Editing Toaru Majutsu no Index:Item4 Chapter3 (section)

===Part 15===

Mugino Shizuri and Kinuhata Saiai. Even in Academy City, where esper development was the norm, they held positions near the top of the ranks at Level 5 and Level 4.

Mujinayama didn’t care.

He slipped forward.

And then suddenly vanished.

Maybe he had intentionally let Mugino’s eyes get used to his movement before breaking free with his top speed.

She couldn’t be certain.

The color white scattered in her vision.

It had happened to her, but she couldn’t tell what it was that had happened to her.

Had he hit her?

Her brain was badly shaken, but even this was Mujinayama showing mercy.

Just this once.

If he could slip past her guard and slam the stock of his sniper rifle against her nose, he could just as easily have crushed her eyes or torn out her throat.

(This isn’t just about me. He broke free of Kinuhata’s eyes at the same time!?)

“Tch!?”

“Even the same, for example, right motion could lead to an attack with the fist, elbow, or shoulder, each of which will have a very different reach or power. You must always be cognizant of at least two, and if possible three, options so the enemy cannot predict your actions. I thought this was a lesson I had drilled into you from a young age.”

At this point, Mugino couldn’t afford to hold back.

Holding the struck bridge of her nose, she stepped back and held her other palm out front.

A beam exploded out.

Academy City’s #4 Level 5, Meltdowner.

When the old butler in a tuxedo and monocle sighed, it contained a note of pity.

Butler Mujinayama did not try to stop the attack. He simply sidestepped the deadly attack and walked toward her.

Right, right, left, right, left, left.

“Y-you’re kidding? So it wasn’t a fluke before. He’s really dodging Mugino’s super Meltdowner from head on like that!!”

“Holding your hand out to aim? That is so simple I almost thought it was a feint, Lady Shizuri. It does not matter how powerful an attack is if it is so predictable.”

Of course, Mujinayama did not have the power of precognition or mind reading. He was probably predicting Mugino’s aim from the distance between them and using the signs she gave him, but that wasn’t the biggest issue.

Drilled into.

From a young age.

This old butler had looked after Mugino Shizuri as far back as she could remember. That length of time was his greatest weapon. He knew this monster’s idiosyncrasies possibly even better than she did herself. This could not be overcome overnight. She could try to change those idiosyncrasies, but she could not consciously cover these things right away.

Mujinayama was getting closer.

A direct hit here would be deadly.

Everyone here knew that. He was an ordinary human who had not gone through the esper development, but he had still easily beaten down Kinuhata Saiai while she was boosted by her Level 4 Offense Armor. He really could slay a grizzly or lion barehanded. All of Item believed so without real evidence. This attacks were not something a human could endure.

And he was right there.

Mujinayama spoke while strolling below a row of cherry trees.

“Is this all you have, Lady Shizuri?”

But she couldn’t hit him.

The beams always sizzled right past the butler.

Mugino Shizuri’s deadly attack was ineffective against Mujinayama!!

“If so, you are no threat at all. Not even with that superpower you acquired in Academy City.”

“What, is a Mugino Family Manager hesitating to kill once it comes down to it? You’re gonna make me cry.”

“I have not been playing around.”

Metal audibly scraped against metal.

“Mujinayama is not a family of geniuses. Thus, we always make certain. The first shot is used to reveal all the small errors introduced by reality.”

It was the sound of him pulling back the sniper rifle’s bolt handle and loading the first round.

The Mountain Sniper whispered.

“Shizuri-sama, this little game of ours has allowed me to accurately measure your range of motion. My adjustments are now complete, so the next time it will be a real bullet.”