Chapter 599

All the way back to the estate after my visit, I sensed a subtle change in the air.

Their glances and movements looked natural enough, no doubt thanks to rigorous training. But they couldn’t escape my senses.

They definitely suspect something.

The A-rank Hunters of the President’s Security Service.

They’d said they were there to provide temporary protection for my family and me, but I wasn’t naive enough to take their word for it.

If they notice even the slightest thing out of place, they’ll report it straight up the chain.

They weren’t Peace Guild members or ordinary Hunters. They were government employees whose direct superior was one person: the President.

President Baek Hanseong might already have received a report about today’s visit—my private meeting with Go Se-won, and the minute or two when no one had been able to hear what we said.

What should I do?

I sank into thought as I stared at the specially treated window that prevented anyone from seeing inside the vehicle.

Go Se-won had told me there was another secret area. Now I had to decide when to reveal that information, and to whom.

I didn’t have to think for long.

I can’t do anything right now anyway.

Only two days had passed since that day. The world was still in turmoil, and people had yet to recover from their grief and shock.

Even Team Leader Choi, who needed to know more than anyone, was no exception.

So I had to keep my mouth shut at least until Kim Hwajong’s funeral was over.

It wasn’t only for Team Leader Choi’s sake. I needed time to sort things out myself.

“Phew.”

At my quiet sigh, the security officer in the driver’s seat glanced at me in the rearview mirror.

“Is something bothering you?”

“No. It’s nothing.”

I sank deeper into the seat as I lied.

The truth was, I was uncomfortable. Everything around me made me uncomfortable.

Silently repeating the truth I hadn’t voiced, I looked out at the world beyond the window.

The scenery slipped past, and time passed just as quickly.

January 19.

A week had passed since the day that came to be known as the January 19 Incident,¹ and the world was still in an uproar.

The flames that had erupted that day refused to die down easily. No—no one could control them as they continued to burn.

The media in Korea and around the world threw firewood and oil onto the flames, while public opinion fanned the growing blaze.

January 19. The day darkness descended upon Korea.

Two artificially induced monster waves. UN Secretary-General: “An international crime that can never be forgiven.”

The Vatican: “He is not human, but Satan. Another Demon King.”

Official statement from Ares Guild: “Go Jun’s atrocities deserve condemnation. We bow our heads and apologize to the people.”

Families of the January 19 Incident’s victims prepare a massive lawsuit against Ares Guild and the government.

Go Se-won’s continuing revelations: “Ares is rotten.”

The ones taking the greatest beating were, of course, Go Jun and Ares Guild.

Go Se-won had briefly been second-in-command within the Guild, and he gave detailed testimony about every act of corruption and every crime he knew of.

As secrets that no one had known—or that people had known and kept quiet about—came to light, the world was turned upside down once again.

The prosecutors’ office issued countless search and arrest warrants. Several overseas branch directors sensed what was coming and even tried to flee.

└ Did you see the news? I heard the Chinese branch director got caught over there while trying to flee.

└ Yeah, saw it. A wanted notice went out right away, and the Public Security Armed Forces Department caught him.

└ Of all people, he had to get caught by those Chinks. Fucking idiot. What a disgrace to the country.

└ ??? The Public Security Armed Forces Department are good Chinks, so don’t insult them. Don’t you know they teamed up with Lord Fuck during the Small Cataclysm and smashed an Arch Lich’s head in?

└ What’s a good Chink?

└ A good Chink.

└ The King Public Security Armed Forces Department deserves credit. The guy who caught the Chinese branch director is Xiao Shen, the youngest ever head of the department. He’s a die-hard Jin Taekyung fan.

└ For real?

└ In interviews he kept saying “Big Brother Taekyung” and “Big Brother Lord Fuck.” Turns out the Chinese branch director damaged local cultural relics too, so the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is pissed.

└ ?? Was this asshole a Red Guard² in his past life?

└ Maybe it’s revenge for the Northeast Project.³ Those mainlanders still call hanbok hanfu.⁴

└ Winnie the Pooh⁵ died ages ago, but hanfu’s still alive and kicking…

It was the first—and worst—crisis Ares Guild had faced since its founding.

Nearly half the Guild’s executives were summoned by the prosecutors’ office. Even those who had committed no apparent crimes or acts of corruption had to be questioned as witnesses.

In stark contrast, public opinion toward Jin Taekyung and the Peace Guild, who had played a greater role than anyone in the January 19 Incident, was overwhelmingly favorable.

Summary of Lord Fuck’s achievements.jpg

I was at the scene during the Pyeongchang monster wave. I’m grateful to the fifteen Peace Guild Hunters, including the late Guild Master Kim Hwajong. May the deceased rest in peace.

Honestly, what crime did Jin Taekyung commit? (Long post warning)

The Blue House national petition has surpassed ten million signatures.

An enormous number of posts defending Jin flooded the internet every day.

They passionately insisted on Jin Taekyung’s innocence, submitted national petitions, and even held protests condemning the media outlets that had recklessly targeted Jin during the earliest days, before the truth had come to light.

Even so, some voices stubbornly continued to criticize him.

