Whoooosh!

A cold wind swept past the windows of the house.

Quite some time had passed since the previous incident. Autumn had receded, and winter was already fast approaching.

The air had grown noticeably colder.

Not that anything had changed in terms of what he had to do.

An ordinary farmer would have needed to pay close attention to the seasons and would have had plenty to prepare for the winter.

But the fire spirits were keeping the crops in his fields warm and tending them well, so there was nothing he needed to worry about.

If the snow started coming down heavily, he might at least have the chore of sweeping the yard, but it was still far too early for that.

Slurp.

Oh Hyunseong sat on the porch and sipped his tea.

Steam curled from the teacup.

The warmth that entered his stomach amid the chilly weather spread pleasantly through him.

I never drank it when I was younger, so I don’t even remember... Is this what tea is really supposed to smell like?

The subtle fragrance rising from the tea left Oh Hyunseong feeling pleasantly drowsy.

As the weather turned colder, he had recently begun growing tea plants.

Tea had never been his thing. One of his juniors practically lived on it, and curiosity had led Hyunseong to accept a cup from him a few times. But each time, he had spat it out and sworn never to touch the stuff again.

Coffee at least had caffeine to keep you awake. He could never understand why anyone would drink tea when it tasted like absolute shit and offered nothing in return.

But tea leaves nurtured by the spirits were worlds apart from factory-made leaves, beginning with their aroma.

Synthetic tea leaves were so lacking on their own that they had to be injected with coloring and artificially infused with fragrance. These leaves, by contrast, possessed a rich aroma simply from growing naturally.

It was a natural fragrance, neither artificial nor alien.

Naturally, there was no comparison when it came to the actual taste, either.

The tea his junior had given him was supposedly an expensive, premium variety, yet every cup had tasted like nausea distilled into liquid.

This experiment was a complete success. I should try growing a few more varieties.

Oh Hyunseong began narrowing down the candidates from the vast number of tea varieties available.

He still wondered why anyone drank tea in this day and age, but like coffee, it enjoyed a surprising amount of demand.

Of course, if those people ever tasted his tea, they would never want to touch anything commercially available again.

After enjoying the aroma and atmosphere, Oh Hyunseong drained the teapot and rose from his seat.

His planned excursion to the reservoir remained on hold.

He had no immediate use for it.

It was sad that he could no longer look forward to spicy fish stew or grilled fish, but he had decided to focus on farming for now.

There was still plenty of room to expand his fields, after all.

Besides, Oh Hyunseong had acquired a new daily routine since then.

"Shall we get started?"

Despite the cold winter weather, he stripped off his coat and stood in the yard wearing only a light T-shirt.

Then he strapped the weight pouches he had retrieved from the storage shed all over his body.

Their crushing weight bore down on him.

They were hunter training equipment, in a completely different league from ordinary sandbags or gym weights, boasting an overwhelming weight for their size.

Thump.

First, to warm up, he planted one hand on the ground and flipped himself upside down.

With his other hand held behind his back, he slowly lowered and raised himself over and over.

Weights totaling twice as much as those Joo Jihye had worn were strapped across his body, yet he had not shed a single drop of sweat.

The main reason was that Joo Jihye was not a close-combat hunter, but this was still a weight that an average-ranked hunter could hardly dream of handling.

As I thought... I still have a long way to go. I’m only at two Joo Jihyes!

Even light training was enough for Oh Hyunseong to determine the weight that would allow him to achieve maximum efficiency during his workouts.

And he was far from satisfied with his current level.

Compared to his body at its peak, he was practically a novice.

Of course, even this represented considerable improvement.

When he had first begun rehabilitation in earnest, his optimal weight had been only one and a half Joo Jihyes.

Considering how little time had passed, his progress had been remarkably fast.

It’s definitely working. At the hospital, no matter how much rehabilitation I did, the strain on my body kept me from improving past a certain point. But now, the upper limit of my recovery has risen.

The incident with Joo Jihye had confirmed that the spirits’ crops possessed a special power.

And his own rehabilitation was now proving their effectiveness as well.

He did not understand the theory behind it, but he was certain this was more than a placebo effect from breathing clean country air.

The crops clearly affected not only psychological trauma, but the body as well.

That meant even his permanently damaged leg might have a chance to heal.

