by Park Saenal
“…!!”
The most important part that Grid and the Overgeared blacksmiths focused on was mass production. It was standardized to be produced quickly and easily, and the materials used were relatively simple. That’s why the rating of the Overgeared Cannon was judged to be lower. The maximum rating was legendary and the minimum rating should be rare to epic.
One of the factors determining item rating was the quality of the materials used, making it a reasonable guess for Grid. Yet the completed Overgeared Cannon was guaranteed to be at least unique. It was the best result he had never expected.
“Nice!!”
“Congratulations Your Majesty!”
Grid and the blacksmith’s cheers filled the smithy. The unclothed men forgot their ages and identities and embraced each other. A bright future was drawn in their minds.
Chapter 1008
[Overgeared Cannon]
[Rating: Unique – Legendary
Unique Rating Information:
Attack Power: 45,000 fixed damage.
* The damage will increase according to the skill level of a marksman’s Firearms Mastery.
* The same damage will be applied to a radius of 4 meters around the target.
Defense +200.
* Neutralize one ranged attack (cooldown time of 1 minute).
Attack Speed: Once every 19 seconds.
Movement Speed: 2 meters per second.
Attack Distance: 300 – 880 meters.
* Three people are required to operate the cannon.
* If the attack target is a building or a weapon, three times the damage will be dealt.
Legendary Rating Information:
Attack Power: 60,000 fixed damage.
* The damage will increase according to the skill level of a marksman’s Firearms Mastery.
* The same damage will be applied to a radius of 6 meters around the target.
Defense +350.
* Neutralize one ranged attack (cooldown time of 45 seconds).
Attack Speed: Once every 15 seconds.
Movement Speed: 2 meters per second.
Attack Distance: 150 – 1,050 meters.
* Three people are required to operate the cannon.
* If the attack target is a building or a weapon, three times the damage will be dealt.
-A cannon created by the legendary blacksmith Grid, who has been recognized by a god, and the blacksmith craftsmen of the West Continent and East Continent.
It is a cannon made with elaborate calculations and can’t work if it is made with a material other than black iron with a different weight. The chassis designed for pulling and recoil suppression is designed to be agile enough to move the cannon forward or back. The knowledge and know-how of the craftsmen made a ‘support’ linking the wheels and barrel. This means a marksman can set the angles of the barrel more flexibly.
The shield on top is filled with Grid’s heart that prays for the safety of the soldiers. It will be responsible for the safety of the artillery. The structure is designed to be able to hold the shells behind the breech-loading cannon. The reload speed is much faster than a cannon that needs to be moved to the front of the barrel every time it is reloaded, and the aiming point isn’t easily lost. The barrel’s length is long, and its attack power and range are excellent.
This is a revolution. The emergence of the Overgeared Cannon, which overturned the limitations of existing cannons, will give people a new perception.
Usage Conditions: A marksman with the Firearms Mastery skill.
Weight: 39,500]
It was worthy of praise. There was even the word ‘revolution’ in the description. He was already looking forward to seeing how much more praise would be added if he got a legendary rating.
“…”
Grid looked at the faces of the sweaty men embracing and turned away. The best blacksmiths of this era…
Why did they take off their clothes to overcome the heat of the smithy? Why were they all men? His eyes would’ve been wide open if they were women.
“…”
No, he didn’t mean to think about this. Grid shook his head and glanced around at the blacksmiths. These were the best people in their class. The Overgeared Cannon contained the skills and knowledge they had accumulated throughout their lives. It was clear that the Overgeared Cannon, which had been made by them, was a masterpiece worthy of praise.
Grid was burning with motivation. “Let’s start the production of the Overgeared Cannon now.”
Blueprints were categorized as consumables. There was only one blueprint of the Overgeared Cannon created by Grid, and only Grid could learn it. However, the blacksmith craftsmen who participated in the design of the Overgeared Cannon weren’t fools. There was no way they couldn’t be aware of the Overgeared Cannon that they had designed.
