"Heh~"
Inside the institute, Samuel smirked as he examined the exchange application in his hand.
The document came from the Talent Workshop, requesting that one of their students study at his institute for two days. The student's name: Shokuhou Misaki.
The newly minted Level 5, ranked sixth, with the ability "Mental Out"—Shokuhou Misaki—had walked right into his hands, just as he'd predicted.
With Misaka Mikoto's Level 5 Electromaster program already in his possession, Samuel was about to secure a second.
Progress on analyzing Sogiita Gunha's ability remained slow. Samuel couldn't decipher it or simulate it, but he was certain it was far stronger than a typical Level 5—likely Level 6 or beyond.
Ding-dong~
Speak of the devil, and she appears.
His Firewall had already relayed the image. Samuel saw her: honey-colored hair swaying in the breeze, dressed in a school uniform, her fair face adorned with a polite yet detached smile. Subtle muscle twitches betrayed her nervousness, excitement… and perhaps a hint of fear.
High-tech cameras, with precision surpassing astronomical telescopes.
"Open the door!"
Standing at the entrance, Samuel wore a courteous smile, internally commanding the door via his Firewall.
The mechanical doors parted, revealing the girl from the image.
"Hello, I'm Shokuhou Misaki, a new Level 5. I'm here to study under your guidance, as arranged by my institute."
Her smile was impeccable, her body tilting forward in a precise thirty-degree bow.
"She's not trying to control me outright? Does she know I'm a Level 5 specializing in calculations?"
Samuel was mildly surprised. He'd expected her to attempt mental manipulation to achieve her goals, but on second thought, it made sense. As one of the original Level 5s with deletion-based calculations, it was natural she'd be cautious.
Despite his inner musings, he played along. "Please, come in, come in…"
By now, Shokuhou Misaki was essentially in his grasp, but Samuel had no intention of harming her. He planned to obtain her data through half-deception.
Hurting her would be tricky to explain to Dolly, and that excitable little girl would only get more rambunctious.
Samuel had always seen himself as "Lawful Evil"—upholding order while using it unscrupulously to achieve his ends.
Now, he still was, but he'd grown to care about a few people's opinions.
There was no need to harm her. Shokuhou's ability could be acquired peacefully, if a bit troublesomely. No need to upset Dolly over this.
After all, dealing with her tantrums would be even more troublesome!
"Miss Shokuhou, what do you hope to learn during your visit?"
"Well, my institute wants me to use your ability assistance training device and undergo ability development here for a while."
This was Shokuhou's sacrifice. Everyone knew Samuel's device had issues—specifically, it stole data. While the exact problem wasn't clear, its information-gathering nature was undeniable.
For institutes and espers, data was critical.
For institutes, data's value lay in possessing it, not necessarily in exclusivity.
Exclusivity was ideal, but they'd trade it for profit.
Thus, they allowed their espers to use Samuel's device.
While Samuel copied their data, the espers' improvements generated new data, far outweighing the loss of existing information.
Espers, however, often didn't grasp the importance of their data, equating it to mundane things like bank PINs or ID numbers.
Unaware of their abilities' true nature, they didn't realize their information was being taken by Samuel or their institutes.
Shokuhou was different. With her Level 5 Mental Out, she'd taken control of an institute, learning the value of data and developing precautions.
Logically, an institute under her control wouldn't sell her out, and with her guard up, Samuel would have a harder time.
Yet she'd requested to use his device, fully aware of its flaws, as a sacrifice.
She was trading her data exposure for Samuel's trust, hoping to find what—or who—she was looking for here.
"Perfect."
Samuel's eyes narrowed, his smile unwavering as he agreed.
As the mastermind, he had Shokuhou completely figured out. He could calculate her every thought.
Since she was being so direct, he saw no need to play coy.
"Here."
He handed her a card.
This was the device, simple in design, containing a receiver tailored to capture his AIM Diffusion Field.
It was single-use, destroyed after activation.
The principle was straightforward: Samuel's Firewall emitted an AIM Diffusion Field in a "diffusion wave" pattern. The receiver collected it, stimulating the user's ability, and was destroyed in the clash.
To activate, the esper used their computational capacity to stimulate the card, which responded in kind. Stopping the input ended the process.
This ensured safety—accidents were messy.
Collecting a complete program wasn't a one-shot deal, but that was fine. The device was far faster and easier than standard training, and it was affordable. As for the issue of multiple incomplete programs from repeated use?
Not a problem. Samuel needed programs for dissection, using them for calculations, combining them, and preparing contingencies.
In combat, he deployed the best contingency.
For example, his electromagnetic ability was primarily based on Misaka Mikoto's, enhanced by the essence of numerous lesser Electromasters and similar programs.
Since its main function was ability enhancement and it was single-use, some called it an "experience card."
***
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