Chapter 118
When Miniature Baal disappeared after completing his purpose, Gremory tilted her head and asked.
“Who were you suddenly talking to?”
“Oh, you couldn't see him?”
“No.”
“Baal.”
“... Pardon?”
“More precisely, I suppose you'd call it Baal's residual thought.”
When I explained the ability tied to Baal's staff, Gremory looked quite surprised.
“Baal was also known as the Wise Demon King. His knowledge should be a great help to you, Savior. Still, even if he's only a remnant of consciousness, he might sometimes mislead you toward what he wants, so please be careful.”
“Yeah, well.”
I was old enough to know that what someone said wasn't always right.
How did I know that...?
Things that seemed true could be false,
and things that seemed just could be unjust.
Or vice versa. There was a den of intrigue where such things happened all the time.
That was the internet in Korea.
Anyone who'd spent much time online in South Korea would understand.
Now that years of experience had toughened me up, I was confident I wouldn't be fooled by Baal's silver tongue.
Anyway, I was currently level 68.
I wanted to get above level 70 first.
“Gremory, is there anything I can do to help?”
“Pardon? No, you've already helped me so much, Savior...”
“It's fine, tell me. Is there some bastard who won't listen to you?”
“... It really is fine, but the Demon Kings who rank in the top ten are still being uncooperative.”
These bastards.
“Want me to go give them a scare?”
“Give them a scare?”
“... I mean, intimidate them.”
It might sound absurd to ask whether someone could scare a Demon King, the very embodiment of fear, but...
Well, what could you expect, now that it had come out that even Demon Kings used to be human?
“It's okay. That's something I need to handle myself. If I want to be formally recognized as a Demon God, I should be able to control Demon Kings on my own. Even if they're high-ranking Demon Kings.”
“Then, anything else you need...”
“Well, not particularly, but... if you insist on finding something, there are places where ancient magical beasts live. They're not a threat as long as we don't bother them, but they sometimes come down and kill demons. The Three-Headed Tiger (參頭虎), for example.”
“How dare a beast kill people... I mean, demons.”
Now that they weren't immortal, were demons people too?
Anyway.
I couldn't just sit by and watch.
It definitely wasn't because I wanted to level up.
Of course not.
“I'll go.”
“... If you insist, then please subjugate them and bring me the Three-Headed Tigers' hides.”
Perhaps no one, not even a Demon God, could assign a mission to someone of equal standing, because no subquest appeared.
That was a downside.
But...
“If you like, I'll have the finest craftsmen in the Demon Realm make clothes for you from those hides.”
That's the power of authority: being able to get something better than a quest reward.
I couldn't quite appreciate it yet...
but I was practically a co-ruler of a world nearly as large as Earth.
**
“Damn it, we can't even broadcast. Why are the NPCs only unfriendly to us?”
Ryan Spencer, who had established himself as America's strongest Hunter after Kaiser, complained like a sulky child.
“We're pouring ten million dollars in cash into this every single day, and I've never seen a worse deficit.”
Robert Garcia let out a deep sigh as well.
“I think we got off on the wrong foot. Kim Segyun seems to have tremendous influence in here.”
“Damn it, is this what it takes to become a Gate Owner?”
The two thought they might have made a mistake in assuming that, as a quest reward, he had only gained the right to enter and leave the Gate at will.
But there was nothing they could do about it.
It had been Kaiser's order.
“That damn old man.”
The plan to forcibly cross the Military Demarcation Line hadn't originally been theirs.
It had come from Kaiser's order, as he wanted to gauge Kim Segyun's abilities.
As a result, in this Demon Realm where everyone else was raking in the benefits, they alone had become outsiders.
A small city had already sprung up around the Gate where the Demon Realm was located.
From hastily built but fairly upscale lodging to restaurants and other businesses that had attracted investment from all across North Korea—and even South Korea.
They say once a monk gets a taste for meat, no bedbugs are left in the temple.
The North Koreans, after experiencing late-stage capitalism, were more tenacious than anyone in seeking chances to make money, and Aoji was quickly turning into a city of pleasure.
Whenever the two trudged out empty-handed, they saw other Hunters returning with enormous profits.
