Ch.671Chapter 25. Let it Unfold (21)

The Great Cataclysm occurred in the year 2000.

Since the capital was moved to Busan quite early, naturally all new city development projects were centered around Busan.

After Hundun Seong Ji-eun flipped all of Busan’s roads with a bag of cinnamon candy.

“…Ah. Today I brought red ginseng candy. In that spirit, would you like to try making this?”

“What is this?”

“Tongyeong International New City. And this is Gimcheon New City.”

New cities that should have been developed near Seoul were all newly established around Busan instead.

Gimhae became an international city.

A 47-story apartment complex was built on Gadeok Island.

The place once called “Bundang is heaven on earth” still bears the name Bundang, but what should have been Bundang now stretches across South Gyeongsang Province.

After the Great Cataclysm.

Busan became the capital.

Gyeonggi Province became Gyeongsang Province.

For example, a certain special autonomous city that should have been near Daejeon became a large island in the East Sea, right above where the meteorite had fallen.

Thus.

Bundang, Wirye, Gwacheon, and all new cities properly developed after 2000 do not exist in this world.

Just as real estate agents have no idea about some “XX-myeon” in rural areas, people in this world react the same way when they hear “Dongtan-myeon.”

“Dongtan-myeon? Are you saying someone fell into trouble?”

“Or maybe it’s where Dong-tak lives. Hahaha!”

This world is so different that even real estate agents who memorize profitable land better than their children’s friends’ names make jokes when they hear the name Dongtan.

But this world, this Korean peninsula, always needs new cities—bad towns.

More precisely, not speculative apartments for those who held enormous wealth in the original Korean peninsula, but homes for those who had no choice but to leave Korea and struggle to survive abroad.

To be frank.

Compensation is needed for those who worked for the Syndicate, like the many tavern owners and peddlers who cooperated with them.

Those who had their land taken by Haeguneul Group, or had their security deposits stolen by operation forces, or lost their livelihoods in an instant due to villain rampages.

Those who received not a penny of compensation from the government or Haeguneul Group and ended up overnight in a 7-pyeong one-room apartment near Busan (5,000/170) or couldn’t even get that.

Those who chose to become Syndicate collaborators like tavern owners or peddlers because they couldn’t get revenge or compensation from Haeguneul Group through voting rights or one-person protests.

For these people, the Syndicate decided to provide one 84A national standard apartment each as compensation.

Of course, the location isn’t near Busan, the capital region.

Although it’s named Neo-Dongtan, it will be established in the northern region—that is, “former North Korean territory” secured by the Syndicate.

“What kind of apartment is it if it’s just sitting alone in the countryside with no schools, hospitals, subway stations, or parks?”

“Anyway, the Syndicate will take care of everything.”

“After doing nothing all this time, now they start?”

“They’re finally starting the development drive they couldn’t do because of Haeguneul Group, so just wait and see.”

Although all infrastructure is concentrated in Busan, considering what the Syndicate will develop in the future, it’s not a place with poor prospects.

And beyond that, a “new place where many people can live” was needed.

“Who’s going to move into these apartments if they build so many?”

“Orphans abandoned in Seoul, Incheon, and Gyeonggi Province.”

“Ah.”

Socially vulnerable groups that the government cannot directly embrace.

“There are children growing up in churches and temples after being abandoned by their parents?”

“That can’t be. Statistics don’t lie!”

“Those statistics—were they created by Statistics Office employees who took bribes from Haeguneul Group? Or statistics influenced by high officials from the previous government? If all newborns were properly registered, the numbers would be at least 1.8 times higher.”

Especially those who couldn’t be directly mentioned for fear of breaking ability users’ mental health—”gacha failures rejected for not being ability users.”

“Even if the Syndicate can’t become their parents directly, we can provide at least one apartment unit built with abilities.”

The Syndicate determined they needed a place to grow up outside of orphanages.

No matter how well children are cared for in orphanages by people like Sebastian Monk or Pastor Myungjin, children need parents of their own.

Since communal childcare in orphanages isn’t feasible, the Syndicate decided to provide “homes in the Korean peninsula” where these children could live independently.

And in some cases, they might be able to connect these people.

