I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun

Chapter 180 ­ Yoo Jin Inbound

* * *

“Maybe it’s because I ate too much meat yesterday, my stomach feels…ugh.”

“You did eat a lot.”

“It seems like I always end up eating a lot of meat whenever I meet Yoo Jin.”

That was true.

Lunch and dinner on the day of the pre-briefing, and dinner yesterday. I had met Dice three times in reality so far, and each time we ate meat. So, in a way, what he said made sense.

Moreover, considering the characteristics of Hanwoo beef, where the more the red meat is finely marbled with fat like snowflakes, the more it feels like oiling the tongue, throat, and stomach directly. It might have been difficult for Dice even if it was fine for me.

Furthermore, just like how watching someone else eat makes food go down easier, he had eaten more than usual. I hoped he didn’t throw up in the taxi on the way back.

I even got him a deluxe taxi to make sure his condition wasn’t strained.

“I told you to stay over.”

“…Now that I think about it, I really should have.”

But regrets are always late, and schedules come quickly.

Unfortunately, Dice, who made a strange sound every 30 seconds, and I were not in reality but inside VR. Monday had vanished into history never to return, and Tuesday had arrived, when the Korean first team was set to play.

The seats were divided into five sections, resembling an orchestral seating arrangement. With twenty chairs packed in each section around the central stage where the host’s podium was located, the sections radiated outwards.

The reason for the twenty chairs was obviously because the maximum number of participants from one country was twenty. Including Dice and me, twenty Korean first-team users were waiting for the scrim to start.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve sat this comfortably in a chair.”

“…Oh, right. You said you turned off the tail data.”

That was true.

The official reason was for fairness. However, even though physical interactions were impossible, the data remained, so viewers could still see it, and steering and balancing through the tail were still possible.

Therefore, it was now possible to sit in chairs with backs in VR. It was a sensation I hadn’t felt in a long time. Leaning back comfortably in a chair was not something easily experienced in reality.

Time flew by quickly. Especially when there was a lot to review before the match. It was necessary to recheck various strategies previously assumed. Because the twenty users were placed as far apart as possible to prevent teaming, movements were crucial in many ways.

A glance to the side showed that the second-team users from other countries had gathered in their respective sections. Our eyes met several times. They all had determined expressions.

Considering they also narrowly missed being selected for their national teams, they were worthy of caution. Although we said we’d quickly overpower them to prevent information leaks, nothing in the world was easy.

The host walked in with a measured step. The atmosphere was much more solemn than before. It wasn’t a time for cheers. This invoked a strange feeling in many ways. It felt like a phantom sound, as if the cheers of millions were lingering in my ears.

The host took the microphone and looked around the audience before speaking.

“Welcome, everyone. I sincerely welcome you to this place. I believe many of you have already arrived in Korea. Japan, Russia, China, Taiwan… It seems it’s time to compete with the champions of Asia.”

One week.

No matter how late, within a week, all national representatives would arrive in the country where the preliminaries were held. In other words, representatives from Russia, China, Japan, and Taiwan were probably staying in some hotel in Seoul right now.

The host’s words hinted at that vaguely.

However, there was no long and grand motivational speech that I expected to follow immediately.

Rather….

“You players probably know the detailed game rules better than I do. It wouldn’t make sense to hold you here longer, so I wish you all the best. Please give it your all.”

With words much shorter than a principal’s speech, the host left. I wondered if it was really okay to be this brief and glanced around.

What should I say, Dice didn’t seem to care much. The conclusion naturally followed – it was always like this. Even when I looked further back, more than half of them were not significantly disturbed.

Those who participated in the Asian preliminaries last year already knew.

In that case, I needed to reframe my question.

“What’s the next schedule?”

“Well… We have about 30 minutes until the scrim starts, so maybe some light mingling in the meantime?”

“Light mingling?”

“Yes. Sometimes the first team does it among themselves, but usually, they walk around and greet users from other countries. Even if you don’t know them, the second-team users from other countries know you, Yoo Jin.”

That’s a bit scary.

I asked because I thought I might need some mental preparation.

“When does the mingling start?”

“Um….”

An ominous silence.

And an ominous noise – the sound of the space completely rearranging itself. The auditorium transformed into a giant hall, and over a hundred players began to disperse. Dice spoke in a casual tone as if it was nothing special.

“Right now.”

