The Time-Limited Leader Makes the Raid a Success - Chapter 125



Only Noblemtl

Episode 125

125. Was that the kind of person he was?

“Grandpa, let’s go quickly. Let’s go save Captain Kang.”

“Is it okay? Even though Sea recruited another skilled hunter, Shinuiju is not an easy place. This old man can’t go there because his face is sold. That means there’s no one to help you. Honestly, I don’t really want to send you to such a dangerous place.”

“No, the person who had an ogre attached to him at C-rank is suddenly doing it now?”

When Go Eul-ji made a dumbfounded expression, Han Byeong-gu felt embarrassed and coughed in vain.

“Ugh! It’s all for your good… … .”

“If things go well two more times, my only granddaughter will be crossing the Jordan River. You have to know what moderation is.”

Han Byeong-gu, whose excuses were running out, avoided his granddaughter’s gaze. Go Eul-ji pursed her lips and smiled.

“Gilma said that you are now a proper hunter. You are not the one being protected, but you have to protect someone. That is the duty of a hunter. I can’t play around in my grandfather’s shadow forever, right? I can’t just keep training. I joined the guild, so I have to do what I have to do to earn a living.”

When his granddaughter, who he thought was still young despite her strength, spoke with dignity, Han Byeong-gu felt his heart swell with emotion. He quietly hugged his granddaughter.

“Hey, you’re all grown up, all grown up.”

“grandfather…….”

Just as Joson was about to spend some cozy time with his grandson for the first time in a long while, Han Byeong-gu saw a fluttering piece of paper in Go Eul-ji’s back pocket.

– Starring: BTA, Red Ballet, ThatZY… … .

“What is this?”

“Oh, my ticket!”

“Wow! Well, that’s right. What? The Hunter’s mission? To fall for such a bribe, you’re a Hunter’s son-in-law, huh~?!”

“Of course, the mission is good, but hunters should also enjoy cultural life. Risking their lives to catch monsters and going to find the leader who ran away from home. Isn’t this level of entertainment okay?”

“Oh my, Doya. I should have stopped you a long time ago when you started chasing after those Bibigo and Bifidus guys.”

“What are you talking about? To my brothers. And BTA. If I didn’t have my brothers, my life would be nothing but a bleak place to go around hunting for monsters. The only reason I grew up well without going astray is because of my brothers.”

“I tried to raise him to be a perfect hunter without any weaknesses, but he turned into a hunter who would fall for a single ticket. Heh heh, it’s all because of that guy from Ganga! When I think about it, there’s no need to go save him. Just tell him to die!”

“Don’t die. I haven’t gotten my tickets to the LA concert yet.”

The car stopped while the two grandsons were bickering.

“Chairman, we have arrived.”

The two of them stood with their arms linked, staring out the car window, their faces turned red.

The driver quietly got out of the car.

Grandfather and granddaughter. A veteran who has been in the hunter world for a long time and a divine being who has received harsh training since childhood.

The driver knew that the two of them were expressing their affection in a rough manner. It was better to leave the place for a while when they were arguing like this.

A little later, the rasping breathing became quieter. Goeulji pulled the lock and opened the car door.

“Grandpa. Okay, I’ll be back.”

“Look for that guy.”

“huh.”

“Take care.”

“huh.”

“If it feels dangerous, run away.”

“huh.”

“Stop watching idols.”

“Uh… Huh? That’s not it.”

“Anyway, like this granddaughter of yours, do your best. You know?”

“Don’t worry. I’ll be fine.”

The grandfather and granddaughter’s eyes met. No more words were needed.

Goeulji slammed the car door shut. Through the window, he could see the driver receiving the motorcycle keys and supplies.

Soon the motorcycle exhaust sounded loudly and gradually faded away.

Han Byeong-gu muttered quietly to himself.

“Yes, it’s time to let the grown up child leave my arms. Time really flies, Yeji. Your daughter has already grown up so much.”

* * *

Hyun Jeong-geon said as he prepared to leave his hiding place.

“First of all, the neighbors here are people I’m close with, so you don’t have to worry. I’ll go out and check on the situation and gather information.”

“If it’s dangerous, you can leave here right away.”

Kang Moo-hyuk suddenly gave Hyun Jeong-geon an indulgence, telling him that he could leave him behind. Hyun Jeong-geon opened her eyes wide.

“I may not be shameless, but I am a man of loyalty. I would not invite a sick person to a dangerous place like Shinuiju and then send him away in such a fatal way.”

Kang Moo-hyuk said, pointing to himself, who was leaning against a cushion at the head of the bed.

