Chapter 167: Homebound Pt. 4

Suddenly, people rushed toward Jeong In-Chang.

As his face blushed from the ridiculous sight, the sounds of the Hunters echoed.

“Back off!”

However, the people had already lost their reason. The crowd that had completely filled up the gymnasium was rushing toward Jeong In-Chang, pushing over one another as they came forward.

“My child!”

“I have to get the medicine too…!”

While Jeong In-Chang was completely lost as to how to handle the sudden situation, the Hunters eventually drew their weapons.

“I told you to back off!” they screamed.

“

Ack!!

”

A few who weren’t able to see the drawn weapons were injured by the Hunters’ menacing movements, and the surrounding area suddenly became a mess.

“

Kyaak!

”

Soon, the screams of people and confusion followed.

It seemed that the situation would continue to escalate further, quickly reaching uncontrollable chaos.

However.

“Enough.”

“...”

With a quiet voice, the people stopped moving. Moreover, not only had they stopped moving, but they also lowered their heads, trying to avoid the speaker’s gaze.

In the midst of this sudden situation.

Jeong In-Chang, who had been at the center of the chaos, Lee Jun-Kyeong, who had been watching everything from the side, and even Yeo Seong-Gu looked over to the owner of the voice.

“I will not tolerate any fuss. Hunters, keep an eye out for those who cause problems.”

It was a commanding tone, one that had reached the point of oozing arrogance.

“Un…understood.”

However, the Hunters followed without any signs of resistance.

Although Lee Jun-Kyeong hated to admit it, the confusion had been settled by a single man.

It was the man he was looking at, and it was because of his single order.

That man was smiling as he looked over to where Lee Jun-Kyeong and his party were at. However, his gaze didn’t fall on Lee Jun-Kyeong.

He stated snidely, “Long time no see.”

No, it was on Yeo Seong-Gu.

The skinny man, Aegir, was wearing an ornamental robe twice as large as his body. The ruler of the Gwangmyeong Sports Complex was looking over at them.

“As for you, please don’t create any fuss without reason, either. If you’re a guest, then act like a guest.”

He had even declared a warning to Jeong In-Chang.

𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Jeong In-Chang clenched his fist with an unknown expression.

Step.

However, he soon had no choice but to withdraw.

The situation here was strange and was also infuriating.

However, there was still an irresistible truth that it was all controlled by that man.

Moreover, Jeong In-Chang also knew this was a situation where a big incident had almost occurred because of him.

But, as he eventually withdrew to Lee Jun-Kyeong’s side, he heard the Hunter speak to him.

“You did nothing wrong.”

Jeong In-Chang replied weakly, “Thank you…”

Then, Aegir, who had suddenly appeared, raised his hand and ordered the Hunters to do something.

“It’s time for food!”

Food.

The people then raised their heads again and stretched out their hands.

***

“Just what the hell is this…”

Jeong In-Chang still seemed shocked.

The situation in Gwangmyeong was completely different from that of Incheon.

Incheong was a place where rules and order were maintained by the League Guild and the properly formed Hunter Association that had been prepared in advance.

However, Gwangmyeong was a city of chaos.

Someone with power had oppressed everyone here and treated them like slaves.

“Just why are they listening to him?!”

Moreover, the people would just bow their heads and hold their breath in front of that enormous power. It was the same with the Hunters as well.

The economy had been ruined by the disaster, so they had chosen to follow Aegir, accepting the gold that he would give them.

“Just why the hell are the Hunters, who are supposed to protect the people…!”

Lee Jun-Kyeong spoke quietly in response to Jeong In-Chang’s inflamed words.

“Not all of them are doing this for the money.”

He continued quietly, “Hunters don’t lack money, and very few people would follow him just because of some measly gold bullion.”

Jeong In-Chang asked, “Then why…”

“Because they can’t stop him.”

Jeong In-Chang quieted down at Lee Jun-Kyeong’s bitter laugh.

“Although they may not be short of money, they most likely treasure their own lives. Even if they put their lives on the line…”

“They most likely wouldn’t be able to stop Aegir,” Jeong In-Chang finally responded.

