Arcane Sniper [Matan’s Shooter]

“Well… that’s… I’ve heard the story a few times when I was young, but it was like a fairy tale—was it actually real? Where did you get it?”

“Hehe, where I got it is a secret. Whatever story you’ve heard, consider it an honor. We’re going to test its power together now.”

Somewhere at the foot of the Admandir Mountains, an item that had never been used at least since Middle Earth Open was now being activated in Leeha’s hands.

[Please select an item containing the mana of the target for reincarnation.]

“As expected…”

Leeha slowly approached the item on the workbench.

It was the item he had asked Bottle-neck to craft, emitting a faint light—the Dragon Heart of Blaugrun.

[Target for reincarnation: Bronze Dragon ‘Blaugrun’]

[Press the confirmation button if the target is correct.]

The reason why the Metal Dragon King showed gratitude to Leeha was because of this.

With it, he could revive his deceased tribe.

No, perhaps from the start, Leeha chose Blaugrun as his dragon partner because he had considered the possibility of this method.

Just like the perfect coloring of Bahamut’s grand masterpiece, Leeha was now completing it like a Middle Earth administrator.

“Confirmed.”

Woah──────!

“Oh, oh, it’s truly—truly an egg of resurrection. By the gods! Hey, Beard Brothers! Come here quickly!”

Seeing the heavenly light bursting from the Easter Egg, Bottle-neck shed tears of joy.

And Leeha carefully picked up the Easter Egg he had been holding, eagerly awaiting the arrival of Blaugrun, the Bronze Dragon who would become his dragon partner in the future.

***

“By the heavens, where did you get something that seems like it could belong to the Dragon Lord?”

“Hush, hush! I won’t tell, no way!”

Beard Brothers’ older brother, while asking by tapping Leeha’s arm, had his mouth blocked by Leeha, who was focused on the Easter Egg.

He had wanted to brag that he got it from the Dragon Lord, but he missed the chance to speak.

“But how does it resurrect like this?”

Crack───!

When gold began to be applied to the Easter Egg, Leeha had already placed the egg on the ground.

Everyone’s eyes, including Bottle-neck and Beard Brothers, were focused on the small egg emitting light. However, curiosity was inevitable.

“Is this an adult dragon? Is it going to be born from that egg?”

Leeha thought Blaugrun, the handsome bronze dragon, would emerge like magic.

But what’s going on?

Just as he thought an adult creature like a Tyrannosaurus would emerge from the egg, there was a moment when──

Crack──!

“Oh!”

Finally, the top of the Easter Egg fell away.

“It’s coming out, it’s coming out!”

Although it had a jewel-like surface, the Easter Egg seemed to have truly become an “egg” after fulfilling its function, and the large ostrich-sized shell was slowly falling apart.

Watching that scene, Leeha felt anxious.

He had seen a similar scene in an old dinosaur movie. He thought it was a touching moment, the moment of birth, but…

“That movie’s lead dinosaur, even the Tyrannosaurus, when it was born from an egg, definitely──”

Crack──!

Snap, crackle, the shell cracked and the fragments fell away. And at last, the appearance of the Bronze Dragon emerged from the egg.

Rough, scaly skin with a bluish tone, Dragon Scale with stronger physical defense than a ranked tank!

Even though it had just come out of the egg, it had noticeably sharp claws, Dragon Claw with a physical attack power stronger than a ranked dealer!

Fwoo──!

With a powerful light, the Easter Egg shattered into pieces and scattered around.

“Wow!”

“It’s out! It’s all out!”

And as the light faded, Leeha, Bottle-neck, and Beard Brothers saw a creature flying in the sky.

[Kyuu?]

“Oh, oh, oh! It’s a hatchling! By the gods of the forge!”

This creature was far different from the Dragon Scale or Dragon Claw.

With its small, horned head, round and cute eyes, and flapping wings, the very small dragon made a noisy pitter-patter sound as it moved in the air.

“Once in a lifetime, they say you’ll never get enough of witnessing a dragon’s birth!”

“Boss! This is a skilled craftsman who said our smithy would prosper!”

Watching the three Dwarves dancing in excitement, Leeha found it hard to maintain his composure.

What’s this?

“Where did the adult dragon go?”

A baby dragon had jumped out of the Easter Egg.

Why? For what reason?

“Eh, eh? What’s this? What’s this? Why─ why is a baby popping out? What’s going on?”

[Kyuu Kyuu?]

Flap, flap, flap──! The bronze dragon fluttered its wings and gently landed in Leeha’s shoulder.

[Kyuu!]

“Blaugrun! Blau─ Blaugrun, where did you go? My partner! Where’s that handsome young man? Or, or my legendary item! The Easter Egg is──────!”

