Chapter 91

Episode 91. Jeju Naval Base Siege (4)

****

Ugh, dizzy. I barely managed to hold back the rising nausea. I don’t usually get motion sickness, but this was crossing the line. It felt like riding a rollercoaster for six hours straight.

Since the hovercraft had no roof, the wind and rain hit my helmet directly. I gritted my teeth. I’ve been on helicopters and done rappelling, but this is the first time I’ve experienced such a horrifying mode of transportation.

But it’s fast, though.

In terms of speed, it’s almost on par with an aircraft.

“How do we board?”

“I’ll use magic to create a wave and lift you two onto the deck. After that, you’ll have to handle things on your own.”

I nodded.

“Then……”

Gunfire erupted toward the hovercraft, a typhoon roared, and thunder rumbled overhead. It was utter chaos.

Dr. Chae began an incantation from his seat.

“Oh great Dagon, we humbly acknowledge your mighty power. To achieve our goal, please lend this lowly servant your dominion over the waters, even if just for a moment.”

The sea folded.

The small hovercraft rode a massive wave straight toward the warship. Upon witnessing the wave, the enemy soldiers abandoned their positions and began retreating inside the ship, but—

The wave crashed over the warship, and everything on its deck was swept into the sea.

The hovercraft was shattered, colliding with a Vulcan turret. Nanami and I stepped onto Admiral Furani’s destroyer.

The destroyer swayed. Judging by how much lower the deck was, it seemed a significant amount of water had flooded the ship from the wave.

“Foundation staff, listen up! Drop your weapons, and those who surrender will be spared!”

My voice echoed across the warship. The sky, the waves, the gunfire—everything seemed to freeze for a moment. Was it just my imagination?

Clang. The destroyer’s Vulcan turret, now in pieces, fell onto the deck. No one answered. Maybe they had all dropped their weapons and surrendered.

“To the bridge, Dr. Kim.”

****

The bridge.

There might be a panic room inside the destroyer, but the enemy officers probably didn’t have time to escape. With my gun and Nanami’s sword leading the way, we entered the bridge.

“Which one of you is Admiral Furani?”

An elderly man in Foundation naval uniform stood up. I frowned.

“You must have a lot of questions, Blue Rose-13. I didn’t expect things to turn out like this, but from now on—”

Bang!

The brain matter of the enemy commander, who had tried to kill me, splattered across the bridge like a water balloon bursting. It looked like red paint sprayed from a can.

I scanned the bridge.

“Who’s next in the chain of command?”

“I’m the captain. Even if I die, I won’t—”

Bang!

Another head exploded.

Adrenaline flooded every vein from my head to my toes. Patience was biochemically impossible in this situation.

“Next. You. Are you the vice-captain?”

This time, the vice-captain stood up.

“Wait, just tell me your demands.”

“Not demands, orders. I’m a Foundation Director, and I’m the highest-ranking officer on-site.”

“Understood.”

“Raise the antenna and return to port.”

****

I reconnected with Foundation Headquarters through Advisor An. Surely, they’d do something this time.

“Is this Foundation Headquarters? Admiral Furani, who ordered my assassination, is dead. This is the Foundation destroyer Chamsuri, returning to Jeju Island.”

[We’ve confirmed the facts. The 8th Administrator is heading to Jeju Island with Special Forces ‘Ninetail.’ It’ll take about three minutes.]

“Three minutes?”

What kind of insane nonsense is this……

****

A black rectangle appeared at the back of the bridge, and a man in a black suit stepped out.

Jet-black slicked-back hair, a face as white as his shirt, and a height that seemed at least a head taller than mine.

“Why did you say three minutes? My coffee’s already done.”

The 8th Administrator. Yustitia.

“Hey, anyone listening? Why’s the weather so crappy today? Turn off the typhoon, will you?”

And then……

As if lying, the storm subsided, and the lightning that had been flashing like camera flashes began to fade. Everyone on the bridge held their breath.

The Administrator’s shark-like eyes stared at me.

“So…… you’re the one causing all this chaos today? Dr. Kim and that attack dog of yours?”

“That’s correct.”

Nanami looked displeased.

