Chapter 36: Big News (3)
Tskwa-kwa-kwa—
Yoon Soo-ho was pushed back, carving deep furrows through the Creep-covered ground.
The blue suit he wore was torn to shreds, his entire body caked in blood and dust—looking utterly wretched.
The mana barrier that had enveloped him was completely useless.
Whenever that incomprehensible force pressed in, it shattered like thin glass in no time.
“Khk…”
Yoon Soo-ho spat out blood-mixed phlegm and barely rose to his feet, using his warhammer as a crutch.
He staggered.
His head spun dizzily, and his vision overlapped in triple layers.
A man in a black suit walking toward him.
Through the blurry vision, it looked like three devils approaching.
“Soo-ho, you can still do more, can’t you? Your mana is still overflowing.”
The devil—Chae Jin-young—spoke.
Yoon Soo-ho circulated mana through his body, quickly healing his minor injuries with self-recovery.
Then he released a burst of mana, washing away the crusted blood on his skin like a shower.
When the circulating mana swept through his head, the dizziness vanished, and his vision cleared.
This was a technique called ‘Mana Refresh,’ something only Hunters who had reached a certain level in 1st-grade could use.
It wasn’t an ability or skill—just the result of enormous mana combined with extremely delicate control.
One of the reasons 1st-grade Hunters were treated as asymmetric forces.
As long as mental strength and mana held out, they could fight without end.
Of course, this was Yoon Soo-ho’s first real attempt in a very long time, yet he was already displaying skill that surpassed even his prime.
Finally, he used an emergency recovery skill to heal the minor cuts and bruises.
Chae Jin-young watched quietly, then asked with genuine curiosity.
“Now you finally look like a 1st-grade Hunter. How does it feel to move your body after so long?”
“…”
Instead of answering, Yoon Soo-ho loosened his stiff body.
Crack— crack-crack—
For the first time in ages, he was facing an existence beyond standard classification—and until now, he had only been helplessly beaten.
But strangely, thanks to that, his long-dormant battle instincts were awakening.
Of course, even becoming slightly stronger than in his prime wouldn’t be enough to defeat this monster.
‘I’ll at least take one arm.’
Now that things had come to this, he was determined to clash head-on, even if it meant death.
Running away had been enough once in his life.
Three years ago, when he was utterly crushed by Godfather.
His old friend had surrendered to that power and defected to GODS, while Yoon Soo-ho—who refused—barely escaped with his life.
In truth, Godfather had simply let him live.
Having preserved his life that way, he had gritted his teeth in shame at his own pathetic state and shut himself away for months.
Then, the friend who had defected to GODS came to deliver a warning.
‘This is your last chance, Soo-ho. If you still refuse to join GODS, there’s only one way for you to survive. Don’t even show the slightest sign of opposing GODS. Don’t give them any reason.’
After that day, Yoon Soo-ho made his decision.
Instead of continuing to hone his strength as a Hunter, he would enter politics and build power.
He would gather the strength of Korea’s political and business world while secretly forging connections in the underworld.
If he could take one more step forward, he could cooperate closely with foreign governments and the International Awakener Federation.
In fact, even after taking the position of Association President, no one had interfered.
‘Everything was already in the palm of their hand.’
The moment he was about to make a real move, that devil appeared as if mocking him.
‘There was no other choice.’
Even if he had secretly contacted Shin Soo-jeong, the situation would only have worsened.
Regretting it now changed nothing.
Reorganized, Yoon Soo-ho.
His figure shot forward like lightning.
His mastery of Lightning Flash had reached the point where it was indistinguishable from spatial movement.
Until now he had targeted the side or rear, but this time he approached from an entirely different direction.
Straight from above.
Yoon Soo-ho appeared in midair and swung his warhammer, Destroyer.
Booooong— Ka-ga-ga-gak!
As expected, it didn’t even reach Chae Jin-young’s head.
The Rupture ability tore the empty air to shreds.
At that moment, Yoon Soo-ho let go of Destroyer.
Determined to clash head-on with Chae Jin-young, he activated his Lightning Flash ability.
Swoosh—
Leaving behind a blue afterimage as he vanished.
Tzzzt—
A black portal created by Chae Jin-young swallowed Yoon Soo-ho whole.
Swoop—
His body shot out from the exit portal that appeared right beside him.
Kwa-gwa-gwa-gwang!
Combined with the terrifying speed of Lightning Flash, the added acceleration from passing through the portal drove Yoon Soo-ho deep into the ground.
Chae Jin-young glanced down at him, then soared back into the air.
Drrrrrr… Pa-kwa-kwa-kwak!
With his Rupture ability pushed to its absolute limit, he tore through the entire area and burst back up to the surface.
***
Chae Jin-young simply watched Yoon Soo-ho, who was breathing roughly.
The mana that had seemed inexhaustible was finally beginning to run dry.
Although it wasn’t the deepest part, the contaminated zone was still not a favorable battlefield for Hunters.
Lasting about thirty minutes while operating at full mana capacity was impressive in itself.
