The First Hunter

Chapter 29. A+, Part I

Translator: Khan

Editor: RED

1.

The quality and number of relics were proportional to the length of a country’s history. In that sense, China was the birthplace of one of the world’s most famous relic grounds.

It was true. Starting with the Yellow River civilization, one of the beginnings of civilization, the relics left through the long history of China were so great that their quality and quantity could not easily be compared with any other country.

“It was until the government of Kuomintang moved to Taiwan, as their defeat intensified in the Chinese Civil War.”

However, in the midst of historical turmoil, China was divided into two countries, and relics could not avoid their fate.

“At that time, the number of relics carried by the government of Kuomintang from China to Taiwan was about 600,000. It wasn’t just 600,000 pieces, but only 600,000 relics were selected and picked by the imperial family of the Qing Dynasty. They moved them all to Taiwan.”

When China fought a war, they divided into the Communist Party and the Kuomintang. The Kuomintang, which was pushed out by the Communist Party, moved to Taiwan. In the process, the Kuomintang also moved the heritage of Chinese history to Taiwan.

“Even they had deceived the U.S. that they would carry civilians to Taiwan, but they transported the relics. Because of that, there were a lot of people killed. They carried the relics instead of the lives of people, and the criticism was huge. Later, because of the Cultural Revolution of the Communist Party of China, the remaining relics in the mainland were completely destroyed. Thanks to the People’s Party, the Kuomintang, they protected the relics of China. It’s ironic.”

On the way back to Bucheon, Jang, who was teaching history in the street, paused and looked at Kim. “Boss?”

Kim didn’t look like he was listening to him. It seemed that he was thinking of something else.

“Boss?” It was only after Jang called him again that Kim responded.

Kim Tae-hoon turned to look at Jang.

“Did you hear my explanation?”

“I heard it.”

“Can I give you a quiz? Did you really hear that?

“I’ll take History education later.”

“You didn’t listen to me. Boss, did you study bad when you were in school?”

Instead of answering, Kim looked at Jang quietly.

Jang smiled awkwardly. “It’s a joke. What the hell are you thinking about?”

Kim gave an answer to the question. “If I were in Taiwan now, and if I were an ambitious person, what would I have planned?”

In the response, Jang wiped the playfulness from his face. “So what kind of picture was drawn?”

“Control Tower.”

“Yes?”

“A huge number of relics, geographical location in the middle of China, Korea, and Japan as well as the geographical advantage of not having to worry about monster raids through land routes. If they have the ability to make contact outside of Taiwan, then there would be no better conditions to be a control tower.”

“Oh… I’m sure it is, but I suppose it’s hard to make a living because they are so isolated.”

“Taiwan`s food self-sufficiency rate is about 30 percent. There will be people dying of hunger, but there is plenty of room to hold on. Even if it’s winter in Taiwan, the temperature won’t drop below zero.”

“But it’s a country where people freeze to death when it snows. They must have spent the winter really warm. I envy them. It was hell for me to wake up in the morning during the winter…”

“More than anything, they call themselves China.”

Jang smiled at this part. He could help not knowing the relationship between Taiwan and China. Naturally, he knew how ridiculous it was to claim that Taiwan was China.

“Even though they claim that…”

But the laughing did not last long. Jang’s expression had hardened. Now he could understand it.

“Taiwan is a country that reveals its hostility to China, and they claim that Taiwan is China. So far, there has not been a big accident because it was just at the level of words, but not from now on.”

“… it’s troublesome.”

If Taiwan had any national power or conditions to threaten China, Taiwan’s claim would not have remained a mere assertion. It would lead to a great war that would affect all of Asia.

“The headquarter of the Six Snakes is Taiwan. They are now drawing a board to gain supremacy.”

This was why Kim had to think over his return to Bucheon.

The Six Snakes.

Now he could guess the starting point of the group that drove one Kim to his death.

Jang sighed deeply when he heard the conclusion. “Wow, Taiwan? … we can’t go there by airplane… this is even more troublesome. Are you sure the headquarter of the Six Snakes is Taiwan?”

Although Jang suspected that its headquarter would be outside the country, it was a totally different story from hoping and feeling real.

However, Kim made a good face instead. “If we know the location of the control tower, it won’t be complicated if we’re sick.”

“Yes?”

“I’ll attack them first.”

Kim knew well.

