Chapter 219
“So I can’t have it?”
“Of course not!”
The Chinese hunters seemed bewildered by Choi Yeonseung’s request. Conceding Chinese land to a foreign hunter… What nonsense was this? If they reported such a thing to their superiors, they would be told something like ‘Do you have a death wish?’
“Really? I thought it would be a reasonable amount of land. Aren’t there many foreign companies doing business in China?”
So far, Dragon Industry and other foreign companies had come to China and rented land to build factories, and the Chinese government was more than happy with that. The country was overflowing with people, and foreign companies meant that more Chinese people could find a job.
“That’s not on the same scale as your request!”
What Choi Yeonseung wanted was very different from purchasing land for factories. First of all, it was too big. The piece of land he was asking for was almost as big as a small island. Nobody had the slightest idea why he wanted to acquire that much land.
“If you want to build a factory, you have to buy land that is suitable for that. You can’t just sweep an entire area of land and build it like that. What about the people living there?”
“Oh, you guys actually care about them? I thought the party would just kick them out.”
“Of course, we can kick them out if needed...”
The Chinese hunter was elbowed by his colleague and changed what he was saying.
“...There is no such thing. We wouldn’t do something as stupid as that.”
“I see. I also wouldn’t kick them out.”
“...Huh? If you want to acquire the land and use it, don’t you have to expel those living there?”
“No. What I mean is that if you just give me the authority, I’ll manage the place instead of the Chinese government.”
“......”
Hearing that, the Chinese hunters got so dizzy for a moment that they almost fell backwards. This made even less sense than before. It was utterly crazy. In Africa and South America, there were a few new republics established by hunter clans that had acquired land there, but they never thought that someone would try to do that with China!
“I’m afraid that’s not possible!”
“Really? Then it can’t be helped.”
Choi Yeonseung shrugged regretfully and left together with Kwon Yeongseung. It took a few moments for the Chinese hunters to realize what had happened as the negotiations broke up and the Korean hunters calmly left the scene.
“......?!”
***
“Aha. So that’s what it was.”
Kwon Yeongseung nodded in understanding. In negotiations, even the most persistent person would give up on their demands if the conditions were utterly absurd.
“I’m sure that if you offer conditions like that, even the most stubborn hunters will give up. I was wondering why you would make such a request to them.”
“Huh? I was being serious with that request.”
“...Huh?”
Kwon Yeongseung looked baffled when he heard Choi Yeonseung’s words.
“What would you have used the land for if you had actually received it?”
“Didn’t I mention that? I was going to build a factory.”
“In that case, why don’t you just buy the land? You can still do that...”
“If I buy the land, the Chinese government will interfere, and I don’t like that. That’s why I demanded the land like that.”
“......!”
It was hard to believe that he issued such ridiculous conditions because of that.
No...
‘Is it because he had nothing to lose?’
When thinking about it, Choi Yeonseung didn’t have anything to lose when it came to the negotiations. Even now, he wasn’t fazed at all by the fact that the deal didn’t go through. Moreover, when the Chinese hunters denied his conditions, he didn’t seem upset in the slightest. His reaction was totally nonchalant.
Kwon Yeongseung suddenly became curious and asked, “By the way, what type of factory were you going to build?”
“Umm. I don’t have any concrete plans yet. I was just thinking about creating a factory operated by the undead.”
“I see… Wait, what?”
***
The Chinese hunters quickly returned home without having achieved much. A few clans went to South Korea and participated in the fight, but overall there hadn’t been many hunters. Once they gained a bad image, it was difficult to fix their reputation. However, when it came to the monster wave, it wasn’t just China that had urgent matters.
“Is it crazy in Japan as well?”
“Yeah. The monster wave must’ve broken out in a weird way.”
“So it appeared in South Korea, but it split apart and spread to the east and to the west?”
Some hunters were speculating about the strangeness of the monster wave, but Choi Yeonseung knew exactly what had happened. The monster wave occurred in two places at the same time: on the Chinese side and on the Japanese side.
“Isn’t that better? There shouldn’t be many monsters on either side if the wave is divided.”
“Yeah, and they still make such a fuss? Those Chinese bastards...”
“Do you think I should’ve gone since it’s not that dangerous?”
Some hunters were unable to grasp the situation and muttered regretfully.
“So you’re going to Japan? Why aren’t you speaking?”
The hunters initially came here aiming to make a huge profit out of the monster wave, but after the tortoise head mountain was slain, things calmed down. There was no way the hunters, who had prepared for a big fight, were satisfied with that and ready to go home. Whether it was China or Japan, they still wanted some action.
“I heard the clan leader refused to go to Japan.”
“What? Why?”
“The situation there is pretty bad.”
“Can we really call ourselves hunters if we don’t go there just because the situation is serious? What kind of job do we have?”
“A job that pays a lot of money. Stop talking nonsense. The clan leader won’t have any of it.”
“I have to go and talk to the clan leader. Even if we were to leave right now for Japan and take the lead, we wouldn’t have enough time…”
The hunter who had been quite lively a few minutes prior came back with a grim expression. He had just talked to the clan leader.
“It was confirmed just now that there are currently four A-grade monsters in Japan.”
“...Huh?”
“Of course, the Japanese government hasn’t made an official statement about that. However, the situation was confirmed by the information circulating on the market, which is quite trustworthy. They said that all their defenses have already collapsed. Now. Do you still want to go to Japan?”
