Chapter 208
Chapter 208
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 208
Chapter Title: The Desert is Always Clear, Then Cloudy (2)
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Was he that shocked by the data screen I showed him?
With a dull clatter, the plenipotentiary special envoy dropped his pistol onto the dry concrete floor.
Having vividly confirmed the transaction records of nuclear materials between Iran and North Korea with his own eyes, he trembled both hands and bit his lower lip.
“North Korea…? North Korea? They're helping Iran with its nuclear armament right now? Is this real?!”
“The evidence is right in front of your eyes, Envoy. It's clear proof anyone would recognize.”
“This can't be…!”
Having taken in far too much information at once, the envoy chose extremism over composure.
Covering his face with his palms, he lamented the fate of his country, flickering like a candle in the wind.
“Damn it! Not just Saudi Arabia, but Iran too! Why does Jehovah God only leave trials for us, the people of Israel?!”
A pitiful patriot cornered psychologically. In his urgency, he couldn't see the big picture I'd shown him and fixated on Iran, unleashing his rage.
This half-blind man. I decided to kindly point out his blind spots one by one.
“Whether it's a trial or a blessing depends on your perspective, doesn't it?”
“What…?”
“Didn't I tell you? The common enemy. If Iran plays the role of the common enemy to America, Saudi Arabia, and Israel, then this trial is closer to a blessing.”
“……!”
Only then did his mind start turning. Tap, tap. He repeatedly tapped the edge of the desk with his fingernail, deep in thought.
After gulping down a bucket of ice-cold water, he returned with a somewhat calmer tone and asked me.
“What about the Saudi side…? Does Crown Prince Bin Salman know about this plan? No, does he know?”
“Not yet. After all, Israel's choice comes first.”
And Israel's choice wouldn't even need further watching.
The only escape for a cornered rat would be the hole I'd just opened.
Leaving the USB with the data right there, I stood up from my chair immediately.
The armed guards outside meant nothing now.
“Well then, I think we've covered everything I wanted to say. May I go now?”
“…….”
In the dim room, under the faintly glowing incandescent bulb, the envoy slumped down.
Turning back, I left him with one last word as I walked out.
“Please give it thorough consideration before deciding. And as you can see there, I've prepared quite detailed specifics too.”
* * * *
“Ugh, I thought I was gonna die of fright. I've been through all sorts of hardships at work, but this one was legendary.”
“Why are you exaggerating like that? You weren't the one who got a gun to the head.”
Me and Mr. Kim Won-cheol, having walked out of the terrifying Mossad den on our own two feet, free once more.
I was the one with the pistol to my head, yet he was the one whining. He always had a surprising amount of guts—not.
“Anyway. So, did that specific plan sit well with him? That envoy fellow.”
“He pondered it for a long time right there. And even after, it seems there were plenty of twists and turns up to the cabinet's decision.”
That day, after I was released, the Israeli government went nearly ten days without any contact.
For a while, aside from the surveillance at the hotel, they didn't even attempt to approach me.
There must have been divisions among the higher-ups, no doubt.
“Of course, they had to admit there was no other way. And Crown Prince Bin Salman is probably in the same boat right now.”
Just as Israel found Saudi Arabia burdensome, Saudi Arabia likely felt the same about Israel.
Thorns bristling at each other, forced to bare claws by circumstances, yet neither truly wanting conflict.
For both sides, the only way to resolve this situation… would be the scheme I'd proposed.
“The common enemy. To share a bed with an unbearable neighbor, you need a beast prowling outside the village.”
Finishing my words, I cracked open a beer can emblazoned with a lion. Licking the white foam rising from the rim, I felt certain.
The specifics of this plan, [Jerusalem Plan]. Perhaps… through this Middle East venture we'd half-willingly stepped into, Ammunition Group could leap to the next level.
And at that moment.
-Ding-dong!
The awaited contact finally arrived.
Seeing the short message on the screen, the corner of my mouth curved upward.
-[Envoy] Let's do it together.
And right as I confirmed that message, my cellphone rang again.
Like the prank of fate, staring at the two gears meshing perfectly at once, I chuckled to myself.
“Well, I'll be. Crown Prince Bin Salman isn't one to be outdone.”
“Huh? What? What'd it say? Oh… it wasn't just the envoy—it came from Bin Salman too?”
Without a word, I turned the phone in my hand toward Mr. Kim Won-cheol.
