Arcane Sniper [Matan’s Shooter]

Their steps were light, partly due to their anticipation of heading to Laputa, but mostly because they had secured permanent entry rights to Saur Land.

During the time they spent for Kyle’s recovery, the players did not just loaf around their lodgings.

They were all busy increasing their intimacy levels with the NPCs and, given the special circumstances, shared most of their information.

Thanks to this, they had reached the highest intimacy level in just three days.

Outside of Saur Land’s barrier, only two dinosaurs, Ulrek and Ji-em, ventured out.

Leeha thought it showed their confidence—being able to handle any emergency with just the two of them.

‘Well, their physical defense would be similar to Toon’s, and they could also use magic, so it’s understandable.’

While thinking, Leeha asked,

‘Black, how do you feel? Do you sense anything from that gun?’

– Hahaha… interesting stuff, contractor.

‘What?’

“Chaos, destruction… and the presence of oblivion.”

‘Don’t talk like an edgy teenage! Is there someone named Zamiel in that gun, do you know?’

Leeha mumbled quietly while holding the Black Bass.

Black Bass simply laughed, and with many prying eyes around, further conversation was not possible.

“Ulrek, how far do we go?”

“Hmm, you haven’t seen it?”

“What?”

“A big, red House-house. It’s what we use to get to Laputa.”

“Oh! Red!? That sounds kind of grotesque.”

Fernand shivered at the thought of the House-house. Imagining its body like a balloon, with a clear texture of its outer skin and folds, and its tentacles spinning like a rotor for propulsion—then blown up to a massive size and colored bright red?

“We call it the Red Zeppelin. We named it after an airship relic from Laputa.”

“A Zeppelin airship! Come to think of it, stretching House-house’ body might give that impression.”

“Huh? You know of it?”

Ulrek’s steps halted momentarily. Fernand quickly waved his hands.

Because there was no way to explain how a strategic airship used by the German army during World War I bore resemblance to Laputa’s relics.

Leeha also felt something strange in Ulrek’s words and tilted his head with a question.

“Um, the name is Red Zeppelin?”

“That’s right, Red Zeppelin.”

“Hmm… why…”

Why name it like the rock band? Leeha couldn’t bring himself to ask this and struggled with the thoughts silently, causing laughter beside him.

“Pffft.”

If it had been Kidd laughing, Leeha would have scolded him. If it were Luger, he would have said not to ridicule. But the laughter now belonged to a completely different entity.

Leeha looked at him.

“…Ji-em?”

Ji-em, a researcher from Saur Land bound for Laputa, stood next to Ulrek.

The dinosaur was rubbing its eyes with its hand.

“Cough, cough. Sorry. Something got into my nose.”

Something got into his nose?

He was clearly wiping away tears from holding back laughter.

It was possible to laugh. Many Saur Land dinosaurs could laugh.

But what did this laughter signify?

‘…He laughed at Red Zeppelin? That cold Middle Earth sense of humor—did he understand that?’

Wouldn’t he have to know the name of a real rock band?

And to laugh, he would need to know the meanings behind the subtly altered spellings of the two ‘Red Zeppelins’?

As Leeha stared intently, Ji-em quickly retreated behind Ulrek.

Leeha couldn’t ask any more questions to the dinosaur sticking close to the third prince of Saur Land.

“Um, Ulrek! How much further?”

“Two hours.”

“If you returned to your original size, it would only take twenty minutes.”

Hearing Ulrek’s reply, Alexander muttered. Ulrek turned to him briefly.

“The Red Zeppelin is a classified entity within Saur Land. The original creature that inspired all House-house is kept a distance from ordinary citizens.”

“I see. But what about any monsters—”

“Do you think there would be any?”

“Indeed.”

Alexander appreciated their perfectionist tendencies immensely.

They were a race so confident in their “information” that they didn’t even need Fernand’s guidance. The Red Zeppelin had never been attacked before, and it never would be.

As they traveled, Leeha’s party persistently asked questions.

For the users who were soon going to Laputa, every word from Ulrek, who had been there before, could become a valuable hint.

However, Ulrek did not provide detailed answers.

He kept repeating that they would understand once they got there and that he couldn’t say more at this moment.

Around two hours later, when the sun was setting, they finally reached the Red Zeppelin.

“Wow…!”

“Is that it? It looks just like a real Zeppelin airship!”

Leeha and Fernand marveled in pure admiration.

The terrain, which had been densely forested, transformed into a vast plain. There stood the massive, bright red House-house!

As Fernand had predicted, a grotesque, large, airship-shaped creature rose and fell there.

“With such a form, we can’t expect much agility.”

“True. However, it has the ability to identify Laputa’s location and fly there automatically.”

“Is it like mana tracking?”

“No, it’s different. Unlike the other HausHauses we created, this particular entity has a unique ability that operates solely on its own.”

Like Bailephus had said, it was clear that agile maneuvers couldn’t be expected from its appearance.

While the older generation of the Three Musketeers looked at the new creature with childlike curiosity, the current generation bore somewhat anxious expressions.

“Luger, do you know about this?”

“Yeah. Damn… it really makes me think of the Hindenburg disaster. I knew from the moment they called it a Zeppelin airship.”

