Hoarding In Hell [EN]: Chapter 168

New Order (4)

“Humanity’s destruction?”

Amini nodded at Hyun-woo’s question.

“What destroyed Pyongyang wasn’t just a simple Flood. North Korea was isolated, but it wasn’t a weak nation. For it to be destroyed so suddenly, there had to be other factors involved.”

“For example?”

“For example, a boss monster with unusually high intelligence or abilities.”

Amini answered lightly.

Hyun-woo realized that Amini had no intention of going into detail. She probably wouldn’t reveal detailed information unless he joined her side.

Or maybe she really didn’t know.

“Wouldn’t it be better to just leave it alone then? I can tell Lee Ji-tae not to touch a boiling pot.”

“It would be nice if leaving it alone would maintain the status quo, but we believe North Korea is already at a critical point. The fact that a Flood occurred near the border this time means that the North is already beyond a dangerous level.”

“Dangerous level?”

“Simultaneous awakening of dungeons… a Hyper Flood.”

Yumin made a startled noise. She looked surprised.

Hyun-woo was hearing the term for the first time, but she seemed to have heard of it. He could roughly grasp the meaning just from the sound of it.

“Are you saying that the dungeons in North Korea will simultaneously trigger a Flood?”

“It’s just a possibility. There’s speculation that North Korea may have already experienced a weak Hyper Flood when it was destroyed.”

Amini leaned towards Hyun-woo with a serious expression.

“As Hunter Kang Hyun-woo has felt, dungeons are not unrelated to each other. They are connected in subtle ways. It’s like a kind of tectonic shift. When one volcano erupts, it stimulates other volcanoes as well.”

“Indeed.”

Hyun-woo understood. He already felt that the dungeons were not separate entities.

For example, around the end of Difficulty: Tutorial, when he triggered a Flood in the Guillotine Dungeon, Floods began to occur in dungeons all over the world.

“So, to prevent a Hyper Flood, we need to start conquering North Korea somehow… but there’s a dangerous element in Pyongyang that we shouldn’t touch?”

“It’s just an assumption.”

Amini answered cautiously. It was unclear whether she really didn’t know or was trying to hide something.

“This Pyongyang recovery plan wasn’t initiated by Lee Ji-tae alone; it’s a project we requested and are currently working on. We are doing our best in this situation, so we don’t think there will be any particular danger, but we still want to be perfect. That’s why we would like Kang Hyun-woo to cooperate with this plan.”

Cooperation.

Chrome, or the UN Special Inspection Unit, would want to bring in Hyun-woo, a confirmed 5-star Hunter, by any means possible.

Judging from her tone, there might already be other 5-star Hunters in the country.

No Hunter would easily turn a blind eye to humanity being in danger. Especially not a 5-star.

“I’m sorry to keep saying this.”

Amini said cautiously as Hyun-woo’s response was delayed.

“We are really doing our best in this plan.”

“I heard you.”

“No. I don’t think you realize it. We are willing to use any means necessary. If this plan shows signs of failure, we are willing to make considerable sacrifices to ensure its success.”

Hyun-woo stared at Amini.

Was this a threat?

But her expression didn’t seem like a threat. Her tone wasn’t threatening either.

She just seemed desperate. Hyun-woo suddenly thought of one word.

Final measure.

If Hyun-woo’s non-participation increased the probability of failure, Amini was saying that she would use a ‘never-before-used’ final measure in North Korea.

Whatever it was, it seemed to be a measure they didn’t want to use even in a land swarming with monsters.

“Kang Hyun-woo, I’m asking for your help.”

Amini asked again. Hyun-woo looked at Yumin.

She didn’t show any particular expression, but Hyun-woo felt that Yumin was thinking the same thing as him.

“Amini.”

Hyun-woo decided.

***

As soon as dinner was over, Amini left in her car.

Hyun-woo watched her car disappear down the mountain. Yumin approached Hyun-woo’s side.

“Why did you refuse?”

“Why did you think it would be better to refuse?”

Yumin chuckled and put her hands in the pockets of her white coat.

