NoveLight ™
"I thought I would live here for a thousand years, but three weeks go by so quickly..."
"Dais, I'll come back here next year, and Harmony… well, she might come too. She could come as a partner streamer or maybe even a professional gamer."
"Professional gamer… that might be a bit too much pressure."
"Come on, instead of deciding on Moni’s job, let’s just clean up and get out of here."
January 1st.
Finally, the time had come to board the flight to Korea. It had been a whirlwind three weeks filled with all sorts of experiences, but thanks to this comfortable and stylish hotel, I had managed to get through without major issues. So, before leaving the room, I tidied up everything neatly.
After saying goodbye to the long-term residents and lobby staff I had become friendly with during my stay, I stepped out onto the first floor, where a limousine bus was waiting, just like when I first arrived three weeks ago. Harmony seemed to be filming a vlog, using a camera with a mosaic function to capture various scenes.
I wondered if I should film something too, but did I even have someone I liked? Even if I did, it felt too bothersome to film, so I cautiously stepped into the open bus. As expected, it was a self-driving bus, and there was no driver inside.
As soon as I settled into my seat, a message came through.
I chuckled at that and made a call. After closing the blinds around me and activating the soundproofing function through the Icarus Gear, there was no sound leaking outside.
It seemed he had been waiting for my call, as his voice came through immediately.
"I knew you’d call."
"You got the message that I’ll be waiting at the airport, right?"
"You’re wishing for a lot."
Of course, I wouldn’t deny it.
Everyone, including myself, was someone who usually found it hard to meet, and since it had been a long time since we had taken a proper vacation, I thought they would come to see me off one last time.
In the meantime, everyone had boarded. The doors closed, blocking the air of Manhattan. The gloomy sky from yesterday had turned clear, but it was a bit disappointing that I couldn't see it properly due to the ceiling. But before I could finish that thought, the wheels began to move smoothly, crossing the city.
In just a few dozen meters, we took a right turn. Central Park came into view through the window. There were no towering barriers, no unmanned control towers or posts, and no machine gun nests. Just bare trees and New Yorkers hurrying somewhere greeted my gaze.
So this was a space so peaceful.
That thought crossed my mind suddenly, but I no longer had to look back at that painful memory. No more bitter past could stand in my way. A star-shaped metal medal hidden beneath my thick clothes compensated for all my time.
The road became a bridge, and the bus crossed over, leaving Manhattan behind. It didn't take long to reach JFK International Airport, passing through Queens. In fact, it was only about ten minutes.
As I got off the bus, I headed towards the airport entrance I had come out of three weeks ago. It wasn’t busy, but the ceiling was a bit low. The unusually high Incheon Airport was quite different.
With three hours left until departure, I wondered what to do when I said,
"The guards are getting lax."
"That’s the first thing you say after coming all the way here…"
"It feels strange. When I return to Norfolk, I probably won’t see you guys for a while. Should I submit my discharge application? Or should I get deployed to Korea for tactical exchange?"
"Don’t say weird things; I’ll come visit often."
Both of them looked… how should I say it? It was like seeing a grandmother’s expression when she’s saying goodbye after a holiday visit. It seemed that there was not much difference in reality. Anyway, the Korean representative team had become quite familiar with them, and I naturally started chatting in my rough English.
Since we wouldn’t see each other again after passing through the gate, we talked for about an hour before I left a message with the schedule manager that I would return to the first-class check-in counter. Upon hearing that, he had a slightly enlightened expression. How should I put it, I felt I had been quite a nuisance to him during these three weeks.
What should I say…
"Um, if it gets really late, I’ll just pay for a flight back, so don’t worry?"
Of course, it had the opposite effect.
As soon as the schedule manager heard that, he burst out laughing, and since neither Harmony nor I were affiliated with a specific team, even if we missed a flight, it was just our loss, not a big deal. At that moment, Rorentina’s eyes sparkled, and she jokingly suggested we buy a house in New York while we were at it.
