SOFTIE 47

“If there is something blocking your path, you should think about getting rid of it. Not conforming to it.”

“It is a shame about Young Master Yoosung, but you have many other options, Minister. Once the Awakening Project is officially announced, people will come flocking. The contract clearly states they must use their abilities for the country and for you, so there is nothing to worry about.”

“Can we have it ready within this year? No, within a month.”

“I cannot say for certain, but I will prepare it as quickly as possible.”

“Increase the speed.”

Shin Witaek wanted to conquer Gates, take the infinite resources within them as his own, and grasp eternal wealth and fame. However, the number of Espers boasting great power was absolutely insufficient.

That was why he needed the power of research.

If he could use his research to awaken those who desired to be Espers but failed to manifest, it was obvious they would offer their absolute loyalty. He knew there were many in the world desperate for power. Even if it turned out to be a rotten rope, it would be too late since they would already be Espers. An Esper is bound to the Association and the State, destined to spend their life conquering Gates.

“Seo Yeonwoo must be killed for certain.”

“Setting aside the success of the research, is that possible? You know the rumors yourself, Minister—that he’s flying high. They say he’s so overwhelmed by his own power that he even catches his teammates in the crossfire.”

“Without a Guide, that fellow can’t exert his strength. So we must target the Guide first. Keep imposing Gates on him. Wear him down.”

“Minister, there are no more Gates left to impose. Even most of the other Espers have returned, so if we distribute the workload, there are no Gates left.”

Han Sunghoon had imposed an excessive number of Gates on Team 1, even while enduring suspicious glares from others. Yet, Yeonwoo had begun clearing the tightly packed schedule as if mocking the attempt to make him suffer.

Even the extra Gates that cropped up were handed over as his quota, but he cleared those rapidly as well. It had reached a point where there was a shortage of Gates. On top of that, the other teams had returned.

Since this was something Shin Witaek hadn’t heard, he expressed his doubt.

“Why? I clearly ordered them to stay in that state until the situation settled.”

“It seems Association President Ma Seongtae made a move. No matter how much of a vacation it is, it is a problem for half of the Espers protecting Seoul to be absent, so it appears he requested their return.”

“No such report was submitted to me.”

“There was no reason for the Association to specifically report it. I only found out today through a message from another employee. As you know, the Seoul Branch Association is his domain. While Team 1 was conquering Gates in the provinces, emergency Gates appeared in Seoul. Since they were A-rank, they could have waited for Team 1 to return, but because Team 1 already had a backlog of scheduled Gates, he used the ’emergency situation’ as a pretext to recall the others.”

In other words, Ma Seongtae had used Shin Witaek’s own scheme to bring back the other Espers. The absence of Team 1 when an emergency occurs—and no other teams available. Having only one team to protect Seoul could cause problems for public safety.

“Since sufficient time had passed since the vacation order, it seems none of the Espers raised any objections.”

“Ma Seongtae, that man is an eyesore as well. He isn’t even an Esper, yet he acts as if he knows their hardships so well. He should be taking the side of humans without power like me.”

He had been an eyesore for a long time. Even though Yeonwoo wasn’t his son, he cared for him so much. The same went for the people in the Association. They didn’t just revolve around Seo Yeonwoo; they worried for his safety and tried to accommodate his situation. Isn’t it only natural to sacrifice the few for the many?

If the end of Yeonwoo was even slightly visible, it was right to prepare for the future. I am personally going to create a new hero.

“There are no more Gates to impose on them now. Since Esper Park Gunwoo is there, we were able to pass the provincial Gates to them, but even that is impossible now. To them, B-rank is a level they can clear with their eyes closed; at best, A-rank could stall for time, but because Seo Yeonwoo’s condition has improved, those times have been shortened significantly.”

There’s a reason why they say he’s in a different league even among S-ranks.

“We can’t target that guy immediately. So, we target the magic beast. You’ve surely secured the Espers, right?”

“Yes. I have negotiated with about three.”

“Good. When Seo Yeonwoo is absent, if an Esper attacks the magic beast, the magic beast will naturally have no choice but to attack back. We expose that moment to everyone. If the magic beast shows a threatening side, people’s thoughts will change.”

“But do you think he will leave the Guide’s side? He picks him up every single day after classes end. There are no extra Gates… will it be possible?”

Shin Witaek tapped his desk with his finger. That was the biggest problem. No matter where they went, they were always stuck together. Now that they were a pair, there was no reason to be apart. They acted as they pleased under the pretext of Guiding him.

“Should we perhaps stop imposing Gates on them for a while? Then, on that day—the day we intend to target the Guide—we give them a massive quota of Gates.”

“Oho, that would be good.”

“However, it might be insufficient. Since Park Gunwoo is there, as soon as the Gate conquest is over, he might go straight to see the Guide…”

“Then we just have to make it so he can’t.”

“Pardon?”

Han Sunghoon asked back, failing to understand for a moment. Shin Witaek spoke with a triumphant smile.

“We just need to create an emergency. Create a Gate.”

“…!”

Han Sunghoon’s eyes widened.

“Mi-Minister, that is…!”

“Do it.”

Han Sunghoon’s brow furrowed. The command to create a Gate. Humans cannot artificially create a Gate. But they were different.

Shin Witaek had initially seen people awaken by being caught in Gates and sought to force awakenings by intentionally causing people to be caught in them. In that process, they succeeded in creating a Gate artificially.

“You’ve done it several times, so it should be easy, shouldn’t it?”

“Creating one Gate is easy, but it won’t lead to an emergency.”

“Who told you to create only one? Create many. Don’t you need a lot of magic minerals for the Awakening Project? Since you used up all the S-rank magic minerals from this time for research, you’ll need to replenish them. Coincidentally, they say a Gate is determined by the grade of the magic mineral, right? Use the remaining S-rank magic minerals to create them.”

It was a sudden thought, but Shin Witaek was pleased, thinking it was a better idea than he expected.

“Looking at the results this time, we’ll save the S-rank magic minerals and use other minerals for the awakenings. The amount of energy that can be injected is fixed anyway. Using them to tie Seo Yeonwoo’s feet will be perfect.”

The expression on Han Sunghoon’s face was complicated as he watched the chuckling Shin Witaek. The Gate grade changes according to the magic mineral. And there is another problem. Because they were artificially triggered Gates, there were many mutants. They were indiscriminate and unpredictable.

The recent incident where a cluster of A-rank Gates appeared in Korea—that, too, was carried out under Shin Witaek’s orders. They had used B-rank magic minerals, but the result was disastrous. Of course, from Shin Witaek’s perspective, he was able to obtain a large quantity of high-quality A-rank magic minerals.

And now, he was being told to create Gates with S-rank magic minerals. Because of that, Seoul could fall into chaos. It was impossible to know what kind of Gates would appear.

“The risk is too great.”

There was no reason to forcibly manifest Gates. With dozens of Gates appearing across the country every day, there was no reason to increase the workload. It would be better to save them and then impose them. Furthermore, considering the Espers who die during Gate conquests, it was an act of eating away at the nation’s flesh and blood.

“I’m saying this because mediocre Gates won’t stop him.”

“Then how about using A-rank magic minerals instead?”

“Opportunities don’t come twice. Do it right when you do it.”

Shin Witaek was firm.

“…I understand.”

Han Sunghoon quietly closed his eyes and nodded. This was a man who had conceived the idea of killing an S-rank Esper who ranked among the top few in the entire world. He was someone who did what he said he would do.

“However, I cannot take responsibility for the safety of the citizens.”