EP 29 – Hunter’s World (4)
“Victor Nikolaevich Lee. Commander-in-Chief of the Far Eastern Command of the Russian Federation Forces. nice to see you. Senator.”
The leader of the Eastern Warlords dividing Russia had an appearance worthy of his name. Large size and muscular body. He was even wearing a military uniform, so it made him feel embarrassed.
But to be embarrassed was to be embarrassed, and to be accepted was to be accepted. I grabbed his brown bear palm and waved it lightly.
“This is Seungmoon Han from WPO. Thank you for the hospitality.”
flinch. Victor Lee’s shoulders shook slightly. No matter how good the treatment we received here, it was not welcome.
He coughed in embarrassment and got up from his seat.
“… … Hmm, I heard you waited a long time. May I pour you a cup as an apology?”
* * *
The cocktail bar in the basement of the Khabarovsk Hotel was the only high-end bar in Khabarovsk. Here, ‘advanced’ means that the quality is not inferior to that of the old world.
In the beginning, there was only one hotel that was properly managed in Khabarovsk. All other hotels have been converted for refugees. For tens of millions of people from Eastern Russia, Central Asia, and even northern China.
The reality was that. Some would call them fearsome eastern warlords, but all they had were tens of millions of refugees aboard ships, tanks now running out of oil, and nuclear weapons.
Meanwhile, a politician from the south came to me as a kind of hope. The real powers of the WPO. Australia’s savior.
The fate of the East could possibly depend on how the deal with him was made. But the commander of the East seemed crazy.
At least in the eyes of Natasha Primakov.
“Commander. Are you crazy?”
“… … Hmm.”
“What about this? really… … !”
Let’s say that he made those precious guests wait for three days. Because the battle was so urgent. It’s not like the commander can’t empty the battlefield.
In the first place, if Victor Lee had been a person who abandoned soldiers for political gain, Natasha herself would not have been with him.
The problem was different.
“Even in business relationships, you don’t go to bars in the first place, but do you come to bars for diplomatic relations? Those people are not Russian!”
“… … Don’t worry. There is no man who doesn’t like alcohol. If you don’t like it, you’re not a man. You must be fond of the expression on the inside.”
“Is that?”
Natasha and Victor, who were having a secret conversation, looked back at Han Seung-moon and his party. They were looking at the menu with expressionless faces and muttering something.
[Chae-won. What do you want to eat?]
[Are you sure?]
[Are there any?]
It was in Korean, so I couldn’t understand it, but at least her expression wasn’t very good. Victor gave an excuse with a look of embarrassment.
“No, besides, the hotel room was too cold. Because there is a fireplace here. Wouldn’t it be better to talk here anyway?”
“You have spoken well. Who is the protocol manager? Who put diplomatic ambassadors in unheated rooms? What kind of bird-”
“He said the heating was off… … .”
“… … .”
“Last winter, I somehow managed to survive, but this year, the facilities seem to have gone bad. After all, the price of food in China was raised, so it could not be repaired. … .”
Even the hotel to accommodate the distinguished guests was cut off, so the situation of the refugee residence was obvious. This winter was going to be particularly cold.
Victor’s strong shoulders were droopy. A man with an empty wallet cannot open his back. Natasha stood up silently.
“… … For now, I’ll try something.”
“Hey, get a phone number anyway. They say that we come to Russia often to have lunch.”
“Hold on to your worries.”
Since then, Natasha has had a knack for drinking and entertainment. It’s a body with bones to seduce people.
She smiled and approached Han Seung-moon.
“Were you comfortable on the way? Senator?”
“Oh, yes. Thanks for your concern.”
Han Seung-moon smiled softly in response, but there was no emotion in those words.
Looking at his career so far, he expected a human rights lawyer-like atmosphere, but surprisingly, he doesn’t seem to be much different from the serpents of Moscow.
Nevertheless, Natasha offered a handshake and smiled warmly. It was clear who could help and who needed help.
So we had to be friends.
“The introduction is late. My name is Natasha Primakov.”
“This is Han Seung-moon.”
They exchanged handshakes naturally, and just as Natasha was about to sit down,
“By the way, if your position is… … ?”
“… … .”
Natasha stood tall at Han Seung-moon’s question. Then, avoiding his gaze with an embarrassed face, he answered in a crawling voice.
“that… … He was a lieutenant colonel belonging to the General Intelligence Agency Spetsnaz.”
“… … Spetsnaz?”
“Oh, no! Now I am a civilian! I was fired from my job on charges of rebellion.”
“… … Ah yes.”
Natasha smiled broadly, meaning ‘I am a safe person’, but Han Seung-moon’s complexion was already pale.
* * *
Contrary to expectations from the Russian side, Han Seung-moon’s proposal was somewhat far from saving lives.
Rather, it was very political.
“The council… … .”
To make the WPO independent from the great powers. An intricate murmur leaked from Victor’s mouth.
Meanwhile, Natasha took this as good news. It was because a new card hand had been introduced to eastern Russia, which was becoming politically and diplomatically isolated.
She has already started counting.
‘I can trade at a fairly high price.’
What will you receive in return for agreeing to this issue? Of course, it was close to a one-to-one exchange, so I couldn’t ask for an unreasonable price. But what if a new transaction is concluded with this opportunity?
