Blue House
While Yoo Eun-ha was busy preparing to be thoroughly put in her place by Rachel, in the Blue House, President Ha Jung-seok faced the infamous Heung-bu and Nol-bu brothers. The atmosphere was tense, with both Ha Jung-seok and Nol-bu glaring at Heung-bu, who had failed to carry out his assigned mission.
"So, you’re telling you couldn’t figure anything out?"
Ha Jung-seok’s gaze bore into Heung-bu, his disappointnt palpable. Among the hunters working under the Blue House, Heung-bu was one of the strongest. Yet, here he was, delivering excuses.
"The opponent was exceptionally skilled. I wanted to crush him, but his hit-and-run tactics were incredible."
"So much so that you couldn’t even pursue him?"
It was a humiliating situation, worse than not having located Seo Ji-yeon at all. At least in the latter case, there would’ve been an excuse. But to et Baekhwa’s companion, fail to capture him, and leave without extracting any information—this was a complete disgrace.
"They say Baekhwa has strong allies, and it seems that assessnt is accurate."
"Damn it, Baekhwa must be stopped at all costs."
Their forces were far stronger than anticipated. If Baekhwa were to unite all villains and survivors in the quarantine zones, the results would be catastrophic.
"Is it really necessary to go that far?"
"Take a look online for just a minute, and you’ll see countless people singing praises for that damned villain. If we try to suppress it by sending in troops, it’ll be too obvious."
Ha Jung-seok slid a dossier across the table, containing intelligence gathered by the Blue House’s hunter division. Nol-bu and Heung-bu reviewed it grimly. The report revealed a troubling trend: the Korean public was rallying behind Baekhwa, even more than their own president. So of the more extre comnts even suggested replacing Ha Jung-seok with Baekhwa as president.
"Sigh. Didn’t I warn you not to abandon Incheon? I told you Songdo could serve as a crucial forward base against the chaos and monsters of this era."
Nol-bu shook his head.
Since the Great Cataclysm, Korea had faced repeated monster threats, steadily eroding its national strength. The fortifications and barriers currently in place were the achievents of Yoo Jin-seok’s administration. Back then, Nol-bu had advocated for maintaining control over Songdo, as it had a significant population of awakened individuals.
However, Ha Jung-seok, fearing the growing power of the Hunter Association, had chosen to abandon the area entirely.
"So, Nol-bu, do you have any brilliant ideas?"
"No matter how much sympathy we might feel for Baekhwa, she’s still a villain. She needs to be dealt with, right?" Nol-bu said, scratching the back of his head.
"Exactly."
"From what I see, Songdo is still worth reclaiming."
This again. Nol-bu had been pushing for the reclamation of Songdo ever since rumors spread that Baekhwa had established a base there.
"So, you’re suggesting we take down Baekhwa and reclaim Songdo?"
"How about putting a 5 billion won bounty on Baekhwa’s head? Ever since Yoo Jin-seok resolved the Pyongyang incident, our hunters have primarily been operating overseas. If we offer 5 billion, hunters will surely cross the barrier. Reclaiming the territory will be an added bonus."
At this point, the governnt had little choice but to promote a policy of reclaiming territory beyond the barriers.
"Five billion? Are you serious?"
Five billion wasn’t a small sum, even for a threat like Baekhwa. Putting that much on the line to capture a single villain, no matter how dangerous, seed excessive.
"If we offer that kind of money, even foreign hunters will get involved. She’s just a villain, after all. In the end, she must be eliminated."
"Hmm. Fine, let’s proceed. We’ll start by pressuring the Association."
Nol-bu’s argunt made sense. This could also serve as an opportunity to criticize the Hunter Association for their ineffectiveness. After all, even Seo Ji-yeon, hailed as the second-strongest hunter in Korea, had failed to gather information on Baekhwa. It wouldn’t hurt to turn up the heat on the Association.
"Do we really have to go this far?"
"Heung-bu, you’re too soft. That’s why your wife and kids are starving," Nol-bu retorted, smirking.
"What did you just say?"
Heung-bu clenched his fists, ready to lash out, but Nol-bu’s next words made him falter.
"If that Baekhwa continues to gain public support, what do you think will happen to the Blue House? The Association is quiet now, but if things spiral out of control, the nation will descend into chaos."
Nol-bu’s logic was harsh but irrefutable. The governnt, no matter how corrupt or inefficient, was still under Ha Jung-seok’s control. Allowing a villain—especially one as charismatic and organized as Baekhwa—to rally public support was a dire threat.
Cut off from the outside world, Songdo had seemingly beco a self-sufficient haven for Baekhwa and her followers, many of whom were likely monsters unconcerned with basic needs like food and shelter. The thought of Baekhwa growing her influence to the point of targeting Seoul was chilling.
"We can’t let so villain girl bring us down. It might be ti to use Shinohara too."
Ha Jung-seok’s obsession with maintaining power would ensure he pursued every option to protect his regi.
***
Hunter Association
With Seo Ji-yeon returning empty-handed, more wrinkles lined the forehead of Choi Chul-sik, the Association’s chairman. Seo Ji-yeon felt a pang of guilt seeing his expression, but what could she do?
Baekhwa wasn’t just any villain or monster—she was soone who had openly revealed her identity. Not only that, she had passionately confessed her feelings to Seo Ji-yeon. How could Seo Ji-yeon possibly betray soone who had expressed such raw, genuine emotion?
It was the first ti in her life that soone had pursued her so fiercely, and she had to admit, it had made her heart flutter. There was no way she could bring herself to stab her in the back.
As she mulled over these thoughts, stealing glances at Choi Chul-sik, he finally spoke, his bald head gleaming as he broke the silence.
