Chapter 54

Chapter 54

It would be better for my own safety to keep my distance from a person like Wi Taewoong.

Because, in the end, I would only be used and then stabbed in the back.

But that was only when one did not know much about the other party.

If I could keep an appropriate distance and exchange only what was necessary, it would not hurt to know him.

After all, it meant having a line to the Master of one of South Korea’s Five Great Clans.

“You want my business card?”

“Yes.”

“Of course I should give you one.”

Wi Taewoong grinned and handed me a business card made of pure gold.

“I am Wi Taewoong. As you know, I am the Master of the Abyss Clan.”

“I am Cha Eunseong.”

“You are a wise young man.”

When I took the business card with a smile, Wi Taewoong grinned as if he liked me.

“When I was your age, I wasted my life being loyal to the nation and its people. Haha!”

Wi Taewoong was a man who had grown disgusted with poor treatment while serving in the special forces and had left the military.

In a way, it would not be wrong to say that he stood at the opposite point from my father or Instructor Kim Sangeung.

“The same goes for me.”

“Mm?”

“I am here because I signed a contract with the Defense Strategy Department, am I not?”

“Ah, so that is what you mean.”

Wi Taewoong nodded as if he understood.

After all, entering the Special Force Training Center to receive training meant that I had completed my Hunter registration with the Defense Strategy Department and signed an official contract.

“How long is the contract period?”

“I cannot tell you that. There is something called a confidentiality clause in the contract.”

“Hahaha! Good. I like how clear-cut you are.”

Whatever pleased him so much, Wi Taewoong kept smiling broadly.

“Then I suppose you will not tell me what you just ate either.”

“Of course not.”

“Fine, I understand. Contact me anytime. The sooner, the better. For reference, our Clan’s legal team is rather competent. We hired plenty of expensive lawyers, you see.”

It meant he would help me terminate my contract with the Defense Strategy Department if I wanted.

One might ask why a Hunter Clan had a legal team, but this was the average these days.

The era of people forming groups with acquaintances like children playing house and going around together had passed.

That was only a story from the earliest days of Hunters.

Hunter Clans had long since become corporate entities.

Clans of some scale, like Abyss, purchased private land to build training grounds and stockpiled helicopters and various heavy weapons.

Accordingly, it was common for them to hire office workers and also have a legal team in preparation for all sorts of incidents, accidents, and legal disputes.

In the case of one certain Clan, it had even expanded its business like an octopus spreading its arms by launching a franchise business and opening physical stores…….

Rather, Kim Yeongnam, who operated his Clan like a club or a social gathering, was the very unusual case.

“Thank you for saying so. If I need help, I will let you know separately.”

“Whenever you feel comfortable. Then, I will assume we will meet again soon and take my leave.”

Wi Taewoong jumped upward with all his strength and climbed into the helicopter.

Seeing him leap twenty meters high in one go, it seemed a 6-Star was indeed a 6-Star.

BRRRRRRR!

The Abyss Clan’s helicopters departed.

“Hey! Have you really lost your mind?! Do you know what kind of human that man is?!”

Choi Yura rushed over and bombarded me with words.

Instructor Kim Sangeung was even more serious.

“Eunseong, since he is the Clan Master of the Abyss Clan, it is understandable that you might be tempted. But listen. Simply knowing people of that sort is dangerous. One wrong move, and not only you, but also your father, your mother, and even your younger sibling could be in danger.”

Perhaps because he was my father’s junior and also someone who was acquainted with Wi Taewoong in passing, Instructor Kim Sangeung spoke very seriously.

“You do not have to worry. I did not ask for his business card with any real intent either.”

“Mm?”

“I took it to tell him to get lost quickly, so you do not need to worry.”

“If that was your intention, then I am relieved, but…….”

Whoosh!

The business card made of pure gold flew in a golden arc and lodged itself in the mudflat.

“You saw that, right?”

“Yes, then I am relieved.”

Instructor Kim Sangeung smiled.

‘I am sorry.’

I felt a slight sense of guilt.

I had already memorized the number, so throwing away the business card meant nothing.

***

Just before we left the mudflat.

“Then…….”

“Let us go.”

“Please wait a moment.”

While sitting on the ATV, I took out the [Looting] card.

‘Collect them.’

Pure white weasels stretched long like snakes and picked up valuable items scattered all across the battlefield, such as Spirit Swords and Etherium.

[ has been obtained!]

[<Blue Etherium (2-Star)> has been obtained!]

[<Secret Coin (Silver)> has been obtained!]

[<Secret Coin (Gold)> has been obtained!]

.

.

[ has been obtained!]

“Wh-What is that? Why are there weasels……?”

Instructor Kim Sangeung flinched in surprise.

“It would be a waste to leave them behind.”

“But is there a reason to collect even Spirit Swords?”

In the world of Hunters, it was common to leave Spirit Swords at the scene.

When a Hunter died, the Spirit Sword would also disappear before long.

Sometimes, people cremated the Spirit Sword together with the Hunter or placed it in the coffin, but it was nothing more than a meaningless act.

After all, the Spirit Sword would vanish without a trace anyway.

“They are useful to me.”

“You mean dead swords might be useful……?”

Hunters called the Spirit Swords owned by dead Hunters [dead swords].

