Matan’s Shooter

TL: xLordFifth

ED: 

“Huh?!”

The black cranes were approaching, but Hudid couldn’t move quickly. The target was Hudid’s outer leg at a distance of 1.3km, specifically the tip of his claw within just 10cm.

With increased difficulty compared to before, hitting the target without proper preparation was impossible for Leeha as well.

“Damn it! A misfire! I have to adjust the click!”

Leeha bit his lower lip until it almost bled.

Click, click. 

Despite delicately adjusting the click, he knew it was already too late.

Even if he hit now, the mana freeze bullet would have no effect. Having missed the only opportunity, Leeha prepared for retreat. If only Rubini hadn’t shouted.

“The hat! All we need to do is find the blue-bearded hat, right?!”

“Yes? Ah, yes. But first, let me scroll—”

“Leave it to me. Before the black cranes arrive, I will tell its location to Leeha-nim.”

“How will you, Rubini-nim, manage to—”

Leeha couldn’t respond to Rubini’s words.

How now? It was difficult even with the scope of Black Bess to find the blue-bearded hat. At that time, it was possible only because there was no special threat.

If they think about Hudid and the black cranes approaching them, there is no time to find it leisurely.

“Wasn’t the reason you chose me for this? [3D Scanner: Partial Fix].”

Rubini smiled and activated her skill. It was a moment when her skill, which she had used in the Sea of Dawn, emitted light even more precisely. 

Whoaaa…!

“This, this is…”

After a moment, the only thing that appeared before Rubini and Leeha was a single life form. The holographic representation of Hudid reduced to a certain ratio, was visible before their eyes. Every movement, down to the smallest detail, was faithfully recreated.

“I focused all the abilities of the 3D scanner on Hudid. It shows Hudid’s current state as is, and you can even zoom in on the parts you want to see—”

Swoosh, swoosh!

Rubini manipulated the hologram as if handling a smartphone screen. She zoomed in on Hudid’s furry head from a top-down perspective and then enlarged his chest and abdomen from a bottom-up perspective.

“I’ll find it right away.”

It was what Leeha had been anticipating from the beginning! Unlike ordinary users, she could see a bit more from a distance. Not only could she change the viewing angles, but she could also unearth all the information about the target. Rubini was fulfilling the role of the ultimate “observer.”

Watching her move the perspective and zoom in on different parts of Hudid, Leeha realized what she needed to do.

“Great! It’s the hat! An animal like that wouldn’t wear a hat unless it stands out! The size is around 30cm!”

“I understand! Ha Leeha-nim, you—Kkak!”

Leeha pulled the trigger without warning. Rubini let out a short scream at the sudden gunshot, but her scream was more like a playful exclamation.

Swoosh—Kwa■Aaah—

Hudid, flying towards Leeha, glowed and roared. The tremendous roar was enough to halt the wings of the black cranes approaching at high speed.

“B-Black crane! Protect Lord Hudid! Form a defense barrier for Guardian Deity-nim!”

“Guardian Deity-nim has been affected!”

“Black crane! Everyone, protect Lord Hudid! Activate the defense barrier for Guardian Deity-nim!”

Seeing the black cranes, Leeha pulled the trigger again without warning, shouting to Rubini, “Find it quickly! I’ll buy time!”

Leeha realized his mission was to buy time. He needed to find another hat somewhere on Hudid’s body.

‘Of course, he wouldn’t die so easily. I’m relieved.’

Leeha looked through the scope again. There was only one toe left on Hudid, and one at the end was completely missing.

‘Hmm, can’t really say it’s a new toe. Too much blood for a tribe ceremony, isn’t it?’

Leeha deduced from the relationship between Ibex and the Red Goat Paleos. Just like how Paleos lived for their patron deity, in the event their tribal patron was attacked, the behavior of other Black Cranes would be dulled, matching Leeha’s expectations.

“I won’t let you live! Sorcerer of the red goat—red goat?”

“Are you okay, Guardian Deity-nim!” The larger black crane paleos flew near Hudid, but Hudid’s expression was not good.

“The red goat… Aibex. Why is Aibex here?”

“What are you talking about?”

“…Big one? What’s going on? Why are we here?”

Hudid’s expression was perplexed. However, the expression of the eldest black crane paleos looking at his face was even more bewildered.

“T-That, what—what do you mean? I can’t understand what you’re talking about, Lord Divine Protector.”

“No, why are we…”

Flap—Flap—!

Hudid looked at his only remaining leg, fluttering his wings. His expression, watching the blood spurting from the place where the toes were severed, slowly began to change again.

“What are you doing? Hurry up and kill that thing. Except for a few who will build the wall, everyone else charge.”

“B-Black crane!”

Soon, Hudid’s atmosphere returned to normal. The larger black crane paleos responded in surprise and began to give commands.

“Only twenty brothers remain! Other brothers, keep your distance! Don’t get entangled in his sorcery!”

“Black crane!”

Flap—Flap—Flap—!

The black cranes that were approaching Leeha changed direction and flew towards Hudid.

“Rubini! Haven’t you found it yet?!”

“Not yet—not yet—”

“I know you don’t like being rushed, but please hurry!”

The view of Hudid through the scope was gradually obscured. Between Hudid and Leeha, there was a solid wall of black crane paleos’ flesh.