"Ha Jung-seok has started pressuring the Association."
"Pressuring us? What do you an by that?"
The audacity. What right did the president have to pressure them?
Had Heung-bu gone running his mouth again? No, that didn’t seem likely. While Heung-bu followed orders, he wasn’t the type to openly criticize the Association. If anything, this must have been Ha Jung-seok’s personal decision. The man was as frustrating as he was unreasonable.
"He’s demanding we issue a bounty on Baekhwa."
"How much are we talking here?"
A bounty on Baekhwa. It was the governnt’s way of officially declaring her an enemy—soone to be eliminated. Seo Ji-yeon wasn’t surprised, but it still stung. Baek Cheong-gang, who had been in the sa room as Baekhwa during a recent monster purge, also knew of her existence.
But to think they’d go this far so quickly.
"Fifty billion won."
"Fifty billion?!"
Fifty billion won—an amount even S-rank hunters couldn’t earn in a single mission. It was clear how much Ha Jung-seok viewed Baekhwa as a threat.
"With fifty billion on the table, they’ll find a way to bypass the barriers."
Even lower-ranked hunters would feel tempted to take a shot at it. Ha Jung-seok was determined to capture Baekhwa no matter what. To him, Korea was his personal domain, and the thought of Baekhwa setting up her own city in Songdo, rallying people to her cause, must have been unbearable.
"Isn’t this way too soon? Fifty billion? Has Ha Jung-seok lost his mind?"
It was rare for even high-level villains to have bounties in the tens of billions. And this wasn’t even the result of prolonged confrontation—it was just the beginning.
"The problem isn’t just Baekhwa herself. More and more people in Seoul, Busan, and even Jeolla Province are starting to support her."
"Because she’s doing what neither the Association nor the governnt could?"
Baekhwa had started gaining public support.
A villain. Gaining public favor. In a country still led by a sitting president. If this was happening here, it was only a matter of ti before the news spread overseas.
"Exactly. Ha Jung-seok has no choice but to act, especially with his approval ratings on the line."
"So we’re supposed to follow his orders now?"
Ha Jung-seok was arguably the worst president Korea had ever seen. Had he done his job properly, far more territory could have been saved. Instead, he had done nothing.
"There’s no other way. After the Kim Jae-soo incident, the Association has been severely short-staffed."
"How long are you going to use that excuse? Why is the Association so useless?"
"Well, we’re looking into pulling resources from guilds and academies."
"Then hurry up already."
Seo Ji-yeon spoke irritably, her patience wearing thin.
Why was the Association so incompetent? Thinking back, Choi Chul-sik had always relied on Yoo Jin-seok’s help. Looking at things now, both the governnt and the Association seed utterly hopeless.
Perhaps Yoo Eun-ha’s side wasn’t such a bad choice after all. The Association and the governnt were pathetic, so maybe…
"Why am I even thinking like this?"
No. No matter what, Yoo Eun-ha’s actions weren’t good for the country. All she was doing was creating division.
"I shouldn’t overthink this."
Soday, Seo Ji-yeon resolved, she would give Eun-ha the spanking she deserved.
***
In the penthouse’s dragon room, I found myself kneeling on the floor, with Little Dragon Ray fluttering in the air and pointing at with her front claws. Across from stood Rachel, arms crossed, glaring daggers in my direction. The atmosphere was tense, like walking on thin ice, and the only one speaking was the traitorous Little Dragon, Ray.
"Kkyuit! Kkyu-kyu Kkyuit! Kkyurrur!"
Ray wasn’t in danger of eating snake stew—she was about to beco the stew. All thanks to this utterly disloyal Little Dragon, who had tattled on to Rachel about everything. Look at her, flapping her wings and pointing at with her tiny claws, as if she were intelligent enough to mock her own mother.
And to think, she’s acting this way after catching Si-woo and during our ti together.
"Human, I can’t even. How could you even think of doing that while your child was watching?"
Rachel’s words were accompanied by repeated smacks to my back. Her strikes were so sharp they reminded of a scorned wife punishing a cheating husband. Her hands were unrelenting—probably the sa hands she used to make her signature spicy snake stew. No wonder it turned out fiery.
"I’m a dragon, though."
"And do you think that’s a valid excuse right now?"
This was all Ray’s fault. The little traitor needed lessons, maybe even literacy training, so I could one day understand whether she was just insulting or plotting sothing worse.
"Why did you even raise her with such a hands-off approach? Don’t tell you were spying on us."
"Spying? She left on her own because she adores her father! How is that spying?"
Sure, I was the "dad" in this equation, but this was getting out of hand. This was a blatant invasion of privacy!
"Co on, let off the hook just this once. No, wait, how about 1,000 tis? That’s still less than how often you get your way. Huh?"
The little dragon put on her best tearful act, complete with big, glistening eyes.
"Crying won’t work!"
But it didn’t work!
"Strange. I thought tears were supposed to be a weapon," I muttered. "That’s what the judge said."
"They only work on n! They won’t have any effect on another woman!"
Hmm. That made sense, but still, wouldn’t it be nice if she caved to my charm just a little, considering she liked now?
"Co on, don’t be like that. I’ll make it up to you, alright? Just spare the snake stew for today. And I won’t bring up the ‘mother-daughter combo’ joke for at least a month. Deal?"
The infamous "mother-daughter combo" wasn’t even about Rachel and Ray right now—it was more about Elise and Creepmary. So really, there was no reason for her to be this upset.
Still, Rachel’s eyes narrowed, and her glare intensified.
Ah, maybe she needed so extra comfort after all?
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