‘The difficulty in war is not when the enemy is strong, but when the enemy is opaque. This was why it was difficult to deal with terrorists, anarchists, and an anti-government group, and why the U.S., with power beyond any other group in the world, did not win the war against them.’

‘On the other hand, when an enemy becomes clear, no matter how great the enemy is, he could find a way.’

In addition, it was something Kim had done during all his life: finding the weak point of a strong enemy and taking only the necessary lives. “All we have to do is identify the enemy more clearly, and then kill the one who needs to be killed.”

“The Capital Defense Command is now more problematic than that.” Of course, at this moment, Kim did not miss the problem he was facing. The immediate issue was not Taiwan, but the Capital Defense Command.

Kim has already fought with the Capital Defense Command. It didn’t just lead to bloodshed, but a bloody war of nerves that was enough to hurt feelings.

“You scratched very well. That’s why I have a question. Why would they ask the boss to kill a monster? Even it’s a green-grade monster… with the power of the Capital Defense Command, they can kill the monster when it gets close.”

Jang also did not ignore the fact.

Lieutenant General Lee Hyuk requested that Kim kill the head of the Goblins, the green-grade monster in Cheonggye Mountain, and they would pay for it. The request was not a lie.

Jang had already known through Daedongyeojido that there was a green-grade monster there.

The problem was Lee Hyuk’s intentions.

“For the Capital Defense Command, the monster stone is the most urgent one.”

At present, it was the monster stones that were urgent for the Capital Defense Command. They could take relics from Kim, but he could not spit out the monster stones he’d already eaten. In that situation, they were asking Kim to kill the green-grade monster? It was like giving up their game to Kim. It was not free, but they would pay for it.

“They want to know what I’m capable of.” In that respect, Kim summed up the situation simply.

“They want to know your ability?”

It was not difficult to determine what Lee Hyuk intended.

“The next game will depend on whether a hunting dog can kill a wild boar or a tiger. That’s the personality of Lee Hyuk.”

“What kind of person is Lee Hyuk?”

“He was the only one who would have been promoted to four stars.”

Jang Sung-hoon clicked his tongue briefly.

“So he must be angry now, right? If he had stayed still, he could have become a four-star general, but his chance flew away because of the monsters…”

In Jann’s understanding, Lee Hyuk’s life was all rosy, but it was shattered by the appearance of the monsters.

“Huh, it’s disgusting.” Jang himself would not have been able to withstand such a situation easily.

“Lee Hyuk wouldn’t be able to get there now if he had had that attitude.”

But Kim was different. As he said before, he knew what Lee Hyuk was like. “Four stars, he has done everything to get there. For him, the seat of the Capital Defense Command would have been dull.”

“Dull?”

“A hunting dog can never be a pet.” Lee Hyuk had fought all his life and had always won the fight. That was when he lived as a soldier.

Would Lee Hyuk, who had lived such a life, be able to adapt and accept peace easily? The guy who proved his worth through a fierce war?

“It would have been an opportunity for him when monsters appeared.” For him, the emergence of monsters, the collapse of the nation, and the end of the world must have felt a historic opportunity.

“It’s a great opportunity to leave his name in history books. To put it another way, he is now in a state of wild ambition beyond all control.”

“So he is being exploited.”

“Yes.”

The Six Snakes were taking advantage of Lee Hyuk’s ambition. ‘The more ambitious the fire grows, the blinder the person is.’

More importantly, the Six Snakes were taking out what they hoped to gain beneath the eyes of Lee Hyuk, who wanted to build a historical achievement, not just personal benefits.

“Then we should use his ambition, too.”

“So, did you make a plan for the future?”

“I am the only one who carries out the liquidation of Cheonggye Mountain.”

It was a sudden notice. However, Jang was not surprised by the notification.

“You’d be bait, that’s it.”

Now, Jang could figure out Kim’s intention without trying to understand.

“So what do we do while the boss is playing a gorgeous bait?”

If Kim made a solo strike at Cheonggye Mountain, all the attention of the Capital Defense Command would inevitably be focused on it. Of course, they would not be able to make any rash moves in Bucheon and Incheon, which were considered the headquarters of the Mac Guild.

“We need to make the area that the Gamecock occupied our territory.” Kim was planning to expand the Mac Guild’s territory as their attention was elsewhere.

“Now is the time to occupy Chungcheong Province. This makes me feel like I’m playing a game in Romance of the Three Kingdoms.”

