Chapter 31
Chapter 31
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 31
Chapter Title: Cleaning Up the Front Yard
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“Five guys teamed up to go after Paeng, huh. That leaves Muhammad from the 1st Expedition Team, but that bastard’s a die-hard terrorist, so teaming up with the others is impossible for him.”
= How did a guy like that even get into the expedition team?
“We picked the best based purely on skill. We didn’t have the luxury to be picky back then.”
= I see.
“To be honest, dimensional invasion was on the verge of starting. We had to try something, right? And thanks to that, we got 400 million in reserve forces. For now, we have to call that initial attempt a success.”
= Then isn’t that fine?
“The problem is that those 400 million reserves aren’t preparing for the dimensional invasion—they’re off doing other crap. Like fighting for power.”
Geon-woo could sense from the actions of those who attacked Paeng that things were going off the rails.
The demon invasion hadn’t even truly begun yet.
And already, users were fighting each other over power grabs.
On top of that, a quick look at Korea’s situation wasn’t good either.
“My front yard’s getting filthy.”
Geon-woo had no strong loyalty or affection for nation or ethnicity to boast about.
But what he’d seen briefly in Incheon and Gyeonggi Province was downright awful.
Especially since several foreigners had been among the users chasing Paeng, which greatly soured his mood.
“I can’t just sit back and watch dogs barking in my territory.”
= What do you plan to do?
“What else? Beat down a few, and they’ll back off on their own. If not, we go to war.”
= Can you win a fight? You said that Cheon Su-wan guy has China backing him. And China’s a big country, right?
“Nothing scares me, but we’ll hold off on a head-on clash for now. Instead, I plan to give them a wake-up call.”
= How?
“If I clean up the troublemakers, they’ll get the message. If that doesn’t work, we try something else.”
= What kind of something else?
“How about sprinkling a few demon dead jiangshi across China? That’d make them feel the crisis of the dimensional invasion starting.”
= You mean using jiangshi?
“What if we release a few dead jiangshi made from demon corpses in some major Chinese cities? Not living ones—moderate dead jiangshi should do the trick.”
= Wouldn’t that just make you the terrorist, my lord?
Ilryeong responded with evident concern.
But Geon-woo shook his head.
“You don’t know what’s going on in the areas where Cheon Su-wan’s underlings have moved in, do you?”
With that, Geon-woo tapped the keyboard a few times, splitting the giant wall monitor into multiple screens.
= Those…… They’re no different from the demons of the Orthodox Great War or the blood ghosts of the Evil Factions.
Ilryeong watched the screens briefly, unable to hide his furious expression.
“They crossed the line ages ago. The situation’s on a knife’s edge right now. I hear even the government’s debating whether to deploy the military.”
The screens showed footage and photos from underground broadcasts that mainstream media had suppressed from spreading.
They revealed scenes of murder and destruction unfolding across the country, laid bare without hiding.
“Which is why the government’s hesitating, but the problem is the opponents aren’t pushovers. Plus, most traditional superpowers are on their side.”
Geon-woo turned off the monitor screens with a displeased look and swiveled back in his chair.
= If the situation’s that dire, wouldn’t stepping in yourself cause even more issues for you, my lord?
“Nah, doesn’t matter. Worst case, I can put on a show of force. If the Forbidden City crumbles or the White House sinks, they’ll get the picture. Then, if I step in to back the government afterward, it’ll work out somehow. They still have the will.”
= But……
“You don’t want innocent bystanders getting caught up and dying, huh?”
Releasing demon dead jiangshi in major Chinese cities would cause significant casualties.
That was Ilryeong’s worry.
= My lord, shouldn’t you walk the righteous path?
“The righteous path?”
= Yes, my lord.
“If I step out directly, I can’t dodge their eyes. With America, China, Russia, Britain, and France all teamed up, how do you hide from that on Earth?”
= So you have no choice but to conceal your involvement, and in that case, disguising it as a demon dimensional invasion is the best method.
“Exactly. Though innocents will die in the process. Honestly, this is an eye for an eye, blood for blood kind of deal.”
Considering the chaos external forces were causing centered around Incheon and Gyeonggi, the destruction from jiangshi in China didn’t prick his conscience much.
