The Time-Limited Leader Makes the Raid a Success - Chapter 85



Only Noblemtl

Episode 86

86. I’m not asking you to say it in words.

Goeulji tried to ignore it, but her instincts wouldn’t let her.

It was the negative effects of the forced training that my grandfather had ingrained in me. I couldn’t leave anything alone if there was a danger nearby.

My grandfather taught me to eliminate or avoid such risks from the beginning. It was a behavioral pattern that had been ingrained in me since before puberty, so it was not something I could consciously forget now.

“Ugh, I can’t stand being rude and being rude!”

“Right! You can’t stand it, right? Gosh~ Oppa!”

Go Eul-ji’s eyes lit up at the moment when Kim Na-ri let out a cheer that was almost screaming.

‘It looks like the guy hiding over there and the group below are on the same side. If I tease this guy, he’ll take care of it, right? He’ll feel uncomfortable too, so he’ll get out of the way. Then I can go see my brothers in peace. Okay.’

Goeulji was watching Mr. Joe without even looking at him. In the space he occupied, he could feel everything and touch everything.

She applied her force secretly, without anyone noticing. It was so small that even Mr. Joe did not feel it.

Again and again!

The will of Goeulji passed through space through Mana. The screws on the display case behind the stage that Mr. Joe had been using as a stepping stone came loose. The display case tilted, and the items on it came crashing down.

Mr. Joe quickly reached out and grabbed the railing, but it didn’t stop the noise.

“Who are you?!”

“What?!”

Kim Myung-jun and Ryu Shin shouted at the same time.

The Igajo hunters who were escorting Ryu Shin jumped out of the darkness and quickly surrounded the place where the sound was heard.

But Mr. Joe had already left the place.

The Igajo Hunters, who had only found traces of someone’s presence through the dusty marks, used their message skill to inform Ryu Shin that there had been an intruder.

“I think I missed it. Could it be the Slayer Guild?”

Kim Myeong-jun shook his head at Ryu Shin’s question.

“No matter how much the Slayer keeps an eye on the Japanese Hunter community, he can’t move this quickly. At best, he’ll only know that someone has entered Korea.”

“The fact that he hid himself and hid from the eyes of his crew members, no, even from me, means that he is a person of considerable skill. Who else but the Slayer could have such skills?”

It was clearly a tone that disparaged the Korean hunter community.

Kim Myung-jun didn’t think Ryu Shin was overconfident. They were capable enough. However, he felt that he underestimated the Korean hunter community.

The expression ‘Fallen Peninsula Hunter World’ that they always use is even on the Japanese news, so it was obvious how much they looked down on the Korean hunter world.

“Even if they’re not Slayers, there are quite a few great Hunters in Korea.”

“I guess my expression offended you a bit? There are capable people like you, and I ended up ignoring you unintentionally.”

“That’s not it, I mean there are some really talented people out there.”

“Well, there’s Joo Se Ah too. Of course, she’s also a former Slayer.”

Ryu Shin reluctantly chose Joo Se Ah, but Kang Mu Hyuk crossed Kim Myeong Jun’s mind.

‘I’m not a hunter, so why does that guy come to mind first?’

Kim Myung-jun instinctively labeled Kang Mu-hyeok as a more dangerous person than Joo Se-ah.

Joo Se-ah was at best a talent who could elevate the level of an individual or a group, but Kang Moo-hyuk evaluated her as a talent who could change the hunter world itself.

In that respect, I didn’t know that the Japan Hunter Association was targeting the weak point of the Korean hunter world without me knowing.

Of course, there was no reason to tell Ryu Shin such an evaluation. Kim Myeong-jun was a twisted person, and he was not a good person to cooperate with in a bad mood.

‘Come to think of it, Kang Mu-hyeok disappearing won’t be of much benefit to me. Iron Will has many enemies. If only Joo Se-ah remains, she’ll be trampled before she can grow. Then, I’ll definitely end up spending my life watching over Joo Se-ah. Isn’t that difficult? If Joo Se-ah grows up properly, I’ll grow up too.’

It was truly ironic that he was the vanguard of the campaign to kill Joo Se Ah’s forces, but at the same time, he was a community of shared destiny with Joo Se Ah.

Kim Myung-jun suddenly realized. They say that a crisis is an opportunity. He thought that whether this project succeeded or failed, it would not benefit him. On the contrary, there was a high chance that it would be detrimental.

But if I just changed my mindset a little, I thought I could turn the situation around.

‘Then we need Kang Mu-hyeok. Unlike the Japanese or the Slayer, he is someone we can communicate with. Should we contact him?’

Ryu Shin, unaware of Kim Myeong-jun’s sinister intentions, decided to leave the scene for the time being.

“I can’t stay in an exposed place forever. Let’s end our meeting here for today.”

“Where should I contact you?”

“I will contact you separately.”

Kim Myung-jun felt that the other person did not completely trust him. It was not a simple discrimination, but a fundamental suspicion.

‘There’s no trust between us.’

So, it was better to prepare my way of life in advance.

* * *

‘Necronomicon… … .’

After that, Ayla’s explanation continued.

