Chapter 8
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Search for the Missing (2)
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The forest they encountered upon leaving the village was littered with dead trees.
The vibrant energy of Brightwood Settlement was nowhere to be found once they passed beyond its borders.
All that remained was a desolate landscape, as if ravaged by the claws of some massive beast.
Jinwoo gripped the horse's reins and gazed down at the small totem resting in his palm.
[Tracking Eye]
A relic of the goblin shaman Norok.
Jinwoo focused on the totem.
Faint blue particles appeared in the air before him, flowing like a river.
It was the path left behind by the abducted villagers and the Trade Federation.
"...So, I'm supposed to follow this, huh."
Jinwoo muttered softly and urged his horse along the stream of light.
The route was cunning.
It deliberately crossed beast habitats or skirted treacherous swamps where footing was unreliable—devious tricks!
The malice intended to shake off pursuers was blatant.
And Jinwoo's eyes spotted something else.
'This is the shortest path to Shadow Marsh in [Rising West]. And that canyon ahead...'
A red warning light flashed in his mind.
A notorious spot among players for frequent ambushes and random encounters.
He immediately dismounted and took cover.
Drawing on his game knowledge, he found a side path and silently climbed to the cliff top.
Sure enough, his hunch was right.
Multiple shadowy figures moved faintly below the canyon.
Dozens of tents dotted an open clearing with unobstructed sightlines.
It was the Trade Federation's campsite.
In a crude pen on one side, Brightwood's villagers huddled in terror.
"Oh no! We're all gonna die!"
"Please, someone..."
Armed mercenaries stood guard around them.
And at the center stood a particularly striking figure.
"Damn it! Quit dawdling! We need to ship these prospective slaves to the Nomade Mine on schedule!"
The being berating his subordinates.
His reinforced armor, twisted with bizarre pipes and gears from a steam engine, was unforgettable.
Arrogant eyes gleamed from beneath his helmet. In his hands, he gripped twin pistols swirling with blue mana.
'Name's Gerion, if I recall.'
Mercenary captain under the Trade Federation.
A mid-game boss in the early regions, known for his cruelty and ambition.
Above all, a roadblock for newbie players.
"No slacking! Once the main force arrives, we'll ship these to Trinity!"
Jinwoo halted his thoughts at Gerion's shout.
He quietly peered down from the cliff, drawing the Infinite Ammo Pistol from his belt.
'Time to get started.'
A cold glint sharpened his eyes.
Hunting time.
Jinwoo leaned against a cold boulder, overlooking the campsite below.
His mind raced through memories from his [Rising West] days.
'Gerion was a tough bastard.'
The key to beating him in the game was simple.
Destroy his reinforced armor.
Keep shooting anywhere, and it would overload, gradually dropping his defense.
But the armor hid a nasty gimmick.
'Impact builds up on specific parts, weakening the mana shield... but any pause in attacks lets it recover instantly.'
Reload times reset everything.
Fortunately, the counters were clear.
Mana-infused bullets or high-explosive dynamite would do the trick.
That part was fine.
The issue was [Rising West]'s Western genre roots.
Barring exceptions like dwarven Gatlings, weapons on the Eldorado Continent were straight out of the American Old West.
Another problem: players facing Gerion were stuck with beginner revolvers and lever-action rifles that needed manual reloading per shot!
Countless players got turned into Swiss cheese mid-reload by his twin pistols.
But Jinwoo now was different.
"Reloading isn't in my vocabulary."
A hunter's smile curved his lips.
Jinwoo steadily raised his pistol, aiming at the watchtower on the camp's edge.
Shh.
A silent flash!
The mercenary dozing atop the tower had his head explode.
Death without a chance to scream.
A blue flash pierced the heart of a patrolling soldier on the opposite side.
An ominous silence began to settle over the camp.
"The watchtower light's out! What the hell?!"
"Enemy...!"
The moment one mercenary shouted, a hole punched through his throat. Panic spread like a plague.
As comrades dropped one by one to unseen bullets, the mercenaries scrambled for cover in terror.
"You worthless rabble! Get it together!"
Finally, the screech of metal from a tent heralded Gerion's charge.
His mana pistols spat fire.
Kaboom! Boom!
Mana rounds hammered Jinwoo's cliff, spraying rock shards.
"That you, you rat?!"
Gerion roared, unleashing overwhelming firepower at Jinwoo.