Lee Kanghee, chief editorial writer at Patriotic Daily: “Jin Taekyung is nothing more than a lawless thug. The matter of Go Jun should have been left to the law…”

The statement by one famous journalist won a considerable amount of support, but its significance quickly faded once the meaning of the Code Red issued against Jin Taekyung by Ares Guild—and the exact casualties from the January 19 Incident—came under scrutiny.

538 casualties in a fierce battle. Yet only twenty people died…

The identities of the dead finally revealed: the late Go Jun and his security team.

Go Se-won: “Go Jun’s security team were loyal hunting dogs and fanatics. The Busan monster wave was also carried out by a security-team member on Go Jun’s orders.”

Testimony from a victim at the scene: “Jin Taekyung knocked down everyone who blocked his path, but he never attacked the healers.”

The chivalry of a modern knight shines amid a bloody battle.

Murders in London, United Kingdom. Ten security-team members flee after murdering the family of Ares Guild European Branch Director Song Cheonwoo, whom they had held captive. Interpol issues wanted notices…

Lee Kanghee, chief editorial writer at Patriotic Daily: Why did he criticize Jin Taekyung? Where did the hundreds of billions of won⁶ in real estate held under borrowed names come from? Prosecutors begin an investigation.

As more truths emerged, the voices criticizing Jin Taekyung faltered. Meanwhile, statements from famous figures who had firmly supported him from the start resurfaced.

Xiao Yang, Chairman of China: “We have not forgotten what happened in Sichuan. Sir Jin is a Great Hero, and he acts only according to justice.”

Grand Mage Magic Johnson of the United States: “Jin is a hero, and the Korean media are trash. The truth will come out soon, so Kanghee Lee, who wasted paper on his stupid letters, should prostrate himself before my thick, enormous magic wand.”

Prince Felix of the United Kingdom: “Jin was not born of noble blood, yet he proved his nobility himself. Unfortunately, those who insult him appear to possess lowly character. Come and kiss the back of my hand.”

Japanese Prime Minister Shinjiro Koizumi: “I think the Korean media should reflect on insulting Mr. Jin, and although they are reflecting, I think they should reflect on the fact that they are not failing to show that they are reflecting.”

Former U.S. President Joseph Biden: “He is a good young man. I met him in person not long ago, and he was calm and kind.” When a reporter asked when they had met, he thought for a moment before adding, “I think I confused him with someone else.”

The world remained chaotic, and people could barely keep up with each day’s news.

In a public apology, President Baek Hanseong promised that nothing like this would ever happen again.

At the same time, under the slogan of cleansing society, he set his sights on the massive Guilds that had grown too powerful to touch.

Prominent figures and heads of state around the world continued to defend the Peace Guild.

Go Jun had committed crimes too horrifying to imagine, and Ares Guild was riddled with corruption. Even its former Vice Guild Master, Lee Jungryong, could not escape condemnation.

Yet among all the truths coming to light, one question remained unanswered.

Why? Why, even now, had Cheon Taemin himself not appeared?

It was the question everyone carried, and at the same time, a truth no one could uncover.

The whereabouts of Cheon Taemin, the immortal hero who had vanished without warning one day, remained shrouded in mystery.

He had not appeared when an Arch Lich emerged in China several months earlier and caused astronomical damage. Nor had he appeared at the national funeral of Lee Jungryong, who had been practically his sworn brother.

Not even when Jin Taekyung reduced the headquarters of Ares Guild—the Guild Cheon Taemin himself led—to ruins…

Cheon Taemin never showed himself. The questions people had about his incomprehensible seclusion swelled like a snowball rolling downhill.

And while the chaos and uncertainty had yet to subside, a massive national funeral was held for the victims of the January 19 Incident.

Korea, usually so noisy, was quiet that day.

The government declared a temporary public holiday. Roads that should have been packed with cars were empty, and the news reported in solemn tones that nearly thirty million people had gathered at locations across the country to mourn.

And… I was here.

At the place where those who had served with honor and devotion were laid to rest.

The National Cemetery.

Step.

Perhaps spring was slowly approaching, because the grass at the end of January was green and full of life.

A breeze brushed my face, and the sunlight was warm.

It was a beautiful day. A day to send someone off, and to remember them again.

January 19. Remembering them.

I looked up from the short phrase engraved at the bottom.

Dazzling sunlight stung my eyes above the tall memorial. Among the names of more than two thousand victims carved into its surface, I found one I knew.

The late Kim Hwajong

I was suddenly glad the weather was so fine.

He had shivered in the cold until the moment he died. On a warm day like this, with countless people there to pay their respects, I thought he could finally rest.

It must be warm now. Isn’t that right, Butler Kim?

His ashes would be buried somewhere other than this memorial, but I believed part of his spirit remained here too.

Just as I offered Kim Hwajong a question that could never reach him, a voice spoke.

“Butler Kim will rest peacefully.”

Team Leader Choi gazed at the memorial with sorrow in his eyes, then added, “But we’ll be even busier from now on.”

I nodded.

It was time to tell him what I had kept hidden.