Ch.156155. Dragon God Association (2)

However, they had no time to escape from reality.

Baek Seol-hwa had already visited the Prime Minister’s residence to address the refugee problem, and Hwang Geun-chul had a duty to report the solution to the Dragon Priestess.

“We’re deeply considering this matter. As Prime Minister, I’ll first report this to Yu-na and discuss it with her.”

“I hope for a swift resolution.”

Though the situation was bad and he was merely avoiding reality, Hwang Geun-chul hadn’t abandoned his duties as Prime Minister.

For now, he told Seol-hwa, who had visited the residence, that they were still reviewing the situation. Since no solution had been determined yet, he said he would consult with Yu-na before finding a resolution.

Baek Seol-hwa had come all the way to the Prime Minister’s residence only to leave empty-handed, but the moment the name of Choi Yu-na, the leader of the Balhut Cult, was mentioned, she trusted that name and departed.

Having bought some time, Prime Minister Hwang Geun-chul used his authority to convene the cabinet ministers, inform them of the situation, and deeply consider how to resolve this crisis.

“To solve the refugee problem, we need to establish a new organization.”

Hwang Geun-chul went to Yu-na to report the answer that came from their deliberations.

“So… establishing a new organization just for the refugee problem? Isn’t that common?”

At first, Yu-na merely tilted her head with an indifferent expression at the Dragon God Association’s report.

In truth, while he had spoken seriously, refugees who had lost their homes and wandered in this apocalypse were not uncommon.

Refugees were the most common group in this apocalypse, and hadn’t the Balhut Cult frequently encountered these refugee groups?

There seemed no reason to establish a new organization just for this refugee problem…

“That common issue caused the collapse of the Daegu Provisional Government. The Balhut Cult needs to take this seriously.”

“…That’s frightening.”

…or so it seemed.

At the news that the neighboring area had been driven out by armed robbers, Yu-na seemed to snap to attention and listened seriously to Hwang Geun-chul’s words.

While it wasn’t a complete government, the Daegu Provisional Government, which had been expanding as an independent force in this apocalypse, had fallen to mere refugee groups.

This meant the Balhut Cult could be next, and it was reasonable to assume that whatever had collapsed the Daegu Provisional Government was now approaching Gyeongju.

“Even now, public safety in areas under the Balhut Cult’s influence is deteriorating because of these refugee groups.”

“It seems the military’s surveillance has broken down.”

“Yes. When the monster groups settled in the mountains disappeared, gaps in surveillance appeared. They seem to be exploiting these gaps to infiltrate.”

When Hwang Geun-chul mentioned that internal security was deteriorating, Yu-na stated that military surveillance had broken down.

Hwang Geun-chul agreed, reporting that when the monsters in the mountains disappeared due to the cold wave, refugees seized the opportunity to infiltrate.

“I see. Perhaps Seol-hwa or I should intervene directly.”

Above all, the fact that Yu-na showed interest in this situation and willingness to resolve it personally made Hwang Geun-chul want to thank the absent Dragon God Bahamut.

“…Could this be related to Jo Sun-do’s remnants?”

“According to our intelligence network, this isn’t related to Jo Sun-do’s remnants. This issue isn’t internal to Gyeongju, but external.”

However, Yu-na first asked if this was caused by Jo Sun-do’s remaining followers, and Hwang Geun-chul firmly denied any connection.

This problem involved refugees coming from outside, not previous looters or criminal organizations that had been established in Gyeongju.

Learning that people from outside, not internal elements, were damaging Gyeongju’s security, Yu-na thought for a moment and then:

“We’ve gotten involved in a troublesome matter. And Jeong Dong-geon, who was in charge of the military, isn’t here right now.”

“That’s the problem.”

She lamented that Jeong Dong-geon, who was in charge of the military, was absent due to the Ulsan War.

If Jeong Dong-geon had been in Gyeongju, Hwang Geun-chul would have gone to him first before approaching Yu-na, confident that Jeong Dong-geon would have handled it appropriately.

However, Jeong Dong-geon was currently tied up with the Ulsan War, and they couldn’t entrust the military without him to deal with dangerous refugee groups that had even taken over a provisional government. As a last resort, he had come to Yu-na.

“What should we do? May I present our proposed plan to Lord Bahamut?”

