Black Minotaur

Proof that I'd awakened as a Player.

'Four bars left.'

The hunters had pretty much taken care of it.

Its HP bar had dropped below half.

It'd only been a little over a minute since the gate spawned, but this was Seoul for you.

Even with all the high-rankers off in Gangneung, they still had this kind of firepower.

At this rate, that thing would drop soon enough, but—

- Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

The Minotaur didn't care if it was about to die—it charged full speed ahead.

- Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

"Damn it!"

I gritted my teeth and raised the rifle, like swallowing mustard seeds through tears.

- Click!

I flung open the one-room apartment window wide, dropped into a prone position, rested my elbows on the sill, and assumed firing stance.

'Practice sniper rifle, right?'

Green stock, gray barrel. Some unheard-of design—probably a system-provided training item.

'Still, thank goodness!'

The structure wasn't all that different from the rifles I'd handled during my military service.

- Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

'Eek!!!'

It came pre-loaded with a magazine, like tutorial mode.

I grabbed the bolt, racked it back and forward in a panic—

- Clack!

'Ten years of FPS games. Two years in the military—I know how to shoot.'

Even if my aim was a bit off, who cares? Reload worked, so all that's left is pulling the trigger!

"Kuuuwaaaah!"

"Ngh!"

It was right there now. My ears rang.

No more hesitation—I pressed my eye to the scope.

'Basic magnification scope fundamentals.'

Didn't matter.

That Minotaur was huge—no need to aim precisely. And it was close!

"Huuuuh."

I let out a shallow breath,

'I trust the 100,000x attack power! Please, just make this work!!!!'

And pulled the trigger!

The instant I did—

- BAAAAANG......!!!

"Guh!"

A deafening roar filled my one-room, and a piercing ring stabbed my ears. Was my hearing okay?

Flames erupted from the muzzle flash.

Recoil wasn't as bad as I'd feared, but way beyond a normal rifle.

- Clink clink clink...

The ejected casing bounced aside, adding tension ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to the loose linoleum of my 200-square-foot sweet home.

So, the bullet—

"Kuuuwaaaah......"

"Hit!"

Direct hit!!!

Not pinpoint accurate, but I confirmed the bullet buried in that massive head.

Because—

Whether because I'd nailed the head, a cheerful impact sound rang out with the message.

I had no idea how much damage my 'critical hit' dealt the Minotaur. Couldn't calculate DPS or anything,

And I wasn't even comfortable with the act of firing yet.

But one thing was clear—

"Kuuuwaaaah......"

It stopped.

The Minotaur halted its charge.

The madness in its eyes gradually lost focus.

"Wha—what?"

Then—

The four remaining bars vanished in an instant,

"Kueh......"

The Black Minotaur staggered back a few steps while standing tall, then its massive muscled body toppled backward.

- Rumblerumblerumble...

Gray dust clouds rose from the crash site.

The monster's flesh crumbled to ash, sucked up like vacuumed debris into the still-hovering gate in the sky.

"I-it's dead. Definitely."

This was certain.

Which meant—

'Did I get the kill?'

That doubt crept in,

But fact was, when my bullet hit its head, four HP bars evaporated.

Still, to claim it outright as my doing, someone else's big attack might've landed simultaneously.

Circumstantially, though, my sniper shot seemed to have hit hard.

'100,000x attack power... maybe way stronger than I thought.'

Even at LV 1, a headshot with a sniper's single-target burst could've been insane, I figured—

- Shwoooosh...

The gate swirled like draining bathwater, shrinking until it vanished from the sky like it was never there.

"I survived!"

Forgetting my fixed HP of 1 for a moment, I collapsed to the floor, basking in the joy of survival.

"Huff huff."

My whole body was drenched in sweat.

Breathing ragged. Felt like I'd run a 10K.

- Thud.

I sprawled on the floor, staring at the ceiling.

With the Minotaur gone, my mind cleared a bit,

And it finally sank in. I'd awakened, become a Sniper who takes down monsters. And—

'This is way more serious than I thought...'

The tension of life on the line wasn't overthinking it.

I resolved once more.

Live without risk. Never face enemies head-on.

The safest way possible.

First step?

'Don't reveal myself.'

Even hunters fight each other often. Competition and faction wars are inevitable.

'Hide the awakening as much as possible. S(EX)-rank could draw all kinds of smears.'

And my job was Sniper.

Who exposes their own info as a sniper?

