Chapter 149

Chapter 149: Hiding My Strength Led to Mounting Misunderstandings

To cap off the operation, we headed to the entrance via portal.

Upon arrival, the Sword Saint elder greeted me and gave an immediate report.

"There have been several intrusion attempts so far. Two major ones, both repelled without issue. It has been quiet for the past half-day."

"I see. They have not given up on entering the dungeon, though."

"Of course not. They will never abandon this dungeon. They are most likely massing their forces."

"That seems probable. How strong were their fighters?"

"There were a fair number of strong Awakened among them, but compared to our guild's core fighting force, they were pitiful."

As expected.

Our guild was currently unmatched by any guild or alliance in the world.

We held the overwhelming number-one spot in military power.

"Then we should proceed with the planned operation."

"Agreed."

Everyone else voted in favor as well.

We vacated the entrance as planned.

Using the dungeon map I had drawn while moving and the map created by Bureau team leader Yoo Hyeon-seong's Dungeon Illumination skill, we divided our forces and designated ambush positions.

When the attack signal sounded, the rally point would be inside a wide dungeon hall.

It was the first open space encountered when walking straight from the entrance.

Eriksson, hiding in concealment, would send the attack signal.

"Eriksson, be careful not to get spotted."

"Got it."

I then opened a Gate portal leading to our home outside the Rift.

Since things would get bloody from here, I wanted to send Rin home first for her mental well-being.

"Rin, go play with your little sister. Mommy and Daddy will be home as soon as we finish."

"Okay! I was missing my wittle sister anyway."

"Ha ha! Yeona must be missing you a lot too."

"Heh!"

Yeona had never been separated from her mom, dad, and big sister for this long before.

Rin gave Ria and me kisses on the cheek, then stepped through the Gate portal.

After the portal closed, Ria said wistfully.

"I miss Yeona."

"Me too...... not seeing her for days is driving me crazy. Let us finish this and go home."

"Yeah."

While we waited, Bell reacted, tapping me with her forepaw.

She was letting me know the cartel Awakened had entered the dungeon.

But we waited.

Until they had walked fully into the jaws of the trap.

The moment they entered the wide dungeon hall where multiple branching paths converged, Eriksson would send the signal.

After a long wait.

-BOOOO!!

Eriksson's horn blast echoed through the dungeon.

Our guild members, who had been lying in ambush along the various branching paths, surged out simultaneously, surrounding the cartel from all directions and launching their attack.

Bell and I blocked the retreat to prevent any escape.

"Who are you to attack us?!"

A man roared in fury.

He must have been the top leader here.

It did not seem like the time to be asking that sort of question.

The roughly one hundred and twenty cartel Awakened were overwhelmed by our guild's superior firepower and subdued one after another.

Then.

SWISH!

Ria cut through the cartel Awakened and reached the man who appeared to be the top leader, severing his right arm from his body.

She pressed her blade to his throat as he writhed in agony and called out.

"Those who wish to live, drop your weapons."

While speaking, she brought the blade even closer to his neck.

Blood began to appear at his throat.

One more push and the carotid artery would be severed.

Sensing the mortal threat, the cartel Awakened dropped his scimitar and raised his hands.

The rest followed, dropping weapons and surrendering.

Our guild members began binding them.

I spoke to the one whose arm Ria had taken.

"Are you the leader here?"

Bound and with bloodshot eyes, he glared savagely at me.

His face was covered in bizarre tattoos.

He spoke.

"......Judging by the look of things, you and the woman who cut my arm are the ones who sent our boss to prison."

"That is right. Now answer my question. Are you the current boss of the Central and South American Awakened Cartel Union?"

"Do you really think I would tell you willingly?"

Before he finished speaking.

SWISH!

Ria moved behind him and slashed both his Achilles tendons with her blade.

"AAARGH-!!"

"See? You should have just answered......"

"You monsters-!"

"I would rather not be called that by a villain like you. And there is no point in staying silent. We have dried out every last Heresia Flower seed in this dungeon. They will never grow back. In other words, your cartel is finished."

"......What?! Do not lie!"

"It is an indisputable fact. So answer the question. Are you the current boss of the Central and South American Cartel Union?"

He said nothing, just glared at me from his knees with venom-filled eyes.

Ria raised her blade.

A warning that his head would come off if he did not answer properly this time.

She released her cold Murderous Intent.

Buckled by the pressure, he finally nodded.

"That is right......"

So he was the leader after all.

His aura had felt like an S-Rank Hunter's, which had made me suspect as much.

He then asked me.

"Did you truly...... dry out the Heresia Flower seeds?"

I pointed at the wall.

There lay the withered remains of dead Heresia Flowers.

"Every flower has withered, just like those. The Heresia Flower will never grow in this dungeon again. We did not leave a single seed. And even if by some miracle one sprouts, we will come back and eliminate it."

"......"

He let out a hollow laugh.

He must have realized the cartel was finished.

Afterward, all the bound cartel members were sent through portals to the Rift Management Bureau holding facility.

They would all be transferred to the U.S. high-security Awakened prison.

***

Having successfully completed the four-day operation.

Ria and I went to the Rift house first to shower and change, then headed to our home outside the Rift.

Yeona, who had been playing with Rin, greeted us.

"Mommy, Daddy! Waaah!"

Having not seen her parents for four days, Yeona burst into tears.

