Chapter 21
Chapter 21
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: Ryu Han Empire (2)
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Comments started pouring in regarding the national referendum.
After a month of announcements and ads about the national vote, news came that a massive fleet had assembled off Jeju Island.
The people of South Korea were gripped by fear.
Thousands of warships were stationed around Jeju alone.
As footage captured the Spirit Race filling Jeju's coastlines, a national emergency was declared.
With the vote looming, the media heavily reported on the Spirit Race's movements.
"Th... thousands of warships just by themselves..."
"They're really going to attack the peninsula, aren't they?!"
"I hear the Ryu Han Empire forces have plenty comparable to S2-rank Hunters!"
"Wouldn't it be better to just ally with the Ryu Han Empire...!"
The Spirit Race's movements dramatically shifted the vote's momentum.
As voting began and counting progressed, the warships gathered at Jeju finally moved.
"The enemy is heading north through the West Sea!"
They were coming toward the Korean Peninsula, not China.
The president hurriedly mobilized the military.
The navy and air force moved out, launching missiles targeted at the Spirit Race fleet.
This wasn't the time to wait for their attack.
To minimize their own losses, they had to strike preemptively.
But the Spirit Race didn't flinch under the barrage of missiles raining from the sky.
"Erect the barrier!"
KABOOM! KABOOM! BOOM—!
South Korea wasn't a nuclear power.
Thus, they'd strived to build firepower rivaling nukes.
Massive explosions bloomed over the Spirit Race fleet, but the fleet suffered almost no damage.
Even the U.S. forces in Korea mobilized, throwing the country into chaos.
BOOM—! BOOM! BOOM!
South Korean naval ships raised barriers and fired cannons and torpedoes at the Spirit Race naval fleet.
The air force followed, dropping bombs and unleashing missiles, pouring everything they had.
With U.S. helicopters joining in, the situation grew dire.
KABOOM! KABOOM! BOOM!
Finally, under fire from Korean and U.S. forces, the Spirit Race warships' barriers shattered.
"Counterattack!"
The Spirit Race, who had held their defense, finally struck back.
Korean ships and fighters activated magic tools to erect barriers.
Protected everywhere except their gun barrels, they clashed head-on with the Spirit Race fleet.
KABOOM! KABOOM!
"Ngh...!"
Korean naval ships rocked violently under the Spirit Race fleet's shelling.
"Th... the Spirit Race are flying into the sky!"
Soldiers desperately fired heavy machine guns at the enemies overhead.
Hunters affiliated with the military joined in, unleashing a barrage of spells, while the Spirit Race countered with spirit arts aimed at the South Korean air and naval forces.
The battle unfolding in the West Sea was broadcast to the public via the media.
Fear intensified.
"Hurry up and count the votes already!"
As war broke out, vote counting accelerated.
This referendum wasn't about allying with the Ryu Han Empire outright.
It was to amend the constitution, affirming the peninsula as South Korea's territory but allowing parts to be ceded to the Ryu Han Empire.
Approval would lead to immediate alliance.
Even those who voted no now watched TV and SNS anxiously.
The battle raged off Gunsan.
"N... no way they're landing in Incheon to attack Seoul, right?"
The problem was that troops stationed in Jeolla and Gyeongsang Provinces had begun marching north.
Forces on the defensive line and Association Hunters started clashing with the Spirit Race.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
"Damn it! How many of them are there?!"
"Keep firing!"
Soldiers pulled triggers skyward.
Casualties dwarfed anything from raids.
Troops and Hunters in Busan gripped their weapons tensely.
"T... Team leader, wouldn't it be better to just ally with the Ryu Han Empire? I hear their forces number over a million."
"Once the results are out, the president will decide."
The counting raced ahead.
Harian, the First Legion Commander, watched the vote broadcast on his smartphone.
War preparations were complete.
Before counting began, he'd trained the newly summoned homunculi, supplied inner cores to boost mana, and leveled them to Lowest to Low Expert in dungeons.
