Chapter 49: Why the NIS Watches the “Most Important Person in the Republic of Korea” Around the Clock
Violent Crimes Unit, Pyeongtaek Police Station, Gyeonggi Province.
“Who is that student?”
Even late at night, Detective Oh was still looking through Ryu Hyesung’s case file when the youngest detective approached and asked.
“You know, the one we questioned before. The factory explosion involving undocumented foreigners.”
“Oh, the student the Blue House told us to release?”
“Yeah. I thought he was a second-generation chaebol heir, but he doesn’t even have parents. He’s a strange kid.”
“Really?”
“How the hell did he make this much money?”
Detective Oh stared intently at Ryu Hyesung’s photograph with suspicious eyes.
“Maybe he won the lottery.”
“Hey, even if you won the lottery, you could never build a factory like that. Do you think it’s some apartment in Seoul?”
He looked at the youngest detective in disbelief.
“But why are you looking into him? Did you find something strange?”
“It’s suspicious. The case was closed this quickly, and the higher-ups are making a fuss about burying it.... I need to investigate.”
“Come on, don’t. Didn’t the Commissioner General order us to drop it immediately?”
“Hey, who said I was doing anything? I’m just going to take a quick look at the factory and see whether anything unusual is going on. Who knows? Maybe they’re making drugs in there.”
Detective Oh, known as the Mad Dog of the Violent Crimes Unit, sprang to his feet and casually grabbed the jacket hanging over his chair.
“I’m heading out. Keep an eye on the office.”
“Yes, sir.”
Development Lab No. 2 at Science Facility’s Factory No. 2.
The H-02P, once pure white, lay on the workbench with black scorch marks covering its body.
“So this is the machine everyone has been talking about.”
The President spoke with admiration as he ran his hand over the traces of the fierce battle.
“With performance at this level, it goes far beyond simply replacing infantry. The moment a single unit enters a battlefield, it could completely reverse the course of the fighting in that entire area.”
The Minister of National Defense spoke with an expression of disbelief.
“The Ministry of National Defense will purchase it immediately.”
He looked eager to acquire it.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t make another one.”
At my words, the heated atmosphere cooled as though cold water had been poured over it.
“It’s a prototype. An experimental unit designed solely for performance.”
“Will the mass-produced version have lower specifications, CEO Ryu?”
The President asked regretfully.
“Yes. The raw production cost of this one unit was approximately one hundred billion won.”
“One hundred billion won.... Isn’t that almost the price of a modern stealth fighter?”
The Minister of National Defense looked stunned.
“That is extremely expensive, especially considering that is only the raw production cost.”
They were well aware that the weapons I made included almost no research and development expenses.
“The mass-produced model will be made with more affordable and appropriate specifications.”
As someone running a business, I had little choice.
“Even so, I’m confident it will become a game changer on the battlefield.”
“I look forward to it. The Republic of Korea desperately needs this weapon.”
The Minister of National Defense clasped both my hands tightly and spoke earnestly.
“However, Hyesung, regarding this weapon....”
The pleasant atmosphere lasted only briefly before the President’s smile disappeared and he spoke seriously.
“At the government level... I believe this white unit must be designated a national strategic weapon.”
“What?”
If the government designated it a strategic weapon, it meant legal restrictions would be placed on it.
“Does that mean I can’t demonstrate or sell it to other countries?”
“I’m sorry.... Can you understand? The lower-performance mass-produced version should be acceptable, but this unit will likely be designated an asymmetric strategic weapon.”
That was not welcome news from my perspective.
Without showing off this overwhelmingly powerful unit as bait, how was I supposed to sell the mass-produced version at a high price? I also needed wealthy buyers willing to guarantee large advance orders before I could prepare the enormous production line.
“If you completely classify it and keep it hidden, it will seriously interfere with the mass-production plan....”
“That is why the Ministry of National Defense has decided to purchase one hundred units in advance as an initial deposit. What do you think?”
The President offered the proposal gently, as though trying to placate me.
“An initial order of one hundred units... Honestly, that is a little too small for my liking. If that is your position, then at least permit limited demonstrations for countries designated as top-priority allies.”
“Do you mean the United States?”
“No. I mean the biggest customers that purchase the most South Korean weapons.”
“Poland and India?”
“That’s right.”
“...Understood. I will make a special exception for them.”
That was a reasonably satisfactory deal. The VIP countries that would sweep up our weapons in bulk had already been decided anyway.
Underground strategic conference room at the Kremlin, Moscow, Russia.
The projection screen displayed photographs of Ryu Hyesung, Blue CL-20 explosion tests, humanoid robots, reconnaissance drones, and even a blurry photograph of an unidentified new white machine.
“Are you serious, Professor Sokolov?”
The Russian Minister of Defense asked with difficulty understanding.
“About South Korea becoming the hegemonic power of East Asia—no, of the entire world?”
“It is difficult to believe. A small country surrounded on all sides by great powers becoming something like that.”
The Director of Russia’s Federal Security Service also looked incredulous.
(Translator’s Note:Federal Security Service — Russia’s principal domestic-security and counterintelligence agency, commonly abbreviated as FSB. It was established in 1995 as one of the main successor organizations to the Soviet KGB.)
“Perhaps that is exactly why it could become a hegemonic power.”
Professor Sokolov snapped the report shut.
“Because of its abnormally difficult geopolitical position, its people have struggled every hour of every day to survive. There is nothing strange about it.”
“Even so....”
“South Korea was once poorer than North Korea. When you think about it now, doesn’t that seem impossible too?”
Many foreigners believed South Korea had always been wealthy.
