I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun

Chapter 455

"I’ve been playing this game for about four years now, but for the first time, I don’t feel like playing anymore…"

"Wait, Eugene… and a greatsword? Is the world ending or something?"

"Please, stop—!"

CRACK!

With a horrible sound, metal crumpled, thick leather armor tore apart, and a person was literally split in two. It was inevitable. When someone who knew how to use their body with unmatched efficiency picked up a claymore over 150 cm in length, horrific situations were bound to happen.

Eugene, in the Ochs stance, glared at the enemy, ready to charge at any moment. With her Berserker Mode activated, golden lightning flickered from her eyes. It was as if she embodied a thunder-forged bull, an overwhelming presence shimmering with golden energy.

It had been only a week since she first wielded the greatsword. While not a long time, the synergy of Icarus Gear’s training mode combined with accelerated virtual reality time had allowed her to shed her assassin's mantle entirely.

In the early days of September, barely ten minutes into her stream, Eugene had already turned the battlefield into chaos.

"Hrk…!"

"…!"

The silvery greatsword painted arcs through the air.

The overhead slash seemed massive, like a perfectly timed heavy attack that could theoretically be parried. But those standing before Eugene couldn’t think that way. The attack was executed with such precision that it bordered on being an instant kill.

Had it been any ordinary person, their head would’ve been cleaved in two. The fact that her opponents managed to block it at all proved they were some of the best Glory and Honor players in the world.

Golden sparks flew in place of blood. Despite being in a game, the impact was enough to make their wrists tingle. The deflected claymore skidded across the ground, throwing dirt and debris into the air.

CLANG!

The chaotic melee soon morphed into a sacred duel.

Eugene's upward swing nearly sent a shield flying as a flail narrowly missed her head. With her legs firmly planted, she pushed off the ground, causing dirt to scatter as her sword spun in a wide arc. The shield grew progressively more battered as metallic clangs reverberated.

But Eugene’s swordplay steadily evolved into something unrecognizable. It became something out of a fantasy: fluid and precise, yet overwhelmingly powerful. Holding the claymore tightly in her left hand, she charged forward, executing a wide horizontal slash while spinning in place. As the enemy scrambled to recover, she slammed the ground with incredible force.

Her attacks defied logic.

Their speed and power were unparalleled.

"Aargh…!"

The airborne strike shattered the heater shield in two and severed one of the enemy’s arms.

Eugene’s stamina was nearly depleted. While not impossible for a human body to sustain, the excessive moves compressed into a short period had drained her resources. Even so, she used her remaining stamina to create distance, parrying an incoming flail with her sword’s blade.

Returning to the Ochs stance, she waited for her stamina to recover. The moment it did, she swung her sword again. A chilling sound followed as the flail user’s final desperate counterattack was nullified. The swift, blinding strike ended with her opponent on their knees. They disintegrated into golden light, disappearing into the respawn screen.

But it wasn’t over yet.

Another user was already stepping up to face her.

"Wow."

"It feels like their classes got switched or something…"

Two familiar daggers aimed at Eugene.

She raised her claymore with a stoic expression, exuding an aura as if she had always been a greatsword user in an alternate reality.

The standoff was tense. While the match was officially Domination Mode, it now resembled a one-on-one tournament at Point B.

The first to make a move was the newly released Assassin class, which had debuted barely 12 hours ago.

The opponent’s strikes were fluid and graceful, vastly different from Eugene’s straightforward brutality. They captured the stereotypical elegance often seen in dual-wielding media portrayals, but no one believed it would last long.

WHAM!

"Gah!"

"That’s not how you do it."

Her tightly shut lips opened at last.

As the assassin moved in for an attack, Eugene countered with a swift knee strike, disrupting their flow. Though the opponent staggered and tried to retreat, Eugene didn’t let up. A single horizontal slash cut through the air, and the enemy fell to their knees.

Their head followed soon after.

With Eugene’s team already holding a decisive lead, the opposing team resigned themselves to spectating the impromptu duels while waiting for the match to end. Applause erupted as the fight concluded, though no one seemed eager to take the next turn.

With just 30 seconds left on the timer, Eugene’s teammates sidled up to her, throwing out casual questions.

"So, when did you switch to a greatsword?"

"Switch? This is more of a… job experience. I mean, Glory and Honor has over 50 classes. I can’t just stick to daggers. There are dozens of weapons to try."

"Does that mean you plan to die to each weapon at least once?"