“...On second thoughts, I think we’ll also have plenty of chances to kill monsters in South Korea!”
The hunter immediately chickened out. He wanted a chance to kill monsters, but he also didn’t want to die.
A single A-grade monster would increase the risk level significantly. Two would be enough for most hunters to back off and watch someone else fight. If there were more than two A-grade monsters, nobody knew what catastrophe might occur. Even the hunters that were A-grade or above would only fight one A-grade monster at a time, not when they were in groups.
To think that four A-grade monsters would appear… This was an unprecedented, terrible situation, even for a monster wave. It sounded so ridiculous that they thought the clan leader was lying.
“Is it even possible for four A-grade monsters to appear at the same time?”
“I think there were three of them that appeared at the same time in China a few decades ago...”
They grabbed the Japanese hunters nearby and tried to get some information from them. The problem was that not even the Japanese hunters that were present knew anything about it.
“We don’t know either!”
“How can you not know when an A-grade monster comes out?! Don’t lie to me! Are you trying to deceive your partner?”
“No! Think about it! In a situation like this, what government would tell the truth to their hunters who are on a mission in a different country?
“...Indeed, that’s true!”
The inquiring hunters were convinced. If the government informed them of a critical situation in their countries, there was the risk that the hunters might not return home. Thus, the government would lie to them.
“What nonsense are you saying? In America, the land of freedom, we don’t lie like this.”
“If only there were freedom.”
“Indeed, Russians couldn’t dream of such a thing.”
“What did you just say, you bastard?”
“Hmm. Our country too...”
Hunters from different countries pointlessly argued about how their countries would have handled the situation. One of them was irritated by the conversation and angrily interrupted, “What does that matter now? Tell me what the situation is in Japan!”
“How can I tell you if I don’t know?”
“Four A-grade monsters... Honestly, I think four is just ridiculous. I would’ve considered going there if there were three, but four...”
“What’s with that bullshit? You wouldn’t have gone even if only one A-grade monster had appeared.”
“Isn’t this monster wave too dangerous? China also said that the situation is abnormal.”
Information was somehow leaking from Japan, but China was actively blocking it. After all, they were known for their ability to control information. As such, the overseas hunters couldn’t help feeling anxious. How many monsters actually were in China?
“The monster wave was divided, right? If there are four A-grade monsters on the Japanese side, doesn’t that mean that there are none on the Chinese side?”
“No. In these exceptional circumstances, we have to prepare for the worst. Let’s assume there are one or two in China as well.”
“Isn’t that crazy? Wouldn’t that mean there are five or six A-grade monsters in East Asia?”
“Huh, so I suppose it’s the end of the world.”
Hunters were murmuring everywhere. The atmosphere was beyond chaotic. Some of the quick-witted hunters tried to fly home as quickly as possible after the monster wave. Once everything became chaotic like this, the most important thing was to get out.
“Hunter Choi Yeonseung, I request a request from the South Korean government. If possible, please don’t leave South Korea...”
“Don’t worry, I’m not going back to the United States under these circumstances.”
The people around him were seemingly relieved as they heard his response. They would’ve been significantly less powerful without him. Moreover, besides the fact that Choi Yeonseung was an A-grade hunter, he had also brought several hunters with him. If he left, those hunters would probably leave with him.
“Hunter Choi Yeonseung.”
“...?”
As they were talking about which place to defend in South Korea, a hunter he had never seen before called out to him.
“I have something to tell you. Can we talk privately?”
“Wait. Who is that...”
“No. It’s fine.”
Choi Yeonseung stopped the hunters and followed the mysterious hunter.
“Now, speak.”
There was only one reason why Choi Yeonseung followed him. It was because the unknown hunter belonged to the household of the Warrior Stained with Madness and Blood.
‘Is he bold?’
There were thousands of hunters who would’ve rushed to kill him had they known he was the household member of an evil god. However, he revealed himself so confidently that Choi Yeonseung couldn’t help feeling puzzled. Indeed, one might be tempted to commit suicide if they lived in the household of an evil god.
“My name is Hong Gildong.”
“That pseudonym is just… Is this a joke?” Choi Yeonseung asked in a dumbfounded manner.
“I-Isn’t it a good name? I’ve heard it’s the most commonly used name in South Korea...” the other person replied in a confused voice.
“...Forget it. Just say what you wanted to say. What do you want?”
“I was sent by the Warrior Stained with Madness and Blood.”
“......!”
Choi Yeonseung was even more flustered when the mysterious hunter just blatantly revealed his identity. Wasn’t assassination his goal?
“Did you come here because you wanted to fight me one on one?”
“No! What are you saying… It’s quite the opposite actually. My master wants to form a temporary alliance with the Undefeated Incarnation of Training.”
Hong Gildong’s words completely took Choi Yeonseung by surprise.
There was a reason why evil god constellations only played with evil god constellations and good god constellations only played with good god constellations. It was because they hated each other and didn’t trust each other. Therefore, the berserker constellation was supposed to hate Choi Yeonseung and not trust him.
‘He lost a lot because of the constellation battle and the Abyss raid, and he wants to unite? Isn’t he being too obvious with this trap?’
“I understand your confusion. Our masters are very different. But after careful consideration, my master has concluded that your master is someone he can cooperate with.”
“......?”
Choi Yeonseung suddenly felt bad. Was that an insult?
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