65

It was easy to spot when a gate was cleared. No matter how powerful it was, its color would always change to white.

The gate Lee Hwan had entered was already cleared. The people outside could see that it had turned white.

The SS-rated gate that had posed a great danger to them is cleared. In other words, Lee Hwan had just saved London.

Everyone cheered as reporters and other crowds gathered to greet the hero and his team. News reports about the gate were shared worldwide, and the whole world was paying close attention to them.

The Royal family of Britain had also seen the news reports. The current king was King Alexander, who was just eighteen years old. He wanted to become a true king.

A Korean hunter cleared the SS-rated gate without any help from the UK. Because of that, they were now in a higher position than the UK.

“How should we reward them?”

At this, Michael Huntington sighed.

He knew that they would have to give up a lot. Either land, money, or weapons, if that was what they wanted. However, there was a chance that the SS-rated gate might appear again, so creating a good relationship with Lee Hwan was important. But if they wanted to maintain this relationship, they would be losing more.

This was why they must be in an equal position. That was how history worked; the UK knew about this well.

King Alexander spoke out.

“Why don’t we invite them over and teach them how powerful the royal family is?”

“…Invite them?”

“Yes, teach them formal etiquette. Make them realize that they are just ordinary Hunters.”

It was a cocky attitude, but unfortunately, Huntington thought it was a great idea.

“That’s a great idea, Your Highness. He’ll definitely realize how small he is after seeing us.”

Now, this was what he wanted to hear. Alexander smiled.

“I heard that Sophie is friends with Lee Hwan. Invite them through her.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

***

Sophie was waiting for Lee Hwan and his team outside the now-white gate.

How long had it been since they had gone inside? Three, four hours?

It might seem useless, but Sophie was worried about him. She really thought of Lee Hwan as a reliable ally.

She waited outside for a long time.

About four and a half hours later, the five of them stepped out of the gate and were greeted with a cheering crowd.

Lee Hwan looked as if nothing had happened, aside from some spatters of blood on his clothes and certain parts of his body. However, it was clear that it was not his blood, which meant that he had encountered no difficulties in clearing the gate.

However, the others with him looked quite ill.

Among them, Kim So-Eun looked to be in the best condition. Did they eat something harmful? Sophie wondered. As she approached them, she bowed low.

“Thank you for saving London.”

Lee Hwan chuckled. They were about to get a significant reward from the UK. Despite that, she was still thanking him again. Lee Hwan smiled and replied.

“There’s no need for that.”

Sophie smiled and stood up straight. She knew that she would be talking about the reward with Jeong Gi-Hoon.

When they were ready to go, someone suddenly came up to Sophie and whispered something urgent in her ear. She seemed to be doubting her ears. What she had heard was just absurd.

The person had informed her that the king was inviting them to the palace, which meant they had to learn proper etiquettes like postures and other things.

Sophie frowned and looked at Lee Hwan. She wasn’t sure if he had heard it or not, but she hoped he would pay it no mind.

Unfortunately for Sophie, Hwan had heard the whisper. His senses were much sharper than anyone else’s. He wondered what Sophie would say. Obviously, she was not a fool to follow that order.

“Did you have a meal inside?”

Lee Hwan looked back at his team. Jeong Gi-Hoon and the others did not look well, and the reason was simple. They had just eaten the venomous monster’s meat. Only Kim So-Eun looked unbothered by the poison, but Hwan thinks she might feel a stomach ache as well.

“I think we should take a rest. Can you book us a hotel room?”

“I’ll book the most expensive one.”

She had caught his implications well. That was why Lee Hwan liked her.

“Lead the way.”

“As you wish.”

She guided them to a fancy hotel, never mentioning anything about the royal family.

It was an insult to assume that she was a fool. She was a really smart woman who majored in political science at Oxford. In addition, she was also the leader of the UK’s Hunter authority.

King Alexander had invited Lee Hwan to the palace. If it had been a usual thing for the king to do, then there would be no issue about it, but this had never happened before.

Right now, the UK should be the one thanking Lee Hwan and his team and rewarding them. They didn’t even send a support team of Hunters to help clear the gate. In short, he was the hero of the UK. What the king had just done was very problematic.

Lee Hwan and Jeong Gi-Hoon didn’t say anything. King Alexander wanted their relationship to be on equal footing, but that was a foolish choice. They wanted to pressure Lee Hwan’s team so that they could stay on top.

Sophie was mad about that. She didn’t know much, but she knew what type of person Lee Hwan was. If someone was nice to him, he would also be nice to them. However, if someone tried to suppress or control him, he would return the favor.

And that was exactly what the King was about to do.

“What the fuck!”

An inappropriate curse burst out of Sophie’s mouth. Her brother, Russel, was suddenly standing in front of her. She sighed and asked him.

“What nonsense is this?”

“…What do you mean?”

Usually, they tried not to express their emotions in public. This was a private place, so Sophie slammed the desk.

“Lee Hwan was invited by the royal family!”

“…What did you just say?”

Sophie realized then that her brother didn’t know about this. If that was the case, then the order must have come directly from the royal family.

Russell quickly realized what was going on and sighed.

“…It’s the king.”

Of course. There was no other answer. That idiot…

Russell sighed again.

“Didn’t you hear it from the prime minister?”

