Returnee's S-Rank Management Guide

Chapter 220 : Encounter (4)

Encounter (4)

"Good morning. We begin with shocking news. Yesterday at 2 a.m., French President Mael Garcia was ambushed in his mansion."

On Monday, as everyone was starting a new day, the news delivered the report of the death of Mael Garcia, the President of France.

And it was not as if he had been assassinated at some official event or due to an incident; he had been killed in the mansion protected by numerous bodyguards.

"All the bodyguards assigned to President Mael's mansion at the time were killed as well...."

I frowned at the news report.

Not only had President Mael been killed, but all the bodyguards had been murdered as well.

Furthermore, in less than five minutes, when reinforcements arrived, everything had already ended.

"President Mael has always held an extremely negative view on the existence called 'demon', which Jin Su-hyuk revealed."

The Hunter Association President, Gong Do-yung, spoke with a grave expression.

The fact that the President of France had been assassinated in his mansion was essentially a warning.

"So, isn't it practically the work of the demons?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know?"

As I asked in a puzzled tone, Gong Do-yung nodded.

"The one caught on the mansion's cameras was Dune Graham. He was the leader of UnderStellar, after all."

Dune Graham.

He was known by many names, but currently, this was what he was called.

He was the leader of UnderStellar, the world's most notorious criminal organization.

His skill was said to far exceed that of an ordinary S-rank.

There were even claims that he was on par with Owen McGregor, but nothing had been confirmed.

'Owen himself is currently missing, anyway.'

He had been possessed by a demon, so to regard him as dead was only natural.

For someone in that state to reclaim his body was basically impossible.

"This event will make it hard for world leaders to speak out about demons. President Mael had invested heavily in his security and staffed his bodyguards with highly skilled Awakeners."

At least A-rank or higher Awakener.

In addition, there were armed soldiers and all sorts of security systems.

It was not an exaggeration to call President Mael's mansion one of the safest places in the world.

But for him to be killed in that mansion—it was as good as a warning that no one could escape UnderStellar's threat.

"People will think UnderStellar supports the demons. The question is whether that's what the demons intended, or whether they joined hands—it's all speculation."

Gong Do-yung's point was valid.

"In this situation, it's clear there'll be setbacks in assembling a team to attack the demonic zone."

For this demonic zone raid, a large number of S-rank Hunters were essential.

But due to President Mael's incident, all S-rank Hunters from each country had been recalled.

"It's not just the president—the members of parliament must be terrified as well."

This had been pointed out for some time.

Even just reaching A-rank makes a person almost a human weapon.

Not to mention S-rank.

"The real issue is that this could lead to the proposal of a new law."

Many wondered: would we be able to handle it if they rebelled?

It was only quiet until now because there hadn't been an incident of this scale.

"If a law that infringes on the freedom of Awakener is proposed..."

The only way to stop something like this would be to perfectly control every Awakener.

A law could be proposed and passed to keep track of what they were doing and where they were at all times.

"Depending on which country starts it, the whole world could be turned upside down."

It was a ticking time bomb.

The war between demons and humanity might be preceded by a conflict between Awakener and ordinary people, since Awakener who had their freedom and rights infringed upon would not stand idly by.

'As the number of Awakener increases, more of them become dissatisfied with the status quo.'

Some Awakener had adopted the ideology that non-Awakeners were obsolete.

So far, their numbers were small and hadn't caused a major problem.

But if things kept progressing this way, that minority could quickly become a majority.

"I'm not sure how you'll take this, but..."

Gong Do-yung looked at me with a haggard face.

"I believe there's only one way to handle this situation."

Unless all humans either became Awakener, or everyone became ordinary, there was no way to put out the fire once the fuse had been lit.

And the ones who first proposed such a solution were the demons—and Jin Su-hyuk.

"... If things go the way the demons want, many people will die."

"I'm aware."

"And we might end up ruled by the demons, too."

Gong Do-yung fell silent for a moment, then spoke again.

"Even so, we'll survive."

If the demons got their way, the ones to die would be the many ordinary people who hadn't awakened.

The Awakener would survive.

But even if the demons were stopped, the fuse already lit would eventually detonate the bomb.

If the law were proposed—

No, that too was, in a way, inevitable.

It was only a matter of time.

And by then, both ordinary people and Awakener would shed much blood.

Looking at the silent Gong Do-yung, I could only let out a deep sigh.

"For now, I'll take care of UnderStellar."

"Excuse me?"

"We can discuss further after that."

First, dealing with UnderStellar would delay the proposal of that law.

To do so, UnderStellar, as an immediate threat, had to be eliminated first.

And that, unexpectedly, wasn't so difficult.

***

Catching UnderStellar.

When I mentioned it, I heard Enoch's groan over the phone.

『That's easy to say, but how will you even find out where they are?』

"If I have permission for something small... no, something rather large, I can manage."

『Hearing you say that makes me uneasy already. Go on, let me hear it first.』

To be honest, it was entirely possible if I forced it.

But, in a sense, it could also infringe on human rights.

"If you let me use an artificial satellite, that's enough."

