Arcane Sniper [Matan’s Shooter]

Leeha removed the scope from Black Bass. Then, he took out another item he had received from Bottleneck along with the Body Armor.

“Just like I can’t see you, you won’t be able to see me.”

It looked similar to a silencer, but its purpose was different.

It was a flash silencer that suppressed muzzle flashes.

Click, click, click…

Leeha attached the flash silencer and once again visualized the map in his mind. What was the battlefield’s layout? The contours and positions of all the structures in the terrain?

How many sniping spots were there for both the enemy and himself, and which location would be the most rational to aim from?

“Now… it’s time to assess it properly.”

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The whole map was firmly etched in Leeha’s mind. And now, there was only one task left. Observing to find the enemy. Leeha gazed towards the left hill.

“I can’t climb to the top of the hill. The moment I reveal myself there, my head might get blown off. So, the most crucial point in sniping to find the enemy is not to reveal your own position.”

Fortunately, Leeha possessed such a skill.

“『Camouflage』.”

Near the middle of the hill, Leeha took a prone position. Camouflage automatically disengaged with rapid movements. However, there were ranges where it didn’t disengage.

It was about 100 meters from Leeha’s position to the hilltop where the White Reaper was.

“The fight starts now.”

By moving fast, it would take only a few seconds to reach there, but from now on, it was a battle of patience. How much effort should he invest to reach there?

Leeha knew that the first requirement for a sniper was patience.

Whoooooooosh…

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The wind blew.

Leeha adjusted the direction and speed of the wind with the hat he put on firmly, pressing it down. About one hour and thirty minutes later, a giant known as Karelin Thunderfoot arrived at the location where the White Reaper’s Ghost was isolated.

“Pant, pant… Did that person enter again? Did they come out? Was there a battle?”

Karelin was even more imposing due to the bulky robe he wore.

Although his voice sounded clear as if it revealed his personality, the guards standing nearby took on a tense posture.

“No presence of mana for spatial teleportation yet, and there was no noise.” one guard reported.

“Good! So, can I go in as well?” asked Karelin eagerly.

“Of course!” the guard replied.

“Let me see, the entry pass issued by the President-”

Karelin started, but the guard interrupted.

“You don’t need to show it! We’ve already confirmed your name, identification, and validity from the previous pass. Besides, Karelin-nim-”

Before the guard could finish, Karelin handed over the pass.

Understanding the guard’s gesture of utmost respect, Karelin smiled brightly and adjusted his robe.

“Could you please open it for me?”

“Please wait a moment.”

Before Karelin could say anything else, the door opened swiftly.

Karelin nodded to the guards and walked straight in. He only had one reason to visit the place where the White Reaper’s Ghost was isolated – to find Leeha.

He was searching for Leeha, the figure who had entered the White Reaper’s abode and allegedly harassed the Lord in Hamina Castle a few days earlier. While most giant users dismissed it as a passing story, those affiliated with the Shazrashian Federation government knew the truth behind the rumors.

“He’s quite famous, huh? Affiliated with Fibiel, so he might be relatively friendly, but it’s hard to tell,” one user said.

Of course, for the Shazrashian Federation officials, the crucial point was Leeha’s purpose. Why had he come to find the Human Flesh Hunter’s Ghost?

“No, more precisely, we need to know why he fought with the Human Flesh Hunter,” Karelin muttered. He had already heard some facts through the guards of this place, such as gunshots sounding, the sky darkening, and numerous lightning strikes.

No matter how it was reported, it was clear that a battle had taken place.

“The user was dispatched as an investigator, but… ugh, this place is bothersome. Is he already dead?”

Karelin sighed.

The guards immediately reported what they had witnessed, and the post-investigation was initiated by the Shazrashian Federation to prepare for future events. Karelin carefully scanned the surroundings.

In the dead of winter when not even the sound of animals could be heard, there were no traces of human presence. It had been an hour and a half since the last noises, and nothing out of the ordinary could be detected. Was someone hiding?

The giant cautiously stepped forward. Users from Chazlathian guild never ventured to this place. Most people didn’t even know such a place existed. And the few who did, knew that they couldn’t cross paths with the White Reaper. One step, two steps, three steps…

Karelin had no desire to come to this place, but he had his reasons why he ended up here, and they were crystal clear.

“If we can handle only the Human Flesh Hunter… then it’s more than possible to expand the resource development beyond this land as it was recorded that there are plentiful mines here in the Beyond of the Middle Earth’s world view. From a user’s perspective? ‘Map expansion. Chazlathian territory grows larger. We might even discover places where new dungeons or raid monsters reside.’

For those affiliated with Chazlathian, ultimately, there was no choice but to accept the consequences, whether it involved NPCs or the users.

“If there’s an issue, it must be the intention of Ha Leeha. If the reason for fighting against the Human Flesh Hunter is different from our intentions-”

Paaaang-!

Karelin halted his steps. He sensed movement above the hill on his left.

Swiftly, he turned his head around. From the ground to the sky, something was leaping up—eyes bundled with a few pebbles.

