I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun

Chapter 593

"Some of the people we saw last year, and there are new faces as well. The one leading the pack seems to be someone we saw last year. Now, in just a few minutes, will we be putting a medal around that kid’s neck?"

"...It seems like it will happen that way."

Head, neck, back, arms, legs, and feet.

Electronic devices, never worn before in my life, were attached to my body, bundled in clothing, as I sat in the chair, waiting for the calibration to finish. The current time was 6:37 PM, and due to the early winter darkness, it had already gotten dark outside.

I had to sit still until the body analysis was completed, but it wasn’t a boring situation at all. It was because of the video in front of Henry — as expected, the final match of the Championship was playing on the screen.

Had it been the old Henry, he might not have cared, but now, with six years of war experience and mastery of military knowledge from a parallel world version of himself, his mind now contained the same amount of knowledge. While he might not be as good in direct combat as an operator, his ability to read the situation was impressive.

While assistants busily set the table and the Icarus field control staff coordinated opinions and situations, the estimated match end time, which had constantly fluctuated, gradually started to shrink.

"I’ve heard that advancements in technology lead to greater convenience, but actually experiencing it feels quite good… If this part keeps advancing, we might not have to fly out to have meetings and deal with the hassle anymore."

"If that happens, it might only remain as a totem at the White House."

"The balance has to be just right. If the meaning of not having to go outside ends up being the same as being forced to stay inside, that wouldn’t be good."

Of course, aside from that, the fact that he didn’t have to spend both time and energy on the occasionally harsh overseas trips was refreshing… but not in a way that brought sentimental feelings.

Originally, the other Henry, nearing the end of his second term in the other world, hadn’t gone abroad even once since becoming president, and the only thing he remembered was signing documents at the Gray House in Central Park and becoming a machine making judgments while receiving briefings.

It was an extremely extreme and desolate memory.

As he thought this, he leaned back in his chair and awaited the calibration process to finish.

The assistant, who had been waiting beside him, quietly added:

"Icarus connection coordination complete, humanoid ready. Transmitting now. It may feel dizzying for a moment, sir, but we are monitoring it and can disconnect at any time if necessary. There’s no need to worry."

"Understood."

Taking a deep breath, he exhaled.

At that moment, the chair he was sitting in transformed into something resembling a bed, and his body relaxed as if all strength was drained. It felt like falling into sleep without losing consciousness, but after a few seconds of darkness, when he opened his eyes again,

"-No issues with consciousness transfer. Humanoid movement confirmed, hologram detected. Are you awake, Mr. President?"

"...I remember the friends playing the game earlier had avatars that were all flashy, but this doesn’t seem like that. Make it look a bit more dignified."

"Th-thats..."

"Oh, I’m just joking. Anyway, this is my first time experiencing this. The sensation is more unfamiliar than I expected. Can I move a bit?"

"Of course."

A mere moment after he closed his eyes, Henry found himself near Dark Zone Town, about 400 kilometers from Manhattan.

His limbs moved much more freely than expected, with strangely excessive strength. Through these sensations, he quickly realized what had happened: the humanoid body he was connected to was using default settings, which made him feel like he had more strength than he actually did.

However, the sensation of confusion didn’t last long. His body, which had been jerky, gradually stabilized, and he regained his usual composure.

Chuckling quietly to himself, he checked the wall-mounted clock.

It was not long until the match was expected to end, and at the same time, the UI before his eyes began to display various information—things like simple speech drafts, movement routes, and more.

After about a minute of adjusting the vocal module, he sat back down and added,

"I remember hearing that if this unit were hacked, it could turn into quite a ridiculous sight. Like the appearance changing or the unit malfunctioning."

"We’ve taken precautions against hacking threats. There’s nothing to worry about."

"I trust that."

He exhaled, though it wasn’t strictly necessary, and got up from his chair.

This was his first time connecting to a humanoid, but with just a few hand gestures and slight shifts in his gaze, he quickly found the route to a specific location. This knowledge had synced with the knowledge from his other-world self. Learning humanoid manipulation had been part of preparing for assassination threats.

For example, the people around him didn’t pay any attention to his movements.

However, the next statement surprised them.

"With 15 minutes left until the match ends, there’s enough time. Can I take a quick walk?"

