Episode 56: Which Report to Believe? (1)
Japan. Hokkaido.
Flowers were beginning to bloom in Korea, but here, one could still enjoy an open-air hot spring bath amid the snowy landscape.
This place was far from the tourist crowds—a modest open-air onsen with a single lamp hanging from the ceiling in the room and a small pavilion in the courtyard.
An elderly man sat in the steaming hot spring, savoring the bath.
A woman in a kimono guided another person to the spot.
It was the bowler-hatted department head who had worked with Actor.
"My apologies."
The department head knelt on the snow-covered ground.
The old man, still with his eyes closed and showing no reaction, was none other than Sing, the organization's Asia director.
The bowler-hatted man had flown to Japan to report directly on the matter. Of course, the specifics had already been relayed to the higher-ups right after the incident.
"You've lost Death?"
"Yes."
Only then did Sing open his eyes.
"How the hell did that happen?"
This was a moment that called for anger, yet his tone was flat. There was no flicker in his gaze, and his voice remained as steady as before. That made it all the more terrifying.
"It happened while dealing with a man named Jang Cheon."
"'It happened'? Wasn't this under your purview?"
"My apologies. It happened while dealing with Jang Cheon."
"Tell me about him."
"He's a new dark horse that's emerged.
He's connected to every issue in Korea related to our organization, and he even has restricted access imposed by the World Murim Alliance's Alliance Leader."
"Tae Cheon-gi himself?"
"Yes. And that's not all. The Korea Murim Alliance Leader is backing him up. Im Yeon-sin underestimated the Alliance Leader. That's why Black Heaven got hit."
As Actor had urged, he shifted the blame to Im Yeon-sin and tried to inflate the incident as much as possible.
It was an obvious ploy, but failing to do even that would mean shouldering all the responsibility himself.
He knew it well: Their fates would be decided by the report Sing, the Asia director, submitted.
"So none of this was your mistake?"
"Absolutely not."
"Well, that's for the inspector to judge. What's the situation now?"
"Actor is pulling in the two great sects to wrap things up. He's reliable."
"Tell them to halt operations and stand by."
"Yes."
Sing snapped his fingers, and the kimono-clad woman glided over gracefully, handing him a phone.
Sing made a call somewhere.
He stated only the essentials and hung up. Dispatching the inspector had been on hold until after meeting the bowler-hatted department head.
The bowler-hatted man asked cautiously.
"Who are you sending?"
"Bulldog."
The name made the bowler-hatted man flinch. Bulldog was a notoriously famous inspector. True to his name, once he bit down, he never let go—he was infamous for digging relentlessly.
'This is bad.'
Sending him meant Sing didn't trust them. He worried whether Actor could handle him and escape blame.
"You return and stand by as well."
"Yes."
The bowler-hatted man departed.
The kimono woman who had brought the phone earlier returned. As Sing handed it back, he said,
"Ji Executive?"
"Arriving in an hour."
"Prepare the drinks for then."
"Yes."
The woman walked away, her hips swaying lightly, and Sing closed his eyes again, enjoying the onsen.
The view from the pavilion beside the hot spring was splendid.
Even in spring, the snow didn't melt here, making the scenery from the pavilion exceptional.
Sing sat there, sipping sake with grilled fish as an appetizer.
Ji Yang entered. He was the Ji Executive due in an hour.
"Come on in."
"Have you been well?"
"As you can see, I'm living like an immortal."
Sing poured Ji Yang a drink. Ji Yang accepted it politely and downed it.
"Allow me to pour you one."
"Good."
As he received the drink, Sing asked,
"What about Jang Cheon?"
The moment the report of Death's death came in, he'd immediately ordered Ji Yang to investigate.
When it came to gathering intel, Ji Yang was the top operative among his Asia subordinates.
"I tried every route possible, but couldn't crack the World Murim Alliance Leader's lock."
"You've unlocked ones the Leader set himself before, haven't you?"
"Yes. But this one—he put real effort into it."
"So he's properly entangled with the World Alliance side?"
"Definitely."
"Fine. You didn't come just to say you couldn't crack it."
"While digging through various channels, I got intel from an unexpected source."
"Where?"
"America."
Sing's eyes sharpened instantly. As always, America was one place that demanded extreme caution.
"Go on."
"Before entering Korea, Jang Cheon departed from the Blayton Republic."
"The one with the civil war?"
"He intervened directly in that civil war."
"On the military side?"
"No. The royal palace hired him."
"So he stopped the military coup. America wouldn't have sat idle."
"Yes. They covertly backed the military. Tensions between the current US administration and the Blayton Kingdom were severe."
"The military had the overwhelming advantage at first, right?"
"Yes, leading to heavy civilian casualties. Most citizens sided with the king.
Anyway, the coup was on the verge of success when Jang Cheon stepped in."
"And America just watched?"
