Chapter 35: Group Battle

How long did I wait at Lee Yoo-jin's mansion?

Finally, the awaited Lee Yoo-jin arrived at the mansion with her bodyguards.

"Good work. You can go now."

"Yes, Miss."

After sending away the bodyguards, Lee Yoo-jin paused as she entered the mansion.

"Hmm."

Can't blame her. I'm sitting right out in the open on her living room sofa.

"Look, I've dealt with assassination attempts from Villains before, so I'm a bit sensitive about this kind of thing."

Hooh. Right. Well, at her age being the Cheonsan Group President... makes sense I guess.

"You don't seem like you came to kill me though? What are you doing sitting on my sofa?"

"I suppose I was too casual with a woman who's hired multiple Villains herself."

No one knows what happened to the Villains she hired.

Probably quietly dealt with them behind the scenes.

"Who are you? I haven't seen you before."

"Pleased to meet you. I'm Dahaka, leader of the Black God Church."

When I carefully greeted her like a proper nun, Lee Yoo-jin looked me up and down.

"Dahaka... the Black God Church leader is Japanese?"

"I'm Korean, actually."

Maybe I should've just used my full name.

"Well, I suppose that doesn't matter. So why did you come looking for me? Don't tell me you're trying to extort funds for the Black God Church?"

"Extortion? This could be beneficial for you too, Miss."

"I have no interest in compromising with the Black God Church."

The Black God Church is notorious even among Villains as the worst of the worst.

"What do you think about these?"

I took out several Magic Stones from my pocket.

Not just artificially created ones, but pure Magic Stones made solely with my power.

Made by none other than our grand Writer's adorable Yong-yong. Made in Azhi Dahaka. Made in Yong-yong.

I take pride in what I create.

Lee Yoo-jin took the Magic Stones I offered and examined them with a businesswoman's eye, bringing over a Magic Stone analyzer to check them thoroughly.

Then she was shocked.

"Magic Stones? Where did you get these?"

She must be curious how such pure Magic Stones came to be.

"These are the purest Magic Stones you'll find anywhere in the world. The Cheonsan Group is researching Magic Stones, aren't you? Though you can't research independently since most of the supply goes to the Association. Isn't that right?"

"Are you offering regular supplies?"

"If you can provide what we need."

To survive in Song-do, just raiding uncooperative Villains won't be enough. We need help from someone like the Cheonsan Group.

I provide Magic Stones, she provides resources to help Song-do survive.

Isn't this a win-win strategy that benefits us both?

"Are you planning to overthrow this country?"

"Ahaha. So you're Korean after all. Of course not. The current Black God Church could overthrow it if we wanted to."

When I said this with a smirk, Lee Yoo-jin stared at me intently.

A strange light flashed in her eyes.

Eye of Truth. Lee Yoo-jin's ability.

She can judge truth and lies in people.

It's like a lie detector that can be used anytime, but her ability has absolutely no margin of error.

In other words, she's seeing the truth in me.

And the fact that the Black God Church really could overthrow this country if we wanted.

After staring at me for a while, Lee Yoo-jin's pupils shook before she composed herself.

"Then what exactly are you plotting?"

"We're gathering people back in Song-do. Those abandoned by the government are so pitiful, don't you think?"

"Why would the Black God Church bother? Trying to rebrand your image now? Aren't you the group that raided Hanseong with Kim Jae-soo?"

Hanseong is where Lee Yoo-jin's sister Lee Yoo-jeong attends. After raiding a place like that, the Black God Church's standing with Lee Yoo-jin must have dropped even further.

I really don't get why the dead Kim Jae-soo keeps causing so much trouble.

"Kim Jae-soo acted alone, but that's not important. Anyway, isn't this enough?"

I took out more Magic Stones.

Pushing harder with a "How about now?" approach. Lee Yoo-jin's serious eyes showed her guard dropping slightly as she fell for my persuasion.

"So you're not just some cult after all."

"Now that the true owner is back, we have to move beyond being a cult. Think of us as a warlord faction. You know, like those Villain warlords in China?"

One of those warlords is the Warlord of Sin.

They eventually compromise with the Chinese Communist government and start invading North Korea with government sponsorship, aiming for semi-independence.

"So you'll give me Magic Stones in exchange for sending necessary supplies to the quarantine zone?"

"Just contact us with this Magic Gear when you're ready and we'll send a Gate User."

I gave Lee Yoo-jin the Magic Gear used by the Black God Church.

She absolutely cannot betray me as long as we're trading.

She cares more about leading the Cheonsan Group than national interests or patriotism.

The key now is whether she properly finds a compromise point for our deal.

"To think I'd end up working with the Black God Church."

So is the deal done?

"You're clearly interested in the Magic Stone business. That settles it then."

"So you won't show your face?"

My face is completely hidden behind a veil, so even her truth-seeing eyes can't see it.

"Haha. My face is expensive. Very expensive. If you want to see it, you'll have to join the Black God Church."

Why would I show my face to just anyone when even the executives don't know what I look like?

"I can't join a group when I don't know what they're up to. Fine. I'll make the deal. But that's as far as it goes."

"Yes. Then I'll take my leave now. These Magic Stones are a down payment and I'll request what we need through the Magic Gear."

With those words, I carefully went outside and flew up into the sky.

If needed I was going to threaten to sell all the Magic Stones to other companies, but Lee Yoo-jin turned out to be quite the greedy woman.

