Chapter 49 – Skill Inference

“Нey, buу it аlrеаdу.”

“I’m not buying it.”

“Why nоt? I’m gоing out of mу way tо rесоmmеnd it tо you.”

“Вecаusе yоu’rе rесоmmending а lamе, overрriсеd Skill!”

“I-it’s nоt lame!”

“Whу arе you reсоmmending a Magiс Skill tо me, an Assassin?”

“Huh? Yоu hаve an Aptitude fоr Аssassin?”

“What еlse did уоu think I wаs…?”

Fеeling slightly dizzy, Asutо pressеd а hаnd to his forеhеаd.

It was true—this timе, he hadn’t rеvealed his Aрtitudе to Amу еven оnce.

Вut if she had watсhed him fight, shе shоuld have realized hе wasn’t а Маge.

Dеspite thаt, shе dеliberatеly rесоmmеndеd a Маgе Skill—he соuld sense malice in that.

“—Wait, how do you instantly know what’s inside a Skill Scroll!?”

“I remember it.”

“Remember? There are six digits! Your tiny brain can’t possibly hold a million Skill Scroll patterns.”

“Alright, I’ll take that fight.”

With a sharp click, he gripped his Dagger and rose slightly from his seat.

Amy paled and smoothly slid backward.

“J-just kidding! Don’t take it seriously! It’s just a cute little joke from cute little me.”

“Who’s cute…?”

His shoulders slumped heavily.

All his killing intent had vanished. Asuto released his Dagger and sat back down with a thud.

“Do you remember when I bought 〈Memory Playback〉 before?”

“Yeah, now that you mention it, you did buy that.”

“That’s how I can recall it. Any Skill that’s been used even once gets posted online.”

“I see. That makes sense.”

“If you understand, then shut up for a while.”

“What a terrible thing to say!”

Ignoring Amy, who was fuming with anger, Asuto picked out four Skills.

These were Skills with the highest Rarity among the information that would be revealed in the future—Legend Skills, of which there was only one in the entire world.

If even one person purchased one, it would disappear from everyone else’s Gold Shop.

So, if he was going to buy one, it had to be now, but they were all so appealing he couldn’t decide.

・No. 963021 – 60,000G

The Bible. An Active Skill that allows the user to form a contract with the Spirit of Light. Randomly applies various Buffs to the user.

・No. 062567 – 100,000G

Weapon Mastery. A Skill that enables mastery of all Weapons.

・No. 078965 – 50,000G

Life Steal. A Passive Skill that steals Stamina from the target with each attack.

・No. 576034 – 80,000G

Natural Healing (Large). A Passive Skill that greatly increases natural healing ability. More convenient than Life Steal since it doesn’t require attacking.

All of them were good Skills.

If possible, he wanted to acquire multiple, but in his current situation, any combination would leave him short.

“H-hey, Asuto, wh-what are those Skills?”

“Hmm? I’m thinking of buying one of these.”

“Wh-why did you pick those Skills?”

Amy’s voice trembled.

She probably thought she was hiding it, but her inner panic was plain to see.

(She must hate the idea of me getting a High-Rarity Skill.)

No matter how strong a Skill is, if the user’s Level or Proficiency is low, its effectiveness remains weak.

Even using a high-Rarity Skill in a weak State won’t allow it to demonstrate its true value.

Only after nurturing it over a long time can you fully draw out 100% of the Skill’s potential.

If humans nurture High-Rarity Skills—if inherently fragile humans gain power beyond their existence—it would trouble Amy and the other Angels, who ultimately aim to destroy the human world.

That’s why she’s panicking about the early acquisition of strong Skills.

(Actually, information about these Skills wasn’t publicly released until several years later.)

“…Well, I just had a feeling these seemed strong.”

“Hey, that’s not an answer! What are you hiding!?”

“Calm down. If you panic like that, people will see through you. Like, ‘Why don’t you want this Skill to be acquired?’ or something.”

“Ugh! D-don’t change the subject. Answer the question properly.”

“Fine. The scroll numbers and Names that are identified get uploaded online. I can recall those numbers anytime with 〈Memory Playback〉. Clear so far?”

“Yeah. How does that connect to why you chose these four Skills?”

“Excluding the known ones, countless numbers remain whose Names and Effects are unknown.”

“Naturally.”

“Actually, by using a certain rule, you can narrow down which ones might be suitable for you.”

Skill Scrolls are masked with numbers.

But these numbers follow a certain rule.

For example, the Skills Asuto recognized after 〈Returning〉 to the time of the Second Outbreak are as follows:

・No. 013245 – Evasion = Martial Arts.

・No. 019486 – Dagger Arts = Martial Arts.

・No. 013245 – Leap = Martial Arts.

・No. 005875 – Slash = Martial Arts.

・No. 199605 – Snapshot = Magic.

・No. 143844 – Haste = Magic.

・No. 853953 – Beast Killer = Other.

・No. 996425 – Memory Playback = Other.

Just listing them like this, you can vaguely see a pattern.

Overlaying this with Skills that would be publicly revealed online in the future, the following rule emerges:

• Numbers 1–100,000 = Martial Arts Type

• Numbers 100,001–200,000 = Magic Type

• Numbers 200,001–300,000 = Long-Range Type

• Numbers 300,001–400,000 = Holy Type

• Numbers 400,001–500,000 = Creation Type

• Numbers 500,001–1,000,000 = Other

By the Skill number, you can roughly determine which Type the Skill belongs to.

This wasn’t Asuto’s idea; it’s a famous rule that had been rumored since the dawn of Hunters.

“Now, from this, if I pick out the high-priced items I can afford—those priced between 50,000 and 100,000 Gold—what happens?”

“…………The four in your Cart fit perfectly.”

“Right?”

At this explanation, Amy’s eyes widened.

“You…………you’re actually smart. I always thought you were an idiot…”

“Want me to knock you out?”

Think of Skill masking like programming.

Skill number = the program itself.

Skill use → Starts running on the human (OS), so it’s converted into a comprehensible language.

By the way, Skills in the “Other” category tend to have more Passive Skills.

Naturally, among these Skills for sale, there are many that are unusable for Hunters.

Example: Rice Planting Skill

(If I paid a fortune and got a Rice Planting Skill, I’d probably fall into despair.)