Damn the World, Ride a Submarine - Chapter 197



Only Krnovel

Episode 197 – Operation Ocean Fortress

CNN panelist Gary Mendes continued his explanation of how the OSS changed the world.

– In short, OSS does not need to be politically aware. The weakness of democracy is that it is difficult to maintain consistent policies, political stances, and diplomatic positions.

– But that doesn’t mean that dictatorships or authoritarian regimes are too big of a gamble and are bound to become corrupt. In the US, doesn’t the Middle East and Asia policy change every time the government changes through an election?

“Ah, I understand a little bit. It’s like looking at an aspect of Plato’s philosopher-man politics.”

– Yes. It would be easier to understand if you see Marshal Lee Si-eon as a philosopher. That is why OSS carries a lot of weight in its political and diplomatic declarations. Marshal Lee Si-eon does not simply use rhetorical declarations that only scare.

– In the past few years, we have instilled in the world the idea that if you do it, you can do it.

– In that very respect, the greatest danger that OSS poses to the world situation is OSS itself. The situation of the enemy’s death.

– Oh, I went too far. Anyway, the order in Asia is now the order of the OSS, and it is no exaggeration to say that it is a group with as much influence as the United States in the world order.

… …

* * * * * * * * * *

When the panelist mentioned me on TV, it seemed like the people in the break room were glancing at me.

I didn’t feel bad about being compared to a philosopher.

Actually, I wanted to be a strong man of steel rather than a wise man of iron. Like a black steel submarine.

While I was lost in thought, new news arrived from Ukraine.

It was reported that the Ukrainian military was planning and on the verge of executing a fall offensive to capture strategically important locations before winter.

The offensive began with a surprise launch of hundreds of missiles supported by us.

Missiles fired from Arsenal ships assigned to the 3rd OSS Assault Group were enough to neutralize Russian defenses in the Zaporizhzhia area.

Russia had laid a huge number of mines, but this was only putting the Russian army in a difficult position.

It was thanks to their acceptance of my opinion that we should use missiles actively and without sparing any effort to create a corridor to overcome minefields.

Using hundreds of missiles to overcome minefields and defensive lines was a tactic with an absurd combat trade-off.

I proposed this method because I judged that the passive combat style of seeking out high-value targets based on cost-effectiveness had been dragging the war on for so long.

Hundreds of missiles fired from the sea without warning, seemingly cutting the Russian defense line in half.

They would drop missiles in a line, reducing minefields and trenches to rubble.

Ukrainian armored and engineer units poured into the created safe zone at once and opened up an advance route.

The Ukrainian army, having broken through the defensive line, made a large U-turn as if herding sheep and attacked the rear of the Russian army.

They pushed the Russians into the minefields they had created and pressed them forward.

With winter approaching, several divisions of the Russian army, unable to move anywhere, surrendered. This gave the Ukrainian army the strength to recapture cities from the Dnieper to the Sea of ​​Azov.

Ukrainian forces recaptured Orekhov, Poloi and Berdyansk southeast of Zaporizhzhia, and also recaptured Mariupol.

As a result, the territory of Ukraine, which had been reduced to an inverted C-shape like the Dnieper River, was stretched out into a straight line, recovering all of the territory along the coast of the Sea of ​​Azov.

However, the northeastern regions of Ukraine, including Donetsk, Kharkiv and Poltava, were still in Russian hands.

This time, Ukraine’s autumn offensive was intended to establish a bridgehead for next year’s spring offensive before winter arrives.

In addition, by securing the Azov Sea coast adjacent to the Crimean Peninsula, an environment was created in which the OSS’s naval power could be assisted.

So Ukraine was catching its breath, waiting for its fifth winter.

And the OSS’s 1st Carrier Squadron and 1st Assault Squadron passed through the Suez Canal, through the Mediterranean Sea, and into the Aegean Sea.

Meanwhile.

The United States, which was at war with Iran, seemed to have fallen into a new quagmire, unlike the initial, promising landing battle.

The vast territories and deserts of Iran and Iraq were the biggest obstacles for the US military, and even Afghanistan, which they had previously abandoned and retreated to, was being waged as a guerrilla war on Iran’s side.

The US military was not only unable to destroy Iran, but was also unable to reclaim Israeli territory.

They had to be satisfied with simply taking control of the Strait of Hormuz, which connects the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, and securing a route for transporting crude oil to Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.

The US military appeared to be waiting out the coming winter while occupying the area around Bandar Abbas in Iran.

That doesn’t mean Iran had any particularly effective means. They could harass the US military with guerrilla warfare and delaying action, but they didn’t have the power to drive out the US military with lightning speed.

The only force that could break this deadlock was nuclear weapons, but both sides recognized that they could not choose a nuclear war that would leave nothing behind and lead to mutual destruction.

