Dictator From Outer Space
Chapter 56: The Price of Terrorism

“From now on, we will be responsible for your safety.”

“Ah, thank you. I appreciate it.”

The black-suited men who surrounded Yu Jiha had been replaced by a new group.

They were elite agents sent by the National Intelligence Service to guard him around the clock.

It was President Jo Hyunggeun’s decision to prevent any possible threats from China, which had become more visible and hostile.

“Well, I’m grateful, but…”

As long as Arma was with him, there was no chance of a terrorist attack.

Even if dozens of fully armed special forces were sent, they would not be able to touch a single hair on his head.

And China would not resort to such a low-level attack that could be handled by these agents.

Arma reported his assessment of the terrorist possibility.

「The likelihood of an attack using an aircraft is low. They will probably send many operatives instead」

“Why not use an aircraft? It’s a pretty effective method. And we’re close to China.”

「Because they are not sure if they can kill you for certain. China wants to destroy what they cannot have.」

“They’re dangerous bastards.”

But he could not tell if they would actually do it.

However, Arma warned that the risk of terrorism was higher than ever.

「They could infiltrate operatives disguised as Korean-Chinese and smuggle weapons through fishing boats. Then they could send more than ten armed operatives to Seoul」

“The Korean Coast Guard is not that incompetent.”

「What if China sends hundreds of fishing boats to distract them?」

That would be risky.

Chinese fishing boats were notorious for appearing in the West Sea, South Sea and East Sea, and sweeping up even the smallest fish.

If they showed up, the Coast Guard would have to mobilize most of their available forces, and naturally neglect the surveillance of the fishermen.

But Yu Jiha was not worried.

“You have to capture them alive, understand?”

「Leave it to me」

He was more interested in the consequences of the terrorism than the terrorism itself.

China would have to pay a price, and so would the United States, which had put him in danger against his will.

His life was not cheap.

The airports in Korea had strengthened their security checks recently.

As the war atmosphere in Northeast Asia intensified, the authorities locked down the gates.

It became harder to get a visa, and naturally there were fewer travelers.

Nevertheless, there were many foreigners coming and going at Incheon Airport.

They were workers preparing for the farming season.

The rural areas of Korea could not function without foreigners, so the authorities easily granted permission if they had several records of entry and exit.

Thus, five Taliban members who had forged their identities as Pakistanis entered the country.

They did not contact the labor agency at all, but ran away and hid.

Around the same time, more than ten Chinese operatives disguised as Korean-Chinese also entered the country.

―Two hundred Chinese fishing boats have appeared in the West Sea. Our Coast Guard has deployed.

As the Coast Guard became busy, the surveillance of ordinary fishermen became lax.

This was when a clandestine trade took place.

They received bags containing weapons from one boat to another on the sea.

It would have been impossible under the Coast Guard’s watch, but the special situation of two hundred Chinese fishing boats made it possible.

That’s how fifteen people armed with pistols, submachine guns and improvised explosives entered Seoul.

Five of them were bait to divert attention, and the real ones were ten operatives.

The operatives were all elites from the Special Snow Leopard Assault Team, with fierce eyes and sturdy physiques.

“We enter while the bait distracts the police. Kill him at all costs. Double-tap him after killing him. Then kill him again.”

“Yes.”

Their only goal was to assassinate Yu Jiha.

If he died, there would be a huge setback in producing Black Metal or Unobtanium, and all kinds of projects he was pushing forward would be halted.

But China’s leaders did not care about that.

―Yu Ji-ha is a traitor who cannot join us in our Chinese dream. It’s better to destroy what we can’t have. Kill him no matter what.

But they made a mistake.

Yu Ji-ha was not an ordinary person.

The ten or so NIS agents were one thing, but he always had Arma, an android, by his side.

He had formidable firepower himself, but he could also mobilize Sibiri orbital support satellite and Settler ship in case of emergency.

And Yu Ji-ha himself had a superhuman body.

He would not die even if he was shot several times, except in the head, and it was hard to hit him.

Anyway, the fifteen operatives succeeded in entering Seoul, passing through various checkpoints.

The NIS agents received data from the CCTV control center and monitored the surroundings, but they did not pay attention to them.

It was common to see foreign workers in groups on a farming season bus, wearing shabby clothes and rubber shoes.

They avoided suspicion by openly showing their poor appearance.

That’s how the fifteen operatives arrived near the headquarters of Shilla Group.

The Sibiri satellite detected them.

..

Bang!

A building near the headquarters of Shilla Group exploded, sending out a loud noise and flames.

