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CHAPTER 131 — THE COMMISSIONER GENERAL
After ordering Yamtti to track the Police Commissioner General’s movements, Ryu Min hung up.
To put the bill into action quickly, he needed the Commissioner General’s cooperation.
‘But there’s no way he’ll do it easily just because I tell him to.’
Then he would simply dominate him and give orders.
It was a simple problem.
Only the matter of conscience remained.
‘I’ll be using an innocent civilian, but it can’t be helped. If I want to establish the Anti-Player Unit as quickly as possible.’
Even now, somewhere, some crazy Player was probably committing a crime.
The sooner the unit was formed, the more it would ease ordinary people’s anxiety.
At the same time, he would build his own reputation among civilians.
That was all Ryu Min wanted from the Police Commissioner General.
After dominating him, he would only issue orders and never touch him after that.
Then he could continue living as usual.
Like the chairman of Player Place.
Being dominated didn’t mean becoming a puppet with no decision-making power at all.
It just meant faithfully carrying out only the parts he’d been ordered to do.
‘So Yamtti’s second slot won the Police Commissioner General jackpot, huh.’
The first was Song Jae-gyeom, the eldest son of LC Group.
Since he was serving as the chairman of Player Place, Ryu Min couldn’t delete him.
‘If I dominate the Police Commissioner General as the second one, that leaves three slots.’
One of those slots would probably have to be used in Nigeria after the unit was established, and if he kept another slot just in case……
‘That leaves only one slot.’
He was shorter on slots than he’d expected.
‘Just in case, I should conserve my slots as much as possible.’
Ma Kyung-rok, An Sang-cheol, Heo Tae-seok, Russell, Jo Yong-ho, and so on.
That was why he hadn’t dominated the people around him.
Not only were there not enough slots to include them, there was no need to dominate them anyway.
They were already basically his people.
‘There’s something I need to ask Assemblyman Lee Seong-hyeon, but there’s no need to dominate him. I left a good first impression.’
What impression could be stronger—or better—than saving someone’s life?
Having sorted out his thoughts, Ryu Min grabbed his coat.
While he was at it, he should go see Assemblyman Lee Seong-hyeon.
He needed his cooperation to establish the unit, too.
Ryu Min stepped back outside.
After working late at the National Assembly building, Lee Seong-hyeon got into his car.
“Where should I take you, Assemblyman?”
“Please take me home.”
The bodyguard nodded and started the car.
Normally, after something as serious as being kidnapped, trauma was bound to form.
It wouldn’t have been strange if he avoided repeating the same behavior, but Lee Seong-hyeon hired a bodyguard again—just like back then.
Of course, it was a different company, but the fact that it was a Player bodyguard was the same.
Seeing that, the people around him spoke with concern.
-You were betrayed by your bodyguard, and you hired one again?
-Aren’t you scared to hire a Player?
But each time, Lee Seong-hyeon explained.
-Not all Players are bad. It’s only the ones going on a rampage right now who are bad.
When he said that, the people who knew him well reacted in shock.
Asking if this was really the Assemblyman Lee Seong-hyeon they knew.
Of course it was.
‘I did change a little after the kidnapping, but.’
It wasn’t just a little.
Compared to when he’d been shouting that all Players were trash, his perception had changed a lot.
And it made sense—because the one who saved him was the very Player he’d despised so much.
‘He said he was Black Scythe.’
That man had given him enlightenment.
He’d freed him from prejudice and made him face reality.
‘Not all Players are the same kind of Player. There are righteous Players, like Black Scythe.’
Just because someone held a weapon didn’t mean you could lump them all together as potential criminals.
Good and evil would be decided by how that weapon was used.
‘All this time, I was trapped in such a narrow-minded way of thinking.’
In his rage at losing his son, he’d viewed Players through nothing but a convenient, biased lens.
‘Now I have to change. I have to face reality and change the world properly.’
The first step for that was the Anti-Player bill.
Thankfully, the bill had passed, and a unit to purge Players would be established.
Though it would take some time before that happened.
‘I did everything I could. The problem is something time will solve.’
Lee Seong-hyeon thought of Black Scythe.
He had carried out Black Scythe’s request to proceed with the bill as-is.
Would this lessen the debt on his heart, even a little?
Lee Seong-hyeon shook his head.
How could he ever repay the grace of having his life saved?
Even if he said thank you for the rest of his life, it probably wouldn’t be enough.
‘It’s a shame we parted like that when I couldn’t even properly repay him.’
