The Special Committee for National Reconstitution (4)
Strictly speaking, the label “Soviet” applied to Pavel carried a minor inaccuracy.
Fundamentally, the Soviet Union was a multi-ethnic state. Even though ethnic Russians held the majority of high-level positions—especially after Stalin’s era had entrenched that pattern—the country as a whole was never purely Russian.
From that perspective, the term “Soviet” itself was imprecise. Americans are never called “American citizens” in the same way; instead, one refers to their birthplace. The same logic should have applied here.
In this case, Pavel Nikolayevich Choy would be recognized as a Korean-Ukrainian with British citizenship, and Yerina Bronska as a Polish-British woman.
In truth, that was how things stood, yet the bald chairman had no business knowing those specific origins.
Of course, the cover identity of Chairman Choi as CEO of Shchuchin-Oder Logistics and his secretary role was the most transparent among the fronts we presented. Even that, however, concealed the full truth: we could not be certain which Soviet republic had produced him.
*What… the precise republic of origin did not matter anyway.*
For Chairman Jeon Doo-gwang, what mattered was simply that neither Pavel nor I was a pureborn Briton.
After all, part of our bloodline now came from nations inside the Eastern Bloc. Whatever hollow rhetoric he was spouting about rejecting communism was nothing more than a thin pretext.
There was no need to pretend to be deceived. I could simply show my disgust. I glanced at Pavel and gave a small nod.
“…Are you serious? Or—why in the world would this country benefit from something like that?”
From my point of view, the emotion I saw in him felt genuine, not something I had instructed. He had sensed it instinctively, even apart from the mission.
The chairman kept wiping his bald head with a handkerchief as he continued. The things he said sounded more like a defense to me.
“That’s simple—you can obtain solid proof of identity! You, Executive, being a foreigner, might not know this country, but it’s one where spies from the north arrive almost daily.”
“Even though the country is officially still at war, foreigners who have come here to invest after seeing its potential deserve gratitude. That said, some verification is clearly necessary.”
“So, if we want to avoid any awkwardness later, the most important thing is to secure a written pledge from Executive and his company that they have absolutely nothing to do with the communists.”
“Moreover, since the national psyche here has not yet matured enough, many people still see foreign companies as a kind of invasion.”
“So, if foreign enterprises want to receive the protection of this country’s institutions, don’t you think a little ‘goodwill’ is required?”
“Well… does that make enough sense?”
As the explanation went on, the chairman’s intent and motive became clear. I could not help but feel a lingering chill.
*Nothing has changed about that prickly feeling…*
Pavel pressed a hand to his forehead and asked.
His expression—whether it was calculated or sincere—could not be read.
“I understand what you mean. When doing business in Korea, you want us to take the country’s special circumstances into account.”
“That’s exactly right! As someone who actually runs a business, you cut straight to the point, unlike us politicians.”
After all, it was still a little shocking to hear political talk coming from a man who had once driven tanks.
But I could understand it. In the original history, the school that had produced the most Korean presidents was none other than the prestigious Korea Military Academy.
“Very well. No need to drag this out any longer. Let’s get straight to the main issue. Chairman, how exactly would you like us to show our ‘goodwill’?”
As soon as I spoke, the chairman’s mouth twisted into a smile. Watching that bald head laugh heartily, I felt a wave of disbelief in my gut.
“It’s simple. You simply hand over a portion of Executive’s company’s profits to our people.”
“That… means?”
“The specific ratio can be discussed later among the executives, but it would be better to treat it as a corporate tax.”
Corporate tax… As far as I knew, the current rate in South Korea was 28 percent. It only applied to corporations with annual business income over 100 million won, but once we started operating seriously, that threshold would be exceeded.
I wondered how much they would actually extract. I decided to watch the situation closely.
Pavel spoke next.
“So, handing over a portion of income through a separate channel to individuals rather than the state?”
“Precisely. It’s not something we can brag about, but I know many countries operate that way.”
*Well… not a small number of them.* And those countries tended to cluster in Africa and Latin America. If anyone listed nations by economic power, South Korea would definitely rank among the top five.
“Whenever something goes out, something comes back—that’s how it works in this industry. The exact ratio will be decided later according to the chairman’s wishes, but we can at least hear what we might receive.”
“Ah, of course. We are not offering you a one-sided loss. The principle of mutual benefit has always been observed, has it not?”
“Indeed.”
“If you want something, I can usually grant it. I hope you remember who I’m representing here.”
