Hoarding In Hell [EN]: Chapter 267

267. Heavenly Fortress (4)

The first challenge humanity faces from another species.

Most of the individuals invited to this meeting represented countries with top-tier national power and a high number of Awakened.

Therefore, if they didn’t step forward, there was no hope of averting the disaster. They needed to unite and act immediately, but voices readily agreeing were hard to come by.

It was understandable. Even though humanity was in danger, most of the people here lived comfortable lives far removed from Dungeons.

They didn’t want to admit the situation was truly dangerous, and they were hesitant to commit to a cause that could cost them valuable human resources.

Moreover, unlike soldiers, most Awakened operated as civilian mercenaries.

It wasn’t an easy decision.

In the worst-case scenario, it could end with a declaration like, ‘The world must unite to repel the invaders.’

However, this atmosphere could be swayed with just a small shift in momentum.

The first to raise his hand was the new Chairman of the South China government, Chairman Wang Xinliang.

“The South China Federation will stand with Russia.”

Starting with his statement, several countries raised their hands to express their agreement.

These were countries influenced by the South China Federation. As more countries suddenly joined, the atmosphere began to shift.

Alone, it might be different, but in a group, the general psychology was to follow the trend unless it involved significant losses.

However, some were not pleased with this atmosphere.

For example, the Chairman of the North China government, who had been outmaneuvered by South China.

With an indignant expression, he pointed at South China’s Premier Wang Xinliang and shouted,

“President Petrovich! Do you really intend to recognize that puppet government! If so, we cannot agree! The 1.3 billion people of China will be outraged!”

Prime Minister Almuth, representing the EU, opened her mouth with a troubled expression.

“This is a crisis that requires the consensus of the entire world. However, I have several questions. In fact, there was intelligence that the Russian military was moving towards the Ukrainian and Polish border regions. If the information about this monster is accurate, shouldn’t they be moving east instead of west?”

President Petrovich glared sharply at Prime Minister Almuth with his sunken eyes.

Prime Minister Almuth was intimidated by his intense gaze but did not remain silent.

“Furthermore, no matter how excellent the monster’s camouflage abilities are, I believe Siberia is densely packed with nuclear facilities aimed at the United States. Even if Siberia’s population is small, it’s hard to believe that you wouldn’t know what was happening there. Surely the Russian government is more capable than that.”

“You overestimate us, Prime Minister Almuth. We truly didn’t know,” President Petrovich said in a heavy voice.

“The military is there to set up camps for civilians to evacuate. As you know, countless refugees are pouring in from the east. The military has been dispatched to protect these refugees. But… if we fail to stop this monster, the refugees will have no choice but to move further west.”

President Petrovich’s words were half a threat.

He was implying that if they didn’t participate, could they stop the refugees and the advance of the Russian military under the guise of protecting them?

Russia had both the justification and the means.

“…I understand. I will gather the opinions of our member states.”

It was an ambiguous answer, but Prime Minister Almuth was leaning towards participating.

Even setting aside the Russian military issue, if something went wrong and the Dungeon fell, it would be better for it to fall on Russia than on Europe.

However, the sticking point was that Russia held the initiative.

‘Why isn’t the United States participating?’

If the United States had the initiative, everyone would have eventually participated, even with outward complaints.

Europe was heavily dependent on the United States economically and militarily, including through NATO [North Atlantic Treaty Organization].

‘Could it be that they want Russia to collapse?’

Considering the monster’s path, it would pass through Russia, then Europe, and then across the Atlantic.

The United States might be thinking they could shoot down the monster when it crossed the Atlantic.

Of course, that was assuming they had the capability.

There was no room to back down now.

The United States was at fault for not participating in the first place.

Russia’s intentions were suspicious, but what would happen if they didn’t participate?

North China was unreliable to ally with, and the atmosphere was leaning towards Russia.

No country would dare to step forward and cool down the overheated atmosphere.

“We will not participate.”

But then, Prime Minister Almuth’s head snapped around.

South Korea’s President Kim Si-hoo raised his hand, looking at President Petrovich as he spoke.

His voice wasn’t loud, but the conference hall fell silent.

Of course, many countries besides South Korea didn’t want to participate. But no one would openly admit it.

Not participating meant abandoning countless people in Russia to die.

At least, considering the moral implications, it was a statement that shouldn’t be uttered.