However, if Yu-na showed interest in this situation, Hwang Geun-chul’s choice to report this matter to Bahamut through her wasn’t bad.

“That’s not possible right now. He’s currently teaching a new contractor in England.”

“I see.”

The problem was that even Bahamut, whom the cabinet had been counting on, was currently busy.

A new contractor in England… meaning he was focusing on the Queen of England, and unfortunately, this timing meant he couldn’t be heavily involved in this situation.

“Soon, he’ll also respond to Alicia’s summoning. Alicia’s situation isn’t good right now.”

‘What on earth is happening in England?’

While it might be natural for Dragon God Bahamut to personally attend to his contractor’s safety, it was nothing short of a disaster for the Balhut Cult.

Though Hwang Geun-chul somewhat resented the unknown Dragon Priestess in faraway England:

“Then we’ll have to organize using Yu-na’s authority.”

“What do you mean?”

“Until now, the military has been handling public security, but it can’t perfectly manage both warfare and security. We’re thinking of establishing a new organization dedicated to public safety and criminal investigation… a police organization.”

“I see. I hadn’t thought of that since the military has been playing the role of police until now.”

The cabinet’s plan alone was sufficient, so Hwang Geun-chul immediately proposed establishing a police organization to handle security, and Yu-na reacted as if this was a revelation.

Until now, the Balhut Cult had been relying on the military, not a police force, for security, essentially exercising influence outside the city in the form of military rule.

‘This is also an opportunity to resolve the excessive concentration of power in the military.’

As a result, the military was handling not just military matters but also security-related issues, inevitably drawing criticism for the excessive workload concentrated on them.

Hwang Geun-chul proposed establishing a police organization to solve this problem, and Yu-na nodded in agreement, as if she hadn’t considered this before.

After all, if security was the issue, investing in a specialized organization like the police would suffice.

“We could ask former police officers to take charge of the police organization, but our jurisdiction is wide… Above all, since looters are disguising themselves as refugees, they’re likely Awakened who have tasted blood, right?”

“Yes, most of the refugees committing crimes have already tasted enough blood. That’s what makes this difficult.”

The problem was that these weren’t ordinary refugees.

Most were Awakened who had tasted blood, and having survived as looters for a long time, their levels were presumably quite high.

This meant they were well-leveled, and such looters were classified as top-tier criminals in America, even called “villains.”

“Then the police organization we’re about to form and its forces shouldn’t be ordinary people, but Awakened. It would be best to deploy Awakened born from the Awakened Project.”

Naturally, the police forces facing them also needed to be Awakened.

Fortunately, the Balhut Cult was producing higher-quality Awakened through the Awakened Project compared to ordinary awakening methods, and they were using these Awakened as forces.

Most were being deployed to the military, but if they were now deployed to the police force instead, the police organization could secure sufficient power.

“I’d like the field officers to be at least level 10.”

“I understand. Newly Awakened can’t capture high-level looters. I’ll deploy high-level Awakened from the military to the police force.”

However, newly Awakened recruits couldn’t subdue high-level Awakened, so they had no choice but to split internal military personnel and deploy them as police officers.

This would inevitably lead to a weakening of the military, but there was no alternative.

Internal security took precedence over concerns about military weakening.

“Fortunately, we’ve gained considerable leeway after the decisive victory in the Ulsan War. Jeong Dong-geon did better than expected.”

“Yes. Without that, we couldn’t have split the military to form a police organization.”

It was truly fortunate for the Balhut Cult that after the decisive victory, the front had somewhat calmed down to a stalemate.

If the Ulsan region were still a battlefield, neither Yu-na nor Hwang Geun-chul would have dared to consider deploying military forces fighting on the front lines to the police force.

“Since internal intelligence networks will be inadequate, we should also ask for cooperation from NTS agents. After all, the NTS has the most reliable internal intelligence network.”

“…Are you planning to catch just one person?”

However, considering even the involvement of the NTS… was indeed concerning.

Hwang Geun-chul asked with a relatively sincere expression if they were really planning to catch just one person.

“Since they’re disrupting public safety, I’m willing to demand even more if necessary.”

“Hmm.”

Yu-na replied that she was willing to do more if necessary.

