Assassin at Range: The Sniper’s Lethal Power

Gold Hook Jack couldn't pinpoint Tristan's location, but he could feel his gaze. It was the gaze of a predator eyeing its prey.

Jack felt insulted, his face turning crimson. Without looking back, he made a beeline for the Black Whale.

A wise man knows when to retreat.

With no lackeys to stall Tristan, Jack knew the outsider would have the freedom to attack him again. He wasn't stupid enough to stick around and take a beating.

And even if he was going to die, he'd rather perish on his own ship! A pirate ship can't lose its captain, just like in the West...

Seeing Jack's flustered back, Tristan remained calm.

In his previous life, he'd gone toe-to-toe with Damien Arrow in a one-for-one exchange. He'd experienced far more intense battles than this. How could such a fight possibly throw him off course?

"Come to think of it, I think I was the first in Terra to swap out a god... Is this how the rebirth was triggered?" Tristan thought to himself while continuing his assault. He threw a Shadow Dagger that drained over 30,000 HP from Gold Hook Jack. Combined with his subsequent Rend and Toxic Blood Plague, the total damage was over 40,000.

Gold Hook Jack ran even faster.

What the hell? How is this outsider so strong?

Edith really did pick a fine ally.

Jack vaguely felt that the balance of power in the black market might be about to undergo a massive change. Whether or not he'd live to see that day was another matter.

Whoosh.

Another flying dagger hit, dropping Jack's health even further. But after all this running, Gold Hook Jack finally arrived beneath the Black Whale. Grabbing a rope that fell from the ship, he quickly jumped aboard the deck.

Once aboard, Gold Hook Jack's demeanor changed completely, as though he had returned to being the pirate lord who once ruled the seas.

From the shadows behind him, the eerie sound of rattling bones emerged. Skeletons in tattered sailor uniforms appeared at every corner of the deck, their eyes glowing with blue, ethereal fire.

Not only that, but after Jack returned to the ship, the Black Whale seemed to find its rhythm. The cannons on the side of the ship swiveled and aimed downward, launching a barrage of firepower.

The cannonballs rained down, shattering the stone-covered ground into pieces.

Tristan was hit by a few chunks of debris, losing several hundred health points.

With such a concentrated barrage of stone, evasion was nearly impossible. He could only do his best to minimize the damage. If not for the gear he had swapped earlier, even this round of stone hits could've killed him.

Tristan knew that he had to reach the deck as quickly as possible. If he didn't, he'd be reduced to splinters by the cannon fire.

Taking a deep breath, Tristan threw another Shadow Dagger, activating the Bone-Cutting Twin Daggers effect, and surged forward. Based on the distance, it would take him at most three more volleys to reach a spot where the cannons couldn't target him.

This task is definitely not for the faint of heart, Tristan silently cursed.

With the debris splintering around him, Tristan made it to the ship's base. His health was still over half, thanks to his ring's shield, or else he would have been down halfway.

The real challenge came when Jack had secretly set up additional cannons below deck. Thankfully, the most dangerous part of the journey was over. Now, he just had to face Gold Hook Jack and his undead sailors.

That was manageable.

Tristan had already dealt with the lackeys before, so the undead sailors wouldn't be much different. The problem was that they kept reviving.

They were now one with the Black Whale—unless the ship was destroyed, they would keep coming back.

While dealing with Gold Hook Jack, Tristan would need to constantly manage the respawning sailors. The process was going to be even more complex than before.

The only good news was that there was a cooldown for the sailors' revival; they wouldn't keep coming back without pause.

As for One-Eyed and Redbeard, they were no help.

Those two were probably hiding in a corner, watching the show and waiting for the final outcome.

If Tristan won, they would swoop in to claim the spoils. If Gold Hook Jack won, they'd just run.

…

Toxic Blood Plague was truly the MVP of this battle.

Another Shadow Dagger hit, and the lead undead sailor instantly fell. Toxic Blood Plague erupted, taking the rest of the sailors with it.

Gold Hook Jack had never expected the entire crew to be wiped out so quickly. He had thought the undead sailors might last longer.

After a minute and a half, the sailors rose again.

Another Shadow Dagger flew, clearing the deck again.

Jack quickly realized the flaw of Toxic Blood Plague—it had limited range.

But even though he understood the problem, it didn't change anything.

The sailors were all melee fighters. To attack Tristan, they had to surround him, which would drag them into the plague's radius.

If they didn't surround him, they'd be useless, just watching from the sidelines.

Things weren't going the way Jack had expected. The Black Whale was supposed to be his domain, yet Tristan seemed completely at home here.

…

Gold Hook Jack's health steadily declined.

When it dropped to 600,000, he once again called for a truce, asking Tristan to reconsider.

When it hit 400,000, Jack lowered his posture, offering to surrender in exchange for the treasures he had accumulated over the years.

By the time his health was down to 200,000, Jack began reminiscing about the past, regretting opposing Edith.

Finally, when his health hit zero, the battle ended.

The Black Whale began to tremble, its hull peeling away from the keel.

The undead sailors on deck collapsed, their bodies rotting into dust and fading away.

Boom!

A burst of black mist erupted from the ship's bottom and rapidly engulfed the deck.

Tristan's instincts warned him, and he didn't bother collecting the dropped items. He activated Bone-Cutting Twin Daggers again and sprinted toward the edge of the deck, leaping into freefall.

Once he landed safely, Tristan turned around to look.

The bottom of the Black Whale had torn open, revealing a rift in the void, and a cold, oppressive aura wrapped around it.

Just standing nearby made his hands and feet feel numb.

If he stayed there, he'd likely be dragged back to life in an instant.

From within the black mist, an eerie laughter and low chanting could be heard.

"Now, you're mine."

Tristan could see a translucent figure being dragged from Gold Hook Jack's body. It was Jack's soul.

The former pirate captain, once the overlord of the black market's fighting pits, now had a look of terror as he struggled to escape, but it was futile. He could only watch as the black mist consumed him.

"A delicious soul..." The voice from the mist murmured with satisfaction.

Then, the mist began to dissipate, taking the Black Whale with it, vanishing as if it had never existed.

As someone who had seen such things before, Tristan understood immediately what had just happened.

Gold Hook Jack had gained his strength by making a deal with the Harbinger of Death.

The condition was that when he died, his soul would be claimed.

Although it was a pity that he didn't get to loot Jack's Gold Grade items—worth a considerable amount—Tristan wasn't about to risk angering the Harbinger of Death just for some treasure. He wasn't in the mood to confront it... at least, not right now.

While pondering, the game notifications began to ring.

"Hunting Moment activated, you have gained 1 Evolution Point!"

"Ding! You have killed Gold Hook Jack, completing your career advancement task. Level cap unlocked!"

"Ding! You have completed the career advancement task, growth points synchronized!"

"Ding! You are the first to complete the career advancement task. Would you like to hide your nickname?"

"No."

"Player 'Blackshade' has completed career advancement first. We hope other players will continue to strive forward!"