Arcane Sniper

Chapter 970

Sergio’s lips twitched for a moment, but he never laughed.

“Unless the ‘Physical Substantialism’ group prepares solid evidence, can we assume there will be no surprises?”

It was a kind of wedge. There was nothing that could be prepared at this point. Revisiting Laputa? That seemed impossible.

Even if they did return, it would all be crushed.

‘Wrong… Even if Master Kay’s speech video is shown everywhere—right now, the diocese will not move.’

No matter how many users there were, most of the diocese-level leaders were ultimately NPCs. Unless there was a weapon to completely subdue them?

‘We might lose.’

Raphaela nodded with a bright smile. Though she managed her expressions better than Sergio, inside, she was exceedingly anxious.

The pope nodded, declaring the meeting closed. Until the opinions of the nine-cardinal committee were collected, there were three days left.

Leeha accessed the system. It took a considerable amount of in-game time for Kijung to access at home, so Leeha headed somewhere other than the New Continent.

“I should finally do some proper work this time.”

He busily moved to manage his holdings in Gaza City.

* * *

“There’s no real problem, is there?”

Leeha quickly reviewed the documents, asking the NPC butler. The butler nodded.

Since Ram Hwayeon had established a good framework, the management of Gaza City could proceed smoothly.

“There was considerable financial consumption at the corps chief’s forge over the past week.”

“That, well… It couldn’t be helped.”

“Is that so. It was for market activation and road maintenance budgets, but― due to the urgent reallocation of accounting categories…”

Though the voice was calm, the pressure Leeha felt was beyond imagination. From the NPC’s point of view, the lord always caused financial issues whenever he came, so it was hard to think favorably of Leeha.

Of course, because of buffs like 『Dignity』, a clear hierarchy was established, so he never openly opposed Leeha, yet Leeha had no desire to refute his logical words.

“Alright, alright. This week, don’t aim for any profits; use all incoming revenue for expenditures. Is that fine?”

“It should be maintained like that until next week.”

“Ugh, anyway.”

Even at Hwahong guild, a considerable amount of resources were consumed when creating a mana supply device for Ram Hwajung.

Moreover, how much more would it need to be enhanced to handle the mana flow for thousands of people?

Leeha had to bear the cost of purchasing various rare minerals for Bottleneck as well as the delay in fortification repairs due to focusing solely on equipment production for Luger, Kidd, and himself.

‘Now that I think about it, this is infuriating. Kidd and Luger barely paid anything, and they hadn’t even fully paid the balance, only the down payment.’

Though having Bottleneck in Gaza City was convenient, sacrificing resources first at such times seemed unavoidable. Leeha glanced at his friends list with a smile.

‘I can’t let that happen.’

By doubling the production charges for Kidd and Luger through Bottleneck and stopping the supply of bullets until they paid the outstanding balance?

He could fully recoup the money Kidd and Luger had earned from looting during the Tiamat war.

“Heh, I’m really a genius. Still, it’s a pity. If only these achievements had been pre-assigned, the procurement of minerals would have been much easier.”

Leeha checked the achievement windows.

Two achievements obtained from killing Onyx with Tiamat caught his eye.

〈Achievement: Removed the Core of the Chromatic Dragon. (S+)〉

Congratulations!

You defeated the elder level ancient dragon 『Onyx』, who led the chromatic dragons. Until a new leader emerged, the chromatic dragons were to remain dormant, resting in their lairs. Your actions earned you the respect of the metal dragons that guarded the frontier, but they also incurred the wrath of the chromatic dragons. An unchecked ferocity could become even more dangerous. Do not forget that a deranged dragon could potentially attack your city, castle, or fields at any time.

Reward: 30 Stat Points

Affinity with all metal dragons increased by 15%

Permission to mine minerals within the territories of all metal dragons

Affinity with all chromatic dragons decreased by 30%

Increased likelihood of attacks by chromatic dragons

(This is a one-time event that can occur regardless of location, and the color of the dragon involved will be assigned randomly.)

You are the first to register the achievement of “Removed the Core of the Chromatic Dragon..”

The first three registrants of the achievement will be recorded in the Hall of Fame, with the existing effects being applied at 200% efficiency.

Effect: 60 Stat Points

Affinity with all metal dragons increased by 30%

Affinity with all chromatic dragons decreased by 60%

Increased likelihood of attacks by chromatic dragons

(This is a one-time event that can occur regardless of location, and the color of the dragon involved will be assigned randomly.)

“Ugh, mineral collection! Well, since things have come to this, should I ask the Beard Brothers to gather other dwarves?”

What if Leeha could organize a specialized gathering group by mass emigrating dwarves from Helanville?

Turning mineral extraction mainly towards the rare deposits of the metal dragons could become a significant source of income.

Leeha seriously contemplated this matter.