Those who participated in the creation of the item received an imperfect blueprint of the Overgeared Cannon. It wasn’t a fraudulent blueprint that guaranteed a minimum unique rating like Grid’s, but it was worthwhile because the basic performance of the Overgeared Cannon was so good.
The heat of the smithy suddenly rose as eight hearths and the private furnace of Overgeared King Grid and the craftsmen who followed him were lit.
Ttang! Ttang! Ttang!
The hammering sound reverberated like chords in the hearts of the young blacksmiths. The future of the Overgeared Kingdom was becoming stronger.
***
Sniping was an attack method aimed at maximum efficiency. The idea was to inflict a fatal wound on the other person so they couldn’t fight back. It was impossible for Jishuka to be unaware of this.
“…” Jishuka gazed at the imperial army and pulled back her bowstring. Despite the optimal wind direction, she wasn’t able to draw her bow carelessly. Sweat dripped down her chin. She was filled with extreme tension. The previous few failures had taken away her confidence.
“Can you do it?” Toban asked carefully. The battle had already run for one hour in length. Jishuka normally played an active role against the imperial army in her intermittent appearances, but now she couldn’t fire a single arrow. Toban, who had been with Jishuka since the days of L.T.S, was unfamiliar with her current appearance. Jishuka was a genius among geniuses. He never imagined that Jishuka, who he believed to be the top gamer until Satisfy, could be so shaken.
“Sigh…” Jishuka took a deep breath and pulled the bowstring. “I’ll be struck back the moment I shoot.”
“That’s why I came with you. Trust me. Am I not one of the best tankers in the world?”
“The real problem is something else.”
Jishuka’s eyes were staring at an archer in a distant place that the public couldn’t see.
“There is no point in shooting. We can’t deal much damage to the enemy by shooting. Additionally, our location will be exposed.”
The imperial army’s formation was perfect. The troops were deployed in a fluid manner where they could avoid major damage, even if they were shot. No matter how much the monster called Noll one-sidedly harassed the imperial army. The ability of the leaders meant the damage to the army wasn’t significant. Moreover, the biggest problem was the magic that blocked ranged attacks which came from ‘beyond a certain distance.’ Unlike Faker and Kasim who directly infiltrated the enemy camp, Jishuka couldn’t assassinate the enemy leaders.
Additionally, there was an archer who could instantly grasp Jishuka’s sniping position. Every time Jishuka fired at the enemy, a counterattack always came back. Jishuka had already lost her life twice from this counterattack. This meant the opponent was more powerful than Jishuka.
It was an environment where she couldn’t be active. The extreme environment depleted Jishuka’s mental power. The dignity of the Saharan Empire, the strongest nation on the continent, turned Jishuka into an infinitely weak existence.
“…”
The day had come when the always confident Jishuka felt frustrated. Toban was frightened by Jishuka’s appearance a
nd didn’t know what to do.
‘Should I slap her on the cheek to wake her up?’
No, he would be killed. He had to find another way to calm her, but he didn’t know how. It had been almost 10 years since he had been with Jishuka, but this was the first time he had seen something like this. Toban didn’t know what to do.
“It isn’t good,” a new voice was heard. Jishuka leaned forward, and her body trembled.
“You need to let me do it if you can’t.” The newly heard voice belonged to Yura. She leaned on a rock and transformed Alex’s Magic Engineering Bayonet into sniper mode. It was the damn weapon that had knocked out Jishuka in the 3rd National Competition.
However, Jishuka showed a ridiculing reaction. “You can do it when I can’t?”
“Of course, I can’t. Still, isn’t it better than nothing?”
“Don’t be sarcastic. The moment you shoot that gun, we’re all at risk. It doesn’t matter if you die, but my life and Toban’s life is precious.”
“If you aren’t going to fire, don’t take the sniper position and get out of the way.”
