I Got A Legendary Sniper Rifle - Chapter 234
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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 234
Ep. 234
「You can enter twice per day.
Byproduct collection in the Tower is restricted.」
How long had it been since I last saw this message!
It seemed to have disappeared ever since I acquired the Makeshift Shooting Range.
Re-entry was fundamentally an action that only yielded experience points, and until now, I had never felt the need to rush into leveling up.
“Still, since I brought this upon myself, I suppose I have to endure it.”
“It is also the fastest method for you to become stronger, Master.”
“It’s fast, sure, but….”
I let out a deep sigh at the Spirits’ words, which seemed to side with Suyeon instead.
For me, who had tasted the sweet flavor of so-called ‘work-life balance’ through once-per-day strategies, this situation was entirely unwelcome.
However, true to their words, having said with my own mouth that ‘I need to level up,’ I had no way to escape.
Since I was already here, I decided to test out my newly acquired exclusive skill and loaded a slime round into my gun.
Click— Snap—
The loading sound was slightly different.
Instead of the firing pin ringing out brightly and clearly as it cycled back and forth, it felt like manipulating a dull mechanical apparatus.
Then I aimed at a single Lava Slime standing apart at the very front and pulled the trigger.
Whoosh—!
Along with a sensation just as dull as the firing pin, a single red, round projectile was fired from the muzzle.
Naturally, the result was a direct hit.
Boom—!
“…Is that really a non-lethal round?”
“…Since you read the description, Master, you’d know better than I would.”
“It looks dead….”
I, the Spirits, and Suyeon all fell silent, each at a loss for words.
No matter how I looked at it, it didn’t seem like a non-lethal round at all.
The slime that had been standing apart only to be struck by this sudden calamity seemed pitiable enough!
The tremendous roar upon impact was one thing, but watching the slime’s plump surface twist grotesquely at the same moment—anyone would come to the same conclusion.
Bounce— Bounce—
Meanwhile, having fulfilled its purpose by striking the slime, the slime round bounced elastically off the ground several times like a rubber ball before melting away and vanishing.
I and my party members rushed toward the Lava Slime in alarm.
“Excuse me~ Are you alright~? Armor Fox, please call 119, and Archer Hunter, please bring the defibrillator.”
“…Where did you learn that from, some children’s emergency response video?”
“Huh? How did you know, Master?”
Leaving Elsie to her nonsense, the other three examined the poor slime’s condition.
True to the description that it absolutely would not kill the target, it had not died.
‘It really just barely didn’t die….’
That said, its condition hardly looked good.
The slime, which was normally filled with lava and boasted a vivid red color, had turned pale white.
The Lava Slime couldn’t move at all, just staying motionless in place.
By human standards, it would be classified as a complete comatose state.
“Could it actually be dead?”
“It shouldn’t be.”
Ihyeon shook his head at Suyeon’s question.
The most definitive proof that the Lava Slime wasn’t dead.
Squirm— Pop—!
Not long after, the pallid Lava Slime split into two.
Even so, the impact from my slime bullet hadn’t faded, as the divided creature remained just as pale.
Elsie let out an exasperated sigh.
“Ugh, how stubborn. At this rate, it would’ve been better off dead.”
Regardless of the opponent, my mana bullets had always claimed every enemy’s life in a single strike.
Until now, I’d carried some sense of responsibility for taking a life with each shot, but seeing the slime bullet’s effect made me reconsider.
‘Perhaps a clean death would’ve been more merciful after all….’
Even I wouldn’t want to be hit by my sniper rifle.
I gazed at my sniper rifle for a moment and spoke.
“A bullet that doesn’t kill even on a direct hit….”
It was still a dedicated skill whose purpose I hadn’t fully determined, but something about the way I muttered it felt ominous.
“Why are you saying that with such a look, Master….”
Especially for Elsie, who had been complaining just moments before.
“What about me? I was just restating the effect.”
“Yes, sir! I pledge my loyalty to you, Team Leader!”
