I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun

Chapter 110 - Easter Egg



Chapter 110 ­ Easter Egg

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“Ah, one two three four, one two three four. Hello, everyone. This is Limit returning to the Dark Zone! Riha!”

­Riha

­Riha Riha~~~~~~~~

­Limit, you look so pure today as well.

­You look so feminine and beautiful today, LOL.

­LMAO look at the lines

“…Thanks for the compliments on the avatar, sniff….”

Yellow, transparent eyes.

A delicate and youthful appearance with a face that exuded innocence, a beautiful girl. Her moderately bright green hair fell down to her waist, behind the cat-ear-shaped headset on her head.

Despite looking a bit sulky, her avatar was still cute and unassuming.

The face of this beautiful girl avatar crumpled as she looked at the chat window. She had many complaints, but since she couldn’t express them seriously, her expression turned sour, as if she had bitten into a lemon.

­LOL still pretty as always

“CallimitCocopalm, thank you… Hey! You guys made my avatar like this by hitting me with money! I originally wanted a macho man avatar!”

­Oh sure, of course

­Fact: This person originally chose a female character

­Memo: You can manipulate Limit with money….

­Leaving with even more reason to earn money today~~

­’Nuna’

It was a common occurrence.

MCN Bonk Hammer Brotherhood streamer, Limit. He was one of those streamers who had his masculinity crushed by the overwhelming cash power of his viewers, despite wanting to create an avatar as masculine as a giga chad.

It had been over six months since he started the Dark Zone, and now he could be considered a max-level user, but the initial struggles always returned. The constant bickering with viewers, stemming from Limit’s initial enthusiasm, had now become a staple of his broadcasts.

Of course,

“I told you not to call me Nuna! Do you all want implants together!?”

­Get in line

­Getting in line for implants~~

­Tsk tsk, look at the chat. I’m third, but remember I’m different from the rest of you.

­LOL

­Thanks for the stable spectacle today, LOL

‘Bastards….’

Sigh.

A breath escaped from his thin lips.

The day was still cold. One month in reality was three months in the Dark Zone. The extremely hot August in reality meant it was September to December in the Dark Zone. In other words, September was equivalent to January to March. Probably by the end of September, the in-game weather would start to warm up.

In a way, this was a bit fortunate. Because of the need to keep warm, the avatar naturally became plumper, and there weren’t many more comments about the avatar.

As I moved, inspecting the M1A in my hand, I saw a few avatars ahead. A green marker indicating they were in the same squad floated above two avatars.

They were familiar faces by now.

On the left. A Russian princess geared up as if heading to the battlefield. That was the streamer Dol.

On the right. A white tiger personified and sprinkled with a bit of TS (Trans-Species). A mixture of black and white long hair with tiger ears sticking out. That was the streamer Hotteok.

It was a gathering of Bonk Hammer Brotherhood streamers, formed to give newbies a tough time, but also to entertain viewers with unexpected collaborations.

Of course,

“…Sniff, you’re so pretty today too. Princess Limit.”

“The elf is here, the elf.”

“You bastards.”

­Oh, that was weird.

­Speak your mind, Lee Ka Cola! ! ! ! !

­LOL

­Hotteok and Kimstone are killing me with laughter, LOL

­I’m rolling on the floor, LOL

Just as they said.

Unable to hold back, the curses that seemed impossible to come from such a face burst out, and the two grabbed their stomachs and collapsed to the ground, cackling. Above them, Limit looked at them with a face full of discontent.

After a moment, the opening began. The three gathered in one place, creating scenes for the video intro by exchanging various remarks like a TV show.

On a usual day, dozens would be hanging around for the chance to participate or watch the broadcast, but fortunately, today they had started a new session, so it wasn’t the case.

The topic everyone was curious about started.

“…Anyway, the reason we’re gathered today is to discuss with Harmony what Dark Zone content to proceed with. For now, viewers will give their opinions, and we’ll check them out. If an idea is chosen, we’ll send a chicken as a thank-you.”

“We do have a few ideas, but we figured you guys would have more in-depth knowledge. So please keep that in mind.”

“Please consider that Harmony hasn’t cleared all the main missions yet, so take that into account when giving suggestions.”

­Do you guys know how skilled Harmony is these days?

­Shh, LOL

­If they’re not max level or fully equipped, they can’t do raids or high-difficulty modes. Only PvP or defense modes might work.

­Domination mode might be good.

As numerous ideas emerged and got discarded repeatedly, long and short donations popped up like bubbles and disappeared. A few good ideas were noted along with the usernames and IDs.

With the combined viewership of the three streamers, the total audience was close to 17,000. Assuming each person threw out one suggestion, there would be 17,000 ideas. At that point, even unlikely suggestions would come out.

Among the feasible suggestions,

“…Okay. For PvE, you mentioned emergency or infrastructure building missions, and defense mode. For PvP, domination and conquest were confirmed. Many of you gave excellent ideas. Those who sent suggestions will receive a gift card, so please check your messages.”

“Now that the ideas are narrowed down, let’s decide what to do first. What’s the most feasible thing? Is there anything anyone hasn’t tried yet?”

No one raised their hand.

These were people who had reached max level long ago. Whether it was a simple preference or an actual content difference, they had at least skimmed through every piece of content in the Dark Zone.

So, the first choice was domination mode.

It was a game of defending and attacking points divided into A, B, and C. One of the reasons for its popularity was the real-time adjustment of nanomachine quantities to prevent one-sided attacks or defenses.

The only unfortunate part was that the game was played in squads. But gathering people was one of the easiest things they could do. They could fill Harmony’s spot under the pretext of participation from the viewers.

