Chapter 291
Chapter 291
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 291
Chapter Title: 67. New Capital, Seoul (1)
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“This should be enough.”
Having finished his one-sided announcement, Young-woo spotted the Neguig carrying two slaves racing toward him from afar.
-Kweeeek!
It was only after the core had been extracted and all the gates of the Metal Jigum Fortress had opened that the creature could finally enter.
‘Oh, come to think of it, the Neguig hasn’t been able to enter until now.’
It had been a shame when the Metal Jigum Fortress belonged to the enemy, but now that he was about to claim the ‘core’ for himself, it actually put him in a good mood.
‘The Metal Jigum Fortress’s defenses were strong enough to keep out the Neguig? Doesn’t that mean Metal Seoul will be the same?’
In this tense situation where the other two planetary development companies had simultaneously declared war on ‘Dogo,’ improved defenses in Seoul were nothing but a boon.
Especially since he planned to use Metal Seoul as Dogo’s Earth business headquarters soon.
‘Of course, the Seoul citizens will hate it... but I’ll have to convince them somehow.’
As he had just announced himself, there was only one hour left until the business briefing.
So Young-woo hurriedly placed his hand on the ‘core’ in front of him.
Thud.
Then, a Toma tool tip appeared for the first time since the reset.
「Steel Core」 - ◇ Toma Power Source
【C-Rank Development Zone Creation】
【Guardian Dragon】
【Extermination Posture】
‘A Toma power source, huh.’
Young-woo made an intrigued expression, and soon a detailed explanation appeared below.
Flash!
【C-Rank Development Zone Creation】
|Transforms the designated area into a state that can be reinforced.
【Guardian Dragon】
|Increases all #Dragonkin stats within the reinforced area by 20%.
【Extermination Posture】
|This power source supports a special defense system.
‘Ah, it’s like a mode-switching item.’
He’d have to try it in Seoul to know for sure, but he could already guess from the tool tip.
If he placed this core somewhere in Seoul and activated it, a certain area would shift into a modifiable state.
Then, through some process, it would transform into a bizarre fortress like the Metal Jigum Fortress.
However.
‘But the one who told me to designate a new capital with this isn’t Toma—it’s Dogo?’
[Dogo] “Capital Relocation”
<Mission> Secure the Jigum Fortress modification core and designate a new capital.
<Special> In this mission, you must disclose Dogo’s support.
<Reward> 30 million karma
So, would Dogo be the one reinforcing the ‘new capital’? Or would it be Toma, the core’s creator?
‘This is really hard to figure out.’
He wouldn’t know until he actually used the core.
One thing was certain: just as he himself was bound to Dogo by an advertising contract, Toma must have some deal with Im Du-pyeong.
‘There was definitely a 500 million allocation mark right under Im Du-pyeong’s chin. Probably a debt or something.’
But the core he had just acquired had not a single line of related tool tip.
In other words, Im Du-pyeong’s talk of ‘becoming a god’ was likely a separate contract with Toma.
And whatever it was, it had probably saved him from his 300 million lives.
‘Toma wouldn’t block 300 million lives for a mere 500 million debt. This guy must have sold something really important.’
An ominous premonition crept in, but there were no clear losses among what he could see right now.
After all, hadn’t he obtained the core without paying any additional fees?
That alone made it a solid gain.
“Neguig, let’s head back to Seoul first. Public sentiment is the top priority right now.”
Without the people’s support in all this, Jeong Young-woo07 would just be a lackey for aliens, trash of Earth.
So Young-woo absolutely needed the support of the people—the voters.
He didn’t want to lose public favor and see a second Number One Swordsman rise.
‘And I don’t want to kill that successor with my own hands. That would truly set me on an irredeemable villain’s path.’
From the contract with Dogo to the orc autonomous region approval and the invasion of China... he had stirred up so much lately that to properly handle it all, there needed to be no rivals left on the Korean Peninsula at least.
