I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun

Mission: Recapturing West Point - South Infiltration

Recommended Party Size: 4

Difficulty: Very Hard (Hardcore Users Present)

The Russian Airborne Forces have invaded the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, slaughtering many officer candidates and destroying the facilities. Reduce their forces and rescue the remaining personnel before it's too late.Due to changes in the entry route, the mission configuration has been altered, and the difficulty is fixed."Very Hard... is a first for me."

The source of this c𝐨ntent is freёwebnovel.com.

The chat exploded into chaos.

**- Very Hard (early in the game), LOL

Teacher, do you know why no one plays Hardcore mode?Pro tip: Hardcore users can’t adjust the difficulty slider.It’s the mode you chose! The thorny path you selected! No going back now, buddy, LOL.(Cue the “there’s no hope” meme)**The chat was wild.

As I stared at the screen before the mission started, it felt like observing a prison filled only with people who delighted in the misfortune of others. And to be clear, I hadn't chosen Hardcore mode.

Outside, it was dark. There wasn't much light—due to the Hudson River being to the right on the map, and because all the lights and buildings had been destroyed.

In front of me, the mission entry screen floated carefully. With a few finger taps, I initiated the matchmaking, and the gears started turning as if they had been waiting for me.

I glanced at the comments—full of opportunists trying to seize the chance to join the mission, as if they hadn’t just been reveling in my impending misfortune.

I even got a donation.

**<MintAndChocoDon’tMix donated 1,000 won.>

But aren’t you a newbie? Your guns and ammo aren’t something a beginner would have; where did you get all that gear?**"A kind person gave it to me on the first day."

**- Kind... LOL

Fact: Stolen loot.It’s war spoils, right?Not even blinking while lying, LOL.All the gear and guns are top-tier, LOL.**They weren’t exactly wrong.

After all, even a villain becomes kind after death if their possessions benefit the living, right? As I explained this while watching the party window fill up quickly, the response was mostly along the lines of “Teacher, please stop talking nonsense.” I’m one of the most straightforward people around, though.

One by one, they were fast traveling to my location.

And then...

"Everyone's avatars look quite cute."

"Wow, hitting us with the roasting right off the bat."

**<WarmWaterRamen donated 1,000 won.>

As if your avatar isn’t just as cute, but you pretend not to notice?**That’s too much.

Maybe this playful teasing would continue until my real appearance was revealed.

A brief mission briefing began.

At the start, the four members were split into two groups—Alpha and Beta. Alpha was further divided into a sniper and a spotter to assist Beta’s infiltration and share enemy locations. Beta was directly deployed to eliminate the patrolling enemies and clear the infiltration route.

After regrouping at the rendezvous point, they would clear the internal enemies and, with the help of a Reaper drone launched from a nearby military airfield, eliminate the armored vehicles of the airborne forces.

Then, they would lead the remaining U.S. military personnel scattered across the area to the helicopter evacuation site while holding off enemy forces until they could retreat together.

"Did everyone understand?"

"Yeah, I got it."

I couldn’t shake the feeling that whoever planned this operation might need to be questioned. My head was spinning. I thought about taking on the role of a sniper or spotter, but considering I hadn’t done much mid-to-long-range sniping, I decided it wasn’t worth the risk.

"What’s your plan, Teacher Yujin?"

"I’ll infiltrate."

"Oh, looking forward to seeing the ‘no witnesses’ meta, Teacher."

**- Is this the Thorn Village Defense Force or something? LOL

Anyway, this is gonna be interesting, LOL.It’s hard to find a more brutal mission than recapturing West Point on Very Hard. Doing it in public matchmaking?Smells like impending doom.Are you confident? Can you handle it? Are you out of control?**Well, we’ll figure it out once we dive in.

Back in my day, the concept of “one more try” didn’t exist. If a teammate went down, you revived them. If the mission failed, you dragged it through somehow.

In other words, I was in charge.

**- [ISO: Good, looks like you’ve arrived near West Point. Alpha team, head to your designated location, retrieve the hidden sniper rifle, and support Beta team’s infiltration.]

[ISO: Beta team, start at the visitor center to the south and move slowly north. Eliminate all enemies you encounter and send any survivors to the Hudson River border. Don’t forget to equip them with IR markers before sending them.][ISO: If you fail to reduce enemy forces to a certain level before the allotted time, the reinforcement team won’t be able to enter, and the mission will be considered a failure.][ISO: Good luck.]**And so, my ordeal began.

**- [Heptic: I’m Alpha 1. Omega is Alpha 2, and Yujin is Beta 1. SoySauceChicken is Beta 2. We’re not great at sniping, so we’ll do our best to ping targets with drones.]

[Omega: Given the size of the facility, there are probably at least two airborne brigades, so assume any soldier you see is an enemy and take them down.]**The moonlight that had been bright moments ago was now hidden behind clouds, making it hard to distinguish the terrain that was somewhat visible just a while ago. But that was only partially true; the academy’s emergency generators were still running, lighting up street lamps here and there. Night vision wouldn’t be necessary, at least not for me.

Thanks to my physical abilities.

My eyes, capable of seeing infrared, and my senses, able to detect minute vibrations, provided me with far more information than human senses could in this situation.

- Beep!

**- [Omega: Three sentries on the northeast building’s rooftop, two patrols near the parking lot ahead. We can handle the rooftop, so hold on a sec.]

"What’s the direction?"

[Omega: I’ve marked it; the movement path should be visible soon.]**Several enemies began to appear in glowing outlines in front of me.

This was quite casual, I thought. There’s no way this would be feasible in real life.

But realism isn’t always good. Perhaps this was to balance hyper-realistic FPS elements with overall game accessibility.