“Why?” President Petrovich asked, glaring sharply.

President Kim Si-hoo felt like he would faint under that gaze.

But he couldn’t possibly know the reason. He was merely uttering words he didn’t want to say with trembling lips.

“Because I want to see Russia and China go down together.”

***

“That was great, President Kim Si-hoo.”

“What… what…”

Outside the conference hall, in the hallway, Kim Si-hoo gasped for breath, carefully asking Kang Hyun-woo in a groaning voice.

Normally, he would have demanded an explanation immediately, but even thinking about it made his head spin.

President Petrovich had unilaterally declared a short break and left.

The remaining countries were quietly discussing the trends and repercussions of this incident.

President Kim Si-hoo felt like everyone was looking at him and talking about him.

Hyun-woo eased some of the psychological pressure on the flustered President Kim Si-hoo.

“What, what is the intention? Standing against Russia? And why did you mention China?”

“It’s exactly as I said. We need to reduce Russia’s power a bit.”

“Reduce their power?”

Was he saying he would abandon people to die?

Kim Si-hoo wasn’t a humanist, but he had seen the video of what happened in Ulaanbaatar.

If he didn’t feel like he had to stop it immediately after seeing over a million people being massacred in an instant, he would be closer to a demon than a human.

Hyun-woo looked at Kim Si-hoo with a gaze that questioned whether he needed to explain.

Whether he explained to Kim Si-hoo or not, what was going to happen would happen.

Of course, in the meantime, Kim Si-hoo would see him as less than human, but that was the case now anyway.

Just then, someone approached them.

“President Kim Si-hoo.”

The woman approaching with a polite handshake was Germany’s Prime Minister Almuth.

Having served as Germany’s Prime Minister for over a decade, she was famous as a veteran politician in the EU [European Union].

“Thank you for speaking up with courage. Thanks to you, everyone seems to be able to proceed with the meeting in a slightly more calm state.”

Kim Si-hoo felt relieved as the representative of a powerful national alliance greeted him favorably.

However, Prime Minister Almuth’s expression was slightly clouded.

“Of course, the level of your remarks was a bit… extreme.”

Kim Si-hoo’s expression turned gloomy again.

“By the way, a monster with a diameter of 18 kilometers… it sounds like a horror novel scenario that Chrome always sends.”

“Heavenly Fortress.”

Hyun-woo suddenly spoke. Prime Minister Almuth’s gaze turned to Hyun-woo.

“Excuse me?”

“We are calling that monster the Heavenly Fortress.”

Almuth looked puzzled. Then, her secretary whispered something in her ear.

“Ah, I see. So, you are… that Hunter Kang Hyun-woo. Nice to meet you. I heard you’re quite a capable Hunter, so you must be President Kim Si-hoo’s hidden confidence.”

Hyun-woo smiled because it wasn’t wrong.

Almuth turned her gaze back to Kim Si-hoo. What was important now was the outcome of the international conference.

“But President Kim Si-hoo, do you have any follow-up measures? I don’t think you really want Russia to collapse. We can’t allow another human tragedy like Ulaanbaatar to happen. I’m concerned about the atmosphere being led by Russia, but I understand their eagerness since Russia is also an affected country.”

“Of course,” Kim Si-hoo nodded and said.

“But it’s right to analyze the Heavenly Fortress’s movements first. Considering that expeditions to unexplored Dungeons usually take more than a week, we should assume that the Heavenly Fortress will take at least that long. If the expedition fails, we’ll have to shoot it down using all available means, which would mean a great loss of our top-tier Hunters, not to mention the aftermath.”

Hyun-woo looked at Kim Si-hoo with a surprised expression. These weren’t the words Hyun-woo had instructed him to say.

“That doesn’t mean we can just stand by while the Hunters are attacking the Heavenly Fortress. If we can predict the Heavenly Fortress’s movements through research and analysis, we can suppress it in a safer location.”

“Indeed.”

Almuth nodded, agreeing with Kim Si-hoo’s words.

“That’s right. Analyzing the Heavenly Fortress’s movements and ecology should be our priority now. Since it’s currently advancing slowly through sparsely populated areas, we can buy at least a week if civilian evacuation is done in time.”

“We should focus on rescuing civilians and luring the Heavenly Fortress during that time. Indeed, with this, we can avoid participating in the Heavenly Fortress’s attack and still save face.”