“I know the old man used to be impressive, but I think he's really lost his edge now.”
“Are you actually thinking of rebelling against him?”
They'd briefly considered taking advantage of Kaiser's weakness to join forces with his daughter, Sophia, and overthrow him.
But when Kaiser showed he was once again as formidable as he had been in his prime, they had no choice but to abandon the idea.
They'd gone before Kaiser and begged, to the point of groveling.
They'd even gone down on their knees and pledged their loyalty again.
But if they'd once considered betraying him, what would stop them from doing it again?
“Damn it, maybe we should pledge our loyalty to Kim Segyun instead.”
If they were destined to live as nothing but number twos anyway,
wouldn't it be better to serve a better number one?
“... Should we?”
“What? Are you crazy?”
Ryan Spencer flatly rejected the idea, aghast.
He might have said it himself, but he knew it was impossible.
“How much are we tied up with America? You want us to throw all that away and move to Korea? Just for... well, not just, but for this one Demon Realm?”
“No. We wouldn't be throwing it away.”
“... Then?”
“We take all our shares, spin off the company, and make it a subsidiary of SG Group.”
“What?”
Ryan Spencer's eyes widened.
“Hey! You can't...!”
“Our earlier rebellion failed because we were trying to become the new bosses. But being number two isn't so bad. Besides, Kim Segyun won't treat us like dogs the way Kaiser does. If we bow our heads, hand over all our shares, and join him, he'll guarantee our positions, won't he?”
“... That's probably true.”
“You admit those shares are just window dressing anyway, don't you?”
They did in fact own a considerable portion of the Kaiser Group's shares.
But in practice, they were little more than rubber stamps.
No matter how many shares they owned in the Kaiser Group, unless they amounted to friendly shares reinforcing Kaiser's control, it was no exaggeration to say they had no value.
They'd recently tried to put those shares to use, and nearly lost everything.
If Kaiser wanted, he could restructure the shareholding at any moment and reduce their shares to worthless scraps of paper.
And they couldn't sell them, either.
“The old man simply shifted the shares concentrated in his own hands to obedient dogs who'd do as they were told.”
The two of them were the leaders of that pack of obedient dogs.
“But will the government allow it?”
“What can they do if they don't? Where are we right now?”
If they were on American soil, maybe...
But this place was far beyond America's sphere of influence.
There were U.S. Forces Korea troops here, but would those soldiers dare lay a hand on them?
“This is Kim Segyun's territory.”
“......”
When Garcia remained hesitant until the very end, Spencer delivered the decisive blow.
“The old man doesn't know his granddaughter has already turned against him. It might be hard to spin off the company with just us, but if Sophia Heinrich, who knows the core internal shareholding structure, helps us, it'll be entirely possible.”
“... If she helps, it really might be possible. But would she help us with this, too?”
“She will. She's quick to calculate.”
Just as they reached a conclusion,
[South Korea's highest-level Hunter has been updated.]
[Five Level 70 Gates have been generated.]
[The pacification of Jeju Province, South Korea, has been lifted.]
[The pacification of Gyeongsangnam Province, South Korea, has been lifted.]
[The pacification of Jeollanam Province, South Korea, has been lifted.]
[The pacification of Chungcheongbuk Province, South Korea, has been lifted.]
As a flood of messages appeared before their eyes, they looked at each other in confusion.
**
Monday morning.
The South Korean stock market was in absolute pandemonium.
The worst crash in history.
It was Black Monday.
There was only one reason.
A failure in level control had set a new highest-level record, generating five new Level 70 Gates and breaking the pacifications Kim Segyun had worked so hard to secure in four regions.
The government and various agencies were busy dealing with the situation, but the busiest of all was, as always, the Awakened Management Department.
“Who failed level control in the Demon Realm?”
“Who the hell was it?”
“Among the Rankers who went to the Demon Realm, who could possibly have reached Level 70? Contact them right now!”
The officials kept calling through their emergency contact network, trying to understand the situation, but all they heard was that nobody had broken through Level 70.
And...
“Nobody says it was them.”
“Are they lying because they're afraid of having to pay damages?”
“Well, strictly speaking, level control is more of a customary practice than a legally binding obligation...”
