Leveling Up Alone

Chapter 291 – Drama, Protest, Suppression, And (2)

Han-Yeol munched on his favorite caramel popcorn while watching TV, and beside him was Tayarana, who was also helping herself to some of his popcorn.

"Han-Yeol."

"Yeah?"

"Why are they so agitated? The United States didn't say anything about taking you with them, right?"

"Ah, that's because the Korean government is pathetic. Haha!"

"Hmm?"

"I saw it on the news recently that a non-combatant awakened with the ability to craft jewels, and they gave him the B Rank."

"Well, crafting jewels isn't that special, right?" Tayarana replied.

She wasn't particularly interested in jewels or precious stones, so she brushed it off.

"Haha! But you might be surprised when you hear this next part."

"What is it?"

"That person didn't simply craft accessories out of jewels; they were able to store skills inside jewels. It would allow any Hunter to use the skill stored in the jewel, even if they didn't possess that skill. Hmm... I guess you could call it a Skill Jewel?"

"What?! Is that true?!" Tayarana exclaimed, her eyes widening.

This was truly an incredible ability if Han-Yeol was telling the truth.

"Where is this person?! I'll go buy a few jewels from them right now!"

As expected of Tayarana, who was obsessed with battles, she was already thinking of purchasing some jewels as backup abilities.

It was indeed a wise choice, as having backup skills could make the difference between life and death in a battle. For example, possessing a jewel with the teleport ability would be the best life insurance.

This ability was truly formidable, and the only drawback was that a jewel of corresponding quality to the stored skill was needed.

"You can't."

"Why?"

"That person is in America."

"Ah…!"

Tayarana now fully understood what was happening.

"The United States recruited that person from your country?"

"Well, it might appear that way on the surface, but this misguided government had the audacity to tell that person that using jewels was a waste of money, so they should find a way to imbue skills into stones instead. Naturally, that person became furious and began searching for another country that would appreciate their ability, and bam! the United States swooped in. The government was monitoring to ensure that the person didn't leave the country, but the United States organized a flight departing from the American base, making it impossible for the government to intervene."

“Tsk tsk… That’s really pathetic.”

“Yeah, that’s what I mean.”

Munch!

Han-Yeol threw five pieces of popcorn into his mouth. The sweet taste of caramel made the popcorn even more delicious.

"This wasn't reported by the media as the government banned it, but the news went viral on the internet. People are up in arms just in case the same thing happens with me."

"I see... So your politicians are a hopeless bunch?" Tayarana muttered while nodding.

"Hmm... I think so," Han-Yeol somewhat agreed.

South Korea's politics seemed quite dysfunctional from his perspective. The government tended to take a conservative approach when quick decisions were needed, and they acted rashly when caution was required. There were numerous cases where they greenlit major projects without proper consideration, resulting in wasted time and money. While the country collected substantial tax revenue, much of it was squandered on ineffective projects. The government also reduced the welfare budget, claiming it was populism, making life increasingly difficult for the common people.

"We would have executed all of them in Egypt."

"Hahaha! I'm sure you would have."

Egypt was one of the few countries that carried out death sentences, but their approach was different from other nations with the death penalty. Most countries executed criminals through methods like hanging or the electric chair, but Egypt employed the ancient practice of decapitation. It was an extremely brutal method of ending a person's life, but it was not applied to just anyone.

Egypt had the harshest punishment in the world, yet ironically, it had the lowest number of criminals on death row. The death sentence was reserved for the worst of the worst criminals, and most offenders did not receive this severe penalty.

Around sixty percent of those given the death penalty were politicians or businessmen, as collusion was considered the gravest crime in the country. For example, a scandal involving a company and a politician could result in the execution of both the company owner and the politician. Thanks to this, Egypt consistently ranked highest in clean governance for five consecutive years.

"Incompetence is a more egregious sin for a politician to commit, and we frown upon it more than corruption."

"Well, I guess you're right."

Tayarana was an elite who had studied politics and royalty at Egypt's most prestigious universities, and she was taught that Noblesse Oblige was the most important principle for Egyptian royalty to uphold. However, this didn't mean that all royals were free from corruption.

Munch!

Han-Yeol tossed five more kernels into his mouth.

"Shall we see what's happening out there?"

"Yeah, things are getting sweeter than this popcorn."

Han-Yeol turned toward her with wide-open eyes.

"Where did you learn that?"