With the objective clear, the tasks became clear too. While Hotteok gathered participants, Limit started matching. As people joined, the room would be filled. Since it was a large game involving 32 participants, many viewers were matching at the same time to be on the same team or the opposing team.

While waiting idly, a video donation popped up in front of my eyes.

­Meanwhile, Harmony, LOL

At the same time, the stadium filled my vision.

Amidst a crowd cheering for one name, a familiar green cat was screaming enthusiastically.

It was Harmony.

And there was no way to mistake the name coming out of her mouth.

­Teacher Yoo Jin───! We’re here!

“…Goodness. She really likes her teacher.”

I knew a lot had happened, but when did she become such an enthusiastic fan?

There were five days left until they learned the phrase “you become who you’re with.”

“This map always puts me in a bad mood….”

I’ve never been to Russia myself, but if I went, would it be like this?

The sky was gloomy. Actually, it was more than that. Describing the sky as ashen was common, but if novelists saw the dirty dark green mixed in, they’d probably write an even gloomier story.

Radioactive black rain fell.

I knew there was a nuclear fuel reprocessing plant nearby, but would it really cause this? I didn’t know the details, but in AP, such things didn’t matter. The premise was that operators fought in virtual reality with a hundred others.

The setting here felt more like a modern Prypiat. It was a battle in a ghost town. The atmosphere was dreary and bleak, with no scenic beauty like other maps.

So, playing this map always felt a bit more business-like than usual.

Opening the box and arming up. The sound of beans roasting began around me. As the number of people decreased one by one, the Geiger counter exclusive to this map clicked and moved slightly.

It signaled the approach of rain clouds.

­Clatter!

While opening the box, a machete popped out. I hesitated for a moment but decided to pass on it this time. I had learned just hours ago about the weird nickname ‘Axe Goddess’ and thought it better to just shoot without much thought for now.

Going outside, the wind blew again. It was damp. The smell of old concrete and wet earth pervaded the dead city. The grass growing through the broken asphalt was already withered and yellow.

But there was no time for sentiment.

───Rat-tat-tat-tat!

A dozen bullets whizzed past my ears. Four or five hit. The nanomachine count was 32%. The bullets seemed to have been fired through a silencer, making it hard to locate the source by sound.

However, the direction and angle of the heavy sensations hitting my body were crucial clues to the enemy’s position.

As I turned my head in that direction, I saw a user hurriedly entering an

apartment. Although unrelated to snakes, my developed vision took a snapshot of the face and converted it into memory.

They had an expression like they had ‘seriously messed up.’

“…Karma?”

It might be karma.

But regardless of karma, obstacles had to be cleared. Just as there was no reason to leave a turret shooting at me from behind, ignoring this person and heading to the map’s center wasn’t a good choice.

The apartment’s interior was quite simple. There was no need to implement everything in detail, and if they had, players would have to search every corner to find the hidden enemy, making the game flow very slow. Most of the doors were closed.

Furthermore, the long corridors with few hiding spots made it a naturally avoided place for firefights, so battles shifted to nearby facilities like playgrounds or gyms.

Stepping on floors covered with layers of dust, grime, and other unpleasant substances accumulated over time. Footprints were left behind.

A cautious and quiet track. The muzzle pointed downwards, ready to aim at any time, focusing all senses on sight and hearing. Visually 70, auditorily 30.

The reason for focusing 30% on hearing was simple. Excessive focus on hearing could cause a shock and make it impossible to respond smoothly if shot. At worst, it could lead to fainting or a heart attack.

That’s why.

­Rustle.

‘…There’s more sound.’

Not just one.

Two.

Uninvited guests.

I slightly regretted not taking the machete, but in most cases, the stock could suffice. Reducing even my breath, I followed them.

The distance was gradually closing. Considering the situation would turn into a firefight, it was close enough. Moving through the corridor, leaving the apartment, and entering the initial area of the complex’s public facilities.

The corridor was long with hiding spots only at the ends. There was no cover while passing through the corridor. So, I sped up a bit.

But then,

───Crash!

“Whoa, aaah!”

A strange noise was heard.

Had they unexpectedly encountered the other suspected enemy? It bothered me that instead of gunfire, something breaking was heard.

I switched from the carbine to the S&W M500 for sure kills. This massive revolver seemed to follow me strangely. It wasn’t lacking in performance. As a handgun, it had formidable power at close range.

Confirming the five loaded rounds, I approached the end of the corridor and checked inside the facility across. A blue light was leaking from one room. The source of the sound seemed to be from there.

­[Warning: Radiation levels spiking.]

‘…Suddenly?’

Though the nanomachine barrier was slowly depleting, my curiosity needed to be satisfied.

Carefully entering the facility and checking beyond the open door───

“…………­­…!”

“…What is this.”

A bizarre-shaped sword emitting a blue light, held by a strange figure. Wearing an eerie radiation suit, the figure’s eyes were pitch black.

It wasn’t a user. Was this one of the many Easter eggs on this map?

Of course, no one could survive five magnum rounds to the head at close range.

───Bang bang bang bang bang!

“Ugh, ugh, urgh…!”

The wildly vibrating Geiger counter fell silent instantly as the being’s head disappeared without a trace, and the sword fell from its hand.

A faded metal blade. It looked more like a lump of iron shaped into a sword rather than a proper blade.

­[Notice: You have killed an error!]

­[Notice: You have acquired the Easter egg weapon, Plutonium Blade!]

“…This is too much.”

I didn’t take it with me.

It was a truly insane idea.

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