Laborer Mr. Kim Reaps Sweet Rewards with Auto-Hunting - Chapter 74

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 074

Workers sent by the Personnel Management Director?
What on earth was this about?
Tilting his head in confusion, Park Mu-Pal looked ahead again.
Still, more unfamiliar faces appeared.
One, two, three… four.
Four of them, even.

“No… how are they here?”

Park Mu-Pal blinked rapidly.
The Personnel Management Director was from the South Korean Revolutionary Talent Brigade.
Then these people as well…
They must be South Koreans too.
Was this a dream?
Or was it an illusion seen after already being dead?
There was no other way to explain it.
There couldn’t possibly be people sent by the Personnel Management Director here…
A brief moment of denial.
But he quickly pulled himself together.
The sound of Rocket Artillery fire had echoed faintly just moments ago.
Any second now—
It would arrive.

Whoooooosh!!!!

As expected.
He had lives depending on him now; he needed to stay sharp.

“I appreciate the sentiment, but this place is too dangerous! Since you managed to get here, you must have a way back—yes? We can’t stop that, so all of you should leave!”

The workers sent by the Personnel Management Director.
His gratitude was genuine.
But…
They were subordinates.
Not the Personnel Management Director himself.
Then what use were they?
How could they possibly stop Rocket Artillery?
The Revolutionary Talent Brigade member over level sixty-one.
In other words, if the Personnel Management Director had come in person, perhaps.
But with anyone else, stopping it would be impossible.
Therefore.
Wouldn’t it be better for someone to survive than for everyone to die together?
That was the logic behind telling them to leave.

“Yes, Manager! Confirmed. I’ll intercept it right now!”

Huh?
Intercept…?
Surely he didn’t mean to intercept the Rocket Artillery?
The one who’d just spoken such nonsense
was a man dressed in Joseon Dynasty military attire.
Wait, you—
You’re carrying a cannon on your shoulder, but…
It’s just a small one, isn’t it?
You’re going to intercept Rocket Artillery with that?
This man wasn’t in his right mind.

“That… it’s pointless.”

But before he could stop him.

Boom! Boom!

The man in military dress lifted the cannon to his shoulder and began firing.
One shot, two shots, and a third.
The cannon rounds flew skyward in sequence and—

Crash!

Wait?
Something just exploded up there?
Surely not….
Did he actually destroy the Rocket Artillery with that tiny cannon?
With that small weapon?

“Well… what is this.”
“…… There’s still more.”
“Understood! I’ll intercept every last one!”

What do you mean there’s more?
How could you possibly know?
While Park Mu-Pal tilted his head in confusion.
Again—Boom! Boom!
The result?

“Interception complete! Allow me to introduce myself once more! I am Yeo Hae, who will be handling the North’s subcontracted operations—specifically, the Revolutionary Talent Brigade!”

All interceptions successful.
Without a single shot missing—flawlessly executed.

“This is… monstrous….”
“Heh heh… your intentions are admirable, but the concern is unnecessary. Didn’t you say the Manager sent him? This is nothing to him.”
“Exactly! Worry over nothing!”

No, by any reasonable standard, you’re the ones acting strange here.
How can a man stop a Rocket Artillery barrage?
Unless he’s some kind of Level 61 or higher monster….

“Shin, good work out there!”
“Not at all!”

And what’s this, now?
This monster doesn’t even feel like the commander.
Now that I think about it….
The true leader must be the Personnel Management Office Director.
He said from the start that the Manager sent him.
And really, what does it matter?
What matters is that these people saved me and my comrades.

“Comrades, shouldn’t we thank our saviors? Follow my lead—thank you for saving our lives!”
“We’re grateful!”

We’ve cleared the immediate crisis.
The problem is.

“Now that the Rocket Artillery has been deployed, this won’t end here. Don’t you think it would be wise to move to a safe location now? In any case, I will repay the debt for saving us today.”
“Heh, don’t worry. We didn’t come here to let the subcontracted workers die.”

Subcontracted?
Were they taken on under the Manager’s authority?

“First, let me ask you one thing.”
“Ask whatever you like.”
“Have you planted any other Hunters around here?”

Other Hunters?
That can’t be right.

“This is all of us.”
“Then we’re talking about small fry here…. Manager, what do you think we should do?”

What’s this?
Is the Manager here?

