NoveLight ™
“It’s something I always think about, but today, again, I feel like I should be paying my friends in the Information Security Department who work day and night to prevent leaks a hefty salary. Because of the value of the ‘youngest’ growing so much, there are many people trying desperately to figure out who’s coming on the broadcast whenever a new person appears.”
“It would be fine as long as they don’t go on streaming or anything, but what can we do? It’s not something we need to worry about. Besides, I bet the information about what that guy was doing in the past is being managed much more tightly than ours.”
“You know something, don’t you?”
“I’ve heard a few things. Some things make sense to me.”
Two bases, Fort Liberty and Virginia Beach, are about 330 km apart in a straight line.
Lying on the couch or bed, I watched the streaming broadcast that appeared before my eyes. Although their locations were different, the posture was the same. It was a common occurrence whenever the one we called the “youngest” started a broadcast. Furthermore, today was a weekend, and, as expected, there weren’t many people staying at the base itself.
If it had been a few months ago—or at least a few weeks ago—they would have been out of the base, driving a car themselves or relying on self-driving technology, driving for about 3 hours on the highway to meet somewhere between Virginia Beach and Fayetteville...
Unfortunately, it wasn’t possible now.
The reason was simple, but Logan didn’t ask about it. He couldn’t. The two of them, without directly mentioning the core issue, could roughly guess what was going on, and Logan caught the implied meaning in the shark’s words: "It seems we won’t be able to meet for a few weeks."
This shark was about to make an appearance as a judge for the 2036 International Sniper Competition. Logan and Eugene, as extra participants, would take part in the competition.
To put it simply, it was about avoiding any conflict of interest. It’s widely known that it’s not a good idea for the participants and judges to meet before the competition.
Anyway, Logan exhaled and added.
“If you look at the timeline, there’s a glaring lack of data about where he was and what he did after entering college. Doesn’t that give you a hint?”
“Intelligence agencies?”
“Probably somewhere like that. I could ask him directly, but I don’t know if he’d tell me. My guess is that it’s either that or ISA, though the probability of ISA is almost zero.”
“ISA with that face? NSA would be more likely. People like us with unusual appearances can’t do espionage.”
“Right.”
Among the hundreds of viewers watching Eugene’s broadcast, it was highly probable that many were Googling even the simplest information about Olivia.
But despite the efforts of Logan and Loren Tina, even after searching high and low, they couldn’t find any data about where Olivia had been or what she had been doing. It would probably surface if they started digging, but they didn’t feel the need to do that.
Thus, the conclusion they reached was simple:
“If we stay quiet, it looks like something interesting is going to happen.”
“It’s already going that way, surprisingly. The imaginative ones are already writing up all sorts of conspiracy theories. Just think about it. If you’re even a little interested, you’ll find out that someone famous in that area used to be in a special forces unit. Do you think any kids who don’t like that kind of thing would care?”
“It’s not wrong, but... this is probably a burden for the youngest. If only they were more like me or you, who figured things out sooner, it wouldn’t be so awkward. Now it’s a bit tricky to do anything about it.”
“It might not be that hard. A career can be shaped however you want, and if it’s just changing a few packages, that’s doable. You and I were even in that suspicious unit MWTR. People whose pasts are a complete mystery might actually find it easier.”
“Hmm.”
That wasn’t exactly wrong.
If that were the case, there were some things that had to be fixed in their minds. They also had to consider the "suggestion" that the youngest had sent not too long ago—basically asking if they could sneak Olivia in as a general observer. If it was approved, there would be a discussion away from the cameras.
Of course, those thoughts were quickly erased from their minds. This wasn’t something they could solve while on the phone, and the person who was central to the conversation, Olivia, had already flown from the U.S. to Korea to solve or at least ease the situation. It was something they could just leave to the youngest.
So, after checking that the current conversation was properly encrypted, the two of them casually moved on to a new topic.
“From what I saw with Icarus’ recent announcement, it looks like they’re planning something suspicious again. Is there still something left to do? Looks like Jin and Rain are coming too.”
“Perfect timing for you to ask. Fortunately, I can give you a lot of answers now, so it’ll be a good thing for you. What are you curious about?”
“Background first.”
“Something suspicious is happening in Savannah, Georgia. Interestingly, there are no humans involved, only Artemis drones operating as if they were intelligent beings...”
A few photos popped up with a ding.
Through the ruined buildings, strange yet graceful tower-like structures were visible from time to time, as well as some sort of fortresses scattered around. Drones roamed the area. The scale wasn’t large, but they occupied key intersections.
From this, Logan was able to figure out a lot. The Artemis drones were tearing up nearby materials and using them to fortify the area. It wasn’t something he had never seen before. It was common for enemy forces invading a country to fortify their occupied zones.
But he never imagined it would be the work of AI drones running amok.
“Is this really happening over there? Or is it just a pure ‘what if’ scenario?”
“As always, it’s the former. Jin and Rain are actively involved, so the team is participating... but from what I heard from the youngest and their parents, this time, they’re not going in as direct combatants, but as support. It’s unlikely there will be a repeat of what happened last time where the war was over but we were pushed to the brink.”
“...Now that I think about it, what we did last time was really crazy.”
