Rust - Chapter 997



Only Krnovel

RUST -997

Leon Bonnard boarded the command vehicle after noticing a small mushroom cloud rising in the distance.

‘The Holy Kingdom really has no intention of intervening.’

When I said that strategic nuclear weapons could be used in the Philadelphia recapture operation, the answer I got was, in summary, ‘You can use them or not, it’s up to you, but if you use them, we can use them too.’

‘If this continues, if you really use strategic nuclear weapons, everyone will die from a major earthquake.’ In response to this, ‘I told you we won’t die. Use it if you want.’

The answer, “If you use it, we use it too,” included the words, “We won’t die from earthquakes.” The Empire was able to avoid great earthquakes by using its maritime cities. What about the Holy Kingdom?

The Empire was unaware that the Holy Kingdom had completed the floating city, but the Holy Kingdom’s response suggested that there was a huge shelter. A shelter that could even withstand a major earthquake triggered by a strategic nuclear weapon.

In that case, the story is different. If we use strategic nukes to solve the problem, the Holy Kingdom will also use strategic nukes to solve the situation in the future.

‘You’re being picky. Or did you think it was dangerous? I wanted to check out King Vladimir Kalin’s abilities. It’s not easy.’

Woot woot-

As the tactical nuclear device exploded, a plume of debris poured down like a pyroclastic flow.

It was not a power that could be taken lightly as a tactical nuclear weapon. With a power of 10 kilotons, three would be a total of 30 kilotons. The bombs dropped on Nagasaki and Hiroshima were around 20 kilotons, so if a vampire was within the firing range, it would have been the end.

‘If he didn’t die, it’s a story of him avoiding the threat of nuclear weapons.’

If you avoided it? That would be the end of your life debt.

“Rest for 24 hours. Strengthen your guard and reorganize your formation.”

[All right.]

‧

Dan Browne had noticed Leon Bonnard’s trick. It was not that the Emperor had no political power, but that he was devoting all his energy to war instead of politics.

As the saying goes, war is bloody politics, and politics is bloodless war. The emperor was clearly talented in politics as well.

A single warning that strategic nuclear weapons could be used elicited a response from the Holy Kingdom, and that single response provided insight into the Holy Kingdom’s situation.

‘Are you saying they’ve already completed a floating city the size of a maritime city?’

How? Even empires rich in raw materials and manpower actually built maritime cities with all their might. The difference in population between 50 million and 5 million was more than a tenfold difference from a construction perspective.

Lanchester’s laws were not only applicable in war, Dan Brown thought, but also in economic warfare.

Given the working-age population, it was impossible for the Holy Kingdom to have built a proper floating city at about the same time as the Empire.

‘I see. It would have been possible if we had actively utilized things like ants and rats.’

The rescue team sent by the Holy Kingdom during the Great Earthquake included a swarm of ants and a swarm of rats. The fact that they could clear away debris and do rescue work meant that they could also be used for construction.

‘That’s true, but the Emperor who has seized military power told us to be prepared for the use of strategic nuclear weapons…’

It had another meaning.

‘I thought there were still cannibals and vampires left in the maritime city.’

If the Emperor had decided to use nuclear weapons, there would have been no realistic way to stop him. However, the reason he foreshadowed the possibility of using strategic nuclear weapons was probably to give him time to prepare for the aftermath of using them, while also making sure that information about their use would not leak out.

Either there was a way to bypass the diagnostic kit. Or there were followers who were hiding cannibals or vampires. Even if there were no cannibals, there was a possibility that there were followers who wanted to become cannibals.

‘That’s ridiculous.’

Only a few months after he stepped down as president, the entire security system, including the security system, was in shambles.

The kitten terror incident was a typical case of a security system gone awry. The situation was resolved, but the Emperor did not trust it. He wanted to use strategic nuclear weapons to confirm security.

‘That’s it. I have nothing to say even if I know that the Emperor is being shameless.’

“Have you finished checking the CCTV footage?”

