The First Hunter

Chapter 40. The World After Death, Part I

Translator: Khan

Editor: RED

1.

“The worst that can be expected is not the worst.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Well, well… Kobe and Osaka are in a state of panic over terrorism. Only the key facilities have been attacked with precision.”

“Who did it?”

“Well, we are trying to figure it out.”

“You didn’t even figure that out?”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

There would be no more appropriate expression to express Matsumoto Kanyo’s current situation.

‘What the hell is this?’

The body of the Eight-tailed Fox and the Kusanagi were taken away. Needless to say, it was the worst situation, and Matsumoto Kanyo had withdrawn all the forces at Aso Mountain in Kyushu that had been hunting the Eight-tailed Fox, bringing them back to Kitakyushu City. It was to prepare for the worst.

‘How could this be…?’

However, after retreating to Kitakyushu City, what was waiting for Matsumoto Kanyo, who was moving to prepare for the worst, was sad news from all over. Major and key facilities in each city were lost to sudden terrorism. The military facilities were hit particularly hard, and even though they were hidden from the outside for their own security, their opponents struck them as if they knew all about them.

“We…we’re in big trouble.” The peak of the sad news came from Hiroshima.

“What else?”

“Hi-Hiroshima Port has been attacked, and no ship can sail.”

Hiroshima Port, where most of the Japanese naval forces were crowded, had been attacked, and Matsumoto Kanyo no longer even sighed in front of the sad news. He didn’t want to be surprised by this anymore. He didn’t deny the reality.

“Did you figure out who attacked?”

Instead, he just wanted to know the identity of those who were pulling this nonsense. But his little desire was not fulfilled, either.

“Well, it was attacked by monsters.”

“Monsters?”

“The monsters came suddenly. It seems that someone intentionally lured the monsters near Hiroshima.”

The moment he heard the story that it was attacked by the monsters, Matsumoto Kanyo’s thoughts virtually stopped.

‘We were fooled completely.’

At the same time, he realized that he could no longer serve as a commander.

‘This is the worst.’ He could see that this moment when he could not act as a commander was the worst situation.

“Captain Matsumoto, the Lord has come to his senses.”

“Really? What about his condition?”

“All the practitioners are responding to treatment, and their physical wounds are likely to be treated soon, and there seems to be no major mental problems or abnormalities.”

For the first time, he saw hope in the worst.

“Good.” Kano Matsumoto was delighted. His expression, which was so clear, was evidence that he saw hope. However, it was also the evidence that Matsumoto Kanyo did not know yet what the worst was.

“Yes, as long as the lord is alive, there will be some chance. There is no place to fall any further, so there is nothing left to climb.”

The worst he could expect… was not the worst.

2.

“Hiroshima team has succeeded in its operation.”

Kim Tae-hoon received the report, nodded, and drew an X on Hiroshima City, on the map of Japan that was unfolded in front of him. The map of the Japanese archipelago was now full of X marks.

“With this operation, we have succeeded in temporarily neutralizing more than seventy percent of the major facilities in Japan.”

It was evidence that Kim Tae-hoon, and the first Special Operation Unit that had landed on the Japanese archipelago at risk of their lives, had completed their mission perfectly. So, everyone with Kim Tae-hoon was looking at the map with a good feeling.

‘We did it.’

‘We really did it!’

‘We have virtually neutralized Japan with less than a thousand men! We won the war!’

If they did not cheer up at once, their big hearts would burst out. However, Kim did not give them the opportunity to cheer. On the contrary, he looked at the crowd with his cold sunken eyes.

“Don’t relax.”

This was the enemy camp. And although they had been neutralized many of their opponent’s forces and facilities, the difference in power in the Japanese archipelago was still devastating to the extent that they felt shameful using the words ‘numerical inferiority’.

“This is just the end of the second phase.”

Also, Kim knew well that there was no eternal victory in war.

