The Gap in Power

Sigma had nearly reached his destination after running flat out, but he stopped and took cover.

Sigma had noticed something wrong—or rather, his Watchers had.

A large number of snipers lay in ambush outside the barrier. None of them had magical energy; they were ordinary people.

Sigma quickly concluded that they were military personnel, which made them Faldeus's subordinates.

A surprise attack by snipers might pose little threat to a Servant, but a Master was another matter.

For some reason, Sigma pictured Flat Escardos's goofy grin. That guy would probably let his guard down once the fighting ended and fall prey to those snipers.

Sigma changed his plan. He decided to take the risk of dealing with the snipers on the perimeter first.

There were twelve snipers in all, positioned around the hospital like the hours on a clock. With one lying in wait at each point, they could spot and shoot anyone who emerged, no matter where they came out.

The Watchers told Sigma that none of the twelve were in contact with the others. He could pick them off one by one without being discovered.

As a mercenary, Sigma had killed many people, but they had all been targets of his missions or enemies trying to kill him. He had never brought himself to kill someone unrelated to his mission.

Once again, his humanity was being tested. It was easy to say he wanted to live, but living at the cost of someone else's life was another matter.

Sigma hesitated over whether to eliminate them. They were ordinary people. Even elite soldiers would be no match for a second-rate Magic User like him, and he could silence them without a sound.

In front of the hospital building, the Twenty-Eight Monsters had already engaged Alcides—or more precisely, Cerberus.

Alcides