I Got A Legendary Sniper Rifle - Chapter 204

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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 204
Ep. 204
The phenomenon that occurs when someone enters the Tower.
Whoosh—!
Simultaneously, his overwhelming presence crashed down upon them with considerable pressure, causing both Ihyeon and the Spirits to tense involuntarily.
‘A formidable one.’
In truth, there was no one among those capable of challenging the 84th Floor who wasn’t strong.
But this presence was a tier above Yuna, Duseok, and Juhyeon.
Or perhaps even more.
In that fleeting moment, Ihyeon intensely analyzed who this person might be.
Of course, in the common floors, one could not attack others.
Just as in the Makeshift Shooting Range, no skill could inflict damage on an opponent regardless of what was used.
Yet even so, it was essential to exercise caution when encountering strangers in the Tower.
The Spirits themselves had already positioned themselves slightly ahead of Ihyeon.
However, Ihyeon soon discerned the stranger’s identity.
Or rather, he recalled the few people capable of reaching this height, excluding those who had just departed.
It certainly wasn’t Suyeon.
‘Then the remaining person must be…’
Korea’s 2nd-ranked Hunter.
Seol Hwiyeong.
The figurehead Hunter of the largest Legend Guild in Korea alongside Aegis—it was he who had just entered this floor.
‘I thought he was challenging the 85th Floor… It seems he’s on the 84th Floor today.’
Dark and light clothing that appeared nearly identical to Ihyeon’s own.
Yet rather than resembling modern combat attire like Ihyeon’s, it took a form similar to the traditional hanbok worn by ancient warriors.
Loose sleeves and legs, with cuffs tightened at the ends.
An outer garment resembling a chest plate but shorter and clinging more snugly to the body.
Most notably, a long curved saber hung at his waist.
It bore striking resemblance to Hwi-yeong’s equipment as revealed in the media.
His features were distinctly handsome, but the pale skin combined with an intensely cold impression confirmed his identity as Hwi-yeong.
Naturally, Hwi-yeong’s eyes met Ihyeon’s immediately upon entering the common floor.
“….”
“….”
And silence flowed between them.
‘Should I… greet him?’
Ihyeon swallowed hard, contemplating.
While Ihyeon knew of Hwi-yeong, Hwi-yeong certainly knew nothing of him.
Moreover, even if Hwi-yeong’s appearance was known through the media, his personality remained largely unknown.
There was no way to predict how he might react if Ihyeon spoke first.
As their gazes crossed in tense silence.
Thud— Thud—
Hwi-yeong walked to one side, then leaned against the wall with a blank stare, deliberately turning her gaze away.
‘…Wasn’t she here to clear the floor?’
As Ihyeon, I found it nearly impossible to fathom her reasoning.
We’d come all this way into the Tower, and while I could understand pretending not to care, but just standing there leaning against the wall—what was that about?
“Hmm….”
“Ugh….”
In the end, Ilgyeok, Jia, and I couldn’t bring ourselves to speak first, so we exchanged glances and pondered in silence.
「Ilgyeok: What do you think?
Elsie: She seems like a strange person. Let’s just go on our own.」
「Ilgyeok: Jia, what about you?
Jia: I think it would be best to proceed with caution for now.」
We were so uncomfortable that we’d resorted to chatting instead of speaking aloud!
Still, since we couldn’t figure out what she was thinking, we all agreed it was awkward to approach her first.
Honestly, wasn’t this situation rather strange?
“Ahem. Well, shall we go then?”
I deliberately averted my gaze from Hwi-yeong and headed toward the stairs.
Though even as I did, I kept my attention subtly fixed on her.
Gleam—
Hwi-yeong was also tracking me and the spirits with those sharp, piercing eyes.
‘Why is she staring like that? It’s unsettling.’
She was ranked 2nd in Korea.
I hadn’t witnessed her abilities firsthand, but someone of her caliber surely had reasons behind every action.
I had to avoid confronting such a person recklessly at all costs.
Thump, thump—
Had I ever climbed stairs with such tension in my entire life?
But once I’d climbed all the stairs.
「Would you like to enter the 84th Floor of the Main Tower of South Korea?」
Even as this notification window appeared, Hwi-yeong remained leaning against the wall without moving a single finger.
