Chapter 72
America.
When the general public hears the word “America,” most people would instantly think of the United States.
Of course, the American continent isn’t solely represented by the United States—there’s Latin America and various Spanish-speaking countries. However, due to the global influence of the U.S., known as a powerful superpower, the world has come to associate the term “America” predominantly with the United States.
When people disembarked from the airship that had landed at Pohang Airport and announced they had come from America, the soldiers of the Balhut Cult immediately thought of the United States, aligning with this common perception.
“Yes, we are from the United States. We have not come here to fight the Cult; we are here to have a dialogue.”
“I, I’ll bring a superior right away.”
Not only did they declare that they hadn’t come to fight but to engage in dialogue with the Cult, causing the Balhut Cult soldier to lower his gun in surprise. He quickly ran to Baek Seol-hwa, the mayor and the person in charge of Pohang.
“Guests have arrived from the United States.”
“Uh, that United States!?”
Even Baek Seol-hwa, who had recently subdued the three major camps in Pohang and initiated reconstruction efforts, was astounded by the arrival of such significant guests.
It could be a source of confusion, but fortunately, Baek Seol-hwa had the treasured Mirror of Perspective, a relic given to her by Bahamut.
Through this treasure, she could contact Bahamut at any time and anywhere. Baek Seol-hwa used the Mirror of Perspective to inform Bahamut that guests had arrived from the United States.
“Lord Bahamut, guests have come from the United States.”
[…Guests from the United States, indeed. Are they from the White House?]
“I’ll find out myself.”
In response to Bahamut’s question, Baek Seol-hwa hurried to Pohang Airport, where the guests from America were waiting. By the time she arrived, the airport was already enveloped in a tense standoff between the American guests and the soldiers of the Balhut Cult.
The guests from America raised their hands, claiming they had no intention of fighting with the Cult, while the soldiers glared at them with suspicion.
From the soldiers’ perspective, the sudden arrival of these foreign guests amid the apocalypse was something they hadn’t prepared for.
“Stop this pointless tension!”
“Yes, ma’am.”
The delicate standoff ceased only when Baek Seol-hwa, the Priestess of the Dragon, arrived at the landing site.
When Baek Seol-hwa shouted to the Balhut Cult soldiers, they ceased their vigilant stares directed at the unknown guests. The guests, who had raised their hands above their heads in relief that someone who could speak properly had arrived, finally exhaled a sigh and looked toward the person who had come to meet them.
‘Younger than I expected? Or, just youthful?’
However, Steven David, the special plenipotentiary ambassador dispatched from the White House, couldn’t suppress his bewilderment at her unexpectedly youthful appearance.
He had expected the person in charge to be a dignified man or woman, but the one who came was a young girl.
She looked no older than fourteen… maybe fifteen at most, and yet the Balhut Cult soldiers followed her without question, leaving the American guests visibly surprised.
“Don’t let your guard down. I sense immense power. Steve.”
“Really, Anna?”
“Yes.”
One of the guests seemed to possess the ability to sense magical energy. A woman named Anna gazed at Baek Seol-hwa, commenting on the enormous power she sensed from her.
The man, affectionately called Steve, questioned her in disbelief, but Anna nodded solemnly, wearing an expression of genuine fear.
Now Steven understood why such a young girl had been sent as the person in charge here.
“Greetings. We are a special diplomatic envoy sent from the White House. Or, to put it simply, we are diplomats.”
“Oh, so you are from the U.S. government?”
“Yes, we were dispatched here as diplomats by the White House.”
The person before her spoke fluent Korean, identifying himself as a guest from the U.S. government.
There might be questions about this, but in this apocalyptic situation, where they had confidently landed at Pohang Airport with their transport and escort aircraft, it could only be an operation that the United States could carry out.
With South Korea’s military currently out of control, only the United States maintained enough order to deploy its forces effectively.
‘Even if I wanted to doubt it… A nation that could operate such a large number of transport and escort aircraft—it must be the United States, right?’
Baek Seol-hwa was beginning to believe his words, merely by the sight of the transport aircraft and their escorts.
It would be absurd to dismiss such claims when there was tangible, physical evidence right before her.
“I am Baek Seol-hwa, the Mayor of Pohang on behalf of the Balhut Cult. May I ask the reason for your visit here to Pohang?”
“We have come to meet with the Balhut Cult, the only government on the Korean Peninsula.”
Baek Seol-hwa’s small mouth fell open at Steven’s words.
The United States, often regarded as the foremost superpower, had just acknowledged the Balhut Cult as a government.
This wasn’t just surprising for Baek Seol-hwa; it left the other soldiers escorting her equally dumbfounded, staring blankly at the diplomat as he called them the sole government of the Korean Peninsula.
The United States had recognized the Balhut Cult as a government.
“Our Cult? Not the South Korean government?”
“The South Korean government has already fallen silent. Whether they ignored our messages or were incapacitated to the point of being unable to respond, we believe the former to be the truth in this apocalypse. That is why we came to the Cult, the only government still operational on the Peninsula.”
In essence, Steven was declaring the end of the South Korean government.
Hearing this and knowing the Cult was the only functioning government left, Baek Seol-hwa deliberated for a moment.
“Could I, perhaps, speak to someone of higher authority?”
“By all means.”
Believing that this wasn’t a decision she should make alone as the Mayor of Pohang, Baek Seol-hwa used the Mirror of Perspective to contact Bahamut directly.
“Lord Bahamut, a diplomat has truly been sent from the White House.”
[Is it true?]
“Yes.”
