Chapter 109
Translator : M.N 1391
Chapter: 109
American think tanks had already predicted these kinds of changes brought about by the emergence of superpowers.
The government’s approval of hero companies was not merely the result of corporate lobbying. It was also a state-level effort to slow the pace of change by integrating superhumans into the existing order. Corporate lobbying merely assisted that attempt.
This direction taken by the government was unavoidable. The appearance of superpowers did not only bring economic change, but inevitably led to deeper, more fundamental changes, philosophical and political ones as well.
And senior government officials foresaw that it was precisely these political and ideological shifts that would lead to the most intense clashes.
The Cold War era between the Soviet Union and the United States left behind a lesson: ideology must never be treated lightly or casually.
“Is that so.”
Kyung-wan nodded, saying he understood.
But Kim Jun felt frustrated. There was no way he couldn’t sense the underlying psychology behind that single remark, I’m not interested, this has nothing to do with me.
Kim Jun spoke with concern and apprehension.
“As superhuman organizations continue to merge and split while growing larger, attacks targeting you will also increase.”
“Am I really that desirable?”
“The merging and splitting of superhuman groups is, in other words, a power struggle to seize hegemony in a new era. Just as espionage between the Soviet Union and the United States was fierce during the Cold War, the idea of planting spies inside each other’s organizations isn’t new. We believe that Übermensch tried to recruit you in order to root out internal traitors or spies.”
“Is that your personal opinion, or is that what your superiors think?”
“It’s the view from above.”
“Hm...”
Kyung-wan rubbed his chin.
So basically, villains and the like might come looking for him now and then in an attempt to pull him in?
“So you’re telling me to go to the United States?”
“...Can you behave yourself?”
“I can’t guarantee that.”
When Kim Jun asked cautiously, Kyung-wan answered honestly.
Just as expected.
Kim Jun shook his head as if he’d anticipated this.
“Let’s pretend you didn’t hear that.”
“Sure.”
“Anyway, fine. I won’t bring up vigilantes, but please keep your distance from Übermensch.”
“Why?”
“If vigilantes are a self-appointed group that targets criminals who slip through the legal net, then Übermensch are revolutionaries aiming to overthrow the system itself. From our standpoint, Übermensch are far more concerning than vigilantes.”
Kyung-wan replied.
“From my perspective, I can only say I side with the winning team.”
“...What do you mean by that...”
“You said the All-American Superhuman Association, right? Do you really think there isn’t a single Übermensch member in there?”
“...”
Kim Jun looked as though he’d been struck in the back of the head.
“People who want to build a new order aren’t so simple that they’d only aim for revolution from below. They could also gain power from within and use legally obtained authority from the existing system, don’t you think?”
“Uh... well... that’s possible. If that’s the case, then Mister Lee,”
“I refuse.”
“...I haven’t even said it yet...”
“It’s obvious. You want me to expose Übermensch.”
“...”
Kyung-wan continued while looking at the now-silent Kim Jun.
“No one knows what the future holds. Making enemies of ambitious people for no reason is just tiring.”
“You think the United States will lose?”
“I think the United States might cooperate with them.”
Kim Jun’s brow furrowed, and Kyung-wan went on.
“Wouldn’t the United States be willing to compromise with Übermensch if it served national interests?”
“...The United States protects liberal democracy.”
“Oh, sure. On the surface. But it’s practically a plutocracy, isn’t it?”
Super PACs, legalized lobbying, the American political scene was already being swayed by massive capital.
Capital concentrated in the hands of a few, and the Washington political establishment intertwined with it, how would they view Übermensch?
The moment it seemed more beneficial to embrace them than to clash with them, more helpful to national interests and capitalists alike, and feasible to do so, Kyung-wan believed that the United States would tolerate an organization like Übermensch. In that regard, plutocracy was more flexible than liberal democracy.
Kim Jun, who had grown up in the United States, understood its structure better than Kyung-wan, making it difficult for him to refute that argument.
Even if Übermensch committed illegal acts, didn’t the United States have plea bargaining?
At present, many people expressed concern about Übermensch, but they shared a common denominator in their pursuit of power. There would surely be room for compromise.
After all, weren’t superpowers the key to future power?
What those in power truly hated was not political rivals, but revolutionaries who would overturn the very system that sustained their power.
If they could preserve that system and crush the revolutionaries, those in power were the kind of beings who would gladly join hands even with future rivals.
“Right now, Übermensch may seem like an illegal organization, but they haven’t caused any major crimes against humanity, have they?”
“...Murder is also a crime against humanity...”
In countries with poor public security, there had been numerous murder cases committed by superhumans identifying themselves as members of Übermensch.
But Kyung-wan waved it off.
“Murder isn’t all the same. Motive matters. Killing driven by competition and killing for the sheer pleasure of harming the weak have completely different meanings, don’t they?”
No matter how one looked at it, Übermensch had not crossed a point of no return with the United States. They were simply too small to negotiate yet, so they were biding their time while growing larger.
That was how Kyung-wan saw it.
Wasn’t the current turmoil caused by Übermensch merely noise produced during that growth process?
