Chapter 24
Chapter 24 – He came back? (1)
“It seems Lee Gun is alive.”
In the beginning, Chun Sungjae hadn’t taken the rumor seriously. However, when he heard these words, his heart pounded.
“Your first rank temple has been incompetent without Lee Gun.”
These words turned the atmosphere of the state dinner at Cheongwadae chilly. Everyone looked in one direction. Reporters, as well as important political figures, were present here. Then there were the VIPs of the day, who were leaders of the temples. Murderous intent lingered in their eyes.
The one who had spoken those words was a muscular man. He laughed as if he were oblivious to the stares. "What? Am I wrong? You guys couldn’t even kill the Spider.”
The temperature in the room dropped further. Finally, the person next to the muscular man tried to rein him in. “Leo General. Please…”
The employees of the Cheongwadae were anxious. It was to be expected. People from the top to the lowest temples were all gathered here. Two such meetings were held each year, each an important event. The temples' representatives were honored guests at the Cheongwadae. Even the representatives of the top temples of other countries directly under the Zodiacs were present here.
Of course, these people and organizations weren’t on good terms with each other. A slip of the tongue could lead to a fight of an epic level. It was unknown whether the Leo General didn’t know this or he was doing it intentionally.
The Leo general, the leader of the Korean temple of the Lion, laughed at someone. “What? The Spider Queen in Bucheon was eventually killed by Lee Gun. It's the one you guys lost track of in Manchuria. You couldn’t even pick up after yourself. I can’t believe you guys are considered a first-tier temple of this country.”
The general of the Gemini Temple was the first to turn his head. He seemed offended. Chun Sungjae could only watch the scene in nervousness.
The muscular man didn’t pay any attention to them. He played innocent and portrayed a happy-go-lucky attitude. “So how did Lee Gun kill the Spider Queen? Did his skills match up with the epic stories?”
In reaction to his words, the sound of a cup being crushed rang out. Everyone stopped breathing. It seemed time had come to a stop to discuss this topic.
“Why are you bringing up Lee Gun?”
“That’s right. Take back what you said right now!”
The disciples of the Gemini reacted in anger. However, the Leo general just grinned. “What? Lee Gun is the greatest hero of Korea. He caught the Spider Queen instead of the Gemini. I don’t see a problem with that. That coward Sheep Saint should've grabbed Lee Gun’s leg in the first place.”
He let out a hearty laugh, making the disciples of the Sheep grind their teeth. This man was mocking them.
“It seems you're acting arrogant because the Leo Saint is a battle Saint. You guys wouldn’t have been able to kill the Spider Queen either!”
“Why are you insisting on comparing us to Lee Gun!”
Lee Gun was a respected hero of Korea, but these people considered themselves superior to him.
As if to prove his discontent, the man who had broken the cup sneered. “It seems you must have been infatuated with Lee Gun’s heroic tales in your younger days.”
This man was Choi Sunghyuk, the general of the Gemini temple in Korea. Their Zodiac was known for its magic.
The general of the Leo temple in Korea laughed. His temple was ranked second in Korea. “What? Haven’t you seen Lee Gun’s famous battle in Russia?”
“Hmmph! It was possible because he received buffs from the twelve Zodiac Saints. It is said that all his weapons and holy items were made by the Zodiac Saints. If we receive a similar amount of buffs, we will outperform him by a mile.”
“You're ranked one only because you sell academic talismans. I don’t know why you're so confident.”
In reaction to these words, violent waves of magical energy emanated around the general of the Gemini temple.
Kwahng!
The table where the Leo general was sitting broke in half, and the Gemini general let out a contemptuous laugh.
“This was the case with the Spider Queen that appeared at the mart. A brave S-rank disciple of mine put his life on the line. Luckily, it was killed…”
“I heard your disciple was able to do nothing. He was eaten while he was trying to run away. A kid witnessed it.”
The Gemini general had been laughing, but his eyebrows started to twitch.
“Your opinion is based on hearsay. Wake up! Monsters and awakened beings have become stronger.
“Even if he was strong 20 years ago, he was a mere brawler. I can’t believe you're comparing us to him.”
The two groups bickered. In the end, Lee Gun was considered someone unable to handle the Devil’s tower. He was unworthy of discussion in the eyes of some people.
President Yoon let out a low groan. ‘I think Lee Gun would be much stronger than them.’
Sitting in the corner, he could only sigh. When he was young, Lee Gun had saved his life. President Yoon had never forgotten that moment when Lee Gun had beaten and ripped apart the monster in an overbearing manner.
Many Users, the awakened beings, were now stars around the world. In terms of presence, they couldn’t be compared to Lee Gun. Yet, each of them had too inflated of an ego to acknowledge that. This had also been the case during the subjugation expedition.
‘If Lee Gun’s manual is brought up, they’ll mock it as being outdated.’
Was it because 20 years had passed? Or did someone manipulate the public opinion?
There was a stark difference in how the world viewed Lee Gun.
‘Unless you saw him for yourself, his abilities were almost unbelievable.’
He had spoken up about Lee Gun, but no one had believed him since he didn’t have any proof.
Now, Lee Gun was considered a mediocre awakened being before Red Eye was killed. This disappointed President Yoon. It was the reason his heart had trembled when the Devil’s Tower had fallen. He had wondered if the long-awaited hero had returned.
‘There’s no way it's true.’
No one here truly believed that Lee Gun had returned alive. When the story about the Devil’s Tower's destruction was brought up, it had been ridiculed.
‘Everything is going to hell.’
