Chapter 336: Chapter 336

‘They’ll curse at us a bit...’

No matter how terrible the position of the Chinese contact person was, he would most certainly curse at them.

“So if it’s a person, not a monster, causing the disturbance... I think it’s better to negotiate with that lunatic hunter to evacuate the people from the city instead of using force.”

“I think so too.”

The Korean residents and the employees of Dragon Industry had already been evacuated, but in situations like this, there would always be people who didn’t listen.

There were many people, including employees of other companies in the United States, who remained in Guangzhou. Choi Yeonseung’s main area of activity was the United States, so he couldn’t just leave the Americans there.

In fact, he was still getting calls from US officials.

-Hunter Choi Yeonseung, the good American people are suffering.

-I’m from South Korea...

-Yes, but aren’t you an American at heart?

-What...?

-If you step up to help them, the other A-grade hunters might follow your example.

-So you’ve called me first because you think I’m the easiest to persuade?

-...Tha-that’s not true! If you’re feeling unwell, I’ll call some other time.

Of course, the Chinese government was affected the most by this crisis, but… Since the city was so big, other countries had no choice but to mobilize hunters and send them to rescue their citizens who were trapped there.

Naturally, governments contacted A-grade hunters as well, and realistically, they had no other choice but to contact Choi Yeonseung first.

‘Well… I also would’ve contacted me first…’

Has the hunter been active recently? (O).

Have they killed civilians, used banned drugs, or committed any other kinds of criminal behavior? (X).

Are they a money-crazed asshole ? (X).

...No matter how the US government officials thought about it, it was clear to them that Choi Yeonseung was much more reliable than other A-grade hunters.

Even though he wasn’t American, he was their best option!

At Choi Yeonseung’s words, Aine, visibly embarrassed, said, “I’m so embarrassed. Honestly, I wish we could just ignore this whole mess. They’ve disregarded you all this time and now they’re asking you to step up and help...”

Aine bit her lip.

Honestly, it was better for Choi Yeonseung to just take care of his own people. If the employees of other companies died, the stock prices of those companies would plummet, causing them to stagnate. Meanwhile, Choi Yeonseung and Dragon Industry wouldn’t be affected at all.

In fact, one of the secretaries expressed this exact opinion.

-Do we really need to let them know?

-...Are you a psychopath?

-N-no... No...

-I wouldn’t want others to treat me like that either, so shut up.

As Aine thought about it, she realized that she had never done such a good deed in her entire life. Wouldn’t this be enough for Santa Claus to come and give her a present?

...But the rest of the American companies really didn’t listen to Choi Yeonseung’s warning.

-What evacuation…? If we evacuate, who’s going to fulfill the quota?

-Isn’t Dragon Industry doing this to keep us in check?

-How many hunters did you evacuate? We can’t make profit if you’re so obsessed with evacuation!

Fortunately, hunters had managed to evacuate the people on Dragon Industry’s side after they threatened that they would leave them behind. Those employees had been pressured by other people close to them, but many other Americans stayed behind.

The hunters wondered what was the matter with these people. The problem was that their bosses had ordered them to say.

“All the Koreans have evacuated in an orderly manner. What the hell is wrong with Americans?!” complained Aine.

“...”

Choi Yeonseung was silent.

Seeing his reaction, Aine asked cautiously, “...So not all Koreans got out?”

“Indeed, there are still a few left.”

“...”

All people were the same after all.

-It’s fine. We won’t die.

-But if Hunter Choi Yeonseung said it’s dangerous...

-Don’t you think your position is in more danger? The monster might make it all the way here, but if you leave this place, it’s absolutely guaranteed that you’ll lose your position.

There were quite a few Koreans who had also stayed behind because of pressure from above.

“However, there are only a few Koreans who chose to stay behind.”

“So there’s a difference between Koreans and Americans after all…”

“No, that’s not it. Seha threatened them.”

“...”

Aine was lost for words when she heard the truth.

“...Still, isn’t it because of our culture and national identity that the threat worked on them?”

“That’s not something to take pride in...”

