I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun
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Chapter 545 Table of contents

[Breaking News] Biyam to Conduct a Russian Assault!!!!!!

<Yujin holding a direct flight ticket to St. Petersburg>

A major disaster is imminent!!!!!!!

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[Breaking News] Biyam arrives and immediately dons a white long puffy jacket, haha

<Yujin quickly putting on a puffy jacket>

It’s so cute, seriously, how does he look so adorable with that jacket on????

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Rahta Center, St. Petersburg, Russia.

I barely managed to get through the sudden snowstorm that hit earlier than expected after more than a decade. I shook the snow off my shoulders and head before walking across the lobby to contact the building receptionist. I get the instructions for the hotel room I’ll be staying in for a few days, not the full week.

A bit delayed in my observations, but the building was truly splendid. It wasn’t just extravagantly decorated. The LED lights on the walls and fireworks made it clear that the Asia qualifiers were being held here. It became clear why the area was so crowded with people.

I got into the building’s elevator, which was a transformed pentagon shape, accompanied by a small cart for automatic luggage transport. The building, narrowing as it went up, was not really built for accommodating many people.

After climbing to about the 70th floor, I reached the top.

"...What is this?"

There were numerous post-its stuck to the door of my hotel room.

The content varied in languages. Korean, of course, but also Japanese, Chinese, and Russian. There were exactly 100 post-its. I could understand Japanese, Russian, and Chinese, so I started reading through them…

 

...

"..."

What kind of bizarre situation is this?

It wasn’t something you’d typically see, so I took a picture of the post-it-covered door with my Icarus gear and carefully peeled off the post-its. It could be seen as a kind of rolling paper.

After throwing my luggage onto the bed, I got back in the elevator to go to the 20th floor for the match, where I confidently walked toward the back entrance, which was restricted to authorized personnel only. The arena was full of cheers as I stepped inside.

"Ah, as I speak, the number of remaining players has dropped to 20! Dice and Harmony from SSM Entertainment are ranked 1st and 2nd!"

And at that moment, I nodded with a smile on my face.

Just as I thought, the little Biyams are certainly performing well.

"Welcome to Rahta Center. The game just started."

"It was a little delayed because of the snowstorm. I see the reason why so many reporters are here despite the cold weather. What’s the first map?"

"NBV Desert Base. By the way, I must say, your Russian is very fluent. I was thinking of bringing an interpreter just in case."

"Oh, that’s not necessary."

I barely broke through the early snowstorm in St. Petersburg and made my way to the hotel room.

St. Petersburg, Russia, Rahta Center.

After finally breaking through the snowstorm that had struck early after many years, I shook off the snow from my shoulders and head. I made my way through the lobby and contacted the building’s reception to get directions to the hotel room I’d be staying in for a few days (not the entire week).

Although it was a bit of a delayed observation, the building was truly impressive. It wasn't just extravagantly decorated. The walls had LED installations and fireworks announcing the Asia qualifiers, clearly indicating why there were so many people crowding the area.

I got into the building’s elevator, which was in the shape of a modified pentagon, along with a small cart for automatically transporting luggage. The building itself narrowed as you went higher, so it wasn’t designed to accommodate a lot of people.

After going up to about the 70th floor, I arrived at the top.

"...What is this?"

I was greeted by a large number of post-it notes stuck to the door of the hotel room I’d be staying in.

The notes were in various languages: Korean, Japanese, Chinese, and Russian. There were exactly 100 notes. While Japanese was easy to understand, I could also read Russian and Chinese, so I carefully examined the notes. They were as follows:

 

...

"..."

This was certainly a bizarre situation.

I carefully peeled off the post-its one by one, thinking this could be something like a rolling paper. After opening the door and throwing my bulky luggage onto the bed, I got back in the elevator to head for the game happening on the 20th floor. I confidently walked down a restricted hallway to the back entrance, which was for staff only, and entered the arena, where cheers were already ringing out.

"Ah, and as I speak, the number of remaining players has dropped to 20! Dice and Harmony from SSM Entertainment are ranked 1st and 2nd!"

At that moment, I smiled and nodded.

Just as I thought, those little Biyams are performing well.

"Please look here!"

"We're from GameIsWorld! Could you please give us a word?"

The 100 participants, now divided into five groups, and the 5 conference rooms.

As the 4th Asia Qualifier, now formatted like the Final Championship, ended, the reporters waiting in the conference rooms quickly snapped to attention. The twenty national professional players who had arrived early from each country took their places on the stage.

