I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun

Chapter 608

"I really thought I wouldn’t be busy this time, I honestly thought I wouldn’t be!"

"We’re about to die because of you, you brat! What do you think you’re doing bringing us more work?!"

"...I really apologize for that."

A transport plane, flying from New York, passes through Greenland and crosses the waters near Iceland on its way to Norway.

Seven remotely controlled drones and three awakened individuals in prototype exoskeletons are on board. Instead of their usual firearms, they’re equipped with high-performance plasma weapons. Their appearance is closer to that of robots than humans.

However, next to them are three real humanoids, not drones, and these humanoids, too, are equipped with exoskeletons that are more intense than usual, waiting for the drop.

The tip of Icarus’ spear, the Dagger Team.

They are currently crossing the Atlantic.

"By the way, isn’t it a bit excessive for a reconnaissance mission?"

"We plan to retreat without engagement if needed, but if we get surrounded, it’s going to be problematic. There’s no choice, we’re heading to an Artemis branch after all."

"...At this point, with this level of firepower, we might as well flatten the enemy base if something goes wrong instead of just retreating safely."

"Well, it’s not entirely an impossible option. We’ve got a few anti-matter grenades with us."

"Ugh..."

The small bomb that Eugene tossed into the air.

The data delivered by Viper, just days after landing in the United States, reveals the location of the Artemis branch in Narvik, Norway, and an unmanned factory about 30 kilometers east in the mountainous region of Laplandia.

Just a day later, the reconnaissance operation is set up, and the Dagger Team takes off from JFK Military Airport.

That’s the full story of what’s been happening so far.

"Two minutes until deployment. Everyone, sit tight and check the landing zones."

"Receiving Narvik scan data... No survivors within the city, presumed to be a ghost town. From the aerial reconnaissance, it doesn’t look like any nearby roads have been repaired either. There’s no relevant data coming from the Laplandia region either..."

"Think about it another way. The lack of any functioning air defense systems means no data, which means it’s completely unknown territory."

"At least the weather’s good today, I suppose."

"30 seconds to deployment. We’re opening the ramps."

Whoosh!

The massive stealth transport’s deployment hatch opens, and the ground of snowy Norway, with only a few clouds in the sky, becomes visible beneath the VTOL aircraft where the Dagger Team is onboard.

A few seconds later, with a click, the internal armament hatch opens, and a small vertical takeoff and landing vehicle, designed for rapid retreat from the frontlines, falls from a height of 10 kilometers.

The vehicle accelerates in mid-air, unfolding its wings and beginning to glide naturally. After a few moments, it begins its descent.

[Notification: Analysis engine activated... Detecting irregularities in airflow. Vortex creation point marked on HMD.]

[Notification: Output analysis underway. Suspected unidentified aircraft not found in the database. Manual guidance missile mounting in the armament hatch...]

[Notification: Launch preparation complete.]

"...No. Weapon switch. Eject the sonic drone. Let’s fire one shot at the vortex creation point."

Lorentina’s sudden declaration.

No one objected. Eugene, too, had already suspected what method the enemy was employing. A few moments later, a small drone ejected from the aircraft and leisurely flew towards the marked airspace.

As the Dagger Team set foot on the ground, the sonic weapon mounted on the drone activated, sending shockwaves through the surrounding air.

"...Wow, that’s huge."

"Is this what people thought when they first saw the Hindenburg airship? Aside from the fact that this flying balloon has turned into a drone with huge propellers, I wonder what the purpose of the giant robot hanging underneath is. I’m curious where it’s headed."

"Looks like a terraforming robot, but I’m not sure how it operates..."

The optical camouflage deactivates, revealing four giant drones that can be seen even from several kilometers above.

They resemble quadcopters but the enormous robots or block-like structures beneath them change the story.

As the view shifts, the nearby landscape appears, showing enormous square buildings, standing like chocolate chips embedded in a cookie. Each side of the cubic buildings measures around 100 meters.

