Chapter 279:

Chapter 279:

The fact that the God of War opposed the use of Text Shredder was a huge shock to the upper echelons of the Association.

They tried to contact Wi Moo-hyuk and ask him why he was against it, or if there was any problem with it, but he did not answer any of their calls after his unilateral announcement that it was absolutely forbidden.

The Association was in a dilemma.

If they tried to use Text Shredder by force, the God of War would not sit still.

Who was Wi Moo-hyuk?

He was the undisputed rank 1 in Korea. He was always mentioned as one of the strongest collectors.

He hardly ever participated in active duty anymore, but even considering that, he had maintained his position as the strongest since the past, which showed how powerful he was.

His level known to the Association’s high-ranking officials was 93.

There was no one among the high-level collectors who surpassed level 90, and there were only three people on Earth, including him, who were on par with Wi Moo-hyuk.

More than anything, his symbolism was too great.

He was the greatest hero who rebuilt the incomplete Korean society.

His name and picture were in textbooks, and he was no different from an idol to everyone.

Wi Moo-hyuk had both power and image, and his status was an iron fortress that even the state could not touch lightly.

The Association was frustrated to the point of madness.

If he had given them a proper reason and opposed it, they might have understood, but Wi Moo-hyuk only expressed his opinion one-sidedly and did not convince them at all.

But they could not ignore him and proceed as they pleased, because Wi Moo-hyuk’s harsh words haunted them.

He said he would resort to violence.

It was unprecedented for Wi Moo-hyuk, who was known to be polite and silent, to express his opinion so strongly. As far as Choi Joong-mo knew, this was the first time.

That meant he was serious.

If only he had told them why.

But Wi Moo-hyuk kept his mouth shut about that part, so they were stuck in a situation where they could not do anything.

Another problem was that Wi Moo-hyuk’s statement was leaking out.

The Association tried to control the rumor that nothing like that happened, but stories are never forcibly confined by someone.

They flow out through the cracks and spread in the form of rumors, which is the essence of stories.

This rumor was first known to collectors who had sharp ears.

Among them, Yu-hyun was naturally there.

‘He finally caused trouble.’

He thought it was suspicious that he had been quiet and not doing anything lately, but he didn’t expect him to drop such a bomb.

‘Did Unleashed force him to do it? But that’s also strange.’

Yu-hyun recalled when he met Wi Moo-hyuk. His rigid eyes and unwavering attitude, the golden book shining brightly above his head.

He was a very fine collector based on that alone.

He didn’t seem like someone who would act rashly for his own greed based on his actions.

But then, why did Wi Moo-hyuk go so far?

‘There must be some condition that even this man can’t refuse.’

What flashed through Yu-hyun’s mind for a moment was Wi Moo-hyuk’s question of whether he could revive the dead.

Wi Moo-hyuk lost his family on the day of Ideological Integration.

The reason he fought against phantoms as a collector was because of his grief and revenge for losing his family.

Even according to what he learned from his book, Wi Moo-hyuk was still consumed by longing for his family and sometimes had nightmares about that time.

‘Unleashed. What have you done again.’

Yu-hyun decided that he had to go see Wi Moo-hyuk himself as it was not going well.

He couldn’t sit still when this man opposed and stepped up against Text Shredder.

First of all, he wanted to talk to him and see if it still didn’t work out.

‘If that doesn’t work, I’ll have to suppress him by force.’

Wi Moo-hyuk was a rank 93 collector, but Yu-hyun didn’t think much of it.

If it had been before he went to Don Quixote’s Ideological World, maybe.

But now that he had obtained the title of The Last Knight and fully realized aporia’s demonic power afterwards,

Yu-hyun had become so strong that he could glimpse the level of transcendents with Teller’s body.

If he converted that into a level of Genesis System, it would be 99+

‘I don’t like this kind of number game.’

If everything is decided by the output of power, there is no meaning in fighting between collectors.

Power is bound to have compatibility issues, and there is also a difference in how finely one can handle the power they have, and how solid the foundation they have built for accumulating power is also affects the battle.

According to Yu-hyun’s judgment, Wi Moo-hyuk was a case of becoming strong without choosing shortcuts.

The path he had taken was the orthodox of the orthodox.

Wi Moo-hyuk was a man who burned his life with the sorrow of losing his family as a material.

He was different from other high-level collectors who came up to this position with only glory and talent.

‘But still, I don’t think I’ll lose.’

Yu-hyun advised his companions to take a break and left the office building and headed for Wi Moo-hyuk’s house.

He already knew where he lived through the book, so his steps were unhesitating.

Of course, Yu-hyun did not go to Wi Moo-hyuk’s house brazenly.

He also had to move secretly, so he needed to hide his identity. Wearing glasses with an engraving was enough.

‘More than that, the house is more modest than I thought.’

A two-story house.

