I Got A Legendary Sniper Rifle - Chapter 307
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Episode 307
Ep. 307
Naturally, Hanryeol had no reason to refuse such an attractive proposition.
In truth, merely circling a single floor in the 80s felt somewhat lacking, but an Instant Tower?
With a minimum of three floors, it meant he could spend considerably more time with Ihyeon.
He simply hadn’t anticipated what would come next.
“To think I, the supreme one, would succumb to mere seasickness… Oh, Sea Dragon, why do you inflict such tribulation upon me?”
Sploooosh—!
“Phew, that’s better now.”
“….”
He hadn’t realized he was prone to such severe seasickness.
Since the Tower’s emergence, opportunities to board vessels had become exceedingly rare, so it wasn’t entirely surprising.
And truthfully, he thought Ihyeon had reasonable grounds for understanding.
To maintain secrecy, they had traveled to this island aboard a specially crafted boat that Jia had conjured from dark energy.
Crash and roar—————!!!
‘Admittedly, even I found that boat rather terrifying.’
It prioritized speed at the expense of stability—the worst possible combination!
Ihyeon, having undergone special forces training and crossed coastal waters in rubber boats during storms, managed well enough.
But Hanryeol, despite his high ranking, had been raised with the treatment of a young master—his situation was quite different.
In any case, they arrived at Wimun Island without a single person falling behind, leaving only the conquest ahead.
Ihyeon waited for Hanryeol to catch his breath in the wind before heading toward the Tower standing in the island’s corner.
As Instant Towers always were, it possessed a distinctly peculiar structure.
Its height barely reached twenty meters, yet its cylindrical form sprawled across a correspondingly vast area.
「South Korea, Wimun Island Instant Tower. Do you wish to enter?
Rank: A
Floors: 3」
As they approached the Tower, this notification window appeared without fanfare.
Ihyeon, already possessing all this information, intended to dismiss it casually.
“W-w-what?! Rank A?!?!?!?”
Hanryeol’s reaction was quite different.
His face drained of color as he turned to Ihyeon with alarm. “Young Master Ilgyeok, h-how is this possible? An Instant Tower with rank A?! Did I misread something?”
“You read it correctly.”
“If it were this rank, you should have informed me! Shouldn’t you have?!?!”
“Ah, did I fail to mention it? My apologies.”
“….”
His expression made it abundantly clear he had deliberately withheld the information.
A truly apologetic person wouldn’t respond with such an unchanged expression, saying something like “Oh, was that so? My bad.”
Had Deokhuun witnessed this scene, he might have exclaimed, “Brother, you surpass even me!” and thrown a tantrum.
Of course, there was no need to look far—Hanryeol’s eyes were already blazing with indignation.
Of course, without having to look far, even Han-yeol’s eyes were burning with a sense of betrayal.
“To think you’d attempt to conquer a tower of this caliber with just the two of you. Even if you are Ilgyeok…”
An A-rank Instant Tower was such a high grade that there were almost no precedents for one appearing in Korea.
The Aegis Guild, which Hanryeol belonged to, had only succeeded in conquering one twice.
And even that was long ago, before Hanryeol became a Hunter.
Upon hearing Hanryeol’s words, Ihyeon put on an expression of feigned hurt.
“Just the two of us? That’s rather harsh, sir.”
“Ah, n-no, of course I didn’t forget about Miss Jia!”
Hanryeol, who had suffered greatly from Ihyeon’s strategy when they first met on the 81st Floor, hastily waved his hand.
“Haha! Besides, there’s Miss Elsie and those black-armored knights, so the numbers are reassuring. I suppose I made an error in judgment.”
“That’s something I failed to mention as well. Elsie and the Knights cannot participate in this conquest.”
“….”
Hanryeol clamped his mouth shut once more, glaring at Ihyeon with blazing eyes.
Of course, Ihyeon’s greatest asset was himself and his sniper rifle.
But still, there’s a psychological comfort that comes with larger numbers, even for those who don’t know much.
‘I brought them along so he wouldn’t get bored, but this should be sufficient.’
Ihyeon was satisfied, thinking he had achieved his intended purpose.
