Arcane Sniper [Matan’s Shooter]

―Need an explanation?

―Well, it’s not necessary, but… these days, the atmosphere in Minis is unsettling. The numbers of cities and castles being destroyed have rapidly increased, and there have been sightings of undead legions alongside the chimeras. Anyway, Leeha, you should mark your target city before it gets destroyed, shouldn’t you?

Lam Hwayeon couldn’t grasp the true cause of the chaos, which was undoubtedly Faust. Having gained authority over the chimeras, he had been wreaking havoc within Minis.

Back when he traveled with just the Bluebeard, Faust was the only one, but not anymore. There were a few more users accompanying the chimeras, whom Faust had enlisted with the authority granted to him by Bluebeard.

Of course, Lam Hwayeon and Ram Hwayeon were completely unaware of all this.

At best, they were only considering the relationship between Bluebeard and the chimeras.

―Hmm… Alright. I’ll head to the palace as soon as possible, today or even right away tomorrow.

―Get in touch as soon as you arrive.

After finishing the conversation with Lam Hwayeon, Leeha thought she should hurry with her preparations.

“I say preparations, but it’s just getting the gear. Well, that’s a problem. Well, at least I managed to snag some of Bahaumut’s rare items, so that’s fortunate.”

If she gathers equipment from other rares and brings back something of exceptional value from Bahaumut’s rare, that should do it. Then she will quickly head to the palace to complete Browris’ quest! That was Leeha’s plan.

“Browris’ quest reward is a related quest. It will probably lead to the Contract of Enhancement – 2 quest. That one shouldn’t be a big deal either….”

What does the Contract of Enhancement entail for Leeha?

Documents going back and forth, representatives leaving after confirming the conditions and signing – that’s it. Most likely, the next quest would involve waiting for some time.

“Will I receive the next city reward then? Hehe, how much will I get in total once I have everything–”

“What are you smiling about, lost in your thoughts?”

“Oh, Bahaumut.”

As she finished organizing her thoughts quickly, an old man in a white robe approached with a smile. The last rare Leeha logged out from was Bahaumut’s rare.

“Have you chosen your gift?”

“Not yet… May I look around and think a bit more?”

“Of course. Bluugrun’s rare has some leeway, so it’s fine. But they say Kuzugunak’s rare is attracting young color kids. You should go see what you want before it disappears.”

“Color– dragons?”

“Yes. Those youngsters who have just become familiar with handling mana are too greedy and take everything they can get from Kuzugunak’s rare.”

Although they had officially declared their detachment from Kuzugunak’s rare, there was no helping the individual friendships.

The rumor was that the youngsters were taking items from Kuzugunak’s rare after confirming his death.

“Both Minis and the chimeras are in turmoil, and there doesn’t seem to be much time left here either….”

To put it another way, it meant there was an invisible time limit!

“Kuzugunak is an Ancient Dragon, so you can get five from there. It’s much more efficient than getting three from Bluebeard’s Adult rare. But, well, the game master seems to hate me.”

To take away all the advantages from the users seemed to be Middle Earth’s style, and furthermore, it felt like the game was always against Leeha, but that was just her complaint.

Of course, from other users’ perspective, it looked like Leeha was receiving unreasonable privileges, but that was the difference in perspective.

“Can I go there alone to Kuzugunak’s rare?”

“I can send you there.”

“Can you accompany me–”

“Giggle. Do you want to witness the war of the dragons?”

“No, no. That won’t be good.”

If the Metal Dragon King appears in the Color Dragon’s rare, there might be an all-out war. Baileyphus also wouldn’t stand a chance.

If there were a ‘partner’ dragon, Leeha would go boldly, but ultimately, she would have to go to Kuzugunak’s rare alone.

Leeha tested herself. How effective could the clues Bahaumut provided be, and what could the various rewards from this achievement achieve?

First, she stored Bahaumut’s rare in the storage. Then, she pulled out a magazine and loaded it into the Black Vess.

“Send me, Bahaumut.”

“Alright. The place is about 700m away from Kuzugunak’s rare. You should be able to figure out where to go.”

“I understand–”

Sssh–!

Before Leeha could finish her reply, her body was already in motion.

She quickly checked the map, but her position was not displayed anywhere. At least according to the map she possessed, it was an uncharted territory.

With the land of unanswered questions ahead, Leeha headed for Kuzugunak’s rare.

In the distance, a cave on the mountainside awaited Leeha.

‘Kuzgunak’shi must have died, I suppose. Still, I don’t feel that strange aura like when I approached Blaugrun’s rare in the past.