“I’m just suggesting an effective option. If you hesitate when faced with a real situation, you’ll end up with neither food nor shelter. You’ve been to an engineering school, right? Isn’t the rule to prepare a card that you can throw away in a crisis? Right now, I’m the one throwing away that card.”

“Wow, my back feels cold. That’s what hunters say. You’re not a hunter, are you?”

“The Chinese forces’ control of Sinuiju is not simply a matter of losing a city. It is a very serious matter that could cause a major problem in the security of the gate. I would rather have the former president escape from here and join Bukpocheon. Tell Guild Leader Ju Se-ah what you know. That will stop their plans.”

Hyun Jeong-geon scratched the back of his head.

‘Was that the kind of person he was?’

Even during the Titan era, there were times when the raid team ran into trouble. Naturally, there were sacrifices, and the resentment was poured out on the raid leader and the strategy team leader.

It was impossible for an ordinary person to maintain that position while bearing the anger and cries of the bereaved family. And it was something that an ordinary person, not a hunter, could do.

Kang Moo-hyeok was attacked more whenever a sacrifice occurred because he was an ordinary person. It was a role that Hyun Jeong-geon did not want to take on.

Maybe that was the reason why he was able to work with Kang Moo-hyuk?

Of course, the biggest reason is because it’s fun.

“Don’t you know my specialty? If I had revealed myself from the beginning, you wouldn’t have noticed, but if I hide myself, you won’t even know I’m there until I get my throat cut.”

“Oh, that’s right. It’s been so long that I forgot. That you were the best ‘assassin’ on Titan.”

“I wouldn’t say it’s the best, but it’s not something to brag about… Anyway, I’m taking care of myself. I’ll be back soon.”

* * *

Not long after Hyun Jeong-geon left, a kind-looking woman came up to the attic.

“Hello. My name is Uiju, and I am looking after the current president’s house.”

“Yes, hello. By the way, what is the stopping date?”

“Oh my, look at me. I’m using the northern dialect again. Haha. The kitchen, the kitchen. I’m practicing speaking standard Korean, but you always show it off like this. Haha. You probably haven’t eaten anything since yesterday, so I brought you breakfast. I made you some porridge because you were sick, but I’m not sure if you’re okay.”

“Oh, yes. Thank you. You speak Seoul dialect really well.”

“People here speak standard Korean well. They learn by watching drama CDs. That’s what everyone wants. To live down there.”

Kang Mu-hyeok noticed that the area below that Ui-ju was referring to was south of Pyongyang. She sighed and continued to grumble.

“It’s too bleak here, so it’s hard for children to grow up. Even though the devil’s business is good, it’s dangerous. I’m sick of being beaten by ‘bad guys’. Oh my, I’m being rude in front of guests. Eat slowly and leave the dishes on the side. I’ll come clean up later.”

“mom!”

A boy came up the attic stairs, calling out loud for his wife. The boy with the brown hair looked shabby at first glance.

He was wearing clothes that were so dirty that they looked like they would never come off, with elbows and knees that looked worn out and a collar that looked tattered.

Kang Moo-hyuk felt that he had lived in poverty compared to the children of the same age that he had seen so far. In other words, even a child from a poor family living in Seoul would look much richer than this.

“Why is he acting so noisy? What did Mom say? I told him to be gentle.”

“That’s not the problem. The Deoksu gang is outside.”

At that moment, Uiju’s gaze became fierce. Only then did Kang Mu-hyeok realize.

‘Is this guy a hunter?’

The baggy clothes and apron hid the tanker’s toned muscles.

“Gilyoung, you are here.”

Mrs. Uiju left her son next to Kang Muhyeok and went down to the attic.

Kang Moo-hyuk looked at her feet as she walked. When he realized her identity, his footsteps seemed different.

The steps were heavy, but the heels did not touch the ground first. It was a step that tankers used when they showed agile movements through weight transfer. Hunters who spent their whole lives in the hunting grounds often showed this kind of step as a habit in their daily lives.

‘There’s a joke that half of the old North Koreans living in Shinuiju are hunters. Who would have thought that a housewife would be a tanker with solid fundamentals? Her rank may be low, but she seems to be good because she’s been playing in the Demon Realm.’

Each hunter had their own criteria for evaluating tanks. However, guild officials, especially the strategy team leaders, evaluated hunters based on global trends as much as possible.

Among them, Kang Mu-hyeok was the strategy team leader who was more proactive than anyone else in accepting the advanced hunter system.

One of the most important things he considered when evaluating a tank position was the step.

