Chapter 41
Chapter 41
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 41
Chapter Title: The Russian Delegation
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Screech!
The moment I got the call, I rushed over to the National Intelligence Service.
Thanks to the visitor's pass the Director had given me before, I passed through the main gate without any special checks, but I still had to go through a body search in the lobby.
“I'm sorry, sir. It's just our job...”
The agent, whose face had become familiar after several visits, spoke apologetically.
It wasn't as if he was doing anything wrong.
I waved my hand dismissively and readily spread my arms.
“Not at all. Thank you for your hard work.”
“Thank you for understanding. By the way, if you're here to see the Director, it might be better to wait in the lobby.”
“Why? Has he stepped out?”
“It's not that. We just received word that he's on his way down...”
“Senior Managing Director Jin Hyun-seung. You're here already?”
Before the agent could finish his sentence, the Director appeared.
He was accompanied by three executive-level figures.
It looked like they were heading out on some urgent business. If so, I had no idea why he'd called me.
“Let's go.”
The Director said to me abruptly before leading the way out of the lobby.
What was this all about?
I hurried after him and asked for our destination. He paused, turned slightly, and said.
“A shipment from Russia will be arriving at Busan Port at 8 PM tonight.”
“A shipment? You don't mean... the disaster relief helicopters?”
“That's right. So we need to hurry if we're going to receive them on time.”
With that short reply, he started walking again.
Confused, I was about to turn toward my car parked over there when the NIS Director suddenly insisted I ride with him.
“Don't bother. Let's take my car. It's only about 300 meters away.”
“...”
“You weren't planning on driving all the way to Busan, were you?”
“Ah!”
******
“We'll be arriving in about 30 minutes.”
At the pilot's announcement, I glanced out the window.
Damn it. No matter how many times I ride in this helicopter, I can never get used to it.
The noise was one thing, but the vibrations coming up from my seat had started making my stomach churn a while ago.
“You look quite pale.”
The Director wore a concerned expression as he watched me fidget.
My face was already ashen, but I forced a dismissive wave. He continued with a faint smile.
“When we arrive at Busan Port, the head of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service will likely be there.”
“The head of their intelligence service? Why?”
“He says he's coming on behalf of Minister Mikhail, but we'll have to see what it's really about.”
“Is it because of the Hyunmoo?”
I asked, just in case.
He didn't exactly deny it, but he didn't shake his head either.
“There's a high probability.”
In that instant, the nausea that had been building up vanished.
The thought that the problem I'd anticipated was finally here.
The real issue was their strangely quiet attitude until now. To me, that was more concerning.
“But there's no need to worry too much. They can't touch the second-phase project, which has already been agreed upon. At worst, it will only affect the planned third-phase project.”
The Director's attempt at reassurance was more terrifying.
With so much left to gain, how much of a loss would it be if the third phase collapsed?
Of course, in the original history, the third-phase project did fizzle out, but I planned to see it through to a successful conclusion this time.
“That would be a problem. By the way, if they do bring up the Hyunmoo, would you let me handle it?”
“What do you have in mind?”
“Well...”
At his question, I laid out the thoughts I'd been organizing.
Was it an unexpected proposal?
The NIS Director, who had been staring blankly for a long moment, suddenly pulled out his phone.
“F-First, let's report this. We need to report...”
******
Thump!
At Busan Port, the unloading was already in progress.
The aircraft were so large that standard containers wouldn't suffice; they had arrived packed in custom-made ones.
It was clearly impossible to transport them by road, so we decided to assemble them with the help of Russian technicians in a warehouse we had prepared for emergencies.
“It's a good thing we cordoned off this pier... Hey, Deputy Chief Im! If you can, block off that other pier too.”
The NIS Director was busy giving orders to manage the complicated situation.
Fortunately, darkness had already fallen, and the assembly was taking place inside a massive warehouse.
Even in the worst-case scenario, if information about the delivery leaked, the helicopters looked like firefighting models, so they wouldn't arouse suspicion.
“They're enormous.”
Among the three helicopters brought in, one was the modified version I had requested.
A machine equipped with a mission computer and software—a firefighting helicopter in name only.
Once the tests with this airframe succeed, my dream will soon be realized.
[My apologies for being late.]
Just as I was lost in thought while watching the helicopters being assembled, I heard English spoken with a strong Russian accent from behind me.
I turned to see a Russian man, who looked to be in his mid-fifties, walking straight toward us.
[I am Alexei, head of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service, the SVR.]
[A pleasure to meet you. I am Ahn Si-hyun, Director of South Korea's National Intelligence Service. And this is Mr. Jin Hyun-seung, who is serving as the external advisor for this Brown Bear project.]
The man—no, Alexei's—eyes immediately shifted to me.
Just from his gaze, it felt like he already knew everything about me.
And just as I suspected, his eyes glinted, and a sharp smile formed on his face.
[I've heard about you from Minister Mikhail. But do you intend to continue our discussion here?]
[Of course not. Let's move to a more suitable location.]
Sensing the prickly tone in his voice, the NIS Director stepped in.
The Director waved toward the far side, and a waiting sedan pulled up. We immediately headed to a safe house prepared by the NIS.
[It's quite a secluded place.]
[For security, seclusion is best.]
The safe house was located quite a distance from Busan Port.
It seemed to be a luxury residential complex where development had recently begun, but being unfamiliar with Busan's geography, I couldn't tell where we were.
[You don't need to worry about American intelligence. We laid the proper groundwork beforehand.]
