The Villain is Too Good at Sniping

89. Annual Event (4)

Among the impure lives known as monsters, there were some that took on human forms.

These were called the Inhuman or Ainhum race, and although they were once treated as monsters, their situation had improved recently.

The awareness of the rights of these species, represented by the Orcs, Beastmen, and Demihumans, had caused a significant social stir, and they had begun to be treated as equal humans.

In this world, the term “human” no longer only referred to “people”.

Although they still faced discrimination and prejudice, they were at least treated as equals.

However, there were cases that didn’t fit into this category, and these were mostly Ainhum who refused to adapt to society.

They preferred to settle in remote areas, building their own societies and living separately.

This kind of case would undoubtedly be treated as a demon. If you cause trouble and cross the line, you’ll be mercilessly hunted down.

…Queen Alexis of the Harpies.

Just hearing the name sends shivers down my spine, but I’m not too worried. I’m not alone, thanks to David Esperanza being here with me.

“SION…!”

Right now, I’m watching David being held down by the Harpy Queen’s legs.

The Harpy’s claws had a firm grip on David, pinning him to the ground, but surprisingly, David wasn’t taking much damage. Instead, David had managed to get close to the Harpy Queen and was stabbing her knee area with a knife.

But I couldn’t just stand by and watch.

Originally, Alexis was going to grab my shoulder, but David took the hit for me and got caught instead.

I gripped my gun.

The Harpies flying around in the sky were holding rocks from the mountain and throwing them at us. Thanks to that, I didn’t have time to gather my magic, but all attention was focused on David, who was caught.

Puduk!

David was using his magic to block the attacks, but Queen Alexis of the Harpies was trying to drag him down the cliff.

If she threw him down the mountain like that, David would die. The Harpies watching the scene burst out laughing.

These Harpies were too quick for me to handle with my [Nameless Shooter] skills. They could dodge my bullets faster than I could fire them.

So, I had to create a slight variation to catch them off guard. I activated [Restricted Trajectory] to bend the bullet’s trajectory.

My target was the Harpy Queen’s wing joint.

Puduk! Puduk!

Alexis laughed and flapped her wings again, but this time it would be different.

Four bullets intersected in mid-air. Three of them were decoys to distract her.

Alexis flew freely in the air, avoiding the bullets with ease. It was a breathtaking scene, like a fighter jet’s evasive maneuver.

Whoosh—

My [Thousand-Mile Eye] clearly showed the Harpy’s flight trajectory.

The mixed-up bullets intersected with each other, changing their trajectories. Only one bullet was aimed at the target, while the other three went in different directions.

The mechanical and complex bullet trajectory was created by combining [Restricted Trajectory] and [Nameless Shooter] skills. It was a makeshift trick, as I hadn’t yet reached the level of freely controlling trajectories.

Alexis easily dodged three bullets. She had calculated the trajectory I had bent with my magic and avoided them with ease.

Got it—

“Kaaak!”

But the remaining bullet pierced the Harpy Queen’s wing.

It wasn’t a high-explosive bullet, so the damage wasn’t severe, but Alexis was more shocked by the fact that she had been shot than the pain itself.

“Kiiik…!”

She glared at me. During the brief moment Alexis was stunned after being shot in the wing, I pulled the trigger again.

Everything happened in a short span of less than a second.

The Harpy Queen spread her wings again and flew up, and the fire-attribute bullet pierced her shoulder at the same time.

‘Man-Toxic Blade’ has been activated.

Bleeding and poisoning effects will be applied to the target.

A cool message popped up, and at the same time, Alexis faltered in mid-air.

It seemed like she was going to fly up again or try to glide, but in the end, she crashed to the ground without a sound.

Clunk.

I reloaded my gun again.

“…Where did she go?”

The fallen Alexion was stuck between the trees, struggling to free itself, but only ended up flailing its wings and hurting itself.

My shot had shattered Alexion’s shoulder blade.

This wouldn’t have worked on any other monster. It was only effective because our opponent was a bird-type monster with a fragile skeleton.

However, taking down the Harpy Queen didn’t make the situation any more relaxed.

Harpy’s have a characteristic of devouring their own kind.

If the target is the queen, it’s especially true. The individual who devours the queen takes her place. This was a trait I had learned from the Esperand mountains’ Harpy’s.

“Kiik!”

“Kak!”

Countless Harpy’s flew towards the fallen Alexion on the ground. I didn’t know if they were trying to protect their queen or devour her. Either way, as David said, I had to fulfill my quota.

Since I was already finishing off a defeated opponent, I didn’t need to conserve my mana anymore.

Before I pulled the trigger, I saw David hanging from the cliff, his sword stuck in the rock crevice, barely avoiding a fall.

“I’m good, take care of that one first. Hurry.”

I confirmed David’s gaze and pulled the trigger towards the fallen Harpy Queen.

──!

A piercing blue light beam pierced through Alexion’s head.

.

.

.

.

.

The Harpy Queen, who ruled the northern Esperand mountains, had fallen.

Although David’s help was instrumental, ultimately, I was the one who finished her off.

“You really caught that thing?”

“Thanks to David’s help, of course.”

“Huh? Wait, move that rock!”

