Chapter 54
Chapter 54
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: A Prince's Offer and a Bear's Invitation
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I postponed the morning meeting and headed to the Ritz Hotel.
Unlike usual, the security was tight right from the entrance, and by the time I reached the lobby, access for all outsiders was being completely restricted.
“Over here, Chairman Jin.”
As I walked toward the lobby, feeling puzzled, one of the NIS agents who recognized me urgently waved from across the room.
At his signal, the security guards parted a path as if the Red Sea were splitting, and soon the NIS Director appeared.
“You’ve arrived early. Follow me for now.”
“What’s with the atmosphere here? Did some kind of accident happen?”
I asked as I quickly followed him.
He replied without breaking his stride, as if in a great hurry.
“There wasn’t an accident. We have an important guest.”
“Who could be visiting to warrant all this…?”
I trailed off.
The NIS Director finally stopped walking.
“This morning, Prince Mohamed of the United Arab Emirates arrived in the country for an unofficial visit. The entire hotel is currently filled with his entourage.”
“They rented out the entire hotel?”
“They said it was a security measure, but to be honest, I was surprised myself.”
The NIS Director answered with a grin.
After passing through a temporary security checkpoint set up by the NIS, he gestured for me to hurry through.
“Director, just a moment… Do you happen to know what this is?”
Suddenly remembering the object I found in my phone, I immediately took it out.
The NIS Director’s eyes widened.
He quickly snatched it from me, then urgently waved over another NIS agent from afar before turning back to me.
“Where did you get this?”
“I found it inside my phone. Is it what I think it is?”
“Yes, it’s a signal interference device. Judging by its shape, it looks like it was made to receive transmissions from a considerable distance…”
He trailed off, tilting his head.
One of his eyebrows raised slightly, and his expression turned serious again.
“What is it?”
“In this state, the phone’s owner would have discovered it immediately upon opening the cover to replace the battery. Whoever did this, aren’t they being remarkably sloppy?”
“That’s what I find confusing as well. I can’t tell if they were deliberately pretending to be an amateur to obscure their identity, or if they’re genuinely unskilled.”
“Well, for now, I’ll send it to the analysis lab. Let’s wait for the results.”
The NIS Director handed the device to the approaching agent.
Turning back to me, he continued speaking with a still-stern expression.
“Do you have anyone in mind who might be a suspect?”
“…I’m not sure.”
No matter how I thought about it, I couldn’t find anyone suspicious around me.
The people closest to me were Secretary Kim and Secretary Yang, and they weren’t the types to do something like this.
I considered whether it could be someone from the secretarial office, but they never had an opportunity to access my phone, which I always kept with me.
“Ah!”
Just then, I remembered what happened two days ago.
The fact that I had gone to a sauna to relieve my built-up fatigue.
“That’s highly likely. It’s the perfect place for a phone to be separated from its owner. Plus, there’s no CCTV in the locker room, so unless you catch them in the act, it’s hard to identify the culprit. Do you know where our agents were at the sauna?”
“One was with me and my bodyguards in the bath. The other remained in the locker room.”
“Are you saying this happened while one of our agents was guarding the locker room?”
His expression grew even more serious.
“Then it’s one of two possibilities… Either our agent let their guard down, or the opponent was not someone to be taken lightly. Damn it, this is getting more confusing. By the way, are any of your bodyguards suspicious?”
“Wouldn’t they know better than anyone that they’d be the first to be suspected? Why would they do something like this?”
“Still, everyone has a price.”
“I doubt it. I don’t think they’d be swayed by any ordinary sum of money. I happen to pay them very generous salaries.”
“Just how much do you pay your bodyguards…?”
“I told you. Enough that they wouldn’t betray me for any trivial amount of money.”
The NIS Director blinked and stared at me.
A moment later, as his gaze shifted to my bodyguards standing in the distance, a look of something akin to chagrin flickered across his face.
“That aside, have there been any incidents where information could have been leaked in the meantime? Anything related to the businesses you’re currently working on.”
“For the past few days, I’ve been focused solely on understanding the operations of the distribution affiliates at the office, so that’s unlikely. I haven’t had any separate calls with the research institute or Thales either.”
