I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun

Chapter 427

"This feels bad, damn it...!"

"They've been blatantly waiting for an opportunity. From the way the shields are advancing, it looks like Gamma and Delta are on the frontlines, pushing forward directly."

The situation suddenly takes a strange turn.

It was just as they said. The bluish shield was slowly advancing. It seemed as though they had concentrated all the power of the tower, as even after Rain and Jin had attacked several times, the shield only trembled momentarily. The antimatter shells were now nearly exhausted, and they couldn’t use them recklessly.

The sound of rustling filled the air again. After being pushed back into the hallway, everyone was performing self-healing procedures. It was fortunate that no one had died instantly, but if they continued to be pushed back purely due to the overwhelming power difference... finding a solution seemed nearly impossible.

And there was one more issue.

"The escape route is blocked. We can destroy the partition, but the flood of water coming from beyond that section will drown everyone in about 20 minutes."

"...Jin, Rain. Even if it's just the two of you, try to break through the partition and get out. The rest of us, even if we die, can return."

"That's impossible."

At the same time, a map was brought up.

It turned out that the entire steel factory they had passed earlier was... literally a battlefield. A massive amount of molten steel had flowed through the path, blocking it completely. Breaking through it would take significant time, even for just two people, or perhaps the chances were slim.

Could they break through the shields of the two machines with everything they had?

Or could they try to exploit the prototype’s friendly fire, like earlier?

But even considering these "ifs" in this situation was a waste of time. It would be far more practical to assess what other options they had.

"...Charging directly from the front is not an option. There's no possibility."

"Is there a chance we could use someone as bait to create an opening...?"

"They are probably preparing for that too."

In that case, there was only one conclusion left.

If anything, it was fortunate that the control tower at Artemis HQ... wasn’t a straight-line structure. As mentioned earlier, the network control room and the fourth control tower were in completely isolated areas, and the path to reach that area was blocked by partitions and water.

However, it had never been said that they had to pass through the second and third control towers to reach it.

But—

"...If even half of us make it there, it would be a miracle."

"As long as Jin and Rain survive, it'll be over."

"...".

Though it wasn’t a wrong statement, Jin and Rain’s expressions didn’t brighten.

Well, still, it wasn’t a huge worry. If needed, once I died, I could log out from the Dark Zone and cross into another world to rescue these two. Of course, it couldn’t be assured, but just knowing there was a possible escape made it feel a little lighter.

After marking the coordinates of the area, I looked at my teammates, who still had concern etched on their faces, and added:

"If I had known this would happen, I should’ve made you guys practice swimming, not just combat."

"You’re cracking jokes even in a situation like this?"

"Well, you should be thankful that the probability isn’t zero. So, which way is the path to the fourth corridor?"

"We need to go through there."

He pointed with his finger at the recently opened path.

To be precise, we had just passed through a door that had expanded into a corridor-sized space, entering and exiting sections two and three. To get to the fourth control tower, we would need to cross this corridor entirely. It was almost like preparing before diving into the water.

The next part was simple. Open the elevator doors at the end of the corridor, take the lift down, and it would be done. Of course, when the elevator doors at the bottom level were opened, a large amount of water would flood in, but that was something we had to endure...

Moreover, since the water had been introduced into an air-filled area, there would be air pockets inside the fully submerged doors, so breathing would still be possible.

"Jin and Rain won’t need oxygen, so mark the locations with air pockets and focus on breaking the partition. The rest... try to survive."

"That's an ironic thing to say."

"Well, you won’t die anyway, right?"

Dice gave me a look that seemed to question if he should take this as a joke, but well... what else could I do?

With the chatroom suddenly turning cold, everyone took out the remaining smoke grenades. We placed them on the floor and planned to cross the hallway once they exploded. Time was of the essence. There was a chance that someone might die, but Gamma and Delta were still in defensive positions, so it would take them a little time to change that.

Probably.

At this point, nothing was certain.

A silence settled, and the smoke grenades arced through the air.

Everyone started running like bullets.

1 second.

