EP 21 – Knights Without Borders (11)
The concept proposed by the United States was simple.
‘Active military action to save the citizens of the world.’
It was said that the army of another country could cross the border and catch the monster to help the citizens of a country where self-defense is impossible from the monster.
In fact, the U.S. military cleared out the monsters near the Mexican border and rescued people. This was because Mexico was in a state of ruin due to a civil war made up of superhuman drug cartels.
The problem here is,
“… … China is effectively controlling Taiwan.”
“Huh… … .”
“The Liaoning Carrier Group has begun military action against Southeast Asia.”
There was no better excuse than this for the cause of aggression.
* * *
‘If a country cannot stop the monster, neighboring countries must intervene to protect the citizens of that country.’
‘In order to protect the citizens of the weak countries, the powerful countries must step forward.’
‘This is not a political issue, but a humanitarian measure to save people.’
This was the logic of the United States and China.
and,
“… … About an hour ago, intelligence came in that the People’s Liberation Army had been projecting firepower from the vicinity of Shenyang towards the inside of the gate.”
“… … And?”
“… … The Shenyang Gate ran into a runaway. It is estimated that it will take approximately 64 hours for the monster to reach the North Korean mainland.”
It was less than 12 hours after the official US statement that the news that China had runaway the Shenyang Gate was heard.
“Hey… … .”
The news that far exceeded our expectations was spontaneously exclamatory.
And the teeth were broken.
“You bastards… … .”
Without realizing it, swear words leaked out, and the NIS agent standing in front of me froze. I nodded and beckoned to her.
“Ah, sorry. Shenyang, Liaoning Province, right? Northern China.”
“Oh, yes, yes.”
“And right above North Korea.”
“… … yes.”
The explanation was enough.
I calmly tapped the calculator.
Shenyang is a large city in northern China. It is also a cursed area with three gates over 100m in diameter.
And the reason North Korea first used a nuclear bomb was because China drove the monsters from Shenyang into the Korean Peninsula at the beginning of the crisis.
“I didn’t know I would do that again… … .”
Naturally, it was obvious why China had runaway the Shenyang Gate.
“… … After North Korea was devastated. Are you going to save the North Korean people and send the People’s Liberation Army?”
“… … .”
“Hey! It’s an outsider, it’s an outsider. We also have a history of bringing things from Seoul to North Korea, so I can’t say anything. ha ha ha!”
For some reason, the situation seems to have gone crazy, so I laugh more than usual. I smirked and sent the agent back.
“yes. Well sir. Just go back.”
“Ah, yes… … !”
Agent quickly left my office. I continued to frown, staring intently at the closed door.
“… … under!”
The laughter doesn’t stop
“Ha, ha, ha, ha… … .”
I pounded on the desk for a while, groaning as if in a frenzy. No, I’m half-realized, right? It doesn’t matter though.
It was because I wasn’t the only one who went crazy looking at the spinning crocodile.
“Hey. f**k… … .”
How come there are only crazy bastards in the world?
but. The world is crazy, so people will be fine.
Besides, in the beginning, politics was something crazy people did. Crazy people are going crazy in a crazy world, so why not go crazy?
I opened the desk with trembling hands. Then I picked up a lighter and a pack of cigarettes.
“Collock! heh heh… … !”
It’s been a long time since I light a cigarette. It still stings, but somehow the cough seems to have lessened.
For such a long time I pondered on the ruthlessness of nationalism.
okay. It doesn’t matter how many people die for the sake of their own country.
There were great politicians.
“… … her.”
In fact, I wasn’t a proud person in front of that idea either. It was also a job that politicians were originally assigned to do.
Aren’t we doing a lot of similar things right now? Was it that they turned the monster back to the north during the Seoul incident, or that they monopolized the stimulant technology and forced it around them?
It’s just a matter of scale and decisiveness.
essentially the same
going in the same direction.
It’s just a matter of who goes further.
With that in mind, I took a sip of the cigarette.
“… … Cologne!”
Of course, historians will call this a very mean and imperialistic idea. That’s actually true. from a moral point of view.
But I shouldn’t think that way.
Whether it’s China or the US, everyone is doing their own thing.
The victim is a sick person.
And I wasn’t the person to be whined for for being cowardly, I was the person to somehow make my country not become a bastard.
From that point on, several ‘thoughts’ ran through my head.
And, as is usually the case with politicians, it was a very heavy and scary kind of thing.
