The President is Going to America! - Chapter 152
Only Noblemtl
152. Flame Jade
Age and class hold a lot of power in Korean society.
As a Korean who also grew up with Confucianism, I have no intention of blindly criticizing that culture.
But it is certain that there were many abuses within the special forces at least in the early days.
The fact that it is a secret unit whose existence is not even known.
And the fact that they are deployed to all kinds of dangerous situations where they have to risk their lives.
Also, because it was a group that was practically a military organization, its internal culture was extremely rigid.
In particular, I, who was ranked first by an overwhelming margin in the training camp, was called in separately by several of my seniors and had to hear the phrase that their instructions were absolute dozens of times.
I even got hit in the head while counting bathroom tiles.
Well, if military discipline was simply strict, there wouldn’t be a problem.
Everyone has gone through extreme training at the training camp and has come back completely drained of social isolation.
I could have worked while enduring that level of shit.
But the problem here was that, unfortunately, the seniors’ skills were not objectively good.
Starting with the 3rd batch that I was in, the average level of the senior batches has definitely dropped compared to the batches that came in after that.
This was true not only in his abilities as a hunter, but also in his appearance as an agent carrying out special missions.
There is no way the organization can function properly when the least capable group is leading the team and holding command.
The 1st and 2nd generations, who knew this fact best, chose to suppress the voices of discontent with their positions and generations.
He also colluded with politicians to look after them.
In return, they received side income from those in power and solid authority within the unit.
But unfortunately, that situation didn’t last long.
Almost all hunters instinctively yearn for greater power.
Not only did they constantly try to train themselves and find ways to become stronger, but even their standards for their superiors were affected.
An organization of hunters eventually has its strongest hunter as its leader.
A wind of change blew within the special forces as well.
Han Su-yeon, Baek Ji-su, Kang Seok.
The Golden Generation of the 5th generation, which included these three, quickly began to assume a central role in the organization and actively rebelled against their senior generation.
Instead of putting the incompetent and incompetent veterans at the forefront, they started to give me strength.
Eventually, I officially took on the position of Special Forces Commander.
At the same time, the senior riders who had been forcibly holding on to power were completely pushed back.
Although I put it simply, it was not a smooth process and there was a lot of noise within the unit.
From their perspective, they were pushed out overnight and relegated to the back room, so they can’t help but be very dissatisfied.
A significant number of them chose to retire, or some even left Korea for other countries.
Believing that they would sell out the unit’s confidential information, Baek Ji-soo insisted that they be buried in cement at the construction site.
Kang Seok said that was too extreme and proposed a compromise of drum passage on the bottom of the West Sea.
Han Su-yeon saw the two and claimed that they were mentally ill and needed to be isolated.
Anyway, I was given two choices.
Should I kill him and silence him without any regrets, or should I let him go despite all the worries?
As someone who had seen the previous behavior of the senior rider, it was true that I was concerned that he might do something foolish.
But my choice was the latter.
Because I thought that if that kind of atmosphere is established from the first case of a large number of people retiring within the organization, I couldn’t guarantee that the same thing wouldn’t happen when we retire.
It is also a choice for each individual special agent, not for the country or organization.
Thanks to this, they were able to retire without any particular issues.
Those who remained in the unit did not last long either.
Those who failed to adapt and caused accidents were expelled, and there were quite a few who died during the mission.
Before the gate problem in China became serious, there were no members of the 1st and 2nd batches in the unit.
Thanks to this, they were later also called the lucky generation.
He was the only rider who never set foot on that hellish Chinese battlefield.
Anyway, my seniors quickly faded from my memory.
They were not people who were pleasant to recall, nor were they great enough to reminisce about in grandiose ways.
An old relationship that I have no intention of ever meeting again and have no desire to be involved with.
But an unwelcome guest suddenly showed up.
*
Mad dog Yang Ki-hoon.
As a senior in the second batch of the special forces, he was outstanding in his own right, having ranked first in his class, but he lacked self-control and was impulsive.
He stayed in the unit because he liked killing people, but was eventually severely punished for intentionally killing civilians and expelled.
A human who has not been heard from since he entered the Awakened Prison.
Thud.
Streams of blood dripped from the tip of the sword he held.
Oh Hyeon-seong tried to respond immediately, but before he could, a sharp dagger was placed in front of Shin Yu-hee’s neck.
“Don’t even think about talking nonsense with spirits. You know my style, right?”
Oh Hyun-seong, who had stopped, stopped the Multz at his feet.
I observed the situation unfolding while maintaining my composure as much as possible.
“… Ugh…”
Shin Yu-hee’s complexion turned pale as snow.
Her body trembled dangerously.
Even though the trauma alone was a serious injury, he’s not the type of guy who can’t do anything just because his stomach was pierced.
A wound on the abdomen that has turned dark brown.
Shin Yu-hee, who is over-fitted with magical power, has a structure all over her body that resembles a magical power receptor, and because of this, she is able to utilize innate abilities that ordinary hunters cannot match.
But conversely, the supernatural powers that invade one’s body are also affected by that structure.
“The world’s worst and greatest sorcerer’s weakness is a curse. Isn’t that funny?”
“…What do you want?”
“I’m not asking you to hand over your neck in some cliche way. You’re not the kind of person who’ll just die quietly for a few hostages.”
Yang Ki-hoon said with a sly smile.
“Unfortunately, I wasn’t prepared for this unexpected situation. I can’t fight you here. I’ll give this guy back to you, so just let him go without touching him.”
“After making Shin Yu-hee like that?”
“It’s better than dying right now.”
Her condition was too serious to just give her back quietly.
A powerful curse using a relic of at least level 1 or higher.