“That’s a relief, at least.”
The NIS Director remained lost in thought for a good while longer.
He was probably thinking that this attempt to get to me wouldn't be the last.
In fact, I was already mulling over countermeasures in my own head.
“Let’s do this for now. From now on, use the anti-eavesdropping phone provided by the NIS. And if you permit it, we will also replace your office and home phones with ours and conduct regular checks. Oh, and just in case, I’ll give you a portable detector, so it wouldn’t be a bad idea to periodically scan your surroundings.”
“Do I not need to worry about the research institute and Thales?”
“Those places are like fortresses right now. Besides, we inspect them several times a day, so a situation to be concerned about won’t arise.”
I nodded readily.
Still unable to shake his bewilderment, the NIS Director shook his head and quickened his pace again.
*Knock, knock!*
A moment later, we arrived at the largest suite in the hotel.
When the door opened, I saw men with white turbans on their heads.
Among them, the one who looked particularly elderly was likely Prince Mohamed, who held the most central power among the UAE's emirates.
[It is a pleasure to meet you. I was just speaking with the NIS Director about you, Chairman Jin Hyun-seung.]
Mohamed’s English pronunciation was excellent.
Apparently, it was the result of attending college in the United States in his youth.
At least I wouldn't have to worry about a language barrier.
“Before you two begin your conversation, allow me to provide some background.”
The NIS Director, who had been waiting for a chance to interject, spoke up.
As if understanding the situation, Mohamed gave a slight nod.
“The reason I’ve brought Chairman Jin here is to discuss a certain matter.”
“What is it?”
“The UAE’s unofficial visit this time is to determine the feasibility of establishing an HVP system in their country. Would that be possible?”
It wasn’t impossible.
In America’s case, a technology transfer had already been promised.
Since there was a batch originally scheduled for delivery to the US Navy, we could divert that portion if the Ministry of National Defense approved.
“What does the Ministry of National Defense say?”
“They said about eight units could cover the core defense areas, excluding the mountains. As for the rest, it won’t be a major issue since we can’t procure our share until next year’s budget is allocated anyway.”
“Then it should be possible. But where in the UAE are they planning to install it?”
“Dubai. In other words, I think they’re wary of Iran. As you know, Dubai and Iran are separated by the Strait of Hormuz, which is only 50 kilometers wide. Moreover, their relationship has become complicated due to their alliance with the US, so it seems they’re preparing for a potential contingency. In a worst-case scenario, if Iran were to launch a barrage of rockets at Dubai, they’d be defenseless.”
It didn’t take long to understand what he meant.
For the UAE, which was planning to turn Dubai into the jewel of the Middle East, Iran, just 50 kilometers of sea away, must be a source of anxiety.
In the midst of that, the emergence of the HVP must have felt like rain in a drought.
“But it’s not just about the rockets, is it? What about the Scuds?”
But a problem remained.
The Scud missiles, of which Iran possessed a vast number.
It was impossible to stop something falling at seven times the speed of sound with an HVP.
“That is precisely Prince Mohamed’s concern. He wished to discuss that matter with you as well.”
With those words, the NIS Director looked at Prince Mohamed.
His gaze seemed to say that he was done and it was now the Prince’s turn to speak.
Understanding the cue, Mohamed immediately continued.
[We have traditionally used American weapons. So, we were originally planning to acquire the Patriot system to counter Iran’s Scud missiles.]
[And?]
[The Gulf War made us hesitate. The American media made it sound as if the Patriot’s interception rate was outstanding, but no one is foolish enough to believe that. Therefore, we would like Jaewoo Thales to develop an anti-aircraft missile for us.]
I wondered what this sudden proposal was about.
As I blinked, Mohamed continued.
[If you have the technology to intercept artillery shells, why can’t you intercept a missile? That is why I believe Jaewoo is capable.]
[You seem to have misunderstood. Intercepting a ballistic missile is a different matter from intercepting an artillery shell.]
[I am aware. But you already have the radar and guidance systems, do you not? In other words, all you need to do is develop the interceptor, correct?]