They could handle basic combat.
"Are the vehicles ready?"
"Yes. The 50 buses from GH Guild, 100 secured from the city, and 1,700 private cars—all ready to move on your order."
The issue was some enemies could fly.
The only immediate counters were rifles secured from military bases.
Not from the government, but from bases destroyed by Spirit Race—left mostly untouched.
Ryu Han Empire troops, enhanced physically, could mount a decent counter with rifles.
"Approval is holding at 70%. Counting is 70% done. If it stays, the alliance will be sealed."
The alliance was all but certain.
Still, the government waited for official results.
To avoid backlash, they needed 80% counted.
"Legion Commander, the southern defense line is breached."
"Busan?"
"Busan isn't under attack. They're probably aiming straight for Seoul..."
"How's the West Sea battle?"
"Korean and U.S. forces are being pushed back. The Spirit Race fleet... is heading for Incheon."
Incheon's nearby island residents had evacuated to the mainland.
Incheon locals rushed to evacuate too.
Even some Seoulites, trembling in fear, fled to Gangwon Province.
"Speed up the count!"
"It's almost at 80%. Just seal the alliance already!"
"Spirit Race have entered Chungcheong Province! And in the West Sea, we're losing ground...!"
Soon after, reports broke of an aircraft carrier appearing off Jeju.
The Spirit Race on Jeju wielded tech beyond Earth's.
As a superpower ruling another dimension, carriers were expected.
Their warship numbers overwhelmed Korea's navy.
As all-out war erupted, the U.S. moved troops from Okinawa.
Japan balked at aiding Korea.
The moment Spirit Race went full-scale, demons began territorial expansion.
Over 500,000 demons rampaged across Japan, estimated, all marching on Tokyo.
U.S. forces in Japan had to redirect to the mainland.
"Damn, U.S. forces in Japan turned toward their mainland!"
"U.S. forces in Korea are fighting Spirit Race in Chungcheong...!"
Then anomalies hit North Korea too.
"Beastmen are massing near the border! Plus, a massive fleet assembled off Nampo near western Pyongyang...!"
South Korea descended into pandemonium.
Even anti-cession holdouts desperately hoped for Ryu Han Empire aid.
At 80% counted, approval topped 80%.
Majority secured.
The president rushed constitutional amendments and alliance with Ryu Han Empire.
The U.S., China, and Russia voiced displeasure.
All coveted North Korean territory.
But China had lost Manchuria to Beastmen.
Russia lost Primorsky.
The U.S. lacked spare forces to occupy and rule it.
They merely protested the amendments.
South Korea couldn't yield.
National survival hung in the balance.
Only after preservation could they address protests.
Amendments flew through at breakneck speed as the president addressed the nation urgently.
The Ryu Han Empire envoy remaining in the capital finally signed the alliance treaty.
Finally, the 1.8 million Ryu Han Empire troops stationed in Jeolla and Gyeongsang surged north.
Spirit Race breaching southern defenses toward Seoul took hits from the Ryu Han Empire forces striking from behind.
Some Ryu Han units rode vehicles rushing to Incheon.
Capital Hunters gathered in Incheon, awaiting the Spirit Race.
"Hoo, I hear Beastmen are going berserk trying to come south from the north..."
Woo Sung-hyun, the black-haired mid-40s master of Goguryeo Guild, let out a small sigh.
"They say the Ryu Han Empire has mobilized 1.8 million troops. Sheer numbers already overwhelm the Spirit Race. Their legion commanders, division commanders, and brigade commanders all rival S2-rank Hunters. Especially the legion commander—he's reached High Sword Master and can unleash slashes..."
Info on Ryu Han Empire forces was publicized via media post-alliance.
"This war... South Korea's economy is totally fucked."
"Right now, we should focus solely on defending the nation."
"Yeah, true."
Economy aside, the nation itself teetered on extinction.
South Korea could count on no one but the Ryu Han Empire.
Sung-hyun prayed they'd play a major role in saving the peninsula.