There were more cases like the ‘Amazon Goblin Godmother’ and the ‘Necromancer of Sader’ than Kang Moo-hyuk had thought. There were cases that were known to the public but the information was manipulated, and there were also many that were not recorded at all.

The World Hunters’ Federation seemed to have decided that all of this was related to an ‘unknown entity’.

“It’s not just about summoning. There have been many cases where the phenomenon was different, but the result was that everyone involved was wiped out. But this time, the ending was different from any other case.”

“You mean our guild leader and I survived?”

“Yes. I hope that you two will not only be valuable as witnesses, but also be able to provide some clues about these unidentified phenomena and beings. Do you have any clues that could be of help? Even trivial stories are fine.”

Kang Moo-hyuk was lost in thought.

‘The only thing that’s strange is that I saw that ominous black mana when the Great Mother summoned it. The other hunters didn’t seem to see it. And the answer to this difference is probably… … .’

Mana addiction.

It was the most reasonable cause for suspicion.

‘It doesn’t matter if I reveal my mana addiction. It’s a ticking time bomb that hasn’t been resolved yet, but it won’t explode any time soon. However, this disease itself is revealing my weakness. I need a safety device. And I also need to value it.’

When Kang Mu-hyeok seemed to be struggling, Aila became impatient. It seemed clear that there was something, but she couldn’t open her mouth at all. Still, she held it in and waited. She knew from experience that if she forced an answer, things could go wrong. Since humans are a species that suspects people when they approach them without any pretense, she was even more cautious.

Finally, Kang Mu-hyeok’s eyes, which had seemed to be looking at a distant mountain, regained focus. He looked to the side and said.

“Before speaking, I would like to ask Chairman Han Byeong-gu to keep this confidential.”

“I don’t know about anything else, but I’m known for being tight-lipped. Don’t worry, you can talk.”

“The most untrustworthy thing in the world is a person’s mouth. I can’t trust a promise made with words.”

“Are you telling me to write a contract?”

“The person who will write the contract is not the president of the association.”

“what?”

Kang Moo-hyuk turned his gaze again and looked at Ayla.

“Aila must provide guarantor.”

“Me?”

Ayla opened her eyes wide and pointed at herself with her finger.

Raven, who had been quietly standing next to him, got angry and stepped forward. He grabbed Kang Mu-hyeok by the collar.

“Hey! Who are you messing around with right now?!”

“Who are you to come out on your own?”

Raven flinched as he belatedly discovered Jusea’s hand covering his own.

‘When were you caught?’

He was only slightly grabbed, but he couldn’t move. The aura that gripped his entire body was murderous. He soon regretted it.

Ayla looked at Jusea and said that she had already reached S-rank, but since she didn’t know how to draw out her own power, she thought that she was no different from A+ rank.

‘Even though we’re of the same rank, is there already this much of a gap?’

But Raven wasn’t the type to back down just because he was losing momentum. At this point, he was going to grab that guy named Kang Mu-hyeok by the collar and lift him up.

As his momentum changed, the bulging tendons on his skin popped out. His muscles also became thicker, and the nature of the mana flowing from his body changed. All of this was replaced by muscle strength.

Although she didn’t see Mana directly like Kang Mu-hyeok, Joo Se-ah noticed this change.

“You, you use strange abilities? By the way, who are you showing off your strength to right now?”

Crunch!

“!!”

As Joo Sea clenched her teeth and exerted her strength, Raven let go of the hand that was holding her collar and fell to her knees. It felt as if gravity had become ten times heavier on her shoulders. The ground where her knee hit caved in.

‘I lost by force?’

Raven chewed her lip and squeezed out her energy.

“stop!”

“But, Alex… … !

“You should be ashamed, Raven. Lady Ayla is staying still, and you’re acting out on your own. If you’re going to act out, at least win. How can you not even properly assess your opponent’s capabilities?”

Raven bowed her head at Alex’s scolding.

When the situation seemed to have been resolved, Joo Se Ah also relaxed and stepped back.

“Get up now, Raven. Lord Kang Moo-hyuk has never been rude to me. It must be a burden to Lord Kang to see you speak like that. The price for that is a fair demand.”

Ayla personally raised Raven and looked at Kang Mu-hyeok. Kang Mu-hyeok was completely unshaken by the commotion that had occurred, and was only looking at her.

‘Those are such innocent eyes. If I just looked at your eyes, I would believe you’re not a human but a member of our species.’

On the one hand, does that mean that faith is easy to gain?

Ayla said.

“Kang Mu-hyeok, what kind of guarantee can I give you?”

“First of all, this is confidentiality. What I’m about to tell you could be a weakness for me.”

“So that guarantee also applies to Han Byeong-gu.”

“He’s impatient because he can’t catch me. If this gets out, he’s definitely going to use it to bring me down.”

“You punk! Do you think I’m that petty? I’m not selfish enough to threaten the gate and do something like that!”

“Didn’t you call me right after I recruited Go Eul-ji? You said you were going to kill her.”

“That’s… . So, my granddaughter is caught, and what kind of old man is just being quiet. No, Ayla. Why are you looking at me like that? Do you really think I’m going to kill you?”

