Upon arriving in Korea, we headed straight to the Blue House.
Fortunately, President Kim Min-su agreed to meet with us despite our sudden request.
The door to the office opened,
and the president rose from his seat.
“Welcome. I’ve been waiting for you.”
“It’s been a while. Have you been well?”
“Thanks to you, I’ve been doing well.”
President Kim Min-su replied with a smile.
We exchanged a light handshake and brief greetings.
But I hadn’t come here today for a casual visit.
There was something I had to do.
I got straight to the point.
“I’d like to purchase weapons.”
“What?”
President Kim Min-su briefly wondered if he had heard correctly.
That was because he had just heard something that made no sense from a common-sense perspective.
He wanted to purchase weapons?
Was he saying that he wanted to buy weapons?
But had he really heard correctly?
The weapons I knew?
Buy weapons?
Those were not words that would ever come from the mouth of an ordinary person.
People had no need for weapons in their daily lives.
If they truly needed anything, it would be a few handguns for self-defense.
Gong In-bae was usually good at saying things that startled people.
But this was on an entirely different level.
Weapons?
This was absolutely unacceptable.
It went far beyond the limits of what he could help with out of friendship or goodwill.
If he asked for help making money instead—
if he said he was starting a company and asked for assistance, that was something the president could help with.
Just as he had approved an insurance product in a single day last time.
Administratively, he could be flexible with the regulations.
To be honest, Gong In-bae deserved that degree of goodwill.
What Gong In-bae had done for the Republic of Korea was remarkable.
He had resolved the crisis in which ships had been unable to sail and people had nearly become isolated because of marine insurance,
connected a hotline with Wei Zhonglin,
and created the status of eternal friends.
For all that, it would be more than reasonable to show enough sincerity to help him establish a business.
At the very least, he could help him make money.
Korea had become a new major country in marine reinsurance,
and improving relations with China was an achievement so enormous it could not be converted into monetary terms.
It was only natural to help the man who had made all that possible earn some money.
Even last time, when Japan had tried to play games with insurance, President Kim Min-su had been prepared to extend his goodwill.
But instead of accepting the favor,
Gong In-bae had invited Wei Zhonglin out to dinner, saying they should just share a meal.
Thanks to that, relations between the two countries had improved even further.
Korea’s standing had risen tremendously.
If Gong In-bae asked for help, he wanted to help him with everything.
But this was different.
Entirely different.
This was not a field that President Kim Min-su could handle simply because he wanted to.
It was not handled by the president, but by the Defense Acquisition Program Administration.
Arms exports were subject to international law.
They were strict and sensitive.
“I said that I would like to purchase weapons produced in Korea.”
Gong In-bae spoke again.
It seemed there had been no mistake.
He really did mean weapons.
There was no need to hear anything more.
Even so, President Kim Min-su could not cut him off outright.
Gong In-bae was not someone he could treat that way.
Perhaps… perhaps it was nothing serious.
Maybe he only wanted a few handguns for self-defense.
If it was merely handguns, they might be able to find a way.
They could put the guns on the disposal list and process them as scrap metal.
Then they could sell that scrap to a private party.
Just as Russia had done.
“What kind of weapons are you referring to?”
President Kim Min-su asked very cautiously.
Hoping that the answer would be handguns.
I held out the tablet I had prepared and placed it in front of President Kim Min-su.
The screen displayed the list of what I needed.
And it was very long.
K9 self-propelled howitzers.
K2 tanks.
K21 infantry fighting vehicles.
Chunmoo multiple rocket launchers.
Hyungung anti-tank missiles.
Cheongung medium-range surface-to-air missiles.
Air defense systems.
Large quantities of ammunition and support equipment as well.
President Kim Min-su’s eyes widened.
This was not simply a list of weapons.
It was enough materiel to wage a war.
President Kim Min-su set the tablet down and looked at me.
“…This…”
President Kim Min-su could not continue.
I nodded.
“These are the weapons I need.”
President Kim Min-su shook his head from side to side.
“No. This is impossible.”
“Why?”
I asked briefly.
“For one thing, the quantity is far too large. It would be nearly impossible to obtain approval for this amount of materiel. At this scale, it would be seen as an intention to wage war.”
“You’ve assessed it correctly. That is exactly the situation I’m in right now. I’m on the verge of war.”
I spoke calmly.
President Kim Min-su looked at me.
It seemed he had realized I was not joking.
He spoke slowly.
