Master Smith Under Ministry of National Defense

Chapter 52

052 – Changing Situation

“It’s strange. The Brazilian government contacted us, saying they want to withdraw their request for gate clearing.”

“They did too?”

“The request from the Panama government to clear the gate near the canal has also been canceled. What’s going on?”

Myung-jun, who had been preparing for overseas gate clearing, was feeling bewildered as all the requests that had come to the clan were suddenly canceled.

Then, at that moment, Byung-tae burst into Myung-jun’s office.

“Leader!”

“What’s the matter?”

“Something big happened!”

“So, what is this big thing you’re talking about?”

“Oh, that… It’s hard to explain. Just watch the news for now.”

Byung-tae grabbed the remote control from Myung-jun’s desk and turned on the TV. Myung-jun raised his head and watched the screen. As he read the subtitle at the bottom of the screen, he stood up from his chair.

“What?!”

[U.S. White House Announcement: The U.S. government will actively assist in dealing with gates that occur in other countries in the future.]

The content delivered through the announcer’s mouth was even more shocking than the subtitle. The U.S. government intended to provide compensation of one million dollars for each gate to the citizens of other countries suffering due to the gate incident.

Although presented as a form of goodwill, it was a clear announcement of the U.S. government’s intention to ‘buy’ gates with money.

“If it’s like this, won’t all our plans go awry?”

Hearing Byung-tae’s worried words, Myung-jun thought to himself, ‘Certainly. This poses a problem.’

Just yesterday, the proposal to liberally clan to clear gates for free was a highly valuable offer. However, the U.S. government’s announcement suddenly turned that proposal into an act of trying to ‘devour items worth more than a billion’ in an instant.

At that moment, while Myung-jun was contemplating how to deal with the situation, he heard a signal indicating a call request in his ear.

Myung-jun touched the pattern on his desk, and the previously opaque desk turned into a screen, revealing Soo-jeong’s face.

Like Myung-jun, Soo-jeong also seemed to have heard the news and had a rather perplexed expression.

“Senior, have you heard too?”

“Yeah. Honestly, I thought they wouldn’t just sit idly by regarding our actions, but I didn’t expect them to use such blatant means.”

“Should we also buy gate-clearing rights for money?”

“At 1 billion each?”

After a brief pause, Soo-jeong tilted her head and said.

“It’s not that we can’t afford it, but I don’t think it’s a good idea. If we set the price on our side, they’ll raise it on their side. No matter how much money we have, spending that much on a Rank 1 gate is honestly inefficient. We can’t engage in a capital competition with the U.S. government.”

The problem was that Myung-jun had excessively highlighted his own value. Originally, he had intended to offer a slight advantage in gate clearing in exchange for the protection of the U.S. government. However, the situation had grown larger than what Myung-jun had anticipated.

What Myung-jun couldn’t understand was that despite having equipment that could easily clear up to Rank 3 gates, he never expected a situation like this to arise because of the equipment that can be made naturally as a production class Awakeners increased.

However, what’s done is done, and Myung-jun needed to make a decision accordingly. As the current leader of the Liberal Clan was none other than Myung-jun himself.

After a brief moment of contemplation, Myung-jun asked Soo-jeong for more information on the current situation.

“Senior.”

“Yes?”

“In my opinion, this seems to contain the intentions of the U.S. government trying to adjust our clan’s movements in the direction they desire. What do you think, Senior?”

“I agree with you. Declaring that we would clear gates for free to secure the smooth cooperation of various governments was probably a mistake.”

If they had requested a fee in exchange for gate clearance, some countries’ requests might have been difficult to accept, but at least the other side would have understood that they were after money. Myung-jun’s excessive showcasing of the large amount of materials and crystals obtained during gate clearing was now exposed.

Myung-jun continued the discussion while reflecting on his recent extravagant actions.

“What do they want on the other side? Are the of 100 sets of Rank 3 Awakener equipment not enough?”

“What they want the most is for Myung-jun to become a U.S. citizen with the clan members, like the offer received through my mother. It would be better if you joined the government, and the U.S. government would have exclusive usage rights for the products you create.”

“At this point, that’s like saying we have nuclear weapons all by ourselves. I’m not exactly looking for that.”

“I know that. That’s why I declined the offer received through my mother. However, now that the rights to gates have gone to the other side, we need to offer a better card than what the U.S. government can provide to secure gates.”

