Chapter 149
Although it could be said that she was being blatantly ignored, Victoria, the person in question, merely shrugged her shoulders, not seeming to mind much.
'If it could have been cut off with just a word, I wouldn't have watched the same video dozens of times.'
Letting out a soft sigh, Victoria pulled out a piece of paper from her pocket.
"It's a new mission. The method is the same as always - clean and without a trace. You know what that means, right?"
She handed over the paper with the mission details, but Baek Mujin still didn't look at it.
He kept his gaze fixed on the TV, only speaking without turning his head.
"This will be the last mission as we agreed, right?"
"Once you complete this one, the quota for the Korean branch will be filled. We won't force any more missions on you."
"Khuhu... Finally, finally! Lee Seongjun, I'll be able to meet you again!"
Victoria's lips curved into a bitter smile at the sight of Baek Mujin, whose voice betrayed a hint of madness.
"It seems you still intend to return to Korea?"
There was no answer, but Victoria could easily read Baek Mujin's intentions.
Having worked with him for quite some time, it wasn't difficult for her to interpret his emotions.
"Why don't you just stay here? With your talent, you could receive considerable treatment even within the World Returner Alliance."
This wasn't simply words to entice Baek Mujin.
As an Investigation Examiner mainly in charge of internal affairs or special missions, she had dealt with countless renowned returners.
However, none of them had shown talent as brilliant as Baek Mujin's.
'...Baek Mujin, this man is the real deal.'
He grew literally day by day.
In fact, in just three months, he had shown overwhelming results, breaking through barriers several times.
To exaggerate a bit, it felt as if he had received the blessing of martial arts.
'He's not bad right now, but probably... within 5 years, he could become someone capable of turning the world upside down.'
This meant that just by making Baek Mujin a member of the World Returner Alliance, they could gain considerable benefits.
"I'll vouch for your position. No, if you want, I can even guarantee it with my position as Investigation Examiner."
Investigation Examiner of the World Returner Alliance.
As mentioned earlier, being in charge of internal affairs and special missions, the power that came with it was quite substantial.
Because of this, not only the leaders of the Returner Alliance but even high-ranking officials from various countries were lobbying in various ways to establish connections with Victoria.
For such an Investigation Examiner, Victoria, to voluntarily offer a guarantee meant that one could definitely walk the path of success.
However, the kind of success that people commonly think of, external positions, held no meaning for Baek Mujin.
"Guarantee? Position? What meaning do such things have? I won't sit in a position that's no different from a burden that requires dealing with troublesome tasks, even if you tell me to."
If he had been after power and position in the first place, he wouldn't have handed over the position of Korean Returner Alliance leader to Tae Sang-cheon.
What Baek Mujin desired was stronger power, and to find the path of martial arts that he could advance on his own.
"...What I want right now is only one thing: to reunite with Lee Seongjun."
He had thought about it every day.
When, where, how should he meet Lee Seongjun?
Would there be any reward for having waited?
Could he achieve the results he was expecting?
But now he could be certain.
'Lee Seongjun, that guy will definitely make me excited.'
The eyes overflowing with majesty and the aloof gaze looking down on everything.
The cold death hidden in the sharp dagger concealed in a corner of his heart.
Outstanding martial prowess that proved his own existence, along with endless potential and the talent to back it up.
Lee Seongjun was literally a person who had all the conditions.
The fruit of his long patience had finally borne results!
'Surely... he'll give me the emotion of ecstasy.'
As Baek Mujin closed his eyes tightly and imagined the fierce battle with Lee Seongjun in his mind, it was at that moment.
Thump! Thump!
His heart began to beat wildly on its own.
'...I'm really looking forward to returning to Korea.'
Naturally, the corners of Baek Mujin's mouth began to curve upwards.
* * *
At a time when public attention was focused on Wei Zhigang, the lord of Flying Dragon City, due to his shocking press conference.
Wei Zhigang and the executives of Flying Dragon City who followed him surprised the world by taking the dramatic step of naturalizing to Korea.
This was indeed shocking because while there were a few hunters who had naturalized from Korea to China, those who had naturalized from China to Korea could be counted on one hand.
In the case of famous hunters like Wei Zhigang, the lord of Flying Dragon City, it could be said that there were none at all.
It was natural.
Why would one give up Chinese citizenship, which has powerful strength and authority as one of the world's leading superpowers, to belong to Korea, which could be called a small country?
As it was literally unprecedented, there was quite a strong reaction within China as well.
Unpleasant words flowed from the mouths of ordinary citizens, and some people steeped in Sinocentrism labeled the executives of Flying Dragon City as traitors and showed extremism, saying they should all be purged.
However, Liu Wuning, who could be called the administrator of the North, took no action.
Rather, he helped the executives of Flying Dragon City to quickly proceed with their naturalization.
