Free Web NovelOn the screen, several men were shown kneeling in front of masked figures.
The men, wearing nothing but their underwear, were trembling violently, tears streaming down their faces.
My gaze fixed on one of them—the only East Asian among the group.
Soon after, the men began stating their demands in English.
Though their faces were covered, their accents made it clear they were Arabs.
Among the string of demands was one directed at the South Korean government.
— If you want this man to live, the South Korean government must immediately withdraw its troops and pull out all companies that have entered Iraq.
Their demands were simple.
The withdrawal of all soldiers and companies currently operating in Iraq.
Once the full shot of the hostages ended, individual videos followed, starting with the Americans, each containing their personal pleas.
The desperate voices captured in those videos were utterly harrowing.
— President Bush. Please withdraw the troops. I want to live.
— President Bush...
Their pitiful look—begging their own president—was unbearable to watch.
It was clear they had already been beaten repeatedly: their faces were swollen, their bodies covered in bruises.
Then Kim Mugil’s video began.
— The invasion of Iraq is a war without justification. These people are not terrorists—America, and George Bush, are the terrorists. America and Bush invaded Iraq for oil. None of the weapons of mass destruction they claimed existed were ever found...
Kim Mugil criticized the United States and the Western world in English.
— I like the Iraqi people. The Iraqis I met here always welcomed me and treated me kindly. But the Americans I met always looked down on me. They invaded Iraq twice. They’re warmongers.
Watching his video, I frowned.
“There’s nothing to ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ be gained by provoking the United States.”
His criticism of America was being broadcast all over the world.
I needed to negotiate for his rescue under America’s tacit approval.
The more he condemned the U.S., the less reason America would have to save him.
Even if his statements were made for his own survival, having anti-American rhetoric spread worldwide was a burden for the U.S.
The more Kim Mugil—an allied citizen and a supplier to the U.S. military—criticized America, the greater the political pressure on them.
Throughout the interview with the terrorists, Kim Mugil condemned both the United States and all allied nations that had participated in the Iraq War.
After the interview ended, he looked into the camera and began speaking in Korean.
— President Yoon Changho. I want to live. I want to return to Korea. All Koreans must leave Iraq. Please... please, I beg you. I want to live, Mr. President. To my fellow Koreans watching this in Korea—please save me. Move the President so that Korean soldiers can leave Iraq. Protect your lives, and protect mine.
Kim Mugil finally broke down, sobbing.
Tears streamed endlessly from his eyes, his emotions transmitted raw through the screen.
He truly wanted to live.
He was truly terrified.
“This is really turning into a mess.”
With Kim Mugil’s video, the Al Jazeera broadcast ended.
By now, the footage was surely spreading rapidly across the internet.
Because of how sincere and desperate it was, the impact would be even greater.
No matter how I looked at it, this couldn’t be stopped.
Sure enough, my phone began ringing the moment the broadcast ended.
“Yes, Mr. President.”
— President Kim, can you come to the Blue House right now?
“Is this about Kim Mugil’s kidnapping?”
— Yes. This has put us in a very difficult position. I was planning to handle it quietly, but I never expected them to release footage so openly. We’ve officially conveyed our protest to Qatar through diplomatic channels.
Al Jazeera was a broadcaster based in Qatar.
It had gained global recognition after releasing video tapes from Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda.
Some criticized it as being biased toward terrorist groups.
But in reality, it was a network that broadcast the voices of both the Western world and terrorist organizations without filtering either side.
“It’ll probably be meaningless. If Al Jazeera hadn’t aired it, they would’ve uploaded it to the internet anyway.”
— That’s true. Still, we have to do something. Everything was shown far too explicitly. There’s no way to contain this. We need to discuss countermeasures... Can you come in right now?
“What can I even do? This is something the government needs to handle directly.”
— President Kim, you know as well as I do. We can’t meet their demands. Let’s not talk about this over the phone—come in.
President Yoon Changho’s voice was urgent. He really was under pressure.