Recalling the peculiar sensation of mana spreading through the air, Leeha thought about the dragon that could have been her “partner.”

“He seemed so kind. With that gentle face and powerful magic, he was definitely a force to be reckoned with. Being at the adult level, he wouldn’t be threatened by any monster or player. Man, if only he could have been my true partner, I might have been able to defeat Alexander!”

Blaugrun led the way, her delicate body moving forward. This encounter could make the enemies lower their guard, and even if she attacked with her full power, it wouldn’t harm the dragon much.

Gracefully evading the enemy’s attacks, Blaugrun paralyzed them. In that helpless situation, hearing the sparks crackling beyond the scope, Leeha pulled the trigger.

Bang!

The enemy’s head pierced, and they met their demise.

Then, using the “Summon” skill, she instantly appeared by her partner’s side. Her abilities allowed for swift escape and movement, and she boasted a perfect synchronization in combat.

“Ugh, why did you die, Blaugrun? I guess I should be glad that at least your heart was saved. Oh, by the way, I suppose the Hell & Veil is now fully completed.”

Having divided Blaugrun’s dragon heart, only about 10% of the total dragon heart was used to create the bullets to catch Kuzgunak’shi. For the rest, nearly all the dragon heart’s power, Bottleneck was entrusted to forge a near-complete item.

“I also brought the Orichalcon, so that’s almost done too. Damn it! Is this a good thing or a bad thing? I have to find them before the Chimeras go berserk…”

“Die, you servant of the Demon Lord!”

“Aaaargh!”

“Huh?”

As they approached Kuzgunak’shi’s rare, two figures suddenly jumped out from behind a massive tree trunk. Had they been hiding all this time? But Leeha wasn’t particularly nervous.

To be precise, they were more like two little kids than adults.

“What, who are you guys?”

Shiiing!

A white-haired kid, who looked older than his age, swung a sword. Although he seemed fierce, compared to the Zar’s Leeha had dealt with, he was quite comical.

Easily avoiding his attack, Leeha noticed that the kid swinging the sword didn’t seem to understand what was happening.

“What’s going on now?”

Tut-tut, sticking her tongue out at Leeha, a green-haired kid with a sporty haircut appeared behind the white-haired kid, thrusting a dagger.

“Huuaaah!”

Chupapot!

While their speed was considerable, it still fell short compared to the Midnight Circus members. No, to be precise, the kids’ attacks hadn’t fully unfolded yet.

Evading the two kids’ attacks, Leeha calmly pulled the trigger.

Click!

Previously, she might have wondered why kids suddenly attacked, but the current Leeha was not so naive.

“Noisy, noisy! You thieves! All metal folks are hypocrite thieves!”

“And how do you nullify our attacks? Without magic, it’s impossible except for the Metal’s big shots―”

Seeing the kids babbling, Leeha sighed.

Indeed, there was no better way than silence to handle them.

She pointed the gun at the kids, who were getting rowdier and rowdier.

“Hey, what level are you guys?”

“….”

“What level? You’re not at the adult level, are you?”

Lowering her gun, she looked at the white-haired kid whose mouth was now wide open. The green-haired kid kept sniffing and crying.

“Ju-Juvenile grade.”

“This arrogant brat. Your words are too short.”

Then, she just moved her index finger… and the white-haired kid’s posture tightened significantly.

“Juvenile… Juvenile grade…! I-it’s… you.”

“Below the adult level?”

“Y-yes.”

The white-haired kid’s eyes were watery as he glared at Leeha. However, despite his expression, polite language came out of his mouth.

Leeha understood that these kids were the White Dragon and Green Dragon.

She knew that the unit of adult level was 1,000 years.

Given the ridiculously long time unit of dragons, if they were Juvenile grade, they must be at least 500 years old.

But she couldn’t just pull the trigger on these kids.

“Darn it, I wish they were in dragon form. That would make it easier on my conscience…”

Their human forms, even at the age of around 12, were a bit too young.

The furious expression on their young faces, trying to hold back their tears, made it difficult for Leeha to aim her gun at them.

After all, even someone like Leeha, who had slaughtered countless Minis users, destroyed Kuzgunak’shi’s dragon heart, and earned a ruthless name in wars (perhaps?), found it difficult to make this decision.

In the end, she decided to change her approach.

Catching these kids and obtaining the Dragon Slayer―Juvenile grade achievement might be possible.

Despite gathering stats countless times, she knew that stats were important, but at least in the current situation, shooting bullets at kids didn’t match her character.

“You’re just kids, not even at the adult level, and you come to steal someone else’s rare? Unacceptable.”

Indeed, kids needed proper education and discipline.