Too many cooks spoil the broth, after all.
‘Good thing I have the core, so I can show at least some results.’
Young-woo’s politics, armed only with destructive power, could only be results-oriented.
Crunch.
As Young-woo gripped the core tightly, its massive size shrank down to fit in his palm.
With that, he hopped onto the Neguig’s back and pointed east with his bastard sword.
Whiiiish!
“Alright, let’s go! Today, I’ll present the future of the Korean Peninsula!”
* * *
At the same time, near COEX in Gangnam, Seoul.
The ones busiest from Young-woo’s insane announcement were none other than the Taewon Group.
Jeong Gu had suddenly informed them of Young-woo’s ‘business briefing,’ forcing them to prepare a massive event in just one hour.
Of course, Young-woo himself just planned to chat with the various Number One Swordsmen and citizens on the street, but Taewon’s position was different.
“No way they gathered this fast? Word sure spreads quick.”
Jeong Gu muttered as he saw the crowds blanketing the area around the tower in Gangnam, and Im Seon-ah, standing beside him, looked troubled.
“It’ll be way more crowded in an hour.”
“...You mean even more people than this?”
“Yes. There’ll definitely be folks coming from Gangbuk and Gangseo. A ‘Number One Swordsman’s’ business briefing... it’s a huge event.”
Everyone in Seoul—no, the entire Korean Peninsula—knew that their elected representative, chosen by all voters, wasn’t right in the head.
Yet the times were so brutal that they had no choice but to elect such a brutal figure, handing power to the once-in-a-generation madman Jeong Young-woo07.
And not even dozens of hours had passed before this happened.
[Development Company 1 ‘Remu’ has declared war on ‘Dogo.’]
[Development Company 2 ‘Mara’ has declared war on ‘Dogo.’]
Had it been a mistake after all?
The Jeong Young-woo07 everyone had united to elect had brought war to the Korean Peninsula.
“Cosmic war... I still can’t quite believe it.”
Im Seon-ah gave a wry smile.
Jeong Gu bowed his head to her with an apologetic expression.
“I’m sorry. It must be worrying. He’s my son, but he’s beyond my control... I’m at a loss too.”
“Oh, no, Father. This isn’t something for you to apologize for.”
Seon-ah waved her hands as if she were the sorry one, and Jeong Gu quickly straightened up.
Swipe.
Then, with a completely different expression, he stroked his chin.
“Hmm, but.”
“......?”
“He wouldn’t start something without a plan. The guy’s too sly to fight a losing battle.”
“What do you mean...”
“If it was worth starting a war, he started it.”
“...Pardon?”
Seon-ah’s eyes widened, but she soon regained her composure and whispered to Jeong Gu.
“You’d better not say things like that out here, Father.”
Win or lose the war, a fight with outside forces was always a burden to ordinary citizens.
And Seon-ah, as a Taewon Group employee, was no exception.
‘At least Young-woo and Father are safe from assassination. That’s a relief.’
One convenient thing about preparing for this ‘business briefing’ was security.
No matter how many crowds or martial artists gathered, they didn’t need to worry about the VIP’s safety—that was a plus.
‘And everything else is...’
Variables or headaches.
As Seon-ah reached to rub her throbbing forehead but barely stopped herself, a group of Number One Swordsmen approached from afar at speeds unbelievable for humans.
“See? I told you he’d cause trouble eventually. And faster than I expected.”
“Being the strongest and becoming the representative are different things, sure...”
“How do you even get declarations of war on your first day in office?”
They were none other than Oh Yeon-hee of Songpa, Seocho’s Number One Swordsman Choi Nam-hee, and Dongjak’s Lee Han-wook.
The three Number One Swordsmen from the Gangnam area were racing side by side.
Then Oh Yeon-hee spotted Jeong Gu first and began slowing down.
“Father!”
“Oh dear, Yeon-hee.”
