'I didn't really see any good goddamn reason to refuse taking that raincoat from him, especially in this downpour,' Shitsubo internally said to himself, as he then threw a quick, sideways glance at two other contractors who had just come out from around the same corner he had been told earlier to enter to find the exit.
As they were now walking briskly towards his general direction, Shitsubo couldn't help but enviously admire the advanced, well-maintained assault rifles they were both casually carrying.
'They don't even seem to be fuckin' bothered in the slightest about this heavy rain possibly damaging their cannons. I'm pretty sure each one of those pieces would cost a mad fuckin' amount of coins, more than I've ever seen. Just imagine actually getting my own hands on one of those beauties…' Shitsubo had barely even finished that thought when another, much bolder, more audacious thought immediately started brewing deep in his opportunistic head.
This new thought caused him to unconsciously halt his steps, and his head then slowly turned to follow the two contractors as they walked right past him, without even paying much attention to him at all, just another rain-soaked figure in the camp.
He then completely turned his body around and stared intently at their retreating backs as he continued to brew his daring new idea.
'Just imagine if I could somehow get my hands on a real piece like that…' he repeated the same enticing statement again in his mind, as he suddenly became acutely aware of a possible way of making this seemingly impossible thought REAL.
He swiftly, mentally, opened his Profile tab and then immediately pulled up the details of the only arcane skill he currently possessed.
[Shape-shift Lv. 1]
Category: Arcane Skill
Acquisition: Vestige of Loki
[The ability to change into any human or Evolve upon seeing. Consumes 2 Energy points per minute]
'There absolutely has to be some kind of armory, or at least a weapons storage tent, around here somewhere, probably filled with more guns just like that.
And these military-type militants, these contractors, they would definitely, easily, be able to just walk right in, casually grab one if they needed it, and then just walk right back out again… No undue stress, no difficult questions asked, and no one would ever fuckin' suspect a single goddamn thing,' Shitsubo pondered excitedly on this sudden, brilliant idea that had just popped into his mind.
'If I am reading the stated ability of this Shape-shift skill correctly, then I should be able to change my physical appearance to match that of anyone I have clearly seen before right?
That part, at least, doesn't seem too fuckin' impossible.
I mean, I have heard of Evolves with sicker powers…
But how the fuck would I even find the armory in the first place?
It's not like I can just change my face to look like one of those random contractors I've just seen, and then simply start askin' around casually for the location of their main armory, now can I?' Shitsubo continued thinking rapidly, as he finally turned back around and then resumed his previous, merry way towards that indicated left corner, now deliberately walking as slow as he possibly could be without drawing attention.
'And even if I somehow do manage to find it, what if there are guards posted directly in front of it, or if there's someone already inside when I try to enter?
And what if either of them then ask me why I'm suddenly taking another gun?
I suppose I could just try to say that I accidentally damaged the last one that was handed to me, maybe back during that last big fight in the subway… but then, what if they have actually seen this specific person, whose face I'm planning to use, sometime before I use their face?
How the hell do I explain myself out of that kinda fuckin' mess then?
And the Shape-shift skill itself will also probably only last for around, what, maybe 4 minutes at best, since my current Energy stat, under Power Status, is only at 9 right now…
Well, technically, I do have a lot of unused Status Points at the moment, but I really shouldn't just waste them stupidly on Energy if I don't absolutely have to.
I mostly, desperately, need all of them for my Construct stat right now…
Shit, this whole idea isn't nearly as fuckin' easy or straightforward as I first thought it was going to be,' Shitsubo pondered further, his initial excitement now tempered with a healthy dose of caution, as he finally cut into the aforementioned left corner and then continued walking slowly onward, his mind racing.
Maybe this isn't a good idea to begin with... Nah, fuck it!... I can do this.
After taking just 3 or 4 more slow, deliberate steps, he then looked up briefly to see how far he now was from the camp's main exit.
He knew, with a growing sense of urgency, that he only really has this one single shot at successfully pulling this mini-heist off, especially since he is currently still within the relative confines of this small, temporary military camp. Once he left, the chance would be gone.
Shitsubo then looked straight down the muddy, temporary road and saw a lone guard standing in front of a large, drab tent, about 70 meters away from him, and currently facing towards the west, away from his position.
He immediately halted his steps again and just looked intently at that solitary guard.
He desperately wants to try and steal a gun, maybe even two if he's lucky, but without raising any undue suspicion at all, and certainly while avoiding any direct questioning from anyone, before quickly splitting his ass out of this camp for good.
