Chapter 101
“How exactly did you kill them?”
What, can you do something like physical hacking?
─ S i m i l a r.
“... Physically, all the way to North Korea?”
─ S u m m o n e r . i s . s t u p i d.
This bastard.
When I glared at it, it flinched a little and began explaining.
To put it briefly...
The distance from here to Pyongyang was roughly 250 kilometers at most.
Even assuming the communications network passed through China on its way to Pyongyang, it was no more than about 2,000 kilometers long.
Since a strand of fiber-optic cable weighs about 0.1 grams per meter...
“So even at 2,000 kilometers, it only weighs about 250 kilograms...”
─ M y . m a t e r i a l . c o n t r o l . a b i l i t y . i s . f a r . s u p e r i o r . t o . t h a t.
That was true.
The thing had controlled tens, even hundreds, of tons of metal like a giant robot.
And considering the influence of my control ability...
“Wait... then.”
In theory, could it use fiber-optic cables to kill someone anywhere in the world through the internet?
─ T h a t . i s . b e c a u s e . t h e y . w e r e . w e a k.
Oh, right.
The hackers had been non-Awakened, so a few strands of fiber-optic cable had been enough to kill them...
But other Awakened wouldn't be so easy to deal with.
Even so, that was an incredible weapon.
Besides, most computer experts, including hackers, were non-Awakened.
“... This really is physical hacking.”
Even national agencies known for hacking, like the CIA, NSA, and China's Ministry of State Security, would have to be wary of this ability.
“Hey, even so, when did I tell you to kill them?”
─ T h e . e a s i e s t . w a y.
“Still, from now on, don't make decisions on your own. At least ask me before killing anyone. Oh, that includes hurting people, too.”
─ T h a t . i s . i n e f f i c i e n t.
“The world doesn't work by judging everything by efficiency, you little punk.”
─ U n a b l e . t o . u n d e r s t a n d.
It's fine.
“This is the sort of thing you learn by getting hit.”
Gluttonies made of mist crowded around the brain-shaped Greed.
─ I . w a s . w r o n g.
“Tell me what you did wrong according to the five Ws and one H, within five minutes.”
Just as I thought...
The best way to train a rookie was to chew them out from above.
When you think about it, the military wasn't completely useless, huh?
**
The headquarters of Unit 121, under the Reconnaissance General Bureau in Pyongyang.
The political commissar returned from his meal and flew into a rage at the sight of the hackers slumped asleep in front of their computers.
“Are you all out of your minds? All of you, self-criticize! No, this is a firing-squad offense! You're all sprawled out asleep while carrying out an order from the Great Leader!”
As he spoke, he approached the nearest hackers and kicked one hard in the shin.
But then.
The hacker toppled over like a log.
He looked fine on the outside.
Except for the faint red dot between his brows...
“D-don't tell me...”
The political commissar checked the others one by one, his face turning deathly pale.
The hackers of Unit 121... were all dead.
“W-what in the world...”
He panicked for a moment, but there was no hiding it.
The report was immediately sent to the Juche Palace through Reconnaissance General Bureau headquarters.
“We believe it was the work of an American miniature assassination drone.”
Kim Jo-eun, the leader of North Korea, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, furrowed his brow.
“It wasn't the Americans.”
“Pardon?”
“The American bastards have no reason to help South Korea right now.”
If they had intended to help South Korea, there would've been no reason for the United States to send them information in the first place.
That information hadn't been false or disinformation; it had been true.
However...
Their opponent had simply been stronger than imagined.
“B-but this kind of technology could only belong to the Americans... No, even in America, I understand it's highly experimental. There's no way those South Korean bastards have it.”
“Then it was some other method, not that technology.”
The miniature assassination drone technology was frightening, but...
A completely unidentified means was even more frightening.
“I think it would be best if you took refuge in the underground bunker.”
“... We should.”
Kim Jo-eun was non-Awakened.
Although he was guarded by numerous Awakened...
Even they had no idea how the Unit 121 hackers had been killed.
Unit 121 wasn't even far from the Juche Palace.
They were both in Pyongyang.
Kim Jo-eun feigned composure, but inwardly he was trembling with fear.