‘If we win a war, that’s all. The loser will start a new war when the winner is careless. History proves that.’

“There is still the third phase left.”

Above all, it was not over yet. He had certainly gained a lot, and he had acquired a great deal of valuable relics, including the dead body of the Eight-tailed Fox, and had also hit Japan with a fatal level of damage. But there was something very important that has not been done yet.

“I say again, I will not let you lower your guard or relax until the leader of our enemy is dead.”

Musashi, the head of the Japanese Empire, was not dead yet. And that was what Kim had intended.

‘War never ends until a period is reached that everyone can understand.’

If he wanted to kill Musashi in the confusion, he could have done so easily. There was nothing hard about it.

‘The Kusanagi basically consumes the Energy of the owner at a tremendous speed when it is drawn. Energy is the source of life, and of course, the moment he uses the Kusanagi, his body will have a great decrease in resistance to external attacks.’

In such a situation, being attacked unexpectedly by the Eight-tailed Fox was like being shot without a bulletproof vest. It would not have been difficult to get rid of Musashi, who was in such a defenseless state, even though it would have required some hard work for Kim Tae-hoon.

But Kim did not.

‘Musashi fits for the end of this war.’

The risk was much greater than the merits of killing Musashi there.

‘It is always so. People hate defeat, and if they are defeated, they want to make excuses for the defeat somehow. Killing Musashi obviously stamps the stigma of a loser on Japan, but it also gives the most perfect excuse to them.’

‘Japan will not accept it as a legitimate defeat. The death of Musashi would not be a legitimate death, but the dirty work of Kim Tae-hoon.’

Even though Musashi might have died there, they would never have put all their weapons down and lifted the white flag above their heads.

‘If Japan is the opponent, we need a more definite end.’

What was Japan like? In World War II, Japan, which had nothing left because of its defeat, did not give up the war. They were crying out, “Fighting Spirit, Fortune, Divine Wind!” and just saying that they would die as a suicide squad, if they were supposed to die. In the end, it was a country with a madness that could not be understood by rational thinking and reason.

‘We need a finish like Little Boy.’

It was two nuclear bombs falling on Hiroshima and Nagasaki that broke their madness.

It was not any different this time. In a world where common sense and its value collapsed due to the emergence of monsters, a world where they could not survive without madness, a definite finish would be needed to end the war.

Of course, there was a big reason for making this choice.

Kim glanced at the back of his right hand.

=======

[Basic Abilities]

– Strength: 770

– Health: 781

[Special Abilities]

– Energy: A- Rank

– Mana: B+ Rank

– Telekinesis: S- Rank

– Defense: A- Rank

– Mana Resistance: B+ Rank

[Achieved Abilities]

-Telekinetic Beads (Grade 2): The power of the Eight-tailed Fox can make Telekinetic Beads, to which any ability of the maker can be applied.

======

‘Musashi is no longer even an opponent to me. There is no possibility that Musashi, who has lost his Kusanagi, will win against me. Even if Musashi makes himself Kamikaze right now, he can not be the opponent of me.’

That was why he had made the choice to let Musashi go.

‘The winner of this game is already decided, and the important thing is to get as much as possible from the planned victory. It is like trying to get more territory in the game of Go.’

‘We must prepare for war with China, beyond North Korea, with what we will get here as a foundation.’

‘What we get from Japan will be an important foundation for the future war.’

Furthermore, Kim Tae-hoon did not want to go to war with Japan behind his back, a country that had never been a true ally in the history of the Korean Peninsula.

‘I will get everything I can get from Japan thoroughly, terribly, and desperately.’

“Send a war declaration to Kitakyushu City tomorrow morning.”

The starting point for it was a declaration of war to be sent soon.

“We start the third phase.”

The moment the order was given, his men did not look any more expectant. They used his words as needles to burst their swollen hearts, and instead, had a determined eye. At the same time, they had faith!

‘Yes, we have the master.’