From the idea of moving the South Korean army to the north and occupying only the key regions of North Korea, and discarding the rest,
The idea of accepting North Koreans and treating them as second-class citizens outside the defense line of Chungcheong to supply the labor force,
Even the thought of dropping a nuclear bomb in advance on a point expected to be the Chinese army’s advance route and scattering radioactive fallout.
In this crazy world, there are many convenient ways to think just a little bit beyond the line like those crazy people.
okay. If I had to see blood, it wouldn’t be my blood that got on my hands.
No matter what I do, I’ll crawl back up again, and one day I’ll smash the sashimi.
I lit a cigarette with tears in my eyes, so bloodshot.
“… … .”
Soon the coughing subsided.
And in my head, when the defense line of Chungcheong to prevent the monster was being converted into something to stop North Korean refugees,
—!
The cell phone in the corner of the desk began to vibrate.
Startled, I dropped my cigarette and turned my head to check my phone.
The long-awaited name was written on the screen.
“… … .”
Pi Chaewon.
* * *
After meeting with the British Prime Minister.
Pi Chae-won looked out the window blankly all the time. The sky in London was gloomy, as if it had been seen in a drama.
Just like her heart.
“ha… … .”
Pi Chae-won only sighed and soothed her stomach. However, without knowing the girl’s heart, the hunters seem to be running around with excitement.
“Hey. Even British news sucks on us.”
“Ugh… … ! You did the right thing in France, right?”
“With this momentum, George, let’s return home!”
They were receiving a lot of attention from the international community. This was not a matter of politics, it was a matter of public opinion. Every news story was about them.
A single, powerful entity usually appears from the Instant Gate, but it is said that only 400 people died even though 4 Class A flies spread out in the center of Paris.
It was said that he had successfully blocked the foreshadowing of the UK’s super-large gate. The spirit of fighting for the country of others is noble.
In a way, it was an agitation that drove them to take for granted that they were fighting for England. They didn’t seem to care as much as the yangbans who came to fight in the first place.
Moreover, since Paris was the only shelter controlled by the EU centrally and a key point in charge of logistics on mainland Europe, the government had to promote the fact that Paris is still alive.
The tone of the favorable news probably had that effect as well.
“… … .”
exactly.
By now, Chaewon was also equipped with this level of political sensibility.
Of course, it was a different matter whether we could accept that as a matter of course.
That was then.
“hey.”
“… … .”
A husky voice was heard, but Pi Chae-won was immersed in contemplation. In the end, Yeo Do-yeon put her hand on the girl’s shoulder.
“What are you doing?”
“… … .ah.”
Pi Chae-won looked up at Yeo Do-yeon with blank eyes.
“what are you doing.”
“… … .”
But the girl is speechless.
In the end, Yeo Do-yeon looked out the window that Pi Chae-won was looking at.
and,
What Yeo Do-yeon pointed to with her finger was not the cloudy sky that Pi Chae-won was looking up at, but the people who were shouting with pickets at the hotel entrance under the paddle.
“Uh… … ?”
Yeo Do-yeon smiled at the phrase on the picket.
Thank you.
Please save us.
“Why do we seem to have high expectations?”
“… … .”
“Let’s be strong.”
“… … Doyeon, my sister.”
Pi Chae-won stuttered and asked Yeo Do-yeon. Contrary to his usual calmness, he looked quite anxious.
“If only If we had to go back, how would they react?”
“… … What?”
“So. that… … .”
The girl looked down at the people below.
And the moment she saw the desperate faces of those people, the girl was speechless in her loneliness.
“… … .”
In fact, the reason the girl was looking up at the cloudy sky wasn’t because she didn’t look at the people clamoring under the paddle.
Rather, the girl understood their hearts better than anyone else.
The feelings of those parents who can’t tell their little ones to wait for the day they die, so they shout at foreigners who don’t even know their names to thank them.
Pi Chae-won understood her more deeply than anyone else in the world.
That’s how it was.
I didn’t have the courage to look directly at them.
The girl looked up at the sky again.
The sky I looked up at as an adult was not blue.
it was gray
* * *
… … hello.
Yes, Minister.
I have something to tell you.
… … It looks like the gate won’t open to the UK.
To be precise, it won’t just open in the UK.
… … Yes. Minimum of 67.
And it is likely that up to 140 medium and large gates will occur simultaneously.
… … And if there is a probability that 1 opens in mainland England, 4 opens in northern France.
… … Yes. The US and the UK knew exactly what they calculated.
And I hid it.
They are trying to destroy Paris.
… … Paris is the only shelter controlled by the EU Central Army. The reason is that we are distributing supplies all over Europe.
