The Lone Sniper: I Was Just Minding My Own Business Sniping Players, and I Ended Up Becoming a Raid Boss

Chapter 26

I arrived at the Gold Planet. Apparently, it's different from Venus. Venus exists separately in this world.

The clouds are golden like Kinto Clouds, and the ground, mountains, and forests are all made of golden crystals.

"Welcome to the Golden Capital! I am Pamela Papareparuppappa, the Gold Nugget Person!"

"Huh."

My spaceship was pulled in as if by gravity and landed in a city on the Gold Planet called the "Golden Capital."

A city entirely built from glittering gold. And noisy like Las Vegas.

The Gold Nugget Person (NPC) in front of me is a middle-aged man wearing gold tights. How should I put it... he's extremely tacky and creepy. I might not like this city very much...

"Sorry to hit you with this right after you arrived, traveler, but I have a request. Actually, a large number of Golden Tanks have appeared near this city, and I want you to hunt them down."

"Uh-huh..."

"If you take them out, I'll give you a reward."

'Sub Mission: Destroy the Golden Tanks' — Start? YES/NO

Recommended Level: 25

Clear Condition: Defeat 12 Golden Tanks

Reward: 15,000 chips

A sub mission... meaning a mission without any major story developments.

No reason not to accept it.

"I'll do it."

"Thank you! That helps a lot!"

Alright, time to go hunting.

"But before that..."

I head to the inn and touch the capsule bed. This sets the inn's capsule bed as my respawn point.

Since this city is treated as a "base," the capsule bed won't be destroyed. However, it charges 1,000 chips in rent per day. I'll have to remember to cancel the contract when I leave this planet.

"All set——"

I leave the inn. Then, someone grabs my right hand from behind.

"Eh!?"

"......"

I turn around—there stands an extremely cute Space Girl.

"Hey, you're a sniper, right?"

"Y-yeah."

Light purple twin-tails, a futuristic sailor outfit and miniskirt. She's cute from head to toe, but also kind of scary.

"I need a little help."

She gives off a sweet, honey-like aura as well as a dangerous, predatory one. If I had to compare it—like a carnivorous plant.

My small-animal (loner) instincts are screaming: stay away!

"I'm sorry, but I have something to do right now..."

"Not even for a request from Shinkai Tsubasa?"

Huh? What's with the sudden... This person's player name is 'Tsubasa.' So that was... her real name? Why would she suddenly say her real name!?

W-weird person!

"S-sorry! I'm busy—"

"No worries, I won't force you. Tsubasa's request can only be fulfilled by a t-o-p-q-u-a-l-i-t-y s-n-i-p-e-r. If you're not confident in your sniping skills, feel free to say no♪"

"...!!"

Something bad is definitely going to happen if I get involved with her. But I really don't want to be seen as someone who lacks confidence in sniping...

"I-I'll help if you think I'm good enough."

You idiot! Why are you prioritizing pride at a time like this!!

"Thanks a bunch! I'll give you my autograph later!"

Autograph? Why?

"This way, hurry please!"

"Y-yes."

I run, being pulled along by her hand.

Tsubasa-san leads me to—a giant casino.

(A casino... the hidden mid-boss of RPGs!)

It's a running joke that players get sucked into the casino and leave the final boss waiting.

"Almost there~"

Inside the casino, the place Tsubasa-san takes me to is—

"Do that!"

That's... a shooting gallery?

First, there's a table in front of me lined with various types of rifles. Beyond that table is a circle with about a one-meter radius. It's labeled "Shooting Position." I guess that means I have to shoot from within that circle.

100 meters away from the circle, a series of conveyor belts begin, each with various prizes on top. The closest belt is at 100 meters, then every 50 meters there's another. The furthest belt is 700 meters away.

The prizes include plushies, furniture, and figures—nothing like weapons or expansion parts that would be useful in combat.

"You want me to shoot this?"

"Yup! I want that plushie of a white bear with wings on the furthest belt. The prizes change at noon, so we're in a hurry! Please! I'll give you a big reward if you hit it~"

"...A-all right. Can you cover the entry fee?"

"Of course!"

Tsubasa-san pays the 10,000-chip entry fee, and the game begins.

First, the dealer (a Gold Nugget Person) explains the rules.

"The guns you can use in this game are limited to those on the table. Switching guns mid-game is prohibited. You may only use one rifle per game. Regardless of which rifle you choose, you get six bullets."

All the rifles are real-world, solid-bullet firearms.

"Do you see the targets attached to each prize?"

"Yes."

They resemble archery targets, and are attached to every prize.

"If you hit the target, you get the prize even if it doesn't fall off the conveyor belt."

"I see."

"Conversely, if you don't hit the target, you don't get the prize even if it falls due to the impact of the shot."

The targets are all quite small. The plushie I was asked to shoot is about 30 cm tall, but the attached target is only about 10 cm in diameter.

"Please perform all shooting from within the circle—the Snipe Circle. Inside the circle, you're free to shoot standing, sitting, or lying down. However, note that within the Snipe Circle, scopes are fixed at 1x magnification."

"What!?"

In other words, it's no different from shooting with the naked eye.

(But that means outside the circle, scopes work normally, right...?)

The Space Girl body has enhanced vision, but there's no way I can visually track a tiny moving target 700 meters away. I'll have to use the scope from outside the circle to gauge distance and position, then fire from the circle.

"Before starting the game, please choose one of the 13 conveyor belts. If you hit a prize on a belt you didn't select, it won't count. Also, bullets do not penetrate prizes, so you can't hit a target behind another prize."

(Huh, it's got a decent difficulty.)

If I aim for the furthest target, every prize on the belts in front will act as an obstacle.

Twelve moving walls. I'll have to dodge all of them and hit a 10 cm moving target 700 meters away. The further the conveyor belt, the faster it moves—the furthest one moves at around 80 km/h.

This is a pretty nasty game. Honestly, shooting a mosquito 700 meters away might be easier.

An unexpected event, but it sounds pretty fun. My trigger finger is itching.

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