The Reason to Grow Stronger
[My child. Your heart seems greatly troubled.]
Even after returning home, I scrambled to find a way to respond to the goddess’s words, which pierced straight through my heart and expressed her concern.
‘Uh, well……’
[Do not panic. Simply think. I can read your heart.]
‘Ah……’
I had made a foolish mistake out of sheer bewilderment.
Of course she could read my heart. She must already know how unusually troubled I was.
‘There are many reasons, but I’m a little flustered because you’ve never spoken to me until now, and suddenly you’re reaching out.’
[It is unfortunate, but the me speaking to you now is not my true self. To put it simply, I am a very small fragment of myself. I never intended to avoid speaking with you from the beginning, my child. I merely waited patiently until you could hear my voice. My voice can only be heard by the soul, not the ears.]
‘Does that mean I’m finally ready to hear your voice?’
[In the beginning, you were nothing more than an ordinary human who did not even know who you were. Then the Awakening Stone stimulated your dormant soul, and a portion of your true power awakened. As you overcame the trials I gave you, your soul was able to grow further. Only now has your soul matured enough to hear my voice.]
‘I still have no idea what my true soul is, or why you keep calling me your child.’
[As I said before, realizing who you are is a fate you must awaken to on your own someday. Just as a mother hen does not break the shell for her chick, breaking the shell of your soul and being born anew is a destiny you must fulfill yourself. My child, I believe the day will surely come when you break that shell and prove who you are.]
The goddess’s expectations weighed on me, yet at the same time, I could not deny a certain desire to live up to them. Regardless of the process, it was an undeniable fact that I owed my current self to the goddess.
‘By the way, when you told me to gather your followers… did you mean that seriously?’
[In the past there were many, but now you are the only one who can act as my proxy in this land. My child.]
‘But I’m not a priest or anything. I’m just an ordinary person who only ever visited a church or temple once during elementary school vacation because my friends dragged me along……’
[My child, do not be afraid. Do not try to teach my doctrine with your lips, nor raise my name with your tongue. Simply show others an example through your conduct, prove my history through the path you have walked, and manifest my will with your sword. That is what it means to become my proxy.]
In other words, keep doing what I have been doing, but make a greater effort to promote the faith to others?
Fine. I’ll give it a shot.
[My child, remain ever vigilant. ‘That day’ draws near. The servants of calamity will spare no effort in preparation. They will also watch for any opportunity to take your life, for you are their greatest obstacle.]
‘That day? What exactly is that day?’
[That day is the Day of the End. The day when the servants’ preparations are complete and the gates of hell open. The horrific scene you witnessed in the trial I gave you will unfold before your eyes once more. The calamities imprisoned in hell will be unleashed upon the world, while the gods who descended into hell to suppress them will instead be trapped there, suffering eternally. Humanity will become slaves to calamity, and the servants of calamity will feast daily on human blood and flesh.]
‘What?!’
I was horrified.
If the goddess’s trial referred to my second awakening, then the terrible tragedy that occurred in the ancient city of Oren could happen here as well?!
[My child, when that time comes, there will be no safe place left in this world. Before that happens, you must find the servants of calamity and stop them. Neither I nor the other gods who descended into hell to suppress calamity can do it. Only you can save the gods… humanity… and this world from destruction.]
‘When you put it that way……’
[I am sorry. To place such a heavy burden on you when you have not even awakened to your true self yet……]
‘It’s actually making me incredibly motivated.’
[…What?]
A smile spread across my lips as I answered the genuinely surprised goddess.
‘My grandfather always says that if you treat others sincerely, you will always receive something in return, one way or another. And this isn’t just one or two people—this is saving the world. I can’t just sit this one out.’
[Pfft…! Hahahaha! My child, you truly are a remarkable one. Even after learning your true mission, you feel no fear?]
‘I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t scared. But even if I’m afraid, I have to do it. If someone has to, then I will. And if I’m going to do it, I’ll do it properly—thoroughly, and with everything I have—so I won’t have any regrets. That’s my way.’
[……My child, I am truly glad that you are my child.]
With that, the goddess’s message ended.
I had no way of knowing whether the fragment’s power had been exhausted or if she was merely resting, but at least I now understood why I possessed this power.
I recalled what had happened in Oren.
Countless Anarchy monsters covering the horizon.
The sight of those grotesque beings—creatures so alien that calling them monsters felt almost endearing—swarming in endless waves could only be described as hell itself.
‘I have to stop that scene from ever happening again, no matter what.’
Now the goddess’s words made perfect sense.
Her command to establish a faith.
I could not do this alone. No matter how strong I became, I could not block ten hands with one. Trying to protect the world by myself would be the height of arrogance and foolishness.
At the very least, I needed strong comrades I could trust and rely on.
That must be why the goddess had added restrictions when I purified cursed items.
