Arcane Sniper [Matan’s Shooter]

“Whoa?! What the-”

The direction from which the sound came was clear. Despite turning his head to look, Leeha still couldn’t see anything.

“There was no one there earlier, it seems- No, is that also the ability of the ‘White Reaper’? Along with the ‘White Reaper’s first shot, the footsteps of the giants began to slow down.

“Come to think of it, that’s an interference, interference, isn’t it?”

Leeha chuckled and surveyed the group of giants.

The target of the White Reaper was the giant at the forefront. Then where would Leeha aim?

“Dividing the enemy. The ‘Firewood Swing’ tactic of the real Finland, where the souls of Paldrin meet the people of reality to reproduce, is a real Finnish tactic.

‘Multi-Warhead Shot.’

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Multi-Warhead Shot was aimed at the very center of the giant army. Starting from that point, Leeha indiscriminately fired bullets towards the left and right of the enemies.

※ ※ ※

“Jin Gonggong said there were about 20,000 to 30,000 troops, and Karelin said there were about 30,000.”

Leeha wondered how many troops he had taken out on the first day. And how much of what Karelin said was true about the enemy. It’s unlikely that the enemy gave him an honest number. So the number of 30,000 troops itself might have been inflated.

“If it was around 25,000 at first, between 2,500 and 3,000 died on the first day. With the remaining troops, there are around 20,000 left. Even if you factor in more casualties, it’s around 23,000.”

The number of troops in front of me was so large that it was impossible to estimate.

Because Leeha couldn’t count them in units of thousands or tens of thousands, he had to assess the situation through logical reasoning.

Fortunately, it seemed that his estimate was almost accurate.

“We can’t even see the troops at the very back. Let’s slow their pace for now-”

As if agreeing with Leeha’s thoughts, the gunshots of the White Reaper continued to ring out.

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One by one, as the giants fell, the troops at the forefront began to drift to the sides. The central area where Multi-Warhead Shot was fired was no different.

Or maybe even thinking of that area as the ‘center’ was underestimating them.

“There are still plenty more at the back, so let’s give them a taste too. 『Multi-Warhead Shot』!”

Multi-Warhead Shot consumes a lot of mana, but it has no cooldown. Since the presence of enemies was confirmed through the initial shot, the ‘Shadow Hitman’ title did not apply, but each shot had a damage of about 35,000. If a single person were to be hit by all 42 rounds with 35,000 damage each, they would have to endure a total of 1.47 million damage.

“Multi-Warhead Shot!”

Of course, unless Leeha was fighting against Bluebeard or Dragon-class enemies, there was no need for that. He set the range of Multi-Warhead Shot as wide as possible, spreading it out at regular intervals.

When the precise sniping of the White Reaper and the bombing-like skills of Leeha poured down, the giants couldn’t even move. Watching them scrambling left and right to find cover, Leeha nodded.

“It’s impossible to kill all of these guys anyway. No matter how many rounds I have.”

Like dust sprinkled at regular intervals on a freshly snowed road, the giants’ bodies were scattered all over. Bullets rained down. Merely shooting guns wouldn’t be enough to kill over 20,000 people.

Therefore, the tactics of Leeha and the White Reaper were relatively effective ‘so far’. Finally, the giants disappeared completely from the main path.

“Now, it’s the first one. 『Soul Link』! Kidd, transform now!”

“Krrrr!”

“And Jellypong?!”

『Myong?』

“Merge with Koma. If it gets dangerous, come back immediately.”

Holding in his hand Jellypong that had been wrapped around his neck, he threw it towards Koma. It was something he had always wanted to try at least once.

While it might not be possible for regular water and fire to merge, these two were—

Spirits.

Jellypong and Koma hesitated for a moment. Nonetheless, once the command was given by Leeha, they had no authority to rebel against it.

“Myong, !”

“Krr, KRAAAGH!”

Looking at the two mystical creatures rushing towards each other incongruously, Leeha smirked.