In any case, Choi Yeonseung and Aine put their heads together to plan the negotiations.

Aine suggested, “Before negotiating, let’s get some money from those companies before we try to rescue their employees. It’s really important to get something out of this. You might think I am a psychopath, but...”

“...I really didn’t think anything like that.”

Choi Yeonseung looked at his niece with a pitying expression. She could speak comfortably with him, so why was she making all these excuses?

“Oh, maybe it’s because you live such a comfortable and successful life that I feel like I’ve become corrupted by capitalism!”

“I...I’m sorry.”

Choi Yeonseung apologized even though he hadn’t done anything wrong.

“In any case, get whatever you can! Ask money either from the companies themselves or from the US government! That way, it’s more likely that they’ll listen to your warnings in the future.”

“I got it. Don’t worry.”

Choi Yeonseung slightly suspected that his niece considered him a pushover.

‘She doesn’t see me as a pushover, right?’

-Successor, you’re not a pushover.

[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ says that the incarnation constellation isn’t a pushover.]

‘Right?’

Choi Yeonseung didn’t think of himself as a pushover.

If someone was a pushover, it had to be Lee Changsik, the Iron-Blooded Ice Emperor. After all, the government, the media, and the general public had criticized him severely, but nevertheless, Lee Changsik had stayed in South Korea to fight for the people instead of going to the US.

Choi Yeonseung wasn’t like that, was he?

‘Okay, I’m certain I’m not a pushover.’

-...Listening to this, you actually seem like a pushover by the standards of Earth...?

***

“The problem is that we don’t have much information about the opponent...”

-I’ve never heard of a vampire called Almagoria.

Constellations didn’t know everything.

The Abyss was essentially infinite, and the further one went toward the outskirts, the more deserted it became and the more difficult it was to find any beings.

Choi Yeonseung held the reputation of being the constellation who had defeated the other constellations on the outskirts of the Abyss, but none of the constellations that were involved with Earth knew about that.

Even during this time, many mortal heroes would appear and disappear in those obscure, desolated parts of the Abyss.

-If it’s a vampire, they’ll most likely know about their fellow vampires. Since they’re an ancient race, they should have records of their history.

-Are there any vampire constellations?

Choi Yeonseung asked that question just in case, but the other constellations suddenly became mute.

[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ says that its new cat likes to draw blood with its claws...]

-...You’re all useless.

At this cold response, the manipulator constellation was glad she hadn’t intervened uselessly. She had wanted to say that nightmare demons also absorbed things from others, which made them similar to vampires.

-Um... I’ll have to ask the goddess of balance.

Choi Yeonseung didn’t like asking the goddess of balance for help.

It wasn’t that he didn’t like the goddess. It was just that…

‘I feel bad...’

Unlike the other constellations with whom he was being honest, Choi Yeonseung had deceived the goddess of balance when he joined forces with her.

-But deception is a virtue that constellations should possess.

-...Yeah well I don’t really mind deceiving other constellations. For example, I wouldn’t be sorry for deceiving evil god constellations or even you. Choi Yeonseung replied to the goddess of sloth.

-See… Wait, what?

Choi Yeonseung didn’t feel particularly guilty about deceiving his allies. The Six-Winged Angel Who Hunts Dragons could also be considered his ally, but Choi Yeonseung wouldn’t feel that bad if he deceived him.

After all, they just cooperated with each other for the sake of their own goals. It was a cruel world, and they could end up fighting each other at any time if things changed.

...But the goddess of balance was a bit...

‘I just feel regretful about deceiving her, and I can’t explain it logically...’

He felt as if he had stolen candy from a child. Such was his feeling of regret.

-It’s a honey-trap.

[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ also says it is a honey-trap.]

[The ‘Manipulator of Dreams and Desires’ says that a honey-trap isn’t just about using your good looks to tempt someone. It is also about finding and targeting the other person’s weaknesses...]

-Everyone, shut up.

Choi Yeonseung silenced the other constellations and then proceeded to contact the goddess of balance.

-Goddess, do you have any vampires among your household members or minions?

