Matan’s Shooter

The simultaneous temptation to fall into hell.

An irreversible situation.

In comparison to the righteous path, which you must navigate through thorny paths and detours, it was an exceptionally easy shortcut and a swift path.

And it was a heretical way, a way to death.

Leeha shook his head quickly to clear his thoughts.

‘No, I shouldn’t listen to this guy.’

The Black Bass’s temptation, which served only himself, would be of no benefit.

However, it wasn’t completely devoid of hints.

– “Kijung, are you busy with Raphaela-nim right now?”

– “No, I’m just chatting with some priest users. Why, hyung?”

Kijung’s status as someone special even in Ezwin mattered. Although he couldn’t kill Kijung, couldn’t Kijung find a way?

– “It’s nothing, just—”

“I found it, Shil-Lyron! Push me quickly!”

Just as Leeha was about to speak, someone started running at a tremendous speed.

A wood elf pushing aside all the Minis users and even the city guards!

“Ha Leehaaaa—! It hasn’t been 5 minutes yet!”

The white-eyed Spiritualist, known in the community for her ‘mysterious charm’ and ‘solo play’, was also helpless in front of Leeha.

Leeha barely held back a laugh that threatened to escape.

– “Hyung, what is it? What are you trying to say?”

– “Oh, never mind. I’ll contact you later.”

Leeha ended his whisper with Kijung and waved his hand towards Prea.

“It’s been a while.”

“You must understand there’s a reason I haven’t contacted you lately.”

“Not at all.”

When Leeha shook his head with a bitter smile, Prea flashed a lively smile.

Leeha knew well that she was trying her best to impress him.

“Oh my, oh my. That can’t be true~ You know well what kind of ‘work’ I do.”

“Exactly. I’m saying that you haven’t said a word about that ‘work’ lately. I thought you had forgotten.”

“No, how could I? Did I come all this way without anything to talk about?”

Prea stuttered in a panic.

Anyway, the fact that Prea came here was akin to crossing a significant hurdle.

From now on, it was time to push forward.

– “Regarding the news from the Demon King’s army… it means there’s definitely something I don’t know, right? If you make up a clumsy lie… it would be goodbye forever. Just know that I am not ignorant of Chiyou’s current situation.”

– “Of course. How can you not trust me after I’ve told you several times? Moments like this make me genuinely sad.”

Prea replied with a whisper and drooped her eyes with her fingers.

Her gesture indicated just how desperately she longed for the ‘spirit.’

“But still, I can’t trust you. Is it because of your eyes?”

Her unique appearance, devoid of pupils, seemed to lower her trustworthiness. Ultimately, he would have to hear her out before making a judgment.

“… Well, let’s hear it. Let’s go.”

“Wait― Where are we going? At least tell me that!”

“I’m not dumb enough to reveal the destination just yet. Follow quietly~”

Leeha strode forward like a man heading out for a casual stroll.

Prea realized once again that extracting any information from Leeha was nearly impossible, and she had no choice but to cling closely to his side.

As they passed through the city of Minis and reached the pioneer base, and finally arrived at Tapadokia, which was once a village of Dark Elves, Leeha listened to many stories from Prea.

Prea indeed had news that would satisfy Leeha.

“… Really?”

“Why would I lie? Honestly, this is why I decided to meet you, Ha Leeha. It’s hard to judge which side to choose to give you the information you want.”

Prea pouted her lips and looked at Leeha.

Though she tried her best to bring out her ace charm, Leeha didn’t even glance at her face.

‘Unbelievable… Chiyou. Could it be― could it be―’

The news Prea brought was about Chiyou’s recent activities.

‘To break away from Bluebeard with 《Arcane Sniper》! And taking Igor and Pyro with her….’

Was such a thing even possible?

While the exact details were unknown, Leeha had to spread this information immediately to verify Prea’s words.

To everyone who knew about Chiyou and all the users Leeha knew.

* * *

Igor held up his greatsword. The target of his saw-like blade was Chiyou.

“Kahahaha! You laugh while saying that? Tearing you apart wouldn’t even be enough satisfaction!”

“Calm down a bit, Igor. You’ll look weak.”

“What, what!? You―”

Igor was ready to charge at once.

Despite the hierarchy among vampires, russia’s mad bear would have leapt forward to attack Chiyou.

Had it not been for Pyro, who stood in his way, and Kyle, who raised his rifle.

“Nothing good will come from acting now, Igor.”

“Shut up, you arsonist. Do you think I’m in the same situation as you?”

“I know we’re different. It’s probably because of the Czar… but for now, calming down will benefit us both.”

Wings had sprouted from Pyro’s body.

They were markedly different from that of other vampires.

Pyro, engulfed in black flames, had already entered the state of the 〈Flame Demon〉.

