Chapter 69: |
In this life, Jung Da-hyun was a pretty special person to me.
Compared to when I was Blood Master, it’s like night and day.
To be honest, I didn’t think much of her when I first returned to the past and met her.
Thinking back, I considered meeting Jung Da-hyun a stroke of luck. She strongly guided me, who was just trying to become a government hunter, without any particular thoughts, and provided significant help to keep me on the right path.
When she died at my hands in the last life, her will didn’t break until the end.
It was the moment I first saw unwavering justice that would willingly sacrifice oneself for the sake of justice, even when it meant facing death.
That’s why in this life, I wanted to see her pursuit of justice expand.
Out of curiosity, I took on the challenge of guiding her to Level 7. She gained the nickname “Crazy Witch” in the process, but that’s okay.
But the expression of the guy facing me was strange.
“Deceive you with what?”
I said I would spare him if he won, right? That offer was still valid.
I had never lied to him, but he was blaming me like this.
“Don’t think I’m going to die so easily.”
“Good for you. Give me your best shot.”
“Ugh!”
Determined, he picked up a boulder right in front of him and threw it at me.
It must have weighed several tons, but he threw it like a ball, so it was fitting that he was nicknamed the White Shark.
Kwaagwagwag!
There was a terrifying crash and shards of broken rock scattered.
He took advantage of the gap to punch me in the face.
Buwoong!
It felt like the wind wave tearing apart.
An ordinary body shouldn’t be able to withstand such a strong Force, but my faithfully trained body was able to withstand it.
It’s a good lesson to give to Jung Da-hyun, an Awakened who had trained both her fundamentals and her body to the extreme.
I brushed his hand aside.
“It’s common to prepare for the next attack, but it’s also good to consider the variables that might arise as a result.”
Arai easily dodged my counterattack, and he retaliated with a fierce counter, but I casually caught his arm and deflected it. Normally, I would have blown him away with a Land Mine right about now.
But this was training.
“If you’re at the Level 7 standard, you can evade and counter. However, barely dodging and making such a predictable attack won’t cut it. It’s important to maintain the pace where you can execute your own attacks at any moment.”
I extended my hand straight, but I also twisted the trajectory and adjusted the speed.
Arai, who had initially blocked my moves effortlessly, started to get confused.
“Ugh!”
“The difference between me not falling for the trick and him falling for it is not just about the way we attack; it’s also about the will we put into it. When you add willpower to your attacks, it makes the opponent instinctively defend themselves. He was tricked, so I gained an advantage by making a move. Now, I should be able to use another trick in this situation.”
With her Intuition, Jung Da-hyun could anticipate and predict the opponent’s attacks in a variety of ways, providing her with greater insight.
In that sense, this guy, White Shark, was perfect for demonstration because he appeared to be a highly skilled Level 7. He had a strong foundation and rich practical experience. Following the direction I set, he could also provide valuable advice to Jung Da-hyun.
“Stop fooling around and fight!”
“Oh, sorry. Just a bit more. But by the way, were you from Korea? You speak Korean well. But why didn’t I know your name?”
“……”
Arai’s mouth closed.
But my apology was genuine. I was not originally the type to play around like this and then kill. If my opponent was a villain, I would have killed as quickly as possible without dragging it out, but I had to educate Jung Da-hyun, so I bought time in this way.
“I’ll kill you painlessly instead.”
“Shut up!”
It’s a favor I was willingly extending, but he’s trying to refuse it.
After his attacks, which he put all his strength into, were blocked a few times, he completely lost his spirit. And he started to look for a chance to escape from my hand.
I couldn’t let go of my valuable hostage. I increased my attack speed to take away Arai’s stamina, and he began to slow down.
Well, this should be enough.
As expected, using strength could take a toll, and it’s not great for endurance.
I had squeezed everything I could squeeze.
Crack!
“Kyaah!”
Arai, with a broken arm, screamed. Even in this situation, the strength in his fist remained.
I was not particularly interested in Gifts related to strength. If one had a high level of skill in using Force and depending on their physical conditioning, they could exert the equivalent strength of those who had Gifts relayed to strength as much as they wanted.
I lightly deflected his punch, and in turn, I broke his forearm, then his shoulder.
I broke his legs so he couldn’t escape.
I didn’t need to explain this process of a villain being incapacitated because Jung Da-hyun was already doing well at it.
“Ugh!”
With a desperate scream, the sight of him crawling on the ground marked the end of a villain.
Villains should be like that. If they saw this sight, even the guys who wanted to be villains might get scared and cautious.
I didn’t really need it, but should I extract information about the League?
Jung Da-hyun, who was watching from the side, said.
“You said you’ll kill him painlessly…”
“Oh, right. I did say I’ll kill you without pain.”
I had forgotten.
Seriously.