I supported David and returned to the base camp. I sat him down on a makeshift chair made from a tree stump and carefully lifted up his pant leg.

“How’s the injury?”

“…….”

“Is it bad?”

David’s leg, which had been caught by the Harpy Queen, was severely swollen and bruised. The area where the talons had dug in was even worse, almost to the point of breaking the bone.

Considering David was a skilled hunter and had abilities surpassing mine, it was a remarkable feat.

If David hadn’t been there, I would have been the one to get my shoulder blade shattered.

I carefully bandaged David’s leg with a pressure bandage made in Esperand. We would need to get proper medical treatment back at the guild, but at least this would hold until we descended the cliff.

“Shall we head down now?”

“Is the Harpy subjugation over?”

“It’s not… I mean, we didn’t destroy their nest, so another one will probably become the queen next year, right?”

Even so, since we had taken down the queen, our quota was fulfilled, and David raised a small cheer.

We had killed this year’s Harpy Queen, Alexion, but the Harpy tribe had survived and returned to their nest. Even without their queen, the Harpy’s of the Esperand mountains still existed.

As long as we didn’t destroy the Harpy’s nest on the mountain peak, the Harpy Queen would be reborn. David would probably have to face the Harpy tribe alone again next year.

“There were people who got dragged away by the Harpy’s alive. I’d like to climb to the top and destroy their nest, but that’s not possible now. Maybe next year, I’ll try.”

Perhaps David would not have been caught by Hapi if I hadn’t been there.

This time, unlike our previous fight, our party had increased in number, and I had to receive the scattered attacks alone, without any support.

Thud.

My footsteps came to a halt. I had reached the edge of the cliff I had climbed up earlier. I had felt uneasy even when I was climbing up, but going down seemed just as difficult.

I asked David, who was tying up the rope,

“…How do you plan to complete the mission?”

“Aidan… capturing him? I don’t know…”

David’s bright smile, which had remained unchanged until then, began to fade. He seemed to be trying to cover it up, but I had touched on a painful wound.

Still, it was something that had to be done. Just as I had foiled Lilia de Sugamond’s assassination plan, Aidan’s assassination plan had to be stopped as well.

“Perhaps it’s impossible in this state. We need to recover without any aftereffects and then try to pursue him again, but by that time, Aidan won’t be waiting for us.”

If necessary, I was willing to pay the price to persuade him. I was prepared to do so.

David was an assassin, but he wasn’t a candidate to succeed Esperand’s legacy. If he was aiming for my or Camille’s position, I was willing to yield.

“What… should we leave it to someone else or take the risk and start tracking him again?”

“Hyung-nim tried to save me and got hurt because of it.”

“That’s true, but…”

I clearly stated to David, who was looking downcast,

“I’ll capture Aidan. If we’re being fair, hyung-nim saved my life this time. And it’s because of me that you got hurt.”

“Are you okay with that? You? You just caught one person, and now you’re going after that oni or whatever.”

He wasn’t a person, but a demon, but I didn’t correct him.

“Do you know that Aidan is a famous magician? He used to be part of the Ivory Tower.”

“……”

“He’s a magician who has evaded all our pursuits until now. There were two assassins who were sent before me, but he completely destroyed them. It was impossible to revive them.”

Up to this point, it was the same as the setting.

“I had a hard time going, but it’ll be even harder for you. You’re still young and lack experience. If I were in your shoes, I would have been able to escape, but for you, it’ll be a life-or-death struggle.”

I listened to David’s words quietly.

David wasn’t someone who would exaggerate. He was probably genuinely worried about me and trying to give me advice.

I kept silent, and eventually, David was the first to speak up.

“Then, Sion, I’ll ask you. I’ve thought about it, and it’s not all bad. You’re my savior. You can finish him off from a distance.”

“If I invest all my magic in firepower, I can try to take him down once.”

“What about when you shot me earlier?”

“I only invested half of my magic then. I didn’t use any real bullets.”

I couldn’t penetrate David’s defense, but if I had used real bullets, the situation might have been different. It was a faint hope, but it wasn’t entirely impossible, as David had said.

That’s why David was sending me a positive signal.

I took over David’s task. The information that I had taken over David’s mission would probably be conveyed to the elders of Esperand as well.

“Kill him, and don’t get killed yourself.”

I nodded in agreement to David’s advice. And I carefully began to make my way down the cliff, following the Hasan Road I had set up earlier.

Even with a wounded leg, David descended the cliff faster than I did. As someone with a well-trained body, it wasn’t surprising.

I suppressed the bitter laughter that was about to burst out and continued down the endless cliff.

David had advised me to kill Aidan, but…

…unfortunately, it was an impossible task.

I won’t kill Aidan. Instead, I’ll support him so he can safely return to the Magic Tower.

Originally, Aidan was supposed to die at David’s hands. That was the setting in the original story. To save Aidan, I had to take on this mission.

A long time ago, Aidan’s full name was listed as Aidan Steelhaiden.

The man who received an unexpected death sentence due to his conflict with Professor Biern.

The current master of the Steelhaiden household, who has been missing for several years.

As can be inferred from his name… he was Lara Steelhaiden’s father.