I Got A Legendary Sniper Rifle - Chapter 119

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Episode 119
Ep. 119
The Doppelganger must have replicated all of Ihyeon’s skills.
Of course, there would be skills used in certain situations and skills left unused, but it was wise to consider every possible scenario.
It was the identity of the dissonance I’d felt in the blind spot just before entering the building.
A sniper is a spider waiting for prey.
The spider spreads its web, and when prey gets caught, it rushes in from outside in an instant to sever its lifeline.
But no matter how much I thought about it, something felt off.
‘As if advertising my own location, firing with an Anti-Materiel Sniper Rifle, then switching to regular rounds at some point.’
Suspicious behavior—whether you’d call it having knowledge as a sniper or lacking it.
And could the Doppelganger truly not hit me, or did it simply choose not to?
What if it had been luring me to create the perfect hunting moment?
If the Doppelganger had fired through Dummies from the start to induce my misconception, and switched modes at some point to prevent mana consumption from the distorted firing range?
The urban area that triggered my trauma.
What if even that was part of the Doppelganger’s web?
‘I have to admit it.’
The moment the Dummy’s head burst apart, all my hypotheses were proven, so I couldn’t deny that the Doppelganger was indeed an excellent sniper.
But it felt less like a sniper trained by humans and more like a beast utilizing its instincts to the fullest, masquerading as a sniper.
What if the Doppelganger had actually been firing wildly from the rooftop?
Then I’d simply return fire.
This was the logical sequence that had unfolded in my mind.
After sending the Dummy, I immediately donned my concealment cloak and utilized structures that allowed me to hide my body thoroughly for concealment.
I infiltrated a building that could survey the entire area.
And instead of using a scope, I searched with my naked eye for traces of the assailant who would inevitably expose themselves at the moment of the Dummy’s death.
The Doppelganger, cunning and cautious until the very end, had used black rounds.
‘It was an assailant that didn’t even exclude the possibility that what entered the building might be a Dummy.’
Although the concealment effect wouldn’t be lifted, there was something the Doppelganger hadn’t anticipated.
A sniper’s instinct—something that couldn’t be expressed through systems and numbers.
A location with sufficient visibility to snipe the rooftop of the tallest building in the vicinity.
The direction from which the mana round that struck the Dummy was fired.
Combining these and several other clues, there was only one place where the assailant could be.
Though my reasoning was lengthy, in reality, the Dummy’s destruction and my scope turning were nearly simultaneous—a mere moment.
‘Got you.’
Above all, my current sniper rifle was an Anti-Materiel Sniper Rifle.
The excuse that it was an independent space where I didn’t need to worry about civilian casualties was just that—an excuse.
‘Let’s see how you like a taste of this.’
I harbored considerable ill will toward the Doppelganger, which had not only summoned me to this wretched place but dared to try to trap me.
Kwaaaang——!!
The massive gun barrel spewed mana.
Simultaneously, the head of the building I’d aimed at flew away.
I never saw the Doppelganger’s face.
I didn’t know what expression it wore at the end.
But Ihyeon was certain.
「Doppelganger eliminated.
You have cleared the 70th Floor.
Grade: S+」
Cleared with a single shot.
That principle remained unbroken.
“Haah…!”
Ihyeon exhaled sharply and rolled over from his prone position onto his back.
Though I’d managed to achieve an S+ grade, it had been an unrelenting sequence of tension that left my palms drenched in sweat.
It was only natural.
Who could have anticipated mana bullets flying through the Tower, forcing me into a sniper duel?
I’d evaluated the tactics I’d employed while sniping monsters as unconventional for modern warfare countless times before.
‘But I’ve never experienced combat like this either, aside from training.’
Ihyeon had never engaged in actual combat against another sniper outside of training exercises.
The closest comparisons I could find were the Goblin Warrior Captain or Rex Lizardman.
But strictly speaking, they fell short of being true snipers.
They were merely powerful monsters capable of executing long-range combat.
This time, only after the clear confirmation message appeared did the tension drain from my entire body and my mind finally settle.
The phrase “One Shot versus One Shot” that I’d half-jokingly considered suddenly felt viscerally real after entering the Tower.
“What’s more surprising is that someone holding a sniper rifle for the first time in their life devised such a plan.”
Ihyeon poked his head back out and slowly surveyed the carnage created by the two snipers.
Several buildings lay in ruins, and beyond that, roads, utility poles, and streets bore considerable damage.
The destructive power was such that one might think missiles or artillery shells had fallen rather than sniper rounds.
And finally, the building where the Doppelganger’s main body had been stationed.
“…What twisted taste.”
That location happened to be the very sector where my squad members had been deployed for the operation.
Whether it was intentional or merely coincidence, I couldn’t say.
After staring at the building with its upper section blown away, Ihyeon sighed and leaned his back against the rooftop parapet.
When the sniper rifle awakened and I began entering the Tower, I’d made a decision.
I would remember my squad members and climb the Tower for them, but I wouldn’t become consumed by it.
My squad members would likely think the same way.
And hadn’t I gained new people to protect?
Ihyeon caught his breath and continued checking the notification window.
