Matan's Shooter

Arcane Sniper (901)

“… It’s over. Now that Arcane Sniper has switched sides… it’s over…”

“Are you just going to give up like that? Huh? Are you going to sit there like an idiot, Kidd!”

Hearing Kidd’s self-deprecating remark, Luger replied with disdain. Luger’s fists, striking the tentacles of Red Zeppelin, grew increasingly forceful.

“Sit there and give up like a fool, Kidd!”

While Kidd and Luger bickered, Leeha was watching Chiyou’s group moving away. Kyle was also still looking in their direction.

He knew that no matter how far they went, there was still a chance the Musketeers here could snipe his mother.

Thus, Leeha did not move hastily.

However, that didn’t mean he intended to remain idle.

‘When I move… it’s when I disappear from Kyle’s view while I’m on the right side of Red Zeppelin. Just a bit more and it’ll be fine, just a bit more… Now. Jellypong, move me to the upper deck of Red Zeppelin. 〈Melding Breath〉.’

The moment he had been waiting for arrived, and Leeha immediately let go of the tentacle.

Having already traveled a significant distance across the Eastern Continent in the 〈Melding Breath〉 state, Jellypong showed perfect synchronization with Leeha’s simple instructions.

On the upper deck of Red Zeppelin, Kidd was still muttering to himself.

Leeha saw him but couldn’t hear his voice. Kidd hadn’t noticed that Leeha was now beside him.

‘〈Sniping〉, 〈Eagle’s Eye〉. I have to make sure.’

Leeha assumed a kneeling shooting position on the upper deck of Red Zeppelin.

Although the night sky was clear, the distance between them was already significant. Losing focus even for a moment would make it difficult to find them again.

‘Damn it, the sway is stronger than I expected. Are they still cautious even with Kyle in their hands? Thorough as always.’

Compared to them, how were they?

They had anticipated that Chiyou and Kaztor would attack again someday, but they hadn’t expected it would be so soon.

Never in their wildest dreams did they think it would happen the moment they left Saur Land, on the way to Laputa.

They had over-relied on the firepower of their group, which included the previous Three Musketeers and Kyle, whose anomalies they had fixed. In other words, arcane Bullet’s Shooter.

‘Chiyou exploited that blind spot. We were foolish.’

The psychological blind spot created by having the mentor of the Three Musketeers by their side was bigger than expected.

Why had they forgotten their most important mission was to ‘protect’ Elizabeth and Kyle?

That was the gap Chiyou exploited.

‘Fine. I lost this round, Chiyou. But… I’m not one to lose and do nothing about it.’

Leeha was firmly observing their group through 〈Distorted Vision〉 and 〈Eagle’s Eye〉.

‘Phewwww…’

Who should he aim at? Elizabeth?

Killing Elizabeth here, now?

‘No, it’s too late.’

Moreover, with Brown accompanying her, even if Elizabeth died, Chiyou would immediately turn Brown into a vampire without being flustered.

Most importantly, killing Elizabeth at this point would reduce their chance of retrieving Kyle to zero.

‘Kyle would never forgive the one who killed Elizabeth.’

Eliminating Elizabeth, Brown, and Kyle only left two targets.

Chiyou or Kaztor.

Leeha alternated his aim between the two.

Who should he shoot? Who should be killed now to achieve the most certain and beneficial outcome?

The choice was simple.

A sniper only had one target to aim for on the battlefield.

‘The highest-ranking person at the moment.’

This was about rank, not age.

If he had to pick the highest-ranking person among the enemies at the moment?

‘Chiyou.’

Though he used honorifics with Kaztor, Leeha hadn’t missed the clue she let slip.

The influence a Vampire Queen held over other vampires.

As Kaztor was already a vampire, it would be difficult for him to go against Chiyou.

Leeha’s rifle stayed firmly fixed.

‘She won’t be able to react to this shot. Moreover, I’ve already confirmed that Kaztor cannot use that mirage-like protection magic while moving.’

