WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ The Little Prince in the Ossuary

Chapter 131

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Angel Island (1)

Corona Triumph dropped anchor at a U.S. base northeast of the Golden Gate Bridge. Just a little farther out was open sea, so the waves crashing against the pier were rough. There was a small bay in front of the base called Horseshoe, but it was not wide enough for a cargo ship to enter. The entrance had been narrowed by a breakwater.

The escort frigate Ramon Alcaraz docked at the same pier. Filipino naval officers and sailors stepped onto land with exhausted faces. They gathered in small groups and lit cigarettes. Several men passing around one cigarette looked miserable. The wind was cold, and they did not have enough clothes, so the ones waiting their turn hugged their own shoulders. Some stamped their feet to keep warm. The homeland they had lost was a warm country.

Gyeoul pressed his feet hard against the ground. He took a few pointless steps, backed up, then repeated it. It was his way of readjusting to solid land. He would probably settle even if he stood still, but this came from the habit of keeping himself at peak combat readiness. The FBI agent watching him smiled.

“Still feels strange, right? Like the ground is rocking.”

“Yes. It has only been two days, and I am already like this.”

Corona Triumph was huge, but it had still skimmed the edge of a typhoon. His body was still feeling the waves. Kind of like stepping off a treadmill.

Joanna looked around and tilted her head.

“Looks like our pickup is not here yet. I sent notice in advance... Could you wait a moment?”

After asking for understanding, she left Gyeoul there and headed to the guard post. The sentries were dressed very differently from ordinary U.S. troops. Solid blue uniforms. Coast Guard. Two of them kept glancing at Gyeoul. Their curiosity was obvious. Then again, it had been the same during the Christmas battle. Back then, an isolated tank platoon had run out of fuel, and its leader, Lieutenant Durant, had stared at Gyeoul in shock and asked if he was a real person.

A conversation he could not hear passed between Joanna and the sentries. It was brief. One of them nodded and got on the radio. The other kept sneaking looks at Gyeoul even then. Gyeoul saluted him. Oh. The shape of the man’s mouth said it all. He immediately snapped into proper posture facing this way. Joanna turned back. She looked puzzled at first, then quickly softened.

When she returned, she said,

“They said they will be here soon. Let’s wait a little longer.”

Gyeoul asked,

“This is not our final destination, right?”

It was still before full dark. She had said they would not meet the team already deployed until after midnight. Joanna pointed at the sea.

“No, it is not. This is an interim stop. First, you will go to that island over there. Angel Island. That place is only a second stop as well. At the end, we plan to move by submarine.”

“Submarine?”

“The operations headquarters is a modified cargo ship. They are pretending to be a private military company that turned into a crime syndicate. The first mission is gathering intelligence among maritime refugees.”

A private military company... Gyeoul understood. Without that cover, there was no way to explain the combat ability and cohesion of those special operators. In the first place, they had always been a group paid to kill. In a world heading toward apocalypse, becoming a criminal organization was not strange at all.

Joanna continued.

“Even if it is only a cover, they do everything a criminal organization does. They hold territory, patrol, collect protection fees, pick fights or clash with rival groups, and sometimes still do mercenary work as their official job on paper. That is how they build ties with refugees from nuclear states... no, forget that useless phrasing. In practical terms, they are building relations with Chinese people.”

Russia still kept control of its own navy. China was in a different situation.

Most of it made sense, but one thing bothered him.

“They collect protection fees? From those people?”

“That is what you worry about first.”

Joanna looked pleased.

“Do not worry. We distribute more than we collect. The hard part was balancing it so it would not look too obvious. Still, it was necessary for the mental health of the personnel assigned to this mission. The refugees just see it as a route where U.S. transport planes pass often. In fact, many praise them for not getting greedy and for keeping order.”

So supply drops were frequent there. It would be more prosperous than other places.

Mental health, though. Gyeoul asked again.

“Do the personnel collect those fees in person?”

“They did at first. Now they have recruited members, so the frequency has gone down. It has not disappeared. Refugee-born members are not people you can trust unconditionally. If we want to prevent unnecessary violence and double exploitation, we have to monitor on site. Everyone hates that duty, so they run it on rotation.”

“They even recruited members... This is really full scale.”

“They cannot afford to get exposed. It has to be thorough. That is exactly why you are such a good fit. Your experience in refugee zones will be useful. Your dealings with the Triad were rated especially high. The CIA did not request you for no reason.”

“Wow. How much do you know?”

Joanna hesitated. It was an honest reaction. With her career, she should have been used to hiding what she felt. That meant she held that much goodwill toward him. So much that she could not help hesitating.

What kind of night had yesterday been for Joanna? How much had the reputation she had built over time affected this?

