Hoarding In Hell [EN]: Chapter 257

257. Utopia (12)

“So, where is Park Gyu?”

“I don’t know. That rat bastard is likely moving with the President, but the choice of which bunker to use isn’t up to me; it’s up to the Chief of Security.”

Hyeon-woo didn’t want to waste time playing hide-and-seek with Park Gyu.

There were still quite a few people who hadn’t been won over by Hyeon-woo. Especially among military personnel, there was almost no one besides Min So-ha.

If Park Gyu started mobilizing other military units, a civil war could break out.

If there was a risk of civil war, would Min So-ha continue to side with him?

Hyeon-woo glanced at Min So-ha, and she scoffed as if she understood his thoughts.

“If we can’t catch Park Gyu and our own military ends up shooting at each other, I’m immediately pulling out. I don’t care if I end up in court later for treason. If our soldiers are pointing guns at each other, it means my choice was already wrong.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

It wouldn’t take that long anyway. Hyeon-woo looked inside the Blue House [the executive office and official residence of the South Korean president] and said.

Min So-ha followed his gaze and turned her head, seeing someone walking out as the door opened.

Min So-ha’s eyes widened.

“Huh?”

It was someone who shouldn’t be there under normal circumstances.

Min So-ha looked back and forth between Hyeon-woo and the man with a bewildered expression. The man quietly opened his mouth.

“If it’s about Park Gyu’s whereabouts, I think I can help.”

***

Finding Park Gyu wasn’t difficult.

After all, to direct Min So-ha to capture Kang Hyeon-woo, he had to be hiding somewhere within sight of the Blue House.

Park Gyu was found in a safe house near the Blue House.

Park Gyu was hiding there with a few bodyguards, and he was dragged out without putting up a proper resistance.

“Let go! Let go, you bastard! Do you know who I am!”

The Blue House.

Park Gyu’s coat was torn off as he was dragged out of the car, struggling.

As soon as Park Gyu’s arms were free, he struck the man who was holding him in the face.

A thud echoed, but it was Park Gyu who soon opened his mouth wide and curled up.

Oh Dae-seong scratched the cheekbone he had been hit on, as if it were itchy.

“Please just come along quietly.”

“You can’t just touch me! How dare you…”

Oh Dae-seong sighed, slightly lifted his foot, and then quickly stomped down on Park Gyu’s instep.

With a cracking sound, Park Gyu felt the pain of the bones in his foot breaking inside his shoe. The moment his mouth opened, Oh Dae-seong shoved his fingers deep inside.

“I’d like to be polite if possible, but…”

Oh Dae-seong muttered, looking down at him with a bear-like gaze.

“That’s only when the other person is being polite.”

Oh Dae-seong was a person who tried to act kindly and do the right thing as much as possible, but that was only towards people who were weaker or less fortunate than him.

The reputation that he would have joined the student movement if he hadn’t been an Awakened [individuals with superhuman abilities] wasn’t a joke.

He could be ruthless to people like Park Gyu at any time.

Park Gyu tried to nod and say he would follow quietly, but Oh Dae-seong ignored him and dragged him away, grabbing the inside of his mouth and cheeks.

Park Gyu had no choice but to be dragged away like a dog, drooling.

Min So-ha was sitting in front of the Blue House.

She made a strange expression when she saw Park Gyu being dragged in.

Park Gyu looked at Min So-ha with pleading eyes, but she turned away, averting her gaze.

She seemed to be completely ignoring what was happening inside.

The place where Park Gyu was dragged to like a dog was the President’s office.

He was thrown onto the floor of the office.

Touching his seemingly swollen cheek, Park Gyu raised his frightened gaze.

The man he had expected was sitting on the desk in the office.

“Conversations should be had face to face, Chief of Staff.”

Hyeon-woo gestured for Oh Dae-seong to leave. Soon, only Hyeon-woo and the stakeholders of this situation remained in the office.

“Kang Hyeon-woo…”

Park Gyu tried to say something, but he flinched when he saw the person next to the desk. There was someone he hadn’t expected.

Park Gyu realized how Kang Hyeon-woo had found him so easily, and how all of this had turned out in Hyeon-woo’s favor.

“P-President? Why are you here?”

President Kim Si-hoo was standing next to the desk. He looked like a secretary to Hyeon-woo, who was sitting on the desk in an impudent pose.

Seeing that, Park Gyu felt his blood rushing in reverse, forgetting even his fear.

