Chapter 134: Hide and Seek
Nearly 100 countries have established their defense attaché offices in South Korea.
This is the highest number after the United States, which has almost half as many defense attachés as South Korea.
The reason for sending so many defense attachés to South Korea is the abundance of information that needs to be handled.
Every time they blinked, there was a new weapon announcement, a conscription abolition, or a war outbreak.
They could not ignore these events.
Many of the defense attachés were former researchers because the weapons systems were so unfamiliar.
For example, the recently announced Combat Walker was incomprehensible to anyone who had not deeply studied black metal and androids.
Even those who had studied black metal for a long time did not understand it, for the most part.
Anyway, in such an atmosphere, the East Asian War finally broke out.
The busiest ones were of course the Korean soldiers, but the defense attachés of various countries also moved busily to find out information.
Because martial law was declared and most of the streets and public offices were closed, the only places they could go were the Ministry of National Defense Press Center and the diplomatic missions.
Fortunately, South Korea was not very stingy with information.
Kim Chul-woo, the Minister of National Defense, appeared at the press center where numerous reporters, diplomats, and defense attachés gathered.
He had served as the acting president, but he seemed to be satisfied with his current position.
Well, he had suffered enough while acting as the president.
The microphone was turned on and he began to announce.
“Yesterday at 7 p.m., South Korea formally declared war on China and Japan. At the same time, naval battles occurred near the West Sea oil field and Daemado Island.”
Battles already?
The defense attachés murmured in surprise.
They had expected that a battle would occur due to the tense situation surrounding the three countries, but they had not thought that it would happen as soon as the declaration of war ended.
Well, it was unusual enough to declare war in this era.
Minister Kim read the contents written hastily on paper, not on a prompter.
“In the West Sea battle, two naval ships of Korea, Kim Gu and Yeon Hyung-hyung, participated and sank or disabled six Chinese 055-class destroyers and many other warships. Currently, the West Sea oil field is secured by the 11th Combat Brigade.”
It was the moment when the superiority of railgun battleships was clearly revealed.
China had been confident that their railgun was not inferior to Korea’s, but reality was completely different.
—They destroyed a fleet in just 30 minutes with only two ships? That’s no joke.
—I have to report this to my country as soon as possible.
While the defense attachés were busy transmitting information, Minister Kim added.
“There were also air force fighters on standby nearby, but no mutual engagement occurred.”
Chinese fighters would know that anti-ship missiles were meaningless in front of iron beams, and Korea would have focused on intercepting Chinese fighters since the battle ended in victory.
Submarines would be top secret even if they were involved in a battle.
“And at the same time, there was also a naval battle with Japan near Daemado Island. However, the ships that participated in the battle were not from the Korean Navy, but from Earth Fleet.”
Earth Fleet? Did he mean that fleet that showed its strong presence in the Indian Ocean?
But there was a joint training of Japan, Britain, and France near Daemado Island. What happened?
Fortunately, the answer came soon.
“Earth Fleet sank five Japanese ships, including a high-class destroyer, and left the area after being attacked by a submarine squadron.”
Then someone stood up abruptly.
It was Colonel Harold, a defense attaché sent from Britain.
He asked without even getting permission to speak.
“Our British destroyer was also included in the training fleet. Did you attack them too?”
“I will not answer that. Please sit down.”
Minister Kim told him to sit down, but Colonel Harold did not back down and poured out English.
“Britain and Korea are not in a state of war right now. If you attacked a British destroyer, it could cause a serious crisis in relations between the two countries. I demand relevant information immediately.”
But the minister’s attitude was relaxed.
“I roughly understand what you mean, but I will not comment. If you do not listen to me now and sit down, I will issue a persona non grata from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Please sit down.”
Persona non grata.
It means that you are an unwelcome person and we will expel you.
Defense attachés often dealt with sensitive information, but it was rare for them to be designated as such.
Once issued, the other country could also take the same action, so it was burdensome.
But now it was wartime and there were hardly any countries that would complain about Korea’s sensitive reaction.
Defense attachés had to be polite by nature, but he did not follow the control of the minister of defense who was at war?
