Chapter 1471: Finalizing (1) |
It kept tightening.
The hand gripping Burton’s throat was squeezing him tighter and tighter!
Burton’s hands instinctively flew up and grabbed at Kang Jin-Ho’s arm. But what filled him up right afterward was indescribable despair.
Because Phil Burton could tell. Simply touching this arm told him everything he needed to know.
It didn’t matter how much he struggled now, because the hand choking him would never let him go. This arm couldn’t have belonged to a human being. No, it must’ve been milled from a solid piece of reinforced steel!
Only then did Burton finally understand who he had been trying to pick a fight with.
I… I wanted to test this guy?
Me? Test Jin-Ho Kang?
What a terribly stupid idea that was.
There should have been plenty of ways to avoid reaching this conclusion. The obvious among which was to confirm Kang Jin-Ho’s abilities just once with Burton’s own two eyes before starting this so-called training exercise.
No, wait. Even before that…
If only he had paid attention to what Kang Jin-Ho did in Area H27! No, even before that! If only Burton took the reports of what Kang Jin-Ho had done in East Asia more seriously…!
The outcome could have been vastly different.
Unfortunately, Burton had arrogantly rejected all those opportunities. And now, Kang Jin-Ho stood before him to make him pay for his arrogance.
…All the while instilling indescribable despair in his heart!
“Kuehk…!”
Burton spasmed and writhed as the incredible grip tightened around his throat. His pleading gaze landed on Kang Jin-Ho next.
“Don’t give me that look,” said Kang Jin-Ho, a faint smirk still etched on his face. “You started all this, after all.”
…And then, Kang Jin-Ho’s grip strengthened some more.
“Kkeurururuk…!”
A bizarre noise leaked out of Burton’s mouth as his torso jerked back. Foam flooded out of his mouth, and so did tears from his eyes.
Lieutenant General Frank Wilson nervously swallowed his saliva at this scene.
Confronting a lion or a bear from up close wouldn’t have been this nerve-racking. A predator with a full belly wouldn’t go out of its way to hunt humans, after all.
But the man before Wilson’s eyes hunted other humans regardless of his hunger. No, he hunted because he felt like it, and that made him hundreds of times more dangerous than a predator!
Wilson cautiously spoke up. “He… will die if you keep that up.”
Kang Jin-Ho slowly turned his head and stared at Wilson, his grip on Burton’s neck remaining firm.
“Who are you?”
“I’m Lieutenant General Frank Wilson, the commander of III Armored Corps. I… oversee the division you fought to get here.”
“I see.”
Kang Jin-Ho looked away as if he was no longer interested.
He held no particular feelings toward soldiers getting in his way because of their orders. That was the major reason why he didn’t feel all that excited while fighting against the United States army just now. After all, soldiers didn’t have their own will.
To these soldiers, it didn’t matter who their adversaries were or what kind of situation they were in. They simply fought or retreated, depending on the orders received. That was all.
In a way, soldiers were tools.
Getting stabbed with a knife shouldn’t make you furious at the knife. No one with a sane mind would do that. No, the one you should be furious at was the person wielding said knife.
So, in Kang Jin-Ho’s opinion, both Frank Wilson and Reggie Mercer were the “knives” in this equation. As for the knife wielder of this event… That would be Phil Burton, currently trapped in Kang Jin-Ho’s grip.
Kang Jin-Ho tightened his grip again, causing Burton to spasm even more wildly.
“W-wait! You’re going to kill him!” Wilson cried out in alarm.
Kang Jin-Ho expressionlessly stared back at the lieutenant general. “So what?”
“I… I’m sorry?”
“Is there a reason why this man must not die?”
“…”
Wilson hurriedly clamped his mouth shut.
“You should be encouraging me to end this man’s life. An incompetent superior is more dangerous than any enemy in front of you, after all. This stupid event only happened because of this guy.”
Wilson would’ve agreed 100% with Kang Jin-Ho ten times out of ten. As a matter of fact, he would’ve been the one wringing Burton’s neck by now if Kang Jin-Ho hadn’t entered the bunker.
Today’s events finally taught Wilson why some soldiers resorted to murdering their own superior officers in the middle of operations.
