I Got A Legendary Sniper Rifle - Chapter 368

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

Episode 368
Ep. 368
I had already fallen for his deception once before.
Having dispelled that illusion and confirmed the assailant lacked any will to fight, there was no need to waste further time.
‘I’m not sure if killing him right now will grant me an S+ rank, but this isn’t the moment to be cautious.’
The next floor would be the 100th immediately after.
The cult had already entered a state of annihilation, and if I killed Erdene, the High Priest, it would collapse completely.
Since I couldn’t make the grasslands safe beyond that, at least I could say the 99th floor itself had been conquered successfully.
I wasn’t sure if there would be additional sub-objectives related to Erdene.
‘No, rather, it’s best to seize the opportunity when it presents itself.’
Erdene’s death meant the end of the war.
Thinking of those fighting outside at this very moment, risking their lives, it was better to eliminate the enemy commander quickly by any means.
Had he sensed his own death?
Erdene spoke to Ihyeon with a bitter smile.
“One-Strike, you possess sufficient power to kill me, but my death will not be the end.”
“I’m already prepared for that much.”
“I see…”
Ihyeon was now considering every possible scenario.
Though Erdene claimed he had no will to fight, once he was struck by the sniper rifle and his breath stopped, there was no telling how the situation might change.
It would have been a natural progression if Erdene possessed a second phase, marking the true beginning of the 99th floor.
I had witnessed many instances where earth spiders erupting from the bodies of the dead ran rampant and created troublesome situations.
Erdene likely possessed an enormous quantity of earth spiders beyond any enemy I had encountered thus far.
But regardless of what situation unfolded afterward.
‘Stop breathing.’
There was only one action I needed to take right now.
‘Fire.’
Bang—!
Ihyeon gave Erdene no more time.
As I pulled the trigger, the mana bullet that burst from the barrel pierced through Erdene’s head almost simultaneously.
Thud—
Erdene died just like that, hardly befitting a tedious High Priest of a cult.
He attempted no defensive magic, no counterattack, no evasion.
Just as he had said he would calmly accept his death as the will of God, he entrusted his life entirely to my mana bullet.
Moreover, earth spiders did not burst from his body as they had from the previous Bishops.
“Why does this feel so unsettling?”
Still, Ihyeon frowned as I looked down at Erdene’s fallen corpse.
His breathing had certainly stopped.
There seemed to be no need to worry about a second phase.
Most importantly, it was definite.
“The, the High Priest has passed away?”
“This can’t be happening!”
“The earthworms… the earthworms in my body are disappearing…!”
“They’ve grown weak!”
“Push forward!”
As the cult forces that had barely held their ground crumbled, the expedition broke through the front lines in mere moments, stormed into the Cathedral of Ministers, and swiftly eliminated the remaining stragglers.
「Main: Safety of the Great Steppe.
Sub: Dismantle High Priest Erdene’s illusion.
High Priest Erdene eliminated.
Cathedral of Ministers captured.
Cult forces annihilated.
Round Table Cardinals exterminated.
Minimize allied casualties.
Floor 99 cleared.
Rank: S+」
The Floor 99 clear notification appeared before my eyes with an almost anticlimactic simplicity.
‘Indeed… Erdene’s death is merely a sub-objective.’
The Round Table Cardinals had actually proven to be far more formidable opponents in terms of resistance.
Was Erdene merely a trap?
In truth, had I lacked inner focus, I might have simply turned back, so he was no easy adversary either.
Moreover, the fact that Erdene’s death counted as only a sub-objective was a truly insidious condition.
Had I fallen into Erdene’s trap, Floor 99 would have been cleared under the guise of protecting the Great Steppe.
But Floor 100 would have become an unreachable dream, forever beyond my grasp.
A complete failure would have been preferable to such a hollow half-victory offering no hope.
Thud thud thud——
“My Lord! My Lord!”
“Ilgyeok!”
The upper levels grew chaotic as my subordinates’ voices calling for me grew increasingly louder.
Though they knew I had infiltrated the Cathedral alone and had already eliminated the High Priest, they were desperate to confirm my safety.
It wasn’t long before one of the One-Strike Knights finally located me.
Crack—! Boom boom boom——!! Crash crash crash——!!!
“The Lord is here!”
“We’ll extract you at once!”
“…Wait, there’s clearly a path right there. Why are you breaking through the ceiling?”
Their method of finding me was truly characteristic of the One-Strike Knight Order.
Rather than locating the path I had taken, they simply tore up the entire floor.
I looked up at the suddenly gaping ceiling with an exasperated expression.
A Squad Member peered inside and asked me a question.
“Is that collapsed figure the High Priest?”
“Yes. What’s the situation outside?”
“A complete victory! Once they learned the High Priest was dead, they simply collapsed on their own.”
“Where are Jiana and Elsie?”
“The captains are outside the castle, directing the mopping up of the remaining forces.”
Ihyeon nodded.
There was nothing to fault in their independent judgment.
“However, the eclipse still hasn’t ended.”
“That makes sense. The eclipse wasn’t caused by the High Priest, it seems.”
“What? Then who caused it?”
“We’ll have to check the next floor to find out.”
With that, Ihyeon lightly bounded upward.
Given my stats, the ceiling was quite high, but a single leap was enough to reach where the Squad Member stood.
“Oh dear, if you’d only waited a moment, I would have helped you down.”