He did not know whether he could recover completely to his former condition, but his first objective was at least to regain the ability to run properly.

To accomplish that, all he needed to do was eat regular meals and devote his spare time to rehabilitation training.

Let’s work hard again today.

Oh Hyunseong gradually increased the intensity of his training.

His breathing grew progressively heavier, and sweat began dripping from his forehead.

He pushed himself relentlessly at an incredible intensity, as though wringing every last ounce of strength from the muscles throughout his body.

Harder. Harder still.

Just as he had done with Joo Jihye, he was subjecting himself to training that pushed him all the way to his limits.

Huff, huff.

To an outside observer, it would have looked like brutal self-abuse, but Oh Hyunseong accepted it as a matter of course.

There was a reason he always finished all his work for the day before beginning his training.

According to his personal philosophy, if he could still stand upright on both legs when it was over, it had not been training.

You’re supposed to train until you’re on the verge of death.

Just as he had learned at the training center and taught others himself.

Oh Hyunseong silently continued his regimen.

"You son of a bitch! Do you think this is a joke?"

The furious roar thundered through the room.

His voice was so powerful that the employees in the outer office heard every word and flinched as they looked over.

Seo Jingyu, head of security for the Daesung Group, bowed his head deeply.

"I apologize."

He was a Grade 9 hunter, considered the highest level realistically attainable for most awakened.

Aside from S-rank Gates, known as humanity’s natural enemy, he was capable of clearing any Gate.

He was an expert who would be treated with respect wherever he went.

Yet he was currently being cursed out to his face.

The reason was simple.

The man berating him was the chairman of Daesung, one of Korea’s foremost conglomerates.

"I specifically told you to find out by any means necessary. I even stressed that every second counted and ordered you to handle it as quickly as possible. So why haven’t you found anything yet? How the hell have you failed to uncover so much as his address or even his name?"

"The agreement appears to have been negotiated in absolute secrecy, and very few people were aware of it. For some reason, security surrounding the matter was also suddenly raised to the highest level, which has cost us additional time."

"Security was tightened? Did word of your activities leak out?"

"No. The measures were taken while Hankyung remained completely unaware of what we were doing. I’m certain of that."

"Goddammit."

Ahn Ilseok scowled and released a deep sigh.

He had come all the way down here only to deal with this mess, and now he smoked one cigarette after another.

His recent order had been to track down the source of the naturally grown strawberries supplied to Hankyung Department Store.

"If those strawberries were all they had, there would be nothing to worry about. But if those Hankyung bastards keep releasing more crops like them, Daesung will suffer a fatal blow. How can we afford to take our time under these circumstances?"

The food industry had grown to an unprecedented scale in human history.

More food corporations than IT companies now occupied the upper ranks of the world’s largest companies by market capitalization.

Five years ago, the Daesung Group had also begun investing an enormous sum in the industry, touting it as their next engine of growth.

Their goal had been to compete with global conglomerates such as Disanto, Ragil, and Drevis.

But they had been blindsided by a surprise attack from the Hankyung Group, which had been considered a hopelessly late entrant into the food industry.

Ahn Ilseok had never even viewed them as competition, so the unexpected blow had left him utterly stunned.

Daesung was only just beginning to launch, one after another, the premium varieties it had developed through massive investment, yet Hankyung’s naturally grown strawberries had already monopolized the public’s attention.

A company that failed to establish itself even in the domestic market stood no chance of succeeding in the cutthroat global food industry.

If the current atmosphere persisted, Daesung would be driven out of the food industry altogether.

Given that the chairman himself had spearheaded the most aggressive investment in the group’s history, the fallout could destabilize the entire conglomerate in the long term.

That was why Ahn Ilseok had to identify the source at any cost.

"But we should have results soon. We’ve thoroughly planted listening devices, and our hunters are currently using both inducement and intimidation. We’ve also identified the truck driver who transported the shipment and made contact with an executive at Hankyung Department Store, whom we have already bribed."

"I don’t care how much more money you have to shove down their throats. Find out as quickly as possible! Beat the answer out of the truck driver if you have to!"

Ahn Ilseok clenched his fist fiercely as he spoke.

"I don’t know where they found something like that... but whether we have to burn the entire field or steal the technology, we can’t let those bastards keep it."