At last… one piece clicked into place with a satisfying snap, signaling the completion of the massive puzzle.
-Chairman Han, the [Jerusalem Plan] you spoke of. Proceed with it immediately. You come to Washington D.C. right away as well.
* * * *
Rewind the clock a bit, to inside the royal palace at the heart of Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia.
-Bang! Bang! Bang!
A desk shaking wildly, as if it might shatter any second.
“Are all the soldiers in the Saudi army from privates to generals just idiots?! Useless rabble!”
Crown Prince Bin Salman slamming his fist on the gold-leaf-edged table.
The hookah on the table toppled from the impact, glass shards scattering across the marble floor, but no one in the room dared point it out.
Because his rage—sharper and fiercer than those glass pieces—was directed at the Saudi military brass.
“How can you show such a pathetic rat-like display to the rebels just because the Jews whispered a bit more in your ears?!”
“We apologize. We have no excuse to offer…”
Thirty tanker trucks loaded with explosives and fuel. That suicide bombing attack had vaporized a Saudi southern border guard outpost in an instant.
“1,700 men! 1,700 turned to ash! Completely evaporated, not even bodies left!”
“We're sorry, truly sorry, Your Highness. We'll establish post-incident measures as quickly as…”
“Shut up! What measures could come out of a head like yours?!”
He must have been truly furious.
Thwack—a dull sound as Crown Prince Bin Salman struck the head of the Saudi Minister of Defense.
“Argh! Y-Your Highness…”
“You idiot!”
A bump rose on the useless head of the Minister of Defense, who was also the crown prince's cousin.
“Forget any thoughts of handling it quietly within the military like always—wipe that nonsense from your foolish skull!”
“B-But then, what should we do, Your Highness? No other ideas come to mind…”
The Minister of Defense, epitomizing the limits of a parachute drop via blood ties.
Even picked from the royal family, no real solutions emerged from his head.
“You can't even bring someone with a solution within the month?! Stuff money in their mouths if you have to—just find a countermeasure, no excuses!”
“Y-Yes, Your Highness! We humbly obey your command.”
The Minister of Defense bolted from the office like an arrow.
Ordering an attendant to fetch a new hookah, Crown Prince Bin Salman exhaled a long plume of gray smoke with a sigh.
“Maggots on bread, those guys! And after all the money I've poured in… no sign of improvement at all!”
The massive national wealth—tens, hundreds of trillions of won—drained abroad thus far.
To America, Britain, France, even Russia and China under the guise of defense spending. Not a single one in the Saudi military was worth the cost.
The only thing showing gradual results was the defense reform project with Korea's Ammunition Group.
“Whew… Until that defense reform finishes, we can't let our weak spots be exposed. What to do…?”
Saudi Arabia knew Israel backed the rebels but was powerless for now.
Thus, the crown prince pondered. Opening the window to feel the night desert wind rushing in on his face, he muttered.
“We must avoid open confrontation with Israel at all costs, and Saudi prestige can't suffer… Hmm?”
Crown Prince Bin Salman wrestling with two incompatible propositions.
As he rubbed his throbbing temples, his pants pocket buzzed.
The chain of mounting worries likely broke when those three letters on the phone screen caught his eye.
“Chairman Han Seo-jun…? This guy's timing is uncanny, as always. Just like before that big deal.”
Whenever massive issues loomed, calls from this man came like a precursor.
Inhaling the swirling anticipation like smoke, he pressed the call button.
Lacing his voice with faint expectation, he spoke first.
“Yes, it's been a while. What's up?”
-Do you know the Way, Your Highness?
Caught off-guard by the sudden cryptic question about the Way.
He'd heard this guy busted a cult, but was he starting his own now?
Clearing his throat, Crown Prince Bin Salman countered.
“…What’s that supposed to mean?”
-I'm asking because Your Highness's voice is filled with worry and concern. Has something not been going well lately?
His ears perked at the tone scratching just the right itch.
Perhaps weakened by Israel woes, he decided to vent a bit to this Korean counselor.
“Strange, it draws me in… Well, yeah. Because of those damned Jews.”
-That's all because your heart's balance is off. The heart stems from the earth, so balance the earth to resolve it.
“What…?”
The budding cult leader spouting ever more enigmatic words.
The crown prince's hazy mind fully opened only after hearing the sweetly soothing voice that followed, like sugarcane.
-I have a solution to balance the Middle East… If Your Highness shows a little sincerity, I'll ease your heart.