54. Corporate Destruction (4)

After entrusting the Glasses Trio with stabilizing HP Bio’s headquarters, I ordered my subordinates to guard this place.

It’s not like bringing them along would help much anyway-our group dynamics don’t really allow for mutual support. It’s better for me to move around alone and kill freely.

‘They were always meant to be worker bees for consolidating my foundation…’

Leaving them behind should be fine. They’re still too weak to drag around-if they die pointlessly while following me, it’ll just be annoying.

‘Yeah, this is the right call.’

Since we’ve decided to make the HP Bio headquarters our base, the original administrators here can handle management. I’ve also left some of my subordinates behind as labor, so they’ll make good use of them.

Moreover, placing Jin Seon-mi on the rooftop will give us the ultimate sniper. She can instantly take lives by sniping distant targets with her Exorcism Method.

‘I should have her read the Book of Immortality later.’

Killing someone with the Exorcism Method and immediately gaining another life-that’d be a jackpot.

‘Now, where should I go next? Should I head to Pax first?’

I received a map earlier. I heard Pax Company’s headquarters is in Seocho-gu.

‘No, Pax Company has too many people.’

My current goal is to gather humans. Now that I can use them as resources, leaving them to be slaughtered by monsters would be a huge waste.

Capturing just three Awakened would net me 300 points-how could I let that slip away?

Especially since each one is worth an extra life. Ever since obtaining this insane ability, hunting humans has become an obvious objective.

‘Let’s start by crushing the Blue Cross Group-they operate in small elite units. I’ll turn them into my pawns and use them to strike Pax.’

That sounds like a good plan.

After torturing and training all the Blue Cross members, I’ll deploy them to attack Pax.

That way, I can suppress them and hunt humans much faster than if I were to cause chaos alone.

‘Then…’

Let’s go find the Blue Cross Group. Ah, but first, I should accept some quests.

I currently have three quests to accept. Since I’ve already completed all previous ones, I just need to take on three more.

[Quest: Hunt 1 Black Dragon (0/1)]
[Reward: 10,000P, Book of Spatial Domination – Basic]

[Quest: Hunt 10 Forest Keepers (0/10)]
[Reward: 10,000P, 1 Immortality Herb]

[Quest: Hunt 1 Deep One Priest (0/1)]
[Reward: 10,000P, Ring of the Sea God]

“Wow.”

This time, all the quests were related to hunting. Seems like someone really wants things dead.

‘And I don’t even know where any of these things are.’

Suddenly, I’m supposed to find and kill a dragon, some forest spirits, and a Deep One-right in the middle of Seoul, no less.

“Ah.”

Then it hit me-I have a rough idea where the Black Dragon might be.

‘Where those bugs built their nest.’

While scavenging for food supplies last time, I saw a massive shockwave followed by a pillar of fire piercing the sky.

Back then, I was too terrified to investigate and ran away-but maybe that thing was the Black Dragon.

‘I’ll check that area again later. As for the Forest Keepers, they’ll probably cross over from the spirit realm, so I’ll run into them eventually.’

And the Deep One Priest-if I wander near the coast, I should be able to find one, right? They don’t seem to give quests that take too long, so heading toward Incheon might provide some answers.

‘Come to think of it, this covers land, sea, and air.’

Now that I think about it, it makes sense. The dragon is the sky, the forest spirits are the land, and the Deep One Priest is the sea.

‘Well, does it even matter?’

I doubt the quests have any deeper meaning. Completing all three gives a whopping 10,000 points, so I’ll just hunt diligently.

“Anyway…”

I need to crush the Blue Cross Group first and take over Seoul, so I’d better move quickly.

******

The Blue Cross Group prioritizes public safety above all else.

But now that the government has collapsed and the world has plunged into chaos, the Blue Cross Group is on the verge of splitting in two.

Had the leaders of the hardliners and moderates not died suddenly, they would have already fractured.

Regardless, the Blue Cross Group remains unstable. Without a proper leader, defections are increasing.

No matter how strong their pride, survival always comes first.

“So, are you really going through with this?”

The last remaining elder of the Blue Cross Group questioned the member before him.

In response, S-rank Hunter Lee Hyeong-u nodded.

“Osung Group and Pax are already rescuing people. Our most urgent issue isn’t rescue operations-there are already groups with more manpower specialized in that.”

