Chapter 583: A Stale Old Connection (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 583: A Stale Old Connection (2)
I turned to Director Kim Seong-tae, who was standing there with an apologetic look, and asked again.
“So… you’re saying the Ministry of Land Protection took Jincheon?”
“…Yes.”
The Ministry of Land Protection was essentially the vanguard of Hexagram, a group plotting to overthrow the nation.
Which meant the enemy I’d worked so hard to catch had just gone back to his own hideout.
“Haaah.”
This was seriously crossing the line.
How much of a joke did they take me for, to not cut their losses but actually try to rescue him?
As my face crumpled in displeasure, Director Kim Seong-tae hastily bowed his head.
“I am truly sorry. I have no excuse. I will find a way to resolve this, so if you could just give me a little time…”
“No, no.”
He looked like he was about to prostrate himself, so I grabbed his shoulders and forced him up.
“It’s fine, please get up.”
I meant it.
I wasn’t the least bit angry at him or the Association.
How could the ones who were robbed be at fault?
The ones at fault were the bastards who snatched what was in someone else’s grasp.
Besides, I knew how much they had accommodated me. There was no way I’d get angry over something like this.
“You don’t have to feel so sorry. It’s not like the Association gave him up willingly, right?”
“St-still.”
“Hey, I said it’s fine. And you don’t need to start a conflict with the Ministry because of me.”
He’d said he would find a way, but that was surely just to placate me.
The Association probably knew it too.
That for now, the best course of action was to keep their heads down, no matter how shitty it felt.
“I’ll take care of it myself, so don’t worry about me. Just focus on the Association.”
His eyes widened slightly.
“Will you… really be alright?”
“Yes, I’ll be perfectly fine.”
In truth, it wasn’t a matter of being alright or not.
Thinking about it rationally, the current Association wouldn’t be of much help to me.
They had accumulated too much bad karma to stand up to the rapidly growing Ministry of Land Protection.
Even in a simple game, there are patches that users love and patches they hate.
The Association was no different.
While they had policies that benefited both Hunters and the public, there were certainly others that seemed designed only to line their own pockets.
And isn’t it human nature to remember one mistake more vividly than ten good deeds?
For that reason, the Association had to keep its head down for now.
So as not to draw the aggro of people who were ready to tear anyone apart.
“I’ll be on my way.”
The only reason I came here was for Jincheon.
If he wasn’t here, my business was done.
Just before I turned to leave the way I came, he asked me.
“Are you perhaps thinking of going to the Ministry yourself?”
“……”
He catches on quick.
* * *
You can let it slide once.
To be precise, it’s less about letting it slide and more about it being a time for self-reflection.
Why did I get hit here?
What should I have done to avoid it?
To prevent the same thing from happening again, what should I focus on from now on?
“Yeah, just once, you can think of it as bitter medicine.”
But not twice.
A time when he was backstabbed by the same person twice and did nothing?
I can say with certainty that in his entire life, such a thing had never happened.
“If I stay quiet, they should know when to stop. Tsk.”
Having endured countless insults and ridicule since childhood just for being an orphan, he knew.
That enduring things wasn’t always the answer.
He didn’t know that when he was young and always put up with it, only for the bullying to cross the line, causing him immense pain.
Since then, he made a promise to himself.
It’s best not to get hit at all, but if you do, endure it once.
But never let it slide a second time.
Kim Do-jin flew through the sky and arrived at the Ministry of Land Protection’s headquarters in Jung-gu.
Landing lightly on the ground, he clicked his tongue as he looked at the massive government building before him.
“Quite the spectacle.”
The grounds and buildings were excessively large for a newly established ministry.
This was a stark indicator of the Ministry’s current standing.
The future of South Korea’s national security, growing rapidly with the support of both the people and the ruling party.
People said that with every move they made, the nation’s security grew stronger.
He couldn’t help but laugh whenever he saw that.
“It’s not even funny.”
He wasn’t blaming the people.
It couldn’t be helped.
He knew their true identity, but the people didn’t.
He was just dizzy from the sheer brilliance of the scheme they’d woven to capture the public’s hearts.
He couldn’t just blindly accuse them and reveal their true nature.
To suddenly start criticizing them while everyone else was cheering them on?
He’d face immediate backlash.
That was the implication of changing a security system that relied on one or a few individuals.
It meant reducing the reliance on S-ranks and strengthening the power of the collective.
In other words, it was no different from saying they would diminish the status of S-ranks.
If he spoke out now, it would obviously be dismissed as the baseless slander of a greedy S-rank Hunter worried about his own influence shrinking.
What’s more, they were hiding their true intentions while genuinely dedicating themselves to the country.
“Looks like they plan to catch their breath and build up their foundation for a bit…”
To expose their true nature, he had to shatter their current image.
Hunters dedicated to the safety of the nation and its people.
That perception of them as true heroes, united by a sense of duty, unlike other Hunters who only care about money.
He had to strip that away, whether by finding fault with every little thing or by creating an incident and framing them for it. Only then would he have a chance of winning.
“This should be fun.”
Kim Do-jin smirked, one corner of his mouth curling up.
He was curious.
How would they react?
And how would he counter their moves?
Because the Kim Do-jin before being wronged and the Kim Do-jin plotting revenge after are fundamentally different.
“Time to head in.”
By now, most of them would have noticed he had entered the building.
He walked at a leisurely pace into the largest building in the center of the complex.
People bustled about.
