The Foreigner on the Periphery

"What do you think makes a person a person?"

Jeongpal couldn't answer Choi Panseok's question right away. He blinked a few times, trying to grasp the underlying intent.

Summoning him here in secret, away from the reporters' prying eyes, meant this had to be an important conversation. A highly pragmatic one. Choi wouldn't have invited him over just to have some dusty, ideological debate.

"You mean... a person?"

The conditions that defined one.

A few answers flashed through his mind. Self-awareness? Ethical reasoning? The capacity for abstract thought?

None of those felt like the answer the old orc was looking for. There had to be a more fundamental, measurable metric.

Jeongpal soon settled on a plausible option—a concept that encompassed all his previous ideas while hewing closely to the dictionary definition.

"Wouldn't it be intelligence? The cognitive ability required to be recognized as a sentient being."

But Choi Panseok pointed out the flaw in that logic.

"Then what level of intelligence is appropriate for a person? What exact scores must one achieve in memory, logical judgment, problem-solving, and perception to be considered sentient?"

Jeongpal stared silently at the table. He knew this wasn't a genuine question, but rather a rhetorical habit typical of old men.

Two whiskey glasses filled with ice sat between them. The two men had merely pantomimed taking a sip after sitting down, leaving the drinks abandoned like unnecessary ornaments.

"The intelligence of some goblins is barely distinguishable from the beasts kept as pets in certain dimensions. In fact, the beasts sometimes have better memories."

"You're saying intelligence cannot be the standard."

"It's dangerous to use superiority or special traits as the baseline for personhood. It provides an excuse to exclude anyone who falls short."

Jeongpal searched for another answer.

"Then a person's dignity must be the key. The unassailable nobility every person is born with. That has to be the condition."

"Is it? For something unassailable, haven't we seen it horribly torn apart and trampled on far too often?"

Jeongpal thought he knew what the older orc was getting at.

Being born a person didn't guarantee respect. One could be chased outside the fence and slaughtered like a beast at any moment.

Just like the incident Jeongpal had experienced not long ago.

Without realizing it, he picked up his glass. He needed this now. He swallowed a bitter, burning mouthful before speaking again, the light in his eyes subtly changed.

"So being born doesn't guarantee your dignity is recognized. That alone isn't enough to be treated as a person. I see."

"That is my conclusion. Personhood is a qualification granted by others. A person is not simply born; they are recognized and accepted by those around them."

Jeongpal didn't reply, simply taking another sip to wet his throat. Watching him, Choi Panseok continued.

"Then on what basis does the majority—society, in other words—recognize a person? What is the standard for acknowledging someone as an equal? Intelligence? Dignity? No, none of that matters in the slightest."

The old orc shook his head firmly.

"It's a mix of cold calculation and instinctive judgment. People agree with the premise that individuals deserve to pursue happiness, but the moment outsiders step into their enclosure to take what is theirs, their blood runs cold at the threat. Alien appearances and foreign ideologies are instinctively rejected. This is an impenetrable wall. No matter how hard you try... human effort cannot tear down a wall built by humans."

It was a self-evident truth, Choi Panseok added.

This opinion stood in direct opposition to the speech Jeongpal had given at the celebration banquet.

"Some might believe the world is gradually getting better. I don't. Every time the Committee intervenes, people fracture into even smaller groups. The world is devolving into a chaotic mess where everyone screams and threatens each other for their own gain."

There must have been an option to relocate the immigrants to an entirely new dimension rather than Earth.

For instance, allowing only orcs to gather and live on a newly terraformed planet.

But the Committee hadn't done that. Choi Panseok suspected it came down to cost reduction.

"In the end, we wound up living mixed together. Moving forward, the conflicts will only deepen. It is human nature to stratify and isolate oneself. As values diversify, people will vehemently despise and deny whatever falls outside their bubble. Pluralism simply means an increase in the number of things to ignore and hate. As long as insurmountable differences exist, the fighting will never end. Not until a planet is populated by a single species with a single ideology."

Only then did Choi Panseok finally bring up his main point.

"Once I realized that, I abandoned all hope."

Jeongpal nodded quietly. It was as if the old man had walked into his mind and pulled those very thoughts out. What Jeongpal had only just realized through agonizing pain, Choi Panseok had internalized a long time ago.

