NIS Agents Tearing Up the Japanese Empire - Chapter 124



Only Krnovel

Flash point (3)

People who had been smiling at the news that the police and the military were having a real fight lost their smiles as the fight continued for several days, or even weeks.

“I heard that the North Korean commander who fled south is leading his troops up to Seoul?”

“No! I heard that the police cut off all the railroad tracks leading from Daegu, so the army was stuck and couldn’t travel to or from Daejeon.”

“If this continues, won’t the two of them have a full-blown fight in downtown Gyeongseong like in Tokyo?”

“Hey… … . But we’re on the same side, so would you do that?”

“Then, the Army and Navy are from different countries. Why did they destroy Tokyo?”

“… … .”

The news spread quickly that Commander Shinnosuke, who had fled to Daegu, was leading his army.

It was an unidentified piece of news whose origins were unknown, but it spread so quickly that most people in Gyeongseong heard it at least once.

If it had been normal, I would have laughed at the news that the army was coming to Gyeongseong, but right now, in the south, the country was turned upside down by all sorts of scandals, including an earthquake and civil war, and in the north, the independence army had attacked Kwantung Province and driven out all the Japanese troops there, causing a major accident.

In this situation, the police discovered a plot by the North Korean army in Yongsan to revolt and turned the place into a complete mess.

But the police chief’s thugs made a mess of the base, but they ended up losing the commander they should have captured.

What does this mean?

“This fight means that it will end only when one of the two, the Governor-General of Korea or the Commander-in-Chief of the Korean Army, dies.”

“Is it that serious?”

“No, that’s not true.”

“?”

Compared to what happened on the mainland, what happened here was child’s play.

Although the relationship between the Governor-General and the troops stationed in Korea was icy, they did not regard each other as enemies like the relationship between the Japanese Army and Navy.

“I will try to talk if possible.”

“Um… … . The Governor-General’s Office was the first to launch a surprise attack on the Joseon army, and Commander Kikuchi is putting up with it?”

“I will endure it for now.”

The situation was that unfavorable.

“Disadvantageous?”

“If you look at them one by one, yes.”

In a large-scale arrest operation that took place at Yongsan Base some time ago, all the staff and high-ranking officers who planned and executed the big picture of the North Korean garrison were arrested by the police.

Well, since there were quite a few personnel who had gone down to the provinces, the unit would not have completely collapsed, but this alone had significantly reduced the Joseon army’s ability to operate the unit, and now the Joseon army is being questioned for its ‘loyalty’, which is something that soldiers of the Empire of Japan should naturally have.

“The loyalty of the military is questioned… …. That’s something I don’t quite understand.”

“Have you forgotten why the Government-General’s Police Department raided the Yongsan base in the first place?”

Miwa Wasaburo of the Special Investigation Unit of the Police Department detected signs of treason among the North Korean army in Yongsan and successfully raided it, securing key information and key personnel from the North Korean garrison command.

“But the Japanese army in Yongsan has nothing to do with this incident, right?”

“It doesn’t matter whether there is a connection or not.”

“Then what is important?”

“It is the will of heaven.”

I smiled and pointed to the sky.

Then, President Namgung’s gaze rose and he looked at the sky.

“Heaven’s will?”

Then I took out a document that had been sleeping soundly in my arms and handed it to President Namgung.

“A few days ago, a low-ranking official in the Government-General sent a telegram to the Imperial Household Agency in Tokyo.”

“What is this?”

“This is a regular report sent from the Government-General of Korea to the Imperial Household Agency in Tokyo.”

“… … ?”

Instead of looking at the report, President Namgung looked back at me.

He didn’t say anything, but from the way he was looking at me, it seemed like he was asking why this was coming out of my arms.

“Oh, that was taken from the Governor-General’s Office.”

“……her.”

President Namgung seemed to have a lot of questions, but he didn’t ask me anything.

I looked down again and looked at the report, knowing that I wouldn’t get an answer even if I asked anyway.

“hmm.”

Although it was a regular report from the Government-General of Korea to the Emperor, the content was more lacking than expected.

Because of the nature of telegrams, you had to convey your message to the recipient in short sentences, so you had to include a variety of meanings in those short sentences. The problem was that if you just haphazardly crammed everything in like this, the interpretation could vary depending on who was reading it.

chamberlain.

[Investigation into crimes committed by troops stationed in Korea – sedition.]

If you just change the order in the phrase.

[Investigation of the Korean Garrison Forces – Criminal Charges of Sedition.]

The phrase is completed.

“This… … . Why are there two of these?”

“One is a copy, so that’s why.”

“Hmm… … . I guess the content of both is different.”

“Haha, that can’t be helped.”

Well, that’s one thing I fixed a little bit.

“?”

“These days, when the Government-General is so busy, mistakes are bound to happen even in simple tasks like this.”

“???”

Originally, what caused the collapse of a huge dam was not a strong wind or rain that tore away entire houses and turned rivers into oceans, but rather it often started with small cracks.

That’s why I’ve focused so far on putting small dents in the great dam that is the Japanese Empire.

And now.

Some results are coming out.

“President Namgung.”

“What’s going on now?”

“The new employees we brought in last time… …. Are they adjusting well to the company?”

“New employees… …? Are you talking about the guys you trained yourself?”

“Yes, those guys.”

“How could they say they’ve adapted well? Everyone is doing well without any problems.”

“That’s a relief.”

* * *

Seodaemun Prison.

Originally, this place was a place to hold criminals, and the prisoners here were vicious criminals who had committed all sorts of heinous crimes in society.