= But……
“Jeez. I thought you’d be different, but you’ve got some rigid preconceptions too, Ilryeong. The righteous path? What’s that even worth?”
= I’m sorry, my lord.
In the end, as Geon-woo’s tone grew rough with displeasure, Ilryeong bowed his head.
Geon-woo clicked his tongue at the sight.
To Geon-woo, a top-tier mercenary counted among the world’s elite, the “righteous path” Ilryeong spoke of was just a pretty picture.
“Of course, I don’t want to resort to extreme measures. I’m just saying it might come to that.”
= Yes, I understand, my lord.
* * *
“W-Who are you?”
Joo Seong-bu stammered, staring at Geon-woo with a dazed expression amid the blood-soaked hall.
Three days ago, he’d deliberately seized the biggest club in Gangnam.
But on the very first day after refurbishing and reopening, they were attacked by enemies of unknown identity.
Three days prior, he’d come to Gangnam with over three hundred underlings.
Yet today, just ten foes had turned the club into a bloodbath.
His three hundred users had been unilaterally crushed.
“No decent ones here. Everyone’s unique abilities are just so-so.”
Geon-woo looked at Joo Seong-bu and spoke with genuine regret.
“Who the hell are you!”
Joo Seong-bu bellowed at Geon-woo again.
“Didn’t Cheon Su-wan tell you to watch out for someone if he came to Korea?”
Geon-woo asked as he stepped toward Joo Seong-bu.
With each step, shattered glass crunched underfoot.
“No way…… Kang Geon-woo?”
Joo Seong-bu asked for confirmation, as if realizing something.
“Cheon Su-wan must’ve gotten cocky. Pushing in so confidently like this.”
“How dare you speak Master’s name so casually!”
“Wow, Master? You with Mae-saeng Guild? Loyal dog, huh. Can’t have that. Kill him!”
Geon-woo grimaced at Joo Seong-bu’s outburst and ordered a nearby jiangshi.
Flash! Clang! Shiiik!
“Eek!”
Kagang!
“S-Spare me!”
Karararagak!
The moment Geon-woo’s order dropped, Amryeong blinked in with teleportation and unleashed a flurry of dagger strikes on Joo Seong-bu.
Somehow, Amryeong’s frontal teleport gave Joo Seong-bu just enough time to barely block the daggers, but he was soon cornered, screaming for mercy.
Kak!
“Wanna live?”
Naturally, the moment Joo Seong-bu screamed for his life, Amryeong’s dagger halted.
Just barely in front of his throat and lower abdomen.
Thud!
“Y-Yes! P-Please spare me, sir. Mercy, sir!”
Unlike before, Joo Seong-bu knelt meekly and began begging.
“Where’d all that spirit from earlier go? You were so full of yourself.”
Geon-woo looked at the suddenly compliant Joo Seong-bu with disbelief.
“T-This! It’s this!”
Joo Seong-bu held out his shattered wristwatch.
“What’s that?”
“It transmits the situation here live to headquarters.”
“Seemed like you used that to block Amryeong’s dagger earlier.”
“If I don’t resist to the end, my family back home is in danger.”
“So you acted tough to save your family?”
“Yes.”
“Then you deliberately broke the watch and surrendered?”
“I-I don’t wanna die. I want to live.”
“What happens when Cheon Su-wan finds out? He will, inevitably. I’m not even confident I can fully evade their eyes.”
“Please make it look like I died here. They won’t bother verifying every small fry like me.”
“Damn, you’re ruthless. Half these guys on the floor are still alive. You’d let them all die just to save your own skin?”
Geon-woo glared at Joo Seong-bu with a chilling expression.
“They’re all human scum anyway. Murder, rape, assault—that was their daily life. No one’ll miss them.”
“You little shit!”
“You think Master won’t notice your betrayal just ‘cause of that?”
“Some of us already sent word to the guild, you idiot.”
The few conscious thugs erupted in rage at Joo Seong-bu’s words.
But Joo Seong-bu just sneered back at his underlings.
“No matter what you do, you can’t get word out. Without this special watch, it’s impossible. Your unique abilities don’t work here either! Quit yapping!”
Joo Seong-bu spoke as if he already knew telepathy and similar unique abilities were perfectly blocked.
Geon-woo showed a slightly surprised expression at his words.
