Episode 267
What James Reed was talking about was the case of the United States. Literally an expensive lesson learned in the United States during the time of monster upheaval.
After the emergence of monsters, countries with huge territories had to make a choice.
So far, they had to defend the territory they had held as myeons, and they had to actually let go of places that were good for monsters to live in, such as rivers, lakes, mountains, forests, swamps, and deserts.
As a result, Saudi Arabia lost more than 90% of its territory. In terms of selection and concentration, it is natural, but the control over cities scattered across a huge territory weakened, causing the influence of the Awakened to increase.
In particular, the United States, which was divided into East and West, also had to pay a high price.
In the early days, before the hearts of monsters were used as a full-fledged energy source, oil was necessary for human survival.
And America, the most blessed land on earth, was a place that was self-sufficient in all of this.
“The government had no choice but to join hands with those who knowingly committed many crimes! “When I think about it now, it was the worst decision, but at the time, it was an inevitable choice.”
It was not just a phenomenon that occurred in the United States. He said this happens in all countries where central government control is weakened, and that South Korea will be no exception.
I definitely think I know what you mean.
“Why are you pointing that out?”
“Because Junho hates villains!”
“Is that the end?”
“I wanted to help Junho. I was scared of how they would react later if they found out the villain was involved. “If I tell you, you will find a way, right?”
That’s honest. I also knew that James Reed was saying this out of kindness, not because he had another agenda.
There is a brain that can understand that much.
“What are you going to do?”
“We’ll have to watch.”
“really? “Is that the end?”
“Then did you think I would just run over and kill them all?”
If you thought I was the head breaker of the past, you were wrong. Now I know how to distinguish between those who should be killed and those who are not.
Of course, if it’s a villain, everyone has to go.
“If you change your mind, you’re not a villain.”
“….”
“Why?”
“I didn’t know those words would come out of Joo Jun-ho’s mouth.”
Right now, I am a former villain who has changed his mind, so why are you saying this? I don’t act mean-spirited even to villains who are villains, but who reflect on their past and try to live a good life.
It’s just that the standard for being nice is a bit high.
[Are you saying you’re being nice now?]
Isn’t this okay?
[Not at all!]
First of all, I learned that Yongyong has high standards.
Either way, people in the world recognize me.
[Who on earth is admitting this?]
Most humans other than you.
[No!]
I pretended not to hear Yongyong’s empty cry and looked at the brat.
“Don’t worry, I won’t kill innocent people.”
“Why did you make me nervous for no reason!”
“Why are you nervous?”
“I thought Junho would say he would kill them all right away. “It would be heartbreaking if a massacre were committed because of me.”
“…It would be beneficial to know how you view me before that.”
“Hi!”
The guy who met my eyes got scared. He said that’s how he saw me, but I didn’t think he would change his perception. He’s that kind of guy anyway.
Instead, I need to give him some relief so he can come to his senses.
“Come to the training room. “Let’s check your skills.”
“Oh no. “I’m a superhuman belonging to the United States?”
“So you’re turning down the opportunity to become stronger?”
“If I see you acting now, I think you’ll get angry at me…”
Anyway, I took the brat and went into the training room. Soon, the boy’s screams began to echo sweetly.
* * *
There was someone close by to ask about the information that Zolaman had given. The head of the National Defense Bureau, who was once the core of the Awakened organization, is next to me.
I asked to talk to Jung Joo-ho, who had a happy expression on his face when he was being bullied.
“It’s the same law wherever people live. “The frequency is especially severe in fat.”
Joo-ho Jeong obediently agreed. It is said that as local autonomy was unintentionally realized due to monsters, the local area became a paradise for awakened people where the line between public officials and villains was blurred.
If you’re an ambiguous guy, you’re actually committing a crime.
Shouldn’t we just remove them all? Why were you just watching?
As if he had read my thoughts, Jung Joo-ho took the initiative to object.
“If you’re thinking of taking care of all of those guys, I want to stop you. “It’s realistically impossible.”
“Why is it impossible?”
