Level 3 Espers before.
Espers were strong, yes—but they weren't invincible. The vast majority of Espers were children or teenagers, students who were far less familiar with real street fighting than seasoned delinquents. With the right approach, defeating a higher-level Esper wasn't impossible.
For example, the tactic the gang leader had just shouted about—draining mental power—was one of the most commonly used methods against Espers. Whether by exhausting their concentration or disrupting it, you could effectively neutralize an Esper's ability.
Normally, activating an Esper power required intense mental calculation. That meant Espers had to stay calm at all times. Lose focus, and their abilities would falter—or fail. In severe cases, they could even lose control and injure themselves.
Most Espers in Academy City were students, many of them minors. Their mental fortitude and willpower weren't fundamentally different from those of ordinary people.
When faced with emergencies or frightening situations, they panicked just like anyone else—and under such conditions, their powers inevitably suffered.
That was why it wasn't unusual for them to be beaten by delinquents with far more street-fighting experience.
This, in fact, was the primary reason armed powerless groups were able to survive in Academy City at all.
The delinquents in the park intended to rely on their experience and raw aggression to bring down the target.
But Kobayashi had no intention of dragging things out.
He spun his wheelchair in place, taking in every enemy around him.
Then, ten telekinetic blocks formed instantly at his side, slamming into his opponents one after another like a game of whack-a-mole.
One hit was all it took to take down an enemy.
By now, Kobayashi could multitask with ease, controlling his telekinesis to handle several household chores at once. Compared to that, using telekinetic blocks to strike human-sized targets was absurdly simple.
Twenty-nine people in total—he even had the spare attention to count them.
It took just twelve telekinetic blocks.
After waiting a few seconds and confirming that no new enemies were appearing, Kobayashi finally concluded that the fight was over.
Contrary to his expectations, while these delinquents were weak, their fighting spirit was surprisingly stubborn. Not a single one had fled—they'd fought until the very last man.
Kobayashi had no intention of killing anyone, but in the heat of the moment, he hadn't had time to finely adjust the output of his telekinetic blocks. He hadn't held back much at all.
Every enemy had been taken out in a single blow. Anyone who hadn't lost consciousness afterward could be considered one of the "tough ones."
The battle had been absurdly one-sided.
After barely a dozen seconds, the only one still standing—still sitting—was Kobayashi.
Around his wheelchair, bodies littered the ground. From among them came the groans of a few unlucky souls who hadn't completely passed out yet.
It almost made Kobayashi look like the villain.
The scene made him uncomfortable, and his first instinct was to flee the site of the incident. But he quickly snapped out of it.
Wait a second. I'm the one who was attacked. This was self-defense. What do I have to worry about?
Besides, his guardian, Yomikawa Aiho, was an officer, one of the higher-ups in the Anti-Skill force. That made it even less of a concern.
So, Kobayashi decided to call the police and seize the narrative first.
Before doing that, however, he rolled his wheelchair over to one delinquent who was still conscious and asked calmly, "Why did you attack me?" …
Whether from pain or sheer speechlessness, the delinquent only groaned, offering no answer.
Kobayashi didn't press the issue and simply made the call.
As he finished reporting the situation, the delinquent at his feet finally squeezed out a spiteful threat:
"…We won't let you get away with this…"
Kobayashi lifted the delinquent with his telekinesis, bringing him face to face.
"I've got no grudge against you," he said coldly. "Why target me? Who put you up to this?"
Now that he'd confirmed their clear hostility toward him, something clicked in Kobayashi's mind.
—Come to think of it, the very reason he'd moved into Yomikawa Aiho's apartment in the first place was to ensure his safety.
(End of Chapter)