Chapter 30
Chapter 30
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Reverse Coup (3)
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‘That bastard Lee Seong-jun has lost his mind.’
No matter how much the military of the Great Korean Empire lorded over the law, they wouldn’t just make people vanish outright.
This was the kind of thing the commie empire up north, the Soviets, would pull.
‘He signed a non-aggression pact with those reds, and now he’s following their lead.’
At this rate, something like the Gulag wouldn’t be out of the question.
This country was truly turning into a place no one could have imagined before.
‘And yet that guy claims he’s going to Westernize this nation? Even the barbaric Chinese would laugh at that.’
The general sneered at Lee Seong-jun’s attitude, but he couldn’t ignore the efficiency his actions demonstrated.
Right now, amid people disappearing, a couple of organization members had been nabbed.
At this rate, the true nature of the “organization” could be exposed at any moment.
The general concluded that if the operation dragged on any longer, one of the anxious members might turn informant.
He decided to carry out the operation swiftly at this point.
He hadn’t secured a sniper for Lee Seong-jun, but that didn’t matter.
If sniping didn’t work, a suicide bombing would do the trick.
“Execution day should be April 9th.”
“Why the 9th specifically?”
“It’s the day of the Army Ministry’s full command conference. No way that bastard skips a meeting of all army commanders. The issue is transporting the bomb. Major Bae, can you handle it?”
The general’s gaze fell on a plainclothes officer missing one arm.
He was a disabled veteran who had lost an arm in the recent Korean-Chinese War.
His name was Bae Jun-hwa.
Bae Jun-hwa had devoted himself to his country’s victory even as he became crippled, yet he was furious that Lee Seong-jun had only delivered a “half-victory.”
To him, this Korean-Chinese peace treaty was a “victory for the crippled” itself.
How could he forgive that?
That was the root of Bae Jun-hwa’s volunteering for the suicide bombing.
Bae Jun-hwa nodded with a resolute expression.
“It’s for the fatherland and our people—what couldn’t I do? Just leave it to me. I’ll make sure to take down the traitor Lee Seong-jun who betrayed our country.”
“We’re counting on you, Major Bae. Major Yi!”
“Yes, General.”
“How’s the procured explosive?”
“Right here.”
Major Yi laid out the rod-shaped bombs he’d brought.
These had been painstakingly acquired from Hong Kong for this operation.
If detonated near the target, anyone around would surely be torn to shreds.
“Here’s how it works. Twist off the timed fuze and insert it into the bomb—it’ll go off in ten minutes.”
“Perfect for sending Lee Seong-jun straight to the afterlife.”
The general expressed his satisfaction as well.
“The problem is the security checks. To get close to Lee Seong-jun, we’ll have to pass inspection no matter what.”
“Yeah, that’s the tough part. Got any clever ideas?”
“We’ll make space in Major Bae’s bag. Hide the bomb there, then when changing clothes, move it to your waist or chest.”
“The issue is Major Bae having to handle the timed fuze during the change and hook it to his belt. Can you do that? With one hand?”
“Since we can’t trust Major Bae’s aide, he’ll have to do it alone.”
The general stroked his chin.
It was an absurdly difficult task, but no better options presented themselves.
Eliminating Lee Seong-jun was the only way to leave the Patriotic Military Committee headless and scrambling, opening a path for the organization to survive.
“General, I can do it.”
As Bae Jun-hwa reaffirmed his confidence, the general nodded.
“No point belaboring a settled matter. Major Bae, our fate rests in your hands.”
“Don’t worry.”
The organization members exchanged steely glances, hiding their anxiety as best they could.
The hour of destiny approached.
On April 9, 1938—the day of the Army Ministry’s full conference—Major Bae Jun-hwa underwent inspection.
Even core members of the Patriotic Military Committee faced checks, so being a disabled vet changed nothing.
Bae Jun-hwa showed everything, even the clothes in his bag.
The bomb was stashed in a hidden compartment in the bag’s false bottom, just in case.
The military police officer patted him down but found nothing amiss.
To be precise, as a high-ranking officer and disabled vet at the major level, they’d only checked the obvious spots.
“Sir, security’s extra tight today.”
“His Excellency’s attending—that’s why. Watch your mouth.”
Bae Jun-hwa cautioned his aide.
Only then did the aide shut up.
The two headed straight for the Army Ministry conference room.
Several generals were seated inside, but Lee Seong-jun was nowhere in sight.
Bae Jun-hwa casually asked a passing officer about him.
“When’s the Chief of Staff arriving? I have a presentation later, so I wanted to change and make sure I won’t be late.”
“He’ll be here soon. Better change in five minutes.”