“What’s going on? What is this?”

“Aaaah!”

As the citizens screamed and evacuated, the agents set up ropes between the buildings.

It was 11 p.m.

The moonlight was hidden by the clouds and some streetlights were also broken, making the surroundings quite dark.

Sirens blared as police cars arrived, but the agents did not encounter any interference and crossed over to Silla Group.

“The target is working in that light. Watch out for motion detectors and don’t leave any traces.”

Yu Ji-ha often worked late at night with the lights on.

He was known as the chairman who left the office last, but today he became a good target.

The agents successfully infiltrated the building right in front of them, avoiding the security guards’ eyes.

“Set up the ascenders.”

They were non-powered, so they required a lot of strength, but they were essential for climbing up in one breath without breaking through the front door.

In an instant, the agents reached the third floor and set up another rope to climb up to the upper floor.

Finally, the 11th floor.

Yu Ji-ha’s office was nearby.

“The target is in the inner chairman’s room. There will be Korean agents blocking the way. Kill them all.”

As the team leader instructed, they all unclipped their flashbangs and took out their weapons.

Everything was perfect so far.

All they had to do now was throw an improvised explosive device to distract the agents and enter the chairman’s room.

But the agents did not know.

A drone that had climbed up to the 11th floor in the meantime was watching them.

And that it had a flashbang provided by the National Intelligence Service stored in its lower body.

Pop.

A clear sound was heard and the window shattered.

The startled agents quickly turned around and almost at the same time, the flashbang exploded.

Boom!

The flash and noise that exploded in front of their noses were not something that could be blocked by sunglasses and earplugs.

The agents were trained to get out of panic as quickly as possible in such situations, but their opponents were too bad.

Several drones that appeared out of nowhere broke through the window and charged at them.

Pew pew pew!

“Ugh!”

No one was fine when a metal lump weighing several kilograms hit their head.

The agents who were staggering from the shock of the flashbang were knocked down by the drones’ attack.

If the blades had not stopped, some of them would have definitely gone to hell.

Beep―!

A loud horn sounded and National Intelligence Service agents arrived at the scene.

They saw the agents tangled up and ran in with a pale face.

“These bastards have guns!”

“Disarm them! Shoot them if you have to!”

The agents were supposed to bite a poison capsule they had with them if they failed.

But they missed their chance to commit suicide because they were mostly knocked out by the joint operation of flashbangs and drones.

One who barely regained consciousness also had his jaw broken by a kick from a National Intelligence Service agent as he rushed in.

“Kuh!”

The alarm rang and several police cars entered the headquarters with loud sirens.

And Yu Ji-ha watched all this from his office with Arma.

“They’re too sloppy. Didn’t they think there would be drones?”

“It would be hard to think that there were flashbangs attached to those drones.”

“Well, this country doesn’t allow individuals to arm themselves anyway.”

Anyway, the situation was over.

The team leader came in and reported to Yu Ji-ha.

“We captured 10 terrorists alive. We’ll have to interrogate them, but they seem to be Chinese agents disguised as Koreans.”

“Oh, that was dangerous. Thank you very much for your hard work.”

“Thank you. We’ll go back to monitoring the area.”

The team leader slightly tilted his head at Yu Ji-ha’s calm attitude.

He thought he was too composed for someone who almost got killed, but he wasn’t an ordinary person anyway.

He was a person who could have a private meeting with VIPs anytime and who received frequent calls from foreign high-ranking officials.

The team leader gave some instructions on the radio and went outside.

He heard the police coming up noisily.

Yu Ji-ha asked Arma.

“Did you say the ones who played the bait role this time were Taliban?”

“They are a terrorist group that took over Afghanistan a few years ago. They are backed by China and armed with a distorted version of Islamic extremism.”

“Weren’t they the ones who tried to hijack a plane before?”

“They received an order from China. They can’t run a country with drugs.”

“Let’s blow them up later and what about the Chinese side? Did you say they were the assault team of Xuebiao?”

“We confirmed their headquarters location.”

“Let’s blow them all up too. The commander as well.”

Arma didn’t know who gave the order.

So Yu Ji-ha’s order meant to kill all the leaders.

Even if they killed them, the attack on Taiwan would proceed as planned.

If they stopped now, China would face a disaster, and the soldiers knew that too.

A mining ship that was working in the asteroid belt sent an asteroid at Arma’s command.

A 50m-diameter, 30,000-ton asteroid headed for Earth.

…

The dawn broke and the whole story of the terror was revealed to the media.