“You have no roots! How dare you treat the President elected by the people like this!”

Park Gyu jumped up and looked for someone to ask for help.

The Chief of Security, who should have escorted the President to the safe house, was standing on one side of the office, ignoring him.

Seeing the Chief of Security, Park Gyu felt his stomach turn upside down once again.

“You idiot, you sold out the President?”

“That’s enough, Chief of Staff Park Gyu.”

President Kim Si-hoo quietly opened his mouth.

“I came here of my own accord. I persuaded the Chief of Security.”

“Yes? No, but…”

Park Gyu looked back and forth between Kim Si-hoo and Kang Hyeon-woo as if he couldn’t understand, then slowly opened his mouth.

Only then did he understand the situation.

The President had abandoned him.

No, he had sold him out.

Kim Si-hoo looked at him with a cold gaze and continued.

“Your evil deeds end here. You put me in the forefront to manipulate state affairs and profited behind the scenes. The search and seizure warrant for your house has already been issued, and your close aides are being arrested. Your movie ends here.”

“Arrest? Mr. President, what crime have I committed?”

Kim Si-hoo glared at him as if he were displeased and said.

“Here, you have infringed on the private property of Kang Hyeon-woo, who has wholeheartedly served the country. You falsely accused Kang Hyeon-woo, who has committed no crime, of treason and tried to kill the hero of the country. Furthermore, you smuggled the Awakened, who are important national assets, overseas and killed countless Awakened who were not won over to cover it up. The declaration of a state of emergency this time will also be included in the charge of conspiracy to insurrection.”

Park Gyu opened his mouth wide.

The moment he opened his mouth as if to protest, the Chief of Security moved unnaturally and shouted.

“Your Excellency, be careful!”

He quickly drew his gun and instantly aimed it at Park Gyu’s head.

A gunshot rang out. Park Gyu’s body sprawled on the floor.

Park Gyu, who had been flinching for a moment, looked back with frightened eyes.

A gunshot had rang out next to his ear, but his head was fine. Instead, a bullet was embedded in the ceiling of the office.

Kim Si-hoo looked up at the ceiling with a bewildered expression, and the Chief of Security stared blankly at his hand, which had suddenly shot upwards.

And Kang Hyeon-woo opened his mouth.

“Who’s trying to kill him without my permission?”

“…Hunter Kang Hyeon-woo?”

Kim Si-hoo cautiously opened his mouth, but Hyeon-woo ignored him and approached Park Gyu. Park Gyu, who was lying on the floor, flinched as Kang Hyeon-woo approached.

“That’s right. The President sold you out.”

Park Gyu couldn’t say anything.

He had almost certainly died just now. But it was Kang Hyeon-woo who had saved him.

The fear of death swept through his entire body, and his body went limp as if he had been electrocuted.

“You shouldn’t have overdone it. From the President’s point of view, he’s the one who worked hard, and he’s the one who got elected, so how could he not be annoyed by someone showing off in front of him? So he was trying to put everything on you this time.”

“Mr. Kang Hyeon-woo, what are you saying!”

Kim Si-hoo shouted in embarrassment at Kang Hyeon-woo’s words. Hyeon-woo still ignored him.

“But at least he’s smarter than you. He has an eye for who’s in power. I don’t know who the backing you believe in is, but looking at this result, it doesn’t seem like a very reliable person, does it?”

“Bullshit.”

Park Gyu barely opened his lips, which were not easily parted, and moved them.

“You… you killed Park Doryeong and attacked Lee Ji-tae!”

“Oh ho.”

Hyeon-woo made an unexpected expression at Park Gyu’s shout.

“You knew that much. I’m getting more and more curious about who’s behind you. Who is it? Was there anyone alive in Pyongyang back then? Who else knows about that?”

Hyeon-woo looked at the President and the Chief of Security.

Both of them were looking at Hyeon-woo with surprised faces. It was as if they were hearing it for the first time.

The Chief of Security tried to say something when his eyes met. At that moment, he put the gun to his forehead and pulled the trigger.

A gunshot rang out, and the Chief of Security’s body fell to the floor.

Hyeon-woo’s eyes widened and turned towards Kim Si-hoo.

Kim Si-hoo took a step back with a bewildered expression, trying to get away from Hyeon-woo. But then Park Gyu rushed forward in front of the President.

“Stop it, you son of a bitch!”

Hyeon-woo looked at Park Gyu, who seemed to be protecting the President, with a delighted expression.

