A Battle of Wits

The road north into Manchuria wasn’t all that difficult. Sure, I ultimately got flattened by a truck and died, but until that point I had roamed the entire country trying to survive in my previous world, so slipping all the way to Shenyang was hardly a challenge.

“What kind of woman zips around from east to west like that? How in the world did you shake off the Japanese pursuit force?”

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Choi Jae-hyung, who had been waiting for me in Shenyang, clicked his tongue in disbelief. As if any of this were hard.

“They’re still trying not to provoke the entire Korean Peninsula, so they’re moving cautiously. The foreign legations are watching too, which makes it harder for them to act openly.”

To be honest, there were plenty of bastards chasing me with everything they had. When the Emperor was dead and Japanese troops had seized Hansung, any soldier in Korean imperial uniform trying to flee the city would have been hunted down by anyone with half a brain.

“But if they realize you escaped, won’t they alert the Korean army?”

“Would any sane person believe that a single soldier slaughtered dozens of the so-called Imperial ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Japanese troops and then ran? They won’t believe it. Their pride won’t let them. If I were Kuroki, I wouldn’t believe it either.”

“I see. It would be hard to swallow…”

Those people would never accept that dozens of their elite pursuers had been wiped out by a mere soldier from a weak nation’s army. Realistically, no country would buy such a story.

“Besides, even if it wasn’t me, news that the Korean Empire has been occupied by the Japanese will reach Manchuria eventually. The Japanese will try to suppress it, of course.”

“They’re going to use the Korean imperial army?”

“There are quite a few of them, and subduing them all wouldn’t be easy. If I were the Japanese, I’d block any information leaks and shove them into the front lines against Russia to die.”

“Then… now that you’ve returned, what should we do?”

At some point Choi Jae-hyung had stopped looking anxious and seemed to be enjoying the situation, as if he had nailed himself to the title of Count. In the original history he would have been desperately praying for a Russian victory; my existence had given the man room to breathe.

“The Japanese have no idea I exist. As far as they know, the Emperor died while personally leading his troops into battle. That’s what they believe right now.”

Min Yeong-hwan, Yi Yong-ik, and the rest of the pro-imperial faction scattered across the country had probably been shouting it from the rooftops. Even though I had accidentally pushed events in that direction, they knew it was the only way to save the nation. Even if I had thrown all etiquette toward the dead Emperor into the gutter, they understood that following my lead was the only way to spark righteous armies and swing both domestic and international opinion in our favor.

“That makes sense.”

“We need to reach Commander Bak Seung-hwan of the combined forces.”

If things went well, we could end the Russo-Japanese War a little faster. To flip this worthless country on its head, the Japanese who stood in our way had to be removed. For that to happen, the Japanese army in Manchuria needed to get hammered.

Before that, however, I needed to stir the pot. I went to see Yi Beom-yun. The Sapodae’s role in this war had to be massive.

“General. It’s time to move.”

“Me?”

Of course you. Who else would move? Amazingly, I was still only holding the concurrent title of Count.

“Yes. Issue a general mobilization order for Gando and Southern Manchuria.”

A general mobilization order. Most of them would be ethnic Koreans, but still. Even that would easily give us tens of thousands. At minimum we could raise the equivalent of three divisions. With the Japanese tied down by the Russians, a surprise attack and piecemeal destruction was entirely feasible.

“Can we really annihilate the Japanese army?”

No matter how useless the main Korean imperial forces were, the Northern Army was different. The northern part of the peninsula had once been the land of Goguryeo, a military powerhouse that every Korean was proud of. Yi Seong-gye’s elite guards had fought there, and during the Joseon period the Four Garrisons and Six Garrisons had absorbed some of the Jurchen who were respected for their combat strength. Their descendants had now crossed into Gando and Manchuria, crushed the Qing troops, and become the elite of the Korean imperial army.

That’s right. They had even invaded the Manchu heartlands that had destroyed the Later Zhou. For any Korean, any member of the Korean people, the dream of recovering the old territory and the glory of Goguryeo was written into their genes. The longing for Manchuria was inevitable.

And the Sapodae was the army that had partially fulfilled that dream. Whatever complicated internal circumstances existed, they overflowed with more pride than anyone, possessed stronger combat power than anyone, and by occupying Shenyang—even if by surprise—had washed away the humiliation of the Three Campaigns. They were an invincible army.

The reason I was hyping the Sapodae so hard was simple: their morale was far higher than that of the mainland troops who had been toyed with by Japan and fallen into despair. They would never fall behind the Japanese. Of course most of the three divisions were recruits, but considering that the core of the force that had first advanced into Gando consisted of veterans who had fought the Boxers and suppressed rebellions, this was still worth trying.