Watching two-year-old Yeona cry felt like the first time in about a year.

That was how rarely Yeona cried.

She had been that way since infancy.

But this time, she must have been deeply upset.

Ria and I approached our standing, sobbing daughter, crouched down, and held her.

"Yeona, Mommy and Daddy are sorry."

"Our Yeona must have missed Mommy and Daddy so much."

After we soothed her with gentle pats, Yeona stopped crying.

Then she spoke in a stuffy, nasal voice.

"Yeona missed Mommy and Daddy so much."

At two years old, Yeona now spoke quite well.

"Really? Daddy missed our Yeona so much too."

"Mommy missed our daughter so much it was hard."

When we even told her we loved her, she finally broke into a bright smile.

"Yeona loves Mommy and Daddy too!"

How adorable.

Four days of hardship melted away like snow.

We also thanked my mother, who had looked after Yeona for four days.

"Thank you so much, Mother. We finished the job well thanks to you."

"Thank you, Mother-in-law."

My mother responded.

"Yeona was so well-behaved and obedient that it was no trouble at all. I was actually healed by spending quality time with my granddaughter. More importantly, are you two hurt?"

She looked us over.

"As you can see, not a scratch."

"Phew, that is a relief."

She must have worried a great deal.

With one more day of leave remaining, my mother stayed an extra day. We shared breakfast, lunch, and dinner together and had a wonderful time.

***

About a month later, public broadcast news reported on our operation.

-Hunter An Seon-u's Wind Forest Guild has achieved another major accomplishment. The Rift Management Bureau conducted a covert operation in cooperation with the Wind Forest Guild. The mission was to raid the base of the Central and South American Awakened Cartel Union, which had occupied northeastern Guatemala.

As a result, the operation successfully eradicated every seed of the Heresia Flower, the novel drug that had plunged the Americas into chaos for years. The cartel's current leader, Raul Barrientos, and key officers were arrested en masse.

All detainees have been transferred to a U.S. high-security prison. The U.S. government expressed deep gratitude to the Wind Forest Guild and the Korean Rift Management Bureau.

Additionally, the Guatemalan government announced through an official statement that it would present the Wind Forest Guild with a medal of gratitude and bestow honorary citizenship upon Hunters An Seon-u and Emeria.

Somehow, Ria and I had become honorary citizens of Guatemala.

I jokingly asked Ria.

"Shall we move to Guatemala?"

"No, I like Korea."

"My wife has become a full-fledged Korean."

"Of course. Completely Korean."

"That is right."

She was more Korean than me, honestly.

Ria had scored 925 out of 990 on the Korean Language Proficiency Test designed for Korean nationals.

She was currently studying for the Level 1 Korean History Certification.

Originally, she had studied hard for my sake. Now it was for Yeona.

She wanted to instill a Korean identity in Yeona, so she was leading by example.

'My wife is truly remarkable......'

I then spoke to Rin, who had been watching the news with us.

"The operation succeeded because of you, Rin."

"Hehe! Daddy, was Win helpful?"

"Absolutely. You were a huge help. You dried out the Heresia Flower seeds, and you defeated the boss too."

"I am happy I could hewp!"

Yeona, who had been rolling around on the seat beside Rin, also praised her sister.

"Unni, cool!"

"Hehe! Yeona, when you gwow up, you can do it too!"

Rin's shoulders rose with pride at her sister's compliment.

My adorable little ones.

I checked the news articles on my phone.

As expected, every outlet was wall-to-wall coverage of our guild and our couple.

One headline caught my eye.

-Chef An Seon-u: Learning the Virtue of Humility from Him

A bit cringeworthy as a title.

Skimming the content, it was a retrospective on this incident and my past.

The article described how I had essentially led the famous Pungjeong restaurant, maintaining Korea's only Michelin three stars for three years, and despite being arguably the nation's top chef, I had never claimed credit. It noted that even after the former Executive Chef's misconduct came to light, I had maintained years of silence.

The piece concluded that I remained the same today — possessing extraordinary abilities and achieving extraordinary feats, yet still choosing to stay out of the spotlight. It noted that my sole public appearance had been on "Leave It to the Fridge," done purely for my daughters.

The article's conclusion was that my patience and humility had earned the public's positive regard.

'I was not being humble. I just did not want the attention, so I kept my strength hidden......'

The misunderstandings kept piling up.

I scrolled through the comments.

-Humility and patience. Great tips on how to marry a beautiful woman, thanks.

-All hail the great Seon-u! My role model.

└FYI, being like that will not get you a pretty girlfriend......

└Let the man dream.

-This reporter writes like an essayist lol. In an age of clickbait and hate, an article like this is refreshing.

-Chef An is manly and cool. I am actually jealous of Emeria. Getting delicious home-cooked meals from the Chef every day.

└For real.

└I have rewatched his episode of "Leave It to the Fridge" at least 100 times.

-At the end of the day, their daughters are the ones I envy most.

└Imagine being born and your dad is Chef An Seon-u and your mom is Hunter Emeria......

Articles and community posts about Ria and me always sparked a three-way debate.

Envious of me, envious of Ria, envious of the daughters.

Opinions were always split.

Every time I saw those comments, the same thought crossed my mind.

'They should be envying me the most.'

My wife was Ria.

My daughters were Rin and Yeona, angelic and adorable.

Truly, there was nothing in the world to envy.