Chapter 56
Chapter 56
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 56
Chapter Title: A Russian Welcome
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[Welcome. I am Natasha Chekolova, of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service.]
A blonde beauty was the one to greet us upon our arrival in Moscow.
Judging by her looks alone, she seemed more like a reporter from some broadcast station than an intelligence agent.
She was so tall, she easily held her own against my 183-centimeter frame.
[A pleasure to meet you.]
After a brief greeting, she led us to a prepared vehicle.
Our destination was a hotel near Moscow, arranged by the Russian government.
As it happened, Putin's return from his visit to Sakhalin was delayed, so our meeting was postponed until tomorrow. Thanks to that, Natasha would be our guide for the entire day.
[You can really feel that this is Russia.]
After unpacking, we headed straight to the first-floor restaurant to satisfy our hunger.
Looking out the large window at the frozen street below, the feeling that I was in Russia truly sank in.
I wasn't the only one feeling it, as most of my companions commented on it as they sat down.
“It certainly is cold. You can definitely feel that this is Russia.”
“Is that how you feel, Secretary Kim? I find our winters back home to be colder.”
For a while, Secretary Kim and Deputy Chief Im debated which felt colder: a winter in South Korea or one in Moscow.
In other words, a pointless argument.
Finding it too absurd, I turned my head, and my eyes met with Natasha, who was sitting across from me. Seizing the opportunity, she spoke to me.
[Director Alexei often spoke of you, Chairman Jin Hyun-seung.]
[What did he say?]
I asked, feeling a bit curious.
I wondered what kind of person I was in the eyes of the Director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service.
But what came out of her mouth was completely unexpected.
[He said you seemed like a crazy person.]
[...]
Pfft!
Secretary Kim let out a snort of laughter.
“My apologies. I’m sure Director Alexei meant it in a good way.”
She seemed a bit sorry and tried to smooth things over, but Natasha, who had somehow understood her, retorted.
[I'm sorry, but I softened it because you're here in person. To be precise, he said you were a 'crazy bastard.']
[...]
At that, the expressions on my companions' faces became quite varied.
If I stayed silent in this situation, the atmosphere would become truly awkward.
I offered an awkward laugh and asked her.
[Do you speak Korean?]
[Since I'm in charge of foreign affairs, I have received some training. Thanks to that, I can understand a fair amount. And on that note, I can assure you that the term 'crazy bastard' was not meant to be ambiguous in any way.]
Hey.
Cut it out.
Can't you see my companions are trying not to laugh?
[But in my opinion...]
Natasha, who was about to continue, suddenly glanced at her phone.
It was vibrating.
She quickly answered the call, and after a moment of conversation with a serious expression, she abruptly turned her gaze out the window.
[What is it?]
I asked, puzzled.
But her attention remained fixed outside the window. A moment later, she shot to her feet and made another call.
“...”
It was nearly impossible to understand the ceaseless stream of Russian.
I could only tell that she was extremely angry and, from her occasionally disciplined tone, that she was speaking to a superior.
After hanging up, she gestured to her fellow agents waiting nearby and then looked at us.
[It seems an uninvited guest has followed you all the way from Korea.]
The moment she finished speaking, Deputy Chief Im scanned the surroundings.
Had the trail gone cold already? Seemingly sensing nothing unusual, he clicked his tongue in frustration and immediately made a call.
“Im Hyuk-soo, where are you... What are you talking about! Are you going to do your job properly or not? And what am I supposed to do if you're only reporting it now?”
A complaint-filled reprimand immediately spilled from Deputy Chief Im's lips.
He then hung up irritably, looked at me, and let out a long sigh before speaking.
“Apparently, they lost the man we saw on the plane.”
“...”
“But there's no need to worry. We have a perfect description of him, so our agents will find him soo—...”
[No, you guests should just continue your conversation. Russia will handle what happens in Russia.]
Deputy Chief Im's words, which had been going on for a while, were cut short by Natasha.
Her expression had turned chilling. She entrusted our safety to a nearby colleague and left, not returning for a long time.
[Now that Natasha's on it, the tail will definitely be shaken off.]
