Chapter 6 …
After the monsters on the 4th floor—three Goblin Warriors, two Goblin Archers, and five Goblins—were all killed,
Lee Hyun looked at the new notification window that appeared before him.
“Item ‘Choi Ihyun’s Sniper Rifle’ has reached Level 5.
Please select a skill.”
Hunters gain one skill every five levels.
Of course, that doesn’t mean they walk around carrying hundreds of skills as their level increases.
If a skill has already been chosen, the options may instead show skill upgrades.
That’s why hunters usually grow by strengthening their main skills.
But for Lee Hyun, this was his first skill.
To exaggerate a little, depending on what first skill appears, a hunter’s entire future career could change.
With a slightly nervous heart, Lee Hyun opened the selection window.
1. Improved Rifling (D)
Improves the quality of the rifling.
Distance and penetration slightly increase.
2. Soulmate (D)
10% of the item’s stats are linked to the bound owner.
Firepower and range apply to Strength, precision and stability to Vitality, stealth and rapid fire to Agility.
Applies even if the item is in the inventory.
3. Flame Shot (D)
Adds a fire attribute to mana bullets.
Firepower slightly increases and precision slightly decreases.
Currently limited to 1 shot.
“…Huh?”
After briefly examining the skills, Lee Hyun was greatly surprised.
The letter “D” next to the skill names.
It naturally meant D-rank.
“Already D-rank?”
From what Lee Hyun had learned, other hunters usually received F-rank skills for their first skill.
If they were lucky, maybe E-rank would appear.
But Lee Hyun had suddenly received D-rank skills, jumping two full grades above that.
And not just one—all three.
“Well, I do get 15 stat points per level… when you think about it like that…”
Nothing about Lee Hyun’s situation was ordinary.
Starting from the awakened item itself, even his stats were abnormal.
So perhaps the skills following the same pattern wasn’t such a big problem.
And even if it was a problem—so what?
As long as it benefited him.
Was this the power of tears, after all?
Lee Hyun gently patted his sniper rifle and carefully read each line of the skill descriptions.
But he didn’t have much difficulty choosing.
‘Obviously this one.’
Smiling, Lee Hyun selected a skill.
“You have acquired the skill ‘Soulmate (D)’.”
It was Soulmate.
The other two skills weren’t bad, but they weren’t necessary for Lee Hyun right now.
As mentioned before, his firepower was already sufficient, and increasing it further would just be overkill.
But if he could share the rifle’s stats himself?
Until now he had only indirectly felt the rifle’s abilities, yet even that had been incredible.
Every time he raised a stat, he could clearly feel the improvement.
Even if it was only 10%, his stats would continue to rise, and the efficiency would improve as the skill rank increased.
There was no reason not to choose it.
‘More importantly, this makes me stronger too.’
Lee Hyun clenched his fist.
Strictly speaking, the one that had truly awakened was Lee Hyun’s sniper rifle.
Lee Hyun himself was still just a simple awakened person, not very different from when he had been in the military.
But with Soulmate, he himself could become stronger.
For Lee Hyun, it was a skill he absolutely needed.
Sure enough, he could feel his strength and senses improving as the stats applied.
“Didn’t it say it works even if it’s in the inventory?”
The effect remained the same even when the sniper rifle was stored in his inventory.
The system that had claimed to be linked earlier clearly wasn’t lying.
Running between his house and the open field would probably become much easier now.
“Would you like to exit Floor 4?”
“Yes.”
Lee Hyun exited the tower and returned home.
Naturally, the sniper rifle was in his inventory.
Even though it shouldn’t have any weight, just the thought that he possessed the rifle made him feel a heavy presence.
He opened the front door firmly.
“Did you get back?”
“Yes, Mom.”
Minjeong greeted Lee Hyun.
After greeting her, Lee Hyun was about to go straight to his room, but Minjeong stopped him.
“Where do you think you’re going? Perfect timing. Help with the store. Come out with Mom.”
Lee Hyun showed a slight look of reluctance.
The next floor—the 5th floor—had a terrible reputation and required considerable preparation.
He needed to start preparing now.
“Mother.”
“…What are you trying to say this time?”
“Although it may seem like your son isn’t doing anything important, I’m actually carrying an extremely significant responsibility. Naturally, I also need a lot of preparation time.”
Lee Hyun tried to persuade Minjeong with a very serious expression.
He also felt sorry for not being able to explain the details.
But Mother!
Your son is One Strike!
The world’s first S+ rank, and he even cleared up to the 4th floor straight!
No mother fails to notice her son’s feelings.
Minjeong released Lee Hyun’s sleeve and nodded regretfully.
“I see. Then it can’t be helped.”
She walked back toward the kitchen, muttering.
“I made soybean paste stew, but I guess I’ll have to throw it all away. I can’t feed something like soybean paste stew to a son who carries such a great responsibility.”
At that moment, Lee Hyun grabbed Minjeong with desperation, using every bit of the stats he had gained from the rifle.
“But as the saying goes—one must first bring order to the family before bringing peace to the world. If the household is peaceful, the world can be peaceful too. I’ll eat lunch and help with the store.”
“Oh my, really? Then Mom would appreciate it.”
Minjeong smiled brightly and nodded.
You can’t resist soybean paste stew!