The number of monsters around Korea was increasing. The Saints contracted from neighboring countries wanted sovereign power in Korea; they wanted the right to colonize. Therefore, it was odd that the Sheep Saint hadn’t contacted President Yoon these days. The Sheep Saint used to press him for payment every day.
In the end, the president sighed as he remembered the Lee Gun from before. ‘It would be great if that hero is still alive.’
All of a sudden...
“This is bad!”
An employee of the Cheongwadae rushed into the dining hall. “Please check the news!”
“What’s going on?”
“It... it’s Lee Gun!”
* * *
At that time...
“Hey, Oh Taeksoo.”
“I’m not signing it.”
Lee Gun snorted at Hugo’s decisive words. “No! I—”
“I’m not signing it.”
In the end, Lee Gun hit Hugo. “Just sign it, idiot. Also, what the hell happened to your rank?”
“What? Rank? What rank?”
Instead of answering Hugo's question, Lee Gun pushed the phone toward him. Hugo’s face instantly froze when he saw the screen.
[Korean Alliance Temple Ranking]
Rank 1 - Gemini temple (Directly managed by the Gemini Saint)
Rank 2 - Silver Lion (Directly managed by the Leo Saint)
Rank 3 - Golden Fleece (Directly managed by the Sheep Saint)
…
[Global Alliance Temple Ranking]
Rank 1 - Balance (Directly managed by the Libra Saint)
Rank 2 - Luminosity (Directly managed by the Virgo Saint)
…
Lee Gun’s eyes flashed like those of a wild beast. For some reason, his friend couldn’t meet his eyes. Lee Gun asked, “Since I’ve been here, I’ve seen only two disciples under you. I knew something was off.”
“No, Gun. Listen to me before—”
“Why isn’t the Archer Saint listed in the global ranking? You aren’t even listed in the domestic ranking. Why are temples directly managed under you ranked lower than those of amateurs?”
Seeing Lee Gun’s cold smile, Hugo realized he had to face the music.
“Why are you ranked below the bastards you taught?” Flames erupted from Lee Gun’s mouth. It was to be expected. Hugo had developed various holy skills and taught many how to fight.
“You should be above them, so why aren’t you even in the rankings? You are even behind that asshole Leo! You wanna die? This is embarrassing as hell!”
Cold sweat erupted on Hugo's back when Lee Gun displayed his fiery temper. “L-listen to what I have to say. Those rankings are dependent on various factors like personal wealth and number of disciples.”
Lee Gun didn’t even bother acknowledging his words. “Jeez! Your kids ran away from home because their father is a good-for-nothing.”
“They didn’t run away!”
Lee Gun snorted as he punched at the empty air. “Isn’t your son an awakened being? His father is a Saint, so why did he decide to join a different Saint’s temple?”
Hugo had nothing to say. He just glared at Lee Gun. 'Why? It’s because of you.’
Lee Gun completely disregarded Hugo’s glare.
[You have acquired the Saint’s EXP.]
[You have acquired the Saint’s EXP.]
[You have acquired the Saint’s EXP.]
“Oh! This is sweet.” Suddenly, Lee Gun, who had been limbering up his body, laughed in satisfaction. A suspicious smoke wave rose in front of him. The sound of mosquito monsters dying in the surroundings rang out.
- While the flame is lit, it will attract bugs of various levels.
- Caution! It must be used outside.
- If used inside, your house might get ruined.
Lee Gun cackled at the holy item he had created for an at-home workout. He wanted to level up inside a home, so he had developed this item by remodeling the holy item he had seen in the home he previously stayed in.
The item was very effective. Lee Gun filled Hugo’s holy ground with mosquitoes' corpses. He had found a great way to gain EXP and get warmed up by crushing the flying monsters.
When the light died down, Lee Gun flicked on the lighter once again. “Let’s do it one more—”
Hugo couldn't take it anymore. His veins popped in anger. “Hey! Stop it! Are you planning on turning my house into a mosquito slaughterhouse?”
“Tsk!”
Hugo ground his teeth as he shook off the dead mosquitoes piled on top of his notebook. ‘I have to chase him out.’
“Let’s make it look like Yang Wei had run away,” he suddenly suggested.
“What?” Lee Gun tilted his head in puzzlement. He couldn’t see the logic behind the move, but Hugo was serious.
‘It’ll be a problem if Gun causes more trouble than this.’ Hugo thought.
Immediately after returning, Lee Gun had razed the Sheep Saint’s holy ground to the ground. He had also killed Yang Wei.
'Does he not realize how much effort I have to spend to keep that event under wraps?'
If one also included the small stuff, Lee Gun had vandalized Hugo’s vending machines. However, Hugo had yet to know that.
Hugo’s eyes flashed. “This is a great opportunity since those bastards don’t know for sure that you're alive. We should make preparations before hitting them from the back. It’ll give us the advantage.
“That's why you should stay quiet for a couple of days. Just give me time to sort out everything. Alright?”
Hugo’s plan made sense, but it wasn’t how his friend liked to operate. Lee Gun spoke as he watched the slime climb atop his head. “Mmm! I’m sorry.”
“Why? What did you do?” Hugo asked.
“I've already stirred up some trouble.”
“Ah! Is that so? I guess you can’t help— W-what? What? What trouble?”
Lee Gun grinned.
* * *
This news took the world by storm. Before the broadcasting company could broadcast a special feature, articles were sent out. It was inevitable.
The words were written in Lee Gun’s distinctive handwriting. This had happened after the Devil’s Tower had fallen. As if he hadn’t been satisfied in sending the message to the broadcasting station, Lee Gun had also sent it to newspaper companies around the world.
The wave his antics created was comparable to that during the news of the destruction of the Devil’s Tower. The whole world was abuzz as they kept up with the breaking news.