“Because we still don’t know about Chrome.”

“That’s what I think too. We can’t step in without knowing what Chrome is all about.”

To be exact, it wasn’t that he didn’t know at all.

Hyun-woo vaguely knew about it through the information he obtained in Difficulty: Hell.

Professor Maria Keller was already related to the guy he met in the Scarecrow Dungeon.

She was the one who designed the AI and created the legendary skill ‘Battle Helper.’ She, like Yumin and Dowonkyung, was one of the scholars who fought desperately to prevent the destruction of humanity.

She was definitely not someone to be taken lightly.

“And more than anything…”

“She’s likely the ‘Teacher’ of the Alliance.”

Yumin continued Hyun-woo’s words. It seemed she had already thought that far.

“For now, she’s the most likely candidate, right?”

“Yes. I looked into Chrome’s history a bit. The organization’s name kept changing, so it was confusing, but they are well-prepared for the future, and the loyalty of their members is also remarkable. They may have formed the Alliance to handle dirty work behind the scenes. Their motto of saving humanity is also similar.”

“It seems like there are too many people saying they’re going to save humanity these days.”

Hyun-woo chuckled and continued.

“Still, she went back obediently since I said I would participate in the Pyongyang recovery plan without joining Chrome. I thought she would cling on more.”

“Amini is a UIN Special Inspector, not a member of Chrome. The two are just in a cooperative relationship, so she doesn’t have much to regret if the goal is achieved.”

There was no need to join Chrome to participate in the Pyongyang recovery plan.

Of course, joining Chrome would give him access to the cooperation and intelligence of high-ranking ability users, but it wasn’t a big loss compared to the risk.

“What are you going to do now? Head straight to the front lines?”

“I have to.”

Hyun-woo nodded and took out a caramel from his pocket and put it in his mouth.

“But there’s one thing I need to do before that.”

***

The next day, Hyun-woo visited the All-Abilities Union Training Camp.

Hyun-woo remembered what the training camp was like.

The managing executives were incompetent, and the Hunters hardly ever visited.

The old, neglected camp was just a place where new recruits gathered for orientation, and it had no meaning beyond that.

But the recently revamped training camp had none of that left.

The factory with its exposed rusty framework was gone, and a 30,000-pyeong [approximately 24.7 acres] camp with state-of-the-art facilities was being reborn.

Of course, most of it was still under construction, but it was progressing very quickly. Once completed, it would be the largest training camp in the country.

Hyun-woo was looking down at the camp, which was still under construction.

Facilities capable of housing actual monsters, measurement rooms where skills and items could be used freely without fear of collapse, hotel-level facilities capable of accommodating up to a thousand people, and even a shelter with a lockdown device and the ability to withstand a direct missile hit in case of an emergency.

It was an excessive scale for a simple training ground.

‘But this isn’t the only one.’

Already, more than eight other training camps were under construction in other areas, although the scale varied.

A huge budget was being poured in, and Hyun-woo was coaxing Park Gyu to tap into the national budget as well.

It was all in preparation for the future.

Then there was a knock on the door.

“Branch Manager Kang Hyun-woo?”

It was Hunter Team Leader, Song Yeo-un.

As soon as Song Yeo-un entered, Hyun-woo gestured for her to sit down.

Song Yeo-un sat down in the opposite seat in an awkward posture. She didn’t know why Kang Hyun-woo had suddenly asked to meet with her alone.

“Do you happen to have an older sister?”

Song Yeo-un was startled by Hyun-woo’s sudden question.

“Yes? I, I do have an older sister.”

Hyun-woo nodded as if he expected it.

“What does she do? Is she a Hunter?”

“She, she graduated from art college and is working, but… my sister isn’t an ability user.”

Not an ability user. That could be.

Hyun-woo nodded and handed her a pen and paper.

“It doesn’t matter. Give me her contact information.”

Song Yeo-un’s face was filled with a million question marks. She couldn’t figure out what was going on.

But Song Yeo-un couldn’t refuse the words of her superior, who was perhaps the strongest Hunter in Korea.