“Even so, shouldn’t we remember our primary objective?”

“The primary objective-to ensure public safety. I haven’t forgotten. I’m just saying we need to focus our role more narrowly.”

“…”

“As I explained earlier, Osung and Pax Company’s Hunters are already guiding people to bunkers and shelters. As a small elite force, we should prioritize hunting the vicious villains and monsters roaming Seoul.”

“Sigh. So that’s your opinion, Hyeong-u.”

The elder nodded.

His body was frail, and he was nearing retirement.

Amidst this chaotic time, too many comrades had died or deserted. Even he wanted to leave.

“But still…”

Lee Hyeong-u argued that with their dwindling numbers, they couldn’t keep focusing solely on rescue missions.

With their reduced forces, they needed to act as an elite unit and eliminate those threatening public safety.

The elder knew this too. But he was afraid.

“So, you’re saying we should go after the dragon nesting in Guro-gu right now? Even with our numbers, hunting a dragon is…”

“We can do it. We obtained that thing the other day, remember?”

Lee Hyeong-u pulled out the item they had acquired.

“I’ll take it.”

What he held was a crimson orb.

[Refined Haetae’s Core]

Consuming it grants immunity to fire and allows the user to wield various techniques of the mythical beast Haetae, including Skywalking.

“Even if it grants fire immunity…”

A dragon’s breath is on another level. The flames unleashed by a dragon transcend physical phenomena, acting as a form of conceptual law.

“You will die. Without a doubt.”

The elder was terrified of that.

As mentioned earlier, the elder was too old to continue fighting.

He was only serving as the acting chairman of the Blue Cross Group because the position had been left vacant-solely due to his seniority.

“I won’t die.”

Lee Hyeong-u was confident.

All his skills were defensive. Among the Blue Cross survivors, he was the toughest.

He had always been the vanguard in battle, raising his shield against the strongest foes.

Known as the Giant Slayer, he aimed to add “Dragon Slayer” to his titles by hunting the Black Dragon in Guro-gu.

Of course, it wasn’t just for glory.

‘Dragons expand their territory.’

That was the problem.

Dragons are creatures that dominate monsters in their vicinity. They’re territorial beings that claim all life entering their domain.

Eventually, it would expand its range until all of Seoul became its hunting ground.

For now, it’s lying low, injured and protected by demonic insects-but who knows when it might awaken and rampage.

‘And Dongjak-gu is another issue.’

Demons have settled there. They’ll soon summon a Demon King or high-ranking fiends. Once named demons appear, true chaos will erupt.

‘Kill the dragon, obtain its heart. Then maximize my demon resistance and strike the demons.’

He intended to become a human fortress-focusing entirely on defense while his comrades fought.

For that, he needed the dragon’s heart. It would drastically increase his mana and grant resistances, especially against demons.

With high demon resistance, he could withstand curses and magic-even if they summoned a Demon King.

“If you die… we’re finished.”

“I know. I won’t die. Trust me.”

“Sigh… Very well. I suppo-“

Just as the elder was about to approve Lee Hyeong-u’s plan-

BOOM-!!!!

The entrance to the Blue Cross headquarters exploded.

“W-what?!”

“Something’s breached us!”

Lee Hyeong-u immediately grabbed his shield with an attached shotgun and rushed downstairs, followed by the elder, who had healing skills.

“What’s happening?!”

“Gah!!! Captain!!!!”

The first floor was a mess.

Blue Cross Hunters who hadn’t donned their power suits lay strewn across the ground, while an unidentified woman was effortlessly dismantling three fully suited Hunters.

“Who the hell is she…?”

The woman, clad in strange equipment, smirked at Lee Hyeong-u and nodded.

“Level 45. So you’re the boss here.”

Using Level Insight to assess him, Elena knocked out the three Hunters with a Stun Fist and took a stance.

“I’ll beat you just enough so you don’t die.”

“You fucking bitch… She’s a villain!!! Everyone, weapons up!!!! The enemy of all has appeared!!!!”

Lee Hyeong-u activated his skill, “Declaration of Heresy.”

At his voice, the fallen Blue Cross Hunters began rising again.

“The hell… Zombies?”

A cold sweat trickled down Elena’s back.