In Arabian, Sahara meant desert. So saying the Sahara Desert could sound like saying the same word twice. However, naming the desert in North Africa Sahara was close to being correct. After all, no Arabian referred to Gobi Desert as Gobi Sahara.

“What are you trying to show me?”

“Our roots.”

“Roots?”

“There’s no clear name for it. We just call it whatever we want.”

Issac led them to a desert tribe’s traditional house made of wooden pillars and surrounded by an oasis. The lifestyles of the north and south of the Sahara were completely different. The north was a little more leisurely. But that didn’t mean they were financially better off. In contrast to African blacks that went after each other, the desert tribes treated their guests well. But they weren’t friendly to just anyone.

The head of the desert tribe lowered his body and paid his respects as soon as he saw Issac. If he had left him alone, he would have bowed all the way down to the ground. Issac minded Ahn Soo Ho and excused him. The one person remaining in the quiet indoors looked at them. Issac touched the uneven walls when the floor split and a staircase appeared.

“Wow! Surprise?”

An underground passageway in a traditional house? He sensed secrets and conspiracies. What he saw at the bottom of the stairs didn’t suit a desert. It was strange that such a concrete jungle existed in the middle of a desert. Ahn Soo Ho clicked his tongue inside his head.

‘I guess I’m not the only one that built a dungeon.’

Everyone needed their own secret space.

Just like how Ahn Soo Ho had his men, Issac had his men as well. Considering how much longer Issac had lived, his numbers surpassed that of Ahn Soo Ho. Issac, Michel, and J-Law were the ones that led human civilization. They strut through the world as God’s lion at one point and hell’s devil the next.

‘The reason why such strong men turned secretive was…’

After the modern period, human civilization developed exponentially and most of the competitive enemies were all gone. The lift went very deep underground. It was so deep that it took the lift 5 minutes while it only took a minute to get up the Empire State Building.

Issac got off first and opened his arms like a musical actor.

“Welcome to the underworld!”

It was huge. That was Ahn Soo Ho’s first impression of it. 200 meters? 300 meters? The ceiling was very high, and if Indiana Jones saw the legendary architecture, he would have fainted. The styles of places all over the world happened to be gathered right here.

“Are you surprised?”

“I am.”

Issac knitted his brows at Ahn Soo Ho’s unenthusiastic answer.

“All of the essences of human civilization is gathered here.”

“Let me repeat, Issac.”

Ahn Soo Ho spoke with a serious look on his face.

“I hate studying history.”

He didn’t care about his own country’s history, let alone the world’s.

‘Damn Korean history!’

He didn’t know about how they taught it these days, but when he was in national history class, he fell asleep. In America, they visited all sorts of historical monuments, but in Korea, it was straight memorization. Unless they changed their education system, it was going to be difficult producing creative individuals.

The place that they headed toward was a special stage that looked like an outdoor theatre. There was already an audience sitting there, and Ahn Soo Ho recognized it at first glance. Unlike the supernatural beings that came about from stones, it was a mutant that was forcefully created by an alpha organism. He probably mistook himself as an outstanding chosen one, but both his abilities and lifespan was downgraded. The strange sensation he felt from them was similar to that of the Sao Paolo rescue operation, the New York and London terrorist attacks, Youngjin Group, and Candula.

‘Ultra.’

Issac caught onto Ahn Soo Ho’s thoughts and carefully whispered.

“It was developed a long time ago. It was initially known as spring water of youth or something like that. It has the ability to temporarily make someone strong, but the side effects are so strong that only those with supernatural abilities can withstand it.”

“What about Aragon of Gaius?”

“It was like an experiment. They wanted to check how much a physically fit human being could handle the drugs. The results showed that only half could succeed.”

The super soldier project that started during the Cold War was actually a human experiment by alpha organisms.

“How many have been fostered?”

“Hm, a million?”

“That’s it?”

That was a small number considering how long they had lived.

“What do you mean? It takes a lot of time and effort to make just one brainwashed soldier. We almost got our roots pulled out, too.”

“That must be why you fought with J-Law.”

“Ahem!”

The reason why J-Law and Issac fought wasn’t because they were passionate about mankind. He was just displeased by Issac’s management course in Angola. They weren’t doing it for the good of humans. Justice in the underworld was just an excuse.

