Chapter 475: Chapter 475

“Hunter Choi Yeonseung is heading to Arizona?”

“Yes! Our chairman is coming. We have to be ready.”

Hwang Jaecheol, the general manager of Dragon Battery, was thrown off by Ducoms’ words. It usually took a lot of effort to prepare for the visit of the chairman, and it would be twice as challenging now that the United States was in a state of emergency.

‘Should I mobilize our clans to escort him from the international airport? Actually, no... I’ve heard that as an A-grade hunter he moves with the household members of other constellations. But would it really be useless to prepare an escort? Shouldn’t we prepare someone just in case? Uh, but those household members will be hard to please. In order to show them proper hospitality... Hmm... I’ve heard that the household members of the Six-Winged Angel Who Hunts Dragons fancy British food. As for the others...’

“Are you listening?”

“Uh? Yes! I’m listening.”

“Right. You’re Dragon Hwang’s blood, so I’m sure you’ll do well.”

“How many times have I told you that’s not the case?!” Hwang Jaecheol retorted. He was tired of having people from other countries assume he was related to Hwang Gyeongryong just because they had the same surname.

Of course, the fact that Hwang Gyeongryong had so many children didn’t help.

“In any case, you are Korean, so you must know what the chairman likes and wants to hear.”

“My hands are already full with the current situation, but I’m still grateful for this.”

The situation in Arizona, the land of deserts, sand and rocks, was getting worse because of the invasion of the evil god constellations. It wasn’t to the extent that the governor had lost office and fled to somewhere like Texas, but more and more monsters kept appearing in deserts and valleys.

Instead of attacking first, the clans focused on defending their cities and towns. Hwang Jaecheol couldn’t blame them, given that he himself had made the same choice.

“Think about it. If he comes, Arizona will be safer. You know how hard the branch managers in China are working right now, right?”

“Yes, I’m aware. I will do my best.”

Hwang Jaecheol contacted the company’s clans and started the preparations. For now, he was going to do his best to welcome Hunter Choi Yeonseung.

‘Ugh... It’s the first time I get to meet him in person... I hope it goes well...’

Hwang Jaecheol couldn’t help wondering what kind of person Choi Yeonseung was.

***

“Don’t come close! She’s very dangerous!”

The hunters at the airport were taken aback by Illaphael’s words and took a few steps back. How dangerous was the being they were transporting for a household member to say something like that?

“...It’s fine, really... So why don’t you release me?”

At that moment, the hunters were bewitched by the sweet, melodious voice, and they were overcome by a desperate desire to free the captive at all costs.

Clap!

Choi Yeonseung infused some internal energy and clapped his hands, causing the hunters to come to their senses.

“Keep your distance. You can move around on your own.”

“Excuse me... If you’d be so kind as to release me...”

Lamart, the household member of the Goddess of Pleasure and Lust, was so tightly restrained that one might’ve thought she was a constellation.

She was bound by chains and various seals bestowed by the Six-Winged Angel Who Hunts Dragons himself and dragged around. That was how wary the others were of her.

“Shut up, nightmare demon! If you keep opening that mouth of yours, I’ll seal it as well.”

“I told you that last time was an accident...”

“Save your deception for your master. I won’t fall for your slick words.”

Illaphael glared warily at Lamart, and the nightmare demon realized that persuading the angel would be impossible. Angels were known to be stubborn, but Illaphael really took the cake. Lamart could tell that this angel was determined to never let go of that incident.

Seeing that she couldn’t seduce the angel, Lamart realized she had no choice but to pick another target.

“Excuse me, human,” Lamart called out to Illeya in a sweet voice. She wanted to somehow get this human to feel sympathy toward her and break her seals.

She had no evil intentions; it was just frustrating and difficult to move around like this.

“I can’t hear you. I can’t hear you,” said Illeya as she covered her ears.

Lamart looked at Illeya with a puzzled expression. Angels were one thing, but how come a human wasn’t influenced by her voice?

Her pride as a nightmare demon took a massive hit.

“Welcome!”

“!”

Choi Yeonseung was puzzled by the sight of people waiting outside the airport. They looked like employees from Dragon Industry...

“Did you come all this way to meet me?”

“Yes, Choi Yeonseung. I’ve been waiting.”

“Surely you guys are very busy with the invasion... You didn’t have to do this.”

Illaphael shook her head at Choi Yeonseung’s words.

“Everyone who is capable and has a high status should be treated accordingly. It is natural for humans to serve you. These humans aren’t wrong. In fact, more humans should treat you like this.”

“You are blatantly denying democracy...” Choi Yeonseung muttered as he greeted the hunters. Even though he thought this was a waste of time, he had no intention of refusing their hospitality after such a warm welcome.

“Yes. Thank you, everyone. What’s the current situation?”

“It’s still okay, but everyone is worried.”

Dragon Battery also had facilities in the mines of Arizona.

Mines had always been very profitable, but after the Abyss gate was open, their importance skyrocketed. Because of the influence of magic power, many mines contained rare minerals that could only be found in the Abyss.

Naturally, mines had become very sought-after because they had the resources found in dungeons but without the monsters and traps.

Companies that put everything on the line to develop more efficient, higher-capacity batteries were particularly obsessed with those kinds of resources.

As such, the clans affiliated with Dragon Battery had set up camp in the mining area in Arizona.

-Even if the end of the world comes, we can’t give up this place!

-I would rather give up my head than to see a decrease in my annual salary!