Thud-thud-thud.

Simultaneously, I heard footsteps coming from somewhere… Heavy enough to shake the ground. It wasn’t just one or two people; it seemed like at least dozens were rushing toward me at once. Thanks to my snake-like sense specialized in detecting vibrations, I could tell immediately.

Their destination… There was no denying it now. It was none other than me. Glancing around, I saw countless people charging in my direction. The sight of avatars of all shapes and colors rushing towards me almost made me dizzy.

It seemed the preference for female avatars in VR was the same in other countries, as all these avatars, who were obviously men, were brightly colored female characters.

In other words, they all had decent visuals.

So why were so many pretty girls approaching me?

“Where is Yoo Jin? Where is Player Yoo Jin?”

“I’ve always wanted to meet you! Is your tail real!?”

“There they are!”

…?

It all happened in an instant.

The massive footsteps gradually stopped and halted in front of me. I couldn’t help but be bewildered. What was going on? The person at the front extended a hand cautiously.

It was for a handshake.

“I’ve been watching your plays, Player Yoo Jin, and always wanted to meet you! You’ve been a great help.”

“…Yes. Thank you. Are all the people behind you here for the same reason?”

Nods.

Although they were from different countries, their reactions were similar. I was a bit dumbfounded by why I was drawing so much attention. But it didn’t matter. What was important was that they were showing goodwill towards me.

What should I say? The atmosphere wasn’t as tense as one would expect from an Asian preliminary round. Maybe because these were second-string players who could play more comfortably than the first-string ones, who had a lot more on their minds.

But the truth was somewhere far off, and it didn’t matter much. It felt more like a festival than I had anticipated, so I thought it was more important to show a corresponding attitude.

There were about 25 people lined up in front of me.

Excluding the Korean users who already knew me well, almost half of the participants in this scrim had approached me. At times like these, it seemed better to just respond rather than speak.

After spending about 10 minutes making face-to-face contact, I could finally return to Dice with a dumbfounded expression.

I spoke naturally.

“…I thought the atmosphere would be more intense for an Asian preliminary scrim, but it wasn’t. What’s going on?”

“Haha, it’s natural to think that if it’s your first time. This happens once or twice at this point, and I thought you’d be the one they’d target.”

“You seem to know something…”

“Hehe.”

Then came the explanation.

“This isn’t uncommon. As you know, pro gamers often watch and analyze better players’ plays, and sometimes they become fans of those players in the process.”

“…So that’s what it was.”

“Yoo Jin, you’re the talk of the town these days… I’m more surprised that you didn’t realize this until now. That’s very you, but you should start paying a bit more attention to your visibility.”

Ugh. I had nothing to say.

As I sat down quietly, Dice chuckled and added.

“Well, everyone has their own perspective. This isn’t the finals, and I don’t think you’d spend time meticulously analyzing how others play. Just do what you always do, and everyone will be happy.”

“Do what I always do?”

“Just beat up everyone you encounter. That’s what you’re best at.”

[Notification: 3 minutes until the scrim starts.]

“It sounds strange when you put it like that.”

“Haha, you think so now? Anyway, just do that and don’t worry about anything else.”

“…You’re right. Let’s get ready.”

“That’s the Yoo Jin I know.”

[Notification: The first map is the Advanced Research Facility.]

[Notification: Movement starts now.]

About two minutes of preparation time.

It was time to part ways with Dice and everyone else. The surroundings lit up. The map, which I had become so familiar with that I could navigate it with my eyes closed, appeared before me. I sketched out a few basic routes in my mind. I would have to adapt based on Juggernaut’s movements anyway, so it wasn’t too crucial.

The clock was ticking.

The dust of the battlefield lingered at my nose.

‘Finally.’

Finally, the time had come.

However, to say that aloud would be too embarrassing – something like ‘Now I can finally show my true skills’ sounds like a line straight out of an anime.

But aside from that, it was notable that everyone except the 20 people in this scrim shared the same thought.

It was probably inevitable. As I said several times, these players had fallen below 20th place due to minor variables rather than their skills, and they had come too far to be overwhelmed by someone stronger.

I couldn’t help but feel my excitement rise.

It might have been an unfounded confidence that came from never having faced her before, but the data they gathered by analyzing Yoo Jin’s play was estimated to be similar to the information accumulated by the second-string users who had faced her a few times.

