Chapter 2: Chapter 02 Newbie on the Battlefield!
"Disassemble complete, would you like to extract at once?"
Wasn't that obvious?
Arthur's face darkened as he muttered. "Extract!"
And just like that, he found himself holding nine books and surrounded by a white light.
"Seriously, are you messing with me? Do you expect me to toil on the battlefield, then go to college, pursue a master's degree, fall in love, marry Ms. Perfect, become a CEO, and reach the pinnacle of life?" He grumbled, but his extensive experience from reading novels told him that these books were not meant for reading.
The soldiers around him continued to hold their ground. In reality, only a few minutes had passed since this all began.
Taking advantage of the lack of attention from others, Arthur concealed several of the books behind his back. He picked one out without giving much thought to its correctness, or whether the action seemed ridiculous, and with a touch, the book transformed into a white light, directly entering Arthur's mind.
Various techniques for using rifles, insights, all of it appeared in his mind.
"Just as I thought!" Arthur nearly jumped for joy but, considering the bullets above his head, he was afraid of becoming a target. So, he gave up on that tempting idea.
Instead, he continued to touch the books one by one.
After touching all Six Rifle Shooting Experience books and three Rifle Close-Combat Experience books, Arthur felt like he might already be a master marksman.
As for the final burst of white light, after slapping it, it immediately dissolved into tiny specks of light, enveloping Arthur.
He felt a peculiar sensation, a slight tingling, swelling, and numbness in his muscles and bones throughout his body.
This sensation was fleeting, and when it subsided, Arthur felt as if he was brimming with newfound strength.
"This is definitely a 'Golden Finger'!"
Though he didn't understand the principle behind it, nor the reason why a mere broken rifle, when disassembled, yielded something as enigmatic as 'Battle Soul,' Arthur felt invincible at this moment.
Ready to stand up and face the enemy head-on, he reached for his gun, only to find it gone. "My gun… Disassembled!"
He had answered his own question and, lowering his head, realized that the disassembly had been very thorough; not even a trace was left behind.
Crouching and scurrying like a hungry dog, he reached for the nearest weapon.
Upon inspection, it had bullets inside, and the safety was already off.
"Would you like to Disassemble the M1 Garand rifle?"
"No!" Disassembling it again? Would he go fight the enemy empty-handed?
Without a second thought, Arthur lifted his head, glanced at the enemy, and pulled the trigger.
The gunshot rang out, and he didn't have time to check the result. The next moment, he recoiled.
"Did I kill him?" Arthur swallowed nervously, not daring to confirm.
To be honest, he felt a bit jittery.
Less than ten minutes ago, Arthur had been an otaku holed up at home, watching movies and playing games. The next moment, he was thrown into this fiery battlefield.
Even with a "Golden Finger" and an abundance of firearm knowledge in his head, how did that change the fact that he was still an ordinary person at heart?
Killing people? That's illegal!
The sight of death all around and the feeling of being pushed to the brink of desperation compelled him to pull the trigger.
After that shot, he didn't know if he had killed the enemy, but Arthur felt that this single shot had shattered his entire worldview and values in an instant.
After this surge of fear passed, Arthur gritted his teeth and stood up once more.
Rifle in hand, he aimed at the distant enemy and pulled the trigger.
Bang!
This time, Arthur didn't lower his head. He watched as the bullet struck the enemy directly in the face.
The splatter of blood, the final moments of the enemy, made Arthur's whole body tremble.
He didn't know if he was excited or scared.
He repeatedly raised his weapon, firing, with most shots hitting their mark. However, the chances of hitting the head weren't particularly high; often they struck the enemy's body or missed entirely.
The battlefield was a place that could drive people insane, especially for a newbie.
The conflict between values, the horrifying visuals, the unleashing of one's animal instincts after killing someone, and more, could all lead to a person's mind overheating.
Arthur felt a bit crazy at this moment.
It was only when he heard a clicking sound from his weapon that he realized it was empty.
At the same time, a feeling of heart-pounding fear suddenly crept into his mind.
Almost instinctively, he rolled, narrowly evading a bullet that was fired at him.
"Is it coming for me?" Arthur's heart skipped a beat as he hid in the trench, not daring to lift his head.
Snipers were on the battlefield. They wielded weapons not of human make; these were the scythes of death, recklessly harvesting lives.
'Was the bullet fired at him a sniper's shot?'
Arthur was ignorant on this matter, but it was clear that someone seemed to have their sights set on him.
He utilized some tips he had learned from movies. There was a corpse to his left, and he carefully removed the steel helmet from it.
With one hand, he held it and cautiously raised it above the trench, without exposing the entire helmet.
Bang!
A loud sound and Arthur felt the helmet fly out of his hand.
"I'm really being targeted!" Arthur was certain that someone was keeping an eye on him. If he raised his head, this person would blow his brains out.
"What should I do?" Arthur took a deep breath as he thought of this.
From the recent combat, it was clear that even after 'reading' those nine books, his marksmanship was, at best, average. He was far from reaching the level of a sharpshooter, so the enemy wasn't completely fixated on him.
But what if his enemy lost their mind?
"In that case…"
Arthur took a deep breath, looked at the rifle in his hand, and said, "Well then… Disassemble!"
The gears started to grind again!
After about thirty seconds, the Disassembly machine made a deflating sound.
"Announcement!"
"Equipment Disassembly successful!"
"Beginner Rifle Shooting Experience * 7"
"Beginner Rifle Close-Combat Experience * 5"
"Damaged Battle Soul"
"Disassemble Experience +1"
"Disassembly complete, would you like to extract at once?"
"Extract!"
With red eyes, Arthur crawled forward, scavenging weapons from fallen comrades, while grinding his teeth.
"I'll improve my shooting skills… Damn it, even without a sniper rifle, I'll still blow you away!"
(End of this chapter)
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