He would be sent back to his country without any excuse.
Colonel Harold licked his lips, but he could not resist and slumped down.
The announcement ended there and the defense attachés learned that the Korean Army’s 7th Corps had left their assembly point.
It was a unit that was too big to keep secret.
Several defense attachés from the United States and Britain gathered at the diplomatic mission and had a serious conversation.
“Why didn’t they announce anything about the 7th Corps?”
“Either they have no separate operation, or it’s confidential.”
“It must be the latter since the 7th Corps is not a decoy.”
“Have they left by now?”
“We’ll find out in 30 minutes.”
In the last Second Korean War, the Korean Army’s 7th Corps received a lot of spotlight.
They advanced at the forefront of the army and crushed the elite tank units that North Korea boasted of.
This unit attracted unprecedented attention from not only China but also the United States and Japan.
The 7th Corps of the Korean Army was the only tank unit equipped with railguns and ion thrusters.
They also wanted to see how the drone system worked in a real battlefield.
That’s why the United States had paid a lot of attention to the training and movement of the 7th Corps, and even shared the information with Japan, their ally.
However, Japan did not care much about the 7th Corps, thinking that it was almost impossible for them to land on their territory.
Considering their huge naval power, it was not a wrong idea. Instead, they focused on Earth Fleet of the Human Alliance.
Anyway, when President Yu Ji-ha declared war, the United States lost track of the 7th Corps except for the West Sea oil field and the Tsushima Strait.
But due to the nature of low-orbit satellites, they could only reconnoiter the location every hour and 40 minutes.
The US Intelligence Agency assigned two Keyhole reconnaissance satellites to the 7th Corps, but they could not reduce the interval to less than an hour.
President Yu Ji-ha declared war 30 minutes ago, so the 7th Corps must have moved too.
The result would come out in 30 minutes.
France wanted to join this place, but the United States only shared information with countries where Anglo-Saxons were dominant.
No matter how much Korea achieved dazzling development, their position would not change.
Maybe President Yu Ji-ha knew this fact and acted hostile toward the United States.
Even if he tried hard, he would not be sure that his rank would rise. Wouldn’t he give up on trying?
Moreover, a think tank of the US Democratic Party reported that he had a high possibility of breaking the board.
He was shaking the world order led by the United States by continuing to wage war. It was an extension of his idea that he would become the center.
Colonel Harold, who had been scolded earlier, lowered his voice.
“Don’t you think he went to Shenyang? He said he wanted Manchuria.”
“Maybe he advanced to Dalian. There’s an oil field there.”
Both were possible scenarios and a SR-72 reconnaissance aircraft that had departed from Guam was heading to Dalian.
This reconnaissance aircraft had a maximum speed of Mach 6 and could not be intercepted by any existing air defense network.
Even China and Russia were helpless against this reconnaissance aircraft and protested several times, but the United States did not budge.
This reconnaissance aircraft was originally stationed in Osan, Korea and Okinawa, Japan, but it moved down to Guam when USFK withdrew and USFJ declared a reduction.
As a result, it could not be immediately deployed for reconnaissance even though war was declared and it was flying hard.
Thirty minutes passed and Major General James, a US defense attaché, received a call from his country.
“The 7th Corps is not at their base. We are tracking their movement now, but it seems like they went to Dalian.”
“He valued the oil field more than Manchuria. He must have been dissatisfied with Siberia’s oil field.”
“That’s unlikely…”
Siberia was one of the places with the most abundant resources in the world.
Korea wouldn’t have shared their initial skills with Russia for nothing.
Colonel Harold leaned back on the sofa with a relaxed expression.
“It seems like the war will not expand as much as we thought.”
“That’s the biggest question. I thought he would definitely go northward considering his aggressive nature.”
They all misunderstood his purpose because he openly picked a fight with Manchuria.
Was this also a deception?
“Compared to his crazy idea of taking over all of Manchuria, taking part of Liaodong Peninsula is more realistic.”
“It’s still a big part. And China won’t give it up easily. Their army has more than tanks.”
“If we add their artillery power and rocket force, they can easily destroy a corps-level unit.”