“Whenever I talk with you, I’m often deeply surprised.”
Kim Jun recalled why he had come to see Kyung-wan in the first place.
In this increasingly chaotic period, where the value of Kyung-wan’s mind-reading ability continued to rise, he had intended to propose placing him somewhere safe, whether in the United States or at some location within Korea, under a witness protection program. Yet somehow, that idea had been completely wiped from his mind.
Kyung-wan’s entirely different perspective on Übermensch made Kim Jun feel his own outlook broaden.
But that very realization also reminded him of his original purpose, prompting Kim Jun to say this.
“For your safety, have you considered hiding somewhere for a while?”
“Well. I don’t really want to.”
Running away out of fear of small fry hurt his pride. More than that, it was simply annoying. If he kept running, when would the problem ever be resolved? It would only be troublesome and exhausting.
“Then...”
Kim Jun trailed off with a worried expression, and Kyung-wan fully understood what he was trying to say.
“If I get recruitment offers, I’ll politely decline. If they try to kidnap me, I’ll just smash them.”
At that answer, Kim Jun looked regretful.
“I wish you’d cooperate that enthusiastically in capturing villains as well...”
Kim Jun wasn’t particularly worried about Kyung-wan being kidnapped by an organization like Übermensch.
The ability Kyung-wan had shown in suppressing superpowers during his fight with Hicksman meant that, with appropriate public authority support, it would be nearly impossible for a villain organization to abduct him.
“So in the end, you plan to stay here.”
“Yes. A bunch of new games just came out. Quite a few good ones, actually.”
“Understood. Then let’s implant a tracking microchip.”
“...What?”
“You heard me. Why pretend you didn’t? We need to reassure the overly anxious so they don’t start having pointless ideas.”
Fair enough.
Kyung-wan nodded. They said people full of suspicion, when anxiety grows, pointless delusions follow. And with that, misunderstandings came easily.
“But is there something other than implanting it under the skin?”
“Didn’t you say before that things like ankle monitors feel like being treated as a sex offender?”
At that, Kyung-wan quietly agreed to have a tracking microchip implanted in his left upper arm.
As the chip was implanted, he resolved that if he ever went outside and saw guys wearing ankle monitors, he’d crack their skulls without a word.
If those bastards hadn’t ruined the image of ankle monitors, he wouldn’t be feeling this uneasy about getting a microchip implanted in the first place.
And what? They’re frustrated? Feel like they’re being treated like animals? Feel their human rights are being violated? Do these idiots need to be culled before they understand what it really means to be treated like animals?
In any case, Kim Jun left with a look of relief, glad he at least had something to put in his report after implementing the minimum safety measure.
And a few days later, Kyung-wan met with the Chinese ambassador to Korea and a vice minister from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Vice Minister Han Jung-byeok from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and this is Ambassador Joo Young-tae, the Chinese ambassador to Korea.”
“What’s this about?”
The vice minister didn’t beat around the bush and got straight to the point.
They had apprehended a serial murder suspect in China, but the last kidnapped victim was the daughter of a party official. They were interrogating the suspect, but he stubbornly refused to speak.
“Uh... really? That’s easy. Bring that bastard here and I’ll tell you whether what he says is true or not.”
At Kyung-wan’s words, the vice minister looked troubled.
“The families of the victims he killed will not tolerate him being taken abroad.”
“Even if it’s just a lie-detection test?”
“They’re worried he might escape during transport, and also that sensitive investigative details could leak overseas during interrogation.”
“Have you already discussed this with the Chinese side?”
“Of course.”
The government knew Kyung-wan’s value well. They wouldn’t want to send him abroad unnecessarily, so they would have proposed early on that the suspect be brought to Korea for a lie-detection test.
But China’s response then likely hadn’t been much different from what Kyung-wan was hearing now.
Or perhaps they had even offered something extra in exchange for bringing Kyung-wan to China to interrogate the suspect?
“So what are you getting out of it?”
Kyung-wan asked.
No way the country gets to take everything. Damn right.
He had no intention whatsoever of becoming a performing bear. As someone once said in a movie, when kindness continues, people start mistaking it for a right. He decided to prevent that in advance by demanding fair compensation for his labor.
At Kyung-wan’s words, the vice minister’s face filled with discomfort.
“Well... it’s a matter between states, so it’s classified.”
“So what’s in it for me?”
Realizing he wanted a cut, the vice minister asked directly.
“How much do you want?”
“One annual furlough.”
“I’d rather give you money,”
“Oh, come on. What good is money to me when I can’t even use it? And even without taking money, I can earn plenty on my own. Just writing a memoir about the things I’ve done would make a fortune. Title it Memories of a Terrorist. What do you think? Or maybe something about stabbing a guy in the waist?”
At that, the vice minister blinked blankly, then suddenly grabbed the back of his neck as if a headache hit him. After steadying himself, he spoke in a serious tone.
“That will be difficult.”
Was he saying furlough was difficult? That the book becoming a hit would be difficult? Or that he’d make sure such a book could never be written?
Kyung-wan chose to interpret it in the way most favorable to himself.