Excluding Min Hae-joon, who had specialized abilities suited to the contaminated zone, Yoon Soo-ho had endured the longest.
Compared to the other 1st-grades—Layla and Jacob—he was clearly in a league of his own.
“Why’d you throw away your weapon so carelessly? You’re still strong without it, though.”
Chae Jin-young sent the floating warhammer Destroyer flying toward Yoon Soo-ho with psychokinesis.
Shwaaaek— Thud!
Yoon Soo-ho instinctively caught the incoming hammer.
His body, drained of strength, wobbled and nearly fell, but he managed to plant his feet before collapsing.
Propping himself up on Destroyer like a cane once more, he finally looked at Chae Jin-young and spoke.
“Did Godfather order this? Not to kill me, but to toy with me until I realize how weak I am.”
“No.”
Yoon Soo-ho’s expression crumpled slightly at the response.
“Don’t play dumb. You were probably seduced by Godfather’s promise too—let him toy with you, make you stronger, and then you joined him.”
“Nope.”
“…”
“Soo-ho, do I still look like someone who’d play villain games to you?”
Yoon Soo-ho had been listening to Chae Jin-young’s words while activating his ‘Ear of Truth’ skill.
He could discern truth from lies just by the voice—and so far, everything had been truthful.
“Tch… so you were bound by that ghost too. No wonder the country went to hell.”
Moreover, the idea of a GODS member badmouthing Godfather was incomprehensible.
He hadn’t met every member, but the ones he had encountered were all the same.
Some even treated Godfather as a father figure—or even equated him to a god.
GODS was a cult, and Godfather was its leader.
The fanatics there worshiped him and mercilessly punished anyone who dared insult him.
‘If not GODS, then who the hell…’
Godfather could inject ‘black mana’ into Hunters, making them far stronger.
A purity of black mana incomparable to trash like Black Rose.
It didn’t just raise overall ability—it could even awaken entirely new ones.
That’s why, the moment he saw Chae Jin-young’s incomprehensible power, he had been certain it was Godfather’s work.
“…Who are you?”
“Now you’re finally talking properly.”
“What does that mean?”
“I came here for business, but you ignored my greeting.”
“…”
“Oh, right—my affiliation is the Intelligence Department. Nice to meet you again.”
—Soo-ho, nice to meet you.
Yoon Soo-ho suddenly recalled the greeting he had dismissed as provocation earlier.
Faced with Chae Jin-young’s consistently serious demeanor, he found himself at a loss for words.
“Looks like you’re finally ready to talk…”
Chae Jin-young used psychokinesis to bring Chae So-young, who had been floating in the air the whole time, down beside him.
“This is Chae So-young, a member of the SP Guild who participated in the contaminated zone operation. She’s the sole survivor.”
“Hello, President. My name is Chae So-young.”
Yoon Soo-ho furrowed his brow and operated his watch, scanning Chae So-young once.
Ziiing—
He checked the biometric information registered with the Awakener Association.
“…”
It really was Chae So-young from the SP Guild.
Chae Jin-young continued speaking without revealing that he was her brother.
With his fake face and psionic energy shielding him, there was no way for Yoon Soo-ho to notice.
“The SP Guild members were killed by GODS’s 1st-grade villain Layla Piper and Min Hae-joon. And I killed Layla and Min Hae-joon. I was only able to save Chae So-young.”
He then pulled Layla Piper’s corpse out from his subspace to show it.
Yoon Soo-ho’s face hardened the moment he recognized her.
“So Min Hae-joon was with GODS too.”
Yoon Soo-ho had always instinctively disliked Min Hae-joon. He couldn’t quite explain why.
That was why he had always kept his distance—because he felt that if he didn’t, they would eventually clash violently.
Today, he finally understood the source of that discomfort.
After hearing the full circumstances, Chae Jin-young spoke to Yoon Soo-ho.
“Now you’re starting to get it, right?”
“…So you’re planning to use me as a figurehead.”
Yoon Soo-ho frowned at the blunt proposal.
Though he seemed less annoyed than before, he clearly didn’t like the idea of being openly used.
‘Hmm… maybe because he’s still young.’
Perhaps because Chae Jin-young had rolled him so harshly and quickly, the “illness” hadn’t fully healed yet.
“Soo-ho, you need to think. The GODS bastards who’ll come in the future—can you handle them?”
“…”
“I can’t keep helping you forever.”
In the pre-regression timeline, Yoon Soo-ho died two years from now.
Having already lost two 1st-grade villains, GODS would surely act more aggressively from here on.
“And you seem to be misunderstanding something. You don’t have the right to refuse.”
“Are you going to kill me or something?”
At Yoon Soo-ho’s words, Chae Jin-young’s lips curved into a grin.
“I have much better options. Curious?”
***
Three days after disappearing from the Association without contact, Yoon Soo-ho finally appeared at the press conference.
A bandage was wrapped around his forehead, and his arm was lightly cast.
Click— click—
Cameras flashed incessantly as reporters took photos.
For Korea’s strongest Hunter to be injured was no small matter.