With lingering regret, he’d even tried to learn more about Black Scythe.
Unfamiliar to civilians, but among Players, he was an enormously famous figure.
‘They say he’s a top ranker who’s never lost the number-one spot, and the only powerhouse who’s reached Level 80…….’
He’d also heard that Black Scythe had taken first place in this Round 8 as well.
Which meant he was still alive.
‘If only I could meet him one more time…….’
When police and reporters asked what Black Scythe looked like, Lee Seong-hyeon lied and said he’d only heard the voice.
Even though he knew what he looked like, he didn’t reveal it to anyone.
Because that felt like the right thing to do for Black Scythe.
“We’ve arrived, Assemblyman.”
Lee Seong-hyeon got out of the car and went up the elevator with his bodyguard.
Up until then, Lee Seong-hyeon hadn’t had any particular thoughts—until he reached the front door of his home, when he had no choice but to flinch in shock.
‘That person is……!’
A man with a tall frame and bronze-colored skin.
Black Scythe—the one who had saved him—was waiting at his front entrance.
At Lee Seong-hyeon’s startled reaction, the bodyguard’s eyes filled with caution.
“Do you know him?”
“A-Ah, yes. He’s an acquaintance of mine. Don’t worry—go ahead and clock out.”
“Are you sure it’s alright?”
“Yes. It’s alright.”
Only after reassuring the bodyguard and sending him away did the bronze-skinned man speak.
“I’m sorry, Assemblyman. I came suddenly, so I startled you a lot, didn’t I?”
“Ah—w-well, not a lot. Just a little startled.”
To anyone, it looked like he’d been startled a lot, but Ryu Min didn’t pick at it.
“There’s something I want to talk about quietly. May we talk inside?”
“Sure. Come in.”
Lee Seong-hyeon opened the door with the door lock card key and let Ryu Min into the house.
It was nothing but ordinary—hardly the kind of home you’d imagine an Assemblyman living in—but Ryu Min knew.
It was a house filled with a man’s precious memories—memories of the family he’d lost.
“Sit here.”
Ryu Min sat on the sofa, and Lee Seong-hyeon sat facing him.
“I never thought I’d see the man who saved my life again like this. You left like you’d never see me again.”
“I have something to ask of you, Assemblyman.”
“A request?”
Lee Seong-hyeon’s eyes widened, then he smiled and said,
“So the chance to repay my life’s savior has come. Tell me—whatever it is.”
“I’ll be blunt. The police are planning to create an Anti-Player Unit, correct?”
“That’s right.”
“Please recommend me as the commander of that unit.”
“What?”
Lee Seong-hyeon was so shocked his eyes looked like they might pop out.
‘Recommend you as commander?’
When he’d heard “request,” he’d assumed it would be something simple like money, but this was something he’d never even imagined.
That made him curious.
“What’s the reason?”
The reason he wanted to sit in the commander’s seat.
“Is it because you crave power?”
Lee Seong-hyeon’s unfiltered question.
It was a kind of test.
‘If he has ulterior motives, he’ll show some sign of fluster here.’
But the man called Black Scythe didn’t twitch an eyebrow.
Which meant a completely different reason was firmly filling him.
‘Not personal greed… is he moving on conviction?’
As Lee Seong-hyeon thought that, Ryu Min opened his mouth.
“Power, huh. That isn’t bad either.”
“Huh?”
Caught off-guard by the unexpected answer, Lee Seong-hyeon froze—but Ryu Min wasn’t finished.
“However, you could say I want the position because of my personal desire.”
“Personal desire?”
Ryu Min paused, letting the air settle.
“It’s the same reason you proposed the bill, Assemblyman Lee Seong-hyeon, wouldn’t you say?”
“…….”
“I, too, hate criminal Players—just like you do. I won’t say why. It would only make the mood gloomy.”
As he lowered his gaze like someone with a sad story, Lee Seong-hyeon realized.
The reason Black Scythe had saved him without hesitation.
‘I don’t know what happened, but he hates criminal Players like I do. That’s why he didn’t accept any reward. He must’ve been satisfied just from dealing with criminals!’
Only now did Black Scythe’s actions start to make sense.
“Can you do it for me?”
“Hmm…… I can recommend you, but don’t get your hopes up. Since they’ll be drafting police Players, the authority to select unit members belongs to the Police Commissioner General…….”
“You mean I might get rejected.”
