I Got A Legendary Sniper Rifle - Chapter 74

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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 74
Ep. 74
But words aside, the methods Jia had suggested were far from cowardly.
After all, any sniper worth their salt had to traverse sewers and far worse—any filthy, treacherous path—if it meant mission success.
No one would take responsibility if you lost your life trying to balance honor with pragmatism.
It seemed that cases like Ihyeon’s, where he simply fired armor-piercing rounds and waltzed into the Immortal Fortress unscathed, were rare indeed.
‘Is that even surprising?’
Ihyeon steered the conversation elsewhere.
“Anyway, let’s find the castle’s core.”
“The castle’s core is typically located deep beneath the castle. I shall guide you.”
According to Jia, S+ grade items and cores were conceptually intertwined within the system, allowing those who possessed such items to vaguely sense each other’s presence.
That explained why S+ item holders were summoned for these special operations.
Ihyeon descended into the castle’s depths, following Jia’s lead.
Creak—
‘…This actually feels more dangerous.’
With all that chaos above, the state of the underground couldn’t possibly be good.
One wrong step and the entire castle seemed ready to collapse in on itself.
I could handle whatever monsters emerged, but if the castle crumbled, there was no way I could endure that.
To conquer the 44th Floor at S+ rank only to meet my end in a building collapse—how pathetic would that be?
‘And all because of a skill I used.’
I braced myself to cling to Jia’s side the moment the castle seemed about to collapse.
Fortunately, the castle remained standing until Jia came to a halt.
“This is it.”
Jia spoke to me before an ornate door that exuded antique charm.
Had the impact not warped the door half-open, I might have felt some tension.
Noticing my tension ease, Jia bowed her head again.
“I apologize.”
Anyone listening would think Jia had invited me to this castle.
“It’s fine. Easy conquests are always welcome.”
I forced open the stubborn door and entered the basement chamber.
There, a brilliant white radiance—utterly at odds with the atmosphere of the 40th Floor—greeted me.
“Is this… the core?”
“Yes, Master.”
As my eyes adjusted to the light, the core’s form became clearer.
It resembled a jewel carved into a sphere.
So beautiful it felt a shame to destroy it.
“The core is known to be a treasure that stimulates the desires of existence. Even after an entity’s death, it ensnares the soul’s desires and creates Undead.”
“I see.”
I nodded in understanding.
So the castle’s nature as an Immortal Fortress, spawning Undead endlessly, was all because of this core.
However, compared to such grandiose circumstances, I didn’t feel any particular desire for the jewel.
It was simply a thought along the lines of: what a truly beautiful gem.
Jia added an explanation regarding it.
“It appears that since you’ve destroyed it considerably, Master, its power has also diminished significantly.”
“…I see.”
Indeed, no matter how remarkable an object was, a single Piercing Round seemed to bring it back to its senses.
“The core can only be destroyed by one who possesses a spirit.”
“Got it. Step back for a moment.”
I had Jia retreat before casually aiming my sniper rifle at the core.
Since it was already in a damaged state, there would be no need to use any special skills.
Click—click—!
Bang—!
I loaded the round smoothly and fired.
The bullet struck with perfect accuracy, hitting the exact center of the core without missing even slightly.
Rumble rumble rumble——
The core trembled for a moment as if trying to endure the attack.
Crash——!!
Unable to withstand any longer, it shattered like glass and crumbled into powder that scattered down.
And notification windows appeared before my eyes.
「45th Floor (???) has been cleared.
Location: Tower of South Korea
ID: Ilgyeok
Rank: EX」
First, the announcement.
‘EX? What is EX?’
Not S+, but the appearance of yet another rank.
Moreover, with the phrase “(???)” inserted right after the 45th Floor, my head was already aching at the thought of what kind of commotion this would cause.
「Item, ‘Choi Ihyeon’s Sniper Rifle’ has leveled up.
