Chapter 36
Chapter 36
5. Seoul Expansion -3
The reason no single human had ever been able to reign supreme was that an individual's power had limits. An individual could not fight an army and win. Even the strongest person among people found it hard to beat ten others. That was why society had taken this shape.
A political form in which people delegated power to one another.
But after the Gate opened, that common sense changed. The superhumans who appeared in the world could readily fight an army and win. If so, then one person rising to stand above all others was no longer a mere dream.
The Hunter Monarchy was built on that ideology.
Yet even as a kingdom arose in the 21st century and people gilded each other with titles like count and duke, skepticism lingered in people's hearts. Was it truly possible for one person to prevail against a nation? In theory, they understood, but no one had actually done it yet⋯⋯
The one who proved that fact was—ironically—the very culprit who brought down the Hunter Monarchy, Noah Won.
The 24 hours he endured against the Seoul palace changed everything. The King of Seoul had gathered his forces, dispersed them, and formed ranks, yet still failed to drive out the rebels. The nascent kingdom's lineage was severed.
"But!! According to the secret intelligence I've obtained, Noah Won is dead!!"
The one-man army was dead!
"All that remains in Seoul is a body-enhancement-type A-rank ability user who strengthens his body with flames! And that bastard is someone Kim Woomin and I can handle! Right, Woomin?"
"Don't act like we're close, you Dusik piece of shit."
"Hahahaha!! So he says!!"
If that freakishly strong mutant was dead, then what remained was surely ripe for the taking! And even if there were quite a few B-rank and C-rank hunters below him, it didn't matter. Subdue the head, and the rest would tuck their tails.
In the first place, the very fact that a group as large as Seoul had been maintained was strange. In an era when the apocalypse loomed close, to keep society going against a death that crept right up to your chin the moment you opened your eyes—you needed a focal point with an almost unnatural cohesion.
"Let's go!! Follow me!!"
Park Dusik stepping to the front like this to tout his own merits was for that very reason. He meant to display the sharpness to keenly detect and deduce enemy movements, and the charisma to lead people!
"⋯⋯Who is that guy, carrying on up front like that?"
"Dunno. Just keep quiet for now."
Look. The fact that they were already murmuring like that meant it was working. Surely they were looking at his appearance and saying he must have been at least a duke back in the Hunter Monarchy days.
The monarchy⋯⋯
One person had toppled those elegant, glorious days, so restoring the monarchy would also take just one person. This was his chance to become that one person.
Park Dusik smiled as he imagined himself becoming the King of Seoul, ruling over a vast land in glory.
That was when it happened. One of the low-ranking remnants Park Dusik had gathered pointed to the end of the passage and shouted.
"Boss! People are coming down from the north passage over there!"
"What?"
Startled, Park Dusik looked north.
"H-hold on."
Sure enough, ten hunters were descending along the path.
Approaching at the very front was a young man with white hair. There was something different about him. Was it because his gait was refined, or because of his handsome features?
If not that⋯⋯ perhaps it was because those eyes were unusually chilling.
Park Dusik, recognizing him, turned deathly pale and trembled, and some of the B-rank hunters gathered there grabbed Park Dusik by the collar and shouted. Even though they knew that rather than fighting among themselves, they needed to either join forces or flee.
"Y-you said he was dead, you said he was dead, you bastard⋯⋯!!"
"Use your damn eyes! Does that look like a corpse? Does that look like a corpse?!"
It was so bewildering they couldn't bear it without venting their resentment.
Because Noah Won, the A-rank hunter who led the city-state of Seoul—the man Park Dusik had claimed was dead—was not only perfectly alive, but had appeared carrying an aura even more intense than in days past.
Step. Step.
Noah Won walked calmly into the midst of the murmuring Hunter Monarchy remnants. As if he felt no threat whatsoever. And then he spoke.
"Any of you who fulfilled your responsibilities, even a little—I intend to take you in."
"⋯⋯What?"
"I don't deny the Hunter Monarchy's ideology itself. I also wanted hunters—our people—to receive proper treatment. Though I did think it was a bit ridiculous, gilding each other's faces by calling each other by titles as if you'd actually become something⋯⋯"
But.
"If you're going to play at being nobles, you should play at the responsibilities too. They call it noblesse oblige. I'm going to hear from the citizens you took in. I'm not asking for much. If you fought off the nearby plants, worked for a better life, and bore even a little responsibility for tending your community—I'll take you in."
"Wh-what gives you the authority to—"
"Because I'm strong."
Noah Won said it flatly.
"You all thought you deserved to enjoy things because you were strong, didn't you? Then you should respect my qualifications, my rightful exercise of authority too. If you don't want to be cowards."
"E-everyone attack at once—!!"
"『Azure Wind Wanderer』."
Immediately, a gale swept through.
Whoosh— shaaaak!
"Guh, graaah—!"
"Ugh! Uuugh!"
The body-enhancement hunter charging in front was sent flying, his whole body shredded by the wind blades, and the hunter about to fire a spear of water clutched at his throat and choked as the air suddenly vanished.
