My Territory +++
Before heading back, I gave the crew a short break. They could go rest at their quarters, but there were things to sort out here, and orders to give.
I called aside Im Sua, Baekseol, and Levi. As I pulled out a cigarette, Im Sua lit it for me. I exhaled a long puff.
"Remember the Burning Rose?"
"Yes."
"There'll be tons of mysterious items like that inside. Probably mostly underground."
"In the Namdong Industrial Complex…?"
"Yeah."
From my quick scan earlier, at least the area around the site for the integrated headquarters looked mostly cleared. They'd need to haul out all the ruins, level the ground flat again—that whole process. I figured it'd turn up a shitload of items along the way. Most would be junk the hobos used, but there had to be some decent stuff mixed in. Even if the cops stumbled on a few while poking around, I had to secure as much as possible from everything else.
"Oh! Come to think of it, that underground warehouse from when we first met—you thought it was something you owned, right?"
"I found it, so it's mine."
"Hehe. Right…?"
"Anyway, we can't let that crap fall into random hands—it'd just piss me off. Deploy Baekseol Princess PMC under the guise of escorting the workers and lock it down. Blue Team this time. They gotta earn their keep."
Blue Team was one of the units under Baekseol's PMC, Baekseol Princess—all dudes, a mercenary squad. Mostly holdovers from when Im Sua had them as her police crew; they hadn't recruited much since, so it was still around 30 guys.
"Ah… But sir, they're not exactly the most trustworthy bunch…."
"…If the team leader can't trust her own team, what then? You picked 'em yourself."
"Offer a discovery bonus, my lord. Even a whiff of something unusual, and they'll bring it straight to you."
"Hm. If it's about that…."
Securing the items mattered more than the cash anyway.
"Fine, process the bonus payouts on receipts later. Don't set it too high, though. We'll have more gigs like this, so price it reasonably for the future."
"Understood, my lord."
"Levi, you train the girls targeting Namdong District Prosecutors' Office security. Once they're ready for rotation, we'll slot 'em right in."
"Yes~."
"Im Sua, monitor progress and report to me."
"Yes, sir."
I killed time smoking, then headed back to the reconstruction office. Still a mess there.
"Oh, might be smart to loop in the cops too, just in case."
"Ask for anything unusual they find?"
"Yeah. But straight-up asking's awkward, so maybe say we'll donate a lump sum or something?"
Who knew how public authority worked. Could they even take outside funds?
"That probably won't fly. Unless you frame it as personal kickbacks."
"That's straight-up bribery."
"More like buying their personal finds outright?"
"But they'll move in teams anyway. If you make 'em turn in everything first, it won't pool up, right?"
"Not many cops that naive. They'll collude and skim some."
"Ah, right…."
Yeah. These were Demonic Incheon's cops. I'd blanked for a sec.
Then…
I could just swap out the whole crew. Pull the police HQ forces here and put Doyunjeong—my loyal Namdong Police Chief—in charge. That'd make securing everything way easier.
But they'll have their own politics. Might be tricky.
To rearrange deployments on my say-so, I'd need some political trade-off at minimum. Like handing over the next Police Commissioner slot. The guy commanding this HQ detachment came here for a reason—probably eyeing that next commissioner gig.
But I wanted a commissioner who suited my taste. Preferably a hot chick.
If possible, bump Doyunjeong to commissioner and slide Kim Sun-ah—Im Sua's old deputy—to Namdong chief.
Even with the permanent special prosecutors' office, it'd take two years to really function. Personal kickbacks it was, then.
"Im Sua, you negotiate it smooth."
"Yes, sir."
+++
Back on the artificial island.
"Sir, the island ownership transfer's almost done."
"Good."
"All approvals are in place. You can register and flip it to your name anytime."
Finally.
"Then spin off a corp for managing Mu-yeol Land. All future business here runs under that corp. Slot the prison corrections corp under it too."
"Pardon? Mu-yeol… Land?"
"Yeah."
"…."
I'd toyed with attaching it to Namdong Industrial Complex, but once I saw the island, it fit better here. Like some Ireland. It was an island.
"Ah… Y-yes… Then the articles of incorporation…."
"Keep it simple. Goryeo Enter owns 100%. Seed it with like 10 billion. We can raise capital later if needed."
"Got it, sir."
Im Sua answered a bit stiffly. Guess the name bugged her. That serious?
My name in it was a plus.
"Oh, Seung-hee."
"Yes."
"You tally up the AV needs like I asked?"
"Yes. One moment."
Beside half-dazed Im Sua, Ra Seung-hee handed over a binder. I grabbed it and scanned.
"Baekseol Princess needs at least seven. Two each for Red and Blue Teams, one for logistics, one medical. Last one's for rapid response."
"Hm."
"Goryeo Enter's bigger, some idols have demands, but five should cover it. As for—"
"What about Mu-yeol Land? That's the main hub."
"Ah."
Goryeo Enter's stage was Ganghwa mostly; even if they traveled, cars handled it. Worst case, fly 'em. Cheaper that way.
But Mu-yeol Land? Island from the jump—no AVs, and transit's a nightmare.
"F-for Mu-yeol Land, I only drafted for the secretary office so far. Total staff around 300, secretaries at 100, but ops teams travel a lot—"
I closed the binder and shoved it back at Ra Seung-hee.
"Redo it with Mu-yeol Land Management Corp in mind. Everything we do here rolls under it. Corrections biz too."
"Yes, sir."
"And Baekseol Princess seven, Goryeo Enter five?"
"Including misc., totals around twenty now."
Twenty AVs… Mine ran 30 billion—gift from White Sis so I wouldn't tool around embarrassingly. That's top-shelf pricing. Cheaper models hit 6 billion each. AVs started at 6 bil anyway.
…
That's 1,200 billion just for those… Holy fuck.
Namdong buyout was 100 bil total…
Half that—50 bil—was Im Sua's incentive. Actual acquisition ran just over 48 bil.
But AVs alone at 1,200 bil…
"AV sales are…"
"Vice President Go Min-young."
"Ah."
Good thing Go Min-young—super tight with me—handled that division. AVs were modded military gear from Militaris anyway.
Gotta hit her up direct.
"Got it. I'll talk to her."
Rental made sense for AVs—cheaper, easier short-term. But security, maintenance, mods, long-term costs? Owning outright won out.
"AVs too—spin off a dedicated ownership and management division. Corps rent per need."
Small scale now, no issue. But later? My empire blows up huge. Every corp ordering their own? Management hell. AVs cost a fortune. Yeah, accounting gets messy now, but siloing it early pays off later.
Plus, Baekseol Princess was 100% hers—no shared books. This AV corp lets me siphon funds smooth.
"Understood, sir."
I called Go Min-young. Line cut instantly; text pinged right after.
Ah, China's still a shitshow, huh.
I texted she'd need AVs in bulk soon—hoping for a deal. Her style, she might even comp 'em, but that felt too leechy. Family-discount 30% off? Perfect.
Nothing beats the thrill of earning it.
Effort, cash—gotta invest for that rush. Handouts? Flash in the pan, no buzz. I make it happen? That's the shit.
In that vein, today's Namdong tour hit different. My plan, my land—rebuilding right on schedule. Sweet sight. Sure, tons of help, but Namdong? I claimed that.
Diff from freebie Mu-yeol Land via Go Min-young.
My turf.
Bedrock for all my future ops, that Namdong Industrial Complex. I lit a smoke, dreaming its tomorrow.