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Chapter 166: Homeward Pt. 3

Just like a picture that had been drawn in Lee Jun-Kyeong’s head, the scene that Hel was observing was projected into his mind.

“...”

A throng of people were crammed into the playground like cattle, breathing heavily with emaciated visages and exhausted complexions.

The people, who were obviously ordinary humans, were squatting, packed together in a crowded gymnasium.

‘The Hunters…’

Moreover, they were also being watched by Hunters. When the people tried to appeal to them for something, the Hunters ruthlessly suppressed them in response.

Soon after, the scene in Lee Jun-Kyeong’s mind disappeared as Hel had halted the gaze, mingling as if the Familiar had felt that he had seen enough.

“...”

Lee Jun-Kyeong closed his eyes in silence.

“Just what’s going on that you’re acting like that?”

He responded quietly, “The man they called Aegir… I think he’s keeping people captive.”

“Captive?”

He explained, “They’ve completely filled the gymnasium with people and are monitoring it through Hunters.”

“What??!” Jeong In-Chang shouted as if he were surprised. “Just why on earth would they…”

“There’s no way.”

Then, as if Yeo Seong-Gu had realized something, he looked around to Jeong In-Chang and Lee Jun-Kyeong and spoke.

"That bastard really did...”

"What are you talking about?" Jeong In-Chang asked.

"That bastard, he..."

Yeo Seong-Gu tried to proceed carefully, but someone else responded instead.

“He figured out how to turn vitality into gold,” Lee Jun-Kyeong said.

“...”

“...”

“The Monster of Gold, Midas. A monster who would hold ordinary humans captive in the midst of the cataclysm and use their vitality to create gold… a Hero.”

Whether it was in history or in the book of the Demon King, he had never heard of the name Aegir.

However, he had heard of Midas.

A man who had risen to fame in the midst of the cataclysm—no, a monster.

No different from any monster, his evil deeds were all recorded in the book of the Demon King, even though none were recorded in official history.

Midas was someone who had been left as a Hero in official history, even though he had cast gold using the vitality of tens of thousands of people who were suffering in the midst of a disaster.

His misdeeds had been wiped, and the humans of the future knew him to be just a Hero that had fought in the cataclysm.

‘The gold that he had produced during the cataclysm…’

That had become the capital that was used to establish Eden.

He had ended up dying at Eden’s hands, but Eden had allowed him to remain a Hero, perhaps because he had been the master of the gold they had stolen.

“Th…this!!!”

Jeong In-Chang was filled with anger. He tightly clenched his trembling fists and shouted loudly.

“Right now, just right now, we have to go beat that dog bastard to death immediately!”

He was ready to leave at this very moment, about to open the door and find Aegir.

However.

“You can’t!”

“No!”

Lee Jun-Kyeong and Yeo Seong-Gu shouted at the same time, and Jeong In-Chang turned to face them, flustered and angry at their reaction.

“Then are we just going to let this…!”

“No, that’s not it.”

Jeong In-Chang, who was about to get enraged, closed his mouth when he saw their faces. They were also contorted with anger.

However, they were more patient than Jeong In-Chang, and they had the clarity to grasp the current situation.

"We\'ve fallen into a trap,” Lee Jun-Kyeong answered. "If we act as we please now...”

“Aegir would most likely take the lives of those in the gymnasium at this very moment,” Yeo Seong-Gu said.

Nod.

“The residents are hostages currently with the purpose of tying us up…”

Lee Jun-Kyeong’s fists were clenched tightly, his veins prominently protruding from the force of his grip.

***

“Overseer Aegir has given you permission to see the facility.”

The next day, a Hunter under Aegir came to the room where the party was staying. Jeong In-Chang had a haggard face as if he had stayed up all night, while Yeo Seong-Gu had a complex expression.

Lee Jun-Kyeong, on the other hand, had a comfortable expression reminiscent of someone who had peacefully slept for quite a while.

“What about Aegir?”

Although Yeo Seong-Gu expressed his cold hostility, the Hunter still attempted to deflect his bloodlust with bravado.

“As he’s on official duty…his lack of time…”

Yeo Seong-Gu snorted. “Ha.”

