Arcane Sniper [Matan’s Shooter]

“You’re not lacking in taste. Right, Peng is still not quite there yet.”

Peng? Leeha tilted his head in confusion.

Ram Hwayeon also quietly observed and sipped the wine. Her eyebrows raised slightly.

“The wine is the same, but… it’s a vintage of the same age as Ram Peng.”

“Ah!”

Was it that they prepared wines of the same age as the people and were showing a taste of each? What did this mean?

Leeha tried hard to grasp the intention behind Ram Long’s actions.

Even as the appetizers were cleared and the main dish arrived, he didn’t say much.

Leeha wasn’t particularly bored either.

The fact that he was having such a meal in such a place, and that Ram Long was right in front of him, was an interesting experience in itself.

‘Not asking means there’s nothing to ask. Not speaking means I should just quietly listen to the music?’

Leeha decided to just relax his mind.

After all, he wasn’t Ram Hwayeon’s boyfriend, and although he was receiving treatment, it didn’t mean he owed anything to Ram Long.

Besides, if he had indebted Ram Long, it would have been the other way around, wouldn’t it?

Even if Ram Long had the power to crush him, there was no reason for Leeha to be cowed, he thought.

‘So, is this a situation to express gratitude? Hmm. If only there was a hint-‘

Leeha glanced at Ram Hwayeon. But he knew he couldn’t get a hint from her.

He felt it every time, but he still hadn’t adapted to it. A woman who seemed most fitting to the nicknames ‘Grace and Intelligence’, and ‘Smartie’, always showed such a rigid attitude when it came to matters related to her ‘father’.

Today, her expression was so stiff that it was hard to tell if she was eating with her mouth or nose.

Leeha took another sip of the wine that was said to be of the same age as Ram Peng.

First, they brought out wine the same age as Leeha, and then wine matching Ram Peng’s age.

What could be the meaning of this? Or was making him think about it the trick in itself? After all, it’s just wine, isn’t it?

Since Ram Hwayeon was a few years younger than himself, naturally, Ram Peng would be even younger.

Then what?

Someone once said that wine is like a person. So, were they equating people to wine, expressing value? Why reveal that Ram Peng is still lacking directly to me?

‘Hmm… this isn’t some riddle from Bahamut!’

Even in this situation, Leeha found himself amused, associating it with Middle Earth.

Ram Long cut a steak, took a bite, and wiped his mouth with a napkin. Only then did the actual first conversation begin.

“You’ve been quite active in our new business.”

“It’s not much to mention. It’s Ram Hwayeon-ssi – no, Director Ram Hwayeon and Ram Hwajung-ssi who are showing greater efforts.”

“Middle Earth, huh. When Hwayeon said she wanted to find a growth driver there, I thought it was so nonsensical I could only laugh. Not developing something there, but trying to find some revenue model. Isn’t that right? Playing in our casino would be more fun than that. Aren’t games ultimately just games?”

Was that a question?

Leeha found it hard to decide whether he was supposed to answer that or not. But he had to follow the conversation.

Ram Long Group, owned dozens of hotels and resorts worldwide, and the ‘casinos’ within them.

The emperor of resorts was also the emperor of gambling.

Leeha knew what he meant by ‘game’.

“Well, games are played, casinos are played, and the world is played.”

Ram Long’s eyebrows twitched.

“Living in the world is full of things useless for anything, right? Games, casinos, movies, comics… We’re all just passing through, so in reality, the world is played too. But thinking this way, I realized Middle Earth is not just a game. It’s slightly different from the gambling in the casino.”

“Different? How so?”

Ram Hwayeon spoke rapidly without moving her lips, as if she was a ventriloquist, saying “Ha Leeha!” but Leeha did not hear her.

Before coming here, one of the things Ram Hwayeon had repeatedly emphasized was exactly that. Simply saying ‘YES’ was the fastest way.

However, it wasn’t easy for Leeha to do so, given his nature.

“It could be a game. Or it could be life.”

“Life?”

“Well, to be precise, here, with the help of Ram Hwayeon and Ram Peng, I underwent surgery and was able to walk again. But until then, I had nothing. Absolutely nothing. Middle Earth gave me my life back.”

“There were other ways to earn surgery money, like winning at the casino, working at a company, or doing business.”

Of course.

Leeha nodded as he listened to Ram Long.

“That’s right.”

Ram Long wasn’t just talking about the surgery money. Just as Leeha wasn’t just talking about life.

“Ha ha. As you know, I didn’t have many opportunities. Ah! And I wasn’t just talking about gathering money for leg surgery. Hmm, was my analogy a bit odd? Let’s say… Middle Earth can’t be completely considered life, but… it’s a game, it’s play, it’s life. For me, it was all of that, a new opportunity.”

“Yes, that new opportunity.”

Ram Long’s eyes sparkled for a moment, but not enough for Leeha or Ram Hwayeon to notice.

He repeated Leeha’s words and continued his meal.

Ram Hwayeon looked anxiously between Ram Long and Leeha, but Leeha himself was calmly eating.