The curse that dug into the body of the overfit would consume her entire body in an instant, and she was practically already dead.
However, Oh Hyeon-seong threw away all the weapons he had in his arms and kicked them far away.
“As expected, I like Oh Hoe-junior because he’s rational.”
Yang Ki-hoon nodded with satisfaction and took a step toward the exit.
The blood dripped down, leaving a long trail on the floor.
“Don’t worry. I’ll keep my promise. But, aren’t you curious as to why I showed up here?”
“… no.”
Oh Hyeon-seong answered his question with sincerity.
It didn’t matter one bit why he showed up, at least not in the moment.
“Just shut up and die.”
Thud!
Oh Hyun-seong kicked his foot in one breath.
Yang Ki-hoon, who was startled by the sight of him closing the distance in an instant, tried to cut off Shin Yu-hee’s neck without hesitation.
But the flying knife pierced the back of his left hand.
“Oh, when did that happen…!
Kwajik!
“Kuaaaaak!”
Yang Ki-hoon’s right arm flew away.
Oh Hyeon-seong’s precise sword strike that penetrated deep.
He must have thrown away all his weapons, but in addition to the flying dagger, Oh Hyeon-seong was now holding a dagger.
I called the weapon I had at home with Nihil’s ring.
“This, this crazy guy…!”
Kwajik!
His kick hit Yang Ki-hoon in the face.
His corpse slid down with a slump, his head smashed in a horrible manner.
“… shit.”
Oh Hyeon-seong quickly pulled Shin Yu-hee out and laid her down on the bed.
As expected, her condition is serious.
Not only had the curse spread throughout his body, it had also penetrated deep into his body, rapidly disintegrating it.
Even basic breathing and pulse were all messed up.
Tsk tsk tsk!
Alyssa came over and placed her hand on her abdomen, which glowed.
The evil curse that had been writhing around the wounded area was somewhat driven away, and the trembling of the body also subsided.
But even with the power of the spirit, a complete cure was impossible.
It only temporarily calmed the fire, but this was only an urgent measure to put it out.
‘I can’t leave you to die here.’
He doesn’t know exactly why Yang Ki-hoon appeared in front of him.
But what is certain is that he wished for Shin Yu-hee’s death more than anything else.
In that case, I can’t just leave him to die.
Woohoo!
At that moment, Melts appeared from the side and warned him.
A large number of hunters are rushing into the castle.
“…at the most painful time.”
After Oh Hyun-seong finished stopping the bleeding, he lifted her onto his shoulder.
I knew from the beginning of this operation that French hunters would come.
To prepare for him, there was also a route prepared in advance to escape.
But there was a problem.
The passageway through which we were supposed to escape had collapsed.
It wasn’t a place that would have collapsed in the aftermath of a battle, and there were signs that someone had deliberately destroyed it.
There are other routes that have been figured out, but they must have figured out most of the passages in the castle, including the culverts.
In fact, when Meltz looked into it, he found that the French hunters had secured each passage, leaving no route for escape.
‘This is happening.’
Oh Hyun-seong let out a complicated sigh.
On one side, you have to carry a seriously injured person and fight your way through the numerous hunters surrounding you.
It’s impossible.
The French side must have deliberately brought in the Awakening Forces, and they must have even brought relics to deal with the top-level Hunters.
It is only natural that Shin Yu-hee’s condition will worsen if exposed to combat.
Woohoo.
“… what?”
But at that time, Oh Hyeon-seong was surprised by what Melts told him.
All the French hunters who had been advancing into the castle while tightening the siege net stopped in their tracks.
*
In the forest where numerous French hunters are stationed.
Only one hunter appeared before them, and the hunters were all shaken by his appearance.
“Huh, Han Su-yeon…?”
“That messenger of the white night?”
Korea’s 13th rank hunter, Han Su-yeon,
The epithet that represents her, the Goddess of the White Night, was a nickname given to her right here in Europe.
At least among the countless hunters standing here, there was no one who didn’t know the three-letter name Han Su-yeon.
But not everyone stopped because of her name value.
In front of her, there was also a saint who was said to be the strongest hunter in Europe.
“I didn’t know you would show up. Let alone… bring that relic.”
Agnes said with a frown.
Her gaze was directed to the red necklace Han Soo-yeon was wearing around her neck.
Flame Jade.
It is one of Korea’s proud national treasures.
If the Ocean’s Jewel is an artifact that greatly enhances the water-attribute ability, the Flame Jade is often said to be an artifact that contrasts it with the fire-attribute ability.
But there was a clear difference.
It is much more destructive in terms of the manifestation of its effects.
“To take that many relics out of Korea on your own… Did the Korean government give you permission to do that?”
“No, it’s just my judgment. Because of the accident that happened, the relic storage facility was also placed under the management of the management office.”
Han Soo-yeon fiddled with her necklace.
Then everyone present flinched in reaction.
It is not simply a Hunter who can use fire-attribute abilities, but is held by the God of the White Night, who is already a 13th-grade Hunter.
From that point on, that little necklace was already no different from a natural disaster that could turn a country upside down.
“If you use that, you won’t be safe either. It’ll just mean we’ll all die.”
“That’s right, they were all brought here to die.”
“What did you say?”
Agnes was embarrassed.
She also fought together with Han Su-yeon on the Chinese front.
He was a man of principle and always pursued a rational approach, so he probably wouldn’t have been the type of character to act this way.
She couldn’t understand why he would resort to such extreme measures.
“I want you to decide now. Should we all die together, or should we quietly push the Hunters back?”
Han Su-yeon approached quickly and said.
There was a faint madness in her eyes as she looked at them.
“So, what do you want to do?”