I Became the Academy’s Munchkin Sniper

It had only been three minutes since the fight started. 

The battle’s outcome was one-sided. No matter what Ciel did, she couldn’t break through the Yeti’s shield, and her once-aggressive momentum gradually weakened.

The snowstorm was intended to slow down the Yeti’s approach, the ice walls were meant to block its path, and the icicles were meant to draw its attention, turning Ciel’s magic defensive. 

When half of her mana was depleted, Ciel began to struggle. She couldn’t keep up with the Yeti’s movements. 

She was barely blocking each attack and had to summon a shield she hadn’t used since learning ice magic.

At that moment, only one-tenth of her mana remained. Ciel exhaled heavily as she looked ahead.  

“Tsk… Haah…!”

The Yeti’s eyes, which were tainted with demonic energy, shone. At the entrance of the underground cave, the demon knight merely scoffed at the sight.  

The sight of someone desperately trying to survive…  

It was utterly…  

[… Pathetic.]  

The fact that an insect dared to resist made him boil with rage. He, who was between a low-ranking and mid-ranking demon, was furious by the fact that he had to deal with such a situation. 

Even though he was a servant of a demon count, he shouldn’t have to be infiltrating a mere human academy. But…  

— Go weaken the academy’s forces. I will grant you your ‘wish.’

However, as it was the count’s command, and because the count was of higher rank, he had come to fulfill the mission in line with his knightly duty.

The demon knight, Herpen, looked at Ciel—the academy’s key figure and its strongest power. She exhaled ragged breaths, her eyes glowing with determination within the magic circle.

It was time to take away her hope.  

After all, this had been entertaining.

[… Young girl.]

As Herpen pulled the threads of demonic energy like a puppet master before a weapon, Yeti swung its spiked mace through the air.

As it slammed the mace down, Herpen spoke a chant.  

[I commend your courage.]

Boom—!  

“Ugh—!”

[But an insignificant being that resists will be crushed…]

Crash—!  

“Keugh—!”

[Experience firsthand what happens when you charge recklessly…!]

Clang—!

At that moment, Ciel’s shield shattered into pieces. The backlash caused her to spit blood as she was slammed into the ice wall.

Bang!

“Ugh—!”

It was a hopeless situation. Her vision blurred. Ciel tried to muster strength in her body, but only her fingertips trembled. 

A very small magic orb—this was all the mana she had left.

Ciel lay drenched in blood with her head hung low.

‘Did I lose?’

Defeat. 

She had been utterly defeated.  

All she did was defend, and in the end, everything was over. 

She had thrown away her pride, focused solely on defense, without even considering fighting back.

Even though she had more than enough mana to use high-level magic, she couldn’t bring herself to use it until her magic power was drained. 

She instinctively knew that no matter what she did, the thick wall protecting the Yeti wouldn’t break.

Regret filled her.  

If only she had used her high-level magic more boldly.  

If only she hadn’t underestimated the demon and had been a bit more cautious.  

If only she had escaped the cave…

Could she have had a chance?

‘How foolish…’

All the opportunities had passed. Due to her reckless judgment, she had put her comrades in danger as well.

Boom—!  

Ciel shifted her blurred gaze. The demon was taking large steps toward her, preparing to deliver the final blow. 

Ciel barely managed to mutter.

“Don’t touch the others…”

[… Your comrades? Unfortunately, they’re still struggling inside the cave. I’ll send them to you soon.]  

“…”

[Die…]

With those words, the Yeti swung its mace.

As if it was happening in slow motion, the iron mace slowly approached. 

Ciel closed her eyes.  

‘Master…’

She thought of him. Ciel felt guilty toward the Master who had helped her until now. 

How ridiculous it must have been for him to believe in someone as insignificant as her. 

How laughable it was that someone like her, who didn’t deserve it, sought after the Master, followed him, and got excited over his every word. 

Ciel felt pathetic.

She moved her lips which couldn’t speak aloud the words she so desired.

To her family, for failing to fulfill her duty;  

To her comrades, who had faced death alongside her;  

And to the Master, who had believed in her…

“I’m sorry…”  

That’s what she wanted to say.

Tears like moonlight streamed down from Ciel’s eyes.

Those were tears of regret.

Whoosh—!  

The mace came crashing down like a streak of lightning.

In that moment, a brief flash of light flickered.  

Clang—! Crash—!  

[…!]

The Yeti stared at the mace that had been deflected. It had not only scraped the wall but had created a large hole and then shattered.

His strength, the sheer power in his weapon, met defeat in a battle of force.  

The meaning of that was clear.

[… I thought you were just an insect.]

Herpen peered deeper into the cave. Amid the vast darkness, a figure flickered.  

[Was I wrong…?]

