Chapter 149

CHAPTER 149

Bang!

The moment he pulled the trigger with his index finger, the muzzle spat out a chunk of metal along with a burst of heat.

The bullet traveled at roughly 1 kilometer per second.

Far too fast to follow its trajectory with the eye,

and too small to visually track.

But the result could be seen.

With a faint bam sound, flames erupted from the light aircraft.

Specifically, from the fuselage right in front of the cockpit.

• Kyaa!
• Why is he good at ultra-long-range sniping too?!
• Was the gun actually a sword all along?
• There's gun-swordsmanship, right? Guns are basically swords, so of course he's good with them!
• So all weapons ultimately lead back to the sword?
• Truly the king of all weapons! The sword stands above all others!

"Looks like I hit it."

Seo-jun said calmly before handing the rifle over so Alpaca could check as well.

But Alpaca didn't take it, wearing an awkward expression.

"I-I don't think I need to check..."

"Really?"

"Yeah. You hit a person from that distance. There's no way you'd miss an airplane."

"Is that how it works?"

"Honestly, hitting the person was just luck."

"That's not a distance you can hit with luck!"

Lumi, standing beside him, said with sparkling eyes.

The farther the destination, the larger the area a bullet could potentially land within.

And the distance to the airplane just now had been enormous.

To the naked eye, the aircraft looked like a tiny speck.

Even through the scope, the entire plane fit into view rather than just the target inside it.

How difficult would it be to hit a single point within such a vast area?

And if it really were luck, what percentage chance would there be of landing that exact shot?

"W-Well, it's not a distance where I can guarantee a hundred percent."

Seo-jun's meaning was understood by Lumi and Alpaca.

However.

The two simply grinned.

"Mr. Alpaca? I think our ace is just being humble."

"Seriously. He mastered frying pans at close range and sniper rifles at long range. There's no way he can't guarantee it. He's just being considerate toward the viewers..."

Meanwhile, the car continued speeding forward.

The storm was still chasing them.

• Is this what true teamwork looks like? LOL
• I can tolerate anything except excessive humility. Do you know how much this streamer flexes?
• Alpaca, think back to all those collabs where he bullied you with his skills. Humble? Humble???
• Honestly, if I had a teammate who cleared an entire underground area alone in ranked, I'd be singing his praises too.
• LOOOOOOOOL

"Ah... right."

Unable to come up with a response, Seo-jun picked up the sniper rifle again.

Before looking through the scope, he glanced at chat.

• Oh? Streamer is flustered LOL
• So he's weak against direct compliments and excessive glazing? LMAO
• Have we finally discovered his weakness?!
• It's time to raid that boss monster!
• Why do we need a raid for a streamer? LOL
• Then how else are you supposed to deal with someone who deflects bullets with a frying pan?

As always, Seo-jun ignored the chat.

Why is raiding me the default option?

He zoomed in on the airplane through the scope.

Black smoke was rising from the front section of the aircraft.

It was on fire.

"It breaks down immediately from just one bullet."

"If it's that powerful, it has to have low durability."

"Ah, I see."

Lumi and Alpaca sounded much more relaxed now.

Apparently the smoke was becoming visible even without binoculars.

Keeping the descending plane in sight, Seo-jun asked,

"So what happens now?"

"Once its durability reaches zero, it can't keep flying and has to land."

The voice of Wind Sword came through.

"What about an explosion?"

"Unfortunately, no explosion ending. Even if durability drops to zero, it can still make a safe landing."

Makes sense.

If planes exploded after a single hit, that would be a balance issue too.

Being rendered unusable after one hit was reasonable enough.

"Alright then. Even though you hit it, breaking through over there seems difficult... What do we do now, Seo-jun?"

The enemies had started earlier.

The plane was also a faster vehicle and had the advantage of altitude.

The distance between them was still considerable.

Even though the aircraft had been forced into a descent the moment it was hit, it remained far ahead of them in the sky.

"What can we do?"

Seo-jun was asking about the standard strategy.

After all, this was his first match of Ground Zero.

"Hmm."

Wind Sword thought for a moment before answering.

"Normally, you don't approach. Even if the plane breaks down, all they need to do is some stunt flying to get out. Once they land, they can just jump out safely. If we approach, they'll have plenty of time to harass us. So usually you just hold a position, wait for the next storm circle, and pray to the RNG gods..."

Before he could finish.

A bullet slammed into the ground beside them.

The first enemy Seo-jun had killed was the streamer who fired the opening shot at their car.

The bullet that had just arrived came from the streamer sitting beside him, who had picked up the sniper rifle again.