“I want to help you as well. I know all too well how much you’ve done for the Republic of Korea. But this goes far beyond the limits of what I can do. The weapons listed here are not only immense in quantity—they are also classified as strategic materiel. Exporting weapons of this kind involves an extremely complicated process. It is handled by the Defense Acquisition Program Administration, and even then…”
I cut him off.
He was saying the obvious.
Looking straight into President Kim Min-su’s eyes, I spoke.
“Do you think I came here without knowing that?”
“What?”
“I asked whether you think I don’t know that these are strategic materials. Do you think I brought this up without knowing how difficult it is to export weapons?”
“Th-then…”
“I know. I know that the procedures are extremely complicated, that they take a long time, and that this won’t be easy. Even so, there is only one reason I came to you, Mr. President. Because you are the only person who can make this happen—the only person who can process it as quickly as possible.”
“It is beyond my authority.”
President Kim Min-su shook his head.
“I’ll pay you as much as you want. You can overcharge me, add an express fee—whatever you like. I have only one goal: to receive the weapons as quickly as possible.”
President Kim Min-su fell silent for a moment.
Then he spoke very slowly.
“In my heart, I would like to sell them to you. I want to help you, Mr. Gong In-bae. But this is not something I can accomplish by myself. There are more than one or two gates we have to pass through. The Republic of Korea has already signed the Arms Trade Treaty, or ATT. And to export weapons, an End-User Certificate is required, which can only be issued by the government of the importing country. The process is extremely complicated and demanding. Sharp conflicts of interest are all intertwined, so it will not be easy to resolve.”
“So you’re saying weapons cannot be sold to a private individual?”
“Unfortunately, that is correct.”
“Then is it possible for the Philippine government?”
“What?”
“I asked whether it would be possible to export them to the Philippines.”
“With the proper consultations and procedures, I believe it would be possible.”
I immediately picked up my phone and called Patrick, the president of the Philippines.
The call connected before it had even rung twice.
“Yes. I’m on the phone.”
Patrick himself had answered.
“Patrick. Send a weapons request to Korea.”
There was no response from the other end.
Of course not.
A request to purchase weapons between nations was not something that could be handled with a single phone call.
The defense and foreign ministries had to consult with each other,
compile a list of the necessary weapons, draft an official document, and submit it.
During that process, reviews and approvals would be repeated dozens, even hundreds of times.
It could take months or years just to prepare the list.
And becoming a partner in the defense industry was not simply a matter of exchanging goods.
It meant becoming an absolute ally.
A dependable partner.
Naturally, political, cultural, and economic cooperation would follow in addition to arms deals.
There was no case in which countries simply bought and sold weapons without any of that.
But a moment later—
“I’ve sent it.”
“Good. Thanks for your work.”
President Kim Min-su was stunned.
He had expected Patrick to say it was impossible or that there was some problem.
Of course, he had thought, excuses or explanations would follow.
No matter how close their relationship with the president was, this went far beyond that boundary.
It concerned the policies, future, and defense of an entire nation.
But Gong In-bae had ended it with one phone call—or rather, one sentence.
President Patrick had not even asked any questions.
He had not asked for a reason or an explanation of the situation.
He had simply carried it out.
Only then did President Kim Min-su realize.
The true ruler of the Philippines was the man sitting before him—Gong In-bae.
No. It was Alex.
This man ruled the Philippines.
Everyone else was merely an agent carrying out his decisions.
.
.
.
The chief secretary knocked on the door.
“Mr. President. An urgent official document has arrived from the Philippine government.”
President Kim Min-su accepted the document and quickly looked it over.
Then he looked at me.
His expression was clearly marked by bewilderment.
The contents of the document were simple.
So simple that it was practically blank.
There was no list, quantity, or price.
Only the signature of the Philippine government was present.
Its meaning was clear.
It meant they were entrusting everything to us—what weapons to buy, how much to pay, and how many to purchase.
It was, in every sense, the equivalent of handing over a blank check.
Now it was time to begin the real discussion.
After checking the list, President Kim Min-su spoke.
“Since you say you know the procedures, I’ll speak frankly. Weapons are not something we can simply sell because the two of us reach an agreement. We will have to consult with the United States, China and Japan will make a commotion, and the National Assembly will not sit idly by either. Even if we handled all of that, it would take a year at the earliest—no, at least ten months.”
I spoke immediately.
“That won’t do. The weapons need to arrive in the Philippines within three days. The situation is urgent.”
“Impossible.”
President Kim Min-su drew a firm line.
The room fell silent for a moment.
“Mr. President, do you know why I came all the way here? Why I came despite ignoring the procedures and skipping the process?”
“No. To be precise, I don’t know.”
