Under the enhancement of Bullet Time, everything before Kobayashi's eyes slipped into slow motion once again. What he needed to do was no different from before—
Layer defensive plating to block the bullet.
He even had the leisure to fine-tune his telekinetic barrier into a sloped, angled shape, experimentally trying to deflect the armor-piercing round instead of merely stopping it.
At the same time, while Bullet Time was still active, Kobayashi seized the opportunity to launch a counterattack.
—Even in this slowed world, telekinetic blocks rained down on the enemy like a storm.
In real time, everything happened so fast that Hunter No. 3 never even understood what had occurred. It felt as though he'd been slammed head-on by a speeding train—violent impacts striking his entire body at once. In the blink of an eye, his consciousness was snuffed out.
Whoosh.
The flow of time returned to normal.
Kobayashi just caught sight of the enemy collapsing to the ground.
He didn't dare relax immediately. His telekinetic "arms" still flailed menacingly as he stayed on guard for a few more moments. Only after confirming that the enemy was completely incapacitated did he finally let out a breath of relief.
Much like his previous fight with Kohane Tomitsu, while Bullet Time was active, his mind had been pushed into a state of extreme focus—an icy, high-speed calm. In that state, there was no room for fear or panic, only combat and problem-solving.
But once the danger passed and he dropped back into normal time, the aftershock hit him all at once.
—No joke. That guy had fired a real gun at him.
For someone who had grown up in a peaceful era, aside from school-organized military training, most people would never even touch a real bullet in their entire lives—let alone face one head on.
To Kobayashi, firearms carried a psychological weight far greater than knives or other cold weapons. Even if, in terms of raw lethality, that bullet might not have been any stronger than the spike used earlier—
—Come to think of it, back at the hospital, hadn't Doctor Yamamoto also used a handgun during the assassination attempt?
That realization forced Kobayashi to hammer the point home once again:
The enemies targeting him were violent criminals who had no hesitation about using guns. They truly intended to kill him, without leaving any room for survival. He had to be cautious—painfully cautious—and treat this with absolute seriousness.
And yet, despite knowing all of this on a rational level, this was still his first time being hunted down. There was an underlying sense of unreality, a naive part of him that kept insisting it couldn't be that big a deal.
Like failing to finish homework at school, or missing a deadline at work, standing in front of a teacher or boss felt terrifying, sure. But that fear had limits. Eventually, things passed. You slept, woke up, and a new day began.
Being hunted for extermination was something else entirely.
Once you were dead, there was no "tomorrow."
No second chance.
When that truth finally sank in, a deep, instinctive terror surged up from his core.
This time, he wasn't dealing with some third-rate gang of street punks.
These were real killers, armed with lethal weapons.
Using his telekinesis, Kobayashi picked up the fallen enemy's handgun and examined it closely.
—So, this is what a real firearm looks like…
Reinforcing his sense of urgency, Kobayashi decided on the spot: he would not continue "adventuring" alone. He needed backup—immediately.
He pulled out his phone and tried to call Yomikawa Aiho for help.
But the call wouldn't go through.
No signal.
That was not something that should ever happen in Academy City.
Kobayashi instantly understood—he still hadn't escaped the enemy's encirclement.
—The communications signal had been jammed.
Putting his phone away, he scanned his surroundings once more. There was no sign of a fourth person.
In this entire area, aside from himself, only two enemies lay on the ground.
Kobayashi moved over to the delinquent. The boy had already lost consciousness, fallen into a coma. Fortunately, the wound on his neck wasn't deep—if treated promptly, it shouldn't be fatal.
When the attack happened, a thin telekinetic "collar" had still been wrapped around his neck. That flimsy-looking barrier had saved his life.
"Lucky you…" Kobayashi muttered.
He pulled out the emergency kit attached to his wheelchair and applied quick first aid with bandages and gauze to stop the bleeding.
As for the man in the suit, Kobayashi had no intention of helping him.
—That bastard tried to kill me without hesitation. Even if he died right in front of me, I wouldn't feel the slightest guilt.
After confirming that the unlucky delinquent wouldn't die anytime soon, Kobayashi felt he'd done more than enough. He didn't linger.
It was time to leave—fast.
"The enemy's hidden, I'm exposed—and I still don't know how many of them there are…" Kobayashi muttered as he accelerated his wheelchair forward. "If I can get out of here as quickly as possible and reach a crowded street, that's a win."
This deserted area was clearly abnormal. It had likely been designated as a battlefield and cleared out in advance.
If he could break through the boundary of that battlefield, he could force the enemy's plan to collapse and make them abandon the pursuit.
Powered by telekinesis, his wheelchair could reach the speed of a racing car.
With a Level 3 ability, even lifting the wheelchair for short bursts of flight wasn't impossible.
The speed he was using now was actually conservative—he had to stay alert for potential hidden enemies and couldn't afford to devote all his focus to acceleration.
That caution proved justified.
Just as Kobayashi was about to speed up further, the scenery whipping past him suddenly began to slow.
Without any warning, he entered Bullet Time again.
Kobayashi felt a surge of gratitude.
Bullet Time was a passive ability—it didn't rely on his conscious intent. As long as an attack capable of genuinely threatening his life appeared, the state would trigger automatically.
Just like now.
The instant Bullet Time was activated, Kobayashi widened his eyes and carefully scanned his surroundings—finally identifying the source of danger.
At roughly the ten o'clock direction above him, about fifty meters away, a bullet was in flight.
Even under Bullet Time, it was moving at a relatively fast pace. In this near-frozen world, any object that still moved "normally" stood out like a beacon.
That was why Kobayashi was able to spot the tiny moving black dot in the distance—and confirm that it was another bullet.
Another enemy attack.
Following the bullet's trajectory backward with his gaze, Kobayashi traced its path to a distant point. The extended line converged on the rooftop of a tall building more than three hundred meters away.
—A sniper.
(End of Chapter)
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