I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun

Chapter 446

“…It’s nice that they sent a new car, but is this really necessary?”

As the elevator doors opened, a cool breeze rushed in.

This was only possible because the underground parking lot had air conditioning running almost constantly. Even when I opened the glass door to step outside, the temperature was nearly the same. When I looked around, there was a parking lot that seemed to exist solely for me—so large that even five large vehicles could fit, and still leave plenty of space—where a black, oversized sedan was parked.

The car was 5 meters long, 2 meters wide, and about 1.8 meters high. Anyone would wonder if it was some sort of official vehicle. In fact, it wasn’t that different—it was, as expected, a vehicle sent by the think tank.

I heard that in the U.S., there had been efforts to replace the existing official vehicles, and many car manufacturers had created their own prototypes. Among the vehicles that didn’t win the contract, the most streamlined and slim one was picked up by the think tank, modified appropriately, and shipped directly to Korea.

Of course, they had removed all sorts of classified internal systems and features.

“…It’s not that I don’t understand it.”

First and foremost, my safety, second my safety, and third, the protection of my privacy.

In other words, they sent this to prevent any potential problems. To give a simple example, if I were to suddenly disappear from the think tank… Well, there’s so much technology I’ve handed over, so we wouldn’t be completely screwed, but it would surely cause some serious problems.

The reason they suddenly sent this vehicle seems to have been partly due to that. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have sent a sedan with bulletproof capabilities intact, loaded with the shield generators that the think tank is currently supplying everywhere.

Still, it felt a bit excessive for such a large car just to go to a destination only 20 minutes away.

???Ssshh.

The 20-centimeter thick rear door opened without a sound.

Naturally, this vehicle could be fully controlled through the Icarus Gear system, and remotely opening and closing the doors was basic.

The interior was spacious, with a fresh smell, and, of course, the backrest was specially designed to comfortably accommodate my tail. To explain briefly, the seat’s structure was split into the cushion where my hips would rest and the backrest, which was slightly elevated.

I got into the car. The backup seats were all stowed under the floor, and there were no passenger seats—just the driver’s seat and the one for me. And of course, the absence of a driver was a bonus.

Various holographic messages appeared, and the vehicle started automatically.

[Notification: Icarus Gear synchronization complete… Energy source detected.]
[Notification: Air pressure function, shield generator, GPS, jamming device, ADS, fire suppression system, holographic indicators in windows, and 64 internal functions confirmed operational.]
[Notification: Starting operation.]
Surprisingly, this vehicle was 100% eco-friendly.

The reason was simple. One of the power sources was my Icarus Gear. It could almost be considered an electric car. Of course, it required placing the Icarus Gear, or my entire wrist, on a designated spot… but that didn’t mean it didn’t run on fuel at all. It also had an engine that consumed gasoline.

As I leaned back, the car quietly exited the underground parking lot. The outside was sunny and bright, and as always, traffic was heavy, but it didn’t take long before the car joined the flow.

We crossed a bridge, took the North Han River Expressway, and then got on an overpass, entering Wangsimni.

It was just a bit more than a 10-minute ride. I couldn’t help but think it was strange to be driving such a thing so close to home. Fortunately, the car made it into the underground parking lot of SSM Entertainment without issue, and the space was surprisingly roomy.

For such a short trip… maybe getting a good bike would’ve been more convenient.

“Let’s see.”

After arriving at SSM, my schedule could be divided into two main tasks: First, I had to undergo various tests related to Glory and Honor. Second, of course, was dealing with matters related to Dark Zone AP. It might take quite a bit of time to meet Dice.

I had been to this building once before, and my visitor’s pass was still valid. However, I could only enter designated areas, meaning I couldn’t access places where celebrities or others were.

So, I boarded an empty elevator.

It didn’t even take a minute before I arrived at my destination—

“…What is this?”

The lobby was fine… but as soon as I looked up, I saw them—cold weapons hanging on the walls. A bizarre sight that didn’t fit at all with the modern interior, creating a strange harmony that felt almost out of place.

But paradoxically, it was because of this strange sight that I could truly feel this was SSM Entertainment, and specifically the section dealing with Glory and Honor.

I was momentarily lost in the sight when—

“Here, Eugene.”

A coach, dressed in the SSM Entertainment uniform instead of a typical suit, stood up from a chair and approached me. It was Polaris, who greeted me as if he’d been waiting.

Snapping back to reality, I quickly activated the drone cam that I had forgotten to turn on and began the stream. I had already gotten permission, so no one seemed to mind, and my next goal became exploring the facility here.