I nodded rather hastily and proceeded to the 84th Floor.
The scorching heat that seemed to constrict my entire body and burn my lungs—the air of the 84th Floor felt refreshingly cool by comparison.
“Phew! Who on earth was that person, Master?”
Elsie, seemingly in a similar state, caught her breath as she asked me.
“Well… she’s ranked 2nd in Korea. Her name is Seol Hwi-yeong.”
“I figured. She did seem strong. The way she wielded that sword too.”
“Is someone strong just because they use a sword?”
“Well, it’s a basic skill~ Haven’t you heard the saying that a sword is a cure-all?”
I chuckled at Elsie’s cheeky remark.
At least nothing had happened since we entered the 84th Floor, so that was reassuring.
I didn’t know why Hwi-yeong was acting that way, but it surely had nothing to do with me.
‘Perhaps she had already arranged to clear it together with Shin Gung. Come to think of it, that seems like the most likely possibility.’
As the tension drained from me, my mind began to function clearly once more.
Few people knew how Suyeon and Hwi-yeong lived their daily lives, but given their rankings, they had surely collaborated on many clears together.
Her posture clearly suggested she was waiting for someone, and among those capable of reaching the 84th Floor, only Suyeon remained—it had to be her.
Ihyeon felt his heart lighten as he spoke to the Spirits.
“Alright then, shall we go take care of that Volcano Worm quickly?”
“Your command.”
“Oh, yes! Let’s go catch that worm!”
Operation: Midsummer Fishing had begun.
* * *
Meanwhile, Hwi-yeong remained in the space leading to the 84th Floor.
She continued staring at the staircase that Ihyeon and the Spirits had ascended.
With an icy expression as though frozen by ice magic itself, she remained silent for a long while before finally opening her mouth.
“…They’ve gone up.”
And surely, anyone who knew Hwi-yeong well would have been shocked to see her like this.
Right now, Hwi-yeong was deeply disappointed!
Seol Hwi-yeong, taciturn beyond compare.
From the moment she awakened as a Hunter, she had been evaluated as Korea’s finest talent to lead the Tower’s conquest, and the Legend Guild actively promoted her.
Because of this, several years ago she had appeared on numerous broadcasts and interviews, and the comments left on those videos mostly went like this.
[ Sigh… If this person starts talking, please wake me up.
└ And thus, South Korea’s population decreased by one.
Hunter Hwi-yeong speaking parts 2:11 5:30 8:14 11:30
└ Thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you
└ 5 responses in a 1-hour interview, legendary
The reason the timeline isn’t shown after that is definitely not because the author fell asleep.
└ Our Ice Prince Hunter Hwi-yeong, please give lots of support! Taciturn is charming!
└ Well, I do want to support but…. ]
She spoke so little that even Korea’s greatest guild, Legend, eventually gave up on promoting her!
Still, she was certainly superhuman in caliber, and with explosive growth she had rapidly climbed to rank 2, though it must be said.
Moreover, while she was ranked 2nd, the gap between her and Suyeon wasn’t that significant.
Furthermore, Hwi-yeong occupied one of only three spots on Suyeon’s friend list.
– Hunter Suyeon, this is Hunter Seol Hwi-yeong. You’ve heard the name, right?
– …Yes.
– Hwi-yeong, she’s likely to be the next rank 1 alongside you. It wouldn’t hurt for you two to get along, right?
– ….
Though the administration and Legend Guild had arranged their meeting, when someone as shy as Suyeon met someone as taciturn as Hwi-yeong, proper conversation was impossible.
Crash—!
– Kyaa! Why did the glass cup suddenly break?!
The awkwardness was so unbearable that the glass cup shattered of its own accord!
But despite this, neither of them ever took the initiative to speak first.
「The ID ‘Baekbalbaegjung’ has sent you a friend request.
Do you accept?」
「ID ‘Baekbalbaegjung’ has been added to your friends list.」
Suyeon reluctantly sent the friend request, and Hwi-yeong accepted it.
Of course, the two of them weren’t as disinterested in each other as they appeared on the surface.
After all, neither of them were genuinely cold-hearted people by nature.
‘Should I ask what floor they’re on? Would that seem condescending? What about hobbies? Do they like anime? No, wait—we met as Hunter to Hunter, so I shouldn’t ask personal things like that, right? Should I ask about their abilities? But isn’t that supposed to be secret? What, what, what should I even ask?!’