The Hero, Aegir, was a Hero with enough ability that both Asgard and Olympus had recruited him.

Moreover, for Jeong In-Chang and Lee Jun-Kyeong, this was the first time they had seen Multiple Sponsorship. A man with two titles…

Although being bestowed Multiple Sponsorship wasn’t necessarily directly related to one’s strength, as special of an occurrence as it was, it was a truth that had to be acknowledged.

'He might be hiding something.'

The Midas that Lee Jun-Kyeong knew, the Aegir he had been told about, were just brief descriptions in the book.

“

Whew…

”

The only person who knew anything about him in detail was Yeo Seong-Gu.

“So nothing has changed. About that trash.”

Yeo Seong-Gu emitted cold anger.

“He’s someone who’s good at politics and espionage, and that was why he was sent to Europe as a spy,” the bald man said bitterly as he looked around.

The room they had been assigned to was something that he could never forget. A feeling of anger threatened to erupt from him as he looked at the place decorated in gold.

“I can’t think of any ideas,” Yeo Seong-Gu said. His face betrayed his feelings that he had no answer for how to deal with the current situation. It was the same mindset as Jeong In-Chang.

Although they all agreed that Aegir should be killed, it wasn’t easy to get rid of someone holding hostages.

That was why Aegir was so confident that he felt comfortable making fun of them. The party was in a situation where they still had to continue onto Gyeonggi-Do, but they also couldn’t just ignore the Gwangmyeong residents' plight and leave.

“The kids…they seem to be sick.”

Although it had been a commotion caused by Jeong In-Chang, there was still something that they had been able to learn.

It seemed that the children gathered all had something in common.

They were all sick.

“Is this also a side effect of the cataclysm?” Jeong In-Chang asked.

Considering that the cataclysm resulted in the world being filled with mana, it was clear that it would have a lot of influence on any non-Hunters.

Moreover, regarding children…

It was an easily plausible story.

“That’s not it.”

However, Lee Jun-Kyeong’s answer was contradictory.

“On the contrary, if we’re talking about any effect the cataclysm could have on the children, it would only be positive. Since their bodies aren’t fully developed, their ability to accept mana is extremely high.”

“Then why…”

This time, it was Yeo Seong-Gu who answered Jeong In-Chang’s question.

He held aloft a golden ornament in his hand. “Aegir. It’s his doing.”

“Huh?”

Yeo Seong-Gu continued, “The bastard creates gold using vitality…”

“There’s no way…”

The bald man stated bitterly, “It’s true. Nothing is as full of vitality as a child.”

When Jeong In-Chang was about to shout with anger once again, Yeo Seong-Gu moved first.

Creak.

He got up, opened the door and shouted, “I will meet with Aegir!”

As if they had been waiting, a group of Hunters approached.

“We will lead you there.’”

***

“Do you like my kingdom?”

He messed with a pile of gold bullion while not even deigning to look at their gazes.

The man with the two titles, Aegir and Midas, was speaking down to them, his attitude obviously mocking them.

Because the people were hostages, he was confident that Yeo Seong-Gu and his party wouldn’t be able to act recklessly.

“You always had a soft heart. That's why you can't make it big," Aegir said, going one step further and even giving advice to Yeo Seong-Gu.

“Look at me. Haven’t I become the king of a city?”

He finally looked at Yeo Seong-Gu.

“The two next to you…so they’re the Underdog and Siegfried, it seems.”

He even seemed to know Jeong In-Chang’s title, as if the Hunter had his own intelligence.

Facing Lee Jun-Kyeong and his party, Aegir maintained a relaxed attitude.

Lee Jun-Kyeong and Jeong In-Chang were measuring his strength.

‘He’s strong.’

With two titles and two sponsorships, Aegir was obviously strong.

However.

‘It’s manageable,’

Lee Jun-Kyeong and Jeong In-Chang, who were different from before, thought at the same time.

Aegir was at a level that they could deal with.

