Master Smith Under Ministry of National Defense

049 – Destiny

The Liberal Clan cleared all 10 Rank 3 gates in a short span of two weeks. During this time, Soo-jeong collected battle data with various types of monsters encountered in each gate, which allowed for the improvement of clan members’ equipment. As a result, the combat experience and equipment levels of clan members had improved significantly compared to before they started clearing the gates.

When they first cleared the first gate, Ho Chang and Byung-tae, who could be considered rookies, struggled even against Rank 3 monsters. However, by the time they attempted the eighth gate, they had become strong enough to barely clear the boss with just their own power.

After defeating the boss of the eighth gate without Myung-jun’s assistance for the first time, Ho Chang and Byung-tae rushed towards Myung-jun with green blood splattered all over them, shouting proudly.

“How do you like that, Captain? This time, we got it without your help!”

“Did you see that teamwork attack we pulled off at the end? Wasn’t it just like a movie?”

“Well, considering how I feel right now, I think we could even join the Avengers. I mean, we might not be able to beat Thor or Hulk, but I feel like we could take on Hawkeye!”

Their confidence and self-assuredness, as they mentioned famous superhero movie characters, were shattered the moment they entered the next gate.

It was the worst gate known as the “Awakener-Eating Monsters”, as mentioned by Myung-jun.

[Warning – System contamination, external armor dissolution in progress. After leaving the scene, it is necessary to replace or clean the contaminated armor.]

[Alert – Purification filter’s cleansing ability reduced by 5%, estimated remaining combat time 2 minutes.]

[Alert – Left front tire damaged. Current condition may lead to tire loss if driven as is.]

Initially, their condition was fine when they entered the gate. Soo-jeong had prepared dedicated equipment to detoxify their armor for every gate, and she had also treated the key components to resist chemical substances. However, the boss of the Poisonous Gate Gate, known to be impossible to clear without purification skills, even for a party composed entirely Awakeners, was spewing powerful toxic substances that could easily melt even such contamination-preventing equipment.

As a result, Ho Chang and Byung-tae, who had assured Myung-jun earlier that they could clear it themselves this time, retreated, shouting, “This is impossible!” and “Captain! Help! Help!”

Myung-jun sighed while watching them and summoned a pile of Turrets. He used relentless long-range attacks to force the boss to retreat.

“Seriously, is that really a Rank 3 boss? It doesn’t seem like a creature designed to be defeated.”

“Take a look at this fist! The more I hit it, the more the armor melts!”

Of course, Myung-jun, as a regressor, knew how to deal with this. After all, he was the one who had created the equipment that the party who first cleared the Poisonous Gate had used. However, this time, Myung-jun left everything to Soo-jeong without providing any ideas himself.

In the future, the Liberal Clan would have to conquer numerous gates, each with strategies that Myung-jun was unfamiliar with. Each time, the person responsible for providing the key to the strategy would be Soo-jeong, not him.

In response to this trust in her, Soo-jeong had created the “Sigma Series”, specialized equipment for large-scale environmental battles.

“An operating system that can function at temperatures of 6,000 degrees Celsius and as low as -250 degrees Celsius, radiation shielding capabilities to operate even on the floor of the Fukushima reactor, and special gloves that cannot be dissolved or corroded by any existing chemical substances. You could probably swim in a sea of toxic liquid and still operate it smoothly.”

Since the Poisonous Gate was actually one of the easier gates to conquer, as long as they had a clear plan to deal with the poison, the Liberal Clan members equipped with Soo-jeong’s new gear easily cleared the boss and obtained a large amount of points and materials.

After defeating the boss, Ho Chang and Byung-tae, who had cleared all 10 gates, recovered in Myung-jun’s sub-space by entering medical capsules. While they were recuperating, Myung-jun headed to a real estate agency with Soo-jeong to search for a suitable construction site in Sejong City.

However, the location Soo-jeong favored already had a 15-story mixed-use building on it. Myung-jun suggested looking for an empty plot in a less desirable location to set up the clan headquarters, considering the substantial price difference between buying an empty plot of land and purchasing an existing building.

Soo-jeong, however, expressed her disagreement with Myung-jun’s proposal.

“I like this place.”

“But the money…”

“Of course, I’d have to use almost all the money I have right now to buy this building, but that’s not a big problem. Money will come in easily once the clan headquarters is established, and once we start selling the equipment we made from the materials obtained in the previous gate conquest. More than that, I want to set up the headquarters in this location for symbolic reasons.”

“Symbolism?”

“Look, it’s not normal to completely destroy a newly completed building like this, especially from a practical standpoint. Moreover, it’s a situation where you have to refund all the deposits to the already occupying companies and pay penalties for contract termination.”

“That’s right. A normal person wouldn’t do that.”

“I believe that such an absurd action will convey a bigger message to people. It’s a message that the values created by humanity are breaking down, and new laws will rule the world. The act of destroying this magnificent building and erecting a new one using abilities will be a historic turning point that people will feel in their bones.”

Having heard all this, Myung-jun raised his hands and agreed with her opinion. After all, even though he would eventually have to pay for it, all the costs of purchasing the headquarters building were coming from Soo-jeong’s pocket.

As Myung-jun, there was no reason to refute her opinion about wanting to set up the headquarters in a prime location. In response, Soo-jeong, with a gleam in her eyes, handed over full authority for the purchase of the building to the real estate agent, who was clearly taken aback by the unexpectedly large number of properties.

“I don’t care about the money. Please purchase the building as soon as possible and evacuate the occupying companies.”

“But it won’t be easy, as the building has just been completed and there is still time left on the lease.”