The Korean session was especially crowded. It was simple to understand. Reporters not just from Korea, but from other countries, were here to see how Korean pro gamers would respond to questions.

The Korean team wasn’t unprepared. They had already brought an interpreter and had the necessary translation equipment ready. However, no one could predict how things would unfold.

Flashes from cameras went off continuously, while reporters enthusiastically waved their hands, eager to ask the first question.

Harmony, the streamer who had been speaking her mind confidently in front of countless viewers, even in uncomfortable situations, had never experienced a press conference like this.

Dice, who had been through such events a few times, was calmly guiding Harmony through it.

"If you don’t want to answer, it’s perfectly fine to say so. Besides, reporters won’t be asking weird questions like Mina might think. Plus, we’ve already beaten other countries, so anything you say will likely be written in a positive tone."

"…Should I consider that a relief?"

"Well, if you think it’s uncomfortable, I can answer on your behalf."

The press conference began, and the questions poured in.

Naturally, reporters had already checked the results from the first day via streaming, and some had even written parts of their articles, leaving space for responses from the players to complete their reports.

The articles’ thesis was simple: Korea stood at the top of Asia once again, just like last year.

Luckily, the reporters in the conference rooms had been selected based on pre-sent guidelines, which included specific conditions for entry and questioning. As a result, the quality of questions was high.

"Kim Seohyun from GameIsLife here. I have a question regarding the skirmish in the N-B13 sector of the Aurora Powerplant. According to analysts, Harmony predicted the movement of the enemy after noticing the narrowing kill zone, and she set traps accordingly..."

"Kaiichi Kenji from Afternoon Time Magazine. I want to ask about the precise grenade cooking technique used by Suzuran and Ink during their encounter in the control room..."

"Hwang Jiwoo from WhatIsTrend!
"Please ask one question at a time!"

The mood was focused. The session wasn’t meant for simple questions about the players’ thoughts on the matches or the skills of foreign competitors.

After all, with 20 players participating, the limited time had to be used wisely. Reporters who had been filtered out beforehand didn’t waste time asking trivial questions. This allowed players to provide more detailed and personal responses, which helped ease the nerves of some who were under the press conference’s weight.

Eventually, the time passed, and the last question came.

"Kim Hanyul here. This year, I noticed that Yujin, who contributed significantly to last year's success, was somewhat distant from the Asia Qualifier. Does that mean you all consider yourselves 'graduated'?"

This clever and pointed question made both Dice and Harmony exchange looks. Harmony took the microphone.

"Yujin... well, strictly speaking, yes. We couldn’t stay under his shadow forever. Yujin wanted to create a self-sustaining system, one that doesn’t need his constant involvement, and that’s where Dice and I come in."

"It seems like you have more to say."

"Of course."

"However, now that we’ve reached this point, we realize how high the mountain still is. People may call it graduation, but I believe it’s just the beginning. There’s still so much to do. We have more heights to reach."

"Haha, there’s a higher peak you can see only once you start climbing. Very impressive words. We look forward to seeing more of that from you in the future."

"Yes, it’s just the beginning."

In short, they had graduated, but they still had a long way to go.

Harmony, Dice, and Kato had already figured out that Yujin was indispensable to their progress. Within a week or two, they would be back in the Dark Zone, playing a new incursion with Yujin.

A good operator always has plenty to do.

As Harmony and Dice were thinking along these lines, the reporter, having stopped recording, sat back down. The conference had lasted more than an hour, signaling that most of the Q&A had come to an end.

The moderator scanned the room for any last questions before finally concluding the session. As he began his closing remarks...

—Tok tok!

A small noise echoed, almost like a tap on the microphone.

A subtle sigh filled the conference room.

The tone was light yet calm. It was almost unnervingly thin for a man’s voice, yet the presence was undeniable, sending a chill through the room.

And after a short pause, the voice spoke again.

"…Just as you said, it’s still too early to let you go."

"Hik!"

"…Huh?"

"We’ll be delivering the feedback for today’s matches individually, but first, there’s something I need to say."

The voice alone froze the room. No one knew where it had come from, but her presence had already made its mark.

The person holding the microphone, the one everyone had been waiting for, spoke.

"Sorry for the delay. Have you all been waiting long?"

Yujin.

The Rahta Center Assault had begun.

Chapter written by
NoveLight ™
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