“Understood, sir.”

No, it’s not that.
They seem to be communicating somehow….

“Newbie!”
“Yes! Newbie worker, Yeo Hae!”
“You and Robin are staying here to guard this place! Got it?”
“Yes, sir!”

Before I could make sense of it.
The two of them vanished.
A man who said his name was Yeo Hae.
And one who quietly kept her hands on her bow, left behind.

“Director, what in the world is going on here?”

The Revolutionary Talent Brigade members who’d been holding their breath, watching carefully.
Their minds seemed to ease at last.
They stepped closer carefully, throwing questions my way.
Park Mu-Pal, as I’d come to know him.
At most, all I could tell them was that the Personnel Manager had accepted us.
But one thing was certain.

“Comrades, I think we might actually survive this.”

Thanks to the Personnel Manager.

* * *

The Monitoring Function that was enhanced not long ago.
How effective was it?
Through the Radio Communication Function, I could stay in contact.
I’d felt it before, but this time I truly grasped the reality of it.

“The Radio Communication Function really is convenient.”
“Boss, are we moving out?”
“Yeah. Let’s go. You said there were small fry around—we need to deal with them first.”
“Understood. I can see the ones keeping watch over this area from here, so we should take care of them first.”

Even right now it’s like this.
In the old days?
I didn’t know why we were suddenly moving.
But now that the radio’s working, I can grasp the situation right away. That’s convenient.

“I’ll go first as the lead mage. Follow me.”
“Roger that!”

Hah.
That’s Unjang for you.
I felt it back in China too.
Every time we deploy like this, it’s reassuring to have him around.
But those observers—
Who could they be?
North Korean soldiers?
I was curious, but—

The moment we arrived at the spot where the rats seemed to be hiding, I could identify them immediately.
“What the hell!”

Huh?
Isn’t that Japanese?

Crack!

“What are you saying?! If you’re in Korea, speak Korean!”

Wait.
Arthur, if you’re going to say something like that while you’re hitting them…
That place wasn’t exactly a Korean-speaking territory to begin with.

“W-what’s all this about?! We were just passing through!”

What’s this?
They speak North Korean dialect pretty well.
So why’d they use Japanese just now?
Were they flustered?
Should I give them another scare?

“Todd, I need your help.”
“Yes, Manager.”

I tossed out a single word.
Todd, who’d been clinging to Unjang’s belt, dropped to the ground.
And he opened his mouth.

“You seem to be from Japan. What brings you here?”
“Oh, no. It’s a misunderstanding.”
“A stuffed bear toy?”

That instructor.
He’s muttering something to himself in Japanese from the back.
Looks like they’re not quite in sync with each other?
But still.
When a bear plush suddenly pops out and starts talking, you’d panic too.
I’ll give them that.

Crack!

“Korean!”

Looks like he’s not going to accept that one.

“Arthur is a Worker, and Todd—that’s what we call him.”
“Todd, that’s right.”

Well, it was true enough.
But something about this still didn’t sit right.
What were the Japanese doing here?

“Hmm… Manager, these ones look like trained operatives just by looking at them.”
“Don’t you think so too, Todd?”
“Yes, Worker Unjang, I’d be grateful if you could subdue them.”
“Ha, it would certainly be cleaner that way, wouldn’t it?”

Well, well.
Speaking such lethal words in that calm voice.

“I suspect we’ll have need for them elsewhere, so I’d appreciate your discretion.”
“Understood.”
“That’s not fair!”

They cried out in protest, but were subdued in an instant.
What next?

“Shall we go have a talk with Kim Il Jung now?”

Just one meeting to see how it goes.
If it doesn’t look promising, then… well.

“Ah, Manager. Would it be all right if we stopped by the Revolutionary Talent Brigade first? I’ve had a good idea occur to me. I’ll explain on the way.”

That sounded fine.
After all, our Workers.
Watching them move, you’d think they could blink and be there.
Since we’ve already started this.
Might as well do it properly.

* * *

Park Mu-Pal, Battle Commander of the Revolutionary Talent Brigade.
He’d just had his life saved by people from the Personnel Management Office’s side.
So what was he supposed to do now?

“Um… is there anything I can help you with, by any chance?”

He ventured the question carefully.

“Not at the moment, thank you!”

The man in civilian clothes declined.
And the other one?

…….

