Chapter 79

[The Sahara Desert is expanding at an unprecedented rate. The Sahara Desert expands southward by an average of 6 to 10 kilometers per year, but researchers have detected an anomaly, confirming that it has expanded by about 200 kilometers in just three months. The Sahara Desert is now larger than the American continent, and if the acceleration of desertification continues, the entire southern African region is expected to become a desert within a few years.]

Lee Gwan-woong, who was watching the news again, unfolded an old newspaper. The newspaper, written in an unknown language, was something he had brought out from the Narakga.

In the Narakga, all signs and items were written in Korean, but the newspaper was written in a separate language. As soon as he escaped from the Narakga, the Ohseong Guild hired linguists at great expense to decipher the language.

He handed hundreds of newspapers to the scholars, asking them to understand the articles, but they all treated Lee Gwan-woong as if he were crazy.

"This is just a blank sheet of paper."

Surprised by this, Lee Gwan-woong quickly took a photo, but as they said, the newspaper was indeed blank. However, when he showed it to other guild members, they replied, "This is the Narakga newspaper." In short, only the Manshengzhong could see the newspaper.

The reason the Egyptian hieroglyphs, once a puzzle in archaeology, could be deciphered was because a comparative language was found. However, the script of the Narakga had no comparable language, making it impossible to determine its pronunciation, and there were few linguists among the Manshengzhong.

The Ohseong Guild had to infer the meaning from the photos in the articles alone.

It was clear that the Narakga, like Korea, was a world where mutants appeared, and the photos of deserts in various regions were spread across several pages, indicating the severity of the situation.

Lee Gwan-woong had no choice but to explore various solutions to the current situation, such as why the Manshengzhong were isolated in the Narakga and how the world would change in the future.

Until now, Kim Seo-kyung's accuracy in detecting mutant appearances was 100%. Therefore, the possibility of a human mutant appearance being predicted incorrectly was minimal. When asked what the mutant would look like, Kim Seo-kyung shook her head, saying she didn't know, and even the gender was unknown.

After the Ohseong Guild's statement, Indonesia showed an unpleasant attitude but remained vigilant, and other countries pressured the Korean government. The government tried to control the mutant disaster, but the information was ultimately in the hands of the Ohseong Guild.

Lee Gwan-woong, a former army colonel, had dreamed of such a day for a very long time. He wanted to protect his country with his own strength and free it from the influence of other countries. He even hoped that Ohseong would control the breathing of other countries, as the mutants that would appear overseas would be an opportunity for him.

Currently, his country monopolizes the Manshengzhong, but he did not rule out the possibility of awakeners appearing overseas.

Then, who was the origin of the Manshengzhong?

It is known that hundreds of people awakened simultaneously. The ranks of the Manshengzhong could be divided later, but the highest-ranking ones did not necessarily awaken in the early stages. Unless the highest-ranking ones were lying.

He opened his laptop and looked at the table listing the Manshengzhong.

[Cha Haya]

Notable Points: Awakened in early summer at age 21 (estimated), a top-tier individual with various eye colors. A swordsman who discovered the method of using elements. The first user of the Narakga gate.

(Excerpt)

[Cha Seo-un]

Notable Points: Awakened in summer at age 21 (estimated), has a purple eye in the mental category. Estimated to be a swordsman and a searcher (organized the northwest tunnel hidden by DK). (Excerpt)

Currently, to the best of Lee Gwan-woong's knowledge, only these two have more than two abilities.

No strange signs were found among other Tachun guild members, and the reawakened individuals did not retain their previous abilities.

[Indonesian Sulawesi origin]

Tap, tap, tap, Lee Gwan-woong tapped the screen of his laptop with his moderately grown fingernails.

"The first occurrence is in Indonesia, and the date is estimated to be next month."

Among so many countries, it was particularly Indonesia where the first human mutant appeared... Was Cha Haya, who is called an irregular among the top-tier Manshengzhong, from Indonesia?

Was it just a coincidence?

Lee Gwan-woong's plan to make the south his base was not only to lure the reawakened individuals but also to keep a close eye on Tachun. There were many suspicious points.

The deputy guild leader of Tachun disappeared around the time he reawakened as a searcher, and during this period, Cha Haya used the gate.

Despite his young age, he could act recklessly, but would he do something that could endanger his life?

Well, his nephew once rented a car without a license and crashed into a utility pole. But that was a different matter.

Knock, knock, Lee Gwan-woong raised his head. The Ohseong Guild building in Ilsan was more relaxed than before the Narakga appeared, as they managed the building and the intersection in shifts.

"Come in."

"Salute! Oh! Seong!"

The guild member who entered the room saluted with a loud sound, bringing his feet together.

"Relax."

"General Manager Kim Ji-yoon, who just returned from the Narakga, contacted us."

"Report."

"The assassination of Kim Han-sol failed."

Without realizing it, Lee Gwan-woong frowned and tried to smooth out his furrowed brow with his hand.

"Reason?"

"According to the report, the assassination almost succeeded, but the deputy guild leader of Tachun saved him."

"Is he a doctor?"

The guild member noticed the long spear next to Lee Gwan-woong, which resembled a Qinglong Yanyue Dao, so much so that he could be called Lee Gwan-woo.

"No! It seems the deputy guild leader of Tachun reawakened as a healer among the top-tier Manshengzhong."

Lee Gwan-woong twisted his body strangely.

"Swordsman, searcher, and healer?"