‘Break new food routes, send people to the Hunter Academy… … Maybe we can sell nuclear weapons to South Korea and buy a piece of land from North Korea.’
great. It’s work time. Natasha hid her smile and spoke in a cold voice.
“… … I understand very well what you said. Just a little bit of time to discuss-”
“good.”
This was the answer that came from Victor’s mouth. Natasha’s eyes widened wide. what does this mean just making a call?
While Natasha, Pi Chae-won, and even Han Seung-moon couldn’t hide their surprise, Victor continued to speak with a serious look.
“I am fighting those who exploit the people in the name of national interest. But if we talk about these things, we can’t raise our heads.”
He put down a cocktail of 99% vodka and 1% lemon juice.
And he looked at something with gloomy eyes. It was the window in the corner of the store.
A Siberian winter blizzard was raging through the window.
“… … This is a very difficult place.”
His gaze was directed somewhere in the harsh blizzard.
“People say Russia is a cold, harsh, bear-rich country.”
“… … .”
“But it wasn’t the bears or the cold that really made Russia sick, but the mafia who walked proudly in broad daylight and the civil servants who wouldn’t help their citizens without bribes.”
Russian soldiers did not like Russia.
But, he knew better than anyone else.
“So we set up a dictator. And I cleaned up all the garbage that corroded society. I didn’t even care that some journalists died in the meantime.”
“… … .”
“because. Because living was more important. Because they believed they had to use the next best thing to survive. So we built the state over the people, and the price was… … Blood was returned.”
He closed his eyes for a moment and thought about something. They were fragments of memories that did not fade even after several years.
An open gate to the sky.
Refugees mixed with monsters.
air strike orders.
city blockade.
Rescue Abandonment.
napalm.
difficulty of obtaining food.
cannibal.
Rich people fleeing by helicopter.
riot.
subjugation.
concealment.
Victor Lee was once part of a public power wielding violence against the people, and now a traitor with gunpoints at his country.
His life was eventful indeed, but now there is no need to even mention it. Because people live in reality, not in the past.
Importantly, he was responsible for tens of millions of refugees, hundreds of thousands of troops, and countless nuclear missiles.
He remained silent for a long time.
Natasha was also silent while looking at Victor’s profile, and Pi Chae-won looked inside him and was brimming with tears.
And Victor said.
“I know better than anyone that a country in crisis, a few powerful people who have taken control of it, abandon its people to survive.”
“… … You are right.”
“In that sense, it was truly unfortunate that the WPO was born as nothing more than a puppet of great powers. But Senator Han Seung-moon said he would fix it, so I have no reason to oppose it.”
His gaze, who was staring at Blizzard through the window, turned to Han Seung-moon.
“But, I will ask you one thing.”
“Yes.”
“Didn’t you say that you want the WPO to become independent from the great powers?”
“That’s right.”
“Then who will take the new power?”
It was a well-intentioned question. And it was a very dangerous question.
Natasha wanted Victor to stop here, but unfortunately he didn’t.
“Can you be sure that all this is not meant to usurp power?”
And Han Seung-moon answered.
“I understand your concerns. In fact, if you ask if the new ruling power is better than the old one, the reality is that I cannot give you a definitive answer.”
“… … .”
“But at least my name will not be on the new council.”
* * *
There are three things that caught my attention in the era of power outages.
Hearthstone, agriculture, and steam locomotives.
Trains can run without electricity, just coal and railroads. The difference between getting energy from outside or procuring it yourself was very big.
Therefore, Russia, which was operating numerous steam locomotives on active duty due to lack of budget, was able to utilize the existing infrastructure relatively easily.
Beep profit-!
… … Thanks to this, a loud horn echoed in the morning air of Khabarovsk Station.
“Let’s go!”
Before long, the train slowly swayed, and black soot crossed the winter sky.
The train sped past the white snowfield, then slowly disappeared over the horizon.
And even after the train disappeared, there was one person standing at the Khabarovsk station and watching the horizon endlessly.
“… … Just go in. Commander.”
“Uh-huh.”
Natasha, shivering slightly from the cold, urged Victor.
But Victor was silently looking beyond the horizon.
What woke him up from his thoughts was the voice of Natasha, who had been waiting for him for a long time.
“What do you think? Commander?”
“No, what… … .”
ironically. Similar stories were coming and going in any cabin of the train running on the snowy field.
“… … They seem to be good people. I want to.”
* * *
[This morning, the news that the two major Russian powers have agreed to produce a councilor was delivered. At the same time, Noah Lumière, Chairman of the WPO, convened an emergency meeting, and a close meeting between the delegations of each country is currently held at the UN building in New York, USA… … .]
[Breaking News! The WPO General Assembly passed amendments to the direct system of councils. As a result, the authority to appoint and dismiss the councilors of the existing heads of state has been abolished, and a significant clash over the new leadership system is foreseen.]
[On the other hand, as former Minister Han Seung-moon resigned from the WPO, suspicions are rising that he is preparing for the next general election. Regarding former Minister Han Seung-moon, who has returned as a complete savage, the National Party has not given any answer at this time… … .]