Just You Wait

I laid down the rules of conduct for the rabbits.

"From now on, you will faithfully carry out whatever I order, and outside of that, you will tend to my master's needs here — meals, cleaning, things of that sort. Understood?"

"Yes, sir! Understood!"

They were standing at rigid attention, which reminded me, oddly enough, of my military days in Cheorwon.

"That said, whenever my master isn't calling for you, you're free to spend your time as you wish."

"Thank you!"

Even conscripts need rest now and then — as long as they didn't let their guard down, of course.

"You know what happens if you run, don't you?"

Dum—zzt—

I sent a faint tremor rippling through their hearts and brains.

"We will work ourselves to death for you!"

"Command us to do anything, and it shall be done!"

"And by the way — if you're going to carry out my orders out in the world, that face of yours won't do, will it?"

"Y-you don't mean... you're going to peel our faces off?"

"No, no. What kind of nonsense is that?"

Jeokmyo and Chilmyo had gone pale at the thought of me flaying their skin. Who did they take me for, some barbarian?

"Starting now, I'm going to teach you Yeokyongsul."

"...!"

The two of them froze, their faces shouting, you'd really teach us something that precious?

"Don't look so shocked. I'm teaching you for my own sake, so learn it properly. Or I'll kill you."

"We will learn with all the strength we have until death!"

Yeokyongsul — a minor art of disguise that reshapes the muscles of the face to alter one's appearance. I'd never seen the need to change my own face, so I'd never bothered with it, but these two would be using it every day from now on.

Free underlings, secured.

Yuri Orlov, an awakener of Russia.

Using his mental-type abilities, he had seized control of the desks at every major news outlet, stoking public resentment with sensational headline after sensational headline.

And that wasn't all.

He "liberated" the National Assembly from Cho Sanghyuk's grip, provoked its members, and pushed them into sponsoring legislation unfavorable to awakeners.

High-ranking officials and corporations bought up armies of paid commenters to fan the flames, and the public was drowned in a torrent of malicious propaganda.

Comments that looked reasonable at a glance — carefully crafted to steer the current of public consciousness. Disposable media. And on top of that, bills like [Abolition of Tax Exemption Privileges] and [Expansion of State Ownership Ratios for Magic Stones] were being tabled one after another.

Yuri Orlov took a swig of harsh vodka and spoke.

"Those blinded by greed and petty self-interest — that is the true nature of humanity. Legendary-grade awakener, do you still want to be a hero after this?"

The corner of his mouth curled into a bitter smirk.

His eyes, brimming with certainty, declared it: no being who held true power could ever remain a hero. Those who had glimpsed humanity's bare face inevitably ended up turning their backs on humanity itself.

Jae-woo's father and mother let out a long sigh as they watched the news on TV.

"Honey, Jae-woo's in Seoul too, and he's an awakener. Do you think he's alright?"

"Oh, come on. Same city, same job description, but those people are world-class top-tier awakeners. What does that have to do with Jae-woo?"

"Still, you never know what might—"

"Enough. He sent you allowance money just this morning. You know better, so why carry on like this?"

Jae-woo's father, Yoo Seonghoon. He spoke calmly, but inside, he could feel the sweat seeping into his palms.

What the hell are you doing on the Han River, you little punks. Go cause your mayhem somewhere else.

Jae-woo's mother, Jo Geumhwa, checked the allowance transfer Jae-woo had sent that morning.

"Well, true. But still — what kind of allowance is this, sending it this big and generous?"

"He awakened, didn't he? As long as he makes good money and stays safe, that's all that matters."

"Exactly. Oh, and Jae-woo sent us that luxury hotel package and told us to go. When should we leave?"

Mrs. Jo Geumhwa's voice went bright with excitement, as if the worry from moments ago had never existed, and Yoo Seonghoon set down the remote and answered.

"We leave tomorrow."

Conference room of the Awakener Association's Strategic Headquarters. The atmosphere was heavy.

Section Chief Jeon Sua calmly combed through the news.

Cho Sanghyuk turned to Section Chief Jeon Sua.

"What do you think their objective is?"

"Jae-woo nim, sir."

"Your basis?"

"It's the same reason villain organizations like China's Twelve Earthly Branches and Japan's Orochi suddenly set foot in Korea. The abrupt shift in our politicians' behavior. My assessment is that this is a means to check you, sir, and to get their hands on the legendary-grade awakener."

Cho Sanghyuk gave a slow nod.

"Then we need to move faster on catching them. Have you identified the ability?"

"Mostly a method of imprinting magic power onto objects in order to brainwash. Estimated level is around 23 to 30, so they're presumed to be far from powerful. However, they're adept at erasing traces of magic power, and they've wiped memories of themselves from the minds of the people they've brainwashed — a considerable degree of meticulousness."