No answer at all.
So what could he do?
All he could do was wait quietly.
Fortunately, the silence didn’t last long.

“Shinn! You’ve been keeping watch well?”
“Yes, sir!”
“Nice work!”

Right.
Those people from before.
But….
They’ve got something dangling all over them?

“We’ll keep these under guard — me and Robin together!”
“…What are these.”

Wait.
That archer.
Could he actually speak?

“Japanese operatives, Worker Robin. They were hiding and spying on this location, so we brought them in. Park Mu-Pal—do any of them ring a bell?”
“That…, the plush bear….”
“That’s probably not the priority right now, is it?”

No.
The plush bear had an air about him that was downright murderous.
Japan, huh.

“When the Revolutionary Talent Brigade rose up together, it was Japan backing us from behind. And after that, the contact kept coming—telling us to naturalize.”
“I see.”
“Well, I’d say that clinches it.”
“Indeed, Worker Unjang.”
“Huh…?”

Unjang?
Now that I think about it….
Back there.
A tall man with a long beard.
I remember seeing him on the Awakened One network.
That Guan Yu who turned China upside down not long ago.
Back when there was chaos in China.
The stories said a god descended and punished them and left.
There was a lot of talk like that….
Why is he here?
The question only lasted a moment.
Then it clicked.
Guan Yu was one of the Manager’s people.
If that’s the case….
We’ve landed on the right side?
Not just that we might survive, but….
Could the whole nation actually flip?
While I was listening to the conversation, waiting eagerly,
the plush bear spoke again.

“Now then, members of the Revolutionary Talent Brigade. I’m going to explain a scenario, and you’ll proceed exactly as outlined.”

* * *

The Prime Minister’s Office in Tokyo, Japan.

“What’s the status.”
“My apologies. We still haven’t heard from them….”
“Hmph. Agents wouldn’t go silent without reason. That means I can’t rule out the worst-case scenario.”

Miyamoto Hayato, the Prime Minister of Japan, exhaled deeply.
How exactly had things spiraled this far out of control.

“Up until I heard news of the Rocket Artillery launch, the plan was flawless….”

The deal with Kim Il Jung, North Korea’s Chairman.
It had gone smoothly up to that point.
Handing over one weapon we’d barely managed to secure from the Personnel Management Office was regrettable.
But if we brought back a Level 60 Hunter in exchange?
That was actually a gain.

“It was a stroke of genius—with luck, we could have landed a few more….”
“Indeed, sir.”

A handful of artillery strikes?
Most Hunters would simply vanish.
But high-tier Hunters are different.
Some would survive, if precariously.
We’d retrieve those ones quickly and bring them in.
That was the promise with the North Korean pig.
As for the families of North Korean renegade Hunters—
The North Korean side was supposed to protect them.
We’d need that leverage to control the Hunters we brought to Japan.
A perfect plan.
I’d thought success was just a matter of time—

“Wouldn’t it be wise to abandon the mediation efforts with South Korea altogether, sir?”
“Right. Drop it now and contact all the countries we agreed to support us. Tell them to back off.”
“Understood!”

Click.

“Haah….”

The aide left, and the office fell quiet.
Prime Minister Miyamoto rubbed his throbbing temple.
Mediation and all that—
now was the time to cut loose ends.
Helping North Korea up to a point?
That was fine.
A matter of principle, they’d say—money could bury it.
But direct dealings? Actual exchanges?
If the details got out…
That would be harder to clean up.
Fortunately, only a few people knew. Start with them, and then…

Click—!

“Prime Minister!”

That aide was sharp.
It was unfortunate, but he’d have to go too.
Once this was resolved….

“Did you send out the contacts?”
“Sir… Chairman Kim Il Jung is dead.”
“What? Where?”
“He was found as a corpse in the Party Central Committee Building No. 1, his office….”

No.
The Chairman dead in the heart of Pyongyang, with no battle at all?
Did that even make sense?
What?
Come to think of it….
Wasn’t it the same back in China?
A figure as high as Chairman swept up by the tempest called Gwan-u, and died just like that.
No, surely not.

“And it’s said that Yi Sun-sin descended upon the North Korean Hunters’ encampment, and is now condemning Japan for backing the regime’s oppression of the people….”

Yi Sun-sin?
That Yi Sun-sin?
No.
What in heaven’s name is happening….

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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