Chapter 80 – Planning [Propaganda]

Regardless of their bewilderment, Lee Dongseok and Bae Hyeonil’s feelings were complex.

As Masters of guilds under major conglomerates, as survivors of the Moscow International Raid Party, as heads of their households and as children themselves,

All the things they had felt and thought over the years rose up with the alcohol.

And those emotions were laid bare in their eyes and expressions.

Watching them, Siguk continued his story.

“Even if a D-Rank Dungeon breaks open right now and only things like Orcs come pouring out, regular infantry units can’t handle them. That’s why we fight risking our lives. But who takes all the fruits of that? Who takes the peace, the byproducts, and the added value we fought for with our lives? Does it come into our hands?”

Thump-!

Siguk lightly struck the table with his fist.

The side dishes and the meat just starting to cook on the grill plate wobbled, and the liquor in the glasses and water in the cups sloshed, spilling onto the table.

“This is wrong. Something is seriously wrong. Why does a guy called the President, who just sits quietly in the background, get to stick his spoon in, and why does the government gulp down Magic Stones for free? What have they even done!”

Siguk finished speaking and downed his soju in one go.

Watching him, Lee Dongseok and Bae Hyeonil momentarily looked at each other.

Then they turned their gazes back to Siguk.

“Huh, huhuhu. This, this, you’re really drunk, huh. Huhuhu.”

“W-well, no matter how young you are, if you’ve finished four bottles of soju, it’s about time you start feeling it. Let’s call it a day.”

Seeing the two trying to laugh it off and defuse the situation, Siguk slammed the table once more.

Thump-!

This time, he put considerable force into it. A crack appeared on the table radiating from the point of impact, and the glasses and cups floated momentarily in the air before falling and toppling over.

Because of that, liquor and water spilled all over the table.

“Siguk-ssi…….”

Lee Dongseok called out to Siguk with a flustered expression.

Bae Hyeonil started pulling out tissues to wipe up the water and liquor flowing onto the floor.

Watching that, Siguk drank soju straight from the bottle, let out a sigh, and opened his mouth again.

“Drunk? Master Lee Dongseok, have you ever gotten drunk from alcohol after your Awakening?”

“…….”

“Master Bae Hyeonil?”

“…….”

“I’m fine. I’m speaking with a clear mind. Aren’t you two angry at all?”

At Siguk’s agitated reaction, Lee Dongseok and Bae Hyeonil finally closed their mouths again.

“I had a feeling something was off even before I Awakened as a Superhuman.”

Thus began Siguk’s lengthy speech, which also served as a declaration of his views.

“While helping my father run the company, what I felt was that labor deserves fair compensation.”

Siguk opened a new bottle of soju and filled Lee Dongseok’s, Bae Hyeonil’s, and his own glass.

“Our JH Group, that’s right. We started as thugs. The Clover Faction from Guro-gu grew a bit in size and, with sponsorship from Bae Eunjeong, Chairman of Ilsan Group, rose to the position of a mid-major corporation. But I can guarantee you, since officially putting up the JH signboard, we have never run it like operating a gangster organization. We have a labor union, and during annual wage negotiations, we listen to their stories as much as possible to give wages commensurate with their labor.”

Siguk emptied his glass. Bae Hyeonil filled it for him.

“That’s what everyone says. JH’s Lee Siguk only catches Villains even though he’s A-Rank. He could make a fortune going into Dungeons, but he uses his power for public purposes. But you know what? That’s complete nonsense. Do you know why I never entered a Dungeon even once after Awakening and before going to Moscow?”

At Siguk’s question, Lee Dongseok and Bae Hyeonil did not answer.

Siguk didn’t expect an answer anyway and immediately continued.

“It was an act of defiance. A passive resistance against this unfair system built on our exploitation, that’s what it was.”

Siguk emptied his glass. This time, Lee Dongseok carefully filled it and asked.

“But why suddenly…….”

At that question, Siguk smiled bitterly and spoke.

“I realized it through the Moscow Raid. That I was just a cowardly bastard. While everyone else was sucking up to and hyping me because I was an A-Rank Hunter, I was the one acting cowardly.”

Siguk, holding his soju glass, looked at it, fell silent for a moment, then spoke again.