Coming here, eating, drinking wine, and talking – it was Leeha who seemed more at ease in this environment.

After a long silence filled only with the clinking of cutlery, Ram Long spoke again.

“I started as a dealer, you know that?”

“Uh? No, I didn’t know.”

“Heh, it seems it wasn’t out of ulterior motives.”

“What?”

“I mean, I started with nothing too. I began working as just a dealer, but I could accurately predict where the ball would land, red or black. Life is like that. Opportunities are always given. The rest is up to one’s own choice.”

Ram Long spoke with an almost excited tone.

Leeha tilted his head, wondering what this uncle was talking about, while Ram Hwayeon struggled to hide her surprised expression.

‘He rarely talks about the past, even to family members. My father hates this topic.’

It was strange enough that this dinner was arranged, let alone such a conversation! With her father being notoriously unpredictable, there was no way to foresee what would happen next.

Unaware of Ram Hwayeon’s concerns, Leeha finally managed to utter a single sentence to Ram Long, who was expectantly looking at him like a child, making it impossible for Leeha to say anything.

“Ah, roulette!? Is that what you’re talking about?”

“You catch on quickly. Look here!”

Before Leeha could process what was ‘quick’, the waiters were already struggling to bring in a huge circular table.

Leeha recognized it too.

A wheel-like table with chaotically arranged colors and numbers… It was definitely something you’d see in a casino.

“What are the rules?”

Ram Long stood up and moved behind the roulette table, picking up and fiddling with a small, metal-like roulette ball.

“I- I don’t know.”

“Let’s keep it simple then. Red or Black. Which color will you choose?”

From 0 and 00 to 1 through 36.

The total 38 slots were alternately painted in red and black.

Leeha might not know the rules, but he was familiar with the game of roulette. More than anything, he remembered what Ram Long had just said.

[Life is like that. Opportunities are always given. It all depends on one’s own choice.]

As Leeha stood there, momentarily dazed, Ram Long grabbed the huge wheel and spun it.

As if to say that sometimes in life, one must make choices without waiting, he then flicked the roulette ball into the wheel.

Click-!

With the sound, the roulette ball dropped onto the wheel and rolled quickly in the opposite direction of the wheel’s rotation. As the ball clattered energetically, Ram Long watched it with a smile./

“Choose quickly. Red or black.” At least to Leeha, this seemed to be the only genuine smile Ram Long had shown since he arrived here.

‘Is he saying to choose before the ball stops? Damn, there’s nothing at stake, but I have a feeling I absolutely must not get this wrong.’

Started abruptly, but given the nature of the Ram family, this wasn’t just ‘any’ gamble.

However, Leeha was clueless about gambling.

Predicting which slot – red or black – the ball would fall into by observing its motion and the wheel’s rotation was impossible. Even with excellent dynamic vision, such predictions are unfeasible until the ball actually stops.

And once the ball comes to a complete halt, regardless of his choice, Ram Long wouldn’t accept Leeha’s bet.

Leeha slowly closed his eyes.

What does Ram Long want? How much does he know about me? What answer is he looking for? What is he trying to test?

It was impossible to discern his intentions.

But one thing was certain.

“I won’t make a choice.”

He shouldn’t engage in this gamble.

Leeha looked straight at Ram Long with his eyes wide open.

Ram Long’s expression was stern. Ram Hwayeon’s was indescribable.

‘Is this not it?’

Though briefly flustered, Leeha didn’t stop. The roulette ball wasn’t thrown only by Ram Long.

Now, Leeha had also thrown his own ball.

“What do you mean?”

“Exactly what I said. I was a soldier. A sniper. You probably already know.”

“So?”

“Sniping isn’t gambling. Snipers don’t gamble.”

They only pull the trigger when a certain opportunity arises. Snipers are different from riflemen.

The weight of a bullet might be only double, but the weight of each shot they fire cannot be simply calculated in multiples.

Ram Long understood the nuance of Leeha’s words exactly.

That’s why he could smile even more joyously.

“But there must be times you have to gamble. It’s impossible to have everything in your grasp and calculate. Would you just give up in such cases? Even if that opportunity never comes again?”

What would you do in a situation that’s absolutely unavoidable?

Leeha knew this too. Sniping can be seen as a game of finding the most certain hitting conditions.

But there is no such thing as 100% certainty in any case.

Sniping is a game where exceeding 99.9% certainty is impossible. The reality of sniping includes frequent mistakes due to that 0.1% probability.

Apart from anything else, a sudden gust of wind can throw off a shot. When it comes to variables, isn’t sniping essentially ‘gambling in God’s hands’?

Ram Long likely wanted to say this. Therefore, Leeha already knew the answer.

“Yes. I give up.”

“Your comrade is dying. The enemy is approaching. If you shoot the enemy, you can save your comrade. Would you still not shoot?”

“If you think that’s gambling, then I won’t shoot. Missing the shot could cause greater harm, and even if I hit, I’d fall into the temptation of gambling. Thinking it’s easy to hit without any preparation, that thought wouldn’t be easily shaken off. If I develop a habit of being negligent in my sniping preparations…”