Thanks to this, Wei Zhigang and the executives of Flying Dragon City were able to naturalize as Koreans without any major problems.
As everything was handled cleanly and quickly, Lee Seongjun could smile confidently at Vice Chairman Ko Tae-hyeon, who was sitting on the sofa right in front of him.
"I told you there wouldn't be any problems on the Chinese side."
"...It really happened as you said."
As it was related to government agencies and hunters, he couldn't hide his anxiety when he first heard the news about the naturalization of Wei Zhigang and the executives of Flying Dragon City.
This was because there was no way China would allow the naturalization of Wei Zhigang and the executives of Flying Dragon City, who could be considered major forces in the North, without any reason.
Fortunately, since it was an affair directly led by Hunter Lee Seongjun, he could feel somewhat relieved, but he couldn't be completely at ease since the counterpart was China, which had been bullying many neighboring countries.
'I expected that there would be big and small conflicts as they change their attitude as easily as flipping their palm...'
To be precise, he thought they would try to reclaim the rights they had lost using the naturalization of Flying Dragon City as an excuse.
As the rights of South Korea that had been hard-won could be threatened once again, he couldn't help but feel a bit of a headache.
'If we were to clash head-on... given who we're dealing with, we wouldn't have been able to protect everything.'
It was clear that the country would have suffered considerable damage.
Of course, they wouldn't have lost their rights as helplessly as before Hunter Lee Seongjun appeared.
However, as it was a confrontation with China, one of the world's leading superpowers, it would have been a very severe and painful fight.
That's why he, Ko Tae-hyeon, was thinking of staking his life on it.
However, China's attitude was so polite that it made this firm resolve seem meaningless.
Considering China's usual behavior, it was such an absurd thing that naturally, a questioning voice flowed from Ko Tae-hyeon's mouth.
"How on earth did you do it?"
"I just used a few light spells, that's all."
Ko Tae-hyeon couldn't close his gaping mouth at the sight of Lee Seongjun speaking in such a nonchalant tone.
"Good heavens..."
As a vice chairman, he had access to information about numerous hunters, so he knew exactly how complex and difficult spells were.
'Spellcasters who can handle mental manipulation spells are truly rare.'
Moreover, it was very dangerous, and the success rate was not very high.
The fact that a spellcaster used it was amazing enough, but Lee Seongjun was a martial artist who handled martial arts.
"...You've even learned spells?"
Recognizing that a misunderstanding had built up in Ko Tae-hyeon's expression of astonishment, Lee Seongjun added an explanation.
"I didn't use it myself, I received help from a capable subordinate."
Although the situation was understandable with this brief but clear explanation, the surprise hadn't disappeared.
No, rather, he was even more shocked.
'Does this mean there's a subordinate that even I and the Hunter Association, who are always watching Hunter Lee Seongjun, couldn't identify?'
It meant that he had a force that was thorough and secretive enough to deceive the eyes of the Korean Hunter Association, and also possessed overwhelming power to handle mental manipulation spells.
In other words, he had more strength than what was known to the public.
'...He truly is a person whose limits cannot be known.'
Seeing Ko Tae-hyeon still looking surprised, Lee Seongjun hastily spoke.
"It's not as amazing as you're thinking."
He could have explained about the skill called Metamorphose and about Bihyeong, but it was clear that the story would become quite long.
He didn't want to waste time on unnecessary talk without resolving the original purpose of the visit.
Therefore, Lee Seongjun shifted the topic of conversation by moving his lips again.
"And... if it's alright with you, I'm thinking of placing the members of Flying Dragon City who have naturalized to Korea as Infinity Guild members in the defense forces of Paju. Could I ask you to handle some paperwork?"
"What do you mean, ask? Of course, it's something I should do. I'll process it right away, and..."
Trailing off, Ko Tae-hyeon reached under the desk and pulled out a heavy envelope of documents.
"As you requested earlier, I've taken care of all the issues related to relocating Infinity Guild's headquarters."
For a brief moment, Lee Seongjun's lips curved into a satisfied smile as he took out and checked the documents inside the envelope.
"Thank you as always, Vice Chairman. Thanks to you, I'll be able to accelerate guild matters."
"Are you going to move directly?"
"I never intended to hide it from the beginning, I was just waiting because I wasn't prepared."
A smile spreads across Ko Tae-hyeon's lips at Lee Seongjun's words.
Hunter Lee Seongjun, currently the biggest topic in the world. The impact that the Infinity Guild he directly established would create would elevate South Korea to a higher level.
From Ko Tae-hyeon's standpoint, who desires the growth and bright future of South Korea, it couldn't be anything but welcome news.
"Although my abilities are lacking, I'll try to support you as far as I can."
"I'll be counting on you for this matter as well."
"No, I should be the one asking for your support."
Bright smiles that couldn't be hidden bloomed on the lips of both Lee Seongjun and Ko Tae-hyeon as they gazed at each other.