“Moreover, as a conveyance of what the overseer had said…”

Even though the Hunter had cold sweat running down his back as he tried to combat Yeo Seong-Gu’s bloodlust, he still continued, “If it’s you, Heimdall, I believe that you would know what sort of situation you are in… so… let’s dispense with the nonsense…”

Pow!

The sound of a leather balloon popping resounded throughout the room.

Jeong In-Chang had wielded his fist.

The Hunter got hit squarely by it and was rolling around.

“Damn it,” Jeong In-Chang said.

“You’re telling me to watch what I’m doing because I won’t be able to run wild here anyway, it seems…” Yeo Seong-Gu continued.

“...”

The three companions rose from their seats and looked down at the fallen Hunter.

He glared back up at them while holding onto his cheek with trembling hands.

“What have the Hunters been doing all this time?” Yeo Seong-Gu asked coldly. “Are you saying that you all still sat on the sidelines even though you knew what Aegir was doing? You, who are supposed to protect these people with your lives on the line?”

Yeo Seong-Gu walked forward quietly to the Hunter’s side. He leaned down, his hand moving toward something sticking out of the Hunter’s pocket.

“Wait…that’s…!”

Although the Hunter struggled to regain his possession while being astonished, he suddenly screeched, “AGH!”

The Hunter was left with no choice but to scream as he was being stepped on by Yeo Seong-Gu’s boot.

The thing that had come out of the Hunter’s pocket, the object that was flashing…

“A gold bullion…”

Yeo Seong-Gu looked at the Hunter with a cold gaze.

Thud.

He threw the gold bullion at the Hunter’s face.

The Hunters, those who were entrusted with the protection of the people, had sat on the sidelines, quietly acknowledging Aegir’s evil deeds, allowing the actions of a man who was killing people.

They had kneeled before the power of gold.

The world was facing disaster and countless people were dying, but…

Yeo Seong-Gu spat, “You bastards just chase after sparkly things then.”

Yeo Seong-Gu and his companions went out of the room, and with stiff faces, they slowly walked down the hallway.

“...”

To them walking out in silence.

“…”

The Hunters, who seemed to be guarding the facility, looked over at them but soon lowered their heads in silence. They, who had received gold made from the lives of people, looked away.

It wasn’t because they were ashamed to have accepted Aegir’s gold or because they had stayed silent at the deaths of the residents.

No.

“Ugh…”

It was just that the bloodlust emanating from Lee Jun-Kyeong and his companions naturally forced them to bow their heads.

***

“Overseer Aegir, are you sure this is okay?” asked a Hunter, who could be called an assistant manager of the Gwangmyeong Sports Complex.

His eyes were shaking uneasily.

“It’s the Guild Leader of the League Guild and the Underdog…are you sure this is really okay?”

The Hunters knew the identities of Lee Jun-Kyeong and his party, so they were shaking with anxiety. Before the catastrophe known as the cataclysm had occurred, these were Hunters who had made the entire world tremble.

Moreover, these Hunters would also have discovered their evil deeds and betrayal by now.

“The fact that they, who should have been over at Incheon, have come here means…”

“It means that they should have solved the issues over at Incheon.”

At last, Aegir answered the Hunter’s questions.

Considering they were Hunters who had been able to solve the catastrophe known as the cataclysm and move forward was a testament to how strong they would be.

“So…don’t you think that killing…”

“Can you even kill them?”

Aegir looked at the Hunter with a smile.

“…”

“What, do you really think you idiots can kill them in the first place?”

Aegir spoke to them in a mocking tone of voice, but it was an undeniable truth.

“Either way, it’s not like they can do anything here in the first place.”

"Because I understand Yeo Seong-Gu.”

Aegir stretched with both hands clenched tight, languidly relieving pressure. Unlike the anxious Hunter, he had a relaxed attitude.

“They know I’ve taken the humans hostage, so they won’t be able to move recklessly. Although that doesn’t mean we can use it to threaten their lives, still…” Aegir said as his smile deepened. “They won’t be able to do anything.”

He rose from his seat. Outside his window, the sight of countless people standing in place, trembling with fear and anxiety could be seen.

“Though you all may not know it, it’s because the power and status of Yeo Seong-Gu are higher than you may think. No matter how angry that Underdog or whatever is and how much he wants to act individually, Yeo Seong-Gu will stop him.”

Slurp.

