Chapter 07

Jinwoo sat alone in his office with Lee Sohee.

Reflecting his practical personality, the office contained only the bare necessities.

Of course, Jinwoo rarely even used the office itself, so he considered even this much unnecessary.

“Captain, public opinion seems really positive right now.”

“Well, that makes sense. We became the first to clear the 19th floor.”

“I’ll read some internet comments for you. “Captain Korea has returned; our national hero is back alive,” “Kim Jinwoo is a god,” “Loyal retainer Lee Sohee…”

“That’s cringe.”

When Lee Sohee kept reading endless praise about him, Jinwoo raised his hand and stopped her.

“Look at these article headlines. They’re all welcoming your return, Captain. The comments are almost entirely positive too.”

Jinwoo smirked at her words.

“They’re acting like this because they’re afraid I might go to America?”

“…I’ll understand whatever choice you make, Captain. I just wanted to let you know that public opinion has changed.”

Even Lee Sohee, who was practically Jinwoo’s only close ally, did not know what he was planning.

Naturally, she could not help but worry.

It felt like Jinwoo might suddenly leave Korea at any moment.

“Don’t worry. I have no plans to leave Korea right now.”

“R-Really?”

“More importantly, did any guilds contact us about buying my items?”

“What do you mean no? They’re contacting us even right now. So far, Black Phantom Guild, White Tiger Guild, and Forest Guild have all reached out. Black Phantom seems very interested in the items you obtained, Forest Guild is interested in the Random Skill Book, and White Tiger Guild seems mostly interested in information.”

“Really?”

“And besides those, many other guilds are contacting us for various reasons. Even overseas guilds are sending emails.”

Jinwoo nodded as though the result were obvious.

Forest Guild. The guild master there was Kim Se-ah, right?’

The guild’s name felt unfamiliar, but Kim Se-ah’s name was very familiar to him.

After all, she had been one of the members of Korea’s final raid team.

“Reply to Forest Guild. Tell them to meet me tomorrow.”

“…Forest Guild? Understood.”

Lee Sohee wrote down his instructions in a notebook like a secretary.

Jinwoo had tried to stop her, but since she insisted on handling the work herself, he simply accepted it comfortably.

Ding dong.

At that moment, the office bell suddenly rang.

“More reporters?”

“The reporters should’ve been stopped in the lobby.”

“Then it’s probably government officials.”

And as expected.

When the door opened, Minister Choi Kyungho of the Hunter Management Department stood there.

For some reason, Choi Kyungho greeted Jinwoo with an awkward smile.

“Hunter Kim Jinwoo, you’ve accomplished something truly incredible this time.”

“What brings you here, Minister?”

Jinwoo did not welcome Choi Kyungho.

Naturally so.

Choi Kyungho was one of the people who had pushed him toward America in the past.

There was no way Jinwoo could have positive feelings toward him.

Seeing Jinwoo’s cold reaction, Choi Kyungho forced a smile and spoke.

“Could you spare some time right now? I came to discuss an important matter related to the nation.”

Jinwoo answered firmly.

“I’m sorry, but I already have another appointment.”

“At this hour? Are you really going to act this coldly because of past events?”

He mistakenly believed Jinwoo was making excuses to avoid him.

He thought that way because he himself knew exactly what kind of wrongs he had committed against Jinwoo.

Jinwoo looked at Choi Kyungho expressionlessly and said,

“I’m meeting the American ambassador.”

Choi Kyungho immediately stiffened in shock.

Meeting the American ambassador at such a sensitive time naturally carried heavy implications.

“Hunter Kim Jinwoo, you’re not planning to leave Korea immediately, are you? Korea can only remain stable if you stay. The people are relying on you as well.”

Jinwoo looked at him expressionlessly and replied,

“As I already stated publicly, I have no intention of making any decisions right now. However, I’m leaving various possibilities open regarding my future actions.”

Choi Kyungho’s face instantly became anxious.

“Hunter Kim Jinwoo, the president values you greatly as well. The reason I came here is because the government wishes to promise you the maximum possible support. So please reconsider.”

“We can discuss it another time, Minister.”

Hearing Jinwoo’s firm dismissal, Choi Kyungho bit his lip tightly before lowering his head and leaving.

“Captain, it looks like the government finally came to its senses. Just looking at Minister Choi Kyungho’s attitude, it feels like the power balance has completely reversed.”

Jinwoo nodded.

“Now it’s time for us to take control.”

In truth, even control alone was not enough for Jinwoo’s goals.

Just like the name of his trait, The Nation Belongs to Me, he needed not merely influence over Korea but complete control over it.

‘If there’s no alternative except me, then both the government and the people will have no choice but to depend on me.’

The meeting with American ambassador Steven Jackson ended without any major results.

Jinwoo rejected every offer America made, and Steven Jackson was forced to leave empty-handed.

But Jinwoo did not consider the meeting meaningless.

The fact that America openly showed how much it wanted him was already valuable enough.

The day after his meeting with the ambassador,

Choi Kyungho visited Jinwoo’s office again early in the morning.

This time, he did not come alone.

He arrived together with Jung Hyunwoo, the Presidential Chief of Staff.

“It is an honor to meet Korea’s national hero, Hunter Kim Jinwoo. I am Jung Hyunwoo, Chief of Staff to the President.”

“Right.”

While Choi Kyungho still maintained a stiff attitude, Jung Hyunwoo acted extremely politely.

The contrast between the two was obvious.

But Jinwoo treated both of them coldly without caring much about the difference.

Jung Hyunwoo spoke first.

“Hunter Kim Jinwoo, if it isn’t too rude, may I ask what kind of conversation you had with the American ambassador?”

Jinwoo answered casually, as though it were nothing important.

