* * *
From a historical perspective, it was almost inevitable for the Korean governnt to stake everything in cultivating Superhumans.
After the Korean War1, there were no resources left in the devastated land, even the infrastructure was not worth ntioning.
And their only lifeline, the Kaesong Dinsional Portal, was not even owned by South Korea. With the entrance managed by the Soviet Union and the exit by the Aricans, South Korea was left with no authority whatsoever.
Despite witnessing the imnse wealth generated by the Dinsional Portal, South Korea had no choice but to bow their heads and be grateful for the leftovers left behind by the two superpowers.
And in the face of this unjust reality, so people arrived at one conclusion: All that remained in this country were people.
This thought did not change even as the Cold War2 intensified and South Korea achieved economic developnt with massive aid from the United States.
In fact, it beca even more solidified.
- Just the people. People are the only 'resource' left in this country.3
Human resources.
Koreans developed the country by literally turning humans into resources—With murderous working hours and industrial environnts that ignored worker safety…
There were often those who cried out for ‘humanity’ in the na of human rights, but in the era of military dictatorship, they were either silenced or killed.
Amidst the tendency to view people as resources, the military took a step further. They decided to turn humans into weapons.
Superhumans—An asymtrical power4 composed of flesh, blood, and mana.
So, the governnt and military devoted themselves to developing Superhumans while avoiding the eyes of the superpowers.
Perhaps it was fortunate that the governnt's Superhuman developnt project did not yield any results for a long ti.
The repeated failures infuriated the military, making them suspect that the scientists in charge of the project were failing deliberately.
The scientists who were crushed under military boots tearfully responded in this manner: It was an unavoidable situation.
Mana tal, a key material used to cultivate Superhumans, was monopolized by the Soviets, who used mustard gas5 on the dwarves. anwhile, elixirs were monopolized by the Aricans, who dropped hydrogen bombs6 on the World Tree.
Refusing to acknowledge this reality, the military punished the scientists and turned to other thods.
If a direct approach didn’t work, why not try to take a detour? Just as the United States. and the Soviet Union did, let’s find a way. After all, this land had plenty of 'resources' available.
The scientists who were not punished followed the military's orders faithfully, just like the scientists under the Nazis had done.
Human sacrifices, human experintation, hybridization—Countless ‘resources’ were exhausted in the na of patriotism.
Fascinated by the experints, the spectating Necromancers and Dark Mages proposed a deal to the governnt. This led South Korea to the point of no return.
However, the results were undeniable.
Starting with the first Korean mage, Jeon Yongseop, other native Superhumans were born one after another.
However, even with that many Superhumans under their command, the governnt was still not satisfied.
Even after being recognized as a Superhuman nation at the international stage and reclaiming the Kaesong Dinsional Portal following the collapse of the Soviet Union, they remained unsatisfied. They could not be satisfied.
For what reason Joseon was annexed by Japan? And why was the Kaesong Dinsional Portal taken by the Soviet Union and the United States even after independence?
Power! It was all due to the lack of power.
No matter how many Superhumans they cultivated, the desire for power never faded.
They had to create even stronger Superhumans to defend the nation against the Soviet Union's grand offensive and withstand nuclear weapons—powerful Superhumans, like the 'Margrave' beyond the other dinsion, so that no one would dare to challenge Korea!
Thus, the governnt crossed the line once again.
How and what line they crossed was unknown. However, it was clear that a line had been crossed.
The Dark Mages who had been working with the Korean governnt fled in terror, and even Jeon Yongseop sought asylum in the United States, indicating the dreadful nature of the line that was crossed.
And as a result, five girls were born.
Children of dreams, proof of miracles, masterpieces of the Korean people that would make Korea the best in the world…
Each child was born from different mothers, but they all inherited the sa special traits.
It was almost natural for them to sense and use mana from the mont they were born. Their uniqueness was on a level… no, several levels above common sense.
They were Superhumans who could enhance their bodies, Mages who could manipulate mana, and Mages who could possess divinity.
To express it in the language from beyond the Dinsional Portal, they were All-Masters.
They were beings who could walk all the paths of mana permitted by the world simultaneously.
The Korean governnt, which had managed to create five such beings that ca once in a millennium, were intoxicated with success.
With this, they would be able to boast loudly to the United States and Australia on the international stage, so what more could be said?
However, the joy was short-lived as the governnt soon rembered Jeon Yongseop’s case.
Even after becoming Korea’s first Mage with national support, he shalessly defected to the United States, becoming the first national traitor.
There was no guarantee that these five girls would not follow in his footsteps. And realistically, the United States could offer more than Korea.
To prevent that tragedy from repeating, the governnt engraved a ban in the girls’ brains, confident in their rational decision.