Aegir stared out the window toward his kingdom, and he moistened his lips with his tongue.

"Athena… it would be so great if that bitch would come…”

"Pardon?" asked a Hunter.

“It’s nothing. For now, just keep a close eye on those bastards. No matter how difficult it is for them to make a move…”

Aegir pointed his hand at a woman outside the window as he continued.

“There’s a saying that one should always keep vigilant for a psychopath. Also, bring that girl in.”

At Aegir’s final words, the Hunter said his goodbyes and left the room.

“U…understood.”

“Kekeke…”

Left alone in the room, Aegir smiled grimly.

He mused to himself.

Who would have known that the world would have turned out like this?

Having luckily gained strength, he had become powerful and had joined Korea’s Asgard. Moreover, his journey hadn’t ended there, but he had also formed a connection to Olympus, enjoying great wealth and power.

However, his secret actions had been discovered: his deeds of killing people and using them to create gold. But then, while he was hiding, a cataclysm had taken place.

“Really, to think that the world would have changed like this.”

Moreover.

This cataclysm.

“And what a world it really is.”

For those like Aegir, it really was the best sort of world.

Slurp.

He moistened his dry lips again.

***

Clench.

Jeong In-Chang’s tightly clenched fist continued to tremble.

Aegir had told them to take a look around the facilities, as if he was teasing them. It was the same as him telling them to go sightseeing and gaze at the people who were being held hostage.

Moreover, just as the overseer had intended, the trio was watching the crowd gathered at the gymnasium.

“Damn it…”

Unlike Lee Jun-Kyeong, who had mingled with Hel’s gaze and saw their actual appearances, this was the first time that Yeo Seong-Gu and Jeong In-Chang saw the atrocities before them.

Clench.

The people had been herded into the gymnasium like beasts, so much so to the point where there seemed to be no place for them to even sit down with how packed they were.

Moreover, the food and drinking water provided to them was also ridiculously inadequate.

“Even children…”

Almost as expected, there weren’t just adults in the throng. The children and the elderly could be seen as well. Even with just a glance, it was easy to see that everyone was in bad shape.

“Please…something to eat…”

“The children are sick…”

The people quietly appealed to the Hunters.

However.

"Shut up!"

“Do you think we have anything left over to give to you vermin?”

“Do you want to die?!”

The Hunters had nothing but ruthless curses as they pressured the people back.

A woman approached one of the Hunters, holding a child who looked emaciated.

“My child is sick…please…” the tearful woman said.

The child was clearly sick, barely able to take a breath. Even with a glance, it was obvious that it was an urgent situation.

The Hunter snapped, “Go back. Don’t move from your place!”

She pleaded, “Please…”

“You stupid bitch!”

The Hunter kicked her in the stomach mercilessly.

As her face distorted in pain and the child was about to fall from her grasp, something blurred toward them from the side.

Thud!

Then, as the child slipped from her fingers, someone caught the falling figure.

Jeong In-Chang had made a move before he had even realized it, catching a hold of the child and supporting the woman.

“Who… who are…”

“Thank you…”

As embarrassment and gratitude intersected.

Clank.

The edge of a greatsword was placed on the Hunter’s neck with a delicate sound.

“How dare?!”

The Hunters around them were shocked by what had happened and made to move for their weapons.

“Ugh!”

But immediately, they dropped to their knees, unable to even stand properly under the vast pressure of mana that crushed their bodies.

Tremble.

There were two things that were trembling under the weight of the mana.

The Hunter the greatsword was aimed at.

“...”

And.

Jeong In-Chang’s hand, veins throbbing and pulsating in anger.

He was ready to cleave through the Hunter at any moment, but he knew that doing so wouldn’t solve anything at this time.

“You will die by my hands,” he said.

Therefore, after saying so, Jeong In-Chang curbed his anger and put his sword away.

Turning around, he handed over the child he was holding with one arm over to the embrace of the mother, and handed something over with the other.

“This is a potion. It can cure most basic illnesses, so feed this to your child.”

“T…thank you!”

The woman gave him a heartfelt thank you, but that wasn’t the only problem that existed in that gymnasium.

“Me…me too!”

“I’m also sick as well!”

“My child too!”

As if they had realized that this was their chance, all of the people in the gymnasium were shouting and rushed toward Jeong In-Chang.