Chapter 307
Chapter 307
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 307
Chapter Title: Busan (1)
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“Sir, we’ll need to check your ID.”
A checkpoint request laced with Busan’s distinctive drawl.
“Hmm, hmm…”
He prided himself on speaking flawless standard Korean after obsessive practice bordering on compulsion, but his accent wasn’t quite perfect yet.
“Wh-why are there so damn many checkpoints? If you stop people at every alley, who’s gonna get around?”
Grumbling like that, Park Kwang-rim handed over his ID.
“There’s a terror threat, you see. Protests too…”
“Terror?”
“Yeah, terror. You know that weirdo cult Kim Shin-hwa stirring things up? Here it is.”
The guy checking the ID wasn’t a cop.
The reinforced suit from Yeonam Industries, prominent at the shoulders, elbows, and waist. And the drug injection port at the nape of the neck.
A combat civil servant from the Foreigner Management Agency.
“Busan’s population is already at fifteen million. Boats bring in all sorts of crap, so we gotta do this or we can’t control shit. Control it. Weird stuff keeps coming in, and that’s why we’re getting earthquakes.”
Park Kwang-rim felt a twinge of annoyance at the nuance in those words. All sorts? Earthquakes because of foreigners?
“Move along.”
The combat civil servant tossed the ID back at him like trash and shooed him on. Park Kwang-rim stumbled past the checkpoint line.
“Sh…”
A word starting with a harsh sibilant nearly slipped from Park Kwang-rim’s lips. I flew here by plane, damn it. Hold it in, hold it in.
A bit further on, Park Kwang-rim checked the map on his smartphone and muttered.
“They said Songjeong, but I should’ve gone one more stop to Gijang.”
Kim Shin-hwa had casually called it Songjeong, but Park Kwang-rim’s destination was Gijang County.
The sea was visible from here too, but it was about seven kilometers east of Haeundae, the beach everyone thought of with Busan.
“It’s this damn hot, and there’s people everywhere…”
Cops stationed here and there.
Combat civil servants from the Foreigner Management Agency, standing out even without uniforms.
“Explain yourselves!”
“Explain yourselves!”
Noise coming from afar.
“Protests, huh? You see everything in this city.”
Park Kwang-rim watched the demonstrators for a moment, his face lit with novelty.
Protests—something unimaginable back in Paju.
If people gathered to vent emotions and cause a ruckus, it could trigger anomalies in Paju.
Only possible in a city farthest from the Great Wall…
Sejong City was nice, but maybe Busan was the best spot to settle after retirement?
Feeling a vague envy toward the Busan locals as he watched the protesters, Park Kwang-rim soon shook his head vigorously.
“Time to work. Work.”
He glanced around cautiously, then pulled a pendulum from his pocket.
It began to sway, slithering upward like a snake raising its head.
‘I get the direction… but of all places, over there?’
The streets buzzed with people despite the tense atmosphere.
Twisted, tangled alleys.
Cluttered signs crammed onto every building.
“Find a damn goblin that’s not even human in this huge Busan…?”
Park Kwang-rim sighed and melted into the crowd, heading into Busan’s back alleys.
* * *
The Busan Special Self-Governing Government announced the population had exceeded fifteen million, but the actual number of humans—or humanoid intelligences—living in Busan was probably over twenty million.
The city touted as Korea’s largest was in an uproar.
“Explain yourselves!”
“Explain yourselves!”
Protesters blocking the main boulevard shouted toward the massive building ahead.
One of the ripples from the incident Kim Shin-hwa caused.
Not just punching a huge hole in the mountainside of Chilgap Mountain, killing hundreds, injuring thousands directly and indirectly—
He’d taken down Yang Seo-ho of the Foreigner Management Agency and kidnapped Dokgo Gyeom of the Manse Ilwon Church—
The freak who achieved that surreal feat declared alongside it:
『Come to Busan in six days.』
『That day, with Cure Medical Care, I’ll open the lid of the Boundless Abyss. From that pitch-black depth, beasts like swarms of starving yellow worms will pour out.』
Outraged Busan citizens hit the streets after this bizarre declaration spread amid the scandal.
Faces flushed with excitement and anger, their shouts rang out.