But this was still not the right way to resolve this situation.
“But he’s still an undersecretary serving in the United States government. Killing him will only worsen the situation.”
Kang Jin-Ho cocked an eyebrow. “It doesn’t matter.”
“But…!”
“You better come up with a different argument,” said Kang Jin-Ho, abruptly cutting Wilson off. “Because this situation is already pretty bad, wouldn’t you say?”
“…”
Wilson agreed with Kang Jin-Ho once more. Not just him, but anyone with functioning eyes would’ve also agreed. However, if someone was insane enough to look at the carnage outside and say they could still “fix” it, their head should be separated from the rest of their body instead. That would be better for the world overall.
Since that was the case, the death of one undersecretary shouldn’t even matter anymore in this situation.
“However… Please remember that this is supposed to be a training exercise.”
“Training?” Kang Jin-Ho smirked if something amused him. “Sure, you could say that. It wasn’t a real battle, after all.”
“Yes, it wasn’t. Undoubtedly, it…”
“But your soldiers still risked their lives.”
“…!”
Wilson clamped his mouth shut again.
“You can see, right?” Kang Jin-Ho used his chin to point outside the bunker. “How many soldiers do you think have died today?”
“…!”
Obviously, Wilson wasn’t blind and could see. There was no way he’d miss the surviving soldiers crawling out of the wreckage or being pulled out from the destroyed tanks. That was enough for him to realize Kang Jin-Ho was being merciful in his own way.
But that didn’t mean everyone must’ve walked away from this ordeal in one piece.
For one, it’d be impossible to revive the soldiers trapped inside the tanks that got thrown into the air before crashing back to earth. And when the injured soldiers were included in the calculation… The number of casualties should increase astronomically.
“People were bound to die the moment your side decided to do something this moronic. That could’ve been me. Or, in this case, your soldiers.”
Kang Jin-Ho’s icy gaze landed on Burton, currently struggling to breathe.
“A man who tries to kill should also be prepared to die. After creating a mess where people were bound to die, he wanted to sit back and spectate?”
What a laughable attitude that was.
Everything in this world had a price. And Kang Jin-Ho was here to collect.
Wilson replied, even as thick cold sweat drops trickled down his forehead. “That is true, yes. However…!”
“…?”
“However, you shouldn’t be the one handing out the punishment for his mistake. That task belongs to the United States government. If he dies today, it would be no different from him evading punishment.”
Kang Jin-Ho’s expression grew unreadable as he studied Wilson. That response… was to his liking.
Despite Wilson being an ordinary person with not a drop of qi in his body, he still tried to persuade Kang Jin-Ho. Most ordinary people would’ve blacked out from merely standing near Kang Jin-Ho by now.
Even though Wilson wasn’t a martial artist, his demeanor still resembled one. That was why Kang Jin-Ho respected Wilson and even chatted back.
I see. The American military isn’t as hopeless as I initially thought.
The American soldiers might approach things differently from martial artists, but people like Wilson or Mercer from earlier fully deserved Kang Jin-Ho’s recognition, at the very least. With people like these two at the top, it was a small wonder why the United States army was such a force to be reckoned with.
Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes. “Even though I can mete out the punishment this man deserves?”
“Yes, but this is a matter of… Let’s say the perspective,” said Wilson with a deep sigh. “Burton dying by your hands might be the harshest punishment in his view. But the important thing to remember here isn’t about finding the harshest punishment, but the correct one.”
Kang Jin-Ho smirked softly. “Speak what’s on your mind.”
“…”
“Don’t worry, because I’m not angry at you. So, tell me, Lieutenant General. What do you want?”
Wilson stared at Kang Jin-Ho for a while, before another sigh leaked out of his mouth. “It’s to reward the survivors and to protect the honor of those who died today.”
“…Explain it in simpler terms.”
“If Burton dies today, the blame will land on us. Because it was our mission to protect him till the end. His death would make it look as if we’ve failed that mission. That means all those who died today will be remembered dishonorably. And the survivors will be treated like losers. Why must we be forced to deal with such dishonor because of this one bastard? My soldiers do not deserve that.”
Kang Jin-Ho’s smirk deepened. “So?”