The Hindenburg disaster was well-known among Germans and Americans, given the airship’s catastrophic journey from Germany to the US.

And it was the same for Leeha.

“It won’t just explode and catch fire in midair, right? Since teleportation isn’t possible here, if that happens—”

“Hmm…”

“Maybe we should’ve been more favorable to Alexander.”

The present generation of the Three Musketeers swallowed nervously as they looked towards Bailephus. Only a dragon could handle such an emergency.

As the party was observing the Red Zeppelin, Ulrek approached them.

“Everyone, go to the tentacles of the Red Zeppelin.”

“Oh… Do we wrap them around our waists?”

“If you’re eligible to go to Laputa, she will grasp you on her own.”

“She… I understand.”

Departure was truly imminent now.

One by one, the party members approached the extended tentacles of the Red Zeppelin.

Since the airship’s body was still touching the ground, the tentacles were stretched out in various directions.

As they neared, the tentacles naturally moved and wrapped around them.

“Yikes, this feeling is so weird, honey.”

“Yeah, I feel the same way, darling. Are you okay, Kyle?”

“I think it’s fun.”

This strange sensation was tough even for NPCs to adapt to.

To maintain balance and avoid tipping the airship, Luger, Kidd, and Leeha moved in the opposite direction of the NPCs.

“U-Ulrek! We’re ready!”

“Alright. Let’s depart.”

Shrrrrrr…

At Ulrek’s words, the tentacles holding the party began to rise into the air. Leeha was thankful that the flight mechanism wasn’t exactly like a genuine Zeppelin airship.

Bzzzzzzz…

“Well, at least there won’t be an explosion disaster.”

“A helicopter crash wouldn’t just result in minor injuries either.”

“For crying out loud, at this rate, it’s not just a helicopter crash, it’s more like a passenger plane crash. We’d all be annihilated.”

Brrrrrrrr…

* * *

As Leeha, Luger, and Kidd shared their impressions, the Red Zeppelin finally ascended into the sky.

The increasingly loud rotor noises drowned out all other sounds around them.

Even though the sun had set, leaving only the moonlight to illuminate Middle Earth, the sight of the bright red airship would stand out anywhere.

“Let’s go, let’s go, to Laputa now!”

“I should just close my eyes.”

“Hehe, Ulrek-nim! Is there any chance of an accident?”

Kidd, forcing his eyes shut, was visibly excited as Luger shook him awake. Leeha watched the scene with a smirk and then turned to Ulrek.

“Are you worried about something like that?”

“No! Just in case! There are many birds over there.”

“Birds?”

Ulrek tilted his head in confusion. Leeha nodded and pointed in a direction.

Weren’t one of the main causes of frequent airplane accidents birds getting sucked into the engine?

Even though the Red Zeppelin was not even an engine type, Leeha felt a needless worry akin to the Hindenburg incident.

“Yes! Over there, many birds are flying around. Or, since it’s night, those might not be birds…”

Could Ulrek not see them?

If that’s the case, what were the flock of flying creatures visible to Leeha through the “Distorted Vision”?

“… Huh?”

Leeha felt the tentacles of the Red Zeppelin wrapping around his spine.

Screech… Screech…

At the same time the alarm rang in his head, something flew from a distance. Their magic, mixed in the darkness, was clearly visible to Leeha’s eyes. Mostly composed of red, blood-based magic, there was one distinct spell. A mass of mana formed from the darkest shade. How many days had passed since they entered Saur Land?

Leeha shouted loudly, hoping his cries would not be drowned by the noise.

“Vampires!!!”

There was no way Chiyou and Kaztor would just sit and wait.

“Absolute Barrier!”

Bailephus’s spell casting was the quickest.

* * *

Boom─, boom─!

Countless spells collided with the barrier. Bailephus’s shield, cast with his full power, was already showing cracks.

—Haha, the slaves of blood are coming again.—

“Damn, although it’s a chance to boost my charge rate—”

Leeha struggled from the tentacles, managing to regain his stance. He shot immediately.

Bang────…!

Leeha saw a bat, hidden in the darkness, plummet down.

“—This timing is just too bad, Kidd, Luger!”

Leeha pulled the bolt and called his companions. But where were they now?

“Ugh, the movements—movements are restricted.”

“Damn it, can’t use Acht-Acht in the air like this!”

They had already been floating in the air, attached to the Red Zeppelin, for about 15 minutes. The fast-moving House-house had already made significant distance from the ground.

“Damn it, shoot anyway! Even if it’s not a skill, use regular attacks! The major’s side too—”

────, ────, ────!

As quickly as Leeha responded, there were others firing back.

Kasdor and the trembling Three Musketeers of the previous generation immediately drew their guns and fired.

“Ugh, can’t see clearly—no choice. Ha Leeha, distance, direction!”

Luger aimed the cobalt-blue python awkwardly. Even with enhanced vision skills, detecting the bats camouflaged by the darkness was tough.

Therefore, he had to resort to a method he had experienced before.

“Direct rear, azimuth 180, distance 1.3km! They’re scattering, hurry!”

“Damn! Time-delayed Shell!”

Leaving the role of the ‘eyes’ solely to Leeha.

It followed the same logic of actual artillery, where the observers and gunners are distinct, and a familiar experience replayed itself once more.