“Haha…”

That was the extent of his laugh. Leeha’s mouth began to open slowly.

“Be careful around the approaching giant when you return.”

“Krrrr—Myongmyong.”

Behind Koma now transformed into a water spirit, tentacles like a spider’s legs protruded from Jellypong.

It was no longer an elemental, nor was it a beast or a bear.

Rather, it leaped from the iron gate, possessing an appearance more akin to a chimera created by Gibrid.

The giants hiding in the forests on both sides breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that they were no longer targets for sniping. In order to save their lives immediately, they moved recklessly. They hardly noticed the transition from being a part of a large force to a medium-sized unit, and then to a small group.

“If it’s a joint operation between Koma and Jellypong, there should be no problem with the firewood splitting. After grouping the enemy into smaller units, the basic tactic of disintegrating them called 『Firewood Splitting』 started to take effect. Moving straight to the secondary sniping point, they headed towards it. Within 30 minutes of the Kidd’s activity, they could easily destroy several groups.

Adding the power and protection of Jellypong, they could easily handle around a hundred intermediate-level opponents; and considering the chaos there, they might even be able to confront a thousand opponents.

“But when that time comes… No, perhaps before that time, the probability of Karelin showing up is high.”

At this moment, Leeha was the most wanted target of the giants, the only person who can stop this giant invasion. And they were looking for him.

At the same time, Karelin, who was included in a small group at the rear of the force, was also watching the position where Leeha might be.

“K-Karelin, soldiers in the front are reporting that a strange monster has appeared! They say it’s impossible to handle, a bear? Spider? An unidentified monster using fire and water attributes skills!”

“Oh… What now?”

Karelin witnessed the scene where Leeha and the White Reaper were fighting, but he couldn’t confirm Koma’s identity. Back then, Koma was running towards the abandoned building where the White Reaper was summoned, naturally out of Karelin’s sight on the hill behind.

And what about Jellypong?

At that time, Karelin couldn’t even fathom that the ‘Fake Leeha’ he saw was actually Jellypong in disguise.

‘Summoning a dragon isn’t enough, receiving assistance from dragon’s magic… and even seeking revenge? What kind of job grants such skills? What on earth is his occupation? Shooting, but with magical attacks, no connection to dragons yet able to summon them skillfully.’

‘He seems like a combination of Alexander and Leeha Jiwon.’

“What??? N-nothing at all. Phew… First, contact everyone. Advise them not to recklessly expose themselves.”

“But if we just stay still, everyone will systematically be attacked by unknown monsters one after another!”

The sporadic gunshots belonged to the White Reaper. The groups attacked by the joint operation of Koma and Jellypong urgently requested help from nearby groups, fearlessly crossing the main road, or attempted to join them, becoming easy prey for the White Reaper.

“And after forming a defensive formation, prepare to strike again-.”

“Uhm, just to clarify – how many of them are split up right now… and being able to pinpoint who is where…”

Knowing roughly where the enemy was, but ironically becoming unable to figure out their own position! Without being able to determine where to contact or who is present, even if Karelin said ‘make contact,’ it was impossible to do so. Karelin was infuriated by the ignorant behavior of the giants.

“Can’t you contact the squad leaders! Contact each squad leader, have them form a defensive formation, deploy a camouflage curtain using skills to lead the users to follow behind, so hurry and make contact!”

“Yes, understood!”

If sacrifices have to be made to come this far, so be it. Even if allies are used as ‘meat shields,’ they must push forward by any means necessary!

“If that doesn’t work either.”

Karelin gritted his teeth. In the end, there was no one else but herself who had to step up. Karelin, who was flexing and relaxing his body with clenched fists, was already prepared for this. Contrary to the bewildered users, the Sha’zrasian knights advancing from the rear were solid like a fortress wall.

“Left foot! Left foot! Left foot!”

In front of the united forces of the knights with a single formation in sync with the northern call, there was a massive shield. Literally taller than the giants and larger than their physique, a row of shields erected, with human barriers stacked on top using skills like Barrier and Fortress.

