Ch.7272. America (1)

# America.

If you mention the word “America” to the general public, most people would identify it as the United States.

Of course, the American continent includes Latin America and Spanish-speaking countries besides the United States, so the US couldn’t monopolize the term “America.” However, since the United States was famously known as the superpower that greatly influenced the world according to global perception, people couldn’t help but think of the US when someone said they came to America.

When the crowd disembarking from the airship that landed at Pohang Airport announced they were from America, the Balhut Cult soldiers immediately thought of the United States for this very reason.

“Yes. We’re from the United States. We didn’t come to fight the Balhut Cult. We came to talk with the cult.”

“I-I’ll bring a superior officer right away.”

Hearing that they hadn’t come to fight but to talk with the cult, the Balhut Cult soldier lowered his gun in bewilderment and immediately ran to Baek Seol-hwa, the mayor and person in charge of Pohang.

“Visitors have arrived from the United States.”

“What? That United States?!”

These were extraordinary guests that surprised even Baek Seol-hwa, who had just subjugated the three major camps of Pohang and started reconstruction efforts.

She might have felt perplexed, but fortunately, Baek Seol-hwa possessed a holy relic called the Scrying Mirror from Bahamut. With this relic, she could contact Bahamut anytime and anywhere, so she used the Scrying Mirror to inform Bahamut that visitors from the United States had arrived.

“Lord Dragon. Visitors from the United States have arrived.”

[…So visitors from the United States. Are they from the White House?]

“I’ll… find out myself.”

In response to Bahamut’s question, Baek Seol-hwa immediately rushed to Pohang Airport where the visitors from the United States were waiting. By the time she arrived, a subtle tension had already developed between the American visitors and the Balhut Cult soldiers.

The visitors from the United States were holding up their hands with relaxed expressions, saying they had no intention of fighting the cult, while the Balhut Cult soldiers were eyeing them suspiciously.

From the soldiers’ perspective, they had no protocol for dealing with sudden visitors from outside during this apocalypse.

“Stop this pointless standoff!”

“Yes, understood.”

The subtle tension only ceased when Baek Seol-hwa arrived at the airport and reached the landing area.

When Baek Seol-hwa, the Dragon Priestess, shouted at the Balhut Cult soldiers, they stopped their suspicious glances toward the unidentified visitors. Finally, relieved that someone proper to talk to had arrived, the visitor who had been holding his hands above his head sighed and looked at the person in charge who had arrived.

‘She’s younger than I expected. Does she just look young for her age?’

However, Steven David, the special plenipotentiary ambassador dispatched from the White House, couldn’t hide his surprise at her unexpectedly youthful appearance.

He had naturally assumed the person in charge would be a mature man or woman, but the person who came as the leader was a young girl. The American visitors couldn’t hide their bewilderment seeing the Balhut Cult soldiers following the orders of a girl who looked only about 14 or 15 years old without question.

“Don’t let your guard down. I can sense tremendous power from her, Steve.”

“Really, Anna?”

“Yes.”

However, it seemed that among the visitors, there was someone with the ability to detect magical power. The woman called Anna said she could sense tremendous power from Baek Seol-hwa.

The man called Steve by his nickname questioned if it was true, but Anna nodded heavily with a genuinely fearful expression. Only then did Steven understand why this girl had come as the person in charge.

“Hello. We are a special plenipotentiary diplomatic mission dispatched from the White House. Or perhaps it would be easier to call us diplomats.”

“Are you really from the US government?”

“Yes. We are diplomats dispatched here from the White House.”

Could the person introducing himself in fluent Korean really be a visitor from the US government?

There were doubts about that, but considering that they had confidently landed transport aircraft and escort fighters at Pohang Airport during this apocalyptic situation, it seemed only the United States could accomplish such a feat. Even South Korea had lost control of its military, but the United States alone seemed able to maintain control of its forces and properly utilize its military power.

‘Even if I wanted to doubt them… only the United States could operate so many transport aircraft and escort fighters, right?’

Baek Seol-hwa was already judging the claim to be true based on the appearance of the self-introduced special plenipotentiary ambassador and the transport aircraft with escort fighters behind him. It was too physically evident to be a false claim.

“I’m Baek Seol-hwa, the mayor of Pohang from the Balhut Cult. What brings you to Pohang today?”

“We’ve come to meet the Balhut Cult, the only government on the Korean Peninsula.”

Baek Seol-hwa’s small mouth fell open at Steven’s words.

The United States, commonly known as a superpower, had recognized the Balhut Cult as a government.

Not only Baek Seol-hwa but also the other soldiers escorting her had similar reactions. When he said “the only government on the Korean Peninsula,” they all gaped blankly at the diplomat.

The United States had recognized the Balhut Cult as a government.

“To our cult? Not the South Korean government?”

“The South Korean government has already fallen silent. Whether they ignored our communications or are in a brain-dead state unable to respond—in this apocalypse, we believe the former is correct. So we’ve come to the cult, which is the only organization operating as a government on the Korean Peninsula.”

It was essentially a declaration that the South Korean government had completely collapsed.

As Steven stated they had come to the Balhut Cult as the only organization operating as a government, Baek Seol-hwa pondered for a moment.

“Just a moment. Would it be possible to speak with someone higher than me?”

“By all means.”

Thinking this was beyond her authority as the mayor of Pohang to decide alone, she immediately used the Scrying Mirror to contact Bahamut.