While Kaztor could use a simple barrier, he could not activate a protective magic that would absorb attacks.

‘That’s why they move evasively. That’s the fatal flaw… Just as I showed you my skills, I also observed yours.’

–Kekeke… I’ll have fresh blood to drink soon.–

Black Bass smacked its lips. freёweɓnovel.com

“Thanks to the vampires, we had already reached 49.9%. And with this one shot, I’ll break through the 50% barrier.”

Leeha quietly used his skill.

〈Melding Breath〉, a skill that remained invisible until activation.

And a skill that Chiyou “still didn’t know about”.

〈White Reaper〉.

Black Bass coiled around Leeha’s arm.

When a ray of light illuminated the night sky, an alarm rang in Leeha’s head.

Thunk―

* * *

“Impressive, Chiyou. Quite impressive.”

“Was it alright?”

“It reminded me of my younger days. I’m glad you understand the thrill of seeing a meticulous strategy come together.”

“Oh, you’re being too kind. I’m still far from being compared to you, Kaztor-nim.”

Chiyou softly smiled as she lowered her head. She could sense Kaztor’s excitement.

The delight of reclaiming Arcane Sniper.

The anticipation of now being able to seize and shake the world.

Above all, the reassurance of a reliable ally, unlike when working alone.

“Much safer and more comfortable than devouring everything solo… Moving someone who has found a place to lean on is not difficult.”

Chiyou made every effort to flatter Kaztor.

“Kaztor-nim?”

“Hehehe, yes? What’s the matter?”

“In the future… won’t I have to always be with you?”

“Of course, hehehe. You and I are now inseparable.”

Kaztor’s attitude remained unchanged.

This was partly because Chiyou, leveraging her vampire traits, had never pressured him, and also because Kaztor was brimming with confidence.

“So, what I mean is… should any problems arise for me in the future, would you be able to protect me…?”

“Problems? Hahaha! I have Arcane Sniper in my hands! Oh, Bluebeard? Is it because of Le? That arrogant Demon King’s Fragment can be turned to dust right now. Shall I do that for you?”

Kaztor boasted as if he personally controlled Kyle.

Though this irked Chiyou, she didn’t show it. Besides, what was the point in fighting with an NPC in a game? She was a woman who took advantage.

“That would be nice too, but… I’ve got some matters to discuss ‘in person’ with the count. You can’t do that right now…”

“Fine, whatever you want. Just say the word! Right now, I feel like I could even grant you control over the Lope continent!”

“Oh my, that would only be a hindrance to someone like me who lacks any governance skills. I simply want a small promise from you.”

“A promise?”

Chiyou nodded in response to Kaztor’s query.

With a light flutter, she approached Kaztor.

“If something happens to me… a promise that you’ll take responsibility.”

Then she gently wrapped her arms around Kaztor’s neck.

At that moment, she wasn’t the Vampire Queen. The charm skill she directed at Kaztor with her moist eyes—the power of a dancer—was strong enough to bring an aged Dark Elf to his knees.

“That’s nothing difficult. Alright, I will take responsibility. Hehe, after all, I need you to use Arcane Bullet smoothly.”

Kaztor readily agreed.

No doubt Chiyou’s ‘skill’ had an effect, but it was Kaztor’s confidence that swayed him.

“Indeed, it would be best to prevent any issues from arising in the first place. Even without using Arcane Sniper, Elizabeth and Brown’s skills alone would make it hard for most to even approach. If I give just a little help, even ‘those guys’ can’t take us down. Hehe. Above all…”

Kaztor glanced at Elizabeth and Brown, grinning.

The direction Kaztor pointed when referring to ‘those guys’ was where the Red Zeppelin resided.

“With Browless and Ha Leeha there… those obstinate ones are bound to track us.”

“Indeed. This is exactly why I asked for your help, Kaztor-nim.”

“Alright, alright. Don’t worry, Chiyou. I have seen your abilities, so from now on— What!?”

