Chapter 105
Chapter 105
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Flame Emperor Kwak Sang-hyun
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"They're still calling from Flame Guild. Or rather, it's more like Flame Emperor Kwak Sang-hyun himself."
Once Hanna finished talking about company matters, she brought up Kwak Sang-hyun.
I'd heard before that Flame Emperor Kwak Sang-hyun wanted to meet me.
Apparently, he'd been steadily pressuring the company to arrange it ever since.
He couldn't openly strong-arm them because of me, but Hanna, being an A-Rank Awakener herself, couldn't just outright ignore him either. It seemed his subtle pressure was getting to her.
'What a hassle...'
"Let's wait a bit longer."
If it was nothing major, things would quiet down. If not, there'd be some kind of reaction eventually. I decided to buy more time with that in mind.
A table neatly set with food.
Four men sat around it.
Even though there were only four, the atmosphere was far from ordinary.
This was a gathering of Korea's top Awakeners before Park Un-ho even appeared—the four A-Rank Heroes at the pinnacle.
People jokingly called them Korea's Four Heavenly Kings.
The four A-Rank Awakeners in Korea got along well and met regularly like this.
One man's hair was a striking deep red.
It was Flame Emperor Kwak Sang-hyun, the pinnacle of Korea's fire-element Awakeners.
"Isn't he a bit too arrogant?"
Na Ju-wan, known as Palace God, grumbled.
With his neat slicked-back hair, he looked like he was in his late twenties, younger than his actual age.
This gathering was a meeting even the president couldn't join.
They'd sent Park Un-ho an invitation, but he hadn't shown up.
Na Ju-wan didn't like that.
"He has reason to be arrogant. Didn't you see the video? I couldn't even grasp what kind of power he has."
"Guess we're not even on his radar."
Nam Kwon-cheol, the Fighting God with his muscular build and sporty buzz cut.
Ji O-kyung, the Sword King in his white martial arts uniform and ponytail.
They said the same, but their expressions weren't great.
"Just be grateful he's not a villain. If he were the vengeful type, we might all have to flee to another country."
Flame Emperor Kwak Sang-hyun spoke.
Though unspoken, all four felt uneasy about Park Un-ho's sudden appearance out of nowhere.
Overnight, someone had appeared above them in Korea. Unlike the public, they couldn't exactly celebrate.
The president was irrelevant to them, of course.
An uncontrolled S-Rank with overwhelming power was a disaster in itself.
Countries with S-Rank Awakeners just propped them up as Heroes and kept them under wraps.
In a world without Dimensional Rifts or monsters, they'd have to be eliminated somehow—eggs that couldn't be clutched or dropped.
Those with families were somewhat better.
The more detached from human ties, the more like walking time bombs they were.
There was a reason no one touched South America even after an S-Rank took it over entirely.
What if they poked the bear and it came rampaging into their own country?
They weren't mindless beasts—they were intelligent.
Governments groveled to S-Ranks for good reason.
The silver lining was that Park Un-ho was a womanizer with a few apparent girlfriends.
"How's Jeju Island?"
"They say it's not the right time to resume the raid right away."
"Figures..."
"Did you ask him?"
"Couldn't even meet him."
"Heh. The mighty Flame Emperor gets ghosted..."
"Tch."
If these men joined the Jeju Island raid together, public opinion would calm down somewhat, but they weren't that free.
Flame Emperor knew that, so he hadn't asked them.
In the end, convincing the seemingly idle Park Un-ho was the easiest path.
"The government's treatment of us is going to get worse, too."
It was obvious—far easier to wag their tails at one man than four.
A message came from Hanna.
Since becoming famous, she'd been contacting me more often.
「Flame Emperor Kwak Sang-hyun is here. He wants to see you, Un-ho... He's waiting until you come. Hard to ignore an A-Rank Awakener outright...」
Hanna hemmed and hawed.