During normal conquests, Elsie would chatter away beside him, which was entertaining to respond to, but lately he hadn’t been able to do that, so he’d been feeling bored.
…Had Hanryeol known what Ihyeon was thinking, his eyes might have burned so intensely that he’d actually fired laser beams.
Of course, Ihyeon’s greatest reason for bringing Hanryeol along was something else entirely.
‘Since the purpose is to strengthen the Ilgyeok Guild anyway, it’s not bad to go in a joint conquest format with someone from Aegis.’
Deokhuun had also heard this reasoning from Ihyeon and agreed it made sense.
Hanryeol probably hadn’t thought that far, but Yurim, the Aegis Guild Master, certainly would have understood that much before sending him.
“In any case, now that you know, there shouldn’t be a problem, should there?”
Ihyeon calmly placated Hanryeol and entered the tower.
What else could be done?
“P-please take me with you, Ilgyeok!”
Since Jia was going in with Ihyeon, there was no way to escape the island and wait endlessly—he had no choice but to reluctantly enter with them.
The next moment, only the sound of waves periodically crashing against the cliff remained on Wibundo Island.
* * *
In truth, even Ihyeon wasn’t entirely without worry facing an A-rank tower.
‘That Lich from last time was B+ rank.’
B+ was a grade that even Claude, who had conquered numerous towers, had grown sick of.
That’s how rarely A-rank Instant Towers were generated or conquered.
It was fortunate that it appeared on this small uninhabited island just recently; had it emerged somewhere on the mainland, it would already be plastered across the news and causing chaos as if a disaster had struck.
In any case, given that a Lich from B+ rank had shaken the entire world, there was no way to estimate what kind of formidable creature would greet him from an A-rank tower.
Of course, had Elsie heard of Ihyeon’s worries, she would have asked this:
‘When it comes to formidable, isn’t there anything quite like Master Gun?’
…Thus, shortly after entering the tower, Ihyeon and Jia looked around from where they stood.
“An ocean… or is it a lake?”
A lake so vast they couldn’t even tell if it was an ocean or a lake stretched out before them.
Upon hearing Ihyeon’s question, Hanryeol spoke.
“Hmm, from where I stand, it’s the ocean. Look there. The waves are even crashing, are they not?”
Indeed, with waves gently lapping at the shore just as Hanryeol described, the confusion only deepened.
“It’s a lake, Master.”
“….”
However, Jia paid no mind to whatever Hanryeol said and stated her own opinion.
“Ha! This vast expanse is truly a lake? I shall prove that Miss Jia’s words are false!”
“How so?”
“The greatest difference between a lake and the ocean is the taste of the water, is it not? One need only drink to know.”
For Hanryeol, it was a fairly reasonable approach.
Fortunately, since this world was nature itself—undeveloped by industry like Earth—it should pose no harm to the human body.
With a snort, Hanryeol walked to the water’s edge, scooped up a handful, and drank.
He froze—
‘It’s a lake.’
The moment Ihyeon brought the water to his lips, he saw Hanryeol flinch and immediately predicted the outcome.
Meanwhile, Hanryeol laughed heartily and stood up, saying:
“It’s the ocean after all, the ocean. The water is salty.”
“Truly?”
“Of course it is. You doubt the words of Jo Hanyeol, ranked 7th in South Korea and a promising future executive of the Aegis Guild?”
It was hard to believe.
Thinking he had nothing to lose, Ihyeon walked beside Hanryeol and drank the water as well.
“It’s fresh water.”
As expected, there was no saltiness to the water whatsoever.
Separately, the taste of the lake water was remarkably pleasant.
He wondered if it wouldn’t sell like hotcakes if he brought some back to Earth.
Hanryeol deliberately avoided Ihyeon’s gaze and made excuses.
“I tend to prefer things less salty, you see. Excessive salt isn’t good for the body, young Ilgyeok.”
It was a fair point.
“….”
But as Ihyeon continued to stare, Hanryeol stammered and added another excuse:
“Perhaps… I hadn’t washed my hands?”
‘How long had it been since he washed them…?’
That was even worse.