“Crazy bastards.”

The Ultra agents that Issac fostered were probably all over the world. They were in all sorts of militaries, medical associations, and corporations, just waiting for their cue. In addition, there were many subordinates of subordinates of subordinates that received their command, which meant the numbers were astronomical.

“If this was back in the day, they probably wouldn’t have needed to foster followers in secret.”

Ahn Soo Ho couldn’t refute. Back in the day, they would have announced to everyone that they were an archangel, or God’s lion, or some kind of devil, but today’s civilization was way too developed. They did create United Industries to try to monopolize the technology, but that still came with limits. The circle was no longer able to completely control human civilization.

“We’re not villains that want to dominate the world, Soo Ho. We only gathered because we all want mankind to last a long time.”

“You sound like some kind of cult.”

Ahn Soo Ho sat in the top seat. The rest of the people then stood right up. In response, Ahn Soo Ho’s heart sank. He was hoping they wouldn’t all raise their right hands and chant “Hail!” Thankfully, that didn’t happen. But instead, the crazy religious lunatic who was quiet for a few days after getting beat suddenly acted up again.

“Glory in the skies! Peace on land! Praise Anna-Anne Karusis!”

Ugh! Fuck!

******

Ahn Soo Ho only returned to Korea 2 weeks after the rescue operation in Nigeria. He could have snuck in without the US military knowing, but he confidently used Incheon International Airport, and his arrival was broadcasted live on television.

The king returns! #GeneralAhn #SuperpowerAhn #SpecialAhn

Oh, my god!

He needs his own soundtrack!

What about the Imperial March?

Stop sucking up! Do you all work for Hosoo Group?

That’s because he deserves it! It’s amazing how someone like Ahn Soo Ho exists in our country!

Didn’t he renounce his citizenship?

Yeah, right! If it wasn’t for him, all the kidnapped reporters would have gotten their necks sliced off!

Even the foreigners are sucking up to him! Especially the ones at the White House!

The cameras captured Ahn Soo Ho entering with Logan and his underlings. The way they were captured made them look handsome.

Kya! Look at him! #CivilianArmy #HosooGuardGroup #SpecialGuardTeam

I thought Hosoo Guard Group was just a security company, but after seeing the member profiles, I trembled! Delta, Seal, SAS, and more! They’re all elites that are from the best of the best!

Is a former sergeant of the Korean military commanding the special forces? Kya!

Isn’t he more like a commanding officer than a sergeant?

I’m from the same troop!

Same here! Sergeant Ahn has succeeded!

Don’t pretend to know him! We lived in the same neighborhood!

The same neighborhood? You’re Domino, aren’t you?

Huh? Are you… Kyung Ho?

Oh Joo Kyung ran over to Ahn Soo Ho with a straight look on his face.

“The preparations are complete.”

“You didn’t even say hello.”

“Let’s go.”

She ignored him and said what she wanted. Logan then approached and whispered.

“She must be pissed.”

“I know.”

No matter how little dating experience he had, he knew this much. Today’s press conference wasn’t taking place at Daesan Hotel, but at the airport instead. People normally would have said this was special treatment, but considering who Ahn Soo Ho was, they didn’t say much.

“I feel like it’s been a long time since I’ve done a press conference. Haha.”

The atmosphere lightened thanks to Ahn Soo Ho’s joke.

“Let’s start with the questions.”

The reporter that Ahn Soo Ho pointed to received the mic and got up. They normally introduced what media outlet they were from, but since he wasn’t a politician, the formalities were excluded.

“Please tell us the full story.”

“The full story…? What are you curious about exactly?”

“Please tell us about the cussing incident with Minister Kim Hyung Il first.”

“The cussing incident? Ha, is that what they said? That’s funny.”

Ahn Soo Ho laughed and then spoke seriously,

“I can’t believe such a crazy man is the head of Korea’s diplomatics… I’m very disappointed.”

“What kind of conversation did you have?”

“Since he’s staying quiet, I can’t say much… Anyway, I don’t know what the ministers of this country do these days. Do they just stick close to elections, put their name up to do some minister stuff and then go back to the national assembly?”

The reporters typed his remarks quickly.

“I’m disappointed in Minister Kim Hyung Il, and I’m disappointed in the president as well.”

