Seoul Station’s Necromancer Chapter 92:
Chapter 92 - Wrath of the Desert
Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan .
Commanding general David Gates got off the phone with the Minister of National Defense, and he gathered his officers .
There was only one topic to discuss within this meeting .
“Currently, a Korean citizen Roused is on the Titan guild's private plane, and he has information on the missile terrorist attack carried out on the US soil . ”
“It must be that Korean, who stopped the terrorist attack . ”
“That's right . He wants to track down and take revenge on the people responsible for the attack, and he is requesting help from our military . ”
The chief of staff immediately asked his question after hearing general David's words .
“I know he is a Roused, but warfare is dangerous . If we don't work well together, the joint operation with the civilians will put us in more danger . ”
He was basically saying a stupid ally was more dangerous than the enemies . It would be more dangerous if this Roused put too much trust in his puny abilities .
There was no guarantee a Roused won't die from a bullet . The battlefield was a place where a bullet might kill you from far away .
“Mmm . This was sent by the Titan guild . ”
At the commander's word, the aide played the video .
"Oh, Shit . "
*
After Woojin and the people from the Titan guild got off the private plane, they were immediately directed towards the commander's room . General David gave a brief greeting, and at Woojin's request, they immediately started planning for the operation .
“How did you get this information?”
This was the information they were most curious about . US Intelligence Agencies were still trying very hard to find information on the people behind the missile terrorist attack yet how did Woojin know all about this?
“Ah well . ”
Woojin called forth Al Assad, who had become a Death Knight . His Loyalty and Trust was still weak, so he still needed to use a considerable amount of Control . However, he had been able to lower it to 80 . Woojin asked Al Assad a question .
“Hey . Tell them all about it . ”
[I received a request from a broker I frequently had business with . It was to assassinate a Korean Roused . . . ]
Woojin's familiar was an assassin, who had tried to kill him . Everyone inside the planning room looked at him strangely, but Woojin paid no attention to it .
“Who was it?”
[It was an Iranian businessman . I don't know his name, but if I see his picture . . . ]
At Al Assad's request, the general brought up a list . It had photos of businessmen, who hailed from Iran . Al Assad pointed to one of them .
“Hmm . This person is Nasser Saatchi . This man sells weapons to both the government and the rebels . He is on our watchlist . ”
[He serves as a go-between for various ventures that has the potential to be profitable . ]
Woojin looked at the picture .
It was a picture of a Middle Eastern businessman named Nasser Saatchi . If he shook this guy down, then he'll be able to find out who ordered his assassination .
“Where can I find him?”
“Whoa . Don't be in such a rush . ”
Woojin acted as if he was about to head out immediately to look for this man, but David dissuaded him .
“Our target is identified now . We'll tell you after we establish the personnel for this operation . "
Now that the information was out in the open they wanted Woojin to wait a little bit . This person was on the US army's watchlist, but on the surface, he was a legit businessman .
Still, this person of interest instigated a terror attack on the US soil .
They had enough probable cause to be able to capture him using the might of the army .
Still, if they wanted to catch him before he realized something was wrong, they needed a proper plan .
“I have a way to monitor the **** without him noticing anything . You just have to guide me to a location where I can see him with my eyes . ”
They didn't have to set up a meeting to draw this man out . Woojin just had to walk by this man within his field vision, and he'll be able to attach Ggaebi to him . After several days, Woojin would find out the pattern of his movements . He'll be able to get the location where he conducts his business, and he'll be able find where he stores the information regarding all his past deals .
“Won't we be able to learn more information doing it my way? What do you think?”
“…… . ”
Woojin's suggestion was intriguing .
If they arrested Nasser at the word of this strange Skeleton Knight, the US might receive international criticism if there were no evidence connecting the man to the terrorist attack .
Woojin would be able to provide them with more detailed information .
Woojin had no other ulterior motives .
If he couldn't learn the information about who had ordered his assassination from Nasser, then he would run into a wall in his pursuit . This was why he was paying closer attention to this operation .
‘I don't know who order it, but that person should watch out . ’
For a brief moment, David thought about Woojin's suggestion then he answered .
“All right . Let's implement the plan together . ”
The mission was named [Putting a Bell around a Cat's Neck] . Woojin was inserted into a portion of the mission called [Lick the Shadow] .
*
Peshwar, Pakistan .
Booooong .
A disguised Woojin was riding in the backseat of a taxi, and he was sitting next to an American intelligence office named Rachel Park . Her Korean name was lieutenant Park-oohnji . They looked like a typical Asian couple on a vacation, and they were headed towards a hotel .
“Why are you so nervous?”
“Hoo-ooh . This is the first time I've been on such a mission . ”
Rachel held a post that placed her far away from the battlefield . However, she had been inserted into this operation, since she was a Korean-American . Her appearance didn't clash with Woojin, so they could act naturally as a couple . It was a good disguise to travel around in .
In case of an unexpected situation, a support team was following behind the taxi in disguise .