Now the world seemed to have realized that it needed to prepare for a war called winter, a war that would involve fighting the bitter cold, rather than a war of gunpowder.

We have entered into an implied ‘winter truce’.

But our OSS was carrying out a new operation just before the ‘Winter Truce’: the landing and occupation of Hainan Province.

The name of the operation was decided to be OOF (Operation Ocean Fortress). It meant that we would make Hainan Province our maritime fortress.

So, I left the OOF operation to Admiral Son Il and Director Kim Jun-myeong and waited for news.

…

Three days after the operation began, Admiral Son Il contacted us.

“Your Majesty, it is a success.”

“Oh, really? What about our damage?”

“We captured the entire Hainan Province without a single casualty.”

“Thank goodness. How could that be?”

“As expected, the Chinese army’s defenses were weak and their morale was low. Some units surrendered from the beginning of the landing.”

“I see. Thank you for your hard work, Admiral.”

“Thank you. Now that I’ve conquered Hainan Province, which was like a thorn in my neck, I feel relieved. Haha.”

“That’s right. Considering how we were anxious about supporting Vietnam and Laos because of Hainan Province… now the entire South China Sea is within our sphere of influence.”

“Now, no ship can enter or leave the South China Sea without your permission. Haha.”

Operation OOF was over in a flash.

The Sanya City garrison in southern Hainan Province saw our fleet along the coast and declared surrender before the recommendation to surrender was even made.

Haikou City, which is connected to the Chinese mainland, was in fierce battle, but the city was able to be taken over thanks to the OSS Special Forces’ surprise attack and the Free Division’s coastal infiltration landing that went smoothly.

Originally, Hainan Province had almost no army, and was a major base for the Chinese Navy. Presumably, the OSS landed after the Chinese Navy was annihilated and there was no proper defense plan in place.

When we occupied Sanya and Haikou, the Hainan provincial government declared formal surrender, and the remaining Chinese troops also disarmed themselves and surrendered voluntarily.

It may have been that they were fed up with China’s wars, and the last naval battle of the Chinese fleet seemed to have had a major impact on the Chinese People’s Liberation Army in Hainan Province.

The naval battle between the OSS-SC submarine squadron and the Korean Navy resulted in a huge engagement ratio of 100 to 0, and the news of this spread little by little no matter how much the Chinese government tried to control it.

Since it was where the Chinese naval headquarters was located, the rumor would have spread even faster.

Now, the South China Sea coast was completely under our OSS’s supervision, and I felt like I could finally face my fifth winter with peace of mind.

We formally incorporated Hainan Province, which we occupied, into the territory of Free China, but we signed an agreement with Free China to lease it to the OSS for 100 years.

I wanted to use Hainan Province as a direct territory of the OSS.

After occupying Hainan Province, they were able to take over all the large and small Chinese naval bases in the Paracel Islands.

Most surrendered without much resistance.

…

The things that had been confusing my mind were slowly being sorted out.

At this point, I wanted to check the status of the entire organization, so I held an expanded video conference with key commanders and senior executives.

My heart warmed as I looked at the familiar faces on the screen.

After the battle situation reports from each military commander, Secretary General Jin Min-gyu finished his report on ESSO, followed by the investment performance report from OSLAM Director Namgung Han.

– … As a result, investment returns this year are expected to reach 2.5 trillion dollars.

-Wow~

– 2.5 trillion dollars. How much is that in Korean Won?

– It will be approximately 3,300 trillion won.

– Huh? So the investment income earned in one year is more than three times the US defense budget? How is that…

– The role of the risk scope created under the direction of the CEO is important, but the most important and sensitive information is produced by our organization, such as OSS and OSL. We simply manage funds based on that information.

Yes, our OSS was the main producer of information on war signs and developments.

The Rothschilds, through their own intelligence network, were able to learn a little bit earlier about the outcome of the Battle of Waterloo between Napoleon and the Allied forces in 1815.

Nathan Rothschild, who obtained this information, quickly purchased a large amount of British government bonds called Consols.

This allowed the Rothschild family to grow from a banker to a world-dominating capitalist.

This kind of thing happened countless times in OSS and OSLAM. In a way, it was like insider trading targeting the entire world.

The investment performance of OSLAM was remarkable. Although it was not intentional, the wars that OSS started or participated in were returned as money.

“Thank you for your hard work, Director Namgung Han. Director Lee Shin-young, what is your current net worth?”

– If the expected profits come in as they are by the end of the year, it will likely amount to around 7700 trillion won.

– Wow~ Are you saying that’s true even after deducting the cost of war?

Director Lee Shin-young’s characteristically fresh voice flowed through the speaker.

– Yes~ If there had been no war or spending this year, it would have been over 100 trillion won.

Various reports were made, including on the current status of Kiribati and the Marshall Camp, and at the end of the meeting, Director of Strategy Coordination Yoo Jae-seong requested the right to speak.

…