He went to a desk where a man in uniform was standing and stated his purpose.
“I’m here to see the Minister of Land Protection.”
The man looked up, saw Kim Do-jin’s face, and flinched.
It was only natural.
He must have thought I was some crazy person for showing up out of the blue asking to see the Minister, but he couldn’t help but be surprised when an S-rank Hunter was standing right in front of him.
He asked in a trembling voice, “D-do you have an appointment?”
“No. Something urgent came up, so I just came.”
“W-well, yes, I’ll contact his office right away.”
If it had been an ordinary person, or someone with even slightly less clout, he would have been rejected on the spot.
The Minister of Land Protection was currently that busy.
But Kim Do-jin was different.
He wasn’t just any S-rank Hunter; he was a next-generation rising star drawing global attention.
The man knew he couldn’t predict what kind of reprimand he’d face for turning him away without even checking.
As he dialed the secretary’s office with trembling fingers, the answer he wanted came back immediately.
-“The Minister will see Hunter Kim Do-jin. Send him up immediately.”
It seemed they were already aware of his arrival.
“Ah, understood.”
The call ended as soon as he replied.
He immediately came out from behind the desk and led Kim Do-jin to the elevator.
“You can go straight up to the 8th floor.”
“Thanks.”
“N-not at all. I hope you have a meaningful time!”
The elevator doors closed as the man gave a respectful bow.
Standing alone inside, a faint smile played on his lips.
“A meaningful time, he says.”
It would certainly be a time where deep meanings were exchanged.
Of course, whether that would be for the better or for the worse remained to be seen.
Ding!
The elevator arrived on the 8th floor and the doors opened.
Beyond them, a woman in a modest outfit was waiting. She bowed her head as he stepped out.
“Welcome, Hunter Kim Do-jin. I will guide you to the Minister.”
The woman walked ahead and knocked on a large door at the end of the hallway.
Knock, knock!
“Minister, I’ve brought Hunter Kim Do-jin.”
“Come in.”
Click.
The door finally opened.
In a room far too large for one person, a single man was working alone.
He appeared to be a middle-aged man in his mid-forties.
I took a moment to count.
‘How old was that Maengkkongi Ajae again?’
He was in his mid-forties when he retired, so he should be in his mid-fifties by now.
His face hadn’t aged much since then.
His body was even toned.
His aura was actually stronger than it was when he retired.
Noticing this, a strange light gleamed in Kim Do-jin’s eyes.
‘Look at this guy.’
Even at the time of his retirement, he was an A-rank not far from S-rank.
The fact that his aura was stronger now meant he had reached S-rank after retiring.
And yet, he hadn't revealed it.
Even though just revealing he had become an S-rank would have garnered him much more attention.
‘Does that mean… he was bought out before he even became S-rank?’
Or perhaps he became an S-rank with the help of the organization.
Either way, it seemed he had deliberately downplayed his own status.
He must have been just holding his position without causing any trouble until the organization gave him his orders.
When a well-known person leads such a revolution, it’s bound to create backlash or suspicion.
Especially for a congressman.
Their public image is so bad that people are suspicious even when they propose good policies.
Does he have some ulterior motive? Or is he pretending to do this because he did something wrong?
But he was a nobody.
An ill-fated congressman whose good policies for the nation’s security had been repeatedly shot down in the past.
That image was probably brought to light later, turning him into an incorruptible figure.
Maeng Gi-yong, hiding a body trained to its absolute limit beneath his suit, stood up and approached.
“This is the first time we’re meeting like this, isn’t it? I’m Maeng Gi-yong.”
He extended a hand with a friendly smile.
As if not to be outdone, Kim Do-jin also put on a bright smile and shook his hand.
“Kim Do-jin.”
A light exchange of blows passed through their clasped hands.
As Maeng Gi-yong’s subtle mana flowed through his palm, Kim Do-jin locked down his insides.
Not completely, just partially.
Enough to prevent his opponent from fully grasping his true strength.
Their hands separated.
“Let’s have a seat first.”
“Of course.”
The two men sat facing each other.
Maeng Gi-yong asked.
“So, what brings you here so suddenly?”
His words carried a hint of rebuke.
As if to say, What kind of manners is it to show up unannounced and demand to see someone?
To this, Kim Do-jin replied.
“I heard the Ministry took an assassin who was being held by the Association.”
“Ah… if you’re talking about the villain who tried to assassinate you, Hunter Kim Do-jin, then yes. Our Ministry recently acquired special investigation authority from the Association.”
His response implied, We just took custody of the criminal along with the investigation rights, what’s the problem?
He wasn’t wrong.
But it was a different story when I was involved.
“I heard you received the investigation rights. But as you know, that bastard tried to kill me.”
“Yes. We are also aware of the gravity of the situation and are preparing to interrogate him with the utmost care…”
“No.”
Kim Do-jin cut him off as he tried to prevent him from getting involved.
“No need to go to all that trouble. I’d like to interrogate him myself.”
His face hardened slightly.
“As I recall, an S-rank Hunter’s authority does not include such a right.”
This is not your place.
Don’t cross the line, and back off.
To this warning, Kim Do-jin replied with a charming smile.
“I may not have the authority, but you, Minister, can certainly grant it.”
What do you mean, no?
Shut up and hand him over.
Though he was smiling, Maeng Gi-yong firmly shook his head at the coercive attitude.
“I’m afraid that’s not possible.”
An unusual tension began to swirl between the two men.