“Us? Us? You’re grouping me with―”

“I’m grouping us together because we’ve been completely forgotten by Le.”

Pyro calmed Igor for precisely this reason.

They understood that they were considered dead in the hands of Kibrid.

How would Bluebeard and Kibrid perceive ‘Igor’ and ‘Pyro’ as users in the future?

At the very least, all their relationships within the Demon King’s army would have been reset.

Even if they appeared right before Bluebeard now, Le would treat them as merely ‘vampires with names identical to those he knew.’

“You probably anticipated this, Chiyou.”

“Well, to some extent?”

Chiyou shrugged her shoulders in response to Pyro’s question.

It was naturally one of her predictions. Bluebeard would never leave a traitor unscathed.

Chiyou’s actions in order to escape from there, right after obtaining the 《Arcane Sniper》, were proof that she knew that fact.

‘An unexpected issue might be that the corpses of these guys have turned into chimeras because of Ghibrid… but I should perhaps keep that a secret.’

Nonetheless, she answered “I knew it to some extent” for this reason.

Hearing this, Igor burst out again, but Pyro remained calm, holding onto his sanity while the flames within him burned even stronger.

“What should we do from now on? Clearly, you—”

“Exactly. That’s what I’m here to talk about. Impatient as always… As you know, I have Arcane Sniper, our adorable Kyle. And the Ha Leeha you all want to kill so badly—”

“Ha Leeha!? Did you capture him?”

“No, no, listen to the end. There’s also Ha Leeha’s ‘master’. That’s Kyle’s mother, Elizabeth. You know her, right?”

Pyro and Igor recalled the female NPC who had appeared alongside Chiyou.

“Hehe… So that was Ha Leeha’s master. He’s something else.”

“Conversely, it means he grew up without a master.”

As Pyro assessed the situation coolly, Igor’s rage only intensified.

The fact that his options were limited was highly frustrating for him.

“Damn it! So, what are you planning to do, Chiyou? If you want to end your Vampire authority, we can do it right now!”

Another thing revealed by the deaths of Igor and Pyro was that vampires could relinquish their powers.

Upon logging in, they had seen the notice.

The time-limited option did not wait long for them.

They had to decide within a mere week what could be a crucial turning point in their Middle Earth gameplay, and anxiously, they had finally met to come see Chiyou.

Barely a day was left at that point.

Chiyou did not flinch at Igor’s threat. She was, in fact, laughing.

“Having already made a name for yourself on the Demon King’s side… and being expelled from there… and you want to finish off the vampire? I wonder if you’ll have a place to return to?”

“I will. If not, I’ll make one. If I take your burnt corpse and relinquish the vampire powers here, they’ll believe me.”

Pyro’s fury matched Igor’s.

Though Igor had hoped for it quietly, they were still far from being able to manage Chiyou through a conversation.

“With Arcane Sniper and his parents before us? Do you think your flames or bullets are faster…? You, more than anyone, should know that best, Pyro.”

Chiyou not only threatened with her skills but also invoked someone Pyro directly resented.

The fastest weapon in Middle Earth: bullets. Any user who had been struck by Ha Leeha’s bullet would be on edge.

So was Pyro.

His anger directed at Chiyou found its “correct target” again.

If Pyro stayed put, it would be hard for Igor to move. As Pyro said, users who had sided with the Demon King’s army must present impressive trophies to avoid relentless pursuit from the Shin Nara Alliance.

Chiyou did not miss the moment they hesitated.

“Leave the vampire powers be. As you know, I didn’t impose any restrictions on you despite being able to use them specially. Moving around during the day just incurs a minor penalty; it wasn’t completely impossible, right?”

“What could that achieve? And what difference would it make if this arsonist and I joined you? Do you think we can become a third power, like Bluebeard, instead of just another group of users?”

Igor snarled.

Chiyou nodded immediately upon hearing him.

“Otherwise, why would I be meeting you? At the very least, I promise one thing: as long as I am the Vampire Queen… you’ll have a position beyond that of a founding member. If… everything goes according to my plan.”

“Do you have a plan?”

The flames of the Flame Mage had weakened.

Chiyou responded without a moment’s hesitation.

“The leaders of both Metal and Chromatic have awakened, haven’t they? We can make the dragons of both sides kneel before us. How about that—wouldn’t that be enough to establish a country?”

“Does 《Arcane Bullet》 make it possible to do that?”

“We will find out from now on, won’t we?”

Chiyou smiled brightly.

Igor could not help but fall for the witch’s scheme.

He cursed in Russian as he kicked stones at his feet, but as Chiyou started to move, he followed her.

Igor and Pyro had completely become Chiyou’s allies.

The plan she conceived was just beginning.