“It is an emergency shield, but… it should be enough to block Leeha’s bullets. Compared to the armored vehicles shown by the Bantal and Amunsan Trio, the War Machines, although not superior in terms of assault, siege, or mobility, Karelin was confident.

“This time, I will definitely catch him.”

If he focuses only on defense and can transport troops, he can handle the attack directly. He couldn’t help but open his mouth at the looming giant wall.

※ ※ ※

“What the heck is that?!”

Before the panic could set in, his hands reacted first. The transparent effects of Wild or Barrier skills extended up to 60 meters in height from the ground. What the hell have they done – these crazy freaks!

“Thunderbolt!”

The Body Shields advancing by using skills up to a width large enough to fill a main path and a height of about 60 meters were so gigantic that they would be hit even if fired randomly anywhere. The problem was that aside from briefly staggering, the shields had no other reaction.

“Since the Shadow Hitman title is not applicable, there’s no way it would work with just one shot. In that case, 『Multi-Warhead Shot』!” With a total of 1,003,705 and now shot four rounds of Multi-Warhead Shot and small ones, there were only about 140 MP left after this skill use. Even considering the naturally replenishing MP, it would be unrealistic to use more skills. Therefore, he opened the character window and invested the points into mind. After confirming how the 42 bullets were being guided, he didn’t regret this investment at all.

Bang, boom boom bang, boom-!

The sound effects of the attack power totaling 1.47 million nullifying the attacks weren’t particularly loud. He shut his eyes tightly.”Wow, what a scam.”

It was different from the last time when he broke through with a shotgun. The defense level was overwhelmingly high, thanks to the skills of the knights’ orders, far superior to the users’ barriers, and all orders participating in this quest had joined forces.

“The skill stack. Not individual shields. Combining all shields into one and blocking in only one direction.”

Should I summon Blaugrunn?

Koma’s summoning time has only about 10 minutes left. The initially split ‘firewoods’ at the front had already caused many casualties due to the onslaught by Koma and Jellypong, trying to escape but getting picked off by the sniping of the White Reaper.

Although a considerable number of giant creatures at the front had already been defeated, the speed at which the giants behind the massive wall advanced was relentless. Before anyone knew it, the giants who had set up the wall had already approached Sector 9007. Considering the speed of Koma’s progress in the chosen direction and their advance speed, it was dangerous.

“It’s risky. If Koma or Jellypong jumps in that direction for no reason—dangerous.”

Where should the wall be broken down from?

If all defense was concentrated at the front, could it be toppled from the sides?

Ironically, facing the Assault-Type Armored Vehicle and Amunsan Triowas much easier. They required a driver and power, a large device with windows for the driver to see through. Unlike waiting for an opportunity, the shield walls fortified with all skills due to the nature of Middle Earth could only be described as a pure concentration of power.

“I wanted to leave the last line of defense, but in the end, I couldn’t help but lower my head.”

If one cannot fly with their own power, shouldn’t they rely on external strength?

-Blink-

『Nothing has changed since the Winter War. No, nothing has changed since coming here after the Winter War.』

“Ah, you startled me! Can’t you show at least a little presence?”

Leeha, who was about to call Blaugrunn, was startled by a sudden sound coming from beside him. The White Reaper floated in the air and stood beside Leeha. Since Leeha had acknowledged that he couldn’t take down the enemies at the initial sniping point, Leeha also quickly tried to make a decision.

“Don’t worry. I have a partner. Once we get rid of the stacked shields—”

『Oh, seems like you didn’t fully understand what I was saying.』

“-What?”

『The enemies haven’t changed. They used that method several times in the past.』

“So, you mean they can’t be taken down with sniping… Wait, you mean they did that before?”

Leeha chuckled. How many times did they use the method of advancing with shields enduring over 1.5 million damage? Then why could the White Reaper’s Ghost come back to life? The White Reaper smiled warmly, yet there was a hint of sadness in his expression, for some reason.