The Mercenary Queen Strikes Back (Lily Hastings) novel Chapter 81

Chapter 81

When Edward joked about Nova being Jordan’s girlfriend, Jordan broke out in a cold sweat. He immediately remembered the fugitives Nova had taken down… His heart skipped a beat, as if he might become one of them.

Jordan quickly waved his hands to explain, “No, no. Don’t say that. She’s Nova Blake. Uh… Just a friend I made in school.”

Edward laughed out loud, “Come on, Jordan. I’ve never seen you so timid back in the unit. You’re acting like this girl’s gonna beat you. Am I right, girl?”

He turned to Nova with a relaxed tone, treating her like an ordinary schoolgirl.

Nova didn’t respond to Edward. Instead, she narrowed her eyes toward the special forces soldiers practicing sniper drills in the trenches and asked, “Those are your soldiers?”

“Yeah.” Edward nodded, a surge of pride welling up as he prepared to impress her. He couldn’t wait to show off, hoping to see an awed, admiring look in her eyes and satisfy his soldier’s ego.

Edward said smugly, “So, what do you think, girl? First time seeing something like this, huh? Pretty impressive, right? My soldiers are top–notch. They can score a headshot from at least 2,500 feet away.”

Hearing Edward boast like this in front of Nova, Jordan cringed so hard he wanted to dig a hole and hide. Any intention to introduce her real skills vanished instantly.

Nova raised an eyebrow slightly. “Too close.”

Edward, expecting praise from her, paused for a moment. “Huh? Too close? What do mean?”

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The next second, Nova spoke with such professional precision that even this veteran was stunned, “The effective range is too short.

“The AMR–2 sniper rifle, caliber 12.7 mm, has an effective range of 5,000 feet and a maximum range of 6,500 feet. Yet your men only shoot at 2,500 feet.

“With a caliber like that, even with minimal training, they should maintain at least 4,000 feet. Honestly, your training methods have significant flaws.”

Nova didn’t hold back, pointing out Edward’s shortcomings directly and leaving him speechless.

Edward’s face went stiff. “You know about guns?” he blurted out in shock.

In his experience, girls were usually into makeup and handbags, not firearms. He thought, still trying to process it, “This girl not only identified the rifle model from a distance but also knew its exact specifications.

Edward stared blankly at Jordan, his expression seeming to say, “Where did you dig up this prodigy?”

Felix and the other four weren’t too surprised. After all, Felix and Evie had already witnessed Nova taking down fugitives from the shadows.

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Chapter 81

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But even Felix and Evie, who had worked as assassins, didn’t have such in–depth knowledge of firearms.

All five of them stood there, dumbstruck. They had only one thought, ‘Is Nova a hardcore gun enthusiast or something?‘

“Girl, from the way you talk, you think you’re better than Edward, huh?”

“If you’re so good, why don’t you give it a shot? Come on, show us what you’ve got.”

A few special forces soldiers lying in the trenches practicing sniper drills immediately bristled with defiance. Naturally, they couldn’t let a young girl show them up.

“Yeah, all talk and no action. I bet you can’t even hold a rifle steady,” another soldier chimed in, hefting his AMR–2 sniper rifle with a challenging tone.

“Nova, you…” Jordan frowned, unsure what to say.

With swift motion, Nova simply swept a hand through her hair, pulling a hair tie from somewhere and quickly tying her long hair into a neat ponytail.

She stepped firmly on the soil as she strode forward, her voice ringing with bold arrogance. “Then I’ll show you what the right way to handle a sniper rifle looks like.”

With that, she walked over, took the AMR–2 sniper rifle from a soldier’s hands with practiced ease, and shouldered it effortlessly.

Holding the rifle with one hand, she rested the barrel against her shoulder–no need to adjust her aim or have a spotter assist.

Standing right where she was, she squinted one eye. Her slender fingers swiftly chambered a round and pulled the trigger. A gunshot echoed across the training ground.

Her movements were so fast and fluid, even smoother than Edward’s demonstrations.

Three seconds later, the target 6,500 feet away was pierced right through by the bullet.

Nova turned and casually tossed the AMR–2 back to the soldier, her movements casual and effortless.

In that instant, all the surrounding special forces soldiers, along with Edward, stood dumbfounded, staring in shock at what had just happened.

The AMR–2 has a maximum range of 6,500 feet. The “maximum range” meant the farthest distance a bullet can travel. It was way farther than its sweet spot, but by then, it barely packed any punch.

Factoring in wind direction, wind speed, temperature, air pressure, and other variables, it’s practically impossible for anyone to accurately hit a target at maximum range.

The AMR–2’s effective range was only 5,000 feet. But Nova had just hit a target 6,500 feet away. That was definitely not something an ordinary person could achieve.

“Holy shit! We totally misjudged this girl. Is she some kind of sharpshooter?” one special forces soldier

19:48 Tue, Jun 9

Chapter 81

muttered, his face full of shock.

Edward drew a sharp, deep breath, eyes wide in utter disbelief.

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“What’s with you all slacking off? Aren’t you supposed to be training?” Just as everyone was stunned by Nova’s display, a stern male voice suddenly rang out.

They looked up and saw a middle–aged man in a crisp military uniform with a resolute expression walking toward them. The thumb on his left hand was bent unnaturally, as if it had been broken before.

The moment they saw him, all the special forces soldiers, including Jordan, snapped to attention and saluted in unison, shouting, “Commander!”

The man was none other than the commander of Sector X18, Harrison Marshall.

He was also an old acquaintance of Nova’s from before her imprisonment. Back then, they had collaborated during the Apo Conflict in Xylem.

Harrison had come to inspect the training. He had just scolded them sternly when he heard a familiar female voice–one that had left him with many “memorable” experiences.

The next second, it rang out with an arrogance that even overshadowed his own. “Hey, old guy, that broken thumb of yours has healed pretty well over the years. Tsk, I’d love to snap a few more.”

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