It felt a bit like I was streaming in collaboration with SSM, but in truth, it wasn’t much different. The company had already adjusted to the situation and offered promotional funding, so it felt like a win-win.

Of course, this idea started to fall apart when I began meeting with the pro gamers of SSM.

“KYAAHHH—!”

“A snake! A dagger! The neck! That person is going to kill everyone here! The dagger! The dagger!”

“I’m not doing ranked anymore… I can’t play…!”

“…What’s going on with them?”

“Haha, I think I know.”

Ahhhhhhh hahahahahahaha
Eugene, did you go destroy the neighbor’s house too!!!
Of course hahaha
Wait… why is this so familiar?
Why does no one ever know, haha
Yeah, I’m the problem again.

But seriously, how am I supposed to nerf their perception range?

And so, my first visit began with screams and shrieks.

“???Let’s assume the situation is as described, and under the assumption that both teams have access to the same level of forces, think about how we can deploy team members to gain the upper hand. The skill cooldowns and selected special abilities of both sides are listed below.”

“Oh, this is already horrible.”

“Well, there’s a ninja with stealth, so we need to be careful of flanking, and Victory Cry will activate in 15 seconds, so we should pull back about 5 meters and send the big shield up front…”

“There’s a ladder ability on the enemy’s side. Should we send someone with a molotov to A…?”

The discussion and debate, the suggestions and counterarguments, the simulations, and actual play.

It wasn’t exactly a classroom, but it was far from an entirely free-form discussion—it was more like a pressured atmosphere where 15 pro players from SSM Glory and Honor’s first team were having a heated conversation, with two coaches coordinating and making assessments.

They didn’t give us much time. Maybe 20 seconds at most. But whether some spoke well and others less so, each person offered answers they considered valid. It was no surprise. The 15 people here were the core of the team, and no one knew more about Glory and Honor than they did.

Anyway, so, what was I doing now?

“…Ah, this method isn’t going to work.”

“I’m not good with a greatsword. Salut would do better, so if he takes it, something might change.”

“Is it a skill gap? I’ve got to give orders and play the game too, it’s so busy.”

I was watching them discuss the game from the back.

It should be considered normal, but honestly, I still didn’t know… all of it. I had a pretty good idea about the attacking methods of each class—there were more than 50 of them by now—but the combinations of class and special abilities could vary wildly depending on what special abilities the enemy brought out in any given situation.

Someone once calculated the number of class-special ability combinations that could come out in the Glory and Honor Domination mode, and the number was astronomical. So, it wasn’t surprising that I didn’t know how each combination could affect individual players or the team’s overall strength.

Sure, it was well documented on the Glory and Honor Wiki… but honestly, I was still more focused on testing how far I could go with my physical abilities alone.

So I threw in a line for the viewers chatting away.

“You guys might not know what game you’re playing, but if you want to rank up, you’ll have to study hard like this. Probably.”

??????
Why add "probably" at the end haha
But seriously, studying like this is how you rank up
Fact: If you bring a middle schooler who didn’t do any of this studying and put them through this training, you’ll maybe get one or two star pro gamers
But then this guy… crushed all those promising players like soft candy on the floor, right? Haha
Hahaha
…Why am I in this?

Of course, they weren’t wrong, so I kept quiet. To be honest, during the Dark Zone play, I might’ve gone a bit too far. It was true that I’d been smashing through the heads of all those players. But still, I taught a lot too.

Maybe that’s why. Watching this systematic theoretical training, I became very intrigued. The downside was that my theoretical understanding of Glory and Honor wasn’t deep enough to jump into such discussions yet.

Considering I’d only been doing promotional broadcasts for about a week, I guess it made sense.

Anyway, as I mentioned earlier, I didn’t have the theoretical foundation to dive into this complex debate, so the coaches and first-team players didn’t really try to talk to me much, though they probably had things to say.

And that was fine. It was written in the streaming guidelines, and I mentioned it briefly yesterday too, but the purpose of my visit to SSM wasn’t to teach them any tips or CQC. Rather, it was to see how the top-tier players played.

The discussions with the team had already been concluded, and now I was showing things that didn’t matter too much for the broadcast. What should stay off the stream were the tailored training programs for individual players.

Of course—

“Next, we’ll practice how to deal with attacks that aren’t officially supported by Glory and Honor, as if you’re facing a special guest from today. You’ll have 10 minutes, so please warm up in the VR zone.”