“A better card…”

“Oh, and I’ve scheduled a meeting with the Chinese government as requested before. They want to meet this afternoon.”

“China… What do you think their intentions are?”

“The most likely scenario is that, like the proposal from the U.S. government, China wants you to come under the banner of the Chinese Communist Party.”

“They must know I’ll decline, right?”

“I don’t know. The Chinese government has a huge say in these matters. They might be planning to offer an ‘outrageous’ sum that makes no sense.”

“But there are quite a few people who went to China, tempted by an ‘outrageous’ sum and ended up being chased out to Korea after having all their knowledge stolen.”

“Well, we should still listen to what they have to say. To secure a large number of Awakeners as you planned, cooperation with the Chinese government might be the quickest way.”

Soo-jeong’s words did have some merit.

If the Chinese Communist Party, with its over one billion population, actively started cultivating Awakeners, it might be possible to secure Awakeners of a level that could safely pass D-Day.

Myung-jun continued to ponder his response to the actions of the U.S. government and proceeded with the meeting with the Communist Party.

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* Read at ILC Translation *

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“I am Song Yeon-bi, assigned to the Records Department of the Central Military Commission under the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. I am thrilled to meet the sensational figure, Mr. Cha Myung-jun.”

The delegate from China was a young beauty who stood like a model. Furthermore, she spoke fluent Korean, indistinguishable from a native Korean. While she was sent and handpicked by the Chinese Communist Party to make Myung-jun feel at ease, Myung-jun was even more cautious because of that.

‘Sure, she’s pretty, but…’

Myung-jun gazed at Song Yeon-bi, who was facing him, but he slightly turned his head due to the cold gaze he felt from behind. Soo-jeong, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed, was glaring at Song Yeon-bi with intense eyes.

‘In this situation, it’s not very senior-like to target that woman instead of me.’

Myung-jun asked Byung-tae to ease the atmosphere.

“Byung-tae, could you please bring some tea?”

At that, Byung-tae nodded, got up without a word, and went out. Song Yeon-bi, who was watching, glanced at where Soo-jeong was and said to Myung-jun.

“Isn’t it usually the woman who prepares the tea in these cases?”

“We have a ranking system. I am the leader, and the most beautiful woman in the world here is our clan’s number 2.”

Song Yeon-bi, who realized the intention behind Myung-jun’s words, smiled pretty and joked.

“Oh, do you think I was sent here to seduce Mr. Cha because I’m in the beauty business for the Communist Party?”

“The use of beauty by the Communist Party is a well-known story, so it’s not much of a secret. Whether it’s true or not, it doesn’t matter. Even if such an intention exists, it won’t work.”

“Indeed, with such a beautiful lover by your side, it’s impossible to tempt anyone else, right?”

“So, let’s skip building friendships and talk about business quickly. We have to address the issue of the gate monopoly strategy announced by the White House this time. We are extremely busy.”

“The announcement from the U.S. government is that they will pay $1 million per gate, isn’t it? We find it an absurd announcement even from our side. I don’t know if you are aware, but in light of the gate situation that all of humanity must overcome, we’ve issued a stern warning against the U.S. government’s hegemony of seeking benefits alone.”

“Whether they hold the hegemony or the benefits, I don’t care. I’m only taking action to deal with what I want to do. That applies to the Chinese government and the Korean government as well.”

“However, isn’t the Liberal Clan a private company under the Korean government?”

“We’re a global company. Just because we are geographically located in Korea, if the Awakening Law, which is up for a vote in the National Assembly, is passed, we will be subject to a different law than the existing Korean law.”

“We have also reviewed that Law. However, if the Chinese government actively supports the activities of the Liberal Clan, are you considering moving your headquarters to China?”

“Is that a scouting proposal?”

“You may think of it that way. However, even though I don’t know what benefits you received from the Korean government, I can promise you that if you cooperate with our Communist Party, you will receive support of a completely different nature than what you can get from other countries. It’s not just at the level of applying a new law but the possibility of granting super-legal authority that surpasses the law entirely.”

“What would you want in return?”

“Provision of military power to protect the people and the party from awakening forces that will grow in other countries in the future. Also, an exclusive usage right for the technology you possess.”

Upon hearing her story, Myung-jun stood up abruptly and extended his hand in the direction of the door.