"From the very beginning, people were designed to draw lines, fight for their rights, and hate one another. So there is no need for orcs to defy providence. Instead of assimilating, we must separate. And we must take what is ours."

That was why he had once even considered an independent nation spearheaded by orcs.

As Choi Panseok muttered this, his face made it clear he considered the idea a pipe dream himself, so Jeongpal didn't bother offering his own opinion.

"But a more realistic method exists."

"What is it?"

"The reason orcs suffer such hardships is because we are chained to the bottom tier of this society."

It was undeniable.

"At this rate, no matter how much our numbers grow, we will never escape our status as the socially vulnerable. The power and wealth permitted by dragons will always flow to the humans and elves first. A microscopic minority of dragons rules a minority of humans and elves, who in turn rule the vast majority of orcs—that structure will remain intact."

"What exactly are you thinking?"

"Rebuilding this hierarchy's pyramid."

To Jeongpal's ears, this sounded just as insanely unrealistic as the independent nation idea.

A solid hierarchy already existed in this society. A modern caste system flowing from dragons down to humans and elves, and finally to the other species.

Overturn this?

"How?"

"It's impossible with our own strength. Didn't I just say? A wall built by humans cannot be destroyed by human hands."

But what if a transcendent entity were to intervene?

"What if someone who rules like a monarch, vastly superior to humans or elves... What if a 'god'-like entity were to step in?"

"Are you talking about dragons?"

"Imagine a concept that sits even higher than the dragons."

"...The Dragon Lord?"

A faint smile touched Choi Panseok's lips. He neither confirmed nor denied it.

"A being that reigns absolute, transcending all power and wealth, would be capable of rearranging and redistributing everything."

Jeongpal shook his head.

"I'm sorry, but that sounds just as absurd to me as building an independent orc nation. Why would a newly elected Dragon Lord step forward for our sake? They are the representative of the dragons, who have completely ignored the Human Rights Alliance up until now."

"Because we will be useful to his rule. We will faithfully submit to the coming era, multiply our numbers faster than anyone else, spread his new rules, and contribute to the stability of the new age."

Jeongpal tilted his head.

Even if the Dragon Lord changed, referring to the aftermath as a 'new age' felt excessive.

"Dragons are immensely powerful but few in number. We can reproduce incredibly quickly and blanket the world. The reason the orc population isn't exploding like it did during the old Soviet era is largely due to socioeconomic factors. Lacking the confidence to feed and raise eight children, they simply avoid having them altogether. Selective abortion is treated as a sin, after all. But if we gain a powerful backer, and orcs rise to the tier just below dragons, the situation will change."

"I apologize, but you lost me halfway through. Specifically, why the new Dragon Lord would ever bestow such favor upon us."

"Of course you're confused. That's because I've deliberately withheld the details. There are things I cannot speak of yet. I am currently bound by certain 'promises.'"

Choi Panseok stared deeply into Jeongpal's eyes.

"I heard that the Red Dragon, Chairman Jenkinson, promised you a special favor."

There was nothing strange about the name of the most likely next Dragon Lord being mentioned here. Jeongpal flinched for a completely different reason. 'How did he know about that?'

Perhaps information had leaked during the cleanup of the terrorist attack. Looking back, Choi Panseok had possessed uncannily good intelligence-gathering skills since the old days.

"I want to meet the Chairman as soon as possible. In secret, too. I know he is currently in the Korea Lair, but he hasn't allowed any visitors for days. It seems everyone gets cut off at the secretary's level. But if you made a request, I don't think that elf secretary could refuse. Am I right?"

After the recent terror incident, Jenkinson had extended a few additional courtesies to Minjun's friends. He had promised that they could come and hide in his lair whenever they felt threatened.

They had been lucky this time, but the measure was taken just in case Jenkinson couldn't fly over personally.

"If I request it, accessing the lair should be possible."

However, whether Jenkinson would actually agree to a meeting was an entirely different issue.

Choi Panseok persuaded him, saying they were in a situation where they had to grasp at straws, and Jeongpal hesitated.

Was it really okay to exploit the favor the Elder Dragon had granted because of Minjun in this manner?

But soon, he recalled the vow he had made at the scene of the terrorist attack.

'Didn't I already swear that I would resort to any means necessary?'

And Choi Panseok's slightly odd attitude bothered him as well, but...

'My older brother assured me before he disappeared. That Assemblyman Choi is a man I can trust.'

Jeongpal nodded.

