Ch.199199. Kyushu (2)

News from Japan naturally reached Seorabeol.

After all, the Japanese market was one of Seorabeol’s important markets, and Seorabeol was also a major client of Japan.

So the fact that Japan was preparing for war had already reached the ears of the Seorabeol cabinet.

“North Korea is one thing, but Fukuoka City has gone all-in on reclaiming Kyushu.”

“We can’t move carelessly on this. Is there any request from Fukuoka City?”

Prime Minister Hwang Geun-chul, the head of the cabinet, began contemplating what stance Seorabeol should take regarding the current situation in Japan.

Fukuoka was one of their largest trading partners, and Seorabeol imported a significant amount of food from Fukuoka. A misstep could lead to a reduction in food imports due to war.

So he first asked if there was any message from Fukuoka directed at Seorabeol, and the answer was:

“Yes, Your Excellency. Fukuoka City is requesting a steady supply of weapons. They said they would pay for the weapons with goods.”

“Weapon supplies, huh.”

It was a message asking for Seorabeol’s help as Fukuoka’s ally.

Of course, none of this support was free. Fukuoka promised to pay for the weapons with goods, but whether this payment would actually be settled was anyone’s guess.

Fukuoka’s goods consisted of rice and daily necessities, and since all these items depended on this year’s harvest, they might end up as unpaid debt.

But this was just considering Fukuoka as a single city.

“Well now. This is a fight for the fate of a nation. If they reclaim Kyushu, they should be able to settle all their debts to us.”

If they could reclaim all of Kyushu and become the ruler of the region, they would certainly be able to pay off their debts to Seorabeol.

With the industrial base and wealth remaining in the city, it was indeed possible to settle the debts owed to Seorabeol.

Moreover, if they didn’t repay all these debts immediately but negotiated the repayment method with Seorabeol, even a city the size of Fukuoka could arrange the means for repayment.

In other words, even in the worst-case scenario, one could assume that Seorabeol would help prevent Fukuoka from going bankrupt.

“What’s the stance of Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hyeon-a from the Ministry of Planning and Finance?”

“She’s going wild with excitement. It’s a golden opportunity to make a lot of money economically.”

However, this proposal wasn’t just beneficial for Fukuoka alone.

It could clearly be a significant help to Seorabeol’s economy. Hwang Geun-chul, unfazed by Takashima Shiro’s initiation of the Kyushu unification operation, first inquired about the status of Lee Hyeon-a, who belonged to the Ministry of Planning and Finance. His aide replied that she was ecstatic about Fukuoka’s situation and going wild with excitement.

From her perspective, this was essentially a windfall for Seorabeol, and considering the amount of supplies consumed in war, this wasn’t far from the truth.

Wars in other countries could bring significant benefits to neighboring neutral or allied nations, and Seorabeol could gradually acquire parts of Japan’s economy as spoils just by selling supplies.

“I thought as much.”

Above all, industrial products and rice produced in Kyushu were items that sold well in Seorabeol.

Recently, they had been trying to collaborate with the private sector to develop Seorabeol’s granary areas to reduce dependence on foreign food, but until now, they had been relying on the United States for most of their food. To reduce this dependence, Seorabeol had been importing rice from Japan.

The current trade structure of Seorabeol involved importing Japanese rice to reduce dependence on the US, while simultaneously selling magical weapons to Japan for a tidy profit.

But with the outbreak of war, Japanese rice might not come in smoothly.

“I guess we’ll have to increase trade with Vietnam and Indonesia. If Fukuoka gets caught up in war, their production will decrease significantly.”

He considered increasing the trade volume with the other two allied countries that had agreements through international organizations.

In fact, Japan had become the largest trading partner mainly due to proximity, but Seorabeol’s trading partners weren’t limited to just Japan or the United States.

As if to prove that Bahamut’s international diplomatic activities weren’t meaningless, they had established exchanges with Hanoi in Vietnam and Java in Indonesia, and these trades were still ongoing.

“They promised to pay with goods, but…”

“That’s unlikely to be kept. Haven’t we experienced this before? War consumes a lot of food and resources. Especially in the current situation where supplies can’t be provided locally, the resources consumed will be enormous.”