After all, she really loved people.
In any case, I inadvertently ended up acting alone again. As Rorentina and Logan walked ahead, I found myself walking alongside Senior Officer Owens after a long time. The height difference was more than ten centimeters, making the visual quite strange.
As I walked without a particular thought, the senior officer spoke first.
"You look much better. When we first met about three weeks ago, you had a rather vague expression."
"…Did I?"
"I’ve said this before, but you’re quite bad at hiding your emotions."
…Is that so?
I definitely felt like I had heard that quite often in the past. I was a person of very clear likes and dislikes. Of course, when it came to survival, I would act desperately, but I figured anyone would do that in such situations.
Anyway, regardless of likes and dislikes, at that time, I couldn’t help it. There were still unresolved issues lingering. But now it was completely different. If I labeled the unresolved issues as a hundred, I could say that I had solved about ninety-five of them.
At that moment, a hand rose up. He placed his hand on my head and stroked my hair. Strangely, people seemed to really like patting my head.
"Those two have been talking a lot about you lately."
"Hi there."
"I can’t pay attention to everything up to there, sorry. But since you are a part of Team Dagger, you can handle a lot of things on your own. Of course, I’ll also check what kind of experiences you’ve gone through in the end…."
He paused for a moment before continuing.
"…After that mission, we’ll continue with the debriefing we couldn’t do."
…We couldn’t do it.
As he said, it seemed that when I went missing at the Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant, I had not been able to have a debriefing afterward. Although he wore a somewhat bittersweet expression, there was no longer any need to be in pain. I was standing right here.
With a pat on the back to signal that there was no need to worry, I found myself entering the dining area before I knew it.
I wondered what was going on and turned my head to meet the senior officer’s eyes.
And, as expected,
"Those idiots want to make sure they feed us before sending us off. They’re not my grandma…."
"Oh my."
Now revealed, those two were leading me to a pizza place.
At this point, I began to wonder whether I was the youngest member of Team Dagger or a grandchild visiting my hometown.
And so, the departure schedule was proceeding one by one.
"Ugh, that was really exhausting…!"
"Now I’m worried about how to adjust to the time difference. But I think I’ll crash as soon as I get home, although I can’t be sure…."
"Just to make a bold statement at this point, I definitely think eating is more rewarding. I didn’t get bored at all since there were constant sounds of food where Eugene was."
"If I could eat that much, I’d eat all the airplane food. It’s such a waste."
…Why do they start hitting me as soon as we enter Korean airspace?
In any case, that was true.
To rewind a bit, before we departed, Logan, Rorentina, and I had eaten pizza to our heart's content, just as a grandchild visiting home would. After that, we passed through the scanner without any issues and entered the duty-free shop. The dazzling array of perfumes, scarves, watches, and wallets was full of eye-catching stores, but, well.
My acquaintances were not in Korea; they were here.
Rather, Yerin and Mina were more excited. The donations they received from streaming in New York and the incentives from their professional gamer activities were plentiful to the point that they twisted their tongues, and they purchased about five or six items under the pretense of gifts and personal use.
After finishing our shopping and feeling the weight of the bags, we chattered away in the lounge until just before our departure, and then we boarded the plane crossing the Pacific towards Incheon Airport. After that, nothing special happened. There wasn’t much to do, and after some sightseeing, it’s natural to get bored.
What remained was food.
…The conclusion is a bit odd, but anyway, it was delicious.
"What do you want to eat when you get back?"
"Um… I don’t know. But honestly, I’ve eaten a lot of Korean food in New York, so I don’t have any particular cravings. Maybe Korean-style chicken?"
"Calling it Korean-style chicken sounds really weird…."
More than that, why were they coming over to my seat to chat?
It was because the girls were seated together and the boys were seated together. Moreover, although it was called personal space, the structure was such that you could see each other if you left the door open, so they had been happily chatting until it reached this point—though the Icarus Gear's soundproofing function played its part to avoid disturbing others.
