Matan’s Shooter

TL: xLordFifth

ED:

At first glance, it might have looked like a Wood Golem or an Ent, and just as Leeha had that thought, a new color appeared in his scope.

A monster possessing color in the entirely gray rock mountain range.

“It’s been a while, Brass Golem.”

Leeha smiled.

The reason he had trudged all the way up here was precisely because of this creature.

It’s easy to recognize, huge in size, and slow in movement. Although it sometimes moves, it has the restriction of having to stop for several seconds to use its ‘Stomp’ skill.

‘Perfect for practice!’

He had already set it for a distance of about 4km, but it needed to be more precise.

At this distance, even a 1mm deviation from the barrel can mean missing the target entirely.

‘First and foremost, distance measurement is crucial. The Brass Golem’s size is… well over 10m. Based on that size… proportionally, it’s around 4,025m, 4,030m. Quarter click adjustment… target moving…’

The Brass Golem was moving. Leeha couldn’t hear its heavy footsteps. Now, he had to adjust the click-by-quarter units. Very finely. Delicately.

‘Ignore wind direction and speed. Firing angle good, visibility good, target acquisition complete… click adjustment according to movement.’

Leeha suddenly felt grateful that ‘Joint Fixation: Upper’ didn’t restrict the movement of his arm.

If it had fixed him in one position, making adjustments would be impossible, and the sniping would undoubtedly have failed.

‘Thanks to the Middle Earth development team’s consideration… [Snipe].’

The barrel of the Black Bass flashed.

With the skilled snipe and the addition of ‘Joint Fixation: Lower’, Leeha knew his maximum shooting range.

The Brass Golem was still moving. One step, two steps, three steps… Underneath, the figure of Yujay rising was visible. The Brass Golem’s characteristic? Probably using the Stomp skill, raising its fist and slamming it down. It would have to walk down a bit more.

Leeha aimed at the anticipated spot and steadied his breath. Then, another click adjustment. The users arrived. Warriors charged in, and mages began casting something. He shouldn’t be distracted.

There was only one thing to focus on right now. His own shot.

Baaaaaang—!

Even as Leeha exhaled, his chest did not rise or fall. He waited until he had expelled all his breath and felt utterly empty inside. His body, already tightly constrained by external forces, seemed to lock up from within, stopping even the smallest movement. Click. Then, at that moment, he pulled the trigger. It took approximately 4.82 seconds for the bullet to shatter the chest of the Brass Golem over 4,023 meters away.

Boom! Beep!

The fanfare slightly baffled Leeha, but he couldn’t afford to pay attention to the notification window now.

The users who hastily formed a raid party for the Brass Golem raid could never understand why the Golem died or why they couldn’t loot it. The sound of the gunshot, carried by the wind, was quieter to them than the sound of stepping on gravel.

‘I hit it… Haha… I did.’ Leeha laughed for various reasons, not just because he hit the target.

‘Where it hit’ was very important in this particular sniping, and Leeha had a chance to test the first limit of Black Bass.

‘The energy is enough. It hit exactly where I aimed.’

He aimed at the head, but the chest was hit.

He initially targeted the largest area to prevent issues like bullet drop, and it hit exactly where he aimed.

It wasn’t about calculating the drop over distance; it was about hitting the target precisely at 4,000 meters, meaning the bullet trajectory didn’t collapse.

Using black powder and steel balls for long-distance sniping, adjusting the barrel while shooting, it meant that sniping over 4,000 meters was certainly possible.

‘It’ll get harder due to the click adjustment limit, but up to 5,000 meters should be almost certain.’

The one regret was the scope. Despite being over-technology in the Middle Earth world, it was still insufficient compared to what Leeha aimed for.

“Ugh, I’ll have to check if there’s any scope-related item at the Vatican. Right?”

[Kyu?]

“Before that, it’d be nice if there was something worth getting in Blaugrunn’s lair. When are you going to take me there?”

[■]

Blaugrunn tilted its head cutely, looking at Leeha.

Leeha chuckled and shook his head.

“Alright, alright. We’ll see when we can communicate. But what’s this achievement about?”

[Achievement: Challenger of Limits (B+)]

Congratulations! You have hit a target over 3,000 meters away! You are no longer ‘ordinary’! Even Brown, a musketeer of the Fibiel Kingdom who hit a target at 2,475 meters, would applaud you. Now, as a human, there’s only one record left to break!

Reward: Agility +15

You are the first to register in the [Challenger of Limits] achievement.

The first three registrants will be recorded in the Hall of Honor, with the original effect being amplified by 200%.

Effect: Agility +30

“Ah! A distance achievement! Right, ever since I started using Black Bass – Eh, wait? Why is Brown mentioned here?”

The achievements for hitting targets at different distances have changed since the black powder era.

Was it because he hadn’t sniped for a while, or because the last time he did a long-distance snipe was around 2,500 meters? Leeha had completely forgotten about it.

And today, with his successful 4,000-meter snipe, a delightful alarm rang after a long time. However, the content of the achievement left Leeha feeling a bit unsettled.

‘Was that the best record Brown of [Penetration] had?’

Penetration at 2.5km…

During the voyage to the new continent, Luger had indeed shown considerable skill. However, Leeha knew that hitting a target at 2.5 km was not within Luger’s capabilities.

