Matan’s Shooter

The special forces barely managed to secure a spot in the square to observe the event, while Kijung, a Holy Knight and a second-class transferee, stood guarding the Pope alongside the Paladins.

“Oh, come to think of it… Didn’t Alexander and Leeha Jiwon say they did something last time?”

To intervene and stop Bobae and Biyemi from bickering, Tale subtly joined the conversation to change the atmosphere.

“Kik, you remember.”

“Can you tell us what that was?”

Biyemi nodded but did not fully answer Tale’s question.

No, there was no need. Biyemi simply raised his finger to point at the podium.

“They’re going to show it now.”

“Hmm?”

With the introductions of each king and the Pope’s speech finished, the importance of the “Sacred Alliance” was being discussed.

Alexander, Leeha Jiwon, and Fernand, who stood beside them, stepped forward one by one.

『―Therefore, this union aims for the peaceful development between the continents of Erika and Lope. Here, these three guides take on the significant mission of proving the existence of a deity. I believe the Supreme Deity Ahlo would be hoping for his children to come across the Sea of Dawn. It’s a floating island that even an Ancient Dragon cannot enter without the proper qualifications.』

“Huh?”

“What― what? Where?”

The square bustled with unrest.

Few fully understood the Pope’s speech, but at least some users grasped what he mentioned.

All the special forces members fixed their gaze on Biyemi.

“Kik, indeed, being rank 1 and 2 isn’t for nothing. When did they manage to recruit the ‘Pioneer King’ and conduct that three-player play?”

This was the intelligence Biyemi had heard through Petyr.

It also explained why Alexander and Leeha Jiwon, along with Lark, could not respond to requests for help.

They were exploring non-teleportable regions, places no other user had visited before.

“A new map!?”

“And… a floating island!?”

『Entering that place, ‘Laputa’, is also a critical task for our union!』

The Pope’s voice was louder than ever.

A large floating island had been discovered far in the southeastern part of the new continent.

* * *

The commotion in the square hardly subsided.

While Alexander maintained a stiff posture on the podium, Leeha Jiwon stood with one leg out, wearing an expression full of complaints.

“Wow, the Pope just drops all the info I barely earned while getting my head cracked open. His aggro is seriously insane.”

“Watch your mouth, Leeha Jiwon.”

“You’re acting like a saint now, but weren’t you going crazy with anger just yesterday? Your sudden change in attitude is almost like Woody—”

“‘Those without qualifications cannot enter Laputa.’ Are you saying this after confirming that phrase yourself, Leeha Jiwon?”

As Leeha Jiwon tried to provoke Alexander, Bailephus, who had transformed into human form, intervened.

“Yeah, yeah~ Golden lizard, keep your mouth shut~ You thought you were invincible just because you’re Ancient-grade, but your mentality is shattered, huh? You couldn’t even break one barrier~ When asked to use the tracking skill, you failed miserably~ Let it go, let it go—”

“… Dare you mock me.”

Of course, he couldn’t engage in a war of words with Leeha Jiwon.

When veins bulged on Bailephus’ forehead, fernand quickly whispered.

“P-please, all three of you, stop. Everyone is watching us move our mouths.”

“Fernand is right. Although it is regrettable that we missed the floating island, I believe that with the rewards for our exploration and the Pope’s support, we will certainly be able to enter next time.”

“Yeah~ Don’t lie~ The Golden lizard couldn’t sense holy power, and my detection didn’t find any holy power either. It’s clear it has no connection with Ezwen~”

Leeha Jiwon stuck out his tongue and continued to provoke Alexander, but he remained silent.

This moment revealed how difficult the struggles they had faced so far were, and how little information they currently had about the floating island.

They had tried various methods to enter Laputa, but none had worked.

They always received the same response: to obtain qualifications.

In the end, all their hard work amounted to very little knowledge.

“Haaa… How did we find it in the first place? Trying to find that island again is genuinely absurd.”

Moreover, as the term “floating island” suggested, it floated high in the sky, moving freely. Once they lost track of its location, it was incredibly challenging to find it again.

Bailephus and Fernand’s stiff expressions while listening to Leeha Jiwon’s lament were proof of this.

No tracking magic or skill had worked on it, and being above the clouds made it barely visible from the ground.

Keeping an eye on the island from the sky with the naked eye was also not easy.

“How are we supposed to find something we can’t even see? The Pope conveniently left this part out. Of course, mentioning it would have been a buzzkill.”

Essentially, the island blended so well with its surroundings that it appeared almost indistinguishable from the sky.

Just as Leeha Jiwon had pointed out, the Pope had omitted these parts from his speech.

There was neither the time nor the need to reveal everything during the inauguration speech, anyway.

Currently, what was important was the organizational structure of the countries attending the Sacred Alliance and hearing each representative’s resolve.

After numerous power struggles between Fibiel and Minis, the final Supreme Commander, “Fox of the Prairie” Awin, was delivering the meaning of the Sacred Alliance with a cunning smile.

His words did not include terms like the Matan Fragments, the Human-Demon War, monsters, or Kaztor’s pursuit.

However, words like “protection from threats”,

“a safe and peaceful future”, and “continental territory defense for constructive development” essentially conveyed the same idea.

“Seriously… Among NPCs, he’s the best talker. I wonder how exhausting it must be to work under him.”

“Does Lark ever feel that way?”

“Nara, you know this by now, listening yourself. There aren’t many like him in Fibiel, right? Ugh, should I naturalize in Fibiel?”