As Logan and Loren Tina agreed, it was literally the “brink of the cliff” tactic.
In normal operations, you would never resort to that. Sacrificing some to gain others during an operation that should prioritize safety is no different than saying that some casualties are acceptable to achieve the goal.
Logan’s thoughts drifted back to a few months ago, during Operation Ouroboros. Due to the vast difference in available firepower, they had been pushed out one by one into the lobby—something they really didn’t want to experience again in the game.
So, after hearing those words, Logan nodded and let out a somewhat relieved sigh.
From behind the hologram, the ceiling was visible. The polar bear, who had been quietly observing, added softly:
“Looks like you’re going to end up shooting with the youngest again this time. Same goes for you.”
“There’s still a long way to go before we really get into it. Our schedule is pretty tight, isn’t it?”
“True.”
In early November, they had to participate in the sniper competition, and once that ended, the youngest would board a plane to Saint Petersburg, Russia.
It would probably be after clearing most of the schedule that they would finally have time to look into the new incursion in Savannah around mid-November.
Now it made sense why Eugene wanted to bring Olivia as a general observer—if it weren’t for now, she would probably have to wait even longer. And unfortunately, time wasn’t going to wait for her.
To understand what happened during the year the youngest fell into this world, they would have to follow them around diligently, and Logan and Loren Tina couldn’t deny that fact or necessity.
The screen showed Eugene and Olivia rapidly clearing the main mission.
The speed was nearly double what it had been with Harmonie. Eugene, who had tried to match Harmonie’s pace back then, was now, with Olivia, like a vacuum cleaner. It was a strange sight, almost as if they were no longer trying to hide anything. The scenario, which should have taken days to clear, was already two-thirds finished.
What would happen next?
No one knew.
“It’s going to be a tough time.”
To make up for the distance, they would have to run, but Olivia was someone who could fly if needed.
But, if someone managed to slip between those two, that would be something else entirely. However, that wasn’t something they needed to worry about. No matter who it was, if they got between them, something interesting was likely to happen. Logan and Loren Tina could just sit back and enjoy.
And—
“Eh, eh... eh?”
“Long time no see, Kato. How’ve you been? I thought about inviting you on a trip to Hawaii, but you’ve been pretty busy, huh?”
“Snakeeeeee—!!”
Just like that.
He was easy to mess with.
And this was just the beginning.
“The last time I saw you, it feels like it was just yesterday, but already the end of the year is approaching. How’ve you been?”
“Uh, I’m just a baby, Kato... Byam is scaryyyy…”
“Ah, Eugene. I know this person. I saw them on YourSpace. This is the friend you strangled with a fishing line last year.”
“We shouldn’t talk about that. If we do, this friend will get a little… upset.”
Dark Zone, PVP, and EU Mode.
Finally, I went to visit Kato, now a regular at the Uncharted Zone.
It had been a while, and it was a familiar sight. The damp air, the sky that was nowhere near blue, and the buildings standing under a gloomy sky. The area that Team Dagger had used briefly as a lodging was now full of parked vehicles, and beside that was the road leading to my gear box.
But today, my goal wasn’t that place. After sending a request to join Kato’s session, there was a brief silence before it was accepted. And so, I pulled Olivia along and went to meet him, and as soon as he saw me, I encountered the person who was actually in the game.
Well, it was about time he should have adapted.
“Was this your main job?”
“Eh, not really… Until about last year, AP was my main focus. But since mid-last year, I’ve gotten into EU Mode, and now here I am.”
“Ah. I remember you were helping clear Operation Ouroboros, are you still doing that?”
“Oh, of course. In this new incursion, Jin and Rain are coming too, so people keep joining. The views are soaring too, haha.”
Ah.
Kato then brought over two boxes and signaled for us to sit on them instead of chairs. Olivia and I sat on them as if we were used to it. Unlike the main Dark Zone, the things here were consumables, so sitting on them could break them.
In the past, someone had once sat on the chair in my gear box and broke it spectacularly.
Anyway, unrelated to that, above Kato’s head was a title that only a few people in the world had: Ouroboros Hunter. He hadn’t caught me or anything, but he was one of the people who cleared the Artemis exfiltration operation on a “kill all enemies” difficulty.
In other words, he was someone who directly helped in another world, like Logan, Loren Tina, Harmonie, Dice, and so on—and even though Blooming was there, he was preparing for the Asian qualifiers, so there was no need to mention him.
And that title was the reason I came to see him today.
“The new incursion is about a month away.”
“Well, I guess it is?”
“Jin and Rain will be waiting for you, Kato.”
“I guess they will...?”
“A kind viewer kindly made a clip of you crying when I was in Hawaii... and even sent me a donation.”
Kato’s face, which had been the expression of a perfectly crafted Kato-graph, slowly shifted into an uncertain, almost crying face. He must have already anticipated it, and he grinned.
He reached out and then added.
Kato wrapped his face in both hands.
“Ah, I’ll be in your care, Eugene. I’ve always been waiting for a re-entry into Eugene School.”
“Of course. Welcome.”
And I didn’t see the expression of Olivia shaking her head behind me.
Anyway, since we successfully recruited Kato, I figured that was that.