“Kyaaah—!”

A flash of light erupted.

It all happened in an instant.

When Kaztor reopened his eyes, there was only one change where the light had vanished.

“Chiyou! Chiyou?! What, what, what is this—what kind of attack is this?!”

Something was burning through the hole in Chiyou’s chest. Kaztor hurriedly called out to Chiyou, but she did not respond.

Chiyou, having lost the power of her wings, collapsed forward.

The surrounding bats hurriedly grabbed her and maintained altitude, but Chiyou showed no signs of getting up.

“Damn it, everyone stop! ‘Maze Dimension!'”

Kaztor immediately cast a defensive spell.

At this point, Kaztor was the next highest-grade vampire after Chiyou, so all the bats obeyed his commands.

“Kyle! Why didn’t you see them!”

“There… was no sign of an attack at all… if there was, we would have…”

Kyle quickly raised his gun.

Elizabeth shouted at him urgently.

“No, Kyle! Mom is fine! You can’t shoot them!”

Hearing her scream, Kaztor raged.

Kaztor had certainly been looking at Kyle from his left side.

“Shut up, Elizabeth! Shoot now, Kyle! Or I’ll— ngh!”

In an instant, he found himself looking at Kyle from the right side.

He couldn’t understand the sudden change in position. And it wasn’t just the position that had changed.

“What… why—bats—”

Even if he wanted to ask, he couldn’t speak anymore. He couldn’t move either.

A multitude of bats were holding him down.

“Ugh…”

Kaztor’s head slowly drooped.

The old dark elf, who was losing all color, finally realized it.

The huge hole in his chest and the black masses gnawing at its edges.

Kaztor raised his head again.

He couldn’t move. He couldn’t make himself move.

“You… earlier—what kind of… magic—”

“Hah, I almost got too late. Isn’t that right, Kaztor-nim?”

Above all, knowing ‘why this happened’ filled his eyes with rage.

In the last moment, Chiyou had embraced Kaztor’s neck and used ‘Blood Oath’.

Unlike the simple command of ‘Blood Vow’, this skill could make a vampire of a certain level die instead of oneself.

‘It’s a skill that you can only cast on someone with similar power to me, but the effect is good.’

Kaztor’s eyes burned as he looked at Chiyou, who was looking down at him.

“Forgive, ugh! I can’t forgive…”

The hole in his chest had now completely eroded his upper chest, spreading to his armpits and below the navel.

If the circle grew just a bit larger, his arms, not even connected to his shoulders, would fall off.

There was even a possibility that his lower body and upper body would completely separate.

Despite such pain, despite such wounds, Kaztor lifted his head to gaze at Chiyou.

The dark elf’s grudge was intense.

And Chiyou was more than enough to play with the intense dark elf.

“Forgive? Who forgives whom, Kaztor-nim? You can’t even move now; you’re going to become ash soon, trying to forgive me? Haha! That’s great. Wonderful. Just disappear without forgiving me.”

Chiyou was paying back everything she had suffered from the dark elf.

“‘Arcane Sniper’—my… dream—”

Kaztor’s fingertips quivered.

Everyone here knew who he was trying to point at.

Kaztor had tried to capture Arcane Sniper for the revival of the dark elf race.

Though his goal and methods were twisted, his concern for his people was immensely pure.

Of course, this was a fact only the players who followed Kaztor’s story quest knew.

Chiyou cautiously lowered her body, bringing her face close to Kaztor’s face.

“Thank you. Now it’s ‘my dream’.”

Chiyou devoured even the last fragment of the dark elf’s hope.

She did not have a trace of sympathy for Kaztor or regret for his thoughts.

“Chi—”

There was no more fire in Kaztor’s eyes. His head hung low, having lost all dreams and hope.

“—you…”

His body turned to ash gray.

TL’s Corner:

Chiyou having stronger plot armor than the MC.

When did Kaztor even become a vampire?

Disappointing.

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