Two of them went down in an instant.
The remaining hunters' faces went pale. But there was no turning back. If they weren't going to surrender here, they had to fight. Several hunters drew weapons—guns, swords, and the like—and rushed in. They figured that since he seemed to be a ranged-attack type, they needed to close the distance.
"Rush him! Get in close!"
"You stupid fucks, if you get close to that bastard⋯⋯!!"
Those who knew about Noah Won tried to stop them belatedly, but it was already too late.
Swish—
"⋯⋯Huh? Gurk!"
He hooked the thrusting sword by the wrist, pushed it aside, and deflected it. Then Noah Won's hand shot up, carrying the subtle principle of 『Quick Flash』, and struck the attacker's throat before withdrawing.
Thwung—
An invisible telekinetic force was clearly fired at him, but Noah Won read its outline from the movement of the surrounding dirt and the hem of his clothes, twisting his body to evade. And then, somehow, a telekinetic force of identical power was fired back at the caster.
"Uwaaagh!"
"D-does this bastard have eyes on the back of his head⋯⋯?!"
"How, how the hell are we supposed to beat him⋯⋯!"
No.
They couldn't win. There was no way to beat him. Park Dusik trembled as he recalled the past. Even when three A-rank hunters had gathered, that iron fortress had not been breached. There was no way this ragtag bunch could leave so much as a scratch.
And on top of that, he looked far more vigorous now than back then. Park Dusik's discernment was too lacking to tell whether it was his imagination or the truth, but his movements seemed nearly twice as fast as before. He couldn't even follow them with his eyes anymore.
And he'd even acquired some strange wind-manipulating ability!
One hunter shattered their formation, scattering them in panic. Then, right behind him, the Seoul hunters who had been waiting leapt in, each unleashing their own abilities.
"Captain Noah, we're joining in!"
"⋯⋯Now you show up?"
"No, I mean, you were fighting so well. We were wondering if maybe we didn't need to step in⋯⋯?"
"Quit slacking and get to work."
"Yessir."
Flames swept through, and the Hunter Monarchy remnants were blown away like autumn leaves before the wind. Park Dusik knew instinctively: he had to run. Right now, anywhere!
But a certain thought seized Park Dusik's ankles. It wasn't greed, and it wasn't loyalty. It was one pure question. Even if he escaped and planned for the future⋯⋯ could he really overcome that man?
Even if he fled and miraculously rallied the remaining hunters of the Republic of Korea, could he truly stand against that one man? One person had toppled those elegant, glorious days, and it was still the same.
Ever since that day, the one standing at the top of Seoul had always been Noah Won.
That realization let Park Dusik's golden time slip away.
"Captain Noah, don't let that one get away! If he burrows into the ground and escapes, that'll be a pain!"
"Got it. Hold the others for a moment. I need to focus. 『Azure Wind Wanderer』, 『Quick-Flash Inner Core』, converge."
Hwoooosh—
The two skills swirled unstably in Noah Won's grip and clung together. The two forces, if only temporarily, unified into one, and in that instant their power surged as if climbing a single stair.
From Sergios using skills simultaneously, from the number of skills required for the rebirth—『Embodiment』, from the Unification that the sun's curse had cried out for—Noah Won had dimly inferred the rules of the world from all of these.
Gathering small things to forge something greater. That must be the fundamental framework of strength.
Permanently mixing them together was impossible, but forcibly bundling them for a brief moment was within his power. And then he would aim for the exact instant the power amplified and release it. Thus⋯⋯
"Synthesis, 『Clear-Wind Flash Strike (淸風閃擊)』."
Hook—!
With a sound like a candle being snuffed out, the blue current of air reached Park Dusik's chest in an instant. A short impact—thwack—rang out. Park Dusik, who had been trying to flee, toppled over with the ground half-dug beneath him.
He hadn't even seen it. He couldn't react. He'd seen plenty of A-rank hunters, but none with an ability like this. Then there was only one possibility.
"S, S-rank⋯⋯ hunter⋯⋯"
One had finally been born in Korea, too.
Park Dusik left those words behind, rolled his eyes back, and passed out.
As if.
I looked down at the sprawled-out Park Dusik and thought. Coldly assessing myself, I wasn't at S-rank yet. In the first place, the rank of S-rank hunter on Earth existed for only one person.
Max Owen, the strongest hunter on the planet.
I had definitely gotten stronger under the System's influence. This fight, which would have given the old me considerable trouble, I'd handled without shedding a single drop of sweat. But whether I could reach Max Owen⋯⋯ honestly, I still didn't know.
Thinking back on the power I'd glimpsed from him before, I didn't think I could guarantee a win even now.
But once I reached C-rank, it would be different. Then it wouldn't be about restoring the Republic of Korea or building a new society—I could truly put "Earth" itself on the table. That was the feeling I got.
It probably wasn't that far off.
After the battle ended, our people scattered in orderly fashion to handle the aftermath.
"I'll go manage the citizens. I'll check their condition and get them ready to head to Seoul."
"Ugh, I'd rather haul corpses than deal with people."