“What the hell is Cure Medical Care hiding?!”
“Explain your ties to Kim Shin-hwa right now!”
“What are you plotting in Korea?!”
“Reveal the truth about last night’s anomaly!”
“Cure Medical Care, tell us the truth!”
A menacing mood.
Already on the verge of boiling over, and then—perfectly timed—a perfectly timed incident.
Rumble rumble rumble—
A light earthquake shaking the ground.
“Uwoooo!”
It wasn’t strong enough for screams.
Normally, just a brief jolt that’d make people jump a little.
But ‘of all times,’ right now.
“Ma!”
Someone’s random bellow.
“What the hell’s with this quake!”
“It’s those damn mages causing earthquakes!”
“Yeah, ever since this research complex went up, the quakes started!”
“What’s causing these repeated earthquakes?!”
The chants blurred into indistinct chaos, morphing into a massive, horrific roar.
“Reveal it!” “Explain!” “Get out of Busan!” “What’re you doing in our neighborhood?!” “Ma!” “You bastard!” “Explain!” “You prick!” “Akiyama!”
The protesters’ curses hammered the windows of Cure Medical Care’s massive research facility in Gijang County.
* * *
Cure Medical Care research facility, main building, 13th floor.
“We’ve already held two press conferences. What more do they want me to explain?”
A man peered down at the protesters outside, hand pressed to the humming floor-to-ceiling window, grumbling.
If you had to describe his appearance, you’d repeat the same words endlessly.
Long, slender limbs and delicate, long fingers. Oddly red, thin lips and eyebrows jutting skyward like his excessive confidence— all long and slender.
Every body part was long and thin.
It might seem awkward, but those parts fit together so seamlessly that this long, slender man formed a visually striking, attractive whole.
Akiyama Yoshinori.
CEO of Cure Medical Care, and a cultist worshiping the [Origin of Life].
“What do you think? Is it because I’m not Korean that I can’t understand?”
Wild Guns Security’s Ko Kyung-soo gave a troubled smile at Akiyama’s question.
“If you wish, we can silence them.”
Akiyama smiled, pleased with the answer, but soon shook his head.
“No, no, no. It’d be a waste to assign top-tier fixers like you to such menial work.”
He clucked his tongue—tsks tsks tsk—
“They’ll feel better after yelling it out. Probably by tonight, even the ringleaders will change their tune, don’t you think?”
Tonight, guests would visit those suspected leaders.
“But we have other matters. What about that oni?”
“The dogs are chasing it down.”
Ko Kyung-soo hadn’t expected to get dragged into occult missions like this.
With that thought, he gave a brief report on last night’s results.
Around 3 a.m. last night.
Spotted a 《goblin riding a flaming motorcycle》 approaching from the south side of the lab annex.
Engaged for about 40 minutes with help from his occult specialist subordinate.
Inflicted damage but failed to capture.
Unlike previous encounters, judged to have dealt a fatal wound this time.
However, as the target was a supernatural entity, pursuing cautiously considering all possibilities.
“Pursuit? Didn’t you say it was impossible until now?”
“Last night, we landed a solid hit. Thanks to that, our occult specialist secured a fragment of the target’s spirit body.”
Akiyama chuckled—huh huh huh—and patted Ko Kyung-soo’s shoulder.
“Excellent. As expected of a good dog. Or was it gun-dog?”
“Either works.”
Ko Kyung-soo took the dog label in stride.
“That Kim Mu—er, Shin-hwa? The day he announced is tomorrow. We need results soon.”
“We’ve nearly cornered it, so results are imminent.”
No, they had to produce results, somehow.
Ko Kyung-soo felt impatient.
Not because he feared Akiyama.
Kim Shin-hwa—that lunatic—whatever he was plotting, dragging this out might mean facing the goblin and then Kim Shin-hwa too.
Of course, if Kim Shin-hwa faced Ko Kyung-soo in full battle readiness… Kim might be the one screaming.
Either way, Ko Kyung-soo’s moniker was Gun-Dog.
The nickname ‘war hound’ wasn’t given lightly.
* * *
Combat civil servants from the Foreigner Management Agency sighed with weary faces.
