Chapter 109

SMH 109

Chapter 37 – The Empire Moves (1)

TL: Boko

Editor: Frost

The Delta Chief, Louis, reported to the Central Hunter Bureau’s Director, Felix, that he could no longer proceed with the mission and explained why.

“If that’s the case, then it can’t be helped.”

Felix shook his head. It was regrettable, but it couldn’t be helped. He wasn’t foolish enough to blindly force his subordinates to proceed with the mission when they’ve told him it’s impossible.

“Good work.”

Based on the report, the Delta Chief had done his very best to carry out his mission. Felix couldn’t press his subordinate to do any more, when Louis had worked so hard.

Seeing Felix, who looked tired, Louis opened his mouth with a calm expression.

“I believe it’s impossible to proceed with the mission immediately, but it doesn’t mean we need to give up the mission in its entirety.”

“Then…?”

“Delta will move on the day that Kang Sung Joon becomes an SSS-rank Hunter,” Louis replied, and Felix narrowed his eyes.

“If we wait until then, wouldn’t it be too late?”

“Not at all. The fact that the Korean government proposed that kind of offer means that they’re safeguarding him. Because of that, we didn’t want to cause diplomatic friction between our countries, so we stepped back for now.”

“Hmm, I see.”

“In other words, it means that South Korea will protect him from both Russia and China. Based on their offer, they’ll do their utmost to protect him,” Louis explained. Like America had done, it was highly likely that Russia or China would move in order to win Sung Joon over. However, based on the offer they proposed, South Korea would definitely do all that they could to protect him.

“But it’s not like that diplomatic friction will disappear.”

“If I can acquire an SSS-rank Hunter, I can give up on South Korea. But because it’s uncertain whether he’ll become an SSS-rank Hunter or not as of now, it’s difficult to proceed with the mission.”

“Still, that doesn’t mean that South Korea’s protection will disappear,” Felix said, and Louis smirked.

“Nothing is impossible for America.”

* * *

Sung Joon, who had visited his father, drank tea and spent a peaceful afternoon. He looked outside the window, and looked as though he wasn’t thinking of anything, but he was actually thinking about when he would assault the Awakening Dungeon.

“When do you think I should go?”

It looked as though he was talking to himself, but he was asking Rishubalt. Sung Joon’s trusty spirit aide opened his mouth with a calm expression.

“I feel like you should go through the Awakening Dungeon within three days, since you’ve gotten plenty of rest.”

“That’s probably for the best, right?”

Sung Joon nodded his head and agreed with Rishubalt’s opinion. Around the time Sung Joon saw the bottom of his tea cup…

A bell sound rang out and he checked his phone. Hyun Sung was calling him. Sung Joon placed his phone to his ear and opened his mouth.

“This is Kang Sung Joon.”

“This is Kim Hyun Sung. Mr. Kang Sung Joon, I have some things to tell you, but telling you over the phone doesn’t seem appropriate; are you free right now?”

“Yes, I’m free right now,” Sung Joon replied. It was probably about the additional compensation.

“It’s an issue that I’m uncomfortable talking about in a cafe as well, so if it’s alright with you, could you please come over to the Hunter Bureau? I’ll send a car for you.”

“It wouldn’t be bad to visit after such a long while. And you don’t really need to send a car. Since I’ll be going with my own car.”

“I understand. I’ll be waiting in front of the building.”

And so, their conversation ended. Sung Joon turned his head towards Rishubalt.

“I’ll go to the Hunter Bureau first, and then let’s think about this some more.”

Sung Joon got into his car and drove towards the Hunter Bureau. Like he promised, Hyun Sung was waiting in front of the building. Sung Joon parked his car, joined up with Hyun Sung, and went up to the building’s rooftop.

The rooftop was a vast open space compared to the investigation office, which felt like one was being interrogated, so he felt refreshed. It was the time when they were busiest, so there weren’t many people up there either.

“If we exclude the introduction, your additional compensation will be applied starting tomorrow.”

“Thank you. But you look really tired.”

Behind Hyun Sung’s glasses, there were deep dark circles underneath his eyes. In response to Sung Joon’s question, Hyun Sung opened his mouth with an awkward voice.

“Hahaha. Honestly, I was called to headquarters and beaten down a bit. I don’t know if it was revenge or what not, but after that, there was a lot of work to be done.”

“That’s…”

Sung Joon furrowed his brow. It wasn’t difficult to figure out that the reason Hyun Sung was yelled at was because the conditions he had offered Sung Joon were too high.

“The tax exemption for your guild starts when you’ve formed a guild. But you never know, so please contact me beforehand if you’re thinking of forming a guild.”

Hyun Sung was tired, but he faithfully relayed all the things he had to say. Sung Joon thought highly of Hyun Sung, as he always did his job diligently.

“What are my other benefits?”

“We’re planning on applying them step by step,” Hyun Sung replied, and Sung Joon nodded his head with a satisfied expression. He turned his attention forward. His vision was blocked by a forest of buildings, so he could have felt cramped, but Sung Joon thought that this wasn’t so bad.

“The American agents have probably left by now,” Hyun Sung said. However, he couldn’t be sure. That’s because they hadn’t relayed any exact information to him. Because America could suddenly come out with something unexpected, Korea was uneasy.

America had history’s sole SSS-rank Hunter, and in the competition among countries, they were at the top.

“I’m glad that it’s well taken care of,” Sung Joon said honestly. The moment he discovered the A-rank Hunter, Jennifer, he thought in the worst case scenario, they would fight with the American agents.

