Free Web NovelKim Jongil turned his head at the sound of the door opening.
Jang Songthaek entered, walking in on crutches.
“Comrade Chairman. This is Jang Songthaek.”
After slightly bowing his head in greeting, Jang Songthaek pulled up a chair and sat in front of him.
“Director Jang. No, brother-in-law. What is this? What the hell is going on? What do they want? Speak.”
“Comrade Chairman······.”
But Jang Songthaek only called out to him, his face stiff.
Sensing something ominous, Kim Jongil asked in a trembling voice.
“Why are you dragging it out like that?”
“They want Comrade Chairman to step back from the front line.”
“What?”
Kim Jongil’s eyes widened as he raised his voice.
“What are you talking about? Are you saying they’re trying to drive me out? Do they think that’s even possible? Or is it that······.”
Jang Songthaek cut him off.
“Comrade Chairman. It’s already over.”
At the sight of Jang Songthaek interrupting him, Kim Jongil frowned deeply.
Until now, Jang Songthaek had never cut him off.
“Your life is already in their hands. To contain this situation, we have no choice but to meet their demands.”
“Director Jang! Surely you’re not······?”
Kim Jongil’s eyes wavered.
“That’s right. I joined hands with them. On the condition that your life, and the lives of your family members, would be spared.”
“You miserable bastard!”
Kim Jongil sprang to his feet and rushed straight at Jang Songthaek, slapping him across the face.
With a loud crack, Jang Songthaek’s head snapped to the side.
“You treacherous son of a bitch! How dare you!”
Jang Songthaek slowly turned his head back.
Kim Jongil swung his hand again, about to strike him once more.
Jang Songthaek caught his wrist.
“Comrade Chairman. Stop.”
Blood was already flowing from the corner of Jang Songthaek’s split lip.
“What? You bastard! Want to die?”
“If I die, not only you, Comrade Chairman, but the entire Baekdu bloodline will be wiped out. Jongun behind you will die as well.”
Releasing Kim Jongil’s hand, Jang Songthaek wiped the blood from his lip.
“Now who will you trust? If it weren’t me, if you put someone else forward, would you and your family really have survived? Impossible. No one can afford to leave you alive. As long as you live, a coup can always be staged in your name.”
“······.”
Kim Jongil’s face flushed red, his hands trembling.
“Of all people, don’t tell me you don’t understand the cold nature of power. I, too, had no choice but to make this decision to survive. I’m also a side branch of the Baekdu bloodline.”
“Shut your damn mouth. I am Kim Jongil. I am the Republic, and the Republic is me!”
“Then will we all die together? If we stop here, we all die. They have no intention of stopping. Comrade Chairman.”
“······Who the hell are they?”
At Kim Jongil’s question, Jang Songthaek answered.
“The United States, China, and Russia have already reached an agreement. You step down, I take power, we abandon nuclear weapons, and in return all economic sanctions imposed so far will be lifted.”
“What?! Does that make any sense?”
“Because you chose isolation, countries that could never mix like oil and water joined hands. We should have used the Republic’s geographical advantage long ago and negotiated with them.”
This was something Jang Songthaek had insisted on for a long time.
The Republic’s geographical advantage was undeniable.
To the south, it bordered South Korea, a blood ally of the United States, while China and Russia stood guard to the north.
Some called it the worst possible position, but Jang Songthaek did not think so.
If instead of taking China’s or Russia’s hand, they had walked a diplomatic tightrope, taking neither side and maintaining neutrality—
then the Republic could have enjoyed prosperity no less than South Korea.
“Why do you think the Great Leader extended conciliatory gestures toward South Korea in his later years? It was for the Republic.”
“I tried to do that too! But those bastards all opposed it! And that’s why I carried out a coup, wasn’t it?” freёwebnovel.com
Watching Kim Jongil shout and desperately justify himself, Jang Songthaek let out a scoff.
“The coup was suppressed, and afterward, you chose isolation by carrying out frenzied purges. Since then, the Republic has been isolated internationally, and now it’s on the verge of collapse.”
“Director Jang. No, brother-in-law. Let’s reveal the nuclear weapons. If I give the order, those nukes will fall right on the heads of those South Korean bastards. Then won’t they use any means necessary to help me?”
As Kim Jongil continued to cling to the nuclear option, Jang Songthaek slowly shook his head.
“Comrade Chairman. Those nuclear weapons are already in Russia’s hands. By now, they should be on their way to Russia through the East Sea.”
“What nonsense is that!”
“When this place was attacked, even the guesthouse where the nuclear weapons were stored was······.”
“You son of a bitch!”
Kim Jongil spat out a curse. Only he, Baek Cheolsu, and Jang Songthaek knew the location of the nuclear weapons.
“You bastard! You told them?”
“Yes. I told them. Russia already knew about the existence of the nuclear weapons that were transferred from the Soviet Union to the Republic.”
“So what if they knew? Those jackals didn’t know where they were! What could they do?! You ruined everything! You treacherous bastard, get out and die!”
Kim Jongil screamed, hurling everything on the desk at Jang Songthaek.
“Stop it, Comrade Chairman. Even my patience has limits. Because of old ties, to save your life, I endured so much······.”
“Excuse me. Comrade Jang Songthaek.”
Ko Yonghui, who had been listening silently from behind, spoke up.
“Aren’t you being far too rude to the General? Show some respect. Even privately, he’s your elder.”
