Against the Clock: The Team Leader’s Pursuit of Glory

Korean Hunters Association.

"Oh my, you're quite hasty. Did you rush here from the airport as soon as you returned to the country? I heard about it. You had a tough time in Russia. Good job."

Han Byung-gu greeted Kang Mu-hyuk's group and guided them to Alex. While walking through the hallway, Kang Mu-hyuk was puzzled to find out that the Federation's guest staying at the association was Alex.

"It seems Ms. Aila is not here."

"She went back to the U.S. because of the trouble you threw her way."

"Trouble?"

"The traitor, I mean."

"Are you talking about Kozlov?"

"Since it was one of our own who messed up the Federation's business, it's quite a blow to their reputation. Aila was also very angry about it. Since the Round Table gave him this assignment, it's embarrassing for them too."

"That means... The Federation feels very sorry for us, right?"

"That's right. It's quite embarrassing."

"They feel so sorry they think they should compensate for something, right?"

"Well, yes, but... what's with that expression? You're not thinking of getting even more out of them, are you?"

Kang Mu-hyuk did not respond and entered the room where Alex was.

"Mr. Kang, glad you returned safely.... What is this?"

As soon as he saw it, Alex inadvertently took the folded note Kang Mu-hyuk was holding out.

"You know it already, don't you? Thanks to the Federation, I had way too much of a hard time with this incident to just let go. I have a lot of work to do and I don't think I'll be able to come to Seoul for a while, so I thought I should give this to you in advance."

Only then did Alex realize that the note was a sort of invoice.

"Haha... As always, you're meticulous with your calculations."

"I wrote down about thirty things."

"Thirty things... You say?"

"That would feel like I was nitpicking too much, so I just condensed it into one thing."

"You could have just said it out, There was no need to write it down on a note..."

"Sometimes, writing is better than speaking. After all, you can prepare yourself mentally before reading."

Suddenly, Alex felt that maybe thirty demands would have been better.

'I'm someone who's even tackled a Red Gate. It's the first time I've been scared to unfold a piece of paper.'

Alex carefully unfolded the note like defusing a bomb.

"!!"

Inside the note was a simple sentence in English, but Alex's thoughts were not simple.

<Long-term loan of Poison Well>

"One unique item should roughly compensate for the hardships our guild members endured."

"Uh, roughly... Haa, Guild Leader Kang. The artifact you're requesting is of unique grade. No matter the hardships you suffered, this request is a bit too much."

"The Federation's guide betrayed us, and an S-rank Hunter attacked us. Amidst that, one of our members was taken prisoner. We were also caught in an insider terrorist attack by a cooperative guild, seeking revenge for past events, and we risked our lives to prevent the Oopoomangbawoo poisonous energy from spreading through the city. Ah, and we also clashed with a Tier-ed Guild from Moscow. In that situation, even having ten lives wouldn't have been enough. I'm telling you, this situation indeed qualifies as 'unique,' Mr. Wilkinson."

Alex's mouth was sealed as if the cat got his tongue.

As Kang Mu-hyuk had pointed out, it was clear that Alex himself would not have been able to resolve the situation. No, resolution was not the issue; even making it out alive would have been difficult. Let alone anything else, the Tyrant was truly dangerous.

Fortunately, Alex had at least a minimal conscience, unlike many Hunters.

The only thing he could say was:

"This is not something I can decide on my own."

That was all he could manage.

Kang Mu-hyuk, anticipating this, had prepared his proposal in advance.

"Please emphasize that it's not a demand for the antidote but a request for its loan."

"But it is a long-term loan. Even if they agree to lend it out, there would be much talk just about setting the period of the loan."

"As far as I know, there is currently no owner of the Poison Well in the Federation because there is no Hunter with the poison trait, right? Though we've attached the condition of a long-term loan, we will immediately hand it over if a Hunter with poison traits joins the Federation."

"I understand your conditions. However, letting a unique item make rounds outside the Federation raises the possibility of theft."

"The user is an A+ ranker. Unless an S-ranker is the thief, it's unlikely to be stolen under normal circumstances. Besides, the value of the Poison Well is relatively low for its grade, unless one is a Hunter who uses poison. Of course, the trait of poison itself is quite 'unique'."

