Chapter 154: The Demon Lord of the Swordsmanship Family
As Park Ki-hyuk captured Alpha, Celutis’s occupation of Japan came to an end.
Now, all that remained was the aftermath…
As you can see, there were many issues.
The Guardian Spirit ‘Archangel’ was false!
Shock: Revealed as a ‘false being,’ the idol of Celutis that occupied Japan!
A national fraud! Japan covered in the worst kind of disgrace!
Most countries handle superhuman crime under the radar.
The primary members of this society are non-superhumans.
No matter how important superhumans are to national military power, the majority of any nation is composed of non-superhumans, or in other words, civilians.
What would happen if these civilians saw the word ‘Mana’ quoted incessantly in news articles?
Not only would they not resonate with it, but they might also feel a sense of relative deprivation.
Moreover, this is not just some ordinary superhuman crime; this is the work of a ‘villain,’ none other than the world-class villain ‘Celutis,’ known as one of the top three villains!
Really, if at all possible… no, desperately! The entire world wanted to handle this incident quietly.
In fact, in the case of China, they went as far as blocking incoming external information under the leadership of the Communist Party.
However, this situation in Japan was, as mentioned earlier, far too significant.
Too significant to hide.
The horrific results brought about by misjudgments.
Tokyo turned to ashes <Photo>
Optimum, “Archangel is not a Guardian Spirit.” This was revealed as a warning until the end.
Japan, which had been a pillar of the global economy, has now seen its capital, Tokyo, completely destroyed.
As stated by some foreign news reporter, “There was nothing there,” the shape of Tokyo was nowhere to be found, leaving only the charred remains.
The collapse of infrastructure.
How are we supposed to manage this? I had no idea.
But the problems are far from over.
As Archangel was neutralized by Park Ki-hyuk, the tightly intertwined chain of dominance crumbled.
The ‘life’ risk that had been kept hidden burst forth all at once.
The problem isn’t Tokyo!
On-site report: Rapidly aging Tokyo citizens <Photo> <Photo> <Photo>…
Citizens claiming to be 22 years old <Photo of a man in a wheelchair>
Young people suddenly aged overnight.
Some by ten years, others by decades… Rapid aging caused biological clocks to collapse, beginning to malfunction both physically and mentally.
Everyone lay down.
An unexpected medical crisis scene. What is going on?!
Is this a hospital or a funeral home? People are dying every day. A dramatic rise in suicides due to depression.
Medical staff, “Most cases are complications from aging.” They shook their heads at the question of whether treatment was possible.
“There are not enough hospital beds. Please help.” A desperate cry sent out to the world.
Optimum press conference: “The miracle created by Japan’s ‘idol’ has collateralized life span.”
The city has collapsed.
The capital has turned to ash.
This means national infrastructure has disappeared… in other words, it signifies the paralysis of all state functions.
Yet, even the labor force to rebuild this has vanished.
It was fatal that most of those who received ‘miracles’ from Archangel were in their 20s and 30s.
A situation where no solution could be found.
Could this be why? People began to look for external problems.
Did Optimum already know?
The ‘tattoos’ engraved on the rescued citizens, the proof.
Japanese ‘some members of parliament’ claimed that Korea’s Optimum might be involved in this incident.
Extreme right organizations protested, “Their swift response is suspicious.”
However, their claims did not gain traction.
During an unprecedented situation where missiles were fired at their territory, it was Optimum that first engaged in relief activities from Fukuoka.
Currently, it was also Optimum controlling the Red Gate that had appeared near Tokyo.
“Please don’t say useless things!”
“You’re the ones ruining this country!”
“Honestly, it’s us who would be in trouble if Optimum threw up their hands.”
“Can you stop that Yeti, Minotaur, and Fire Bug rampaging near Tokyo?”
“All governors must thoroughly control anti-Korean sentiments. We have no ability to sustain ourselves right now.”
A statement from a Japanese journalist hits the mark. There is nothing left, neither manpower nor military strength…
As it stands, there are hardly any superhumans left in Japan.
