Matan’s Shooter

As soon as the Murti-Warhead Shot was seen, the vampires began to scatter.

Just by observing their sudden tactical movement, Leeha judged that there was a high probability that their commander was among them.

“Luger, Kidd! Over there! Take out the ones retreating to the left rear first! Chiyou is there!”

“Chiyou?! Just as expected, they’re targeting Kyle right from the start!”

“Considering their― movements, it’s― obvious! They planned to distract us with all these attacks and abduct Kyle!”

────, ────, ────!

The current generation of the “Three Musketeers” began concentrating their attacks on the left flank. The previous generation of the Musketeers also heard their conversation clearly.

“So, it’s in that direction!? Sir!”

“I won’t let them get near my son!”

Elizabeth and Brown’s gun barrels were heating up fiercely.

Each bullet, fired as if to annihilate the entire bat swarm, was sharply aimed.

Browless wore a relaxed expression throughout.

No matter how many enemies there were, once the main target was identified, there was no need to worry about the other forces.

“Kidd! Catching the enemy commander equals ending this battle, understood!?”

“Of course. All the things the director did twenty years ago… I remember them all.”

“Haha, it’s a bit embarrassing to hear that!”

The fame of the Three Musketeers, who had been active before the 2nd Human-Demon War, was known broadly, yet a whispered secret within that fame was Browless’s assassination record.

Few could thwart the infiltration of the “Rapidfire” that operated thoroughly in the shadows, which was why Minis repeatedly failed to overpower Fibiel despite its overwhelming forces—due to the commander’s absence, an absurd justification.

Six bullets were focused on a single point.

This was on a different scale from the fusillade Leeha created alone.

The concentrated bombardment on the vampires soon yielded results.

“Magic…! Director!”

“Yes.”

There were not many bats capable of using magic.

Lesser vampires could use magic in their human form but not as bats. Nevertheless, there was a significant number of spells flying from the side that had been heavily attacked.

This was further evidence of at least platoon-level vampires congregating there.

Adjusting to the movements of Kidd and Browless, the Musketeers also raised their Red Ceppelin’s tendrils to shield their faces and other vital areas.

“Son! Come here quickly!”

Elizabeth urgently called out to Kyle.

There wasn’t much room to move, and since they were bound by the tendrils like belts, avoiding the enemies’ attacks was inherently minimized.

Thus, their strategy was to sacrifice part of the Red Ceppelin to protect themselves.

However, Kyle was not moving.

“Mother, I just saw the ones casting the spells.”

He pointed at the bat swarm with calm eyes, his voice unhurried.

“Uh, uh? Well! So come here quickly, we need to—dodge. Kaztor, that darned creature, but his magic skills are—”

“There are only eighteen bats over there that can cast spells. The one farthest to the left, over there, do you see?”

Elizabeth didn’t turn to look where Kyle was pointing.

Seeing her expression, Brown shouted.

“Kyle! We need to dodge now! Acknowledging the enemy’s abilities is also part of combat!”

“Doesn’t the magic get canceled if the mana is cut off? So wouldn’t it be better to do this—”

Bang─────────…!

“—instead?”

Raising his rifle swiftly, Kyle fired, seamlessly continuing his words.

“… Insane.”

Leeha saw eighteen vampire bats plummeting from the left side.

All the spells that had been flying toward them were canceled.

Ulrek and Ji-em were unfazed.

Compared to Alexander’s magnificent feat of handling over five hundred vampires post-〈Fusion〉, Kyle’s action might seem less impactful.

However, most of the users and NPCs present wielded firearms.

Therefore, they were at a loss for words.

Even having glimpsed Kyle’s skills within Saurerland, they were now soaking in a shock incomparable to that of the past.

The 『Rapidfire』 test that shattered the five stationary targets with just a graze was nothing compared to this.

Amidst a swarm of bats that moved swiftly, it was impossible to distinguish one from another, except immediately after using magic, yet the shots hit their marks.

Eighteen targets were killed instantly by the bullets.

‘Did… Did he really hit all of those targets? And distinguished the one using magic amidst them?’

‘That damn bastard made a line piercing through eighteen bats with one shot?’

‘Are we talking about a true 『Rapidfire』? A single bullet doing the work of many…’

Leeha, Luger, and Kidd didn’t look at each other.

Each of them knew the shock the others must have felt.

* * *

‘I sense something.’

『What kind of presence is it?』

Alexander swung his spear.

Even in his human form, he could freely adjust the length of the spear.

The majesty of the spear remained unchanged after being fused with Bailephus.

If Alexander’s skills based on the sun, light, and justice were amplified by Bailephus’s mana, then…

Whooosh────!

The vampire bats burst apart just from brushing against the spear imbued with light.

It was beyond the level of attack and defense, resembling a one-sided massacre of lower life forms by a superior being.

Alexander focused on the whisper-like conversation with Bailephus. Despite this, there were no issues with his seamless offense and defense.

He held all the control in his body, while Bailephus provided and analyzed all sorts of information beyond Alexander’s perception, feeding it back to him.

This was an abundance of information that transcended relying on sight, hearing, smell, and other senses.

If Bailephus’s mana detection and Leeha’s spirit detection were passively embedded into close combat, especially if the number one ranked individual demonstrated such behavior, there would be no match for him in close combat.

‘It’s the Dark Elves’ aura.’

『It’s Kaztor. Which direction?』

Alexander could sense it.

He sent a whisper to Leeha immediately.

―Kaztor’s aura was felt among the group we just attacked.

―What? Did you feel it, Alexander?

―Yes, I did. I’ll head there after cleaning up these vampires, so hold on a bit longer.