A city created for those who, regardless of abilities, want to genuinely become family despite not being blood-related—filtered from those who would falsely form families just to get apartments, using the Syndicate’s big data.

That’s Neo-Dongtan.

A living space for those deemed powerless in the ability gacha draw, though not connected by blood.

For those who have multiple children but secretly abandon the non-ability ones.

For those who leave their babies at church entrances and sink deep into the Han River after “baby gacha” failures.

To prevent people from saying “use that money to catch more B-class and A-class villains and focus on rich neighborhood security” when the government tries to secure social safety nets for these people.

To help abandoned children grow up receiving love from fortunate new parents.

Or to help them grow up healthy with androids, homunculi, or monthly 4 million won field nannies hired by the Syndicate to support vulnerable children.

To give them the security of having their own home to return to like everyone else when they enter society.

We will develop numerous new cities in the northern Korean peninsula, the former North Korean territory.

All for world peace.

* * *

“—That was the wholesome, bright, and future-oriented plan, but someone had to say ‘everyone patriotically procreate,’ and now the internet is in chaos.”

“Does becoming a shota automatically mean catching the Ymir virus? Why would you say something like that there?”

“What’s the #1 popular song on UTube? ‘Sex Bomb.’ So much for waving the Korean flag.”

…As soon as the three executives returned to the Ulleungdo lodging after passing the second preliminary round, they began grilling me.

“What do you think, Goblin, who caused a worldwide Sex Bomb craze with a shota face?”

“I think it’s a good song. And since it’s uncomfortable to talk about it so directly, please use roundabout terms like ‘patriotic bomb’ or ‘yas bomb.'”

“If you were going to be embarrassed about it, you shouldn’t have set it off in the first place!!”

Cheon Ju-yeon shouted, violently twisting her body.

“Now the Syndicate has suddenly become a Ymir collective among people we know!”

“Um, I feel like my name has somehow become an idiom for that kind of expression. Am I imagining things?”

“You’re not.”

That’s rich coming from Ymir, who once hid heart-shaped nipple patches made of white chocolate under her maid costume, claiming it was Valentine’s Day practice when it wasn’t even Valentine’s Day.

“But I can’t let Ymir’s image transfer to Doblin. I might accept, with extreme reluctance, that Goblin or Do Ji-hwan is somewhat promiscuous, but not Doblin. Doblin is officially a minor.”

“That’s the bigger problem!!”

Cheon Ju-yeon began thrashing more violently.

“The very fact that a child said such things is causing worldwide outrage! American elementary schoolers are asking if Korean kids are this sexually forward from a young age—communities worldwide are in chaos!!”

“What about my ability technique that overwhelmingly buried five S-class villains with Doblin’s tremendous power?”

“If you wanted to emphasize that, you should have used a different line! Or transformed into Rider and let me handle the lines!!”

“I couldn’t have English voice lines while fighting in Korea. Or Korean voice lines either.”

I have no intention of becoming Do Ji-rider, but it’s standard for Rider belts to have English voice lines.

“This is troublesome. I wasn’t trying to spread the Ymir virus—I was trying to promote the new cities being built in the northern region.”

“You certainly promoted it. ‘We’ll build this city for you, so patriotically procreate here.’ It’ll be a patriotic city before the infrastructure is even built. Hahaha.”

“That’s good news.”

Ymir clapped her hands with a bright smile.

“If it’s a patriotic city, there will be many children, which means the population will grow, right? People won’t abandon their children because life is difficult or because they’re not ability users—they can live in the patriotic city, can’t they?”

“……”

“Since it’s come to this, should we create a lottery for apartments in the patriotic city? Winners would only need to pay acquisition and registration taxes to move in.”

“That’s a good idea.”

After all, lottery funds were originally created to help people in need.

And.

“We’ll make it an electronic lottery. Only good people who have cooperated with the Syndicate will win.”

“That’s rigging.”

“There’s a saying in this world called ‘white lies.'”

This is not illegal rigging done for personal gain or with malicious intent.

“Good deeds are supposed to be done without anyone knowing.”

“That’s still rigging.”

“Whatever, Taejo.”

“……”

“Whatever, Doblin.”