“Too many people died. People who were someone’s father, husband, friend, and son; people who were someone’s mother, wife, friend, and daughter; heroes who must exist to protect this world died too easily.”

At those words, Lee Dongseok and Bae Hyeonil let out sighs and picked up their glasses.

The three emptied their glasses simultaneously. Siguk opened a new bottle, refilled the glasses, and continued.

“A whopping 411 people died. But the ones bickering in the background about Magic Stone distribution ratios and whatnot were all representatives of various governments. The ones who never even went near the Dungeon.”

Siguk’s voice grew agitated again.

Gradually, signs of anger and discontent began to appear in Lee Dongseok and Bae Hyeonil’s eyes as well.

“I hear that in India, protests led by the bereaved families of Hunters who died in battle are happening daily. The stupid mouthpiece media of the International Superhuman Association reports that the bereaved families are doing it over compensation issues, but you can confirm it just by turning on YouTube and watching the live streams. Whether the slogans there are about paying compensation or about reforming the oppressive structure exploiting Hunters.”

Siguk emptied his glass, filled it himself, and finished his speech.

“Do you two Masters like this system?”

When Siguk closed his mouth, a heavy silence fell over the room for a while.

Amid that silence, Siguk just silently emptied glass after glass.

When Siguk had finished about one and a half bottles by himself and was about to open a new one, Lee Dongseok opened his mouth.

“What Hunter in the world…… would like the current system?”

Bae Hyeonil also nodded in agreement.

Lee Dongseok emptied his soju glass and continued.

“But what can we do? If we slip up and the International Superhuman Association brands us as Villains, we could legally get beaten to death…….”

The 2021 System, centered on the complete state ownership and management control system of Magic Stones.

As Siguk said, this system built on the sacrifice of Hunters drew fierce backlash from countless Hunters in its early days.

But the various governments and the International Superhuman Association stepped in to appease the Hunters who rebelled initially, and those who couldn’t be appeased were branded as Villains and purged.

Rudolf Krauf, the first Master of Germany’s Lindenbaum Guild, the world’s first Corporate Guild, and Li Cheng, the hero of the Battle of Beijing and commander of the Superhuman militia, were representative cases. They spoke of Hunter rights and refused appeasement, only to be designated as Villains.

Rudolf Krauf, also famous for his El Dorado statement, sought refuge with the A-Rank Necromancer Villain Uluru Tumbebe in Central Africa, and Li Cheng, the hero of the Battle of Beijing, was executed.

Naturally, the backlash subsided, and thus the 2021 System operated without major issues for the past seven years or so.

But after the Moscow Raid, public opinion was gradually changing.

Criticism of the 2021 System and demands for reform began pouring in, centered on the bereaved families of fallen Hunters and the families of Hunters still alive.

However, those speaking out were only the non-Awakened family members of Hunters.

Not a single Awakened Hunter brought up that topic.

“Master Lee is right. The moment you step forward and speak out, you get shot dead on the spot. Who would talk about it?”

As Bae Hyeonil began to chime in as well, the drinking session instantly transformed into a forum for denouncing the 2021 System.

And the corner of Siguk’s eye, who was quietly watching this, twitched slightly.

‘Got it. They’ve come over.’

The revolutionary class had appeared.

The soil for revolution was sufficiently prepared.

All that was needed was the revolutionary cause and professional revolutionaries.

‘The cause can be crafted as needed.’

The 2021 System was established and maintained based on the belief that civilization rests on force.

But the moment that belief crumbled, and the moment secret fraternal organizations of Hunters like the NAC acted systematically, the 2021 System would draw its curtain, and the 2030 System would take its place.

‘Actions befitting the cause are also necessary.’

In his past life, the cause of the worldwide Hunter general strike that created the 2030 System was met with public indifference.

While talking about the unfair exploitation of Hunters, they turned a blind eye to the suffering of the people, so the public did not acknowledge the cause the Hunters championed.

It got so severe that in South Korea, where Hunters and the government/Association clashed head-on, the exploitation of Hunters turned into exploitation by Hunters, giving rise not just to public indifference but to public resistance.

‘This time, I need to handle it more smoothly.’

Excessive social chaos and disorder acted as a detriment, not a boon, to Villains.

