Rust - Chapter 496



Only Krnovel

RUST -496

I thought they would force negotiations using the Aegis ships, but they are requesting talks on their own.

‘Are you going to try your luck based on the title of war hero and king of a country?’

If you simply thought that, you were stupid.

‘Or else, you’re just a fool who believes in promises even in a dirty situation like this.’

If he was truly a hero, it would just be a pity.

Because the end of every hero’s story is always a tragedy. Whether it’s a hero in mythology, a hero in history, or a hero in modern times, the end of someone who fell into the romanticism of a hero is death.

[A small boat carrying Vladimir Kalin approaches. He has no firearms, but he is carrying a ceremonial sword. What should we do?]

“There’s no need to clean that up.”

“No, you must disarm him. He is the one who killed the mutant monster with a sword in Japan.”

“We have guns? You want to take away his sword? Even though he’s the king and he came alone?”

“···At least allow me to have armed guards at close range.”

Since we’ll have to capture him anyway if things go wrong, it’d be better to prepare.

“Don’t do that.”

“I will prepare.”

As General Edmund Garfield nodded, the adjutant immediately prepared the carrier’s conference room and placed heavily armed troops on standby in the hallway.

‘What a mess.’

The expression on Maru’s face as she boarded the aircraft carrier was not good. The stench of coal was rising from the flight deck, where there were clear signs of burning and patching here and there.

‘It’s an aircraft carrier, so they must have been very strict with deck maintenance. The fact that it’s still like this means they’re short on manpower.’

Why were there so few men? What could possibly have happened to the fleet waiting in the Black Sea? Maru’s eyes narrowed slightly.

‘It’s either an internal conflict caused by anger management issues or a cannibalistic outbreak. It’s possible that it’s both.’

So, the important thing now is whether the commanding officers are cannibals or not, and we’ll find out when we meet.

“Please disarm.”

“There is no gun.”

“That knife?”

“You want me to let this go too? If you follow me with a knife, I’ll let you go.”

“Yes? Please wait a moment.”

The officer with the so-called rank reported anxiously.

“It’s okay. Then I’ll arrange for you to meet with General Graham Garfield right away.”

“Okay.”

As the young Maru nodded, So-Woo took the lead.

‘Is this seizing the initiative?’

The corridor leading to the conference room was lined with heavily armed soldiers. There were also soldiers gathered in groups of three or five on all four sides of the conference room.

“Nice to meet you. My name is Graham Garfield, commanding Carrier Strike Group 2.”

“King Vladimir Kalin of the Holy Ark Kingdom.”

Edmund Garfield’s eyebrows quirked slightly at Maru’s brief introduction.

“You seem to like talking about the main point, so I’ll get straight to the point. Why did you come here alone, without any escort?”

“I have heard that the North Atlantic Carrier Strike Group 2 has nowhere to go.”

What the heck is this guy?

General Edmund Garfield hid his embarrassment with a smile.

“Hahahahaha – You have nowhere to go. You misunderstood. I don’t know where you heard it, but negotiations with the Confederacy are scheduled.”

“The Confederacy? You’re saying they contacted you first?”

Maru asked back, pretending not to know.

“That’s strange. Long-distance communication would have been impossible due to radio interference, right?”

So, when asked how they were connected, the general answered calmly.

“I guess they were watching our carrier group in the south. An agent came to me and made a proposal.”

“···A dedicated agent. I see. They say that Agent Virginia Langley is everywhere in the world. I guess that’s true.”

It was Maru who got the information that Virginia was moving actively.

‘They say they were targeting the carrier battle group even before the Aegis ship was destroyed by me.’

Seeing the Federation Army steadily growing in size and cajoling them, it seemed that even if this year passed, there would be armed conflict next year or the year after at the latest.

General Edmund Garfield cleared his throat.

“Hmm- Let’s talk about this later. You said you were the King of the Sacred Ark Kingdom. It’s the first time I’ve heard of such a country in the United States.”

“It’s not even been 100 days since the declaration of the founding of the country, so it’s understandable that you don’t know.”

The general wanted to know the situation, and Maru faithfully told him what he was curious about.