Lark and Shin Nara were also standing nearby, leading their respective knight orders close to the platform.

At such a close distance that they could whisper, a representative from Shazrashian was also present.

In Shazrashian, members known as “legislators” were often elected based on their military prowess, essentially making them a power group capable of fulfilling knightly duties on their own.

“Shin Nara, Lark, and Ram Hwayeon… In terms of strength, Ram Hwajung is just as strong as her sister, but politically, the older sister has the upper hand.”

Karelin herself could also befriend them.

She had the position and power to do so, but having a middleman certainly made things more convenient.

He wondered if the person who could bridge the gap had come here, so he opened his friend’s window, but all it showed was Ha Leeha’s location: Dawning Sea.

“―As agreed by the representative of paleo from the continent of Erika―!”

Currently, almost all the people Ha Leeha knew were gathered at the Ezwen Papal court.

“―We hereby declare the establishment of the 〈Sacred Alliance〉!”

And there, the largest event in Middle Earth was held. Buffs flowed into the bodies of all the attendees.

“Alright! I feel so pumped up! Shouldn’t we start moving quickly?”

“Hehe, as soon as Gibred arrives, we’ll get a call, so it’s fine. Just for today―”

“We can’t just stand around. The official dispatch from each country starts tomorrow morning, so if we endure today, the personnel monitoring the forest of the Corrupted World Tree will significantly increase. Let’s endure today.”

Hyein raised her staff while embracing the shoulders of Biyemi, who was trying to leave quietly.

Except for a very few who were clearly aware of their duties, today was bound to be full of excitement and anticipation.

At the very moment that the honor guards and various knight orders of each country celebrated the establishment of the 〈Sacred Alliance〉.

There was someone who targeted that very moment.

* * *

Twukwaaaaa――――!

“Ugh, it’s not working. Is it even possible to see the crevice in the wind? Anderson! What do you think?”

“Hmm, maybe it’s similar to feeling a current?”

Anderson jumped toward the sea.

In an instant, his legs transformed into a mermaid’s tail.

“Like this! Like this! Ha Leeha, you can also transform into a mermaid!”

“…Is it as easy as you say? Besides, even if I turn into a mermaid, I can’t feel such things. Maybe I could feel it if I turned into something that could fly?”

Using the skill 〈Eagle’s Eye〉, he actively observed the typhoon, but nothing came into view.

Even if it was a close angle, it was 500 meters away from where Ha Leeha was, and it was impossible to sense anything detailed from such a distance.

“Well, there’s nothing I can do about it. The answer is to shoot more on days when I’m less noticeable. Alright, I can see the wind. I can see the wind, the wind is visible.”

Ha Leeha hypnotized himself as he aimed at the typhoon. The scope had already been removed.

Twukwaaaaa――――!

The rapidly flying beam of light disappeared with a swish, shaking as it went.

Ha Leeha clicked his tongue.

‘First, I need to control the wind. Then I need to approach the typhoon, use the Animal Soul Stone, and get into practice. Hmm, I can’t even read the flow of the wind properly, let alone get closer―’

Suddenly, something came to Ha Leeha’s mind.

‘No, that’s not it. I need to approach it to feel something, right?’

Reading the flow of the wind from a distance of 500 meters?

No matter how strong a typhoon with a speed of 41 meters per second, at 500 meters away, it would just cause a little fluttering of hair.

It was an absurdly far distance to read the ‘space’ where the bullet had to penetrate and move.

“Damn it! Staying far away out of fear backfired, didn’t it? I should have practiced up close first! Anderson, can you keep the typhoon going even if we go closer over there?”

“Of course!”

“Great! Then could you keep an eye on the surroundings while I practice?”

“Understood!”

Anderson smiled as if happy to sail the seas with Ha Leeha again.

Ha Leeha quickly gathered his items and opened his skill window. Just as he was about to jump into the sea, he thought of someone.

“Oh right, I should inform them. Sir Syndergard! Guard Captain!”

Ha Leeha stood at the end of the buoy.

The guards were stationed in the central area of the buoy to protect the mana relay tower as their top priority.

Ha Leeha wanted to report to them in advance in case the NPCs would look for him or worry.

“I’m going to be off to the sea for a bit, so if you don’t see me— Wor… Syndergard!”

Ha Leeha immediately pulled out the Black Bass he had stored.

What he saw near the mana relay tower were 12 corpses that had turned ash-gray.

Rustle—

At that moment, a sound emerged near the mana relay tower.

“Who’s there! 〈Mana Clairvoyance〉!”

Swoosh—!

Ha Leeha directed his skill toward the sound’s direction and aimed his gun.

Then, he immediately pulled the trigger towards the silhouette moving through the bushes.

Boom────!!

A rough scream echoed from the bushes.

The moment Ha Leeha heard that voice, his hair stood on end. It was a voice tone he had unmistakably heard before.

‘No way…?!’

Who could have possessed such skill to overpower someone of Syndergard’s caliber without any resistance?

Who would target the guards of the mana relay tower?

Why would someone loiter near the mana relay tower?

‘They intend to use the mana relay tower… to link their mana.’

Someone with formidable skills, yet who ‘had to’ link their mana through the mana relay tower.

Among those Ha Leeha knew with such conditions, there was only one person.

“Kaztor────! Jellypong, 〈Combat Mode: Agility〉! Follow!”

『Myong!』

At the time when everyone’s guard was down due to the matters of the 《Sacred Alliance》, Kaztor began to move.

TL’s Corner:

Finally, something’s happening.

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