Bombshell at Unity Hall
Washington, USA.
The conference hall of Unity Hall.
An unusual tension hung in the air where representatives from around the world had gathered.
All eyes?
Were fixed on one seat.
──DELEGATION SEATS──
The seat of a certain nation that was still empty.
Normally, the top-tier nations would have sneered with discomfort.
—Shouldn't a powerless country arrive three hours before the meeting starts?
—They'll only come to their senses after suffering all sorts of disadvantages from diplomatic and economic pressure.
That was only natural.
Tower rankings were equivalent to national power.
And that power was fully reflected in the hierarchy among the delegations, down to the smallest details.
But today?
It was entirely different.
The nation that hadn't arrived yet had become the biggest topic worldwide recently.
And it had leaped from the bottom ranks straight to the top in one go.
'Damn it, when the hell are they showing up?''We've got a mountain of questions to ask, but I doubt we'll even get a proper chance to speak.'
They could only bite their nails and wait anxiously for their appearance.
Delegations arrived one by one.
Five minutes before the opening, only that nation's seat remained empty.
At that moment, finally.
"The Korean delegation is entering!"
With the entrance of the Korean delegation, the atmosphere in the hall flipped completely.
Click! Click! Click!
Reporters' shutters flashed relentlessly.
The broadcast cameras focused solely on the Korean delegation.
The representatives from other countries, already seated, shot them dissatisfied glares.
The commotion died down.
Clack— Clack—
The sound of dress shoes echoed in the silence.
Cha Minhyuk and the Korean delegation found their assigned seats in the fan-shaped arrangement and sat down.
A strange tension filled the air densely.
They could feel on their skin that every nerve in the hall was focused on the Korean delegation.
'All familiar faces, huh.'
Cha Minhyuk curled the corner of his mouth upward.
Faces he saw every month without fail.
But this month's—and last month's—summit dynamics would be completely different.
A hero on a white horse had appeared for the Republic of Korea, after all.
"Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to attend. This gathering is a cooperation summit to safeguard world peace and security—."
A brief keynote address followed.
On the surface, it was about world peace and security.
But in reality, it was closer to a place to reaffirm and solidify the class pyramid among nations.
The moderator, elected by the United States, reported on the major world events from the previous session.
"—And with the help of the US, China, and Japan in the last round, the 34 lower-ranked nations safely overcame their rampage crises."
Clap clap clap clap clap clap—!
Thunderous applause erupted.
The US, Chinese, and Japanese delegations wore triumphant smiles.
But the faces of the 34 lower-ranked delegations were complicated and humiliated.
Because they had to accept conditions tantamount to colonization every time in exchange for aid.
The world order.
It wasn't an exaggeration to say it was led by the three nations—US, China, and Japan—which possessed the most S-rank Awakeners and advanced tower technology.
Through Awakener naturalization, specifically.
What does that mean?
No matter how much national support they receive, no one can climb the tower indefinitely.
Eventually, they hit a wall.
Ah, no way I can break through this even if I die trying? And there are no more floors left for repeat clears to farm points.
Does that make this Awakener a worthless lump that can't farm points anymore?
No.
They become a sort of mercenary.
Deployed for foreign currency earnings.
Specifically.
Using these tickets.
Awakener nationality on the system can only be changed using tower tickets.
And if they change nationality?
Your nationality has been changed to XX.
You can now acquire repeat clear points from the floors you previously cleared.
Start over from the 1st floor? No.
The highest cleared floor is maintained.
What changes is.
They can farm repeat clear points again from the floors the target nation's climbers have completed.
Based precisely on the first clear scores each nation set per floor.
In metaphor, Awakeners each hold a points mine for every nation.
That's how it roughly works.
Of course, they don't let them mine excessively.
Just enough to prevent rampages.
That way, they can keep them on a tight leash going forward.
"The list of the 34 lower-ranked nations that overcame rampage crises with aid is as follows—."
Translation: These are ours—we've slathered them in spit, so don't even think about touching them.
A de facto declaration of vassalization.
That was why the 34 nations' representatives felt immense guilt toward their citizens watching this screen back home.
Afterward, discussions on various international agendas proceeded according to the schedule.
This, too, was like carving up the cake among nations with strong speaking rights.
But.
"On that point, I believe we need a relaxation of Russia's current restrictions on overseas mana stone imports."
The established flow was disrupted.
By the Korean delegation.
They strongly voiced opinions on every agenda, stirring up the hall.
The great powers were flustered.
What's gotten into them all of a sudden?
Did they take their meds or something?
Of course, the Republic of Korea currently ranked 4th, so their speaking rights weren't weak by any means.
If anything, they were formidable.
But wasn't that purely the result of that monster called Hitchhiker hitching a ride?
If he turned his favor to another country, their rank would pop like a bubble.
Moreover, the round settlement hadn't even finished yet.
They hadn't secured the massive national benefits tied to rankings definitively.
For them to come out swinging like this meant.
No way...! The same thought flashed through every delegation's mind at that instant.
'Did they find Hitchhiker?''Is that why they used the permanent nationality confirmation?''Our spies turned Korea upside down and found zilch—how the hell did they?'
All participants were hardened politicians.
They could ghost-like discern the implications of even the smallest human actions.
The atmosphere in the hall shifted dramatically.
Until now, Japan had been pushing international media play like this.
The odds were practically zero.
The system wasn't that lenient.
China's media play was this.
Who knows? Judging by the trend, was there even a floor that could stop that monster?