“‘Usually’… so things like easing regulations or granting special land for business sites?”
“Exactly. Since you seem to have experience with these matters, I assume the process is similar everywhere.”
I let out a silent sneer inside. *Similar, yes.*
The phenomenon of those in power abusing authority for private gain existed everywhere in the world.
From that standpoint, extorting foreign businesses for special favors was already a widely recognized “business model.”
Therefore, these men were not being creative. They were simply applying an already proven method to squeeze out benefits.
A proven method meant the arrangement actually worked in their favor.
For a company, it was clearly better to pay a few percentage points of corporate tax than to operate under constant government scrutiny.
Of course, the citizens would suffer the most.
The portion that should have flowed into the treasury as foreign-company revenue would simply end up in the back pockets of the upper echelons.
But to me, it was of little consequence.
The South Korean power structure had remained unchanged for decades, a dictatorship under one man. Attempts to overturn it were almost nonexistent.
In other words, as long as they did not try to topple the current system, stability was guaranteed.
*And I had no intention of toppling this country.*
South Korea was the eastern spearhead I would need when the time came to drive my blade into the heart of the Soviet Union.
I would recover the entire Korean Peninsula north of Pyongyang in one swift stroke, extend my reach into Manchuria and Primorsky Krai, and—
—if possible, collaborate with southern Japan to completely uproot communist forces in the Far East.
For that, the rudder of this nation—the ship of South Korea—had to remain firmly in my hands.
If I accidentally turned this country into a democracy, an inexperienced fool would sit in the Blue House.
The value of my local collaborator, Ham Cheon-ho, would vanish, and the effort I had poured into the organization would be largely wasted.
Therefore, regardless of my personal opinion, it was better to leave the South Korean leadership exactly as they were.
At least until I finished my final preparations and set Moscow ablaze. After that, I could rule the entire world to my liking.
In short, what President Park Byung-hwi had requested through Chairman Jeon Doo-gwang was nothing more than a simple transfer of funds.
Although the actual cash flow was the sticking point, the amount was so large that I could easily accommodate it.
I would not give an immediate answer, but I could certainly give the impression that I was considering the proposal positively.
It was, after all, something I had half-expected, and Pavel and I had already aligned on the response. Pavel delivered the prearranged line on cue.
“If this is such an important matter that you came in person, I believe you expect a positive reply?”
“Haha, I wasn’t trying to impose any burden. If you give a positive answer, we can build a constructive relationship going forward.”
“If you refuse, may I ask what would happen then?”
“Well… I don’t think you’d actually make that decision, but doing business here will become quite difficult.”
“….”
The man was amusing. If that was how he framed it, who didn’t know this was nothing but blackmail dressed up as consultation?
I had planned to pretend to be fooled anyway, but his tone only made me more irritated.
I stepped closer to Pavel and whispered in Russian against his ear.
“Let’s step back for now. In the end, we’ll accept it.”
As I spoke, I made eye contact with the bald chairman. The natural triggered by the artifact was blocked by an invisible wall.
It was a different sensation from when I activated it on Delis. In other words, just as I had expected.
The relic that granted mental immunity had been embedded somewhere on him.
No need to dig deeper. I faithfully conveyed the important fact to my superior and withdrew again.
“The secretary has delivered an important message. You won’t ask, but I believe that message will not reverse the decision!” “Yes… well…”
“After all, the sudden proposal may require some time to consider. I hope you make a wise judgment.”
The bald chairman rose and left the room after delivering his message. The fact that he treated us as clear subordinates was all too obvious.
“…They’ve gone.”
As soon as Chairman Jeon Doo-gwang departed, the hotel lobby guards began to slip out one by one.
Some remained to keep an eye on us.
Pavel and I left the hotel through the same route and returned. We mulled over the proposal the chairman had delivered.
It was not a perfect attitude, but it was not bad either.
Fundamentally, the proposal was to siphon off a portion of our ghost company’s profits. While such a link to Korea’s political circles had its downsides, it was not without advantages.
For example… through further infiltration, we could indirectly control the remaining nuclear weapons outside Pyongyang. Conventional forces went without saying.
On the day of the final battle, these weapons would serve as decoys to scatter Soviet attention. They were not like mosquitoes draining tiny amounts of blood. Each one would deliver strategic-level shock.
I imagined the mushroom clouds falling on Hamhung, Sinuiju, Beijing, Dalian, Sapporo, Hakodate, Vladivostok, and Khabarovsk.
All of them as simple decoys.
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-[damage] HP