… … When the supply chain centered on Paris collapses, the UK is the only base that can supply goods to Europe. To be precise, only the air supply network through London remains.
Of course, if Paris falls, Britain will take the lead in Europe, and Britain will be no less than an American minion.
So, that… … .
… … America to conquer Europe.
… … Britain to become the leader of Europe.
They want to destroy Paris, and even let southern England be devastated by monsters.
That’s how the Superhuman League will be disbanded.
… … Ah yes.
If you ask my opinion.
I think we should send all the hunters in England to France.
* * *
[This is breaking news. Minister Han Seung-moon issued an emergency statement.]
[…] … According to the monster detection system developed by the Paranormal Management Department, it was analyzed that the very large gate expected to be opened in England will be opened in northern France.]
[The US Department of Defense immediately proposed joint research and is known to have sent a large-scale delegation including research personnel.]
SIDE EP – No Country is for Everyone
towards the end of summer.
It was a sleepless night.
I stepped out onto the veranda of the official residence and looked up at the sky aimlessly. There was not a single star in the dark and empty sky.
On the TV set in the living room, actors called announcers appeared and reported lies.
Of course, we were the ones who did it.
[…] … Vice President Mike Pence, the head of the US diplomatic mission, is known to have had close meetings with President Yang Pan-seok.]
[…] … Breaking news! Vice President Pence admits to a flaw in the Horus system! As a result, speculation that a very large gate might occur in northern France gradually became visible-]
[…] … The ROK and the United States have set up task forces to keep pace with a series of catastrophes taking place in Europe. It is known that scientists from both countries have begun collating research data from both sides-]
[…] … It has been speculated that the worst-predicted European crisis in history could occur as a series of sporadic openings rather than a very large gate. Hwaran Cheon, chief of Paratech Research Center-]
“… … .”
okay.
it’s made with this
* * *
We became aware of the American conspiracy, but did not expose it immediately, but only a small fraction of it, bringing the United States to the negotiating table.
And the present situation was the result of that negotiation.
The American misinformation was an observational error of the Horus system, and when Korea pointed it out, the United States asked for help.
At least, that’s what I’ve seen in the news.
I’ll have to hear the details at the cabinet meeting tomorrow morning, but this case seems to have ended on this line.
Yang Pan-seok and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs must have dealt with it.
So now you can stretch out your legs and go to sleep.
But how are you going to sleep in this situation?
I was tired enough to die, but I couldn’t sleep no matter what I did. He lived a tiring life without realizing that he was tired, but his body seems to be getting tired every day.
He was just sipping caffeine so late at night.
smart-.
A gentle knock was heard from the door panel, which even had an intercom on the door lock. And out of all the people I knew, there was only one yangban who could do such a boring thing.
I quickly put on my indoor prosthetic legs, cleaned up my outfit, and ran out to the front door.
As he opened the door, a familiar face poked his head out.
He was the president of Korea.
“Ugh. Were you not sleeping?”
“… … Come in.”
“It smells like a widow from the front door. Don’t you have something like Febreeze at home?”
* * *
The first thing I did as soon as Yang Pan-seok entered my residence was to open the refrigerator and take out all kinds of beer and kettles.
“How come the layout is similar to our refrigerator.”
“… … I’ve always cleaned it up, haven’t I?”
“Ah, it was.”
Yang Pan-seok grinned and opened the bag of grilled squid with butter.
“It’s only been a year now. You and I have changed a lot. After all, is it that time is sometimes wild?”
Seeing that the story progressed as smoothly as if he had greased his tongue, it seemed that he had planned the flow of the conversation from the time he opened the refrigerator.
okay. Yang Pan-seok was originally such a person. He’s always messing around, but actually he’s more thorough than anyone else. A mastermind who always has to move someone according to his plan to unlock his intuition.
Although it was likely that he was a shy person, I greeted him with a gentle smile with respect and affection for him.
“That’s it. A lot has changed.”
“okay. President from the council. You came out.”
“I think it’s fortunate that it has changed for the better. I.”
“… … Thank you for saying that.”
Yang Pan-seok, who sat on the living room floor with a sound of pain, loosened his tie.
“Because the world doesn’t seem like that at all.”
Yang Pan-seok, who had spread the kettle, put his untied tie on the sofa, and I brought a glass of wine and politely filled his cup.
He always had a habit of tilting the glass large and drinking only one sip in order not to lose consciousness at the drinking party, but this time it was not.
“… … Is it okay to drink like this?”
“Oh! then! It’s okay!”
“… … still-“
“Sometimes people have to drink until they get drunk to make their liver stronger.”