Maybe the total war itself was a deception.
Anyone could see that Korea was not capable of fighting China and Japan at the same time.
Even if they joined forces with the Human Alliance, they might have an advantage in combat, but it was impossible to make both countries surrender in a short time.
Eventually, it would become a long-term war, which would be fatal for Korea, which depended on imports for most of its raw materials.
In that respect, everyone thought that Korea’s goal was not Manchuria as a whole, but Liaodong Peninsula.
Since their main force, the 7th Corps, went to Dalian, it was not unreasonable to think so.
It was more realistic than taking over all of Manchuria.
But China wouldn’t give it up easily either.
***
After destroying Japan’s training fleet, Earth Fleet submerged and escaped from the pursuit of a submarine squadron that had been ambushing nearby.
It was very difficult to detect a submarine from a submarine.
Even the United States and Russia, which had an edge in anti-submarine operations, sometimes caused collision accidents.
As a result, Japan’s Joint Command completely lost track of Earth Fleet and Prime Minister Matsuda was furious.
“They attacked as soon as the declaration of war ended? They are completely crazy!”
He secretly hoped that Britain and France would intervene, but the military decided that it was unreasonable because there was not much damage.
“Four of our destroyers were maneuvering with the fleet, but their shooting was so exquisite that they did not cause any damage.”
“Only one high-class destroyer was disabled and got some fragments from the explosion.”
On the other hand, Japan’s navy suffered a lot.
Five battleships that received railgun shots were all sunk or completely disabled.
According to the helicopter that was urgently dispatched to the scene, the flagship Maya-class, where Admiral Izuchi boarded, was almost a beehive.
It did not sink, but the bridge, radar, engine, and railgun turret were all smashed, so it was almost like a floating coffin.
Prime Minister Matsuda trembled with rage at Korea’s treachery.
“They attacked from behind because they couldn’t face us head-on…”
But the navy sighed in unison when they received the data from this battle.
“It means that our forces are in a huge disadvantage, even if we ambushed them, we couldn’t respond and were annihilated.”
“The penetration power of the railgun is much higher than we expected. The black metal armor was useless.”
“If this is the situation without the firepower ships and drone carriers coming out…”
But no one in the navy could report this to the prime minister.
They were afraid of being accused of being cowards.
There was also an internal situation where they could not be underestimated in a situation where the army was confident that they could secure Tsushima if they opened the sea.
The incident where the training fleet was destroyed and Admiral Izuchi died did not cause much shock, because a bigger shock came later.
The railgun deployed on Korea’s Dae Ma Do island started to operate in earnest.
This railgun was a ground type, so it could push in a different dimension of power than the ship type.
The control authority did not exist in the army or the joint chiefs of staff, but only in Yu Jiha.
When the weapon started to operate, the Japanese navy was startled.
—Tsushima’s railgun is activated! All fleets execute evasive maneuvers!
In fact, there was no reason to be afraid of railguns unless they were fleets.
It would have a definite penetration power, but it would not have much destructive power because it could not put high-explosive shells.
If they loaded hafnium-2 warheads, it would be a cause for condemnation from the international community.
Even now, there was a strong opinion in the UN that Korea’s hafnium-2 warheads should be stopped.
Because Korea withdrew its diplomats, their intentions were not conveyed, but if mushroom clouds rose on the Japanese archipelago, other countries would not sit still.
Even the United States announced that it would consider redeploying tactical nuclear weapons depending on Korea’s use of hafnium-2 warheads, let alone what else.
Japan was a country with a different dimension of influence on the world economy than Iran or Pakistan.
But they didn’t know.
That a railgun with a fully released limiter does not need hafnium-2 warheads.
As soon as Dae Ma Do’s railgun started firing, hundreds of projectiles overturned the fleet near Sasebo.
It wasn’t one by one.
The fleet was like a honeycomb in an instant, as if it had been hit by a shower.
“Rain of projectiles falls from the sky! The fleet will be annihilated at this rate!”
The nearby air defense unit did its best to respond, but it was impossible to intercept because the speed of the projectiles was too fast.
