Against the Clock: The Team Leader’s Pursuit of Glory

Baek Sungbin just shook his head at Kyung Suhyuk's question. Despite Eulji's tired, zombie-like look, none of the Hunters asked if she was okay. This wasn't surprising. Eulji was the strongest in the group, except for their captain, Lee Jinjoo. She wasn't just a little stronger---she was far more powerful than anyone else.

Her strength wasn't the only thing people noticed. Eulji was also known for her fiery temper. On the first day after the Iron Will Guild called for full mobilization, Eulji joined the team. Someone thought they could mess with her because she looked young. It was a big mistake. She completely destroyed that person, showing everyone her true strength.

The one who faced her wrath? It was Seo Daechi. Before joining Iron Will, Seo Daechi was known for being a greedy, ruthless person. As a freelancer, he had to be tough to survive, and he was known for being brutal. So, when the Guild Leader recruited him, people were confused.

At first, when Eulji beat him, everyone was pleased. But after she took down a few more strong members of the team, the others realized they should avoid her. No one felt bad for Seo Daechi, but they didn't want to end up like him either, so they stayed clear of Eulji.

Baek Sungbin pulled Kyung Suhyuk aside and whispered, "I don't know what's going on, but she looks angry. Let's keep our distance before we get dragged into it."

"But you've got a healing factor, so even if she hits you, you'll be fine."

"A healing factor doesn't mean it doesn't hurt. Did you forget what she did to Seo Daechi?"

"Good point. That was the first time I ever heard him scream. This is the same guy who laughed when his shoulder got pierced by a Kalashnikov's claws. Nobody stands a chance against Eulji."

"I heard the Guild Master is training her. I guess they have the same personality too."

"If you ask me, she was born that way."

"Shh! She's looking this way. Don't make eye contact."

As Eulji turned her head, the two Hunters quickly looked away, pretending to focus on something else. The other Hunters nearby did the same, acting like they were busy with other things. Battling monsters day and night was exhausting, but having someone like Eulji on their team was even more draining.

Still, nobody complained about her being there. Even though they were tired, they knew that at least the monsters were truly dead. Every monster she fought was left in pieces. The guild might lose some money because the corpses were a mess, but for the Hunters risking their lives, Eulji was the best ally they could ask for.

Plus, in Iron Will, which lacked magical firepower, Eulji wasn't just valuable---she was a treasure. She handled monster hordes all by herself, something the rest of the team couldn't manage. Other guilds' strike squads had Hunters who could cast wide-area spells, but a mage like Eulji, who could work alone, was rare.

Because of her, Iron Will saved a lot of energy. Their overall power didn't match other guilds, but no one was seriously injured, and they had Eulji to thank for that.

"Alright, everyone, gear check!"

Lee Jinjoo called out as she walked into the clearing where the team was resting. Kyung Suhyuk raised his hand and asked, "Captain, are we heading out?"

"The Guild Leader ordered us to stand by. Something about him working on a strategy."

"Haaa. See. Just because we got done with hunts doesn't always mean something good for us. We've probably gone out twice as much as the other guilds."

"Eulji handled half of those all alone, so what are you complaining about?"

"That's the problem! Why am I the only one doing all the hard work?"

Eulji yelled in frustration. Lee Jinjoo replied, "Because you're the ace of this Expedition team."

"A-ace...?"

Smile~

"Wait, no! I shouldn't be happy about this!"

"Oh? You're not falling for it this time? You've grown up, huh?"

"Ace or not, I'm still a minor! I didn't even pull all-nighters for my finals, and now I'm stuck with night shifts for a whole month? This is outrageous! I should report this to the labor board!"

"Hunters aren't under the labor board's jurisdiction."

"What about the Guild Cooperation Agency?"

"Not them either."

"The investigation bureau?"

"What are you? Catching villains now?"

"The association..."

"Oh, come on. Are you seriously going to be cheap and pull the family card?"

Eulji ran through every organization she could think of, but none of them seemed to care about unfair treatment toward Hunters.

"Seriously? There's no place that protects Hunter rights?"

"Hunter rights? Why would you need those? It's a high-paying job. Everyone says being a Hunter is the number one dream job of the future. Honestly, where else can you find a 3D job like this?"

"What's 3D?"

"Dirty, dangerous, and downright exhausting."

"Oh, got it."

Kyung Suhyuk almost corrected her but decided against it. He had learned that they weren't the type to listen to reason. He had only known them for a short time, but he had already figured that out.

Instead, he pointed out the real problem.

"Look, jokes aside, we need backup. We might be able to push through physically, but if these hunts keep going, we're all going to lose it mentally."

He said that while tapping his head, and Eulji agreed.

"Exactly. I'm going to lose it if this keeps up. The constant monster screams, seeing blood and guts everywhere, and hearing bones crack---it's really starting to get to me."

"In the start, didn't you say hunting monsters helped you blow off steam?"

"Yeah, because games are fun when they're a hobby. But try being a pro gamer, playing all night with no sleep. That doesn't sound fun."

"Hunting isn't supposed to be fun."

"I know, I know. But school's starting soon! I'm in my final year, the one even S-rank Hunters wouldn't mess with! Are you going to let me miss school? What if I can't graduate because of low attendance?"

"You said you weren't going to college."

"Whether I go or not, high school is mandatory. I'm paying taxes now, and I want to fire things up for my last school year. Why won't anyone help me out? We should go on strike! Or at least, captain, can you talk to the leader and get us some vacation time?"

"You could fire things up here too if you really want to."

Lee Jinjoo lit a blue flame in her palm and playfully twirled it around her arm. Eulji flinched and stepped back.

"Come on, Captain! Just because you ranked up doesn't mean you can bully your team. If you keep this up, people will say you're abusing your power."