Nam Ji-yoon, the Chief Secretary who followed behind him, spoke into the microphone.
“We will now begin the press conference by the Association President regarding the failure of the Hongcheon Contaminated Zone restoration operation.”
Yoon Soo-ho took his seat and silently scanned the reporters.
The sharp gaze made the journalists flinch instinctively, even though they had done nothing wrong.
And it wasn’t just that.
The aura he gave off was completely different from the Yoon Soo-ho they had always seen.
The perpetually dead eyes and apathetic expression were gone.
It felt as though he had returned to the days three years ago when he had been an active 1st-grade Hunter dominating the world.
Though his charisma wasn’t quite at its peak back then, he still overwhelmed the room.
As everyone held their breath watching him—
Yoon Soo-ho finally spoke.
“Korea is no longer safe from GODS.”
“…”
The reporters looked bewildered.
Yoon Soo-ho continued without pause.
“While the search in the contaminated zone was facing difficulties, I believed I was the only one capable of entering the depths, so I searched alone. And there, I encountered GODS’s 1st-grade villains Layla Piper and Min Hae-joon.”
“…!”
The reporters’ faces filled with shock simultaneously.
Even though it wasn’t question time, they began shouting questions one after another.
“Are you saying Min Hae-joon was a spy for GODS?”
“What happened to the villains? Did you miss them?”
Amid the barrage of questions, Yoon Soo-ho closed his eyes and spoke quietly.
“Quiet.”
At the small but resonant voice, the reporters instantly fell silent.
“They spent several days performing a suspicious ritual, using the SP Guild members as sacrifices. After finally subduing the Mine-transformed Min Hae-joon and Layla Piper…”
Photos of Layla and Min Hae-joon’s corpses appeared on the large screen.
Min Hae-joon’s body had been replaced with an unrecognizable Mine corpse.
The reporters were speechless at the gruesome images.
“I succeeded in rescuing the sole survivor, Chae So-young. She is currently resting and recovering, so please understand her absence from this press conference.”
Some reporters expressed dissatisfaction or suspicion at Chae So-young’s absence.
But most were overwhelmed by Yoon Soo-ho’s presence and refrained from raising strong objections.
“Finally, I declare here and now: As Association President, I will lead the effort to protect the Republic of Korea not only from dungeons but also from the villains of GODS.”
Yoon Soo-ho might now become a target of GODS.
Yet the reason he deliberately made such a statement at this press conference was one.
A man standing behind the reporters.
His eyes met those of Intelligence Department agent Chae Jin-young.
In Yoon Soo-ho’s opinion, the only Hunter capable of standing against Godfather was him.
And after rolling around with him in the contaminated zone for two days, he had made his decision.
He would never hide from GODS again.
With resolute eyes, Yoon Soo-ho spoke.
“That concludes my statement. I will now take questions.”
Reporters raised their hands eagerly.
Yoon Soo-ho answered the barrage of questions without hesitation, clearly demonstrating to the world that the 1st-grade Hunter and Association President was still in full force.
Major newspapers ran front-page headlines.
Video streaming sites and nearly every TV channel broadcast the press conference as breaking news.
The big news spread far beyond Korea, reaching every corner of the world.
***
A pitch-black room. Only the light from the television softly illuminated the table and sofa opposite.
—…I will lead the effort to protect the Republic of Korea from the villains of GODS.
A white man watching Yoon Soo-ho’s live press conference on the sofa.
He tore at his unkempt red hair and laughed like a madman.
“Kikik. Kikikik. Hey, Kwak. Isn’t that your friend?”
The Korean man named Kwak, watching the video beside him, nodded.
“Yoon Soo-ho. I clearly warned him not to make a fuss and to live quietly like a dead rat. And yet he goes and does this.”
“The bastard who dared refuse Godfather-nim’s offer, right? Should we go kill him now? Kikikik.”
At the redhead’s words, Kwak glared at him with a murderous look.
“Are you seriously thinking of acting without Godfather-nim’s permission right now?”
“N-No! I’m a good boy who only follows Father’s words! Don’t misunderstand!”
The redhead frantically shook his head and hands in panic.
Kwak clicked his tongue in disgust and stood up.
Seeing this, the redhead’s eyes widened in alarm.
“P-Please don’t tell Father! I don’t want to get scolded!”
“Shut up. I’m not going to see Godfather-nim.”
“Kikik. Really? Then good. Get lost already! Shoo!”
The redhead, acting as if he hadn’t just been begging moments ago, flashed an unpleasant grin.
He even waved his hand dismissively, urging Kwak to leave quickly.
Though Kwak found the man utterly repulsive, he showed no reaction and simply left the room.
In the hallway, he ran into another Asian man.
A man in his early thirties wearing a People’s Liberation Army uniform.
“Zhu Yun-chang.”
Zhu Yun-chang, a 1st-grade Hunter affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party.
He was also a spy secretly working for GODS.
“Kwak Jeong-min. Did you hear the news?”
“What news?”
“Godfather-nim has finally approved the Monster Wave operation.”
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