“… … Oh yes.”
Yang Pan-seok emptied his glass of wine in an instant, and his lips twitched with a sullen face.
“okay. the gate. Do you know who the politician I admire the most?”
well Several names ran through my head right away. Kim Dae-jung, Roh Moo-hyun, Moon Jae-in, Yoo Jae-gwang. Even Kim Young-sam, Lee Hoe-chang, and Lee In-je.
After much deliberation, I came up with an answer.
“… … Isn’t it President Kim Jong-pil?”
“Shinzo Abe.”
this. An unexpected answer came back. He is also a yangban who knows how to surprise people. With such thoughts in mind, Yang Pan-seok continued speaking slowly.
“I don’t like it, but I rate it the most”
“… … Abe?”
“Ugh. What should I explain? Isn’t there one of the biggest challenges in Korea? Economy, low fertility, aging population, youth unemployment, etc… … .”
“Ah yes.”
“Thinking about it now, it didn’t even fit into the problem axis. At the time, I thought this was a very difficult problem. everyone.”
“It was.”
“no.”
Yang Pan-seok shook his head.
“Actually, no matter what the problem is, if you solve it from a macro perspective, you will find an answer.”
“… … yes?”
“To give you a few examples… … .”
He shook his head for a moment.
“If we want to solve the youth unemployment problem, why don’t we just fire the father and put the son in his place?”
“… … yes?”
“Thanks to this, the lives of the elderly will become more difficult, and more people will freeze to death while picking up waste paper in the winter, but most of the elderly are not economically active, aren’t they?”
It was said that it doesn’t matter if they die or not, as it is a surplus manpower that is useless to the country.
I looked at Yang Pan-seok with a feeling of hitting a goal for a moment, but Yang Pan-seok’s words showed no sign of stopping.
“And if you want to solve the low birth rate, you can create a society where men in their 20s can easily gain vested interests. It will be difficult for women to live if they are not dependent on men.”
“… … Yes?”
“Or there is a way to George both. It’s easy with just a few touches on the rent of a house. If we create a society where people cannot find a house by themselves, won’t there be a dual-income couple?”
“… … uh, uh.”
“Isn’t it better than destroying the National Pension Medical Insurance?”
“… … That, well.”
Since then, the solver Yang Pan-seok has been able to solve a number of national issues succinctly. Of course, only in words. And there were things that had to be done in words.
“okay. it’s economy Saving the economy is not easy. Lower corporate taxes and lower costs. If we only help large companies that export, our GDP will go up.”
“… … .”
“Of course, when the value of the won goes down, prices go up. Even the lives of ordinary people will be difficult. what to do In a country like ours who risked their lives for exports, cost reduction is advantageous.”
“… … That’s right, I do.”
It was only around the time when the smile faded from my face and a smile that didn’t even look like a smile was awkwardly holding its place, Yang Pan-seok smiled more gently.
“okay. Of course, real politics doesn’t work this way. Preferably, it is Why?”
“… … For the happiness of the people?”
“If you do it that way, your approval rating will be shattered.”
oh okay. Right. Politics was about the approval rating, not the people. You forgot the most basic common sense. I’m still far away
Yang Pan-seok continued to speak before my shock was gone.
“Isn’t this ironic? If you do something for your country, your approval rating will drop. After all, you can’t catch two rabbits.”
“… … So what is the actual politics like?”
“I take medication to relieve the side effects. That’s what it’s called a common thought.”
I understood it as brainwashing, and Yang Pan-seok explained it simply.
“For the old man who picks up the waste paper, they make a bunch of scumbags. They make poor young people curse each other before they curse the country. It is to turn the eyes of ordinary people to the entertainment industry for a large corporation that will expand globally.”
“… … .”
“If it’s too complicated, it’s going to be simple. Let’s be patriotic.”
Yang Pan-seok concluded with a smile.
“And, as far as I know, the most meticulous yangban of this kind was Shinzo Abe.”
“… … Is that so?”
“then! While saving the economy by choosing only the things that will completely destroy the approval rating. Wasn’t the approval rating still far-right?”
Yang Pan-seok gave a short taste with four legs.
“Of course, that’s the way it was, because the connection between the social leaders was so strong that we couldn’t even compare it to ours.”
“… … Words are connections, aren’t they really sleazy?”
“Hmm, there were quite a few yangbans who could not handle ideology and were consumed by ideology, but seeing that even using them, Abe was a really outstanding yangban. After the nuclear power plant exploded, the taste was slightly lost.”
“… … little. It’s surprising.”