[There is still about 30% left.]

“What about the investigation?”

[We have secured 27 suspects and are investigating.]

“There may be a way to bypass the diagnostic kit. Don’t trust the results 100%, and if there’s anything suspicious, get them individually examined. Even if the test results don’t show that they’re cannibals, don’t rule out the possibility that they’re followers.”

[All right.]

It was Den Brown who strengthened the security system of the maritime city.

======

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The combination of hunters and animals is getting better and better.

“Ruby- Where are you?”

A retriever with one front paw raised at a 90-degree angle and its head fixed in one direction. It was perfect direction guidance.

“Okay. I’ll go against the wind. Can you steer it that way?”

Ruby nodded instead of responding with a yawn to her master’s softly whispered voice and moved. It was the same for dogs and cats.

Meow-(here-)

“Good job, Milo.”

The cat, having discovered a rabbit hole, wags its tail from side to side. At that moment, a rabbit dashes out.

The rabbit suddenly jumps up to swing its cat-punch at the sudden charge of the rabbit, and the rabbit runs through the gap shouting, ‘Step, save me.’

Any other cat would have instinctively chased the rabbit, but Milo found it annoying to chase it in the bitter cold until he was sweating.

Mieeeeong- (That thing is running away – Butler -)

“There might be more inside. I’ll catch those. Check inside the cave.”

Meow- (Okay.)

‧

Winter hunting was already tough.

It was difficult to move around in the exosuit because the temperature, which ranged from minus 60 to minus 70 degrees Celsius, reduced battery performance.

Although I was able to withstand the cold by wearing an exosuit, it was difficult to cope with the rapidly depleting battery power.

So the hunters carried their exosuits on sleds. Most of them made a contract with a wolf pack and had the wolves drive the sleds.

However, since they were wolves that hunted in packs, the contracts were made in packs, and the contract period was short, which was a problem. This was because the wolves’ main occupation was rangers.

AI Diana reported that hunters’ demand is shifting towards renting military dogs or adopting dogs that have been treated with AI.

[Contracts with military dogs are increasing, and the number of hunters who want to adopt safe dogs is increasing. If this continues, it is predicted that supply will have difficulty keeping up with demand.]

“I guess we definitely need a dog rather than a cat.”

Even if they weren’t breeds known for being sled dogs, like the Alaskan Malamute, Samoyed, or Siberian Husky, wild dogs that were adapted to the cold could easily pull sleds.

[After all, there is a clear difference in traction. Wild dogs and wolves also do not have many pups.]

They can give birth to 8 to 10 pups, but both wolves and wild dogs give birth to about 4 pups on average. It takes about 1.5 to 2 years for them to grow up and do their part, so even if they breed as much as possible, it would be difficult to meet the demand.

“Robot dogs are probably going to be difficult, right?”

[Because as you know there is a battery problem.]

“Still, everyone is working hard. It’s so cold.”

[It’s because the equipment is good.]

The reason they can hunt in extreme cold is because of their equipment. Their outerwear made from the fur of mutated monsters and their innerwear made from special heat-generating fibers are the driving force that allows them to withstand temperatures of -60 to -70 degrees Celsius.

Add in the makeshift bunkers and sleds, and it was to the point where people even said that the bitter cold of winter was a better season for hunting.

“Is that all?”

[They say that you have to wear many layers of clothing, so your body becomes a bit dull. But it doesn’t seem to be a big problem. Aren’t there quite a few awakened hunters? Even without that, the equipment was good, and now that they’re awakened, they say that winter is better than summer or fall, when there are a lot of bugs.]

It was mostly just awakening physical abilities, but that alone was helpful enough.

“Even if our main force moves to Southeast Asia, there will be no problem in defense.”

[Yes. There are hunters, and the crows, ants, and rats are intimidated, but dogs and cats fill the void.]

“What is the Korean government’s response?”

[It wasn’t bad. The conditions we offered were a bit radical.]

