Chapter 185
Chapter 185
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 185
Chapter Title: Royal Class Verdict
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Transcendent beings who surpassed the limits of humanity.
The world called the six pillars of light across the globe by that name—even beyond the realm of such hunters.
Royal Class.
Wherever they existed was deemed the safest place on earth.
And a nation that could claim and command them held the strongest power in the world.
'Yet the strongest hunter, evaluated as closest to Royal Class, gave that assessment...'
Charlie, the Vice Director, shoved his hands into his pockets and walked down the long corridor, setting aside the humiliation from moments ago.
Charlie's footsteps halted.
True to his military background, he executed a crisp turn.
Precisely ninety degrees to the right. Charlie silently stared at the door before him.
[VIP Room]
Inside this door were the War God and the one he claimed had already ascended to Royal Class.
He had already forgotten the one-sided disdain from the War God and the revenge for past events.
Only one name swirled in Charlie's mind.
'Yong-un.'
A name that was hard even to pronounce.
Charlie pressed his ear to the sounds leaking from within, placed his hand on the doorknob, and pushed it open forcefully.
The door creaked open with a long squeak.
The War God, waiting in the VIP room, curled his lips into a sneer at Charlie's entrance.
"Hasn't arrived yet, I take it."
The War God chuckled dryly at Charlie's bold demeanor.
"For the esteemed Vice Director himself to grace us with his presence. Did my words get under your skin that much?"
"Impossible not to. Besides, you won't escape punishment for this incident either."
"You can't punish me. If you try, I'll drag you down with me somehow—like that famous Asian water ghost."
Charlie naturally sat down beside the War God.
He crossed his legs and continued.
"You spoke so confidently of Royal Class, yet he still hasn't shown up."
"If waiting is too much for you, go back to your seat. I didn't ask you to come."
"I looked into this hunter named Yong-un on the way. He's not even in the world S-Rank top three."
"But he solo-cleared the San Marino Demonus that no one else has ever cleared."
Charlie glared at the War God.
A verbal sparring match where neither yielded an inch—the War God unyielding, Charlie trying to crush him.
The heavy atmosphere, like a silent war beneath the calm, made the GHO headquarters hunter staff positioned to protect them start glancing nervously.
But the two ignored the onlookers and pressed on.
"Amusing, since you say so, War God. You know better than anyone—San Marino Demonus is something GHO could clear anytime if they wanted."
"But the casualties wouldn't be light. Unlike someone who cleared it without a single loss to his team."
"Hah, not that we're afraid of sacrifices, but there's no reason to clear it."
"You wouldn't know?"
"GHO has Ignito, after all."
The Royal Class that made America the world's superpower.
GHO's Royal Class, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the Light of Earth, Mercenary King.
Fire of Earth.
Ignito, the Light of Fire, was that very being.
One of the key reasons for GHO's global influence, and the one who protected America from Marquis-level demons. At the mention of Ignito, the War God furrowed his brow.
Seeing the War God's expression, Charlie smirked triumphantly.
But it was short-lived.
A grin crept across the War God's twisted lips.
Conversely, Charlie's face shifted to one of puzzlement at the War God's smile.
"Is that so? You've got some nerve. But what now? You and I, letting the Mercenary King roam free?"
At the renewed mention of that incident, Charlie scowled.
"The Mercenary King was already Royal Class. Even GHO couldn't..."
"I told you. Yong-un is already Royal Class too."
Charlie's words cut off as the War God's voice overlaid them.
He spoke with unwavering conviction.
"Yong-un is already Royal Class. So, threatening to punish me means punishing yourself for that past incident, right, Vice Director?"
"Ancient history."
"No. Shame I only recorded everything back then."
Knowing how furious the War God had been at the time, Charlie figured he must have taken some measures.
So he casually uncrossed and recrossed his legs without much impact.
"Recordings won't help. He's not Royal Class."
"How can you be sure?"
"This sure."
Charlie quietly pulled out his phone and answered an incoming call.
The name that followed made the War God's confident eyes widen in shock.
"Ignito?"
The Royal Class Ignito.
"All arrived?"
He was coming here on Charlie's orders.
Not just to punish the War God, but to arrest Yong-un, suspected in the Demon Cry incident.
"Send him up."
Charlie hung up, and the War God asked with a stiffened expression.
"You called Ignito over something this minor?"
"Minor? The strongest hunter, hailed as near-Royal Class, acknowledges the next Royal Class. As vice head of the World Hunter Organization, how could I let this slide?"