After all, additional affinity with metal dragons or further negative affinity with chromatic dragons wasn’t much of a concern for him.

‘It’s already way past -100%. What’s bothersome is the occurrence of the attack event.’

Leeha glanced at the sky outside the window. This meant that if he was unlucky, one of the deranged chromatic dragons might attack Gaza City, where he was located, at any moment.

‘What if I were at the Papacy or the capital? Would they attack then too?’

If there were enough chromatic dragons that followed the 『Elder』 to attack regardless of the location, it was possible. But Leeha chuckled at the thought.

Now that Onyx was dead?

Perhaps since Onyx was gone, another dragon would take up the role of 『Elder』. Leeha didn’t know how that dragon would act, but he was well aware of Onyx’s predictable actions.

“That’s exactly the significance of this kind of achievement.”

〈Achievement: Freedom for the Dragons!(S)〉

Congratulations!

You freed them from the clutches of the leader of the 『Chromatic』 dragons, who held more than 85% of the members’ resentment. Those who were subjugated and exploited by their de facto leader were genuinely rejoicing at the death of their oppressor. Buoyed by their newfound liberation, they would undoubtedly respect your opinions. The fact that they didn’t consume you whole is evidence of that!

Reward: 25 Stat Points

Affinity with chromatic dragons increased by 20%

Eligibility to attend the selection of the next leader

You are the first to register the “Freedom for the Dragons” achievement.

The first three registrants of the achievement will be recorded in the Hall of Fame, with existing effects being applied at 200% efficiency.

Effect: 50 Stat Points

Affinity with chromatic dragons increased by 40%

“Heh heh… Heh heh heh! To think he earned the ire of more than 85% of the members. That Onyx dragon was truly a wretched one.”

“Perhaps it would equate to an additional achievement given for killing the leaders of Color or Metal, an S+ level accomplishment.”

The statement implied that Middle Earth could earn achievements based on the relationships not only between Color and Metal but also within each dragon faction.

Leeha understood that a certain degree of luck was necessary for such feats.

“In other words… even the ‘new’ Bahamut on the metal dragon’s side could be treated in this manner.”

This was also a direct example of how inefficient domination through sheer force could be.

Leeha scratched his chin as he gazed at the achievement window. However, he wondered about the statement below it.

“‘Eligible to attend the selection of the next leader… does that even make sense?'”

Even if a certain level of camaraderie increased, the total was still negative. How could Leeha attend the Chromatic Dragon’s leadership selection meeting?

Moreover, could someone who was vulnerable to potential random surprise attacks from the achievement above actually do such a thing?

“With the ‘Dragon Slayer’ buff, I am already sensitive to hostile dragons. Well… it would certainly be interesting if I could attend.”

Just imagining how the situation would unfold made Leeha chuckle.

“And next…”

Among the achievements obtained after the Tiamat war, there was one that left the most memorable impression.

Even more than fully charging Black Bass to 75%, it was an achievement that resonated deeply with Leeha.

〈Achievement: Shimo’s Message (S+)〉

“Congratulations!”

“You have excellently fulfilled the last task that the previous ‘White Reaper’ left behind. The outstanding flow of mana you possess and wield so well has triggered the message he imprinted on his weapon just before vanishing. Though his resting soul cannot recognize you now, he surely is overjoyed.”

Reward: 60 stat points

Skill—Snow Storm’s range increased by 50%

Skill—White Reaper’s damage increased by 30%

‘Replayable message from the White Reaper’

(This achievement does not have a Hall of Fame.)

“There is no current possession of the White Reaper’s gun.. Or more precisely… it’s here.”

Leeha grasped Black Bass. It had absorbed Shimo’s gun. Leeha had been baffled right after obtaining the achievement, but now he understood clearly.

“Black, play it.”

—”Heh heh… Understood.”—

Black Bass’s voice carried more strength than before.

Leeha believed it was because Black Bass had consumed Tiamat’s heart and had absorbed the energy to enhance its demonic charge rate, but he could not focus on that right now.

Moments later, a dazzling white light exploded from the lord’s office in Gaza City.

In front of Leeha emerged a semi-transparent image of a person: the White Reaper.

『If you are seeing this, it means you have ultimately succeeded in using 〈White Reaper〉 perfectly.』

Even though he had heard it once before, Leeha still found it amusing.

The last mission that the White Reaper, Shimo, had left was precisely the perfect use of 〈White Reaper〉.

‘My skill remains restricted. Even in 〈White Reaper—Restricted〉 status, it cleared.’

But what did it mean, having completed the mission? When Leeha first saw the video, he was flustered and tried to speak to Shimo’s spirit, but as per the achievement’s description, it was a one-sided message.

The replayed video left a message without enabling two-way communication with Leeha.

Fortunately, Shimo provided an explanation himself.

『At least 30,000 splits… It would be impossible in a restricted state.』