Chapter 72
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 072
Chapter Title: Spatial Ability User Kim Geuk - [1]
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After a long time, I watched Kang Jun-chi's "True Education" video and spotted one thing that was different from usual.
"Corrupt Cop Taking Bribes Gets True Education"
The video by Kang Jun-chi, titled as above, contained exactly what the title promised.
In the video... a cop out on a DUI checkpoint took a single Sin-sa Im-dang bill and tried to politely let the caught driver go.
Unfortunately, they paid the price for being spotted by Kang Jun-chi.
"You fucking corrupt scum, you think this is a game?!"
Kang Jun-chi charged out yelling and immediately hoisted both the driver and the cop into the air.
Then, swinging his limbs wildly, he yanked out every strand of hair from their bewildered heads, tore their clothes to shreds, and even ripped out their fingernails and toenails to deliver his true education.
It seemed like nothing special compared to his usual antics, but it was different.
The fact that this true education target was a uniformed cop caught my attention.
Kang Jun-chi doesn't mess with just anyone; he picks and chooses his victims carefully.
As seen from how he held back against Han Hee-seok before, he usually doesn't unleash his sadism on public officials.
Likewise, up until now, Kang Jun-chi had never touched a police officer.
He must have restrained himself out of fear of the backlash from messing with cops, but in this video, he went right after one. Why?
I could understand the reason for this change because I'd recently threatened a prison warden myself.
I was able to make that threat because I'd gained a certain conviction.
The conviction that with this level of power and influence, I could cross certain lines without issue.
Kang Jun-chi must have gained that same conviction from this incident. And so, he was finally able to cross a line he'd avoided until now.
How auspicious. Truly.
Big trouble~ Big trouble!
Baby Mushroom is so cute it's a problem!!!
Because Baby Mushroom is just too adorable, a ton of stalkers showed up at her house, can you believe it?
Kim Seok-hee unnie's stalkers must've come along too! Some of them were hounding Baby Mushroom asking where Kim Seok-hee unnie was, and Baby Mushroom was too scared to say a word, trembling all cutely!
Then guess what? A bunch of unnie oppars came rushing to protect Baby Mushroom! (The person in the beige suit right at the front with Incheon citizens was Councilor Park Mi-hyeong. Everyone who remembers her face, please give her your vote in the Incheon mayoral election?)
And finally, even Baby Mushroom's bodyguard, Jun-chi oppa, showed up, so the stalkers finally backed off!
Baby Mushroom decided to hold an Aidolu concert as thanks to everyone who gathered!
They split into two buses (chartered by Councilor Park Mi-hyeong, running as number 2 in the Incheon mayoral election. Shouldn't everyone who rode them be grateful?) to head to the concert hall, crossed the border, and even Manticore ajusshi and all the big shots showed up for Baby Mushroom's Aidolu concert!
Baby Mushroom got so hyped by the enthusiastic response!!!
I'd already become something like HuntWeb's healthy idol before, but after this incident, I'd been reborn into something even greater.
Just looking at the number of comments proved it—the figures were an order of magnitude higher than before.
On HuntWeb, even someone who posts crap like this gets worshipped. Hail Kim Geuk.
Kim Geuk and Kang Jun-chi are the hope of all Korean Awakeners. For real.
Can you believe all this happened because he tried to save Kim Seok-hee, someone he wasn't even close to?
Kim Geuk is a god! Kang Jun-chi is a god!
Thanks.
Clicked to say thanks but my eyes rotted instead. Not thankful for that.
As you can see, the comment section vibe had surpassed the usual praise I got. Notably, a high proportion of A-badge holders among those commenting.
A-badge owners who never commented on my posts before were now chiming in.
It wasn't hard to figure out why: obliterating the special task force, and nullifying their reserve mobilization—which had drawn as much resentment as a reserve army call-up—had caught the attention of many Awakeners.
What the hell? I checked Councilor Park Mi-hyeong's abilities at the scene myself, and she only has one ice ability... So what captivated this young man wasn't ability-based brainwashing, but hypnotic brainwashing?
Came to see why there were so many comments... What is this? ;;;
I scrolled through more comments from Awakeners on my post before shutting down the computer.
This was definitely an astonishing achievement, one I could brag about as a lifelong accomplishment. But I wasn't about to ride this popularity wave into politics or anything. Right?
I had other things to do.
I chugged a protein shake packed with all sorts of ingredients and headed out.
Hunter work is great.
Unlike all those nagging thoughts crowding my head lately—non-Awakener trash this, national subversion that—making me question if what I'm doing is really right, everything about Hunter work is rock-solid.
As an Awakener of Incheon, when I'm out monster hunting, I have no doubts. I just slaughter every monster that pops out of the Gates, then bask in the cheers of the Incheon citizens who've been kept safe because of it.
So hunting is an undeniably good deed, and it proves my very existence has value.
When I arrived at the meeting spot, my Hunter team was waiting. I remembered how they'd rushed to protect me this time.
"Thanks so much for this! Man, you should've seen how moved I was when I saw my team show up..."
Jeong Jin-yeong cut in abruptly while I was talking to them.