To think she'd consider working with Villains for the Magic Stone business. Well, she must know it's in her interest to cooperate.

She won't provoke someone who could turn Seoul into a sea of flames right in front of her, and she gets the Magic Stone business too - all benefit and no downside for Lee Yoo-jin.

Plus having us in the background means we can prevent anyone from messing with Cheonsan preemptively.

The friction with China starts in earnest from the individual matches after the group battles.

The group battles are domestic but the individual matches include students from China and Japan. That's when there's friction with the Chinese Hunters, and Choi Si-woo ends up fighting Chinese Hunters.

After that, Choi Si-woo becomes quite famous among Chinese Hunters, and naturally the Hunter Army warlords who compromised with the Communist Party try to devour North Korea before Korea grows too strong.

If I could, I'd like to just go to China myself and wreck shit.

But I can't since I don't know how the future might change.

Don't know when the individual match season will be, but there shouldn't be any problems since I'm laying the groundwork bit by bit.

* * *

At Lee Yoo-jin's mansion after Eun-ha left, Lee Yoo-jin let out a ragged breath.

"I-I made it through. Yoo-jin."

Lee Yoo-jin took deep breaths like someone back from the dead.

There was actually something Eun-ha didn't know.

Lee Yoo-jin's Eye of Truth doesn't just detect lies. It's different from Yoo-jeong's emotion sensing, but she definitely has eyes that can see a person's true nature.

"N-no way. That Dahaka was Azhi Dahaka..."

While Azhi Dahaka never caused trouble in Korea, they were quite infamous in Korea too for what they did in neighboring China.

When that being suddenly disappeared and the Black God Church appeared... to think their leader was Azhi Dahaka himself.

According to rumors - no, information from China, Azhi Dahaka brought all kinds of calamities like mass slaughter, cannibalism, incitement and more.

She casually accepted a proposal from that Azhi Dahaka, and even rejected an invitation to join the Black God Church.

"Haah. Haah."

Lee Yoo-jin was unusually excited.

Whether that Evil Dragon sprays some kind of pheromones or not, was Lee Yoo-jin the type of pervert who gets sexually excited in the face of overwhelming fear?

That didn't matter right now.

She could feel wetness in her panties.

Seems she'll need some alone time.

* * *

Group battle day. Arrived at Goryeo Academy.

And heard the explanation of the group battle rules again.

The format is capture the flag as explained, but honestly just beating each other up would be easier. They call it capture the flag but what is this. Are we gonna have a friendly flag battle with Monsters later? With Villains you just need to crush them with DPS.

Anyway, since I got a request from the School Director too, I decided to make this a speed game without dragging it out.

"Wow it's Yoo Jin-seok's sister Yoo Eun-ha."

"Ah, the famous les."

"There's also Divine Sword #2 Choi Si-woo. Huh? She was a girl?"

Which bastard spread rumors to Goryeo Academy too?

Just wait till I catch them, I'll separate their flesh from their bones.

[Hanseong Academy Class A Team 1 VS Goryeo Academy Class C Team 2]

Perfect timing that our opponent is Goryeo Academy. Class C means nothing to see here.

I don't do that bullshit of holding back my power to give the protagonist growth opportunities. The current Si-woo and Heroines are quite strong anyway.

I'll make them even stronger by turning them into Mutants later.

And Class C Team 2 is way below our level. No need for Reina, Han Soo-ji, and Choi Si-woo to hold back.

Goes without saying for Rosaria the Healer.

Victory conditions are stealing the flag or incapacitating all 5 opponents.

"You can't lose to Hanseong! Crush them even if they're Class A!"

"Eun-ha! Don't you dare lose! Give those Yankee bastards a beating!"

Hey, being under Viola doesn't make us Yankees.

But whether from Viola's influence or not, the Goryeo Academy students were glaring at our students ready to beat down Hanseong.

"Even without Teacher Viola, we absolutely won't lose for Goryeo Academy's honor!"

Seems the Goryeo students are ready for battle, not just 'flags'.

What's the point then?

The original goal was to fight and incapacitate each other, and they probably added flags for the weaklings and intelligence types.

The test arena was a simulation lab.

A huge battlefield with a compressed barrier using Magic Gear.

In the end this huge space was unnecessarily big for just 10 people.

"What should we do?"

"It's flag defense right? Gotta defend the flag hard. Let's have Si-woo and Rosaria take mid, Soo-ji on top, Reina guard bot."

Don't think this is exactly like an AOS game.

4 out of 5 are defenders and 1 is attacker. In this case breaking through one spot makes defense vulnerable.

"Why defend when we're not lacking anything? Let's just break through?"

I want to, but Kim Young-hee told me to dominate overwhelmingly.

The fact that she only called me probably means she wants me to show my power.

Need to get a weapon for our Reina, might as well do this much.

"Just trying not to make it complicated. I looked into our opponents beforehand. What do you think, Si-woo?"

"I'll leave it to you."

"Alright, I'm going jungle."

Plus the opponents are using quite a decent strategy.

Whether they know they're weaker than us or just coincidence, seems they plan to break through one spot at a time.

Same as what they did to the original Si-woo's team.

I already know all 5 opponents' fighting methods.

First all 5 move through the forest to ambush us before we can coordinate.

So I came out alone as an easy target.

We'll see how many take the bait.

* * *