It was only natural that they were dumbfounded.
Volunteer work?
They had co all the way to Korea to negotiate non-permanent mber status.
Finn asked,
"Are you serious?"
"Of course I am. Completely serious."
"What do you..."
"I'm not joking. If you're here to talk about Korea becoming a non-permanent mber because of , then that ans you just want as a resource, doesn’t it? So why blow things out of proportion for just one person? I don’t like complicated processes either. If we share the goal of world peace, then I’m more than willing to help under the label of volunteerism. Like I said earlier—I’m not interested in money. Unless..."
Su-ho narrowed his eyes slightly.
"You’re not calculating sothing other than needing my help for world peace, are you?"
"......"
"......"
"......"
Everyone sat in silence, exchanging glances.
Because they all knew Su-ho was telling the truth.
Su-ho smiled.
"I'm going to step out to the restroom for a bit."
With that, he got up and exited.
They all knew Su-ho was giving them space—deliberately.
And so, they quickly began discussing among themselves.
"Captain, what should we do?"
"We'll have to report it to HQ. But honestly, his proposal isn’t necessarily a bad one. Like he said, if he really does help as a volunteer, we can utilize him without escalating things."
"But the gates that require Peace Corps deploynt aren’t ordinary ones. Will he really help us?"
"That’s..."
Finn couldn’t answer Sein’s question.
Because he wasn’t sure.
That uncertainty was exactly why they wanted to make Korea a non-permanent mber.
But Su-ho clearly didn’t want that for his country.
And this was no small matter.
A capable player clearing gates was the greatest contribution anyone could make to humanity.
"I’ll make a call."
Finn got up and stepped into a quiet corner of the restaurant.
After making a call, he returned.
By then, Su-ho was already back.
Su-ho smiled at him.
"Have you finished discussions with HQ?"
"...Ha, I can’t keep up with you. Yes, we talked. But Mr. Su-ho, while everything sounds great, there’s one thing we’re concerned about."
"You’re worried I won’t help with the important gates when the ti cos?"
"...Yes, that’s exactly it."
"Does that concern really an much?"
"What do you an?"
"Let’s be honest—aren’t there people in the Peace Corps who quit outright just to avoid going into certain gates? Which ans, in reality, the deploynt rate into Peace Corps-level gates isn’t very high."
"That’s..."
True.
No matter the circumstances, unless soone’s family was being held hostage, overcoming the fear of death wasn’t easy.
Why else would deserters exist?
But it wasn’t a convincing enough argunt—at least, not to them.
So Su-ho continued.
"You’ve already done a full background check on before coming, haven’t you?"
"Yes, we have."
"Then you must also know how many sealed gates I’ve cleared by myself?"
"Yes, more or less."
"Then do I need to explain further? You know what a sealed gate is. It’s a gate that was forcibly sealed off because too many people died trying to clear it. The portals are locked down by Squares. And those Squares are standardized by international treaty. I entered those gates alone. Most of the sealed gates in Korea, in fact."
Su-ho looked each person in the eye before continuing.
"I’m not afraid of death. To end the gates, soone has to go in. I’ll be that soone. If there’s no volunteer, I’ll go in alone. Actually, I prefer it that way. I’ve always worked like that. Of course, I don’t want compensation. But to clear the next gate, I’ll need to keep what drops from the ones I do clear. That’s my nourishnt for growth. That’s all I want. You’re not planning to confiscate the loot just because I’m volunteering... right?"
"......"
Finn fell silent again.
Then, after a mont, he quietly spoke.
"Understood. Mr. Su-ho, your position is clear. However... even if it’s under the pretense of volunteering, I doubt the Korean governnt will allow it so easily. As you know, you’re a high-value national asset."
"I understand. I’m officially state-affiliated, so it wouldn’t look good if I acted purely on personal whim. But don’t worry too much. If the governnt is considerate, I’ll reciprocate that. But if they try to drag around for no good reason, I won’t hesitate to act on my own terms."
"Impressive. I heard the hierarchy in Korea is far stricter than in the U.S."
"I may be a national Hunter, but I don’t serve people or ranks. I work for the nation and the people."
"Good words. I understand your position, Mr. Su-ho. We’ll take it seriously and conduct an internal review. Do you have a direct contact number?"
"Of course."
Su-ho handed over a secret business card with his private number.
"This has my direct line. Please keep it secure."
"Understood. You have nothing to worry about on that front."
"So, are you heading back now?"
"I should at least show my face since we’re visiting."
"Then... would you mind leaving out of tomorrow’s eting?"
"Leave you out?"