“One of my people was killed. They were attacked by the enemy. What are we supposed to do, then? Just sit still?”
“…”
The president said nothing.
“Dialogue? Consultation? Negotiation? One of my people was killed. Is any of that possible?”
“To prevent greater losses, I believe those are also possible methods.”
President Kim Min-su spoke in a quiet voice.
“To prevent greater losses… Then you and I think in exactly opposite ways. Those who huddle down and refuse to strike back when they’re hit will be beaten again the next time. They’re seen as easy targets because they don’t retaliate. But people who are willing to endure losses and throw everything they have into fighting back are not attacked so easily. The other side might get hurt as well. They think twice before acting. ‘Is it really safe to provoke them?’ That’s what we want to show them. We want to show them what happens when someone provokes us. We want to show them that if anyone touches our people, we are willing to go to war. In my view, that is what will prevent greater losses.”
“That is a difference in perspective, and I find it difficult to agree.”
President Kim Min-su spoke.
“I did not come here to obtain your agreement, Mr. President. I came to buy weapons. I need roughly five hundred trillion won worth of weapons. This could become the greatest achievement of your presidency as well.”
At those words, President Kim Min-su’s eyes wavered.
Five hundred trillion won.
The Republic of Korea’s annual budget was around seven hundred trillion won.
It was impossible to imagine how many policies he could pursue with that kind of money.
In the end, many of the problems South Korea was experiencing stemmed from a lack of budget.
But five hundred trillion won—
that was enough money to solve most of those problems.
His thoughts became tangled.
Countless calculations raced through his mind.
President Kim Min-su took a moment to organize his thoughts.
“The formal procedures would be difficult. But there is a method called the ‘Emergency Military Logistics Cooperation Program.’”
“What is that?”
“We can bind our country and the Philippine government together in a joint military project.”
“Then we can do that.”
“But to do so, we need justification. A reason for us to help the Philippines. A genuine threat, or some reason why weapons of this scale would be necessary.”
I thought for a moment before asking,
“Would a civil war work?”
“A civil war?”
President Kim Min-su’s eyes widened.
“Yes. If insurgents in the Philippines issue a warning against the government and use force, would that… be sufficient justification?”
“That would be more than enough.”
I picked up the phone again.
This time, it was a three-way call with Simon and Patrick connected simultaneously.
“Simon. You know the situation, right? They say the Philippines needs a plausible excuse.”
“You mean a situation that would justify the need for weapons in the Philippines?”
“That’s right.”
“You’re asking me to start a civil war.”
Simon spoke calmly.
“Exactly. You heard him, right, Patrick?”
“Yes. Please go easy on us.”
Patrick spoke with a laugh.
“I’ll fire some weapons into the sea near Zamboanga. I’ll abduct a few foreigners as well. But who should we take?”
“If Korea is going to provide weapons, wouldn’t it be better if they were Koreans? Then Korea could intervene more actively.”
Patrick answered Simon’s question.
“Good idea. There are people from Daeyeon Development there, aren’t there? Bring them over. They’ve been working hard lately and look exhausted. We can send them to a resort and let them rest for a few days. They deserve a vacation. I’ll talk to Dae-hun about it.”
I spoke of the people from Daeyeon Development.
“Okay. Let’s do that.”
“Then I’ll make preparations as well.”
Everyone agreed.
There was no need to prolong the call.
By contrast, President Kim Min-su’s entire day had been one bewildering moment after another.
Gong In-bae, someone he was grateful to, had suddenly come to him and asked him to sell weapons.
It had made no sense from the very beginning.
Naturally, he had refused.
But the amount he wanted to spend was five hundred trillion won.
And he wanted it all spent on strategic materiel.
Yet five hundred trillion won was the kind of money that could make even the impossible possible.
Money alone was not enough.
When he said they needed justification, they had called the insurgents and started a civil war on the spot.
They would fire weapons near Zamboanga and abduct foreigners.
And, so that Korea could participate, they would graciously abduct Koreans.
Of course, in reality, those people would be relaxing comfortably at a resort, but it was the perfect condition for Korea to step in.
Korea could provide a massive quantity of weapons under the justification of rescuing hostages and assisting an allied nation.
All of this had been settled in the space of only a few minutes.
They were matters that would have been difficult to accomplish even over several years.
President Kim Min-su entertained the absurd thought that perhaps time flowed differently in this room.
Otherwise, there was no way such a complicated problem could have been resolved so easily.
Watching President Kim Min-su, I spoke calmly.
“We have our justification now. It’s your turn, Mr. President.”
President Kim Min-su looked at me for a moment,
then quietly nodded.