I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun

Chapter 497

"It's a shame that we won’t be seeing each other for a while."

"Did Lorentina’s flight leave at 3:40 PM? It’s unfortunate that she has to depart first..."

"It's just a normal thing when the destinations are different. Safe travels."

11 AM, Café in the airport.

The palm leaves planted around the area swayed in the wind, and the now familiar Hawaiian air mixed with the airport’s dry scent, the air fresheners placed around, and the smell of coffee, creating a strange, never-before-smelled fragrance.

The week in Hawaii, which had felt like it would never end, was now coming to a close. The many souvenirs and brand-name items purchased for personal use or for family and friends were loaded onto the plane, and the seven of us, including myself, were preparing to board.

There were 50 minutes left before departure, and Lorentina still had about three hours before her flight. We were headed to Incheon International Airport, while Lorentina was going to JFK International Airport.

The Starbucks scattered throughout the airport provided caffeine for those returning from their vacations, those transiting through Honolulu on their way to other countries, or those just arriving. We, too, were one of those groups.

We were more focused on the sweet drinks or the small desserts sold alongside them than on the caffeine.

As a result, there was quite a lot on the table. It was a relief no one was feeling motion sickness—otherwise, we’d all be vomiting the drinks or cakes we had just eaten.

"But Eugene, you're leaving for the US again in November. Aren’t you going to meet up with Lorentina again?"

"No way. It’s just like how you can’t meet friends who’ve gone to the military whenever you want."

"Ah, right."

"Hah, I’m not sure. Maybe Minah should enlist as a non-commissioned officer."

"Ugh, but she’s already training under Eugene, so that’s probably not going to happen."

Minah skillfully dodging the conversation.

Anyway, Lorentina... Her service in Korea was over, and her vacation was almost up. Technically, she hadn’t used up all of her leave, but there were quite a few tasks waiting for her while she was on leave. She was in DEVGRU, handling the core of training and combat, so it couldn’t be helped.

In that light, I wondered if she’d be able to participate as an evaluator in the International Sniper Competition, but that was up to her.

As soon as that thought crossed my mind, related topics began to pop up relentlessly.

"Now that I think about it, it seems like this time you’re going for something quite urgent. You won’t just be doing training, right?"

"…"

"…Eugene?"

The five heads turned at once.

Someone like you, who’s quick to catch on... But I had dropped so many hints that it was hard not to. Especially with Dice and Harmony, I had directly suggested that I was affiliated with "that side."

After a brief pause, I decided to give them a proper explanation. After all, if you just search "International Sniper Competition" on YourSpace, videos from the past and present would flood in like rain. There were plenty of people who had exposed their faces and names already.

Given how distinctive Logan and I were in terms of affiliation, people would likely just lump us together as either blank spots, USASOC, or USSOCOM, in the worst case.

As I reached that point in my thoughts, the next words came.

"Wait, we’re not going, right?"

"Of course not. Why? You want to come? I won’t stop you."

"Uwaaaa, no way!"

As expected.

But I could understand why these two were saying this. During our time in Hawaii, Minah and Yerin showed some impressive physical skills… Even though I played the spotter role, it was still very impressive. Things like breathing techniques, aiming posture, and the basic understanding of target acquisition were absolutely essential, and without them, it would have been impossible to achieve those results.

Last time, even after I showed Kimstone a thing or two, if your breath and alignment were off, the bullet would never land where you intended. That was made painfully clear for everyone.

That moment was broadcast far and wide, and among the viewers, it was nearly impossible that there weren’t any high-ranking U.S. military personnel. Given that Minah and Yerin had been showing off their skills, the likelihood of those higher-ups getting excited wasn’t small.

So, I received contact.

Anyway, if they really wanted to learn more, I could only tell them to apply to sniper school.

And the chances of these two actually taking that step? There was no way. It would be faster for Hitler to be resurrected by dark magic, for Stalin to command him as a zombie, and for them to cross the Atlantic. It would be faster than these two signing up.

As soon as I finished explaining, the next words followed.

"That’s not going to be streamed, right?"

"As I’ve said before, if you want to see everything from start to finish, join the U.S. military."

"…Got it. I’ll watch the edited version on YourSpace when it’s up."

It was a shame, but it couldn’t be helped.

As compensation, as I mentioned yesterday, I’d be putting these two, along with the others from the Asian qualifiers, through some serious training before we leave. To be honest, I wasn’t too worried about Harmony and Dice, so it didn’t bother me much… It was more of a concern that I’d have to act as an instructor for 18 people.

But that was something to think about after we returned to Korea.

The clock now pointed to 11:30 AM.

Announcement: Passengers on the 11:50 AM flight from Daniel K. Inoue Airport to Incheon International Airport, please proceed to the gate indicated on your electronic ticket...

"It’s been fun this week, rookie. Before you head to Georgia, you should stop by Virginia. You could take a day off and come out."

"Should I tell Logan to come up?"

"Tell him to rest at the base. He just had a major training session a few days ago."

Of course, even if I said that, if I dropped some hints, there was a high chance he’d sneak up here.

With a sliding sound, everyone stood up, returning their coffee cups and trays. After a brief farewell to Lorentina, we hurriedly moved toward the gate that would take us to Incheon.