“And, Great Leader... it seems subversives are running wild outside Pyongyang.”
“Leave them be. If we send out the few Hunters we have left to crush them, Pyongyang will be in danger. As long as Pyongyang is safe, we can wipe them out all at once later.”
“Yes! Understood!”
“Hunters who can survive even a nuclear bomb...”
A sigh escaped Kim Jo-eun's lips.
“We were thoroughly deceived by those American bastards.”
Only the information had been correct.
Kim Jo-eun had never even dared imagine that there could be a Hunter capable of facing five Revolutionaries alone and surviving a nuclear strike at the same time.
Who in the world could have imagined that?
The Revolutionaries were overwhelmingly powerful Hunters, more than a match for China's top-ranked Hunters.
“For now, we need to make sure the Hunters don't lose morale.”
As long as Pyongyang's Guard Hunters Corps maintained its strength and loyalty, his power would remain secure.
After all, they were the core of the Republic's fighting force.
It was just as he was about to head down to the bunker, relieved.
“L-Leader, we have a serious problem!”
“What is it?”
“The Special Operations Force has turned against us! Commander Ri Jeong-chun...!”
“Ri Jeong-chun?”
How dare the military, of all people?
In the past, he'd tried by any means to control the military, but since the Awakened era began, Hunter forces had taken far higher priority.
What could the Special Operations Force—non-Awakened, no matter how well trained—do against the Republic's Hunters?
“Eighty percent of the Hunters in the Guard Hunters Corps are dead.”
“W-what?”
Eighty percent dead...
Even if the remaining twenty percent were the strongest members of the corps, that was still enough to shake his power.
Kim Jo-eun, his face gone pale, shouted urgently.
“H-how!”
“It was a surprise attack. The Hunter-killer Sniper Brigade made its move.”
Could non-Awakened strength be used to fight Awakened?
Had non-Awakened truly become useless?
The unit had been formed around that question.
It was a special forces unit capable of limited combat against Hunter forces through intense training and various equipment.
“Ri Jeong-chun, you reactionary bastard!”
Kim Jo-eun ground his teeth.
“The survivors are gathering at the Juche Palace.”
“... Ri Jeong-chun couldn't have thought this up on his own. He doesn't have the brains for it.”
“Then...”
**
Around the same time.
The 329th and 330th Brigades, located along North Korea's border in China's Northern Theater Command, and the army groups behind them began moving busily.
The news was immediately relayed to the intelligence agencies of various countries, and reported to their highest leaders.
“How likely do you think it is that China will push north?”
“... They probably don't intend to take over all of North Korea. But it's highly likely they'll move in under the pretext of managing part of the border region at North Korea's request.”
Zephyros continued after briefing them on the reports he'd received from his deputies.
“We may need to take preemptive action.”
“... Are you suggesting we strike the North?”
“We have to stop China from pushing south.”
“The problem is, we have no justification.”
North Korea had pro-Chinese factions, but no pro-South Korean factions.
There might have been some in the past, but after Kim Jo-eun consolidated the power structure during his succession, ties with the highest North Korean leadership had long since been severed.
China could at least have its pro-Chinese faction seize power in a coup and request support, but...
Was there any North Korean leader who would request South Korea's help?
“... There is someone.”
“Who?”
“Not in North Korea, but here in the Republic of Korea.”
“What does that mea— Ah!”
“Yes. Until recently, he was at the heart of North Korea's highest power structure... and he defected due to a certain incident. He also has a good reputation among the people of the North.”
“The Holy Knight of Juche Ideology.”
“Yes. Though now he'll be the Holy Knight of Democracy.”
The Holy Knight of Juche Ideology defects and...
returns to the North to spread South Korea's democracy.
It was a perfect picture.
“What does Mr. Lee Seong-hyeok himself think?”
“... He has no desire for power at all, but says he'd gladly burn himself out to ensure a peaceful transfer of power and prevent discrimination against the North Korean people.”
“He has the will, too. We'd be fools to hesitate. Let's proceed at once. Any objections from the other committee members?”
No response.
The non-Awakened faction's influence within the cabinet had once again been sharply diminished.
Naturally, this was thanks to Kim Segyun's remarkable achievements, which no one could even explain.
