"And this is your apology?" Kim Haru's voice, tinged with the Unlted Frost Bamboo Tree's icy chill, pierced through the hearts of everyone from the Haneulsae Trading Team. "How insincere."
"...What do you want?" Roh Baekjin asked after a mont of silence. "As long as you spare my teammates' lives."
"Are you in charge?" Kim Haru asked.
"I am."
"Rember what you just said."
After speaking, Kim Haru patted the Unlted Frost Bamboo Tree beside him.
The ice spreading across the ground began to shrink and lt away, and the biting chill in the air gradually diminished, returning to a normal temperature. The ice encasing the Level 3 ability users thinned more and more until it completely disappeared.
At that mont, all of them collapsed uncontrollably to the ground. Any part of their bodies that had been frozen was now entirely numb, devoid of any sensation.
Then ca the Level 2 ability users, who had been frozen solid from head to toe, like ice sculptures. When the frost finally lted, not a single one of them remained conscious. When they would awaken depended entirely on their own resilience.
Those who had been frozen first were in the worst condition. Their skin had already begun to crack, and when the ice lted, blood flowed freely from their wounds. If they had been left frozen any longer, saving them would have been impossible.
Even so, it was uncertain whether these people could regain their previous abilities and physical strength once they woke up. For all anyone knew, they might spend the rest of their lives bedridden and crippled.
Of course, Kim Haru wasn't aware of any of this.
Even the na of the mutated bamboo beside him was sothing he had only just learned from these people of the Haneulsae Trading Team.
"Thank you, Mr. Kim," Roh Baekjin said with a sigh of relief.
"I froze you once; I can freeze you a second ti," Kim Haru said, his gaze fixed on Roh Baekjin. "You'd better behave."
Kim Haru hadn't yet decided what to do with these people. From the beginning, he hadn't planned to kill them outright. While it was true that the Haneulsae Trading Team had attacked him first, killing them all might have been easy, but handling the aftermath would have been far more troubleso.
He would discuss the matter with the Pyeongseong Safe Zone Commander later.
After finishing his words, Kim Haru plucked a handful of leaves from the Unlted Frost Bamboo Tree and stuck one onto each of the people before him. "If anyone dares to discard this, I won't be so lenient next ti."
Before the conscious Level 3 ability users could even nod, the Unlted Frost Bamboo Tree leaves had already lted into their bodies, leaving a bone-chilling cold that lingered within them.
No explanation was needed; the mbers of the Haneulsae Trading Team already understood that they had been marked by the Unlted Frost Bamboo Tree. At any mont, it could refreeze them into ice sculptures, the kind that would never thaw again.
Any defiance brewing in the hearts of the Haneulsae Trading Team was snuffed out in an instant.
The Unlted Frost Bamboo Tree, pleased with its intuitive understanding of Kim Haru's intentions, extended its leaves toward him again, poking at him playfully.
Kim Haru sighed helplessly. "Fine, fine. When we get back, I'll give you an extra al."
Obtaining what it wanted, the Unlted Frost Bamboo Tree instantly beca jubilant. Now that the crisis for this human was resolved, it could finally return to its lair. Hopefully, its promised extra al would arrive soon—there was no way it was letting those other creatures snatch it away.
The Unlted Frost Bamboo Tree disappeared. Following Kim Haru's instructions, Roh Baekjin also lifted the spatial confinent.
The sudden appearance of so many people startled passersby. Upon seeing their miserable state, onlookers gasped in alarm.
Before long, the Pyeongseong Safe Zone Commander arrived with his n.
After understanding the situation, the expressions of those from the Pyeongseong Safe Zone turned to disgust as they regarded Roh Baekjin and his group. "Does Haneulsae Safe Zone really think we're afraid of completely falling out with them?"
Their revulsion toward Haneulsae Trading Team's shalessness was matched only by their exasperation with Kim Haru's recklessness.
"Mr. Kim, our hearts can't take tests like this."
Clearly, he had sensed that sothing was wrong with the Haneulsae Safe Zone people earlier, yet he didn't leave imdiately. Instead, he deliberately waited for them to catch up and then confined the space. While everyone knew Mr. Kim was incredibly powerful, they had been worried sick that sothing might go wrong.
How could he be so reckless about sothing like this?
Kim Haru shrugged his shoulder.
After their initial shock subsided, the Pyeongseong Safe Zone Commander discussed with Kim Haru how to deal with the mbers of the Haneulsae Trading Team.
Though it was evident that the actions of the Haneulsae Trading Team were directly authorized by the new Haneulsae Safe Zone Commander, everyone—whether from Haneulsae Safe Zone, Pyeongseong Safe Zone, or even Ahnhae Safe Zone and Bogang Safe Zone, who had only heard snippets of information—understood this fact. However, as long as the issue wasn't brought into the public, Pyeongseong Safe Zone couldn't escalate the matter to involve all of Haneulsae Safe Zone for the sake of maintaining stability. Enjoy new stories from My Virtual Library Empire
In the end, the Level 3 ability users from the Haneulsae Trading Team were detained in the Pyeongseong Safe Zone, while the Level 2 ability users were sent back with the food supplies from this transaction. Of course, not all the food was handed over. To express their "apology" to Mr. Kim, the supplies were cut in half. Haneulsae Safe Zone wouldn't dare protest.
Additionally, if Haneulsae Safe Zone wanted their remaining Level 3 ability users returned, they would need to bring a certain amount of supplies after winter to negotiate their release.
Why not keep the Level 2 ability users?
What use would those near-crippled people be? Letting them beco a freeloader in Pyeongseong Safe Zone?
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