The Count's Gun-Shooting Scoundrel

A week later.

As promised, Van came to find Arthur, carrying a long box on his shoulder.

“I have come on the promised date.”

“You made it?”

Seeing the long box, a flicker of anticipation stirred within Arthur.

“First, you should check it.”

As Van was about to place the box on the ground, Arthur grabbed his hand and stopped him.

“Let’s change locations.”

Arthur moved to the archery training ground behind the castle.

Upon arriving, Van placed the box on a table.

“Open it.”

“Hmm.”

Arthur opened the box with a careful expression.

Inside was an object that was almost identical in shape to his other self, the ‘CheyTac M200’, differing only in color.

“What, you actually made it!”

Arthur exclaimed in admiration, taking out the CheyTac and examining it from all angles.

He did so for a moment.

“What’s this?”

There was something that hadn't been in the blueprints.

At that, Van scratched the back of his head with an awkward expression.

“I was unable to make it exactly as you wished. I mobilized all my resources, including alchemy, to create the closest possible version.”

His attitude and tone toward Arthur were now distinctly different from before.

It seemed he had accepted his loss in the bet.

“Let’s see.”

Arthur examined it closely and then grinned.

It seemed that implementing an automatic firing function had been difficult, so he had made it to fire single shots.

Now that he looked at it, it resembled an early model of a gun.

“I can’t tell just by looking.”

Arthur picked up one of the steel bead-like objects from the box.

Then, he loaded it into the CheyTac and pressed the stock against his shoulder.

‘So that’s how you use it.’

Van fell into thought as he watched Arthur’s strange posture.

Arthur placed his index finger on the trigger and looked through the scope.

The scope was little more than a telescope, but it was a hundred times better than nothing.

He focused his attention on the distant archery target.

After a few seconds.

Arthur held his breath and pulled the trigger.

BANG!

With a tremendous sound, a bead shot out from the muzzle.

“Hmm…”

Arthur’s face hardened.

The recoil was so severe that his shoulder was thrown backward.

He reloaded and took his stance again.

BANG!

The same thing happened again.

“Hmm.”

Arthur’s expression did not relax.

He tried to reduce the recoil as much as possible when firing, but it wasn't easy.

The distance to the target was about a hundred meters.

He had missed the target both times.

He was someone who could accurately hit a target from over 2km away, but the performance of this gun was worlds apart.

‘First, to control the recoil…’

Arthur shifted the center of his upper body forward and put more force into the shoulder supporting the stock.

Then, staring intently at the target, he steadied his breathing and pulled the trigger.

BANG!

‘A little more…’

Just as Arthur was adapting to the weapon, Millerf and Skevin, having heard the gunshots, rushed over.

“Young Master!”

“What is going on?”

Van saw the two men, bowed politely, and then answered.

“It is the sound from the weapon I created.”

“Then, are you saying that is what the Young Master requested?”

Millerf's face was full of curiosity as he looked at the CheyTac.

Skevin also looked at the CheyTac, which he was seeing for the first time, with a meaningful expression.

“That is the Young Master’s…”

BANG!

“……!”

At the gunshot, which sounded like a thunderclap, Millerf and Skevin's eyes widened.

It had sounded incredible from a distance, but hearing it right next to them was terrifying.

It seemed like the sound alone could intimidate an opponent.

But aside from the loud noise, nothing special seemed to be happening.

He was clearly aiming for the target.

The two looked at each other, bewildered.

‘It’s a failure after all.’

Just as Van was showing a hint of disappointment, Arthur grabbed a handful of beads from the box. Then he reloaded and aimed at the target.

At that, Millerf gripped his staff tightly.

‘I have to confirm it.’

He stared intently at the muzzle.

BANG!

Simultaneously with the gunshot, Millerf muttered runic words and cast ‘Hawkeye’ magic on everyone except Arthur.

They witnessed the bead being fired from the muzzle, and their gazes followed its trajectory.

It hit the target, shattering it to pieces.

“Gasp!”

“What!”

“This can’t be…”

Everyone was astounded.

But Arthur, still with a hardened expression, reloaded and took his stance again.

BANG!

Simultaneously with the gunshot, this time the target next to the shattered one was blown to bits.

Arthur continued to operate the weapon and fire.

The beads gradually clustered toward the center of the targets, and as he fired repeatedly, the recoil also lessened.

Of course, the targets were invariably shattered.

“Now the sights are finally zeroed in.”

Only then did Arthur show a satisfied expression.

Skevin watched the faint smoke drift from the CheyTac's muzzle, marveling at its firepower.

‘Incredible. If you were hit by that up close, it would pierce through armor.’

Arthur, who had been observing the target, asked Skevin.

“Can a crossbow shatter a target like that?”

Skevin quickly answered.

“The power varies depending on the size. It is difficult for an individual to carry one that powerful.”

“What about an Orc’s body?”

“It cannot penetrate it completely, but a shot to a vital spot could kill it.”

“I see.”

Arthur nodded and this time looked at Van.

“What are the beads made of?”

“Steel.”

“If you made the beads from a material stronger than steel, the destructive power would increase, right?”

“That is correct. But the production time would double, and a material stronger than steel would have to be at least Mithril, which will not be easy to acquire.”

“If it’s Mithril…”

Arthur shifted his gaze to Millerf.

Millerf replied with an awkward smile.

“It will be difficult to obtain immediately.”

“How long will it take?”

“We would have to wait at least six months, and I don't know how much we could secure.”

“Can’t we buy it with money?”

“We could ask the merchants, but most rare ores are already reserved by other domains, so it won't be easy for you to acquire them, Young Master.”

