Hoarding In Hell [EN]: Chapter 205

205. New Orders (2)

Only the sound of flowing water echoed through the sewer.

Rats scurried around haphazardly, then disappeared upon detecting an unexpected presence in the sewer.

The two figures, a man and a woman, standing in the sewer had been silent since their brief conversation. The woman muttered again, as if still in disbelief.

“Amini committed suicide… Why?”

“Is it as shocking as you being alive, Xiaojie?”

Xiaojie glared at the man, her eyes flashing.

Xiaojie, who was reported dead in Pyongyang, was hiding here in a sewer on the outskirts of a small Chinese city.

She couldn’t go outside. She would be torn to shreds.

No, if Amini had committed suicide, there was nowhere in the world where Xiaojie could safely hide.

The man pulled out a piece of paper and said,

“This note—you sent it to Amini, didn’t you? Our Special Oversight Division obtained it before Amini’s house was searched. I had a hunch, but it really was you, Xiaojie.”

Xiaojie glared at the man.

The man, who identified himself as a member of the UN Special Oversight Division like Amini, claimed to be a special agent assigned to this case.

“You said you had information about Hyunmu to give to Amini. Since Amini is dead, I’ll listen instead. As you know, the Special Oversight Division is very interested in this matter. If it helps, I promise you protection.”

Xiaojie carefully examined the man.

His face was hidden by a deeply pulled-down hat and a coat with its collar raised, making it impossible to recognize him.

She could trust Amini. Even though she had tried to screw Amini over, she could trust her integrity.

But she didn’t know about the others.

“How can I trust you? Amini’s suicide means that the Special Oversight Division and Chrome are in league with Hyunmu, doesn’t it? I can’t help but think you’ll sell me out too.”

“All we know is that you murdered our agent and Adam Vault and tried to massacre 300,000 people with a nuclear weapon. But you failed for some unknown reason. So, yes, we should have killed you for the crimes you’ve already committed. But we’re keeping you alive, aren’t we?”

Xiaojie was speechless, horrified by the fact that the Special Oversight Division already knew about her plan.

Knowing that meant they were ready to execute her at any time.

In the end, Xiaojie surrendered. She was already cornered.

“I know a huge truth about Kang Hyunmu. If you promise adequate compensation, I’ll tell you everything.”

“Anything you want?”

“Spinal reconstruction surgery, facial restoration, a mansion on a lake in Norway with a monthly pension of $20,000, a security program, a rehabilitation instructor…”

The man laughed in disbelief, but then nodded.

“Okay. I’ll promise if it’s worth that much. Tell me.”

Xiaojie sighed deeply and began to speak.

She recounted everything from when she first approached Kang Hyunmu, what happened in Pyongyang, subduing Lee Ji-tae and Park Do-ryeong, to the moment Kang Hyunmu was about to kill her.

She added some embellishments, exaggerations, and lies to minimize her own faults and portray Kang Hyunmu as a devil.

After listening to the story, the man looked at Xiaojie and spoke again.

“Kang Hyunmu doesn’t seem like such a merciful person. Why did he spare you?”

“Spare me? Me? Ha.”

Xiaojie laughed savagely and pulled up her hood.

Her grotesquely misaligned neck bones and her face, with the skin peeled off to reveal more than half of the bone, were revealed.

“I died that day. But just before I died… I was barely able to use my ultimate skill. I barely managed to turn myself into an undead. Kang Hyunmu was fooled for a moment.”

But she couldn’t stop Hyunmu from taking the fragment. As a result, she lost the power given by the Wailing Star and became someone who couldn’t show her face anywhere.

To make matters worse, her body was brutally mangled as Hyunmu raised the difficulty of Pyongyang [referring to increasing the challenges and dangers within the city during the conflict].

Xiaojie was now in a state where it was difficult to function even as an ordinary ability user.

It was ironic that Xiaojie, who wanted nothing more than a peaceful rest, was struggling to survive.

“The real devil isn’t me, it’s Kang Hyunmu! I made mistakes, but I regret it now and tried to tell Amini the truth! She would have taken my side!”

“While receiving a mansion on the Norwegian lakeside and receiving $20,000 a month?”

“That’s cheap for the price of truth.”

“It’s cheap indeed.”

Xiaojie took a step towards the man.

“If you want, I can make a public announcement. Kang Hyunmu, that fool, foolishly made me a hero. If I appear here, I can reverse public opinion. Use me, Special Oversight Division. You exist to prevent ability users from going astray, don’t you?”

Xiaojie looked desperate. Her life was that miserable.

Xiaojie didn’t just want to survive; she wanted to live a leisurely life.

If so, she should have lived in seclusion in a scenic spot rather than establishing a puppet state, but she could not resist the whispers of the Wailing Star.

But now it’s different. The Wailing Star has disappeared from her, and now she is just an undead who will slowly rot away.

“That’s right. The Special Oversight Division exists to prevent ability users from going astray.”