“···I see. So that’s why Director Dan Brown and General Gilbert Brown worked together to declare an empire.”

“It was inevitable, since the Confederacy had effectively seceded from the Union, and the Union was effectively over.”

So let’s not even think about going to the South. You’re not going to go to the South, which is leading the way in destroying the United States, even though you’re a federal soldier who will die soon, right?

Going East was the same. The East, where Dan Brown had pledged everything to rebuild the United States, eventually declared an empire, so wouldn’t it be awkward for the Federal Army to join hands with them?

Then how about entering the Holy Ark Kingdom without any hesitation? Maru slowly started selling medicine.

“Are you telling me to enter the Sacred Ark Kingdom?”

“Yes. Our kingdom is a peace-loving kingdom. If you think about it logically, you will find the answer. For example, if two carrier battle groups were to defect to the Confederacy? What would happen?”

“······.”

“It won’t be long before we’ll be at the forefront of the war against the Eastern Empire. It’ll be the same for those who are part of the Eastern Empire. We’ll be mobilized for the war against the Confederacy. There’s no reason to avoid war, since it’s something soldiers do, but why would those who were part of the United States have to fight in a bloody battle?”

“It sounds like the Holy Kingdom is different.”

“Yes.”

Edmund Garfield was quite surprised by Maru’s reply that if the Empire was unified through negotiations with Chancellor Dan Brown, the kingdom would join the Empire without any further war.

‘Are you saying that you will step down from power when that time comes?’

Was the declaration of the kingdom also to protect the people in the area where he was?

‘What are your intentions? Are you trying to take advantage of the situation while the South and the East are fighting?

The kingdom was larger than expected. Even in terms of its current area, the entire territory of the kingdom was from central Canada to eastern Michigan, and given the treaties made with the eastern part of the kingdom, it was not a problem to expand westward.

In fact, it would be no problem to eat up all of Canada. It would be the same to occupy the states adjacent to Michigan.

“I would appreciate it if you could give me some time to think about it. I need to talk to my adjutants.”

“Yes, that’s right. Oh, but. When I was boarding, it seemed like the mutant virus situation was serious. Is it all resolved now?”

“To be honest, it’s not easy to choose between the three. The Southern Alliance has promised to supply Ojin Pharmaceuticals’ original treatment.”

“A cure for Ojin Pharmaceuticals? Why do you need it? If you get infected with a mutant virus, you will either become infected or mutated, or you will develop immunity and be fine.”

1) You can’t overcome your intermittent explosive disorder and become a zombie. 2) You turn into a mutant and completely mutate. 3) You catch it and get better. 4) You don’t catch it in the first place. 5) You are infected without symptoms.

Anyway, it was strange that the fact that the infection situation had calmed down meant that there was no longer any need to desperately seek a cure.

‘No way. Are you joining hands with cannibals?’

It didn’t feel too bad to call it a trap.

‘First of all, he doesn’t seem to be a general.’

General Edmund Garfield answered Maru’s question with a candid tone.

“As you can see from the flight deck, it was really dangerous at the time. If the cannibalistic soldiers hadn’t come to their senses and helped later, we wouldn’t have been able to save the carrier. The cure is for them.”

“···The cannibalistic subordinates helped voluntarily?”

“Yes. The cure is for them. The disease is the problem, not the people. It’s not that there is no cure, but there is, so we should do our best.”

Maru’s eyes began to turn cold.

“Chief, all executives are gathered here.”

“Oh. Okay.”

General Edmund Garfield walked into the conference room where his officers were gathered. As the general stepped out, the soldiers began to reload their guns. Judging from the trembling in some places, it seemed that there were cannibal soldiers mixed in.

=====

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As he entered the conference room where his officers were gathered, General Edmund Garfield asked his aide.

“How did it look?”

“He was so confident.”

“Can we consider the kingdom as an alternative? He has a point.”

“If you are talking about geography, then no. The situation is always changing.”

The Confederacy and the Eastern Empire were now squabbling, but they were not at war. The fact that they were working and building together, but not at war, was very important.

“Is it possible for the conflict to be resolved at any time?”

In politics, there are no permanent friends or enemies. Whether it was the Confederacy or the Eastern Empire, if at some point they decided to recognize each other and draw a border, that was the end of it.