Whether it was true or not, according to him, he even guaranteed that there would be no more hacking.
As a result...
The ministers in the non-Awakened camp, such as the Minister of National Defense, merely nodded.
“Minister Jeong.”
“Yes, Mr. President.”
“How many Hunters could the Ministry of Awakened Management mobilize for war without provoking resistance?”
The sudden question caught him off guard, but since he'd prepared in advance, he cautiously spoke up.
“I think all the rankers could be mobilized. Most of them are in the country anyway, since recent events led us to restrict overseas travel... and they've also received a great deal from the state.”
“And aside from rankers?”
“We could call up around three thousand top-tier Hunters. However... one condition is essential.”
“What condition? Compensation?”
“Compensation comes after that... there's one prerequisite they've all put first. That is...”
He hesitated for a moment.
Then Minister Jeong said with a sigh,
“Every single one of them is requesting that Hunter Kim Segyun accompany them.”
“Ugh.”
President Kang Min-guk groaned deeply, as if even that name gave him a headache.
“We rely on him for far too much simply because he's one of our own.”
“... I'm sorry.”
“There's no need for you to apologize, Minister Jeong, and I understand how the Hunters feel.”
Even inside a dungeon... that was the presence of a great Hunter.
The reassuring sense that just by following him, your life would somehow be safe.
“We'll leave that up to Hunter Kim's decision. If he refuses, we won't ask again.”
“... The Hunters will be unsettled if he doesn't come.”
“Even so... our country has already received too much from him.”
President Kang Min-guk shook his head.
“No matter how great a Hunter he is, he's still a human being, an individual. I understand that personal freedom may have to be sacrificed to some extent for the country. But it's also my duty as the president of this nation to make sure that doesn't go too far.”
“Understood.”
The committee members grew solemn.
“Then, the first thing we need to resolve is...”
“Preventing China and Russia from moving south. To that end, we'll send our Hunters as a volunteer support force, led by Hunter Lee Seong-hyeok.”
“A full-scale war would be problematic.”
“Yes. We still don't have wartime operational control, so to keep the United States from getting involved, we'll have to proceed while insisting as much as possible that this isn't a full-scale war.”
The logic was that since Hunters weren't soldiers, this wasn't an army, and therefore this wasn't a war.
“Let's hurry. And...”
President Kang Min-guk looked each committee member in the eye and spoke.
“I know there are rivalries between departments. There have to be. But for now, I want you to put them aside. I want you to judge solely by what is right for the country. Do you all understand?”
The ministers nodded, murmuring their agreement.
“Perhaps... after nearly a century, this may finally be the moment our people become one. If we ruin it, it won't just be a failure—we'll go down in history as traitors. None of you want that, do you?”
Let us not become traitors to history.
At that warning, the ministers shrank back.
Only then did a faint smile appear on President Kang Min-guk's lips.
**
“What?”
“Mr. Lee Seong-hyeok has agreed to temporarily take charge of the collapsed North Korean regime. Our country plans to send high-ranking Hunter forces.”
“... Is that right?”
“Officially, it's not at the national level. It'll be in the form of a PHMC. A fairly big PHMC, but the Americans do it all the time.”
“That PHMC wouldn't happen to be...”
“SG Group. That's why I need your approval as chairman.”
Though North Korea was openly an enemy state, the country couldn't send Hunter forces to another country directly.
It would certainly look better if Lee Seong-hyeok, a high-ranking defector, were the one hiring them.
That was true, but...
“Did you gather them all into one company just for this?”
“There was some of that, yeah.”
“Ugh...”
I understood exactly what the stamp meant now.
I was taking full responsibility for this invasion(?) of North Korea.
“There won't be any problems, will there?”
“At least in our country, you're untouchable now. Who would dare lay a hand on you?”
“Then that's fine.”
“Oh, and... you're going too, right?”
“I have to.”
I still hated killing people.
But if I wanted to avoid killing anyone, I had to go myself.
If you want peace, prepare for war, and all that...
The best defense is a good offense...
National strength doesn't lie in defense...
... No, scratch that.
Anyway, the age-old truth was that overwhelming strength could bring peace.
... So.
“I'm going to end this war.”