“Lord Dragon. The White House has truly sent diplomats.”

[Is that so.]

“Yes.”

‘Wow, that United States is interested in our cult? For what reason?’

Not only Baek Seol-hwa but also Bahamut was greatly surprised by the news that the United States had come.

Bahamut also had the common perception that the United States was an enormous power and recognized as the leader of the first world that ruled the globe. Of course, he knew that the United States had fallen from a superpower to a great power through numerous failures, but due to common perception, the United States was still evaluated as a powerful nation with overwhelming strength incomparable to other countries.

Bahamut, being an ordinary young man not far from this perception, couldn’t help but be greatly surprised that the United States had come to the Balhut Cult.

[But why would the United States come to us?]

“Well, I’m not sure?”

Yet that United States had specifically sought out the Balhut Cult and come to the Korean Peninsula.

That meant they recognized the cult as a government, but what did the United States want that made them contact them?

Bahamut looked at Baek Seol-hwa with an expression of complete bewilderment, but Baek Seol-hwa, who also shared the common perception, looked back at Bahamut with an equally clueless expression.

[For now, let’s inform the main temple in Gyeongju about this and formulate a plan. Guide them to the main temple in Gyeongju.]

“Understood.”

Since they couldn’t come up with an answer, they decided to inform the cult about this fact and prepare countermeasures.

Baek Seol-hwa received orders to guide them to the main temple in Gyeongju, and she nodded in acceptance without complaint.

[Visitors have come from the White House.]

“The White House?”

[The United States.]

“Eh?”

And Bahamut immediately conveyed through Yu-na that people from the White House had arrived, and Yu-na’s reaction was not much different from Baek Seol-hwa’s.

At the news that the United States, the only country maintaining itself during the apocalypse, had come, she gaped like a mute in shock.

Yu-na was also an ordinary girl with common perceptions, and she was greatly surprised that the powerful United States had come to the cult.

However, she didn’t forget what needed to be done, so Yu-na immediately issued a summons to all executives in the cult and informed them that the White House had made contact with the cult.

The Balhut Cult in Gyeongju had two reactions to the news that the White House had come.

“Why would the United States come to us? Are we valuable enough to catch America’s eye?”

The first was suspicion.

That United States was the only one maintaining its government and military, showing the appearance of a superpower in this apocalypse.

Despite experiencing setbacks like monster attacks across the entire country and the death of the president, they had overcome everything with the vice president succeeding as president and reclaiming territories ravaged by monsters.

Even now, they were busy fighting monsters, yet they were making such a grand gesture to contact them.

“Are they really from the White House?”

Some expressed doubt.

The cult had limited access to information, and what the Balhut Cult knew was only what had been publicly announced.

From the beginning, the Balhut Cult, which was more concerned with the situation on the Korean Peninsula, had no need to know the internal affairs of other countries.

“Doesn’t this mean the United States recognizes us as the only legitimate government on the Korean Peninsula!”

“Sis, you’re too excited.”

On the other hand, some were hopeful.

Lee Hyeon-a, who had been deeply fascinated by Bahamut’s power from the beginning, was greatly pleased with this news and claimed that the United States had recognized them as the only legitimate government on the Korean Peninsula.

“It’s not actually wrong! The Balhut Cult is the only organization that has established a government on the Korean Peninsula!”

“She has a point.”

In reality, while several self-proclaimed governments had emerged claiming to be successors to South Korea on the Korean Peninsula, only the Balhut Cult had the administrative power, military force, and control to function as a government.

These self-proclaimed governments hadn’t even expanded beyond large survivor camps, so from the United States’ perspective, it made sense to contact them as the legitimate government.

Although Lee Hyeon-a’s claim was extreme, surprisingly many executives agreed with her.

“Anyway, Seol-hwa is currently guiding the diplomats to Gyeongju. Before they arrive, can we anticipate what the United States might say to us?”

However, the executives fell silent at Yu-na’s subsequent question.

Honestly, it was extremely difficult.

“Does… the United States want something from us?”

“I don’t know.”

“The United States has overwhelming resources, materials, and territory. If anything, we would have more requests for them.”

“If contact were to be made, I would have thought we would initiate it, not them…”

It was puzzling.

The executives each tried to think of reasons why the White House would make contact, but they couldn’t come up with any.

The gap between them was overwhelming.

To say that the United States wanted something from the Balhut Cult seemed unlikely given America’s vast territory and the overwhelming resources that came from it.

Of course, the United States also imported raw materials from outside, but even in this apocalypse, they would have numerous resources buried that could make them self-sufficient.

Rather than Gyeongju, which had just recaptured Pohang, being in a position to demand something, it was Gyeongju that should be begging the United States for supplies.

“Military power?”

“They still have their army. They’re even operating military aircraft properly.”

“…That’s true.”

They need military power. To use the Balhut Cult as mercenaries.

If that was the logic, it could be understood, but the United States was undisputedly the world’s number one military power before the apocalypse.

Above all, overwhelming mechanized forces were protecting the US mainland, and they had witnessed with their own eyes that the latest fighter jets and military aircraft were still operating properly.

Yet with such overwhelming modern weapons, they needed the military power of the Balhut Cult?

The cult executives thought it was truly strange.

“What could be the reason they contacted us?”

“”””””……………….””””””

It was a contact full of questions.

Objectively speaking, it would make sense if the Balhut Cult initiated contact with the United States, but it was strange for the US side to contact the Balhut Cult first.