I waved my hand dismissively with a smile, but Elsie voluntarily saluted with her fist over her heart, pledging her allegiance.
I hadn’t asked her to do that, but if she was going to, I saw no reason to stop her.
Meanwhile, there was one person who outranked me at this very moment.
“Alright, now that we’ve tested the new skill, let’s finish clearing this floor!”
“Um… I’m asking just in case, Suyeon.”
“Yeah, oppa.”
“How many times are you planning to enter and exit today?”
At my worried question, Suyeon answered brightly without hesitation.
“Well, as long as I have time?”
….
And that day, I.
「This is your 3rd entry today.
Byproduct collection in the Tower is restricted.」
「This is your 4th entry today.
Byproduct collection in the Tower is restricted.」
「This is your 5th entry today.
Byproduct collection in the Tower is restricted.」
Only after clearing the 86th Floor five times could I finally exit the Tower.
By the time I dropped Suyeon off at her home, the sun was already sinking low on the horizon.
“Thanks for the ride! Let’s meet up again tomorrow!”
“…Tomorrow as well?”
“Yeah, you said you’d focus on leveling up for a while, right? Besides, we didn’t do that much today anyway?”
I shouldn’t have mentioned leveling up!
No, at the very least, I shouldn’t have said it to Suyeon!
It was the moment when Ihyeon, who had swept through countless enemies with a single strike and advanced rapidly to the 86th floor, discovered a formidable new adversary.
“I… I’m certain that ‘madwoman with clear eyes’ must be referring to that Archer Hunter…”
Elsie, who had been rubbing her soft cheek against the rear window glass, stretched out languidly and muttered.
Clearly, even for a spirit, five consecutive floor conquests seemed to be quite exhausting.
Fortunately, the four of us were skilled enough; otherwise, we would never have endured the war of attrition against the mountain of slimes.
“She is a noble person who will aid in your master’s advancement.”
Meanwhile, Jia maintained her characteristically upright posture and praised Suyeon, just as she always had.
Ihyeon watched Suyeon’s retreating figure as she entered her home lightly, then rested his arm on the steering wheel for a moment.
“Do you know what’s most unfair?”
“What is it?”
“What… Master?”
“That despite clearing five floors, I still haven’t managed to level up…”
There was an old saying that a man cries three times in his life.
By now, there were so many variations that no one even knew what those three times actually were.
‘One of them must surely be a moment like this.’
With such an absurd thought, Ihyeon headed home.
“Son, you worked late today?”
“Yes, it just… happened that way…”
As I entered the house, Minjeong, who was preparing dinner, welcomed me and the spirits with a warm greeting.
“Work? That’s not even work!”
Zing—!
“…Yeah.”
“My, is that so? What were you doing when you came in?”
Elsie complained endlessly about how Jeong Suyeon, that Archer Hunter, kept clinging to Ihyeon and wouldn’t let go, which is why she only just arrived home now.
“You must be tired~ Oh, how adorable~”
Despite claiming she was thousands of years older than Minjeong and absolutely couldn’t use formal speech, it was quite strange how she would act spoiled and nestle into her arms at times like these.
Meanwhile, Minjeong listened to Elsie’s words carefully, then nodded with determination and spoke to Ihyeon.
“Son, you shouldn’t neglect your mother just because you have a girlfriend, you know?”
“She’s not my girlfriend!”
I had absolutely no intention of getting a girlfriend who entered the Tower five times a day!
‘Actually, five times would be a blessing—from what I hear, she seems to go in eighteen times by herself…’
Indeed, life is a comedy when viewed from a distance.
Even South Korea’s number one ranked Shin Gung was beautiful and magnificent when seen from afar.
A swan glides gracefully on the water’s surface, but beneath the surface, how frantically it paddles…
It was a day filled with wandering thoughts as exhaustion washed over me.
“By the way, Mother, what’s for dinner tonight?”
“Tonight we’re having mackerel stew—Elsie’s favorite~”
“Mackerel!”
Elsie, who had been lying listlessly beside me, perked up instantly at the mention of mackerel stew and bolted toward the kitchen.