“... That's true, but.”
Jeong Inhyeon, the Minister of the Awakened Management Department, clutched his head and let out a deep sigh.
“Then who the hell was it?”
“Could it be Kim Segyun...?”
“Don't be ridiculous. Even if he's Kim Segyun, could he have gone from the 40s to Level 70 this quickly, when he was only in the 40s not long ago?”
He had most recently cleared an Irregular Gate in the 40s, so it was certain Kim Segyun's level was at most in the mid-to-high 40s.
“And if Kim Segyun is Level 70... that would be even worse.”
“... Why? I think Kim Segyun could definitely break through the Under Seventy era.”
“That's right. Kim Segyun could do it.”
“Then why...”
At the vice minister's question, Minister Jeong looked at him as if he were an idiot and said,
“What's happening with the world's Hunter-related stock markets right now?”
“... They've gone up.”
They'd risen more dramatically than at any other point in history.
There was only one reason.
It was all priced in.
“The stock prices that rose because people were certain Kim Segyun would clear their country's Irregular Gates... what do you think will happen to them?”
“... A massive crash.”
If Kim Segyun had reached Level 70,
then the Irregular Gates below that level would remain ‘Irregular’ for some time, without any help from Kim Segyun.
“Our own country is the problem to start with. If he's Level 70, there's no way he can clear the Level 50 Gyeongsangbuk-do Gate... and the Level 64 Irregular Gate in the Seoul area is beyond his reach, too.”
“... Good heavens.”
“Right. Our country might be relatively better off. If Kim Segyun clears Level 70 Gates, our stocks might rise temporarily. But ultimately, pacification in the Seoul area will be impossible for quite some time.”
“The world's Hunter industry will see its temporarily priced-in stock gains vanish...”
“No, they'll fall even further than the priced-in gains. The expectations themselves will disappear. You know that, don't you?”
No matter how amazing Kim Segyun was, he couldn't go around clearing every Irregular Gate in the world.
He'd cleared nearly all the major ones within his level range, but...
even as his level rose, there had been regions he'd ended up being unable to clear permanently.
The DDF (Dungeon Development Fund) stock prices for those regions had been utterly devastated.
“So please, let it not be him. It'd be better if someone else had failed level control.”
In that case...
there'd at least be hope that Kim Segyun would level up slowly and clear them later.
“Minister! We've reached Hunter Kim Segyun!”
“Give it here!”
Minister Jeong Inhyeon practically snatched the phone and spoke.
“Hunter Kim Segyun? This is Minister Jeong!”
─Yes, Minister? What is it...?
“Did you see the message about reaching Level 70? It wasn't you, was it, Hunter Kim?”
─... It was me.
Thud.
Minister Jeong's legs gave out, and he sank to the floor. The people around him startled and rushed to support him.
“W-why on earth...”
─We should start clearing Level 70 Gates soon. How long are we going to remain in the Under Seventy era?
... He was right.
And Kim Segyun was certainly the kind of Hunter capable of following through on those words.
Minister Jeong sighed once, then slapped his cheeks lightly, trying to collect himself.
“Understood. Since things have come to this, the government will formulate its own plan.”
Rather than foolishly trying to put spilled water back in the cup, it was better to quickly come up with a new plan.
─Ah, if you're worried about pacifying those regions, don't worry too much. I'll take care of them as quickly as I can.
“Yes, understood.”
Even as he said that, Minister Jeong's expression didn't ease.
If he cleared Level 70 Gates alone, his level would rise again.
Then Level 71 Gates would open...
and pacification would become almost impossible from then on.
Besides, there was a reason people called it the Under Seventy era.
No matter how incredible Kim Segyun was...
even if he was a Hunter who could survive a nuclear strike...
Level 70 Gates wouldn't be easy.
After ending the call with Kim Segyun, Minister Jeong Inhyeon let out a deep sigh.
“I had no idea our country had become this dependent on one person.”
Concluding that they had no choice but to accept an era without ‘pacification’ in practice, Minister Jeong ordered them to prepare countermeasures.
And just a few days later,
South Korea's stock market, which had climbed as if it had no fear of the heavens, was sent back three years.