Chapter 168 – Return (2)

On the day the aircraft carrier arrived, we said our goodbyes to the people.

We didn’t need to go to the harbor to say farewell.

The place where we bid our farewells was right in front of the base, at Sunset Park.

In the park, a vertical takeoff and landing aircraft from the carrier—the V-22 Osprey we had taken to Japan—was waiting for us to board.

Although it was right in front of the base, many people came out to see us off.

At the front of the crowd, Tom extended his hand to me.

“Don’t worry. We will definitely protect this island and the gate.”

Tom spoke confidently to us as we were leaving New York.

I wasn’t worried.

Even without his words, I knew that the shrunken U.S. government would do its best to protect the newly reclaimed Manhattan Island.

Seeing the massive carrier and its fleet rush to New York after hearing that Manhattan Island had been retaken made it clear.

I shook his hand.

After greeting me, Tom tipped his hat slightly and also greeted Zahina.

“We’ll get along well with the elves—no, the divine tree people. Please leave that to us as well.”

Once the divine tree city was restored, the spirits would cross over to New York through the gate.

The people here had already seen the abilities of the spirits through Zahina.

Having seen that, there was no way the people here and the U.S. government wouldn’t treat the spirits properly.

However, I couldn’t help but offer a word of caution.

“Please don’t judge them based solely on Zahina. They are more arrogant and emotionally detached than you might think.”

Over the past few days, Zahina had been a great help to the Sunset Park base.

Her enhanced magic had aided many people, and they praised her for her spells and her beautiful appearance.

Some of the people who came to see us off were there just to catch one more glimpse of her.

Thanks to that, the people here seemed to view the spirits as real elves.

They would surely be disappointed when the spirits arrived.

“Haha, don’t worry.”

Despite my words, Tom’s confident expression didn’t change, and I gave up on saying more.

Some things can only be understood through firsthand experience.

With the crowd’s farewells, we boarded the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft with its massive propellers.

In addition to our party members, there was one more person on board.

Western, the girl who had insisted she was a boy. She had finally fallen for Yelena’s persuasion.

She had the potential to become a great mage, and Yelena had promised to teach her properly if she became her apprentice.

It wasn’t a lie, so it wasn’t exactly sweet talk, but in any case, she had decided to become Yelena’s apprentice.

After deciding to become Yelena’s apprentice, she revealed her secret to us.

“My name is Irene. I’m not a boy; I’m a girl.”

The name Western was her father’s name.

“I knew.”

“Huh?”

“It might be hard for ordinary people or awakened ones from this world to tell, but mages or knights like me can easily detect that level of magic. You need to be careful.”

“It’s okay! I didn’t know until Sir Egar told me.”

Yerim’s attempt to comfort Irene didn’t seem to work.

“Once you learn proper magic, no one will be able to tell.”

Yelena’s words didn’t help Irene’s flushed face, but Hofmann’s following comment immediately brightened her expression.

“Well, now you don’t have to hide anymore, right?”

She immediately dropped her disguise.

Her thin, boyish frame transformed into a more feminine shape.

Her somewhat androgynous face became more feminine, and her voice grew higher and softer.

The transformation was more dramatic than expected.

“Wow.”

We were all stunned by her transformation, and Yelena nodded with satisfaction.

With one more member added to our returning party, we boarded the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. The two propellers on the wings began to spin, and the plane slowly ascended.

This aircraft, nicknamed the “flying coffin,” had safely taken us to our destination both when we went to Japan and now.

The aircraft carrier floating off the coast of New York, unlike when seen from a distance, was not in perfect condition.

Signs of damage and hasty repairs were visible everywhere.

The carrier fleet accompanying it was also not large.

Like the Pacific fleet that had been annihilated by the satellite attack, this carrier fleet seemed to have also been hit by a satellite attack.

However, unlike the Pacific fleet, this fleet had fortunately avoided total destruction.

After arriving on the carrier, we were treated as VIPs.

They must have heard about what we had done on Manhattan Island.

Once on board, I had a call with the U.S. Vice President—no, the new President.

I had spoken with the previous President, who had died on another carrier off the southern coast, but now I was speaking with the new President.

In my past life, this would have been an unimaginable dream.

The call with the Vice President took place in the carrier’s communication room, via voice only.

Last time, it had been a video call…

The military satellites that had survived the Demon King’s magic seemed unable to support video calls.

[I’ve heard from Thomas about what you’ve done. You’ve helped with other operations and made Manhattan Island a safe zone… On behalf of the U.S. government, thank you.]