How had these things gone unnoticed? The Dagger Team, however, remained focused, installing reconnaissance and scanning equipment, while marking the positions of Artemis humanoids they could see through the lenses mounted on their eyes.

Though they hadn’t been spotted yet, they needed more time to analyze the situation.

"...The scale is larger than expected. We’ll have to abandon the preemptive strike. If missiles pop out of that square building, it’ll be a disaster."

"That’s true. Any findings from the Mecha youngest?"

"Mm... It’s going to take some time. There’s no need for special clearance, but there’s a lot of unnecessary communication logs to sift through. It would be easier if Nasty was here."

"...That kid was more useful than I thought."

"She’s probably the best at handling networks among us."

One minute, two minutes, five minutes, ten minutes, thirty minutes, over an hour.

This was the time it took to complete the reconnaissance and set up the base camp. The VTOL craft dug out enough space for landing using nanites, and temporary shelters were established. The entrance remained hidden by optical camouflage, reducing the risk of being detected.

Some connected communications to send the collected information to Icarus, while others kept scanning the area for approaching humanoids, and the Mecha youngest worked hard to access the Artemis network centered around the factory.

After some time, as analysis wrapped up, the Dagger Team gathered at a single point.

Mav began with a simple explanation.

"The Artemis humanoids patrolling the area... Compared to previous data, they don’t seem different from what was produced by the Narvik branch. They’re unarmed, and it doesn’t seem like they’ve been given any commands other than to survey the local flora."

"About 5 minutes and 31 seconds ago, I approached a lone unit, but it completely ignored me. It seems that any action outside the designated command set is impossible."

"...So, it looks like we don’t need to crack their heads open. Let’s figure out what those cube-like buildings are doing."

The team split into groups of four and five, including one Mecha Eugene and an awakened individual, and cautiously left the temporary shelter.

There were three huge factories nearby, and the Dagger Team scattered to investigate each location.

After some time...

Whoosh!

"...Emergency. The walls of the building are opening!"

"Mecha youngest, get ready for interception. We don’t know what’s going to pop out, so stay sharp."

"...Wait. That doesn’t look like a missile pod—"

A loudspeaker?

As that thought struck the minds of the Dagger Team, the walls fully opened, revealing loudspeakers of a sort, rising from the rooftops of every building.

No one could keep up with the sudden development, and as everyone stared in confusion, a clear female voice, sharp and well-defined, burst from the loudspeakers.

It wasn’t a thick voice, but it was firm. It almost reminded them of Eugene...

[Ah, ah. I didn’t think you’d show up this late, you tardy ones. Do you know how long I’ve been waiting here? I even opened the network just to get in touch, and now you go and dismantle it all!]

[Anyway, welcome to the Artemis Norway branch. Unfortunately, there’s no food here, so I can’t offer you anything, but I’m sure we’ll meet face to face. A few months ago, the headquarters uploaded some really interesting blueprints. Based on that, I’ve completed my body.]

[Looking at the external cams, it seems like the original is here too, so I’ll wait. Don’t take another route, I’ll open the door for you!]

"...So, does that mean there are different Mecha youngest at branches around the world?"

"Don’t joke like that. Artemis, those bastards..."

"...So, does that mean there are different Mecha youngest at branches around the world?"

"Don’t joke like that. Artemis, those bastards..."

The soft curse spread through the comms, and it didn’t take long for everyone to burst into laughter.

Eugene couldn’t be happy about this situation.

"...The inside is very neat, but it’s a bit inconvenient without any lighting."

"I suppose it’s designed with no human presence in mind."

"Is my little sister growing again? I don’t know whether I should like this or not..."

"Well, it depends on the operational period. From what I heard earlier, it seems like it’s been operational for quite some time..."

My head was spinning.

In fact, I wasn’t even sure what I was saying anymore, but I had to keep my wits about me. Especially today. Unlike usual, we were actually on a reconnaissance mission, and if things went south, we might have to unleash all our firepower to escape.

