Chapter 203
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 203
Chapter Title: Whispers of the Black Sea
Since Kim Chae-hyun had decided to cooperate, I wasted no time and got started on the measures.
"First, burn away the muscle power..."
I had no intention of torching everything. After all, he'd declared he wouldn't become my enemy, so there was no need to turn him into a total cripple.
"What if I train back up and regain my strength...?"
The moment Kim Chae-hyun spoke, I hit his legs with Paradox Flame again.
"Including any potential for growth."
I couldn't burn it all away. This guy's the type that leaves a decent amount of scorch marks, so some residue always lingers.
"With about fifty years of effort, you might recover half your current muscle power level."
Kim Chae-hyun's face twisted in dismay at my words.
"It'd probably be faster to just watch my grandkids grow up."
Kim Chae-hyun examined his legs, twisting them this way and that, then muttered.
"And it leaves some scars..."
Before he could finish, I swung my spear, carving wounds into his body. I'd put some care into them. Even a top-tier hunter would take one look and think they'd come from a real fight.
"Impressive handiwork."
Bloody and staggering, Kim Chae-hyun rose to his feet. I stepped aside. Behind me was a window. The barrier that had blocked it was already shattered during our scuffle.
"Good."
Kim Chae-hyun limped toward the window, picking up a can of beer rolling on the floor along the way.
"No idea how this one survived intact."
With a hiss, he cracked it open, chugged the contents, and raised it toward me in salute.
"Here's hoping our paths never cross again."
"Yeah. Congrats on your discharge."
Kim Chae-hyun hurled himself out the window. The reason he'd handed over his legs so meekly and retired on the spot was probably disappointment.
I had no idea what exactly about the Korean government had let him down. He hadn't said.
But from the vibe, it felt like the disillusionment of a volunteer at a stray dog shelter watching the place they worked start mass-euthanizing the animals.
"Well, that's that with him."
I approached the boss slumped unconscious in the corner.
"Hey, wake up."
No passing out until you hand over the runway. I shook him a few times. Moments later, he groaned and opened his eyes.
"Sleep well?"
"Hiiieek!"
He let out a bizarre shriek, flailing his legs on the floor as he scrambled backward. The glasses barely hanging on his face clattered to the ground.
"Hand over the runway. Do that, and today's just a wild, once-in-a-lifetime adventure. Refuse..."
I planted my foot right between his legs and grinned.
"And you'll get snipped."
The moment I went for his manhood, the boss went pale and scrambled to do what was needed.
"Damn, riding a plane's a pain in the ass these days."
There was a time when you could just book online, grab your passport, and go.
Anyway, business here was done. I stepped back outside to find a tense standoff: dozens of hunters facing off against Han Sang-ah and Jeong O-hun.
Behind them, at what they figured was a safe distance, broadcasters and reporters were filming the scene.
"All done?"
I nodded at Han Sang-ah's question.
"Yeah. Runway's secured."
They wouldn't have the guts to interfere again in this situation. Problem was, while we were finished here, the hunters blocking our path and the media folks seemed to think they still had business with us.
I let out a small sigh and approached the hunters barring our way. With every step, black flames bloomed like flowers at my feet, then vanished.
"Wouldn't it be better if you all just walked away on your own two feet?"
As I drew near, the clustered hunters flinched and backed off.
"I'm not in the best mood right now. You're fellow hunters who've been through the grind, so I won't kill you... but I could turn you into vegetables who'll never work again."
I breathed deep, building my aura. Mana surged from my body, boiling the air. The ground trembled, cracks spiderwebbing across the asphalt road.
"Get out of the way. Unless you want to end up like a Kookdaes crushed by a hammer."
As we advanced slowly, the hunters who'd been putting up some resistance gradually retreated, eventually clearing a path.
If you're gonna do this anyway, why bother crawling all the way here? As I passed them, one reporter raised his voice.
"Headhunter's raid on Incheon International Airport Corp. could be seen as a threat to public authority. Could we get the reason why a renowned Headhunter would suddenly act out like this?!"
I stopped at the reporter's words and turned to him. Then I flipped off the camera.
"Renowned? When did you people start treating us like that?"
What a joke.
"That gesture just now...!"
I chucked a pebble at the reporter who'd thrown that half-assed question our way. It traced a weird arc and smashed right in front of his feet, punching a small hole.