The person of interest, Gentleman, was driving.

Seo-jun had been observing all of this through his scope.

"Huh?! Why didn't you tell us?! If our car gets hit one more time, it'll explode!"

"I figured he wouldn't hit us. Just keep driving and tell me the other options."

Trying to dodge unnecessarily and getting hit would only make things worse.

And Seo-jun had a reason for being so confident.

The aircraft seemed conscious of his attacks.

It kept tilting left and right while descending in a bizarre manner.

No way he can hit anything flying like that.

Thud!

Another bullet came flying.

It missed again and struck the ground behind them.

"As expected!"

Lumi and Alpaca nodded.

This was normal.

Ultra-long-range sniping was supposed to be difficult.

At least, that was the conclusion they were silently exchanging with their eyes.

But the real reason was simply that the plane's driver was driving like absolute garbage.

• KKKKKK, Pado is driving with every ounce of his soul trying not to get hit.
• Isn't that drunk driving? Someone report him LOL.
• Looks like he's surfing waves! HAHAHA.
• Oh no, manager...

"Or, Seo-jun, there's another option. We can just rush them right now. If the storm closes on us later, we'll have to break through eventually anyway."

If they held position and the storm reached them, any team unlucky enough not to be chosen by the safe zone would have to move.

And then they'd be fighting opponents who had already secured strong positions.

Ideally, they'd be the ones waiting in ambush.

But the odds were only fifty-fifty.

"Then let's charge right now."

Better to attack while the enemy was still distracted.

"Understood!"

Wind Sword put more force into the leg pressing the accelerator.

The speed didn't change.

They were already at maximum velocity.

Meanwhile, Seo-jun's rifle continued tracking the aircraft that seemed to be piloted by someone whose brain had been pickled in alcohol.

The plane had descended considerably.

It looked like it was about to land on a large hill near the border.

Seo-jun finally got a clear view of its side.

As it rocked left and right like a seesaw, the enemy would appear, then disappear behind the wing.

• Is that a ride at an amusement park? LOL
• The fact that the rhythm isn't even consistent makes it funnier LOL
• Pantyman sure can drive!

And then—

Just as the wing dipped downward.

Bang!

He pulled the trigger once more.

The distance was much shorter than before.

That gave him a little more confidence.

If that earlier headshot had been luck...

Then this time—

One second later.

[Sword God14 → 1898]

After checking the message, Seo-jun smiled faintly.

"Wow! But... is it really okay for us to play the game like this?"

"Because we're not doing anything? I like it."

"Mr. Alpaca, do you enjoy getting carried?"

"Yep!"

"Ahem. Excuse me, but I'm still working over here."

The last remark came from Wind Sword.

Looks like they'd gotten closer while looting.

• LMAOOOOOO Pado almost cursed himself into oblivion LOL
• What's "bread" supposed to mean?
• 18 LOLLLLL
• Gold.
• He almost dropped the F-bomb from sheer shock LOL
• Well, his whole plan got wrecked because the shots kept landing LOL

It was a shame the scope magnification wasn't high enough to see the enemies' faces.

Still, the overall situation was visible.

Pantyman had given up driving and moved to the back seat.

The plane would crash on its own soon anyway.

Then he pulled out a sniper rifle and handed it to the player sitting beside his original seat.

What's he trying to do?

The aircraft had recovered from its drunken wobbling and was descending smoothly now.

That made it much easier to see.

Is he telling me to take another shot?

Bang!

A gunshot rang out.

But no kill message appeared afterward.

Without saying anything, Seo-jun handed the rifle to Alpaca.

Silence settled over the speeding vehicle.

An awkward atmosphere filled the car.

The three teammates exchanged glances several times before speaking.

"Haha! Hahaha! Even monkeys fall from trees sometimes!"

Alpaca said as he accepted the rifle.

"Exactly! Missing isn't weird at all! Didn't get a headshot? Honestly, anything above a 30% headshot rate is already insane!"

Lumi quickly added.

"Or maybe the enemy's wearing a Level 3 helmet like Seo-jun usually does. A sniper round won't one-shot through those."

Even Wind Sword joined in from the driver's seat.

Seo-jun chuckled and pulled out his frying pan.

"What am I, some department manager who just shanked a golf shot? Just keep aiming at the enemy."

"Haha, understood!"

Alpaca secretly observed Seo-jun.

For a moment, he'd worried that Seo-jun was experiencing failure for the first time and didn't know how to react.

Fortunately, that didn't seem to be the case.

Though his eyes did seem to be burning.

That look...

Was it annoyance?

