Hoarding In Hell [EN]: Chapter 247

247. Utopia (2)

It was a back alley with few people around.

The cafe, clearly misplaced in this location, was empty despite it being lunchtime.

Well, almost empty. One person occupied a seat.

Though they looked like a customer the cafe would be better off without.

The cafe worker glanced at the woman sitting at the table with a complicated expression.

Anyone could tell she was suspicious, with her dark sunglasses, a coat that didn’t suit the season, and her eyes darting nervously between the entrance and the window.

‘What a….’

Perhaps because it was a cafe in such a secluded location, the work was easy, but strange customers were a frequent occurrence.

But this was a first. It was almost like watching a scene from a movie.

Fortunately, someone dressed so conspicuously was unlikely to be involved in any actual criminal activity.

She had just been occupying a seat for four hours.

The cafe worker suddenly noticed that the water glass on her table was empty.

She had only ordered one Americano initially, and then refilled her water glass ever since, but the worker’s sense of service was still strong.

She turned to grab the water pitcher.

“So, what happened?”

The worker was startled by the sudden voice and turned her head.

A man had entered the cafe and was sitting across from the woman. It seemed that not only the worker but also the woman was surprised.

The woman barely managed to steady herself, almost falling over.

“Oh, when did you get here?”

The worker silently agreed with the woman’s stammering words.

Looking back, she had heard the sound of the door opening and the chair sliding.

Nevertheless, she hadn’t noticed it at all. It was as if it had naturally faded from her attention.

Then the man glanced at the worker.

The worker thought she had seen the man’s face somewhere. Definitely on TV, he seemed to be a famous Hunter… At that moment, the man snapped his fingers.

The worker suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to organize the storage room.

She left the counter and headed to the storage room.

***

“Ah, I should have at least had them order a drink before sending them away.”

Song Yeo-un looked at Hyun-woo with a dumbfounded expression at his mumbling. Now, only the two of them were in the cafe.

“What was that? Hypnosis?”

“It’s a skill. If their consciousness isn’t focused, they don’t even realize they’re being controlled. But unless I give them a clear objective, it won’t last long.”

He had instilled the objective of organizing the storage room, so it would last for about 20 to 30 minutes.

He felt that the overall ability of his skills had become stronger after becoming a Star [a high-ranking ability user].

Although he had scattered most of the Star’s power, it wasn’t noticeable.

“What’s with that outfit? I almost walked right past you. Why are you dressed so suspiciously?”

“I was taking advantage of the blind spot that someone dressed so suspiciously couldn’t possibly be suspicious, but is it really that strange?”

“Isn’t the best way to avoid suspicion not to attract attention? That’s the worst way to do it.”

At Hyun-woo’s criticism, Song Yeo-un grumbled and took off her coat.

“So, what happened?”

“You saw the text message, right? Everything written there is exactly as it is. The Omnipotent Church and the Ghost Mansion were attacked and seized.”

“That’s why I don’t understand.”

Hyun-woo frowned as he spoke.

“Our house was seized? The government indicted the executives of the Omnipotent Church? Why is the government suddenly attacking the Omnipotent Church? Did that bastard Park Gyu suddenly go crazy or something?”

“You’re talking about Chief of Staff Park Gyu, right?”

When Song Yeo-un sent the text message ‘The Ghost Mansion was taken away,’ she meant that the prosecutors had raided and searched the place.

Hyun-woo scanned the text messages and read through the news of the past few days on his way here. But the situation felt strange.

Just a few weeks ago, the Omnipotent Church, which had been treated like a pillar of South Korea, was suddenly being treated like a band of traitors.

“Um, nominally, it’s because we refused the Flood suppression case.”

“Flood suppression?”

“Yes. A Flood [a large-scale monster outbreak] broke out in Gangwon-do, and Team Leader Seo Ji-hoo refused the request to suppress it. But the military’s defenses were breached, and monsters flowed in, causing civilian casualties. They’re trying to put the blame on us….”

“Are they crazy?”

“I know. We should have suppressed the Flood. But there was a reason for that….”

“No, I was wondering if Park Gyu was crazy. If you guys made that decision, there must have been a reason. But I can’t understand that bastard Park Gyu. He’s raiding our house over something like that?”

Song Yeo-un looked slightly touched.

But Hyun-woo was completely sincere.

A gloomy feeling surged up, but before that, a rational reason came to mind.

“They took advantage of my absence.”