The reporter shut up, and we finally went on our way in silence.
The plane was ready, runway secured. Time to fly to Ukraine.
We headed straight to Incheon Airport from the corp building.
The moment we arrived, we started radiating menace on purpose.
We looked like bombs ready to blow if poked. No one dared approach, not even the hunters and soldiers stationed as backup.
"Yeah, stay like that and there won't be any trouble."
I called out to them, then approached the soldier blocking the path.
"Mind making way? It'll be easier for everyone if we hop on the plane and get out quick."
You think you can stop us now, after we handled Kim Chae-hyun? That's not courage—that's arrogance.
The hesitant soldier radioed somewhere, then cautiously stepped aside.
"Thanks."
And just like that, we boarded the Geumyang Group's private jet.
"News is already breaking."
"Nothing good, I bet."
Jeong O-hun popped the cork on a champagne bottle as he spoke. Han Sang-ah nodded.
"Public opinion's negative. They say we're ignoring the law and running wild."
"Which is true?"
We'd blown past the law and procedures, doing whatever we wanted. Spot on. One famous rich guy back in the day once held up a plane about to take off over macadamia nuts.
But we didn't bicker over nuts—we shut down the whole damn Incheon Airport.
"Exactly."
Han Sang-ah pocketed her smartphone and added.
"Think the Korean military will fire an antiair missile at us?"
"No way."
It wasn't that big a deal. Jeong O-hun sipped his champagne.
"Still, this'll really get us hated."
"Can they hate us more than they already do?"
Most Koreans secretly want us gone anyway. Of course, they also quietly hope we fail to take down the Sandai Club.
"Does that matter? We're not doing this for praise."
We all nodded at Han Sang-ah's words. We had a goal.
What others thought of us didn't matter. We'd never aimed for their approval in the first place.
"Can't wait for the Black Sea."
The plane flew on, landing in Kyiv, Ukraine. Odesa had an airport too, being close to the Black Sea, but it was abandoned after the sea turned into a marble pit—landing there was impossible.
We'd head to Kyiv first, under warlord control, then move to Odesa.
Upon arrival in Kyiv, the local warlords greeted us with tense faces.
"No issue."
No time to bite and tear into you right now. We were heading straight to Odesa.
"The UK aid workers are all gathered in a village called Minerne near Odesa."
Odesa hugged the Black Sea coast, making it impossible to approach. The map showed Minerne wasn't far.
"Got it."
After hearing the warlord out, we hurried toward Minerne. We made it to Odesa before sunset.
"..."
Jeong O-hun stared blankly at the sea, then turned away with a dry heave.
"Shit, feels like something's drilling into my skull."
Han Sang-ah nodded in agreement, her face sour. I slowly approached the water.
It wasn't a sea anymore. Countless orbs bobbed on the surface, shimmering in a riot of colors. Staring at the sea packed with tiny spheres, they shifted hues in dazzling patterns, as if trying to devour your sanity.
It wasn't just visual disorientation. Beyond the eyes, it seeped into the mind—a flashy, incomprehensible metamorphosis that slowly eroded reason.
"Here."
Feeling a slight headache, I dipped my hand into the orbs and lifted one, examining it closely.
"You okay?"
"No."
I answered Jeong O-hun, then stared at the orb in my palm.
"Hey, you..."
"It's fine. Just a natural reaction."
Hairs stood on end all over my body. Goosebumps prickled my skin. Cold sweat dripped, pupils quivered. Every pore tightened in terror and tension, bristles rigid.
This wasn't fear or dread. If it were some half-baked emotion, I'd have laughed off the Black Sea's patheticness and tossed the orb back.
It was unknowable, incomprehensible. Beyond primal human fears, these orbs stirred something more fundamental.
The root of all terror and dread. And at the end of awe's trail, always lurking there.
Fear and reverence for the incomprehensible.
The instant I grasped it. A flood of whispers invaded my mind—not sentences, not words, not even fragments.
Utterly meaningless, yet each syllable dredged up profound revulsion from the depths of my soul, laced with utter irreverence.
"The Unknown and the Inexplicable."
The most fundamental force blanketing this Black Sea. The inability to comprehend or grasp. Fear and madness were mere byproducts sprouting from this root.