From the unidentified explosion to the agents who infiltrated Silla Group’s headquarters building, everything was exposed.

The Blue House spokesman came out and briefed.

“…As such, the terror targeting Silla Group’s chairman Yu Ji-ha failed, and the police authorities have captured many agents alive. The mastermind behind the incident is currently being verified.”

The reporters rose like a swarm of bees.

“Is it true that all the agents are East Asians?”

“Isn’t there only one country that would target Yu Ji-ha?”

“We are keeping all possibilities open and investigating.”

The spokesman briefly answered and left Chunghwa Hall.

In fact, the police knew who was behind this incident.

It was China.

But it was difficult to announce this fact.

If they revealed the terror and provoked China, the nuclear threat could become a reality.

“Are they really trying to start a war?”

President Jo Hyung-geun raged, but his aides persuaded him.

“You have to think realistically. The whole world knows that China is behind this, but only the US, Russia, and India are criticizing them.”

They all had something in common: they were countries that could oppose China and had nuclear weapons.

“China is not in its right mind right now. It’s war soon, do you think they care about our criticism?”

“Their power is divided, so it’s unclear who is in charge of the second artillery corps. Even if a nuclear missile is launched, we don’t know who to hold accountable.”

They were all true and also infuriating words.

China was aiming for this effect by committing terror.

There was nothing Korea could do realistically.

They were neither a nuclear power nor a superpower, but a country with an awkward status.

The government did its best, but South Koreans knew very well who was behind this incident.

―China tried to kill Yu Ji-ha Jiha!

―Expel them all! Cut ties with China!

Anti-China sentiment exploded again after the kidnapping incident.

Protests broke out everywhere and Chinese people who could afford it quickly left Korea.

But most of the Chinese people, including Koreans of Chinese descent, did not have that luxury.

If they had stayed quiet, the protests would have died down soon without replaceing a place to vent their anger.

But the Chinese people who remained in Korea were reckless.

―Do you have any evidence that we did it?

―Don’t mess with us! South Korea is over if one nuclear bomb falls on Seoul!

They shouted like that and clashed with the protesters.

After a fierce fight and knife fight, people with serious injuries appeared.

The police rushed in, but they couldn’t stop their fight.

Collisions like this occurred everywhere in Seoul and dozens of ambulances roamed the streets.

―The chinks are using violence in someone else’s country!

Once ignited, anti-China sentiment did not subside easily.

The protests that started in Seoul spread to the metropolitan area and then to Busan and Incheon.

Wherever people gathered, there was no place where they didn’t curse China.

The media kept reporting on restraint, but they got scolded for being chinks too.

The chief of police, the Blue House spokesman, and even the president’s press conference failed to calm down people’s anger.

There was only one person who could calm down this situation.

Yu Ji-ha.

He volunteered to hold a press conference in front of Gwanghwamun.

It was Arma’s idea to put a splint on his uninjured arm and wrap a bandage around it, and it was very effective.

Tens of thousands of people who mistook him for being injured by the terror chanted his name.

―Yu Ji-ha! Yu Ji-ha!

At this moment, Yu Jihwa was the idol and spiritual pillar of the entire nation.

He grabbed the microphone.

“Hello, citizens. I’m Yu Ji-ha. I was attacked by a clear enemy, but I was able to get out of the crisis thanks to many of you.”

“Finding the mastermind behind the terror is of course important. We must replace them and hold them accountable. But there is something more important than that. It’s power.”

“Don’t you get angry at the government? Do you know why the media are hushing up? It’s because we have no power.”

“Citizens, the world today is run by the logic of power. You may remember that Japan imposed an injunction on my company. I was cornered until I was kidnapped, and I was also subjected to unfair sanctions by the EU. And just yesterday, I was in a life-threatening situation.”

“All of this is because we have no power. We can no longer suffer humiliation. We must not pass on this painful history to future generations. To do that, we need power more than anything else.”

If he had heard this normally, he would have been scolded for talking nonsense.

But the reality that South Korea faced, Yu Ji-ha’s wounded appearance, ignited the lump in people’s hearts.

Yu Ji-ha raised his voice.

“Please help me. I will be with you, citizens. I will help South Korea gain power.”

If there was a presidential election right now, Yu Jihwa would have gotten the most overwhelming votes in South Korean history.

He came down from the temporary podium and many people surrounded him.

“Oppa!”

“Bro! Take me!”

“Thank you, thank you.”

Yu Ji-ha Jiha shook hands with each person and started walking down Gwanghwamun Street.

Tens of thousands followed him, shouting his name.