[…]
To my surprise, his words were exactly correct.
A radar with tremendous detection range and precision. A guidance system that could even intercept artillery shells. The reality was that with the right means of interception, we could even defend against ballistic missiles.
Could it be that this man knew what he was talking about?
But from the looks of it, that didn't seem to be the case.
[Development is actually already planned. However, we haven’t secured the budget yet, so it will likely take quite some time.]
[If money is the problem, we will solve it for you.]
For a moment, I doubted my ears.
When I tilted my head, he said with emphasis.
[We will bear the development costs for the interceptor.]
[I’m sorry, are you perhaps proposing a joint development?]
[I would like to, if I could, but we do not yet have the industrial base for it. So what I mean is that we will purely provide the funding.]
[…]
[Of course, there is a condition. That we will be the first to deploy it upon successful development.]
I immediately looked at the NIS Director.
“Is that possible?”
“I’ve informed the military and the Blue House. They are likely holding a meeting on this issue as we speak, but there’s a high chance of a positive response.”
[Hmm…]
I blinked, my mind in turmoil.
Then it occurred to me that a similar situation had happened before my regression.
Was it around 2020?
At the time, the ADD had begun developing a short-range ballistic missile to neutralize North Korea’s rocket artillery hidden in caves. The result was an outstanding weapon called the KTSSM, but in a bizarre turn of events, the UAE had imported it first.
A weapon that hadn’t even been deployed to our own military yet.
[The cost will be considerable, won’t it?]
[The cost does not matter. It’s not as if it will require tens of billions of dollars, will it?]
It was a moment where I could truly feel the power of oil money.
But how was I supposed to interpret this situation?
[The terms are not bad, are they?]
Mohamed pressed me for an answer.
Well, I had no reason to refuse.
I was already planning to proceed with a joint anti-aircraft missile development with Russia soon anyway.
If the UAE was footing the bill, wasn't it a situation where I could get something for nothing?
[Very well.]
I answered readily and extended my hand.
What remained was to discuss the specific development plan and payment methods.
I canceled all my scheduled appointments and spent nearly half the day with Mohamed.
*Knock, knock!*
“Director. It’s Section Chief Cha In-soo.”
Just then, an NIS agent urgently knocked on the door.
He entered the room and whispered something to the NIS Director, who, after showing a deeply surprised expression, gestured for me to follow him into another room.
“The analysis of the listening device just finished. According to the analyst, it seems the culprit is likely Chinese intelligence.”
“…”
“They tried to disguise it by using some Japanese parts, but the circuit pattern is similar to the method primarily used by Chinese intelligence. In other words, they couldn’t hide their technical signature. It seems China has become very interested in you, Chairman Jin.”
“Hmm…”
“In any case, it’s best to be careful from now on. With incidents like this, unless you catch them in the act, you can’t even make a diplomatic appeal. You remember the protocols I mentioned earlier, right?”
“Of course.”
“Well, it’s a hassle, but what can you do? This is your fate now, Chairman Jin.”
He lightly placed a hand on my shoulder and offered words of comfort.
What was strange was that he didn't seem particularly tense.
Then again, as the head of an intelligence agency, how many times must he have experienced things like this?
His perspective on the incident was probably entirely different from mine.
“Ah! And one more thing. Our agent just informed me of something else. Papa Bear has formally invited you to Russia through official diplomatic channels.”
“Why me?”
“Deputy Director Im was supposed to go to Russia for the gyro and fighter jet technology exchange, but Papa Bear has requested that you come in person instead.”
At his continued whispers, I felt that what was bound to happen had finally arrived.
The funny thing was how exquisitely timed the situation was.
Wasn’t it as if all the pieces were falling perfectly into place, like a divine arrangement?
Wait, surely no one is actually intervening in my life, are they?
“Chairman Jin. I asked what you plan to do.”
“…What else? Of course, I have to go. But I have one request.”
“Go ahead.”
“Could we change that ‘Papa Bear’ expression to something else? The image doesn’t match the actual person at all…”
“Hmm, then let’s go with Boss Bear.”
“…”