Damn the World, Ride a Submarine - Chapter 224



Only Krnovel

Episode 224 – Angel’s Share

I didn’t have the courage to look at the Shinheung camp that was completely destroyed by China’s missile attacks. It felt like I was looking at my hometown that had been reduced to ruins.

However, we were also in the process of restoring the OSS Armored Corps headquarters to its new camp, and we wanted to make sure that the supplies we had stored there were safe.

As I approached the new camp, a strange excitement began to well up in me.

Eventually, the ARK surfaced and slowly slid into the dock of the new camp.

The view of the new camp from afar gradually expanded, but there was no trace of bombing. However, it was clear that the appearance had changed significantly, with familiar buildings disappearing and new buildings being built.

After docking the ARK at the dock and exiting the main gate, Commander Kim Poong-ik, the commander of the Armored Forces, came out to greet us.

“Your Majesty!”

“Commander, you must have had a hard time.”

“No. I am carrying out my mission with enthusiasm thanks to your consideration.”

“The grounds have changed a lot.”

“Yes. The main building was so damaged that it was unusable, so we demolished it and rebuilt it. We needed a large parade ground for training and inspection, so we built the headquarters building a little further away.”

“My house must have been destroyed too.”

“Oh, Your Majesty’s residence escaped the bombing. And the other facilities have been completely restored. You will have no difficulty staying there.”

Hyein, who was listening from the side, seemed to want to go quickly.

“That’s good. Well, let’s rest a bit today and talk about it while looking around the grounds tomorrow.”

“Yes. Please go straight to the official residence.”

…

I headed to the Shinheung Camp house with Hyein. That place also had many memories with her.

It was also where we settled in Tawi Tawi, experienced the kidnapping of our staff by the MILF, launched an operation to punish them, and waited in tension for the results.

As soon as they arrived in front of the house, Hyein ran in like a little girl.

“Wow! It’s all there. Hahaha.”

“That’s right… It was a good idea to build the house a bit farther away from the headquarters. Haha.”

“Brother! Look here.”

Hyein opened the door to the secret storage room disguised as a bookshelf and called me.

“Oh~ It’s all there. Hahaha.”

The secret warehouse was where I stocked up on my favorite foods, such as cigarettes and whiskey, and stored gold bullion.

“Oh my goodness!”

“what’s the matter?”

“The refrigerator is also full.”

“Haha. Commander Kim Poong-ik must have been paying attention. Then, how about having a glass of whiskey for the first time in a while?”

Hyein smiled brightly and welcomed the offer to have a drink.

“Okay. Now that I think about it, what I was holding when I approached you was… Oh! That’s right, it was a Black Bowmore… Hahaha.”

“Yeah, if you look in the warehouse over there, you’ll find the last cask from 1964!”

“Oh, where are you?”

“No, I’ll look for it. I forgot about it until now! It’s a treasured liquor. Hahaha. I have to open one today.”

I went into the secret storage room and turned on the light in the basement space below.

It was a long, corridor-like space, like the wine cellar of Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest, with various types of whiskey, wine, cigars, and precious metals such as gold and silver on display.

* Black Bowmore The Last Cask 1964

This is a single malt whisky that began maturing in 1964 when Black Bowmore was first produced at the Bowmore Distillery on the Isle of Islay in Scotland, and was bottled in 1993 and matured for 29 years.

When it was released in 2017, it was priced at 30 million won, and as of 2020, it has gone up to over 100 million won per bottle.

I went into the secret storage and took out a bottle of 1964 Black Bowmore from among the whiskeys I had been collecting.

I filled it with Glen Karen and toasted with Hyein.

The deep color spreading across the knitted glass before my eyes and the scent spreading as I got closer seemed to prove that this was a different kind of whiskey than other liquors.

“Oh my! What kind of whiskey is this smooth?”

“It was distilled in 1964 and bottled after 29 years of maturation. After waiting for 29 years, there was probably less than a third of it left in the oak barrels when it was bottled.”

Hyein continued speaking with a look of wonder on her face.

“Somehow~ but, when whiskey ages, the amount decreases?”

“It’s commonly called ‘Angel’s Count.’ It refers to the whiskey that decreases during maturation. In order to increase the value of anything, sacrifice and sharing are necessary. Haha.”

* Angel’s Share: The share of the angels, the distribution of the angels. It refers to the amount of whiskey that slowly evaporates and decreases through the pores of an oak barrel during maturation. After 18 years of maturation, about 35% evaporates, and after 29 years of maturation, more than 65% disappears.

The average annual evaporation rate is 2%, but in warm, dry areas, it can evaporate at a rate of more than 4% per year. (In an area with an annual evaporation rate of 4%, after 29 years of maturation, 116% will evaporate, meaning not a single drop will remain.)

“I guess my palate has become more sophisticated since I hung out with my brother. It suits my taste. But how much do you pay for something like this?”

“Well? The last time I checked, it was 150 million won, so I think it’s going to cost 200 million won a bottle now?”

