I Got A Legendary Sniper Rifle - Chapter 118
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 118
Ep. 118
With a deafening roar, the building that had been standing beside me just moments ago collapsed entirely.
The mana beam that destroyed the building didn’t stop there—it carved a deep wound into the very road where I stood.
Even if I wore my black armor as expected, a direct hit from such an attack would mean instant death.
‘Damn it, what the hell is happening?’
The moment I broke free from my shock, I instinctively activated my Sniper Point Transfer skill.
I escaped my position and ascended to the rooftop of a nearby apartment building.
That instinctive reaction speed had saved my life.
Watching the building and road that had been perfectly intact moments ago reduced to rubble sent chills down my spine.
The thought that I could have been standing there made it even worse.
But separate from that physiological response, my mind began functioning properly.
‘They fired an anti-materiel round. So they really did replicate it perfectly.’
No matter how powerful a sniper rifle’s firepower, the bolt-action mode I primarily used couldn’t produce this level of destruction.
To level an entire building meant they had used an Anti-Materiel Sniper Rifle.
It was essentially a declaration of intent to send me to the afterlife in a single shot.
When I hunted Amogratl or Behemoth in the past, I couldn’t fully appreciate the impact because they were so massive, but using it in a familiar cityscape revealed destructive power beyond imagination.
I had harbored hopes that replication wouldn’t work properly, assuming the sniper rifle held a special status in the system, but it seemed luck wasn’t on my side.
‘Using Sniper Point Transfer first on my end is painful, but….’
My gaze swept sharply across the outside.
In a sniper duel between marksmen, firing first wasn’t necessarily a good choice either.
Because you could fail, just like now.
Moreover, that bastard hadn’t even used the Anti-Materiel Sniper Rifle, which was the most conspicuous weapon aside from armor-piercing rounds.
‘That bastard’s position is south from here. Based on the firing angle, roughly….’
I spotted a building roughly 500 meters away, about ten stories high.
Whether intentional or not, it was a fairly decent position choice.
Could you even call them a reasonably skilled sniper?
But.
‘I wouldn’t go there if I were them.’
I smiled faintly.
‘Which means I can definitely win.’
Then I immediately left the location.
The art of a sniper duel is patience.
A sniper lacking patience eventually exposes weaknesses to their opponent.
My opponent, the Doppelganger, is a monster.
A deranged killer who can’t resist the urge to murder when they see humans.
No nation on Earth would ever make such a creature into a sniper.
It’s a disqualifying factor.
I glanced up at the sky briefly.
‘Just wait a little longer.’
I’ll be right there.
Ihyeon leaped across to the rooftop of the adjacent building.
Crash——!!
With a similar deafening boom, the apartment building where Ihyeon had just been standing collapsed.
Just as Ihyeon had predicted.
The apartment building he’d jumped to was also half-destroyed, teetering precariously.
But Ihyeon had no intention of staying in one place for long.
He found a suitable structure to descend and skillfully made his way down to ground level.
When he was just an ordinary awakened one, such reckless movements might have been dangerous, but now he could execute them with ease.
In the urban cityscape, visibility was severely limited.
Rather, if he moved appropriately at ground level, it would be difficult for a sniper positioned high above to locate him.
A sniper without clear sightlines or unable to pinpoint the enemy’s location was no longer a sniper.
Of course, that didn’t mean the Doppelganger was completely neutralized.
Bang——!
Bang—!
From the building where the Assailant was presumed to be, gunfire erupted every moment Ihyeon’s figure came into view.
But after firing several shots, the Doppelganger had switched from the Anti-Materiel Sniper Rifle to standard mode for some reason.
Even as mana bullets whizzed past so closely that his hair rustled with each near miss, Ihyeon’s smile grew increasingly deeper.
‘He doesn’t even realize I’m orchestrating all of this. He’s having quite the time.’
A sniper speaks through their shots.
In other words, the more shots a sniper fires, the more they reveal their identity.
Their personality, tendencies, behavior, location, habits….
Ihyeon had been steadily accumulating data on the Doppelganger, this sniper.
And now he was certain.
‘You’re not very good at sniping, are you?’
For the first time, Ihyeon aimed the sniper rifle from a position where the Assailant’s building had poor visibility due to the shadows cast at just the right angle.
The magnification was set appropriately low.
The entire building came into view at once.
Sunlight illuminated the front of the building.
Glint—
A small reflection appeared from the rooftop.
The reason Ihyeon had looked up at the sky earlier.
To use the sun.
If the Doppelganger had been a proper sniper, he would have changed positions multiple times by now, but he hadn’t.
It was merely instinctive shooting.
After confirming the reflection, Ihyeon immediately concealed himself.
Even if the Assailant was inexperienced, he had replicated all of Ihyeon’s skills.
If he couldn’t find him with an optical scope, then surely——.
Bang—!
‘He’ll switch to a Thermal Scope.’
But it was already too late.
Ihyeon had once again vanished into the shadows of the Gray City….
As I moved my legs swiftly, I spoke to myself.
‘Just wait a little longer.’
I’ll find you soon.