Think about it. The Japanese aristocrats fled to neighboring Korea to escape brutal repression, and many of the existing superhumans died in large numbers due to Celutis’s incitement.
While a few remain, their reactions were cold.
“The country did not protect us.”
“They threw us away when it was convenient, and now they want to help us?”
“Ugh! This damned country. Enough. I’m moving to Korea. I already know an agent there.”
Ultimately, the arrows of responsibility circle back.
Exclusive: Prime Minister Noda found dead at home!!
A document resembling a s*icide note. “I have become no longer myself…”
Is it just the Prime Minister? More than half of the cabinet members made the same tragic choice.
A fallen Japan. Nothing is normal.
The fall of Japan is ongoing.
“…I never intended to profit from others’ misfortunes.”
It has inadvertently happened that way.
Now it seems there’s no denying being called the witch of Optimum…
Kim Yeon-hee bitterly smiled as she looked at the astronomical number stamped on the documents, while the Secretary-General, buried under the papers, calmly spoke.
“I don’t think so. We warned sufficiently, and Japan’s current situation is of their own making.”
She led relief efforts more swiftly than anyone else, minimizing the damage.
In fact, there was no need for Optimum to step in Fukuoka. They could have just taken the bloodline of Japan, the contractual party, back to Korea.
In reality, some team leaders pointed this out, asking why they should risk themselves in this situation.
Those concerns were quelled by Kim Yeon-hee.
“It was you who persuaded us that we should save lives. You even matched bonuses for that. You even sent your family.”
The same goes for engaging the Five Sisters.
The Five Sisters are not allies. What binds them is thorough business.
To mobilize the Five Sisters, who had no intention of moving, it was necessary to compensate them correspondingly.
What Optimum offered was a stake in the ‘Artificial Spirit Stone.’
Although they sold it for a fair price, just having the Artificial Spirit Stone has astronomical value. Selling it was a tremendous gift in itself.
“Nothing could have been done better. But they are completely oblivious…”
The Secretary-General expressed indignation as if it were his own matter.
From his perspective, it pained him to see Kim Yeon-hee, whom he respected more than anyone, being slandered, and his pent-up anger erupted.
Kim Yeon-hee gazed at the agitated Secretary-General.
He must really feel wronged. Still, her heart warmed at the thought that there was someone to vent her anger for her.
“Thank you, ‘Chan-woo.’”
“Th-thank you, CEO…”
“I don’t have anything special to give, but I’ll increase your salary.”
“…!!”
The teasing atmosphere ended there.
Kim Yeon-hee clapped her hands to lighten the mood.
“Well then, Secretary-General, shall we discuss the upcoming schedule? First, how is the situation with the Red Gate?”
“The Red Gate near Tokyo, except for one, is to be handled by the Five Sisters.”
“One is the Fire Bug? That one. It was to be handed over to the coalition forces.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Tsk, they have to save face too.”
In fact, the coalition forces had suffered the most humiliation in this affair.
While the Five Sisters moved, they just twiddled their thumbs.
Alright, that’s fine. However, the information that the lobbying of ‘Celutis’ led to them just sitting back has been obtained from Tokyo.
Of course, this information was classified as top-secret, known only to a few, but the fact remains that they were played by Celutis.
“We will handle the Red Gate as such, and what about the ‘rest’?”
“We are in discussions with the Japanese cabinet. We will likely have everything without customs duties.”
“Hmm~ that’s impressive.”
While people’s attention is focused on the Red Gate in Tokyo, the end is not yet in sight.
Celutis had made moves on the Blue Gates throughout Japan. They attempted to turn cursed relics and ‘humans’ into Red Gates.
These contaminated gates composed over half of all the gates in Japan.
Though the Five Sisters intervened and managed to stabilize things to some degree, several near Tokyo have come close to becoming Red Gates, with most transforming into Purple Gates.
“If we clear all these gates… then the losses will be sufficiently covered.”
“We’ll even have extra.”
Even if Japan’s gates are insufficient, from a national perspective it is one thing, but for agents to handle it alone is overwhelming.
