“Who the hell are the lunatics that did this?”

Go Byeonggap stared into his phone, replaying the previous night in his mind.

He’d been on his way home after finishing business in Asvillam. In the bathroom, he was dousing himself with scalding water to wash off the day’s fatigue when suddenly the light went out.

At first, he figured it was just a blown bulb in the bathroom. But right after, the hot water cut off, and every appliance in the living room stopped working. A blackout.

It wasn’t just his apartment. Beyond the balcony, the Seoul night stretched pitch-black.

Luckily, the blackout didn’t last long. Electricity was back in under ten minutes. Back then, he thought it was just another minor hiccup you run into in life.

But the news article he saw the next morning was downright staggering.

The news said the Naju power complex was attacked last night. All twenty reactors overturned, not a single one left standing. This wasn’t some ragtag operation.

Yesterday’s blackout had been caused by that very incident.

The authorities launched an investigation based on witness accounts, but they seemed to be hitting one dead end after another.

And no wonder—aside from those witness statements, there was no worthwhile evidence. The assailants had made damn sure to erase every trace. A meticulously planned crime, that’s what it was.

To make matters worse, the so-called testimonies were all vague nonsense like ‘They wore black masks’ and ‘They carried swords.’

Setting all that aside, Byeonggap couldn’t even wrap his head around the idea of attacking a power complex. What grudge could possibly drive someone to do that?

“Man, the world’s just full of bastards with nothing better to do.”

Here he was, busting his ass working as a hunter and a Lord, and these assholes had time to spare—he wished they’d share some of that free time with him.

“Let’s just get to work. Work.”

And so Go Byeonggap kept diligently completing his tasks that day.

Just because it was March didn’t mean the brutal cold had vanished in the blink of an eye. If anything, the lingering winter chill was putting on a show of its own.

On the other hand, Asvillam in March had progressed a great deal compared to February.

The second stronghold, Baltadren, had seen a bountiful harvest. Of course, the place was warm year-round, so it wasn’t strange to be harvesting corn even in the dead of winter.

Several crops had been planted east of the inner castle. Corn, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, turnips, and more. The variety was decent.

For now, farming was limited to within the inner walls, but once things were more organized, they planned to start full-scale cultivation outside the fortress walls.

Honestly, if he were greedy, he’d want to get into herbs and fruit too. But growing those would require a lot more study and experience.

Better to play it safe than to stretch too thin and end up humiliated.

“Kkueek! Kkue-ik!”

“Yeah, here’s your food. Eat up, all of you.”

Swill made from corn and beans boiled into a porridge. He let it cool a bit before pouring it into the feeding trough, and the pigs went at it.

For the record, he hadn’t given the pigs any elixir of Growth. Even keeping up with their current appetites was a tight squeeze. If he fed them the elixir too, he might end up having to steal food from the goblins just to keep them fed.

In one corner of the pigsty, goblins were shoveling out manure. If they composted that properly, it’d make excellent fertilizer.

After watching the pigs eat for a while, he moved on. His destination was a house in the residential district.

«Oh? The Lord’s here.»

A normal goblin greeted him. The little guy was busy doing something by a bed.

«What were you up to?»

«Changed a diaper. This one’s always shitting.»

He approached the bed. Lying there, no longer an infant you could call a newborn, was a baby sucking on a bottle. To put it bluntly, it could no longer be called “human” either.

‘Every time I see her, she gives me the creeps.’

About a month ago. Go Byeonggap had brought a human baby—pulled from the belly of a monster harpy—to Asvillam.

Since a human came out of a monster, he figured he’d raise it, if only out of curiosity. But the baby was anything but ordinary.

First, her growth rate was utterly unbelievable for a human. Maybe it was because she spent all day eating, sleeping, shitting, and repeating? The kid wasn’t even a year old yet, but her build was already that of a three-year-old.

Second, this girl was increasingly taking after her mother. The skin on her arms and legs had hardened, transforming into something like a bird’s. Her facial features could no longer be considered human, either.

Human turning into monster. Watching that process was anything but pleasant.

‘Maybe I’ll have to kill her sooner or later.’