It was not an easy thing to find such a house in Seoul, but considering that Wimuk Hyuk was the number one collector in Korea, it was modest.

‘There are also people lying at the entrance.’

Some citizens had already heard the rumors and were protesting in front of Wimuk Hyuk’s house.

“Explain your opposition to the use of the shredder!”

“Explain! Explain!”

‘How noisy.’

They were still a minority, but it was obvious that more people would come as time passed.

Another group caught Yu-hyun’s eye as he stood by the roadside watching the scene.

What a cheeky kid.

Yu-hyun felt a bit amazed by the answer that didn’t suit a six-year-old child.

“Ye Eun. Who is that?”

“Oh, dad. We have a guest!”

“A guest?”

Then, from behind the kitchen, a giant man appeared.

The warrior Wimuk.

He saw Yu-hyun and his face hardened in an instant, but he soon realized that his daughter Ye Eun was there and managed to control his expression.

Yu-hyun didn’t want to break this atmosphere either, so he greeted him naturally.

“Long time no see. Mr. Wimuk.”

“...Yes. It’s been a long time. Mr. Kang Yu-hyun.”

“Dad, do you know him?”

“Yes. Ye Eun. Can you stay with mom on the second floor for a while? I’m going to have a conversation with my friend.”

“I want to stay too...”

“You’re our Ye Eun. A good daughter, right? You’ll listen to dad, right? I’ll buy you some delicious ice cream later.”

“Okay. I got it.”

Ye Eun quickly moved her cute legs and ran up to the second floor.

Wimuk checked that his daughter had completely disappeared from sight and looked back at Yu-hyun with a stiff expression.

“...How did you get here? No, what is your purpose?”

“It looks like we need to talk for a bit.”

Yu-hyun pointed to the exit of the world of his own with his finger.

***

Yu-hyun came out of the world of his own and sat face to face with Wimuk in the living room.

Wimuk was uncomfortable all along. It was because he had hidden his world of his own, but Yu-hyun had witnessed it.

“Did you come here because of your opposition to the use of the shredder?”

Yu-hyun nodded. Wimuk looked like he expected it.

“When you think about the situation that might explode in Gwanghwamun soon, you must know how dangerous what you are doing now is.”

“...All I wanted was an afterlife with my family. Is that such a wrong thing?”

Wimuk’s opposition to the use of the shredder.

It was because of his world of his own in his house.

The distance between Gwanghwamun and Wimuk’s house was not far apart. That means if they use the shredder, Wimuk’s house will also be in range.

Considering the power of the shredder, this small world of his own would disappear like a candle in the wind.

“It’s my family that I’ve finally found again. I couldn’t lose them again.”

“They are fake. Don’t you know that?”

“Teller Kang Yu-hyun told me himself. As long as I remember them, they are not really dead. That’s true. My family is alive right now.”

“So, are you going to live inside your world of your own for the rest of your life? Hiding from everyone?”

“It’s just a small world that’s only as big as my house. There’s no risk of erosion or influence from the world of his own runaway. I just have to be quiet, very quiet... just stay still.”

“Unleashed gave you the seed.”

Did you already know that?

Wimuk nodded.

“But, Mr. Wimuk. Do you know that? The tenfold world of his own that will soon happen in Gwanghwamun is what Unleashed is doing.”

“...”

“Maybe you chose that location, and used the shredder when Mr. Wi Muhyuk’s house was in range. All of that was done to suit your position, right?”

“But still...”

Wi Muhyuk bit his lip, unable to bear the rising emotion.

“But still, I got to meet my family... My wife and daughter, whom I thought I had forgotten.”

“For those two people who are already dead, for those mere illusions, you want to ignore this situation that could kill tens of thousands of people?”

“You don’t know anything!”

Wi Muhyuk roared like a tiger.

In his blazing eyes, there was anger towards Yu-hyun, as well as complex feelings about the current situation.

“How would you know, you’re not even human, you’re a teller. How would you know the sadness of losing a family?”

“...”

“How would you feel, when you thought you could never see them again, those precious things, and you got to touch them with your own hands again. When you thought you had finally regained them. How would you feel when someone tries to take them away from you!”

“...”

Yu-hyun did not answer. He just silently, calmly looked at Wi Muhyuk.

Wi Muhyuk, who had been losing his temper, seemed to regain his reason and his expression returned to normal.

He realized what he had done and bowed his head. His shoulders trembled pitifully.

“I’m sorry for getting angry. And please, I beg you.”

Wi Muhyuk said in a sobbing voice to Yu-hyun.

“Please keep this a secret. I don’t want to lose my wife and daughter anymore.”

He was called by many names.

The number one in Korea. The strongest man. The owner of an unshakable steel-like will.

He always stood at the forefront, leading the way, shining in the light.

But his shadow was not like that.

The man who was praised as a hero by the people.

He was just an ordinary father who wanted to get his family back.

“Please.”

“...”

Yu-hyun could not say anything.