This is where people come from, for example, throwing bombs at police stations or giving heavy lumps of iron to the fragile lower abdomens of Joseon aristocrats wandering the streets.

Here, the people in uniform were usually either imperial police officers dispatched from various police stations in Gyeongseong or military police officers who had come to hand over prisoners… … .

“Tell me! What kind of conspiracy were you plotting in Yongsan?!”

“I told you I didn’t know anything.”

“Really? Then let’s wait until we find out what we know. I have a lot of time.”

“… … .”

But today was a little different.

The previously quiet Seodaemun Prison was now packed with soldiers, and not just ordinary soldiers, but high-ranking officers, crowding the interrogation room.

“Did you get anything?”

“Half of them just keep repeating that they know nothing, and the other half say that they are loyal soldiers who have nothing to do with this.”

“So you’re saying there’s nothing to be gained?”

“Since you are trying to coerce me with nice words instead of the usual way, the information I can extract is limited.”

“hmm…….”

The head of the special investigation team under the Police Affairs Bureau of the Government-General of Korea, Superintendent Miwa Wasaburo, who led this incident, became even more confused.

It couldn’t be helped because as soon as he returned to Gyeongseong after starting a business in Yongsan and capturing soldiers, he had to be summoned to the governor and explain what had happened.

“I heard you made a mess of Yongsan?”

“We simply arrested subversive elements within the military for the future of the Empire of Japan.”

“A subversive element within the military… … I guess some explanation is needed.”

“That is… … .”

Miwa told Governor-General Saito everything she had seen, heard, and inferred without reservation.

The murder of a spy for the Governor-General of Korea in Yongsan, the embezzlement of military supplies, and the death of the officer investigating the incident.

Governor Saito, who had heard everything from Chief Miwa, closed his eyes for a moment and became lost in thought.

Governor-General Saito spent a long time like that in silence, and Miwa felt as if her blood was drying up at the sight of the governor-general.

At that time, Miwa was dying of thirst.

The governor’s eyes widened and he let out a small sigh.

“Your loyalty to the Empire is an example to all police officers, but I think you’ve taken things too far.”

“If it’s about Commander Giguchi who escaped to Daegu, I will work with the local police to make sure he is caught… … .”

“That’s not what I’m worried about.”

Governor-General Saito did not take issue with Miwa’s actions themselves.

He had a different issue.

“First of all, I commend your bold decisions and your impeccable handling of affairs, but I think there are problems after that.”

“yes……?”

“If you had caught those guys, you should have either killed them until they told everything they knew, or put them in a box of nails and turned them in so they wouldn’t say anything even if they died without saying anything.”

“yes……?”

The Governor-General was bitter about Miwa’s weakness for not being able to finish the work quickly.

“If you start something, it’s important to finish it cleanly. If you judge them to be traitors, you have to make them admit it themselves.”

“Ha, but Your Majesty… … Those people are still only suspected, and there is no clear evidence that they actually conspired… … .”

“so?”

“… … Now that we’ve captured them, Commander Giguchi won’t be able to move recklessly, right? So we might be able to use this as a bargaining chip.”

The corners of Governor Saito’s mouth slightly went up at the word negotiation.

“Negotiation… … If you were Commander Giguchi, do you think you would come to the negotiation table if I called you?”

“Of course it would come out, right? This isn’t just an incident… … .”

This is a case that has been accused of rebellion.

So, if Commander Giguchi was truly innocent, or even if he had such thoughts, he would have come to the negotiations to bury them somehow.

At least that’s what Miwa thought.

But Governor Saito’s thoughts were a little different.

“He only comes to the table when he is convinced that the military has the upper hand over the Governor-General. And so do I.”

From the beginning, Governor-General Saito had no intention of negotiating with them.

“We now have the evidence and witnesses to prove their treason, so I don’t think there’s any need to create an uncomfortable situation and heat up the negotiations.”

“… … .”

“You have one week to do so. Use whatever means necessary to bring us evidence to prove the rebellion of Commander Giguchi and the Joseon garrison.”

“… … .”

Governor-General Saito intended to use this opportunity to completely break the momentum of the Korean garrison troops and even destroy their bases, thereby returning their command to the Governor-General.

“Whew… … .”

“Do you have any concerns?”

“It’s nothing.”

Miwa’s sighs grew louder as she listened to the Governor’s firm instructions.

‘No matter what, they want us to bring them the evidence we want even if it means torturing the soldiers… … .’

Although Miwa had been involved in this kind of work and had blood on his hands more than once, he had never tortured a fellow police officer or soldier.

Even other police forces known for their torture have never tortured soldiers, although they have tortured civilians.

Moreover, most of them were not the rabble you commonly see on the streets, but graduates of the Military Academy and the Army University or those who had distinguished themselves in the various wars that the Japanese Empire had fought in the previous several decades.

Miwa felt reluctant to torture such people to obtain evidence.

“Sir, I can’t do this anymore. If we continue like this, I’ll just be wasting my time here instead of getting any information.”

“… … .”

Miwa’s worries have become longer.

While he was killing time like this, Commander Giguchi, who had fled to Daegu, would be reorganizing his troops and preparing to move to Gyeongseong.

‘We must move as quickly as possible. If we do not want to give them a chance, we must also use all means and methods.’

I understood it in my head, but understanding it and putting it into practice were two different things.

But that only lasted for a moment.

Soon after, when news arrived that soldiers had occupied police stations and government offices in Daegu, Miwa could no longer sit still.

“… … Get the testimony by any means necessary.”

NIS Agent Tears the Japanese Empire Episode 125