“Yes. That’s probably it.”

Song Yeo-un also said with a bitter expression.

“Right now, South Korea seems very precarious from the perspective of civilians. A 4-Star ranked ability user is usually the representative, but Lee Ji-tae is gone, and Park Do-ryeong is gone. Team Leader Oh Dae-sung is still there, but he’s generally considered to be a lower rank compared to the previous two. And then Branch Manager Kang Hyun-woo suddenly disappeared for several weeks….”

Even if a leader is absent for only a few days, rumors of health problems circulate, and conspiracy theories spread.

Now that most of the top-ranked Hunters have become dependent on Kang Hyun-woo, his absence seems to have caused quite a bit of anxiety.

Hyun-woo realized that he couldn’t leave his post carelessly anymore. He suddenly felt the weight of his position.

“Chief of Staff Park Gyu has been eager to turn the Omnipotent Church into a state institution from the beginning. But since the Branch Manager is not here, he must have thought this was his chance.”

It was a so-called empty house raid [taking advantage of someone’s absence to seize their assets or power].

“With signs of increasing difficulty, Hunters not listening, and a lot of anxious public opinion, wouldn’t he try to take it all by force while advocating for a strong nation?”

It’s impossible for the state to take over a private group, but the Omnipotent Church was already half-nationalized to receive state funding.

But since they didn’t actually have the authority to control it, they were trying to take it over completely.

“He’s committing petty acts.”

“Right? I thought everything would go back to normal when the Branch Manager returned, but it seems it’s not that simple. Oh, um. There’s also talk that the Branch Manager’s usage of the budget he received isn’t transparent. And since the top executives of the Omnipotent Church have all been arrested, the ability users don’t know what to do.”

No matter how violently Hunters rampage in dungeons, they can’t live apart from society.

The executives and team leaders who are loyal to Hyun-woo personally might resist, but ordinary Hunters who don’t want to be branded as criminals have no choice but to cooperate with the state.

No matter how solid a group Hyun-woo built, it was ultimately built on the foundation of the state. He couldn’t escape it.

“Who was arrested?”

“Team Leader Seo Ji-hoo, Dr. Do Won-kyung, and Team Leader Oh Dae-sung. Miss Yoo-min is currently in a safe house.”

They were people who had been arrested willingly rather than being caught.

Seo Ji-hoo would have fought if Hyun-woo had told him to fight the state, but he couldn’t do such a thing on his own, so he simply accepted it.

“There’s probably a warrant out for you too.”

“I just won’t get caught.”

Song Yeo-un was also the type who wouldn’t hesitate to fight, but she seemed to be on the run because she couldn’t fight independently either. But it was fortunate that she was able to evacuate Yoo-min thanks to that.

“Oh, right, CEO Kang Seong-gyu was also arrested. For refusing to cooperate with the government.”

“Who’s Kang Seong-gyu?”

Song Yeo-un looked at him with a dumbfounded expression.

“…The CEO of the Omnipotent Church. The old man you set up as a figurehead, remember?”

Hyun-woo finally remembered.

Kang Seong-gyu.

He was the former Deputy Director of the Omnipotent Church who had sold out the Japanese ability user and Chinese assassin who tried to kill Hyun-woo in the North Korean dungeon and saved his life.

He had been set up as a figurehead CEO, but it was unexpected that he refused to cooperate with the government.

‘No, it’s not that unexpected. He’s someone who prioritizes his own life above all else.’

In any case, the overall movement was that the South Korean government was unilaterally attacking the Omnipotent Church.

Since ability users were not following the state’s control and acting arbitrarily, the public was bound to be dissatisfied.

The government was trying to take advantage of this opportunity to secure the ability users once and for all, riding on public opinion.

But Hyun-woo felt that this series of movements was unnatural.

Even if he was absent, could they move so boldly?

No matter how daring a politician Park Gyu was, what would he do if he later defected somewhere, or if he started resisting?

“Then who’s controlling the Omnipotent Church? If no one is, the field will be even more chaotic.”

“Ah, that’s….”

Song Yeo-un had a troubled expression. She seemed a little ashamed.

“Tae-sung is doing it.”

From that answer, Hyun-woo glimpsed the source of Park Gyu’s confidence.

Hyun-woo stood up. Song Yeo-un stood up with a worried expression.

“Um, Branch Manager Kang Hyun-woo. Still, please….”

“Why? Should I surrender and give in now?”