“My Gifts are originally somewhat painful. I’m sorry.”
I swung my sword and severed Arai’s neck.
Leaving his lifeless body behind, I turned my attention to Jung Da-hyun. She should have learned something from this.
“Did you learn something?”
“…Yes.”
“Can you be specific?”
“No, I’m sorry.”
Jung Da-hyun, who was trying to think about it, apologized. I understood. Enlightenment is ineffable at first. It’s not complete until it’s crystallized and comes out in its own clear form.
“It’s hard to feel it all at once. It’s important to refine it and make it yours.”
“Yes.”
“Then let’s move.”
“What?”
“Don’t you know there are plenty of guys like this one in Busan right now? I will explain things as I did now, so watch closely.”
There’s a way to make her experience it firsthand, but the chances of winning were slim.
Come to think of it, why did that guy who just died think Jung Da-hyun would be the one fighting him?
Anyone could see that Jung Da-hyun was weaker.
Could it be that he thought I would provoke a confrontation with a stronger opponent for Jung Da-hyun so she could gain enlightenment in an extreme situation?
It seemed he had read a lot of hero comics.
The surest way to advance to the next level is to be “safe” first. There’s no point in getting to the next level if you’re dead.
It’s the same principle when I called Berserker and asked him to spar with Jung Da-hyun.
“Let’s go.”
Jung Da-hyun and I moved on to find another villain to kill.
***
Busan was a place where Yoo Sung-soo had taken deep roots over the past decade.
People might have been deceived all this time, but there was no place of power in Busan untouched by Yoo Sung-soo, and villains disguised as hunters were lurking everywhere.
While some villain organizations escaped to Japan upon hearing the news of Busan City Hall’s fall, there were far more remnants who couldn’t escape.
“Wipe them out.”
Under the steadfast leadership of Jung Ju-ho of the National Security Agency, the forces of Yoo Sung-soo were quickly wiped out.
The reason this was possible was due to Brainwashing. Yoo Sung-soo, like an avatar of desire, was susceptible to brainwashing and displayed a considerable ability to endure it for a long time.
The surviving subordinates were also brainwashed, and they spewed out Yoo Sung-Soo’s faction members one after another.
The largest cleansing in history. And when trillions of won were recovered, it was reported in the news every day.
<The amount recovered from Busan City exceeds 50 trillion won!>
<The largest corruption case in history breaks out, and the opposition is not uninvolved!>
<Yoo Sung-soo who caused conflicts, but in reality, Busan is a monster safe zone!>
<The opposition: “Unrelated to Yoo Sung-soo.” Controversy dismissed!>
<A murder drama aired in broad daylight. Is this really okay as it is?>
<Is it acceptable for a hunter even more brutal than the villains to roam freely like this?>
The incident known as the ‘Yoo Sung-soo case,’ which has been hitting the news day after day, caused a steep drop in the approval ratings of the opposition party.
The opposition party, which had initially resisted the political backlash, had no choice but to bow to public opinion and offer apologies.
It seemed that there was some peculiar news included here.
“It’s all thanks to our Transcendent Choi Jun-ho.”
The president, whose approval ratings had risen due to a boomerang effect, wore a satisfied smile. It seemed to be true that he couldn’t regain his composure when his approval ratings went up.
“I just did what I had to do.”
“To be this humble. No wonder there’s nothing not to like about you.”
There’s no need to like me.
As if he had read my thoughts, he smiled slyly and changed the subject.
“Oh, and Japan has also sent their gratitude. They are thankful for Transcendent Choi Jun-ho’s favor.”
“If it has contributed to promoting friendship between the two countries, I am glad.”
“And the proposal to offer assistance against the League in Japan was declined.”
“I see.”
“It’s not an easy decision for them to allow a Transcendent from another country to cross over to conduct operations. It’s highly understandable.”
“Yes, it’s no problem at all.”
I could feel the President watching me carefully.
“Do you have something else to say?”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Please feel free to ask.”
“It might be a bit awkward.”
“If it’s truly awkward, I won’t answer.”
“Then, I will just ask. So, um.”
It seemed like it’s a question that’s really difficult to answer. It’s making me more curious now. What would he ask? Was he trying to find out if I was a villain or something?
I could say with confidence that I was not.
But the words that came out of the President’s mouth were completely different from what I expected.
“By any chance, do you have multiple Gifts?”
I was a bit dumbfounded by the question.
Was this what he was having trouble asking?
There’s no need to hide it, so I answered willingly.
“Yes.”
“Really?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
Surprisingly, the President who asked the question and Cheon Myeong-guk, who had been so tense, both had a look of disbelief on their faces.
“They usually say that if you have multiple Gifts, you can’t use them properly…”
“I’m different.”
Because I took Gifts that other people had completed.
But was there a reason to be so cautious like that?