Leeha laughed bitterly while hearing Alexander’s command.

Maybe it was because he showcased a new skill? It seemed like his pride soared even higher.

‘But the sudden detection of Kaztor’s aura means―’

It means Kyle’s recent attack had an effect. There was a high possibility that one of the eighteen he hit was Kaztor.

‘There’s a chance. Even if it’s not, preventing the vampires from approaching easily is a significant achievement.’

The vampire swarms, already cautious because of Luger and Alexander, began to actively evade and spread out even more after Kyle’s attack.

Despite being only about 300 meters away, the vampires were flying left and right, making it take more time for them to reach the Red Zeppelin.

“Ha ha ha! There’s no hope, Chiyou! None at all, you pathetic vampires! Become food for my snake!”

“Shut up, Luger! If you have time to talk, you should be firing more shots!”

“You’re the loud one!”

Luger and Kidd were naturally in high spirits.

Despite facing a thousand vampires, they handled it without borrowing the strength of the Sauroland dinosaurs.

They could feel how much they had grown since they started their expedition to the New Continent’s East.

Of course, the significant contribution of outstanding NPCs like the previous generation’s Three Musketeers and the yet-to-be-fully-understood Kyle, the Arcane Sniper, had a huge impact. But it was also a fact that the players themselves had gotten stronger.

“Ugh! Ha Leeha― Ha Leeha-ssi! Some are coming down below!”

The only person not participating in the battle was Fernand.

After hearing about the vampire attack, he realized he couldn’t help and focused solely on observing the ground.

In one hand he held paper, and in the other hand, charcoal.

Even in such desperate moments, he was doing his best, like assessing the terrain the Red Zeppelin was flying over, figuring out how to proceed if they got lost, the surrounding topography, and identifying viable routes for people.

“Fernand-ssi! The enemy― try whipping them a bit!”

“Ugh, these bastards! They retreated a whip’s length and then approached again—there are quite a few of them already!”

Leeha aimed his gun in that direction but then lowered it.

Even if he didn’t hit Fernand, the dangling tendrils of the Red Zeppelin obstructed Leeha’s view.

Shooting a curved shot at each one individually would waste too much mana, so Leeha had only one option.

The tightly packed tendrils restricted movement.

If one saw each tendril as a ‘tree’, this place was no different from a forest.

“Jellypong! 〈Combat Mode: Agility〉! Save Fernand and kill those vampires!”

『Myoongmyooong—!』

It was the perfect place for Jellypong’s three-dimensional movement.

Although Leeha couldn’t move, Jellypong could convert Leeha’s stats into its own and utilize them.

『Myoong! Myoongmyoong! Myooong—!』

“Screech—!”

“Szzk—”

“Graaah! What’s this!?”

In other words, Jellypong’s current attack power and health surpassed most field bosses.

The vampires, which had previously been bats, tried to transform into human form and counterattack, but Jellypong, moving quicker and swinging its tendrils, was too much for them.

Kidd covered the upper area, while Jellypong handled the lower area.

Alexander handled interceptions, and the Three Musketeers took care of defense.

In this situation, where offense and defense came from all directions, the Red Zeppelin continued its flight.

When they just entered a dense stratocumulus ahead, it was the enemies who screamed first.

“Graaah! 〈Maze Dimension〉! 〈Dark Cloud〉!”

One human appeared from the swarm of bats approaching Kyle, Elizabeth, and Brown on the left side of the Red Zeppelin.

────, ────, ────!

“Kaztor!”

“I will kill you!”

“Rotzaaaak!”

Even before Elizabeth, Brown, and Browless could call his name, bullets were already flying.

Only after the shots did their enraged roars emerge, but Kaztor was no fool.

The magic he used the moment he appeared was his unique skill, which completely distorted the surrounding space.

The bullets all got lost in the labyrinthian dimension.

Kaztor smiled from the shimmering air beyond.

His gaze was fixed solely on one person.

“Indeed. The Saur Land army. Cured what even dragons couldn’t lift… You look much better, Kyle.”

“Don’t say my son’s name with that filthy mouth!”

BOOM────────……!

Elizabeth pulled the trigger forcefully, but the shimmering air protecting Kaztor swallowed the bullet again.

“I won’t let you lay a finger on this child.”

“Browless, this is not your place.”

“What? How dare you say that—”

“Then it’s fine if I step in. I won’t let a filthy mana tendril touch my child, not even a finger, Kaztor.”

Browless angrily tried to unload his bullets, but Brown put a hand on his shoulder to stop him.

Having already revealed himself, they knew their ordinary bullets couldn’t hurt him.

“Kukuku… Brown. Don’t you realize? You can’t lay a finger on me with your pathetic bullets. Even after all this, you still—”

“The fool here is you, Kaztor. Just as you said, our Kyle lifted your curse in Saur Land. Twenty years… after twenty years, he’s now in a normal state. Did you really think Kyle wouldn’t hate you?”

Brown turned his head to look at Kyle.

Kyle met Brown’s gaze for a moment before turning back to Kaztor.

Although bats flitted around the dark elf, Kyle’s eyes didn’t waver.

“You’re right. Our bullets can’t pierce you. But.”

In time with Brown’s words, Kyle slowly raised his rifle.

“Our son… Kyle can hit you.”

The 《Arcane Bullet》 aimed at Kaztor.

Leeha couldn’t see Kyle’s expression.

Thus, while Fernand, Kidd, and Luger all had their eyes fixed there, Leeha let his thoughts drift elsewhere.

It was triggered by something that had happened just before they left Saur Land.