Chapter 386

“I’m too late. Have you all been waiting long?”

Lee Jungryong swept his gaze over the assembled people. Some faces were familiar, while others were strangers he was seeing for the first time today.

Magic Johnson and Pai Chen, whom he had encountered several times during the Great Cataclysm. The young British prince. And China’s problem child.

Each time his eyes met someone’s, the S-rank Hunters gathered in the underground bunker greeted Lee Jungryong first.

“It’s been a while, Lee. You’ve become an even more attractive man since we last met. Every time I see you, I feel like confessing my love.”

“Please restrain yourself, Magic Johnson. I don’t swing that way—though Pai Chen over there might be another matter.”

At Lee Jungryong’s nonchalant reply, Pai Chen swept back her long hair.

“Oh my. I didn’t realize Mr. Lee felt that way about me. What a shame. I found out too late.”

“What’s there to regret? You’re still in your prime.”

“Thank you for saying that, but if the youngsters heard us, they’d laugh. They’d wonder what a pair of old people like us thought we were doing.”

“Is that really how it is?”

When Lee Jungryong looked at him, Wu Heixing hurriedly waved his hands.

“Oh, no, Mr. Lee. How could that possibly be?”

“I’ve heard a lot about you. You’re remarkably talented and, hmm… a young man who’s honest about everything, I’m told.”

“T-Thank you.”

Wu Heixing bowed, looking deeply honored.

Normally, he was so hostile toward Korea that he constantly spat out the word bangzi, an insult for Koreans. But he lacked the nerve to show that side of himself in front of Lee Jungryong.

A bead of cold sweat rolled down the back of Wu Heixing’s neck.

“I’d heard you were coming, but I never thought you actually would.”

“Of course I had to come. When your neighbor is in trouble, shouldn’t you help?”

“It’s an honor to meet you, Mr. Lee.”

Even Magic Johnson and Pai Chen, heroes born from the Great Cataclysm, could not compare with Lee Jungryong.

He was the sworn brother of Cheon Taemin, called the Jesus of the twenty-first century and the savior of the world. He was also the real leader of that Ares Guild.

A powerful Guild counted among the strongest in the world. And a man ranked among the top three strongest S-rank Hunters.

Lee Jungryong.

Anyone who faced him had to show the proper respect.

Wu Heixing, arrogant as he was, was no exception. Neither was royalty of noble blood.

“Pleased to meet you. A pleasure to meet you, Jungryong Lee.”

“Ah. So you’re that prince.”

“How dare—”

Prince Felix raised a hand to stop his secretary and gave a dignified little bow.

“Felix. You may call me Felix. You may.”

The Korean produced by the translation device was awkward, and his level of formality was strangely ambiguous.

But with that, Felix Alexander Louis—third in line to the British throne—made the difference between Lee Jungryong and everyone else perfectly clear. He had actually allowed Lee Jungryong to omit the title Your Royal Highness.

Of course, Lee Jungryong did not care in the slightest.

They’re all just brats.

The only ones Lee Jungryong acknowledged were Magic Johnson and Pai Chen.

Whatever their personalities, Wu Heixing and Prince Felix were considered geniuses by the public. But in Lee Jungryong’s eyes, they were nothing more than chicks that had only just learned to walk.

And…

The people who truly irritated Lee Jungryong were elsewhere.

The Peace Guild.

Lee Jungryong’s gaze shifted to one side. A deep smile formed on his lips as he looked at the two men standing there in silence.

“I’ve been seeing you two quite often lately. Have you both been well?”

At Lee Jungryong’s greeting, Jin Taekyung and Choi Minwoo exchanged glances and shrugged.

“Not really.”

“Not particularly.”

“…?”

What?

Lee Jungryong faltered without realizing it.

It had been less than a month since he had last seen them. Yet there had been a great change in the way the two men treated him.

Hostility.

That was it.

The obvious hostility and wariness he had felt from them before were no longer there.

As Lee Jungryong looked at the two men, who were as calm as could be, he soon understood why.

They’ve grown stronger. Incomparable to before.

There was no doubt about it. Choi Minwoo’s energy was far greater and more refined than before—so much so that Lee Jungryong wondered how he could have grown this much in such a short time.

And the other man, Jin Taekyung…

…What is this?

He could feel it through his skin and sixth sense. The tremendous energy contained within Jin Taekyung’s entire body. The deep, still look in his eyes.

It could mean only one thing.

He crossed the wall.

The shock struck Lee Jungryong as though someone had hit him in the back of the head. He had to struggle with all his might not to show his agitation.

How?

Jin Taekyung had already been a powerful man. He might even have stood above the countless A-rank Hunters in the world.

After all, he had defeated two named monsters alone. It was only natural that people and the media had been loudly proclaiming the birth of a new S-rank Hunter.

But Lee Jungryong had known the truth.

Jin Taekyung had not yet crossed the wall.

He knew it would take a very long time for the man to climb over the wall blocking his path and become a true powerhouse.

And yet…

How could something this absurd happen?

Mere surprise could not begin to describe it.

As Lee Jungryong met Jin Taekyung’s impassive gaze, he remembered emotions he had long forgotten.

Anxiety. Impatience.

It was the first time Lee Jungryong had felt such unease since taking complete control of the Ares Guild.

Only a few months ago, Jin Taekyung had been nothing more than someone he found ridiculous and irritating.

Yet that man had awakened feelings of anxiety and impatience within him.

You…

The smile on Lee Jungryong’s lips vanished as though it had been washed away. Wei Penghu looked at his stiff face in puzzlement.

“Mr. Lee? Is something wrong?”

“…It’s nothing.”

“Hmm. Then may we begin the meeting?”