“Let that man go. Give us the chance to make him face the consequences of his actions. That is all I ask for.”
The honor of his subordinates, was it…?
That’s fairly idealistic, isn’t it?
Kang Jin-Ho once heard that Westerners cared more about practical benefits than Easterners, but that assertion must’ve been incorrect. No, it was a mistake to categorize people into Westerners and Easterners in the first place, wasn’t it?
Kang Jin-Ho briefly tightened his grip on Burton’s throat before throwing the American away toward the far corner of the bunker.
Slam!
Burton sagged on the floor, unconscious.
“Don’t worry, I didn’t kill him. He’s still alive.”
“Oh…!”
Wilson was about to rush toward Wilson, only to flinch and stop himself.
“Do what you want,” Kang Jin-Ho muttered casually while turning around to leave.
He never held any grudges against Phil Burton, anyway. Kang Jin-Ho also agreed to participate in this nonsensical event, after all. He merely wanted this moronic bureaucrat to pay for the lives lost because of his miscalculation, that was all.
Of course, even if he could see how laughable it was for him to mete out the punishment in this case.
If this was not the outcome the American military wanted, Kang Jin-Ho didn’t have a reason to go against their wishes. He got everything he wanted to acquire from this place, after all. And he had proved himself enough by now, had he not?
“Thank you,” said Wilson.
Kang Jin-Ho briefly looked back at Wilson before leaping outside of the bunker.
Plop!
Wilson fell on his butt when Kang Jin-Ho was gone. It was already a minor miracle that he remained standing all this time. Simply coming face to face with Kang Jin-Ho was enough to gnaw rapidly away at his mental strength.
“G-general, sir! Are you hurt?! Are you alright?”
Soldiers fearfully observing the situation from the back rushed forward to assist Wilson. He got up with their help, then wiped away all the cold sweat caking his face with his uniform’s sleeve.
While furrowing his brow, he glanced at his subordinates. “What’s the situation outside?”
“The division has already begun the search and rescue operation, sir. However, because we’re in the middle of a desert…”
Wilson subtly chewed on his lip while listening to the subordinate’s report. “Dammit… Request the HQ for ground and air support from the nearest base to our current location. If that’s not enough, call 911 if you have to! Get as many ambulances here as we need!”
“B-but, sir. That will compromise the operation’s…”
“Do you think keeping secrets is more important than saving our soldiers’ lives?! I’ll shoulder the responsibility, so get a move on, now!”
“Yes, general!”
While the soldiers rushed away, Wilson yanked a nearby chair close and plopped down on it.
Damn. Our current state is in the pits.
Indeed, the situation looked terrible. Thankfully, though, it wasn’t absolute worst, either.
No, the absolute worst outcome would have been Kang Jin-Ho fighting for real. That would have meant not only Burton, but Wilson would be dead by now.
“Martial arts, is it…?”
Wilson felt like an idiot for agreeing with Burton’s opinion before this training exercise had begun. To think he’d bask in this baseless superiority, even though he knew little about the enemy!
Maybe the idea of the United States army being the strongest in the world had lulled him into this state. He should’ve remembered that, no matter how powerful America’s weapons were, none of them would matter if the one at the top was a moron.
That moron this time just so happened to be Wilson.
“Fuu-woo…” After letting out a lengthy sigh, Wilson forced himself to stand up. He glanced at his subordinate. “Open the bunker’s door.”
“Sir? But the situation outside is…”
“Hurry up!”
“Yes, sir!”
Wilson glared at the unmoving figure of Phil Burton still stuck by the bunker’s corner. The lieutenant general furrowed his brow, then coldly turned around to leave the bunker. His current job was to join up with the division commander to discuss the recovery operation, then… And also, to apologize for this blunder.
This will raise one hell of a stink later.
Without a doubt, the report of this event would cause a massive upheaval within the higher-ups. Because they would have to rip out the rules of engagement and start everything from scratch, after all!
Being the trigger that set such a thing in motion didn’t feel great to Wilson, however.
Once he emerged from the bunker, his eyes caught the sight of Kang Jin-Ho’s distant back walking through the burning wrecks of tanks.
Wilson stood there watching for a long time, before sighing again.