In other words, it wasn’t a realm of certainty. They could only speculate, but today, they would see clearly whether their assumptions were true or false.

And the honor and glory of making that determination first fell to Tochka, ranked 22nd among the Russian second-string players.

In short, he was the luckiest, and unluckiest, user to encounter Yoo Jin first.

‘…There she is!’

A faint, flickering silhouette.

Behind the slowly moving figure was the peculiar writhing identity unique to Yoo Jin. Due to the characteristic poor lighting of the high-value research facility, it seemed more like shadows wriggling rather than a tail.

Calculations began to run automatically in his mind. The distance to Yoo Jin, the firearms and explosives currently in his possession, the state of the controls, escape routes, and the surrounding engagement situation. He thoroughly measured all these factors. Perhaps the only regret was that he couldn’t use close-quarters combat techniques like CQC, which he had painstakingly learned.

No, he should actually say he had to avoid it at all costs.

The calculations were complete.

But,

At that moment.

‘…!?’

Swish.

At that moment, Yoo Jin turned her head and quickly moved her eyes, meeting his gaze. Was it an illusion? Their eyes met for a very brief moment, but she was definitely looking in his direction. How on earth? The once calm surface of his mind started to churn violently.

It would be a long time before he realized that it wasn’t their gazes actually meeting, but rather Yoo Jin’s personal habit of checking all potential attack points as quickly as possible, based on past experiences.

In other words, that would be for later.

He still believed he had the advantage, and he wasn’t entirely wrong. Therefore, Tochka took a deep breath and pulled the trigger. If he could hit her head once to weaken her shield, the chances of winning would increase.

His finger twitched.

With the suppressed gunshot, the bullet hit its mark.

───Thud!

It hit her head accurately.

Her body staggered heavily.

However, the speed at which she recovered was unbelievable. As soon as it hit her head, she disappeared from sight and took cover. It was a ridiculous sight, as if he had shot at a ghost.

Although the first shot hit, the premise that subsequent shots must also hit began to crumble relentlessly.

“Блять…!”

He muttered a Russian curse under his breath and moved.

However, perhaps hiding his body among the bushes of a large bonsai was a mistake, as the rustling sound and the shaking of the bushes were followed by a dozen bullets tearing through them.

The scattered leaves. He was hit three times.

Even though he knew in his head that it was just suppressive fire, the accuracy was astonishing. However, while he was in a state of panic and not paying attention to external stimuli, Yoo Jin took advantage of the gap.

In other words, she closed the distance significantly while he was too distracted to notice the sound.

‘When did she get so close…!’

About 70 meters apart. With the complex terrain in between. Despite these obstacles, she had gotten this close. It was maddening.

It was like literal teleportation.

The very thing that those who had fought Yoo Jin testified to was unfolding right before his eyes.

Still, he was ranked 22nd.

It meant he had a rough idea of what was happening through numerous experiences. And he wasn’t far off from the truth. It started with the simple premise that she quickly approached while he was distracted.

But if you asked how to deal with that… well.

How do you handle that?

“Argh…!”

───Ratatatatata!

The advantage of his position and the fact that he knew the enemy’s location melted away like ice cream left out on a summer day. Thus, the skirmish that started from that point took on a primitive form of a direct clash of strength.

To put it bluntly, it was about who shot better, who took better positions, and who had superior accuracy in both moving and suppressive fire.

Though the outcome was halfway decided, Tochka had no intention of succumbing to his fate and managed to hold Yoo Jin at bay for 1 minute and 31 seconds after the most primitive engagement began.

Though a double KO was impossible, he had drawn enough attention.

Despite it being a scrimmage, Yoo Jin, who rarely faced enemies directly, aimed her gun and added,

“Indeed, the Asian preliminaries are different.”

“…I think so too.”

Bang.

With the flash of light in front of his eyes, Tochka heard the footsteps around him.

After drawing so much attention, surely some would attempt the ABC meta — where C intervenes and benefits while A and B are fighting. And perhaps one of them might succeed.

He didn’t know their faces, but Tochka wished for their success as he was ejected to the lobby.

“Wow. Is that even a human….”

Tochka’s wish was only half-fulfilled.

During the two-minute-long engagement, about three or four individuals, drawn by the smell of blood, revealed themselves. However, Yoo Jin successfully shattered all their heads.

The scrim had just begun.

* * *