Lee Jungryong nodded silently, his gaze fixed on one person the entire time.

Leaning diagonally against the back of his chair, the young man named Jin Taekyung muttered as if to himself,

“Well, it certainly looks like something to me.”

“…!”

“Or not. Never mind.”

Without realizing it, Lee Jungryong clenched his fists tightly.

The meeting in the underground bunker continued for a long time.

The monster wave had caused at least hundreds of thousands of casualties over the past week. It was already a massive natural catastrophe in its own right, and they were unquestionably at war. Naturally, they had to proceed with the utmost caution.

“Accordingly, we should divide our forces into five armies and pressure the enemy…”

Someone interrupted Wei Penghu as he continued speaking with a serious expression.

“Comrade Minister of Defense.”

“Speak, Senior General Liao.”

The middle-aged man known as Senior General Liao wore a uniform dripping with medals. Stroking his beard, he began to speak.

“Listening to the Minister of Defense, I find myself so frustrated that I have to speak. At this rate, how long will it take us to deal with those monsters?”

Wow…

His tone was unbelievably obnoxious.

He was talking that way to Wei Penghu—the Chairman’s right-hand man and the military’s highest-ranking power broker.

As if he had read my question, Team Leader Choi sent me a Message Spell.

• The Communist Party has factions too. Senior General Liao is a pure-blooded member of the Princelings, the Communist Party’s largest faction, going back to his grandfather’s generation. They’re rivals of the Shanghai clique, which Chairman Xiao and Minister of Defense Wei Penghu belong to.

• The Princelings and Shang… what?

• …If we’re being precise, it means the Princelings are number one and the Shanghai clique is number two.

• Ah.

Until now, I had assumed that the Communist Party operated under a strict one-party system. Apparently, they fought each other tooth and nail too.

• But is that allowed? If Chairman Xiao simply points at someone and says, “That man is dangerous,” wouldn’t that person be beheaded in Tiananmen Square?

• They do it because they’re allowed to.

• …Right. When you put it that way, I’ve got nothing to say.

• The factions reached an agreement. During the Great Cataclysm, the Chairman from the Princelings made so many mistakes that they felt awkward about continuing to hold power.

• Ah. Pingping?

• Yes. Pingping.

That damn Great Cataclysm really had changed all kinds of things.

While I was listening to Team Leader Choi’s explanation, Senior General Liao—who apparently came from the Princelings’ pure-blooded younger generation—made an absolutely brilliant proposal.

“Let’s use nuclear weapons.”

“…”

“…”

“Let’s formally request it from Chairman Xiao and fire dozens of nuclear weapons across all of Sichuan. Wouldn’t that solve everything cleanly?”

“…”

“…”

What a lunatic nuclear-happy bastard.

Everyone, myself included, stared at each other in disbelief.

Wei Penghu’s expression was especially spectacular. He answered with the face of a man who desperately wanted a pistol.

“Rejected.”

“Why? Are you dismissing me because I’m not part of the Shanghai clique?”

“Say something that makes sense. Something that makes sense! If we do that, what happens to the people who are still alive or haven’t been harmed? What about the land we leave barren?”

“Sacrificing the few for the sake of the many is unavoidable!”

Forget the rest—he just sounded like an ox head to me.¹

Magic Johnson, who had been listening quietly, suddenly spoke in his deep voice.

“The damage from a successful nuclear attack is bad enough, but what are you going to do if someone uses spatial teleportation magic to move the nuclear warheads? To Beijing, for example.”

“That’s why we have an Archmage like you…”

“Me? Our opponent isn’t an ordinary Lich. If this Arch Lich is more skilled in magic than I am, then it will cause an irreversible catastrophe. Something similar already happened several times during the early days of the Great Cataclysm, remember?”

“B-But even so… sacrifices on this scale…”

“Hey. Motherfucker.”

Bang!

I nearly jumped out of my skin. Magic Johnson shot to his feet, his bronze muscles rippling.

“Knock it off. I like Asian men too, you know. I might punish you.”

“…!”

“…!”

That was the scariest threat I had ever heard.

Senior General Liao’s face turned deathly pale as he looked around for help. But the officials who appeared to belong to his faction avoided his gaze. Even Wu Heixing, the last line of defense, looked away.

So this is how it gets resolved.

The opponent was an American national hero and a national gay icon.

Everyone seemed desperate not to become the Asian man Magic Johnson liked.

Of course, the ridiculous bullshit Senior General Liao had been spouting also played a major role.

“Enough, both of you. And especially Senior General Liao—stop talking such utter nonsense.”

Under Wei Penghu’s leadership—a Chinese man who had just subdued the chink—the meeting moved forward quickly.

After gathering the opinions that had been raised and exchanging heated arguments, Wei Penghu finally won everyone’s agreement. He spoke with a tired expression.

“We will divide the six S-rank Hunters present here among six fronts. According to the official organization, each front will receive three Army and Air Force divisions, along with Hunters from the Public Security Armed Forces.”

Three Chinese divisions, along with the Public Security Armed Forces.

I had no idea exactly how many that meant, but their sheer numbers would be enormous.

When it came to the number of Hunters it possessed, China was always competing for first or second place.

Of course, the other side is no pushover either.

The casualty estimates alone were in the hundreds of thousands.

If the Arch Lich had resurrected the dead as undead…

Then an unimaginable number of enemies would be waiting for us.

“This concludes the meeting. Please move out as soon as possible.”

Just as everyone rose from their seats after Wei Penghu said he would provide the exact numbers and unit composition in writing, a voice pierced my ear.

• Come see me for a moment.

It was not a Message Spell, but unmistakably Sound Transmission.