The target was Sejong City and the surrounding areas, and Chungcheong Province, which had been occupied by the Gamecock. It was also very important.

The Chungcheong province would not only be an important route to the Jeolla region but also to the Gyeongsang Province, as well as the most important food supply in the survival battle that would take place from now on.

He was not talking about only farming. Fruit trees, of apples and peaches, were valuable resources at this point. Fruit trees never grow overnight.

There was another one. “If we occupy Chungcheong region, we can obtain oil reserves in Seosan and Pyeongtaek.”

The cities of Pyeongtaek and Seosan, located near the border between Chungcheong Province and Gyeonggi Province, were the base for oil reserves in Korea.

‘Seosan, in particular, is a base for crude oil.’ Eleven million barrels of oil were stored in Seosan.

War required human blood, gunpowder, and oil to be fought. The oil reserve was more important than anything else.

When Kim finished thinking, he looked at his right hand with black Eyes.

======

[Basic Abilities]

– Strength: 561

– Health: 502

[Special Abilities]

– Energy: B Rank

– Mana: B+ Rank

– Telekinesis: A Rank

– Defense: B+ Rank

– Mana Resistance: B Rank

[Achieved Abilities]

– Anger Soaring (Grade 3): The power of the Gamecock. It consumes all your Energy and causes a huge explosion around you.

======

After confirming his ability, he clenched his fist. ‘If you want to see what I can do, I’ll definitely show you.’

2.

Cheonggye Mountain…

It was the southernmost mountain surrounding Seoul, not small, but insufficient to call grand. It was a mountain one could feel a sense of loyalty from time to time, as it kept its seat like a gatekeeper, blocking those who wanted to cross Seoul.

However, at this moment, in the summer of 2017, one could not find any loyalty to protect Seoul in Cheonggye Mountain.

Kiii, Kiii! Kiii! Goblins filled Cheonggye Mountain instead of loyalty. It was like a Goblin zoo. There were all kinds of Goblins, and there were countless numbers of them. Among them was a monster whose presence was incomparable to that of other Goblins.

Kir! Kirr! Rather than a Goblin, it looked like a troll, huge in size and white skinned. Around the Goblin, whose green eyes shone, there were all kinds of skulls of animals, monsters, and human beings piled up like mountains.

It was a history of predation. It was also clear evidence that the white skin Goblin had reigned as the owner of this Cheonggye Mountain for a long time.

Snap! Some people took pictures with long-lens DSLR cameras that reminded one of a cannon far away. The number was not one or two, either.

“They’re within range.”

“We can capture this side in range.”

The number was about forty.

It was not a rare sight in Cheonggye Mountain, because there used to be a lot of people who came to take pictures of Cheonggye Mountain with professional cameras, often as part of a photo club. But those who were holding the cameras were not of that kind.

“Okay.”

They were all wearing uniforms. It was not just military uniforms, but black uniforms. At the same time, everyone had a round mark on the back of their right hand.

“Everyone, stand by.”

They were the special forces that Lieutenant Colonel Yoo led. The reason why they brought expensive cameras here to Cheonggye Mountain, which had become a kingdom of Goblins, was simple.

“We’re ready.”

They came here to take pictures of one man’s abilities.

That man was, of course, Kim Tae-hoon. He told the Capital Defense Command, “I will clean up the Goblins of Cheonggye Mountain, so be sure to watch.”

“You’ve managed to let this happen, I thought you’d be interrupting the photographing.”

It was unexpected. The Capital Defense Command predicted that Kim would do a lot of work to hide his abilities.

When Lieutenant Colonel Yoo was assigned the mission of recording Kim’s abilities, he wanted to grab his hair and tear it off at first.

However, Kim allowed the filming to be done in a public way.

“Is it for me?”

“Think of it as a good thing.”

Of course, it was not for Colonel Yoo.

“How do you think you’re going to fight?”

Kim Tae-hoon was just going to show them clearly: his abilities, and the ability gained after taking the crystal of the Gamecock.

“Isn’t there one thing you want to see anyway? I’ll show you the new abilities I have.”

He was going to imprint his presence on all of the people of the Capital Defense Command, including Lee Hyuk.

At that moment, he began to fly.

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Readers, due to technical issues, chapters 41, 42, 45, and 47 were not showing, even though they had been posted. We invite you to go back and read them now that they are showing.

A special thanks to synthar and Pfeffalofficus for bringing this to our attention.

11-18-2018. From Kahn.