Anyway, we return to the beginning. The plane had entered the airspace over the East Sea, and soon it would land at Incheon Airport along the designated route. Outside, it was already dark since the sun had set. Today, the weather in both New York and Korea was nice.
The time adjusted automatically as the date changed from January 1st to January 2nd.
"Hey, hurry up and go sit in your seats. They say we’re landing soon."
"Ugh!"
The farthest seat, Dais, was playfully pushed into his seat by a light smack on his back, and Harmony lifted her tail to sit him down. It was time to prepare for landing officially.
The lenses I wore all the time automatically downloaded GPS data, and every place my gaze stopped was displayed in holograms, indicating where we were and the altitude. Although it was unnecessarily detailed, it also took away the thrill I had initially felt.
But those thoughts were rendered meaningless as the plane touched down safely on the runway in just a few minutes, finally landing us on Korean soil. As reverse thrust started and our speed noticeably decreased, the gate that would take us to Incheon Airport lined up with the plane’s door.
As I stood up to leave, I saw two figures in uniforms waiting for us among the flight attendants.
It was the captain and co-pilot, oh my.
"I hope you had a pleasant journey."
"Ah, thank you."
"I’ve heard the news. Congratulations on winning first place in the Final Championship. Although I couldn’t watch it since I was in flight, I kept up with the recorded videos during my breaks. It’s truly an honor to be able to host the Korean representative team."
And then we shook hands. Not just with me, but also with Dais, Mikael, Ink, Gambit, and even Harmony. It felt strange. News had spread so quickly.
Of course, that didn’t stop me from being preoccupied with finding my luggage as soon as I got off the plane.
However, I was able to find my luggage without any major issues, and now all that was left was to exit Incheon Airport.
"I wonder how many people will be waiting for us."
"What was it like last year?"
"Uh, there were more than I expected, but also fewer than I expected…? To think about it, since it’s only been three years since it started, even last year, it wasn’t overwhelmingly crowded. But this year, it suddenly soared like crazy, so… I think there will be a lot of people."
In other words, it had only been three years?
It was bizarre that a game based on my past had gained this much popularity, showing that there was still a lot of room for growth. With this level of popularity, I wondered if people would be clamoring for me to appear next year too.
Of course, for now, that was just speculation.
We were close to reaching a point where we couldn’t go back once we stepped out. The door that had yet to open was waiting for us.
"I crossed that path last year, and I wonder how it will be this year."
I didn’t respond particularly. After all, it was something you had to experience to know.
I took a step forward. As I got closer to the door, my curiosity peaked. But it would soon be revealed—and after a few seconds.
The door opened.
"Oh my."
───Click, click, click!
───Wowwwwwwwww!!!
The place was packed with people.
Left, right, and above were all waves of people. Hundreds, if not thousands, held up smartphones, waiting for us. Amid countless flashes going off, I wore a confused expression as I didn’t know what to do and simply waved my hand.
Of course, at that moment, the security personnel who had moved slightly ahead of us, along with airport security, extended their hands to guide the way. Thus, the five of us, including myself, made our way to the photo point with blank expressions.
In the midst of this, Harmony added with a dazed expression.
"I wonder if it’s okay for me to be here."
"Since you came in first in the partner streamer competition, I don’t think there’s any reason you can’t."
"Then I’ll shamelessly stand next to Eugene."
She was indeed bold.
I had no idea where they had procured this, but I was the first to grab a microphone.
I didn’t know how I ended up with this interview opportunity, but, well, I had to admit it was somewhat enjoyable. I took out the pure gold name tag, one of the prizes, from around my neck and raised the pure gold trophy that had been buried among my belongings with my tail.
The response was explosive.
At the peak of the cheers, I opened my mouth.
"Hello everyone, I am Yujin, a member of the Korean representative team, and the reason I am able to return with this trophy."
And the sound of cheers echoed through Incheon Airport as if it would burst our eardrums.