As social productivity declined, purchasing power fell, and with lower purchasing power, drugs and illegal Mana items handled by Villains naturally didn’t sell, becoming dead stock.

‘Even if not to the level of the US, if order is maintained at least to the level of Japan, China, or Europe, generating profits domestically will be easier than in my past life.’

In his past life, there were economic reasons why Siguk operated in places like Japan, Taiwan, and China, not South Korea where his backer Kim Yanggi was in power.

‘Establish a revolutionary regime of Hunters, and based on that, seize control of the Asian underground economy…….’

If he were B-Rank, it would have been very difficult. A scale where success couldn’t even be guaranteed.

But as an A-Rank, it’s possible.

‘It will require a lot of work……, but well, to receive fair compensation, you have to work hard, right?’

Siguk’s gaze turned to Lee Dongseok and Bae Hyeonil, who were getting heated as if they were about to storm out and burn down the Blue House and the National Assembly.

‘Since I saved people who would have originally died, shouldn’t I receive appropriate compensation for that?’

Thinking that, Siguk downed his soju. Then he opened his mouth to the two men.

“So.”

At Siguk’s voice, which carried a slight hint of Mana, the two men, who had been venting their fury and denouncing the system like student activists, closed their mouths and looked at Siguk.

“We need to do something.”

At those words, the two nodded.

Lee Dongseok asked Siguk.

“You’re right. We need to do something. We can’t just take this lying down. But…….”

As Lee Dongseok trailed off, Bae Hyeonil continued.

“W-well, we don’t have a clear plan. If we slip up just once, we’ll either be put on a plane to Africa or end up dead…….”

The two weren’t trying to make pessimistic statements about having no method.

They had grievances but lacked concrete ideas. These two veteran Hunters were asking the 40-year-old Villain infused into a 20-something body if he had a way.

“I don’t start something without an execution plan.”

And Siguk had a clear idea.

“It seems the conversation will be long. How about we move locations? My house is in Cheongdam-dong. For the second round, it would be nice to cleanse our palates with premium traditional liquor there.”

As he said this, a subtle, very subtle smile hung at the corner of Siguk’s mouth.

October 19, 2028, 10:30 AM.

33rd Floor, Chairman’s Office, JH Group Headquarters, Samseong-dong, Gangnam.

Lee Jeonghoon and Siguk sat facing each other, drinking coffee and talking.

“National Policy Partner Guild?”

At Siguk’s words, Lee Jeonghoon nodded and replied.

“Yeah. Got a call from the Prime Minister’s Office this morning. They said the motion passed in the State Council meeting. The announcement is scheduled for this Friday afternoon.”

“Hmm……. Suddenly, in this situation? Wasn’t that originally done by the Signiel Guild?”

At Siguk’s question, Lee Jeonghoon shrugged but offered his own inference.

“There’s been talk for a long time, you know. Why give the National Policy Partner qualification to the Signiel Guild, whose parent company Signiel Group is Japanese capital.”

“That’s why Signiel Group moved its headquarters to Korea, right? Well, that wasn’t the only reason, but anyway. But suddenly giving that qualification to us?”

“Well, the original contract with the Signiel Guild was for three years, and that ends on January 2nd next year. Plus, there’s the symbolism of being the guild with the nation’s first A-Rank Hunter.”

It was a plausible story, but the reason was too simple.

‘Hyeon Woongryeol isn’t the type to make such a decision based on just that reason……. That paranoid…….’

The true nature Hyeon Woongryeol showed in his past life.

It was the appearance of a mental patient suffering from paranoia.

He didn’t even trust his closest aides, so from his inauguration until his resignation three years later, he carried out large-scale purges regardless of faction, aides, or political opponents.

Just as he suspected his aides, he suspected Hunters, and when Hunters went on strike, he pressured the Superhuman Association as if he had been waiting, trying to brand all strike participants as Villains.

Right now, he was hiding his true nature behind his eloquence, tall stature, model-like proportions, a slightly receding hairline starting with an M-shape but still handsome face—a being no less a madman than any other crazed Villain, and that was Hyeon Woongryeol.

Having seen that, albeit indirectly, as a Korean in his past life, Siguk was suspicious of the decision to replace the National Policy Partner Guild, which would be impossible without the President’s influence.