"...Going outside the building might be a bit concerning."

"Don’t worry. I’ll stay inside the building."

Though his words were a bit ambiguous, the Icarus staff didn’t react. They already knew what he meant.

With the familiarity of handling his body, he grabbed the door handle and left, quickly finding the hidden elevators around the stadium that only a few people knew about, making his way through them. This was also made possible by the UI showing the route.

The elevator rose about six floors, and when the door opened, a lavish hallway appeared. But, unsurprisingly, no one was around. This was the area leading to the player’s waiting room and lounge, accessible only to staff.

As Henry walked around the building as if it were his own home, the noise—the cheers—grew louder.

At the end of his path was the lounge, which led to the center of the stadium. Glancing at the Korean flag on the wall, Henry couldn’t help but smile slightly.

Through the shared vision, everyone watching knew exactly where he was heading.

After some time,

Clack!

"Huh? No one was supposed to come in—Puhhhh!"

"...Wow, this is unbelievable."

The moment someone saw his face, they spat out their drink in shock.

Some people gaped in disbelief.

Others looked around, trying to figure out what was going on.

At the same time, a drone camera floating behind Yujin fell to the ground as if it were malfunctioning. Yujin caught it with her tail. Henry knew exactly why this happened—the jammer function in the unit had activated, blocking the broadcast transmission.

It wasn’t an uncommon situation. Even official vehicles had ECM and jamming functions, so why wouldn’t a humanoid have them?

But that wasn’t what mattered.

Seeing the astonished faces, Henry laughed.

"Haha! This reaction was totally worth it! Sneaking in here was a good idea!"

"...Sir, please..."

"Don’t worry too much. I just stopped by before the awards ceremony."

The sharp stares that screamed, "This is not the time!" shot through him, but he wasn’t bothered. He was known for being thick-skinned among politicians.

Without paying any mind to it, he turned to Yujin and added,

"You’ve raised some excellent people. If there were more like them in the military, it’d be reassuring."

"Does that mean you think we’re not enough?"

"Of course not. Anyway, sorry for surprising you. I have to get going; there’s an award ceremony to prepare for. Enjoy yourselves before returning home."

With that, Henry left the room.

A brief but intense storm, not lasting even a minute. Those who were slightly interested in current affairs only realized who the person was after seeing his face, rubbing their eyes in disbelief, while others, still clueless, feigned ignorance.

How long had it been? Soon, someone whispered from behind.

"...Yujin, you don’t know him personally, right?"

"There were many circumstances. I met him when I was a senator. Now I see why the broadcast cut off."

Muttering under his breath while rebooting the completely turned-off drone, Yujin thought to himself.

What a troublesome person.

And so, the final match of the Championship concluded with Michael taking first place.

"Yay! Finally, it’s over!"

"Great job, everyone. Michael finished in 5th, Harmony came in 4th, and Dice took 1st... What a stellar performance. It was a clean sweep of the top ranks, even beyond last year. Foreign viewers will be furious."

Finally, lol!

Dice wins! Dice wins! Dice wins! Dice wins!

Koitsu finally breaks out of the slump, LOL

Wow, how do you get 1st, 4th, 5th, 9th, and 14th, lol?

Other country players are probably screaming, lol.

Dice, finally winning the Final Championship.

Unlike other days when the lights would turn on like in a movie theater after the match ended, today was different. As the ceiling opened, a massive display of fireworks began, and a huge holographic panel descended from the ceiling, showing the rankings.

Fortunately, thanks to the large glass barrier on the ceiling, the cold air didn’t enter.

Dice, who had been 4th last year and essentially 2nd, proudly took 1st place this year, and as soon as the match ended, he dashed into the lounge where we were.

Before leaving for the US, Dice had been preparing for some athletic competition, so maybe that’s why he jumped into my arms with an unnecessarily large leap.

"When you win 1st, you’d usually cry, but Dice doesn’t seem to do that."

"Are you trying to say I look weak enough to cry? Well, it’s not like that. Compared to last year, things are way better. Back then... but this year, I didn’t randomly encounter a manifestation. So, I wasn’t as nervous and went in fairly casually."

"Well done."

Great job.