『The satellite? Do you really think just using that will magically solve everything? You're not planning to actually track them down with it like in an SF movie, are you?』

"Well, something like that. But the satellite is just a relay. What I really need is a way to broadcast electromagnetic waves to the world."

『Electromagnetic waves? What on earth...』

Enoch's words trailed off.

It seemed he finally realized the meaning behind my asking about satellites.

『Is Alencia Walker capable of such a thing?』

"If it's something related to electricity, she can do anything."

『My goodness.』

Alencia wasn't exactly dumb—just incredibly kind. In the end, a Saintess was basically a modern-day god.

Just as Estella performed miracles with the power of a Saintess, Alencia, in this world, was closer to being omnipotent than anyone else.

After all, virtually nothing in this world functioned without electricity.

Using it as a medium, Alencia could do almost anything humans could imagine.

Just like magic.

『That certainly... makes it hard to approve. If word gets out... it'll only pour more oil onto the flames of the current crisis.』

"That's true."

『So please, don't let anyone find out. Really, under no circumstances. I am only trusting you with this.』

Enoch reluctantly agreed, practically begging.

He must have concluded that, in reality, there was no other way to catch UnderStellar.

If there had been, UnderStellar would have been wiped out long ago.

"Well then, now that I have permission, let's try this."

"... You really are outrageous, showing up out of the blue with these demands."

Polaris Research Institute, USA.

Leon looked at me and Alencia in turn, his face incredulous.

But Alencia didn't seem fazed by the business involving satellites and such big plans.

Rather, she simply stared at her own YouTube channel with fascination.

"Manager-nim, then... with my abilities, could I manipulate video view counts, too?"

"You probably could, but if you do, you'll be very disappointed."

"Uh, I'm not saying I'd actually try it. I'm just curious."

She sounded casual, but she looked quite disappointed.

Now that she was getting S-rank Hunter support payments and earning good money, her obsession with view counts was almost funny.

According to her, it was a matter of pride.

"I didn't expect I'd be using this again."

"We won't need as much output as last time."

Back then, we'd pulled the entire power grid of America. This time, that shouldn't be necessary.

Maybe just one state's worth.

Of course, considering America's scale, one state was the size of Korea.

"I've pinpointed the satellites' positions. But... you're not just going to use the American ones, are you?"

"I'll need to borrow some from other countries too."

"I never thought I'd sympathize with Enoch."

Leon sighed and activated the device.

As usual, the ceiling opened, and the institute's machinery whirred to life.

The procedure was almost identical to before.

Draw power and focus it through Alencia.

Only this time, the electricity would be directed toward the satellite's position.

"Alright, are you ready?"

"Anytime!"

Alencia spoke bravely, but she seemed slightly tense.

After all, this would be her first time using her power like this.

In a way, it was an extension of broadcasting electromagnetic waves nearby.

Now, she would just expand it to a global scale.

'It was the demons who set UnderStellar in motion, but they never anticipated Alencia's power.'

Of course, that made sense.

Demons were ignorant when it came to electricity.

No matter how long they lived in this world, to beings used to magic power or demonic energy, electricity was an unfamiliar force.

Besides, UnderStellar wouldn't know about the existence of a Saintess.

They wouldn't know what kind of power she had, or how close to omnipotence she was.

'If they'd known, they wouldn't have acted like this.'

All they did was light the fuse that would have ignited one way or another—a little sooner.

***

Dune Graham.

He had been an ordinary Awakener, aside from his remarkable talent.

At least, until his parents were murdered by other Awakener.

The Awakener who killed his parents were never caught.

From the start, the police couldn't pursue them.

To the young Dune, the police always gave excuses.

'The one who killed your parents is at least an A-rank Awakener.'

'We're doing our best, but honestly, I don't know if we'll ever be able to catch them...'

The police always said the same things.

That was when he realized—

An Awakener with great strength stood above any law enforcement.

The world wasn't ready to accept the Awakener.

"So, did you kill your enemy?"

"I did."

Dune answered his comrade calmly.

Even if the police had caught the culprit, it would have ended with a prison sentence at best.

Talented Awakener were national assets, so unless someone was a heinous mass murderer, they were rarely executed.

"I learned some good lessons from that incident. I even considered letting him live."

"Sometimes, Captain, you're really not normal, you know that?"

Another UnderStellar member replied, sounding sickened by Dune's words.

He was fiddling with something on his phone the whole time.

"What are you doing?"

"Oh, mobile game, Captain. Want to play?"

"Not really my thing."

"Not surprising. You only enjoy killing, after all."

He turned his eyes back to the phone screen as he said this.

"So, what's the next target? We hit Europe, is it America now? Or China?"

"The next move isn't a single target. We'll attack several places at once. Make it feel even more threatening."

"Sounds good."

Grinning, the man playing the mobile game replied.

The game was fun, but the most enjoyable thing was watching the world recoil in horror at their actions.

"Next time, let me have a turn too."

He turned his gaze back to the phone as he said it.

Unaware that the phone's camera was watching him.

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=

Omae Wa Mou Shindeiru.

62 chapters left.

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