Suyeon was brimming with the desire to start a conversation, but hesitated over what to say and couldn’t bring herself to speak.
‘Strong.’
…That was simply what Hwi-yeong thought.
In any case, despite the lack of conversation, their relationship could be described as friendly!
They occasionally crossed paths while clearing the Tower, or would take down a monster or two while dealing with Gates before parting ways—they had that much camaraderie.
For two people who primarily solo-cleared, that was quite a warm gesture.
In any case, the reason Hwi-yeong, who should have been challenging the 85th Floor, entered the 84th Floor today was simple.
It wasn’t that she had made another promise with Shin Gung, as Ihyeon had guessed.
‘I wanted to try clearing with Ilgyeok.’
…Surprisingly, it was truly to meet Ihyeon.
Hwi-yeong’s thinking went like this:
Enter the 84th Floor early in the morning and wait → Ilgyeok arrives → Wait for Ilgyeok to speak first → Wait for Ilgyeok to suggest clearing together → Clear together → Mission accomplished!
It was an overly dependent plan that relied entirely on the other person’s initiative, but since all of Hwi-yeong’s relationships had unfolded this way, there was nothing strange about it.
Whether at the guild or the management office, people had always made the first request to Hwi-yeong.
The fact that Hwi-yeong was waiting first was enough for the other party to express gratitude as a matter of course.
But Ilgyeok completely deviated from Hwi-yeong’s plan and simply ascended with the Spirits.
Hwi-yeong recalled the reaction the Legend Guild Master had shown when she presented this plan.
– …Are you serious?
At the time, she thought it meant something like, ‘Why would you, ranked 2nd, bother entering the Tower first to wait?’
‘That wasn’t it at all.’
Had Ihyeon heard Hwi-yeong’s thoughts, she might have spun her sniper rifle five times in the air before striking the back of his head with the stock.
Who would think that way about someone standing silently against a wall?
In any case, despite her ambitious plan failing spectacularly, Hwi-yeong wasn’t badly shaken.
Her pride wasn’t wounded either.
‘Perhaps today was a day when they wanted to clear alone.’
She simply thought this.
Had Elsie heard this, she might have tried to strike her solar plexus with the hilt of her sword….
In any case, Hwi-yeong leaned against the wall for a moment longer before quietly pushing off.
“I should clear this alone too.”
With that, Hwi-yeong activated Plan B.
While the attempt to directly observe Ilgyeok’s clearing had failed, she could still gauge their skill level.
Hwi-yeong would enter the 84th Floor herself and clear it.
Though Ilgyeok had entered a bit earlier, that was a fair advantage to account for.
Besides, Hwi-yeong had already cleared the 84th Floor before.
Thump— Thump—
Hwi-yeong ascended the stairs of the 84th Floor with quiet, measured steps that carried considerable weight.
Even in mere walking, an auspicious aura seemed to radiate from him, overwhelming the surroundings.
The superior trait ‘Swordmaster’.
A specialist specialized in combat with a single blade, and a restrained trait that utilized martial arts only as much as necessary.
He was about to set foot on the 84th Floor, a land seething with lava and monsters….
And roughly twenty minutes had not yet passed.
Boom—! Boom—!
On either side of Hwi-yeong, who had drawn his sword with the grace of a noble crane, two massive Volcanno Drakes lay collapsed on the ground with their necks severed.
It could be said that his pace was actually surpassing the combined efforts of Yuna, Duseok, and Juhyeon.
Hwi-yeong swept his surroundings with cold eyes that contrasted sharply with the scorching heat.
His senses had already clearly locked onto the presence of the next monster to hunt.
“That direction, then….”
The key to a swift clear was the time it took to summon the Volcano Worm.
Finding monsters quickly was important, but understanding the limits of what he could face alone was equally crucial.
And Swordmaster Seol Hwi-yeong knew his own limits better than anyone in that regard.
Next were three Lava Golems.
In Hwi-yeong’s mind, the path to ruthlessly tear through their bodies and sever their cores was already taking shape….
「The 84th Floor clear record has been updated.
Location: Tower of South Korea.
ID: Ilgyeok
Rank: S+」
“?”

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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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