Half unconscious, Harmony lay sprawled across the bed, while Michael, Gambit, Summit, and others lay scattered on chairs and sofas. Naturally, their expressions were gradually turning sour. They worked hard, but the results were a little disappointing.

In other words, Michael was grinning ear to ear.

Everyone wanted to say something encouraging, but any further debriefing seemed pointless. I clapped happily, and in response, Lorentina, Olivia, Kato, and Harmony’s friends cheered loudly as well.

Especially Hyun-ah was going absolutely wild.

"Oh my, oh my, everyone! Come see this! Our Mina went to the Final Championship and got 4th place! Tricky’s pride! I’m really getting emotional!"

"Agh, stop yelling in my face!"

"Ugh...!"

Another crazy one here, lol.

She’s just a lunatic, lol.

Oh my, she’s just noisy whenever she shows up, lol.

Kim Hyun-ah, the one who doesn’t know shame... I think I’m going insane.

I heard she went to a debate academy as a kid, and now she’s using those skills here, lol.

Fortunately, there wasn’t much of a problem since Harmony got cut off early.

Anyway, we were in the lounge, and the fireworks were still going off. The flash paper flower petals were scattered everywhere, making it feel like we were watching an early bold drop event.

Before falling to the ground, the flash paper was lit up by the laser shield that had been preinstalled on the floor, and a grand, nostalgic melody filled the air, touching not only our ears but also our hearts.

As the players enjoyed the excitement, their words gradually faded.

It was December 20th. The day the Final Championship ended, and only 11 days were left until the last day of 2036.

After a while, a unified chime rang from all the devices handed to the players, and a low podium rose from the center.

There were five spots available. Three of them were from Korea, so it was pretty emotional, right? Maybe. I had personally taught them, and now they didn’t need my help anymore... The semi-graduates went on to win medals in a global competition.

Maybe the vibrations were because the award ceremony, the final event of the Final Championship, was about to begin.

"Can I say, 'I love you, Yujin!' during my acceptance speech?"

"The moment you say that, I’ll be on the next plane home."

"Wow, that’s the strangest, but scariest threat I’ve ever heard!"

Well, it was a tailor-made threat.

Anyway, with those words, the five people slowly disappeared back to where they came from. Only the top five would be there, but this year, there would be a group photo at the end.

And so, the bomb was about to explode. I thought that while waiting a few more minutes, the atmosphere would start to settle, and the host would appear. The applause and cheers slowly died down, but that was just a prelude.

When the five winners walked out, a huge roar filled the air. The noise was so loud that it felt like the entire lounge shook with the energy of the crowd.

"Wow."

"The lounge is shaking. How scary..."

"Well, I guess that's to be expected."

But the real event was just beginning.

Out of the 50,000 people in the audience, only we knew what was about to happen next. Everyone was wearing strange expressions as they waited to see when "it" would happen.

"[Now, we’ll proceed with the medal ceremony. However, there's one change from what was previously announced. I kindly ask everyone here to remain calm and react as naturally as possible.]"

"What’s going on? LOL!"
"Wait, is Byam going to put the medal on them directly? LOL"
"But he’s not even leaving the lounge. LOL"
"What’s happening? What is this? What is it?!"
Then, at that moment, the back door opened, and someone walked in—a sharp-looking, middle-aged man with gray hair, wearing a neat black suit.

The confident steps, the American flag-shaped badge on his lapel. Most people in the room immediately recognized him and were so shocked they put their hands to their mouths to keep from gasping.

The Captain of the United States.

The head of the most powerful country in the world.

The man who would become the new president of the United States in 2037.

Henry Michael Brayton walked toward the center.

"[...The incoming 50th President of the United States, elected and set to take office on January 20th, will personally present the medals to the winners.]"

"????????????????????????????????????"
"Wait, what did you just say?????"
"This is huge!!"
"What?! This is crazy!!!"
Naturally, the five people standing on the podium, including Dice, all had their mouths wide open in astonishment.

I couldn’t help but chuckle at their expressions.

"Well, I guess it’s a good thing, isn’t it?"

"...Are you seriously going to say that in front of them?"

"Well... maybe not?"

With his puppet-like movements, the five winners, still in shock, received their medals from the President himself. As the last day of 2036 began to draw to a close, we were left reflecting on what had just transpired.

This year was truly enjoyable.