“Well, as far as I know, there was a time when a hunter who said he would kill someone actually died… … .”

“He was a villain!”

Kang Moo-hyuk pointed to Han Byung-goo, who was suddenly angry, and spoke to Aila.

“Have you seen? In addition to confidentiality, we also need security.”

“Hmm… I think that’s true.”

“Aila… What are you trying to convince me of again?”

A loud noise came out of Han Byeong-gu’s mouth, but Ayla paid no attention and continued speaking.

“Then, how can I make a guarantee? You said you don’t believe words.”

“Of course we have to write a contract.”

“You’re not simply asking for silence, are you? To be honest, I don’t have much to offer in return. If I were to teach you magic, that would be different. Of course, since you’re so used to the skill, you can’t teach it to humans.”

“The price is something the Federation will have to decide. How do you feel, Mr. Wilkinson?”

Alex made a troubled face, then sighed as he looked at Ayla’s face looking back at him.

“My authority is limited. How much do you want?”

“First of all, please classify my secrets as top-level information for the Federation. Then, the person in charge of the Hunter Association will not open his mouth carelessly.”

“Huh! Just because it’s a mandatory provision of the Federation doesn’t mean you can’t speak at all.”

“So you’re going to spread rumors? Should I question the autonomy of the president of the association representing the Korean hunter community?”

“That… Hehe. Big! That guy with a big mouth.”

Joo Se-ah giggled at the sight of Han Byeong-gu, who couldn’t find the original intention, smiling bitterly whenever he opened his mouth.

Han Byeong-gu glared at Gil-ma and the team leader, but did not say a word to Kang Mu-hyeok.

Kang Moo-hyuk took it as a sign of acceptance and continued speaking.

“The second condition is the security guarantee that Lady Ayla mentioned earlier.”

“Are you talking about safety guarantee?”

“I don’t know if you know, but our guild recently went through a war-level mission. It was a raid that exceeded our guild’s capabilities and we suffered a lot of damage. And we also have a Rider Wolf.”

“It means there will be someone who covets the treasure.”

Alex immediately understood what Kang Moo-hyuk meant.

“In Korea, we have put in place a minimum level of safety measures through supply contracts with Tier Guilds, but we are unable to deal with the expected interference from neighboring countries. If our guild leader has become S-rank as Ayla has confirmed, we are concerned that in the future, we will not only be subject to simple restraint, but also direct attacks.”

“There are certainly some who do not like the Korean Hunter community. So? Let me tell you in advance that direct military deployment is not allowed. China and Japan are active supporters of our alliance, so we cannot provoke them.”

“You don’t need troops, just a declaration of support is enough.”

“Declaration of support? I’ll clarify this in advance, but the Federation officially refrains from commenting on specific guilds.”

“I’m not asking you to say it in words.”

“If not words… … ?”

“I would like to ask for the Federation’s support regarding the breeding of rider wolves.”

“backup?”

“I understand that the Federation has considerable influence in American politics. The American political world draws considerable funds from the Guild. It is not only the Asian Guilds that are interested in Rider Wolf. We want to learn the know-how of advanced horse ranches in the United States. The Federation should take charge of arranging this.”

“!!”

* * *

“Weird guys?”

Seongseonje was nervous about the report he received from the intelligence team because it was information from Japan.

Lee Kang-san, the section chief in charge of Japanese intelligence, scratched his head and looked at the documents.

“I didn’t see any movement that would indicate this. However, what’s suspicious is that all the equipment that was taken out from the Japanese Hunters’ Union’s equipment storage room was unloaded at Incheon Airport. So wouldn’t there be someone who would use that equipment?”

Seong Seon-je also had the same opinion.

‘Some of the organizations in the Union are so secretive that they can’t track people. That’s the limit for now. So I watched the equipment move, and it’s all caught like this. Are you making fun of us?’

Suddenly, a doubt occurred to me. Isn’t it too easy?

“Isn’t it too sloppy to use an airplane so openly?”

“But it doesn’t look like any trick or disguise.”

“Why?”

“Because it came in a diplomatic bag.”

“Oh my, the Japanese government is now pushing this so openly. I thought it was a no-no, so I grilled a few Japanese embassy guys, and sure enough, they did something wrong… … .”

Lee Kang-san asked the cold, sullen Seong Seon-je.

“What should we do?”

“Where was it delivered to?”

“We’re currently looking into it.”

“If they came in secretly, they wouldn’t be honest. But they wouldn’t have come in hiding either. They basically ignore Korea, so it’s more likely that they came through a well-established route rather than coming in as regular tourists. Try digging up the yakuza businesses connected to the union. You’ll find something.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Lee Kang-san made a checklist in his notebook and spoke carefully.

“But shouldn’t we also prepare?”

“What kind of contrast are you talking about?”

“Shouldn’t we notify other tier guilds and ask for their cooperation… … .”

Seong Seon-je smiled bitterly at Lee Kang-san’s suggestion.

“If that were the case, we would have done it already. They are all busy living their own lives. We need to come to our senses.”