In order to make Korea a distribution base, it was decided to repair and replace the destroyed production facilities in the southern part of Gyeongsang Province. In addition, it was decided to build production plants around Chuncheon and Wonju in Gangwon Province, which were ceded as autonomous districts.

“What about sending troops? If you just guard the supply depot, it will lessen our burden.”

[They say that sending troops is difficult. There are also troops tied up in Taiwan. They say that Japanese refugees who had been cut off are slowly coming back.]

“still?”

[It’s not much, but it seems like they’re coming in at the ten-finger count every day.]

“If there are less than 10 people, it’s almost nothing. Isn’t that an excuse to refuse to send troops?”

[The problem is that there are people who have been eroded on that side, so it seems like a lot of troops are needed to control them.]

The eroded one.

Maru’s expression became serious as he heard that there were people trapped in a deep sinkhole, trapped by something unknown, among the refugees.

“Are the sinkhole guys really trying to expand their power?”

If the sinkhole guys were expanding their power, organizing Southeast Asia wouldn’t be important. They were already dead. They were immortal.

[I don’t think so.]

After taking a moment to collect his thoughts, Ki-sun’s answer was ‘No.’

[If they were trying to expand their power, they would have come in droves instead of stabbing a few people at a time. Even at the lowest estimate, the number of people and animals that were encroached upon in Japan would be in the hundreds of millions. Wouldn’t it be better to attack them all at once?]

“No. If it were me, I would infiltrate them secretly like I am doing now and try to cause division from within.”

What if we rush in all at once and break the frozen sea like last time, causing them to drown? They were clearly vulnerable to seawater. If they had the ability to learn, they would not have used a tactic that could cause them to drown if they rushed in all at once.

[Sure. That’s true. So what are you going to do? Are you going to give up on organizing Southeast Asia?]

Maru was disappointed that his unique sense of crisis had changed. If it had been like before, there would have been some kind of reaction. His heart was beating quietly. It was as if Maru’s life was not at risk even if a sinkhole burst.

“Anyway, Southeast Asia needs to be sorted out.”

[Sure. That must be it.]

It has been hypothesized that the immortal monsters that emerge from sinkholes are more powerful in places where volcanic eruptions block out the sun with ash and dust.

After discovering and removing a sinkhole in a rebel-held area on Mindanao Island in the Philippines, we sent an official letter to each country in Southeast Asia asking them to search for the sinkhole, but it has been over six months, ten months later, and there has been no response.

There must be sinkholes in Southeast Asia, a region with frequent volcanic and seismic activity. There must be sinkholes, but why don’t they report them even if they are discovered?

Are you trying to use it like a rebel? The sinkhole I saw in the Philippines was eating bugs and insects and spitting them out. What if you collected them and pushed them into the enemy country?

No country could stop the attacks of the immortal insects.

[Are you going to weaponize it? That could be possible. Southeast Asian countries are not on good terms to begin with.]

Even just in Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, Thailand, and Malaysia, the relationship was a mess. Add in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Australia, and things got even worse.

It’s fortunate that we have a huge(?) enemy called China, otherwise the conflict would have broken out many times.

The problem was that China’s pressure on Southeast Asia completely disappeared as China split into seven pieces. As the imminent threat from China disappeared, conflicts between Southeast Asian countries gradually increased.

“It doesn’t matter if we’re on good terms or bad, if we’re grabbing each other’s hair or going to war. We just need to get rid of the sinkholes and monsters. There are cannibals and strange religious groups that have sprung up.”

[Okay, I’ll convey my opinion.]

And Southeast Asian countries condemned it with one voice.

‘The Holy Kingdom’s request is a clear violation of sovereignty.’

‘Look at what they did after they took control of the rebel areas in the Philippines. Didn’t they just cause chaos and leave?’

‘Look at the strategic assets in the Philippines being destroyed and no compensation given.’

‘We will not stand idly by and watch the invasion of the Holy Kingdom forces.’

‘The Holy Kingdom must first present a compensation plan!’

These kids had something going on.