“Park Gyu. I felt it earlier, but I didn’t know you were such a loyal type.”

“It’s not loyalty; it’s the obvious thing to do, you damn bastard.”

“Chief of Staff…”

“This bastard is a stupid bastard, but he’s still the legitimate power elected by the people! Even if he’s overthrown, it should be by the people based on the law, not by some crazy guy with a lot of power!”

Park Gyu was desperately protecting the President.

Whether it was really out of a love for democracy, or because he had no other backing to believe in, was unknown.

In any case, Hyeon-woo could feel that the feeling was genuine.

“Power elected by the people.”

Hyeon-woo muttered to himself.

“Right. According to what I’ve found out, that elected power was trying to smuggle out the Awakened, take a cut, and defect to South China.”

Park Gyu flinched at Hyeon-woo’s words.

“You thought you were controlling the President, but in fact, the President was using you as a shield and secretly plotting behind your back. Besides, he even sold you out.”

“Lies! It’s a lie!”

Kim Si-hoo shouted like a seizure. Hyeon-woo took out a report from Yoo Min and scanned the list, saying.

“There are so many people I need to visit, regardless of whether they’re from the ruling party, the opposition party, the judiciary, the administration, or the legislature. It’s a report from the National Intelligence Service [South Korean intelligence agency], but it seems like they did a pretty neutral investigation, seeing as it includes senior members of the ruling party. I’m even surprised to see the President’s name written there.”

There, Hyeon-woo snapped his fingers as if he were surprised and said.

“What’s surprising is that your name, Park Gyu, wasn’t on here. I was more surprised that your name wasn’t there than that the President’s name was there.”

Kim Si-hoo desperately grabbed Park Gyu’s shoulder and shouted.

“Chief of Staff, that guy is lying. I’ve never done anything like that…”

“Shut up! Damn it, I knew it. Did you think I wouldn’t know?”

Park Gyu glared at Kim Si-hoo with his eyes wide open.

Kim Si-hoo froze at that gaze.

Park Gyu gritted his teeth and turned his gaze to Hyeon-woo.

“I knew it too! Who do you think ordered that National Intelligence Service report to be written? But I just thought you were a bigger threat than this stupid bastard. The President, damn it. No matter how stupid he is, I can control him. But not you.”

Park Gyu bit his lip and said.

“You’re the kind of guy who should be chased out even if it means making a deal with the devil. When I think about what you did in Pyongyang, and the things you’re doing to drive Korea into hell, I had no choice but to turn a blind eye to this much. I was desperate for power!”

“Hmm. You had to do it even if it meant making a deal with the devil.”

Hyeon-woo muttered, twisting his lips up.

“Then you should have looked for the devil.”

At that moment, Hyeon-woo’s body moved. Park Gyu flinched, but Hyeon-woo just plunged his hand straight in.

Park Gyu flinched and closed his eyes tightly.

But the pain he had been waiting for didn’t come.

When he carefully opened his eyes, he felt a hot liquid soaking his clothes from behind.

Kim Si-hoo was looking at Hyeon-woo with an unbelievable expression. The twitching heart could be seen in the hole in his chest.

“Your Excellency!”

Park Gyu tried to support Kim Si-hoo, but he collapsed.

Park Gyu looked at Hyeon-woo and shouted like a seizure.

“He’s the head of the democratic government elected by the people! How could you!”

“That’s right. Now that I hear it, that’s right.”

Hyeon-woo wiped his hands with the President’s coat and said.

“The head of the legally elected democratic government has become a minion of a crazy guy with a lot of power in a situation where a state of emergency is declared, where absolute power is legally guaranteed. Where is Korea going? How will this makjang [Korean slang for ‘exaggerated’ or ‘absurd’] drama end?”

And Hyeon-woo took out his cell phone. Park Gyu didn’t know what Hyeon-woo was saying, or what he was doing.

And he didn’t know why he was still alive without being killed.

He bit his lip tightly and asked.

“Don’t tell me you’re going to keep me alive and use me?”

“No.”

Hyeon-woo replied briefly.

“Giving someone a second chance is too much.”

At that moment, Park Gyu felt the corpse of Kim Si-hoo, whom he was hugging, slowly rising.

Hyeon-woo turned on the video recording mode on his cell phone and conveyed his will to Kim Si-hoo, who had become a ghoul.

Including what specific lines to shout.

Hyeon-woo gave the order in a firm voice.

“Go, President! Body slam!”