Arcane Sniper [Matan’s Shooter]

After completing all the preparations perfectly, Leeha started heading towards the citadel that rose in the center of the city.

The architecture, made with an unknown mix of bones and other materials, irritated his nerves.

However, Leeha did not have the luxury to observe his surroundings in detail.

He focused all his nerves on Pyrot Cocri, walking along the path to the citadel.

It was obvious that the boss would exist in the largest citadel in this immense city.

* * *

―Are you still okay?

―Yes. Thinking about it as the village of Pyrot Cocri makes sense.

―What do you mean?

―The types of undead I’ve never seen before. Some of them seem like I can’t even hit them.

Among the undead wandering between buildings, not only were there Dullahans, but also Death Knights.

Leeha had seen them being summoned and commanded by Faust, so they weren’t that surprising. However, the large number of spirit-type monsters similar to Phantoms was intriguing.

“Even though I completed my second job change, I still don’t have attack skills… I won’t be able to deal direct damage to those spirits.”

Among the floating entities, some were obviously spirits, with faint gray or translucent black appearances, but there were also monsters wearing hats deeply pulled over their faces, riding brooms.

“Kihehehe.”

‘Isn’t that just a witch, not an undead?’

Leeha could only think that way, as he had not seen their true form, cloaked by magic.

Besides the spirit-type and airborne monsters, there were many other peculiar monsters.

Especially notable were the ones wandering around in white shrouds with their hair down, and male monsters following at a certain distance, giving off an oddly familiar vibe.

‘Could it be a maiden ghost and a bachelor ghost? There are things that look like Jiangshi too… This seems like it’s gathered all ghosts from the East and West.’

Leeha shook his head and refocused.

There was no time to be distracted by the surroundings.

The citadel was less than 100 meters away now, and if there were guards like in the royal palaces of other nations, it would be difficult to advance from here.

“Kakakakak.”

Leeha deliberately made a skeletal noise as he looked around. To his relief, the surroundings of the citadel were empty.

This was in stark contrast to the countless undead he had seen walking on the main road and around buildings.

―No enemies around the citadel, I’m going in.

―Be careful, they might be hiding.

―I confirmed it with 〈Distorted Vision〉. Don’t worry.

Nothing could hide from his passive skill.

Although sudden attacks from underground were a common pattern in cemetery hunting grounds, Leeha would not fall victim to those.

―There’s a grand emblem at the entrance. Just to be safe, please check again. It’s a huge heart with a slightly stretched X on the sides.

―Yes, it is. It symbolizes the confidence of controlling all undead. It’s like manipulating toys they love with their hands.

―The X?

―Precisely it’s the handle of a marionette. Do you see the thin lines extending from the ends of the X?

―Ah…

Were the thin lines, which he had thought were mere scratches, representing strings?

Leeha nodded in understanding as Blaugrunn explained.

Passing through the citadel’s gate, a splendid space unfolded. Leeha hesitated for a moment when he saw the interior, decorated like a luxury hotel lobby.

―Still no one inside. There are plenty of paths; where should I go? Where would Pyrot Cocri like to be?

―The most splendid place. The highest place. He likes to stand out. He wouldn’t be hiding in the basement.

“Okay.”

Ha Leeha recalled the exterior of the fortress.

The castle, balanced on both sides, certainly had its highest point at the center.

‘This is quite straightforward. No, building such a fortress in the middle of the city itself means they must like to stand out.’

It was different from Bathory, which would have been hard to find without the advance party. Ha Leeha climbed up, up along the central staircase.

– Blaugrunn-ssi.

– Yes?

– If I die here, will I become undead?

– Wh-what an unlucky thing to say?

– No, just in case. There were those kinds of records in the Pyrot Cocri’s writings.

During the 2nd Human-Demon War, the main forces of the Demon King’s army consisted of three components.

Giant entities that pushed forward with sheer force from the front.

The combination of Baron Bluebeard’s army and the vanguard led by Toon’s presence instilled fear in the United Human Alliance just at the sight of them.

‘And the second was the unknown monsters. The Chimera Legion, whose weaknesses were nearly impossible to find.’

The Chimeras created by Gibrid were of unpredictable forms.

Things that couldn’t fly, flew; things that couldn’t cross rivers, crossed; and dead things exploded, causing acid rain around their surroundings—the records of which Ha Leeha had clearly read.

‘These two were still better. At least they revealed themselves clearly in visible places.’

What troubled the United Human Alliance the most was none other than Pyrot Cocri’s forces.

The summoned undead mostly moved with Bluebeard’s army, but what really troubled the United Human Alliance wasn’t that.

‘It was that past heroes were resurrected.’

Outstanding heroes who had shone in wars before the 2nd Human-Demon War.

Strategists, generals, assassins—those who made names for themselves in various fields—rose from their graves, which was the biggest problem.

Because of this, individuals who became ‘Heroes’ during the 2nd Human-Demon War reportedly screamed in delight.

Who were the ones they studied, analyzed, and took as their role models in strategy and martial arts?

They were the entities who existed before them in Middle Earth’s timeline.

In other words, they had the chance to fight their role models.

‘Since they rose from the ‘Graves’ located at the center of each nation’s territory, and because their supporting army wasn’t very large, it could be blocked. It was an infiltration operation with insufficient forces, so naturally, the undead were at a disadvantage, allowing them to be stopped.’

Simultaneously occurring and failing to unite, numerous undead heroes who couldn’t join the Demon King’s army died.