“If you want, I can arrange for you to occupy a better building with more space. I’ll find a good location on the first floor of another building for the company on the second floor, and I’ll even cover all the previous costs. I’ll also offer additional fees if you move quickly.”

“So, are you in a hurry because you have a deadline?”

“If you complete everything within two weeks, I’ll double the commission.”

“Well, even so, evicting companies that have already signed contracts and moved in is something that can be done with money…”

“Triple it.”

“I will do my best to achieve the goal, even if it means risking my life.”

“That’s a response I like. Your success fee has just quadrupled.”

The real estate agent secretly rejoiced. When two seemingly irrational individuals suddenly appeared and talked about buying an existing building just because they liked the land and planned to demolish it, he had initially thought they were crazy. However, upon closer consideration, the opportunity to earn a substantial sum of money had presented itself.

Moreover, although they claimed it was a difficult task, it wasn’t that challenging. Due to the overheated speculative boom in Sejong City from the beginning, there were plenty of vacant spaces suitable for occupancy.

The real estate agent bowed 90 degrees and greeted the two as they left everything in his hands and stepped outside. He immediately began leveraging all his contacts.

“Hello? Oh, it’s me! Can you help me with something right now? It’s regarding a building transaction. Could you provide a list of property owners who hold the rights to the building I sent you on KakaoTalk?”

***

Sometimes, excessive wealth empowers a person beyond their limits. The 4x success fee proposed by Soo-jeong was enough to unleash such power, and the real estate agent in charge managed to successfully close the deal by going beyond his usual business capabilities.

Thanks to that, Soo-jeong was able to obtain the property rights of the desired building not in 2 weeks but in just 10 days.

During those 10 days, after completing the clan’s corporate registration, Soo-jeong’s next move was to leak information to major media outlets across the country that the Liberal Clan planned to build their headquarters in the heart of Sejong City using their abilities.

Along with relevant information, Soo-jeong attached a video clip of SCV, resembling something out of a game, to the broadcasters, who immediately broadcasted the content through major news and special programs nationwide.

As a result, in the midst of the already exploding interest in news about gates, monsters, and Awakeners, the information provided by Soo-jeong garnered explosive attention.

[World’s first private-owned Awakener corporation, ‘Liberal Clan’, plans to construct headquarters in Sejong City.]

[Liberal Clan has already completed the purchase of an existing building on the planned site and announces its intention to dismantle and rebuild the building using abilities.]

[Why is the Liberal Clan planning to destroy a perfectly fine building? What essential functions are required for the Awakener clan headquarters?]

Various news articles flooded in, and within those 10 days, Ho Chang and Byung-tae, who had completed the clan’s corporate registration, were able to see an immense crowd gathered in one place as they joined Myung-jun.

From reporters to YouTubers, government-assigned experts to civilians who had simply come to watch, all sorts of people crowded in front of the building. However, unlike the fervent energy emanating from the gathered crowd, not a single person approached the two of them with questions. Ho Chang only understood the reason when he finally approached them after pushing through the crowd.

Six turrets summoned by Myung-jun, like guards, had formed a circle around the two, protecting them. When Ho Chang ran toward them with a joyful expression, he raised both hands to appeal to the turrets.

But as the turrets turned their heads back to their original direction and started patrolling the surroundings, Ho Chang realized the reason for their actions.

Ho Chang, who had witnessed the fearlessness of those turrets during their gate conquests, walked towards the direction where Myung-jun was. He couldn’t help but feel cold sweat on his back.

Then, he turned to Soo-jeong, who was standing beside him, and said,

“Miss Soo-jeong, your outfit today is incredibly glamorous, isn’t it?”

“Glamorous? I thought I looked neat.”

Soo-jeong, in her clean-cut business suit that gave off a corporate secretary vibe, stood beside Myung-jun with a tablet tucked against her chest. On the other hand, Myung-jun was dressed like a young CEO on Wall Street, standing by her side.

Seeing the two of them in matching suits like a couple, Ho Chang glanced at his own attire and commented to Soo-jeong,

“Well, Miss Soo-jeong, even if you turned a beggar’s outfit inside out, I think you’d still shine gloriously. Your outfit looks clean. Don’t you have one for me?”

“I put it in the personal room. Didn’t you check your messages?”

Realizing that the term “personal room” referred to the space within Myung-jun’s subspace, Ho Chang apologized to them and returned to the subspace.

The sudden appearance of a burly man with a beam of light, who vanished in front of their eyes as he entered, excited the crowd with high expectations for the upcoming “superpower” event.

“Oh! He disappeared!?”

“What his name?!”

“The person who just disappeared along with the light pillar is Mr. Lee Ho Chang, the representative of Ho Chang Company, a security firm known for his affiliation with Liberal Clan, established by Cha Myung-jun!”

While excited journalists were grabbing microphones and sharing their stories, Ho Chang and Byung-tae, who had disappeared into the subspace, reappeared in front of the building in black suits.

Their teleportation-like appearance, transforming from tracksuit-like attire to suits, felt like watching a magic show.

“Wow!!”

“Is this real superpower?!”

“Are those people awakener too?”

With immense attention pouring towards them, Byung-tae waved to the audience as if he were a celebrity, enjoying the moment.

However, Soo-jeong, who had been waiting for them, stopped Byung-tae’s actions and said,

“Don’t wave your hands to them just yet. The real show is about to begin.”

“Oh, then can we see the construction robot that you said you’ve just created this time?”

Soo-jeong, with a quizzical expression, responded with a small smile, “That’s part two. For now, we need to start with a fireworks display.”

“Fireworks?”

“There are obstacles in the area where we want to build the building, so we have to ‘break’ that first, don’t we?”

Soo-jeong pointed in a direction where a massive 15-story building made of steel and concrete was towering above them.

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