I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun

Chapter 422

"Report the situation."

"I’ll activate the projector."

Whir.

Inside the underground air raid shelter and conference room of Central Park HQ in New York, shrouded in darkness due to a blackout, the beam projector turned on. A slowly diminishing ring of concentric circles centered around the Artemis headquarters began to appear on the screen.

The display on the projector changed in real-time. What had seemed like an unchanging defensive network by the Canadian military suddenly developed a breach as soon as a certain date arrived. The exact date didn’t need explaining.

However, a day, two days, and three days later, a new development was emerging.

"The Canadian military pulled out of that area, and now our unmanned forces have a much easier time positioning themselves. I never expected to dispose of old conventional forces in this way."

"Indeed."

"Anyway, so. What’s forming around Artemis now... is that some kind of... discarded piece, perhaps?"

The person conducting the briefing nodded in agreement.

The concentric circle around Artemis HQ was becoming more fortified by the day. They had also made preparations to launch artillery strikes at Artemis HQ at any time. The reason for this was simple: to create some leeway for the Dagger team and allied forces to infiltrate Artemis’ headquarters.

In other words, the three-day preparation period given to the Dagger team wasn’t just for them but was also necessary for the U.S. military’s unmanned forces to operate. They would deploy unmanned vehicles through countless transport planes, leaving only weapons that could be destroyed if needed, while buying time for the retreat of key personnel.

Everything was reaching its final stage.

"When can we start the operation?"

"We expect to infiltrate Artemis HQ within three to twelve hours. The ISA operators are currently organizing data and preparing pathfinding. Once they’re finished, I’ll report again."

"Hmm."

"The infiltration will be carried out using stealth hawks and on-foot maneuvering. We estimate it will take about 20 minutes for the Dagger team to reach the base."

Twenty minutes.

In his mind, the dark and gloomy interior of Artemis HQ seemed to appear. Perhaps within twelve hours, they’d be monitoring the operation status in a conference room, much like during the Neptune Sphere monitoring operation decades ago.

Real-time operational monitoring. With the Dark Winter crisis escalating, battles were fought at such a scale that it was hard even to count the numbers. Despite that, suddenly, Henry had the thought in his mind.

While it was unclear whether direct engagement was the right choice, nothing could be more effective than monitoring the situation as it unfolded.

He paused for a moment and added:

"Once the operation begins, everyone should gather in the conference room again."

Swipe.

Lifting his tablet, he dragged his finger down the screen, and soon, most of the terminals in the room vibrated lightly—Joint Special Operations Command Support Deputy Commander, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, National Security Advisor, Chief of Staff, National Intelligence Director, Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense, ICARUS Director...

At that moment, all eyes were fixed on one point, and Henry spoke up:

"These individuals will be monitoring the progress of the Dagger team’s operation with me in real-time."

"...Understood."

"And how are we preparing additional forces, in case something unexpected happens?"

"Aricon, Violet, and Laser are on standby as reserves."

"I hope another operation team doesn’t need to be called upon."

The briefing was nearing its end.

Now, Henry could clearly monitor the situation at the base and Artemis HQ, even from regions hundreds of kilometers away. He knew that, until the Dagger team was ready to begin the operation, there was nothing else to confirm.

The clear light emitted by the projector dimmed for a moment, and people began to leave the conference room. Most of them were military personnel. Since the briefing on the information the president needed to know, or matters requiring direct approval, had concluded, there was no reason to stay.

Normally, leaving midway through a briefing would be unthinkable, but the United States, in its current state, faced the worst personnel shortage, where even the slightest absence from the highest authorities or operational personnel would result in a mountain of tasks piling up. That’s why some people had reluctant expressions on their faces when Henry made his suggestion.

However, in the end, there was nothing unimportant.

In the now emptier conference room, the next briefing began.

It was about the reconstruction of the transportation infrastructure in the U.S.

"Nothing here is unimportant. Is it just my imagination, or is it that more than half the people here won’t be able to leave the conference room until the Dagger team’s operation starts?"

"It’s certainly not your imagination, Mr. President."

"I wish I had seven more bodies... Anyway, let’s move on to the next agenda."

At the same time, the Secretary of Transportation stood up.