If this girl’s nature turned out to be the same as her mother’s—if she became uncontrollable—then killing her would be the only option. You can’t tame a wolf into a dog, after all.

‘It’s not like I’m the Harpy Lord.’

Truth be told, if it weren’t for the authority of being the Goblin Lord, he never would have lived cheek by jowl with goblins in the first place.

Think back to their first encounter. Weren’t they dead set on killing each other?

The ferocity of monsters was greater than that of wild animals—if anything, they were worse, never less.

«Hey, Tiny. Go outside and get some air for a bit. I’ll watch this place.»

«Huh? The Lord? No way. I’m fine.»

Tiny waved his hand, refusing the offer. Go Byeonggap suddenly sensed something off.

«…Hey, Tiny.»

«Huh? What?»

«Did your speech get better?»

«Speech?»

The little guy tilted his head.

«I don’t think so.»

«No, you did.»

There was a subtle difference in tone. Just the day before, he’d spoken in staccato bursts of single syllables. His use of particles and sentence structure had been unbearably clumsy.

It still wasn’t perfectly natural, but compared to before, it was much smoother. A single word flashed through his mind.

‘The Seed of Enlightenment!’

Go Byeonggap lunged forward and began examining Tiny’s body all over.

«Your back, let me see your back!»

«Huh? L-Lord. What’s wrong?»

«Stay still, damn it!»

‘No outward changes?’

His appearance was the same. There wasn’t a single noticeable difference, not even the size of an eye booger. Go Byeonggap sucked in a breath and clicked his tongue.

«Who am I?»

«The Lord.»

«That’s right. So how are you supposed to greet me when you see me?»

Tiny rolled his eyes a few times before answering.

«Hello, Lord.»

«No! You say, ‘My Lord, good day.’ Try it. ‘My Lord, good day.’»

«My Lord, good day.»

«That’s it! From now on, that’s how you do it.»

«Mm-hmm.»

Tiny nodded, as if he understood. Byeonggap hesitated, wondering if ‘mm-hmm’ was the right answer, then let out a deep sigh.

«…Good luck. I’m off.»

«Okay, Lord, bye-bye.»

Stepping outside the building, he swept his gaze across the surroundings. Several hob goblins and normal goblins were hauling carts somewhere. He called out sharply.

«Hey, you lot! Drop the carts and get over here!»

«Ah, yessir!»

About ten goblins scurried over in a hurry. Byeonggap paused for a beat, then asked.

«What were you doing?»

«We were moving rubble from a building that collapsed during the day, My Lord.»

«Right. Work going all right? Need anything?»

«No, sir! Work is always a pleasure!»

A hob goblin answered on behalf of the group. Even this one’s speech had smoothed out considerably.

«…Don’t you lot feel anything strange?»

«Strange… you say, My Lord?»

«Strange? What’s strange?»

«I dunno. Ask the Lord.»

«My Lord, what do you mean?»

The goblins buzzed among themselves. Byeonggap clicked his tongue and waved a hand dismissively.

«Never mind. Go on, get back to work.»

«Yessir!»

«Bye, Lord.»

Byeonggap gave a half-hearted wave.

‘Are they not even aware their vocabulary’s grown? …I need to go see Dorma.’

The thought had barely crossed his mind when he moved toward the wall. Unless they had special schedules, the raid team members stood guard alongside the sentries.

Dorma should be near the south gate. Byeonggap headed straight there without delay.

Entering the quarters beneath the wall, he found Dorma just as expected. Kiriyan was there too.

«Hm? My Lord, what brings you here?»

«When did you arrive? We didn’t even notice.»

«Good timing—Kiriyan’s here too. This works. I’ve got something to ask.»

«Speak, My Lord. What do you wish to know?»

«You lot—don’t you feel anything strange?»

«Huh? Strange—what do you mean by that, My Lord?»

Kiriyan replied in a tone that suggested he didn’t understand.

«Haven’t you heard Tiny and the others talking? Their speech has gotten better, hasn’t it?»

«Well… I’m not sure. I haven’t noticed a big difference.»

«Nor have I.»

«I’m telling you, their speech has improved!»

Kiriyan and Dorma just tilted their heads in confusion.

«Hang on a second!»