Jang Songthaek glared at her and snapped.
“Where does a woman like you get off flapping her mouth like that?” ƒгeewebnovёl.com
“W-what did you say?”
Ko Yonghui sucked in a sharp breath.
Since she had begun living with Kim Jongil, she had been recognized in North Korea as his official wife.
After that, no one had dared speak to her this way.
“Did you think I wouldn’t notice that you’re using Jongun to scheme your way into succeeding him?”
“T-that’s not—”
“You’ve been meeting party officials and even military generals. Did you think I wouldn’t know? Stop dreaming your midsummer dog dreams and sit quietly beside the Chairman like you’re dead. Otherwise, I’ll rip that mouth of yours open and feed it to the dogs.”
At the humiliating words, Ko Yonghui bit her lip hard, her entire body shaking.
“I still haven’t forgotten how Seong Hyerim, the mother of Jongnam, died lonely in Moscow.”
“T-that wasn’t because of me, it was because of Kim Youngsook!”
“And who took her place? You did. Before the Chairman even married, he was already seeing you. People think you’re the third wife, but I know why Seong Hyerim had to leave Pyongyang for Moscow. Others might not know, but I do.”
Jang Songthaek had personally raised Kim Jongnam, Kim Jongil’s eldest son. Naturally, he was attached to him.
Kim Youngsook’s marriage to Kim Jongil was one reason Seong Hyerim left for Moscow, but the bigger reason was Ko Yonghui.
Kim Jongil had long since lost interest in Seong Hyerim and had set his heart on Ko Yonghui.
“I’d like nothing more than to throw you into a cesspit, but someone needs to stay by the Chairman’s side, so I’m letting you be. So exist like you don’t exist. Understood?”
“······.”
“When a hen crows, ruin follows. The Chairman wasn’t like this before. He changed after meeting you. You’re the problem.”
In the end, Ko Yonghui collapsed to the floor, sobbing bitterly.
“That’s enough!”
Kim Jongil slammed the table in anger. Only then did Jang Songthaek stop and turn back to him.
“Understood. Comrade Chairman.”
“What do you want from me? What makes your tongue wag so much? Have I wronged you that badly, Seongtaek?”
At those words, Jang Songthaek let out a hollow laugh.
“Even a stone Buddha would burst into laughter. I worked like a slave for you. If you said crawl, I crawled; if you said walk, I walked. You called me brother-in-law with words, but in truth, I was nothing but a servant. Because I wasn’t of that precious Baekdu bloodline, you cast me down again and again, without reason, claiming you were ‘fixing my habits.’”
With murderous eyes, Jang Songthaek poured out the resentment that had piled up inside him.
He had been dragged to collective farms and reeducation camps, enduring those brutal years.
“Did you think I didn’t know? That once this was over, you planned to kill me next? Did you really think I wouldn’t notice how tightly you had me watched?”
“······.”
“When the hunt is over and you try to boil the hunting dog, it’s only natural that the dog bites off its master’s throat.”
“Hey. Jang Songthaek!”
Jang Songthaek pulled a neatly folded sheet of paper from his inner pocket, placed it on the table, then stood up with the help of his crutches.
“This is the list of people who must be killed if you truly care about the Republic. I’ll give you one hour. Draft the arrest orders for all of them. Then you can continue living as you are now. I’ll let you enjoy everything you’ve enjoyed until now and live out your life until death. Think carefully and decide. All of this is for the Republic.”
Leaving those words behind, Jang Songthaek turned away.
Leaning on his crutches, he limped out.
“Jang Songthaek!”
Kim Jongil called after him, but he did not stop.
“Hey, Jang Songthaek!”
He called again, but Jang Songthaek opened the door and left.
Kim Jongil stared blankly at the closed door. The sight of himself was pathetic.
The fact that his life, and the lives of his family, now hung in Jang Songthaek’s hands was absurd beyond belief.
“Bring me some alcohol.”
“General······.”
“Bring it!”
Kim Jongil barked.
Ko Yonghui hurriedly brought his favorite whiskey and a glass, pouring it for him.
He downed two glasses in quick succession, then put a cigarette to his lips with trembling hands.
He stared at the paper on the table until the cigarette had burned halfway down.
After a moment, having made up his mind, Kim Jongil picked up the paper.
As he unfolded it and looked inside, he suddenly burst out laughing.
“Ha, hahaha!”
The paper, densely packed with names, listed every single military and National Defense Commission member he had personally installed, along with Workers’ Party officials and cabinet members.
If they were all arrested and killed, there would be no future left to hope for.
After laughing for a long while, Kim Jongil stopped and muttered bitterly.
“What a joke I’ve become.”
Amid the thick cigarette smoke, Kim Jongil let out another hollow ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) laugh.
* * *
I left the Blue House and returned to Pyeongchang-dong.
After a light breakfast and a shower, I changed into comfortable clothes and sat down in the study.
The first thing I did was turn on the news.
Every terrestrial channel had replaced regular programming with special broadcasts.
They all explained why DEFCON Level 3 had been declared and what it meant.
But nowhere in the broadcasts was there any truth—only speculation.
Just then, my phone rang. Jang Songthaek’s satellite number appeared on the screen.
“This is Kim Muhyuk.”
— President Kim Muhyuk. This is Jang Songthaek.
I let out a hollow chuckle without realizing it. Look at this bastard. His tone’s already getting short.