“Then local security will collapse.”
Joo-ho Jeong says they are a necessary evil. After the emergence of monsters, city-stateization was a global phenomenon.
Everyone wanted to be within the city walls, and the first to flock to the city were young people. As a result, it is said that in marginalized regions, public order has reached a point where public order cannot be maintained without people whose boundaries are unclear as to whether they are public servant hunters or villains.
“….”
“Do you still want to deal with it?”
“I think it’s greatly exaggerated.”
“Well, that’s true.”
Jung Joo-ho also readily admitted it. However, he said it is true that the current situation is in the right balance.
“Are you planning on getting rid of it?”
“If you’re not a villain, I’ll leave you alone. “Everyone has a past.”
I also know that among the innumerable openings in the world, my opening is the largest.
I am also fortunate to be able to completely shake off that past.
“I heard those guys are involved in the oil business.”
“Ah, that’s how it gets entangled again. But it is also an unavoidable part of running a business. “This is a pain in the ass.”
James Reed and Jung Joo-ho are the same. I could tell that they regarded it as a kind of necessary evil.
Can’t I think like that too?
Of course, thinking is possible.
However, whether you could just look at the villain and ignore it was a separate issue.
It’s something I can’t ignore that catches my eye.
“It reminds me of information I saw when I was at the National Security Agency.”
“what?”
“When villains are arrested, the rate of reformation is overwhelmingly high in rural areas.”
This was possible not because I really came to my senses, but because I was looked at and tolerated to a certain extent.
The reason I didn’t pay attention to the statistics at the time was because I focused more on arresting villains than reforming them, and because the guys who were arrested by me were so damaged that they could never do villainous things again.
I thought the rate of reforming villains in the metropolitan area was low because of me.
Now I realize that information that I only glanced at at first glance actually plays an important role.
“Do not worry. Because I don’t want to handle everything. “After seeing it, I will decide what to do.”
“Is that scarier?”
Jung Joo-ho was disgusted and tried to stay away from me, but my mind was full of thoughts about what to do with them.
I guess I’ll have to see it in person too.
* * *
The place I was planning to go was Gunsan. During the Awakened Brainwashing incident, Kang Woo-tae tried to escape to China through Gunsan, and it was scheduled to become a strategic point when oil came in from Saudi Arabia in the future.
Busan is one of them, but it does not meet the requirements because it is a large city with strong government influence.
So the chosen location was Gunsan. This is also a fairly large city, but the rate of villain indoctrination is high and there are quite a number of awakened people with ambiguous boundaries.
However, before heading to Gunsan, I decided to change my style.
In the past, people often recognized my name but not my face, but now they often recognize my face.
Since my purpose was to observe from the side, I didn’t want them to recognize me and not be able to see my natural side.
“How do I do it?”
Should I come clean and seek counseling?
It seems that if you just leave it to me, I can transform your image properly.
But since it’s just a light walk, I don’t want to bother you with this.
Usually, I combed my hair and tried to walk around as neatly as possible due to Jin Se-jeong’s sanctification. So, I favored functional suits that allowed for easy movement and formality. However, since this became a symbol of me, there was a high probability that my identity would be discovered.
Yongyong said to me while I was thinking.
[Lower your bangs and wear glasses.]
Since there was nothing to lose, Yongyong lowered his hair and put on his glasses, and his image changed.
Well, it’s a bit strange for me to say this to myself, but it seems like you have a gentle attitude, like you wouldn’t be able to kill a single person?
[If I wear a white T-shirt and jeans, people won’t recognize me.]
I followed Yongyong’s words and created an image that was quite different from my usual self.
Are you the type of person who can meet more than 10 people in 10 minutes when you go downtown?
Yongyong, since when did you have this kind of fashion sense?
The bridge of his nose rose to the sky at my admiration.
[Don’t ignore Shinsoo’s keen eye for attention! If I put my mind to it, something like this is possible!]
As I was watching him show off, I felt like I was complimenting him for nothing, but I wondered if it was the first time he had seen me just because he changed his styling as Yongyong said.