Naturally, no one opposed it. In Korea, every human was a resource, and the five sisters were resources for the nation.
Resources… yes, the girls were just resources. Resources that would prove that Koreans were not just the best on Earth, but in all dinsions.
However, it wasn’t long before the governnt’s expectations were shattered.
The girls, the five All-Masters created through the governnt’s imnse resource investnt, were not as outstanding as they hoped.
Their innate potential was brilliant. They moved like Superhumans while using magic and were able to communicate with gods to perform magic.
However, what about their talent?
Their talent was only slightly exceptional.
They were unable to reach the level of the Magic Tower's ‘Vessel’ in magic or the level of ‘Saintess’ in terms of Holy Power.
Although they showed so prominence in the martial arts researched independently by Korea, they were lacking when compared to the son of Jeon Yongseop, who had defected to the United States.
The Korean governnt could not accept this reality. On top of that, the fact that the traitor’s son was talented enough to draw the world’s attention drove them mad.
Yes, they went mad. In the hell that had created the terrible cognitive dissonance7 and the term human resources, they went further down the rabbit hole.
The insane governnt abandoned the thod they were using to educate the girls and devised a new training thod.
A training thod that only Korea could employ to make up for the girl’s insufficient talent.
Why? Didn’t resources called humans sotis display unknown strengths when pushed to the extre?
Just like a blacksmith hamred iron to make steel, the governnt forced the girls into extre situations, employing their siblings, friends, and parents.
For example, after commanding the girls to learn a certain type of magic, they would impose a ti limit.
If they failed to learn it within the stipulated ti, their siblings would be tortured. If they still failed the next ti, then friends, and the next…
“…That’s enough.”
Dung Beetle abruptly interjected without realizing it. Seti, who had been narrating the story until a mont ago, smiled awkwardly.
“Oh, I’m sorry. That was an inappropriate story to listen to while eating, wasn’t it?”
She alternated her gaze between Dung Beetle and the cup noodles in front of him. The reflection of Dung Beetle’s frowning face was visible on the surface of the cup noodles, which had gone soggy a while back.
Dung Beetle briefly fiddled with the chopsticks, then sighed and looked directly at Seti.
“…Why are you telling all this?”
“Well…? There wasn’t much to talk about while watching you eat, so I thought it wouldn’t be a bad idea to share so stories of the past with a partner?”
“…”
“Actually, it’s the first ti I’m sharing such stories with soone else. But I’m feeling much better than I expected. Is this why therapists ask about the past?”
Having said that, Seti covered her mouth and laughed silently. The corners of her mouth, visible between her fingers, curved attractively.
Dung Beetle shook his head.
“It’s good that you found so comfort in talking about the past, but don’t expect to hear about my past.”
“…I haven’t even said anything about that. Well, but I will listen if you ever decide to talk about it.”
“I have no intention of doing so.”
Dung Beetle picked up his noodles and stood up, cleaning the eating area and tidying up the surroundings.
Having retained habits from his ti as a janitor, he began gathering all the convenience store trash that Seti had piled up and put it in the trash bin as well.
While Dung Beetle was cleaning the room, Seti lay sprawled on the bed and simply observed him.
She looked so carefree, that it was hard to believe she was the one who had just revealed a huge secret the governnt had been hiding.
However, Dung Beetle didn’t think that her carefree attitude was pitiful nor did he ignore it.
People broke more easily than one might think; it was just the manner in which they broke that was different for everyone.
Dusting his hands once he was done with the cleaning, Dung Beetle sat back down. Seti then spoke up.
“Since you’ve finished eating, shall we get back to the topic we were discussing earlier?”
“…What topic?”
“Your original revenge plan, Dung Beetle-ssi. Knowing about it will help when planning for the future.”
His original revenge plan. Dung Beetle drumd his fingers on the chair as he thought of his plan.
…Could it even be called a plan? What he originally devised was more of a short-term operation than a plan.
After arranging for a stable weapon supply route in the black market through Jang Man, he killed the Necromancer and the governnt officials to steal the Awakening Potions. And after that…
“…I was thinking of using the stolen potions as bait to draw the attention of governnt officials, then assassinate key figures from the Janitor Guild and high-ranking governnt officials.”
“Uh… Hmm… That was a surprisingly sloppy plan.”
As Seti pointed out, it was indeed a sloppy plan. And it was evident if he considered his near-death experience when he went up against the Necromancer.
“Oh, but considering your talent, it might have worked out sohow.”
Having said that, Seti propped her chin and narrowed her eyes as if assessing sothing.
“Hmm, Dung Beetle-ssi. We first need to clarify so things. The targets of your revenge are everyone associated with the Janitor Guild and the Necromancers, right?”
Dung Beetle nodded instead of answering. Seti tapped her lips with her fingers as if she had expected that.