Alex felt that Kang Mu-hyuk had a lot of accumulated frustration against him. Otherwise, he wouldn't keep emphasizing the word 'unique.'

'So he's telling me to accept this invoice while I can, huh? Jeez. This guy never lets go of a chance. Everything else about him is all good, but he's too greedy when it comes to this stuff.'

Kang Mu-hyuk continued, looking to drive the point home.

"As you know, Alex, the utility of a unique artifact varies greatly depending on the user. The more it's used, the more situations it's adapted to, the more data is accumulated on its methods and scope of use. It's more beneficial for the Federation to conduct research on Poison Well through our guild than to just lock it away in a vault. In fact, I found that it significantly expands tactical options when it is used in practice."

"Given what you've said, I'll put together a formal report for the Round Table. Lady Aila might be able to push it through as an agenda item."

Alex declared his surrender. At the same time, he decided to pass this difficult decision up the chain.

"Then please add one more thing to the report."

"What might that be?"

"Tell them that they haven't repaid Korea's debt from the Great War. If they want to gloss over this matter again, they might as well take off the Federation's signboard."

Alex's face turned pale.

'How can I bring that up, Mr. Kang?!'

Faced with Kang Mu-hyuk's resolute expression, all he could do was inwardly exclaim.

After a long absence, Kang Mu-hyuk returned to the guild without showing any particular reaction.

Instead, he spent his days more quietly than usual, busy as always. It seemed as though the fierce struggle in Russia had taken place years ago. Most members didn't even know that Kang Mu-hyuk and Ju Se-ah had been to Russia, thanks to the secrecy required by their mission.

Even the key members of the guild, Lee Jin-joo and Jang Deuk-goo, were still in the dark about what had happened in Russia. Kang Mu-hyuk had decided to explain things in person later, and it was likely related to Ju Se-ah's promotion to S-rank. He seemed reluctant to make Ju Se-ah's rank upgrade public.

"I'm having a bad feeling about this," Ju Se-ah muttered to herself.

"What do you mean?" Jang Deuk-goo interjected.

"Isn't he too quiet? That workaholic. He is just wandering around like a retired Hunter blankly staring into nothing."

"Isn't he just checking preparations for the Hunter Village opening on the 26th?"

"Well, that's obvious, but it feels like he left his soul in Russia."

Ju Se-ah felt unnervingly uneasy. It was an unfamiliar sight. Or was it? His absent-minded demeanor somehow didn't feel new.

'He was cunning as usual when driving the Federation people into a corner,' she thought.

She went to Pyo Beom-hee, who had worked with Kang Mu-hyuk the longest, hoping he might know something. But contrary to her expectations, Pyo Beom-hee was calm.

"I've seen this a lot. Makes sense. You must not have seen him like this. After all, you didn't see him during the Titan days."

"What was he like during the Titan days?"

"He was always tense, indifferent, and cold, except in one particular situation."

"One situation? What kind?"

"Whenever he had to make a decision."

"A decision?"

"Every time he has to make a very important decision, he just takes his time to think things through leisurely. At those times, he looks like he has a screw loose."

Ju Se-ah cocked her head in confusion.

An important decision?

Then, what about the life-or-death decisions he had made in an instant up to now? What could be more important than those?

'Well, it must be different from decisions that have to be made in seconds on the brink of death, right?'

Suddenly, Ju Se-ah became curious about what decision Kang Mu-hyuk was about to make.

"Team Leader Yeom, have you seen Guild Leader Kang?"

After finding Yeom Soo-hyung, who was organizing the storeroom that had been sealed after the orc tribe raid, Ju Se-ah looked up to the sky.

Yeom Soo-hyung, who was moving heavy and enormous boxes, was in the midst of using his Giant Skill. Working in a giant state was more a part of training than work efficiency.

'Maybe the one who was most affected by this trip to Russia wasn't Team Leader Pyo, who became an A+ ranker, but Team Leader Yeom.'

Yeom Soo-hyung seemed to be taking action to return to the Hunter profession that he had unconsciously been avoiding. He was also preparing to reapply for his license soon.

"He went to Storage C, saying he was going to check on something."

Yeom Soo-hyung, who could now communicate without stuttering even in his first-stage transformation, pointed towards the shelter where the weapons team resided.

"Thanks."