“Well, I see.”
“You can speak freely.”
“I’d like to, but I’m not mentally prepared right now. Hehe, it’s not common to ask if you have multiple Gifts.”
“I understand.”
“Instead, don’t tell anyone else that you have multiple Gifts. It’s important information.”
“Yes.”
Anyway, only a very small number of people knew that I have multiple Gifts.
Originally, there were quite a few, but they all died.
***
“Phew! It’s not easy to deal with.”
After Choi Jun-ho left, the president let out a sigh of relief.
Even though he was the president, facing Choi Jun-ho was more challenging than convincing the opposition party leader.
Just today, his hands were so sweaty from asking about Gifts.
“But we obtained valuable information.”
Dealing with Nuri and even Yoo Sung-soo.
The contract with Choi Jun-ho was one of his most successful achievements.
He even figured out that Choi Jun-ho was handling various Gifts. He was satisfied with getting a glimpse of the reason behind his strength.
“And.”
The president smiled while looking at Cheon Myeong-guk.
“Has your perspective changed with this matter?”
“It has changed a lot.”
“That’s good.”
The president was a non-awakened individual, while Cheon Myeong-guk was an awakened one, but their thoughts were completely opposite.
The operation to catch Yoo Sung-soo this time was carried out as Cheon Myeong-guk suggested, and the result was suppression due to the collision.
“In the end, what maintains justice is power.”
“It was a sense that I had forgotten for a long time since I left the scene. I realized it when I saw Transcendent Choi Jun-ho this time.”
“How was it watching from the sidelines?”
“I was afraid.”
He still shuddered when he recalled the moment when Choi Jun-ho suddenly appeared.
The sight of him ruthlessly executing enemies without a hint of mercy. It might appear cool on the surface, but what if the target was him? What if it was South Korea? It felt like a dark abyss looming ahead.
As if sensing his thoughts, the president spoke.
“So that’s why I suggested we make him part of our strength even more.”
“I doubt if we can control that power to the end.”
“That’s why we need to keep our minds clear.”
Was that even possible? What if everything gets turned upside down due to a few more incidents like this?
Cheon Myeong-guk sighed and expressed his genuine feelings.
“Mr. President, your words are correct, but the world won’t just accept it as is.”
“That opinion is already circulating.”
“What’s urgent now is the public opinion about Choi Jun-ho, both domestically and internationally.”
“It won’t be easy.”
“There are forces behind the scenes pushing for it.”
“We can’t simply label them as the League.”
Choi Jun-ho’s enemies were everywhere. There might be reporters who saw his actions as tyranny, guilds opposing him, jealous civil servants who felt threatened by his rapid promotion, and companies that suffered significant losses due to the Big Bang Series.
“There are those who support the League’s ideology here, too.”
It was like a mishmash of various interests.
Their goal was singular.
To turn Choi Jun-ho from a ‘hero’ in the eyes of the public into a ‘villain’.
The intrusion into the Busan City Council was a perfect precursor to this.
Even though he was responsible for catching the mayor and council members who were trying to start a civil war, Choi Jun-ho still ended up killing the majority of them.
Attempts were being made to change public opinion of the Awakened by pointing out their radicalism.
This was happening not only domestically but also overseas.
“Especially if he goes to gatherings. It’s going to be a headache.”
“If he picks a fight, the public won’t let it slide.”
“If he goes to the International Transcendent Union, there’s bound to be trouble. He’s been invited, right?”
“Because he’s one of the most talked-about Transcendent lately.”
Choi Jun-ho’s presence was widely known not only in South Korea but around the world.
Particularly, his solo hunting of Nuri had elevated his reputation.
Even after briefing on the hunting process in countries like the United States, many hunters still didn’t believe he had hunted Nuri alone.
“We plan to inform Choi Jun-ho soon.”
“There’s no reason to stop him… right?”
“Yes.”
“…”
A brief silence hung between them.
Considering that there were those who did not view Choi Jun-ho’s actions favorably, the possibility of a conflict arising there was very high.
How should they prevent this?
It was giving the Cheon Myeong-guk a headache.
“How about just letting things be?”
“What do you mean?”
“Isn’t it meaningless for us to worry about it? We should send Choi Jun-ho to the International Transcendent Union and enjoy some rest. The Transcendent there will handle it themselves. Choi Jun-ho’s special flavor should not be only enjoyed by ourselves. What do you think?”
“…That’s a wise decision.”
The feeling of vitality returned just by the thought of Choi Jun-ho temporarily leaving South Korea.
Not to mention the fact that the world would get a taste of Choi Jun-ho.
Both of their expressions brightened.
T/N: I’ll use [Crazy Witch] instead of [Menacing Woman] from now on. Since the latter is quite a mouthful and doesn’t really sound cool. (⌒_⌒;)