Assessment

“I’ve confirmed an additional skill. That makes a total of six so far.”

I reported to Charlotte.

The outlaw had gone inside the fortress and was resting with his back against the wall.

I observed his movements through my telescope from one of the embrasures.

“He’s using ‘Yuichi,’ his reconnaissance goggles. He’s currently surveying the area within a two-kilometer radius.”

“Uh-huh. Since we have nothing else to do, you might as well go over each skill until the troops arrive. Run me through the skills you’ve observed so far.”

“Aye.”

I began reciting each skill without taking my eyes off the man.

“The first one I confirmed was ‘Daigo,’ the sword with the enlarging skill. I’ve seen it grow up to three times its original size.”

“Hmm, it should be able to grow larger than that. Perhaps he finds it more manageable if it’s smaller.”

I had no idea how much bigger the sword could get, as I had yet to level up my “assessment” skill.

“Next, I confirmed ‘Tsukasa,’ the megaphone mask with the general skill. The troops were immobilized for about ten seconds after it became effective.”

“That’s the little one’s skill. I’m always impressed by how useful it is.”

“Useful” was an understatement. Although I wasn’t sure how much time he needed to recharge that skill, if used consecutively, he’d be all but invincible.

“After that, he used ‘Homura’ and ‘Yachiyo,’ the red and blue twin blades with fire and ice skills, respectively. ‘Homura’ burns its opponent to ashes, while ‘Yachiyo’ freezes its target.”

“When they were still human, they used to throw balls of fire and icicles. I wonder if their range has been shortened? That, or he’s hiding their full potential.”

When they were still human. I grimaced at the distastefulness of her words.

The fact that the people who'd fought by her side had turned into weapons didn’t seem to faze this woman at all.

“Lastly, I confirmed the bazooka skill in the form of the hand cannon ‘Shizuka’. It’s the most powerful out of all the skills I’ve seen so far. A single shot was enough to wipe out most of Unit 13.”

“Ah, yes, Shizuka. She might have made it if only she’d used her skill when she was alive.”

Hearing Charlotte talk made me sick to my stomach, so I went back to watching the outlaw.

I saw him put “Shizuka” away in his backpack, which I’d overlooked earlier because I’d been distracted by the hand cannon.

“I’ve found another one! That backpack is ‘Futoshi’s’ item box skill. It allows him to stuff as many items as he likes in his bag.”

“Imagine only becoming useful after dying. He’s one badass fatty.”

After returning the hand cannon “Shizuka” to “Futoshi,” I noticed the outlaw take out something else.

“Wait, there’s one more! He’s holding the sniper rifle ‘Yayoi,’ which has an effective firing distance of 3,500 meters! ...Huh? He’s pointing the gun in this direction...”

I was unable to finish my assessment of his eighth skill.

The front of the telescope shattered, and my vision in my right eye faded.

The bullet from “Yayoi” had pierced my right eye through the telescope before exiting the back of my head.