“Oh my…! When I hear the price, I’m scared to even think about it. Haha.”

“As long as it fits Hyein’s mouth, don’t worry about that. Haha.”

“I don’t like luxury goods or extravagances, but I think this alcohol is pretty good.”

“Since Hye-in said it was good, it was worth saving it. Actually, when I heard that Shinheung Camp was bombed, I was even more upset because I thought this warehouse had been blown up. Hahaha.”

“So how many bottles of whiskey are there?”

“Well, I didn’t count. There must be about 100 bottles here. At that time, I told Director Kim Wan-jun to buy as many as possible. Haha.”

“Oh, but. How much did this cost when it first came out? I mean, when it was first put into the bottle.”

“Well? It was 1993… I think it was around 100,000 won.”

“Wow ~ So whiskey can also be a means of investment?”

“Alcohol is just something to drink, so what kind of fortune can you make with it? Haha.”

“No, when it first came out it was worth 100,000 won, but now it’s worth 200 million won…”

“Hahaha. If you hold on to most things for 30 or 40 years, they’ll all turn into money, though.”

“?”

“The more difficult it is to store and transfer, the less suitable it is as an investment vehicle.”

“Well, it’s not easy to move around with 100 bottles for decades just because you bought them for 100,000 won.”

“Just think, if this house had been bombed, not a single drop of whiskey would have been saved. At least you could find gold in the rubble. Haha.”

“I see~”

“And it’s hard to find or meet someone who will buy these things, and it’s not easy to verify their authenticity…”

“Again~ Again!”

“Oh, I’m talking too long again. Haha.”

“Anyway, I feel great. My house is still there, and the taste of whiskey that brings back memories is good. I’m with my brother.”

I spent a happy night reminiscing with Hyein.

…

next day.

I toured various parts of the Shinheung Camp, which is currently under restoration, with Commander Kim Poong-ik.

Director Kim Wan-jun said that the farm, special forces headquarters, barracks, and ammunition depot that he had lovingly tended were all in ruins, so they were all torn down and new construction was underway.

Only my house and the docking facilities on the shore seemed to be intact.

General Kim Poong-ik simultaneously established and trained units and constructed camps, and the new camp was reborn as the OSS Armored Forces Command.

“Commander, that parade ground over there has a concrete floor. Was it really necessary to make it like that when the tanks are going to run on it?”

“Oh, I didn’t have time to tell you.”

“yes?”

“It was made like that because Director Kim Wan-jun specifically requested it.”

“Is this Director Wanjun?”

“Oh, fortunately, the containers containing the Marshal’s personal effects were unharmed during the Chinese missile bombardment.”

“Oh, is that so?”

“When the leader ordered the introduction of the new camp, Director Kim Wan-jun said that he had moved it to the outskirts of the camp, so when I checked, I found that dozens of containers were scattered here and there, intact.”

“Ha~ Director Wanjun, in the meantime···. Hahaha.”

“So we dug up two-thirds of the recovered containers and buried them in the ground and covered them with concrete. We placed the rest around the outer perimeter decorative materials warehouse.”

“Oh! That went well.”

“But, Your Majesty, what is that souvenir?”

“Oh, well. Just common cigarettes, whiskey, and such.” “That much?”

“I just collected them because of my paranoia.”

“If it’s paranoia···?”

“It’s a delusional disorder where you think the world will end someday. Haha.”

“The world is half ruined now…”

“By the way, is the creation of the armored force going well?”

“Yes. The 1st Division has already been deployed to Hainan Province and is currently training to be ready for deployment at any time. The 2nd Division will be deployed to the Far East Republic once its organization is complete.”

“How is the training level and morale of the soldiers?”

“The training level is very high because it is mainly filled by former South Korean armored unit personnel.”

“oh!”

“All of them operated K2 or K1A1 tanks during their active service and were trained with TMPS, so it was confirmed that they would adapt to the TARC system within a week.”

“great.”

* TMPS (Tank Multi Purpose Simulator): A simulator training system used by the Republic of Korea Army to train tank soldiers.

* TARC (Tactical Armored Remote Command): A general term for the tactical remote command armored vehicle and related systems developed by OSS for remotely controlling unmanned tanks.

“Is there any difference in the tactical doctrine from existing armored tactics?”

“It has superior advantages over existing armored forces in every aspect, but······.”

“It seems like there’s something missing. Please speak frankly.”

“As you know, Marshal, anti-tank weapons and tactics have been developed extensively. That is why joint operations between armor and infantry are important.”

“Yes.”

“However, there is a tactical gap in having to send infantry to protect tanks on the dangerous front lines where unmanned tanks are deployed.”

“Well… there is definitely a contradiction.”

“Of course, a significant portion of the area is covered by drones.”

“…”

“However, when we conducted training in an actual urban warfare situation, it was clear that drones had limitations in searching the inside of buildings and eliminating danger. That was a real disappointment.”

“I see. I’m also thinking about that. For now, I’m developing the OSS-ART quadruped combat robot.”

“A quadruped walking robot?”

…