“Hah. Yes, do whatever you like.” Jishuka didn’t have the physical strength to deal with her rival. Then it happened when the frowning Jishuka was about to leave.
Tatang! Yura fired the gun. A jade magic power was fired from the muzzle and quickly aimed at the enemy.
“Crazy woman!” Jishuka’s Hawk Eyes had achieved master level, and she examined the enemy. It was as expected. Yura’s bullet, which aimed at the enemy commander, was blocked by the magic barrier. Simultaneously…
–-!
An arrow faster than bullets seemed to flood over to their side. It was the archer who had killed Jishuka twice.
“Dammit!” Jishuka reflexively raised her bow and fired an arrow.
–-!
Two arrows collided in the air and fell to the ground. While panting, Jishuka shouted at Yura, “Do you want to die? Why are you ignoring people’s words?! If it wasn’t for me, you would be dead!”
Legends were naturally immortal, but the enemy’s relentless arrows would’ve followed her to the end. Yura grinned at the shouting Jishuka. “You are better than him.”
“What?”
“Didn’t you hit that arrow despite shooting later? Doesn’t that mean your skills are better?”
“No, that….” Jishuka was about to refute it only to shut up. Yes, it was worth trying. Did she need to be scared by a person like that? No, why should she be scared in the first place? Hadn’t she already been through many disadvantageous fights? Then why now…
“…Hah.”
She had been living too comfortably these days. After setting up the Overgeared Kingdom and becoming a duke, she lived a life that was far from a ‘challenge.’ The stage of the National Competition might’ve weakened her. Death and failure in the National Competition were fakes with no penalties. She had become accustomed to false deaths and failures and afraid of real death and failures.
“I have become a cow.”
Jishuka was a predator. She shouldn’t mistake herself as a grazing animal.
“Toban.”
“Yes. Tell me,” Toban answered vigorously after confirming that Jishuka’s gaze had returned to normal.
“The world’s best tanker? I should trust in you?”
“…?”
Jishuka gave a meaningful smile and suddenly climbed on a camel. She started to move toward the distant imperial army.
“This is crazy!”
Reidan’s camels were an improved species. It was possible to run quickly in the desert. In an instant, Jishuka moved far away, and Toban quickly followed. Jishuka was laughing. “I can’t shoot from a distance? Then I can shoot from close up, right?”
On the running camel, Jishuka pulled back her bowstring. The Red Phoenix Bow reacted to her magic power and emitted flames hotter than the desert.
“The enemy!”
“Only two? Crazy!”
“Intercept them!”
The imperial army discovered the woman with a burning bow and the soldier with a shield beside her. Toban’s shield blocked the incoming arrows and spells. “Ugh…! No more!”
They couldn’t approach any further. Toban wanted to stay this, but he had no time.
Jishuka was already flying in front of Toban. “Fly Up!”
A huge flaming bird appeared above the heads of the imperial forces. The soldiers didn’t panic. A few days ago, they witnessed the destruction of the red phoenix, but none of them had died.
“At that time, I was shooting from a distance.” Jishuka laughed. The desert exploded, and the formation of the imperial army was overturned. The price of Jishuka’s attack was great. The enraged imperial army’s counterattack quickly turned Jishuka into a rag. She was dying.
“I saw it well.” Yura helped her. She opened the hell gate and summoned the demons to secure their treat.
“You are unlucky.”
“I hear that a lot from women.”
“What? Do you think I’m jealous of you? Do you want to start bleeding?”
“I don’t want to.”
“T-Take me too.” Toban chased desperately after the two bickering women.
Chapter 1009
The former emperors believed that the higher the level of the people, the stronger the nation. It was one of the reasons why the empire wasn’t wealthy. The empire conferred more welfare and benefits to its people as it conquered and exploited others. They hoped the people would take pride in themselves as citizens of the empire and focus on self-development, which would also grow the empire. This was the empire’s investment for thousands of years.
–!
The archer Rainhud was one of the talents raised by the empire. The extremely developed archer perceived the breeze coming from afar and recognized the wavelength of the air.