Bae Jun-hwa nodded and went to the changing room.
It was empty, luckily.
“Aide, I’ll change quick—stand guard outside and keep people out.”
“Got it.”
Bae Jun-hwa locked the door and opened his bag.
He pulled out the bomb prepared for this operation from the false bottom.
No one disturbed him as he finished prepping.
Bae Jun-hwa secured the bomb to his belt.
‘Luck’s on my side so far.’
He checked his watch and entered the conference room.
But the man he needed to target, Lee Seong-jun, still wasn’t there.
Bae Jun-hwa glanced at his watch anxiously, waiting for him.
“When’s the Chief of Staff coming?”
Just then, a general voiced exactly what Bae Jun-hwa wanted to say.
“The Chief of Staff has a sudden urgent matter and won’t be attending the conference.”
What?
Bae Jun-hwa was stunned.
But it wasn’t all that surprising.
Seong-jun was aware of assassination threats and frequently altered his public schedule on the fly.
The organization’s mistake was assuming he wouldn’t skip something as major as the full army commanders’ conference.
Bae Jun-hwa’s face went pale.
‘If this bomb goes off now, it’s over.’
Once it detonated, scrutiny would sweep through everyone around him like a dragnet.
The organization would be finished.
Bae Jun-hwa bolted for the bathroom.
In a panic, he yanked out the timed fuze.
Then—
BOOM!
The bomb exploded.
The blast in the Army Ministry’s third-floor bathroom claimed one life and nothing more.
The real problem was the explosion itself.
One terrified organization member, who hadn’t even attempted the assassination, confessed everything about the coup plot.
The Patriotic Military Committee agonized over how to interpret the incident.
“This is clearly an attempt on His Excellency’s life! We’ve got the confession!”
“Treating it as a failed coup will burden His Excellency.”
“You’re not suggesting we bury it, are you?”
“Let’s hand it over to Security Command for now. They’ll handle it quietly.”
After heated debate, the incident was ruled a simple explosion from gas from the bathroom pipes igniting a cigarette.
Few believed it, but if the regime said so, that was that.
On the surface, the matter ended there.
Behind the scenes, it didn’t.
“Round them all up.”
Those who’d contacted Bae Jun-hwa were dragged into Security Command’s safe house.
Even the “general,” leader of the coup forces, was no exception.
“Name.”
“Imperial Korean Army Lieutenant General Im Tae-seong.”
“Our Political Bureau Chief must’ve had it easy living in this world, huh? Plotting treason right in front of His Excellency.”
At the word “treason,” the general flew into a rage.
How dare these lowly scum spout such nonsense just because they’d won.
“Treason? Trying to right the world overrun by you vermin is treason? This was a righteous uprising!”
“Call it uprising or treason, doesn’t matter. Point is, Chief, you failed. You know there’s a price for failed rebellion, right?”
“I’m prepared. Will you put me on trial? Do it. I’ve done nothing shameful under heaven for Korea.”
“Our general’s so naive.”
“What?”
“Who said anything about a proper trial for you? Too much hassle. For a soldier, a summary court-martial’s plenty.”
Stunned by the unforeseen turn, the general showed his bewilderment.
“I—I’m an imperial Korean officer and Army lieutenant general. I have the right to a fair trial. If you’re killing me, do it by firing squad after a formal trial!”
The interrogator ignored him, pulling out the Army regulations and reading in a bureaucratic tone.
“Defendant Im Tae-seong, you stand proven guilty of organizing a treasonous group and terrorizing the Army Ministry. Per Military Criminal Code Article 11, State Treason, you are sentenced to death by firing squad.”
“This isn’t even a summary trial!”
The general protested, to no avail.
“Take him away.”
The fate of those who’d challenged Lee Seong-jun in the coup was summary trial followed by execution by firing squad.
*
“Your Excellency, all participants have been dealt with. They’ll never see the light of day.”
“Well done, Im.”
I sat in my office chair, receiving the Security Commander’s report on the ruthless dispositions.
Summary court-martials leading to executions typically happened in wartime.
There was no time for full procedures then, so it was unavoidable.
But carrying out summary firing squads in peacetime, without special cause, wasn’t justice—it was judicial murder.
No proper head of state would do such a thing.
Yet I had ordered judicial murder.
Better to commit extralegal killings than acknowledge a challenge to the regime.
Dirty or not, I didn’t care.
The moment the coup was launched, I’d already forsaken any clean name or reputation.
If I had one goal, it was surviving in this world.
To do that, I had to remain in power and keep winning the game of thrones.
Building a Republic of Korea would come after I survived.
Until then, I had to shelve that dream.