“I…”

“Don’t ask for details. It’s not a bad thing.”

It was a part that couldn’t be explained or couldn’t be done anyway. Song Yeo-un hesitated, then took out a ticket from her wallet instead of writing something down.

It was a ticket to a joint exhibition held in Insadong.

The exhibition ticket had the photos and names of four men and women. Among them, the name Song Ji-min stood out.

Song Yeo-un wrote a number on the back of the ticket.

“Song Ji-min is my older sister. Um, you’ll probably be able to see her if you go to the exhibition. It’s just that the branch manager asked for her contact information, so I’m giving it to you… but I thought it might be better to meet her in a public place like this first…”

Song Yeo-un carefully said, glancing at Hyun-woo.

Hyun-woo fluttered the ticket, checking the address and date. It was an exhibition with only a few days left.

“No. You did well. I asked for personal contact information too carelessly.”

And he recalled the exhibition tickets that were thickly filled in Song Yeo-un’s wallet.

“If I go to the exhibition, the number of visitors will increase by one.”

“Hehe.”

That was probably her intention too.

Hyun-woo was ignorant of culture and art, but he knew that there were few people who visited such small exhibitions.

Considering Song Yeo-un’s age, she probably hadn’t graduated from college long ago, so she wouldn’t have much experience.

When the business was over, Song Yeo-un bowed 90 degrees and quickly left the office. Then Hyun-woo suddenly called out to her again.

“Hey.”

“Yes?”

“Listen to your sister. No, well, it seems like you listen well.”

Song Yeo-un had a puzzled expression. When did Hyun-woo see her sister and tell her to listen well?

But Song Yeo-un wasn’t brave enough to argue with Hyun-woo.

“Yes, of course I have to listen well.”

***

A small exhibition hall in Insadong.

In this exhibition hall, located in a deserted alleyway, an exhibition of students who had just graduated from college was being held.

Inside the exhibition hall, only a couple wandering around aimlessly were chatting, and it was very quiet.

Song Ji-min, who was sitting at the counter, was bitterly watching the couple.

The couple, who were clearly there to kill time during their date, were playing hidden picture games in front of an abstract painting, saying it looked like her or not.

At first, Song Ji-min followed them around explaining the works, but the two seemed to be more interested in spending time together.

‘It’s better than no one looking at it…’

To be honest, she wished there was someone who would appreciate the true value of the work.

The friends who had gathered their meager funds to rent the exhibition hall in anticipation of holding their first exhibition had now lost interest and hardly visited.

Only Song Ji-min was still keeping her place.

The works were hardly sold, and no sponsors appeared. It was natural, since there were rarely more than five visitors a day. It would be better to work part-time during that time.

It was then.

The man in the couple was curious about the texture of the oil painting hanging on the wall of the exhibition hall, and he scratched it with his fingernail.

Song Ji-min was horrified and ran over.

“Sir! You can’t touch the artwork!”

The couple was startled and stepped back as Song Ji-min shouted and approached.

“Hey, what’s the big deal…”

“I just touched it.”

The couple answered vaguely and quickly left the exhibition hall.

Song Ji-min quickly checked the painting to see if there was any damage, noticing that the couple was leaving in a hurry.

Her expression soon turned pale. How hard did they scratch it? A part of the hardened oil painting had fallen off.

“Ah…”

Even if it doesn’t sell, it’s 0 won, but the cost of materials for oil painting is considerable.

Song Ji-min poured out curses on the couple and wondered how to attach the fallen oil painting pieces without making it noticeable.

Then she heard the sound of the door opening. She was tired of receiving guests now, but Song Ji-min forced a smile and turned her head.

“Welcome… ?”

Strangely, it was a guest with a ticket. She had scattered exhibition tickets here and there, but hardly anyone came.

But that wasn’t why Song Ji-min was surprised.

“Is this Song Ji-min’s art exhibition?”

Kang Hyun-woo.

The very person who was the direct superior of her younger sister, Song Yeo-un.