Objectively speaking, it wasn’t likely that allied nations would fight amongst themselves and cause chaos, but since he had often seen the worst side of people in his past life, he knew that there were no relationships that one could completely trust.

“Thank you for all the hard work.”

“Hahaha. It seems like you’re the only one who recognizes my hard work,” Hyun Sung said bitterly. Though headquarters had recognized Sung Joon’s importance, they were displeased with the outcome of Hyun Sung’s negotiation as it wasn’t the most favorable for them.

Therefore, he had been called to headquarters and he was completely smashed. Hence, he was pretty dejected and exhausted right now.

“Please rest as you work, if for no other reason than your health,” Sung Joon genuinely advised, and Hyun Sung smiled.

“Thank you.”

“Please contact me if it’s too hard. If I make I guild, I’ll leave a spot open for you.”

“Hahaha. Thank you for thinking of me.”

When he was finished, he checked his watch.

“It’s already this late. I have to go back to work now. It looks like I won’t be able to see you off.”

“That’s fine. I’m not a little kid.”

Sung Joon parted ways with Hyun Sung, went down to the parking lot, and got into his Hunter sedan. He started his car, and when he was about to depart…

He got a message.

[Shall we meet?]

Seol Ah had sent a message.

[Is it a formal event?]

[Let’s say it is.]

As soon as Sung Joon replied, he received a follow up message. Sung Joon didn’t like having lengthy conversations through messages, so he took his hand off the steering wheel and called Seol Ah.

“Hello?”

It seemed as though she had been in the middle of inputting another message, as she immediately picked up her phone. He heard her voice from his phone, but it sounded as though she was a bit tipsy.

“Isn’t it too early to be drunk?” Sung Joon said, and checked his watch. It was five o’clock in the afternoon.

“That’s true. Why do you think I’m so drunk right now?”

“You said it was formal, so I’ll come and see you myself. Please send me the location through a message,” Sung Joon said.

To him, Seol Ah was important to him. He had gained a lot from her dangerous tightrope act[1].

It seemed as though she was drunk and was complaining, but he would adjust. Eventually, he received a message detailing her location.

“It’s close. I’ll be there soon.”

“Are you going to see Yoon Seol Ah?” Rishubalt asked.

“Yeah,” Sung Joon replied. Rishubalt nodded his head and opened his mouth.

“It’s a wise decision. Yoon Seol Ah is a helpful person to you, my lord. I recommend that you keep her close.”

“I think so too.”

Sung Joon grabbed the steering wheel, left the Hunter Bureau’s parking lot and drove for about twenty minutes; in the end, he arrived at the lounge bar that she said she was in.

After parking his car, he went into the lounge bar. The inside was luxurious and had an antique vibe. The only person he saw was the bartender and it was so quiet to the point of being lonely.

“I’m over here.”

He heard Seol Ah’s voice from a secluded area. While he was walking towards her, he couldn’t even see the presence of other shadows.

“Do you come here to drink often?[2]”

At some point, Sung Joon had gotten right in front of her.

“Correct.”

Befitting a chaebol family, the way she entertained herself differed from others. Still, Sung Joon thought that her level of entertainment was alright, all things considered.

“Is there something that upset you?” Sung Joon asked.

“Yes, there was,” Seol Ah said, weakly nodding her head. Seeing that, Sung Joon felt like she did experience something that really upset her.

Sung Joon wordlessly poured a drink into her empty glass.

“It doesn’t seem like a formal affair, but please tell me. I’ll hear you out for free,” Sung Joon said. Seol Ah opened her mouth with a sad expression.

“He told me to seduce you.”

Sung Joon just nodded his head. He had somewhat expected this, and honestly, when he had first met her, she had said something similar.

Is it because she didn’t want to seduce him that she had drawn that line?

“Grandpa got upset with me since I haven’t been meeting with you a lot lately, Mr. Kang Sung Joon.”

“Well, I have been busy lately.”

There was the matter with the Winter Sovereign, and he also had to compare between Korea’s offer and America’s, so it was true that he had been avoiding contacting Seol Ah.

“He said that if nothing else works, I should use my body to seduce you. That asshole who I call my grandpa,” Seol Ah said, and Sung Joon furrowed his brow.

He had thought that they would tacitly pressure him, but he didn’t think Chairman Yoon Tae Seok would speak so directly. If this were true, then Seol Ah would’ve been incredibly shocked.

After that, Seol Ah continued to complain for an hour, and Sung Joon just patiently listened to her. Finally, she ended up crying.

“But I’m… trying my hardest…”

“I’ll take care of it, so drink as much as you want today.”

“When you say you’ll take care of it, does that mean you’re buying?”

“Yes, that’s included as well,” Sung Joon replied, and Seol Ah smiled faintly. Seeing that, Sung Joon likewise smiled. It was the first smile he’d seen since meeting her an hour ago.

“I should order some expensive drinks.”

“That’s fine. Since I got paid a lot from taking down the Winter Sovereign.”

“Really? I’ll really buy some expensive drinks.”

Seol Ah seemed genuine, and Sung Joon just smiled and nodded his head. Even if the drinks were expensive, how expensive could they be? He had more than $300 million right now.

This much didn’t even amount to a trivial indulgence.

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Later, even when he saw the bill, he didn’t lose his smile.

[1] Talking about how she’s pretty much doing what she wants instead of what her grandfather orders her to do.

[2]The literal translation basically says something to the effect of ‘do you pay rent?’, which basically means she comes there often. It’s a common Korean saying.