Or had he found something amusing?

Either way, it wasn't the expression of a genius crushed by failure.

Relieved, Alpaca put his eye back to the scope and searched for the airplane.

Then—

"Huh?"

Something black.

No, a bullet.

It was flying directly toward his head.

In that split second, Alpaca couldn't react.

Only one thought crossed his mind.

I'm dead.

But—

BANG!

Something blocked his vision.

He immediately pulled his eye away from the scope to identify it.

A sturdy, reliable sheet of metal.

The strongest weapon on earth.

A frying pan.

Following the frying pan, he saw—

"What's wrong? Why'd you stop shooting?"

Seo-jun was standing proudly on the hood of the car.

"Huh? Ah! Right!"

He'd been too startled to say I knew you'd protect me!

Instead, he looked back through the scope.

Now he understood the situation.

The plane had crashed into the hillside.

The two surviving teammates had jumped out and taken defensive positions, aiming their weapons toward them.

More importantly—

Pado, the guy wearing nothing but underwear, was standing beside them holding a frying pan instead of a gun.

Only then did Alpaca understand why Seo-jun had looked amused.

• LMAOOOOOOOO
• Is the battle between equals finally beginning?
• They're actually doing this LOL

"Take a shot."

Seo-jun's voice came from the front.

Alpaca aimed at the enemy sniper's head.

His finger squeezed the trigger.

Bang!

Wow. He blocked it.

Just like Seo-jun, Pado protected his teammate with a frying pan.

Clang!

At the same time, another sound rang out from the front.

Wow. He blocked that too.

This time, it referred to Seo-jun.

The clash between two monsters had begun.

The distance between the teams continued shrinking.

Alpaca fired several more shots.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Every single one was blocked.

However—

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The enemy's attacks were being blocked as well.

And honestly?

The whole thing was hilarious.

"Don't aim for the head. Try somewhere else."

"Understood."

Following Seo-jun's advice, Alpaca lowered his aim.

Instead of the prone enemy's head, he targeted the lowest part of the neck.

Then—

"Ah! He couldn't block it!"

News came that the enemy shooter had entered a downed state.

Seo-jun smiled.

• Ahhh LOL it's over.
• Pado was just the discount version of the streamer. He could only block headshots with good timing.
• Bro was basically just hitting pitches from a batting machine LOL
• Homerun!

As expected.

Still, he blocked the first bullet and even taunted me afterward. I can't just let that slide.

The pride of a streamer was shouting inside Seo-jun's mind.

A taunt must be answered.

Seo-jun chose not to ignore that inner voice.

He turned to Alpaca.

"Alright. Throw away the gun now."

"Huh?"

"Just drop the sniper rifle on the ground. And Wind Sword?"

"Yes?"

It's over.

Pado stared blankly at the approaching vehicle climbing the hill.

More specifically—

At the rookie streamer standing proudly atop the hood.

• LOLLLLL you got absolutely farmed.
• First-game player destroyed you.
• See? Not everyone can do the frying-pan thing LOL
• Still fought well. Holding out this long against a god is impressive.

Had things gone wrong when they lost a teammate in the plane?

Or when that first snipe failed?

Damn it.

He needed to revive his teammate.

But if he moved to do that, the car would arrive.

And once that happened, it was over.

No.

It was already over.

Still, Pado swore to himself that at least he wouldn't die to a sniper shot.

He'd show the viewers how to block bullets properly from now on.

Waiting for the next shot, he focused.

Then—

Alpaca threw his sniper rifle onto the ground.

"What?"

• LOL another taunt.
• That's exactly how Goblin got baited before.
• That's the signal for a one-on-one duel.

Ah.

A duel?

He understood immediately.

Pado started walking down the hill.

The game was already lost.

At least this way he could recover some dignity.

And if he somehow won?

Even better.

The match would still be lost, but—

A one-on-one.

Could he win?

He wasn't sure.

But he certainly wouldn't lose easily.

Step.

Step.

Step.

As Pado descended the hill, a jeep-like vehicle approached.

VROOOOOOM!

"Good! Let's see who's really better with a frying pan—!"

The moment Pado tightened his grip on the frying pan and steeled his resolve—

Huh?

Why isn't it stopping?

The vehicle slammed directly into him and continued past.

• LMAOOOOOOO traffic accident ending!!!
• Bro got the deer-crossing-the-road ending LOL
• Sorry, we were out of one-on-one duels. Please accept this reincarnation truck instead ^^
• "Let's see who's better with a frying pan!" Screeech—CRASH!
• FYI, they were at full throttle. There wasn't even a screech. 😂