The two unknown players split up, clearly wary of each other. From the looks of it, they weren't exactly close.
Suneo began moving on his own. Gian was nowhere to be seen. Meanwhile, Yayahara Daichi remained with Dekisugi.
As for Nobita, Daichi used his sensing spell to check in on him—and found him strolling leisurely through the streets like he was just out for an afternoon walk. He looked far too relaxed, as if victory were already in the bag.
Daichi scoffed. Cocky fool. I'll teach you humility soon enough.
He turned to look at Dekisugi, who seemed unsure about his marksmanship. Daichi pulled him toward the riverbank.
No one was playing baseball there today. Standing beneath a tree, Daichi had Dekisugi move about twenty meters away, then told him to aim and shoot directly at his chest.
Dekisugi refused firmly. "No way. I can't hurt you!"
Daichi smiled. "Relax. This won't hurt me. Remember, even a real bullet couldn't take me down back then."
Dekisugi hesitated, then finally raised his hand to aim.
He aligned his thumb, forefinger, and eye, forming a clean line of sight. With a whispered "Bang," he fired.
An air bullet formed instantly between his fingers. At the same moment, Daichi summoned the Embrace of the Dawn Goddess—a ragged but powerful cloak. Though the garment itself was worn, its strength came from the magical barrier it conjured.
The bullet struck Daichi's chest right as the golden cloak materialized. He felt nothing more than a breeze.
Looking down, the impact had landed squarely on his chest.
"Who says you're bad at shooting?" he said with a grin. "You hit dead center on the first try."
Dekisugi scratched his head sheepishly. "That was just luck. It's my first time playing a shooting game."
Daichi's eye twitched. First time, huh? You're outperforming seasoned players. Talk about natural talent…
Dekisugi then pointed at the cloak. "That's the one, right? The defense seems really strong."
Daichi nodded. In its current tattered state, it could still block up to a Tier 2 spell before needing recharging. For a fragile magic user like him, it was practically a portable shield spell.
Then he pointed to a nearby tree. "Wanna see who can shoot more leaves off a branch? To keep it fair, we each pick a branch for the other."
Dekisugi agreed.
They both picked branches, stepped back twenty paces, and fired five shots each.
When they returned to inspect the branches…
Dekisugi began offering Daichi a full minute of gentle consolation.
"It's okay. We're both beginners. It's normal not to hit that many. It's just a friendly match—don't take it too hard…"
Daichi, face drained of color, cast a sidelong glance at him. We both just learned this, yet he hit five leaves. I didn't even get one off my branch…
He expected a gap, but not one this big. It was enough to make him question life itself.
Meanwhile, Nobita had just encountered his first opponent—a boy whose name no one even remembered. With confidence, Nobita stood tall and said, "Go ahead. I'll give you three shots."
The chubby kid raised his hands and fired five times in a row—none of which hit Nobita, despite his generous target size.
Nobita saw his opponent's spirit waver. Calmly squinting, he lifted his hand and—"Bang!"—fired a perfect shot. The chubby kid fell instantly.
Nobita walked up, blew on his finger like a gunslinger blowing smoke from a barrel, and moved on.
Suneo, having witnessed the whole thing, was so shaken he abandoned his own ambush plans and fled.
Back at the riverbank, Daichi wanted to keep practicing, but Dekisugi was hesitant. "If we run out of bullets now, what if we run into someone later?"
Daichi responded flatly, "Don't worry. If anyone tries something, I'll show them what a real air cannon looks like."
The sky had cleared up and was free of clouds, but Daichi could still draw on the power of the heavens for small-scale attacks. More than enough to deal with any pests.
Dekisugi laughed nervously. "This is just a game. You wouldn't really use magic, right?"
Daichi paused, then chuckled. "Of course not. I'd never use a lethal spell in something like this. At most, I'll wash the air bullets off them with a water orb."
Dekisugi finally relaxed.
They agreed to leave the riverbank and start hunting for targets.
Elsewhere, Suneo had regrouped with a lanky teammate. Together, they followed Nobita, planning to take him out from behind.
Nobita, meanwhile, was still strolling aimlessly when he noticed a luxury car parked nearby. He admired the sleek body, red trim, premium tires—
—and two reflections in the side mirror.
Two people?
Instantly alert, Nobita spun around and fired. "Bang! Bang!"
Suneo and his teammate went down without resistance.
Nobita shoved his hands into his pockets and walked away. "Trying to ambush someone stronger than you? Not a bad strategy. But once your shadows crossed into my line of sight, you'd already lost."
His silhouette stretched behind him, looming over the fallen pair.
Daichi and Dekisugi eventually returned to the starting area—a wide, open field.
The place seemed empty, but Daichi's sensing spell told him Gian was nearby, dragging along some dogs and watching the area.
It was clearly a tactic to bait enemies into wasting bullets. Clever—but useless against Daichi and Dekisugi, who weren't relying on ammo.
Daichi detected another presence.
It was Nobita—already within twenty meters. Daichi grinned.
He casually walked forward with Dekisugi. Nobita saw them, then ducked behind cover.
Just as expected, he peeked out and fired. "Bang! Bang!"
Daichi had already prepared a Tier 2 shielding spell, which protected Dekisugi. He himself used the Embrace of the Dawn Goddess to absorb the shots.
Both of them theatrically collapsed.
Nobita was ecstatic. He strode up to admire his "trophies."
Just then—ambush. Three dogs burst from the bushes.
Nobita dropped the bravado, raised his hand, and—bang, bang, bang!—took them all out with headshots.
As he exhaled in relief, a voice called out from the bushes.
"Hehehe, Nobita. How many bullets do you have left? I've still got all ten!"
It was Gian.
Nobita snorted. "I've got one. But one is all I need."
Gian sneered. "Still so cocky, huh…"
The air grew tense. Sweat beaded on both their faces, but neither dared to wipe it away.
Gian blinked first. He lunged forward and fired.
Nobita rolled to the side, dodging, and fired back in one fluid motion from one knee.
"Bang!"
The shot struck Gian like a cannonball. He flew through the air and crashed heavily into the ground.
Match over.
Nobita holstered his hand, turned, and walked away like a lone gunman. The setting sun stretched his shadow behind him, a symbol of solitude and victory.
But then—
He tripped on a rock.
(End of Chapter)