“But what about the Han and Manchu armies?”

True, there were Han and Manchu forces. But that didn’t matter.

“Leave that to me.”

Since external enemies had appeared, we could use them to unify everyone at the right temperature.

I slipped a few plants into the crowd.

A few ethnic Manchu and Han plants shouted first. As soon as several voices cried out for the Emperor, Manchuria, and the Korean Empire, the people who had been watching each other nervously joined in. People always need something to rely on when times are hard. With Russia and Japan now in Manchuria, which nation could they trust? The Qing? The Qing had already become a colony of the Great Powers; it wasn’t even worth mentioning. That left only the Korean Empire.

It was a truly wretched empire, but given the arrival of Russia and Japan, choosing the Korean Empire—with which they at least had historical ties—was only natural for both the Han and the Manchus. Of course some minor incidents occurred during the process, but those pitiful events were nothing compared to the external threat. This was how one unified many ethnic groups under an outside threat.

“Yet foreigners have now entered this Manchuria. Yes—the Japanese pirates! Island savages who dare to invade this sacred land and claim it as their own. How can we simply watch? Let us crush these invaders together and protect our shared homeland of Manchuria!”

The crowd roared like thunder. With this, unity under the external threat was achieved. At least for the duration of the war there would be no division. I knew every language involved, so whether Manchu or Han, the chain of command would unify under me.

“Wow… just when did you learn Chinese and Manchu, Count?”

The man who had appeared beside me was shaking his head in amazement. His name was Kim In-soo. In the original history he had been in the Korean imperial army, dismissed during the Russo-Japanese War, and then joined the Russians. He had originally been an interpreter for the Russian Foreign Ministry; now he served as my aide with the rank of major.

“I can speak Russian and French too.”

“No wonder they put you in charge of the Sapodae’s diplomacy.”

To be honest, I couldn’t fully trust this man. He might have been sent by Emperor Gojong as a watchdog, or he might be a Russian agent monitoring my fief. Either possibility left a bad taste in my mouth.

“All right. We’ll advance with General Yi Beom-yun at the lead. But first—”

I had to recruit Commander Bak Seung-hwan. I had already laid the groundwork for integration; military unification could be left to Yi Beom-yun for now. It was time to meet Bak Seung-hwan.

The Korean-Japanese combined army was stationed a little distance from Shenyang. I didn’t know whether the Japanese had asked for help or not, but anyone with a brain would have felt the danger. On the way here Japanese scouts had even tried to interfere. They clearly meant to cut our connection to the homeland.

I smashed one Japanese soldier’s skull, borrowed his uniform, and entered the Korean imperial army headquarters without much trouble.

“Who are you?”

If someone asks who you are, basic courtesy demands an answer.

“I am Ok Jin-seo, Administrator of Shenyang. Commander.”

Bak Seung-hwan’s eyes widened. He must have heard about me. It would be strange for someone like me to be strolling around here so casually.

“The seal of the Shenyang Administrator on a woman’s body… I cannot call it a lie. What business brings you here? Why have you not moved the army to assist us?”

Because I had no reason to help. The war between Japan and Russia must be going badly if they were saying the Korean army had to step forward.

“The troops will be commanded by the Gando Administrator. A more urgent matter has occurred—His Majesty the Emperor has been assassinated by those Japanese bastards.”

I needed to make Bak Seung-hwan realize how dire the situation was. At my words, he and his staff froze like honey-stuffed mutes. The death of Emperor Gojong. In this country the existence of the monarch was absolute, and if the perpetrator was Japan, the reaction was obvious.

After blinking stupidly for a moment, Bak Seung-hwan finally came to his senses and shot to his feet.

“What are you saying? His Majesty has been assassinated?!”

Don’t shout so loudly.

“Shh. Please keep your voice down. We don’t know where Japanese ears might be listening.”

I raised a finger to my lips and glanced around. The Japanese wouldn’t stay quiet. They were probably checking constantly to see if information was leaking. The fact that they still hadn’t attacked us meant their fight with the Russian army had grown difficult. In other words, they could not attack us until we noticed what was happening.

When Bak Seung-hwan nodded, I carefully whispered in his ear everything that had happened in Hansung.

“Is that true?”

“Doesn’t the fact that they’re putting our Korean imperial troops in the vanguard tell you everything? They want to expend us before we catch on. If you still doubt me, send someone to the palace. Hansung is already under their control, and the foreign legations now know that His Majesty has met with disaster.”

Japan was probably being cursed to high heaven right now. After stabbing the queen with a blade, they had now killed the monarch. Just how fucked up could one country be?