“To the best of my knowledge, at least hundreds of people, starting with the Minister of Superhuman Affairs, are involved in this matter.”
Her voice trembled slightly. At least several hundred people —but what if they were talking about the maximum number?
“At the very least, it will involve several hundred people. At the most, the scale could grow to the point where you might even need to take down the President.”
“…The President.”
He had already anticipated it to so extent. However, there was a stark difference between expectations and facing reality. Sothing deep inside Dung Beetle's heart sank heavily.
“And when it cos to that, Dung Beetle-ssi, you’ll beco Korea’s biggest political terrorist and murderer… Will you be okay with that?”
“Yeah. It's sothing I've already resolved to do.”
Dung Beetle replied without a trace of hesitation. The compassion and pity he once had were long buried along with his colleagues.
“Resolution, resolution, you say… Then do you admit that we need to co up with a new plan?”
“...Will you be making that plan?”
“No, we will make it ourselves.”
Seti continued as she leaned her face closer towards Dung Beetle.
“I’ll co up with the basics, but the rest will depend on Dung Beetle-ssi’s improvisation and talent.”
“…It sounds like you already have so ideas.”
“I’m still not done with the specifics yet, but I had the frawork in mind from the mont I saw your talent.”
Seti, now on her knees on the bed, crawled closer to Dung Beetle.
“If you intend to assassinate the President and Ministers, you'll have to take a long detour. Those old n know how to protect their own lives, so it will be a chore to find them. But if we get the opportunity to wipe them out in one fell swoop?”
“Wipe them out in one fell swoop?”
What that idiom ant was to catch all the fish with one sweep of the net. Could it be that she had a plan to gather all the governnt officials in one place and kill them?
“It’s actually a simple thod. When governnt officials gather in one place, BANG! What do you think?”
“…Are you suggesting that we attack the Cabinet eting hall or sothing?”
Dung Beetle sighed softly and added.
“It will be quicker for us to assassinate the Ministers one by one than to break through the Mages protecting the Cabinet eting.”
“What if it’s not the Cabinet eting?”
“The answer is the sa. It is not easy to break through the security at any gathering of important governnt figures.”
“Then, what if I say it will be a eting to see you?”
“…What?”
Dung Beetle raised his eyebrows in surprise at the unexpected answer.
“A eting where the governnt officials gather to see ? Isn’t that almost impossible?”
“No, it’s possible.”
Seti, who had sohow reached right in front of him, raised her hand and brushed his hair up. With a sulky expression, Dung Beetle looked directly into Seti’s blue eyes.
“You have a pretty good appearance, brilliant talent. And… fa. With that much bait, the governnt officials won’t be able to refuse the invitation, right?”
“I don’t understand what you’re saying. Please elaborate clearly.”
“First, create a fake identity, then beco famous. You can beco a patriot or a traitor. It doesn't matter, as long as we can use it as bait.”
“…”
“And after becoming famous… you should achieve sothing remarkable. The bigger the achievent, the better. Or even just a patriotic accomplishnt will do. Politicians will flock to you just for that.”
Only then did Dung Beetle realize what she was talking about. At the sa ti, he also realized the problem with the plan.
“…I’m sorry to burst your bubble, but it’s nearly impossible for to beco famous enough for the President or the Ministers to co see .”
Seti snorted upon hearing Dung Beetle’s words.
“I don't think so. I'm confident… it won’t even take you a year after you create a fake identity and present yourself to the world. That's how talented you are.”
“…”
“If all else fails, just beat up that traitor’s, Jeon Yongseop's, son and you'll beco a national hero.”
“...Jeon Yongseop’s son?”
Jeon Yongseop, the first Korean mage, and the traitor who betrayed Korea and defected to the United States.
According to the secret history about the governnt he heard from Seti, there seed to be more to the story, but it was none of Dung Beetle’s concern.
However, his son… every citizen in this country knew about him.
Jeon Yunseong was the genius boy who won the Superhuman Olympia by eliminating all Korean representatives.
The next-generation Superhuman that the United States boasted about and the person all Koreans around the world hated unanimously.
Even the good-natured Uncle Deokbae disliked him, so the average public sentint was close to hatred. If soone with Korean nationality defeated him publicly… it would easily dominate the news and portal sites for at least a week.
“Heh, indeed, after thinking about it, it does sound quite plausible, doesn’t it?”
“…”
“We might still need to refine the details like identity fabrication or how to beco famous… but it’s a pretty good plan, don’t you think so?”
Having explained up to that point, Seti lightly brushed Dung Beetle’s earlobe.
“So, what will you do?”
Facing the girl’s smiling face, as if she had already decided on the answer, Dung Beetle responded.
“Let’s give it a /genesisforsaken
Reviews
All reviews (0)