‘Before that, though, I need to get stronger first. Right now, I’m nowhere near enough.’
I pulled out my phone.
“Ah, Sowon. Sorry about this. I know we agreed to take today off. You’re sure it’s fine? Thank you. I’ll see you in a bit, then.”
After meeting the Director and handling the Grade 1 confidential matter, it had been quite late, so I had decided to rest today. But I could not afford to sit around doing nothing, even for a moment.
Even though it was already late evening, I headed out with Sowon to clear the Tower.
＊＊＊
The next day, late afternoon.
As the sun was beginning to set, I checked my phone after emerging from the Tower and found three missed calls.
“Who called?”
“The Director. I think I should go see him.”
“Ah, go ahead. I’ll head home too. Good work today, Humin.”
“You too, Sowon. Get home safe.”
After settling the accounts and seeing Sowon off, I called Director Lee Won-hyung and arranged an immediate meeting.
“Hello, Director.”
“Welcome. Hunter Ahn Humin. I contacted you urgently because of the investigation into Deputy So Hong-min of Public Security Division 3 and his family, as you requested.”
“What did you find?”
At my question, Director Lee Won-hyung nodded with a heavier expression.
“As you suspected, Hunter, there does seem to be something going on with Deputy So Hong-min. After a discreet investigation, we discovered that his current family members are not his real family. His wife and children are all actors hired to play the roles. Even the family register has been falsified.”
‘I had a feeling……’
Just as I had seen in the prophetic dream, it was highly likely that So Hong-min’s real family was being held hostage by the Black Death Clan.
Of course, there was also the option of quietly eliminating So Hong-min, but that was truly a last resort.
“Should we remove Deputy So Hong-min from the operation?”
“No. I don’t think that’s a good idea. They still don’t know we suspect him. There’s no reason for them to. If we suddenly remove him from the operation without cause, it’ll create unnecessary variables. That would work against us.”
To make proper use of the prophetic dream, it was best to minimize variables as much as possible.
Thanks to the dream, I had learned that So Hong-min was a traitor, but if I removed him now, I would not know what new variables might arise until I had another prophetic dream.
There was even a chance that something bad could happen to my brother-in-law before I could dream again.
“I agree with your assessment, Hunter. In this case, rather than removing Deputy So Hong-min from the operation, it would be more beneficial for us to make use of him.”
“Make use of him?”
At my question, Director Lee Won-hyung answered calmly.
“We should feed them false information. If they take the bait, we can wipe them out in one stroke.”
“But for that, Deputy So Hong-min’s resolve and his family’s safety must come first. He won’t be able to betray them until he confirms his family is safe.”
“We’ve already located his family.”
“Really?”
I asked in surprise. It had only been yesterday that I asked for the investigation into Deputy So Hong-min, yet they had already pinpointed where his real family was living?
“Deputy So Hong-min goes to Thailand for golf every other weekend. But when we checked his credit card transactions, there was no record of him ever using a golf shop in Korea. Isn’t that strange? A man so obsessed with golf that he travels overseas every two weeks has never once used a domestic golf shop.”
“He must have had another purpose.”
“While investigating his past movements, we discovered that the last woman he was involved with six years ago is currently living in Thailand. We obtained a hair sample from her child at the international kindergarten the child attends, and the results confirmed a 99.99996% DNA match with Deputy So Hong-min this morning.”
‘Wow……’
I could not help but be genuinely impressed by the Awakening Management Bureau’s intelligence capabilities.
“The problem is rescuing the family. There are likely quite a few Black Death Clan members watching over them locally. They’ve probably also hired local villains with money. If a large number of our agents enter Thailand, they’ll be the first to draw attention. Requesting support from the Thai government would also be difficult.”
“In that case, I’ll go.”
“You, Hunter?”
“Yes. I’m not well-known to the public yet, and I should be able to rescue Deputy So Hong-min’s family safely even if I go alone.”
“Hmm……”
Director Lee Won-hyung’s deliberation dragged on.
“How about sending Team A instead?”
Team A.
The Bureau’s special forces unit, composed of only the most elite field agents. Their reputation was infamous even among the clans, with abilities so overwhelming that calling them one-man armies would be an understatement.
But……
“No. I have other tasks I’d like to entrust to Team A.”
“Then……”
“Yes. This matter must be handled by me alone. That’s the only optimal solution.”
When my resolve remained firm, Director Lee Won-hyung finally nodded.
“I’m very uneasy about sending you alone, Hunter Ahn Humin, but if that’s the only way, then I understand. If anything happens, please prioritize your own safety over the operation. Your well-being is now essentially a national asset of Korea.”
“Yes. I will.”
“Then, on behalf of the Bureau, I ask this of you.”
“I’ll do my best.”
This concerned my brother-in-law’s safety. Of course I would do my absolute best.