“Good. Then let’s get moving. First, I need to look into real estate in Norway…”

At that moment, Xiaojie felt something change in the atmosphere.

She hurriedly stepped back and guarded against the man. The man was standing still, but Xiaojie felt something was wrong.

She sensitively sensed that the man was not an ordinary person.

“Who are you?”

***

At Xiaojie’s question, the man grinned.

“Special Oversight Division agent.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I think you’re an ability user.”

“Maybe I’m both.”

“If you harm me carelessly, you’ll bury the truth forever. Unless you want to be unilaterally violated by Kang Hyunmu, make me a weapon… Hurry…”

The man smiled and took off his hat and mask.

At the same time as the presence that the mask had been erasing was revealed, the man’s presence filled the sewer.

Xiaojie couldn’t move, feeling a chilling sensation.

It was like falling into a pit full of needles.

“Long time no see, Xiaojie. Do you know how surprised I was when your body disappeared?”

“Ah, ah, aaaaaah!”

The face revealed from behind the mask was Kang Hyunmu.

Xiaojie couldn’t understand why she hadn’t recognized the mask.

But Hyunmu’s mask had such a function:
cognitive interference and presence distortion.

It was natural that Xiaojie couldn’t recognize it. She finally lost her strength and collapsed.

“S, Special Oversight Division, c, credentials…”

“That’s what’s so funny. UN Special Oversight Division Special Advisory Committee Kang Hyunmu. One of the titles I got thanks to you. The word ‘special’ is used twice. Do you know how special it is?”

Xiaojie trembled and tried to run away, but she couldn’t move because all the strength in her body was gone.

It wasn’t like this even in Pyongyang. She couldn’t imagine how she had dared to stand up to such a person.

But in fact, it was because her relationship with Hyunmu had become clearer as she became a monster.

Xiaojie, who didn’t know that, couldn’t help but mistake that Hyunmu’s power was endless.

Hyunmu walked over leisurely and stepped on Xiaojie’s back. Her face was buried in the mud.

“If you’re a corpse, you should lie still. Why are you walking around with your mouth flapping?”

“Oop, oobub!”

“You don’t even need to breathe if you’re an undead; don’t pretend to be struggling.”

Xiaojie seemed to realize something and quickly turned her body to attack Hyunmu.

But the moment she put strength into her body, she heard a snapping sound, and her shoulder slumped. Hyunmu had stepped on her shoulder blade and broke it.

“It’s a good thing I found the note at Amini’s house, or else how would I have been in trouble?”

At those words, Xiaojie’s mind flashed. Amini didn’t commit suicide but was killed by Hyunmu?

Hyunmu has the ability to temporarily control the actions of ordinary people. It was easy to disguise the suicide of Amini, who was not an ability user.

Then it was natural for Hyunmu to find the note she left behind first.

“N, no words!”

“No words?”

“I, I won’t say anything! P, please save me! You promised to save me!”

“I also promised to expose you.”

“I wouldn’t have done it if I knew it was you!!”

“Hmm, I don’t think so. I have a personality that always keeps promises. Because I promised you $20,000 a month, a mansion in Norway, and security in exchange for your exposure…”

Then Hyunmu snapped his fingers as if he had suddenly realized something.

“Ah, right. Then I don’t need to expose you if I don’t guarantee your safety, right?”

“G, Kang Hyunmu!!”

“It just means die quietly.”

Hyunmu quickly brought down his foot and cut off Xiaojie’s neck.

Xiaojie’s neck was cut off with a thud, hitting the sewer floor and rolling to the ground.

Mud poured into her wide-open mouth. Her eyes stared blankly at the ceiling.

“Pretending to be dead again.”

Hyunmu lifted Xiaojie’s head and said.

“You’re an undead. You don’t die when your head falls off, do you?”

Xiaojie rolled her eyes with a pale expression.

It was as Hyunmu said, but she couldn’t speak anymore since she no longer had lungs to exhale air.

“But it’s a relief. Even someone like you has a useful side. It’s not as good as a mansion in Norway, but there’s a place where you can relax comfortably.”

***

After the failure of the Pyongyang recovery operation, a major change began in Korea.

First, the ranks of the clans were reorganized.

Hwanmamama was virtually dismantled as Park Do-ryeong died and many veteran talents were killed. Most of Hwanmamama’s assets and remaining talents were absorbed into the Omnipotence Alliance in the process of reorganizing the clan.

There was also a change in Taesung.

The Taesung Clan, which had lost its strong center of gravity, Lee Ji-tae, went through a chaotic process.

Still, as long as the Taesung background remained intact, there was no room for major upheaval, but there were people who darkly predicted the future as a hunter clan.

The biggest beneficiary was, of course, the Omnipotence Alliance.

Kang Hyunmu, a powerful ability user; Oh Dae-sung, who was highly respected among lower-level ability users; and Yohan, who saved countless people from the nuclear explosion. It goes without saying that the Omnipotence Alliance rose to become the number one clan in Korea.