2 seconds.

3 seconds.

???Thud! Thud! Thud!

And the bullets rained down.

It was truly a long time. Given the leeway we were granted at this point, there was no way we wouldn’t be able to cross, no matter how wide the door was. And so, everyone crossed the hallway safely—but, naturally, just a beat too late, a ferocious barrage of fire poured down.

What made things worse was the vibration conveyed through the soles of our feet. Whether they had noticed we were heading towards the 4th Tower, they immediately began deploying drones and infantry. However, no one was unaware of the situation, and by the time we crossed the entire corridor, we were split into two groups of four.

Rain and Jin were tearing open the elevator doors, while the remaining seven, taking cover in the hallway, were systematically dismantling the pursuit squads.

"Throw the grenades, throw them! Everything except the antimatter grenades! Let's sweep them all up here!"

"The Archetype, the door’s open!"

"After you enter, mark the air pockets! Break the partition! We'll stall as much as we can here!"

I would never know what kind of expression those two had at that moment.

The next moment, there was a sharp sound, and the two of them disappeared. They went down the line. But regardless, the fighting in the hallway continued with blood washing away blood. The absence of Jin and Rain immediately led to a lack of firepower, and it didn't take long before we were outnumbered.

Logan grimaced and pulled a grenade from his pouch.

"Damn it, using type Bravo! We better start mass-producing these for future supply!"

"Of course!"

A flash of light erupted.

Logan’s type Bravo grenade, with a blast radius of 50 meters, exploded in the middle of the Artemis forces, instantly turning dozens of drones and an equal number of enemy soldiers into ash or charred corpses.

The remaining antimatter grenades dropped from eight to seven, and for a moment, the enemy faltered. But they couldn’t be used recklessly. The reason didn’t even need an explanation.

Time seemed to stretch and contract unpredictably.

The progress of Rain and Jin marking air pockets and breaking through the partition was painfully slow, but as soon as the heat in the corridor dissipated, Artemis forces resurfaced immediately. The frontline gradually retreated, and soon only about 15 meters remained to the elevator.

I turned to Harmony, Dice, Kato, and Blooming, who were continuing to provide cover from behind.

"We’re going ahead! The three of us don’t need air pockets!"

"…Don’t die and make it down!"

And so, one by one, people started to leave.

Kato, Blooming, Harmony, and Dice all headed out.

By now, only three of the Manifesters were left in the hallway. But we, too, couldn’t afford to delay any longer.

"...Those bastards, now they’re coming straight into the hallway."

Gamma and Delta.

At some point, they had started advancing, armed with heavy ballistic shields, and we had no choice but to fall into the elevator shaft, nearly falling into the vertical corridor as the last one.

???Splash!

The water wasn’t very cold, but it filled the floor.

A familiar sensation. Although my movements were slightly slowed because of my gear, entering the water-filled corridor and maneuvering around it posed no major problems. The first thing I needed to do was check what the four who entered first were doing.

Fortunately, it wasn’t difficult to find them. To my surprise, the four were still alive. They had smashed the door handles and were struggling to hold back the water flooding into the room after entering the air pocket. Normally, this would be impossible due to the water pressure, but the downgraded Icarus Gear made it possible.

Naturally, Logan, Lorentina, and I didn’t open the door. The oxygen was only for those four. None of the Manifesters, including me, would have trouble holding their breath underwater for over 15 minutes.

However, there was an even more pressing problem.

After signaling Logan and Lorentina with vibrations, I communicated the situation in sign language.

‘Artemis underwater units are approaching.’

The vibrations from the entrance we came through reached us.

At the same time, a strange sound echoed. Initially, "underwater units" didn’t sound like much. It was just unmanned submersibles floating around, detonating mines, and that’s what counted as underwater units. The shock in the water was transmitted well, making it effective against Manifesters too.

We had to divide our forces again.

After giving orders to Logan and Lorentina to respond, I quickly swam into the crushed partitions and found Jin and Rain. Thankfully, I had taught them sign language, so the communication was simple.