[The ‘Goddess of Balance Who Walks Ahead’ wakes up in a hurry!]

[The ‘Goddess of Balance Who Walks Ahead’ says to wait a moment!]

[She earnestly asks you to wait while she asks other constellations.]

-...I-it’s okay… Take your time…

The goddess of sloth listened to their conversation with great interest. It was a unique situation in which it wasn’t clear which of the two constellations was using the honey-trap stratagem.

Not even the goddess of sloth, a constellation who had been around since the beginning of the Abyss, couldn’t tell if the goddess of balance was trying to deceive Choi Yeonseong or if she was being sincere.

After a while…

[The ‘Goddess of Balance Who Walks Ahead’ says in a gloomy voice that there are no vampires among her household members or servants.]

[The ‘Goddess of Balance Who Walks Ahead’ is sorry that she couldn’t help you.]

[The ‘Goddess of Balance Who Walks Ahead’ says that if you need anything else, don’t hesitate to ask her….]

-...Yes. I understand.

Choi Yeonseung thought it was best for him to not contact the goddess of balance for a while.

***

Surprisingly, there was one vampire that Choi Yeonseung knew about, and he wasn’t just any vampire. He was the head of a family, the vampire king!

However, there was one problem.

-Isn’t he the household member of the Noble Crown Collector?

-Yep. That’s a problem.

The collector constellation was one of the evil god constellations Choi Yeonseung hated the most.

It must’ve been utterly shocking for the collector constellation to lose the United Kingdom, one of his sources of power. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Even though he was an evil god constellation and he had recently been attacked and stripped of his power, there had been no news about him recently. It was clear that he had gone into hiding to recover from the tremendous defeat.

-I don’t know how he’s going to react if I send someone to his kingdom to request a meeting with the vampire.

-You have nothing to lose, so you might as well give it a try.

The words of the goddess of sloth made sense.

Choi Yeonseung gave orders to a newly acquired demon who was in the collector constellation’s kingdom.

He wanted to meet Garhansha, the vampire king.

-Master, I will tell him, but... The realms of the explosion constellation and the collector constellation are a bit different. They won’t budge.

Even the experienced demons were skeptical. It seemed likely that they would either ignore their request and even retaliate.

...Yet surprisingly, Garhansha accepted Choi Yeonseung’s request.

***

“I didn’t think you’d agree to meet me,” said Choi Yeonseung.

“Well, you were not wrong to assume that,” replied Garhansha. It was only natural for Choi Yeonseung to assume that, since Abyssal creatures would usually decline invitations from a hostile constellation.

However, Garhansha hadn’t done that.

“Nevertheless, I accepted your invitation, honorable man. Do you know why?’

“Is it because you’re dissatisfied with the collector constellation?”

“...No... It is because I respect your honor,” Garhansha answered as though he found it absurd. It would’ve been ridiculous to decline Choi Yeonseung’s invitation for something like that…

“Ah, my honor?” Choi Yeonseung wondered.

“Yes, it’s because of your honor.”

Back when they fought a constellation battle in the UK, Choi Yeonseung’s performance had been impressive. He had made sacrifices for the underdogs he didn’t even like!

Choi Yeonseung could’ve just focused on bringing victory to his constellation. However, he hadn’t done so.

Seeing that, Garhansha had realized that Choi Yeonseung was as honorable as him.

‘...Did this guy forget that he was deceived in the constellation battle?’ Choi Yeonseung thought.

-He probably thinks it wasn’t you who did it, right?

-In any case, I’m just grateful that his misunderstanding works to our advantage.

Choi Yeonseung took out a chair and poured the vampire something to drink.

Garhansha received the cup gracefully. The bright red color of the drink and the magic power emanating from it delighted him.

“Mmm… Most delicious. Have you perhaps prepared blood for me?”

Not everybody could prepare so meticulously for such an honorable meeting. As expected, this human knew how important honor was...

“Ah, I’m sorry, it’s just tomato juice. Did you prefer blood?”

“...It’s okay. I don’t really need blood...”