That said, it is possible only because it’s Optimum.
“Given the turmoil in the cabinet, Japan should be assessed as such. Next is the aristocratic alliance.”
“Why? Have they changed their minds?”
The human heart can change from the time one enters a bathroom to when one comes out, and the act of reneging on promised compensation after delaying payment is a common occurrence.
Especially since what the aristocratic alliance promised was all the information on their ‘bloodline.’
From their side, having just come to a favorable situation, it is easy to see why they would feel they cannot possibly let it go.
“It’s not that, though.”
“Then what is it?”
“Well….”
The Secretary-General scratched his head.
“They want to meet Mr. Park Ki-hyuk.”
“Ki-hyuk?”
“Yes.”
The top beneficiary from the recent incident in Japan is not the Five Sisters or Optimum.
It was Park Ki-hyuk, who dismantled Celutis’s defense line alongside the Mountain Lord and the White Tiger.
If the former two are considered the highest level of superhumans, then just the fact they teamed up makes it at least a match.
It is rare to find a superhuman in their early 20s showing such overwhelming performance, and thus, Park Ki-hyuk gained global attention with a shocking debut.
Well, for Kim Yeon-hee, who knows the truth, it was even more shocking, but to a third party, this exposure alone was shocking enough.
“It seems they want to line up to get to Ki-hyuk.”
“To line up?”
“Why, they’re good at things like that in Japan, right? Marital alliances and so on.”
“Aha….”
Kim Yeon-hee felt relieved.
Looks like it’s fine to move on.
At the same time, she sent a text message to the bright young cousin, whom she often chatted with these days.
“But when is Ki-hyuk coming?”
“He should be arriving soon… A Secretary-General’s staff is waiting at the airport, so they will contact us as soon as he arrives.”
“Alright.”
“It seems you miss him.”
“More than that, I’m worried he might fly all the way to Korea.”
“Haha. I think Ki-hyuk would definitely do that.”
In response to Park Su-hyeok’s question of whether there’s anything he could help with, Park Ki-hyuk replied.
“Sorry, but can I ask you to wrap things up, bro? I want to go home quickly.”
Before heading to Tokyo, he said he wanted to go home quickly.
Even though he had the destructive power to single-handedly subdue Celutis, to his family, he was just the cute youngest child.
Thinking of her youngest, Kim Yeon-hee smiled and firmly said,
“Let’s get to work quickly.”
Because they had dinner to share together.
And at that moment, Park Ki-hyuk appeared at the airport gate.
“Daddyyyy!!”
“Spring!!!”
I picked up Spring, who was jumping around. Our Spring squealed with joy, bursting into laughter.
But something fell on my face.
It was water.
Tears.
Spring was crying while laughing.
“Our Spring.”
“Daddy!”
“Why are you crying?”
“I missed you.”
“Me too.”
“Eep!”
She rubbed her chubby cheeks against mine as she whimpered, causing my heart to flutter. An emotion I had never felt before.
Was it a mental magic spell? My heart felt achy and painful. I found myself tearing up without even realizing it.
It’s maddening. I can’t handle it.
Suddenly, I came to hate myself. What kind of wealth and honor did I think I would enjoy, leaving my precious child behind while I crawled all over the place? If I saw my past self from a few days ago, I would have punched myself in the jaw.
“From now on, Daddy won’t go anywhere. Whee!”
I lifted her up and placed her on my shoulder.
“Huh? It looks like my princess has grown a little since I last saw her?”
“Really? Did Spring grow?”
“Absolutely. A father’s eyes cannot be deceived.”
3.3 centimeters? It’s a little, but it feels immense.
“Hehe. I’ve been eating a lot.”
“Spinach too?”
“Spinach is….”
Spring rolled her eyes.
Even if she grew 3 centimeters, it seems spinach is still a challenge.
A smile spread on my face.
Is happiness anything special? Being with family is what happiness is.
Thus, Spring and I headed home, talking about things we had postponed.
……
…
“Oh! Daddy brought a lot of presents for Spring.”
“What is it! What is it!”
“You’re going to like it.”