Indeed, the Korean Awakener Association had been struggling to track them down.

"Do not let a single piece of information reach anyone without mental-type defenses. Understood?"

"Yes, Team Leader."

"And assign the protection of Jae-woo nim and his family to reliable awakeners of at least level 35. Keep this in mind — their security matters more than the president's."

Jeon Sua bowed her head.

"Yes, sir. I'll take exceptional care with it."

Cho Sanghyuk nodded and let his thoughts drift.

If those bastards poke the sleeping lion's nose and the whole country gets turned upside down, that would be a disaster.

For the love of god, don't kick the beehive.

You uncivilized idiots.

I sat cross-legged in the World of Dream Souls and sank into meditation.

Having only ever learned ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠what my master taught me, trying to reach an insight of my own wasn't exactly easy — but there was a certain thrill to it.

I spent an hour each day instructing Jeokmyo and Chilmyo. If they were going to work under me from now on, it was better all around if they were a little stronger. The rest of my time, I poured into my martial studies.

I went over every single form of Myeolcheonmagong from the very first movement to the last, checking each one anew.

Is there a way to unleash each form even more sharply?

The angle of the blade. The placement of the toes. Whether to rotate the wrist to the left or to the right. The volume of breath released as the demonic qi was brought to heel. The direction of my internal energy as each form unfolded. The speed at which the qi coursed along the meridians. The timing of condensing and releasing inner force — and on, and on.

I weighed every possible permutation with painstaking care, and to my surprise, the process was genuinely enjoyable.

Once training was over, I'd flop onto the bed in my one-room apartment, open the [VIP Auction] app, and browse for anything worth buying.

"This is it!"

Exactly what ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the dream world needed! With electricity, I could run a state-of-the-art refrigerator, air conditioning, an induction cooktop, a microwave, an air fryer, an electric kettle, a toaster, a recliner — even a massage chair.

A big screen and a projector were going in too. Movie nights with popcorn, right there beside my master!

The cutting-edge infrastructure flickered before my eyes.

I had money. Why not spend it, bang bang!

There was just one problem.

How was I supposed to take delivery of all that? My one-room is way too cramped and inconvenient.

The dream world mattered, but reality needed some attention too. And more than anything —

Isn't owning your own home every Korean's dream?

It was high time I actually moved. But where to? Crowded apartments or central Seoul were out. The plan was to buy a plot of land and build my own mansion — which meant I needed to see what was out there.

Right then, a message arrived on my phone.

"Oh, finally."

Admission didn't start until tomorrow, but...

I called Section Chief Jeon Sua right away.

"Yes, Jae-woo nim."

"Section Chief, is this a bad time?"

"Not at all."

"It's, well, about ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the Seoul Architectural Expo..."

I gave her a brief rundown.

"We'll have you attend as a VVIP."

A most satisfying answer.

"Haha. You read my mind. And by any chance, are you free tomorrow? It's unfamiliar territory for me, so handling the payments and contracts alone sounds like a headache."

"Of course. I'll take care of all the minor details myself."

"Thank you. Then I'll see you tomorrow."

Click—

Ahh, so this is what convenience feels like.

This is exactly the kind of moment a secretary is for. Yep.

Scrolling through my message list, I spotted a text from my older brother, Jaegyeong.

"Oh, right. Mom told me to check in on him, too."

I whipped out my phone and fired off a message.

"Sounds like my brother's doing well, too."

Us three brothers were the type to be indifferent toward one another — most of what we knew about each other's lives came through Mom anyway.

Still, one thing had caught my interest.

A niece or nephew... I wondered how cute they'd be.

Indulging in happy daydreams, I fired up NutTube.

Training was all well and good, but honestly? Doing absolutely nothing was the best.

Hmm. What kind of news is this supposed to be?

The comments were an even better show.

"Don't tell me this is what Team Leader Cho warned me about?"

I immediately invoked the skill [Gu Poison] to summon Jeokmyo and Chilmyo.

Jeokmyo and Chilmyo darted across the World of Dream Souls in an instant, dropped into a fist-palm salute before me, and spoke.

"You called, my lord."

"Take a look at this. Anything ring a bell?"

The two of them put on their international translators and listened closely to the news.

"...We believe so."

"Knew it. Who is it?"

"Someone affiliated with Russia's [Proxima], though we don't know the name or face ourselves..."

"Oh, is that so?"

Team Leader Cho will probably handle it himself, but... what if those bastards went after my family? Stepping in to clean things up after the damage was done would be the definition of locking the barn after the horse was gone.

I texted Team Leader Cho right away.

Good. I'd extended the bare minimum of courtesy.

Villains. Rotten politicians and high-ranking public officials. Bastards whose special talent was fabrication and incitement.

"Just you wait."

Time to do a little housecleaning.