Chapter 50
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 050
Chapter Title: Gyeoyang District Baron Kim Seok-hee - [1]
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Lately, I keep having that same dream. It's a tiresome one that always ends with a nuclear explosion.
Recently, one particular part of the dream has become much clearer.
It's the section where I'm traveling around Sowol.
In the dream, I hang out with the Awakener Lords I meet while wandering Sowol. I observe how they tend to their flocks and rule over them.
Of course, the details of the dream evaporate in an instant, so I can't remember exactly what I saw or heard.
But one fact sticks with me crystal clear.
I was deeply impressed by the lives and ways of those Awakener Lords in Sowol...
I don't know why. Was it because of that memorable conversation I had with the previous Awakener Lord? Or maybe because, in the hallucination, after crossing into the Gate to save Baek Dam-bi, I spent a long time in Sowol?
Or could it really be that the rulers of Sowol are far superior to those running Earth?
Before boarding the official vehicle, I turned to my fan holding the camera.
"Don't shove your camera in other hunters' faces and make a nuisance of yourself. You can't act like those broadcast crews blocking pedestrians and demanding people move out of the way, or interrupting hunts. Got it?"
My fan, who'd previously uploaded footage of my hunts to YouTube, wanted to tag along and film this one too. He bellowed back.
"Got it!"
"See those camera guys always trailing Knight? Just stick to them like glue. Do that, and no one will give you grief."
My fan nodded vigorously. I gave him a thumbs-up and a grin.
Then I climbed into the official vehicle with my hunter team.
The car carrying us pulled out.
Inside the moving vehicle, Seong Mun-yeong glanced back at my fan fiddling with his camera and muttered.
"That guy's such a pain in the ass. Always following us around... Isn't he getting too bold because you keep indulging him, hyung?"
"What's got you so grumpy this time?"
"Even if that old guy's filming us, all he gets is more YouTube cash. Why should we put up with him? But he keeps being a bother... Last time, he wouldn't leave you alone during your break, demanding explanations. Then after you bagged a few Deathclaws, he wants poses. Total nag—doesn't it annoy you?"
I was satisfied enough knowing footage of my exploits was being captured, so that level of hassle was something I'd gladly endure. No need to say it out loud.
I just replied like a gentleman.
"He's not bothering other hunters, though. So what's the harm?"
"Maybe he's not really your fan—he could just be chasing YouTube bucks."
"If that's the case, he's just trying to make a living. Let him be."
I shut it down firmly, but Seong Mun-yeong kept grumbling.
"Man, you're too nice. Y'know, it's kinda weird when you think about it."
"Weird how?"
"In those old interviews, didn't you come off like some rage machine? They said you beat the academy head and the training instructor half to death, left 'em disabled."
"Yeah, I did. So?"
"For someone who talked like that, your patience seems saintly now. Hell, you even seem nicer than me these days."
I almost snapped back that no one could be nastier than him, but bit it back. It was a touchy question for a casual brush-off.
I chose my words carefully before answering.
"Back then, I thought acting tough like that was cool."
"Just decking anyone who pissed you off?"
"Yeah. I figured holding back made me a punk. Thought smashing someone solved problems for real."
"But now you've seen the light?"
"Nah, it's just that no one picks fights with me anymore. No need to swing fists."
"So if something ticks you off again, you'll go back to beating people and landing in jail?"
"Who knows...?"
My vague dodge must've spooked him. Im Hyeong-taek, ever the aspiring adult, jumped in.
"No 'who knows'! You must keep your temper in check! How many people are counting on you, watching Kim Geuk?"
He laid into me like that, then launched a lecture. How the lives and hopes of countless folks, including himself, rested on Incheon's guardian Kim Geuk's shoulders. How if I screwed up and ended up in jail, they'd all be devastated. And so on.
Im Hyeong-taek never missed a chance to flatter amid the scolding, weaving in praise tailored to my ears, so I was listening pleasantly enough.
That's when the lead vehicle carrying the hunters braked to a halt. The ones trailing it stopped in a line.
Our official car stopped too, so I got out.
"What's going on?"
A hunter answered.
"Some punks are blocking the road. They're occupying it and won't budge."
I looked ahead at his words.
Sure enough, a group had taken the road, blocking our hunters' path. They all looked like lowlife thugs.
I could guess what they were about.
Seong Mun-yeong, who'd followed me out, muttered.
"Those guys... look like them, right? The lackeys of that Gyeoyang District Baron or whatever."
I nodded.
No surprise there. I'd anticipated their showing up.
HuntWeb user BluntYouth—Hunter Seok Jang-sil, active in Seoul—had messaged me a heads-up.
There was some Awakener gang in Gyeoyang District, and their boss, Kim Seok-hee, wasn't thrilled about my visit. Apparently, he didn't want me setting foot in their turf and was planning to run me off.
The reason? Gyeoyang was long abandoned by residents due to monster swarms, turning into a slum despite prime transit links. Kim Seok-hee's gang had filled the power vacuum there. They wanted it to stay a ghost town.
With my Incheon reclamation project drawing residents back, cops would return too, along with other official eyes. No more playing feudal lord unchecked.
