Volume 4 Chapter 18: Demon Transformation

Qin Lun would rather take several hits and insist on using his sniper rifle like a fire poker instead of close-combat weapons like the Dagger of Sin or FN-500, because he had his own considerations.

First, he didn’t have Joey’s close-combat abilities. While his other personality was observing during the switch, watching lots of movies didn’t mean he could imitate the fighting moves of movie protagonists.

During his time in Handan Prison, fights between Qin Lun and other inmates were mostly handled by Joey. His current close-combat abilities were purely built through the Combat Model. Without inputting detailed combat data of opponents and just relying on assumptions, he would be snapped out of his hypnotic state in one encounter.

Qin Lun wasn’t using the Dagger of Sin or FN-500 partly to gather Kathleen’s combat data and to mislead her into thinking he was purely a long-range shooter. Also, compared to the sniper rifle, the Dagger of Sin and FN-500 had one drawback: they weren’t heavy enough.

Before the close combat started, Qin Lun had a plan. He wanted to provoke Kathleen and make her destroy his sniper rifle.

Kathleen wasn’t an Apostle and didn’t have a Storage Space. Her outfit was quite revealing—a low-cut top and a slit skirt. Besides two pistols, she could only hide a small dagger in her boots.

To destroy Qin Lun’s sniper rifle, a dagger wouldn’t work; she had to use her pistol. The Webley VI revolver was an early model retired by late World War II.

Its features were obvious: large caliber and heavy at 1.277 kilograms. If held by the barrel and used to strike with its metal handle, it was no different from a hammer.

So, when Qin Lun deliberately swung his sniper rifle and hit Kathleen’s sensitive spots with the stock, the beautiful hunter finally let her guard down. At the cost of damaging one pistol, she smashed his sniper rifle.

In fact, when Qin Lun saw Kathleen using her pistol to smash the rifle, he reacted almost instantly, even deliberately leaning forward. The moment the two guns collided, he threw the shattered sniper rifle at her and rolled backward on the ground.

While rolling, Qin Lun took out a monocle from his chest and put it on. His light gray pupils slowly turned crimson, but his cold expression oddly looked confused.

Qin Lun rose immediately after the roll, turned around, and knelt on one knee. He extended his arms, holding the FN-500 steadily with both hands. Tilting his head slightly, he brought his right eye with the Combat Gauge to the gun’s sights, as if instantly becoming a marble statue in a firing pose.

“Target combat ability not fully analyzed. Average Agility 42, fluctuation above 5. Other attributes incomplete…”

“Combat Gauge estimated combat power: data exceeds Blue Quality Combat Gauge judgment, estimated three digits or more…”

“Combat Gauge estimated defense strength: 89, fluctuation above 13 points; Health Points: unknown…”

“Prediction mode activated. Precise Combat Model unavailable. Creating subjective model. Entering shooting unit calculation…”

“Wind speed less than level 1. Based on attack range, Light-energy Scattergun’s resistance negligible…”

“Eliminate target at 11 o’clock direction, height 1.78 meters, distance 3.23 meters, elevation 23.2 degrees…”

“Estimated focused energy bullet cannot pierce target’s defense energy. Activating second shooting option…”

“Activating personal special shooting skill: Weakness Crosshair… Shooting plan assessment: Fire in 0.28 seconds, impact point at left-hand Webley pistol!”

Kathleen’s Agility far exceeded Qin Lun’s, but he had planned this moment while she needed reaction time. So when Qin Lun simultaneously retreated, drew his gun, and aimed in a fluid motion, she felt completely caught off guard.

Kathleen was a master of close combat, evident from how she taught Little Red Riding Hood Liv, whose movements were agile and graceful like dance. In close combat, Kathleen had sharp instincts and strong Perception, able to dodge subconsciously before danger struck—a basic talent for Combat Gunmanship.

When the tiny crosshair appeared in the center of Qin Lun’s pupils again, Kathleen shuddered like a cat whose tail was stepped on. Her forward-leaping body seemed to hit an invisible wall, flying backward against physics.

This must be the powerful ability Little Red Riding Hood Liv encountered late last night. Damn, it wasn’t executed with a sniper rifle but with the Luger Pistol.

Watching the Luger Pistol held steadily in Qin Lun’s hands, Kathleen had a flash of understanding.

But why didn’t he use it earlier? Why swing the sniper rifle around? The Luger Pistol was far more suitable for close combat than the bulky sniper rifle, which didn’t even have a bayonet.

Gaining this crucial insight, Kathleen grew suspicious. She was an experienced associate professor at Grimm Academy, not a rookie like Little Red Riding Hood.

Recalling their earlier fight and this new information, she quickly noticed several oddities in Qin Lun’s actions.

He did it on purpose—he wanted me to use my pistol to smash his sniper rifle…

But what’s the point? I have more than one pistol…

Thinking of her guns, Kathleen immediately looked at the Webley VI revolver in her left hand and gasped in shock. She realized that while dodging his powerful shooting skill, she had instinctively blocked her face with the left-hand pistol.