“I didn't realize it was such a precious item.”

“It has been a long time since the domain has engaged in any trade…”

“It’s fine. This is good enough for now.”

Arthur slung the CheyTac over his shoulder with a satisfied expression.

The feel of it against his body was similar to when he used to carry his old CheyTac.

‘He had every right to be confident.’

He had heard Van was skilled, but he hadn't known he was this good.

However, he showed no sign of surprise and asked calmly, “Don’t you have one more thing to give me?”

“I made it with the Mithril left over from making that.”

Van opened the bottom of the box that had held the CheyTac and took something out.

It was the Kukri.

“Ah~.”

The entire blade glittered as if reflecting the sun whole, and its edge was the sharpest he had ever seen on any weapon.

Above all, he couldn't hide his surprise that Van had recreated it exactly as he had imagined.

“Quite impressive.”

Arthur stabbed and swung the Kukri through the air.

Swish, swish.

The sound of it cutting through the wind was very satisfying.

“Very good.”

Despite the praise, Van still kept his head bowed.

Arthur smirked at his reaction and sheathed the Kukri at his lower back.

“Do you accept the outcome?”

“As promised, I will become your attendant.”

“……!”

Millerf and Skevin’s eyes widened.

Although Van’s personality was fierce, he was a master among masters who had inherited the skills of the dwarves.

Furthermore, his pride was as high as the heavens, no less than a dwarf’s.

And yet, he was saying he would become Arthur’s attendant.

Both of them stared at Van with bewildered expressions.

“However, I have a condition.”

“A condition?”

“I may not have made it perfectly, but I did make it, did I not?”

“Well, you’re not wrong, so go on.”

“I will become your attendant as a blacksmith. I will not perform any other duties.”

His will to protect his last shred of pride could be felt.

“I have no intention of making you do anything else. Think of the castle blacksmith as your home.”

“Understood.”

Van knelt on one knee and bowed his head respectfully to Arthur.

“I, Van Natalias, swear to serve Lord Arthur Julius until the last moment of my death.”

* * *

That evening.

Arthur summoned Skevin to the castle wall and asked about the Knight Order.

“How does the current Phoenix Knights compare to the knight orders of other domains?”

“Before the training, their skill was above average. Now, I believe they would rank within the top five among the knight orders in the empire.”

“What about other aspects?”

“In terms of size, we are about half as large as other knight orders.”

“Then tell me what you know about Count Yarve’s knight order.”

“The Rose Knights, more than half of whom are composed of mercenaries, are surpassed by us in skill, but I understand they are at least twice our size.”

“Then how do the commanders of both knight orders compare?”

“That is…”

Skevin hesitated for a moment before speaking cautiously.

“According to our informant, it seems he is trying to recruit a Sword Master.”

“A Sword Master…”

Arthur’s face hardened.

If he were Yarve, he would surely try to conquer Grada through this Territorial War.

It was obvious he would appear with his strongest forces.

In contrast, Count Julius’s side had only the Phoenix Knights and the trainees.

Even if all those numbers were combined, they wouldn't match the strength of Count Yarve’s Rose Knights.

The situation was far more serious than he had anticipated.

“Hmm…”

Arthur’s gaze deepened.

Skevin waited silently until he spoke.

Several minutes passed.

Arthur opened his mouth, his eyes fixed on the village below.

“I’ll have to create a new knight order.”

“……!”

Skevin asked in surprise, “Surely you don’t intend to disband the Phoenix Knights…”

“They will be maintained as they are.”

“Then…”

“I plan to create a knight order specialized in guerrilla warfare. From now on, you will take over as the instructor again.”

“Were you not going to continue, sir?”

“I will be observing the trainees and selecting suitable personnel for the new knight order. Besides, the physical training is sufficient. From now on, it’s weapons training, and it’s better for you to handle that than me.”

“But…”

Skevin had been very impressed by the dagger skills Arthur had shown when fighting the Orcs.

He thought it would be useful for surprise attacks or for dealing with enemies swiftly.

So, he had wanted to learn those techniques when weapons training began, but with regret, he decided to postpone it for another time.

“When should I begin?”

“Start tomorrow.”

“Understood.”

“Don’t mention the new knight order to the trainees yet. I will do it when the time is right.”

“Yes, sir.”

After Skevin bowed respectfully and descended, Millerf soon came up.

“You were here until this late hour?”

“I had something to ask. What brings you here at this time?”

“I can’t sleep at all because of the weapon I saw during the day. I was hoping you could satisfy my curiosity, Young Master. How do you know of such a weapon?”

Arthur had anticipated that he would ask this someday and had already decided on an answer.

“It is one of the weapons that Teheran used.”

“As I thought. May I know its name?”

“CheyTac.”

“Hmm, it sounds like a name with a deep meaning.”

As Millerf’s gaze deepened, Arthur also got lost in old memories and added, “As you’ve seen, it’s an incredible piece of work.”

“Now that you have acquired one of Lord Teheran’s weapons, Young Master, all that remains is for the House of Julius to soar.”

“There are too many things to resolve before that can happen.”

Arthur continued with a bitter smile.

“By the way. Do human temperaments also have characteristics?”

“Of course. There are specialized abilities depending on one’s temperament.”

“First time I’m hearing this. Then what ability am I specialized in?”

“The blood-red temperament possesses the ability to nullify the abilities of all other temperaments. However, I understand that you must reach a certain level of ability to use it.”

“A fitting ability for an Overlord.”

Arthur smiled with satisfaction and turned his head toward the Sparring Arena.

“I should start with that.”