It was precisely at the moment Maud's attention was drawn by the uproar that the bullet came bearing murderous intent.
The timing and angle were perfect.
Treacherous and vicious.
It was clear that the shooter had prepared in advance.
Unfortunately for him, the person he was facing was Maud.
Just before the bullet could shoot into his temple, Maud tilted his head back.
Whoosh--
The bullet grazed past the hair above Maud's forehead and struck the ground at an angle, leaving behind a gunshot hole that steamed with white smoke.
A shot that had been certain to hit had missed in frustration.
On the heights of Tree Island, eight hundred meters away, a man with a messy bird's-nest hairstyle and slightly dark eye circles knelt on one knee, bracing a single-shot flintlock rifle with obvious signs of modification in both hands.
That shot had come from this man.
"Damn..."
After missing, the man's expression changed.
He believed he had timed the shot perfectly, and there was no need to mention its accuracy, so he had been extremely confident in it.
Before pulling the trigger, he had even involuntarily imagined Maud's head exploding.
However, reality had slapped him hard across the face.
"Captain Oliver, did you hit him?"
Beside him, the rifleman's companion looked at him expectantly.
Oliver shook his head. As he swiftly reloaded, his gaze remained fixed on Maud in the distance.
Even without a scope, the flintlock rifle he had modified himself could guarantee a hit within a one-kilometer range.
The firearm's power and stability were one factor, but more important were his naturally gifted eyes.
With those eyes, he could see a grain of sand in the distance and even track a bullet's trajectory with his naked eyes.
Such talent had naturally made him a highly skilled