Chapter 84
Chapter 84
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 84
Chapter Title: Reckoning
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"You did good."
Arriving at the airport, Do-jae took out Young-jin's luggage and returned it all to him.
"Whew! You worked hard too! I didn't know you'd have so much fun. Hehehe."
"It wasn't fun at all."
"Aw, don't lie. It was written all over your face, you know?"
"Ahem."
*Thump-.*
Embarrassed, Do-jae lightly tapped Young-jin's arm.
Young-jin clutched his shoulder and groaned.
"Ugh, my shoulder..."
"Exactly. Why'd the injured one keep wanting to go out?"
"It's fun. A mission's a mission, but you have to enjoy yourself when you can. Besides, that was the earliest flight anyway."
"Yeah, I get it. You should get going. And take another week off. I'll take care of it."
"Whoa. Really? But why is my bag open?"
Young-jin said in an excited voice as he slung the bag over his shoulder, noticing it was half-open.
Do-jae remembered giving Young-jin's flashlight to Tahul and spoke with an apologetic expression.
"Oh, right. I used your flashlight. I'll buy you a new one later."
"It's fine. You can just have it. What's a flashlight when I just got another week of vacation? Well, I'm off then!"
Young-jin waved and left. Left alone, Do-jae sat on a chair and waited for a moment.
Soon, a man in a black suit appeared and spoke quietly to Do-jae.
"Mr. Lee Do-jae."
"Kim Jung-hoon. 28 years old. Member of the Shadow Unit. One of Kim Soo-kyung's men."
"...Yes, the team leader is waiting for you. I will guide you."
Do-jae rose from his seat and followed Kim Jung-hoon.
He exited the airport, and Do-jae followed him without a word until they reached the parking lot.
"He is waiting inside."
Kim Jung-hoon pointed to a car and disappeared somewhere.
Do-jae headed straight for the indicated van.
It was a van with all its windows blacked out.
*Clunk-.*
"Welcome."
Kim Soo-kyung was waiting inside.
Do-jae activated Eye of the Golem as he climbed into the vehicle.
"I'm sure the news has already reached your ears. Is that why you're in a bad mood?"
As Do-jae glared at Kim Soo-kyung, the man forced a smile and replied.
"I thought I was managing my expression well, but it seems that doesn't work on you, Mr. Lee Do-jae."
"It's possible you've run into trouble because of me. But you'd be wise not to expect anything from me. You should be grateful I even brought you the Mana Accelerator."
"Of course. I have no intention of blaming you in the slightest. I was just hoping you would quickly resolve the favor I asked of you before."
Kim Soo-kyung placed his clasped hands on his thighs.
It was a gesture that betrayed considerable anxiety.
"Is there a reason for the rush? Don't you think you're being a bit hasty, considering I just brought back the Mana Accelerator?"
Kim Soo-kyung paused for a moment.
However, his eyes were not wavering but filled with conviction.
So Do-jae waited in silence.
"Thank you for waiting. I was just considering how to convey my sincerity. Hiding my emotions is easy, but I'm not accustomed to showing my true feelings."
"I can tell whether you're lying or not, so just say it."
"Haha, I worried for nothing. The truth is, Park Do-hwan ordered your assassination."
"Park Do-hwan did?"
Do-jae clenched his fists.
Fury surged within him at the fact that after all the trouble he went through to get the Mana Accelerator, Park Do-hwan was ordering his assassination behind his back.
However, realizing that he had returned to the country without incident and that Kim Soo-kyung must have intervened, Do-jae slowly calmed his anger.
"He ordered that data be sent to China, framing you, Mr. Lee Do-jae, for destroying the research facility and for what happened to Li Shun. He thought China would then take care of you. Li Shun is a rather high-ranking official, you see."
"So he wanted to get what he wanted without getting his own hands dirty. Since you guys have the other half of the Transcendence Stone anyway."
"Correct. One of the agents on surveillance was supposed to retrieve the remaining half. In that case, we would no longer have a need for the Mana Accelerator."