‘There’s plenty of coolant around, so Jin, focus on plasma-cutting the door, and Rain, take care of the mines and break the partition.’

At those words, Rain quickly went beyond the opened door and back out.

Since the railgun wasn’t rotating, its power was less diminished in the water, so interception shouldn’t be a problem. There were already several small submersibles circulating around, so we couldn’t afford to leave them alone.

Unfortunately—

"…Ah, this is Kato. I’ll go ahead. The air pocket will be fully flooded soon."

"…You’ve done well."

"I’ll be watching the broadcast. Is there any donation function to send oxygen?"

That was the last message. While the three of us—myself, Lorentina, and Rain—were busy intercepting the small submersibles, Kato's nickname disappeared from the allies list.

One by one, people started to fall. About 40 seconds later, the room where Blooming had been was completely flooded. Thankfully, Harmony and Dice had chosen the same room, and together they sealed off the water entering the room, allowing them to hold out a little longer.

Another three minutes passed.

Amidst the bluish light crossing the water, Jin, after several trial and error attempts, managed to open almost all the partitions except one by creating a hole just big enough for people to pass through, instead of melting the entire door.

It was time.

???Knock knock knock!

I knocked on the door where Harmony and Dice were, and the two hesitated before opening it.

Countless air bubbles burst forth as Harmony and Dice appeared, their cheeks puffed up. Logan had already gone inside, and Lorentina and I each grabbed Dice and Harmony’s arms, swimming at an incredible speed to quickly cross the partition.

About twelve doors were now open. An infuriatingly large number.

By the time Rain, who had been smashing submersibles until the very end, quickly came back inside, the two Mecha Eugens aimed at the last remaining partition.

Flames and flashes erupted.

???Whoosh!

"…Cough!"

"Ugh…!"

"Are you all okay?"

"In my life, I never thought I’d have an experience like this. Seven of us are still alive, so maybe we’re ahead, right?"

Through the opened partition, water continued to pour in.

However, beyond that was a space filled with air, and Lorentina and I stopped the water’s violent current by grabbing Harmony and Dice’s arms before they were swept away. The fierce water currents showed no sign of stopping, but everyone’s expressions in this moment were incredibly bright.

We did it.

Now, all that was left was to head toward the fourth control tower, and thankfully, this area—although Epsilon was supposed to be here—had Artemis’ unfortunate mistake. Epsilon had been renamed Rain, and she had already left the headquarters.

Now, the question remained: what awaited us?

"I hope there’s nothing waiting for us."

"Let’s go for it. The fourth control tower isn’t far if we go with the current, so don’t fall behind."

However, before that, identifying the entrance was essential, and to open it, a little trick was needed. In short, we had to place a few grenades, predict their detonation timing, and set them to explode right before the door to the fourth control tower.

The grenades were thrown far ahead of us, landing with a soft plop, and once we thought it was the right moment, the seven of us simultaneously let go of the walls, letting the current carry us.

It was much faster than walking, and we began moving at a breakneck speed.

???Boom!

But as we rounded a corner, the view changed suddenly, and with a massive explosion, the current shifted.

A huge tunnel appeared from the hole created by the grenade blast, and before we could change direction, all seven of us were sucked into it.

Water cascaded from the shattered entrance, and we tumbled across the floor of yet another combat lab. As the foggy vision began to clear, déjà vu washed over me, and only then did I see the room clearly.

There was no other Epsilon.

But, just like on the upper floor, enemy forces filled the experimental lab.

Seeing this, I couldn’t help but mutter in disbelief.

"…Ha, I should have asked for ten more bombs if I knew this would happen."

Bzzzt!

In that moment, I threw a Bravo-class antimatter grenade straight at the four-legged tank, and as I dodged, I pulled my pistol and fired at the canister.

Flashes and heat waves surged, but before I could fully react, a gliding cannon struck my left arm, tearing it off completely. I was thrown sideways, feeling like I'd been struck with a giant hammer, and the battle began.

The situation was desperate, but we were almost there.