"I an... we’ve already discussed everything important. What’s the point of attending? I’d rather use that ti to get so work done. As I ntioned earlier, I just ca back from the North."
"Haha. I understand exactly what you an. Is that the only favor?"
"Yes, just that. But please explain it well. I heard soone insisted I attend."
"Alright. We’ll handle that in advance."
"Thank you. While you’re at it, ntion the Purification-Reunification operation or sothing. Give the higher-ups a bit of a shine. Doesn’t even have to be real."
"Sure. Then, could I ask a small favor as well?"
"Is it personal or from the UN?"
Finn scrunched his nose playfully at that.
"You’re quick. Of course, it’s from the UN."
"What is it? If it’s about gates, I’m always happy to help."
"That’s exactly it. Would it be possible to request your help with sealed gates in other countries? We’ll provide as much support as we can."
"Of course. But wait—did the UN plan to use that as another test of my abilities?"
"Haha... please, cut so slack."
"A request like that right now? What else could it be? Fine. Whatever it is, I won’t refuse. Let’s sort out the details later. It would help if you sent the gate info in advance."
"Thank you. We’ll proceed with that internally."
"Got it. Oh, and one more thing—you’ll need to pay close attention to level restrictions. I’ll be breaking level 200 soon."
"Haha. That’s definitely been taken into consideration."
They ended with laughter on both sides.
Su-ho was the first to step out of the bar and stretched.
Then he returned to the car, checked the ti, and called Jeong Cheol-min.
The call was answered quickly.
— Oh, Su-ho.
"Are you ho?"
— *Yeah, just got back. I was on the phone, actually. Why?"
"Who were you calling?"
— *Just the Association President so far. Why?"
"I just t with so UN people."
— ...What? How did you end up eting them?
Su-ho briefly explained the situation.
Of course, he left out Martin Park.
He simply said he went at a friend’s request, and the UN approached him first.
He told him about the test, how he crushed them, refused non-permanent mber status, and offered to work in a volunteer capacity instead.
He laid out most of the conversation.
Partly because he trusted Jeong Cheol-min, but mostly because it was easier to handle logistics when people in the know were up to speed.
And besides, Jeong Cheol-min was far more influential than Su-ho himself.
When the explanation ended, Jeong Cheol-min let out a deep sigh.
— Ha... those lunatics at Foreign Affairs...
"They’ve always cut corners. It’s not like this is the first ti. Anyway, tomorrow’s eting will just be for show."
— The higher-ups are gonna be all over it. By the way, the UN asked for you specifically—what should I tell them?
"I already handled that. I told them to deal with it on their end."
— *True... if the Ministry is in on it too, they’ll just pretend not to notice. But still, we should be helping each other—this is just absurd. Ugh... now I’ve got to call the Association President again."
"I’m sure he’ll understand."
— Is that everything?
"Yes, that’s all. Actually, I was wondering... can I stay in the North until the next operation?"
— You know it’s not far off, right?
"I know. I’ll be back the day before."
— Fine. But how did you convince the UN guys so easily?
"I pierced one guy’s stomach and cut off two arms."
— ...What? Stop joking, you maniac.
"I’m not joking. Finn and Albert, was it? I cut off the team leader’s arm and the Korean-Arican’s. If you don’t believe , ask them."
— You’re insane! Do you even know who they are?!
"They asked for a mock battle. I played along. And I reattached the arms. Perfectly."
— That’s not the point—ugh, forget it. What am I even supposed to say to you...
"I handled it cleanly. No loose ends."
— Yeah, I’m sure you did... Hey, Su-ho.
"Yeah?"
— Did they say anything else?
"Like what?"
— I an... never mind.
A vague reply.
But Su-ho knew what he ant to ask.
So he grinned and said,
"Chief."
— Yeah?
"I’m not going to any other country. And I’m not leaving the Grand Hunter Association either. So don’t worry."
— Wha—? I didn’t say anything!
"Isn’t that what you were worried about? I left a great guild to join this one through special recruitnt. If money were the issue, I would’ve # Nоvеlight # chased it long ago. Sa with the country. No matter how ssed up it gets, I believe Koreans should stay in Korea. I like kimchi and garlic a lot, you know."
— Who said otherwise?!
"Just saying~"
— You brat... just get your ass back to the North already!
"Should I defect while I’m at it?"
— You wanna die?!
"Haha, just kidding. I’ll hang up now."
As expected—Jeong Cheol-min.
Always fun to tease.
After regrouping, Su-ho used the Guiyeong Spear he had lodged at Mount Kumgang to cross back into the North.
[ Shadow Step has been activated. ]
Shwip—
Su-ho’s figure vanished.
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