Indeed, Park Do-hwan's thinking wasn't entirely wrong.
MID could use China to eliminate Do-jae while simultaneously evading responsibility.
"The fact that I'm hearing this now means I can assume you stopped it from happening?"
"Hahaha. Will this earn me your trust?"
"A little."
Do-jae looked at Kim Soo-kyung.
Kim Soo-kyung did not avoid his gaze.
There wasn't a hint of unease in his eyes, and the Eye of the Golem didn't register any anxiety or deceit in his state.
"And I will now return this to you."
Kim Soo-kyung took out a neat briefcase.
Inside was a half-sphere.
"Then I suppose I should give you this."
Do-jae retrieved the bottle containing the Mana Accelerator solution from his Subspace, handed it to Kim Soo-kyung, and took the Transcendence Stone in exchange.
"Thank you. The Republic of Korea owes you a great debt."
"Don't say things you don't mean."
"Am I that obvious? Haha. I wonder how much time it will take to study this sample..."
Kim Soo-kyung's voice trailed off as he gazed at the sloshing liquid.
"Don't worry. I didn't just bring back a sample."
"Pardon?"
Do-jae then took out a bundle of documents.
Kim Soo-kyung took them, quickly scanned through them, and couldn't hide his surprise.
"This is?"
"That's not all. I brought all the data from the facility and the machines needed for Mana Accelerator production."
"Is that true? If so, the time it will take to produce the Mana Accelerator will be significantly reduced. Thank you so much."
The corners of Kim Soo-kyung's lips lifted slightly.
It was likely the greatest expression of emotion he could show.
"But there's something you have to promise."
"A promise... you say."
"The material needed to make the Mana Accelerator is human. Children, to be specific. Those bastards were injecting children with drugs to use them as ingredients for the Mana Accelerator. And the children they couldn't extract any more from were buried on the spot. Like trash..."
While destroying the research facility, Do-jae had discovered a pit filled with countless white skeletons.
The small, not-yet-fully-grown bones were piled in layers, and the most recent ones still had skin and clothes intact.
"I had my suspicions, but to think they were really using children..."
"If MID also decides to use humans as materials, I won't stand by and do nothing."
"I promise. We will never use humans, especially children, in our experiments. We cannot undo the experiments we have already conducted, but we will never commit such acts in any future experiments."
Kim Soo-kyung nodded, his lips pressed into a firm line.
Relieved, Do-jae leaned back leisurely and spoke.
"Then all that's left is Park Do-hwan. What's the plan? Are the preparations complete?"
"Yes, the preparations are complete. I will explain what you need to do on the way."
Kim Soo-kyung gestured toward the driver's seat.
The van's engine started immediately, and it set off without delay.
***
*Slurp-.*
"Mm... a fine aroma."
Park Do-hwan was savoring the taste and scent of his warm black tea.
He was in an exceptionally good mood because a matter that had been troubling him had been resolved smoothly.
"I can start the research again. Then I'll be able to put that bastard Kim Hwan-soo in his place."
Park Do-hwan wore a satisfied expression as he shuffled through some documents.
According to Kim Soo-kyung's report, Lee Do-jae and Shim Young-jin had been dealt with by Chinese hunters, and China would announce it was the work of a criminal organization, not the state.
Unavoidably killing Shim Young-jin, the son of a major corporation's chairman and the nephew of a major guild's vice guild master, had become a nuisance in many ways, but it was a trivial matter compared to recovering the Transcendence Stone.
"That soft-hearted Team Leader Kim has finally handled things properly. Took him long enough. I should probably fire him soon. The nerve of him, messing with the Bright Star Guild."
Park Do-hwan searched for the Bright Star Guild on his smartphone.
Though not a major guild, it was a mid-sized guild of considerable scale that was experiencing rapid growth.
"Doing well. Yes, get bigger. That way you can properly digest the food I give you."