So the gang was trying to block my hunt in Gyeoyang.
Naturally, I didn't stew over it alone. I called Park Mi-hyeong right away. She, in turn, leaned on the mayor, police chief, and others to get it handled.
Thus, our op included not just hunters but cops too. No need for me to throw punches in any scuffle—I figured they'd sort it legally.
But my expectations were dead wrong. Way off.
"Police officers?"
I'd asked the accompanying cops to deal with the gang since they'd actually shown, but they hemmed and hawed instead of stepping up.
"What are you all standing around for?"
Only after I prodded did they approach the roadblockers.
And what they did... it was hard to tell if they were chasing off the thugs or bowing to their masters.
Hell, an apartment security grandpa shooing vendors would have more backbone.
In the end, after chatting with the gang, the cops slunk back to us hunters.
The thugs still blocked the road, leaving me staring at the cops in disbelief.
"You gonna clear those idiots off the road or what?"
A cop mumbled.
"That's... tricky..."
"Is that punk some assemblyman's son? Scared of backlash if you touch him?"
"Scarier than an assemblyman's kid. He's a Physical Enhancer, that bastard."
The cop pointed to one of the blockers. Unconvinced, I frowned.
"You all brought guns, right? Just shove 'em in his face and tell him to fuck off."
"You think bullets dent a Physical Enhancer's muscles?"
"Depends on the Enhancer, but they'd stick in most."
The cop shut his mouth mid-retort. He wanted to argue bullets bounced off, but as a fellow Physical Enhancer, I knew better.
Of course, winning the argument changed nothing. The gang held the road; cops hung back, watching.
Frustrating. Why were these people acting like this?
No choice. I stepped forward and quietly asked Baek Dam-bi.
"Which one's the Awakener?"
She closed her eyes, then opened them.
"That guy, far left."
I eyed the man she indicated. Him, a Physical Enhancer?
He didn't look it at first glance. I'd bulked up at the cost of flexibility, but he had a sleek, panther-like build.
About 175cm tall, several weight classes below me visually. Still, no room for complacency. Even without hunter experience or monster kills to level up, Awakeners varied wildly from the start.
Kang Jun-chi was S-rank right out the gate. This guy might look weak but could flatten me in one punch—no big shock.
So, no dropping guard. I set aside my useless hunter rifle here and approached the gang barehanded.
"Ah, shit, it's Kim Geuk!"
They recognized me and smirked. Faces screaming for a fist—tempting.
But I couldn't swing first. As I stared silently...
"Here for a staring contest?"
One provoked. I shot back.
"Not staring—wanna try real wrestling?"
"Nah? Don't wanna touch a punk like you, stinks too much!"
They cackled like it was hilarious.
Suppressing anger, I clocked their game.
Obvious: bait me into swinging, then cry broken bones to the watching cops.
Understood or not, it pissed me off. Deep breath...
The Physical Enhancer Baek Dam-bi had pegged approached me.
He poked my chest.
"Hey, buddy. Built like a bodybuilder, huh?"
"Yeah. Thanks."
"Not a compliment, dumbass."
More snickering from the gang.
The Enhancer said.
"Bodybuilder morons strut like they're hot shit, then one boxer punch sends 'em to the afterlife. You, you fucking punk—ever even tried real fighting?"
I wasn't mad at the taunt—more baffled. My UFC record was a quick Naver search away. No computer or phone at his place?
As I pondered...
He interrupted his rant with a sudden uppercut at my jaw.
To him, lightning-fast ambush. The whistling fist was damn quick.
But compared to bullets or leaping Deathclaws? Meh. I'd reacted to worse.
Casually, swiftly, I slid my left hand under my jaw to block.
Next instant, his fist smacked into my palm—and stayed, gripped tight.
The gang's snickers died.
Even the Enhancer froze. He strained to pull free, but no dice.
Hmm, strength check over. No twists—I was stronger, he was weaker.
Now I could relax. Kick his shin and snap it? Hassle incoming.
Cops watching—no need for direct violence.
"Let go, asshole? Right—"
I Teleported, still gripping him.
To an abandoned building room 2.3km away, deserted by all. He came along for the ride.
Sudden scenery shift should've rattled him, but as an Awakener, he was tougher. Free hand swung again—blocked by my right. He growled.
"Let go in five seconds or I smash your mom's skull."
Gangster threatening family? Standard?
Not very scary.
"Kill my mom, but give me her bones. Cremate nice and flush the ashes down the toilet."
My self-roast threw him. Mouth flapping, words failed.
Over ten seconds, still trapped.
I released him with a smile.
"Five seconds up? Trusting you for the bones, COD."
"Crazy bastard..."
"But buddy, is that how you talk? Just us here."
I locked eyes, conveying: No eyes, no CCTV—your skull instead of mom's okay?
He got it, shut up. Satisfied.
Patted his shoulder grinning, then Teleported back—alone, leaving him.
Cops still spectating. Approaching the pathetic lot, I said.
"Handled the Physical Enhancer pal. You can manage the leftover posers, right, officers?"
Thankfully, no refusal. Watching them shove the gang off the road, I sighed.
What the hell was this bootlicking circus?