“Above all, they’re outsiders. They don’t understand that when in Rome, one should follow Roman law.”

“That’s right.”

It was their fault for coming uninvited and committing crimes as they pleased.

Just as the saying goes “When in Rome, do as the Romans do,” they wanted to shout that those who come to the Balhut Cult should follow the cult’s laws.

“Of course, considering the reality of the apocalypse, they might argue they had no other choice. Still, I’ll ensure they’re properly punished through trial.”

“Are you planning to declare severe punishment?”

“Yes. While establishing the police, let’s also organize a special police force specifically to take down such serious criminals.”

She even proposed a special police force to properly restore public order.

This meant declaring a policy of severe punishment to take down all resisting looters, which would have raised human rights concerns before the apocalypse, but:

“Then the police chief who will command all police needs to be an Awakened who’s not just field-capable but also administratively competent. We need an Awakened who can handle administrative work and has broken through at least level 15.”

Hwang Geun-chul didn’t point that out, and instead, as if supporting Yu-na’s statement, advised that the representative of the police should be a strong Awakened.

“Do you have anyone to recommend?”

“Recommendation…”

‘That’s difficult. Most Awakened who have surpassed level 15 are already executives in some organization.’

The problem was that there weren’t many suitable candidates to recommend for the special police force.

At that level, they were already executive-level personnel who had secured positions, and Awakened without positions were rare.

Even if they reached level 15, those who hadn’t secured high positions were usually identified as having personality issues or being difficult for the cult to control, so Hwang Geun-chul had to carefully recommend talent avoiding such problematic individuals.

And after careful consideration, the person he recommended was:

“How about giving the position of police chief to Han Seong-geun?”

It was Han Seong-geun, who had declared his intention to join after the Ulsan War, not an internal cult member.

Though he was essentially an outsider, Hwang Geun-chul recommended Han Seong-geun with confidence.

“Han Seong-geun?”

“Yes. He recently expressed his intention to remain with the Balhut Cult. His level has long surpassed 15, and he served as deputy commander in the Ulsan War after Jeong Dong-geon, so no one can doubt his leadership.”

“True. He was a leader of a region. We should give him appropriate treatment.”

Moreover, his leadership had already been recognized by Jeong Dong-geon, making him a suitable candidate for the position of police chief.

He could handle administration, provide leadership, and above all, his level had surpassed 15.

There wasn’t a single deficiency, and he could be described as an all-around talent.

“Then I’ll recall Han Seong-geun to headquarters and appoint him as police chief. Any objections?”

“None.”

Yu-na nodded to Hwang Geun-chul’s words as if there were no problems, and Hwang Geun-chul showed his agreement.

With this, the newly established position of police chief went to Han Seong-geun, but upon reflection, it was an exceptional appointment.

After all, they had given the position of chief of an organization based on his achievements in the Ulsan War.

Naturally, there would be suspicions about Han Seong-geun from the military and cabinet, so:

“Then, please inform the cabinet of this… I’ll report directly to Lord Bahamut.”

“Understood.”

Persuading them was Hwang Geun-chul’s role, and Yu-na also said she would report this directly to Bahamut.

The cabinet could be sufficiently persuaded if Hwang Geun-chul cooperated with Park Cheol-gon, and as for Bahamut, even if Yu-na reported after the fact, he tended to support Yu-na as long as it wasn’t a major issue.

“And please provide necessary personnel from the military and NTS. Share intelligence networks too. The help of these two will be necessary until the police establish themselves.”

“Understood, Yu-na.”

The rest was about supporting the newly established police organization to become independent successfully.

With the support of the military and police, independence was certainly possible, and for the police to establish themselves successfully:

“If necessary, you may even use my name.”

She declared her sincere commitment to this matter, even offering her own name.

After ending the meeting with Yu-na, Hwang Geun-chul could finally calm his anxious heart with an expression of relief.

“I can finally handle this difficult matter. I should inform the assembly and Park Cheol-gon as well.”

With Yu-na’s help, he had managed to handle the difficult situation, and the rest could be dealt with by cooperating with Park Cheol-gon.

“And I now have an excuse for Lee Su-a. I should thank Yu-na.”

And since he now had an explanation for Lee Su-a, Hwang Geun-chul decided to visit her first to explain the content of this meeting before it was too late.