‘Wow, so the United States has taken an interest in our Cult? For what reason, I wonder?’
Baek Seol-hwa wasn’t the only one surprised to hear that America had come; Bahamut was equally astonished.
Bahamut, too, held the common perception that America was an immense superpower, the leader of the first world, and a dominant force over the world.
Of course, he knew that the United States had, through many failures, descended from its status as a superpower to that of a mere powerful nation.
Still, due to common perception, America was viewed as a mighty country, possessing overwhelming power unmatched by any other.
As a fairly ordinary young man, Bahamut was no exception to this perception, so he couldn’t help but be greatly surprised at the news that America had come to visit the Balhut Cult.
[But why would the United States come to us?]
“Well, who knows?”
It was said that the United States had directly specified the Balhut Cult and come to the Korean Peninsula.
This implied that they acknowledged the Cult as a government, but the real question was what the United States wanted in reaching out to them.
Bahamut looked at Baek Seol-hwa with an expression of complete bewilderment, but Baek Seol-hwa, sharing the common perception, looked back at Bahamut with an equally baffled expression.
[For now, let’s notify the main temple in Gyeongju of this and prepare a response. You, lead them to the main temple in Gyeongju.]
“Understood.”
Since they couldn’t come to a conclusion, Bahamut decided to inform the Cult and formulate a response.
Baek Seol-hwa was ordered to guide the guests to the main temple in Gyeongju, to which she lowered her head in compliance without any complaints.
[So, guests have come from the White House.]
“Well, if it’s the White House…”
[It’s America.]
“Oh.”
And Bahamut immediately conveyed to Yuna that people had arrived from the White House, and her reaction wasn’t much different from Baek Seol-hwa’s.
Upon hearing that the only nation to maintain itself during the apocalypse, the United States, had come, she was left speechless, her mouth agape in shock.
Yuna, too, was an ordinary girl who shared the common perception, and the news that America, the powerful nation, had come to see the Cult greatly startled her.
However, not forgetting her duties, Yuna promptly issued an order for all the Cult’s executives to gather and informed them of the news that the White House had reached out to the Cult.
There were two reactions from the Balhut Cult in Gyeongju when they heard that the White House had come.
“What reason would America have to come to us? Are we really a power so valuable that America would notice?”
The first reaction was doubt.
The United States was the only country to maintain its government and military and had shown its status as a powerful nation in this apocalypse.
Despite its entire territory being invaded by monsters and even facing the misfortune of the President’s death, they had overcome it all, with the Vice President assuming the presidency and reclaiming their land from the monsters.
Even now, they were busy fighting against the monsters, yet they had reached out to them in such a grand manner.
“Are they really from the White House?”
Some were expressing skepticism.
The information available to the Cult was limited, and what the Balhut Cult knew was only what was publicly known.
Moreover, with the Cult prioritizing the state of affairs on the Korean Peninsula, there was no real need for them to understand the internal workings of other countries, which played a role in this.
“Could it be that the United States has recognized us as the only legitimate government on the Korean Peninsula?”
“Sis, you’re getting too excited.”
On the other hand, some saw it with expectation.
Lee Hyuna, who had always been deeply immersed in Bahamut’s power, was overjoyed at this news, claiming that the United States had acknowledged them as the only legitimate government on the Korean Peninsula.
“It’s not exactly incorrect! The Balhut Cult is the only organization that has established a government on the Korean Peninsula!”
“That makes sense.”
In reality, several so-called governments had emerged, claiming to be successors to South Korea, but only the Balhut Cult had the administrative power, military strength, and control necessary to act as a government.
These self-proclaimed governments had not yet moved beyond large survivor camps, so it seemed logical for America to view them as the legitimate government and to reach out accordingly.
Lee Hyuna’s argument was radical, but unexpectedly, many executives agreed with her.
“Anyway, since Seol-hwa is currently guiding the diplomats to Gyeongju, can we anticipate what America will say to us before they arrive?”
However, Yuna’s subsequent words left the executives silent.
To be honest, it was deeply perplexing.
“Is there… something the United States would want from us?”
“No idea.”
“The United States has overwhelming resources, territory, and even the power to spare. In fact, we’re the ones who’d want things from them.”
“If we were to reach out, it should be us, not them…”
It was a mystery.
Each of the executives pondered the reasons why the White House might reach out, but they simply couldn’t come up with a reason.
After all, the United States was a power that held overwhelming advantages.
To suggest that the United States wanted something from the Balhut Cult seemed absurd, considering their vast territory and resources.
Though America still imported raw materials from abroad, it had plenty of resources for self-sufficiency in this apocalypse.
There was no reason to demand anything from Gyeongju, which had just reclaimed Pohang. If anything, it was Gyeongju that should be begging America for resources.
“Military power?”
“They still have their military. They’re even operating military aircraft just fine.”
“…That’s true.”
They need force—perhaps they intend to hire the Balhut Cult as mercenaries.
From that perspective, it was understandable, but America was the undisputed world’s leading military power even before the apocalypse.
Most importantly, their overwhelming mechanized forces were defending the American mainland, and they were still deploying cutting-edge fighter jets and military aircraft, as seen with their own eyes.
Yet, with such overwhelming modern weaponry, they would need the military power of the Balhut Cult?
The Cult executives thought this was indeed a strange story.
“For what reason could they possibly want to make contact with us?”
“…………………”
It was a meeting filled only with questions.
From an objective viewpoint, it would make sense if the Balhut Cult were the ones to initiate contact with America, not the other way around.
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