“…” Rainhud captured a glow in the sky and lowered his gaze. His eyes stared at the horizon and captured a blue stream of magic power. He instantly captured Yura in his gaze. The string of his bow was pulled back. He had no intention of letting go of an enemy who dared to shoot at the empire.
Rainhud released the bowstring. The sparkling bullet that flew toward the allied formation exploded as it collided with the magic barrier. There was a glaring light that obstructed Rainhud’s visibility.
“Keuk…!” Rainhud lost his aiming point, and the arrow he fired was weaker than usual. Rainhud’s arrow, which should’ve penetrated Yura, was intercepted in the air. It was an arrow made of jaffa. Rainhud recognized it instantly. It was the arrow of the woman he killed twice.
“You!”
The greatest shame of an archer wasn’t when they failed to hit the target but when they were targeted. The disgrace he felt when the arrow he’d shot became a target was too great. The excuse of losing his sight because of the flash didn’t work. Rainhud had to make up for it. He once again drew back the bowstring.
The magic bombardment of Noll in the sky intensified, causing Rainhud to lose his balance for a moment. He hurriedly shifted his gaze back and saw an absurd scene. The crazy female archer of the Overgeared Kingdom was approaching on a camel.
“Why is she committing suicide?”
Rainhud tried to aim at the female archer only to then come to a stop. It was due to the phoenix rising from behind the archer. The hot heat emitted by the phoenix seemed to melt the entire desert.
“It is useless! Don’t be deceived!”
“It isn’t a big deal!”
The soldiers ignored the phoenix. A few days ago, the phoenix fired from a distance was blocked by the magic barrier. However, now the distance was too close. It was a distance where the magic barrier which worked against snipers couldn’t take effect.
Rainhud paled, and he quickly fired an arrow. He planned to assassinate the archer before the phoenix’s attack hit.
“Ohhhhh!” Then a black man came running with a shield and protected the archer. He was a very durable man and didn’t fa
ll down easily.
“Shit!” Rainhud blamed the monster in the sky. The firepower of Rainhud’s allies wasn’t concentrated because of Noll. The screams of the soldiers echoed as they were swallowed up by the fire. Grey pillars rose continuously, and Rainhud lost one eye. This was the moment when the quality of the archer weakened.
“Kuah…! Kuaaaaak!” Rainhud’s scream of anger and resentment was directed at Jishuka. This was the beginning of a new growth.
[★Hidden Quest★ Expert Archer’s Grudge has occurred!]
[Expert Archer’s Grudge]
[★ Hidden Quest ★
The expert archer, whose name isn’t known, has a big grudge against you and plans revenge. In the future, he will live to kill you.
Survive the sniping!
Quest Clear Conditions: Survive 10 sniping attempts that might occur in the future.
Quest Clear Rewards: Every time you survive, your agility and sensing stats will increase.]
“Isn’t this good?”
Jishuka retreated with Yura’s help. She managed to soothe her pain of dying two times in the war. Moreover, she wasn’t alone. There were numerous crises during the war, and the suffering Overgeared members were growing significantly in power.
***
Satisfy had a hierarchy for the countless classes. Some classes were spotlighted by people at the pinnacle of the pyramid while others at the bottom of the pyramid were shunned. The artillery class was a typical low-status class. The expression ‘underprivileged’ was an exaggeration.
Satisfy currently had no portable artillery such as bazookas. There were rumors that they could get portable artillery from the dwarf city or the East Continent, but it didn’t matter… They weren’t circulated on the market. Thanks to this, the artillerymen had to use cannons as weapons, and at least three of them were required to operate one cannon. Moreover, most shells were purchased by the empire and kingdoms.
That’s right. For all sorts of reasons, the artillerymen were a half-rate class that couldn’t even use weapons. Proper hunting was impossible. The only way for artillerymen to progress was to enlist in the army.
“This garbage class has nothing to do even during a war.”