As the silence stretched on, a voice spoke up from beside me.
I turned my head to see the Russian agent Natasha had asked to watch over us. He smiled faintly and continued.
[She's the best in the entire Foreign Intelligence Service when it comes to this kind of work. I don't know who it is, but they won't get far. The only question is whether they're brought in alive, or... well...]
At his words, we all looked at each other.
The only one whose expression didn't change was Deputy Chief Im.
He let out a long sigh, as if he had already anticipated what was to come.
“Hmm...”
I focused on the fact that Agent Im Hyuk-soo had lost the target he was marking.
And also that he hadn't reported it until Deputy Chief Im called him first.
It seemed my suspicions were likely close to the truth.
“Why? Is something else wrong?”
Deputy Chief Im asked, looking puzzled after noticing my hardened expression.
Should I trust Deputy Chief Im?
If he was involved, my entire trust in the country's intelligence agency would crumble.
But what if I trusted him, only to be betrayed?
Honestly, you never know with people.
“It's nothing. By the way, circumstantially, the uninvited guest Natasha mentioned must be that man, right? The one who was on the plane with us.”
In the end, I decided not to reveal my suspicions for the time being.
At least until I was sure about Deputy Chief Im.
“I would think so. The timing of his disappearance is too coincidental...”
Deputy Chief Im replied with near certainty.
His tone, his expression, and what I knew of his usual personality—all of it made it seem highly unlikely he was involved.
Still, I couldn't let my guard down completely.
[Sorry to keep you waiting.]
Some time passed.
Finally, Natasha reappeared.
She looked utterly exhausted.
Her clothes were slightly disheveled, as if she had been through something rough, and her breathing was quite ragged.
Gulp!
She gulped down water repeatedly, as if to quench a burning thirst.
Just then, I noticed a bloodstain on her sleeve.
[Are you hurt?]
When I asked, just in case, she belatedly checked her sleeve.
Ssk.
She discreetly adjusted her sleeve and offered an awkward smile.
Soon, as if burdened by my persistent gaze, she finally hid the sleeve and spoke.
[It's not mine.]
[...Then.]
[The Prime Minister was very angry. About the fact that our invited guests had been tailed.]
[...]
Son of a... Did they really just take him out?
******
“You two will take turns guarding this room today.”
Deputy Chief Im ordered the two agents as soon as they got up to the room.
He quickly swept the room with a bug detector, only speaking after a long while.
“It's clean.”
At his words, the others let out a breath they had been holding.
Was it suffocating? Soon, one after another, they began to speak.
“He's dead, right?”
“He must be.”
“You think he's dead?”
Watching them, I let out an incredulous laugh that didn't fit the situation.
It felt like the tension had eased, if only a little.
But in that moment, Deputy Chief Im dropped another bombshell.
“In my experience, there's no way they would have left him alive.”
Hic!
At that, Secretary Kim started hiccuping uncontrollably.
The head of security, the only one who remained emotionally unshaken, stood guard by the door the entire time, ostensibly preparing for any potential emergency.
Times like these really show that those with a special forces background are a different breed.
“I have no idea how they plan to clean this up.”
More than anything else, that's what I was curious about.
Their recklessness, eliminating a tail without any hesitation.
Yes, reckless was the right word for it.
“Russia is one of the few countries where common sense doesn't apply, but to be honest, I'm a bit concerned about that too. However, the Japanese side won't be able to make this a public issue. This is how this world works, after all, and Japan was the one who made the first move.”
Deputy Chief Im's words were somewhat convincing.
But what did he just say?
“Did you just say he was a Japanese agent?”
“Yes, before we came up to the room, Natasha pulled me aside and told me. They got a confession that he was an agent from the Japanese Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office. I asked for a description just in case, and it matched the man our agent lost.”
“Then on what basis did Agent Im Hyuk-soo conclude he was Chinese before?”
“That's what I'm saying. So, about that...”
Deputy Chief Im trailed off and paused for a moment.
He then glanced at me, gesturing with his eyes, and led me to another room attached to the living room.
“Frankly, it's embarrassing to even bring this up, but I think I need to discuss it with you, Chairman Jin.”
“Go on.”