Dressed neatly in a suit, but with dark circles under his eyes, this individual had inherited the massive workload that had fallen on the U.S. government’s shoulders due to the collapse of most state-run transportation departments. The sudden duty to stabilize and rebuild the U.S. transportation system had left the department swamped with work proportional to its newfound power.

At this point, the U.S. was teetering on the edge.

"Now, let me talk about the most urgent areas for reconstruction, the materials required, and the associated costs and manpower..."

Numerous resources and personnel were required everywhere.

Not just in the unexplored zones, but Henry and countless other government officials were waging battles and tackling mountain-high tasks from their respective positions.

The Great War had culminated, but the reconstruction was just beginning.

"Be careful not to cause a detonation. No leaving even a single round behind. Pretend you’ve never received anything like anti-matter grenades from the start."

"That’s not possible. Where else could you find such an attractive weapon?"

"...Anyway, you guys just can't get enough of firepower."

Of course, the Destroyers, hundreds of kilometers away from New York, weren’t concerned at all.

Operation Ouroboros had begun.

Boom!

"...It’s the Secretary."

"It’s probably even more noticeable at night."

Flashes of light could be seen even from dozens of kilometers away, blinking repeatedly.

A stealth helicopter flew around the battle area, approaching Artemis HQ from the side. Fast rope deployment quickly dropped them off and vanished. Just weeks ago, the forest had been covered in thick trees and moss, but now, the area had numerous holes.

The reason was simple. Recently, the CAF, the Canadian forces, had failed to eliminate Artemis HQ with explosives and artillery from a distance, and the aftermath of that failure still lingered. In other words, shells and stray bullets had torn through the forest.

Fortunately, the movement was easier because of that.

"I heard the attacks on Artemis HQ are all coming from unmanned vehicles. Pretty clever."

"They probably know they’ll be countered by railguns, so this is their plan."

Various discussions continued up ahead.

The Dagger team, leading the way, quickly conducted reconnaissance and confirmed the remaining distance to HQ. Meanwhile, Jin, Rain, Harmonie, Dice, Carto, and Blooming followed behind, providing rear security.

Lorentina and Logan, a few steps ahead of me, moved without breaking their stride, as did I. The Artemis headquarters was clearly visible even from the current location, about 2 km away, so there was no risk of losing our way.

Therefore, my thoughts began to drift in a different direction.

'...It would be great if this is the last one.'

If I thought the battles had ended after the conflict in Seattle, that was too optimistic.

But on the other hand, if Artemis was wiped off the map after this battle, what other force could possibly give me, the Dagger team, or the U.S. military more trouble? Shadowy terrorists? Cartels?

In that case, maybe Lorentina’s comment about taking me to Florida wasn’t an ominous foreshadowing but a sincere wish.

Maybe I’ll take Jin and Rain with me later...

Boom!

"...Ugh."

"So, the enemy we’re facing is carrying something like that, huh? This is already giving me a headache."

• "What the hell?"
• "No way, hahaha!!!"
• "We didn’t have anything like that when we did it! We didn’t have anything like that when we did it!"
• "Would you expect that? Hahaha!"
• "If they add something like that, it’ll be impossible to break through for a thousand years."

A bluish flash streaked through the air.

There was no sound of explosion or blast. The radius of the enemy unmanned vehicle ring surrounding Artemis HQ was 100 km—meaning, the distance between the prototypes and the unmanned vehicles was around 100 km. In other words, somewhere far away, unmanned vehicles were being destroyed, but we wouldn’t be able to detect it.

Regardless, the U.S. military had also come prepared. They were launching missiles and other long-range munitions with the intention of avoiding interception by using artillery and Tomahawk missiles, which had a range of several hundred kilometers.

Every time a missile was fired, the electromagnetic barrier swayed dramatically.

After some time, with about 500 meters to the base, the Dagger team at the forefront inserted something unusual into their under-barrel grenade launchers.

The in-ear comms crackled.

"Everyone hit the deck. The blast wave is going to be massive."

And everyone except a few hit the ground—how long did it take?

The air seemed to tremble with an ominous sound, and missiles that seemed to come from three directions struck Artemis’s electromagnetic barrier, shaking it violently. As a prototype hovered in the air, selecting its target, a faint sound, familiar yet not light, echoed.

"Strike."

And the flash erupted.