His abilities were intrusive in many ways. Although there was a chance that the Hunter also had something hidden in reserve, it was still clear that he was weaker than the enemy that they had faced earlier, Elfame.

Jeong In-Chang and Lee Jun-Kyeong nodded at each other for a moment.

“What are you up to?”

The Hunter was languid even in response to the actions of Lee Jun-Kyeong and Jeong In-Chang.

“I’m saying this just in case, but don’t think about doing anything stupid,” Aegir said, smiling.

“As all of those who were here before…”

He raised his right hand and waved it, and his right hand then began to emit a golden light.

Then.

“...!”

Lee Jun-Kyeong saw it, thousands of golden threads tied to Aegir’s hand.

There was no need to ask what they were connected to.

“If I die, thousands of children will die with me. What an incredible sight it would be. For I am a great man who feeds on the dreams and lives of children.”

“…”

“Yeo Seong-Gu.”

Aegir finished with his warning and turned to look at Yeo Seong-Gu. “I don’t know what your goal is, but I just want to be able to rule this place quietly.”

“That… do you really think it will go the way you desire? Although the world is currently facing a catastrophe, it will soon return to normal. Do you really think you’ll be okay then?”

Smirk.

Aegir's smile deepened.

“I mean, that could happen, yes. However, when that time comes…”

Aegir's gaze met Yeo Seong-Gu’s, his eyes tainted with madness and greed.

'The eyes of a monster.'

It was similar to the gaze of a person who had given up on being human.

“I will most likely be holding even more lives of the children in my hands. Considering that the world is on the brink of ruin, if it’s regarding the lives of the children who will lead the future… don’t you think they would be worth their weight in gold?”

“...”

“All I want is to quietly rule a city and live comfortably.”

“But with Odin’s personality…”

In order to threaten Aegir, Yeo Seong-Gu even brought out Odin’s name, which was something he hadn’t wanted to have to mention.

However.

Aegir smirked. “I know that Odin is gone.”

“…!”

“I heard that Zeus has also disappeared?”

"You…!”

Lee Jun-Kyeong and the others’ eyes widened in shock.

The information at Aegir’s fingertips was beyond imagination—a secret that even Yeo Seong-Gu, who had the divine item, Bifrost, hadn’t been able to verify.

“I have no intention of telling you even if you ask. Either way, there is only one thing that I can offer you,” Aegir responded firmly.

“Leave quietly. It’ll be troublesome for me to try to kill you as well. Whether you want to go save the world or roll over and die after you rest for a bit is your choice. You only need to leave my city,” he concluded.

Aegir then turned to Lee Jun-Kyeong and his companions, who hadn’t left, and asked, “What, do you have more to say?”

Yeo Seong-Gu could feel it—if they left here, now, they would never get another chance to save the people in the gymnasium.

Although children would become collateral damage, killing Aegir here was…

Yeo Seong-Gu thought that it might be a way to prevent more losses.

The sacrifice of the few for the many.

“…”

“What are you laughing about?”

As Yeo Seong-Gu laughed inexplicably, Aegir asked a question, frowning at the sight.

The sacrifice of the few for the many.

‘I can’t let myself fall down that road too.’

Yeo Seong-Gu seemed to have finished making a decision without answering the Hunter.

He wouldn’t walk the same path as Odin, and he refused to become like the dark side of Asgard.

Thus.

“As you said, we will leave.”

“Good.”

“However…”

Yeo Seong-Gu stood up from his seat and spoke.

“Give me some time.”

“Time?”

“Yes, time.”

“Hmm…”

Aegir looked worried for a moment. It was clear that Yeo Seong-Gu had some sort of intention in asking him for some time.

‘What could be the reason?’

Aegir couldn't guess that easily.

Therefore, he simply replied, “I can’t give you long. Please leave in two days.”

“If it’s that much…it’s enough.”

Lee Jun-Kyeong and Jeong In-Chang then also stood up simultaneously, and the three soon moved to leave the room.

Although Aegir may not have seen it, the three of them were smiling inexplicably.

‘There’s a way.’

Because Lee Jun-Kyeong had found a way.