As hundreds of projectiles poured down like localized showers, the core facilities of the base were literally shattered.
“Sasebo Regional Command completely silent! There is no ship that can move!”
“The damage to the amphibious assault unit is also devastating! Unable to respond!”
Dae Ma Do’s railgun did not touch civilian areas and only targeted military facilities.
There was nothing left to penetrate buildings, concrete fortifications and armored vehicles with its tremendous penetration power.
The fuel depot also exploded, causing a huge explosion at Sasebo Naval Base.
Prime Minister Matsuda heard that mushroom clouds rose in Sasebo and contacted the Joint Command with glee.
“Those Koreans used hafnium-2, right?”
“N-no! According to confirmation results, it seems to be an explosion of fuel depot!”
His face turned sour in an instant.
War was inevitable anyway, and he had to somehow drag the United States into it, but Korea did not give him that opportunity.
He couldn’t just sit still, so he immediately ordered an attack on Tsushima.
“Pour out everything you can shoot!”
The relatively well-coordinated air force and navy stepped forward and poured out all available ground-to-ground missiles, and Dae Ma Do also responded with interception.
While both sides projected limited firepower around Tsushima, Earth Fleet freely roamed Japan’s sea.
Japan’s submarine units searched for revenge, but they had a hard time finding traces.
Earth Fleet could almost go down to the bottom of the sea floor.
They tended to underestimate this fleet’s diving depth because they showed weakness in the Indian Ocean.
—It can only dive, but it doesn’t have the same diving depth as a real submarine.
—The fact that it didn’t move properly when it overturned fragments means that its confidentiality is not very high. -But we have to be careful about its speed. It’s too fast even for fast.
However, being fast in water means that it exposes a long trail.
It is because it cannot pass through water without leaving any traces.
So Japan’s naval command deployed huge mines near ports and fleets where Earth Fleet might appear, as well as mobilizing Orion and anti-submarine helicopters to search for water.
But Earth Fleet hardly showed up.
If they were scared and not moving, that alone would have been a great success for Japan’s operation.
They just had to recover their forces and attack Tsushima.
There were more amphibious assault units that could carry out landing operations besides Sasebo.
It would take time to call them, but if Earth Fleet stayed hidden like this, it was worth a try.
What Japan was reluctant to do was the human alliance’s army, including Earth Fleet, not Korea.
—The 7th Division or something is definitely amazing. It would be hard for our army to deal with them. But how are they going to cross the sea?
—KF-31 is still in production and the combat walker thing was only announced, not deployed yet. When they make a fuss, we will have F-3 deployed, so it’s not a problem.
—-Just watch Terra Island.
Everyone was focusing on Terra Island and Earth Fleet, while China mobilized all means to find the 7th Division heading to Dalian.
The 7th Division was a definite target and was expected to hold the key to this war.
If they could neutralize or at least hinder this tank unit, the odds would definitely tilt towards China.
But the Chinese reconnaissance planes that flew into Liaoning Peninsula were all shot down, and even the satellites failed to take pictures in time.
As a result, the Chinese leadership had to be blind for several hours without knowing the situation in Liaoning Peninsula.
“What the hell is going on! Even if the Korean army entered, it’s our land! How can we not know the situation of our land!”
“Th-there is a Korean fleet nearby, so it’s impossible for reconnaissance planes to approach!”
They couldn’t mobilize other fleets because of the defeat in the Yellow Sea battle.
The ballistic missile power, including the hypersonic anti-ship missile, was not yet time to use.
Wang Xian Shangjang suppressed his anger and asked.
“What about contact with the local?”
“The Korean army destroyed the communication relay tower as they moved! The submarine cable seems to be cut off too, and the radio interference is no joke!”
“Send in a motorcycle unit!”
The motorcycle unit stationed in Yingkou rushed to Dalian.
They had already been promised a promotion of one rank.
That means reconnaissance with death in mind.
But when the motorcycle unit arrived in Dalian, the 7th Division was gone.
All that was left was the traces of their movement.
Wang Xian waited for three hours to receive a report and felt empty.
“Then where did the 7th Division go?”
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