Stay hidden. I won't get exposed.

So I vowed.

Then—

- Ding!

A message popped up before my eyes, fixed on the ceiling.

"What? Me?"

I really got the kill?

'It only had four bars left—too hasty to claim it.'

Was this the 'last hit'?

Flustered, I sat up from my sprawl.

The congratulatory message for slaying the Black Minotaur glowed purple and flashy, showing no sign of fading,

Without prompting, the next message followed.

That Minotaur was the unique boss. Made sense for a boss gate—solo spawn, hence tougher.

And I'd taken it down.

'No way, for real?'

As I pondered—

The system public channel chatter, like a radio broadcast, resumed in my ears.

The hunters didn't know the cause of the four-bar wipeout, it seemed.

Made me think I really was the culprit.

Eh, maybe not me after all.

Cheon Seung-hyuk—Korea's rank 1.

'Phew.'

Good. This level wouldn't leak to the public.

I hadn't even secured survival basics for myself yet—

If rumors spread and my identity got doxxed already, it'd be a nightmare.

Needed dozens, hundreds of survival cards first before going public.

At least that was a relief. No one knew I'd done it.

"Ah!!!"

Oh crap!

There were results messages.

Post-gate clear, they neatly tallied contributions—who did what, how much.

Speaking of which, one popped up right in front of me.

Results message.

"It's me."

MVP, even.

Every gate clear, news and YouTube hype the MVP like a celebrity.

This time, it was me.

Murmurs followed, but they still didn't know it was me.

"G-good."

At least they didn't know who #1 was. I could hide with this.

"Ah!!!"

Oh crap!

MVP flashed before every hunter involved, like a scheduled year-end awards show,

"Huh?"

Dazed groans chorused.

That's when it hit me.

"I haven't been exposed yet."

Definite.

A barrage of reward, EXP, and other notifications filled my view.

"Huuuuh."

I stood, closed the window, and surveyed my 200-square-foot one-room steeped in ordinary wage-slave life.

No longer ordinary.

Immediate risk of exposure averted for now—

Deep breath. Time to properly handle 'growth and rewards.'

Registering an ID unlocks rewards and system features.

Skip Hunter Certification Bureau registration, and you're 'anonymous' guaranteed.

Plenty of hunters operate unregistered as 'solo operators.'

A breather. Lucky.

'Anonymous for now.'

For now. Until I overcome HP 1.

'What ID?'

Something untraceable to me.

Then it hit—

[Unregistered]

Perfect. ID 'Unregistered'...

Petty, but fussing over every button is camouflage basics.

"ID: 'Unregistered'."

No time or need for long thought—I decided,

No one'd pick this lame ID—approved instantly.

Officially registering with the system.

That moment—

Flash!

"Ooooh."

A main screen like a homepage materialized before my eyes.

Top banner in sleek black bold font:

Hunter news, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ads, info boards, niche galleries galore.

"This is the awakened world's hub!"

Moment I truly felt like a full-fledged awakener.

This main screen underpinned the hunter world—everything for hunter life.

"Don't know much yet. Gotta learn slowly from my room."

As I resolved—

- Whoosh!

Rainbow light burst from my body again,

"Ooh."

Rewards time—first up, EXP.

I'd been LV 1; no more, after slaying an advanced unique boss.

System limit notice, and—

Level jumped straight to 11.

'World rank 1's at 819, right?'

Max 999—still newbie miles away. But +10 at once? Sweet.

Excess saved for next—fair, no loss.

"Hng."

Body still frail. HP 1 fixed.

Next: new skill notice.

'Skills require certain levels, huh.'

Basics at low, cores at high.

Sniper-related, unlocked progressively?

'Good. Master what's given.'

Lots to learn and practice.

Newbie gamer vibes.

Except life-on-line issue.

'Step by step.'

As I went to check new skill—

- Ding! Ding! Ding!

"Ah."

Rewards time, round two—via mail.

'Whoa, rewards flooding in.'

But—

'Found another plus.'

System like a game—sends items/rewards by mail.

Lots drop on-ground too, but—

For my job and HP, field looting's risky...

'Lucky.'

Skill training, reward checks—

Slowly.

Haste makes waste.

That instant—

- Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!

"Hm? What?"

"?"

Too much.

Newly awakened get this flood?

Or—

'They already sniffed out my registration?'

My 'Unregistered' disguise that flimsy?

- Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!

Mails, requests, sponsorships kept pouring in nonstop.