"What do we do with the prisoners? If we don't have anything to tie them up with, should we break their arms and legs?"
They'd accumulated enough experience by now to handle things on their own. So then I⋯⋯ maybe I should lend a hand with the citizen management, the job the kids hated. Since my face had been in the media, quite a few people recognized me. That would make calming them down a bit easier.
Just then, Hyejin trotted over and nudged me with her elbow.
"Come on, let the kids handle it."
"It gets done faster if I do it."
"You've got a lot of that⋯⋯ overnight stuff? Coming up, right? I heard from Team Leader Park that you're heading out on some expedition to a faraway place. If we're going to manage without you then, the kids all need to try things themselves—that's how they gain experience and grow⋯⋯"
"Then you should go get some experience too, dumbass. You hate dealing with people more than anyone, and yet⋯⋯"
"Hehehe."
Hyejin grinned shamelessly, lit a cigarette, and stuck it in her mouth. Then she blocked me with her body so I couldn't move. Apparently she intended to drag me into her slacking off too.
Thinking it over, she wasn't exactly wrong, so I sighed and decided to just supervise.
"You came from Seoul⋯⋯? W-we'd been cut off from the world, so we didn't even know Seoul was still standing."
"Th-thank you! Thank you for saving us! We lived off nothing but mushrooms every single day. Finally, we're escaping this wretched life⋯⋯!"
From over to the side, the voices of the rescued citizens drifted in sporadically.
There were about forty non-hunter citizens. They looked like they'd been forced into brutal labor—most were gaunt, and some had permanent disabilities. Hyejin puffed away at her cigarette and asked casually.
"We're taking them in, right? Even the ones with physical disabilities."
"Yeah. Don't think of it as a waste—"
"Don't think of it as a waste. We give food and buy social stability in return. Knowing that you won't be thrown away even if you get hurt working for the community boosts people's will to work. Yes, yes, I know. I've heard it until my semicircular canals wore out."
"⋯⋯If you know, then why do you keep asking!"
Thunk.
"Ow."
I lightly rapped Hyejin on the head. She put on her best pained act, then gestured with her eyes toward a few of the citizens.
"Seoul or whatever, fuck⋯⋯ they're all the same bastards. While the fire-breathing monster freaks rest up on top of our heads, we're the only ones working like dogs! Huh?!"
"Ha, I'm—I'm the son of a National Assembly member. If you live in Seoul, you obviously know, right? I'm dying here, so bring me some water first. Hurry up. Do you know what kind of humiliation I've suffered here?!"
He was making his pitch.
"I was thinking we probably don't need people like that."
"⋯⋯⋯⋯"
Well, honestly speaking, that type doesn't help Seoul. In fact, they're likely to have a negative impact. So, thinking coldly, the right move here would be to arrange an accidental death.
But that's something I'll do when we're truly cornered with no way out, drowning in desperation.
Right now we have food, electricity, buildings—we have everything, don't we? Since we have room to spare, I figured a little extra waste was acceptable. Those people too, if managed properly, would each become labor.
"How can a person be so soft? Your temper's so narrow, but in weird corners like this your heart's strangely wide⋯⋯ eep."
"My temper is not narrow. And quit messing around, okay?"
I made a show of winding up to deliver another knuckle rap over Hyejin's head as she raised her guard.
I understood how she felt. These little prods meant that sometimes a person needed to be ruthless, and if I found that hard, she'd do it for me. Hyejin was the type who was merciless to anyone outside her own people.
Probably because she'd been abandoned before. When we'd welcomed her onto the team, she'd been cast out from her community and left to wander alone—we'd picked her up.
I was playing along to show I understood all of that. The knuckle rap was that kind of gesture too. Not because she'd teased me for being narrow-minded.
Well⋯⋯
This kind of worry probably only exists because we lack power. If I get a bit stronger, Hyejin won't need to think like this. There's still a long way to go.
And the bus that will shorten that long road is coming soon.
[(Notification) You have been selected as a Tutorial Stage mentor. Time until the next Tutorial Stage: 82 : 11 : 27⋯⋯]
"⋯⋯⋯⋯"
Somehow, my memories of the day I used the 『Telescope』—even though everything had clearly gone smoothly with nothing special happening—gave me a strange feeling the more I recalled them. But one thing was certain: I had obtained 『Azure Wind Wanderer』 there.
If I can obtain one more, the conditions for 『Embodiment』 will be met.
And if I can also discover a talented newbie in the Tutorial Stage for the Battle-Demon Ascension rite, then my path to C-rank is practically right in front of me.
Let's give it our best, Noah Won.
In space, inside the Northeast Branch. Pointed-eared beings sensed something and conversed.
-An anomaly has appeared on Earth. Was its growth not expressly forbidden?
-When the sample population is large, an error or two is bound to occur. It's nothing to worry about.
-What fool of a mage ignores experimental error? Where in all the world would you find one? Something must be done. But I'm not keen on calling Camellia either⋯⋯.
The bespectacled hunchback twitched his long ears and spoke.
-Let's open an artificial Gate. I'll eliminate the anomaly.