“Just think of it as a vacation . Look how great . . . I guess it isn't that great over here . ”
Woojin had pointed out the window, and he could see ruined buildings . There were soldiers securing the surrounding with children nearby . Woojin's words trailed off when he saw the people in the streets .
“There was a suicide bombing here not too long ago . "
She was an intelligence officer, so she was very well versed in the terrorist activities in Afghanistan, and Pakistan .
“Does this happen a lot over here?”
“It happens quite frequently . Even a single terrorist attack in our country would cause an uproar, but it is just part of the daily life here . ”
“Hmmm . ”
He couldn't help, but smirk at the view of the streets . He felt the energy of the battlefield . It felt strange . He might be able to delude himself into thinking he was back on Alphen .
‘Of course, he is composed . ’
Rachel swallowed her saliva as she saw Woojin, who was smiling . She had gone over every intel they had on Kahng-woojin . Woojin's Rank was too high to call him a run of the mill Roused, and his decisive actions were quite unusual .
Her mission was to guide Woojin towards the restaurant in a hotel where Nasser Saatchi was scheduled to visit . She also had another important mission of keeping Woojin, who was known to be hot headed and impulsive, in check .
“We'll be arriving soon . Please refrain from doing anything eye-catching or provoking . ”
“Don't worry about it . ”
Woojin and Rachel entered the hotel, and they checked into their appointed room . Rachel opened her suitcase, and she started setting up the communication equipments . Then she put a small earpiece into her ear .
She contacted the operations vehicle with the support team in it . After she finished checking her communications, she carefully waited for her target to show up .
After a moment .
[Chi-jeek . The target is approaching the restaurant . ]
“He's here . ”
“Let's go . ”
Woojin and Rachel headed down to the restaurant . After leisurely ordering their meal, Rachel whispered towards Woojin .
“He is sitting in the 3rd table near the back window . He is wearing a sky blue shirt . ”
Woojin peeked a glance, and he saw a face that matched the photo .
‘Stick to him, Ggaebi . ’
[Yes . ]
Ggaebi, who was attached to his shadow, moved to Nasser Saatchi's shadow . After a moment, the food they ordered arrived . Woojin used his fork to put food in his mouth, and he started chewing . It was a chicken and shrimp dish . The spices were a little bit on the strong side, but the taste was to his liking .
“This is quite good . ”
Rachel asked in a bit of an impatient manner as she looked at Woojin .
“While we have the time, please activate the surveillance mechanism . ”
“I already did . ”
When? She hadn't noticed anything at all .
“Let's head out after eating this . ”
“…understood . ”
Rachel hadn't noticed anything even though she was right in front of him . She decided Nasser, who was leisurely having a meal, wouldn’t have noticed anything .
They didn't look at the target again . Woojin enjoyed the meal as if he was really on vacation . It allowed Rachel to shed her nervousness she felt for her first field mission .
When she realized his constant leisurely manner wasn't a false front, Rachel felt a strange emotion inside .
“Bring the equipments . I'll wait below . ”
“Why don't we go up together?”
“It isn't necessary for both of us to go up . ”
“There are some things only two people can do together . ”
Woojin smirked at Rachel's provocation .
“Even if you'll have to lay down your life?”
She decided Woojin was turning down her offer, so Rachel shrugged her shoulders . This was the most cut-throat rejection she had ever received .
“Too bad . ”
“Go do what you have to do, and come back . ”
“Yes . Please wait here for a moment . ”
While Rachel went up to the room, Woojin walked into the lobby .
The hotel was well maintained, and the street in front of the hotel was clean . The people weren't in extreme fear about the war or the terrorist attacks .
“It much better over here compared to Alphen . ”
That place was hell, where he had to worry daily about staying alive .
Woojin stood there doing nothing, when dirty orphans gathered around him .
They started babbling words at him, but Woojin didn't feel the need to drink the Language Drug to understand what they were yelling . He could tell by their body language that they were fiercely begging for money .
‘Kids always gets the shortest end of the stick no matter the location . ’
It was very hard for children to survive after losing their guardians . Woojin took out his wallet, and he gave each of them money as he looked into their clear eyes .
The children spoke in words he couldn't understand . They gave their thanks as they moved away from him . Woojin spotted a little girl in the alleyway, and she came running up to him .
“Ho-oh . ”
There wasn't a single speck of dirt on her soul . She had a clear soul .
Maybe, it was because she was a child . Her soul was more clear and innocent than Do-jiwon . Even in a war-torn battle field, clear souls were still blooming .
Woojin was suddenly in better spirits, so he smiled .
The little girl was short as her height only reached his waist . The smile she gave Woojin was very pretty .
“Hello . ”
The child bowed her head, and she respectfully put both her hands out . Woojin laughed as he opened his wallet . Then an out-of-place noise tickled his ears .
Tick .
As Woojin was about to frown, the bomb hidden within the child's clothes exploded .