I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun

Chapter 131 NBV Desert Station

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[General] Dice appears ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Another stable Jjuguri on today

[All Comments][Order of Registration]

– Oh

– His avatar is really well made

ㄴStably arousing ㅇㅈ

– Am I the only one who likes him???

ㄴSo who the hell is Dice, you otaku?

ㄴIt’s good that Dice has been showing his face a lot lately

ㄴRly ㅋㅋ

ㄴLast year he only had three interviews even though he made it to the finals, but it’s different this year ㅋㅋ

ㄴMust’ve been scolded from above

ㄴMakes sense!

– Dice! Dice! Dice! Dice! Dice! Dice! Dice! Dice! Dice! Dice! Dice! Dice! Dice! Dice!

– Isn’t he the one who’s been hanging out with Yoo Jin a lot lately? He’s cute

ㄴDon’t be fooled, he wasn’t like that last year

ㄴWhat was he like? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴEven when interviewed, he’d just stay silent, but after meeting Yoo Jin this year, he’s been chatting non-stop

ㄴㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴTurns out he’s really good at talking ㅋㅋ

– 6th place? He was 13th last year, but he jumped up this year ㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴMust’ve been practicing hard

ㄴBecause of someone ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴPush to the limit and you can do itㅋㅋ

ㄴKoits squeezing water out of a dried squid wwww

ㄴAt this level, it’s like squeezing a dried squid underwater

ㄴBullshitㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– He’s going to grow a snake’s tail like Noknyang soon ㅋㅋ

ㄴOh

ㄴWow

ㄴHe doesn’t have a snake’s tail, you idiot ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴDrink the water from a snake’s tail, and you become a snake…

ㄴA blonde beauty with a snake’s tail? This would sell ㅋㅋ

[General] Today’s interview… catastrophe… gif

Crazy girl ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

[All Comments][Order of Registration]

– ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– No surprise, using snake-like skills ㅋㅋ

ㄴssr ㅋㅋ

ㄴㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴWhy is this so funny ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴBecause he’s a snake, he uses snake-like moves ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– Why are they beating up poor Dice ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴFact) If he could beat each viewer individually, he would’ve done it long ago

ㄴRly ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴTotally Yoo Jin style ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴThe previous interview was gold ㅋㅋ

ㄴㅋㅋ good, let’s come up with more chaotic nicknames

– The host is really flustered ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴNot even trying to stop it, just chuckling ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴEveryone except Dice and Yoo Jin is having a blast, how can they filter this out ㅋㅋ

– The ones next to them are laughing their heads off ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– Yoo Jin and Dice’s chemistry is insaneㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ earth shattering universe piercingㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

ㄴWhat’s piercing, you crazy bastard ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴWhoa, calm down, dude

– They’re having so much fun ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– Timing is perfect ㅋㅋ

– They reek of being social butterflies 씨1바….

ㄴDude ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴIntroverts shouldn’t play DarkZone, rly ㅋㅋ

ㄴWhy is this even social ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴSudden confession about school days, legendary

– But am I the only one who thinks they look good together???

ㄴRly ㅋㅋ it’s like a blonde lady knight with a snake witch

ㄴSnake Witch (Physical)

ㄴSo, hanging out with the Snake Witch makes you grow a snake’s tail now?

ㄴOh

ㄴWhat the hell ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

“If I can’t perform well in the game, it’s your fault, Yoo Jin.”

“Shall I call you someone who knows how to earn their punishment?”

“Oh, please don’t.”

ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– What are they doing ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– These guys came here to shoot a comedy, not a competition ㅋㅋ

– Comedy x Romance o

– These days, grappling techniques are called romance? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Laughter echoed all around, barely suppressed by those nearby.

However, I stood unperturbed. Dice had apologized after releasing the Cobra Twist, and I simply took a little advance on that apology. Somehow, I felt increasingly shameless as time went by. Not a particularly good sign.

Nevertheless, separate from that and fortunately, everyone seemed rather amused rather than concerned. They seemed intrigued by such bizarre performances occurring so openly in this situation. Of course, it wasn’t pre-planned or anything.

The atmosphere gradually settled down. It wasn’t something that could drag on for too long, and there were still other users to interview and map introductions to be done. The stage was set up like a small theater, with a hundred chairs arranged in front of it. The participants sat there, waiting to be called for interviews or to listen to the host.

“…Is the term ‘Big Sister’ that funny?”

“I enjoyed 1984 quite a bit….”

What a creative excuse.

But unlike that person, my actions were legitimate. At least Big Brother doesn’t get mocked by the people. Anyway, it wasn’t that important. As the last interview ended, I shifted my focus to the map explanation. All the players stared intently at the screen.

It was time to introduce the highly anticipated first map.

“Now, let’s proceed with the draw for the first map the players will face!”

The host’s booming voice filled the stadium, while curiosity about the map swirled in my mind. I mentally reviewed my pre-planned routes. But it didn’t really matter what map it would be, as it was always the same.

The draw, done at the cutting edge of virtual reality technology, was hard to describe. Brief descriptions of eight maps appeared on the screen, layered like cards. These maps were shuffled randomly and placed on a table.

Then, thud.

A knife struck down on them.

The chat window was already in chaos.

­??????????????????