"I was more moved!"
I stared at him, wondering what was up with this guy all of a sudden, and Jeong Jin-yeong continued.
"You were so damn cool, seriously...!"
His lips were quivering, which was a bit disconcerting. The Awakeners had benefited from this incident, not non-Awakeners like this guy. So why the reaction?
After exchanging some mutual praise with Im Hyeong-taek, Seong Mun-yeong, and the others, we boarded the official van.
With Incheon citizens seeing us off once more, I set out to hunt.
On the way to the destination, I spoke to Baek Dam-bi sitting next to me.
"Did you report to the association that you can open Gates now?"
"Yes, I did."
"What'd they say? Are they bumping up your contract fee and dispatch pay?"
"No, nothing like that yet. But..."
"But what?"
"They're offering to mediate so Incheon City ends your contract without a refund on the signing bonus."
I gawked at her in shock.
"What the..."
"They said it'd let you focus on opening Gates. With Behemoth getting closer to Seoul this time and the risk rising, they'd have you stop hunting and just open Gates to observe Behemoth's status..."
My round girl leaving my side? The urge to stop it hit me, but I couldn't think of a reason why I should. Forcing calm, I asked.
"So what'd you say?"
"I said I'd keep going as is. I can open Gates and observe Behemoth while hunting anyway..."
You have no idea how relieved I was hearing that.
"So you're sticking with hunting?"
"Yes."
"Unexpected. Just opening Gates sounds easier on the body, safer overall. Why bother?"
"I have no plans to quit being a Hunter."
"Why not?"
"In the end, all this came from doing Hunter work. I don't want to just drop it now that I've got what I need. My abilities growing this much proves it, but working by your side has taught me a lot too..."
Satisfied, I grinned at my round girl.
Baek Dam-bi just adjusted her sunglasses, acting nonchalant, but she was clearly embarrassed. Her flushed ears gave it away.
What a cute girl.
I was thrilled knowing she'd keep hunting by my side, and that she found fulfillment in her own achievements from it. I stayed in a great mood the whole ride.
Well, until the car stopped.
The moment I got out, serious trouble came right up to me.
A woman approached, her face full of anxiety, and spoke to me.
"Um, you're Hunter Kim Geuk, right?"
"That's me, Incheon forever. You live nearby?"
"Yes, but..."
"Need something? Spill it!"
I was as friendly as possible, and the fidgeting woman finally mustered her courage. She spoke.
"Well, I have a favor to ask...!"
I told her to go ahead. She started rambling, but the gist was this.
"So, your daughter's gone missing around here?"
"Yes...!"
"And you want us to find her?"
The woman nodded frantically.
Seong Mun-yeong spoke up, not hiding his irritation.
"Why tell us instead of the cops? Do we look like the people who handle that?"
This sharp reaction wasn't because Seong Mun-yeong was some hothead.
Plenty of people mistake Hunters for public servants and pester them with demands. Hunters often snap or even curse them out. Seong Mun-yeong was actually being pretty polite.
The woman shrank a bit but still said her piece.
"I went to the police, but they won't look for her! They said she's probably just out playing and to check properly. I told them I'd already checked everything, but they said in this day and age, how are they supposed to find a missing person, and sent me away...!"
Seong Mun-yeong cut her off and barked.
"Of course they can't find her! How are they supposed to know if she ran away or got snatched by a Deathclaw? What if they go into a danger zone promising to find her and end up missing themselves?"
This wasn't baseless anger either.
These days, police don't even go out searching for missing persons reports. In this world, the odds of finding someone are slim even if they search, and there's too high a risk the cops themselves could become casualties.
And there's no reason for Hunters to do what even the police won't. Because Hunters aren't cops. They're just civilians.
But for the Incheon Viceroy who transcends Hunters, there's reason enough.
I held out my palm, and Seong Mun-yeong shut his mouth mid-rant.
I asked the woman.
"Got a photo of your daughter? Let me see."
"Pardon? Oh, yes, here!"
She fumbled open her flip phone and showed a photo of a seven-year-old girl. I memorized it and promised.
"I'll look for her as best I can while hunting."
"Really?"
"I can't promise I'll definitely find her, but I'll make the effort."
We left the woman bowing and thanking me repeatedly and headed to the operation site.
On the way, Seong Mun-yeong grumbled.
"Hyung, why make that promise?"
"Don't get mad, man. I'm not asking you to look."
"So you're doing it alone? With that mental net of yours?"
"Yeah."
"Searching with the mental net tires you out too, doesn't it? Even when you're using it to hunt monsters, you often say you're fatigued and take a break."
"So what? It's not interfering with the job, is it?"
"No, but hyung, you're already risking your life doing tough work. Why pile on more? Better to drag the cops out kicking and screaming to search instead of you doing it yourself..."
He meant well, worrying about me, so scolding him felt awkward. I patted his back, then stopped upon reaching the destination.
Under everyone's guard, I closed my eyes and focused my mind.
The mental net spread out in a 3km radius, feeding information on everything within range straight to my brain.
The hunt had begun. And as a bonus, the search too.