"From the internet. Korea's internet is really fast, unlike Egypt."

"Hahaha... that darn internet..."

The fact that the internet was the source of all sorts of trolling didn't seem to change, no matter how many years passed.

***

The candlelight vigil protest, initiated by Han-Yeol's plans, blazed even brighter as more people took to the streets compared to ever before.

"The incompetent government should resign!"

"Resign!"

"They keep raising taxes without giving anything back to us!"

"Resign!"

The issue with Han-Yeol was merely the spark that ignited the frustration people had toward the government.

"We will no longer tolerate this!"

"We deserve to have better lives!"

"Give us our freedom back!"

"Yes!"

"Resign!"

"Resign!"

The police estimated 630,000 people protesting, while the organizers estimated 3 million people protesting. Based on the organizers' estimate, this would be the largest protest in South Korean history.

That's how fed up the people were with the government.

The police were astonished by the massive crowd that gathered to protest. They immediately mobilized 30,000 riot police to handle the situation, but it proved to be inadequate, so they parked their buses in two to three layers to act as a barricade.

Whiiiing…!

The water cannons were aimed at the protesters, ready to unleash torrents of water should they breach the police line.

"Damn..."

"They brought the water cannons?"

"I didn't think they would go that far..."

The protest organizers couldn't help but lament the fact that the water cannons were already in place. They had hoped to advance as far as the gates of the Blue House before the police could respond, but their plans were thwarted as the police acted more swiftly than expected.

“Tsk… There’s nothing we can do about that.”

“Yeah, let’s use our numbers to our advantage.”

“Yes! We shall reform this incompetent government of ours!”

“You’re right!”

The high-stakes standoff between the government and the people had begun.

The government realized they could no longer pressure Han-Yeol, knowing that more people would flood the streets in an attempt to overthrow them if they pursued the matter against him.

In the end, the government was compelled to abandon its plans to punish Han-Yeol and refocus its efforts on appeasing the crowd.

"Tsk tsk... This is why you should've recognized who you were messing with from the start, you incompetent fools," Han-Yeol clicked his tongue and grumbled.

While the immediate situation might have ended, Han-Yeol had no intentions of allowing things to conclude so lacklusterly.

"You might want to call it quits here, but I have no intentions of doing that. You see, I make sure to repay my enemies a hundred, no, a thousand times what I was owed. Let's have fun from now on."

"Heh."

Han-Yeol flashed an evil smile and dialed a number.

***

The government was in chaos as it tried to deal with the three million people protesting at Gwanghwamun Square.

Bam!

The president slammed his fist on the table and screamed in anger until the blood vessels on his neck became visible.

"Just what in the world did you do to make three million people come out protesting?! That's the biggest crowd that has ever gathered in the history of this country!"

"W-We apologize!"

"We have no excuses..."

The ministers of each department bowed their heads and apologized.

The president had called for an emergency meeting following the recent turn of events. It was quite rare for each minister to gather so frequently, but the situation was dire enough to warrant it.

President Kim's anger did not dissipate even though the ministers were apologizing with their heads bowed.

Bam! Bam!

"Is apologizing the only thing you can do right now?! Do you think I called all of you here to listen to your sorry excuses?! I need a solution to the current situation! Speak, you fools!"

“Ugh…”

“Ahem…”

The ministers gritted their teeth as President Kim lashed out at them.

‘He caused all of this, yet he's lashing out at us…’

‘That dog wagged his tail and did exactly as his master told him to, so what is he screaming at us for?’

‘Am I his sandbag? Why the hell would he vent at me?’

‘Damn it!’

Ironically, they might grumble internally, but there was no way they would utter a single word out loud, as they owed their current positions to the president.

"Haa... Police commissioner," President Kim called the police commissioner after venting at the ministers.

Chwak!

"Yes, sir!"

The police commissioner responded with a salute after realizing that the situation was quite serious.

"How will you resolve this issue?"

"Sir! It will not be enough with only the police forces to stop the protesters!"

"What?!"

The police commissioner flinched as President Kim lashed out, but he had no choice.

The police might be able to handle one or two million protesters, but three million protesters was an unprecedented number even for them.

Furthermore, there were numerous small protests erupting all over Seoul, which further stretched the police forces thin. It was impossible for the police to handle this situation by themselves.

"I-I apologize, sir! B-But there are too many protesters, and we are already struggling to maintain law and order."