“No, even with such growth, I still haven’t caught up to the old trio? And this achievement, ‘Challenger of Limits’ – sounds grand but it’s just B+ grade? Considering the difficulty, it should be S grade!”

Leeha grumbled as he closed one of the notification windows.

After the second alert, Leeha had a rough idea of what the second achievement might be. There was an achievement for 2,000m, and now he had achieved the 3,000m one, so the other one was quite predictable.

[Achievement: Unreachable Distance (A-)]

Congratulations! You have hit a target over 4,000 meters away! In the long history, no one has ever reached a distance of 4,000m! The most outstanding shooter in the recorded history of musket shooting, a former musketeer of the Fibiel Kingdom, Elizabeth, who held the record of 3,450m, has been surpassed by you! Now, the only battle left is with yourself! Or perhaps, a battle with beings beyond humans!

Reward: Agility +16

You are the first registrant of the [Unreachable Distance] achievement.

The first three registrants will be recorded in the Hall of Honor, with the original effect being amplified by 200%.

Effect: Agility +32

“Of course, 4,000m… But this time it’s Elizabeth? Wow…

3,450m hit record. Indeed, the NPC named [Hit] had more skills than those of [Penetration]. So, hitting a target at 4,000m, what about Leeha?

‘I’m better -… that’s not the point, is it?!’”

Just as his mood was about to lift, Leeha read the implications in the achievement description.

What did all those qualifiers before Elizabeth’s record mean!

“Muskets in shooting… while also being an ‘officially measured record’…

What defines a musket? Is what Leeha currently using, the [Legendary Black Bass], considered a musket? Of course not. At least not until he deactivates the current SASR skill!

That means Elizabeth shot over 3,000m with a musket using black powder, right?

Not in a normal hunt or urgent situation, but in a ‘formal measurement record’ setting, like in a shooting competition.

“…Snipers have no face to save.”

[Kyu?]

“Ha… Crazy, really. Seeing this, Luger and Brown are hardly any different, huh? How am I supposed to catch up with Elizabeth?”

Could he hit 3,450m with a musket?

Confidently, Leeha could say it’s impossible. How much black powder would that require?

Even compressing it as much as possible, extending the range with all available skills, it’s doubtful whether he could even reach 3,000m.

‘Let alone 3,000, I’m not even sure about Brown’s 2,475m. No, but Brown must have used something other than a musket. That’s nonsense…’

[Kyu-uu, Kyu-uu.]

Blaugrunn patted Leeha’s shoulder comfortingly.

The thrill and excitement of hitting 4,000m, the anticipation that Black Bass’s maximum range was even further, the confidence that with an improved scope he could achieve anything, all were crushed in an instant.

“I should raise my stats and log out. I’m drained. Character window!”

Name: Ha Leeha/ Race: Human

Occupation: Musketeer / Level: 200 (5%)

Title: Shadow Assassin / Achievements: 128

HP: 6,460(4,522)

MP: 1,600

Stats: Strength 551 (+466)

Agility 3,300 (+1,234)

Intelligence 190(+139)

Stamina 228(+135)

Spirit 65(+55)

Remaining Stat Points: 78

Upon opening the character window, Leeha realized just how fickle humans can be. The joy of the 4,000m success was instantly overshadowed by the achievements, but seeing the stats gathered in the character window, he found himself cheered up again!

“Ahem.”

[Kyu?]

“No. I’m not laughing because I’m happy, so don’t stare at me. It’s embarrassing.”

[Kyu-kyu? ^?]

As the corners of Leeha’s mouth turned up, Blaugrunn playfully poked his cheek a couple of times. Leeha felt a bit embarrassed to have his true feelings discerned by a dragon that was only at hatchling level.

‘Well, I do have 20 bonus stats for being below level 100. Plus, the stats from level-up achievements and the Chiyou assassination achievement…’

The difference between levels 199 and 200 is just a single level numerically, but such a significant change can happen only in Middle Earth.

Even excluding the Chiyou assassination achievement, the difference of 34 stat points can arise from just one level increase.

Now, Leeha was entering the level where the rate of various effects based on stats would be applied differently, which was certainly a reason to smile.

‘Even if the agility stat is the same, the effect at level 199 and 200 is different. No need to think twice, I’ll put all 78 points into agility!’

Leeha’s agility was now 3,461.

He knew that without a round number, nothing special would happen, so he didn’t have high expectations.

He was merely curious.

‘Blaugrunn grows through feeding. Koma will also need some kind of significant event apart from feeding to grow… The only thing directly related to my growth is this little guy.’

[Mong-Mong?]

“Ha, you know when it’s about you, huh? Jellypong, when will you grow?

When does Jellypong grow? A single stat point of 3,400 is by no means low. And Drake said Jellypong grows in proportion to the user’s growth. What exactly is that criterion?

“Is it just that it gets damage proportional to my stats and that’s considered growth? Hmm, I’m sure he hinted at a physical change too… Sigh. Just like with Elizabeth’s case, I still have a long way to go.”

[Kyu-kyu!]

[Mong-mong-mong*]

“Ah well, thinking ahead only tires me out. Let’s go! I still have a lot to receive! I’ll find out when the time comes.”

The road ahead might be long, but there are plenty of assured rewards that can shorten it. With mixed feelings of both satisfaction and dissatisfaction, Leeha logged out.

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