Chapter 69
Chapter 69
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 69
Chapter Title: The Baengnyeong Island Incident
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*Ring!*
While I was flustered, both Vice President Kim's phone and mine rang at the same time.
A quick glance at my phone showed the caller was Deputy Head Im—no, Senior Managing Director Im.
"Yes, Senior Managing Director."
I immediately pressed the call button and looked at Vice President Kim Young-gi, who was silently mouthing words at me.
*The Director of the NIS?*
Thinking the situation must be serious, I adjusted my grip on the phone.
On the other end, Deputy Head Im's shouting voice sounded like he was about to collapse from a lack of air.
"An hour ago, there was a clash between North Korea and our navy at Baengnyeong Island. A Chamsuri-class patrol boat was sunk as a result."
"I'm looking at the breaking news myself, but how did we respond for it to end up sinking?"
"I'm not sure about that myself. Is Vice President Kim Young-gi there by any chance? The Director of the NIS wanted to speak with him."
"He's on a call right now. Understood, I'll call you back."
I quickly ended the call and listened in on the former minister's conversation.
Whatever was so serious, he wasn't saying a word, just listening to the person on the other end.
"Hoo..."
Just when I thought the call was finally ending, he let out a long sigh.
His expression was terribly distorted, as if he'd heard some bad news.
"What happened?"
"North Korea apparently crossed the NLL near Baengnyeong Island. Our Chamsuri patrol boat that was nearby responded and seems to have been hit by a tank gun mounted on an enemy patrol boat."
The North using a tank gun on a patrol boat was the same as in history.
The only difference was that it happened during the second engagement, not the first.
It was the result of North Korea's thirst for revenge after suffering immense damage in the first naval battle, but I couldn't understand why it was deployed from the very first clash this time.
*No, on second thought, maybe it's only natural.*
Having been humiliated twice already, they would have wanted to make up for it somehow.
In the end, their train of thought must have led them there.
A method of attack that took into account the Chamsuri's poor armor and armament.
"And our military?"
"That's the problem."
"..."
"It seems the damage is severe because follow-up support was delayed."
I could roughly picture the situation in my head.
Minister of National Defense Kim Young-gi, who had stepped down after two hardline responses.
The new Minister of National Defense, not wanting to suffer the same fate, must have hesitated to send support.
No, he probably did send support.
However, to ensure the safety of the PCCs, they needed to strike the enemy's Styx missiles and coastal artillery first, and I suspect he hesitated to do so.
"Hmm..."
But in the end, that hesitation became an even bigger problem.
North Korea had already saved face, while only our military suffered casualties.
Considering there was no chance of an all-out war, it might have been better to act decisively like former Minister Kim Young-gi.
"How many casualties were there?"
"On the flagship, boat 358, all hands were lost. The other two patrol boats also sustained heavy damage."
"..."
This was no ordinary incident.
It was to the point where it should be called a massacre, not an engagement.
By now, not just the Ministry of Defense but the Blue House as well must be in an uproar.
"But why did the Director of the NIS call you, Vice President?"
I suddenly became curious about that.
What reason could there be to inform former Minister Kim Young-gi, who had already stepped down?
But even Vice President Kim Young-gi himself didn't seem to understand.
"I'm not sure about that either. He just said he was passing on a message that His Excellency wants to meet soon..."
"..."
Something felt off.
But no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't figure out the reason.
"Let's head back up for now. The atmosphere is likely to be tense for a while, so we need to grab someone and get a more accurate grasp of the situation."
Without another word, we both got into the car.
The entire way back, one fact wouldn't leave my mind.
That perhaps it was a rule of the universe that historical events must happen, even if the timeline is distorted.
**********
"Here we go again."
Captain Yoon Tae-hwan, commander of the Chamsuri-class patrol boat 357, frowned as he watched the North Korean patrol boat cross the NLL.
With the autumn blue crab season in full swing, the number of North Korean patrol boats heading south had increased.
Though their stated purpose was to protect North Korean fishermen, these frequent southern incursions, which had been going on for ten days straight, were becoming excessive.
"Proceeding according to the rules of engagement. We will maneuver first."
Just then, a radio message came in from Major Kim Tan of the flagship, boat 358.
Simultaneously, the flagship 358 and boat 356 increased their speed.
To keep pace, Captain Yoon Tae-hwan immediately executed a blocking maneuver, moving to intercept the path of enemy vessel 684, one of the three.
"Huh?"
At that moment, a sudden chill ran down his spine.
A strong premonition that he might never see his beloved wife again.
But he quickly shook his head, focusing all his attention back on blocking the enemy vessel's maneuver.
"What a strange thought..."
It wasn't the first time he'd had such a thought.
When he first took command, and the first time his vessel had a standoff with a North Korean patrol boat across the NLL.
But every time, it had turned out to be a needless worry, and he thought this time would be no different.
"Huh?"
But today, something was different.
Enemy vessel 684, which would normally have increased speed for a collision course, suddenly began to slow down.
*Screech.*
Then he saw it—vessel 684 was armed with a naval gun he'd never seen before, and it was turning to face his direction.
"Damn it! Hard to port!"
Panicked, he immediately ordered the helmsman to change course.
*Boom!*
But it was already too late.
Even for an inaccurate tank gun, dodging a shell fired at such a close range was practically impossible.
*Bang!*
In the end, the enemy's 85mm shell cleanly pierced the side of the patrol boat.
"Fire!"
Amid the shock, Captain Yoon Tae-hwan immediately ordered return fire.
The boat's 40mm naval gun turned toward the enemy.
"Damn it!"
But boat 358, which had moved in between, was the problem.
At this rate, they risked hitting a friendly vessel.
To get a clear shot, they had to change course again.
