Between 1939 and 1940, Finnish sniper Simo Hayha earned the achievement of becoming the deadliest sniper in history, amassing over five-hundred kills in mere months.
With an Ability that reinforced the impact of any projectile he used the further out they went, he accomplished his kills with no more than a regular crossbow and the cold, bitter snow to hide in.
That guy was titled "The White Death…" Well, I'm dressed in black leather armor and a silver helmet… So maybe I'd be considered "The Silver Death?"
Sitting atop a tree branch, Rowan sighed and threw yet another ball of fire.
"Yeah right, that just sounds like a cheap knockoff."
The ball of orange flame traveled at a relatively strong speed. Though a pitiful description and nowhere near that which the behemoth turtles launched at, it was ultimately enough to catch most people—and more importantly, monsters—off guard.
Traveling out of the forest, the fireball was maneuvered to precisely strike the giant turtle as it hid in its shell, exploding inside and delivering an ultimately fatal blow.
It's pretty pathetic, but it at least works. Even if it takes fifty years to finally kill one of them.
Having scoured the small island for vantage points, he found a good place to camp and one more turtle monster, having finished off the missing piece prior to his exploration.
For most, the idea of using long-range, small, aimable fireballs was inconceivable. It cost too much mana, for little value.
But Rowan, being Rowan and having his strong Ability, was allowed to rely on this cheap strategy.
Though, I really don't give a hoot. If I win, I win. Better than risking death.
He approached the monster, who left behind a red mana crystal, casually picking it and holding it up to the air. Despite the creature's great size, what could be considered its carcass was actually quite small, fitting snugly between his thumb and index finger.
Anywhere from five to fifteen total, huh? I've killed three. Worst case, I've got twelve left. Best case, I've got two.
Although, if he were to consider his current predicament, where despite his exploring, he'd found no monsters other than the ones he'd just killed, then he might have monsters beyond the island.
Maybe I missed something.
Pocketing the mana crystal, he got off the beach and chose to continue walking around the forest. With each step he took after departing from the beach, the more apparent it was just how dirty his shoes had gotten.
I really do hate sand. It's coarse, rough, and whatever else he said.
As he continued to walk around in his sandy shoes, Rowan couldn't take it anymore and forcibly cleaned them out with Water Magic .
Following that, he continued his journey, briskly walking as though he wasn't trapped inside a dangerous dungeon. After all, he'd settled, and was feeling quite confident in his longed-ranged abilities.
After exploring for around thirty minutes, steadily regaining his mana, he found that he was truly alone on the island.
Speaking of, I wonder what the other guys are doing?
How much time has even passed in the outside world? If it's been an hour or so, then the others are probably chilling out after school.
David is almost definitely in the gym—that guy's got hands. Kira is most likely drawing, or maybe out Hunting? I don't know. And Schwartz… Yeah, no clue what Schwartz is doing.
Biting the innard of his cheek, he gazed upon the sea. There, he saw four dolphins, diving into the air and back down into the water.
"You guys are pretty cute… Too bad you're just monsters, so sorry!" Rowan shouted, forming a ball of fire in his palm and throwing it out.
Interrupting their activities, Rowan sniped one of the males on the head with a fireball. The explosion did little damage, forcing all four of them under the water.
Ah, crud. Yep, being a White-Death-wannabe isn't exactly going to work when they're in the ocean.
Two mana crystals left to use, Rowan pondered over how to use them. If he was to fight in water, then theoretically, he could enchant his basic clothes to help him move around better in water.
However, the problem was simple—Rowan didn't like the water.
Perhaps it was his thalassophobia speaking, but he really, really really really hated fighting in water. Especially in the ocean, where he would be going up against evil dolphins, and even the slightest thing that touched his foot would make him shriek like a little girl.
Plus, it's like, their domain and stuff… I wouldn't fight a grappler on the ground, so I won't fight a dolphin in the ocean.
But I also can't bring it out of the ocean. So, I've got no choice but to amplify my Water Magic.
Yet, enchantments were weird. The idea of wearing something that boosted a certain form of magic was rare, though theoretically possible with the mana crystal of an S rank monster or higher.
After all, why waste enchantments on clothes for silly things like that? Clothing enchantments ought to be about strengthening the durability of your body, not boosting magic.
Especially considering the fact that tattoos are the obvious way to go.
Without ink, Rowan really had only two readily available liquids—saltwater and blood. And considering that he was adept at Healing Magic whilst lacking the precision to remove the salt from the seawater, his choice was obvious.
Taking the knife, he drove it along his forearm, enduring the pain without an ounce of worry.
Ultimately, most pain is only troublesome only because you know you can't heal so easily. Once he was assured of his safety, pain became nothing but stings and annoyances to quickly ease up. That was Rowan's belief.
With his rudimentary level of Earth Magic, obtained by passing the third grade, Rowan manipulated a stone near the shore to become that of a cup, before filling it with boiling water to remove bacteria. Finally, after all that, he poured his crimson blood into the small cup.
Holding the small red gem in two fingers, he took a slight bit of mana from it. Then, inside the crystal, he added his own bit of mana, that which was uniquely produced by his soul.
It's not like this is a super common process, but it's basically a common sense improvisation.
Adding the scarlet beauty to his own vat of crimson, the crystal enchanted not the cup, but the blood inside.
Carefully spreading his cut open with his fingers, Rowan inserted the liquid back into himself, grunting and whimpering in pain, his body trembling from the unceasing sting.
