The Drive

I convened a council of war to discuss the court's policy if unauthorized barbarians from Daehan invaded the border.

Unlike the Association, the hunters of the Ignis Guild weren't merely hunting magical beasts near Pamagok. I couldn't shoulder responsibility for the vast border alone, so I needed the cooperation of the other commanders.

Two of the three posts were vacant, and I was in Pamagok, bringing the total number of commanders to ten. The subordinates who normally came and went freely in the audience chamber stood rigidly in formation behind me today.

"W-We greet the Great General!"

"We greet the Great General!"

The martial auras in the room were honed to razor edges. I told you, they all loved putting on a show. Thanks to that, the commanders of the Regional Defense Corps who arrived one after another were intimidated; even after sitting before the table, they couldn't properly lean back against their chairs. Only Park Gyu and Bunhui acted as comfortably as though they were at home.

"We greet the Great General."

"Welcome, Lord No."

Once everyone had gathered, including Nochil from the most distant post, the council began. As decided beforehand, the agenda was the treatment of Lee Dowon and the Ignis Guild.

If their affiliation differed from the Association's, then from our perspective they were no different from Yashin or Togwol. In terms of how they should be treated, they were even lower.

Before I could even suggest a course of action, fierce reactions erupted. They mainly came from the people who had once associated with Gusam and felt guilty about it.

"Even if they are mere insects, their disposition is solely the prerogative of the Great General, who was entrusted by His Majesty with guarding the border!"

"We must immediately make those arrogant barbarians experience the Empire's majesty firsthand!!"

"Let every command mobilize and behead their leader!"

"Indeed, I shall lead the way!!"

"Everyone, calm down first."

Judging from the reactions on the Hunter Gallery, most of the people currently in South Korea seemed to regard me and the Cheonyu Empire with something close to worship. Anyone would feel that way if they were suddenly allowed to make a fortune unlike anything they had ever earned before.

One reason for that was probably that, although we kept them at a wary distance, we had never directly drawn swords against them. The only friction so far had come from the mistakes committed by the members of the Biran Party.

But Ignis was undeniably one of Korea's Seven Great Guilds. If we immediately cut off their heads merely because they had crossed the line, favorable opinions of the Empire would inevitably waver.

I wanted to avoid anything that might make us look barbaric in return. It would have been ideal for the Association to punish them, but it currently lacked the means to control them.

In that case, I, the only sensible person here, should step forward and propose a reasonable solution. Surely everyone would be satisfied.

"If they want to hunt so badly, wouldn't it be better for us to step up and help them?"

"Pardon?"

"What do you mean……."

"I tried this once before on someone among you who isn't present today, and it worked quite well."

"……."

"……."

Huh? Why had everyone gone quiet?

All I would do was lure monsters there as soon as the hunters appeared and let them fight to their hearts' content. Apparently, it was called a monster drive, and it happened from time to time in the Tower as well.

When I brought up Gusam's case, the faces of the three commanders who had associated with him turned pale. Nochil, who had also been at Reed Village at the time, began coughing repeatedly.

"Even if they are barbarians, turning them into food for magical beasts is a bit much……."

"Those who angered the Great General will all die now……!"

"Do you dislike the idea? If you have another opinion, speak freely."

"N-No, not at all! The Great General's decision is absolutely correct!"

"Of course!"

The proposal I had put forward was adopted unanimously by the commanders. Since I had gone to the trouble of arranging this forum, I had wanted to hear a variety of opinions, but no one raised an objection.

It felt a little unsettling, but everyone had agreed, so it should be fine. Since the soldiers from the other posts weren't capable of carrying out a monster drive right away, we decided to split off troops from Pamagok to provide support.

After finishing the deployment, I waited for the members of the Ignis Guild to return. Before long, they appeared once again.

*

Thud! The massive body of a Hellhound collapsed into the reeds. Baek Nayoon, an A-rank hunter from the Ignis Guild, extracted the mana stone from its head.

The wind blade that sprang from her hand cleaved three skulls at once. As she gazed at the mana stone's brilliant color, one of her companions urged her on.

"Let's move quickly. We need to kill as many as possible and get back before we're spotted."

"Oh my, so what if they spot us?"

Baek Nayoon was unfazed. According to Lee Dowon's calculations, the probability of being attacked by Yoo Hyun's army was extremely low.

There were hunting grounds in the Tower as well. When groups clashed over hunting grounds, force took precedence in quite a few cases. But this case was different.

"How would they know when and where we come out?"

"They said they have a surveillance system too."

"So have we been ambushed yet?"

"No, but……."

"They can't stop us in the first place. Even if a rumor spread that we'd been attacked by the army, wouldn't that make things worse for them?"

Anyone could post on the message board. If word got out that they had killed people—not merely detained or put them on trial—the Association would have difficulty maintaining its friendly relationship with Yoo Hyun as it had until now.

"Exactly. They should have accepted the vice-master's proposal when they first approached us on their knees. Serves them right."

"How are we going to transport the mana stones?"

"There's an unregistered barge in the West Sea, so we can leave them there for now. If we sell them in Korea, the Association will track us down."

The merchant vessel Lee Dowon had brought to Korea carried monsters called Gigant Worms. Using them to evade the Association's eyes, they could enter the Hidden Stage, transfer the mana stones they obtained to an empty space, and receive much more substantial support the next time they arrived in the United States.