'Okay, now, how the hell do I actually go about doin' this smoothly…?
Wait a minute. I shouldn't try to get too fuckin' greedy here and then end up fuckin' this whole opportunity up completely.
If I can manage to get only ONE single gun out of this, it will still be a fucking incredible jackpot for me,' Shitsubo thought, as he stood there, still stared intensely at that distant, unsuspecting guard, almost like he expected a perfect solution to magically pop out from the guy's own body.
Thankfully, the guard didn't seem to have noticed his lone, stationary figure yet, mostly because of the continuing heavy, obscuring rain.
'Wait a damn minute now… I think I am going about this whole thing all fuckin' wrong…' Shitsubo suddenly had a much better, much clearer idea, one that almost seemed completely flawless, on how he could actually get himself that precious gun.
He quickly walked back to the corner he had just come out from a moment ago.
Then, he stopped again and looked cautiously ahead, down the muddy track, to see if anyone else was coming his way.
The heavy rain made it very hard to see clearly for any significant distance, but Shitsubo didn't think he would need a very long time to do what he now wants to do.
He then closed his eyes tightly and called out the command 'Shape-shift' clearly in his mind.
He quickly opened his eyes again and immediately checked his faint, dull reflection in a nearby wet metal sheet that was leaning against a stack of crates.
But, frustratingly, nothing fuckin' had happened.
He still looked exactly like himself, and he didn't feel any different either.
'Shit… this is just like fuckin' maths or somethin'; I really shouldn't be wastin' any more precious time like this.
If the skill description clearly says I need to see someone first, in order to successfully shape-shift into them, then that probably means I have to actually put up that specific person's clear image in my head before I try to invoking the power of the skill…
Right, I need to remember this fucked-up System always seems to work primarily with pure, focused intent,' Shitsubo quickly made a firm mental note to himself.
He then exhaled deeply, trying to calm his nerves, and then closed his eyes again, focusing his mind.
With a perfect, crystal-clear mental image of the specific person now held firmly in his head – vividly remembering that person's exact eye size and color, their hair style, their lip shape, their skin complexion, their overall physical statue, their nose shape, and absolutely everything else that he could possibly recall seeing from that person's head all the way down to his toes – he then softly, but with intense focus, said the command 'Shape-shift' again, with all the unwavering intent he could possibly muster.
He then immediately felt a slight, yet distinct, tingling force rapidly enveloping his entire body, from the outside in.
He could even strangely feel that same peculiar force now working inside his body as well.
His old, ragged clothes suddenly began to feel uncomfortably tight on his rapidly changing body.
And as Shitsubo then slowly opened his eyes again, he could see that his clothes indeed now slowly, but surely, felt much, much tighter than before.
He quickly looked at that same wet metal sheet again, and this time he found a completely different person's reflection staring back at him.
And though he already knew, that this System is undeniably real, and he has, by now, somewhat managed to establish that basic fact in his own mind, he still couldn't help but feel even more at ease, more confident, in seeing this tangible proof that it was truly, undeniably REAL once again.
But this time, it felt a bit more profound, more grounding somehow, since he could now see an actual, physical change in his own damn body… in his entire fuckin' body, really.
He also quickly noticed that his eye level was now noticeably further from the ground than before, and his whole body generally felt much more filled up, more substantial.
He looked down at his own arm and noticed the huge, unexpected amount of new flesh, of muscle, that he now suddenly seemed to possess.
He then quickly checked the sound of his new voice, and a few other minor physical things, before then deciding to immediately change back into his own familiar self.
He then opened up his Profile screen again and quickly added 3 more of his hoarded points directly into his Energy stat, primarily to try and increase the total time he could take before the shape-shifting power would wear off on its own.
He then waited for about a minute or so, allowing his body to replenish the few points from his ArcaneEnergy pool that he had just used to perform that initial shape-shift and then the quick reversal earlier.
Then, he carefully adjusted the gifted raincoat he now wore, making sure it was properly fastened, so that the tattered, filthy rags he was still wearing underneath it didn't accidentally show through, except, perhaps, for his own battered, muddy boots.
But he then quickly thought that even just his boots alone might still attract someone's unwanted attention, making them ask him some awkward questions about it, or at least making them feel very fuckin' suspicious of him.
He then finally, with his plan now set, walked out normally from the corner, heading once again towards the general direction of the camp's main exit.
But he wasn't actually going directly there just yet.
