Chapter 66. Won Pilso (2)
Won Pilso was originally a gangster.
Sitting on my throne, I recalled old memories.
After becoming a Contractor, he gathered a lot of people around him with his loyal and easygoing personality. His own skills weren't bad either.
I had never interacted with him directly, but I had seen Won Pilso walking around with a bunch of underlings several times before.
But in the end, he's still just a gang boss.
Won Pilso wasn't a martial artist like Jegal Geum.
Nor was he a knight commander like Cheon Sangwoon.
He ran his organization through a very gangster-like hierarchy, and most things were handled rather roughly.
And yet the fact that he has so many subordinates means there are plenty of Contractors who prefer that kind of leader.
Cheon Sangwoon demanded that his subordinates live like upright, honorable knights.
Jegal Geum also ran the Hwaseong Sect almost like a martial arts sect from a wuxia novel.
For Contractors who wanted to run wild according to their own desires, that kind of environment would naturally feel suffocating.
Han Sewon and the others had actually grown dissatisfied with that policy and tried to overthrow the Hwaseong Sect.
There are probably plenty of thugs like Lee Jukheon back when he was in the Iron Blood Squad.
Won Pilso did a good job controlling those kinds of Contractors.
There were countless Contractors who sincerely followed him, and among them were several whose skills rivaled Won Pilso himself.
Especially Hwang Cheol...
His combat ability is actually higher than Won Pilso's.
Hwang Cheol was Won Pilso's right-hand man.
By the ranking standards commonly used in the Capital Region, he was evaluated as an S-rank Contractor.
He was a power fighter similar to Sama Yun.
His physical specifications were lower than Sama Yun's, but he compensated with various Skills.
The Constellation he was contracted with was the A-rank Constellation "Hunting Giant."
Its True Name was Orion, the Greek hero famous as the constellation in the night sky.
Won Pilso will probably send Hwang Cheol.
Won Pilso had a lot of subordinates.
However, because he controlled such a vast territory, they were scattered across many different areas.
And right now, he had strengthened the northern defenses because of Cheon Sangwoon's pressure.
He wouldn't deploy a huge force just to stop Kang Yujin's group.
He would almost certainly respond with an elite unit centered around Hwang Cheol.
Then...
Let's see what they've got.
I summoned Number 49 so he could handle the broadcast.
"Won Pilso hates Contractors from other factions entering his territory."
Walking through a ruined city, Joo Minha spoke calmly.
"He deploys guards and patrols along the borders with other factions."
"But his territory is too large."
"And it's stretched long from east to west."
"Joo Minha, then..."
"Yes."
She nodded.
"He doesn't have enough people to guard everything."
"And right now, he's concentrated even more personnel in the north because of Cheon Sangwoon."
"That's why the defenses here are so weak."
At present...
Kang Yujin's group had already entered Won Pilso's territory.
They had encountered patrols under Won Pilso's command several times on the way.
But there were never more than three or four at once, so they subdued them almost instantly.
"Let me remind everyone again."
Joo Minha continued.
"Our goal is not to destroy Won Pilso's entire faction."
"I know."
Lee Jukheon answered bluntly.
"We go deep inside, deal them a major blow, and leave."
"So they never think about touching the Hwaseong Sect again."
"Correct."
There was no way four people could completely destroy Won Pilso's faction, which controlled such a large territory.
"Ah."
Joo Minha stopped walking.
"I believe that's the road."
She pointed toward a road leading up a small mountain.
"Hmm."
Seok Taejun looked uncertain.
"Is it really true that Won Pilso is holding a meeting with his officers at the lake beyond that mountain road?"
"According to the information we obtained at the checkpoint, yes."
They had found a freshly received fax at one of the checkpoints they passed.
After capturing and interrogating one of the guards...
They heard the exact same story.
"Of course..."
Joo Minha added calmly.
"There's a high chance it's a trap."
"Even if it's a trap, I don't care."
Kang Yujin answered flatly.
"We'll just smash the trap and deal them a blow anyway."
"That depends on what kind of trap it is."
"We might simply waste our time."
Joo Minha looked at Seok Taejun.
"Seok Taejun, please scout ahead."
"Got it."
As usual...
Seok Taejun pulled the Chimera out of the backpack where it had been squirming around.
He transformed it into adult mode, climbed onto its back, and flew into the sky.
While Seok Taejun handled reconnaissance...
The remaining three decided to wait there for a while.
"Everything around here is just collapsed apartment buildings."
Kang Yujin looked around.
Joo Minha answered quietly.
"I believe this area was devastated during the war against Pandemonium."
"They don't repair them?"
"Modern Korea no longer has the capacity to restore high-rise buildings like those."
"The buildings still standing could collapse at any time."
"It's simply safer to live somewhere else."
After saying that...
Joo Minha added briefly.
"The housing shortage disappeared thanks to the population decline anyway."
"..."
Silence fell for a moment.
"Come to think of it..."
Kang Yujin spoke again.
"There's something I've been curious about."
"What is it?"
"The world we're living in right now..."
"The Material Realm..."
"It overlapped with another world, the Fantasy Realm, right?"
"Correct."
"And the monsters and demons from the Fantasy Realm crossed over into the Material Realm."
"Yes."
"Then..."
Kang Yujin frowned.
"What happened to the humans who lived in the Fantasy Realm?"
If the humans of the Fantasy Realm had crossed over as well...
The world's population should have instantly doubled.
But nothing like that happened.
Only imaginary creatures like monsters seemed to have crossed over.
"At present, there are two theories."
"Two?"
"One is that they were moved to another world."
"Another world..."
"The other..."
Joo Minha's voice remained calm.
"Is that they were all wiped out when the Fantasy Realm collapsed."
"..."
"We don't know which theory is correct."
"Apparently, neither Constellations nor Apostles will say anything about this matter."
"..."
"Perhaps..."
"They don't know the answer either."
While they were talking...
Seok Taejun returned from reconnaissance.
"How was it?"
"Won Pilso really was there."
"He looked exactly like the picture we saw before."
"So it wasn't a trap?"
"There were a lot of people around him."
"At least fifty."
"They looked like Won Pilso's subordinates."
"Seok Taejun."
Joo Minha asked.
"Do you think they noticed you scouting?"
"I'm not sure."
"It looked like they might have..."
"But they didn't launch any anti-air attacks or anything."
"Hmm."
Joo Minha nodded.
"It seems they're intentionally trying to lure us in."