“Aren’t the mines a good place to kill monsters?”

“Yes. That’s right.”

Monsters were bound freely to increase in numbers in remote areas like mountains and forests. Given that very few people lived or wandered through such areas, many monsters settled down undetected.

The government tried to deal with that issue by sending patrols in those areas, but the efficiency of that wasn’t great.

-Huh... I guess humans don’t know how to do that.

-What do you mean?

-I created a magic artifact a long time ago, and it’s pretty simple to use if you understand the principle. If there are any active monsters in the vicinity of the artifact, it will send a signal to its counterpart, informing you of the activity.

Like a true slacker, the goddess of sloth was adept at this type of magic. Laziness was seen as a negative trait, but those who were lazy found all kinds of efficient tricks so that they could remain lazy.

After all, the goddess of sloth had developed a spell that could make the undead work in a factory for a reason. Many constellations never would’ve thought about that.

-Oh, is there such an artifact? That’s great. Let me know they’re installed.

-Ah... n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

The goddess of sloth realized that she had made a mistake. Didn’t this mean that she was supposed to directly supervise the production of the artifacts...?

-In fact, now that I think about it, I don’t think it’s that great...

-Are there any constellations out there that are deceived by your lousy excuses? I’m really curious.

The goddess of sloth was dejected.

“By the way, Hunter Choi Yeonseung. I don’t mean to tell you what to do, but... Wouldn’t it have been better to come to Arizona at a later time?” said one of the clan leaders in a quiet voice.

Some people saw hunters as firefighters, but that comparison was rather inaccurate. Firefighters put out fires in buildings, whereas hunters made bargains, asking how bad the fire was before deciding if they would help.

The stronger the fire, the more money hunters made.

At the moment, the situation in Arizona wasn’t that desperate. Clans were holding out in the big cities, and there were many companies to get involved, so there still was some semblance of order...

Thus, it would be difficult for hunters to get a lot of money if they got involved.

“I’m not here for the money,” Choi Yeonseung said bluntly. His goal was to do the necessary raids and keep Huntsman in check, not to make money.

However, the clan leaders interpreted his answer differently.

“As expected...!”

“I am ashamed.”

“?”

[The power of existence has increased due to faith!]

***

Hwang Jaecheol managed to find a Korean chef and have them prepare traditional Korean cuisine in a short time.

The summoned hunters were puzzled by the unfamiliar Asian dishes.

“What is this?”

“Why did the general manager serve us this? Did he want to show off the food of his country?”

“Why can’t we just eat American food?”

The hunters had a lot to say even in front of the general manager. They were risking their lives to fight monsters, so they obviously wanted to eat what they wanted.

“Oh, it’s food from Hunter Choi Yeonseung’s country? I guess Hunter Choi Yeonseung wanted to eat it.”

“Ah. Looking at it again, it looks delicious.”

“I actually enjoy Korean food.”

The hunters quickly changed their minds. They weren’t afraid of the general manager, but they were most certainly afraid of an A-grade hunter.

After all, a hunter of that level could blow off someone’s head when they were angry.

“You all seem pretty tired.”

Choi Yeonseung looked around at the hunters. He didn’t need to use his constellation eyes to see that these hunters, who were working here in the mining area, were tired. Their flow of magic was unbalanced, and the fatigue had left a mark on their appearances.

‘I should let them recover.’

If Choi Yeonseung were a constellation of recovery and blessings, he would’ve quickly rejuvenated the hunters with his power. But unfortunately, he could do no such thing.

However, as a constellation, he had other abilities.

Thump—

“???”

Hwang Jaecheol was surprised when Choi Yeonseung suddenly took out a kitchen knife.

“Don’t... Don’t you like your meal?”

“Ah, no, it’s great. It’s just that I want to show you something after you welcomed me like this.”

“Ah, is that so?”

‘Even if it doesn’t taste good, I’ll eat it no matter what.’

The chef brought by the general manager looked at Choi Yeonseung in a bewildered manner. He knew he was a strong hunter, but he didn’t understand why Choi Yeonseung suddenly came into the kitchen.

Why did a hunter want to cook?

Hwang Jaecheol apologized to the chef. “I’m sorry. He seems to enjoy serving things himself.”

“I’m getting paid, so it’s fine. Besides, there’s no way for me to understand how high-ranking hunters think. I’m just worried whether those hunters will enjoy the food. Won’t it ruin the atmosphere?”

“The hunters are smart, and they’ll show gratitude for the food. I’ll make sure of that.”

Hwang Jaecheol was determined. Even if those hunters didn’t enjoy the food, he would force them to eat it while smiling even if it meant threatening them with their annual salaries.

Just then, flames rose up and well-cut ingredients started dancing inside the pan. An amateur chef would certainly not be able to pull off such moves.

‘...Is it because he’s a hunter?’

The chef was stunned. No matter how he looked at it, Choi Yeonseung’s dexterity in the kitchen was extraordinary.

He knew that hunters moved differently, but still...

“Wait, Illeya.”

“Huh?”

“Can you use the ice power to prepare some dessert?”

“...I can.”

Illeya’s voice grew cold like her power, but Choi Yeonseung pretended not to notice it.

-By the way, isn’t it possible to do it with martial arts?

-Maybe you can do it with the power of existence, but her ice will give the desert a deeper flavor.

Choi Yeonseung happily took the ice. If he had a chance later, he would ask Illeya to make some more ice so he could pack it and store it in his realm.