Ju Se-ah was able to find Ahn Ji-Il, who had been practically living in the weapons storeroom.

"Guild Leader Kang? I think he mentioned checking on Hunter's Village earlier."

"Did he say anything specific to you?"

"Nothing special. He just made sure that enough of the rental weapons were prepared."

"So it wasn't about Storage C then?"

Muttering to herself, Ju Se-ah headed to the newly refurbished lodging area at the old Sanjeong Lake, which originally had motels, pensions, restaurants, and supermarkets. They had prepared a large accommodation facility using extensive infrastructure renovation and container houses.

"Wow, it's even more amazing now that I see it again. Who knew that that haunted village could look like this?"

Ju Se-ah marveled as she looked around Hunter Village anew. Even though it was merely a renovation of the existing infrastructure, the neatly arranged roads were impressive on a second look.

The newly established stores were also a fresh sight. Restaurants that had been selected from Pocheon city applicants and several franchise businesses were busy preparing to welcome customers.

Looking at this street alone gave the feeling of having stumbled upon a famous food alley or a café street.

'I can't believe that he pushed all the construction costs onto the government and businesses. Now that I think about it, didn't those weapons store's entering business bear the burden too? Using others' money like one's own sure is a superpower, I tell you.'

Moreover, most of the construction was entrusted to Pocheon companies.

The workers were primarily from Pocheon, and the restaurants that were set up also focused on Pocheon citizens, in line with the promise made when North Pocheon was chosen as the guild's base to stimulate the local economy.

Hunter Village was truly a result of a plan faithful to the revitalization of the local economy.

Ju Se-ah walked around the place for a long time but couldn't find any trace of Kang Mu-hyuk.

"Where on earth could he be wandering off to? He's not even a Hunter, yet he's got great stamina."

While Ju Se-ah was wandering around, Kang Mu-hyuk was lingering near a waterfall that had collapsed during the orc tribe raid.

The broken dam above the waterfall had been dismantled, and construction to consolidate the ground was underway behind it.

Although the site for a large-scale Hunter Outlet was still far from completion and thus deserted, it was a good place to clear his thoughts without distractions.

After blankly watching the construction site until sunset, Kang Mu-hyuk dusted himself off and stood up.

"Alright. Shall we start with that then?"

"Really? You want to do this?"

"Yes. It's our base, isn't it?"

Ju Se-ah scratched her head at the sudden plan Kang Mu-hyuk brought up.

'I wondered what decision he was making... What on earth does this mean?'

Ju Se-ah mulled over Kang Mu-hyuk's suggestion once more.

"We're here in North Pocheon. It's a special operations zone. It's a dangerous place."

"I know. That's why I'm proposing we strengthen patrols with guild members, aren't I?"

"But on opening day, there will be many other Hunters here. You're suggesting we invite the citizens of Pocheon into that chaos?"

"People from Pocheon are already entering and living in Hunter's Village."

"Those people are here to work and live on-site."

"That's why I'm saying we just open up for a few days, not turning anyone away who comes. We'll charter buses to run between the checkpoint and the guild. With Hunters accompanying as escorts, there won't be any problems. And with the Hunters who will be entering along with them, it'll be even better for safety."

"Are you serious? What is this, a safari? Buses coming in?"

Ju Se-ah flared up, and Kang Mu-hyuk became serious.

"What's with the sudden serious mood?"

"After the incident in Russia, I realized we really need communication. It's our base of operations, after all. I believe it's important to show the people of Pocheon how we work, how we live, and what kind of monsters we deal with. Wouldn't that truly make us a local guild?"

"Ah, the Nazezhinsky affair... Hmm, you're right. It was all because they didn't communicate with each other, right?"

"Yes. It was a tragedy born from misunderstandings that accumulated because people acted without communication, only considering their own circumstances. I felt the same during the orc tribe incident. Had the war with the orcs not occurred, we couldn't have avoided responsibility for the breached fence either. And same goes for the criticism that would follow if someone was sacrificed. We could have been shaken up badly by the media. I want to prevent such situations in advance."

"By inviting the citizens?"

"We're planting the belief that our guild is not just for Hunters, but a place where citizens can also be together. So they can say "This is 'our guild'" as well. A strong-rooted tree does not sway in the wind."