She didn't say it outright, but she seemed to want me to meet him.
Before, I'd ignored an invitation from that group the four A-Rank Awakeners had formed.
Since I wouldn't meet, he'd shown up in person.
At least he hadn't come to my house—worthy of praise.
They must have looked into my preferences somewhat.
A few idiots had rung my doorbell before; beating them senseless had been worth the effort.
Still, he was one of Korea's rare four A-Rank Awakeners.
I hadn't expected him to wait so helplessly, pride be damned.
'No idea why he's going this far.'
It wasn't just because I was S-Rank or gratitude for cleaning up his mess.
I didn't particularly care if he came or not.
But Hanna did.
In the end, even if it wasn't for his sake, I should move for Hanna's face.
Not thrilled about some dark-skinned guy's mug, but...
Even if I skipped now, since he'd come personally, he'd keep causing a fuss.
「I'll send a car.」
I could have driven myself, but I'd grown accustomed to the comfort of being chauffeured lately.
I'd realized it was better to seek other pleasures during driving time.
Like mobile games or catching up on movies...
'Might as well drive with Jin-ah on the way.'
As usual, Jin-ah came over, and I rode with her driving to the company.
In the company's reception room sat a man with red hair and eyes I'd never seen in person before.
Flame Emperor Kwak Sang-hyun.
'I've seen him on TV, though.'
"I'm Kwak Sang-hyun."
"Park Un-ho."
He wouldn't have waited so patiently just to see my face.
"I came to ask you to join the Jeju Island raid."
Kwak Sang-hyun got straight to the point.
I'd wondered what he'd say when I came, but I hadn't expected the Jeju Island raid.
'They still haven't given up?'
".......Why me?"
"You don't have to do anything. Our guild will handle the cleanup. Just relax at Jeju Port and head back once it's done."
I got the picture...
Public opinion was bad, so he planned to use me.
No idea why they were so obsessed with Jeju Island.
Still, I didn't care to pry into his personal reasons.
"We'll make sure the reward is worth it."
Lending my name and just hanging out would bring in money.
Not bad.
On the other hand, going all the way to Jeju Island was a hassle.
"Can you guarantee no more A-Rank monsters?"
"........We've scouted 90 percent. From what we've checked, no B-Rank or higher."
It didn't matter to me either way.
I was just nitpicking out of laziness.
As I pondered...
"If you just participate, I'll never forget this favor."
Kwak Sang-hyun bowed his head.
Not empty words—it meant he owed me a debt.
An old guy's bow didn't move me much...
But looking at his deep red hair sparked an idea.
"I have a condition."
"What is it?"
His face brightened, expecting a positive response.
I could save him now if I wanted.
But nothing in life was free.
I didn't want to beg the government. Better to keep a proper distance from them.
With the Jeju Island raid situation and his level of power, it shouldn't be hard.
In the end, at Kwak Sang-hyun's request, I boarded the ship to Jeju Island.
"Never thought I'd be going to Jeju with you, mister..."
She said that, but Jae-eun looked happy.
Not just Jae-eun—Jin-ah was heading to Jeju with us too.
I hadn't expected to go to Jeju myself.
The moment I announced my participation in the raid, public opinion flipped, and Flame Emperor Kwak Sang-hyun got his way to resume.
Alice had really wanted to come, but I'd left her behind.
Thanks to her outrageous lustfulness, she'd awakened quickly.
Elemental or some special ability, I wasn't sure, but her mana pattern suggested mana manifestation type.
But I hadn't told Alice she'd awakened.
It sounded pretty rough there, and if I'd told her, she'd have clung on, insisting she was an Awakener too.
The scenery of Jeju Port shimmered in the distance.
Spatial distortion from countless Dimensional Rifts.
As the ship plunged in and neared the dock, the true view of Jeju Port emerged.
Countless containers and bustling crowds.
Maybe because of the good pay, people's faces looked brighter and more energetic than expected.