Ihyeon asked Jia:
“Jia, how did you know this was a lake?”
Jia smiled and answered:
“The oceans we see from within the Tower are usually not this peaceful.”
“….”
It was the kind of reason that possessed considerable persuasive power, yet was somehow difficult to believe.
As they spent a moment like this, the objective of the First Floor came to mind.
「Instant Tower, First Floor.
Orb of Harmony obtained.」
“…An Orb of Harmony.”
The objective was clear yet daunting.
Obtaining the Orb of Harmony itself would be straightforward, but where in this vast lake was I supposed to find it?
‘Surely they don’t expect me to search the lake bottom.’
If that were truly the case, then this Instant Tower would indeed be worthy of its A-rank designation in a different sense.
Fortunately, Ihyeon, who had been scanning the surroundings with narrowed eyes, soon spotted something near the horizon.
“There’s an island.”
More precisely, there was a small pavilion sitting atop a modest island.
Whether the true Orb of Harmony actually lay there remained unknown, but it couldn’t exist without reason.
“An island, you say? Ah! We can take a boat over there!”
At Ihyeon’s words, Hanryeol, who had been glancing about, soon discovered several boats moored at the water’s edge.
“I shall reconstruct the boat for you, Master.”
“What! The tower prepared these boats for a reason! A true man of honor must face challenges fairly and squarely—one must never resort to such shortcuts!”
At Jia’s mention of reconstructing the boat, Hanryeol jumped up in protest.
He seemed utterly horrified at the prospect of sailing that manic black vessel again.
Though the distance was considerable, two Hunters of Ihyeon and Hanryeol’s caliber would find rowing manageable.
Hanryeol spoke as he walked toward the boat.
“I shall go and scout ahead alone.”
“You intend to go by yourself, sir?”
“It must be so, must it not? After all, slaying monsters won’t measure up to the Perfect Target’s achievements. Perhaps by handling such menial tasks, I’ll finally be recognized as having conquered this floor alongside him.”
Hanryeol’s expression as he spoke seemed quite forlorn.
It appeared that though he had achieved S+ rank together with me on the 83rd Floor, his contribution had been so minimal that he hadn’t received the reward, which clearly weighed on his mind.
…Indeed, ever since that announcement, he’d endured every conceivable ridicule on the internet, so it was impossible for him not to be bothered.
However, Ihyeon stopped him.
“Wait, please.”
“Hm?”
Seeing Ihyeon’s serious expression as he held him back, Hanryeol paused mid-step, one foot already on the boat.
Ihyeon immediately used his Perfect Target skill to create an illusion.
The illusion was so seamless that it was difficult to distinguish from reality even while watching it form.
“T-two Perfect Targets?!”
“It’s an illusion.”
“Ah, I-I see.”
…Though it was meant as a metaphor, Hanryeol had genuinely been startled, thinking Ihyeon had actually split into two.
‘This can’t be this easy. It’s supposed to be A-rank, after all.’
A skilled marksman should have destroyed a few test bridges before crossing one.
Moreover, something felt distinctly suspicious.
The island and pavilion across the peaceful-looking lake.
The several boats moored as if advertising themselves for passage.
Above all else, I had to be cautious of such deep waters inside the Tower.
‘Even thermal detection can’t see through the water’s surface. If something lunges out from below, there’s no way to respond from a boat.’
I immediately sent the Phantom toward the pavilion.
Though it was quite a distance, if obtaining the Yeouiju from the pavilion was all that mattered for clearing, there shouldn’t be any problems.
It might be a speedrun mission, but choosing to cross the lake cautiously was far better than rushing forward out of such suspicion.
Splash— splash—
While I couldn’t share my stats with the Phantom, oars that required only the strength of an adult man were no problem at all.
The Phantom and the boat cut through the tranquil lake, moving forward.
“You could have trusted me a bit more. I could have made that distance and returned in no time.”
Hanryeol grumbled from beside me, clearly disappointed at not getting to showcase his abilities.
How much more time passed like this?
Rummmmmmmble———— CRASH SPLASH——!!!
“?!?!?!”
The clear sky and peaceful water’s surface began to convulse violently in an instant.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————