“The appearance of that young man on the screen has merely accelerated the process.”
Sokolov looked at Hyesung on the screen with reverence in his eyes.
“That young man is a god....”
“Professor, could you stop clasping your hands together every time that young man comes up? It looks disturbing.”
“....”
As though he had not even heard the Minister’s rebuke, Sokolov continued staring at Ryu Hyesung in a daze.
“In any case, the President at the Kremlin also chose the path of becoming friendly with South Korea because of your opinion, Professor Sokolov.”
“Of course. It is a wise decision. There is no need to commit the foolishness of opposing the nation of a god.”
Russia began making serious efforts to become a friendly nation of South Korea.
However, because of South Korea’s firm military alliance with the United States, a delicate diplomatic balancing act began in which Russia and South Korea found it difficult to openly grow close.
Office of the Second Deputy Director of the National Intelligence Service, Naegok-dong, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Deputy Director Jang Seokjin did not hide his displeased expression as he read the report.
“Who is this Detective Oh, and why is he trying to dig into a case that has already been closed?”
Because Ryu Hyesung was already under continuous VIP protection and surveillance around the clock, word of Detective Oh’s investigation quickly reached the NIS.
“He is known as the Mad Dog of the Violent Crimes Unit. Apparently, ever since he watched the movie The Outlaws, he has been going around acting like that.”
(Translator’s Note:The Outlaws — A 2017 South Korean crime-action film directed by Kang Yoon-sung and starring Ma Dongseok as the physically formidable detective Ma Seokdo. The film was inspired by police operations against Chinese-Korean criminal gangs in Seoul.)
An agent from the NIS Security Investigation Bureau had already investigated even his personal tendencies.
“Does he think he’s Ma Dongseok? Well, he does look like a pig.”
(Translator’s Note:Ma Dongseok — A Korean-American actor also known internationally as Don Lee. Born in 1971, he is known for physically imposing action roles in works such as Train to Busan and The Outlaws.)
“Should we give him a warning?”
“Make it clear. Tell him not to bother my son-in-law... No, our valuable person.”
“Yes, understood.”
The NIS had begun personally intervening in the movements of the police officer pursuing Hyesung.
Office at Science Facility’s Factory No. 2.
“Wow, what is this? It looks like computer screens are floating in the air.”
Ian smiled brightly while wearing the glasses I had given her.
“They’re AI glasses. I made them recently. Make sure you wear them.”
“I don’t need glasses. My eyesight is pretty good.... But I’ll wear them since you gave them to me.”
When she smiled brightly, it felt as though the entire factory lit up.
“Ian, you really are the prettiest person I’ve ever—”
Bang.
At that moment, the office door was thrown open.
“You can’t just barge in here like this!”
Taeju blocked the man, but the difference in their builds made it look hopeless.
“Come on, I only want to conduct a brief investigation. Just an investigation.”
“Huh? Hello. Detective Oh, why are you here...?”
His sudden appearance left even me flustered.
“Oh, so you’re CEO Ryu Hyesung. You were on a date, huh? Wow, she’s incredibly beautiful. Is she a celebrity?”
He began behaving rudely, like some detective from a movie.
However, that behavior did not last long.
“Detective Oh Taesik? That is enough.”
Men in suits suddenly rushed in and roughly restrained both of Detective Oh’s arms.
The office, which had been filled with a rosy atmosphere between Ian and me only moments earlier, suddenly turned into the set of a gritty gangster-detective noir film.
“What the hell? Who are you people?”
“We’re from the National Intelligence Service.”
They pulled identification cards from inside their jackets and showed them.
“They’re real. But why is the NIS after me? I’m a police officer.”
“We can discuss the details outside.”
“No, I’m a detective! Wait a minute.”
Detective Oh tried to throw them off roughly, as though he were some gangster detective, but it was useless.
The NIS field agents were genuine human weapons with monstrous physiques.
“What the hell? Why are your bodies so hard?”
“Stop resisting and come with us.”
The office nearly descended into chaos, but the situation was cleanly resolved in an instant.
After the storm had passed, Ian asked in a daze,
“Hyesung, what just happened?”
“I don’t know.... I’m not really sure either.”
Interrogation room of the National Intelligence Service Security Investigation Bureau, Naegok-dong, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Across from an NIS counterintelligence officer, Detective Oh, the Mad Dog of the Violent Crimes Unit, sat completely cowed, like a criminal.
“I only went there to investigate. What right does the NIS have to arrest and detain a detective of the Republic of Korea?”
“What right did you have to enter that factory without a warrant or anything else? You should know that ordinary people cannot simply enter a defense contractor’s facilities. Haven’t you watched too many movies?”
“No, it just seemed suspicious....”
“So if somewhere seems suspicious, you’ll barge into a military base, the Blue House, and everywhere else too?”
“No... that’s not what I meant....”
“Would you rather go behind bars for violating the National Security Act, or quietly return to your office?”
“Who exactly is that student for you to go this far?”
“That student you look down on is currently the most important person in the Republic of Korea.”
“What? Why?”
“Haa.... Stop showing off and live quietly from now on. Understood?”
A chill ran down Detective Oh’s spine at the NIS officer’s cold words.
For a moment, he almost imagined that he might disappear into the sea without a trace, just like in a movie.
“Yes, I’m sorry for acting out! I’ll personally apologize to that student too.”
“No. Just make sure you never appear in front of him again.”
“Ah, yes! Understood.”
That day, Detective Oh Taesik learned a painful lesson.
There was a special existence in the Republic of Korea that could not be explained through common sense.