If she had not investigated him through other channels, some part of the trust she was showing was hard to fully accept. So he had expected this.

Gyeoul reassured her.

“It is okay. I think it was necessary, actually. If it helped you trust me more.”

“You mean that?”

“I do not believe results can justify means. But I also believe people have limits. The refugee zone was that kind of place. Everyone got vicious to survive. From outside, it probably looked disgusting. In that situation, what way did I have to earn trust? Exceptional combat ability? Reckless bravery that ignored my own safety? No. Those are not proof that someone is good.”

“In the end, the result would have been the same. It just would have taken a little more time.”

“That little bit of time is precious. It was a good opportunity.”

At his words that surveillance had been an opportunity, the FBI agent shook her head.

“It was from late December to January. As far as I know, the order came from pretty high up. They said they needed to determine whether you might cause scandal after becoming famous. You know how things are in America right now...”

“You do not need to make excuses. Thank you for telling me honestly, Ann. That was probably not something you were allowed to tell me. I will keep the secret. Want to pinky swear too?”

Gyeoul held out his little finger for a pinky promise. Playful on purpose.

“Ha, honestly.”

Joanna gave a bitter smile. Gyeoul steered the conversation back to the original topic.

“I am glad they do not have to bully people who are already suffering, but the side effects must be serious too. You probably end up killing a lot.”

An area with many supplies would attract greedy groups. Would that not mean frequent attacks? That was his question. The FBI agent agreed.

“I heard it was like that at first. They suffered badly from frequent raids.”

“So what did they do?”

“They demonstrated overwhelming capability, to the point where almost nobody dared touch them. During that process, two DEVGRU teams were withdrawn.”

DEVGRU. The U.S. Naval Special Warfare Development Group. In this world, Corporal Ashford had mentioned them before. He told Gyeoul not to become a useful blade like they did, because he would be used up and broken.

If even they had pulled out, maybe he needed to reassess the expected difficulty of this mission.

“Withdrawn... That is surprising. Was it because of casualties?”

“No. They are still the top special forces unit in the U.S. It is hard for them to be worn down fighting untrained gangs that value ammunition more than human life. But there was stress. No matter how rotten those people were, they killed too many of them. The operation period was long too.”

“Hmm, would it not have been simpler to increase supply deliveries to the surrounding areas too?”

Gyeoul pushed back. If people were not hungry, they would have less desire to attack. Not none, of course. Human beings have limits in many things, but not in greed.

Joanna said that would not work.

“That was not a realistic choice. First, transport capacity is limited. How many more transport planes would we need to satisfy the surrounding areas? The more sorties we pull into this operation, the more shortages we create elsewhere. We are breathing a little easier now as alternative aircraft like Wooden Wonder and more pilots come online, but the top priority is clearly preparing Manifest Liberation.”

“Now that you put it that way, yes.”

“Next point. That measure might reduce direct engagements, but it would not erase conflict. People here spend their extra time staring at the sky. Uneven concentration of increased supplies would naturally trigger bigger conflicts. If we look only at casualties, it is better that we bear the fatigue.”

“Ah.”

“Last point. Supplies are a means of transaction. It is hard to make deals with people who have no unmet needs. Favorable negotiation becomes possible when the other side is in danger. Think about the nature of this mission, Gyeoul. Cold as it sounds... they need to stay hungry.”

Every point was reasonable, so Gyeoul only nodded. Since they accepted deals from this side at all, it was obvious their supply situation had improved compared to before. Call it cold or whatever, but it was hard to condemn as inhumane.

“One more question. Will there be any problem with me operating there?”

My face is too well known now. Joanna answered casually.

“We just disguise you.”

“Will that really be enough?”

“Do not underestimate the CIA. They blunder a lot, but they were once the best intelligence agency in the world. You will change so much even your family would not recognize you.”

The word “once” left a stain in his mind. Was it because there were no real comparisons left in a collapsing world? Or did she mean it literally, as in only once. The FBI and CIA were not exactly close either. Their domains were different, but broadly speaking they were in the same field and kept each other in check.

‘Right, Ann herself was being dispatched as a supervisor.’

She had said it at their first meeting. Domestic operations by the intelligence service were supervised by the investigation bureau. Most people did not welcome being watched. Not everyone could be like Gyeoul.

The conversation broke off. Engine noise was approaching from the north.

‘Hm? Something sounds off.’

It was not the Humvee exhaust note he was used to. The vehicle racing toward them with its headlights on was red. Even under a dimming sky, it was flashy.

“...Ferrari?”

A baffled voice came from beside him. A civilian car driving around a military base was already unusual. If it was that kind of luxury brand, even more so.

Is that our pickup car?