“Yes. So I don’t think there is any reason to enter the kingdom for safety reasons.”

“Okay. Then what about the Empire?”

The adjutant paused for a moment to consider his words.

“As the agent said, the Empire has already defeated the cannibals twice. If you go under the Empire, you will have to abandon all of your cannibalistic soldiers. The same is likely to happen to the Kingdom. The one who made a great contribution in the war against the cannibals was Vladimir Kalin.”

“So you recommend the South?”

“Yes. The situation is the same wherever the navy and air force are weak. The side that we raised our hand against is overwhelmingly stronger.”

The South, which had lost five ships to Maru and one more to the Eastern Empire Coast Guard Fleet, was in dire need of a second carrier battle group. Those who were most desperate would offer the best conditions. Naturally, the adjutant strongly recommended the South.

“It’s not just a power boost. Our carrier strike group will be a game changer in its own right.”

In its current state, takeoff and landing were precarious, but once repairs were completed, an aircraft carrier capable of operating fighter jets would literally be floating in the Atlantic Ocean.

The mainland couldn’t operate proper air power at the moment. It was because of the crazy birds. But what if fighters were to be launched from the open sea? There was no force to stop them.

In this situation, an aircraft carrier is not just an aircraft carrier. As the adjutant said, it is a game changer in itself.

“What does everyone think?”

“I think it would be best to join the Confederacy.”

“Certainly, when you think about the cure, the Confederacy looks stable.”

“I agree. The Empire seems to be in danger of its soldiers contracting cannibalism. The Kingdom seems to be in danger as well.”

General Edmund Garfield nodded.

“Unless something comes up that requires it, I will join the Confederacy.”

No one mentioned the justification Maru had initially given for the fall of the United States, which began with the secession of the Confederacy.

“What if we capture Vladimir Kalin?”

“That would be good. We can capture him alive and trade him for the Aegis fleet he led.”

The 2nd Carrier Squadron was currently half-dead. There were only two Aegis ships left. But if they could add five more ships, they would be able to secure a spot in the Confederacy and make their voice heard.

“You only need to secure 3 or 4 ships instead of 5.”

“Is that an Aegis ship from the Holy Kingdom? It must be a captured Aegis ship from the Federation.”

“I agree. I don’t think there will be another opportunity as good as this one.”

Ahem-

Although General Edmund Garfield muttered in discomfort, most of the senior officers agreed to capture King Vladimir Kalin and exchange him for the Aegis ship.

‘In the end, this is what happens.’

The general’s mouth was bitter.

“Have them treated with respect. Inform the Aegis ship of the Kingdom that the King has been detained. Offer to exchange the King and the Aegis ship.”

As soon as the order was given, there was a sound of something being cut and a leather pouch being torn open where Vladimir Kalin was.

“What are you guys doing! Didn’t I tell you to serve me politely?”

Kwajik- Kwaddeuddeuk!

A tearing sound can be heard in the hallway.

Whoa whoa!

“Shoot!”

Tadadadang!

“A monster. A monster.”

Thud, thud, thud!

Gunshots began to ring out everywhere.

“What is this? Have the royal forces infiltrated?”

[Avoid! He’ll go that way!]

A sound coming from the speaker.

As if the emergency bell had been pressed, emergency signals began to ring out in all directions. At the very moment when the executives gathered in the conference room were about to jump up and head to their combat positions, a strange sound erupted.

■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■—–

It sounded like an aircraft carrier roaring.

“What is this! What is happening now!”

Kkieeee-

Suddenly the aircraft carrier began to rock back and forth.

A phenomenon that occurs when the direction is changed sharply.

[Keuk- Beep- Kwajijik-]

The sound from the control room was transmitted vividly through the speakers, but no one could understand what it meant.

“······.”

“······.”

“······.”

“······.”

[Cheeeeeek- From now on, the ship you are looking at has been taken over by the Holy Kingdom. All disarm – Beep-]

[Chi-ik – I won’t warn you twice. Disarm and come out onto the flight deck.]

The voice of Vladimir Kalin.

General Edmund Garfield and his officers’ eyes were filled with confusion.

What the-