Ch.154153. The Refugee Problem (2)

In reality, while Seo Un-jae had kindly described them as migrants or refugees due to his good nature, a closer look revealed that the term “refugee” alone couldn’t accurately capture the full picture.

Most people would think of refugees as those who, facing the apocalypse, were forced from their homes and wandered without destination.

But by now, everyone should know better.

‘After nearly a year, these so-called refugees are hardly weak or helpless.’

Many assumed refugees were powerless people wandering without shelter, but in this apocalyptic world, refugees were more like powerful gangs.

After all, how could one label Awakened individuals who moved from place to place for survival as mere refugees?

While truly powerless refugees certainly existed, they were extremely rare. The harsh reality was that weaker refugees often fell prey to stronger ones.

‘Many failed to seize power and were purged by the current authorities.’

By now, most cities had either developed proper ruling factions or established absolute single-party systems like the Balhut Cult or the Cult of Immortality.

What was the first priority for those who controlled a city?

Was it revitalizing city functions and producing supplies for survival?

No, the priority was eliminating opposition, monopolizing remaining resources, controlling their distribution, and consolidating power.

The fastest way to achieve this was purging anyone who opposed them.

‘Those who couldn’t accept this and lost are exactly the refugees I’m talking about.’

Naturally, those who refused to join the dominant city factions often resisted their tyranny, and the ability to resist meant they too were powerful Awakened.

“Are you saying refugees are the problem?”

“Yes. Criminal organizations and spies from other factions disguise themselves as refugees to infiltrate our territory. Of course, there might be genuinely powerless refugees among them.”

Certainly, there were people who became genuinely helpless refugees due to the tyranny of city rulers.

Seo Un-jae couldn’t deny this, and countless people risked their lives to reach the Balhut Cult territory for survival.

However, he had a specific reason for his negative assessment of refugees.

“But such powerless refugees often don’t even reach our territory before being attacked by other refugees who steal their supplies or, worse, enslave them or sell them into human trafficking.”

“…Isn’t that an extreme view?”

Seo Un-jae knew that powerless refugees were often attacked by stronger ones and turned into slaves or victims of human trafficking.

Seol-hwa carefully objected that this might be too extreme a view, but…

“Lady Seol-hwa, the apocalypse is approaching its first anniversary. It’s already difficult to find ordinary people wandering outside. Even our Balhut Cult is creating new Awakened through our project. The number of ordinary people is steadily decreasing.”

“I see…”

With the apocalypse approaching its first anniversary, everyone understood that becoming Awakened improved survival chances, and people would try to hunt zombies to achieve awakening.

Leaving cities or villages to become refugees meant wandering lawless territories, constantly threatened by monsters, zombies, and even other humans.

So the common trait among these refugees was:

“They’ve tasted blood. They act before they speak.”

“That just makes them raiders.”

“Yes. They’re raiders who’ve become wandering refugees. When necessary, they reveal their true nature as raiders, and when needed, they hide it and pretend to be vulnerable refugees. They’ve become troublesome entities.”

They had all tasted blood—meaning they could fight and preferred taking resources by force rather than through dialogue, making them essentially no different from the raiders everyone was familiar with.

Raiders would infiltrate cities, extort powerless citizens, and plunder resources.

Despite military efforts to capture and eliminate them, raiders seemed to be replenished from somewhere and were never completely eradicated.

“They demand South Korean law from the Balhut Cult, but if necessary, they’re ready to break those same laws under the pretense of civil resistance rights—they’re complete hypocrites.”

What was most frightening was how they exploited the remaining framework of South Korea that Kim Su-ho had somehow preserved, claiming their rights through “civil resistance” while being ready to break those same laws.

This blatant hypocrisy made Baek Seol-hwa’s expression gradually harden.

“That’s why I’m concerned about how to handle them.”

It was extremely troublesome.

Just as the raiders had military power, Pohang had its own division and forces protecting the Dragon Priestess, albeit in a formal capacity.

These forces couldn’t remain idle, and if deployed, they could quickly defeat the raiders—or rather, refugees—wandering the Korean peninsula.

However, Seo Un-jae couldn’t bring himself to order their elimination, which left him deeply troubled.

After all, not all of them had chosen to become refugees or raiders willingly—wasn’t the apocalypse itself the true culprit?

“Is there a way to peacefully settle these refugees?”

“It’s possible. We could educate and rehabilitate them, showing them they can survive without raiding. But it would require significant money and time… and there’s also the issue of public opinion among existing Pohang residents.”

After some consideration, Seol-hwa asked if there was a way to peacefully settle the refugees.

Seo Un-jae, as if he’d been waiting for this question, advised that they could be educated and rehabilitated while convincing them this place was safe.

The downside was potential negative public opinion in Pohang, plus the significant money and time required.

In truth, with the enormous profits from trade with America, Pohang had no problem with the necessary funds, and time could be allocated if needed.

“Even now, residents are highly dissatisfied with incidents caused by refugees. If we announce benefits for refugees, public support might shift away from us.”

“This is difficult.”

The problem was public opinion in Pohang.

Refugees were already disrupting public safety, and consequently, public sentiment toward them was growing increasingly hostile.

In such a situation, thoughtlessly announcing benefits for refugees might undermine the trust they had built so far.