A sly smile spread across Park Do-hwan's face.
The Bright Star Guild was a guild he was backing.
Befitting the head of the information-savvy MID, he passed all sorts of useful intelligence to Bright Star, not hesitating to hand over dirty information as well.
Having thus gained leverage, Park Do-hwan controlled Bright Star, shaping it to his liking while also pocketing a handsome sum in kickbacks.
"But why is it so quiet today?"
Park Do-hwan suddenly noticed that his surroundings were quieter than usual.
It was too silent to be dismissed as nothing.
"Did they all leave work already? Those bastards..."
Park Do-hwan headed to his desk and picked up the phone.
He wanted to find out why everyone had left so early.
*Beep, beep, beep-.*
The phone rang, but no one answered.
"These sons of bitches..."
Park Do-hwan slammed the receiver down in frustration.
But just then.
*CRASH-!*
A sound of something collapsing came from outside the building.
Hearing a noise that should never have come from the MID headquarters, Park Do-hwan opened the window and looked out.
*Fwoosh-!*
He could see someone lying collapsed within the crumbled wall.
Dust was rising, and the person was buried under a pile of rubble, making it impossible to identify them.
*BOOM-!*
This time, a loud noise came from inside the building.
Soon, the sounds of a fight echoed through the halls.
"Damn it... what the hell is going on?"
Park Do-hwan was about to leave his office to assess the situation.
But just then, someone opened the door from the outside and entered.
"Team Leader Kim! What in the world is this situation!"
The person who opened the door and appeared was Kim Soo-kyung, the leader of the Shadow Unit's Team 1.
"Park Do-hwan, surrender peacefully."
The suddenly appearing Kim Soo-kyung spouted unbelievable nonsense.
"Team Leader Kim. What do you think you're doing? What is this outrage!"
"Park Do-hwan, you are not qualified to be the head of MID. As someone who has watched everything you've done from the side, I can no longer stand by. If you step down from your position and live the rest of your life quietly, I will spare your life out of respect for our past association."
"What kind of nonsense is this crazy bastard spouting?"
Park Do-hwan grabbed the sword he kept propped up next to his desk.
While Kim Soo-kyung was a considerably skilled Suppression Corps member, he was by no means a match for him.
He intended to take down Kim Soo-kyung for daring to rebel against him and then hold him accountable for his crimes.
"Don't think you can get away with this outrageous stunt! The captain of Team 3 will be up here soon after he's dealt with your entire Team 1."
Team 3 was a team Park Do-hwan had created for himself.
Comprised of the most elite members within MID, they were loyal subordinates who carried out only his orders.
*Step, step-.*
"Here he comes. See, why did you have to do something so pointl— you're Lee Do-jae?"
The person entering the office was not the captain of Team 3, but, bewilderingly, Lee Do-jae.
Lee Do-jae dusted off his fists, splattering blood on the floor.
"Sorry, but I've already dealt with all your men. Kim Soo-kyung, I didn't kill them, just as you asked."
"Thank you. I need to make proper use of them after their re-education is complete."
"What is the meaning of this! Damn it!"
Park Do-hwan brandished his sword and lunged at Kim Soo-kyung.
His plan was to deal with the weaker one first, then take on Lee Do-jae, who, for some unknown reason, was still alive.
But unfortunately, his sword was stopped just inches from Kim Soo-kyung's nose.
"What should I do with Park Do-hwan?"
It was Lee Do-jae, who had caught the blade, swung with all of Park Do-hwan's might, with one hand.
Park Do-hwan felt a cold sweat trickle down his back.
"Do as you please, Mr. Lee Do-jae. Kill him or let him live. I will take care of the aftermath."
"Alright. Then just this much..."
*KABOOM-!*
He felt Lee Do-jae's fist move, and by the time he realized it, Park Do-hwan had already been sent flying through the wall and into the next room.
Through his blurry vision, he glared at Kim Soo-kyung and Lee Do-jae before losing consciousness.