“So you’re saying you won’t change your mind.”

“That’s not the only reason why I renounced my citizenship.”

“What’s the other reason?”

“As I said in Nigeria, nothing comes for free in this world.”

“Did America make you renounce your citizenship in exchange for supporting your rescue operation?”

“Many including America wanted that.”

“Why?”

That was the most fundamental question. Why? Why were the strong nations so sensitive about Ahn Soo Ho’s nationality? That part was hard to understand using logic.

Ahn Soo Ho sighed.

“I don’t know how to explain this. Hmm. Have there been any diplomatic issues lately?”

The reporter just blinked in response. And the person that responded was the veteran reporter next to him.

“Besides Nigeria… there’s the drug smuggling case of Jung Hye Sun in Panama.”

“Oh, that. I think I saw that on the internet. That person is insisting innocence, right? Have you heard anything else about it?”

“From what I’ve found out, a corrupt customs officer worked with the airport police to frame a traveler for the crime.”

That didn’t only happen in Panama.

When traveling in the Middle East, Africa, or South Europe, one had to be careful of pickpocketters as well as the police. It was not advisable to obey anyone in a uniform. There were real police officers, but they were fake police officers on the roads and alleys as well.

“Do you think that woman is innocent?”

“Yes, I believe so.”

“But that’s not enough to let her free.”

“You’re right. The Foreign Office only sent a formal cooperation request and didn’t take any action in order to avoid interference of domestic affairs.”

He wanted to call the Foreign Office of Korea incapable, but if the other country pulled out the interference of domestic affairs card, not even America could do much. The sovereign power of a politically unstable country was always a sensitive issue. Ahn Soo Ho made a hand gesture to which Logan handed him a phone.

While he talked to someone on the phone, no one interrupted him. The phone call only lasted 2 minutes. Ahn Soo Ho hung up with a smile and then picked up the mic again.

“Jung Hye Sun will be sent back to Korea tomorrow.”

“Huh?”

The mumbling got louder.

“You can check for yourselves.”

In response to Ahn Soo Ho’s announcement, the reporters picked up their phones. They confirmed it in no time. He was right. Jung Hye Sun, who was held in Panama for smuggling drugs, was in the process of being released, and she was planning to return to Korea tomorrow. The reporters stared at Ahn Soo Ho with fascinated eyes.

Was this a performance that he had prepared beforehand? Not at all. The reporter that said Jung Hye Sun’s name first was the most surprised. He knew better than anyone that Panama was a difficult country to deal with. In order to make any request from them, they had to give them something in return.

“Are you surprised?”

“I am. How did you do that?”

“This is the kind of work I’ve been doing outside of Korea for over 10. Years. You still don’t get it, do you? Let me give you an example. If you found cockroaches in your house, you’d naturally call CESCO, right? Or wait. Would you bother your landlord first?”

Some people laughed at Ahn Soo Ho’s last question.

“When there’s a problem who do you call first? Depending on the situation, you’d probably call the police, the fire department, a doctor, or your mom, right?”

Some continued to laugh at his jokes.

“Then let’s increase the scale a bit. How do presidents and prime ministers resolve problems when a problem arises? They all probably have puppets working for them below them. And the small problems are probably resolved by them. But there are serious problems that not even they can resolve.”

The most common request Ahn Soo Ho received had to do with kidnappings. What the rich and powerful worried about the most was security, so they did their best to always keep guards around. The reason why rich people always had bodyguards was because they were afraid of being kidnapped, but unpredicted circumstances always arose.

In kidnapping and missing persons cases, the chances of survival decreased the more time passed by. And the rich and powerful probably had various ways of resolving these problems themselves. However, for the most part, kidnapping and missing persons cases usually ended horribly.

“Bad things happen to everyone in life. The rich, the poor, the commoners, and even the president could face unlucky situations. Don’t ever think that won’t happen to you. In life, uphill moments are followed by downhill moments. And when they are faced with a hopeless situation, they usually cry and pray. But God won’t answer those prayers.”

The room grew silent in response to Ahn Soo Ho’s words.

“Why is America and other strong nations sensitive about my nationality?”

The room was very silent.

“I’m the last savior who can answer their prayers.”

< Protect – Episode 198 – Stateless Person [1] > The end.