"Why does it always come to that conclusion?"

It wasn’t entirely incorrect, though.

She couldn’t admit it aloud, not while golden sparks still dripped from her claymore. What would her next weapon be? With daggers and axes already checked off, and now the greatsword… wait a second.

Her eyes landed on a chain sickle held by the person nearest to her.

For a moment, her mouth hung open, her hands uncertain. Then she spoke.

"…Can I try the chain sickle next?"

"What?"

"Wait, hold on. Is this request time now?"

"Stick with the greatsword! Claymore! It’s so epic—!"

The conversation was cut short as the session ended, ejecting Eugene back into the lobby.

Dazed, she scanned her surroundings before muttering:

"…What just happened?"

Naturally, she remained bewildered.

Meanwhile, as Eugene cleaved through everything in sight with a claymore as if splitting firewood…

The newly launched Assassin class had stormed into Glory and Honor, leaving chaos in its wake. Players armed with dual daggers flooded both casual and ranked matches.

Streamers eagerly tested the class in private practice rooms, summoning AI to experiment with its Assassinate System: a combination of enhanced reflexes, superior speed, and unparalleled performance in one-on-one combat.

Yet what captivated players most wasn’t the mechanics but the visceral immersion—how the world fell silent, save for the pounding of their heartbeat, as their vision narrowed and their target glowed faintly.

THUD!

"Whoa…!"

"What kind of damage is this?"

"Wait, every assassination has a unique animation? How many are there?"

A single successful psychological play yielded an overwhelming reward.

Whether lunging through an opponent’s legs, leaping into the air, or driving daggers into their throat, the Assassin’s attacks devastated their foes, leaving only a sliver of HP if they managed to survive at all.

Of course, achieving such rewards required taking enormous risks. Few public matches saw the dramatic plays imagined in highlight reels.

Instead, most matches went something like this:

CRUNCH!

"Argh!"

"Stay quiet!"

Players misjudging their distance and getting smacked on the head, sending them straight to the respawn screen.

Others failing to execute their moves and fumbling into their deaths.

Failed psychological gambits resulting in clumsy parries, followed by inevitable defeat.

And so, failures piled up by the hundreds, quickly filling YouSpace channels with clips titled Game Fails or When Idiots Play Games, racking up countless views.

Amid this blend of comedy and tragedy, one undeniable fact emerged:

"…I don’t know how they designed it, but when the Assassinate Gauge fills, and you activate it, the rush is absolutely insane. The heightened speed and pounding heartbeat—it’s genius. Who came up with this?"

"The difficulty isn’t as bad as I thought, but the weapon’s short range is oppressive. You have to close in to land hits, and facing heavily armored enemies sounds like a nightmare…"

Clear rewards.

Simple yet challenging gameplay.

Adaptable tactics depending on the enemy’s armor type.

While the class could’ve easily been a failure, Glory and Honor’s developers had cleverly designed it to maximize the euphoria of activating the Assassinate System.

And so, 12 hours after the Assassin’s launch, opinions began to converge:

"At the very least, anyone who’s triggered the Assassinate System can’t say this class is weak. Killing three enemies in 20 seconds—even with special skills—is insane. But this class makes it possible."

Of course, some ranted mindlessly about poor design. Others remained quiet, still learning how to use the system.

But the remaining half, addicted to the thrill of one-shot kills, reveled in their newfound power, unable to contain their excitement.

As heated debates raged across Glory and Honor communities, Eugene’s stream grew increasingly popular as viewers flooded in to watch the origin of the Assassin class in action.

CRASH!

"Wow, so many viewers today. Unfortunately, my daggers are on a break."

"??????????????"

"What is that massive, ridiculous, beautiful hunk of metal??"

"Wait, a claymore?! Seriously?!"

"Why is this person using daggers when no one else does, and a giant sword when everyone else is using daggers?!"

"We’ve decided to call it being a hipster."

"No, no, this is a trendsetter, not a hipster!"

Eugene’s claymore tore through another opponent like paper.

Despite reading the barrage of questions flooding her chat, she maintained her composure and raised her sword once more.

And as expected, the results didn’t deviate much from what everyone had anticipated.

"That’s not how it’s done."

"Ack!"

With carefully calculated steps, Eugene narrowed and widened her distance, toying with her opponent’s range. In mere moments, she delivered another lesson: "You’re doing it wrong," at the cost of her enemy’s life.

As always, Eugene refused to follow the crowd.