“No. I’m just scared that Branch Manager Kang Hyun-woo is going to beat Park Gyu to death right now.”

“Don’t worry.”

Hyun-woo said, snatching Song Yeo-un’s unnatural sunglasses.

“I should go home first.”

***

The Ghost Mansion.

This mansion, built halfway up a mountain and serving as an air-raid shelter, was famous for rumors about the unfortunate ends of its owners.

In the rumors, the lush forest was just a gloomy and ominous forest, and the quiet mountain path was just an isolated and rugged area.

Two police officers and two Tae-sung Hunters were standing guard in front of the Ghost Mansion. The search and seizure were over, but the seizure was in progress.

The Tae-sung Hunters were talking about the ominous rumors surrounding the Ghost Mansion.

“They say that every generation either goes crazy, commits suicide, or gets murdered. Now Hunter Kang Hyun-woo has added his name to the list. In the form of a disappearance.”

“Hey, would a crazy bastard like Kang Hyun-woo be haunted by a ghost? That guy looks like he’d eat ghosts too.”

“Geez, kid. Do you think you’d start fighting if there was a ghost? Imagine waking up in the middle of the night and seeing a ghost with a face the size of your torso crawling towards you, twisting your limbs. Can you not freak out and fight?”

“Ah, dude. Don’t describe it in such detail. My dreams haven’t been good since I started guarding this place anyway.”

“I don’t know about a ghost with a face the size of your torso, but I’ve seen a giant with about a hundred joints or a snail dragging around a head the size of a house, and it was just okay to fight.”

“Hey, you’re scarier… Who is it!”

The two Hunters who were talking were startled and stood up.

A man wearing a mask was standing behind them. The Hunters felt nauseous just looking at the mask.

The bizarre mask, which distorted their vision, was erasing the man’s presence.

But at the same time, Hyun-woo was constantly leaking his presence, confusing the Hunters’ senses.

It was then. Suddenly, something seemed to seep into their heads, and the Hunters lost consciousness and collapsed.

“What is it? You’re suddenly being gentle.”

Song Yeo-un, who had quickly subdued the two officers at the front gate, approached Hyun-woo and said.

He might have killed them if they had drawn their weapons and attacked, but there was no reason to do so now. Song Yeo-un, who was saying that, also hadn’t killed the police officers.

Song Yeo-un grabbed the door of the Ghost Mansion and warned Hyun-woo before opening it.

“Just, don’t get too pissed off when you see inside.”

“That’s for me to decide.”

Song Yeo-un nodded as if Hyun-woo’s answer seemed plausible and opened the door.

Hyun-woo knew why Song Yeo-un had warned him as soon as he opened the door and entered.

The house was a mess.

As is usually the case in places where search and seizure have taken place, all the drawers in the mansion were open, and everything that could be turned over was turned over.

The documents containing Yoo-min’s research data were also scattered haphazardly. It seemed that more than one or two items had been taken carelessly.

Song Yeo-un glanced at Hyun-woo. Hyun-woo had a faint smile on his face.

According to her memory, Hyun-woo had been expressionless until he entered the mansion.

And the more she looked around the mansion, the thicker his smile became.

Perhaps that smile is proportional to his anger.

Hyun-woo suddenly stopped in his room.

“The computer….”

“Ah, is there any important work or sensitive data? I was only focused on taking care of Miss Yoo-min….”

“I used to write a lot of malicious comments on internet articles with that computer.”

“Yes….”

“I also wrote comments praising my articles… It might all be revealed.”

“That’s definitely sensitive content….”

Is it? Is it really sensitive content?

Song Yeo-un felt confused and headed to the second basement floor.

Then, when she arrived at the central hallway, she flinched and stopped as she saw the things lying on the floor.

They were familiar.

Song Yeo-un soon realized that they were sculptures carved by her sister, Song Ji-min.

Some of the sculptures that Hyun-woo had bought for hundreds of millions of won were lying on the floor, broken into pieces.

“Ah, well….”

Song Yeo-un was heartbroken, but she thought it was nothing compared to the mansion being ransacked.

Wouldn’t the person who was most heartbroken be Kang Hyun-woo, whose house was completely ransacked?

Song Yeo-un tried to take a step, but realized that she couldn’t hear the sound of him following her.

When she turned around, Hyun-woo was smiling a bigger smile than ever before, showing his teeth.

“I think I’ve seen enough.”