His true, immediate destination was now that solitary, unsuspecting guard by the tent.
When he felt he was close enough, but not too close, he quickly, covertly, shape-shifted again, this time into the specific person he had previously, so carefully, visualized.
"Oi, soldier!" Shitsubo, now wearing another's skin, called out sharply to the guard, as he was now just four or five confident steps away from him.
"Tanji-dono! Sir! How can I be of assistance to you?" the startled guard immediately stood up arrow-straight, saluted, and then asked respectfully.
'Heh. They might not officially be a proper army, but rigid hierarchy is still fuckin' absolute everywhere you go in this world, ain't it?' Shitsubo, who was currently wearing Tanji-dono's own skin, commented sardonically in his mind.
"Give me your side arm right now, and also all your extra ammo. Fast!" Tanji (who was actually Shitsubo) then said, his voice now infused with a harsh, authoritative tone.
"Sir?" the guard couldn't help but ask, his voice betraying his surprise and confusion, obviously needing to confirm what he thought he was hearing.
The guard was clearly, understandably, very hesitant to just do as he was suddenly told.
His boss, Tanji-dono, had just abruptly demanded his personal sidearm, with absolutely no reason or explanation attached to that demand.
And even if he did say he had a good reason for it, why couldn't he just go to the damn camp armory himself and easily get himself another handgun there, if he really, truly needed one so urgently?
'Why the hell would he come all the way over here and specifically ask for my own weapon?' the guard pondered silently, with no immediate intent of just blindly handing over his issued side arm to his boss, not without a damn good reason.
A few rather wicked, suspicious reasons immediately popped into the guard's head, but he quickly did his best to try and look outwardly calm, and was already starting to plan on how to respectfully, yet firmly, refuse to do as he was just told.
'I am clearly not in any fuckin' wrong here for questioning this. And if he then tries to give me any shit about it later on, I damn well won't just let this whole strange incident simply slide by, no sir,' he mentally reaffirmed his decision to resist.
"What the fuck is that suspicious look in your eye, soldier? Do you honestly think I want to try and use your own damn gun to somehow put some kind of shit on you, to frame you for something? Just clean your fucking prints off the gun properly, and then hand it the hell over to me, now!" Tanji (who was still Shitsubo, of course) then said, his voice now a very vexed, impatient tone.
The guard was visibly shocked by this outburst, and he desperately tried to process what was actually happening here again, to quickly think if he should indeed give his boss his gun as ordered, or if he should just adamantly, respectfully, refuse.
But before he could think that fast, Tanji (Shitsubo) then blurted out again, his voice now filled with clear, undeniable anger and raw annoyance.
"Motherfucker, I said NOW!" he then yelled loudly, directly at the stunned guard.
The guard immediately stopped thinking altogether at that.
He quickly, fumbling slightly, brought out his side arm from its holster, then hastily, nervously, cleaned all his prints off the gun and also off his spare ammo clips.
He then handed them all quickly, reverently, over to Tanji (Shitsubo).
Shitsubo roughly snatched it all from him and then quickly walked away, heading towards the right-hand corner of the large tent.
But, as an afterthought, he then casually said, "Go get yourself another one from the armory," to the now-unarmed guard, without even bothering to face him as he walked away.
The guard just stood there and blankly looked at Tanji-dono's retreating figure as he disappeared around the corner of the tent.
He then just slowly shook his head in bewilderment.
"Man, I wonder what the hell his problem is today?" the guard rhetorically asked himself, his voice low.
He then sat down heavily on a nearby wooden crate, as he suddenly just got incredibly tired of standing there, trying to make sense of it all.
Meanwhile, safely around the corner, Shitsubo couldn't help but celebrate just a little bit, a silent victory, in his own mind.
He kept his head bowed down for a few more seconds, just in case some lucky bastard might be watching and happen to spot his face suddenly, magically changing.
Then, he quickly, smoothly, shape-shifted back into his own familiar body.
'It fuckin' worked! It actually, really, fuckin' worked! This might not turn out to be such a completely bad fuckin' day after all… Shit, man, I really can't fuckin' believe it actually fuckin' worked out so perfectly. I honestly thought he would at least say something like, "Who the fuck are you, and what are you doing here?" … I guess this shape-shifting skill is actually pretty fuckin' wicked good, much better than I'd hoped,' he thought, a genuine, rare smile on his face.
Shitsubo then quickly, without any further delay, exited the now much less secure camp, and then immediately made his way towards the closest public train station he knew of that was reasonably nearby.