“Where’s Young-woo? Not here yet?”
Yeon-hee’s eyes burned with hostility toward Young-woo.
No matter how great Young-woo’s achievements had been, she couldn’t condone him sparking a 2-versus-1 war.
And it wasn’t just her.
The crowds gathered near the tower and COEX wore expressions full of discontent and fear.
“Seeking approval for war? What kind of nonsense announcement was that? Not even putting it to a vote—he’s just asking for permission?”
As Oh Yeon-hee vented at Jeong Gu on Young-woo’s behalf, he bowed his head again.
“Yes, I saw the same wording, and it was truly outrageous.”
But he didn’t forget to add a follow-up.
“Our side’s the one that got declared on, though? When the enemy’s already charging with swords drawn, we can’t just sit around debating whether to fight.”
“Still, words matter, don’t they? At least the nuance...”
As the two bickered over ‘war approval,’ the crowds around the tower began to stir.
“Whoa?”
“He’s coming!”
“Wow, what’s that?”
It was because those staring at the sky had finally spotted it.
Fwaaaash...!
A streak of light was crossing the sky from afar, like a shooting star.
“A, a Number One Swordsman?”
“Number One Swordsman!”
“The Number One Swordsman’s here?”
Even though several Number One Swordsmen were already present, everyone called for just one ‘Number One Swordsman.’
The one riding the starlight across the sky, the Korean Peninsula’s one and only elected Number One Swordsman, Jeong Young-woo07.
Shiiiing!
Soon, the incoming beam of light plunged straight into the top of the ‘tower’ that had pierced Gangnam, and the people gasped, surging toward the tower’s entrance.
Most had come to see the face of the foolish Number One Swordsman who brought war, but witnessing his star-like movement made them forget why they even came.
“Number One Swordsman!”
“Young-woo!”
Even amid the chaos, crowds continued pouring into the tower and COEX area in Gangnam.
And finally.
Piiiing!
The tower flashed white for a moment, one side of its outer wall arching open like a gate, and out stepped Jeong Young-woo himself.
“Huh? He’s here!”
“Young-woo! Jeong Young-woo...!”
As the people rushed forward clamoring for the ‘Number One Swordsman,’ Young-woo shouted loudly from atop the Neguig.
“Everyone! Back off! If even one person gets hurt here today, I won’t do the business briefing. I’ll just start a war for no reason. Got it?”
“Wha, what...?”
The crowd, in a frenzy, froze in stunned silence at the unimaginable remark.
Then they dredged up their forgotten anger and hurled it at the Number One Swordsman.
“Y-Yeah! War’s breaking out because of you!”
“What the hell happened?”
“Explain! We trusted and voted for you, and you start a war in one day?”
In response, the Korean Peninsula’s representative, Jeong Young-woo07, pulled out the ‘core’ from his bosom.
Flash!
He looked around at the crowd and asked.
“Why do you think the war’s my fault? Got proof?”
“...What?”
“Huh...?”
The people went blank again for a moment.
Young-woo quickly followed up.
“What you should be asking isn’t why the war started—it’s how we win it. You should be asking if I brought the way to win.”
“......”
The crowd fell silent at Young-woo’s words.
Then someone from the back asked.
“So, what’s the way to win? Did you bring it?”
It was none other than Young-woo’s biological father, Jeong Gu.
So Young-woo.
Swipe.
Glanced at his father briefly, then tossed the core into the air.
The fist-sized core began to grow, spinning in Gangnam’s sky, and Young-woo grinned wickedly at the sight.
“Win the war? The whole country will kneel before us.”
Right on cue, the core in the sky expanded to an absurd size, its shadow blanketing Gangnam in darkness.
“Huh...?”
“W-Wait.”
“Do we really need them to kneel...? Why?”
It was then that the citizens realized something crucial.
Because someone in the crowd asked in a tiny voice.
“Um, by any chance... are we the villains?”