I don’t know what kind of magic my parents worked, but once again, only first class was available. It was strange that more than half of the first-class passengers were from our group. Everyone was pulling out their cameras to film the first-class review videos, which was a sure sign they were born streamers.

The flight attendants led us to our seats, and the spacious cabin, divided by partitions, soon revealed itself.

Sitting by the window, looking calmly outside, I saw the scenery changing as the plane slowly began to taxi down the runway.

The plane was now positioned on a runway several kilometers long, and the engines next to the wings roared to life.

Vroom!

The takeoff had begun.

It was time to go home.

The Hawaii trip was officially coming to an end.

"They're gone."

As Eugene’s flight ascended into the sky, Lorentina took her phone out of her pocket.

She made a call to someone, and after about 10 minutes of back-and-forth conversation, she leaned back on the sofa, a smile playing on her lips—someone with such drive and monstrous achievements would be hard for the U.S. military to stop.

She was scheduled to head to Fort Benning in early November.

"Finally home..."

The sound of a suitcase rolling echoed through the hallway.

It was around 5:40 PM when we arrived at Incheon Airport, and though I knew the journey home wouldn’t be easy, experiencing it firsthand was truly dreadful. What should have been an hour-long drive turned into a nightmare of traffic, typical of Seoul’s evening rush hour, and the result... well, there was no need to explain further.

I think the fact that we left before 6 PM and didn’t get home until 8:30 PM speaks for itself.

Nevertheless, we eventually arrived home. As the elevator ascended, the familiar view of Seoul’s bright cityscape appeared. The time was still before 9 PM, so most buildings had their lights on, and the streets were jammed like the clogged veins of an unhealthy body.

I had pre-ordered dinner on the bus, but since it hadn't arrived yet, I figured the delivery driver was probably having a rough time. I figured they’d show up sooner or later while I took care of some work at home.

That being said, the smell of the hallway was surprisingly nostalgic.

???Click!

As I approached the door, it opened automatically.

Before leaving for Hawaii, I had replaced the door lock and installed an automatic opening system, so with just a signal, the door could open by itself. The familiar view of my home was now visible.

The faint sight of the Han River, the lit-up skyscrapers, the quiet but high ceiling, the modern chandelier hanging above, the marble table, and... a pile of unknown trash...

Wait a minute.

"What? What’s this?"

Rushing in with my suitcase in hand, I quickly entered and noticed the pile of trash and the overwhelming feeling of déjà vu. It wasn’t the usual plastic or typical trash you’d expect in this world, but instead, there were paper wrappings all over.

I was startled and quickly pushed my suitcase aside as I began inspecting the house. It only took about a minute, but then...

"...Come out."

"...I thought I hid well."

"Why are you here, Archetype?!"

I’d picked up two mecha-clowns.

A mighty roar escaped my mouth, and these two began begging for mercy, explaining that "Archetype left the door to the world open," as if that was an excuse. That’s when I realized something important that I had forgotten.

It was like one of those cliches—"Did I turn off the stove?" or "Did I lock the gas?" or "Did I turn off the air conditioner?" The difference here was that I could remotely control all of those from Hawaii, but the most important thing had slipped my mind.

I was really losing it.

'Well, thanks to Pizzler, it’s not like a virus has come over from the other world...'

Anyway, after looking around for a bit while trying to catch these two, I didn’t find the house in too much of a mess.

The trash on the table, when I looked closely, was neatly packed in a plastic bag. According to Jin and Rain, they had planned to properly dispose of it afterward. They had been doing that even before I returned, they said.

So, the house hadn’t been trashed. It was just barely safe.

That left only one charge—breaking and entering.

"Yaaaah—!"

"Ah, pressure at 302kg, 443kg, anything beyond this could cause damage—aaahhh…!"

"Quiet."

After the immediate punishment was carried out, I heard the basic details.

It wasn’t long before they discovered that the door was left open. They mentioned that they occasionally came by just to look outside when they wanted to see the world. Also, despite knowing the door was open, the other Dagger Team members didn’t come to my house.

In other words, it was just these two mecha-bums who used my house intermittently for sightseeing.

Well, I suppose it wasn’t that bad.

"Next time, at least let me know. Understood?"

"Understood."

"But we don’t know how to contact the owner."

"Ah."

That was another oversight.

By now, these two were wearing Icarus Watches, which signified their official operator status, and through data sync, I shared my contact information with them. As soon as Jin figured it out, he tried to contact me immediately, but I stopped him.

On a separate note, with these two in front of me, something else came to mind.

According to the email from my parents, the new raid would be released in about a month, but that didn’t mean there wouldn’t be anything happening in the meantime—this meant that the other world and the Dagger Team on that side were probably preparing for something.

I heard they wouldn’t be fully deployed to the battlefield this time, but of course, that was something only seeing the situation firsthand would confirm.

So, another task awaited.

"...This will be an unexpected visit."

"Huh? What did you say, owner?"

"I guess I should check in after the trip to Hawaii."

I figured I’d save the Hawaii souvenirs for later. I didn’t have anything to give them right now.

But I’d already thought I’d need to visit soon, so I might as well take advantage of the situation.

"Alright, let’s go. To see the Dagger Team."

"No, wait! Tell me what’s going on!"

"Give up, Rain. Archetype is always like this."

What did I even do?

Anyway, with that thought, I started preparing to visit the Dagger Team as soon as I returned from my trip.

It was going to be a busy time.