It was practically an act of plunder, but the Seven Great Powers had consistently taken the Association's interests for themselves in this way. They had no intention of making an exception for the Hidden Stage.

"If they send even one S-rank hunter, it'll be over."

"Our guild only has American personnel besides our current combat forces, doesn't it? They won't be able to enter here."

"Then we need to hire a Korean from another guild. I hear the Association is doing that too, right? That little brat from the fallen Shin family."

"Don't tell me…… that Revealing Heavenly Secrets?"

There were not many S-rank hunters currently staying in Korea. Moreover, most of them were not really combat assets for one reason or another.

"I hadn't heard that. If an S-rank hunter is involved, isn't that serious?"

"How could the Association openly turn against the great powers? And even if Shin Yuyu herself wanted to, we couldn't lay a hand on her."

"Why not? I heard she has a fiery temper."

"The ancestors she serves still haven't abandoned this country."

After the Tower was built, the Shin family was destroyed. Although it had produced several highly capable Awakened, it had not been enough to hold back the monsters pouring out of the Tower for fifty years.

Even after becoming restless spirits unable to pass on and inhabiting the divine artifact of the last surviving legitimate daughter, they could not lay a hand on the great powers that had offered no help at the time. The will keeping them in this world was to protect the Republic of Korea.

"It's because if even we disappeared, this country would truly fall, that's all. So even though she can use magic, she won't be able to activate her unique ability carelessly."

"True. When you think about it, isn't this all a matter of enhancing national prestige?"

The truth that selling one's country meant living well for generations applied in every era.

Just as we were about to go hunt some other monsters, a fiery glint appeared in Baek Nayoon's eyes. The air felt strange because an energy other than mana was spreading through it, but more than anything, the sensation was familiar.

"What's wrong?"

"Don't you suddenly feel some heat?"

"Now that you mention it…… doesn't it look like something's burning over there?"

The reeds were on fire. Even though the wind was blowing in the opposite direction, the flames were steadily approaching the members of the Ignis Guild.

The hunters were much faster, so that alone wasn't a problem. But that wasn't the issue. A huge number of monsters were running at full speed in the opposite direction from the smoke to escape the flames.

"This is insane……!"

"Is it a natural disaster?"

"How could it be!? Anyone can see it's man-made. Hurry, jump into the rift!"

"Wait, is someone up ahead?"

It was a mounted soldier holding a single spear. Guiding the enraged monsters like a herder, he charged toward them, and only then did Baek Nayoon realize that they were being driven.

She prepared her magic and shouted to her companions.

"Stop that bastard! Knock him off his horse before he gets close!"

"Damn……!"

There was enough distance between them to deal with him. Besides, they had a large force of more than ten mages on their side.

She judged that if he hesitated after being frightened by the barrage of magic, he would be caught between the monsters and the hunters, unable to do anything before being taken down. Following her signal, the hunters all attacked the soldier at once.

However.

"He dodged?"

"I knocked some of them aside!"

"Why is he moving so fast? Even the horse is speeding up!"

"Whoa…… dodge!"

They had planned to stop him somehow before he could lead the monsters to them, but it was already too late. The soldier burst through the members of the Ignis Guild and stopped his horse a short distance behind them.

When he casually glanced back at them, Baek Nayoon realized that her hand had been cut off. Before she could even throw herself into the rift—

The monsters switched their targets to the nearest prey and instantly overwhelmed them.

.

.

.

.

"Mission accomplished, Commander."

"Good work, Chunsik."

"It's Jowoon."

"Was it 'One Against a Thousand'? It gets stronger when there are many enemies and you have to fight alone. That's a little dangerous, but it's useful."

"I have been through countless battlefields like this, even before learning martial aura, so I am accustomed to them."

"Really?"

"Yes. The Yoo family had many enemies in Unjungseong. Once, troops from other clans all came rushing in, and I broke through their encirclement to rescue Madam's eldest son. Compared with that, this is……"

"Bunhui, are things over there all wrapped up?"

"Yeees~!"

"Guh!"

I casually let Chunsik's bragging about his old workplace wash over me once more. If the losses among the hunters they sent continued to mount, the Ignis Guild would have no choice but to withdraw.

The problem was that this was only a stopgap. Mana stones from the Tower were generally about ten times as effective as ordinary ones. In Pamagok, where qi lay thick, I had heard the difference could be as much as twenty to thirty times, so they would not give up. They would definitely return fully prepared.

"As expected, I need to give them a proper warning at least once."

Even after returning to my office, I continued to mull it over, fidgeting with the Staff of God Lee Dowon had given me.

'They have to be able to travel freely to Earth, not be affiliated with the Association, and be powerful enough that even the Seven Great Powers can't easily lay a hand on them after I deliver my warning.'

They also had to be obedient. Who on earth could fit the bill? Just as I was erasing faces from my mind one by one—

Boom!

The staff in my hand fired its last flame on its own and exploded. I suppose it really was a prototype; they hadn't even installed a safety mechanism.

As I was brushing the peeled skin from my palm, a shrill scream came through the hole in the door.

"C-Crazy……! We almost had another major accident!"

When I opened the door, Shin Yuyu was sitting on the floor, clutching a huge book.