Leeha picked up the shattered pieces of the Easter Egg from the ground, but he already knew.

As much as the characteristic of an item that would disappear once used, he remembered it clearly.

With his knees on the ground, Leeha, holding the shell of the Easter Egg, looked up as the newly born Blaugrun settled down on his shoulder.

[Kyuu!]

Hatchling fully recognized its partner.

The soft scales of the dragon gently brushed against Leeha’s cheek.

“Blaugruuuuuun!”

[Partner, Bronze Dragon ‘Blaugrun’ has been reborn.]

You can use the skills [Summon (Partner)] and [Summon (Partner)].

“No-o-o-o-o!”

Leeha shouted at the creature, slightly larger than his fist, but the water had already spilled.

Splash─!

Whether they were mocking Leeha or celebrating, the achievement notifications were ringing in his head.

***

[Achievement: Witness of the Divine’s Birth (A+)]

Congratulations!

You have witnessed the moment of a dragon’s birth. The birth of dragons, beings bestowed with more divine power than any other, will grant you the driving force for life, and just by testifying to this event, you will earn the admiration of others.

Reward: Health +18, Continent-Wide Fame +1,000

You are the first registrant for the “Witness of the Divine’s Birth” achievement.

Up to the third registrant will be recorded in the Hall of Fame for the achievement, with an additional 200% effect applied to the existing rewards.

Effect: Health +36, Continent-Wide Fame +2,000

“Driving force for life…?”

He could combine Blaugrun’s lightning magic with his sniping skills to show off his prowess! He had chosen the Easter Egg at Bahamut’s Rare only with that dream and hope… but…

[Kyuu? Kyuu!]

Splash, splash, splash, splash.

As he watched Blaugrun playfully brushing its scales against his cheek, Leeha couldn’t figure out what kind of driving force he could gain from this Hatchling.

“That’s right. Oh, right, I should have known. If I think about it, the word ‘resurrection’ wasn’t mentioned in the effect or description.”

The item’s name was Easter Egg, the Egg of Resurrection, but in reality, it wasn’t. The expression was more like “rebirth” or “bringing back to life.”

“Ugh, was that also a trap, those damn… those damn Middle Earth people! They must be watching me and chuckling to themselves, right?”

Leeha even had a delusion that the administrator of Middle Earth was watching him.

“You idiot! Why do you have such a gloomy expression when you see this marvel?!”

“I’m not looking gloomy…?”

“Look at this adorable appearance! Don’t you know that even the gods of Upper Earth couldn’t handle such cuteness and sent them down to the continent?”

“What I need right now isn’t cuteness—”

[Kyuu?]

Splash, splash, splash, splash.

Blaugrun was brushing its scales against Leeha’s cheek with such force that it seemed to want to wear it out completely.

“Well… well, maybe it does seem like it could understand me?”

“But didn’t it not understand you when it was a Hatchling, boss?”

“True, but that’s not right after it was born!”

As Leeha and Blaugrun were looking at each other with a happy smile, Bottle-neck and Beard Brothers couldn’t help but laugh. At Bottle-neck’s words, Leeha’s ears perked up.

“Really? When does it understand words? Can Hatchlings also use magic and transform?”

That’s right.

The baby dragons they met in front of Kuzguk’nakh’s Lair were like that too. They were said to be Juvenile class, but to Leeha, they didn’t seem much different from this Hatchling.

“Well, I don’t know how to determine the age of dragons. If I guess based on the Hatchlings, they might start acting like dragons after about a hundred years?”

“A few years?”

“A hundred… years.”

There was a time difference of five times between Middle Earth and reality. Even so, a hundred years here would be twenty years in reality. It was a time period in which the game Middle Earth could disappear.

“Ugh… I’m going crazy.”

“Why are you sighing on such a joyous day! Don’t be so pessimistic!”

[Kyuu! Kyuu!]

That’s right, that’s right, I got it. Leeha nodded his head as he looked at Blaugrun who seemed to understand him, but decided to put his worries aside for now.

Anyway, the Easter Egg had been used and disappeared.

The opportunity to choose an item from Bahamut’s Rare was gone as well.

But his partner didn’t come back. He could also use the achievement rewards skill.

“Of course, I don’t know how useful they’ll be… but let’s think positively. It’s my partner, after all.”

Leeha spread his palm in front of his chest.

Whether the meaning was understood or not, Blaugrun, who was perched on his shoulder, flapped its wings and settled on Leeha’s palm.

Despite having the appearance of a reptile with scales, a certain warmth could be felt as well.

“Do you remember, or do you understand