The first words from the communicator were a simple, straightforward expression of gratitude, without any embellishments or conditions.

Of course, since I couldn’t see his face and the English coming through the communicator wasn’t something Zahina’s translation ability could handle, I couldn’t fully grasp the nuances.

But even without the translator next to me, I could tell he was sincerely expressing his thanks.

Perhaps it was because the new President was a businessman by background.

“I only did what needed to be done.”

[That’s why I’m asking… Would you consider using your power for this world—no, for America? We’ll do our best to accommodate whatever you want.]

His next words also reflected his straightforward personality.

A sudden recruitment offer.

And it wasn’t just anyone making the offer—it was the U.S. President, handing me a blank check.

In my past life—no, even just a short while ago—I might have seriously considered it.

But unfortunately, it was too late now.

I already had enough gold to do what I wanted, and although I wasn’t at the level of a sword master, I still had power that wasn’t to be underestimated.

Moreover, the current U.S. President wasn’t the leader of a superpower.

He was just the head of a group barely holding on with the remaining military forces in a ruined world.

In this world, it would be difficult for him to give me what I wanted.

Even if he could, it would come with a mountain of hardships.

‘Fighting undead and the Demon King’s army alongside armed civilians and barely awakened individuals?’

Just thinking about it sent shivers down my spine.

“I am a knight of the expeditionary force. I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”

I immediately declined the President’s offer.

He might have been upset by my refusal and could have denied us a flight back to Korea, but I wasn’t worried.

This President was a quick-thinking businessman, after all.

[…That’s a shame. Even from this brief conversation, you seem to be the most reasonable of the otherworlders, just as my advisors said…]

As expected, he simply expressed regret.

The reason he made me the recruitment offer wasn’t just because of my abilities.

The Americans had interacted with us, the otherworlders, many times before, and they must have realized what kind of people we were.

From medieval nobles who looked down on others to muscle-headed knights and mages who thought magic was everything.

After dealing with such people, encountering me, who remembered the civilization of my past life, must have led him to make the offer without hesitation.

[Even if you decline now, please don’t forget my offer. America will not forget its gratitude to you, and the door will remain open.]

“Thank you. I won’t forget your kindness.”

He tried to keep the connection alive until the very end, and I ended the call on a positive note.

After the call with the President, we had a more casual conversation with the captain.

He talked about the flight back to Korea and even boasted about providing us with the utmost convenience.

After the conversation, when we went to the cabin where we would stay until departure, it turned out the captain’s words weren’t just empty boasts.

The captain had given us the best room on the ship—his own cabin.

After the guide left, Yerim, who had been looking around with a flushed face, finally let out what she had been holding back.

“Wow, wow, I can’t believe we got thanked by the U.S. President and even received a recruitment offer. That’s amazing! And now we’re staying in the captain’s cabin on an aircraft carrier. It’s such a shame! If only the internet worked, I’d be bragging so much right now.”

Yelena tilted her head at Yerim’s words.

“Is that really such a big deal?”

Typical Yelena. Her mentor was a battle mage, so she wasn’t as politically savvy as a traditional mage.

“No, the President is like a king. And not just any king—the President of the United States.”

“But he’s the king of a ruined country.”

“Hmph. That’s true.”

Unfortunately, Yerim’s words crumbled under Hofmann’s rebuttal.

“But still, a country with this kind of ship and aircraft—can you really call it a ruined country?”

Zahina’s following question was answered by me.

“It was even more impressive before. And unlike magic or knights, this military power won’t last long.”

Right now, they still have supplies and spare parts for repairs, but that won’t last forever.

With cities in ruins and factories shut down, unless civilization is restored, the remaining military power will soon disappear.

The people of this world haven’t realized it yet.

We were treated with the utmost hospitality on the carrier and departed for Korea the next day.

Unfortunately, the carrier couldn’t accommodate large aircraft, so we couldn’t fly directly to Korea like we had on the way here.

Moreover, the airport in Hawaii had been destroyed during the satellite attack, so we had to stop at a hidden air force base in Alaska to refuel.

Yerim’s eyes sparkled at the mention of a hidden, secret base, but there were no hidden weapons or alien spacecraft at the airport.

The Alaskan airbase was just a snow-covered airfield.

With a disappointed Yerim on board, the C-2 transport plane took off again.

Our destination was Jeju.

The Jeju airport where the Korean government had taken refuge.