Only then did the War God realize why Charlie had been so brazen.
'Ignito...'
He glared at the smug Charlie and lowered his head.
A hidden smile on his lips.
Originally, the War God had intended to chase him out.
But with Ignito summoned, ejecting Charlie was impossible.
And if Ignito joined them, this wouldn't end as mere banter between Charlie and the War God.
Every move by the Royal Class Ignito was headline news.
Word of Ignito coming to see Yong-un would trigger GHO internal audits, exposing Charlie, the War God, and even the Death Demon Cry affair.
The situation worsening by the minute.
'Actually, fortunate.'
But inwardly, the War God sneered at the escalating stakes.
If Ignito came, he'd recognize Yong-un's true worth.
Then!
'I'll hear the truth of that day from Ignito's own mouth.'
The War God planned to use Ignito's endorsement of Yong-un to pressure Charlie over the past incident.
Unlike back then, he now had the honor and influence to pull it off.
To avoid flipping this massively enlarged board, he kept his head down, fully immersed in his act.
Focusing solely on the endgame to corner Charlie.
"Done stalling?"
"Didn't you call Ignito?"
Charlie smirked at the War God and rose from his seat.
Sudden movement from Charlie.
"What are you doing?"
Standing straight, Charlie looked down at the War God.
"I didn't call Ignito."
"...?!"
"Not like he'd come for something like this anyway."
Straightening his suit, Charlie glanced at the mirror nearby.
"Just testing if you meant what you said."
"What do you..."
"Ignito."
Charlie whipped his head from the mirror to face the War God.
"Even hearing he was coming, you're overflowing with composure."
This setup could've dented Charlie's power base.
But what was this now?
As confusion threatened to show, the War God thought fast.
'If Yong-un truly hasn't reached Royal Class?'
What would he do?
"You're too relaxed. Call him if you want."
Short deliberation, swift action.
He exaggerated his movements, shrugging nonchalantly as if it were no big deal.
Mimicking the perfect poker face bluff.
"Hah."
But.
"Never go into politics, kid."
Charlie's smile deepened.
As if the War God's reaction had confirmed everything.
Having tidied his appearance in the mirror, Charlie beckoned the hunter staffer at the door.
The staffer flung the door wide open, as if waiting.
Charlie had chosen to leave.
Before exiting, he addressed the War God's distorting face.
"Think hard about how I climbed this high. Thanks for the intel—I'll put it to good use."
Unexpected turns and an enlarged battlefield.
In this war of silence, the War God had lost everything.
He felt utterly pathetic, unsure where that sly old fox had laid the trap.
"Hahaha!"
Charlie laughed heartily, like someone who'd scored valuable info, and strode out.
But at the threshold...
He stopped short.
A man stood in his path.
"Yong... un?"
It was Yong-un—the one who'd requested the meeting with the War God, the key to this mess.
At Charlie's clumsy pronunciation, Yong-un glanced at him briefly.
But only for a moment.
With business to attend, Yong-un ignored him and stepped through the open door.
'That guy's Royal Class?'
Charlie's gaze lingered on Yong-un through the narrowing gap as the staffer closed the door.
"Damn it."
The War God cursed in English the moment they met. Yong-un glanced at the now-closed door.
"Who's that guy to know my name?"
"No need to know. Actually, make sure you do. That's Charlie, GHO Vice Director."
GHO Vice Director.
The second-most powerful figure ruling the hunter world.
'That old man's the one?'
Unable to shake the image of a harmless old grandpa with no mana, Yong-un twitched an eyebrow.
"Whatever that sly old fox demands, don't give in. Not worth getting tangled with him."
"Advice noted."
Yong-un nodded, and the War God smoothed his twisted expression before asking.
"So, why'd you want to meet?"
Finally tearing his gaze from the door, Yong-un looked at the War God.
"What I'm about to say stays between us. You're the only one who knows everything about me and Soul Slaughter—you're the one I truly trust. Consider this a request."
Yong-un's unusually grave expression.
"Something wrong?"
The War God matched the gravity, asking quietly.
Yong-un scanned the surroundings before sending a mental message.
"...?!"
Yong-un's words nearly made the War God shout aloud.
Forcing his mouth shut, the War God glanced around and nodded silently.
Then came Yong-un's shocking request.
The War God snapped his head up, eyes bulging as he stared at Yong-un.