I signaled SoySauceChicken, who was following me, to hold position. Then, the comms crackled.

Three simultaneous gunshots.

Two sniper drones and two sniper rifles—although it was a spotter role, this was more of a precaution in case the number of enemies was overwhelming.

- [Heptic: The rooftop is clear. But we can’t see the enemies in the parking lot.]

Across the road, on the cathedral rooftop.

The two snipers’ fields of view were displayed to us. The areas they could cover were faintly glowing in gold, while the rest remained in darkness.

But just marking the targets was enough.

"The sniper drone can handle it. If we take out two, we can handle the remaining four on our own."

- [Omega: I’ve never tried this before... but I’ll give it a shot.]

**- Why does the southern route look like this?

LOL, who even takes this route?Wasn’t this mission supposed to involve sneaking in via the river and then retreating?That’s how the game was meant to be played, you idiots.Teacher, why are you playing a different game than us? We’re reporting you.**A specially designed silent drone hovered in the dark sky, observing the ground below.

With its many attitude-control propellers spinning, the sniper ammo slid into the chamber, and the camera rotated. At the end of the crosshair, a Russian soldier moved slowly along the designated path.

Below, two individuals split up, moving to positions where they could create a crossfire.

I slipped my finger onto the trigger, ready to fire at any moment.

There was no need to worry about sound. The combination of subsonic rounds and a suppressor would dramatically reduce the gunfire, allowing us to swiftly eliminate the enemy before the other patrols noticed.

I synchronized the timing, selected my target, and began the countdown.

- Bang!

Three members of a patrol fell simultaneously.

Immediately advancing, I opened fire again before the trailing patrol, a few dozen meters away, could realize what was happening.

Although I used a bit more ammo in the second engagement, we remained undetected.

**- [Heptic: There’s a platoon of enemies 100 meters northeast of your position in a campsite. They don’t seem to have noticed anything yet, but can we hide the bodies just in case?]

"It’s probably better for us to leave before they discover the bodies."

[Heptic: Then... okay, got it. Where should we go next?"

"Descend first. About 400 meters north, there’s a cluster of public buildings. There’s a hotel on the hill opposite, so it’d be good to provide sniper support from there."**I recall that everyone received a map with contour lines during the mission briefing, but it seems they’re missing the sense to read it and secure an advantageous position.

They were just gamers, after all; I should consider that.

After designating the next move, I started advancing.

**- [ISO: Looks like you’ve successfully infiltrated. But the real challenge starts now, so be prepared.]

[ISO: As you move north, you’ll find a field where several public offices, sports centers, and offices are clustered. It was once a training ground for officer candidates, but now it’s the enemy’s base camp.][ISO: I’ll provide support with the Reaper. It’s equipped with two cluster bombs and two detachable Hellfire missiles, each capable of obliterating an area the size of a soccer field.][ISO: If used improperly, it could harm civilians or allied forces inside the buildings, so carefully scan the surroundings and guide them precisely.][ISO: The callsign is Valkyrie 1-1.]****- LOL, is this how it was meant to be used?

LOL, I didn’t know what it was for, so I just fired the missiles anywhere and failed.That’s what happens when you keep running the easy route.Public matches always have idiots, what did you expect?Is this public matchmaking (hopeful version)?****- [Omega: Wow, I’ve never come this way before, so I had no idea this existed. I always wondered where the enemies were coming from.]

[SoySauceChicken: Well, everyone just takes the easiest route, so it’s understandable.]**With the snipers who had descended via the pre-installed fast rope, I moved to the designated location.

As we passed through the deserted city, devoid of even a trace of human life, gunfire continued to echo from a distance.

A small hint that the remaining friendly forces were still fighting somewhere.

Before long, I naturally found myself in the lead. The fact that I was simultaneously acting as both the point man and squad leader was somewhat absurd, but everyone seemed to accept it without question.

I hadn’t done much to warrant this yet, so I wondered why. Then I brushed the thought aside.

As the main road split into two, a field teeming with enemy personnel came into view.

At least ten infantry fighting vehicles and countless soldiers bustling around, engaged in various activities like setting up communication antennas and deploying guards—it was chaotic.

After ordering the team to take cover, I quietly spoke up.

"This is indeed the base camp. It seems we’ve chosen the wrong entry point. That hotel is probably in a similar situation."

"Yeah, we’re not familiar with this route either, so we’re not sure... but it seems impossible to advance in either direction."

"That’s probably why they gave us the Reaper. I think we can clear this out more easily than expected."

I quickly assessed the situation.

Most of the enemies were gathered in that field, and one or two well-placed cluster bombs would finish them off. The real challenge would be the hotel, for which we had no information.

The only thing left was to prioritize our actions.

"I’ll adjust the cluster bomb radius from the hotel rooftop. After the bombs drop, the snipers should move to the rooftop of the opposite building and clean up any surviving enemies."

"We’ll follow your lead, Teacher. Just give the orders."

"SoySauceChicken, you’ll follow me. We’re focusing on clearing the hotel. You’ll need to keep up with my pace."

"I didn’t expect you to play this game so seriously...."

**- Where’s the mindless shooting game I knew, Teacher????

I only saw people messing around in PVP, but this is new, LOL.I guess they weren’t kidding when they said the mission freedom was high.Idiot brute-force strategists wouldn’t know this, LOL.Nope, I’m just watching—I’m not playing!**After wrapping up a brief explanation and moving into action, I started guiding the team through the next steps.

Maybe a "teacher" is someone who can be relied upon and trusted, even in situations no one has faced before.

At least, that’s what I think.

If not, oh well.