“That’s right. Still, I’ll push as hard as I can. You have the record of saving me, and you’re an extremely famous figure among Players, so you’re more than qualified to be commander. But there’s no guarantee. If that Commissioner General insists on ignoring ability and forming it only with police officers, then I have no way to stop him……”
“That’s enough. Officially, you recommended me, and the Police Commissioner General accepted the recommendation and appointed me commander. If it proceeds like that, I’ll be satisfied.”
“No—I’m telling you, the Police Commissioner General might turn it down.”
“Then it can’t be helped. Still, please make sure you recommend me.”
“Alright. I’ll use my influence.”
Ryu Min stood up, as if his business was finished.
“You’re leaving already? At least have a cup of tea…….”
“No. It’s not right to stay long in someone else’s home. Then I’ll see you again next time. Ah.”
Just as he was about to turn away, Ryu Min turned back as if something had occurred to him.
“Tell me just one thing.”
“What is it?”
“Is the Police Commissioner General a man? Or a woman?”
The highest rank among police ranks: Commissioner General.
In the Republic of Korea, there were only two Commissioner Generals.
The Commissioner General of the National Police Agency, and the Commissioner General of the Coast Guard.
One of them, the Commissioner General of the National Police Agency—Lee Cheong-ryong—threw documents onto his desk and let out a sigh.
“Phew… those f*cking Assemblymen. Proposing some useless bill and making things a pain. Tsk.”
What he’d thrown down was the bill Lee Seong-hyeon had proposed: the establishment of an Anti-Player Unit.
This bill—meant to be formed by drafting police Players aged 29 or younger—had even received approval from the President and the Police Commissioner General.
But that approval was only given to appease public opinion.
Lee Cheong-ryong’s true thoughts were filled with negativity.
‘A bill that allows summary execution in 21st-century Korea. Does that make any sense?’
The contents of the bill stated that in an emergency situation where civilians’ lives were at stake, summary execution would be permitted only in the case of Players.
In other words, even if you killed a criminal Player, you wouldn’t be held guilty—but in a country where the death penalty had been abolished, it was a bill too absurd to implement.
‘Do they think the law is dog sht and that’s why they came up with this? Ignoring judicial procedures and killing someone—how is that not murder? Tsk!’*
And that wasn’t all that was ridiculous.
‘They’re going to gather police Players under 29 and make an Anti-Player Unit? Under 29 means most of them are just patrol officers. They want to catch Player criminals—ones that even veteran detectives struggle with—using these rookies with no experience?’
If anything, it would become a laughingstock to the senior detective veterans.
And complaints might erupt that only the juniors were getting promoted.
‘If you ask me, this is totally dead in the water. It’s nothing but pointless busywork.’
And on top of that—who were they going to pick as the commander of such a unit?
They’d all be newbies who’d never even caught a single criminal.
“Jeez.”
Right as he was sighing—
“Pick me.”
At the voice that came from empty air, Lee Cheong-ryong jolted in shock.
“Ah, f*ck! What the hell?!”
He turned his head—and in the space where there had only been a wall, a person sliiide—appeared.
A bronze-skinned man was staring at him.
“A-a Player!”
Only a Player could have such an impossible supernatural ability.
Lee Cheong-ryong raised the pistol he kept for security.
He tried to shoot him dead right away, but the man rushed in instantly and snatched the gun, leaving him with only an attempt.
“That’s harsh. Sneaking into the Police Commissioner General’s office isn’t a crime worthy of death, is it?”
“Y-you monster bastard—do you know where you are……!”
“A monster? That’s harsh to say to a law-abiding citizen.”
“What the hell are you! What’s your purpose!!”
“No matter how much you shout for help, it’s useless. I already took care of everything outside.”
“What?”
Click—
The office door opened, and a woman walked in.
“Yamtti. Did you handle the staff?”
“Yes. I arranged it so that everything that happened here will be treated as if it wasn’t seen.”
“W-what are you trying to do. Don’t tell me……!”
“Oh, Commissioner General. Sounds like you’re imagining torture—do you really think we’d do something so inhumane?”
“T-then what……?”
“You just need to carry out a few orders. Yamtti.”
As Yamtti stepped forward, a pinkish glow shimmered in the Commissioner General’s pupils.
The moment their eyes met, it was over.
Being ensnared by enchantment happened in the blink of an eye.
“Yamtti, deliver my words to the Police Commissioner General exactly as they are.”
“Yes, Master.”
“Use your influence so that the Anti-Player Unit can be established and begin operating as quickly as possible. And then……”
Ryu Min said with a grin.
“Appoint Black Scythe as the commander of the Anti-Player Unit.”