Chapter 164: Is That Even Possible?

"Why is Director Pan Kai coming here?"

As though proving that great minds think alike, Chief Secretary Kang Inhan voiced the exact same question that had been bothering me.

"He said he'd explain everything once he arrives."

"When will he get here?"

"He said 'soon,' so I imagine he'll arrive tomorrow."

"I see."

"Now, let's talk about something else. My suite is enormous, so how about we stay together?"

"Is that really necessary?"

Chief Secretary Kang Inhan's question clearly carried a note of refusal.

"Director Pan Kai offered to let me use the suite free of charge."

"There's an old Chinese saying: 'If someone repays kindness, they are honorable. If someone fails to avenge a grievance, they are no true gentleman.' Director Pan most likely offered you the suite free of charge to repay the favor you did for him."

"I understand that, but having such a huge suite all to myself feels like a complete waste."

"But Saho is arriving tomorrow."

"Saho will be sleeping in the same bedroom as me."

"I'm sorry, but I'd prefer to stay in my own room."

Ding!

Just as the atmosphere became slightly awkward, the doorbell rang.

Grateful for the interruption, Chief Secretary Kang Inhan immediately hurried to the door.

A moment later, he returned with Director Lee Menghong and two foreigners who looked to be around fifty years old.

There was no need to guess.

These two foreigners were clearly the local heads of the CIA and FBI.

Just as I stood up from the sofa to greet them, Director Lee Menghong spoke.

"Director Cha, this is the CIA field commander..."

The CIA representative was Neil Cayman, while the FBI representative was George Fries.

Officially, both men were vice presidents of American companies doing business in China, while secretly serving as deeply embedded undercover agents for the CIA and FBI.

In case the worst happened, they requested that I address them only by their cover titles.

Naturally, I readily agreed.

Once the introductions were over, I got straight to the point.

"Director Griffin mentioned something to me on the way here that I still don't fully understand."

"You're referring to the matter of your authority over us, correct?"

"That's right, Vice President Cayman."

"We received direct orders from President Douglas to regard you, Director Cha, as our commanding officer."

With direct orders coming from President Douglas himself, there wasn't much left to discuss.

Just as expected from veteran undercover operatives, neither of them showed the slightest sign of dissatisfaction or hesitation.

Deciding there was no reason to dwell on the issue any further, I turned toward Director Lee Menghong.

"Have you been monitoring Politburo member Liu Peiqi's villa?"

"We've maintained constant surveillance since last [N O V E L I G H T] week."

"Any suspicious activity?"

"Everything appears normal."

North Korea believed Deputy Director Jo Ilcheol had defected to the United States.

Fearing that Jo Ilcheol might expose Chief Inspector Michael Hayden's identity, Pyongyang had ordered Hayden to leave the country immediately.

Logically speaking, they should have rushed additional Reconnaissance General Bureau operatives to Liu Peiqi's villa to protect the hackers stationed there.

Yet, strangely enough, everything at the villa remained completely normal.

I asked Director Lee Menghong whether he knew why.

"The Chinese intelligence services have no idea that North Korea is operating a hacker unit there. On top of that, Beijing is extremely displeased with Pyongyang's growing ties to Russia. Considering those circumstances, North Korea most likely decided against sending additional Reconnaissance General Bureau personnel in order to avoid drawing attention."

"That explanation makes perfect sense. Have you managed to identify the hackers' escape routes?"

"The truth is... not yet."

NIS Director Om Giyeon had instructed Director Lee Menghong not only to monitor Liu Peiqi's villa but also to determine the hackers' escape routes.

Five days had already passed since those orders were given, yet there were still no results.

I asked him directly why.

"Liu Peiqi's villa sits on a rocky cliff surrounded by the sea on three sides, and the cliff itself stretches for nearly six kilometers. With guard posts scattered all around the perimeter, identifying the escape routes has proven extremely difficult. We'll determine them as soon as possible."

"There's no need to take unnecessary risks."

"What do you mean...?"

I understood immediately why Director Lee Menghong had trailed off.

"I'll handle locating the hackers' escape routes myself."

"And how exactly do you intend to do that?"

"I'm going to use an animal spy with extraordinary agility, as well as phenomenal hearing and sense of smell."

"It's a stray cat named Saho. He's intelligent enough to understand human speech."

To reinforce my claim, Chief Secretary Kang Inhan decided to speak up.

"Is that really true?"

"You'll see for yourself tomorrow. Please continue with Director Cha."

Chief Secretary Kang Inhan quietly stepped back, leaving the floor to me.

"If it weren't for Saho, we wouldn't even be able to begin the operation against the hacker unit."

"Now I understand."

"To flush the hackers out of the villa, we'll need a small, lightweight, high-powered timed explosive. How quickly can you prepare one?"

"Director Cha, allow me to answer that."

Vice President Cayman spoke before Director Lee Menghong had the chance.

"I'm listening."

"The high-powered timed explosives and tranquilizer rounds are already aboard the stealth submarine."

"So we'll be able to obtain them tomorrow?"

"Exactly, Director Cha."

"As soon as everything is ready, we'll conduct a full simulation of the hacker elimination operation."

"Understood."

I turned toward Vice President Fries.

"Have you learned why Choson Trading President Lee Hyeoksan traveled to Europe?"

"We've confirmed that he went to Germany to procure engines used in mobile ballistic missile launchers."

"Do the German automobile manufacturers know the truth?"