“Dr. Kim. I’ve got something to say. Have you met Patreus? That short Administrator.”

He wasn’t short; he was a cat. But saying a cat is tall is also funny. I nodded anyway.

“That guy’s an idiot. I’m not as soft as him, so don’t judge other Administrators based on Patreus.”

“Understood.”

“How much of a mess did you make, Dr. Kim? Are you going to kill everyone you see every time you get annoyed? You should’ve shown some restraint.”

I nodded.

I contacted Headquarters as quickly as possible, but they ignored me, right? They told me to handle it myself. So I handled it myself.

Yustitia snapped his fingers, and Special Forces ‘Ninetail’ took control of the ship. It was a gun I hadn’t seen before, but it looked similar to the one I was holding.

“I’ll clean up after you this time, Dr. Kim. Foundation Directors and generals are always causing trouble. I can’t personally intervene like this every time.”

“Understood.”

I couldn’t tell if he was serious or just making a twisted joke.

“Take the ship to port on your own. I’m heading back to the naval base. Oh, Dr. Kim’s group, follow me. We need to wrap things up.”

A black rectangle appeared in front of Yustitia again. We stepped through the black door and emerged outside the naval base.

****

Ninetail’s members swept through the facility. Foundation staff dropped their weapons.

“This is cleanup. Most of the staff at this naval base will be reassigned. It’s possible today’s events will be erased from their memories.”

“Understood.”

“Dr. Kim. Do you get it now? What the Foundation is about? The enemy isn’t just outside. The most annoying and powerful enemies are within the Foundation.”

“I see.”

“And they are the ones who most strongly threaten the world’s safety. Unlike those insignificant hostile groups or mindless supernatural phenomena.”

Yustitia sighed.

“Ninetail is the Foundation’s elite. Internal control personnel. They’re deployed in cases of rebellion or severe containment failures.”

“……”

“We’re busier than you can imagine. The Foundation is always on thin ice, and maintaining order is like balancing on a few chopsticks.”

****

[Administrator Council Meeting Minutes]

[Author: The 1st Administrator]

[Attendees:]

[The 1st Administrator, Veritas.]

[The 8th Administrator, Yustitia.]

[The 9th Administrator, Patreus.]

[Admiral Furani tried to kill the Seoul Branch Director, and the entire facility was turned upside down.]

[It’s the pinnacle of incompetence. Even if Jesus himself had invaded, they should’ve been able to subdue or stop at least one humanoid. Good riddance.]

[Honestly, it was disappointing. All the Blue Rose units deployed in the field were also killed.]

[Don’t you get it now? Yulje-myeon is a kind of solitude. It’s like throwing all the poisonous insects into a jar and making them eat each other to find the most venomous one.]

[So what?]

[That’s why I’m saying this. Who’s the monster that survived the fog of Yulje-myeon after killing all the other monsters and insects?]

[Blue Rose-13.]

[Dr. Kim.]

[Funny, Patreus. Is that your conclusion after fighting in Yulje-myeon?]

[Yes.]

[We need to increase Ninetail’s numbers to three digits. No…… The Foundation has never experienced this many containment failures or rebellions before.]

[What was Furani aiming for?]

[The retrieval of Blue Rose-13. The assassination obviously failed, and Blue Rose-13 single-handedly destroyed the naval base and subdued a destroyer.]

[Yustitia. Anything to say?]

[……]

[I respect Dr. Kim’s power and abilities. This incident, though a bit excessive, was ultimately caused by an assassination attempt on Dr. Kim.]

****

[Ninetail Operation Record]

[Author: Team Leader]

[We’ve secured the Foundation’s Jeju Island Naval Base.]

[Dr. Chloe was found dead among the key figures, and Admiral Furani’s aide suffered a severe injury, losing an arm.]

[Also. It seems Nanami went on a rampage, cutting down everything in sight. The area was completely devastated.]

[In total, there were about 100 casualties in this incident.]

[As for my thoughts…… It’s a bit puzzling. The Jeju Base personnel must have had experience killing espers and had plans in place. Why did this outcome happen?]

[Also…… It seems Blue Rose-0 has awakened. Whether it’s due to the typhoon or Blue Rose-0 inciting the typhoon is unclear.]