He doubted it, but it was. The driver stuck his head out the window of a four-seat coupe. After talking with the sentries, he looked this way. Grrrr. A smooth engine note. The Ferrari 612 Scaglietti rolled up slowly and stopped in front of Gyeoul and the FBI agent. The driver and passenger got out and saluted sharply.

“Sorry for being late. There was a small mistake at the control room. FBI Supervisory Special Agent Joanna Gibson, and... wow, Lieutenant Han Gyeoul-nim. It is truly an honor to meet you. I heard you were coming and have been looking forward to it.”

“Ah, yes...”

“I am Ensign Aaron Barker. Please call me Ensign Barker. This is Sergeant Lazaro.”

After greetings, he opened the rear seat door of the coupe like a doorman.

“Please get in first.”

Gyeoul tilted his head but got in without protest. Joanna got in right after him and said,

“I expected a Humvee, so the Ferrari surprised me a bit.”

“Ah, this guy?”

Grinning, Ensign Barker got into the driver’s seat, pulled out, and answered.

“We operate many requisitioned civilian vehicles here. There are several reasons, but the biggest is reducing maintenance demand on military vehicles. Another purpose is lowering fuel consumption. As you know, Humvees are fuel-eating monsters. Civilian cars get better mileage.”

Then Joanna muttered, “Talking about mileage while driving a V12 coupe.” Maybe he heard her, because the ensign burst out laughing.

“Well, what can I say. Good is good. I was thrilled when I found this guy during a recon run. A Ferrari in my life. It was the only luck I got in an age with apocalypse closing in.”

Is this guy the same type as Jeffrey? They had just met, but Gyeoul felt a vague familiarity.

The car passed the Coast Guard office and entered the base proper. It was not far.

“Welcome to Fort Baker. This is where Starfleet Command will be in the twenty-second century.”

Starfleet Command? He had no idea what that meant. Nothing came up, not memory, not hologram. It seemed outside the range of Intelligence correction.

The ensign kept glancing over with eyes that seemed to expect something, but both the FBI agent and the boy officer just stared blankly. No reaction. He looked a little dejected. Sergeant Lazaro in the passenger seat scolded him.

“Seriously. How many people still know Star Trek these days? You are embarrassing me too.”

The ensign looked even more crestfallen. Yeah, definitely the Jeffrey type.

============================ Author's Afterword ============================

#Questions I Cannot Answer

I try to answer comments marked with @, especially ones that end with a question mark, but sometimes I get questions I cannot answer. They may be central to future developments, awkward to answer, or for other reasons...

Please do not feel too disappointed if the author avoids a reply. Haha.

#Q&A

Q. PlumConcentrate2: Joanna Gibson hi hi @...and come to think of it, if humanity goes completely extinct, what do those zombies eat to survive? Would that not be mutual destruction?

A. Not exactly. Their consumption drops compared to their numbers because of Metabolic Suppression, they can eat more things than humans can, and two related plot seeds have already been thrown.

Q. Sasasid: In this world too, will someone like Trump get elected? Or is he already elected?

A. In this world, the U.S. is heading into a presidential election. From here, you just have to trust the author’s childlike innocence.

Q. ThousandShiftsThousandRain: @Like Ossuary, I should also pop into your dream all of a sudden and ga-ya-yak-doo-waak-eui-ek

A. Cheonbyeoncheonu-nim already lives in my dreams. This is a secret, but when I wake up, the universe is destroyed.

Q. OneChance: @My god, Trump got elected. Looks like doomsday is coming soon. Where can I get migration rights to Dreamland?

A. Uh... Trump is a bit unsettling, but still better than the Great Old Ones. And our country is probably better than Dreamland, right?...or maybe not. What matters is which Old One the Blue House High Priest made a contract with.

Q. Dipleon: @Will you keep serializing on Joara Noblesse without switching to premium? I am asking because Naver charges per episode ?><?

A. I promised, so I will keep it.

I just wish the people who copy and repost would disappear. Someone took it up to the latest chapter yesterday too.

Q. Dohwawon: @We top up childlike innocence. This is purity. So it is not only that demons exist, it is that there is too little supply of the author’s childlike innocence, which makes people become demons gyaaak guaak

A. Which came first, the chicken or the egg. I think you were already a demon even before Ossuary started serialization. @[email protected]

Q. ToothbrushWithRice: @Author, when a line or a scene or an idea suddenly pops into your head, do you write it down? I do that, but writing still does not come easily... (Secret is I am tired because I play Mabinogi and Overwatch!)

A. Of course I write it down. If I think of something while sleeping, I record it on my phone. I am sorry to hear writing is not coming easily for you. I get like that when I am tired too. My issue is that I am always tired because of sleep disorder. Haha. Stay strong.

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