In truth, Lee Jinjoo was likely the biggest winner from this defense mission.

Kang Mu-hyuk had predicted she'd reach A+ rank soon, but the constant battles sped up her progress even more than expected. In large guilds, A+ was the minimum rank for an Expedition leader, and now Lee Jinjoo was finally on par with others.

She smiled and let the flame die out.

"Just hold on a little longer. We'll have a plan soon."

"Relief troops?"

"No, a counterattack."

"What? Counter- what?"

"Yeah, we're going to take them all down."

Eulji didn't look happy about the idea of another hunt, but the rest of the team stirred with excitement.

Baek Sungbin stepped in for Kyung Suhyuk, who was still too embarrassed after his shaky performance during the orc tribe raid.

"When you say 'all of them,' do you mean the named ones too?"

"Of course. If we leave them alive, catching all the others will be for nothing."

"Do you really think we...can take them down?" one of the team members asked without thinking.

Lee Jinjoo shook her head and replied, "Don't worry. Another team is handling that part."

Meanwhile, a convoy of cars sped down the East Coast Highway. The highway had been fully opened for about ten years and stretched all the way to Najin City. It served as a crucial supply route to the northern defense line, making it one of the safer routes. But with monsters around, there was never a guarantee of safety, so guards were stationed just in case. Given the importance of the passengers, it was a necessary precaution.

This wasn't just any group. The convoy carried politicians with strong influence and news crews ready to film their campaign activities. The government couldn't afford to slack off on security.

Hunters from the association had been assigned to provide protection. The Guild Cooperation Agency had devised the plan, and the government was happy to go along with it. Even the Chariman of the association got involved personally. From the government's perspective,  it was a great opportunity to create the impression that the government, officials, and the public were working together, so they were very enthusiastic about the proposal from the Cooperation Agency.

"I love this picture. Even Picasso wouldn't be able to understand what's what here."

"You mean it's a mess, right, Chairman?"

"We're almost at Cheongjin now. Let's be honest. This whole plan wasn't your idea, was it, Director?" Han Byunggu asked, glancing at Cha Gil-joo. Cha Gil-joo smiled faintly and didn't respond.

"Figures. It was 'that guy,' wasn't it? I must've been out of my mind when I agreed to visit my granddaughter. What a fool I am."

"If you're going to see your granddaughter, you could just go. You don't need all these formalities, do you?"

"Well, my granddaughter's a full-fledged Hunter now. If I visit her as a doting grandpa while being the association chairman, that guy will have a field day mocking me. I'm just tagging along under the guise of official business."

"Ah, so that's why Guild Leader Kang told you to phrase it that way. I didn't know your granddaughter joined Iron Will."

"I shouldn't have helped him. Now I'm roped into this... But let's set that aside," Han Byunggu said, his gaze sharpening.

"What's that guy scheming this time?"

"Scheming? He's just trying to win over the politicians."

"Come on, let's be real. You know as well as I do that he's got something shady up his sleeve. You've seen it enough times. Once he draws his sword, he cuts down anything in his way, whether it's radish or anything else, right?"

"We'd be lucky if it's only the radishes he's cutting."

"Exactly. When he gets going, it's not some crazed berserker---it's the Grim Reaper himself. Whoever crosses him is done. And this time, he called a bunch of lawmakers. If he goes for their heads, the whole country's going to be in uproar. Makes me think I should've stayed out of this."

"We can only hope he's not aiming to take any heads."

"And yet, here I am, dragged into this mess, swapping out battle reports. The fact that you got into my car means you've got something to say. I don't know what his angle is, but he wouldn't involve me without a reason. So, what's the play, Director Cha?"

Cha Giljoo glanced at a passing sign that read

<Cheongjin City 11km>

After confirming they were close to their destination, he finally spoke.

"He didn't say much. Just..."

"Just what?"

"He said to just play your part as the sidekick."

"Sidekick? Me?"

"Both of us, actually. I still don't know what exactly he's planning."

"So, you're helping him without even knowing the plan?"

"We need to do something. If we keep dragging this out, there's no telling what might happen."

Cha Gil-joo's words made Han Byunggu drop the subject. He didn't need to ask more because he understood. He had been strategizing when to step in, planning to bring in the Hunters trained by the association. If he felt frustrated, it was clear that Cha Gil-joo, who was responsible for coordinating with all the guilds across South Korea, must be even more stressed. Han Byunggu knew about Cha Gil-joo's past and could guess why he was cooperating with Kang Mu-hyuk.

'Director Cha, just like me, like him, like Se-ah---we're all in the same boat.'

Annihilation of all monsters. If it weren't for that shared goal, Cha Gil-joo was not the kind of person to have stayed in the Guild Cooperation Agency, dealing with all the chaos.

"Well, we're past the point of no return. Let's go see just how far this sword dance will go."

Meanwhile, No Song-rin gave Kang Mu-hyuk a curious look. "What's with the sunglasses?"

Sunglasses weren't part of Kang Mu-hyuk's usual style. He casually removed them and played with the frame between his fingers.

"Today, I need to look a little more... scary, you see."

"Are you planning to fight someone?"

"Not really a fight. More like setting the stage with some dramatic flair in front of the actors."

No Song-rin frowned, confused by Kang's cryptic words. Just as he was about to ask more, Kang Mu-hyuk gestured toward the road ahead.

"Speak of the devil. Here come the actors."

A procession of black sedans appeared in the distance, heading toward Cheongjin City.

"Is everything ready?"

"I've already given Captain Lee Jinjoo the word. She's ready to move at any moment."

"Good. In that case..."

Kang gave a nod, slipped his sunglasses back on, and muttered under his breath,

"Time to give them a proper show."