‘Children really do have impressive stamina.’
* * *
「Lava Slimes annihilated.
86th Floor cleared.」
「Second entry of the day.
Tower byproduct collection is restricted.」
「Third entry of the day.
….」
The next day brought another round of the hellish 86th Floor strategy led by Suyeon.
Fortunately, this time I had found a method that wouldn’t push me to my limits.
“Everyone! Grab your weapons!”
“Uooooh!”
Bolstered by Deokhuun’s Branding skill, the One-Strike Knights marched forth with dramatically reinforced numbers!
The Knights, organized into four squads, each formed groups that burst, tore, and slashed through the mountain of Lava Slimes.
“Hahaha, my lord! Commander! How is it?”
“Excellent.”
“Wahaha! This is the true power of the One-Strike Knights!”
As long as I dealt with the Origin Lava Slime, the Knights and Spirits handled everything else—such a stable source of experience points.
‘From now on, I’ll definitely have the Knights handle all repeated strategies.’
…I had gotten just the slightest taste of why people develop a lust for power.
The Knights, greatly encouraged by my and Jia’s praise, grew even more enthusiastic in hunting the Lava Slimes.
But that enthusiasm only lasted so long.
“Go.”
“Again, again, my lord?”
“Yes.”
「Fourth entry of the day….」
“Go.”
“Ugh….”
「Fifth entry of the day….」
“Go.”
“P-please, my lord! Make us do PT exercises instead!”
“We don’t want to kill any more Lava Slimes!”
“Lava Slimes are living creatures too!”
“Just watching those sluggish Lava Slimes makes me nauseous!”
“…You’re all Undead anyway.”
“Ah, that’s right, isn’t it?”
After repeating it about five times in quick succession, even the Knights began to voice concerns that this was perhaps going too far.
Truthfully, I thought the same thing.
“Come on, everyone~ Just push a little harder and do your best!”
“Who exactly is that archer?”
“Shin Gung… Ah, you archers should get some instruction from Suyeon. Suyeon, think you can handle that?”
“Sure! There are plenty of monsters left anyway, right?”
“You heard her. Go ahead.”
“Ugh…”
As a bonus, the squad members who handled bows could receive training from Suyeon, which proved quite helpful for improving overall combat strength.
Of course, the Knights used crossbows while Suyeon used a regular bow, but there was still plenty she could teach them.
‘Should I just appoint Suyeon as the archery commander of the One-Strike Knights?’
Suyeon was usually quite reserved around strangers, yet strangely, she carried herself around the Knights much the same way she did with me or the Spirits.
When I asked why, she explained that since she was my subordinate and they weren’t human, she felt far less pressure.
After all, she’d conversed with the Spirits naturally from their very first meeting.
So I broached the subject of making her archery commander.
“Huh! Me, really…? Can I really take on a role like that…?”
Her words were demurring, but her eyes sparkled brilliantly, and her lips twitched with barely contained excitement.
“She’s absolutely thrilled, absolutely delighted.”
Elsie’s assessment was perhaps a bit blunt, but it hit the mark perfectly.
And so Suyeon became the archery commander.
“Elsie, since we’re on the subject, you take command of the sword wielders.”
“What? I am Elsie, the Legendary Sword! A lone wolf does not lead a pack!”
“Right, wolves are pack animals by nature.”
“Ugh…! How dare you defeat me with facts!”
Elsie, caught off guard, found herself appointed as the sword commander.
And so the One-Strike Knights became even more complete!
‘Jia will handle the spear and shield units just fine on her own.’
As I nodded in satisfaction, Elsie let out a mournful cry.
“This means I’m now subordinate to that Armor Fox! I’m the Legendary Sword Elsie!!!”
…It seemed Elsie disliked being ranked below Jia in the chain of command far more than she disliked the idea of leading subordinates in the first place.
“Even if you take command, we’re both subordinates to the same Master, Elsie.”
“Look at that! Already giving me that look, aren’t you? That condescending gaze!”
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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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