“It's about Im Hyuk-soo. No matter how I look at it, something is suspicious.”
“...In what way?”
“The fact that he lost a target he was marking so easily, and that he didn't report it to me immediately. Crucially, he insisted the man was Chinese but couldn't provide any solid evidence. He claimed it was because the documents the man was looking at were all in Chinese characters, but now that my trust in him has wavered, I can't even believe that.”
He said this while glancing toward the hallway.
An action conscious of Im Hyuk-soo, who would be taking his turn guarding the door.
At this point, I started to think that perhaps I could let go of my suspicion that Deputy Chief Im might also be an accomplice.
After all, if a key figure leading a nation's intelligence agency was a mole, we were screwed anyway.
“Actually, I've been suspicious of him as well.”
I ended up telling him my own suspicions.
As I spoke, Deputy Chief Im's eyes widened, and by the end, he was scowling and muttering all sorts of curses.
“That son of a bitch, whose life is he trying to ruin... Anyway, if this is the situation, then that bastard Hyuk-soo must have been the culprit in the phone bugging incident too.”
“That was actually the decisive part that made me suspicious. He claimed it happened in the short time he was in the restroom, but who could break open a locker, disassemble a phone down to its partition, and plant a bugging device in such a short time? In the end, it means he did it himself.”
“...Then what could be his motive?”
Deputy Chief Im got to the heart of the matter.
That was the very first thing that had come to my mind as well.
I answered with a long sigh.
“I'll have that confirmed for you as soon as we return to Korea. Anyway, what do you plan to do about Im Hyuk-soo now?”
“For now, we have to pretend we don't know. If he tries to flee from here, the aftermath will be even harder to handle. Still, just in case, I'd like to ask you to have your bodyguards keep him under constant surveillance.”
“Don't worry about that. And even in the worst-case scenario, if he catches on and tries to run, we won't lose him.”
“...”
Deputy Chief Im looked at me as if asking what I meant.
Then, as if he understood, he let out a short exclamation. “Ah!”
“Natasha... Right, I forgot we're in Russia. Still, I hope we don't have to face that kind of embarrassment.”
I gave a nod.
When we left the room, Secretary Kim, who was still waiting in the living room, spoke to us in a terrified voice.
“Um... I'm sorry, but can I sleep here tonight?”
“...”
It wasn't that I didn't understand.
Hearing that someone had died, she couldn't possibly be at ease.
It was a relief she hadn't seen someone die right in front of her; if she had, her reaction would have been far worse.
“Let's do that.”
Fortunately, we were in a suite with two bedrooms.
In the end, the decision was made for everyone to spend the night in one room, except for the two NIS agents taking turns guarding the door outside.
“Head of Security.”
I quietly called the head of security over.
I whispered something to him quietly, and his eyes lit up as he nodded.
“I know it's a hassle, but please keep a close watch for a few days.”
“Understood. Don't worry, and get some rest.”
With a firm expression, the head of security returned to the living room.
The thought of having someone trustworthy nearby brought a small sense of relief.
“Hoo...”
Unable to sleep late into the night, I took out a cigarette in the living room.
Fortunately, this hotel didn't have a no-smoking policy.
Just as I was about to light it, Secretary Kim approached and handed me a glass full of alcohol.
“Drink this and get some sleep. Tomorrow will be an even more tiring day.”
“Thank you. Oh, and... if you ever want to quit, just let me know.”
I said this casually to her as she was turning away.
After all, this wasn't something a woman should have to experience.
She whipped back around in an instant, looking at me with an unreadable expression.
“As you've just experienced, Secretary Kim, we're now constantly exposed to danger. In this situation, I can't ask you to stay with me until the end.”
“Can I really?”
“...”
I was momentarily taken aback by her unexpected response.
For a moment, she let out a small laugh, then crossed her arms and spoke.
“Honestly, I'm dying to. But no one pays a better salary than you, Chairman. My motto is 'Live short and large.' Therefore, I think I'll have to stick by your side until I've earned as much as I can.”
“...”
“In exchange, could you perhaps throw in some hazard pay?”
Hmm... just like my secretary.
So damn pragmatic.