Chapter 3. A New World (2)
“Y-You...! Are you insane?!”
Kim Jin-cheol.
President of the Korean Hunter Association.
One of South Korea's first-generation Hunters and still an active S-Rank Hunter.
He had once been famous for his fiery temper, though rumors said he had mellowed considerably after becoming Association President.
But right now...
“You crazy bastard! Are you trying to get someone killed?!”
Kim Jin-cheol looked exactly like he must have during his active-field days.
And he wasn't the only one.
Park Min-ho, Director of the Special Division and one of the most influential figures in the Association, pressed his temple and spoke.
“Ji-woong, say something. What the hell were you thinking?”
There was a simple reason why Choi Ji-woong, team leader of the Special Division, was being torn apart like this.
“He's the Massacre! The Massacre! I've risked my life on plenty of battlefields, but I've never seen eyes like that in my life. My legs go weak just looking at him.”
Returnee Kim Si-hyeon.
Alias, the Massacre.
He had said that he wanted to become an Association civil servant.
And Choi Ji-woong, unable to reject him on the spot, had told him it was possible.
“You want to bring a demon like that into the Association? Are you trying to cause a catastrophe?!”
Finally, Choi Ji-woong, who had been hanging his head, spoke.
“...Isn't it actually a good thing?”
“What?”
“Wh-What?”
“He's at least SS-Rank. Minimum. Didn't you say other countries already started investigating after hearing about the unrankable Gate incident? If we're not careful, someone else could take him.”
“Ahem.”
Both Kim Jin-cheol and Park Min-ho coughed awkwardly at the same time.
“If he works for the Association, shouldn't that make him easier to manage? More importantly, the fact that a Hunter of that level would join the Association instead of a Guild is itself...”
“It would be a first. Some high-rank Hunters act independently, but none have ever voluntarily joined a government organization.”
Returnees were unusual beings.
Their power.
Their values.
Their entire lives.
All of it was different.
King Arthur of Britain.
A Returnee who had supposedly defeated a Demon King.
Apparently, after killing that Demon King, he had become king of the other world.
Even after returning to Earth, he continued trying to rule like a king, causing endless trouble for the British government.
Choi Ji-woong had heard that Britain ended up granting him part of its territory as a duchy.
Compared to that, one civil servant position inside the Association was nothing.
“...True.”
“President!”
Park Min-ho stopped Kim Jin-cheol from immediately agreeing.
“That's not the real issue.”
Park Min-ho was an extremely experienced veteran.
Like the Association President, he was also S-Rank.
One of only two S-Rank Hunters directly employed by the Association.
“He's too dangerous. If we don't provoke him, it doesn't seem like he'll leave the safe house anyway. Aren't we just letting a ticking time bomb wander around?”
Park Min-ho's concern was reasonable.
“...That Returnee is a lion. A tiger.”
“There are people who tame wild beasts.”
“Do you think he'll even see us as people?”
Park Min-ho's tone was merciless.
“In front of the Massacre, we're ants. At least, that's what my instincts tell me.”
“Come on. Isn't that too much? We haven't even properly confirmed his abilities yet.”
“Are you serious?”
Unlike Kim Jin-cheol, who had never properly witnessed Kim Si-hyeon fight, Park Min-ho had personally seen him slaughter monsters.
He couldn't accept the idea so easily.
In the end, only one person held the authority to decide.
Kim Jin-cheol.
“...”
Then he made his decision.
“Bring him in.”
It was settled.
“If he goes berserk, we don't have any way to stop him anyway. In that case, we might as well keep him close and try to manage things somehow.”
“We can't put a leash on someone like him!”
“Who said anything about a leash?”
Kim Jin-cheol spoke with resignation.
“Lion or tiger, just give him all the meat he asks for, keep him warm and well-fed, and let him live comfortably. Why would a full beast bother paying attention to ants?”
And that was how Kim Si-hyeon's employment by the Association was approved.
“And you're his handler, Choi Ji-woong. You caused this, so you're responsible for managing it.”
“...What?”
“What do you mean, what? Discussion over. Oh, and the Massacre will belong to the Special Division.”
“President!”
Choi Ji-woong, who had only agreed to Kim Si-hyeon's request because he planned to dump him on another department and escape responsibility, had one thought.
I'm screwed.
This world was quite different from the one I knew.
At least, until thirty years ago, it seemed to have been a normal modern society.
Then, thirty years ago...
“There was something called the Great Upheaval...”
Apparently, everything changed because of the Great Upheaval.
“Meteor showers fell from the sky, and monsters began appearing alongside Gates.”
“Ah. I know.”
I replied.
“I read about stuff like that in novels.”
Books had been my only friends.
My one hobby in a life filled with loneliness and the constant fear of being bitten by zombies.
Five years after the zombie outbreak began, every light in Seoul went out.
By the tenth year, the entire world had been swallowed in darkness.
Television.
YourTube.
Computers.
Everything stopped working.
Only physical books remained.
“...There were novels like that? If so, maybe they were some kind of prophecy.”
Did fantasy novels not exist in this world?
Then again, even in my world, only certain people read them.
Maybe someone like Choi Ji-woong simply never knew about them.
“Monsters appeared, but fortunately, superhumans called Hunters appeared as well.”
Choi Ji-woong continued his explanation.
Apparently, this was part of the basic training required to become an Association Hunter.
“Strength based on rank... the treatment Hunters receive...”
“Mm.”
“And even if you're a Hunter, you can't just kill people however you want.”
I see.
“So I can kill them as long as I don't do it carelessly?”
“Yes! Yes! Of course. No, wait. Whether carelessly or carefully, you can't kill people.”
Realizing his mistake, Choi Ji-woong hurriedly corrected himself.
“There are laws, you know?”
“...Even if they're trying to kill me?”
Choi Ji-woong thought for a moment before answering.