Check your status window.」
「Item, ‘Choi Ihyeon’s Sniper Rifle’ has reached level 25.
Please select a skill.」
After that came the notifications I had anticipated—the sniper rifle’s level-up and skill selection.
「45th Floor (???) Reward.
You have obtained 10 C-rank Magic Stones.
Check your inventory.」
「EX Rank Clear Bonus.
….」
And since it was a special dungeon, there were generous rewards and an EX rank clear bonus.
But there didn’t seem to be time to check them right now.
Rumble rumble rumble rumble rumble————
The moment the core was destroyed, the castle began to emit an ominous sound and shake violently.
Jia alerted me to the danger.
“Master, I strongly recommend we escape immediately.”
“I was thinking the same thing!”
Dying crushed beneath the collapsing castle because of my own skill would be pathetic enough.
But dying without even properly confirming the rewards after completing the entire special mission would be even more pathetic.
Fortunately, I didn’t need to retrace my steps back the way I came.
Whoosh—
A portal identical to the one that had swallowed me earlier materialized at the entrance of the basement door.
“Let’s go!”
“Yes!”
As Ihyeon and Jia rushed through the portal, they found themselves back on the path leading to the Forward Base.
“Phew, that was close. I almost died for sure.”
“That would never have happened.”
Jia’s eyes were filled with unwavering determination—she would protect me no matter what, even if the sky itself came crashing down instead of the castle.
It was reassuring, but if the castle actually did collapse… well, that was another matter.
Just then, another new notification appeared before my eyes.
Skimming through it, it seemed to be a global announcement as well.
「One of the Undead’s strongholds, the Eternal Iron Fortress, has been completely destroyed by the ID ‘Ilgyeok’.
The waves occurring on Floors 41~49 will be significantly weakened.」
“…?”
I tilted my head after reading the announcement.
I roughly understood what was happening.
In other words, the special mission I cleared had affected the entire 40th Floor range.
But.
‘Did they really need to announce this to everyone?’
If the waves got weaker, they got weaker—there was no need to broadcast what I’d done all over the place.
Or they could have at least waited a day, or until I left this place.
Because.
“Ilgyeok has done something incredible again!”
“What’s the Eternal Iron Fortress?”
“I don’t know, but this is insane!”
I could already hear the commotion erupting from both the Forward Base and the Abandoned Castle.
Like the excellent sniper I was, I assessed the situation in an instant.
Snap—
“My Assistant Gunner, Jia.”
“…!!!”
Jia’s eyes widened in surprise at the sudden title of ‘Assistant Gunner’ I had just given her.
In truth, Jia didn’t fully understand the meaning of the word ‘Assistant Gunner,’ but she could feel trust, support, and warmth pouring from my tone.
Her eyes grew misty—
She was so moved that tears even welled up in those typically expressionless eyes of hers!
It was a joy incomparable to the first taste of ice cream.
Ihyeon seized the moment and spoke.
“Return home safely.”
“Yes.”
With that, Ihyeon immediately threw on his concealing cloak and dashed into the Forest!
It would be troublesome if he lingered here aimlessly and caught the people’s attention.
Since Jia was Ilgyeok to the people, he had instructed her to handle the situation appropriately.
…It wasn’t as though Jia would harbor resentment over not being called his Assistant Gunner.
‘In truth, Jia is my Assistant Gunner.’
As Ihyeon, I had expressed my honest feelings through this opportunity.
*Thud*
Jia knelt respectfully on one knee toward the direction Ihyeon had vanished and paid her respects.
She was reaffirming her resolve to serve her master with the determination to face death itself.
Not long after, people came flooding from the Abandoned Castle and the Forward Base.
“Ilgyeok! Ilgyeok!”
“Where are you?!”
Since this forest path was the last place they had seen Jia, it was natural they rushed here.
And they easily discovered Jia kneeling toward the Forest.
“Ilgyeok!”