Any sensible politician would naturally follow this line of thinking.
If they could recruit and lock down that figure called Hitchhiker.
It was only a matter of time before their nation rose to world #1 hegemon.
And at this very moment.
"Hmm, no matter how I look at it, I can't agree with China's stance on this agenda. I suspect even our Hitchhiker would think the same."
The Korean rep was going all-in on the "We're tight with Hitchhiker" act with their whole body.
Hitchhiker at the end of every sentence.
Hitchhiker every chance they got.
While asserting that every agenda should pass in their favor.
Those crazy bastards...!
Those shameless fucks...!
Such thoughts bubbled up, steam hissing from everyone's heads.
Did they really snag Hitchhiker?
Or are they just bluffing like madmen?
How do they plan to handle the fallout?
That confidence—what's behind it?
The hall buzzed.
Weighing possibilities, the odds favored Korea bluffing.
From spy reports.
There were no signs of any special Awakener contacting the Korean Management Agency.
And the Korean agency was infamous for lacking manpower, making it impossible for them to find Hitchhiker on their own.
But if, just if.
If Korea had recruited Hitchhiker and successfully used the permanent nationality confirmation.
—Gulp.
The current class pyramid.
A tectonic shift was coming.
This summit might even be a chance to ride that new wave.
Calculators whirred feverishly in their heads.
Imagination has a way of turning people into opportunists.
Especially for politicians, where success or failure in reading the opponent's intentions could mean the difference between triumph and disaster.
The summit's atmosphere churned wildly.
China's rep, Li Feng, sensed crisis.
Summit agendas were decided by vote, under the banner that all nations are equal.
Normally just a formality, controlled by US-China-Japan fingers.
But in this flow...!
A major incident could erupt.
He hurriedly shot glances.
Unable to endure, Japan's rep Nakayama asked.
"Has the Republic of Korea definitively recruited Hitchhiker?"
"Hmm, well. Our official Korean stance on Hitchhiker will be announced at the end of the agenda. So, maybe we have, maybe we haven't."
What kind of bullshit answer is that?
Nakayama whipped his head toward the US delegation.
This is driving me insane.
The summit, which should have run to US-China-Japan tastes, was turning into total chaos thanks to Korea.
Time to think of countermeasures?
The situation left no room for that.
There was a strict summit schedule.
With the whole world watching, they had to push the agendas forward.
"Voting on Agenda 1 is complete. Results are on screen. Next, Agenda 2—."
Agenda on the chopping block.
Korea's Hitchhiker tackle.
Then vote.
Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.
The result.
Nearly a third of the agendas passed in a direction extremely favorable to Korea.
The nations under US-China-Japan sway?
Of course, they sided with US-China-Japan.
There was conflict, but switching sides on mere suspicion was too risky.
The problem was the upper and mid-tier nations less influenced by US-China-Japan.
They actively sided with Korea on agendas less tied to their direct interests.
It wasn't decided that easily, of course.
Even in the tight timeframe, it was a judgment after thorough calculations.
Prior relations with Korea.
Prior relations with the top three.
Their nation's stance on the agenda, etc.
Many factors, but the biggest purpose in choosing to help Korea was one.
To shatter the solidified class pyramid and force change.
Otherwise, escape from US-China-Japan rule forever was likely impossible.
Hitchhiker was a massive hammer to smash the existing hierarchy.
And the nations hit hardest by Korea's agenda steamrolling were China and Japan.
Neighbors destined to clash constantly over close territories.
Maritime rezoning issues.
Export-import route problems.
"Th-this...!"
China's rep Li Feng's face turned beet red with uncontainable rage, all the way to his hairline.
All their national plans had been proceeding in sync with agenda passes, but now everything was derailed.
In economic damage terms.
An astronomical sum beyond counting.
'How dare they! How dare a puny nation like that!'
Li Feng glared at Cha Minhyuk, his jowls quivering.
Japan's rep Nakayama as well.
'A nation we helped economically grow...! Acting like this, you Koreans...!'
He shot Cha Minhyuk a deathly glare with his narrow, slit eyes.
In the buzzing atmosphere, the summit creaked onward somehow.
And at the tail end, finally.
"N-next, we have a speech from the Republic of Korea delegation, blessed with the emergence of a powerhouse Awakener in our international community. Please give them a big round of applause."
Grudgingly using the word "blessed."
Even though their guts must be twisting inside.
Cha Minhyuk smirked and ascended the podium amid the applause.
Expectations, excitement, confusion, tension.
Eyes pouring with all sorts of emotions.
He opened in fluent English.
"First, I'm honored to stand here where all your nations' leaders have gathered—."
International peace this, your nations' eternal glory that.
He sped through the formalities and got to the point.
"I'll address the part you're most curious about first. From the very first day of Hitchhiker's appearance, the Korean Management Agency launched a full-scale search for him. And the result is—."
Complete silence descended.
Every nerve in the summit hall focused on Cha Minhyuk's next words.
Why aren't you saying it already?
Did you really meet Hitchhiker?
Is that why you were so confident?
You must have proof, right?
The Korean Management Agency had stonewalled not just domestic media but foreign press requests entirely.
This was the official statement.
Cha Minhyuk savored those gazes, deliberately pausing to heighten the tension to its peak before speaking.
The fundamental reason such a scene could be staged.
Toward Hitchhiker. With infinite awe and gratitude.
"—The Korean Management Agency did not find Hitchhiker."
At that instant, the entire summit venue plunged into utter chaos.