"I'll try contacting the Chairman's secretary."

*

"...For those reasons, I could not return with the Avatar."

Elahu-Praga Church Headquarters.

Having finished his statement regarding the events in the sanctuary, Alext bowed his head deeply.

Minjun kept his eyes fixed on the fluid-filled Coffin. Sleeping inside was a dragon that appeared to be barely a hundred years old. The soul that had been controlling the body was currently absent.

"..."

Dell was the one to break the silence.

"Then what about Ha Eunseong?"

Her face was completely drained of color. She had been unconscious for much of their journey with Ha Eunseong, but after coming to this dimension, she had frequently spent time with the dragon. She had grown fond of him without even realizing it.

The one who answered in Alext's place was the Pope.

"Swept up in such a massive torrent of Talents... his sense of self has likely collapsed. Even for him..."

Asiph-1 stuttered, wearing a look of utter devastation.

If Alext's words were true, the probability of Ha Eunseong being safe converged on zero. It was essentially the equivalent of a dead man dying a second time.

And Asiph-1 was fully aware of his own involvement in that entire sequence of events. He was the one who had originally killed Ha Eunseong, and he was the one who had lured him into fleeing to Elahu-Praga.

His sins had grown even heavier.

In stark contrast to the reactions of those two, Yumtus wore a surprisingly serene expression. He spoke in a gentle voice.

"We will surely see him again soon anyway. After the world collapses, that is. It's impossible for the Avatar to not receive salvation, isn't it? This must also be nothing more than a brief parting."

Asiph-1 didn't reply, and Dell opened her mouth to snap at him in disbelief.

At that moment, Minjun raised a hand, stopping her.

"...Understood. Everyone, leave."

Minjun headed straight back to his quarters. It was a divine sanctuary hastily arranged to replace the cathedral he had burned to the ground while disciplining his son.

He sat in a chair, sinking deep into thought.

Alext and Yumtus didn't take Ha Eunseong's 'end' too seriously, believing he would be saved during the apocalypse regardless.

On the other hand, Asiph-1 and Dell viewed the situation with profound grief. They believed the ghost had effectively been obliterated.

And Minjun harbored thoughts entirely different from all of them.

'This is strange. What is this premonition?'

His gut instinct was famously inaccurate back in his prisoner days, but he didn't think he was wrong this time.

'I don't think Ha Eunseong has collapsed.'

He recalled how the ghost had been perfectly fine even after absorbing a million Talents.

Of course, the amount of Talents brimming inside that place had to be far greater, but...

'I can withstand it.'

For some inexplicable reason, he felt that Ha Eunseong could do the same.

He then thought back to Asiph-1's words.

That Minjun, Asiph-1, and Ha Eunseong would all eventually connect at some focal point. The creation had been utterly certain of it.

'Why didn't I feel that sense of kinship?'

Thinking about it now, Minjun had never been particularly fond of Ha Eunseong, even back in his prisoner days. It wasn't quite disgust, but he felt an unbridgeable sense of distance. There was the obvious reason of the ghost having blown his Talents, but it was still strangely bizarre just how little attachment he felt.

He asked himself again. The 180,000 Talents Ha Eunseong had unconsciously burned away. Was that really the only reason?

'So, what the hell was that guy's true identity?'

His worries and musings overlapped and tangled, eventually leading to a single conclusion.

Aside from himself and Asiph-1, there was another entity who had taken a massive interest in Ha Eunseong. Someone who had tried to exploit the ghost for her own gain.

He had delayed confronting her up until now, but it had reached a stage where he could no longer afford to neglect it.

He recalled the words she had spoken a long time ago.

"You are a child who will transcend the limits of species and be loved. The fences and walls that restrict their empathy—you effortlessly leap right over them."

Minjun closed his eyes. He let himself sink deep into his inner world. Even with his vision cut off, bizarre shapes flickered before him.

It was the first time he had cast his consciousness into those depths since fully recovering his memories.

He descended downward, endlessly plunging into a dizzying abyss with no bottom in sight.

Grrrrr!

Minjun's mind reached a mental scape where shadows boiled and writhed. A prison situated beneath the abyss. A bottomless pit of darkness untouched by a single ray of light.

The moment he cast his mind into that space.

Kiyaaaaaah!

The surrounding landscape coalesced, forming a pitch-black wave.

It immediately erupted like an explosion, surging violently toward Minjun.

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