There had already been plenty of controversy over the Iraq deployment, and now a citizen had been kidnapped—of course he’d be desperate.
“When should I come in?”
— Right away. I’ve also called Secretary-General Lee Myungsoo. He said he’ll be here shortly.
“Understood. I’ll leave as soon as I’m ready. It should take about an hour.”
— All right. I’ll be waiting.
After ending the call with President Yoon Changho, I gave instructions to Manager Ma.
“Cancel all of today’s schedules. We’re heading straight to the Blue House—prepare everything.”
“Yes. I’ll get it ready.”
While Manager Ma stepped out to prepare, I looked back at the laptop screen.
It was frozen on a close-up of Kim Mugil’s injured face.
On the way to the Blue House, I called my grandmother.
— Muhyuk.
“Yeah, Grandma.”
— Did you find out anything? What’s going on?
“I looked into it. I still don’t know the details yet.”
Fortunately, she didn’t seem to know about the video yet.
— Is that so? It’s not even on the news. I don’t know what’s happening.
“They’re probably negotiating behind the scenes, so it’s not being reported. There’s no need to stir people up while negotiations are ongoing. Don’t worry too much—just wait. I’ll find out more.”
While I was talking to her, we arrived at the Blue House entrance.
“Grandma, I have to go to work now. Don’t stay up all night watching the news—just wait.”
— Oh, all right. My good boy, you’re working hard.
After hanging up, I went through a brief security check and entered the Blue House. freewebnoveℓ.com
The Chief of Staff was waiting outside. Following his lead, I arrived at the President’s office.
Inside, President Yoon Changho and Myungsoo were already in conversation.
“President Kim!”
President Yoon greeted me brightly as I entered. Myungsoo’s expression also visibly relaxed.
“It’s been a while, Mr. President.”
I bowed slightly in greeting, exchanged a nod with Myungsoo, and took my seat.
The moment I sat down, President Yoon got straight to the point.
“President Kim, how much do you know about this situation?”
“I know about as much as you do, Mr. President.”
Letting out a deep sigh, President Yoon nodded.
“That’s a relief. No need to explain everything from scratch, then.”
“How is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs responding?”
Myungsoo answered in the President’s stead.
“For now, embassy staff in Iraq and the Zaytun Unit are moving to open a communication channel with the kidnappers.”
“It’s good that you’re doing something, but opening a channel won’t be easy. There’s no way they’d risk exposing their location.”
“We can’t just sit on our hands. We have to try something. How could we bear the criticism of abandoning our citizens?”
Myungsoo was right. With the video already public, doing nothing was out of the question.
“Have you identified the terrorists?”
“They call themselves ‘Monotheism and Jihad.’ They openly named themselves on the Al Jazeera broadcast.”
“So you didn’t know before that.”
“Those insane bastards didn’t even notify the embassy about the kidnapping for over two weeks. They tried to handle it independently by hiring locals in Iraq to look for a solution.”
Judging by the way he cursed even in front of the President, Myungsoo must have been furious.
“You’re talking about the company Kim Mugil worked for?”
“Yes. The idiot CEO of Cheongseong Trading caused all of this. Apparently, the kidnappers initially demanded a ransom from him—but the lunatic tried to haggle it down, and this is what happened.”
So they had demanded a ransom at first. Unlike KBR, which immediately informed the U.S. government, Cheongseong Trading’s reckless handling must have delayed intelligence acquisition.
“Then it wasn’t Monotheism and Jihad who kidnapped him originally. He was probably abducted by someone else first and then handed over. Monotheism and Jihad would never demand money—they’re backed by al-Qaeda.”
“What? Al-Qaeda?”
President Yoon asked in shock.
“You mean remnants of al-Qaeda?”
“Yes. Monotheism and Jihad is a subordinate organization of al-Qaeda. The U.S. captured their leader, but they survived tenaciously and seem to have orchestrated this.”
“...So the U.S. already knows.”
