“Uh?”
“What?”
“Wow, look at me. I haven’t even allocated my stat points.”
“Hyung… You really are a citizen of Fibiel, aren’t you? How could you be so caught up in the war that you forgot to allocate your stats?”
Feeling embarrassed while looking at Kijung’s exasperated expression, Leeha scratched his head.
“Well, I was just negotiating a ceasefire with Kraven— It was that time, so I couldn’t help it— Ah, right.”
Hadn’t he been running around like crazy?
Leeha had just received the signal that Alexander appeared, so he had no time to spare. As he invested his stat points, earned from achieving the “Recognized by the Son of the Sea God,” into agility, another thought popped into his mind.
“What’s this, a blanket?”
Kijung asked as he watched Leeha rummage through his bag.
Taking the item out, Leeha shook it out and said, “No, it’s a coat. Drake gave it to me.”
“Huh? What did you say?”
“Kraven’s Drake? That NPC Supreme Commander? The strongest of the seas?”
“Yeah. He gave it to me while signing the ceasefire agreement, but I was so busy that I just stuffed it into my bag.”
“You stuffed the armor Drake gave you into your bag? Hyung?!”
Leeha felt embarrassed again as Kijung gave him a look of disbelief.
“Well, I was that busy…”
“To think you ranked number one in contribution. You must have been running around the battlefield like crazy. Anyway, what are the options on that thing?”
Kijung nodded vigorously.
Leeha briefly thought about how to get back at his annoying cousin who was always teasing him.
“Curious?”
“Of course! If a top-grade NPC gave it to you, it must be at least rare level? No, considering his fame, it wouldn’t be surprising if it was a heroic level! Show me already—”
“If you’re curious, then tank for me.”
“What kind of deal is that?”
“Where can I find Level 190+ monsters? Can you survive a few hits from them?”
It was a perfect opportunity. Although he could get information from Zhu from the Intelligence Guild, it would be more efficient to use Kijung since he was already here.
Listening to Leeha’s explanation, Kijung just stood there with his mouth open, staring at his cousin. He had just wanted to ask about the item, but now, he was completely dragged in.
* * *
“Oh, so we come to these hunting grounds around Level 200? The atmosphere is pretty intense.”
A chilly wind grazed Leeha’s face.
Kijung had chosen a hunting ground that best matched Leeha’s criteria. There were no monsters around, just Leeha.
–Hyung! What are you doing? Ready yet– Oh, it’s here!
“Ah, indeed, the scenery in Middle Earth is worth admiring. Well then, shall we get ready?”
Leeha took out the Black Bass and slowly unfolded the bipod. Despite the urgent cries echoing in his head, he acted completely indifferent.
Squinting towards the barely visible distance, Leeha lay down. He opened the scope cap and first identified the general location with a low magnification. Far away, he saw a person raising a shield, and in front of that person stood a Three-Handed Ogre.
Generally, they were Level 195+, and the one Kijung was facing was roughly Level 200.
–Hyung! Hyung!! Quickly— Oh, oh— Ugh—! Hyung, you’re ready, right? You’re going to shoot now, right?
–Oh, Kijung. With the location here, but your voice directly in my head, it’s like being at a drive-in theater. Ever been to a drive-in?
–Don’t talk nonsense! Hyung! Hurry up! I can’t hold on much longer!
What Leeha had in mind was the quest for the Black Bass.
They had to deal with a level 190+ monster from a distance of 2,000 meters with a single blow.
Given the condition of “a single blow,” it meant they couldn’t deliver damage twice, nor could anyone other than Leeha inflict the damage.
In other words, Kijung was now meant to defend against the three-armed ogre’s attacks unilaterally.
“You brat, you need to suffer a bit to learn how to treat your hyung with respect.”
Leeha had no intention of shooting quickly.
Just because Kijung didn’t know much about Middle Earth, did he think so little of his hyung?
Of course, it didn’t mean Leeha would just sit back and watch until Kijung died. Tirik― Tirik― Tirik― Adjusting the scope clicks, Leeha observed Kijung.
A blue light flashed from his body.
“Hah, hah, hyung! Please! Shoot! I’ve already used my skill! Even though my level is higher than this Three-Handed Ogre, its attack power is higher than the same level!”
One of Leeha’s requirements was that “the monster should be large.”
Although the level was 200, about 15 levels lower than Kijung’s, the monster’s attack power was equivalent to level 210 or higher due to its size. Without a healer, it was quite a challenge for Kijung to tank alone.
Three arms holding massive clubs swung alternately.
Although no sounds were heard outside of Kijung’s whisper, each time Kijung raised his shield, it felt to Leeha like he heard thuds― thud― thud― echo in his head.
“Hyung, I’m serious! I’m dying for real, hyung!”
Kijung’s words were starting to get tangled up.
Even the guild master of the elite Star Guild, known for excellent evasion and tanking, couldn’t help but suffer against a relentless barrage without counter skills.
“You gonna stop acting tough or what.”
“Huh, huh?”
“Will you stop fooling around or not?”
“Hyung? Now is not the time for…”
“Ssshh, are you gonna stop or not?”
Leeha chuckled quietly to himself as he watched the exchange between Kijung and the Three-Handed Ogre. The muttering, or sobbing sound, that was hard to categorize, momentarily filled his mind.