After finishing the meal and heading to the store—
“Well, you know what? Sungho’s mom came to the shop and insisted on something.”
Lee Hyun casually responded to Minjeong’s chatter while operating his status window.
Choi Ihyun’s Sniper Rifle
Lv.5
Firepower: 13
Range: 3
Precision: 10
Stability: 10
Stealth: 7
Rapid Fire: 7
Mana: 30
Unassigned Stat Points: 5
‘I invested quite a lot…’
By the time it reached level 5, he had earned 75 stat points.
In addition, he increased mana by 7 using the six mana stones from floors 1–3 and one from floor 4.
But once mana reached 30, it was no longer possible to increase it with F-rank mana stones, so two stones remained unused.
Since F-rank hunters were limited to level 29, it might be related to that.
If he had known this earlier, he might have invested only mana through stones.
Still, mana had already reached a decent level, and with the S+ reward that only Lee Hyun seemed to obtain, he would have plenty of mana stones in the future.
That part was a bit disappointing, but—
‘Well, I’ll start doing that with E-rank mana stones.’
He was still at the very beginning of his growth, so he didn’t regret it too much.
And besides—
‘Being able to raise stats with mana stones is already broken.’
Whether through stones or stat allocation, the stats he gained per level were far higher than other hunters on the same floor.
Even so, could he achieve S+ on the 5th floor?
Even Lee Hyun couldn’t help but feel a bit nervous.
That was because the 5th floor had the first mid-boss: the Goblin Warrior Chief.
He had encountered one during military operations before.
Its armor was so tough that even mana rifles struggled to penetrate it.
The only way was to shoot its exposed face, especially the eyes.
Of course, that was why he had invested heavily into firepower now.
Still—
‘Clearing the tower means I’m alone.’
Unlike military operations carried out by a platoon, tower raids were solo.
There were no squadmates to hold enemies down.
No reliable fire support.
That was why he still kept five unassigned stat points.
To invest them into whatever was necessary in an emergency.
Lee Hyun quietly closed the status window and thought.
‘It’s been a while… I’ll move like a real sniper.’
Simply crawling and picking a sniping point was something even FPS players could do.
He didn’t know the exact conditions for an S+ clear, but his goal was clear.
One shot.
To kill even the Goblin Warrior Chief with a single shot, he would need to act far more seriously.
Just then, Minjeong glanced at him.
“Hyun, are you listening?”
“Huh? Oh—Mrs. Minju came with three-day-old mushrooms and asked to exchange them? Why would she do that when she knows better?”
“Oh—oh. You were listening?”
Minjeong nodded in surprise.
He had clearly seemed lost in thought, yet he answered immediately.
Lee Hyun chuckled slightly at her surprised face.
Mother!
Your son is One Strike!
A sniper must be able to detect the sounds necessary for survival even on a battlefield filled with noise.
Management Agency – Talent Search Department
Seongyun and the employees were now completely exhausted.
Even after sending official notices nationwide, no one was bringing in mana stones from the 1st floor.
‘What, is he climbing from some remote island or something?’
Meanwhile, One Strike continued climbing one floor per day and had already cleared the 4th floor.
“If he’s not settling mana stones, it probably means he’s selling them on the black market… which means…”
Now no one even bothered to scold those who suspected One Strike might be a villain.
Everyone was starting to wonder the same thing.
The higher-ups were pressuring them to find him quickly.
The public praised One Strike’s achievements while mocking the government for failing to identify him.
Seongyun and the department were stuck between both sides.
“Any reports today?”
“No… Ah, actually there was one person who settled a 1st floor mana stone.”
“What? Who?”
“He had severe injuries from a goblin.”
“Sigh…”
Seongyun shook his head.
It was unfortunate for a hunter to be injured.
But someone injured by goblins could never achieve S+, not even B rank.
So it clearly wasn’t One Strike.
‘Where on earth is he and what is he thinking…’
Soon the employees began whispering.
“What’s the Korean record again?”
“Rank 1 Shingung cleared up to the 4th floor with S.”
“4th floor? What about the 5th?”
“A+. But from the 6th floor onward he got S again. So technically Shingung still holds the record.”
“Is the 5th floor that hard?”
“You work here and don’t know? The 5th floor has the mid-boss Goblin Warrior Chief!”
“Goblin Warrior Chief?”
“Yes! Most hunters can’t even scratch its armor. So the standard method is leveling up several times on the 4th floor first. Shingung got A+ only because he’s Shingung.”
“I see…”
The employee who had been explaining spoke gloomily.
One Strike had become the hope of Korea with his continuous S+ streak.
But if it stopped at the 5th floor, it would feel disappointing.
“I guess… at least he’ll get an S.”
“Well, even that beats Shingung’s record. But since the U.S. already recorded S on the 5th floor, it won’t be officially announced.”
The mood in the department sank even further.
The possibility that One Strike might be a villain wasn’t what depressed them the most.
What depressed them was the thought that the S+ streak might end.
Main Tower – Floor 5
Whoooooosh—
Lee Hyun calmly waited for his opportunity.
The 5th floor was indeed far more difficult than the previous floors.
The Goblin Warrior Chief was on an entirely different level from the other goblins.
But Lee Hyun was a sniper.
Eventually, a large goblin entered perfectly into his scope.
Lee Hyun twisted the corner of his mouth upward.
‘Got you.’
