I Have Returned, but I Cannot Lay down My Gun-Chapter 780: Washington D.C (2)

At this point, in the United States, the vast landmass covering 10 million square kilometers was sparsely dotted with cities where the few survivors had gathered, like islands on the land.

The road and rail networks connecting the cities had gradually become difficult to use due to the lack of repairs and the absence of people who could operate vehicles or trains. The country had retreated to a state reminiscent of the pre-Western Expansion era.

The only things that moved around without pause were transport ships, which carried essential materials and personnel day and night, while the already sparse maintenance crews worked tirelessly, keeping the vehicles operational.

The information blackout between cities was inevitable, and apart from the major cities that everyone had heard of, there was almost no exchange of material or military resources.

And it was precisely for this reason that the Dagger team, visiting Washington D.C. for the first time, quickly realized they would have to build the metaphorical wall of order, one brick at a time.

Just like they had done in early Manhattan.

However-

"I heard things were chaotic across the Potomac River, but it’s not as bad as I thought. Looks like the bulletproof gear is the problem."

"Not as bad as expected... as someone said, the bulletproof gear is subpar, and their combat expertise is lacking. The gangs were real gangs, and the organized warlords who broke away aren’t any better."

"It seems like there’s not enough manpower to mobilize here either. Plus, we lost three Icarus gears..."

"We managed to get one back after three days, so that’s enough."

"...Quite impressive, in many ways."

These problems couldn’t stop the Dagger team.

The last remark came from the operations officer in the Pentagon TOC in Washington D.C. As I said earlier, the inevitable information blackout caused by the viral apocalypse meant that the Dagger team’s actions couldn’t be fully communicated with just the fragile networks that remained.

The Southern Command of Florida, which had directly experienced the Dagger team’s absurd efficiency and skills when they captured a set of defected operators shortly after arriving in Florida.

And then Manhattan, the Dagger team’s main operating area.

Apart from these two places, no one knew just how much power the Dagger team actually had.

Just a few days ago.

"Over 1,500 killed in three days, and you even cleaned up the enemies using Icarus gear we lost. What the hell is this...?"

"Forget that. What about the request we sent earlier? I remember Solomon’s approval came through."

"As soon as the transfer procedure is complete, you can wear it. I reported it to Secretary Janet at the White House, but we haven’t received a response yet. She seems to be quite busy at the moment..."

"Hmm, is she often busy?"

"Very often. But thanks to the President moving to Ravenlock, Secretary Janet’s workload has been reduced, so I think it’ll be sorted out soon."

"Well, if it really takes too long, we could just ask her in person. The situation in D.C. is urgent, so we’ve handled a few things on our own..."

The rest of the conversation wasn’t said aloud, but the officer knew what was implied.

A few days ago, a top-secret request had been sent to Washington D.C.—a large-scale survey targeting the high-ranking officials still remaining across the U.S. Naturally, it asked about what they knew regarding the defected Alejandro Webb and his Syndicate group.

Strictly speaking, the survey itself wasn’t important. It was a sort of... notice from the still-living President. Either spill what you know or °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° at least avoid joining them.

And if they switched sides...

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The officer’s imagination was racing toward uncharted territory, but the Dagger team didn’t pay attention to that.

"Good to hear Solomon is cooperating well. Handing over the recruitment duties to the Dagger team was a great choice. Marcus is confirmed, and Susan... let’s see how she handles the gear before making any decisions. We’re not putting her on the Dagger team just yet, it’s for treatment purposes."

"The guy mentioned by that seal... There’s no need to distrust or doubt. But you’ll have to take care of the aftermath. Do you understand what I mean?"

"Of course. Speaking of which, I think Olivia once said, 'If Lapland betrays us, I’ll hunt him down myself.' Looks like that didn’t happen, thank God."

"If that damn wolf had been here, he would’ve had a fit after hearing that."

From the officer’s point of view, there was no need to pay attention to what they were saying. What mattered was confirming the key facts.

First, the Dagger team had to meet with the Secretary of Defense within three days, and if Secretary Janet refused, the Dagger team had the authority to mark her stance as suspicious and act accordingly.

Second, the Dagger team was required to retrieve an Icarus gear somewhere in the capital, and the command center in the Pentagon had to cooperate with these requests.

Not everyone was indifferent to these facts. It was a confusing time, and as the world became more disconnected, exclusionary tendencies grew.

But when the Dagger team was dropped at Fort McNair, taken from the hands of anti-government military factionalists and gang alliances established by former U.S. military members, and had wiped out 500 enemies in just four hours, the people who had been exclusive suddenly realized that the Dagger team was not simply a government proxy but the very embodiment of military power.

The officer continued, his expression tense.

"So... what’s your next move?"

"We’ve extinguished the immediate flames, so we’ll rest for a bit at our quarters. Laurentina will visit DARPA with Marcus, though."

"Understood. I’ll prepare the vehicle and keep contacting Secretary Janet."

"Let us know if anything comes up."

At that, the officer finally took in the Dagger team’s appearance.

Having just returned, their gear was smeared with blood and dirt from the field. It was the perfect look for those who had been dropped into the heart of enemy territory and wiped out a faction in a day.

Task Force Dagger. The sharpest blade of Icarus.

The officer barely had time to engrave their image into his mind before realizing they were already leaving the TOC.

The sound of their military boots echoed down the hall. With every step, the scent of concrete dust, blood, and gunpowder began to fill the corridor, beyond just the nostalgia of the battlefield.

None of them complained about the slight aches or fatigue.

