I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun

Chapter 456

September.

For some, it marked the start of a new school semester. For others, it was the final month of the third quarter. It was also the beginning of autumn, with the relentless sunlight and oppressive heat finally easing their grip.

In South Korea, where virtually everyone was familiar with the VR game Dark Zone, preparations were underway for ranking matches, preliminary rounds, and KSM scrims. Meanwhile, Glory and Honor, a rising star in the gaming world, was busy readying a stadium in Yongsan for the launch of its Korean tournament, set to take place in just one week.

And amidst all this, I received a call from the Glory and Honor division of Icarus.

The topic was... a bit tricky.

“So, if I understand correctly, you’re asking me to participate as a guest commentator. But I’m afraid I’ll have to decline.”

“Oh, is that so? If it’s not too much trouble, could I ask why?”

“It’s just that my theoretical knowledge doesn’t go deep enough to catch every nuanced strategic play and turn it into commentary on the spot.”

To put it simply, I wasn’t knowledgeable enough to be a commentator or caster.

The Domination mode in Glory and Honor was, strictly speaking, a strategy game. It combined individual skill, strategic planning, and the choice of runes and special abilities to counter enemy tactics. The breakdown was roughly 80% individual skill and 20% strategic elements.

Now, some might argue that with an 80% focus on individual skill, the remaining 20% wasn’t worth much. But in reality, the way that 20% was utilized could often make or break a game.

Professional players devoted immense amounts of time to mastering that 20% to crush their opponents. Therefore, a commentator who could understand the value of seemingly ordinary special abilities, classes, and tactical combinations—and explain their impact on a match—was indispensable.

And that person... definitely wasn’t me.

“If you’d settle for me participating in the finals of the event match during the tournament intermission in mid-to-late September, that’d be great. I was able to handle AP guest commentary last year because I had sufficient theoretical grounding for that, but I also have a few personal commitments this time.”

“Ah... I understand. As always, thank you for all your efforts, Streamer Eugene.”

“Sure.”

And with that, the call ended.

I slumped back into my chair, mulling over my final words—personal commitments, huh. Strictly speaking, that wasn’t untrue, but it wasn’t anything significant. My parents were coming to visit Korea again, having returned from the U.S. It was only natural to meet them and exchange greetings after such a long time.

Of course... this wouldn’t be good news for the Korean branch of Icarus. Especially considering my mother’s position as the head of the Management Diagnostics Team and the fact that this visit was for a pre-audit in preparation for October’s interim audit.

The tournament would go ahead as planned, but I could only imagine the staff would be in for a rough time.

Thankfully, the motion capture data for the Assassin class had been collected well in advance.

“There’s still plenty left to do, though...”

I flicked my fingers across the keyboard, pushing aside Glory and Honor-related tasks, and opened a new window.

The top-priority Glory and Honor advertisement campaign had successfully taken off. Instead of boring, generic game intros, focusing entirely on ranked battles had proven to be a brilliant tactical move.

It turned out well—not just because of my involvement but also because many other streamers, whether they specialized in gaming or covered a variety of games, had already played and advertised Glory and Honor. By spotlighting the raw combat that viewers craved, the results were far from disappointing.

Well, the skyrocketing MMR (Matchmaking Rating) made for entertaining viewing, which helped, too.

I checked the advertisement period I had sidelined.

There were about four weeks left until the contract expired. Below that were performance metrics for Glory and Honor—things like concurrent users, revenue, and new user acquisition—all tied to incentive clauses in the contract.

Though I hadn’t examined the specifics, the gist was clear: additional incentives would be paid based on these metrics’ upward trends.

And since those metrics were steadily climbing, I just needed to maintain the current pace.

“All that’s left now is the event match I mentioned earlier.”

As long as I didn’t mess that up, the contract would conclude without issue—not that I planned to mess it up.

This meant I could finally turn my attention to other matters I’d neglected. My inbox was a prime example, overflowing with messages related to the think tank, Dark Zone, advertisements, and countless other topics.

One email caught my eye.

“Message from two weeks ago... Camp Henry.”

Of course, Camp Henry referred to none other than our illustrious Senator Henry.

Curiosity piqued, I browsed articles about the recent Democratic National Convention in the U.S. To summarize: Senator Henry had verbally demolished his rivals, securing a clear lead.

Moreover, as the Democratic floor leader, he had championed IT industry funding bills, one of which had significantly boosted Think Tank’s growth. This naturally bolstered his appeal as a presidential candidate.

Icarus International had long funneled money into Camp Henry as a super PAC supporter, and Think Tank was no exception. With less than two months left until the presidential election, his victory seemed highly probable.

“After pouring loads of cash into his pockets, it’s payback time...”

The pre-audit didn’t really require my parents’ visit, yet they were coming anyway.

Henry had started sending covert emails right after his primary victory.

I wasn’t particularly interested in these developments, but I couldn’t postpone handling them any longer. It was time to draft an invoice for Camp Henry. Even though the topic was far too mundane for a dinner conversation with my parents, given our social positions, it couldn’t be avoided.

I began drafting an email for Think Tank.

“To the future occupant of the White House: draft the invoice as you see fit. I’ll review it and coordinate with the relevant parties afterward. Make it neat.”

As usual, I delegated the task.

How much Icarus billed was none of my concern, so I shifted focus to my final remaining task.

The current time was around 3 p.m. in Korea, meaning it was about 2 a.m. in the U.S. My parents were likely asleep, so I opted for an email instead of a call.

The message was simple:

“Planning a shooting trip in Hawaii or Guam. Any hotel recommendations?”

It was more of a casual text than a formal email.

Satisfied, I closed the message window, stretched lightly, and stood up. With no particular goals for the day, I decided to dive into ranked games and check out the Assassin class that had been gaining traction recently.

It was time to return to the world of iron and blood.

Thus began another eventful day in September, as the countdown to the Glory and Honor event match drew closer.