Moreover, Seorabeol, having experienced war in this apocalypse, believed that territory couldn’t be reclaimed quickly.

Even if they attacked with momentum, the undead wouldn’t surrender out of fear, and looters who didn’t want a regional ruler would certainly interfere covertly.

This meant…

“If they had all of Kyushu, there wouldn’t be a problem. But the area Fukuoka currently holds is only about 1/3 of Kyushu. The resources produced from that much territory are limited.”

The resources produced in Fukuoka alone couldn’t provide all the supplies needed for the Kyushu reclamation operation.

“Then…”

“The deficient amount will be produced by Seorabeol, and all of this will become debt for the Fukuoka government. But from Seorabeol’s perspective, this is a good thing. The ability to incur debt means we can have a say in the future Fukuoka regime.”

If that’s the case, Seorabeol would have to fill in the deficient parts, and all those supplies would become debt for the Fukuoka government.

But from the perspective of expanding Seorabeol’s overseas influence, they might even want to impose more debt on Fukuoka.

“Are you thinking of securing interests?”

“Yes. When it’s at its lowest point, it’s an opportunity to buy Japanese interests. How can we miss this? Show me the list of supplies the Fukuoka government wants.”

“Understood.”

At this point, Japanese interests were at their lowest, and this low point could be seen as a golden opportunity to rebound and receive greater rewards.

Hwang Geun-chul decided to support Fukuoka and requested a list of supplies demanded by Takashima Shiro.

“The supplies Takashima Shiro requested… as expected, weapons and clothing.”

“Yes. He especially requested a lot of combat uniforms to safely protect the bodies of the Awakened. He said Bahamut Bullets are expensive.”

As expected, he requested clothing to protect the body and weapons to hunt the undead.

But the main item Takashima Shiro requested was none other than combat uniforms.

He prioritized the distribution of combat uniforms over weapons.

“Well, Bahamut Bullets are expensive from their perspective. How’s the status of the Ulsan front? Is it intense?”

Hwang Geun-chul thought the reason was due to the high price of Bahamut Bullets and asked about the Ulsan front, a war that Seorabeol was currently engaged in.

“No. It’s currently in a stable phase. Further conflicts are meaningless. The Cult of Immortality seems to be concerned about what’s happening in North Korea.”

“Makes sense. Given that potential subordinates are coming down from the north. So, there’s no immediate war right now?”

“That’s correct.”

Above all, due to the political changes in North Korea and China, the Cult of Immortality was responding to these changes rather than fighting with Seorabeol.

The battle for Ulsan had essentially entered a ceasefire, and the army stationed in North Ulsan was operating much like the pre-apocalypse ceasefire line.

In other words, there was no immediate need to fight the Cult of Immortality.

“It would be good to trade with Japan, except for a month’s worth of war supplies. I’ll discuss this directly with Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hyeon-a from the Ministry of Planning and Finance.”

This meant they could support Fukuoka with those supplies.

But since it was related to the military, Hwang Geun-chul first needed a cabinet minister who would agree to this plan, and he mentioned Lee Hyeon-a as the first person to persuade.

And when Hwang Geun-chul went to see Lee Hyeon-a:

“That would be good.”

“You’re not mentioning self-defense.”

“With the newly established Hwarang, a direct unit under the Dragon Priestess, even if the Ulsan front were to be pushed back, Hwarang could deploy to compensate. Above all, do you think Jeong Dong-geon would retreat so easily?”

He was able to quickly gain Lee Hyeon-a’s agreement.

Regarding the potential side effect of weakened self-defense, since Hwarang had been newly established, they could deploy them in emergencies, so it wasn’t a serious issue.

Above all, since Jeong Dong-geon of the military wasn’t weak enough to easily give up North Ulsan, Lee Hyeon-a was essentially suggesting a gamble, trusting in Jeong Dong-geon’s abilities.

“Isn’t that relying solely on Jeong Dong-geon? Still, this matter will be reflected in future national strategies?”

However, relying on the abilities of just one person for national strategy was very risky.