"They were told the engines were intended for Chinese automobile companies, so the German side most likely has no idea."

"Just as I expected. When is he scheduled to return?"

"According to our information, he'll be back at the end of the week."

"I see. Were you able to infiltrate Choson Trading's office?"

Vice President Fries instantly grasped the implication behind my question.

To establish mass production of missile launchers, North Korea had assigned Choson Trading to import the necessary components.

President Lee Hyeoksan and his staff undoubtedly possessed a complete list of those required parts.

In other words, I was asking whether they'd managed to break into the office and obtain that information.

"We infiltrated the office last Sunday night, but every computer was password-protected, so we couldn't recover any valuable data. However, we did identify the location of Choson Trading's warehouse."

"Good. We'll determine exactly which components North Korea requires after we capture Lee Hyeoksan. More importantly, were you able to infiltrate the warehouse?"

"We entered it two nights ago, but none of the missile launcher components—including the cooling system pumps—were there."

"That's only natural."

"I'm not quite following your reasoning, Director Cha."

"Vice Chairman Chen Zhihui was the one supplying missile launcher components to North Korea. That means they aren't stored in Choson Trading's warehouse—they're in Golden Trading's warehouse."

"Ah... I see."

Vice President Fries nodded vigorously as understanding finally dawned on him.

"There's a very high probability that Golden Trading's warehouse is somewhere in Dandong."

"We'll identify its location as quickly as possible and verify whether the missile launcher components are stored there."

"Do that. The hacker elimination operation and the warehouse destruction operation must take place simultaneously."

"Understood."

"By the way, I noticed an unusually large number of police officers and soldiers on the road to Dandong. Did something happen?"

Director Lee Menghong answered as though he'd been waiting for that very question.

"Director Cha, as I mentioned earlier, relations between China and North Korea are currently strained. Because of that, China has reinforced both police and military forces along the border."

"In that case, is it likely they'll remain stationed there for quite some time?"

"If relations with North Korea don't improve, yes."

"Approximately how many personnel are currently deployed around Dandong?"

"I don't know the exact figure, but it's certainly in the thousands."

A terrible feeling suddenly washed over me.

If my fears proved correct, the consequences could escalate into a disaster on a national scale.

As I sank into thought, searching for a solution, Chief Secretary Kang Inhan cautiously spoke.

"Director Cha, you suddenly look troubled. Is something wrong?"

Two heads are better than one.

"If the missile launcher components really are stored inside Golden Trading's warehouse, we could be facing a very serious problem."

"Please explain."

"As you know, Secretary Kang, Vice Chairman Chen Zhihui's brother-in-law is Zhang Jinan, Deputy Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and one of President Xi Jinping's most trusted people."

Chief Secretary Kang Inhan immediately understood what was worrying me.

If the NIS and FBI destroyed Golden Trading's warehouse containing the missile launcher components, Vice Chairman Chen Zhihui would learn about it immediately.

Without wasting a second, he'd contact Deputy Secretary Zhang Jinan.

And Zhang Jinan would undoubtedly mobilize the police and military forces stationed around Dandong at once.

If that happened, escaping from Dandong would become extraordinarily difficult.

Chief Secretary Kang decided to confirm his deduction.

"Am I correct, Director Cha?"

"Exactly right, Secretary Kang. We need to divert the police and military before the operation begins. Any ideas?"

At that moment, Director Lee Menghong requested permission to speak.

"Director Cha, about an hour from Dandong is Fengcheng, where there's a kamikaze drone manufacturing plant. If we destroy that facility, the police and military will rush there."

"And what if your assumption is wrong?"

"The Fengcheng drone factory is jointly operated by China and Russia. Every drone produced there is exported to Russia and used in the war against Ukraine."

Director Lee Menghong paused briefly before continuing.

"Fengcheng is the closest major city to Dandong. The drone factory is considered a strategic facility, so both the military and police would have no choice but to respond."

"I see."

"Destroying the drone factory would kill three birds with one stone."

"Three birds?"

"First, it would divert the police and military. Second, Russia's supply of kamikaze drones would be disrupted, preventing them from deploying them on the battlefield. Third, it would reduce civilian casualties in Ukraine."

Even so, I wasn't ready to agree with Director Lee Menghong's proposal.

"The facility must be heavily guarded. Are you certain it's even possible to infiltrate it?"

"To avoid drawing attention to the factory's true purpose, security is only posted at the main gate."

"Let's assume we decide to destroy it. How exactly do you plan to do that?"

"The building contains a massive stockpile of explosives. All we'd need to do is detonate them."

Chief Secretary Kang Inhan suddenly interrupted.

"Director Lee, how large is the factory?"

"It consists of three large buildings."

"Does it operate around the clock?"

"No. Operations stop at night."

"That's better. Even so, can we really destroy the entire facility?"

"To do that, we'd have to plant explosives all around every building."

In other words, it wasn't realistic.

"So what's your proposal?"

"In my opinion, the best option would be to destroy the finished goods warehouse."

At that moment, a brilliant idea flashed through my mind.

After rapidly organizing it into a workable plan, I turned to Director Lee Menghong.

"Do you know how to operate those kamikaze drones?"

"I've never used one, so no. Why do you ask?"

"I was just thinking... what if we wiped that factory off the face of the earth so thoroughly that not even a blade of grass remained?"

"Is that even possible?"

Director Lee Menghong's astonished voice echoed throughout the living room.