As he got out of the car, Alexei made a sudden, seemingly random remark.
The Director seemed just as confused, tilting his head. Alexei let out a small chuckle.
[Do you think the Americans, who watch every inch of Russia's ports, would sit idly by after seeing non-standard containers being loaded?]
[...]
[So, we loaded a ship bound for Syria with a large number of special containers of the same size as the ones used for the helicopters. America will surely mistake them for missiles and be busy tracking them.]
[So you used a diversionary tactic?]
[Precisely. In the meantime, we slipped out at night using a special cargo ship with a concealed hold.]
Hearing it, their plan was incredibly thorough.
The effort they put into it was palpable.
Then again, this was a country that had been fighting an intelligence war with the United States for decades. What else could I expect?
I was once again reminded of their unseen power.
[By the way, aren't you curious why I came instead of the Minister of Defense?]
Alexei said with a meaningful expression as he settled onto the sofa.
Honestly, it would be a lie to say I wasn't curious.
I glanced at the NIS Director, but he responded with a calm expression.
[Seeing as the Foreign Intelligence Service is involved, I assume this isn't about a routine matter.]
[Tsk, so you're going to feign ignorance until the end. Very well, I'll be direct. We've concluded that the maneuvering method of the ballistic missile South Korea recently launched is similar to our Iskander. How about an explanation?]
At that, the NIS Director shot me a quick glance.
Whether he was just quick on the uptake or not, Alexei's head also turned toward me.
I had already braced myself for this, so I felt no tension.
[That's correct. It is indeed the Iskander's maneuvering method.]
[...]
Alexei stared at me, surprised by my immediate admission.
His expression suggested he had much to say but didn't know where to begin.
If my prediction was correct, he would soon ask about the source of the technology.
Pfft.
But instead, he let out a dry laugh.
Leaning back and draping an arm over the sofa, he held up a finger and drew an arc in the air.
[It flies like this and falls like this.]
[...]
[In other words, it's unmistakably the Iskander's maneuvering method, but according to our intelligence, its external appearance is completely different.]
[...]
[To put it simply, it can't be called entirely our technology.]
I couldn't guess his intention.
Just moments ago, he was pressing for a confession. Why was he suddenly declaring our innocence?
The NIS Director, equally bewildered, nudged my leg and whispered.
“What is he doing?”
“I'm not sure.”
As I answered, I ran through countless possibilities in my head.
And I came to only one conclusion.
[What is it that you want?]
This man was about to ask for something.
In other words, he was trying to make a deal.
No wonder the protest that should have come long ago was only arriving now.
Smirk.
As expected, a smile spread across Alexei's face.
After a few hearty laughs, his expression changed abruptly, and he began to speak.
[To be honest, the Russian government was quite shocked by the results of this test. While it was clearly our technology, the precision was far superior to the Iskander's.]
[...]
[So, after a long debate, we came to one conclusion: South Korea has developed an atomic spin gyroscope.]
[I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about.]
I feigned ignorance.
But the moment I saw his unwavering gaze, I realized he wasn't just guessing.
[We are Russia. Do you think a country that has waged an intelligence war with the U.S. for decades wouldn't know that much?]
As he spoke, he pulled out a photograph.
It was clearly a satellite image.
Although the resolution was a bit low, it clearly showed the impact point.
A large, floating tube with a hole punched right through the middle.
[You're not going to try to convince me you achieved this level of accuracy with an optical gyroscope, are you?]
“Tsk, this means the Americans know too...”
Hearing my inadvertent mutter, the NIS Director's expression hardened.
He nudged my leg again and whispered dejectedly.
“Does the fact that the U.S. agreed to temporarily shelve the issue until the summit mean they're after the gyroscope too?”
“Yes, that's highly likely.”
“Damn it. Negotiations with the U.S. are going to be a real headache then.”
“Well, it could also be a blessing in disguise.”
At that, the NIS Director looked at me again.
I ignored him and turned back to Alexei.
[So, are you asking us to hand over the manufacturing technology for the atomic spin gyroscope?]
[Wouldn't that be enough for us to overlook the leak of the Iskander technology? Think of it as an equivalent exchange.]
[No. My idea of a true equivalent exchange isn't just the Iskander, but Russia handing over its entire fighter jet manufacturing technology.]
Alexei's face contorted into a deep frown.
After all, fighter jet development requires decades of know-how.
Russia itself had likely spent tens of billions of dollars on development so far. Asking for that technology was like asking for their heart.
[You want what?]
To be honest, I hadn't said it with the real intention of making a trade.
It was just something I threw out there, looking for a demand he would surely reject.
[I thought we were getting somewhere, but I guess not.]
As expected, Alexei sounded dumbfounded.
But the reason he held his tongue was likely because he also knew how unreasonable it was to compare the gyroscope to the Iskander.
[Ahem, what about the smart shells you've developed?]
Just as I thought, he took a step back and made another offer.
That was probably his real objective.
Pfft.
But that, too, was an impossible condition to accept.
[Do you think the United States would stand by and do nothing?]
[Then what in the world are you proposing? We may be holding our breath, but we are still Russia. Are you telling us to just shut up and take it after being robbed blind?]
At this point, we needed to offer them a sweetener.
Not to stroke their pride, but for our own future.
To ensure this Brown Bear project—which historically yielded little after the second phase—could continue as efficiently as possible.
[That wouldn't be right of us. So, how about Russia and us engage in a true partnership?]
[...]