Immediately after, Kijung declared his surrender.
“I’m sorry, hyung! I’ll stop messing around, so please deal with this thing! Quickly!”
“You sure about that?”
“Of course I’m sure!”
“‘You sure about that?’”
“Yes, absolutely, hyung! Shoot already! I’ve already lost 1/5 of my HP!”
“Wow, he’s doing better than I thought.”
Despite Kijung’s desperate cries, he indeed possessed quite the skill of a dongsaeng ranker.
In Middle Earth, where a five-person party was the norm for tackling same-level monsters, Kijung was solo-tanking a near-equal-level monster for a long duration, with only 20% HP lost.
“At least he’ll listen to me for a while. Hm.”
Leeha took a deep breath, albeit jokingly. Ultimately, Kijung was indirectly helping Leeha.
They were close cousins who understood each other’s minds and pranks.
“Distance 2,000… 2,045 meters. Wind direction east, wind speed 4 m/s, stabilized.”
The Three-Handed Ogre’s right arm, left arm, and middle arm alternately reached towards Kijung.
Leeha hadn’t just been watching Kijung struggle. He needed to understand the attack patterns and movements of the Three-Handed Ogre.
“From now on, it’s a place I’ve never been; an uncharted territory.”
A 2,000-meter sniper shot had never been attempted in Middle Earth or reality. Yet, thus far, it was no different. Leeha had a certain degree of confidence going into it.
The fight at Dique Seas with Kraven and the 1,800-meter shots he had landed on Alexander had developed Leeha’s skills considerably.
A virtual sound echoed in Leeha’s mind.
Thud― thud― right when the Three-Handed Ogre’s middle arm was about to move.
“Calm mind.”
Boom—!
The bullet flew, slicing through the wind. The Three-Handed Ogre struck Kijung’s shield with its middle arm, creating a brief delay.
Leeha had carefully calculated the timing between the bullet’s arrival and the Three-Handed Ogre’s delayed action after hitting the shield. His shot was impeccable.
Kijung lowered his shield and waved both arms towards Leeha. With the signal from his cousin, a fanfare echoed in Leeha’s mind.
Ba-bam—!
* * *
You have leveled up.
〈Achievement: Silent Sniper (B)〉
Congratulations!
You have hit a target over a range of 2,000 meters! You must have felt it when you fired? There will be a delay of about 3.4 seconds before the sound is heard, so very few in Middle Earth will notice you. However, beware of those ‘exceptions’ among humans and non-humans. Middle Earth desires the power you possess.
Reward: Agility +13
You are the first registrant of the 〈Silent Sniper〉 achievement.
Up to the third registrant will be recorded in the Hall of Fame, and there will be a 200% additional effect on the existing effect.
Effect: Agility +26
[Black Bass’s Seal—3]
You have completed the quest.
You have learned the skill—Mana Vaporizing Shot.
[Black Bass’s Seal—4]
A new quest has been generated.
“Oh? Oh!”
While leveling up, he had aimed for the Black Bass quest, but an unexpected achievement caught Leeha’s eye. Achievements based on distance that had vanished after 400 meters. Black Bass had transformed into a modern sniper rifle with nothing significant appearing at 1,000m and 1,500m, so he had thought they were gone…
“2,000m… I see. The achievements that started from 100m with a musket begin from 2,000m with a sniper rifle.”
Despite the praise it received, the achievement was only B-grade.
Leeha clearly felt there were more distances up ahead, though he could not determine the specific meters.
―Hyung, is it over?
―Yeah. You have leveled up complete. I’ve reached 163.
―Good, good! Hehe, come quick and get the items, I’ll keep watch.
Leeha tidied up his position and invested 5 stat points into agility before heading towards Kijung. First, he had to check the skills and the Black Bass quest.
“How long has it been since I learned a new skill? No matter how broken my weapon might be, compared to Luger or Kidd, I have almost nothing. I wish I could learn something like Bulletstorm!”
If others heard him, they might say they would trade all their skills for his weapon, given how overpowered Black Bass was. Still, personal desires couldn’t be ignored.
Leeha chuckled and opened the detailed skill window.
〈Mana Vaporizing Shot〉
Description: A seasoned predator even suppresses its prey’s struggles. The prey, clueless, cannot resist or escape.
Effect: All new mana within a 30m radius from the impact point is frozen.
(Existing skills are maintained, new skills cannot be cast)
Mana: 200
Duration: 10 minutes after impact
Cooldown: 1 hour
“Huh…? Uh-huh?”
New mana freeze? It meant that while existing spells were maintained, new ones couldn’t be cast.
‘Dispel cancels even the skills that were already cast. Ah, if only it was that strong, it would be amazing!’
Knowing the might of the Gold Dragon Bailephus, Leeha understood this. When the dragon glared and snorted, all the incoming spells simply vanished.
Even if it wasn’t as strong as a gold dragon, having Biyemi’s skill would have been excellent. Hadn’t even the flying mage fallen when the Fly spell was canceled?
‘It’s fortunate that it is an area spell. Moreover, a 30m radius from the impact point is quite wide….’
Though it wasn’t as strong as Dispel, the ‘generous cooldown’ and ‘generous effect radius’ of this skill were a small consolation.