Had the past heroes revived as undead directly commanded Bluebeard’s giant monster troops or roamed with Bathory’s vampire legion for assassination, or carried out a charge attack aboard a Gibrid’s Chimera legion?

‘A few of the undead heroes who survived immediate extermination from the graves had actually carried out such operations, leading to… a miserable struggle. Even though only about thirty of the revived past heroes managed to survive.’

Because of those mere thirty out of hundreds and thousands of revived heroes, Pyrot Cocri’s legion was recognized as one of the main forces of the Demon King’s Fragment.

– If I become undead… the situation wouldn’t be just serious.

– If it were any human other than Ha Leeha speaking like this, I would’ve laughed it off. But… indeed, it is.

Having already experienced the ‘Rugermon’ incident, he could understand.

But turning into a Chimera means only a ‘single’ trait would combine.

What would it mean to be revived as an undead?

It meant literally becoming an enemy while retaining the entirety of his past power.

‘If I could use the remaining skills except for a few that need a partner… it would be insane.’

Ha Leeha calculated his current maximum effective range as he climbed the stairs.

If combined with a Chimera, the only skill usable would be ‘Snipe’.

However, if he turned into an undead and became an enemy, his items would remain the same as now, and he could use ‘Joint Fixation’ upper and lower halves.

‘The basic maximum range of Black Bass is about 4,000m. If I multiply it by 1.4 with Snipe, 1.25 with upper Joint Fixation, and 1.3 with lower—’

Ha Leeha expressed his astonishment with a “Kat!” sound.

Even during such a moment, he felt proud of himself for imitating the skeleton’s voice.

‘Maximum range of 9,100m? This is insane— No, I should be thankful. Although I can read wind direction/speed, I don’t ignore them, so it won’t extend to the maximum range. Considering some energy loss of the bullet at maximum range, it would be a bit shorter than that.’

It would be shorter should only be about 8,000m.

– A sniper shooting from around 8 km away? That’s hardly even a sniper shot anymore; it’s almost absurd.

It was a distance that Ha Leeha couldn’t even fathom how to observe or shoot from.

‘That absolutely cannot happen.’

It would be good to kill Pyrot Cocri or strengthen the seal, but Ha Leeha decided that his top priority would be ensuring he didn’t become undead.

As if responding to his resolve, Ha Leeha finally arrived at the topmost floor.

― Top floor reached. A splendidly decorated door can be seen.

― It has been reported to the Lord. Contact immediately upon discovering Pyrot Cocri. Do not be surprised. Use the time to contact us instead of being astonished.

― Of course.

Ha Leeha opened the door. The space, which occupied the entire top floor, was vast.

There was no leisure to appreciate the lavish interior decorations.

What immediately seized his attention was the gigantic, bright red crystal before his eyes and the pitch-black wall arranged around it as if to swallow the crystal.

Unlike the other three walls, the black one drew his eyes for a moment, but Ha Leeha focused his gaze on the crystal in front of him.

What was in the crystal ball? If Pyrot Cocri was there, he needed to whisper immediately!

Ha Leeha took a step forward.

“Who are you? Who dares to communicate with dragons?”

As soon as the girl’s voice resonated, a lavender light flashed from beside Ha Leeha.

Abnormal Status: Space Constriction (enhanced). All spatial movement within the radius is restricted for 15 minutes.

Abnormal Status: Communication Disruption (enhanced). All group chats, including whispers, are forbidden for 15 minutes.

Ha Leeha was bewildered in many ways.

* * *

“Then we will depart immediately tomorrow.”

“This is the matter the Pope is most concerned about. We look forward to your success, Browless.”

At the headquarters of the 〈Sacred Alliance〉, a secret operations meeting was in progress with Browless, ewin, and other key NPCs and players.

It had been made known to Ha Leeha that the entire 〈Sacred Alliance〉 personnel was searching the western part of the new continent.

That was indeed true.

Ram Hwayeon, who allied with paleo, and even all the users belonging to the Special Forces and various Knight Orders including Shin Nara and Lark, were spending their time in the west of the new continent.

“However, it is impossible with just my efforts. If Commander Ewin of 〈Sacred Alliance〉 does not attract attention, they will immediately catch on.”

Nevertheless, it was only a ‘deception.’

“Playing the role of the defeated is my specialty. Didn’t I pull off the role magnificently against Granville in the previous national war? Hahaha!”

‘Fox of the Prairie’ Ewin immediately caught the meaning behind Browless’s words.

“But since the opponent is who they are, I won’t show a single gap.”

“I have no doubts about it.”

Browless nodded with trusting eyes.

“A feint to the east, striking from the west.”

Ewin refined the strategy with a satisfied expression.

They would create the pretense of concentrating all their forces in the west, while a small team would target the east of the new continent.

If they aimed at the east from the beginning, the Demon King’s military strength would also head that way, making this inevitably a necessary strategy right from the start of the operation.

“We’re finally going. Though it’s annoying to go with you, Alexander.”

“The direction is the same, but the purpose is different. Don’t forget that, Luger.”

“… It’s unseemly to bicker before we even start.”

“I agree with Kidd-ssi on that point.”

The chosen ones for this journey included Luger, Kidd, who would track Kaztor with Browless, and Alexander, and Lee Jiwon, who would gather information about 〈Laputa〉 in the eastern new continent with Browless.

“Why do I feel uneasy yet somewhat reassured… Haha, it feels like we’d have the perfect team if Ha Leeha-ssi were with us.”

And Fernand.

When the player assigned as a guide with Browless uneasily laughed, Luger scoffed and gripped his cobalt-blue python.