‘These days, the trend is multi-tank or dealing tank. Hunters with only strong defense have low tactical flexibility. You need to know how to do everything to be able to deal with unexpected situations. In that sense, fast movement is essential. Since the main stage is the Demon Realm where monsters are complexly distributed, the hunters here are probably better in that regard.’

Kang Moo-hyuk got up from the bed. His vision went dark because he had gotten up so suddenly. He started to feel dizzy, so the boy next to him, Kim Gil-young, helped him up.

“Sir, you said you were sick. Don’t get up.”

Kang Mu-hyeok looked down at the child with his young eyes. Unlike Ui-ju, who had a faint hint of a northern accent, the child was fluent enough to speak standard Korean, even if he was a southern child of the same age.

“You speak Seoul dialect well, too?”

“Oh, this? That’s what I learned when I was young. If you don’t want to be ignored when you go down south, you have to start by speaking properly. My friends all speak Seoul dialect well. The adults nag you a lot, saying that one day you’ll get out of this prison, even if you don’t know when that will be. If you spoke in a northern dialect, you’d get beaten with a spoon. Hehe.”

Kang Mu-hyeok could feel how passionate the desire of the people in the prison village to escape from Shinuiju was.

I want to support my family in a safer, more prosperous place, even if I don’t know when that will be.

‘It’ll be hard. Without government policy or social consensus.’

The coup by North Korean hunters, which occurred before the scars of the war had even healed after the Great War, remains a great pain in the history of the Republic of Korea.

Although it was decades ago, the descendants of the former North Korean hunters were still seen by the people who still had memories of that time as potential threats who could betray the country at any time.

“Since you’re helping me, could you help me out the window over there?”

“Of course. I am strong.”

Contrary to his confident assurance, the child staggered and led Kang Mu-hyeok to the window.

Kang Moo-hyuk looked down through the small attic window. The window itself was small and blocked by wooden blocks here and there, but the gaps were enough to check the outside situation.

In the yard, five men were scattered about in awkward positions, smoking cigarettes.

“Those guys are Cheon Deok-su’s gang. They’re really bad guys.”

Soon, I could see Uiju’s wife coming out into the yard. The Deoksu gang all stubbed out their cigarettes on the floor. Judging from the swords hanging from their waists and the spears on their backs, they all seemed to be hunters.

The window wasn’t open so I couldn’t hear the conversation, but judging from their expressions and attitudes, the atmosphere wasn’t good.

“Who is Cheon Deok-su?”

“There’s no such thing. They’re all Cheon Deok-su’s subordinates.”

“You don’t seem to be on good terms.”

“The leader of those guys is my father’s enemy. When I awaken as a hunter later, I will definitely get revenge.”

Kang Moo-hyuk glanced at the child who was talking about revenge. Sparks flew from his eyes. It was an evil that could not come out of a normal child.

‘At that age, he can control his anger like that. The person he’s dealing with must really hate him. It’ll be fun to watch him become a hunter.’

Kang Moo-hyuk realized that he had been evaluating Kim Gil-young as if he were evaluating a promising prospect without realizing it, so he smiled inwardly and looked away again.

“I understand that these authors are your enemies. But why, specifically, are they bad guys?”

“Why? They’re the Chinese guys’ lackeys. That’s why they don’t get along well with the patrolmen.”

“Patrolman?”

“These are the men who protect our village. They protect our village from the Chinese, but those Deoksu gang members always get in the way. But the leader of the Yeonjeongmun clan is really strong, so even Deoksu can’t pick a fight.”

Who else is Yeonjeongmun?

From Kim Gil-young’s words, Kang Mu-hyeok suddenly realized that he knew nothing about the prison village.

The information sent by Noh Song-rin contained the overall situation of Sinuiju, but the information on the prison village was lacking. Not only was the power relationship with the Deoksu gang omitted, but the number of residents and hunters was also unclear.

Although he was trapped in a prison village to avoid Chinese hunters, Kang Moo-hyuk thought that he should at least learn the minimum amount of information since he didn’t know when he would be able to escape.

‘Come to think of it, I don’t know where Noh Song-rin is. Did he return to headquarters? Or is he still waiting outside of Sinuiju?’

Kang Moo-hyuk asked Kim Gil-young, thinking that he could be of use if he was there at this point.

Kim Gil-young clenched his fist and spoke, perhaps misunderstanding Kang Mu-hyeok who was struggling.

“Don’t worry, mister. Even if you look like that, my mom is the class president here. Even if they’re from Deoksu’s gang, they can’t harm you.”

“It looks like that. But Gil-young,”

“yes?”

“I have a question for you. Could you tell me about this village? I suddenly became curious about the story of Yeonjeongmun and Cheon Deoksu.”