Jinwoo coolly tracked his movements, waiting for an opening to counter.
'Here it comes.'
The instant Gerion's pistols cooled, Jinwoo struck like he'd been waiting.
Shh, shh, shh, shh, shh!
Five shots slammed precisely into Gerion's chest center, rapid as a burst.
Clang! Clang-clang!
But the bullets only sparked off, failing to pierce the thick armor.
Gerion sneered from under his helmet.
"Ha! Think those peashooters can scratch Trade Federation armor?!"
Jinwoo answered by pulling the trigger again.
Red Eye
Remaining cooldown: 5 seconds
A world slowed for 5 seconds.
His pistol hand dropped to his belt.
His left hand primed the hammer.
Fanning—the classic Western rapid-fire technique!
Jinwoo wondered just how many bullets he could unleash.
He'd know soon enough.
Shshshshshsh!
No reload delay. Dozens of rounds per second stormed Gerion's chest center like a tempest.
Clang-clang-clang-clang!
"Foolish...!"
Gerion tried to mock him.
Crackle!
A faint spark flew from his chest plate.
Bullets once bouncing off now dug in, eroding the blue mana shield.
"Wh-what!?"
Disbelief colored Gerion's voice for the first time.
Accumulated impacts disrupted the mana flow, slashing his defense.
"No way! A dwarven Gatling?!"
He instinctively raised his arms to shield his chest, but Jinwoo's barrel had shifted to another weak point.
Shshsh!
The shoulder joint this time.
Endless bullets tore pained groans from Gerion as he staggered back.
A helpless sight from a mighty boss, impossible in the game.
'Taking him down this easily!'
Jinwoo was certain.
Victory was his.
"Y-you bastard!"
Fear tinged Gerion's voice for the first time.
His prized Trade Federation steam armor was no longer invincible.
Relentless bullets shattered the mana shields on his chest and shoulder.
Exposing mechanisms and flesh beneath.
Against a gun without reloads, it was just an expensive coffin.
"How dare you scar my armor! Unforgivable!"
Cornered, Gerion lost reason and bellowed.
He aimed his mana pistols skyward.
The mana stones on the barrels glowed dangerously bright, sucking in surrounding mana like a storm.
'That one!'
Jinwoo's eyes flashed. The classic berserk pattern!
Gerion's AOE ultimate: Bullet Storm.
Devastating power, but with a 5-second charge-up—double-edged sword.
"Die, all of you!"
As Gerion screamed, pouring his last strength, Jinwoo charged closer and fired.
He'd never forget the defenseless state during cast.
Shshshshshshshsh!
More bullets swarmed like hornets.
A tight bullet cluster.
Pouring through the cracked chest armor he'd targeted relentlessly.
Krunch! Clang!
Finally, metal tore.
The blue mana stone core powering the armor was exposed.
Jinwoo's final bullet struck dead center.
Whoosh!
"Guh...?"
Gerion's eyes widened in disbelief.
The rising mana storm fizzled like a lie.
His body tilted forward slowly.
The heavy armor crashed to the ground like lifeless scrap, booming.
"This... can't be!"
The boss's death.
It broke the dam.
"Captain!"
"Run! He's a monster!"
The remaining Trade Federation mercenaries lost all will to fight, screaming and scattering.
Jinwoo didn't pursue.
'Chasing them down changes nothing. The Federation knows the truth anyway.'
He quietly approached the pen and shot the lock off.
"You're safe now. Head back to the village."
But only about six villagers emerged—mostly men.
"Where are the others? The women and kids?"
An old man answered Jinwoo's question with a despairing face.
"Young man... the villagers? The Federation relocated them somewhere."
"Relocated?"
Jinwoo's brow furrowed. The old man nodded.
"Yes. Said they'd move them to a safer city under their protection... Took most yesterday on a big ship. We stayed behind to pack up and..."
This battle alone couldn't save everyone.
"Do you know which city?"
"Trinity, they said. A port city."
As those words ended, a new system window appeared before Jinwoo.
Main Quest: Head to Trinity and rescue the kidnapped villagers.
🎁 Reward: 50,000 gold, ???
Jinwoo pictured the distant port city on his mental map and sighed unwittingly.
'Damn it. As expected. Tied to the main scenario, it's gonna drag on.'
The next act of this tiresome play was set.
'A siege, maybe?'