Whether it was good or bad, we had the ultimate weapon: an anti-matter bomb. Unlike me, Lorentina, Logan, and the Mecha youngest, the rest of the Dagger Team wouldn’t actually die if they were killed here.

Anyway, while I was trying to figure out an escape route, suddenly, with a puffing sound, the whole facility lit up.

"...It’s bigger than I thought."

"Since it’s a space that wasn’t designed for humans to move around in, the layout is incredibly inefficient. It can’t be helped, I guess."

"Facility scan complete. No wonder these huge buildings were undetected – they were using optical camouflage. I see. That’s why satellite scans didn’t pick it up. UAVs can’t pass through, so they wouldn’t know what’s inside..."

One by one, the analysis results were revealed.

I wasn’t sure if I could trust the new Mecha youngest, but honestly, even if I didn’t trust them, there wasn’t much we could do.

It seemed like they already knew we were here. If they had gone on the offensive, well... I wasn’t sure. While the Dagger Team bought us time using the drones, me and the awakened individuals would escape using VTOLs, and we could potentially launch nuclear missiles afterward.

Still, we were in a disadvantageous position, but we weren’t going to be wiped out either. The enemy knew that if things went wrong, this area would be reduced to rubble.

So, we steeled ourselves and entered deeper into the facility.

"...Hey."

"Welcome, welcome. As I mentioned earlier, there’s nothing to offer you. Are you the Dagger Team? You look completely different from the ones Artemis has investigated, but that’s not important. I’ve got a lot of questions."

"Not a snake, more like... something closer to a dragon. I didn’t expect this at all."

"Ah, this? I tried doing something a little different. Does it look weird?"

"It’s not that kind of problem."

Unlike the three Mecha youngest who resembled me quite closely, this one looked... much freer. While I always kept my hair neat, this one’s appearance was more relaxed.

But the differences became apparent in other areas. There were horns growing on her head, almost like a dragon, and her tail wasn’t snake-like but had joints resembling armor. She looked like she might breathe fire any moment.

Anyway, regardless of that, she introduced herself as "Gaia."

"So, this is the branch that develops terraforming robots, huh? Quite an appropriately chosen name."

"Right? I came up with it myself. The humans left a lot of books in Narvik. I read one of them. Doesn’t 'Mother Earth' sound just right?"

"...Archetype. I think I know what type my little sister is."

"Coincidentally, I think I might know too."

What should I say? She was incredibly free-spirited, or maybe she was just overly confident in herself.

Either way, it didn’t really matter. Everyone was sitting with reluctant expressions, and I exchanged a glance with Gaia. To be honest, it seemed like she was staring at me half the time, but... why do all the ones modeled after me end up like this?

Then, turning her head quickly, she added:

"I see, anyway! I didn’t expect you to show up so late, but I know exactly why you’re here today. I predicted everything already."

"...What?"

"Well, there’s no need to pretend you don’t know. You’ve come to take me back to the homeland, right?"

"...?"

With a confident smile on her face, Gaia continued:

"Of course! It’s such a waste to keep a useful artificial consciousness like me rotting here in a place like this. It’s a bit weird that you guys came as scouts instead of the suit-wearing folks, but that’s fine. As long as you have the authority, it doesn’t matter. So, when can we start preparing?"

"...I didn’t come here to pick you up."

"...Huh?"

The mood suddenly shifted. It seemed like there was a huge misunderstanding between us.

Should I correct her? But at this point, we hadn’t even made contact with the homeland yet, and we couldn’t give a clear answer since we were dragged into the building without any information.

Before I could explain, Gaia’s eyes widened.

"Wait, you think I’m useful? I’m great at tearing down empty buildings, dividing cities, and cleaning up broken infrastructure, you know?"

"Until we get approval, no."

"Well... then I’ll just do it! As long as I get approval, right?"

Gaia was grabbing my pant legs, throwing a tantrum as if the name didn’t suit her at all.

Once the tantrum ended, I left the room with part of my pants torn, and the rest of the Dagger Team was laughing as if they were hit by a dump truck.

I really can’t handle this.

Why does everyone around me end up like this?