The conversation continued.

"Do you think it’s okay to take something someone else used?"

"Well, it’s not common, but it’s not something to make a big deal about. If you don’t want it, we’ll store it and wait for new gear from DARPA."

"Alright."

Clank!

There were a lot of empty spaces inside the Pentagon, and even after accommodating the Dagger team, there were still plenty of rooms available. Within minutes, they arrived at their designated room and sat on the beds, unsure how long they would need to stay.

Since they had already claimed their beds for the night, everyone started taking off their gear and disassembling it. They emptied out bulletproof plates, electronics, magazines, explosives, and everything else.

Even the firearms were placed into a thick, electronic-locked filing cabinet. It was a cumbersome process, but there was no alternative.

Only Laurentina took her gear outside, preparing for potential ambushes. No one knew when she would return, but nobody was concerned.

At last, the weariness of battle began to settle deeper into their bodies. Everyone started drinking water from the cabinets, emptying a 500ml bottle before any conversation resumed.

"I have a feeling we’ll be doing this kind of thing everywhere we go."

"Aftermath?"

"Something like that."

"Well, what can we do? Asymmetric warfare is just like that. If we were Task Force Nuclear instead of Dagger..."

"Hey, who’s making those nasty jokes?"

"Can’t I tell a joke!?"

Did anyone really know that the Dagger team could joke around like this?

Eugene, watching the scene, chuckled quietly. A little humor was always good for mental health.

Logan, still grumbling, glanced around and took a deep breath, but suddenly, he rolled his eyes in confusion as an odd feeling hit him.

While the others weren’t paying attention and sat on their beds attending to personal matters, she manipulated the Icarus Gear, checking various metrics.

How much time passed?

"...It’s been almost a year since I first wore this."

"Soon, it’ll be a full year."

"Why bring that up suddenly?"

"...Just a thought."

Compared to before, the smell of sweat had noticeably diminished.

If you are reading this translation anywhere other than Novelight.net or SilkRoadTL, it has been stolen.

With her metabolism being more active than others, it was impossible to avoid the buildup of waste products. But with her exceptional Arctic bear-like sense of smell, even she couldn’t detect it. What did that mean?

Gradually, parts of her body, which no longer required maintenance, or unnecessary waste, were disappearing without undergoing normal metabolic processes.

She had been told this once, but now she wondered if it was because her body was slowly transforming into something beyond human. This thought crossed her mind.

However, that thought didn’t last long.

—Click!

"Who’s that?"

"Hello, everyone. I’m Kelly, the Chief Operations Officer here in Washington D.C. To get straight to the point... as soon as this door closes, we’ll be completely cut off electronically from the outside."

"Looks like you’ve got something you want to say."

"Yes."

Click!

As she pressed a button below the light switch, a beam projector descended from the ceiling with a buzzing sound, casting a bright light on the white wall.

As the screen lit up, displaying numerous pieces of data, she spoke again.

"This information is still classified and should not be shared outside."

"We’re listening."

"Let’s get straight to the point."

She pointed at a spot on the screen.

"Very few in Washington D.C. have noticed this, but according to the TOC’s logic circuit, it’s presumed that Secretary Janet has encountered a serious problem."

"Understood... That’s very quick."

"Exactly. The system has detected that she’s deviated significantly from her expected parameters."

"...So she’s been compromised."

"Yes, and there’s a chance it’s connected to something else."

"...I see."

The Dagger team instinctively realized that if they didn’t understand this level of detail, they had no idea what kind of power the cyborgs or androids they’d been facing could wield.

They hoped this wasn’t the worst-case scenario, but they didn’t expect any less. Once things went downhill, they always got worse.

And so, they refrained from discussing it further.

If their suspicions were true, the White House was currently... fully taken hostage by Black Eagle and the cyborgs, but they didn’t feel the need to state that explicitly.

In a world where reason, morality, and ethics had disappeared, there was only one thing they could trust.

Suddenly, they turned their attention to the knife or axe secured in their gear, those seemingly ordinary close-combat weapons.

"Anyway, we’ll handle it. We need to meet that person as soon as possible. It’s better to leave it to us."

"...Is that all?"

"Chief Operations Officer, as much as I hate to say this, if we’re not Icarus Operators, no matter how many we send, it’s going to be the same result. If you haven’t realized that yet, we’re just spinning our wheels."

"...Understood. I’ll take it to mean that Washington D.C. is in an unprecedented crisis."

"Good. Glad you’re quick."

Kelly nodded, though her face had drained of color.

But the world didn’t wait for her to adjust.

Suddenly, the Dagger team’s gear chimed.

—Beep!

"...What’s this?"

"The friend we met at the TOC must’ve brought some good news. Secretary Janet wants to meet with us. At 2 AM."

"...How can we help?"

"Well, for now... we need to brace for the shock Washington D.C. is about to face."

Only the Dagger team knew what that truly meant.

The capital was on the verge of chaos.

—The Icarus Operators have bitten the bait. 15 combat cyborgs are being prepared.

—Short-range ground-to-ground missiles are ready, and RPGs have been prepared for those who’ve been converted. Due to mission adjustments, we haven’t been able to extract Secretary Janet yet. Is that alright?

—We’ll handle that part. Don’t worry about it... The blizzard is coming. We’ll land at Tidal Basin today. Any sign of detection?

—The IFF code from Secretary Webb is working fine. Location spoofing is progressing without issue.

—Alright. Let’s see how this plays out.

Meanwhile, two enormous hovercrafts were making their way up the Potomac River.