Chapter 134
Chapter 134
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 134
Chapter Title: A Proposal That Can Be Refused (4)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Phew…….”
After his meeting with the chairman concluded, Suhyun returned and set the documents down. Charles had faithfully provided the materials. From his attitude and reactions, it didn’t seem like he was plotting anything.
Of course, that didn’t guarantee the information was reliable.
‘Looking at what the explorers brought back… it seems plausible enough.’
Charles had put considerable effort into the preliminary investigation. For starters, the explorers dispatched there weren’t human. Dark elves were generally exclusive toward other races, but they were especially so toward humans.
That was why the chairman had sent a dwarf exploration team. Not all dark elves were monolithic. Some among them preferred contact with the outside world, and others could be bought off.
The dwarves had made contact with such dark elves. The pitch was simple, but it was the culmination of a long intrigue. They must have been preparing this even before the Dragon Slayer Project.
What they wanted was comprehensive information on Insurin: its terrain, resources, monsters, and so on. That’s when an intriguing piece of intel rolled in.
The dark elves of Insurin had a superpower enhancement potion.
The dwarves, as the chairman’s loyal employees, gathered anything that might pique his interest.
The dark elves of Insurin lived divided by tribes, only uniting to face external enemies or emergencies. The rumor was that one of those tribes possessed the superpower enhancement potion.
‘Rumor, rumor…….’
Rumors couldn’t be fully trusted, but they couldn’t be dismissed outright either.
‘If it really exists, the effects would surely be potent…….’
“What’re you looking at?”
“Oh.”
“Why the reaction? Something I shouldn’t see?”
It was Shaina who had entered. Suhyun suddenly recalled her race.
‘She’s a dark elf too, right?’
“Shaina, take a look at this. Does it seem legit?”
“What is it? Oh……. Insurin? Ugh. Why there?”
Shaina shook her head in disgust.
“You’re from there?”
“I left a long time ago. Superpower enhancement potion? Ah, yeah. It exists.”
“What?!”
Suhyun shot to his feet at Shaina’s casual affirmation.
“Really?!”
“Huh? Yeah?”
“But why haven’t you said anything until now? If something like that’s out there!”
“Because even if it exists, it’s pointless!”
Even in her fluster, Shaina responded calmly. Suhyun reined in his excitement and asked.
“What do you mean?”
“It takes too many ingredients to make one, and even then, it takes decades. When I left, there weren’t any left. If they say there is now……. They must’ve made some in the meantime.”
“…….”
Shaina’s words were a huge help to Suhyun. Just knowing the recipe existed made it worth pursuing. If the potion itself wasn’t there, they could grab the recipe instead.
With his mind made up, his next worry was the dark elves in that region. Charging in without permission could land him in court. They wouldn’t sue no matter what he did there, but handing leverage to a sly fox like the chairman was the last thing he wanted.
“Shaina, if we head to Insurin this time, could you handle negotiations?”
“Huh? Me?”
Shaina’s ears perked up as if the thought had never crossed her mind. Suhyun nodded.
“If it’d make your tribe uncomfortable, you don’t have to. I won’t hold it against you if you sit this one out.”
“No, it’s not that! I can do it!”
“Really? You sure?”
A dark elf wandering human society clearly had issues with her own kind. Knowing that, Suhyun was trying to be considerate.
But Shaina stubbornly insisted on joining.
“After how close I’ve gotten with everyone. They’ll welcome me with open arms!”
“…Your credibility just tanked. Don’t push yourself. Just be honest. No need to force it to help.”
Shaina flushed as he hit the nail on the head.
“No, I can definitely handle negotiations.”
“Alright then. I’m counting on you. As long as they don’t shove guns in our faces the second we arrive.”
“Yeah, got it.”
After wrapping up with Shaina, Suhyun prepared to contact the chairman. But an incoming call beat him to it.
It was from Kim Jong-tae.
‘What’s this?’
“Didn’t I tell you to report in person?”
“S-Sorry, sir.”
Kim Jong-tae’s voice came panting over the line. Suhyun frowned. This was a far cry from his usual self—not a good sign.
“I’m tied up right now and can’t come to you. I’m really sorry, but could you come here?”
“What?”
Kim Jong-tae kept panting as he gave his location, then hung up abruptly. Suhyun clicked his tongue in disbelief.
“What kind of stunt is this?”
* * *
“Think it’ll work?”
“It will. Better to pique his curiosity like this than drag him out with a blatant lie.”
“What if he brings external forces…….”
“No, he won’t. Even if he does, it’ll just be one or two superhumans at most.”
Kim Jong-tae spoke confidently to the men waiting behind him. They weren’t superhumans. They were Chinese military specialists trained to counter superhumans.
‘He doesn’t seem keen on publicizing our contacts either. Plus, he’s a mage. He’ll underestimate me, thinking I can’t touch him, and strut right in arrogantly.’
Kim Jong-tae’s prediction was spot on. Suhyun arrived at the rendezvous alone, without a single escort. Sensing presences in the abandoned factory on Pyongyang’s outskirts, Suhyun sneered.
‘Time to cut him loose already?’
Boom!
“Kim Jong-tae, I told you to come to me. Did my words sound like a joke?”
The reply came from above. Leaning over the second-floor railing, Kim Jong-tae smirked.
“Don’t I get to have you come to me sometimes?”