It was clear that something had struck that spot.

“Wha–”

And at that moment,

“Taaaang——…! – Human hunter!”

Gunshots echoed from afar.

Karelin hastily crouched down and darted towards the lower side of the hill on his right. But this time, gunshots rang out from a much closer distance.

Tuaaaaah——!!

“Damn it.”

Struggling through the ground, he barely managed to lift his torso and look towards the direction of the shots.

It was evident that the sounds came from where the objects had previously leaped up.

“What’s going on? What the-“Argh!

Once again, the pebbles sprang up from that spot.

Before the sound of gunfire could be heard in the distance, gunshots rang out near where the pebbles had sprung up.

Whizzzz–_——!!

Taahh ———–……!

Only then did Karelin realize.

“H-haiga……. 『Detect』!”

They are fighting.

He used the transparent removal skill but was even more surprised.

“Nothing?”

Nothing was visible.

“Why?”

Even when he stared with his eyes wide, there was nothing on the left hilltop.

Something kept flying and hitting, and there were gunshots that made his ears ring as if they would burst, but that was all.

“Why is there nothing-”

Boommm–_—–plosion!

Karelin smashed into the ground at an incredible speed.

Dozens of objects suddenly appeared out of nowhere and began to fly, even though there was clearly nothing there. A skill? No, there was definitely no one there! Where did the skill come from- huh!”

Without a chance to react, Karelin was suddenly overwhelmed by a blinding light that was brighter than white. The giant lowered his head, covering his eyes.

Only when the light finally faded could he raise his head. Then, instinctively, he took out a crystal ball.

『Kaaahhh–__-

In the empty space was undoubtedly a dragon that had never been seen before.

“Si-silver dragon- no, not silver. What in the world…!?”

The platinum dragon, Bahamut, roared.

The crystal in Karelin’s hand started to crack and shatter with a sound.

“Damn it, not even aiming towards Bahamut! The camouflage cooldown is 12 hours!”

He was moving fast. There was no time for self-recrimination.

After investing nearly two hours to climb up to the top of the hill! Perfectly understanding the layout of the village buildings and sniper positions!

“Being attacked preemptively! How? How did they see me?”

Was it because he had smoothed out the snow with his body? That couldn’t be it. The traces in the snow were left only behind him.

In other words, the white ghost that one had to look at head-on should never have first noticed it.

“Haah, haah, still, by looking at the building layout, hah, I roughly figured out the positions through the bullet angles and gunshots.”

He fired multiple rounds towards that spot. However, there was no response. In an attempt to accurately pinpoint the location of the White Reaper, Leeha summoned Bahamut, but the White Reaper did not fire a single shot towards the dragon. Realizing this, Leeha deactivated the camouflaged and swiftly moved to another location at full speed.

“Curses, ugh, and on top of that, phew, who’s this strange guy who popped in out of nowhere?”

After running for a while in search of a new sniping point, Leeha suddenly discovered something.

“Insane… That’s right. It’s indeed the White Reaper.”

How was the White Reaper able to spot him? In a way, this was a rather simple issue. The irritation oozing from his words!

“Breath… ugh! Damn it, is the defense too thorough!?”

Leeha opened his bag, took out the White Corpse Potion, and immediately put it back.

“No. The 100-minute time limit is too tight. I can’t use it here right now.”

Above all, wasn’t this potion meant for resisting abnormal status? Even without using the White Corpse Potion, Leeha’s achievement from before had raised his ice※ resistance by 30%.

“I’ll hold on like this for now. In the worst-case scenario, I might have to resort to it briefly, but not now. If they want proof over there, then follow me.”

Leeha took a pinch of the eyes lying on the ground and put it into his mouth to locate his position.

“Continuing left from the left hill, after crossing a little over the adjacent hill, when viewed from the entrance, about 8 o’clock direction of the village should be visible.”

What buildings were visible from that direction? How about the windows of each building? Which sniping points could be aimed at?

Did the White Reaper see his movements?

“Didn’t see me… he didn’t.”

The gunshots could be heard, serving as evidence. Bahamut in the air did not disappear. So, where were the recent gunshots aimed at?

“Where I was just now. Right where my breath had last exhaled.”

Leeha stopped in his tracks. If Leeha hadn’t been there, he now realized.

“Alright, good.”

Leeha swiftly sketched a map in the snowy field from his memory.

Where would the White Reaper head to? If Leeha were the White Reaper, from where and at what angle would he aim for a sniping point? How many such points would there be, and where would be the best spot for Leeha to see those points the most?

“If it’s about proof, this must be it, right? If it’s about proof, I won’t lose either.”

Leeha remembered Sergeant Kim’s words. Indeed, the White Reaper’s proof within Middle Earth was thorough. The thoroughness of the Baroque was appreciated by Leeha.

“The more thorough it is, the more you are just a 『ghost of the past』. And I… even after you, I know quite a lot of snipers who left a mark in the history of sniping. Thanks to learning from the best sniper in the history of the Republic of Korea Army.”

Leeha re-drew the map in his mind and began to strategize.