「Item ‘Choi Ihyeon’s Sniper Rifle’ has leveled up.
Check your status window.」
A level up, at least.
My level had been rising noticeably of late.
Now I was already at level 32.
I had accumulated forty distributable stat points.
‘In truth, I considered using the twenty remaining points before fighting the Doppelganger, but….’
Ihyeon shook his head as he looked at the number of distributable stat points.
If it had truly been that dangerous, I would have had to do so, but I harbored no regrets about my choice.
The pride of having won against myself under identical conditions.
Perhaps that satisfaction fulfilled Ihyeon’s desires far more than simply clearing the floor.
And next.
「70th Floor reward.
You have obtained the item ‘Random Skill Ticket’.
Please check your inventory.」
‘Oho, is it because I’m a Floor Master? They’re giving out something quite decent.’
Ihyeon’s eyes widened at the substantial reward.
Without a ticket like this, skills were precious items that could only be obtained by raising a level to five without exception.
Other Hunters would spend long periods on a single floor, repeatedly clearing it to raise their levels to the target, so they’d have no problem.
But in Ihyeon’s case, ascending to a new floor almost every day made Skill Tickets all the more invaluable.
「S+ Grade Clear bonus.
You have obtained the item ‘Random Item Ticket’.
Please check your inventory.」
“A random skill and a random item too. It’s like a gift set.”
Naturally, this was not an expression of complaint.
Ihyeon smiled with satisfaction.
The rewards for this floor didn’t end here.
Once I stepped outside, there was also the new information the Spirits had promised.
Ihyeon decided he should use the tickets together with the Spirits and picked up his gun before rising from his seat.
If it had been before, I would have stored the large sniper rifle in my inventory, but these days I don’t.
Whoosh—
The sniper rifle transformed into a small handgun in response to Ihyeon’s will!
‘Of course, I could put it in my inventory without issue, but this way is more comfortable for me.’
Since it wouldn’t be very noticeable if I kept it inside my clothes, I always carried it on my person like this whenever entering the Tower.
After absorbing the spirit stone, keeping the sniper rifle in my inventory had felt unsettling.
After finishing my preparations and about to leave.
「Will you be exiting the 70th Floor?」
Normally, this was the question that should have appeared.
But.
Crackle….
“?”
An anomaly occurred in the notification window that had appeared normally.
Strange static-like noise interfered, and slowly the contents of the notification window changed.
「You are being transferred to the 70th Floor (???).」
“???”
The question mark in parentheses spoke volumes about Ihyeon’s feelings.
‘Wait, didn’t I already clear the 70th Floor?’
Such a question naturally arose in his mind.
In that moment, a memory from the 45th Floor flashed through Ihyeon’s consciousness.
Back then, there had been a ‘(???)’ attached as well.
But that time, without clearing the 45th Floor as I should have, only I had advanced to a special space.
Yet this time, I had normally cleared the 70th Floor, hadn’t I?
However, the system didn’t even give Ihyeon time to voice such doubts.
Whoosh—
The next instant, Ihyeon vanished from the rooftop of the building.
At that moment, Jia and Elsie were waiting in Ihyeon’s room for his return.
Jia spoke to Elsie.
“The Master has entered, Elsie.”
“…Yes.”
Elsie too nodded with an unusually serious expression.
She had sensed that Ihyeon had successfully entered a new space.
Perhaps the time spent there would become an opportunity to learn something about the Tower’s secrets that they had mentioned.
And it would also be an opportunity for this world surrounding the Tower to undergo another transformation.
The two spirits fell silent for a moment.
Elsie casually called out to Jia.
“By the way, armored fox.”
“What is it, Elsie?”
“Did we tell the Master that he would be transported to another space?”
“…”
Jia recalled her memories with her usual expressionless face.
She had definitely mentioned it during the 45th Floor.
That Ihyeon would proceed through a space different from everyone else.
But this time?
“…”
Jia’s silence grew longer.
“We did mention that you would obtain new information.”
“W-well, yes, but what about the other space?”
“…”
Jia’s silence stretched even further.
It seemed she hadn’t mentioned it.
Yet Ihyeon had already crossed over to another space as expected.
Cold sweat beaded on Elsie’s temples.
“He’s probably quite shocked.”
Jia said nothing.
* * *
Just as the Spirits had anticipated, Ihyeon opened his eyes in an entirely different space.
Yet this place too was remarkably familiar to me.
Unlike the city district from before, it wasn’t a place of questionable taste.
‘The unit’s shooting range?’
The special forces shooting range that I occasionally used at the Makeshift Shooting Range.
But this time, someone was standing roughly ten paces away from me.
He stood leaning on a Maesek Gun identical to mine like it was a staff.
He was another Ihyeon, grinning as he looked at me.
Click—!
I immediately drew the pistol tucked at my waist and aimed it at him.
Though the firepower had weakened, a Maesek Gun was still a Maesek Gun.
At this distance, I wouldn’t miss, and this Maesek Gun wouldn’t fail to take down a Doppelganger.
Then the other Ihyeon startled and waved his hands frantically, speaking.
“No, no. I’m not your enemy.”
“…How am I supposed to believe that?”
“…Right?”
I almost actually fired.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————