Ihyeon observed the Squad Member’s playful remark and asked casually.
“…You were too scared to jump down, weren’t you?”
“S-scared? How could you say such a hurtful thing…? *Ahem ahem!*”
The Squad Member avoided Ihyeon’s gaze and let out an awkward cough.
‘They do all sorts of bizarre things, yet they’re afraid of this?’
Considering the Squad Members’ usual conduct, it didn’t quite make sense, but that was their personal matter.
Yet even as everything seemed to be concluding, I felt unsettled.
‘Something’s off.’
There was still something I couldn’t quite remember.
Ihyeon called to the Squad Member who was still coughing beside him.
“The mopping up should be nearly complete, right?”
“*Cough cough cough cough*—— *Hack hack!*”
‘…Is he coughing that much?’
“Ah, yes. That’s correct.”
“Tell Jiana, Elsie, Blue, and the Vice Captain to come to me.”
“All the captains, sir?”
“Yes. Something feels wrong.”
The Squad Member, whose tension had eased with the conquest’s end, immediately sobered at Ihyeon’s serious expression.
He knew well that his lord, though kind even to subordinates like himself in normal times, was meticulous when it came to conquests.
At least, when his lord said something felt “wrong” inside the tower, something truly happened.
“Yes, my Lord!”
The Squad Member shouted loudly and immediately bounded through the hole he’d made, leaping all the way to the surface.
Ihyeon watched him go, unable to hide his bewilderment.
‘What on earth was he so afraid of that he couldn’t jump before?’
But that wasn’t important right now.
Ihyeon followed the Squad Member up to the surface.
I sent separate messages to Jiana and Elsie as well.
It would be faster this way than having them receive word through an intermediary.
Boom—!
“I answer your call, Master.”
Whoosh—!
“I’m here too, Master!”
…Their speed was so remarkable that even I was taken aback.
Jia plummeted from the sky with a thunderous crash, while the dokkaebi fire that suddenly materialized in the air transformed into Elsie.
Fwoooosh——— Screeeech——
Blue descended slowly from the sky, venting steam from every part of her body.
“Beep beep beep, I’m late, Master.”
“Tsk tsk, what am I, some kind of iron… anyway, what was that?”
“You were cool enough too, so let’s leave it at that, Elsie.”
“Hehe, of course I was, Master.”
By comparison, the Vice Captain’s arrival on the ghost horse seemed rather dull.
Once the executives had gathered, I furrowed my brow slightly and spoke.
“I haven’t received my reward yet.”
“?”
The expressions of the two spirits, the golem, and the undead grew troubled.
They had rushed over at my summons, but the reason for it was…
“You called all of us just because you haven’t received your reward?”
Just because of a missing reward?
…In truth, only Elsie expressed genuine bewilderment.
Come on, after receiving such absurdly generous rewards all this time, shouldn’t you be patient even if the delivery(?) is a bit late?
But the confusion of the others was of an entirely different nature.
When no one agreed with Elsie, she panicked and looked around frantically.
“Why are you all like that? Am I the only one who doesn’t understand?”
“Then stay quiet.”
“Yes, well, understood.”
I set Elsie aside—I hadn’t expected much from her anyway—and asked Jia instead.
“Does that even make sense?”
“I’m not entirely certain, but considering the special circumstances, it may be possible, Master.”
I had definitely cleared the 99th floor.
Yet I still hadn’t received the 99th floor clear reward, much less the S+ privilege.
Clearing the 99th floor was almost certain to trigger a level up, but there was no such notification.
‘No rewards or settlements have been processed yet.’
It was absurd, but the situation spoke for itself clearly enough.
Elsie, finally grasping the situation, gasped in shock.
“W-wait… Master, are you saying that right after the 99th floor ends, immediately…?”
Boom—!
The Vice Captain struck her sword tip forcefully against the ground and spoke with a grave expression.
“I will organize the troops.”
“Yes, don’t let your guard down.”
“Yes, Lord!”
The Vice Captain was the first to leave his seat.
Shouts began erupting from all corners.
“Everyone, regroup!”
“Check the roster! Anyone with issues, report immediately!”
The troops, who had been intoxicated by the atmosphere of successful conquest and the annihilation of the cult mere moments ago, suddenly snapped to attention.
Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t have bothered disrupting their sense of accomplishment.
“It does seem to be the case.”
“Yes, Master.”
“Beep beep. I lack data on this possibility and cannot offer advice.”
“No, does that even make sense in the first place!”
But this situation was different.
Likely something no one had ever experienced before—and for good reason.
「Qualification verification.
The 100th Floor of South Korea’s Main Tower is beginning.」
Two consecutive floors, and forced conquest at that.
I couldn’t hide my bewildered expression as I stared at the notification window before me.
‘Erdene said that my death wouldn’t be the end, but I didn’t expect it to mean this.’
I never imagined the sequence would be connected so meticulously.
The cult and the High Priest’s demise had felt far too anticlimactic.
Now everything made sense.
The 99th Floor was merely an intermediate stage, a harbinger that the 100th Floor would commence immediately.
Erubein had said it.
The 90s served as a verification stage to confirm one’s qualifications.
The phrase “Qualification verification” written before “The 100th Floor is beginning.”
Erubein’s conjecture was not wrong.
Even the Spirits showed unease in their eyes at this unprecedented situation.
Watching Jia and Elsie like this, I let out a fierce smile.
“The 100th Floor begins.”

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