He looks like an ordinary job seeker rather than an awakened person.
This is fine.
“Then let’s go.”
I immediately headed to Gunsan. I thought about taking the dog with me, but this time I thought it would be best to completely hide my identity, so I went alone.
From what I heard from Kim Yun-gi, I heard that Gunsan and Busan are being considered as major bases in Gunsan and that bases will be expanded depending on the amount of imports.
Perhaps because their home was chosen, the atmosphere in Gunsan was lively. There was a liveliness that I had never seen before. However, the closer I entered the construction site, the more I felt the atmosphere becoming heavier.
There’s something.
[But.]
“Huh?”
[If you’re going to look at it like this, isn’t the disguise meaningless?]
“Ah, this?”
I entered the center of Gunsan and was inspecting the construction site from a far away place with few people, rather than being crowded around.
Yongyong says if he’s going to do this, why did he disguise himself?
That’s true, but one person knows and the other doesn’t.
Even if you disguise yourself like this, you will attract attention as a stranger in the city. I’m trying to quietly look into it, but entering boldly would be a bad choice.
[Then why did you disguise yourself?]
Even if you enter the city when you have time, you don’t want to be discovered, but Yongyong doesn’t seem to like even that.
There is no point in sticking around here.
“Let’s just do what feels right.”
[Wow…]
Yongyong showed signs of displeasure, but I didn’t care and quietly observed the scene.
The place I paid attention to is a place called ‘Guan Construction’, which is in charge of construction in Gunsan.
Joo-ho Jeong chose this place as a place for people who are ambiguous between villains and awakened people, and when we inquired with the External Cooperation Management Bureau, we received an answer that several people with a history of being villains in the past were affiliated with it. In other words, it is ambiguous.
The ambiguity here means that he is in fact no different from a villain disguised as a legitimate person, but I chose to look at it first.
I quickly looked for an opportunity to find out.
When men in black suits appeared at the noisy construction site, they were enveloped in cold silence. The guys who were walking around the area as if it were their own house started lining up the workers and started using violence.
Is it really like that? I just watched quietly from afar. The guys who had been trying to discipline the workers got into their cars and drove away, arriving at a deserted beach.
It was so dark that it was difficult to see the surroundings.
They opened the trunk, took out the sack, put it in a drum they had prepared in advance, and dropped the drum into the sea.
[No life reaction.]
Seeing as there was no life reaction from the beginning, it means that the body was disposed of.
The guys who dropped five drums into the sea got back into the car and started moving.
Hiding in the dark, I followed them. The place we arrived at was a prefabricated building a little far from downtown.
I chose to infiltrate the place because it felt suspicious just by looking at it.
[There’s a strange smell?]
“What smell?”
[I can smell what you humans call drugs.]
…They do all kinds of things.
When I looked inside, I could see that this was a gambling place.
Even though he commits violence against civilians, disposes of corpses, uses drugs, and gambles under the guise of legal action, he is not a villain?
Of course, if you claim it is legal, it will be recognized as a legal place. But just because the law recognizes it, is there any reason why those guys aren’t villains? If human trafficking is added to this, all the crimes committed by villains exist.
I was convinced they were villains.
[Even if it’s some deviation?]
That’s a personal opinion. I also think he’s a villain based on my subjective judgment.
[Isn’t it a problem?]
What is the problem?
What matters is not whether you are within the bounds of the law, but what you do.
There’s no way these legitimate guys would secretly dispose of a villain’s body like that.
After gaining confidence, I jumped into the gambling hall without hiding anymore.
“Who are you…!”
Quack!
I twisted the neck of the villain who was asking.
Not long ago, people praised themselves for listening to wills and taking action, but that also discriminates against people.
For a villain, even a will is a luxury.
If you use the few seconds they spend talking, you can take out more villains than just one person.
There was no need to hide his identity, so he took off his glasses, let down the white t-shirt that was constricting his neck, looked around, and said.
“If you want to live, break both your arms and slam your face on the floor.”