But the Omnipotence Alliance did not settle there.

“Pyongyang containment net?”

“Yes. There are still many monsters in Pyongyang, and an unidentified boss monster is gnashing its teeth. So, Kang Hyunmu is mobilizing the assets of the Omnipotence Alliance to build a huge containment net and interception base that oversees Pyongyang and the surrounding areas.”

Groundbreaking ceremony for the Pyongyang Battle Memorial Hall.

It was a memorial hall to commemorate the hunters who died in the Pyongyang battle and the soldiers who were sacrificed in the nuclear weapons.

The memorial hall was built on a hill slightly south of Pyongyang. This memorial facility, which decided to commemorate everyone regardless of nationality, was built with a large donation from Taesung.

Lee Seo-yeon, chairman of the Taesung Group, who participated in the groundbreaking ceremony, was surprised by the unexpected words.

“But is that possible with just the assets of the Omnipotence Alliance?”

“First of all, the government has decided to deploy soldiers under the command of the Omnipotence Alliance. Of course, along with subsidies. They are also planning to hire retired soldiers and officers.”

The person talking to Lee Seo-yeon was Yoo-min, the person called Kang Hyunmu’s woman.

Of course, neither Yoo-min nor Kang Hyun-mo liked the title, so no one said it openly.

The official title was Director of Science and Technology of the Omnipotence Alliance.

She came in place of Hyunmu, who could not attend the groundbreaking ceremony.

“Hiring soldiers, what on earth…”

Isn’t that allowing private armament?

That thought flashed through Lee Seo-yeon’s mind.

It is strange that a private group called the Omnipotence Alliance, not the state, controls part of the territory.

In effect, Kang Hyunmu was becoming the governor-general of North Korea.

But Lee Seo-yeon shook her head.

The current situation in Pyongyang is special.

The Omnipotence Alliance is saying that it will enter the ruins, one of the most dangerous places in the world, and become a shell to protect the outside world, and it is absurd to talk about the governor-general in front of it.

‘Of course, Kang Hyunmu is not that naive.’

He sacrifices because he gains something.

Lee Seo-yeon knew that Kang Hyunmu was an ambitious man, although she didn’t know if it was an item or experience.

With her younger brother Lee Ji-tae gone, no one in the country could stop his dominance.

Lee Seo-yeon felt a sudden sense of fatigue as she thought of Lee Ji-tae.

“Vice President Lee Seo-yeon, are you okay?”

“…I’m fine.”

Lee Seo-yeon muttered, pressing her forehead. After a moment of silence, she suddenly said to Yoo-min.

“Taesung also wants to contribute to it. We also have a lot of assets. It will definitely be of great help, but I want you to promise me one thing.”

“What is it?”

“Please find even my brother’s body. It must be somewhere.”

At Lee Seo-yeon’s words, Yoo-min nodded as if she knew everything.

“Of course. Ah… that thing is coming in now.”

A large glass case was placed on a cart and appeared on the groundbreaking ceremony stage.

It was a legendary-grade equipment called ‘Nightmare on Ussurper’ [likely a mistranslation, implying a powerful item obtained from a defeated enemy], a trophy and achievement that Kang Hyunmu obtained in Pyongyang.

Behind the scenes, it was more often called ‘dirty-mouthed rat bastards’.

It was sealed in several layers of glass, and the famous swear words only leaked out very slightly.

Lee Seo-yeon’s expression was speechless.

“Donating that to the memorial hall is a tribute and expression of will that Kang Hyunmu sends to his colleagues who were with him. Lee Seo-yeon, someday, we will completely conquer Pyongyang and take revenge on him.”

Lee Seo-yeon nodded without saying a word.

On the stage, the host was giving a long speech about what the memorial hall and this equipment meant, but the two were not listening to anything.

Even in the midst of sorrow, Lee Seo-yeon was calculating the future situation, benefits, and social changes, and so was Yoo-min.

“Then, a special memorial performance by the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra…”

It was then. Suddenly, black liquid seeped onto the stage as if it had been spilled.

The host stepped back in horror. The black liquid smelled terrible.

It was the smell of tar.

Yoo-min was the first to notice the change in the situation.

“It’s dangerous!”

Yoo-min quickly grabbed Lee Seong-yeon’s head and lowered her body.

At that moment, the tar that had seeped into the glass case suddenly swelled up like a balloon and shattered the several layers of glass at once.

Glass shards flew everywhere.

Screams and shouts erupted. Hunters who had been preparing for the sudden situation from the outside quickly entered.

“Haha, foolish, lowly, and weak humans, did you think I would die with just that?”

What appeared while smashing the glass case was none other than a rat man with black fur. The rat man shouted with a ferocious laugh and gleaming mad red eyes.

“I, Kazat, have come to avenge Kang Hyunmu, the one who dared to oppose me!”