Busan was a city surrounded by mountains and sea.
Roadblocks alone couldn’t solve the problem.
Especially since the target could fly and was a mage who could change appearance at will.
And that wasn’t the only issue.
“Captured sub-species attempting illegal entry via Busan Port.”
“Apprehended an ability user hiding weapons in the back seat. Probably fixers smelling blood in the water.”
“At the tollgate checkpoint, nabbed about sixty suspicious types suspected of organized crime, but no priors, so holding them is tricky.”
“That bastard Black King chartered a whole tour bus to send his kids in?”
“About forty cultists snagged at checkpoints are fleeing toward central Busan.”
Suspicious forces flooding into Busan.
“Cure Medical Care’s hired guns are in a chase with some ability user in the back alleys near Songjeong Port. What do we do?”
“Shinsegai faction gangsters got into a brawl with some Joseon-jok ability user. Check it out?”
Incidents popping off everywhere.
Yang Seo-ho scowled at the incoming reports and asked.
“What’s Shinsegai again?”
“Organized crime group operating near Songjeong.”
“Oh, the local crew?”
“Yes.”
“Tell the local cops that if they don’t want to see me accidentally kill some Busan folks, they better handle it themselves—rough ’em up.”
“...Understood.”
New problems erupting before old ones were solved.
“Thirteen armed vehicles speeding down the riverside boulevard! Requesting mobile unit support.”
“...Ah, this is pissing me off.”
Crack—crunch—
Ominous sounds from Yang Seo-ho’s fingertips.
The combat civil servants eyed him uneasily.
“Just declare martial law and shut it all down.”
Everyone’s faces drained pale.
It was Yang Seo-ho saying it. If he declared it, he’d do it.
No one could take back Yang Seo-ho’s words…
Oh, wait—someone could!
The civil servants’ gazes shifted as one. Feeling it, Shin Woo-jin blinked, sighed, and spoke.
“Team leader, please say something sensible.”
“Don’t wanna?”
“It’s not about want—it’s impossible.”
“Want me to create a situation where it makes sense?”
Grrrrr—
The floor beneath Yang Seo-ho warped with a sinister groan.
The surrounding civil servants yelped “Eek!” and jumped back in unison.
“Why’s the floor doing that? Hey, hey—you, you. Tall guy. You.”
The awkwardly nearby ‘tall guy’ pointed at himself, “Huh? Huh?”
“Yeah, you. What’s your name?”
“L-L-L-Lim Hee-young, sir.”
The combat civil servant stammered, trembling.
“Hey, Hee-young. Call the Busan mayor and say the ground’s gonna cave in—so declare martial law, lock all the humans indoors. Earthquakes keep hitting; someone’s gonna get hurt.”
“Huh? H-Huh?”
At the same time, Shin Woo-jin leaped up with a growl—grrrrowl—
“Team leader, I said don’t do that!”
Shin Woo-jin clung to Yang Seo-ho, yelling furiously.
“Ah, annoying. Forget it. Hee-young, stand down.”
“Y-Yes, sir!”
“It’s because you keep doing this that everyone copies you! Know what the mayor said the other day?”
Yang Seo-ho squinted one eye, half-listening, and absentmindedly—
“Got it, so move—”
Reached toward Shin Woo-jin.
A light push at the chest.
The casual sort anyone might do to a buddy…
“Gah!”
Shin Woo-jin recoiled two steps before the hand even touched.
“Hmm…”
Yang Seo-ho’s hand hung awkwardly in the air, shrinking back.
Awkward silence.
Everyone in the emergency ops room stared at Yang Seo-ho.
Bewilderment in their eyes.
Fear.
The gaze toward an alien being.
“N-No, team leader? It’s not like that.”
Shin Woo-jin approached awkwardly.
“Hmph.”
Yang Seo-ho withdrew his hand and asked a nearby civil servant.
“Where on the riverside earlier?”
“Huh?”
“Joyriders, right? Which riverside?”
“The riverside boulevard, sir.”
“Where’s the mobile unit backup? I’ll grab ’em, so tell the unit to keep doing their thing.”
“Team leader, I…”
“Just watch the kids.”
“...Understood.”