Could his goal be… Kathleen’s pupils suddenly contracted into pinpricks!

“Bang!” A clear gunshot rang in the corridor. Guided by the powerful calculations of Weakness Crosshair, the Light-energy Scattergun’s shots, controlled by Qin Lun’s Perception, converged from scattered pellets into a single cone-shaped energy bullet that struck the revolver shielding Kathleen’s face.

The strength of Dark Gold weapons lay in their unique skills. The FN-500’s instant-shoot ability was fully demonstrated at this moment. Kathleen jolted; despite her reaction speed, she couldn’t dodge in time. The steel cylinder of the revolver shattered into pieces, completely destroyed.

“Clap, clap, clap!” Kathleen casually discarded the small remaining part of the revolver and wiped a trickle of blood from her cheek caused by the shrapnel. She applauded her opponent’s brilliant performance, even smiling warmly, though a cold glint flashed deep in her eyes.

“I think I need to change my view of you. I originally thought you were like ordinary Nazi soldiers—tough, brave, cold, but lacking flexibility. I didn’t expect your cunning to match your shooting skills! You successfully set a trap and destroyed both my guns!”

Kathleen’s voice had the soft allure of a mature woman, with a hint of coquettishness, the kind of beautiful murmur that could make men linger. But her smile gradually faded as she spoke.

“I should have realized earlier that being selected as a Superhuman for Skorzeny’s ‘Gentlemen Alliance’ meant you couldn’t be just an ordinary sniper. I never thought besides using a sniper rifle, you could fire such a powerful magic light bullet with a Luger Pistol!” Kathleen said expressionlessly. “However, deceiving a beauty’s feelings is a great sin! Do you really think I can’t do anything besides dual-wielding pistols?”

“Of course not! As a professor at Grimm Academy, since you taught a student like Little Red Riding Hood, you must be versatile and not limited to one attack method!” Qin Lun’s cold, numb face suddenly broke into a smile.

“But during the bombardment of the Gneisenau, you were busy evacuating the three-nation leaders and scientists, then immediately assigned by the ‘Justice League’ to guard the underground passage…

You don’t usually dress so revealingly and alluringly, do you? After all, academy professors need to maintain decorum in front of students. Wearing this to fight must be a last resort. Most of your equipment is probably buried in the rubble above ground, right?

Otherwise, you wouldn’t be using a nearly retired Webley revolver but the kind of magic firearms Little Red Riding Hood uses. Let me guess—did you get that Webley from some British senior officer temporarily? I’ve heard many World War I British veterans like collecting this gun as an antique.”

Kathleen fell silent, her pupils slightly dilating as a flicker of surprise crossed her eyes. It wasn’t strange that Qin Lun knew she was a professor at Grimm Academy. A big shot like Skorzeny could deduce the academy’s involvement from Little Red Riding Hood. At her age, she couldn’t be a student, only a professor.

What surprised her was that Qin Lun’s other guesses were all correct. Her luck had been terrible during the recent shelling; her room took a direct hit from a 150mm shell from the Gneisenau.

If she hadn’t been awakened by the whistle of the shell at the last moment, she would have been buried in the rubble with her gear. The Webley pistols she held were actually given to her by General Montgomery, who was with British Prime Minister Churchill—one was the general’s own sidearm, the other belonged to his chief of staff.

“Judging from Little Red Riding Hood’s combat skills, your abilities should be similar to your student’s, mainly focused on agile and delicate weapon-based close combat, not true hand-to-hand expertise. That fits the characteristics of female combat professions!”

Qin Lun narrowed his eyes slightly, showing his trademark charming smile for the first time since entering this world. However, on Gerthard’s rough Germanic features, it looked unusually ferocious.

“So what? Your clumsiness with the sniper rifle definitely wasn’t faked. You’re not good at close combat either!” Kathleen sneered. “Let’s see how you defeat me!”

Even if she wasn’t great at hand-to-hand, she wouldn’t lose to an amateur. Besides, her magical energy was still plentiful. With prior preparation, she felt she no longer had to fear that strange Luger Pistol of his.

“Heh, no, not me. The person you’ll face next isn’t me… cough cough… Even though it’s necessary, I still hate this feeling every time… Ah…” Qin Lun suddenly spoke, the red light in his eyes blazing. He clutched his head, bent over, and curled up like a shrimp.

Watching her opponent’s painful state, Kathleen cautiously stepped back two paces, adopting a defensive stance. But soon, her beautiful eyes widened in shock.

“Such a terrifying aura… What are you?”

“Haha, Qin Lun, you finally can’t hold on anymore?” Qin Lun’s body was hunched over, his originally light gray Germanic eyes now completely blood-red.

“Lovely lady, Joey Foster sends his greetings!” The Serial Killer abruptly looked up, his violent eyes gleaming with cruelty as he stared at the beauty before him, like a lamb to the slaughter.