*Thwack!*
In that moment of hesitation, he heard something pierce the bridge.
Then, 37mm shells began to tear through from all directions.
The resulting shrapnel instantly turned the bridge into a scene of carnage.
"Helmsman!"
The first to fall was the helmsman, Sergeant First Class Han Young-hoon.
After him, NCOs and sailors were groaning all around.
The vessel was now practically uncontrollable.
"Those sons of bitches!"
Captain Yoon Tae-hwan grabbed the radio, trying to regain control of the situation.
*Thwack!*
Just then, a bullet flew from somewhere and embedded itself in his abdomen, the impact causing him to drop the radio.
"Ugh! Do they have a sniper?"
It was clear he hadn't been hit by a stray bullet.
It was just a single shot.
Feeling that things were getting stranger, he ducked as low as he could and looked outside. At that moment, he saw the flagship, boat 358, sinking.
"No!"
He glanced at boat 356, and its situation was just as bad.
The entire vessel was practically in shreds.
Boat 356 also seemed to have taken a major hit from the first 85mm shell.
*Vrooom!*
Just then, the enemy vessels suddenly began to retreat.
They had only crossed 1.1 kilometers south of the NLL.
After slipping back into their own waters in an instant, they lingered for a moment as if to mock them, then retreated toward their base at full speed.
"Those bastards..."
Captain Yoon Tae-hwan finally took in the state of his vessel's interior.
Four sailors and NCOs were completely motionless.
On top of that, there were countless others who appeared to be seriously injured, leaving him speechless.
"All fleet units, return to base."
As tears blurred his vision, a radio call came from the base.
Why was there no support? How were they supposed to return on their own in this condition?
Unable to contain his rage, he slammed his fist on the floor.
*******
"Aargh!"
It was that dream again.
A dream that replayed every single detail of what he had experienced during the engagement.
He had even resorted to sleep aids to stop it, but after the first few days, they had almost no effect.
"Cough!"
At this rate, he had no time to rest.
Even sleep, his only chance for peace, was tormenting him.
He felt hopeless, wondering how long this would continue.
*Swish.*
Captain Yoon Tae-hwan tossed the sleep aids the nurse had left into the trash can.
He figured that at least while he was awake, he could try to push the thoughts away, but he wasn't sure if that was even possible.
"Still, you're one of the lucky ones."
He suddenly remembered the words of his unit commander, who had come to visit.
How badly he had wanted to spit in his face then.
No, his mind had been so hazy back then, he couldn't even be sure if he actually had.
Judging by the fact that no one had visited for a while after that.
"Shit..."
*Knock, knock!*
Just as he was muttering curses at no one in particular, someone knocked on his hospital room door.
His head naturally turned toward the door.
What he saw was a young man who looked to be in his mid-thirties and an older man who appeared to be in his late sixties.
"Hah!"
His mind clearing in an instant, Yoon Tae-hwan tried to sit up.
But the pain that followed made his body collapse back down.
Seeing this, the man in his sixties clicked his tongue and stopped him.
"A patient shouldn't move around so recklessly. Just stay lying down."
"Mr. Minister, what are you doing here...?"
Yoon Tae-hwan mumbled in his confusion.
Perhaps displeased with the title, the older man frowned slightly as he replied.
"Minister? It's been a long time since I stepped down. I'm just the vice president of a defense company now."
The man in his sixties—no, Vice President Kim Young-gi—then looked at his companion.
As if on cue, the man in his thirties took a step toward Yoon Tae-hwan.
"I'm Jin Hyun-seung, the head of Jaewoo Group."
"..."
Of course, Yoon Tae-hwan knew who Jin Hyun-seung was.
He was just baffled as to why the chairman of a major conglomerate would come to see him.
As he just stared, Vice President Kim cleared his throat and explained the reason for their visit.
"I know it must be painful for you, but we came hoping we could learn a little about the situation at the time."
Captain Yoon Tae-hwan hesitated for a moment.
What was so hard about telling them?
But he was reluctant to speak of the events that continued to torment him even in his dreams.
"Well..."
But in the end, he began to speak.
After a lengthy explanation, just as he was getting agitated about the issue of follow-up support, Jin Hyun-seung spoke up gently.
"PCCs were heading north at the time. But it was difficult to approach because we detected that North Korea was targeting them with Styx anti-ship missiles from a land base. On top of that, their coastal artillery was also ready to fire, which would have made a response even harder."
"But if they had just made the decision, it would have been possible to preemptively strike the coastal artillery and the Styx missile base, wouldn't it? Just like they did at Yeonpyeong Island."
"..."
Even Jin Hyun-seung had nothing to say to that.
He could only glance at Vice President Kim Young-gi standing beside him.
Seemingly just as displeased with the situation, Vice President Kim Young-gi spoke to Yoon Tae-hwan with a deep frown.
"There's nothing I can say about that."
"That's not something for you to apologize for, Mr. Minister."
Yoon Tae-hwan replied with a bitter smile.
As if that pained him even more, Vice President Kim Young-gi gently patted Yoon Tae-hwan's shoulder.
"In any case, thank you for your testimony. It must have been difficult for you. Oh, and while there will be compensation from the state, Jaewoo Group also plans to provide condolence money to the victims. Money might not mean much to those who were sacrificed, but their families' reality is different."
"..."
At those words, Captain Yoon Tae-hwan stared blankly at Jin Hyun-seung.
Perhaps feeling awkward, Jin Hyun-seung's expression stiffened slightly as he spoke gently.
"I know you've suffered a great deal of mental shock from this incident. To be honest, I'm not sure what words of comfort I can offer. But if there's one thing I can say, it's that the chances of something like this happening again are not high. We are already exploring solutions at the military's request."
"..."