When Byeonggap reappeared in the quarters, he had a normal goblin in tow. He launched into a nonstop barrage of questions at the normal goblin, as if putting it through a speech contest.

Kiriyan and Dorma, who’d been watching in silence, wore expressions of bewilderment.

«Well… it’s true! He’s definitely talking more now.»

«Huh. He wasn’t like this just a moment ago, was he?»

«Dorma, Kiriyan. What about you two? Do you feel any changes in your bodies?»

At their Lord’s question, the two goblins examined themselves.

«I’m not sure, milord. I can’t sense anything.»

«Dorma, what about you?»

«The same as him. Everything feels normal.»

It seemed the change wasn’t universal, much to his chagrin. Go Byeonggap stroked his chin, lost in thought, then suddenly snapped out of it. “Leave the south gate open. I need to head to Somnium.”

«Ah! Yes, milord!»

«At once!»

Go Byeonggap took the light vehicle and hit the road. Thanks to the path they’d cleared, he could reach Somnium in twenty to thirty minutes.

Beep! Beep-beep!

«A car! Someone’s come from Baltadren!»

«Who is it? Is it the Lord?»

After honking the horn a few times in front of the gate, it swung open. Go Byeonggap acknowledged the guards’ salutes with a quick nod before speeding into the fields.

Skree!

A sturdy fence had been erected around the spot where the Seed of Enlightenment was planted. He got out of the car quickly and approached.

A moment later, a bright smile spread across his face.

“Whoa!”

Inside the fence, a tiny sprout — smaller than a fingernail, nearly invisible if you weren’t looking closely — had pushed up through the soil.

* * *

“Man. These guys are something else.”

Go Byeonggap had visited the Association to settle up magic stones after finishing a subjugation. While waiting for his turn, he fiddled with his phone and let out a sigh.

-After Naju, an attack on the Changwon industrial complex! What’s the next target?

Yesterday, the power plant complex in Changwon had been hit.

It happened just two days after the Naju assault.

The government had even hired hunter mercenaries through guilds instead of relying on security firms staffed by non-awakeners. But it was all for nothing.

They say the Changwon plant alone had been guarded by twenty B-rank hunters. But masked assailants had subdued them in the blink of an eye.

Were there a lot of them? No. As far as anyone could confirm, there were only four or five.

The puzzling thing was that not a single person had died. The attackers only destroyed the power plant; they committed no killings whatsoever.

“Pacifist terrorists, huh. That’s one hell of a concept.”

-With the attacks confirmed as a serial terror campaign, authorities have announced they will devote all resources to power plant security.

After reading the article to the end, Go Byeonggap clicked his tongue. If twenty B-rank hunters were helpless against them, it meant the assailants were at least S-rank awakeners.

This wasn’t a problem a few high-ranking hunters could solve.

“What kind of insane bastard pulls a stunt like that? Korea only has four hundred and fifty S-rank hunters total—why do something that’ll be found out in no time… Ah, unless it’s an unregistered awakener.”

There are plenty of awakeners who aren’t hunters. And plenty who never even took the awakening test. Some of them are bound to be S-rank.

The government estimates there are about twenty unregistered S-rank awakeners in Korea.

If this attack is their handiwork, the investigation is heading into a minefield.

“Well, no sane person would piss away their life like this… Eh, I need a coffee.”

Go Byeonggap shuffled over to the free coffee machine in the second-floor lobby. He always grabbed a cup or two whenever he stopped by the Association. Why? Because it was free.

The machine whirred to life, grinding and hissing as it dispensed a milk coffee.

While it worked, Byeonggap skimmed the bulletin board pinned to the wall.

Despite the chaos in Naju and Changwon, no new notices were up—just as he thought that, a female staffer walked over and tacked a big sheet of paper onto the board.

Byeonggap’s eyes drifted over it without thinking.

—Power Complex Temporary Security Recruitment <Special Guard>

1. Recruitment Period: 2026.03.02–

2. Primary Duties: Protection of Wonju/Gangneung/Ulsan power complex facilities.

3. Salary: Negotiable.

4. Bonus Details: 500 million won per terrorist killed, 1.5 billion won per terrorist captured alive.