‘All we have to do is follow the master. It’s not our job to be happy and sad.’

Then a new man came into the room. “The Okjo has arrived!”

A bird made of jade, carefully held by his subordinate with both hands, jumped over to Kim Tae-hoon’s shoulder.

“I will report about the current situation.”

From the mouth of such a jade bird, along with the voice of Jang Sung-hoon, the report on the current situation in Korea flowed out without hesitation. Some details were important, and some seemed to have little meaning.

“Therefore, there seems to be nothing impossible now.”

The same was true of this phrase. When this phrase came out, no one thought it was a word with a special meaning.

Only one, Kim Tae-hoon, grasped the meaning of the phrase. ‘The Golden Glass is full.’

“Hoo…” At that moment, a long sigh came out of his mouth.

3.

Jang Sung-hoon was always pleasant. He was a friendly man. He was young, he had lived a life that would not normally be experienced by young people, and he did not lose himself in such days. However, he did not feel good at this moment. Sitting in a chair with a table in front of him, he was holding his face in his hands.

“Uh-hoo.” Through the palms of his hand, a sigh, which those who heard seemed to droop his shoulders, came out. On the desk in front of him, Napoleon’s Golden Glass was dangling a red liquid of promise before his eyes. Standing beside the Golden Glass, an Okjo was looking at the Glass and cocking its head.

“Uh-hoo.” Once again, with a sigh, he looked at the Okjo, releasing his hand from his face. Then he remembered what the Okjo had said.

‘The boss said that I have to drink it!’ It was he who had to drink Napoleon’s Golden Glass on behalf of the boss.

‘Boss.’ The Okjo had spoken in the voice of Kim Tae-hoon, not just anyone. And the words were not the end.

‘It’s been a long time since I heard the word, “please”, from the boss.’

Kim had added, “I beg you to do it, please.” He had also added, “Of course, I will not force you to do it.”

However, Jang Sung-hoon did not listen to the words afterwards. At the word ‘please’ from Kim Tae-hoon, he was ready to give his life. In other words, he had no fear of drinking Napoleon’s Golden Glass. There was no reason to be afraid.

‘I have often wondered how I will die.’

‘It’s a dream in the first place. It is not a real death, but an opportunity to avoid death by experiencing it. It is a golden chance.’

‘But can I drink this?’

That was the reason for the worry.

‘Can I do it like the boss?’

‘The moment of death which can be seen by Napoleon’s Golden Glass is fragmentary, and it is extremely difficult to get an opportunity to avoid the death in that fragmentary situation.’

‘Since it was Kim Tae-hoon, he has been able to go to the next stage on the basis of his death. If it had been for others, they would have urged their death on rather than going beyond.’

‘A bloke like me?’

Jang was a person belonging to the “others” mentioned above.

Jang couldn’t help it. He was not an Awakener, nor was he a great strategist, nor was he a leader who was willing to risk his life for what was just. He was just a young man with a good artistic eye. He was not just the second man of the Mac Guild, but a brother who stuck to Kim Tae-hoon. He was that kind of man. Well, could he get something to control the fate of the world in the fragmentary situation ahead of his death?

“Oh, God, really…” Finally, his feelings were vomited out through Jang’s mouth. At this moment, he no longer considered his feelings. He would never drink it that way. Instead, he tried to do what he could do better than anyone else. He measured Kim Tae-hoon’s feelings. He imagined how Kim felt and how Kim thought about asking him for this.

‘The reason why the boss wants me to drink this is that the boss wants to see the world after his death. In other words… the boss is not sure he’s going to live too long.’

Jang picked up Napoleon’s Golden Glass as if he had finished his determination. Then he prayed to God, ‘Let me live as a landlord in Gangnam, Seoul, in my future life.’

With an unworkable wish, he drank the liquid in Napoleon’s Golden Glass, all in one go. At the same time, he started to dream about the world after Kim’s death.