"No. They sent a special forces team to take him out covertly.
Have you heard of ABSS—Anti-Blade Strategy Simulation—developed by the US Strategic Planning Department?"
"Yes. A program the military made to counter martial artists."
"Exactly. It analyzes footage of martial artists in combat via supercomputer, devising strategies and victory probabilities.
With accumulated data, it's now highly accurate, even predicting our side's casualties."
"The military used it?"
"Yes. They luckily obtained footage of Jang Cheon fighting in Blayton and ran it through ABSS."
"And?"
Ji Yang pulled a report from his bag.
"Intel extracted from their Strategic Planning Department."
"You managed that?"
"There was good reason. Take a look."
Sing's eyes widened as he read.
"0.2%?"
"The success rate for killing Jang Cheon with an elite tactical team."
"Why so low?"
"Below that: two teams."
"0.4%? Doubled, at least."
Sing looked incredulous. He knew full well the firepower of two tactical teams.
Three teams: 0.5%. Four teams: interference dropped it to 0.3%. More wasn't better.
"What's this?"
Sing read the additional element below.
"Four teams plus four Apache combat helicopters: 0.8%? Still under 1%?"
"Look beside it."
Sing checked the time listed next to it.
"Estimated annihilation time: 2 minutes 37 seconds? Four teams and four Apaches wiped out in under three minutes? Even for a grandmaster, that's excessive."
"Yes, so their Strategic Planning team thought it was a simulation error and brought in engineers.
They tinkered for hours, but it was ruled an error. America backed off from the incident.
If the team failed and US involvement leaked, it would've been disastrous."
"What's below?"
"Programmers tested various additions while fixing the 'error,' then slated it for disposal. We snagged it."
That's how they accessed it. Even for the organization, stealing top-secret US Strategic Planning data was impossible.
"Adding a fighter squadron: 1.3%. Finally over 1%. But annihilation time four minutes?"
Sing looked baffled.
"Before fighters: 2:37. So the squadron gets downed in 1:23."
"Yes."
Sing skimmed to the bottom, crumpled it into a ball, and tossed it under the pavilion.
"I wanted intel on Jang Cheon, not this garbage."
Ji Yang knelt and bowed his head low.
"My apologies."
Knowing Sing's temperament, Ji Yang knew one misstep could mean his head rolling instead of that paper ball.
Luckily, Sing wasn't that furious.
"So America? Left him alone?"
"Yes, they've pulled back for now. No direct damage to them, and the World Murim Alliance lock factors in.
As you know, their internal politics are messy. No reason to stir up old trouble."
"Good. Press the World Murim Alliance angle harder. There must be a way. We have to uncover it.
This Jang Cheon bastard—simulation glitch or not, there's something off about him. Charge in with numbers, and he might devour us all."
"Understood."
Ji Yang bowed and withdrew.
Once he was gone, the kimono woman appeared again. She trotted over and picked up the crumpled paper from the floor.
At first glance, she seemed like mere help, but her aura now was entirely different.
She was a martial artist hiding her skills—and a formidable one at that.
Sato Mi was Sing's bodyguard and brain trust, a brilliant talent.
Without asking permission, she unfolded the paper and read it.
"Intriguing."
After the parts they'd seen, more tests with added forces: tanks, missiles. But each only confirmed the simulation error. Nothing exceeded 5%.
Sato Mi's eyes widened at the final result.
Nuclear Weapon
Tactical Nuclear (targeting facilities): 29% kill rate
Strategic Nuclear (city-wide): 99.9% kill rate
"My God! A nuke?"
Details split into two: small-yield tactical nuke for facilities, city-destroying strategic nuke.
"Even with a strategic nuke, it's not 100%?"
Her stern expression brightened into a smile.
"Hahaha. What's that 0.1%?"
Her cheerful laugh signaled certainty the data was flawed.
Only then did Sing, seated in the pavilion, speak.
"That's why we can see this. Their final confirmation it was an error. Now, as a martial artist, tell me: Possible?"
"No. No need to worry."
"Certain?"
"If it were the World Murim Alliance Leader Tae Cheon-gi, world's strongest—maybe.
I've seen him weave through barrages of shells and bullets.
But a young guy pulling this off? Impossible.
Jang Cheon must be formidable. But not this simulation's protagonist.
A nuke? No one's. Pure program error."
"Right?"
"Of course."
To reassure him, Sato Mi crumpled it back exactly as before and set it down.
Sing's tense face finally relaxed. For a brief moment, his mind had truly been unsettled.
Truly having such an enemy meant no guarantee of enjoying this onsen next year.
"The appetizers have cooled. I'll bring fresh ones."
Sato Mi trotted away.
Sing's gaze fell on the crumpled paper discarded on the floor.
He snorted once, drained his cup. Ignoring it made it nag more, so he glanced a few times.