“A guy who used to grovel now acting like this……. You must have something to back you up. So, what gives you the guts to summon me?”
“Try using your superpower. Then you’ll see.”
“?”
Suhyun tested his telekinesis. There was an odd sensation. Poison in the air. Interference blocking his power’s activation.
‘Superpower nullifier, paralytic toxin, and soldiers to boot? Well prepared.’
His enhanced vision spotted the masked, armed troops in the corners. Suhyun said, genuinely impressed.
“A superpower nullifier? Did you sweet-talk the Chinese for that in the meantime? Gotta admit, you’ve got some real talent.”
“Still bluffing? You don’t seriously think the poison can’t kill you. Without your powers, your own poison won’t activate either.”
“Hmm.”
Suhyun tilted his head.
“You know I’m a mage, right?”
“So what?”
“You didn’t see the report on Liu Xin that went up to the Chinese side?”
Kim Jong-tae grew increasingly uneasy at Suhyun’s composure.
“…No, I didn’t.”
“You idiot. Even if the access routes differed, you should’ve prepped that much before facing me.”
Suhyun raised his hand. Sensing danger, Kim Jong-tae opened his mouth.
“Everyone, fire on him…….”
Bang bang bang bang bang!
A single strike neutralized both the nullifier and the enemies. With one swing through the air, Suhyun dropped them all. Kim Jong-tae’s eyes bulged.
“Jong-tae, Jong-tae……. Didn’t we get along pretty well?”
After gathering and absorbing all the airborne poison at once, Suhyun slowly ascended to the second floor. Kim Jong-tae was too stunned to even flee.
“Gah!”
The triggered poison surged with agony.
“And yet you stab me in the back like this. I’m disappointed. I was looking forward to your report about successfully contacting Jin Luo Gong. If you’d wrapped that up well, I might’ve let you go.”
‘Lying through his teeth as usual…….’
Amid the pain, Kim Jong-tae muttered inwardly. A ruthless bastard like Suhyun would never release him.
The pain stopped.
“Hah, hah…….”
“Where’d you get these troops? They’re not your average hires.”
“Th-Through Jin Luo Gong’s……. connections…….”
“Impressive. A real talent, looking at your resourcefulness. Where’s the related report? You didn’t skip that just to kill me, right?”
Seeing a glimmer of hope in Suhyun’s demeanor, Kim Jong-tae tremblingly pulled out a chip and tossed it.
“Hmm, okay. Anything to say to me?”
“I’m sorry. I overstepped……. Give me one chance, and I’ll repay you with my life…!”
Suhyun skimmed the chip’s data on a portable computer, letting Kim Jong-tae’s pleas flow in one ear and out the other.
“Hmm. So Jin Luo Gong went south.”
“I’ll pledge my loyalty!”
“Huh? Oh, sorry. Wasn’t listening.”
Suhyun pocketed the chip.
“I appreciate the loyalty, but I only give one chance.”
“W-W-Wait…!”
“You’re not the type to quit after one failure. What if I slip up on the second? You might come at me with something I can’t even imagine someday.”
Without waiting for a reply, Suhyun ended Kim Jong-tae. He hadn’t expected their arrangement to last forever, but it had crumbled faster than anticipated.
‘Cut dangerous loose ends quick.’
Only Suhyun’s mage status was known, not the details, which allowed this idiotic trap. They hadn’t known his poison immunity either, which played a part.
Battles against superhumans were like an escalating chain. Superhumans emerged, then tech to neutralize them. Mages to counter that tech appeared—so someday, tech to neutralize mages might too.
‘Time is still the answer, huh…….’
No tech mattered if severed before activation. Suhyun felt the necessity once more.
* * *
“Long time!”
“Yeah, long time no see.”
“Hello. Looks like your numbers have grown since last time.”
After exchanging greetings with the cheerful Jennifer, Suhyun answered Scott’s question.
“Hired some new blood.”
“Anyone Team Leader Kim Suhyun picks must be top-notch.”
Suhyun nodded instead of replying. He had high hopes for Gu Jung-chul. He didn’t look like much on the surface, but he was the type who honed skills diligently.
“Blue Bear is Teams 1 and 2?”
“Yes. As agreed beforehand, command is yours. Issue orders directly or through me.”
“This job shouldn’t be too risky anyway. No must-kill monsters. Pull back if it gets dicey.”
“Understood.”
“The dwarf exploration team?”
“Over there.”
The dwarves—including Mu-jack, whom Suhyun had once saved—waved. They’d joined in case contact with the dark elves was needed.
“Quite the large group up close.”
“The chairman worried a small team would be riskier.”
“Fair point. Other races are more dangerous than monsters…….”
Suhyun finished talking and prepared to depart. Everyone here was a pro; no need to repeat the obvious.
* * *
Bypassing the Dragonia branch, Suhyun gazed at the distant mountain range piercing the sky. Even knowing dragons wouldn’t come this way, tension was unavoidable.
‘How much could I do against a dragon?’
Of course, he had zero intention of fighting one. If conflict loomed, his first thought would be evasion or escape.
That aside, preemptively assessing was crucial. Even if it never happened, simulating in his head prevented panic if it did.
‘First things first……. Scatter the group.’
Clumping up against a dragon was pointless. Spread out to sow confusion.
Then what?
‘Pierce its defenses.’
135