“Wouldn’t it be stranger if they didn’t? Are we not properly sharing intelligence with the U.S.?”
President Yoon replied in a heavy voice.
“We’ve only just begun discussing countermeasures ourselves. We haven’t fully coordinated with the U.S. yet. It’s only been a few days since we even found out.”
“The U.S. will never negotiate with terrorists or hostage-takers. And they won’t welcome South Korea conducting negotiations on its own either.”
President Yoon frowned and nodded slowly.
“That’s exactly why I called you.”
“You called me?”
“Can you persuade the U.S.? So that even if our government conducts negotiations, it won’t become a problem.”
At his words, I looked President Yoon straight in the eye.
“Are you determined to save Kim Mugil?”
“We have to.”
“There’s a possibility of international criticism.”
“Even so, I want to save him. How can a nation stand by while its citizens are killed by terrorists? If a state doesn’t protect its people, what reason does it have to exist?”
President Yoon spoke firmly.
Even if it meant international condemnation, he would fulfill the duty of protecting his citizens.
“Hm...”
Although I had already spoken to Jessica about this, I pretended to deliberate, swallowing my hesitation.
“President Kim... isn’t there any way?”
Between my grandmother and now President Yoon pushing me, perhaps Kim Mugil was fated to survive.
“I’ve already contacted the U.S. I asked them to allow me to conduct the negotiations directly.”
“What? Why are you only telling me now? You’re really planning to step in yourself?”
President Yoon scolded me, eyes wide.
He seemed more disappointed that I hadn’t told him earlier, which didn’t bother me much.
“Kim Mugil turned out to be the son of someone I know. So I contacted the U.S. just in case. But if the U.S. opposes it, I don’t plan to get involved. Ignoring the U.S. would be far too risky.”
Given America’s principle of never negotiating with terrorists, it was uncertain whether they would tacitly approve this.
That was why I was honest with President Yoon.
“I’ll support you however I can. If you step in, I’ll be able to breathe a little easier.”
“There’s no guarantee I can save him just because I get involved. All I can do is try.”
President Yoon barely seemed to hear me—he only let out a relieved sigh.
“If it’s you, you’ll find a way. Have you ever failed at something once you set your mind to it? You’ve succeeded every time.”
He said it with absolute conviction. Did he think I was some kind of superhero?
Well... given what I’d shown so far, I could understand—but still.
Even I couldn’t predict how this would turn out.
“I’ll say this again—I can’t promise anything. The Middle East isn’t a place where common sense applies. And Islamic extremists even less so. There’s a higher chance this will turn into a rescue operation once we locate them, rather than a dialogue-based solution.”
“The method doesn’t matter. As long as we can save our citizens.”
I studied President Yoon carefully.
Was he truly concerned about his people, or just afraid of political fallout?
But his gaze didn’t waver for even a moment.
There might have been political considerations, but he genuinely seemed to want to save his citizens.
“There isn’t much time. At most two weeks—possibly just one—before they carry out executions. The longer this drags on, the harder it becomes. The critical window is right after the kidnapping, when you can identify and respond immediately.”
“I’ll never forgive the CEO of Cheongseong Trading. Someone who should have prioritized his employee’s safety...”
President Yoon trembled with anger at my words.
Cheongseong Trading was finished. Once the tax authorities, police, and prosecutors tore into them, that company wouldn’t survive.
Now that I’d decided to act, speed was essential. freēwēbηovel.c૦m
“I’ll depart for Iraq tomorrow. I’ll wait there for America’s response while gathering information.”
“You’re going there personally?”
At President Yoon’s worried question, I simply smiled.
“Huh... isn’t that too dangerous?”
“Don’t worry. Black Bear’s mercenaries are already there, and I plan to call in a team resting in Russia.”
I was thinking of summoning Igor’s team, currently on extended leave after completing a North Korea infiltration operation.
After successfully finishing such a disadvantageous mission, Igor’s team was trustworthy.
Once we confirmed the kidnappers’ location, there was a high probability they would carry the operation through to success.