­What the hell is this selection method ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

­Take it easy, you crazy bastards ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

­Savage ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

­It was normal last year! It was normal last year! It was normal last year! It was normal last year! It was normal last year!

The knife tip stopped in the middle.

It had pierced four cards and landed on none other than the NBV Desert Base, a place where even nanomachines got damaged by sandstorms. I glanced at Dice. Seeing her eyes tremble… last year’s selection might have been more ordinary.

“…It’s not like a belated start to Dadaism, it’s bizarre.”

“What on earth is this….”

I patted her shoulder to bring her back to focus and added.

“Just do as you’ve learned. Try not to encounter anyone if possible.”

“Wow, now that I think about it, I have to play the same game with you today and tomorrow. I’m already scared….”

Unfortunately, I had little to say. The battles were imminent.

The host officially announced the start of the match. Viewers, already familiar with the maps through various rankings and preliminary rounds, didn’t need further explanation.

“KSM’s first map! The highly anticipated first map is the NBV Desert Base! Watch closely to see who will survive the sandstorm!”

Wooooooo!

The overwhelming cheers almost deafened me. It was now time to converse not with words, but with guns. Players would engage in combat as they always had, while unseen casters and commentators fueled the audience’s excitement.

Everything around me sank into the abyss. My only goal was the finals, and the first place. To uncover more secrets the world had left for me, I had to rise to the top.

“Korea Selection Match, starts now───!”

A halo of light enveloped me.

I lightly tapped Dice on the shoulder, who wore a determined expression. Our eyes met. There wasn’t much I could say. Unless Dice made it to the second place, I wouldn’t see her again. Players from the same team were placed at opposite ends of the map.

So, I didn’t have much to say.

“See you in the Asian preliminaries.”

Before everyone scattered in the halo of light, she bit her lip and nodded.

The moment the Korea Selection Match began.

[ISO: A severe sandstorm has hit the base. Clear out all hostile personnel around before the base’s shields go down and move to the safe zone.]

Whooosh!

The ominous rumble and the serene sky. Although the surroundings appeared clear, it was because the gigantic protective shield installed at the base was piercing through the kilometer-high sand clouds, reflecting a clean sky. The rumble also originated from this.

The sandstorm’s power was so great that even high-output generators couldn’t withstand it. This map’s kill zone might appear to gradually reduce HP, but in reality, it was no different from instant death. The sand created static electricity that quickly eroded the nanomachine barriers, making it almost impossible to secure a clear view.

Even if you drove a car, the sand would instantly invade the engine, exhaust, and suspension, making it practically impossible to escape the safe zone.

The weather was hot but insanely dry.

The sound of beans being roasted started to be heard one by one. It wasn’t fast. Since it was the first round, everyone was cautiously gauging the situation. How should I handle this round? To be honest, it didn’t really matter what I chose, so far, I had always played the game with the first gun I picked up.

While sitting on a box on the floor inside a building, thinking,

───Rustle.

The sound of sand being stepped on.

I glanced around, but the only weapon I saw was… a bow? It wasn’t even a gun, but a bow. On the floor, a bunch of arrows lay scattered. The vibrations were slowly approaching from about 20 meters away. It seemed to be someone wearing a desert-optic camouflage suit, which could commonly be found in any box.

Given its performance, it couldn’t hold more than a submachine gun, but it was powerful enough depending on its use.

I looked around. The shattered ceiling, exposed wires, and pipes that had weathered. And there seemed to be more than just one pipe around ­ pipes?

Then there was no choice.

I picked up an arrow and climbed up, hiding in the darkness of the ceiling.

­Creeeeak.

The door I had just turned my back on carefully opened.

A faint outline. A shimmer as if the space itself was distorted, followed by a handgun protruding from the end of the optic camouflage. A Glock 18 equipped with a Roni Kit. A very standard setup ­ but now, as I checked up to here, I gauged the height of the enemy and found a spot to stab.

With a thud, I jumped down, grabbing the enemy’s neck before they could turn around and aiming the arrow with my right hand like a shuriken. When dealing with a sharp awl-like object, there was a specific spot to stab ­ the back of the neck, where the neck ends and the head begins. I stabbed it diagonally upward.

No sound was made. But in reality, since both the midbrain and the pons were pierced in one strike, the enemy fell to the ground without any resistance. Critical hit. With such a UI display, I quickly gathered the items scattered on the ground.

In the meantime, I heard heavy boot sounds approaching from the front.

I quickly finished reloading. But the opponent was faster than I thought, so with the intention of controlling the recoil with one hand, I aimed forward and fired preemptively.

───Ratatatat!!

The enemy, unable to stop in time, took about five shots and hurriedly retreated. I picked up a grenade from the ground with my tail, removed the pin with one hand, and threw it into the opposite hallway. The sound of the metal clashing with the ground was drowned out by the gunfire.

A few seconds later, hundreds of fragments scattered. To keep the momentum, I quickly ran and aimed down the hallway, but all that was left was a pile of items similar to the previous ones.

Somehow, I had taken out two people in an instant. What were they thinking now? But I quickly dismissed the thought and carefully checked if there were any third parties around, but there were no signs of life. Now, it was time to loot the items.

“…It’s fierce right from the start.”

Now, it seemed I could finally wear my gear with some peace of mind.

It was a common start to an AP match.

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