Crud, that didn't sound very family-friendly.
Closing up the wound, Rowan looked down at his arm, seeing a line of red split down his forearm.
But that's fine, isn't it? Now, I've boosted my Water Magic by ten-percent. Now for the next.
…
Upon repeating the process for his other arm, Rowan came out with a twenty-percent increase to his Water Magic. And as such, upon walking upon the sea, he managed to walk along it, each footstep of his creating ripples in the waves.
Clutching the knife in his hand, he felt incredibly unprepared.
I really should've gone back to find that sword. Oh well. What's done is—oh shit!
Upon getting a solid distance away from the shores, the dolphins swam up. Just like the turtles, they too were capable of suddenly launching themselves, which one of the males used to explode and ram into his chest. Sent like a ragdoll through the air, Rowan acted like a skipping stone, bouncing off the water thrice before rolling along the waves, coughing.
"Owgh… agh…"
Slowly getting to his feet, Rowan was continuously bombarded by full-impact bodyslams by the evil dolphins. Each one sent him cascading further and further towards the beach. In the process, the dolphins too ended up getting closer and closer as well.
Ah, wait a second…
"Pffft!!" he suddenly burst, jabbing his finger at them. Once one leapt out of the water towards him, Rowan barely evaded, and turned around. Upon its resubmersion into the water, he simply used Water Magic to control the water, lifting it up and heaving it into the forest, mimicking the movement with both his arms, as it required genuine exertion on his end.
One of the males went first, and thus smashed into a tree, where it then laid on the ground. It flopped around.
Even if dolphins could survive on land for a few hours, ultimately, it was a species adapted to water. So when Rowan used Fire Magic to form a barrier around it, it began to freak out like crazy.
And from there, despite its relatively short time on land, the dolphin ended up turning into a red gem.
That's the method, then.
…
The process was as simple as it was cruel.
Even if they're technically monsters, and also surprisingly evil when it comes to mating, I just don't feel good about killing dolphins in a cruel way.
At least when it came to the turtles, he was doing so from afar, and delivering solid attacks. But to drag them out of the water and burn them to death was just cruel, and thus he felt awful at his weakness once more.
After all, if he'd been stronger, he could kill them more "honorably," per-se. A sword to the head felt cleaner.
But that's not how it happened. Regardless, I still need to hurry up. That should be seven monsters down… either halfway or close to finishing.
It was difficult to believe the dolphins were really B rank monsters, but it made sense. Even the best fighters in the world, if they didn't have Water Magic, would likely die when placed at the bottom of the ocean. Not necessarily because they'd be crushed, but mostly because they couldn't breathe, and it would be too dark to cling to the light.
Being able to breathe is a big advantage. Who would've known?
He pocketed his four red gems, walking along the dirt of the forest, avoiding the cumbersome sand of the beach.
I wonder what the Boss is going to be? This island dungeon means it could be either an on-land monster, or an aquatic one… urgh, I hate the idea of it being a sea monster, though. Mostly because I'm not a sea-men—hehehe—but also because my thalassophobia gets baddddd when I'm in waters I can't stand in.
If he were to give blame to the source of his thalassophobia, it would one-hundred-percent be because of a scary game he watched Youtubers play when he was young, in which they'd be tasked with going underwater and surviving incredibly fearsome monsters that not even the world had thought up before.
"Though, I guess the 'Are you sure what you're doing is worth it' is pretty good advice for a Hunter."
Applying that to his situation… Well, it wasn't exactly his choice. Either inconvenience others by making them save you, or hurry it up and escape—the answer was obvious.
"Yeah. I'd say it's worth it. If they're fibbing, then that sucks, but at least I survived. If they're not, then I might be able to actually get enough money to attend Yedenar… Yeah, it's worth it."
And, like clockwork,
"H-huh?"
Something foul was in the air. Not that he could smell, but the air itself seemed to be thrown off-balance.
Shit. That's right… After all, monsters B rank and under can't use magic.
Rushing out of the forest and taking a look at the manufactured ocean before him, the waves were out of joint. Growing in height, but lacking depth, they were like tall scarecrows—lengthy, but did not move forward any.
They crashed back down.Then sudden, explosively fast small waves crashed against the sand with such potency that they scattered across the air, looking as though a bullet had struck them.
Rowan's forehead went slick with sweat, as he happened to see it. In the distance, a giant gray fin protruded from the waters.
"U-uh… ergh… shit…!!"
His aquatic fears coming true, he was forced to bear witness to perhaps the most frightening aquatic monster in history, regarded in myths and legends, yet proven true—,
The monstrous Megalodon began to encircle the island, as Rowan couldn't keep his eyes off of its enormous fin.
And, just as he'd feared,
"Ugh…"
The water from the ocean had shot out, moving like a shotgun and cracking through the air, decimating his legs from the knee down. Indeed, it worked like magic, turning everything below those kneecaps into spaghetti-looking-mush.
He struck the ground. Not with the devastating impacts he'd been accustomed to, but with perhaps an even more frightening level. His blood spilled freely, moving as though it was entirely unrestricted—which it was.
"A-aghh!!!" He shrieked, hugging his knees to his chest, floppy noodle-veins barely strung to his body, staining his hands with corrupted scarlet.
That was right, wasn't it?
Once a monster reached A rank, it could begin to use magic. And as the Boss of this distinct dimension, the A rank Megalodon used its territory to rip apart Rowan with highly-pressurized water.