“I’ve heard enough. The exit is over there.”

“Aren’t you going to hear more?”

“I’ve already thought about it, and I’ve made my decision.”

“No, I believe Mr. Myung-jun hasn’t understood the true value hidden in my offer. Think about it. The current Liberal Clan is in isolation. While the Korean government, which should be nurturing Awakeners, will have no control over a private entity like the Liberal Clan, it won’t even pay the budget for acquiring gate rights abroad with taxes. In addition, the recently formed Liberal Clan that is created by the greed of the U.S. government is zero in terms of winning against its self-interest.”

She was saying that due to the nature of the Communist Party that could freely adjust the budget according to the party’s intentions, if Myung-jun wanted, he could block the U.S. government from buying gate rights with money. She argued that it was possible to go beyond the application of law to the super-legal authority.

“While the U.S. government has more money, they cannot call for an unlimited high price for lower-rank gates, as their budget must be approved by Congress. However, we can pour as much capital as needed.”

Furthermore, she stated that all the rights for the conquest of numerous gates currently occurring in the vast Chinese territory would be granted to the Liberal Clan. All the Awakeners belonging to the People’s Republic of China would obey Myung-jun’s orders, and a seat right next to the Chairman of the Party would be established for Myung-jun.

That was the card she brought to persuade Myung-jun. It was an overwhelming power held by the Communist Party regime, which had absolute control that could annihilate tens of millions of its own citizens with a single word.

And she had confidence in the efficacy of that card. Given the current situation, the Liberal Clan was in a crisis due to the gate trading issue caused by the greed of the U.S. government, which was difficult to rely on the Korean government for help.

Gate trading caused by greed.

‘A proposal to give absolute power that no one can shake in a situation where it is difficult to expect help from the Korean government and is being swayed by the U.S. government. It’s rare to find a man who can refuse this.’

However, there was one thing she didn’t know, the man in front of her was Myung-jun. A man who had been trapped underground under the Ministry of National Defense for over 30 years, unable to even complete his military service. A man who had finally found his freedom after all those years of imprisonment.

This was the true identity of the man before her.

“In this current situation, the fact is I can’t achieve what I want.”

“Yes?”

“Moreover, as you mentioned, there is also the situation where the U.S. government is trying to monopolize the gates located overseas.”

“The issue we want to resolve is exactly that. If you accept this proposal, no matter what it takes, we will safely relocate all members of the Liberal Clan and their families to the Chinese mainland.”

Almost believing she had overcome it, Song Yeon-bi started urging Myung-jun with a smile on her face. However, Myung-jun’s response to her proposal was completely different from what she expected.

“However, I will decline.”

“What? Why?”

“First of all, you’re mistaken about one thing. Of course, it’s true that the gate reward proposal from the White House has blocked the Liberal Clan’s future plans. However, if the other side tries to monopolize the gate conquest rights with money, then we have something far more valuable to offer. Whether it’s 1 billion or 10 billion, providing this card feels like a much bigger advantage than receiving that money.”

“What in the world…?”

“Let’s say something like this, for example.”

Myung-jun reached out his hand and received a tablet from Su-jeong, who was standing behind him. Then, he showed the tablet screen to Song Yeon-bi.

“What is this?!”

“This is the Liberal Clan’s counterattack against the U.S. government’s gate compensation strategy.”

Myung-jun showed the tablet screen to her. It contained the new compensation plan that the Liberal Clan had renewed in response to the U.S. government’s gate compensation strategy.

[The Liberal Clan, when requesting gate conquests, will provide awakener equipment exclusively for Rank 3 or higher monsters materials, regardless of the gate rank.]

At that moment, Soo-jeong tapped her ear and then tapped Myung-jun’s shoulder. Then, in a clear voice that Song Yeon-bi could hear as well, she spoke to Myung-jun.

“Myung-jun. The White House contacted us.”

“What did they say?”

“They want to talk to you ‘right now.'”

Myung-jun chuckled and stood up. Then, he looked at Song Yeon-bi, who was looking at him with a lost expression, and said with a wicked smile.

“Well, since it has come to this, go back to China and deliver the message. We have absolutely no intention of accepting their proposal.”

This was the moment when a newly established private company, not even a week old, showed its strength by completely outmaneuvering the two most powerful governments in the world and regaining control.

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