“Well. Japan’s economy is steadily improving, but people’s lives are getting worse and worse. But didn’t it crush it into Woo Min-hwa and far-right populism? We are not the ones to look at it and curse it, we are the ones to watch and learn.”
“I do, but… … .”
“Right now, in 2013, we stopped the US bond crisis by purchasing government bonds, and then we were able to solve the economy with quantitative easing on the back of the US, so how much we… … .”
Yang Pan-seok stopped talking at this point. And, as usual, he smiled softly.
“this… … Was the introduction too long?”
“Where is the introduction? It should all be engraved.”
“I would appreciate it if you could think of it that way. great. Let’s go back to America.”
He started chewing the butter-grilled squid.
“I had a meeting with Vice President Pence for roughly four hours. Contrary to popular belief, he was quite a funny person. I told you about the US impeachment process last year. Oh yeah… … .”
“So how did this happen?”
“Oh yeah. Fortunately, I’ve heard the full story of your plan. The details are a secret. I’ll just tell you the ending.”
Yang Pan-seok smiled brightly and continued the story.
“If the American plan had been successful, the United States would have divided the League of Superhumans, that is, Eurasia. And he would have helped us. Without the help of the United States, it would be difficult to survive.”
“… … Aren’t you giving me a bottle and medicine?”
“okay. It’s a kind of physical improvement. It is about improving the constitution of the world in order for the United States to become an unrivaled hegemon.”
I want it to be a very violent physical improvement. Thinking about that, he was kicking his tongue inwardly, and Yang Pan-seok held out two fingers to me.
“By the way, there were two things that the United States did not expect.”
“… … .”
“The first is the hunters sent to Europe by Korea, and the second is what you did yesterday.”
To be sure, it was something the United States had done that came as a surprise. I chewed the beef jerky and listened to Yang Pan-seok’s explanation.
“America’s plans have been greatly modified. And we decided to join the plan. As an ally of America.”
“… … Is that so.”
“It’s thanks to you.”
“… … yes?”
“It’s all thanks to you.”
I laughed out loud at the sudden compliment.
“No, why all of a sudden?”
“I can’t tell you the details, though. You saved Korea once.”
“… … .Oh yeah. People say that they lifted it up and put it down.”
“Isn’t it because the old man’s Simbo is bad? In that sense, I mean.”
Yang Pan-seok laughed lightly.
“Is there something about Pi Chae-won?”
“… … .”
“… … .”
“… … oh Yes. I can read people’s minds.”
“this. Better than my bodyguard. He’s a lie detector.”
“… … Is that so?”
“okay.”
Yang Pan-seok smiled as if it was insignificant.
“Anyway, I can’t even give you a medal. I’ll treat you well. I suffered a lot when I was young.”
“… … All right.”
“ah. And I mean. Several measures are planned in cooperation with the United States.”
He started tying his tie again. I sat quietly and watched the scene with a sense of weakness for some reason.
“… … Action, you say?”
“okay. It is a necessary action, though. People also tend to hate it. But what do you do? I have to live.”
“… … .”
“So I mean. You should get out of this job for a while.”
“Yes… … ?”
“I’m telling you to stay away for a while.”
He replied calmly.
“Now the news must have been that you collapsed from overwork. Please don’t leave the house for a while and get some rest.”
“Oh no, what is this… … !”
I got up and tried to stop him, but Yang Pan-seok was getting ready to leave with a spatula at the front door.
“Get your hands off me!”
“haha. No matter how much I think about it, the smell of the front door is too strong… … .”
He staggered drunk and crawled into his shoes. I looked at him with a broken heart.
Yang Pan-seok, who staggered and leaned against the shoe rack, smiled and said to me.
“okay. Buy something like Febreeze and spray it on. He said that because the official residence is bulletproof glass, the ventilation is not good. Then you have to hide the smell well.”
“… … .no! So what is that action?”
“You can’t put your shoes away, can’t you? … .”
“dismissal!”
Yang Pan-seok left the front door with a drunken face, glanced back at me, and left a few words.
“Don’t be surprised no matter what happens from now on. And don’t even go into detail.”
The voice was a stern warning, but those eyes were not those of a warning. I questioned him.
“… … What the hell are you doing?!”
“needful.”
Yang Pan-seok, drunkenly, with a staggering gait, left the front door.
The door closed, and I watched him leave for a long time.
And, fearing that the old man might stumble and fall for nothing, he put on his slippers and went out the front door.
But,
The back view of Yangpan-seok, who is walking far away,
It was straight with no fuss.
SIDE EP
No country is for everyone
END