“If I heard it, then I wouldn’t be this surprised.”

“……”

Russell stood up. Before Sophie had barged into his house, he had been feeling relieved because London was now safe. That was why he decided to return home quickly and spend some time with his family. That was a big mistake.

Together, Russell and Sophie started to head to the palace, but it was too late.

On the television, a breaking news report was showing.

[ Hero of London declines the royal’s invitation. ]

***

The hotel room Sophie got for us was really big. I was watching the television with Jeong Gi-Hoon as I sat on the couch, eating a plate of nachos. I liked its salty taste. Unfortunately, the news was not as good as the nachos.

“I guess they had been planning this all along.”

As I smiled, Jeong Gi-Hoon responded quickly. “I expected it.”

“You mean this?”

“Yes.”

I glanced at Gi-Hoon. He never talked about the compensation from the UK, always saying that we would just talk about the reward later. He didn’t even mention the amount of money we were asking for. I guess there was a reason behind it.

As if he read my thoughts, he answered.

“The leader of the UK is the prime minister, but the power of royals cannot be ignored as well.”

I listened to him carefully.

“Why do you think everyone declined the UK’s request for help?”

“Why?”

“In short, it’s because of the royal family.”

“The Royals?”

“Yes. King Alexander is just an eighteen-year-old boy, but he is prideful and arrogant. I have known him since I was in Cheon-Myeong.”

“How prideful is he?”

“He thinks that he is the rightful ruler of the UK. That’s probably why he made this ridiculous statement.”

I grabbed a handful of nachos and shoved it in my mouth. Then I asked Jeong Gi-Hoon what exactly his statement was.

“As awakeners gradually appeared, someone claimed that the monarchy should return. He was the one who strongly supported that claim. He even tried to get rid of democracy in this country.”

Wow. That was shocking.

“He controlled the army of awakeners and monitored other ministries for his own good; all of that happened in just two years. He even tried to spread his ideas to other countries. That’s why everyone hates him.”

“I see. So that was why no one came to help the UK.”

“Yes. The biggest problem was that king, but…”

“Go on.”

“That is also the reason why we can take so much from them. We were the ones who saved the UK from danger. If it weren’t for us, the London we know would be destroyed by now.”

As I nodded in understanding, Jeong Gi-Hoon continued explaining.

“You are not a citizen of the UK. Even if you are a hero, you are still a foreigner. Some people naturally will not like this.”

“Indeed.”

“To be honest, taking North Korea back was a hard job. As I mentioned, the UK had an internal political issue. To make them our ally, we need to get rid of those who are in our way.”

Jeong Gi-Hoon picked up a nacho chip and ate it, ending his explanation. His claim was interesting.

“I know that you don’t see the point of this, but the form of colonies has been changed. If all the politicians here support you, then I suppose it would be more like a colony.”

Look at this guy. His statement made me laugh.

“I never knew that you were such an ambitious man.”

“Not at all. That’s how the strongest Hunters work; Master Lee did this too. He’s more dangerous than a nuclear weapon now, and you are stronger than him. They must try to collaborate with you.”

Like I mentioned before, I let Jeong Gi-Hoon do all the tasks, and my judgment was correct. He was an expert.

“You don’t have to do anything. Just stay still and someone will do your job.”

“Like who?”

“Like Sophie.”

That was true. She knew my power, and she loved her country. I knew she would do anything to save her land.

“I haven’t told you this yet, but the Winsted family is the rising star right now. All the family members are named politicians or well-known professors. In fact, Sophie’s grandfather was the former prime minister of the UK. Since they are on our side, this will be an easy job.”

Jeong Gi-Hoon was certain and confident. That put a smile on my face.

“If the UK fully supports you, then they will be like a colony to you. You can have the UK as a supporter, and you’ll be comfortable.”

“I see.”

“Do you like soccer?”

“I do.”

“You can make your own team. The entire country of the UK will cheer for that.”

My own soccer team, huh? That sounded really interesting.

“Also, do you like the beach?”

“I do.”

“I shall get a boat for you as well.”

Everything seemed good so far, but I had a question.

“How about cash?”

“We will certainly get that, but as you well know, we are part of the Hunter authority now.”

“Um…”

“We’ll definitely get cash, but not now. If we get it now, then we have to pay taxes to the Hunter authority. They don’t deserve that. Leave this to me, and I’ll keep all the money safe.”

He really was the perfect supporter.

“Wow… No wonder my brother admired you.”

“Oh, me?”

“Yes.”

“Well, it is true that I can live well in Cheon-Myeong… But I want a spectacular life.”

We both laughed for a while before Jeong Gi-Hoon stood up.

“I’ll go now.”

“Are you heading to talk to Sophie?”

“Yes. Let me do this. At the gate, I wasn’t able to do anything.”

“But how about your stomach ache?”

“It’s fine. I’m not that weak.”

However, I knew that Gi-Hoon was not well. The poison of Musmahhu was very severe. He was still up and awake because he was the only S-rated Hunter with us. Yoo Ee-Na and Kim Yoo-Jeong had already passed out by now.

“Take care. If you feel unwell, make sure to use the toilet.”

“I will. And I will finish the task by today.”

He was seemingly confident. I smiled and let him go.

Oh, but I forgot to ask him an important question before he left.

When were we going back home?