“It’s difficult. We can’t monitor the entire border. We can’t build a wall, and even if we could, it would require enormous resources and manpower.”

“It seems this problem can’t be solved just by restoring public safety.”

“Correct. Even if we restore public safety, that’s only a temporary measure. It can’t be a fundamental solution.”

So this situation couldn’t be resolved merely by restoring public safety.

A complete solution required addressing the continuous influx of refugees.

‘The easiest method is deportation. Immediately deport refugees who cause problems. But that could affect our already low reputation, and the headquarters might object.’

Seo Un-jae considered deportation.

If the refugees followed the Balhut Cult’s administrative orders, the matter could end without conflict, but would they actually listen?

More likely, they would mock or underestimate the orders and reveal their true nature.

‘Since I can’t resolve this at my level, I reported it to Lady Seol-hwa, the Dragon Priestess. But honestly, I can’t expect much.’

Moreover, as Seol-hwa’s representative, Seo Un-jae couldn’t order their deportation on his own authority—only Seol-hwa held that power. Just as Seo Un-jae was about to suggest deportation to the Dragon Priestess…

“Three chances.”

“Pardon?”

“Let’s give them three chances. Beyond that, they’re out. We’ll use force.”

Seol-hwa declared she would give the refugees exactly three chances.

This wasn’t an act of mercy but rather establishing justification. Once they exhausted all three chances, she would authorize the use of force.

In other words, she would eliminate them all once she had proper justification. The Balhut Cult had powerful magical weapons capable of subduing them in one strike.

“They say even Buddha’s face turns after three times. I’ll be patient three times too. After that, I’ll respond harshly. Of course, murder or violent crimes mean immediate expulsion.”

“Are… are you sure about this?”

“Pohang residents are suffering greatly from the refugee problem. And surely some refugees genuinely want to settle in Pohang. So we’ll keep those people and expel or suppress the rest.”

The problem was that this forceful suppression could further damage the Balhut Cult’s reputation.

The cult, which had already experienced many difficulties due to its reputation, would find it troublesome to resort to harsh measures at the cost of further reputation damage.

Seo Un-jae, seemingly mindful of this, asked if she was really sure about this approach, but Seol-hwa firmly declared her intention to respond harshly.

“We could also choose to embrace them through policies and support.”

“Do we have favorable public opinion or administrative capacity for that?”

“We have neither. Public opinion has no sympathy for them anymore. We’re just anxious about our reputation falling.”

Of course not.

If they had such resources, Seo Un-jae wouldn’t have been struggling alone before consulting Seol-hwa about what to do.

“I know a harsh response seems cruel. Expelled refugees might make extreme choices. But we’ll warn them in advance, and if they ignore our warnings and waste all their chances, they’ll have committed an undeniable crime. If necessary, I’ll handle it personally.”

“You’re quite resolute.”

“Well, if they’ve been warned and still act out, they didn’t come to respect Pohang—they came to mock it.”

It was a firm declaration that she was willing to shed blood if necessary.

This was a decision that could easily be criticized as a harsh policy, but Seol-hwa spoke with eyes full of hatred.

“So they’re no different from raiders coming to plunder Pohang. And I really hate raiders. If I see a raider before me, I’d want to deal with them immediately.”

‘Ah.’

Come to think of it, Seol-hwa herself had suffered greatly at the hands of raiders in the past.

Although this led to her contract with Bahamut, she clearly hadn’t forgotten the days of suffering under raiders, as her intense hatred toward them was now becoming evident.

Moreover, since the raiders who tormented her had become law-abiding citizens after Bahamut’s descent, Seol-hwa had been unable to take revenge and had to let it go.

Now she had a chance to resolve her grudge against raiders.

Even if this policy contained Seol-hwa’s personal vendetta, considering the justification, no one would criticize her or think badly of her. Instead, they would praise her as a hero for her swift decision and support her choice.

‘She must harbor deep resentment. After all, before becoming the Dragon Priestess, she was essentially used as a magic wand by raiders.’

Only Seo Un-jae noticed Seol-hwa’s true feelings, but he had no intention of pointing it out or stopping her.

Although Seol-hwa had abandoned thoughts of revenge when the raiders who tormented her denied their past and became ordinary citizens, from an objective perspective, what she experienced was so cruel that people would naturally ask why she hadn’t taken revenge.

Knowing some of this truth, Seo Un-jae realized this policy stemmed from her desire for revenge against raiders and her intention to resolve the resentment within her. However…

‘Most of them are probably human garbage anyway. And she’s a person of sound judgment.’

After all, the targets of Seol-hwa’s revenge were clearly human garbage—raiders—and he believed she wouldn’t use violence or her immense power against genuinely powerless refugees.

It was a classic case of being harsh to the strong and gentle to the weak. As Seo Un-jae expected…

“But this is too significant for me to decide alone. I’ll consult with Cabinet Prime Minister Hwang Geun-chul first before making a decision.”

Seol-hwa proposed the policy but didn’t prioritize personal revenge. She announced she would inform Prime Minister Hwang Geun-chul at headquarters and consult with him personally.

“As you command.”

As her follower, Seo Un-jae would simply prepare to make Seol-hwa’s thoughts a reality.