Knock, knock!

Just then, an employee opened the door and appeared.

The secretary cautiously spoke as Ahn Ilseok whipped his head around to glare at him.

"Um... Chairman, a visitor is urgently asking for you. She insists that she must see you immediately..."

"Can’t you see I’m busy? Who the hell tries to summon me without an appointment? Tell her to get lost!"

"W-Well, she forced her way inside... She’s right outside the door now...!"

"What? What kind of bullshit is that? Does she have any idea where she’s barging into?"

Ahn Ilseok could not conceal his disbelief.

He was currently inside the security division at the group’s headquarters.

Aside from the guards and those deployed in the field, every available member of the security force had been assembled there. More than thirty of them were Grade 8 hunters or higher.

Who could possibly dare to force their way inside?

Before he could even voice the question, however, the employee’s body was suddenly shoved backward and a woman strode into view.

"It’s been a while, Chairman Ahn."

"What...?"

Han Suyeon, deputy director of the Disaster Management Agency, entered the room.

Her appearance was entirely unexpected.

Why the hell had that woman suddenly come here?

"Deputy Director, what brings you here so suddenly...?"

"You’re in the way. Everyone out."

Han Suyeon spoke coldly as she looked around.

Aside from Director Seo Jingyu, who had already been inside the room, a crowd of hunters stood behind her. They had failed to stop her, been pushed back, and belatedly followed her inside.

The security division’s hunters hesitated despite panting for breath.

Seo Jingyu could do nothing either, save swallow hard.

According to protocol, they should already have attempted to subdue her and drag her outside, but there was no chance they could actually do so.

She might have been only one person, but even this many hunters were no match for her.

"What are you all doing? Get out, now!"

At Ahn Ilseok’s shout, the hunters hurriedly filed out.

The room soon fell silent.

Ahn Ilseok stole a glance at Han Suyeon’s expression, then forced a smile.

"I was under the impression you were quite busy. You never showed your face no matter how often I asked to meet, yet here you are, dropping by without so much as a word."

"I’m not someone who needs your permission before going anywhere, Chairman."

"Ha, haha...! What an absurd thing to say."

Ahn Ilseok’s brow twitched, but he quickly forced his expression back under control.

As the head of the Daesung conglomerate, he had no fear of a hunter’s strength.

To a man who understood how society truly worked, that was only natural.

His real power lay in the group’s immense capital and manpower, as well as the connections it had spent decades cultivating in politics and the media.

From his position near the pinnacle of the business world, with all of that at his disposal, even the most powerful hunters were merely people he could control with money.

The problem was that the person standing before him was a hunter who led the Disaster Management Agency, a powerful government enforcement body, and enjoyed the incumbent president’s full support.

"What brings you here so suddenly? Have you reconsidered the gift you rejected before?"

"No. As I told you then, I already have more than enough money."

"Come now, can anyone truly have enough money? I’m not asking you for anything in return. You could simply accept my goodwill with a clear conscience..."

"Hunters cannot be bought with money. The only ones you can buy are second-rate nobodies who have never experienced a real battlefield. And the reason I came here is precisely the opposite."

"The opposite? What do you mean...?"

Smack!

Han Suyeon tossed the documents she had brought onto the table.

The envelope fell open, scattering documents and photographs across its surface, and their incriminating contents entered Ahn Ilseok’s view.

The listening devices that had all been recovered. The freed truck driver’s testimony. Even records of the money paid to high-ranking police officials.

"Th-This is..."

"Using hunters to conduct illegal surveillance on civilians, kidnapping, intimidation, bribery, and so on. You’ve certainly been busy poking your nose into everything."

The atmosphere in the office changed instantly.

A chill ran down Ahn Ilseok’s spine, and cold sweat poured from his forehead.

Every piece of evidence was devastating and utterly conclusive.

Since the establishment of the Seventh Republic, the government had generally refrained from intervening in disputes between corporations unless absolutely necessary. Yet for some reason, this time it seemed determined to act.

"Now, I assume you understand why I’m here."

She strode across the room and naturally took the seat of honor.

Then she tapped the table, beckoning him forward.

"Sit."

Han Suyeon’s icy gaze fixed upon him.

Chapter 22

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