“What is the meaning of this?!”
People swarmed around Jia like clouds.
But seeing her on her knees, they hesitated to rush forward.
“Gasp, Ilgyeok is kneeling….”
“You fool! Don’t you see the mark on the 45th Floor? It must have been an incredible battle.”
“Then, does that mean Ilgyeok might be injured?!”
As long as the other Hunters had minds to think with, they could deduce that Ilgyeok had completed some special mission different from theirs.
One only had to look at the announcement that the 40th Floor wave had been significantly weakened to understand.
*Whoosh*
As Jia slowly rose to her feet, the people cheered.
“Waaaah!”
“Ilgyeok is unharmed!”
Looking closely, her symbolic black armor, shield, and spear remained pristine and gleaming without a single scratch.
…In truth, the moment Ihyeon’s Skypierce round struck the castle directly, the mission was essentially complete, so it was only natural.
One Hunter, gazing at Jia with admiring eyes, suddenly raised his hand and asked.
“Was that mushroom cloud earlier also caused by Ilgyeok?!”
“Gasp! Really?”
“That was truly terrifying.”
Among the other Hunters, many had witnessed the mushroom cloud, and murmurs of excitement rippled through them.
And.
A flinch—
“?”
Jia also flinched at the mention of a mushroom cloud.
My Sky-Piercing Bullet possessed destructive power that was formidable even by her standards.
Rather, as someone in the Tanker role, she felt the terror of that scene all the more acutely.
But the Hunters who witnessed Jia’s reaction made an even bigger fuss.
“Indeed…!”
“With great power comes great responsibility…!”
It was certain that Ilgyeok had created the mushroom cloud.
Moreover, he felt responsibility for the terrifying scene and destructive power he had unleashed—such admirable character!
Was Ilgyeok truly a perfect being possessing both skill and virtue?
Some members of the One-Shot Café even began hurriedly leaving their seats to post this incredible news on the café’s forum.
Rather than saying anything more, Jia quietly made her way toward the Abandoned Castle.
To comply with my order to return home safely.
“Sigh, the fact that such a Hunter exists in Korea is truly great fortune….”
“Who says otherwise? Let’s go pay more taxes.”
“Wait, we could have paid more taxes if we wanted to?”
And so Ihyeon and Jia returned home.
Only then could I properly examine the 45th Floor clear rewards.
I set aside the skill selection for later and checked the 45th Floor privilege first.
Since this was an EX-grade I was seeing for the first time, I was quite curious.
“I humbly request that you check the 45th Floor clear reward first.”
“…Even ‘humbly request’?”
Jia’s strong recommendation was also the reason.
Since there was no loss in doing so, I followed her advice.
「EX-grade Clear Privilege.
Item ‘Soul Stone (???)’ has been acquired.
Please check your inventory.」
“Huh?”
Soul Stone.
It was an item I had never heard of before.
I had at least heard of Enhancement Stones existing.
But Soul Stone was something entirely new to me.
Well, this world had so many secrets that it might have appeared somewhere before.
The mystery began with the parentheses that should have contained a grade, now filled with ‘???’.
“Do you know what a Soul Stone does?”
“Yes. Shall I have you take it out first?”
I was planning to take it out anyway.
I retrieved the Soul Stone from my inventory.
Its appearance was familiar to me.
A fragment of the core I had destroyed in the Immortal Iron Fortress.
‘So this is a Soul Stone.’
All the core fragments had dissolved into light and vanished, but it seemed one piece had been awarded to me as compensation.
Jia knelt on one knee and spoke to me.
“If you grant me that stone, I will become even stronger.”
“I see.”
I nodded in acknowledgment.
Its purpose seemed similar to that of an enhancement stone.
I wouldn’t know the exact details until I used it.
Just as I was about to hand the Soul Stone to Jia.
Whoosh—
“Huh?”
“?”
Something neither of us had anticipated occurred.

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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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