“The American ambassador offered me fifty trillion won. He said they’d pay it all immediately if I moved to America.”

“F-Fifty trillion?!”

Hearing this, both Choi Kyungho and Jung Hyunwoo were completely shocked.

It was nearly three times more money than the assets of Korea’s richest person.

Simply by moving to America, Jinwoo would instantly become one of the fifty wealthiest people in the world.

“Fifty trillion… D-Does that even make sense?”

Choi Kyungho quietly whispered to Jung Hyunwoo, almost seeming suspicious that Jinwoo was bluffing.

But Jung Hyunwoo ignored him and cautiously asked Jinwoo,

“And… what answer did you give them?”

“I didn’t give a definite answer.”

After hearing that, Jung Hyunwoo could not decide whether to sigh in relief or look even more serious.

“Hunter Kim Jinwoo, you are Korea’s hero. The nickname Captain Korea wasn’t given to you for nothing. For the sake of the people, you must remain in Korea.”

“Captain Korea, huh.”

Jinwoo gave a cold, mocking smile.

“Well, I’m not so sure. Neither the government nor the people seemed to think that way.”

Then he pulled out his phone and showed them old screenshots Lee Sohee had saved.

“There were comments like these. And articles like these too. What kind of national hero gets treated this way by their own people?”

“T-That’s…”

Jung Hyunwoo stuttered awkwardly.

“And hearing those words from the chief of staff is honestly laughable. Have you already forgotten what the government did to me?”

The government had openly pressured Jinwoo.

They demanded he force raids before proper preparations were complete, demanded that he hand over portions of Tower resources like Karma to the government, and more.

They even launched tax investigations against him, and whenever one of his subordinates made even a small mistake, they punished them excessively simply because they were Hunters.

One of the biggest reasons Jinwoo’s raid team had eventually collapsed was precisely because of this government pressure.

“Hunter Kim Jinwoo! That’s a misunderstanding.”

“That’s right. The government only prioritized principles. We never targeted Hunter Kim Jinwoo due to personal feelings.”

Jinwoo answered firmly.

“That’s enough. If you want to persuade me, then bring a worthwhile proposal. I’ve already done everything I could for this country. Do I still need to sacrifice more for the nation?”

Jung Hyunwoo hurriedly began offering various proposals.

“O-Of course. The government has already prepared compensation that should satisfy you. First, if you achieve another first clear like you did with the 19th floor, we’ll reward you with one hundred billion won. In addition, we’ll support any equipment needed for future raids.”

“So the condition is that it must be a first-class

Jinwoo let out a scoff.

In reality, he barely restrained himself from saying, ‘Only one hundred billion? Who do you think that’s enough for?’

He had no idea how the petty government might twist his words through the media.

So instead of criticizing the small amount of money, he deliberately responded in a way that implied, “Are you forcing me to achieve first clears?”

“O-Of course, even if it’s not a first clear, there will still be rewards. We haven’t fully discussed it yet, but perhaps around ten billion…”

“Forget the money.”

“E-Excuse me?”

“You already know, don’t you? Korea can’t compete with America using money.”

When Jinwoo coldly said that, Jung Hyunwoo lowered his head.

Whether it was ten billion or one hundred billion, none of it mattered much after America had already offered fifty trillion.

“What I want isn’t money. I want a special legal status. Not just for me, but for the entire profession of hunters.”

“……!”

The completely unexpected demand shocked not only Jung Hyunwoo but even Choi Kyungho.

“What do you mean by special legal status?”

“Exactly what I said. Give Hunters immunity and protection from arrest. Only then will Hunters be able to focus entirely on climbing the Tower.”

“Immunity and protection from arrest?! Hunters aren’t members of parliament! We can’t grant such excessive privileges!”

After his initial shock, Jung Hyunwoo firmly refused.

To begin with, this was not even something the government alone could decide.

It absolutely required approval from the National Assembly.

And even before reaching parliament, the president himself would never agree to granting Hunters such enormous privileges.

“You grant those privileges to ordinary politicians already, so why can’t Hunters have them?”

“What?”

Six years from now, this country would collapse.

But if Hunters disappeared, Korea would not even survive this year.

That meant Hunters were dozens of times more important than politicians.

Yet the country still failed to understand their value.

That was why they still forced Hunters into military service.

And why they shot at Hunters simply because they caused minor trouble while drunk.

“Anyway, I’ve already said everything I wanted. If these demands aren’t met, then I have no reason to stay in Korea.”

“T-Then ask for something else instead. The president would never accept demands like these.”

“There’s nothing else I want.”

Jinwoo firmly shook his head.

Money was something he could simply earn himself.

Knowing the future, how could money possibly be difficult to make?

Even exporting hair-loss medicine alone could earn him trillions.

‘Winning the support of Hunters is dozens of times more important than money.’

To achieve the plans he had for the future, he needed the Hunter community completely on his side.

And the first step toward that was strengthening Hunters’ legal rights.

“…Understood. We’ll relay your demands to the President.”

With expressions like they had just swallowed something rotten, Jung Hyunwoo and Choi Kyungho left Jinwoo’s office.

And that very afternoon:

<Kim Jinwoo: “Hunter privileges must be strengthened.” Sparks controversy.>

<The “national hero” who wants to become nobility. >

The contents of Jinwoo’s demands to the government were immediately reported by the media.

After reading the articles, Jinwoo smiled coldly.

‘The fact that they aren’t controlling the media at all basically means they’ve already rejected my demands.’

More than simply rejecting him, it was clearly an attempt to undermine him.

Even public opinion was already beginning to shift once again.

‘No matter how much they try to interfere, they won’t be able to stop me from establishing the Association.’

The plan Jinwoo had made was to establish a Hunter Association and become its leader.