* * *
The blood throughout my body simmered with a steady heat.
Though it might sound somewhat contradictory, it was the most accurate way to describe my current state.
Crack—! Bang—!
Even if the Doppelganger fired its gun indiscriminately by instinct, its accuracy and destructive power were not to be underestimated.
If I let my guard slip for even a moment, I would die.
That much remained unchanged.
‘And if possible, I’ll end this with a single shot.’
I scanned the building where the Doppelganger was presumed to be once more.
Brilliant sunlight still reflected off its surface.
By now, I had drawn much closer to the building than before.
But my pace was gradually slowing.
Was it because I could be caught if I approached recklessly?
Still, I carefully studied the surrounding landscape once again.
‘That building is certainly the best vantage point for sniping in this area.’
High and with an unobstructed view.
Of course, since this is a city, there are other similar locations, but if I had to choose just one place, I would have found that building.
But hidden in the blind spot, I began to think at this moment.
How far does the Doppelganger’s knowledge extend?
If it truly moves only by instinct, would it really climb that building and snipe from there?
‘Something feels off.’
If it possessed only a monster’s instincts, it would more likely be roaming the streets with a gun in hand, searching for me.
Conversely, if it had the knowledge of a sniper, it would logically climb that obvious building and open fire.
A strange sense of incongruity washed over me.
I recalled the terrain and landmarks around me once more.
I conjured a hypothesis that could resolve this incongruity, discarded it, and conjured it again.
Then, suddenly, one hypothesis came to mind.
“…Ah.”
It seemed I had been underestimating the Doppelganger far too much.
My eyes grew sharper still.
Moments later.
I burst out from the blind spot where I had been hiding.
As if to prove a point, I hurled my body into the open.
Bang—!
Gunfire followed immediately after, but it narrowly grazed past my body.
I had anticipated that timing and thrown myself forward.
After rolling across the ground once, I got to my feet and began approaching the building again.
Concealing my body, crawling, vaulting over shadowed walls.
The distance remaining to the building was less than 300 meters at this point.
Had circumstances been different, I would have reached it in less than five minutes.
Once I picked up speed, the remaining distance closed in an instant.
Throughout it all, the Doppelganger relentlessly pursued me.
Crack——!! Bang—! Bang—! Bang—!
To be honest, in those final moments before entering the building, even I was in danger.
‘Kobold ammunition? The rate of fire is faster than I expected.’
Bullet holes stitched in rapid succession at close range, following my silhouette.
At that rate, it felt closer to a rifle than a sniper rifle.
However, once I was flush against the building I’d targeted, the firing angle from where the Assailant was positioned no longer worked.
I plunged into the building without hesitation.
It goes without saying, but the elevator wasn’t operational.
I had no choice but to sprint up to the rooftop where the Assailant was positioned.
Following urban combat doctrine, I took a defensive stance watching upward and headed higher.
Tap— Tap— Tap—
The building in this world where only the Doppelganger and I existed was eerily silent.
Even with each step taken to minimize sound, noise echoed clearly.
Yet the Doppelganger, which should surely be above, didn’t reveal itself.
Had it already shifted its sniper position and moved to another building?
‘That couldn’t be it.’
That was absolutely not the case.
However, if I held my sniper rifle in a situation like this, the options available were limited.
“….”
I paused at the landing leading to the 7th Floor.
If my thinking was correct.
Whoosh—
Boom——!!!
‘…That’s quite explosive.’
I could simply fire vertically and blow away the staircase entirely.
After all, this sniper rifle possessed enough destructive power to level an entire apartment building.
Since I already knew there was an enemy inside, why hesitate?
Of course, I don’t know much about construction, so if I thought the building might collapse, I wouldn’t choose this method—but that’s only from a monster’s perspective.
I clicked my tongue and leaped up the collapsed staircase.
Now there was one more thing to be careful about.
But after that, no more gunfire followed.
Finally, the door to the rooftop came into view half a floor above.
The Doppelganger, which had fired vertically downward from there, had apparently gone back outside.
Boom—! Hisssssss——
I kicked the door open and the smoke from the flash bang erupted outward in nearly the same instant.
I immediately advanced through the smoke.
“Found you.”
Just as I’d anticipated, the Doppelganger stood at the edge of the rooftop, staring at me.
Its expressionless face betrayed not a shred of emotion.
I took aim at the Doppelganger in a stable firing stance.
Would it all end if I pulled the trigger?
That’s what I was thinking…
Ping—!
Then, a sound so faint compared to all the previous gunshots pierced through the silent Gray City.
It was the distinctive whisper of a black bullet—a sound that made it nearly impossible to pinpoint its origin.
It came from neither me nor the Doppelganger.
At the same moment.
Splurch—!
My head, which had been aiming at the Doppelganger, exploded.
But from my shattered skull poured not blood, bone, or brain—only white light.
In that instant.
Who was smiling?
And who was frowning?
What was certain was.
‘Just as I predicted.’
I was the one smiling.
Draped in a concealing cloak, I smiled from my position in a nearby building where I’d been preparing for this sniper shot.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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