Conversely, if that person were absent, everything could collapse like a house of cards. Hwang Geun-chul expressed concern that relying solely on Jeong Dong-geon was dangerous, but:

“But if we use this war well, isn’t it a golden opportunity to reform Seorabeol internally, a kind of reform?”

Lee Hyeon-a acknowledged the risk but advised that, conversely, they could use Japanese money to reform Seorabeol.

She was essentially saying they could dismantle all the problems accumulated during the Balhut Cult era and complete a system befitting Seorabeol.

“On a small scale, we can further develop Seorabeol’s military facilities and complete the Seorabeol reconstruction project, which hasn’t been fully implemented, with Japanese money. It’s an opportunity for internal political reform, as well as reorganizing laws for the Awakened and establishing departments that were lacking.”

On a small scale, they could complete Seorabeol’s military projects and resolve the reconstruction projects that had been postponed with Fukuoka’s money.

Additionally, if done well, they could have the leeway to disband extremist forces entrenched within Seorabeol and resolve recent issues regarding the Awakened with money.

Above all, they could address the establishment of various departments that hadn’t been touched since the founding due to lack of money and time.

“Hmm.”

It was too large a sum to shout, “So you’re trying to bribe me with money? Are you trying to insult me?!”

When Lee Hyeon-a raised the practical money issue, Hwang Geun-chul cleared his throat but opened his mouth as if he couldn’t deny it.

“True, the appearance is impressive, but it’s woefully inadequate to rebuild everything in a year.”

“And we can also claim Japanese interests. Considering Japan’s economic power, isn’t it tempting? Above all, Seorabeol, as a new nation, needs to prove its faith and credibility towards allies. No one helps a nation without faith or credibility.”

Above all, they could gain not just material benefits but also diplomatic advantages.

Every Korean knows how miserably a nation without faith is treated in the international community, and to clearly show that faith, they needed to voluntarily step forward and help when an ally needed it.

“Even if there’s a loss right now, I think we’ll be greatly rewarded in the future.”

“A future strategy…”

Even if there might be losses right now, thinking about the future, they should help Fukuoka—that was Lee Hyeon-a’s opinion.

“Still, I can persuade the assembly with the words ‘Japanese interests.’ If the cabinet says so, Lord Bahamut and Lady Yu-na will follow.”

Indeed, there were few words that made Koreans’ hearts race as much as those.

Having formulated the logic to persuade the cabinet through Lee Hyeon-a, Hwang Geun-chul said:

“Alright. Then let’s try to persuade Park Cheol-gon.”

He decided to persuade Park Cheol-gon of the Constitutional Democratic Party.

When Park Cheol-gon heard this from Hwang Geun-chul, the first thing he thought was:

“Additionally, it would be good to secure ownership of Dokdo, which was a territorial dispute area.”

“Is that so?”

It was a claim to firmly establish ownership of Dokdo, which had been a disputed area with Japan.

Indeed, even if it reduced some interests, it was also a golden opportunity to completely resolve the sovereignty dispute that had been troubling them for a long time.

Of course, to say that Fukuoka alone couldn’t decide that… currently, the only government that could be called Japan’s negotiating body was Fukuoka alone, so they wouldn’t be able to express any complaints about this later.

“Other than that, I don’t have any particular objections. Isn’t it an opportunity to take advantage of Japan for once?”

“Haha. Indeed.”

That was the stance of the Constitutional Democratic Party, with no particular objections except for that condition.

Rather…

“I hope they wage war for a long time.”

“Because there are many opportunities. But let’s not drive them to ruin.”

They were in a position to pray for a prolonged war, and Hwang Geun-chul drew a line, saying he had no intention of pushing them to the level of collapse.

While it’s beneficial if Fukuoka wages war for a long time, the moment they lose the war, all the interests promised by Fukuoka become mere scraps of paper.

“I understand. If they collapse and we can’t get our money, nothing could be more frustrating. We will be faithful allies to Japan, showing our loyalty.”

“That’s right.”

Yes, Seorabeol intends to cooperate as Japan’s loyal ally.