Perhaps the weakest of the series so far, definitely not a bad read for sure, but it was low on the silly interactions between the Liberators that make the series so fun to read. Plus while I love Laus' character progression, I would have loved to see more of him with the main crew, and having the adventure part being more of a stealth operation with a side crew was a bit disapointing (and also where was the illustration of Sui undressing in the train compartment and Reinhart and Shawn's reactions? That was one of the best scenes and it deserved something, but maybe that's just me? ^^; ) Also the rest being mostly a recap of all the Liberator branches took a long time. This light novel got very thick and some parts could have been shorter. This also highlighted an editing issue I've had with the series as a whole: some different scenes are not separated at all, making it harder to follow, and that could be solved with simple formatting. But I'm still very excited for the series finale, this book was mostly build-up for it and while we all know how the Liberators end, how it all happens is what matters here.
With one book left in the Zero series, I can honestly say I'm glad. It just doesn't hold up against the original. In a 450 page book you'd think more of merit would happen. Well there is only one more in each series to go. Shirakome-sensei suggests reading Zero vol 6 before finishing the mainline. Considering Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest: Volume 12 barely came out digitally a few weeks ago... I'm just waiting for which ever one arrives next.
Hitting it's stride a little with this one I think. I can't help but be disappointed whenever I read one of the Zero books as so many characters are just weak copies of characters from the main Arifureta series. Given the fact that this series doesn't have the zany harem theme from the main Arifureta series, the fact that the entire series doesn't seem to pass the Bechdel test is even more jarring. Still a fun over-the-top light fantasy read.
The build up to this moment is at great pace. Oscars obsession makes this even better. The bonds that are achieved make for a great story. Trying to rate this book without giving things away was the most difficult thing for me to do. You will enjoy it.