Since a Spirit Sword shared its life with its owner, it was a fairly fitting expression.

“They may not be useful to other Hunters, but they are useful to me.”

“What in the world…….”

Instructor Kim Sangeung asked me, as if he could not understand at all.

“Eunseong, what exactly is your Role Category?”

“Who knows?”

“Are you keeping it a secret even from your uncle? Come on, tell me. I am personally curious. I will not report it to the higher-ups.”

“Even if I want to tell you, there is nothing I can tell you. I am still in the process of figuring it out too, so it is hard to define it clearly…….”

“Is that so?”

“It is half and half. Half of it is me hiding it, and half of it is because I really do not know.”

“You little…….”

Instructor Kim Sangeung glared at me.

“Fine, since that is personal information, I will not ask any further.”

“I would appreciate that.”

“Enough. Hurry up and get on. I am sick and tired of this place. Let us get out of here quickly.”

Instructor Kim Sangeung pointed at the ATV right beside him.

“Let us.”

Vroom!

As soon as I climbed onto the ATV and started the engine, Ra Sihyeon quickly climbed on.

“That girl, seriously…….”

Choi Yura ground her teeth, but this time, she could not bring herself to tell her to move.

Unlike a bike, an ATV was easy to drive, so there was no need to ride behind someone else.

VROOOOOOM!

Soon, the ATVs raced across the mudflat.

***

“Minister, this is the field commander’s report. Eunseong’s person has been secured.”

“That is welcome news.”

Minister Ahn, who had been focused on other work, looked as if a weight had been lifted from his chest.

The Minister of Defense Strategy of the Republic of Korea could never cling to just one situation.

Even at this moment, incidents large and small were occurring all across the country, and intelligence on various abnormal signs was being reported.

On top of that, he had to remain vigilant against a coup by certain forces…….

“What are the follow-up measures?”

“In the case of the wounded, after emergency treatment is administered, they are scheduled to be transferred to nearby general hospitals. Those with no particular issues will be brought to the Defense Strategy Department for now.”

“Good. Inform the survivors’ families as well. And…….”

Minister Ahn’s gaze turned toward the giant screen.

Although the mudflat incident had been resolved, Jebudo was still engulfed by the Fog Labyrinth.

To begin with, the Transference Crisis had started three kilometers west of Jebudo.

Because the Gate had formed offshore, in other words, over the sea…….

“I authorize the use of a tactical nuclear weapon. Yield, five kilotons. Strike the target point precisely, and once the blast aftermath disappears, deploy the Abyss Clan to clear the Gate.”

“Tactical nuclear weapon, use authorized. Yield, five kilotons. Abyss Clan deployment after target strike. Yes, confirmed.”

Captain Im quickly wrote down Minister Ahn’s words and relayed the order.

Five kilotons.

The power of [Little Boy], which the United States had dropped on Hiroshima in the past, had been approximately fifteen kilotons, so this was a figure equal to one-third of that.

In this era, the use of a tactical nuclear weapon of around five kilotons was not particularly rare.

In the past, it had been a privilege that only a few countries could enjoy under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, but now, any reasonably advanced country operated tactical nuclear weapons.

Immediately after the order was given.

A submarine belonging to the Republic of Korea Navy, which had been submerged in the Yellow Sea, surfaced and fired a ballistic missile loaded with a tactical nuclear weapon.

SHOOOOOOO!

Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missile.

The submarine-launched ballistic missile, commonly called an SLBM, flew toward the location where the Gate had formed.

***

BRRRRRRR!

On the way to the Defense Strategy Department in a Chinook Helicopter.

BOOOOOOOOM!

From far away to the west, an enormous roar rang out.

The aircraft shook without pause, then soon calmed down.

“Urgh!”

“Aaaaaagh!”

The frightened chicks flailed about, but I quietly crossed my arms and looked out the window.

This was a personal preference of mine, but no matter how many times I saw a nuclear explosion, I never got tired of it.

The sight of it looking as if the sun had split into two, and then the world instantly burning white.

Soon, beyond the horizon, a dark-red pillar surged into the sky, forming a mushroom-shaped pillar of fire.

In about an hour, the Abyss Clan would be deployed.

Even if the aftermath of the explosion subsided, the danger of radiation would remain, but radiation was no problem for Hunters.

From the moment they received the blessing of Ether, they were immune to radiation.

‘If that bastard stays beside Wi Taewoong, he will keep growing. Should I separate them, or should I kill him?’

As I recalled Lee Hyun, who had been sitting on the helicopter and looking down at me, I mulled over various schemes. Before I knew it, the Chinook Helicopter had arrived at the Defense Strategy Department building in Gwacheon.

“Eunseong!”

“Son!”

“Big Brother!”

As soon as I got off the helicopter, my family ran toward me.

The others were the same.

Not only the trainees, but the families of the active instructors were also waiting at the airfield.

“Honey!”

“Daddyyyy!”

Instructor Kim Sangeung’s wife and daughter also hurried over and threw themselves at the head of their family.

‘Thank you.’

Instructor Kim Sangeung sent me that look.

‘Do not mention it.’

I answered with a slight bow and moved toward my family as well.

“I am back.”

I smiled brightly.

For the sake of my family, who must have spent the whole night with their hearts in their throats.