Electronic devices like Joo Seong-bu’s couldn’t be fully jammed, but system-powered unique abilities were different.
From the moment Geon-woo began the attack on the club, Ilryeong had blocked any such powers from leaking beyond a certain range.
He’d enveloped the entire club in powerful mental barriers, preventing unique abilities from piercing through.
But Ilryeong’s work was so subtle and didn’t affect the interior, so Joo Seong-bu shouldn’t have noticed.
How?
“What do you know?”
Geon-woo glared fiercely and demanded.
“I sensed the entire club was sealed by some kind of barrier.”
Joo Seong-bu immediately bowed his head in answer.
“How’d you know? A unique ability?”
“Yes.”
“Wasn’t yours Fire Fist or something?”
“No. My original is super strength. Boosts my power.”
“Then the fire around your fist? Did you awaken fire-attribute mana?”
“Yes. Once my soul count passed 5,000, I awakened fire-attribute mana.”
“Then how’d you detect the barrier?”
“That’s my hidden unique ability. A detection type—senses special mana flows.”
“You used that to detect the barrier around the club?”
“After all my underlings went down, I tested it on a hunch. That’s when I knew. So I provoked, took a hit to break the watch, and surrendered right away.”
“That’s why you surrendered?”
“With a barrier, there was a chance to survive, so I took it.”
“Quick thinker, huh?”
“Thank you.”
“Nothing to thank me for.”
“?”
As Joo Seong-bu looked up puzzled, one of the jiangshi behind Geon-woo stepped forward.
It was Dokryeong.
His demon body was wrapped entirely in black bandages to hide exposed skin, and Joo Seong-bu’s eyes widened at the movement.
Dokryeong was still a dead jiangshi.
Geon-woo had captured a demon using bloodline abilities in an Onblood raid and turned it into a living jiangshi, but hadn’t extracted the blood core to pass to Dokryeong, who remained dead jiangshi.
There were too many places to use Dokryeong, leaving no spare time to give a blood core to a living jiangshi for absorption.
“P-Please spare me! I beg you!”
“It’s fine. It’s fine. Not gonna kill you. Just knocking you out. That’s why the paralytic.”
“P-Paralytic……”
Relief washed over Joo Seong-bu’s face at Geon-woo’s words.
And the next instant, he collapsed face-first onto the floor, expression unchanged.
Thud!
No one caught him, so he hit the hall floor stiffly with a heavy impact.
“Good, saved one usable one at least. Detection unique ability, plus super strength. Not bad for temporary use.”
Even turned into a jiangshi, he wouldn’t be main force material.
Just decent as emergency backup.
Or later, a vessel for injecting a demon jiangshi spirit.
= My lord, there are still many alive. What shall we do?
At Ilryeong’s question, Geon-woo frowned as he replied.
“Grab the few usable ones and kill the rest.”
This was already the sixth time cleaning up foreign users.
Three Chinese groups, and one each from Russia, America, and Britain.
All tied to the 1st Expedition Team bastards.
Pure human trash, so no qualms about wiping them out.
But after rampaging like this on purpose, the 1st Expedition Team would soon notice Geon-woo’s movements.
“The symbolic first users or not, if they get cocky, I might have to kill a few.”
Geon-woo had already made up his mind about them.
= My lord, shouldn’t we hurry and clean this up to find the Ark Capsules?
As Geon-woo pondered next moves, Ilryeong urged him.
It was about the Ark Capsules used by the guys here.
“The capsules are probably in their dorms.”
= Yes, but we should move before others get to them. If the guards realize what happened here, they might pull the soul stones from the Ark Capsules and hide or flee.
“If you’re that worried, take the jiangshi and secure it first, Ilryeong. Leave Dokryeong.”
= Understood, my lord. I’ll go secure it now.
At Geon-woo’s words, Ilryeong led four jiangshi out of the club.
Geon-woo, left behind, created stone coffins, sealed a few users inside, and stored them in his dimensional space.
Then he turned the club hall floor into a swamp, burying everything remaining deep underground.
“Unless they bring a user who can peer deep into the earth, they won’t figure it out. No way they’ll demolish this tall building and dig up the ground.”
He’d killed and buried a bunch at once, but Geon-woo showed no inner turmoil.
No regrets over actions in a mission.
That, too, was basic for a mercenary.