“Wow, they’re really doing it…”

“This is terrifying, seriously…”

“Polaris, I just got a call from home, my onion’s suddenly having a stomach ache, I need to go back for a bit—!”

“Get out of here before it turns into onion juice.”

Hahahaha
Why is it about onion juice of all things, haha
Hitting new levels of nonsense haha
Will Eugene actually face off against the special guest? Haha
Naturally, their expressions were like they’d encountered a grizzly bear while camping.

But a scheduled event is something you can’t avoid. I’d have to do the work since the money was in my account, and I was planning to show them a real fight, something no amount of theory and personal lessons could solve.

Thinking back, it reminded me of when I taught pro gamers during Dark Zone. It was the complete opposite situation—there was no formal curriculum like here. We focused on building physical skills and preparing for combat, while here, everything was planned out.

Anyway, putting that aside, it was almost time to get to work.

The destination: the VR zone.

And when I first stepped into the area, I saw a pretty amusing sight.

“Wow.”

“Welcome. You’ve arrived at the VR zone, one of SSM’s prides. I believe something similar was just installed in the Dark Zone section as well, but I suppose you haven’t heard about it?”

“After the final championship, I’ve been keeping my ears shut about this side of things.”

“Well, we’ve opened your ears again at just the right time.”

The coach handed me two sticks and a thin exoskeleton that could be worn all over my body.

After putting on all the parts, the sticks became daggers in my hands as a highly realistic hologram was projected over reality, turning the VR zone into an actual battlefield.

To make it truly immersive, I had to wear a neck connector. By switching to AFK mode, I could move my body, but the connector helped recreate the feedback I’d receive from the battle, which added some resistance to the movements.

It wasn’t the most comfortable feeling, but… well.

I twirled the daggers when one of the pro gamers approached me with a gloomy expression. But, the enemy’s appearance began to change—the towering Viking holding a round shield and Viking sword stood before me. It was a class—Conqueror. He bowed slightly, before immediately entering combat stance.

At the same time, a voice from the side.

“It’s nothing special. Just treat it like a 1v1 match.”

“Well then.”

The round shield and solid armor combo. The Viking sword wasn’t particularly long, maybe about 70 cm. As long as I paid attention to the sudden changes in his stride, it wasn’t anything to worry about.

I clashed the daggers together once, and surprisingly, even though I was holding the handle without a blade, I could feel the clash. That meant I didn’t have to worry much about the upcoming fight.

So, I decided to let the first strike go to him.

???Whoosh!

The sound of the air being cut.

A quick horizontal swing, followed by a rapid combo. The blade seemed wide but light, as the attacks flowed seamlessly. After a shield bash, he followed up with a headbutt, but I quickly dodged with a spin. It was almost like bullfighting.

In situations like this, it was best to lead the psychological game in another direction—by staying within the enemy’s attack range, I could provoke a sense of urgency.

Honestly, if my perception wasn’t sharp, I’d be walking right into the death zone.

“Huff…”

“Ugh.”

“…How are you dodging at such close range?”

Attempt, attempt, and then continuous attack attempts.

I dodged them all.

At the point where his blade was about to touch me, I predicted his movements, kept my focus, and avoided the lethal zone. Just before the shield could strike, I jumped back to avoid his follow-up. He was probably getting frustrated by now.

But unlike regular players in-game, my opponent was still patiently waiting for the right moment to strike.

That kind of patience was something that set pros apart from amateurs.

But increasing focus means narrowing your vision.

And a simple ‘trick’ was enough to break down the tower of concentration he had built.

???Whoosh!

“...!”

“Don’t get distracted.”

As I avoided the attack, I snapped my wrist, sending one dagger flying straight up in a vertical arc.

Naturally, blocking it with my gaze was impossible, because it was instinctive.

The enemy, having crossed his sword and shield into an X, reversed the motion and swung a large horizontal slash. It was an overhead attack—but I was already crouching, barely dodging it. I thrust my left dagger into his thigh, then rolled to the right to avoid his follow-up.

The dagger I threw collided with his shield, bouncing off to the side and falling to the ground as he staggered back.

I quickly grabbed the remaining dagger and spun it around.

My opponent opened his mouth.

“Hah, I didn’t want to go first…”

“It's okay.”

I reversed my grip on the dagger.

I aimed for the neck.

Waiting for the right moment, I would finish it with one strike.

“Soon, it will be your turn.”

Monster… monster… monster… monster…
I knew it hahaha
Seeing this in real life is terrifying hahaha
I don’t even know what’s going on, but please forgive me just this once
Why is this making me rethink wanting to play Glory and Honor hahaha