Almuth smiled briefly.

Her expression showed that she was relieved to know that Kim Si-hoo wasn’t a mindless madman.

Hyun-woo met Kim Si-hoo’s eyes. Kim Si-hoo invisibly exhaled and wiped the sweat from his neck.

‘Indeed.’

He was being manipulated by Park Gyu and was a traitor trying to sell the country, but he hadn’t wasted his time in office.

Selling the country was something that required ability.

More than anything, Kim Si-hoo had been a puppet for more than a day or two.

This level of improvisation was a piece of cake.

In fact, the solution he presented seemed plausible, but he hadn’t said anything with solid evidence.

“But President Kim Si-hoo, we still have to eliminate the Heavenly Fortress in the end. If it weren’t for the subtle unease I feel from Russia, I would gladly decide to participate… I’m worried that we might be missing an opportunity due to unfounded suspicions.”

She meant to ask if there was a more direct solution.

Kim Si-hoo’s expression briefly hardened before barely relaxing.

“Why wouldn’t we participate?”

“Excuse me? You said you wouldn’t participate at the meeting earlier…”

“A disaster that threatens humanity has appeared. If we withdraw from here, we don’t deserve to be members of humanity.”

Kim Si-hoo turned to Hyun-woo and said.

“You said you were worried about Russia holding the initiative, right? Then we can form our own team! Kang Hyun-woo here is qualified enough.”

Hyun-woo just smiled.

Kim Si-hoo’s remarks were over the line for improvisation.

What was infuriating was that the solution he presented was the same as what Hyun-woo was going to do.

***

The meeting resumed. During the short break, the opinions of those who wanted to participate in the expedition seemed to have solidified.

It was a natural result since they had enough justification and power.

The active participants, led by Russia and the South China government, formed an alliance called the ‘Pan-Human Front.’

They named the monster Heavenly Fortress, Feiyun, Skydrop, etc., as they pleased, but they agreed that they had to suppress it somehow.

On the other hand, there were also opinions that the expedition should be approached with caution.

This was a smaller force compared to the Pan-Human Front, led by the EU.

There was a possibility of backlash within the EU itself, but Prime Minister Almuth chose to withdraw, promising civilian protection and follow-up support.

North China, Japan, and South Korea belonged to this group.

“To think they’re still playing politics in this situation, it’s absurd.”

After the meeting ended, at a hotel on the outskirts of the city.

Mariya Keller muttered like a sigh in a hotel overlooking the night view of St. Petersburg.

Adam Folt, who was tidying up the bed for her, opened his mouth.

“Still, it’s better than the United States, who didn’t participate at all, isn’t it?”

“No, the United States is better. They know this meeting is meaningless and didn’t participate.”

“I see.”

Adam Folt answered calmly, but Mariya Keller continued to mutter.

It was closer to a task of organizing her own thoughts than explaining to Adam.

“The United States knew that this meeting would end in a mess like us. It’s clear from their actions so far. Because whether it’s the Pan-Human Front or the skeptics, half of them don’t really want to drop Skydrop.”

A mobile Dungeon that is constantly in a Flood state.

Ordinary Hunters or ordinary people might not know yet, but it has a different meaning for Apostles who have contacted a Star.

The increase in monsters means that the Familiars belonging to that Star also increase.

“The territories that monsters build and conquer soon become the territories of the Apostles. Of course, the number of enemies and territories will also increase, so conquering Skydrop is important. The one who conquers Skydrop will be the victor.”

Conquering the Heavenly Fortress will inevitably turn into a national competition.

Those who don’t know the truth will be backstabbed, and those who know will fight each other.

“Then isn’t it better to withdraw like the EU or South Korea?”

“Unless they have other thoughts, they are either lacking or weak. After all, it’s true that Skydrop is a threat to humanity.”

It was a complicated issue, but if the cause itself was eliminated, there would be no problem.

She wondered if she could find collaborators through this meeting, but Mariya Keller only reaffirmed her disappointment.

“In the end, to prevent Skydrop from falling into anyone’s hands, it must be dropped. So that no Star or monster can take it.”

Mariya Keller turned to Adam Folt with a chilling expression and said.

“That’s why you are important, Adam Folt.”

Adam slowly approached under Mariya’s gaze. Mariya grabbed his hand and muttered.

“The king without a nation who devours all monsters.”

“…….”