A man was walking toward them, holding a weapon.

———

[You have selected the Light element.]

[The target’s element is Evil.]  

[There is a significant level difference between you and the target.]  

[Insight is activated!]  

[Your level, stats, and skill grades will temporarily rise!]  

[Damage amplification is applied!]

[ Kyle ]  

Lv: 50  

Race: Human  

Gender: Male  

Title: The Most Notorious Scoundrel, Demon Slayer  

Mana: 3600/5000  

Karma: 5  

Innate Trait: Sniping Master  

Traits: Perfect Accuracy, Crisis Detection, Rapid Fire, Touch of Death, Iron Man, Indomitable Spirit

[Stat Details]  

Invested Stat Points: 0  

Strength: 30  

Stamina: 30  

Endurance: 30  

Intelligence: 30  

Perception: 30  

Mana Perception: 15  

Spirit Perception: 15

[Talent Details]  

Element: Multiple  

Affinity: Multiple  

Growth Efficiency: A+

[Active Skill Details]  

Liberation, Ignition, Water Control, Gust

[Passive Skill Details]  

Shooting Proficiency: B  

Mana Efficiency: B  

Firepower: B  

Firepower Control: B  

Crafting: B  

Butchery: B

Kyle was observing the situation through his scope.  

“Phew~ I wasn’t too late.”

The ice cave was so long that it had taken him a lot of time to bring two people through. 

By the time he arrived, Ciel was on the verge of collapse. He had barely managed to knock Yeti’s weapon away just in time.

[Warning! A powerful enemy is targeting you!]

Thanks to that, Herpen’s attention was now focused on him. Which was just fine.

‘Yes, look at me. Don’t waste your strength on Ciel anymore.’

Unlike in games, if the player doesn’t draw aggro, it’s unsettling.

Kyle stepped into the ice cave on his own, making sure Herpen wouldn’t approach Ciel any further. 

Herpen roared and charged at him with heavy steps. However, the distance between Kyle and Herpen was still great. 

Right now, it was Kyle’s time to act without interference.

He raised his gun, aiming at the creature’s head that appeared through his scope. 

Without hesitation, he fired the second bullet.

Zip!

The silent bullet flew towards the target.  

Thud! 

It was blocked by the shield. Kyle had already expected that a normal attack wouldn’t work. The armor that demon lord wore was of artifact-level quality.

“Still fine.”

But it wasn’t over. 

Kyle calmly prepared his third bullet.

[Such useless tricks…!]

Meanwhile, Herpen was smashing through the ice cave, charging forward. The straight trajectory of the next shot desired to break the shield once again.

Crackle!

The sound of magic power clashing with the shield filled the space as the massive creature rushed through the dust. 

Herpen couldn’t understand it. The man would soon be torn apart, but he remained calm, holding his ground.

Now the distance was around 50 meters. If Kyle didn’t dodge, Herpen would utterly crush him.

[Be flattened…!]

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Herpen charged forward with the momentum to wipe out everything in front of him.

“…”

Meanwhile, Kyle loaded the fourth bullet. He infused it with the last of his remaining magic power, and the bullet turned red. He drew a line as Herpen approached.

A blue grid began analyzing the cave for optimal shooting conditions. Once the calculations were complete, Kyle exhaled white breath and said.

“There’s still one shot left.”

The sniper rifle fired.

Zoom!

This time it was different. 

The magic-infused bullet spun at high speed, tearing through space and creating shockwaves. Like a vortex, the entire area seemed to be sucked in.

[…That!]

Herpen saw the red spiral approaching. He couldn’t dodge, and he couldn’t block it. The bullet was cutting through space, accelerating even faster. 

There was no air resistance to slow it down. Even as the Yeti tried to move its hand, everything felt slow. The only thing moving quickly in this world was the bullet.

‘That’s dangerous…!!’

Herpen instinctively enhanced his armor’s power. A black shield quickly wrapped around his body, but the bullet continued to approach without hindrance.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The armor, which no one had ever penetrated, began to crack.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. This armor had been the masterpiece of the former demon king, the reason Herpen had remained a knight.

[Damn it…! This is impossible…!]

In the end, Herpen desperately pushed his armor to its limits, but…

Shatter!

The armor broke like glass. Metal fragments scattered across the underground cavern. 

Herpen stood there with a blank gaze.

The mana-infused bullet was spinning right in front of his eyes.  

Psshhk—!

Darkness.

The bullet pierced through Herpen’s forehead, severing his connection with the demonic beast. The Yeti’s body collapsed, leaving only its lower half as a massive hole opened in its torso.

[Congratulations! You have defeated the Yeti possessed by Herpen!]

The situation was resolved.

“Phew…”

Kyle exhaled deeply and lowered his sniper rifle.