"I'm not sure about the other two, but the healer is confirmed! However, Kim Han-sol suspects Namgung Jun as the mastermind behind the assassination, and the collapse of DK seems imminent."

Lee Gwan-woong unfolded Cha Seo-un's chart again. He stopped writing "healer" and hit the keyboard hard.

Does this make any sense? But it couldn't be that General Manager Kim Ji-yoon was making it up.

"Leave."

"Salute! Oh! Seong!"

It was a salute filled with immense loyalty. This was inevitable because the guild member's family was saved by Lee Gwan-woong. When the crow mutant appeared, Lee Gwan-woong saved the guild member's family, and after awakening, the man immediately joined Ohseong. Although he was of intermediate rank and not very useful, he was a good source of information due to his discretion.

However, suspecting Namgung Jun was a good thing, but if the deputy guild leader of Tachun was really a healer...

Lee Gwan-woong stood up and put on his black uniform jacket. Although his stay was not over, he slung the long spear on his back and headed to Seongsang High School.

It seemed that persuading Tachun as soon as possible would be beneficial for the unification of the Manshengzhong guilds.

***

"I! No! I have aesthetics! Assassination goes against my aesthetics!"

Namgung Jun shouted, his eyes bloodshot.

Kim Han-sol, accompanied by Team 1, visited Seongra Department Store and convened a full guild meeting for DK.

As she presented the evidence of the dagger used by Lee Seong-hwan, Namgung Jun, who had been calm, began to rage. Of course, she couldn't talk about Seo-un, so she repackaged the near-death experience as narrowly avoiding the dagger.

"That bastard Lee Seong-hwan! That bastard betrayed me! Where is he?!"

Kim Han-sol's expression was cold, but she was equally flustered. Strong denial often indicates strong affirmation, but Namgung Jun looked genuinely aggrieved.

"Mr. Namgung Jun, all the evidence points to you. Lee Seong-hwan said he has no memory after dining with you at our landmark. After that, he attacked me at the Tachun hideout. Ability transfer, didn't you know?"

Namgung Jun flinched at the mention of ability transfer, as if to say, "How did you know?"

"Ugh, I'm so frustrated. I don't know how you knew about the ability transfer, but I really didn't do it. Would I kill Han-sol in my right mind? We've been living together like a family, eating the same food!"

Kim Han-sol was not in a good mood. No matter how close they weren't, the idea of assassination made her blood boil.

"Then, are you saying Lee Seong-hwan lied? Tell me, did you eat with him yesterday or not?"

"......I'm going crazy. I did eat with him. Han-sol, bring Lee Seong-hwan here. Then everything will be resolved."

"Ah, seeing you so confident, it looks like Mr. Namgung Jun killed and destroyed the evidence?"

This is the truth. Namgung Jun clenched his teeth and puffed out his chest, barely suppressing his anger.

"Kim Han-sol, to be frank, does the current guild leader seem sane to you? He hardly comes back from the Narakga. Yes, I did ask him to step down for my selfish reasons. But don't think all hypnotists are sinister. That's why hypnotists hide their abilities. I've been open about mine because I have nothing to hide. But to receive such a false accusation?"

Kim Han-sol couldn't help but pause at Namgung Jun's heartfelt lament. He might not be the real culprit, but according to her knowledge, only Namgung Jun could hypnotize Lee Seong-hwan to transfer abilities.

Those aligned with Namgung Jun glared at Kim Han-sol's side. They were those who had a grudge against the irresponsible guild leader.

With Ohseong Guild's suspicious activities, DK was already split in two, on the verge of internal conflict. Kim Han-sol seriously considered stepping down.

Suddenly, Namgung Jun ripped off the DK badge on his chest.

"Even if I talk for a hundred days, there's no way to clear my name, and I'm disgusted, so I'm leaving. I'm stepping down from the guild leader position without any regrets. And you, don't touch that bastard Lee Seong-hwan. I'll kill him as soon as I find him."

The guild members on Namgung Jun's side tried to stop him, but there was no stopping a stubborn hypnotist. He told them to stay safe under Kim Han-sol or the guild leader and not to follow him. He reassured them that as a top-tier individual, he would survive on his own.

Thud, Kim Han-sol collapsed into a chair, taken aback by the unexpected turn of events. The badge Namgung Jun left behind kept catching her eye.

Could it be...

If Lee Seong-hwan was a spy...

Kim Han-sol stood up, thinking she had missed something, but without solid evidence, she couldn't catch Namgung Jun.

However, her instincts kept pointing to the Ohseong Guild.

They had taken over the intersection and played a key role in the alliance. Ohseong had absorbed more than five guilds, and their power was growing at an alarming rate.

If this continued, the name "alliance" would be meaningless, and Ohseong would dominate.

Kim Han-sol leaned back in the creaking chair.

Namgung Jun's words were not wrong. The current guild leader was more concerned with how long he could stay in Korea.

However, she couldn't make Namgung Jun the guild leader either, as his strong individualistic nature made him unsuitable for leadership.

Suddenly, Kim Han-sol felt like giving up on DK. She envied Namgung Jun, who left without any regrets, which was absurd.

If not for the conflict with Jo Kyung-min, she could have lived comfortably in the comprehensive guild... But it was water under the bridge. It was her fault for awakening as a healer. Kim Han-sol thought of the Tachun guild members.

Despite the overall chaos, they seemed to be tightly knit, probably because they were originally friends. Still, her Team 1