At the same time, there were also countless undead creatures flying towards Leeha and Rubini at a rapid speed.

“Go, my sons! Ride the undead dogs of Aibex and kill them! [Gwangyeom]!”

Whirr—!

Leeha swallowed dryly. The fiery black crane paleos, which had fearlessly charged towards the illusion of Bahamut, was now heading straight for him.

Fortunately, Rubini’s reassuring voice quickly reached him.

“Ah! I found it! It’s right behind the connection point between the neck and the body! If you think of it as a human, it’s behind the cervical spine!”

“But you can never hit that area from the front.”

However, the result was far from optimistic. A way to target the back of an opponent facing the front? Unless bullets can curve, there’s no such magic in sniping.

Kwaaaaak— Kwaaaaak_

The fiery charge of the black crane paleos had already reached within 1 km. Leeha had to brace himself.

“Rubini-nim, if it gets too dangerous, run away immediately. Got it?”

“What? R-Run away? What about you, Ha Leeha-nim?”

Rubini was perplexed. Leeha wondered what expression she might be making with her eyes uncovered. What expression does one make in a situation like this?

“You’ve worked hard to find it, Rubini-nim. I’ll see it through. I’ll be back! If it gets dangerous, make sure to run away!”

“Alone? Are you planning to go alone, Ha Leeha-nim? Ha Leeha-nim—”

Paaat—!

Without hearing Rubini’s words, Leeha jumped from the treetop.

Facing the approaching enemies head-on was impossible. Not only would it put Rubini in danger, but even if that weren’t the case, it was impossible to hit the hat behind Hudid’s cervical spine.

‘Jellypong!’ And as he worried, Leeha wasn’t truly ‘alone.’ While Blaugrun wasn’t brought along, there was Jellypong, who would support him more reliably than anyone else in battle.

Chuwaat, Chuwaaaat—! Without any special instructions from Leeha, Jellypong started extending its hands, ready to swing on the trees. With Jellypong’s swift movements, even faster than a skilled monkey, Leeha traversed the Redwood Forest.

The direction was slightly different from where the black crane paleos were coming from at 10 o’clock. It was the 2 o’clock direction where Bahaumt’s illusion had appeared. Looking at the cold wind and the afternoon sunlight, Leeha felt a bit regretful. What if it was a quest to kill them all? Even though the black crane paleos numbered in the hundreds, Leeha was confident.

‘The combination of multiple warheads and a flamethrower could have blown up at least half of them. Sigh!’

However, that wasn’t an option this time. The reward details for this quest were clear:

[Friendship with Hudid and his Paleos +100%]

Even if the goal was to save Hudid, if he killed a lot of paleos, he wouldn’t be able to fully utilize the 100% bonus. Naturally, his aim was the ‘achievement’ in this situation.

‘Tsk, so even though I knocked those two out before without killing them… Well, in the worst case, I might have to kill a few. Clearing the quest is the priority.’

He aimed for two rabbits, but if that wasn’t possible, he would aim for at least one clear target. While swiftly moving between the branches of the Redwood, Leeha didn’t forget to keep an eye on the black crane paleos.

About 400m away from the location where the black crane paleos and Leeha were!

Although she had initially headed towards the 2 o’clock direction where Bahaumt’s illusion was, Leeha changed her direction again to approach Hudid. However, they had to be faster than ever.

‘Let’s increase the speed. Faster, faster than the flight of the black crane paleos! Turn here!’

[Mongmongmongmong!]

The effect of the teleport scroll didn’t seem to show. It meant that Rubini hadn’t fled yet! Even though Leeha knew Rubini’s approximate location and direction, the black crane paleos, who hadn’t spotted her, would charge at her without hesitation.

Zuaaaat—! Hwaaaaat—!

After changing direction towards Hudid, Jellypong accelerated further according to Leeha’s wind. ‘Getting closer, he hasn’t noticed yet.’

Glimpses of Hudid’s body appeared through the leaves. The flesh wall of the black crane paleos was shielding him from them. Where would the hat be, just behind the base of the neck? How far would he have to aim?

‘In practice, it’s almost like shooting “attached.” Anyway, since he’s at a higher point than the Redwood.’

If he hadn’t completely caught up with him, he wouldn’t be able to shoot from the tree. Because he couldn’t see. Even if Leeha had caught up, he couldn’t shoot carelessly. There was a possibility that the bullet might penetrate the hat and shatter Hudid’s neck.

In the end, just like when shooting the hat of the wing tip, his only option was to fly in a diagonal direction.

“Search carefully! And once you find him, set him on fire immediately!”

“Black crane! Understood, eldest brother!”

Paaaat—!

The black crane paleos, which were soaring, began their descent. The black crane paleos were now almost reaching Rubini’s position. Leeha, who had increased her speed, was also about to reach the spot directly below Hudid.

The distance was within 100m!

“Black Crane! Over here-“

Shaaat—!

A column of violet light soared up at that moment. Leeha could also see that scene.

“Whoa?! Something—something used magic again! He disappeared!?”

“Black crane! What are you talking about?”

“Something that looks similar to a paleos was here, but it just hid its presence!”

One of the black cranes, in confusion, reported to their eldest brother. Although Leeha couldn’t hear their voices, he could roughly understand. They didn’t grasp the concept of teleportation.

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